A day after.. and it seems as if it has all been forgotten. This is how the human mind works. Two days ago we sat on the floor, wearing cloth shoes, crying for the destruction of the two temples and today, the music is blasting, we're going on shopping sprees and dancing at weddings.
This Shabbath, we will be reading the first Haftarah of the seven prophecies of consolation, which are read between the Shabbath following the Ninth of Ab and the Shabbath preceding Rosh Hashana. The message is clear, it is time for spreading hope and light. We should be consoled and comforted.
Yet, as many of us know, we must always display a firm belief in the future redemption and anxiously await it. It is, in fact, one of the thirteen principals of our faith. The Gemara in tractate Shabbath states that one of the questions that every single one of us will be asked on our day of judgment is: "Did you anxiously await the Geullah, the salvation?"
The Pele Yo'es, (Hakham Eliezer Papo from Turkey), writes that it is not sufficient to just utter the words, rather, we must feel it with our hearts and await the redemption wholeheartedly. He adds that a person's way of speech is an indication of his sincere expectation of the Geullah.
How so? When someone who makes plans for the future says: "May the Holy One Blessed be He bring the Geullah before that", this is a testimony to his true longing for the Geullah. For example, if we are planning a wedding or a trip that may take place a few months down the road, we should use this form of speech. Perhaps we should accustom ourselves to think and speak in this fashion.
The Pele Yo'es shares another interesting point. Those of us who live outside the land of Israel, should refrain from building big homes with fancy and elaborate decorations. The constant daily longing for the land of Israel and for the redemption, does not go hand in hand with living in big comfortable houses.
A point to ponder...
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