BS”D

Sukkos – The Miracle of the Sukkah.

Dr M Bank

A Gutten Erev Shabbos kol Am Y8israel. We are now in Chol hamoed Sukkos. I would like to call this weeks Dvar Torah the Miracle of the Sukkah.

How mysterious and miraculous the mitzvah of leshev basukka is, to dwell in the sukka. Living in the sukkah affects our roof, so to speak, physically, psychologically and spiritually and gives us a sense of the awesome fragility of our existence in this world. As Jews, as human beings and also as part of the human race that seems to be “on a stampeded over the edge”. The Haftora from the first day of Sukkos from the Navi Zercharia, describes the war of Gog UMagog, which will take place round about these days. There is tremendous insight why that Haftora and why Sukkos is the Chag Zman Simchaseinu, the holiday of our happiness. It is a mitzv to be besimcha on every Hag. It is a d’orasia mitzvah to be happy on the holiday. But we are talking about here is a compounded happiness. There is a mitzvah of vesamachta behagecha and it is also zman simchaseinu. We have toi be happy. So we contemplate, on the simple level, every time sukkos comes around, in the agricultural sense, the harvesters have now harvested their crops. It is a time of reflection, of thanksgiving. Of miraculous abundance. The fruit comes from the fields of this land. This land doesn’t yield its fruits to any other nation. Historiucally, it has been impossible for any other nation to dwell in this land, in substantial numbers. We look at the 7 species that we make a special brocho on, all unique species to the land. They are available elsewhere, but these are species H blessed the land uniquely with. If you ask people what they think of fruit and vegetables here they say it has a neshama, it has an incredible taste of life. You feel like you are living. You can obtain from other countries huge fruit and vegetables and sometimes the response is quite shocking. It can be the taste of cardboard with the smell of the Garden of Eden. I remember one Shabbos I brought an incredible pineapple, the biggest pineapple I ever saw. It smelt out of this world. On leil Shabbos, I quickly rushed through the meal so that we could get at this pineapple. We cut the pineapple and the juice flowed from it like a waterfall. We cut it up into pieces and sank a fork into the pineapple. We made a brocho and started chewing. To our shock and amazement, it had such a gorgeous smell, it was so full of juice and it had such a perfect texture for a pineapple that we expected it to taste out of this world. It was out of this world. It didn’t have a taste. It was a most surprising experience. One learns from that something something about Shabbos that only H can do – the cholent any other day of the week doesn’t taste the same. That ambience of Shabbos can’t be captured in a bottle. You can’t market it any other day of the week. It just doesn’t have a neshama. You can’t imitate the fragrance of the Shabbos. You just can’t duplicate the miracle of Shabbos.

In the same way, the miracle of the Sukka. This is the most humble dwelling place. It is fragile. It has all the ingredients of poverty. If we look at third world nations, at how they live, in cardboard boxes, wooden shacks and mud huts. This harks back to a time when starvation was the order of the day across the world. Now we see in the Sukks, an incredible opulence. Its an overflow of the blessings and the decorations are something to be reckoned with. That we see the most beautiful brochos on the walls of the Sukka. Our thoughts go back to a time when our forefathers were travelling through Europe. Tremendous tremendous dangers. Yet they stopped for those precious moments no matter where, when or what and built these flimsy unprotectable dwelling places, that were totally vulnerable.

