Are We Ready to Finish the Journey Our Ancestors Began? - Ari Abramowitz: The Fellowship

Now I believe that I believe that the Torah book ends the 42 journeys with Ramses and Arvot Moav and uh the the later commentators really see profound symmetry between them. Right? The journey begins in constriction and ends in expansiveness. The first step is breaking free and the last step is stepping into covenantal responsibility. And here we are at what I believe is the final stop right now at Arvat Moav, the plains of Moav. After 42 journeys, the nation stood in the banks of the Jordan River. And the Torah says, "These are the journeys of the children of Israel. They encamped by the Jordan from Beth to Ael Hashim in the plains of Moav. From there, they could see the promised land. I I always look right out this window where I am right now and I see the mountains and they were looking at and they could see the promised land. The wandering seemed to be just over, but the true mission sanctifying the land was about to begin. And our generation, I think our generation really does mirror that moment. After 2,000 years of exile, the Jewish people have returned. We've rebuilt our language, our community, our sovereignty in the land of Israel. Yet like our ancestors, our vote moav, we stood on the threshold, the full redemption, the temple, the revealed presence of Hashem. True peace in the land. True peace felt just beyond reach. In our vote moav, Moshe gathered the nation into a new covenant, saying, "You are standing today, all of you, before Hashem your God to enter into the covenant of Hashem your God and into his oath which Hashem your God makes with you today." That same calling echoes now through war and aliyah and challenge. Hashem is reminding us that Israel that all of Israel is bound together. Only unity will allow us to cross into our destiny. And it will be only when we can truly experience the truth of unity with each other that we will be able to experience and take responsibility in leading the unity of all of mankind. As crazy as that is to imagine, it really is. We're on the cusp of it. We can see it's starting to happen even now. And it's at this point that the Torah shares the borders of the land of Israel. Hashem himself draws the lines. These aren't arbitrary political boundaries. They're divine coordinates. They sanctify specific mountains, valleys, and cities, including Judea and Samaria. The world debates our borders, but the Torah reminds us that these borders are heaven's map. And the question is not whether the world will recognize them, but whether we will have the faith and courage to stand where Hashem has placed us. Which brings us to right now at the very end of the portion where Israel stands on the banks of the Jordan River. One more step and they're in the promised land. Can you feel Can you feel that moment? Centuries of wandering and exile, miracles and failures, and we are finally home. That is where we are right now. We've returned to the land, but we're still on the journey. We have not yet reached redemption, but we are closer than any generation since the times of Joshua. Right? What does that mean for us? It means that we must know that every challenge we face from rockets to fears to political divisions, every challenge is another step in the 42 journeys. It means that every stop that feels like setbacks are part of Hashem's plan. And it means that we have a calling to fight with moral clarity and to stand firmly on the holy ground that Hashem gave us to take responsibility for each other and for the entire world. As Hashem said to Yeshua when he prepared to lead the people in the land. Be strong and courageous for you shall cause this people to inherit the land. Only be very strong and very courageous to observe and do all the Torah. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left. The question before us today is the same as it was then. Will we rise to the holiness, embrace unity, and trust Hashem enough to step forward? We're no longer wandering. We're at the doorway. The land and the redemption are waiting. We stand where our ancestors once stood. The journey of 42 stops isn't just history. It's prophecy living out in our days. We've crossed oceans of exile and deserts of despair. We've returned to the land. Yet the final step, the crossing into full redemption remains before us. In this moment, as we face so much right now, wars, division, fears, uncertainty, Hashem is calling us to the same covenant covenant that he offered at our vote moav unity, responsibility, and holiness. [Music]