The Eclipse & The Geula

Aug 21, 2017 by Chaim David Targan

Today –  August 21, 2017 – the day of the Solar Eclipse – is the next turning point in Hashem’s Wake Up Calls – and a big wake-up call it is.

For the past several years, there has been an ever strengthening and ever increasing spiritual hurricane in the world going on – that will continue to strengthen and widen until the revealed part of the Geula (The  Final Redemption). And at the center of the hurricane – the Eye of the Storm, which is the only calm spot  – is Eretz Yisrael (Israel).  And Israel will continue to stay calm and prosperous as the rest of the world falls into further turmoil, as it is the pupil of Hashem’s eye.  As we know of hurricanes, the strongest  winds are just outside the eye of the storm, and here it is the same.  Every country surrounding Israel is in an existential battle for survival. Whether countries are  in actual battle such as Syria, Lebanon and Iraq, or ones just one bullet away from mayhem and a fundamentalist takeover – such as Jordon, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, not to mention the complete incompetence and dysfunction of the PA and Hamas.

But the hurricane has been expanding wider as well. It has spread to Turkey, Africa, and Russia – and especially Europe over the past several years.  Whenever I see an attack in Europe  – which today has already become such a daily event that people are starting to get desensitized to it –  I am reminded of a rare three hour meeting I and a few others were privileged to have had right before Pesach (Passover) 2003 with Ben, a famous autistic mekubal (kabbalist) who communicated his channeling through FC – Facilitated Communications – by typing out messages onto a card with letters that someone else held.  He had said at that point that the Shechina– the Divine Presence – had left France and was leaving England. The leaving (or more accurately the further concealment of the Shechina) implied that Klal Yisrael (The Jewish People) in those parts had lost its Divine protection, which kept it alive and prospering.  No minority in history has really survived intact, with its religion, beliefs, etc. – except for Klal Yisrael the Jews .  And this is only because of Divine protection  – because of the Jews unique mission in the world to elevate it, fix it and to bring the Geula (redemption).   Once this Divine protection is gone (or further concealed), then Klal Yisrael is subject to things B’Derech HaTeva – by the natural way or natural order of things – meaning by the brutality of humanity – which has  very rarely acted kindly towards the Jews.

 

And this hurricane has been widening further and about to take the next serious move – crossing the oceans to North America, Australia and beyond. This is where today’s solar eclipse has relevance.   It is the starting bell of the next wave of increased challenges in the world, and particularly the United States.  According to the Talmud (Oral Law), Israel is compared to the Moon, and the Gentile nations are compared to the sun.  So a lunar eclipse often creates problem for Klal Yisrael, while a solar eclipse presents challenges for the world at large and particularly for the Gentile nations, and most specifically the countries where the eclipse is visible.  There are of course many opinions of the sages:  From the Talmud to the Maharal of Prague to the Rama to Rabbi Jonathan Eybeschütz to the Lubavitcher Rebbe – each one enlightening us upon from different perspectives.

THE SPECIFIC SPIRITUAL NATURE of THE UNITED STATES
As the eclipse is signaling a further opening in the challenges facing the US, it is important to explain that the US is part of Edom – which are the descendants of Eisav – who is the father of the Roman / Christian world. There are two main parts of Edom. The head of Edom and the body of Edom.  While Eisav’s physical actions were very wicked (murder, rape, theft, idol worship, etc.), his head actually had some merit – (and his potential was truly to be a great great Tzaddik or saint). And therefore according to the Midrash (The allegorical part of the Torah), his head is buried in Hebron in Ma’arat HaMachpela, (the Holy Cave of the Patriarchs).   With this knowledge, we now can understand that Europe is the body of Eisav / Edom, which has no merit, while the United States represents the head of Eisav / Edom, which does has merit, and has considered by many Tzaddikim in very favorable ways.  In fact the Lubavitcher Rebbe had called the US a Mamlechet Chesed – A nation of Kindness.

 

BUT WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND that these are just still wake up calls.  Destruction does not have to happen. Hashem’s ultimate level is pure unconditional love, so more than anything else, Hashem wants to bring the Geula (Redemption) in the sweetest way possible.  He wants the world to wake up, and particularly Klal Yisrael – who is responsible for bringing the Geula  – to wake up.  While there certainly has been Divine retribution against the nations for their horrors promulgated against the Jewish people throughout the ages – with more planned – , there are also an enormous (and growing) number of Hasdei Olam – Righteous of the Nations – who are on the side of Hashem, on the side of Klal Yisrael, and on the side of Good – who are helping shift the balance as well.

 

SO WHAT CAN BE DONE

 

FIRST WE ALL NEED TO WAKE UP.  We do not need wake up calls when we are awake. Just when we are sleeping.  So the first part of being awake is having Geula or Moshiach consciousness, to cry out to Hashem for the Geula, and to have the eyes to see everything through the lens of the Geula.

 

EMUNA:  – Emunah and  Bitachon (Faith & Trust /Certainty) are the engines that bring the Geula.

 

ACHDUT: Unity for Klal Yisrael, whether from different backgrounds, whether religious or secular, or  from differences within the religious world.  We all have heard vAhavata R’echa Kamocha – Love your neighbor as yourself.  We need to really live it.

 

TORAH & MITZVAHS: Hashem created a world and gave Klal Yisrael an instruction booklet of how things work, and what not to do to prevent it from breaking.    That instruction booklet is called the Torah and the Dos and Don’t are called the Mitzvahs.  In fact, if we really read the secrets of this instruction booklet, we will learn that doing this brings health,  doing this other thing brings a long happy life, and doing this other things means you won’t have any financial worries.   If we bought a 110 volt refrigerator, and the instruction booklet said “Do not plug it into 240 Volts” or it will blow up the motor, we would likely follow the directions.   But unfortunately with the only real instruction book that matters – The Torah –  all too often, we tend to ignore it – and then we wonder why things are not working out in life.

 

TIME TO RETURN TO ISRAEL. Hashem has also put out the global email that it is time for all of Klal Yisrael to return to Israel.  Please note, that while I live in Israel, I have always felt that people have different missions in the world and that it wasn’t everyone’s place to come to Israel.    My past view no longer holds. For the past few years, there has been a crystal clear clarion call for all of the Jews to return to Israel.  No more excuses… This is a Divine order.

 

In short, there are certainly more challenges and wake up calls ahead – but let’s do everything possible so the next wake-up call is like a sweet kiss, not a bucket of ice cold water throw on us. And nothing would make Hashem any happier than this.

Chaim David Yosef  Targan
Rosh Chodesh Elul 5777
August 21, 2017
Tzfat, Israel