One thing that we can guarantee is Am Yisrael. As long as there is heven and earth, H guarantees that there will be Am Yisrael. So the nation is eternal but what is not guaranteed is who will be part of this nation. So each and every one of us with all our might, all our soul and all our abilities have to cling to this nation and to the tree of life. So when we go forward at this time, it is a curiosity. Before we arrive at the festival of Sukkos, we have to go through a graduation so to speak. We have to go through, literally, Rosh hashana. Rosh Hashana sets up the premise. It is the only Rosh Chodesh that does not have Hallel. It is a time for reflection. It is a time for pleading for mercy. Because we are going into awesome days. It is like a rocket at take off which is its most dangerous moment. At take-off it is at full thrust and there is a serious danger of a tiny mistake turning into a total catastrophe. For a person that chas vechalile does not have the right kavana, or doesn’t bother himself to go through the harata, regret, of what he can remember from the last year might have been less than perfect, he may lose his opportunity. This is setting up the premise really, recognising H as Melekh, Malchius. We come to appoint in time where we reconfirm, we recommit ourselves to H’, as Hamelekh, Malchei Hamelakhim Hakadosh Boruch Hu. That is the first point of development. Ol Malchus hsomayim, that we accet the yoke of H’s heavenly guidance. The Torah, H’s book of life for Am Yisrael. We try to spread the message. iIts a curiosity because all the nations of the world, almost, know that this is Rosh hashana, the Jewsih new year. Even though they may not know the severity of the time, they may pursue their lives as normal even though they pursue the Sheva mitzvos bnei noach, they may not comprehend the din coming to the world at these times. They do know one thing – it is jewish new year. As Jews we stand out as a nation that confirms and reconfirms our faith in H as the King, the King of Israel, the G-d of Israel. This is the G-d that the world will one day accept upon itself and it says in the prophets ‘Bayom Hahu, Yiyhe H Ehad Ushmo Ehad”. We see tremendous awareness of the world about the destiny of Israel. Never in world history has the world paid attention to every little thing going on in Israel. Even a tiny little event makes it to CNN news within seconds, before the daily news in Israel knows about it. There are more reporters in Jersualem per capita than in any other city in the world. This is something that perhaps we don’t understand. The rest of the world have their eyes on us and are waiting with baited breath. They are trying to create solutions that are anything but a road map to shomayim. If anything it mauy be a roadmap from Aza to Azazel. That they are taking the world to Azazel. On Yom Kippur there are two goats, one to H and the other goes to Azazel, which means to hell. When we reflect on this the world stops and stands – as the saying goes in Yiddish, man tracht und Got lacht (man plans and G-d laughs). All their plots and all their devious devices, H watches them, and puts a stumbling block before them, whilst they try to pu a stumbling block before Am Yisrael. H will not let his nation go. H our loving father, will judge us kindly. What is more, we have a formula H, H Kel Rachum Vechanun, the merciful, the gracious, King of the Unibverse, He judges a nation in only the way a father could judge his son. As much as his wrath is stirred up, he still has a feeling of love towards us. we as a nation have to acknowledge and identify this. H gave us this formula. It is not so much just to cry out this formula. The reality of the situation is that we have the capcity to tap into this formula. It is of external vaulue, his wrath is stirred up, cry out to Him and his mercy will save you. If you just repeat them like a Shakesperean sonnet. You have to take it to heart. That is really what it is all about. Without that you remain at 0. With it, you can achieve a very high level and kapporo.

It says in the Navi Yoel, those that cry out to H will be saved. Those that do not will not survive the war of gog umagog. So we have to contemplate this with infinite awe. As we get closer, the world resembles a washing machine nearing the end of the cycle on fast spin, with the whole world shaking and in turmoil. We see morality breaking down, there has never been so much depravity where a suicide bomber is praised.

The liberal thinkers have been welcoming the holocaust denier, the President of Iran. Last week he was applauded at the UN. Columbia university invited him – in the ivy league, supposedly at the forefront of education, but this is not really education, it is disintegration of values. That they can invite the modern Hitler, the one \who said that he wanted to eradicate Israel off the face of the map, that they can invite him to the University to give him a platform to speak. No matter how important freedom of speech is, it does not justify inviting pure undiluted hatred. They are on the verge of being a partner to it. Like a person that would go into an Ir Hanidachat, City of Desecration, - where even the mezuzas and sifrei Torah in the Town need to be burnt. Fuirst they go to the city to hear their opinion. Imagine a person going to Sodom and Amora and saying – H intends to anhilate you all very soon. But let me ask what your hashkofo is. Lets see if we can find some value in your ways, regardless of what H says. So, to invite unadulterated evil is to become a partner in it. Either way, the chumash says keep yourself away from impurity. The reality is that a person who gets to close gets caught up in it. It doesn;lt matter how sweet or good intentioned the people caught up in Korech’s rebellion were. They may have thought, for whatever reason, that they were doing the right thing. H warnbed Am Yisrael – don’t go after your own heart. In Moshe Rabbeinu, we had the ultimate leader guiding this nation. Instead of turning our backs, chase after Torah UMitzvos. Can a person do teshuva in a split second? The proof that you can is the Bnei Korach who, as they were going down into the pit, to gehenom, , did teshuva and were saved.

