Four-Part Series For The Three Weeks (Part IV)
(To read Part I, click here; Part II click here, and Part III, click here.)
There are many tragic stories that occurred during the time of destruction of the Beis HaMikdash. One of them is described in Kinnah 34 which we say on Tisha B’Av morning. It speaks about the murder of Zechariah ben Yehoyada, who was a prophet, a judge, and a Kohen during the time of the first Beis HaMikdash. Hashem sent him to reprimand Bnei Yisrael for worshipping idols. But when Zechariah admonished Bnei Yisrael for rejecting Hashem, they stoned him in the courtyard of the Beis HaMikdash. Our rabbis tell us that this occurred on Yom Kippur, which that year happened to fall on Shabbos. In effect, Bnei Yisrael murdered the holiest man, on the holiest day, in the holiest place.
A Babylonian general named Nevuzardan came into the Beis HaMikdash and saw Zechariah’s blood seething on the floor. Upon learning the source of the blood, Nevuzardan declared that there would now be a reckoning for this crime. He proceeded to kill many Kohanim, as well as other men and women. Nevuzardan and his men tragically murdered over 900,000 Jews at that time.
But then the story takes an unexpected turn. Upon seeing that Hashem allowed so many Jews to be slaughtered as retribution for the killing of just one individual, Nevuzaradan realized that his own punishment for murdering thousands of Jews would be vastly greater. He therefore repented and converted to Judaism.
One might wonder how a person like Nevuzardan could be absolved for his many heinous crimes. The answer is that Hashem forgives anyone who is sincere in his repentance. We are never too far gone to turn back from our wrongdoing. We shouldn’t feel that because we have repeatedly committed a certain aveirah or haven’t kept a certain mitzvah, that it’s too late to change.
There are two lessons for us here. The first is that Hashem accepts anyone who wants to follow the right path, regardless of his past history. The second is that we also should never give up on anyone.
An incredible story told about Rav Moshe Feinstein shows this second point. There were some yeshiva boys hanging out together one night – boys who were more interested in causing mischief than learning. They were making prank phone calls, as kids sometimes do, but they took it to a shocking level. They decided to call Gedolei Yisrael and ask fake halachic questions. It was already late at night, and it was one boy’s turn to make a prank call to Rav Moshe Feinstein. Rav Moshe’s wife answered the phone and said that he was sleeping. She asked if this was so important that she should wake him. The boy said yes. When Rav Moshe got on the phone, the boy asked his question, and Rav Moshe immediately realized that it was a bogus question. Rather than reprimand the boy, Rav Moshe asked him what topic he was learning in Gemara. The boy told him, and Rav Moshe proceeded to tell him a question on the Tosfos to that Gemara. The boy confessed that he didn’t understand the question – and that he barely understood the Gemara itself.
It was past midnight, but Rav Moshe patiently explained to the boy the entire daf of Gemara, line by line, with Rashi and Tosfos. (It is said that Rav Moshe did this without even having the Gemara in front of him, such was his level of brilliance.) And when the boy still didn’t understand, Rav Moshe went over it all again, and then a third time. After an hour, when the Gemara finally made sense to the boy, Rav Moshe again told him the question on Tosfos. The boy heard it and recognized that it was a remarkable question. Rav Moshe told the boy that when they learn that Tosfos in yeshiva, he should ask this question. And that’s exactly what he did. The next day when his rebbe taught the Tosfos, the boy raised his hand and asked this question. The Rebbe exclaimed, “That’s incredible. Where did you get that kasha from?” The boy answered, “from Rav Moshe Feinstein.” Over the next few days, the Rebbe worked on this question, and when he finally came up with an answer, he excitedly shared it with the class. From that moment on the boy’s attitude in yeshiva radically changed. He focused on his learning and ended up becoming a great talmid chacham. He credits his achievement to the fact that Rav Moshe believed in him, which made him believe in himself.
What an incredible lesson for us – not to give up on anyone, and to recognize that everyone has potential. This also means not giving up on ourselves and doing our best to realize our own potential. This will help us all become the best version of ourselves.
