Q:
Why did Hashem allow the Arabs to attack us on Yom Kippur?
A:
Mr. Levy asks why did Hashem allow the Arabs to attack us on Yom Kippur?
So I presume that there are two parts to this question. Why did He allow them to attack us? And why did He allow them to attack us on Yom Kippur?
But first I have to make an amendment. The word, ‘us,’ is not properly used. The Arabs didn’t attack ‘us.’ The Arabs attacked the people in Eretz Yisroel. And that’s important because for certain purposes, the people in the State of Israel wish to create the impression that the Arabs are attacking the whole Jewish nation, which is not true.
Not that the Arabs love us so much, but the Arabs had no intention of attempting to destroy chalilah all of the Jewish people, as was stated in one Hebrew kol korei. Like it says אָמְרוּ לְכוּ וְנַכְחִידֵם מִגּוֹי וְלא יזכר שם ישראל עוֹד. That was said in that kol korei, and I don’t understand that at all! The Arabs didn’t say that. If they wanted to destroy the State of Israel, we have to differentiate. They didn’t want to destroy, chalilah, the Am Yisroel.
Now why did Hakodosh Boruch Hu permit it? Hakodosh Boruch Hu permits many things that we don’t like but He understands like the physician does. If you go to a physician, he does a number of things sometimes that you would prefer he shouldn’t do. He pushes certain things down your throat or up the other end of you and he makes various examinations that you might not like. But he does it because he has good reasons.
And Hakodosh Boruch Hu is the big Rofei and if it says היוסר גוים הלא יוכיח – the One who brings suffering on nations, isn’t He showing something, המלמד אדם דעת – isn’t He teaching man understanding? (Tehillim 94:10) So we understand too that He certainly wishes to teach the Am Yisroel.
Only if we had the foresight to learn from misfortunes that happen to other nations, then we could sometimes spare ourselves undergoing these experiences. If we study the yessurim that other people have, then it’s enough. But if we fail to learn from the yessurim of others, then sometimes we ourselves will have to suffer chalilah.
Let’s say, had the people of the State of Israel learned from the Vietnam War or other wars which were sent upon the nations for the purpose that the Am Yisroel should become afraid and do teshuva. The Gemara says that. אין פורענות באה לעולם אלא בשביל ישראל – No misfortune comes upon the world if not for the sake of Yisroel (Yevamos 63a). You hear that? All misfortunes are only for the sake of our people. Even what comes on the nations of the world. And Rashi says כדי ליראם – in order to put a fear into the Jews so they should do teshuva. So if we learned properly from the wars that the nations are undergoing, then we could be spared those wars closer, at home. When Hakodosh Boruch Hu sees that they don’t learn sufficiently, so He brings the lessons closer to home.
And why did it happen on Yom Kippur? Because Yom Kippur is the day when we should have learned most lessons. That’s the day that’s best suited to teshuva. And therefore, when Hakodosh Boruch Hu sees that Yom Kippur is passing by and soon it will be over and they’ll be back to the old derochim that they did last year after Yom Kippur and the year before after Yom Kippur, so therefore this Yom Kippur He added a little more vitamins in order that the lesson should be more potent. So the purpose of all suffering is teshuva and suffering on Yom Kippur surely is for teshuva.
TAPE # 38 (October 1973)
