THE HELICOPTER TRAGEDY: WHOSE FAILURE?
THE HELICOPTER TRAGEDY: WHOSE FAILURE?
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Today, the entire Jewish people mourn.
Today, 73 families throughout the land of Israel lay to rest
their beloved, who died when two helicopters collided high above
Shar Yashuv in the North of Israel. As one society, one family,
we all share in the pain and sadness of the bereaved families;
we mourn with them, and we cry.
In times like these, all Jews feel as
one. All differences - Sefaradi, Ashkenazi, religious, secular
- disappear as the pain of tragedy unites us as one group, one
society.
And as one group, let us bear in mind
the words of our sages, "When one member of a group dies,
let every member of the group feel dread." Let each and
every member of the group take this tragedy as a personal message,
as a chance to look inward and ask, "Where have I failed?"
Yes, speeches were made by many people:
The Prime Minister, the President, the Chief of Staff, etc.
In every speech, one idea repeated itself: The need to investigate,
to find out what went wrong. Was it mechanical failure? Was
it human failure? A highly respected committee was appointed
to investigate and help ensure that no such thing repeats itself.
But we don't need to wait for the findings
of that committee. We know it's no mechanical failure; no wind
or fog alone can account for that collision. The failure is a
human one, but not the failure of pilots steering an improper
course.
It is the human failure of each and
every one of us.
It is ever so tempting to point our finger at Israeli society and say, "Look at the mass Shabbos desecration, look at the Israeli public schools' near total disregard of our great Torah heritage, look at the appalling lack of modesty that rules the streets." But is that the approach of a Torah Jew?
Someone once said to the great Rav of
Brisk, Rabbi Yitzchak Zev Soleveichik, "I'm sure that all
the bad things happening to the Jews in Israel are a result of
the mass abandonment of Torah observance by the secular society."
The Rav answered, "Do you remember
what we read on Yom Kippur? We read about the prophet Yona and
his flight from the land of Israel. The ship he boarded threatened
to sink in a terrible storm. The sailors cast lots to find out
who was the cause of the storm, and the lots fell on Yona."
"What should we do?" the sailors
asked Yona.
Now, these sailors were not the world's
most righteous people. In fact, they were idol worshippers.
What would have been easier than to point at them and say "It's
all your fault! G-d is punishing you for your wickedness."
But was that Yona's approach? Did he
shift the blame to the others? Let's listen to Yona's own words:
"Pick me up," says Yona, "and throw me in the
sea … For I know it is on my account that this storm
has come upon you."
The Torah Jew doesn't look around trying
to find the fault in others. He asks himself, "What am I
missing? Where do I fall short?" Like Yona on the stormy
ship, a Jew looks courageously inside himself, takes a personal
accounting, and says "how might my own failings be responsible
for the situation?" While we are taking stock of our individual
failings we must also focus on another crisis facing our people.
Surely, many are aware that we've been
saying prayers for the recovery of the great leader of our generation,
Rav Shach, shlita. And surely none of us can ignore the
connection between this military accident and the pain and suffering
of such a great Torah leader as Rav Shach. For as the Talmud
says, when the great sage Rabbi Eliezar fell ill, it was a sign
of Divine anger in the world, as though the Torah scroll itself
were writhing in pain. So too, is the pain and agony of our great
sage, Rav Shach, who has taught Torah to thousands, built Torah
in Israel, who's advice and guidance illuminate the way for us
in Ohr Somayach and countless other yeshivas. Such a person is
in pain as if the Torah scroll itself is writhing in pain.
Our Torah leaders have declared today
that every Jew should take upon himself one resolution, one small
area where he tries to improve. It doesn't have to be of cosmic
proportion: Study Torah for an additional five minutes a day.
Pray a little slower. Or do at least one special kind act each
day. This, in addition to adding a special prayer for the full
recovery of "Elazar Menachem Mon ben Bas-Sheva" (Rav
Shach's full name).
Perhaps there is another message in
this tragedy of the helicopters. Of course, the heads of state
must make every effort to negotiate peace with our Arab neighbors.
But let us not entertain the illusion that treaties alone will
bring an end to the suffering caused by so many fatalities each
year due to accidents and traffic deaths, which claim more lives
than all the wars and tragic accidents in military exercises.
Only the improvement of our own human failures can bring us true
security.
Throughout the streets of Jerusalem,
people are asking each other "Did you look in the Haftorah
we read this week? It says "And Hashem said to Yeshaya:
Go out to greet Achaz, you and your son Shar Yashuv …
and say, 'Take heed and be silent, fear not, nor be faint-hearted
because of the two tails of smoking firebrands…'"
Of course, we know that 'Shar Yashuv'
refers to Yeshaya's son, not the place of the helicopter collision.
'Two tails of smoking firebrands' refers to two enemies of ancient
Israel, not two flaming helicopters falling in a tail-spin earthward.
However, can we ignore the connection,
the implicit message? "Fear not! Nor be faint of heart!"
Don't despair. Don't fall into hopelessness. If we have the
courage to look honestly at ourselves, then we have the courage
to improve. Each little improvement brings another, success breeds
success. If we improve, we can work towards a world free of smoking
firebrands, like those tragic ones of Shar Yashuv.
Today, the day before Rosh Chodesh, is called by the kabbalists 'Yom Kippur Katan.' Today, many fast, many add special prayers to the afternoon service, and many take a personal monthly accounting. On this day, on this 'miniature Yom Kippur,' let each of us take stock of his direction and goals, his actions and attitudes. And let each of us, right now, think of one resolution we can make, one area in which we can improve.
Produced by Ohr Somayach Institutions, Jerusalem
General Editor: Rabbi Moshe Newman
Production Design: Lev Seltzer
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