A few words from Tsfat before this Pesach
Wishing all of our friends, wherever you may be, a kosher
and joyful Pesach,
with healing, health and protection.
By: Rabbi Ephraim Kenig
HOW TO CELEBRATE PESACH THIS YEAR
Apparently, we need to celebrate Pesach this year in a way that we’ve never
celebrated before, at least as things appear at the moment. God can do
anything, and everything can be transformed to good in a second. Nonetheless,
we need to be prepared—and if we must make Pesach under certain different
circumstances, so these are exactly the circumstances that God wants. As I’ve
mentioned before, if it isn’t going the way you want, then want the way it is
going.
This means that everyone needs to see to it that they will observe Pesach this
year. This means ensuring that there is matzah and maror (the
bitter herbs for the seder plate) at home, along with a joyous atmosphere and
the holiday meals. Make sure to read the Passover Haggada, which leads us
through every aspect of the Pesach seder—how and what to do. Of course,
everyone has their own family customs, and whatever you don’t know or are
unclear about, you can ask someone. Or ask other family members regarding your
family traditions or anything else that is needed. In this way, little by
little, we’ll pass through the holiday calmly and in a settled manner—exactly
in the way that God wants for this moment.
We were redeemed in the month of Nisan, and the future redemption will also be
in Nisan. We hope that it will be immediately, this year, as the verse says,
“You are all alive today.” HaShem should bless us all with a chag kasher
v’sameach, and a holiday of total freedom.
WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO NOW?
There is no question that we need to pay great attention to what is going on
around us right now. As the Rambam writes, when things like this happen, don't
say it is by chance or a rare occurrence, and then let it pass as if nothing
happened. If so, the Rambam says, God will need to send an even more difficult
warning to get our attention, God forbid. So what do we need to do? Right now,
without delay, take a good honest look inside yourself to fix whatever you know
needs repair. God knows the heart and mind of each one of us and knows if we
are really learning the correct lesson from what is going on right now.
Whatever we understand that we need to improve in our lives, it is important to
put it into immediate action. The main thing is to fix the relationship between
us and others, whether it be family or friends, or anyone else with whom we
interact. Ensure there is no grudge, malice or hard feelings between you and
anyone else.
Likewise, it is time to take a deeper look at our relationship with God.
Regarding prayer, we are now in a situation where it is already impossible to
pray with a minyan. I think the message is for anyone who has perhaps
taken prayer in a minyan lightly. Thus we now face what is described
in Pirkei Avot, that whoever neglects the Torah in wealth, will ultimately
neglect it in poverty. We see that for all sorts of reasons, we are being told
not to pray in a minyan. The advice for this is also found in the same
Mishnah, that whoever fulfills the Torah in poverty, will ultimately fulfill it
in wealth. (Pirkei Avot 4:9) In other words, it is time to strengthen
ourselves and do whatever we previously found difficult—all of those things we
avoided doing until today. Yes, fulfill them, yes, strengthen ourselves in
those things we previously belittled or disparaged. Yes, be spiritually
stronger and have greater focus in prayer. Then, of course, God will have
compassion and give us the ability to fulfill the Torah in wealth, in many
different ways: practical mitzvot, mitzvot connected to thought, and those
dependent upon speech. God should bless us all with whatever we need in order
to do what He desires, according to halacha. If we fulfill God's desire, He
will most certainly fulfill our own holy desires as well, and we will see
immediate deliverance and redemption, may it be His will. Amen.
By Rabbi Ephraim Kenig
IS GOD ANGRY AT US?
When a person goes through hard times, or any other more general type of
trouble such as where we find ourselves in the world today, know the following:
God controls everything and knows exactly what He is doing. Not only does He
know, but whatever He does, actually comes down to manifest itself in our
lives, which is proof enough that it is the right reality for us at the moment.
But don’t think that God brought this to the world because He is angry, God
forbid, since the fact that He brought it shows the exact opposite. Even if God
was indeed angry, the fact that He put us in this situation is already part of
the tikkun—it is already repairing any anger He may have had.
Precisely times like these show that God is relating to us in order to fix and
elevate us, so there will be no need for anger again. In other words, His anger
has already passed. We are now in the phase of God’s desire, as it were, which
shows that He is looking at us and our actions. This should make it easier to
come to all sorts of decisions to improve ourselves, since God is waiting for
us—not out of anger—but out of the desire and love that He has for His creation.
If you can take a swift hold of your life today and bring yourself to a better
path on every level, God is waiting for you with open arms. If we can all
awaken ourselves in teshuva, this awakening will most certainly ascend to
Heaven and shut the mouth of the Accusing Forces. Through this, a shefa of
life, health, healing and nachat will come down to us—shefa for
everything we need. Amen.
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