So we reflect, how did we get to sukkos? How did we get to this great awesome moment? We have to identify and accept the Ol Malchus Shomayim, H Melekh, h Malakh, H Yimloch Leolam Va’ed. Once you get to that level you have a footing to get to yom HaDin. A person going into Yom haDin. A person going into judgement who doesn’t recognise the judge faces serious problems. If the King recognises that the children are in regret that they accepted the yoke of earthly forces instead of their father in heaven, that they accept His Kingship and judgmenet then there is a chance for favourable judgement.

But to say, thank you very much for Rosh Hashana, now I expect a good judgement is also a tragedy. Yom Kippur is a day of atonement. A healthy person who does not fast will be cut off from his people. A person who eats and has pleasure, his soul would be cut off as it says in the Torah.

We see the terrible tragic irony of the Yom Kippur war , that at 4.00 am Moshe Dayan desperately called through to the United Nations to speak to Henry Kissinger, a German jew who married a goya. According to halacha, that destyroyed his covenant with Avraham Avinu and H. Anybody who enters such a situation – instant kares. Where was he? It was still nighttime in America, probably about 11.00pm in America. He was in the middle of a United Nations dinner party. Celebrating with the nations of the world instead of crying out with his nation. So we saw that Moshe dayan called pleading with him to stop the impending catastrophe. The nations surrounding Israel planned to attack Israel with all their might. What about the United Nations? They were absolutely united, in Israel’s demise and destruction. He turned around to Moshre Dayan after Moshe dayan’s final plea for mercy, and said “ don’t you ever phone me again and disturb me in the middle of a dinner party. So we can understand how he was very far from his people and even further from H’. It was a tragedy of infinite proportions but not for Israel. For those that hope to destroy Israel. H guarantees m Yisrael will remain lenbetzach netzachim. No nation and no power in the world will be able to remove us from the surface of the world. And we seee, those who curse us will receive what they wanted to inflict on us. The Premier of Iran said that he wanted to eradicate Israel from the surface of the world – so we know what his punishment will be. Be absolutely sure, just as Sadam Hussein said that he wanted to eradicate Israel, and wanted to destroy half of this nation, so you can look at his country just now. It is divided and he has been destroyed. Those that curse us covertly and support those who call for the destruction of Israel. They want to divide Israel, so they will be divided. We see a tremendous irony going on in the world right now.

It says in Neviim, the 70 wolves will come in for the kill. So if we can refelect on the Haftora on the first day of Sukkos and jump to the Haftora of this shabbos, which is Shabbos chol hamoed, then we will see some amazing insights into the war of Gog and magog. For a start, the Torah portion read each day lists the korbanos brought on Succos which totals seventy oxen (parim) for the 70 nations. The nations will pay for their ox and be blessed with water.

A letter was just sent to the UN asking for permission for jews to bring sacrifices on Har Habayis for the good of the world. The tremendous irony was that they responded, if you want to make an application, you have to write to certain other departments requesting permission. For permission to do what? To serve H’. What a disgrace that we have to appeal to the other nations. It is hafuch. Those that go seeking other leaders are at best mistaken.

