In Iyar we celebrate two new holidays, which commemorate events of the twentieth century, the establishment of the State of Israel and the unification of Yerushalayim in the Six Day War.
Of course, Rav Kook did not specify an attitude towards these days, as he was no longer alive when the State of Israel was established. In fact, in his writings he does not deal with the problems of a Jewish state, populated by a majority of non-observant Jews in a world not yet redeemed.
However, Rav Kook does explain in his writings why the ideal of Judaism does include a political element. In one of his early essays ( "On the Course of the Ideas in Israel" - printed in Orot) he explains that from the beginning of Judaism, in the differentiation of the belief in Hashem from the prevelant pagan beliefs, the uniqueness of the ideal presented to Avraham was that in order to achieve his goal, he must be a "goi gadol" , a great nation. Rav Kook explains that in order to bring humankind to a true spiritual revolution there is a need that those who have reached the true understanding of God and know to bring the divine into the world create a political entity that reflects that achievement.
"So that it be known, that not only wise and unique individuals, pious and holy hermits, can live in the light of the divine ideal, but rather entire nations, equipped with all the trappings of culture and political existence; entire nations, including all the strata of society, from the artistic and intellectual elite to the broader social , political , and economic strata , to the lowest proletariat. The light of the divine ideal influences all of the aspects of such a nation and as a result it affects the entire world."
The uniqueness of the message of Am Yisrael is that an entire nation can reflect the ideals of da'at hashem and that that nation can be an example for the entire world. Thus the political aspect of the Messianic ideal is not only a way of concentrating ovdei hashem in one place, but to have a nation-state permeated with the divine serve as an example for a world that (Rav Kook obviously thinks) will in the future still be organized as nation-states.
Many of the holidays that appear in the Torah or that were established by Chazal, mark historical events that happened to the Jewish people. The Chassidic tradition has emphasized the message of the holidays for the avodah of each individual and concentrated less on their national implications. Thus at Pesach we not only commemorate the Exodus from Egypt but examine our own way to leave our personal spiritual bondage. The transition from Pesach to Shavuot represented by the days of the Omer are explained in the mystical tradition as a call for tikkun of the 49 permutations of the midot which are reflected in our soul.
Is this type of interpretation appropriate regarding these modern holidays? Perhaps our focus on these days should be just the opposite. These holidays, falling during the days of sefira when we are focused on our individual progress toward Matan Torah, may serve as a corrective in emphasizing the ultimate significance of bringing the entire Jewish people to fulfill its destiny in becoming a mamlechet kohanim v'goi kadosh.
Rav Dr. Kalman Neuman
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Rav Kalman Neuman teaches at Yeshivat Bat Ayin. He studied at Yeshivat Merkaz Harav and Yeshivat Har Etzion, and holds a Ph.D. in European History from the Hebrew University. |