GALUT OR GEULA?

GALUT OR GEULA?

As the Nation of Israel and its State sink to lower and lower depths, we often face the argument that there is nothing we can do about it since "we are still in the galut (exile)". One gets the impression that such a reaction, far from being a serious, well-reasoned argument, is simply an expression of bitterness and despair, and - worse - constitutes an excuse for passively accepting the situation without trying to rectify it.

It is to refute this "we-are-still-in-the-galut" argument that the following article is intended.

When the People of Israel are living in the Land of Israel, have attained sovereignty over that land, have achieved awesome military victories, have witnessed the miraculous fructifying of the land - can this be a situation of "galut"? After all, galut is when a nation is uprooted from its land. Today, even with all the problems we have (and we are certainly the last ones to ignore or minimize them!), the process is the very opposite! The Jewish People have returned to their land! The exile is rapidly being liquidated. In the very near future, the majority of the Jewish People will be living in the Land of Israel. Can one so casually dismiss such a situation as galut?

But the truth is that calling the situation galut is not entirely without basis. The spiritual, moral, and national deterioration of the Jewish People today is, indeed, unprecedented in its severity. One can easily get the feeling that this redemption process that we are supposedly in the midst of somehow falls short of expectations.

And so, in order to clear things up a bit, we must understand that geula (redemption) is not merely a slogan. The geula is a very specific scenario described by our sages. It comprises several components: the rebirth of the land, the liquidation of the exile, the return of Jews to the land, restoration of Jewish sovereignty over it, revenge against the enemies of Israel, the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple, the appearance of Mashiach Ben David. If we want to define the situation we are in today, we cannot do so based on our instincts or subjective perceptions. There are rules. There are specific components to "geula". Can anyone deny the reality? - The land once again gives of its fruits! ("There is no clearer sign of the End of Days than that"! - Sanhedrin 98); Jews have returned from the four corners of the world (kibbutz galuyot or ingathering of the exiles); the exile is self-destructing (either by immigration to Israel or, G-d forbid, via physical liquidation or assimilation); large parts of the Land of Israel were conquered in wars ("war is also the beginning of the redemption!" - Megillah 17) and are under Jewish sovereignty - so much so, that the hand of Israel is stronger today than at any time since the the Golden Age of King Solomon. (The fact that we refuse to apply our strength is another, albeit, major problem.)

That's How G-d Decreed It To Happen

These are all facts that only the willfully blind refuse to see. What do they say instead? "Not for this kibbutz galuyot did we dream". But what, then, IS the meaning of the term "kibbutz galuyot", if not a return of the Jews to the Land! (Or perhaps it refers only to an ingathering of the Jews of Boro Park?...) You are not pleased with the way it came to fruition? It is not the way you pictured it? Well, that's how G-d decreed it! What else do they say? "This isn't the rebirth of the land which the sages meant". But the fact is that for two thousand years, the land kept its promise: "and it will lie desolate for its enemies", despite the efforts of various goyim to revive it. Only in this last era, when the Jews returned, did the land give off its fruit! For those who say we are in galut: what has to happen to make the process "kosher"? Must we start again from the beginning? Must we all go back to the exile (God forbid) and must the land become barren once again so that we can get it right next time? Must we start over again so that things can go according to their script, the way they think it ought to happen?

Geula Be-Ita - Laden With Pain and Suffering

But the crucial question remains: How can it be that with all these miracles, the wicked continue to dominate? How is it possible that hand in hand with the geula process, the Jewish nation is descending into depths of horror and decadence such as it has never known? Is there not a contradiction here?

On the contrary! The sages discussed such a scenario many generations ago. Indeed, they told us that the geula which comes be-ita ("in its time"), which is precisely the process of Messianic birth-pangs we are living through today, will have the following characteristics: "the whole government turns heretical", "the evil government will rule". Furthermore, our sages tell us (Megilla 17) that one of the stages in the geula process is "judgment against the wicked!" And so in the geula of "be-ita", there will be wicked people, and these wicked people will be in power! But then what? - At a certain stage, they will be destroyed ("criminals and sinners alike will be broken, and those who have forsaken G-d will perish")! This stage, too, will come. When? - Ah, that already depends on us. If instead of kvetching, G-d-fearing Jews would take hold of the reigns to advance the geula process, we could accelerate the arrival of Mashiach Ben David.

To Remove the "Galut" From Within Us

What a pity that so few really learn these passages, yet so many speak on these matters as if they were experts! This subject is at least as important as the subject matter in Baba Kama. What a waste to live through this unique era submerged in blindness, without attempting to understand the greatness of the moment! If we are able to grasp the significance of the moment, we will succeed in furthering the redemption process, and save ourselves from at least some of the suffering of the birth-pangs of Mashiach.

In closing: the complete redemption has not yet arrived, but parts of it are already with us. The real problem is not that we are in the galut, but rather that we refuse to remove the galut from within us - and that certainly depends on us.