Behind the Curtain - Tisha B'Av/Va'etchanan 5786

On Tisha B’Av morning, (which happens this Thursday,) we read a special Torah reading.This reading is actually also part of this week’s Parsha, Va’etchanan (Devarim 4:25-40).  It begins with Moshe warning of exile in case we stray from Torah, and continues with a promise that we will never be cast away from Hashem.  Moshe reminds us of Hashem’s great kindnesses, taking us out of Egypt with great miracles and wonders, splitting the sea, giving us the Torah, and leading us toward the Land of Israel.  Moshe exhorts us to do Teshuva, to return to Hashem, and assures us that He will never forget His covenant with us.

Then Moshe tells us to remember a very important and foundational principle of our faith (verse 39):  “You must know today and consider in your heart that G-d is the G-d in heaven above and on earth below; there is none other.  (Note that is only the simplest way to translate this very intricate and mulit-faceted verse.)

There are books written to try to explain this verse.  The basic question is, what does it mean when it says G-d is the G-d?  Which other god would be the G-d?  This is the Torah that Moshe is teaching to the Jewish people who have spent 40 years in the desert intimately aware of Hashem.  This is the Torah that Jews through the ages read and study, that has told us multiple times that there is only one G-d.  As the Alter Rebbe famously writes in the book of Tanya, would a thinking person really think there is another god buried underground or deep under the sea?

To get at least a basic understanding of these words, we need to look at the Hebrew words for “G-d is the G-d.”  Hashem has several names, each of which represents another manifestation of Hashem in the worlds.  There is the name with four letters, yud - hay - vav - hei, known as the ineffable name because we may never pronounce it as written.  We refer to this name as “Havaye,” which means “existence” or “Creator.”   Another name is “Elokim.”  (There is actually an “H” in the place of the “K”, but we don't pronounce it as written except in prayer or while reading the full verse in the Torah.)

So the verse actually says: “You must know today and consider in your heart that Havaye is the Elokim.”  Now we see that there is a much deeper message here.  Havaye refers to Hashem the source of all creation, incorporating the past, present and future together - Haya - He was, Hove - He is, and Yihye - He will be.  Above time, eternal, not limited in any way.  Havaye is not a level we can directly experience or see.

Elokim is plural.  One G-d Who is manifest in every aspect of creation.  The only way Havaye can actively create a world of limit, division, and even darkness where Havaye, the true source of everything, is completely hidden, is when it is “covered” and “constricted” so that it can “enclothe” itself in the physical world.  Were Haveye to be revealed, there would be no world, only the unfettered and seamless light of Havaye.

So nature is set up in such a way that we see the Elokim aspect of creation, the natural order of things and the way things seem to work without being constantly driven by 

Havaye.  We think that the sun rises today because it has done so since the beginning of time, and we think that things happen to us because that is the way of the world.

The Torah reading of Tisha B’Av reminds us:  Know today that Havaye is Elokim.  Nature is actually run by Havaye, the Source of everything.  Everything was created from nothing, and therefore continues to be created at every moment.  The fact that there is Elokim, Hashem’s energy concealed, is itself from Havaye, in order to allow for us to exist.

So how does that affect my life and why is it so important?  Because whatever happens to me, whatever events happen in the world, are all driven by Havaye.  Hashem has given us free choice to follow Him or not, but we don't control the events of the world.  

Contemplating this deeply, as Moshe says “consider in your heart” and making it real, helps us overcome all the challenges and tests that come our way.  We have faced many of those recently.  When we realize that ultimately it is all from Havaye, we realize that, while we need to work within the world of Elokim and take natural steps to deal with the issues, our greatest strength lies in our connection with Havaye. Our faith is being tested, and we must look beyond the test and recognize that withstanding this test is our purpose in exile.

It is Tisha B’Av, we are in exile, we mourn the destruction, and life seems to be tough for Jews now.  Actually it is tough.  But on this day Moshe reminds us, it is not random.  It is Hashem’s will.  Hashem wants us to do another Mitzvah, another act of goodness and kindness, and He will remove the pain and bring the redemption and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple.