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The Hostage Deal—Success or Surrender?

The 33 hostages scheduled for release in the first phase of the hostage deal
How Far Are You Willing to Go For Israel? |
The hostage deal in Israel tears our hearts.
I want to share with you an incredible pearl—extracted from this week’s Torah portion—that guides us today like a lighthouse in tempestuous waters. The Torah tells us how our ancestors were enslaved in Egypt with little prospect of salvation. For hundreds of years they languished—the situation was hopeless. When Moses was sent by G-d to lead the people to freedom, a staggering 80% of them were left behind! Our sages explain that only those 20% who had trusted in G-d—those who believed in the redemption—were allowed to experience it. In a self-fulfilling prophecy, the cynics, scoffers, and atheists who refused to believe in the impending miracle did not stick around to experience it.
Herein lies the secret that has allowed Jews to survive the most difficult of challenges since the dawn of our nation. Faith is the belief that G-d has a plan, no matter what happens. But trust in G-d—bitachon—is the unwavering conviction that the results will be good, in a way that we can celebrate and appreciate.
The Torah is full of hints to this spectacular mindset:
“He who trusts in G-d will experience G-d’s kindness.” (Psalms 32:10)
“It is the way of trust itself to draw free kindness upon those who trust in Hashem.”(Ikkarim, Fourth Essay ch. 46)
“Whoever trusts in My Name—I will save them.” (Yalkut Shimoni, Yeshayahu, Remez 473)
In the summer of 1950, a ritual slaughter (shochet) asked the Rebbe’s advice on whether he should move to a city with more financial opportunities and less Jewish life, or whether he should keep his options open:
“….To your question about whether you should return to a position as a shochet and bodek (ritual slaughterer and inspector) in a city without a minyan, and where you will not be able to recite Kaddish yourself (relying on your two brothers instead). However, this job would provide sustenance for yourself and your household, as well as allow you to cover your commitment to pay for your father’s burial expenses.
The Sages permitted certain actions due to livelihood needs… especially in this case, where the two brothers will recite Kaddish, and through this, part of the burial expenses can be paid off. Therefore, another person should be hired in your place to recite Kaddish.
All this is said because I do not know your level of trust in Hashem (bitachon), but if you are strong in this and sincere, and will search for another livelihood opportunity—then Hashem will grant you sustenance in a place where there is a minyan, and you will be able to fulfill all the responsibilities mentioned.”
(Igros Kodesh of the Rebbe, Vol. 3, p. 372)
What the Rebbe was telling this G-d-fearing man was that he had a choice as to how he wished to live his life: either he could follow his natural expectations for an imperfect solution or he could tap into a miraculous energy that would allow him to satisfy all of his needs. And it all depended on the trust that he carried in his heart.
Bitachon—trust in G-d—is not a game, a last resort or a “what-do-we-have-to-lose?”-approach to our problems. It’s a profound spiritual commitment that unleashes a powerful spiritual response. The principle behind it is that G-d responds to us exactly as we relate to Him. When we have blind trust in G-d’s power—without calculating how G-d is going to solve our problem, G-d reciprocates, granting us our desired result—without calculating if we deserve it or not. When we doubt G-d’s power and choose to rely on our plans, G-d allows us to experience the result of our own efforts without His intervening in the result.
In other words, the “Bitachon Mindset” does not cause us to get what we deserve. It’s a work-around that gives us an entirely new merit—the merit of trusting in G-d despite our understandable anxiety—that earns us the desired result we so desperately seek! It’s an entirely new merit that secures a completely new response, commensurate with our trust in G-d.
Here is how the Rebbe explains it:
“[In] response to someone pleading… to arouse great mercy for a dangerously ill person: “Think good—and it will be good;” The intent behind these words seems to be… Trust is an effort and labor of the soul, and it draws down Hashem’s kindness, which is a result of this effort and trust. When a person truly relies in the depth of their soul solely on G-d, to the extent that they feel no worry at all, this very trust causes G-d to act toward them in a way that bestows goodness—even if they were not otherwise deserving of it.”
(Likkutei Sichot, Vol. 36, pp. 4–5)
Are you capable of unleashing this degree of such faith?
Conventional wisdom dictates that a person in crisis waits to see what happens and then rejoices. The Torah is challenging us to flip it around—asking us to celebrate the joyous result even before it happens so that this very trust will cause the result to materialize! Once again the Rebbe spells it out for us:
“Surely you have heard the saying of the Rebbe Maharash: “When one cannot proceed [overcome his problem] from below, one proceeds from above. But I say, from the outset, one should proceed from above.”; Similarly in this case, though one might think to delay open joy until health improves, there is room to say, based on the above, to preemptively celebrate the improvement of health—even though it is not yet revealed—and this itself will hasten the matter.”
(Igrot Kodesh, Vol. 16, p. 252)
I struggle to implement the “Bitachon Mindset” every single day of my life. I know it sounds too good to be true, but it is the secret that has allowed us to solicit Divine intervention throughout the ages. It’s effectively challenging our spirituality to the limit. Because trust is like pregnancy—there are no half-measures. Either you are fully calm about G-d’s ensuring this will succeed, or you’re not. There is no middle ground.
Admittedly, developing this skill requires some serious practice. When the pandemic forced us to shut down our Shul, I immediately moved our classes online to teach the classic 11th-century work “Gate of Trust,” authored by the Spanish sage Rabbenu Bachya ibn Paquda. You can learn this life-changing work with me at JewishGardens.com/Trust whenever you wish.
We are living in desperate times, in which our nation faces an existential threat. This hostage deal may or may not be the worst thing that ever happened to us in recent history. Whether you choose to adopt the “Bitachon Mindset” or dismiss it, one thing is for sure—your choice has consequences.
We need YOU to unleash a miracle in the Middle East. And based on how the “Bitachon Mindset” works, whether you say you can or you say you can’t—you’re right!
Rabbi Dovid Vigler
Chabad of Palm Beach Gardens
6100 PGA Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418
JewishGardens.com | 561.624.2223
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