singing despite the suffering

1) The Rama paskens that on shabbos Chazon one should wear weekday clothes and not shabbos clothes.  GR"A disagrees, as wearing weekday clothes would constitute public aveilus, which is not allowed on Shabbos.  There are various explanations (e.g. see Aruch haShulchan) offered to try to justify the psak of the Rama.  R' Moshe Shternbruch in his Moadim u'Zmanim suggests derech derush an idea based on a Chasam Sofer.  The C.S., who followed the Rama's psak and wore weekday clothes on shabbos, was asked by a talmid why he did so, given that the AR"I disagrees (I don't know why the talmid thought the C.S. should have followed the AR"I over the Rama, but I'll leave that to those more familiar with minhagei C.S. than I am).  The C.S. answered that the ARI felt the pain for churban in his heart 365x7, even when he was celebrating Shabbos and wearing his Shabbos finery.  I, said the C.S., am not on that level.  I have wear weekday clothes on Shabbos to arouse in myself the feelings of loss.  In our times, says Rav Shternbruch, we are so desensitized to the loss of Beis haMikdash that even wearing weekday clothes on Shabbos will not awaken us, so what's the point in doing so.

I don't know how seriously to take R' Shternbruch's cynicism here.  We have to try our best to be m'orer ourselves to feel something.  Sadly, events like 10/7 have brought the suffering home and have awakened something in people who otherwise were very distant.

 

2) חֵ֤טְא חָֽטְאָה֙ יְר֣וּשָׁלַ֔͏ִם עַל־כֵּ֖ן לְנִידָ֣ה הָיָ֑תָה (Eicha 1:8)

 

The Midrash asks: ?אומות העולם אינן חוטאים  Do we have a monopoly on sin?

 

Chazal answer: אלא אע"פ שחוטאין אינן כלום, אבל ישראל חטאו ולקו

 

What's pshat in the Midrash?  Why should they get away with it and not us?

 

The Divrei Shaul gives a mashal to two garments, one made of cheap polyester and the other made of the finest silk.  If you get a stain on the cheap polyester, first off, you might not even notice if it is a dark color, and second of all, you can throw it in the wash.  EVen the slightest blemish, the slightest wrinkle, is immediately be noticeable in a fine fabric. 

 

Klal Yisrael is like that fine silk garment.  Davka because of its beauty and value, it can be spoiled.  Davka because of its beauty and value, every defect is that much more noticeable.  חֵ֤טְא חָֽטְאָה֙ יְר֣וּשָׁלַ֔͏ִם, which is the greatest city in the world, and therefore, עַל־כֵּ֖ן לְנִידָ֣ה הָיָ֑תָה. 

 

One can perhaps offer a slightly different answer.  Kesubos 66b tells the tragic story of the daughter of the wealthy Nakdimon ben Guryon whose kesubah was worth millions of dollars, but at the time of the churban she was reduced to picking through animal dung to look for food. R’ Yochanan ben Zakai exclaimed, “Ashreichem Yisrael! When the Jewish people obey G-d’s will there is no greater nation, but when they fail to obey G-d's will not only are they subjugated to the lowest nation, but they are lower even than that nation’s animals”.

 

As we've discussed before, Maharal asks: Neicha that R’ Yochanan ben Zakai would exclaim “ashreichem yisrael” at the glory of Nakdimon’s wealth, but why exclaim “ashreichem yisrael” over the tragedy of the downfall of Klal Yisrael?

 

Maharal answers that davka the immensity of the downfall speaks to the greatness of Klal Yisrael.  To go from lofty heights to such depths, a complete 180 m'igra rama l'beira amikta, cannot be by chance.  It must be that our history is guided by yad Hashem.  When we become consumed by gashmiyus, we lose out identity and fall to nothing.  When we are doing what we are supposed to do and are connected to Hashem, we are on top of the world.

 

Because of the greatness of Yerushalayim in being so close to Hashem's heart, kavyachol, therefore, עַל־כֵּ֖ן לְנִידָ֣ה הָיָ֑תָה, it's downfall, like that of the daughter of Nakdimon, was so drastic when punishment was called for.   By the other nations, אע"פ שחוטאין אינן כלום, because it is the whims of history that determine their fate, not hashgacha, not direct up close and personal, kavyachol, schar v'onesh.  Hashem lets the chips fall where they may; He does not take a "personal interest," if you will, in the outcome.  In our case, Hashem takes our fate in hand.  אבל ישראל חטאו ולקו directly through the yad Hashem, not some chance of history. 

 

3) Chazal tell us that when Nevuchatnetzar witnessed Chanaya, Misha'el, and Azarya's escape from the burning oven that he had thrown them into, he began to sing songs of praise to Hashem that rivelled the praises of David haMelech in Tehillim.  When it reached the point that his praise was on the verge of surpassing David's a malach came down from shamayim and slapped him across the face, which put a stop to his song.

 

Is Hashem playing favorites?  So what if Nevuchadnetzar would surpass David?  If his praises are greater, and he deserves the #1 spot, so be it!

 

The Kotzker explained that the malach did not come down to stop Nevuchatnetzar.  The malach came down to test if indeed he was on David's level.  David haMelech's life was filled with tzaros.  He had problems from Shaul, he had problems from his children, his great dream of building the mikdash went unfulfilled.  It was a hard life, but he sang Tehillim throughout. 

 

Nevuchtnetzar witnessed Hashem's greatness in saving Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya from pain.  Under those circumstances, it's easy to sing songs of praise to Hashem.  The malacha came down and gave him a slap, just a little taste of the pain that David experienced, and said, "Let's see if you still sing praises now." 

 

Nevuchadnetzar, of course, did not. 

 

From the suffering of the churban to the suffering of 10/7, we, like David, continue to sing praises to Hashem in spite of our pain, in spite of our suffering, ad bi'as go'el.