Footseps of Moshiach: Is This Deja Vu?

                        Hearing Footsteps of Moshiach:  Is This  Deja Vu?

Deja Vu? Have we all been here before? Does it feel like that? For most of us, on a conscious level, probably not. But when we go beyond what we feel, and plumb the depths of our deeper collective unconscious, it is nothing less than Deja Vu; that we have been here before. What do I mean?

Without any power to stop it or even slow it down, we are witnessing the world we have always known spinning out of control. Conflicts between individual countries carry within them the growing threat of world war, which could easily spill over into the nuclear dimension. 

The vilification of Israel has become a weekly, if not daily, occurrence. That thin and disingenuous distinction between being Anti-Israel and a timeless Anti-Semite has all but disappeared. The hatred of our people and accompanying violence have become practically daily occurrences. While for the most part, while still targeted at individuals, as the unchecked protests and rhetoric grow both in worldwide demonstrations and on Social Media, there is a growing threat that these could morph into violence on a larger scale, Chas v’Shalom. Many have this foreboding sense that we are heading into perilous and explosive times. 

In Eretz Yisroel, the Olam HaTorah is under assault by a Jewish government and a Jewish army as bochurim live in fear of being arrested for learning the Torah HaKedosha. 

With astonishment and fear, we ask, “Where is this all leading to?”

One thing is certain: as the problems continue to increase and become more severe, we have this sinking feeling that the Geula that Hashem has promised us is moving further away than ever!

And yet, strangely enough, this is where the Deja Vu begins. 

What am I talking about?

Let’s take a look at how Moshe Rabbeinu reacted to a situation almost exactly like ours. The Ribbono Shel Olam told Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon HaKohen to stand before Paroah, the most powerful man in the world. They were not instructed to ask Paraoh to allow the Jewish People to leave Mitzraim, but rather to demand in the name of Hashem, “Shlach Ami v’Avduni”. Send out my nation so that they should serve me!

Not only was Paraoh unimpressed, but he decided to punish the Yidden for their leader’s insolence by taking away the straw needed to make the bricks. This effectively made their unimaginably difficult situation impossible. 

Moshe was confused and distraught. Hashem sent him to Paraoh to bring the Geula. Not only was there no Geula, but the situation was deteriorating and was traveling in the opposite direction, at high speed!

How different is our situation today? We know that we are on the precipice of the Geula, and yet things are moving quickly away from it. Are we better than Moshe Rabbeinu? He was broken by what he observed and asked Hashem point-blank. “Lama Haraiso?” Ever since you sent me to Paraoh, it keeps getting worse. Why did you send me?” Why shouldn’t we think the same? The Geula seems to be slipping away from us, Chas v’Shalom!

Before answering that question, we need to drill down a bit deeper to understand the way that Hashem brings the Geula. The Vilna Gaon shows from the pasuk in Yeshia that the Chevlai Moshiach, the birth pangs of Moshiach, mirror the Chevlai Laida mamash, the pains and difficulties that a mother experiences before birth. It’s not just the general pain associated with having a baby, but the frequency and intensity of that pain increase unabated up until the moment of birth itself. 

After Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon HaKohen demanded that Paraoh set the Yidden free, the pasuk tells us “Tichbad HaAvodah,” the work became more difficult. But contrary to our simple understanding, Paraoh took away the straw not because he was taking revenge against Hashem, Chas v’Shalom, but rather because as the Geula became closer, the pain and difficulty needed to increase. Paroah’s reaction was the apparent cover for what Hashem intended all along.

So too, Hashem will take away our “straw” to increase the frequency and intensity of our difficulties as we draw closer to the Geula. But as we will see momentarily, contrary to what we might think, this is not cause for despair, but rather for hope and yearning for the Geula that is becoming ever closer. 

To complete the thought, let’s return to Yetzias Mitzraim; more specifically, how Hashem answered Moshe Rabbeinu’s question, “Lama HaRaiso”, Moshe asked, “Why do things continue to get worse?” Hashem told Moshe Rabbeinu, “Atah Tireh Yeshuas Hashem.” Now you will see the yeshua. Why didn’t Hashem just say, “You will see? What was Hashem referring to by telling him, “Now you will see?” 

The Kli Yakar explains that Hashem was telling Moshe Rabbeinu that the path to Geula is counterintuitive. You, Moshe, think that as the situation deteriorates, the Geula is becoming further away. Just the opposite is true. Just as the coldest part of the winter is just before the advent of spring, and just as the darkest part of the night is just before the dawn, so too the most painful and difficult time of the Galus is the moment just before the Geula. Hashem told Moshe that it is “davka” now that the Galus is so intolerable that the Geula is ready to come.

Why is this so difficult for us to grasp?

Because our minds are rational. We discern patterns and, based on them, make predictions. We think inside the box. But it's not merely that Hashem thinks outside the box. Hashem has no box. He is not limited to what we consider rational thought. He does whatever He wants, whenever He wants, however He wants. And His “path” to Geula illustrates just that.

We would think that Geula is the final step in some orderly sequence, the last piece of the puzzle, the next segment of the pattern. But Chazal tell us, “Yeshuas Hashem k’heref ayin.” It comes in the blink of an eye, literally out of nowhere.

The more we understand this, internalize it, and live it, the more we will be able to protect ourselves from reacting to our deteriorating situation with fear and yiush. And instead, we will know that as those Chevlai Moshiach increase in frequency and intensify, we are drawing ever closer to the Geula, and our yearning for Moshiach will become the shiafa of our lives that will both define who we are and what we are living for!