The new month of Adar has just begun and we are reminded by the rabbis that this is a time for rejoicing. As we prepare to celebrate this special time of joy, families in Demona, Israel will be grieving the loss of loved ones who were shopping in a mall when a suicide terrorist killed himself in order to injure and kill others. This is a small reminder of the thousands of Katushya Rockets that have fallen in Sderot and other municipalities in Israel. Another reminder are the children and adults who have died or been injured or driven from their homes that are in proximity of the Gaza Strip. Another reminder are the terrorist bombers who invaded the malls and market places in Israel. A reminder that pizza shops were not safe from these hate filled terrorists. A reminder that coffee houses were not safe for brides meeting their parents for coffee the night before their betrothal. A reminder that even shopping for a piece of fruit was an act of bravery because life was at risk in the marketplaces of Israel. So what are we to rejoice?
Sixty years later the names have changed and boarders are different but the battle is the same. Early in the history of the modern State of Israel soldiers stood on battlefields with broom handles, pretending to have guns. Perhaps that is what we should rejoice: that our soldiers are well equipped with the best of weapons. Back in the War of Independence our armies were barely trained, but now we can rejoice that the young men and women we put in harm’s way are the best trained army in the world. Truthfully, however, I doubt that Gilad Shalit’s parents can rejoice by saying their son’s training was the best in the world. They want Gilad home and then they will rejoice.
How do we have the audacity to rejoice when others are suffering and when we know in our hearts that peace is not at hand? Honestly, peace is further away today then at any other time in the history of Israel. Conditions are even more vulnerable because there is no peace with Palestinians, nor is there internal peace with our own people. We are not united and that is what makes us most vulnerable. We have reason to worry about an about unstable Iran with the potential of nuclear weapons. We are threatened by a faltering government in Pakistan that already has nuclear capacity. We are threatened by a Taliban occupying mountains overlooking Afghanistan and planning terrorist activities. Al-Qaeda is there too, just looking for the most vulnerable places to attack. Is this what our Rabbis were referring to when they instructed us to rejoice in Adar?
I don’t see much reason to rejoice. There is more reason to be afraid. And I am afraid. I am afraid for my children who live in a world with the capacity to destroy itself with weapons of mass destruction. I am afraid because whatever might survive would likely be better off in the O’lam HaEmes (the World of Truth). I am afraid because the world economy seems to have become dependent on industrialized countries without a conscience and without regulation. China, which brought us children’s toys with lead in the paint and poisonous parts, is the same country manufacturing the medications we take every day. I am afraid because it seems to me that we have lost our way and travel aimlessly through our tomorrows.
How can I rejoice in Adar knowing these challenges stand in our way?
Purim is coming so I ask myself: Do you think Mordechai felt that he could rejoice in Shushan? Achashveirosh was King and his pleasures took precedence over his integrity and moral conscience. He demanded that his Queen Vashti appear before the elders of Shushan to show her beauty and when she refused, he had her hanged. This action alone would inhibit a sense of trust. How can you trust a man who appointed Haman, a viciously wicked man, a man without scruples, to serve as his Viceroy and second in command? Personally, if I had been Mordechai, I would not have felt very hopeful. The final straw was the command to hang the Jews.
The difference is that things can change on a dime. If G-d wants it, so shall it be. In the end, it is our faith in G-d that allows us to rejoice. We can rejoice now knowing that our G-d is a G-d of mercy and a G-d of Justice. Our G-d is a G-d committed to the covenant with our forefathers and foremothers. Jews will escape calamity because of G-d’s promise that the children of Israel will one day live in the land of Israel in peace. Those promises give us a reason to hope and to rejoice. G-d is certainly known for keeping promises. “When Adar begin one should increase the joy in their life.”
