Weekly Dvar Torah: Stick to the Mission
Moshe sent Shluchim, messengers, to scout out the land of Canaan to see how to concur it when the Jews are meant to enter the promised land of milk and honey, and report back to the Jews in the desert.
When they came back they went on a tirade describing what they saw, but instead of just doing their job which is to report on their findings, they overstepped their limited mission and they voiced their opinions as to whether it is at all possible to conquer this land.
We will be consumed by this land, they said.
We will never be able to conquer the land.
As a result, the Jews cried and complained, blaming Moshe for all their ills, why didn’t you leave us in Egypt? Why don’t we just die in the desert? G-d is unable to bring us into this land, they cried.
What went wrong? How did the spies who were chosen by Moshe stray so badly to cause the Jewish people to spend another 40 years in the desert and only the next generation were given the chance to enter the promised land?
These spies were chosen by Moshe, who chose the best to represent the Jews in this mission, where did they go wrong?
In a nutshell, thanks to the teachings of Chassidus, we get an insight into the mindset of such great people, how just one little mistake can turn into such a calamity.
The spies were very holy spiritual people, they saw that in the desert the Jews had no worries, they ate manna from heaven, they had water from the rock, the clouds took care of their clothes and kept them fresh and clean, all you need to do is study Torah without interruption.
When they came to the land of milk and honey, they realized that there the Jews will have to work the land, they will have distractions from studying Torah, that’s not the best idea for a good holy and spiritual life.
The only problem with this narrative, is the tiny little fact that the Torah is from hashem, and in order to keep the Torah and all the Mitzvos you must go to the land and work it and only then can you fulfil all the Mitzvos, this is G-d’s plan.
Like Moshe told the angels, G-d is giving the Torah to humans who live in a world full of challenges, and they use the physical to elevate them into spiritual by doing G-d’s will, and not to angels who are already spiritual and they have no worries other than to worship G-d.
Another small but very important point, the spies were told to report on what is going on in the land, but they were not asked for their opinion, but they thought that they will throw in their own two cents of an opinion.
And this caused the disaster.
When given a mission, especially by Moshe, the leader of the generation, stick to the mission as given, don’t mix in your thoughts and opinions, your ideas should be focused on how to implement that mission, but not to introduce opinions and ideas.
I had the pleasure to participate in a wedding in Los Angeles of third generation Shluchim, grandchildren of the legendary Shluchim Rabbi Berl Shemtov from Detroit Michigan, and Rabbi Shlomo Cunin from Los Angeles, California, what I saw was amazing and most inspiring.
The Rebbe wanted to have Chasidim who will inspire the world to want to get close to Hashem, the Rebbe said go out there and make every city a Jewish city filled with Judaism.
For 50-60 years these Shluchim toiled and sweat away, and today Detroit and LA are major Jewish cities full of Jews with Judaism.
These young men when they started out were razor focused on what the Rebbe, the Moshe of our generation, instructed them as to what is their mission, they did not introduce their own ideas.
A young man when he starts out to build a Jewish family, his idea is to find a place where there is a setup infrastructure, with Shuls, Jewish schools, kosher supermarkets, and all else that is required to raise a good Jewish family.
What did these Shluchim do? They went out and created such communities from scratch. No Shul? Make a Shul. No School? Open a school. No Kosher supermarkets? Create a community that will demand Kosher, and the entrepreneurs will open those stores.
And when you walk the streets on Pico or La Brea, for miles you will see today Kosher stores, Yeshivas, Kolels, Kosher restaurants galore, and Shuls about three per block.
This happens when you follow the Moshe of the generation as instructed, focused like a laser to do what you’re told, and success is guaranteed.
Now I witnessed the wedding of the third generation of Shluchim, I saw hundreds of Shluchim from all over California and elsewhere who danced together at this wedding, it was inspiring and uplifting.
Next week on the 28th of Sivan, we celebrate 81 years since the Rebbe came to America, and that’s when the orders were given to conquer the land for G-d, and hundreds of Chabad Houses in California and Michigan did the job.
Now the next generation will start their own new Chabad House which will all merge into the great Chabad House in Jerusalem alongside the Third Beis Hamikdash with Moshiach speedily.
Have a Chabad Shabbos,
Gut Shabbos
Rabbi Yosef Katzman
