Shalom.
Two nights ago, I was busy searching for a message for this week’s MovemenT
Every single “peace” that I found centered on Shalom.
Only after I finished learning did I discover the answer to the puzzle.
It was my grandfather’s Yahrtzeit.
Can you guess my grandfather’s name?
A friend of mine told me, you make Peace with your Enemies.
There’s alot of truth to that.
What would you do if you found your enemy prone and vulnerable?
Dependent on you?
It’s a great time to take revenge.
We discussed in school today the Torah’s perspective.
Your friend is busy unloading his car.
You go and help him.
What if it’s your enemy?
The guy who makes your life miserable.
And now he’s stressed.
Not majorly.
But he’s unloading his car, and he’s having difficulty.
Can you sit there and grin?
The Torah believes in us.
In our ability to rise above.
He’s caused you pain.
He’s not nice.
You don’t need to be his friend.
But he’s in need.
You have the capacity to put aside your differences.
Recognize his humanity.
And help him in his time of need.
This is what G-d expects of us.
Hashem “practices what He preaches.”
There are many enemies of the Jewish People.
Many people who do terrible things to us.
Every single night, they are prone and vulnerable.
They return their “neshama” (soul) to their creator.
Hashem is entrusted with the soul of every person in the world.
Good or bad.
Friend of Foe.
Hashem could end all wars.
And every morning Hashem returns those souls back to this world.
This is an expression of “Peace”.
But let’s go one step deeper.
Do we only make Peace with our enemies?
Why are we nice to our friends?
Is it because we care about their opinions?
Is it because we want them to be our friend?
That may be a beautiful first step.
But let’s live life a little fuller.
Are we only expected to care for, and empathize with our enemies? What about our friends?
Ahron and Miriam spoke negatively about Moshe.
Moshe understood how Miriam could falter.
But Ahron?
Ahron, as a Kohen, gave everyone a Brachah for “Shalom”
He blessed the nation with “Peace”.
That underscored Ahron’s deep love of Peace.
That bothered Moshe.
Ahron was a lover of Peace.
How could he speak negatively about him.
Ahron was his brother.
He loved him.
Neither of those were enough.
Ahron’s pursuit of Peace should have dictated how to treat his brother.
We must make peace with our enemies.
But we also must make peace with our friends.
Have a good Shabbos!
Rabbi Yoni Rudansky
