Baseless Hatred and Rav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman

 

by DIN

It's Tisha Be'ov and we are all wondering why we are still mourning. 

The Parsha that we all heard in shuls around the world this shabbos, was Parshas Devarim.  Moshe Rabbeinu, using hints and riddles, chastises the Jewish people, reminding them of all what transpired in the 38 years prior.

But there was one sin that the Jewish people did that Moshe Rabbeinu didn't mince words, didn't hint and didn't use riddles but was very direct, and that was the "Chet of the Meraglim."

Why?

Because Hashem never forgives someone who bad mouths Eretz Yisrael, you could learn Torah and do chesed, you could be a great rabbi who authors the greatest sefarim, but if you bad mouth Eretz Yisrael, Hashem will never forgive you.

Last night was the 3,330th  anniversary of when the Meraglim brought their treasonous words to Moshe. 

Hashem promised that this day would be בכיה לדורות "a cry for generations" and Hashem was true to His words; the first and second Bais Hamikdash were destroyed on the anniversary of this very day.

The Talmud in Yoma (ט':ב) cannot understand why the Second Bais Ha'mikdash was destroyed, after all the Jews were involved in Torah, Mitzvois and Gemillas Chassadim

?שהיו עוסקין בתורה ובמצות וגמילת חסדים מפני מה חרב

It would have been much easier to understand why Hashem destroyed the Bais Hamikdash , if the Jews at the time would have been involved exclusively  "in Torah and Mitzvois" and not in involved in chessed, then we could reason, that the Jews were only interested in mitzvahs that were between them and Hashem בין אדם למקום, but mitzvahs that pertain between them and their fellow Jews,בין אדם לחבירו they neglected, and that's why Hashem destroyed the Bais Hamikdash.

But a careful reading of the Talmud's question includes גמילת חסדים, the Jews were very much involved in doing chessed,

so if they were doing  "chessed, why was the Bais Hamikdash destroyed?

The gemmarah answers that it was because of "baseless hatred" שנאת חינם`

Wait one minute, they were doing chessed and hated their fellow Jew? How do we understand that, it's a contradiction! 

It's not a contradiction ... because doing a chessed to a neighbour or to another Jew is a personal thing, you feel bad for his or her circumstances, so you will go out and do them a chessed...

Hating another Jew is anonymous thing, because usually you hate a group and you may not even know them personally ...

"That other group  doesn't dress like me, doesn't follow my minhagim, or even because they are not religious. So yes, I will do them a favor a chessed should they need something, but in my heart I hate them, I don't want them living anywhere near me."

So how does a Jew who learns Torah, does mitzvahs and does Chessed, hate another Jew? Where does it start?

For that we have to thank Hamas!

What? Hamas?

Yes absolutely... Hamas and Hizbollah train their toddlers to hate Jews, and set up summer camps to make sure this happens. They train them when they are still very young. 

There exists a very large Chassidus that is known for chessed, if G-d forbid you or a loved one was ever hospitalised, you benefited from that chessed. They will take their shirts off their back to help another Yid, no question.

But at the same time they embed hate of other Jews such as Zionists, in their children and they do it when their children are still very small

Another point that I want to make in reference to this gemarrah in Yoma.... 

If you open the book of Josephus or even the gemarrah itself, you will see that there were large groups of Jews that were not at all frum and  some of them were even murderers. For example, the Sadducees and the Essenes were groups of Jews that went against the Torah, so why is the gemmarah searching for a reason for the destruction of the Bais Hamikdash and why does the gemmarrah seem to say that all Jews were involved in "Torah, Mitzvahs and Gemillas Chassadim?"

Why doesn't the gemmarah simply say that Bais Hamikdash was destroyed because many Jews were violating the Torah, weren't holding shabbos? 

The answer is that Hashem looks what the Frummies are doing. Hashem is looking at the guys that learn all day, learn Mussar sefarim, do Mitzvois and do chessed who are "Torah True Jews" ....yet hate each other. 

Hashem is looking at the Jews who instead of voting, make illegal protests, protesting  the "light rail" in Yerushalyim because it "will bring "prizus into their neighbourhoods, yet destroying millions of shekels worth of equipment." Hashem is looking at Jews that throw rocks and beat up other Jews because they were brave enough to join the army to protect their very rights to protest.  Hashem is looking at Jews that train their children to call other Jews "Nazis" Hashem is looking at the "holy" Jews in Meah Sharim who threw rocks and eggs, just like Arabs, on 60 innocent Jewish girls that walked thru their neighborhood.

The Bais Hamikdash was not destroyed because of "chillul Shabbos" it wasn't destroyed because of Jews that may have distorted the Torah .... 

The Bais Hamikdash according to this gemmarrah in Yoma was destroyed because of the "Tzaddikim" it was destroyed because those learning Torah and doing Mitzvois and going out of their way to do another Jew a chesed, were at the same time carrying around hate in their minds & bodies..

Remember that the roshei teivois of 

איכה ישבה בדד העיר 

is איבה ..hate

and that brings me to my headline ...

about Harav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman...

This book is a must read, and every Jewish home must run out and buy it. It's about a Yerushalmie Jew brought up in Meah Searim and who loves every single Jew... see what he has and continues to accomplish.

I have seen his work first hand, and he is truly a tzaddik. 

If you want to celebrate Tisha Be'ov next year, buy this book and start in your own small way emulating a true Ohaiv Yisrael!