Answering the Call: Love, Unity & Redemption - Ari Abramowitz: The Land of Israel Fellowship

hom everybody good to see all of you you know I know that you you know this but I think of all of you very frequently um I I carry you with me not only because uh you're my beloved friends and even very much family to me but because in my heart you are living manifestations of the Redemptive times that we're living in and it isn't a secret that I'm uh more than a little bit Redemption obsessed meaning that I walk around feeling various levels of how impending the Redemption is but it only really varies between believing that we're on the precipice historically meaning that will happen maximum in the next year or two that's the furthest versus feeling like it's absolutely impending with great immediacy and will happen any time now even today like when the electricity went out I was like maybe this is it it's happening because you know I look at the world and it's all happening now and at least in my eyes this Fellowship is a is a part of a historic shift towards Redemption for reasons that we've spoken about I won't go into all the prophecies I know Jeremy just mentioned one but perhaps the greatest among them is the inexplicable love between us here in this Fellowship as we're you know we're from different countries different cultures different lands different religions and despite all these significant differences there is just so much love and that is one of the central themes that I saw in this week's Torah portion love love ravona tup here he shares a beautiful teaching regarding the giving of the Torah because we so often focus on the drama and the magnitude of the miracle of the actual giving of the Torah itself Mount Si shook to its foundations as smoke rose up from the mountain with thunder and lightning and the sounds of chaar bellowing forth it was just so dramatic that sometimes we forget to take a moment and remember what just happened like immediately preceding it what what led up to it what happened well Hashem tells Moshe to give the nation an inspirational prepatory pregame speech chapter 19 he instructs Moshe to tell the nation you have seen what I did to the Egyptians how I bore you on eagles wings and brought you to me now then if you will obey me faithfully and keep my Covenant you shall be my treasured possession among all the peoples indeed all the Earth is mine but you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation these are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel now the great commentator Rashi explains like this so beautiful he says as an eagle which Bears its children upon its wings scripture uses this metaphor because all other birds Place their young between their feet since they are afraid of another bird that flies above them but the eagle fears none except man apprehending that perhaps he may cast an arrow at it since no bird can fly above it there therefore he places its young upon its wings saying better the arrow should Pierce me than my young meaning that Hashem loves us in the way that a mother Eagle loves her Young by protecting her young with her very own body that a hunter's Arrow should sooner Pierce her own self her own body than harm her children Hashem is telling us that that is the way Hashem loves us that's what he's telling us and why is God telling us this right now before the giving of the Torah so we all know that the entire basis of his giving us the Torah is founded upon his Indescribable love for us this is not about authoritarian control no that is more you know Islam fascism that's not what this is about this is about love the entire transmission of the Torah from God to Israel is all about love that's why Ru up here explains the sages speak in great depth about Mount Si being like a a who here knows what AA is Right you've been to a Jewish wedding before it's a it's a marriage canopy the Mount Si was like AA between the nation of Israel and the god of Israel because we are forging an unbreakable Covenant of Love and intimacy with Hashem and there's an exclusivity there the very word that's defined as a treasured people in amula comes from the concept of a loving exclusivity that's not meant to be shared like a marriage between a husband and a wife it's precious and treasured it's not meant to be violated or transgressed and while God loves all of mankind all of his children there is an element of exclusivity with his amula of Israel and that R sa here explains is how the rambam describes Redemption Redemption right as the return to one's true place that's what Redemption is when the temple is built and God's presence dwells within the nation of Israel when God's presence is amongst us when it's within us that is redemption that's as things are meant to be that is the true place it's only when his presence is amongst us that we can channel that light to the entire world Redemption is the opposite of loneliness fear fear and isolation right Redemption is the experiential knowledge of being exactly where you're supposed to be now my words I think may be resonating with some of you in this Fellowship because over the years so many of you have reached out to me and told me how you feel isolated and alone on your spiritual Journeys if you have felt like that on your spiritual journey raise your hand at some point on your journey wow that is well that's okay that's our fellowship there have been people have contacted me reached out to me this week about feeling exactly that way and you know who you are it's definitely amongst the most frequent feelings that are shared with and as a matter of fact it's it's an existential feeling that led many of you if not all of you to being a part of this Fellowship to begin with at least from our the non-jews you know Jews I think have a whole different reason that sort of brings us together maybe a little bit of that feeling of not finding our place either you know and so really however painful that feeling of isolation and alienation may be it's actually a blessing because it has led us to each other it was that pain and isolation that is leading us to a higher dimension of love and unity and understanding than we could have possibly conceived before and that is also what happened at Mount Si among the nation of Israel we know that there was a there was a lot of conflict among the camp of the Israelites I mean it's Israelites it's Jews you know a a lot of conflict Moses mosha was sitting and judging the conflicts among the people from morning to night there was so much conflict that Jethro himself told Moses that he needed to delegate and set up a system that he can't possibly resolve all the conflict on his own but despite all of that conflict the Torah tells us and Israel encamped there before the mountain the Hebrew word for encamp is said in singular teaching that Israel only merited to receive the Torah because they stood at Sinai as one person with one heart now what brought the nation together at Mount Si is the exact thing that is bringing all of us together in this Fellowship God the Torah truth a truth that is so powerful and overwhelming that it transcends the very real things that we still don't agree on and there's a lot of things we don't agree on if we tried to drill down and just have fellowships about what we don't agree on there's a lot of it we don't even but we don't even need to know how those differences will get reconciled because it doesn't really matter because the truth of God's Oneness is so much greater than our own intellect or anything it is that divides us and that by the way is what made erro Jethro different the Torah tells us that rro heard about the great Miracles that God did for Israel and uh and here's here's what it says chapter 18 Jethro priest of Midian Moses's father-in-law heard all that God had done for Moses and for Israel God's people and how Hashem had brought Israel out of Egypt so of Kahana teaches that hearing isn't just about listening you know hearing with your ears it's about responding I mean think about it R wasn't alone the entire world heard about what God did for Israel but only yro answered the calling and came it's the same today the whole world is seeing with their eyes the miracle of Israel the in gathering of the Exiles the Revival of the Hebrew language the blossoming of the desolate Wilderness that the prophets forhold the whole world is seeing the our war against the forces of evil and darkness but it's only a very small Remnant righteous few that are actually answering that calling and coming home and coming to us and joining Israel physically spiritually they are coming and joining us in our journey that we're not alone and really like the prophet said the the to uh when you cast your lot with Israel and the Jewish people you become a part it's like a a joining a joining coming on that is what Redemption is and that is ultimately why I believe this Fellowship is a part of it and so my dear friends as we close our time together today I hand you back to Jeremy I want to bless each and every one of you with the clarity the strength and the courage to continue answering the call May Hashem fill your hearts with the Deep knowledge that you are exactly where you're meant to be right now and may you feel his boundless love and protection as an eagle Shields its young may we continue to stand together as one United in love and in truth and in the unfolding Redemption of our time and may we soon see the full revelation of hashem's presence among us bringing peace joy and light to all of Israel and the entire world Amen [Music]