I would like to quote a beautiful thought from Rav Chaim Pilaggi’s sefer Moed L’Kol Chai, where he quotes from the Tana D’Vei Eliyahu
( chapter 31)
הקדוש ברוך הוא יושב ומצפה להם לישראל יותר ממה שמצפה האב לבנו והאשה לבעלה, שיעשו תשובה כדי שיגאל אותן ויבנה להם בית המקדש.
G-d sits and waits for the Jewish people, more than a father waits for his son to come home, or a lady for her husband. He waits for them to do Teshuva, so He can redeem them and build the Bet HaMikdash.
What powerful words! Hashem is waiting for us.
Rav Chaim Pillagi says,
“I truthfully say that whenever I read this wonderful Midrash, I cry tears. How can it be that the Honorable King, G-d Almighty, Master of the world, is sitting and waiting for us to return? Waiting for what? Waiting do one of the greatest favors He can do, and we aren’t paying attention.”
We do not realize how important it is for us to do Teshuva.
Rav Chaim quotes this Midrash in reference to the Aseret Yeme Teshuva, the time we are in right now.
He says to imagine that you have a dear son, and it is ten o’clock at night, and he is not home yet. You aren’t really worried, because he usually comes home, and he probably just forgot to call.
One year on Purim, I got home late, and the door was locked so I went to sleep by a friend. My parents were ready to call the police in the morning until I finally identified myself. It is scary.
Parents get scared.
That is the way, so to speak, that Hashem is feeling. Rav Chaim describes it like a father looks out the window, waiting for his son, calling his friends.... or a lady waiting for her husband to return from overseas.
That’s the pain that Hashem feels, and yet we are asleep.
Therefore, he says, “Hashem please, put into the hearts of the Jewish people to return.”
He continues on and says, “The truth is, I don’t have to ask for Hashem to do that. He’s doing it already.”
And he quotes the Zohar HaKadosh, that says Hashem Himself announces every day, שׁוּבוּ בָּנִים שׁוֹבָבִים אֶרְפָּא מְשׁוּבוֹתֵיכֶם.
Return o’ wayward children.
Hashem is announcing this, and yet He says
בָּאתִי וְאֵין אִישׁ קָרָאתִי וְאֵין עוֹנֶה.
I come and there is nobody home. No one is responding.
The Zohar says in more than one place that Hashem is announcing, “Please listen” and we don’t listen.
He goes further and says Hashem does not hire a messenger to make this announcement. He does it Himself. That is how important it is. That is why, he says, there are customs brought down that during the month of Elul and on the Aseret Yeme Teshuva, in certain towns, they would announce in shul every day, שׁוּבוּ בָּנִים שׁוֹבָבִים -Return, o wayward children,in order to remind them about what was going on in Shamayim.
The obvious question is, What is the purpose of this Bat Kol- this Heavenly Echo, if we don’t hear it?
The Degel Mahane Ephraim, in Parashat Vayikra, quotes his grandfather, the Baal Shem Tov, who asked a similar question about a Mishnah in Pirkei Avot which says that every day a Bat Kol comes out that says, “Woe to the creations, on the disgrace of the Torah.”
What, he asks, is the purpose of this Bat Kol?
He answers that the purpose is that we do hear. Our neshamot hear it. And if a person is aroused to do Teshuva, it’s because he heard that Heavenly Echo.
The Baal Shem Tov goes further and says that a person has to close his eyes for a moment, pay attention and think to himself, and he will, so to say, hear Hashem calling us back. We have to believe in the power of these days. We have to believe that Hashem is really calling us back. He misses us.
That was the whole process that was started beginning with the three weeks. This has been one long process. It started with the mourning over the Churban. The Gemarah says in Masechet Berachot that every single day G-d cries,
אוי לבנים שגלו משלחן אביהם
Woe unto the children that have been exiled from their father’s table .
G-d is crying for us. We have been exiled from our Father’s table.
But, as Rav Wachtfogel says, we have to realize that although we are exiled from His table, He sends us care packages. Shulhan Aruch L’Kol. G-d’s table is set for everyone. We are not sitting at His table anymore. That is why He’s crying. But He is sending us food. Even though He cannot be with us, He’s sending us food.
This reminds me of another personal anecdote. My parents live in Lakewood, and they were planning on having one of my brothers over for a Seuda on Rosh Hashanah, but one of the children tested positive for Corona. My mother had already set the table and cooked the food. So, what does a good mother do? She sent all the food over to them!
Hashem is no different. He’s still sending us care packages. Everything we ate this year came from His table. Everything we drank came from Him. All the clothing that we wear, and everything that we have, comes from Him. And He misses us.
We have to realize how much Hashem misses us. It is up to us to return.
B’ezrat Hashem we will pay attention to that voice. Hashem wants us to return. And we will return.
Have a wonderful day.