After doing teshuva on Yom Kippur, we have an awesome opportunity to celebrate H’s blessings by coming to dwell in the Sukka, the most fragile dwelling. The Twin Towers stood for 33 years. There was enough t steel to build a double highway to Los Angeles and back to New York. It was the most power4ful structurte ever built in the history of the world. It was meant to last indefinitely. Who would imagine,k if they wanted to compare, the Twin Towers and the fragile week Sukka. Who would imagine that the Twin Towers would last 33 years, when the mitzvo of Sukka has lasted 3,300 years. Around 1000 times longer.

This time of year, every jew that is affiliated runs out and rebuilts his dwelling with H, his Sukka. What seems like the most fragile structure is actually one of the most invincible in the world. This humble abode will outlast all the other structures in the world. H guarantees, as long as there is heaven and earth, Am Yisrael will not be destroyed. Gog and Magog will wave a great war on a certain and this will mark the revelation. Property taken from Israel will be returned. The hafotro deals with Sukkos, and the cataclysmic war of Gog and Magog and the Messianic Age. Gedolim, including the Chafetz Chaim, said that the First World War was a birth pang of the Moshiach. It took a long time and was very catastrophic. World War II was even more catastrophic, but quicker. The world knows how many Jews perished in World War II. How many of Am Yisrael’s enemies perished? That is not readily known to the world. Some researchers suggest 60 million. A very expensive war by all standards. The third will be bekerev ayin – in an instant. Like the blnk of an eye, it will be very sudden. Some commentaries say that the vast majority of the earth’s surface, food and water would be destroyed, Chas VeShalom. The vast majority of civilisation might also be destroyed Chas vehalile. They bow to hevel verik. They have missed out on a critical message that Yeshivas Dvar Yerushalayim has been transmitting to the world for the last 40 years – the 7 mitzvos bnei Noach.

In the first flood, Noach pleaded with the world, who had breached all 7 mitzvos bnei Noach, to do Teshuvo for 120 years. They thought it was the most hysterical thing, until the raindrops started coming down and the door of the ark was closed. With that was their fate sealed. All the animals that Noah took, he was responsible for. We see that just by following H’s instructions to build an edifice, even if it seemed ridiculous to people at the time, that person will live.

The Nations that survive the war of Gog and Magog by joining Israel will join them every year afterwards for Sukkos. Those coming now do not have pure intentions. M,any are missionaries trying to lead Am Yisrrael astray. H is waiting for the righteous gentiles. He will give them their helek, their portion. Those who worship other gods have a portion in gehenom.

Gog can also be read George. There is a video out by Yeshivat Torah Ohr, Los Angeles, America called Gog UMagog, the Upcoming Final War. The theme is that world leaders try to rehape the order of the world, but truly they are pawns in the hand of the true Master of the World bringing about the final redemption. It can be screened at www.torahohr.net . There are critical Torah messages there which are important for modern times.

The Nemukei Yosef on Megilla says that the war of Gog and Magog will take place in the Seventh month – Tishrei.

Rav Hirsch explains another, deeper connection with Sukkos. Gog is parallel to the word Gag, roof. Therre is an incredible contrast between the fortified bunker and the Sukka. An incredible contrast of faiths. The whole history of mankind reflects the delusion that mankind can make himself safe and secure. This is the story of the Titanic, the greatest ship built, in its time. The Captain made the grave error of saying the ship was so safe even G-d couldn’t sink it. Of course, the rest is tragic history and he went down with it. Those who build their forces against H and find security in their own might, who crown their buildings with their gabled roofs will in the end be defeated. The French put their faith in the Magineau Line. What did the Germans do? They sent a few paratroopers behind it and all those tanks and gunsd were laid waste in a few momentrs. All the walls that have been built don’t stand a chance. The only walls that will stand are the daled amos of halocho. The Sukka, the mitzvos, Taryag mitzvos.

