by Rabbi Yoseph Kahanov Jax, Fl.

Has The World Gone Crazy?

A belief in free will touches nearly everything that human beings value. It is difficult to think about law, politics, religion, public policy, intimate relationships, morality—as well as feelings of remorse or personal achievement—without first imagining that every person is the true source of his or her thoughts and actions. And yet the facts tell us that free will is an illusion – Sam Harris: Free Will

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Do you find yourself totally befuddled by current events? Are you like so many others struggling to find some sort of context or perspective to the madness that’s taking over the world these days…The surge of anti-Semitism and the world’s support for blatant and egregious evil? Do you feel like it’s either you or two thirds of the world that has lost touch with reality? It’s not that you disagree with their position, which would be normal, it’s that you don’t even begin to relate to where their coming from.

Well if that is the case, you can rest assured that you’re not crazy. The world has definitely become a confusing place which cannot possibly be understood through the eyes of logic and natural phenomena.

The events of the 20th and 21st centuries raise many questions and are often counter intuitive. Why, for example, did the Soviet Union choose to support the Arab states from the get-go? In addition to inciting Arab terror against Israel, the Soviet Union persecuted its own Jewish population and forbid all forms of religious expression.

Why after 70 years of cruel domination and the sudden collapse of the Soviet Empire, would worldwide anti-Semitism increase? Why would so many nations align themselves with the Arabs and prevent Israel from decisively defeating Arab terrorism? Why do the nations support the Muslims in their struggle against the Jewish State? How do we explain the allies’ support, especially the cursed continent of Europe, of Arab terrorist nations in their attacks and aim to destroy Israel? And most perplexing, why to begin with, would the whole world become involved in the conflict of this tiny nation?

How do we explain the fact that in all the major wars against Israel, the Arab forces far outnumbered the small army of the Jewish State? If the Arabs were to have won any of these battles, the entire Jewish population of Israel would be slaughtered in a horrible blood bath, Heaven Forbid. The questions just keep coming.

Why is it that the Arab nations are made wealthy from vast reservoirs of crude oil, which G-d has hidden beneath the ground in their land – black gold which brings them great riches and immense political influence? Israel is situated in the center of Arab territory, yet remarkably while the sea of oil surrounds Israel, she is almost bereft of this natural resource.

The United States is the lone voice protecting the Jewish nation. Why would the most powerful country, the United States of America, choose to supply Israel with sophisticated weaponry, as well as financial and political support, but won’t allow the Jewish State to once and for all defeat the Arabs terrorists?

The key to understanding the absurd world landscape of the 21st century is to recognize that there is nothing normal or logical about it. It is rather the miraculous doing of the Divine hand that is at work here, doing its job and weaving its web; in a way of pure Divine providence and intervention.

Miraculous you ask, Divine intervention? Why would G-d intervene in this way? Why would G-d cause there to be illogical and irrational support for evil in our world and disdain for kindness and righteousness?

The answer to this critical question is that the Almighty seeks to maintain a balance of power in the world at all times. Though the President and Congress of the United States might favor Israel, United States interests in Arab oil will temper and modify this support. American backing of Israel will prevent the Arab nations from destroying Israel, but at the same time it will not be strong enough to enable Israel to completely vanquish the Arab terrorists, and establish peaceful co-existence with the Arab neighbors.

This is to say that specifically in the most mindboggling illogical world events, lies the deepest Divine providence and order; the perfect backdrop and balance for the opportunity of free choice and its maximum impact.

This phenomenon is the basis of the opening verses of our Parsha, Re’eh: “See, this day I set before you blessing and curses. Blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your G-d that I enjoin upon you this day. And curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your G-d, but turn away from the path that I enjoin upon you this day and follow other gods, whom you have not experienced.”

In order for the Jew to have free choice there must be a balance of good and evil in the world. Hence the hand of G-d majestically weaves a wondrous and deliberate pattern on the tapestry of Jewish history. It is often difficult to appreciate the significance of events as they unfold as it is often truly illogical from the human perspective.

To perceive Divine providence, one must step back and view the masterpiece in its entirety. This includes some of the dramatic upheavals and cataclysmic changes that the Jewish people have experienced throughout history, including the 20th and 21st centuries, which are believed to be the “End of days” – the final moments of exile. Any other perspective of the picture is sure to leave perplexity and bewilderment in its wake.

G-d’s plan for these “End of days” is nothing short of incredible. He has returned millions of Jews to their homeland, while surrounded by tens of millions of hostile Arabs. The Arabs possess oil fields, which provide them with wealth and power. Most of the nations rally in support of the Arab cause. As a counterbalance, the United States of America is a lone ally to Israel, though not in an absolute fashion.

During these end of days many powerful nations become engaged in this conflict between the Muslims and the Jews, ultimately, the entire world will be engaged in a giant tug of war of sorts. G-d maintains a state of equilibrium between these mighty forces and balances the struggle with great precision. Only one thing will break the stalemate and tip the scale in either direction, that is the “Free choice deeds” of the Jewish people. Every single Jew possesses this power.

Every Mitzvah performed has the potential to tip the scale in favor of the Jewish people. Likewise each transgression committed moves the scale in the opposite direction.

The Almighty orchestrates this international struggle over the land of Israel, a tiny sliver of land, so that each Jew may recognize the immense significance of his every single action. The balance of power is so precarious that the slightest movement in either direction is liable to tip the scale. The fate of the Jewish people sways back and forth like a great pendulum, in accordance with their religious conduct.

So, while the world is locked in a great struggle, one mitzvah of a single Jew could move the pendulum in favor of the Jewish people. This idea is in complete alliance with the words of the Rambam – Maimonides – who wrote unequivocally over a thousand years ago, based on the Talmud Kiddushin 40b, that: “A person must constantly view the entire world as if it is half meritorious and half guilty. If the individual performs one sin, he tips the balance for the entire world toward the side of guilt and brings destruction to the world. If he performs one mitzvah, he tips the balance to the side of merit and brings salvation,” Rambam Hilchos Teshuva 3:4.

Unfortunately many Jews living in the 21st century fail to recognize that G-d has set the stage and the enormous power they wield. They are busy driving themselves insane trying to make sense of the current world madness. It would do us all well to give up trying to come-up with rational explanations for irrational phenomena and perceive the true force behind it all and the role we can play in it all.

The idea that G-d created a world where humans were given complete freewill is a gift of tremendous magnitude and responsibility in itself. But the Zohar teaches that G-d created a system where the ripples of our freewill in the physical world are felt even in the spiritual realms.

Our freewill actions affect this world, and then are sent up to the heavens, inspiring G-d to react to our deeds. Based on our actions here, G-d reacts in order to bring about the desired result. For us, the cyclical flow starts here, in this physical world.

We cannot truly oblige G-d to do anything. Nothing can occur in this world without the desire of the Creator. But that does not deny the existence of this elaborate system that G-d created in order to elevate us as equal partners in bringing the world to its complete state.

By our perceiving the true method behind the madness and the great opportunity presented by our free choice, we will choose life and blessing and hasten the coming of the righteous Moshiach BBA.

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