This talk took place about twenty six years ago. The words of the Rebbe at that time were so absolutely unreasonable and beyond the realm of reality. And yet, behold, we see what distant vision he had! We see what is taking place before our very eyes! * There remains a wonder: How do we know that a Jew is obliged to respond to a gentile’s accusation “you are thieves!” The answer lies in the name “Rabbi Yitzchok.”
Translated by Rabbi Binyamin Shlanger
THERE ARE JEWISH PEOPLE WHO ARGUE: “WE ARE THE THIEVES. WE STOLE THEIR LAND!”
At the beginning of his commentary on the Torah Rashi opens with the words: “Rabbi Yitzchok says: The Torah need not have begun this way… Why then does the Torah begin with the account of creation?’ The response is in a verse of Psalms (111.6) ‘He makes known to His People the might of His hand in giving to them the inheritance of Nations (the Land of Israel).’ When the Nations of the world will say to Israel: You are thieves….. You conquered the Lands of the Seven (Canaanite) Nations, they (the Jewish people) should respond: The entire world belongs to G-d. It was He who created it and gave it to whom He saw fit. By His will did He give it to them, and by His Will did He take it from them and give it to us.”
Rashi quotes, “He makes known to His people the might of His hand in giving them the inheritance of Nations” (a message to His People).” At this point we are not yet speaking of any contention made by Gentiles, but rather of a situation whereby there are Jewish people who will come and argue (even before the conquest of the Land of Israel), “how was it that G-d permitted us to conquer the land of Israel – it belongs to the Nations!” The response which G-d gives goes as follows: He shows the might of His creation to His people. The Land of Israel (and indeed the entire world) is an act of creation by G-d. He is Master over the Land of Israel given at one point in time to the nations. Therefore, He is entitled to subsequently grant it to the Jewish People.
Rashi continues his commentary: “If the Nations will contend.” Here there arises a difficulty. We can readily understand that before the conquest of Eretz Yisroel there is a need to explain how could the conquest of the Land of Israel take place? It belonged to the Nations! But after the conquest – what need is there for this explanation? Rashi explains that it is quite conceivable that Gentiles will come with a claim against the Jewish Nation – you are thieves! How do you justify holding on to the Land of Israel? Therefore, in order to respond to the Gentile, the Torah opens with the account of the Creation to tell him that it was G-d who created the Land and therefore “with His Divine Will did He initially give it to them, and subsequently by His Divine Will did He take it from them and give it to us.”
There remains a wonder: How do we know that a Jew is obliged to respond to a gentile’s accusation “you are thieves!” The answer lies in the name “Rabbi Yitzchok.”
In tractate Brachos (7b) Rabbi Yitzchok says that when things are going well for a gentile it is forbidden to taunt or provoke him. One should take note of him and not be overwhelmed when he comes with a storm of protests. When however the Gentile accuses – you are thieves, this very same Rabbi Yitzchok quoted by Rashi states that the verse explicitly stipulates that you are obliged to respond to the Gentile with the greatest force, because only then will all claims become null and void.
(From a public talk dated Shabbos Parshas B’Reishis, 1971)
THE GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL WILL STAND ON THE SIDE OF THE ARABS
(Interview with Mr. Ariel Sharon discussing some of his meetings with the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Recorded in the Kfar Chabad Magazine issue 684)
“The Rebbe always amazed me on subjects that I never anticipated would happen. For example, his descriptions of how to defend the Suez Canal and Sinai were astounding. At that time I was battling by the Bar-Lev line because I saw danger in the coming days. And in the framework of the battle I also publicized the letters which the Rebbe sent to me regarding that line. In these letters the Rebbe analyzed the dangers from a defense point of view of setting up such a line, and he anticipated the catastrophes which would befall us in its wake. It is to my pain that the vision of which the Rebbe wrote there came true in the fullest sense!
“At a different meeting I spoke to the Rebbe regarding settling the Old City of Jerusalem and Hebron. The Rebbe said to me words that sounded at that time so far from reality. He said that very serious things would take place at these places in the future, and added, that in his opinion, the day will come when the Government of Israel will oppose Jewish People from settling there, and will stand on the right hand side of the Arabs in the fighting between them and Jewish People.
“This talk took place about twenty six years ago. The words of the Rebbe at that time were so absolutely unreasonable and beyond the realm of reality. And yet, behold, we see what distant vision he had! We see what is taking place before our very eyes!”
Dear Reader,
Pease take a few moments to copy, paste, and email this sicha to 10 friends, asking your friends in turn to email the same to 10 further friends, ad infinitum. Thereby you will be taking a strong and active part in the Rebbe’s battle to protect the lives of millions of Jewish people whose lives are so endangered. This is, as the Rambam writes, Milchemes Hashem, and we will see it through to the final Nitzachon!
Please go to http://beismoshiachmagazine.org/true-peace/ where you will find the current sicha.