Gog and Magog represents the fight for the roof, for domination. Magog can mean from the roof. The ones that were at the top, the Ottomans – the Rulers of the Middle East whose Empire Collapsed before the first world war, and the British empire. Those who have sought to conquer Yerushalayim have paid the price. We see now in these few 40 years, how Jerusalem has blossomed and how it has gone from the strength to strength. It is unimaginable. It defies all statistics and can only be described as miraculous. Not only that, but when look across Israel, at the farms, vineyards and blessings that the land is experiencing right now. A phenomenal thing is sweeping the lan – about 50% are keeping kosher. That is taking into account that there are probably 1 Million Russians, of which say 80% aren’t Jewish. There may be aover a million Arabs and gentiles. So in a nation of about 7 million, it may be that way over 50% are keeping kosher. So we are seeing and experiencing right now a tremendous wave of return, Teshuva, that all the other forces and other leaders who declare themselves the guardians of Israel, we see how ironic it is. As much as the security forces might want to save am Yisrael, we see how hopeless it is against millions of enemies. If the nations wanted to fire atomic bombs, there is nothing that could stop them besides HaKadosh B”H.

We see the irony of the Lebanon War and giving away Gush Katif. All attempts to appease the nations of the world resulted in greater outrage and demand for further concessions from Israel. The Secret of World History is that we can only rely in H’s protection. Nothing can stop the world conspiring and being inspired to attack. It is up to us to choose life. The world has never been in such a dangerous situation where third world countries have enough atomic bombs to destroy the face of the earth.

So we go forward with this concept of Gog and Magog. Ishmael was ruling the Middle East including Israel. Esav, about 100 years ago came and drove them out. Now we see for the first time in 2000 roughly, Am Yisrael are coming home. Coming home to Torah, coming home to Eretz Yisrael, coming to a time that the prophets predicted.

So we see through all of this that we are reaching a point in world history that in a way is accelerating the prophecy of the prophets. The prophecy of Zecharia came at a critical juncture in Israel’s history. H sent Zecharia to command Zerubavel and the people with him to ignore their fears and resume reconstruction of the Temple, and promised them success. Sure enough, King Darius soon after sanctioned the undertaking. Zecharia prophesied the catacalysmic war of Gog and magog some time in the future with the realization that H alone is King, and that Israel is His people. This realization will be celebrated on Sukkos.

So we see there is a ciulmination coming through Rosh Hashana to get to a point where we acknowledge H’s Malchiut and the rest of the world acknowledge it, coming through Yom Kippur where we do a complete cleansing, of all the aveiras but not discount the mitzvos, and then coming to the dwelling place of the Sukkah, that H offered to all the nations of the world. They said it is favouratism. We only have 7 mitzvos – test us. H tested them with the Sukka. It started of cool and they went in the sukka. H turned it up 1 degree and they startyed loosening their clothing. He turned it up another degree and they began to feel uncomfortable. Another degree and they got out and kicked the Sukka to the ground. That they left was a possibility. That they klicked it to the ground was a sign of hatred, that the mitzvos were not for them. So we see just as Esav ate from the cholent of lentils, the lentil soup of Yaakov, got up and didn’t say Birchas Hamazon, he turned his back on his birthright and walked out, never to return. So we see these things on a Universal plane, the war betweeeen Ishamel and Esav, east and West, started with the collapse of the twin towers, George Bush declared it wasn;t just an act of terrorism, it was an act of war. In spite of what everybodsy said, it was a knee jerk reaction that couldn’t be avoided. The whole of world History is His story – H’s story. We are in the middle of it. We have to hold on with all our might because the ride is going to get more and more wild. The world is going to look more and more hopeless. Through the mitzvah of leshev basukkah, H creates for us an infinite protective shield, an invnincible protection. By clinging to H’s mitzvos, and following His Torah – VeAtem Hadevekim BH’ Elokeihem, Hayim Kulchem Hayom.

May we, Kol Am Yisrael and all the Righteous Gentiles of the world experience very soon and in our days, a Geula Shleima, Moshiach Tzidkeinu, and a complete, eternal, everlasting peace across all the world. May I wish all of us, Kol Am Yisrael and all the righteous people in the world, Shalom, to Am Yisrael Shabbat Shalom, Be’Ezras H’, we should all be soche to the complete and Eternal Redemption.