I've Lost Everything, But I Haven't Lost Hashem

The esteemed Rabbi Kolledecki Shlita shared with me: When, after World War II, they described to the Chazon Ish zt"l all the horrors that occurred during the Holocaust with the murder of millions of our people, because in Israel they were unaware of it during the war, only afterwards, the Chazon Ish expressed in one sentence and said: "Only a merciful creator like Hashem can perform such surgery!"

This sentence was explained by the esteemed Rabbi Nissim Karelitz Shlita, the nephew of the Chazon Ish. A father whose son is sick and requires the removal of a growth from his body, but due to other health issues the son has, cannot be put under anesthesia, and thus this operation needs to be performed while he is conscious – no person can cut into his living flesh and remove the growth from him. Who can endure his screams and immense pain? However, the only one who could do so is the father, whose mercy on his son is boundless, the one who would sacrifice himself for his son and overcome his emotions in order to save his child.

The Chazon Ish says, during the Holocaust we underwent unbearable surgery, only a merciful one like Hashem could perform such surgery in order to bring us to our destiny and rectify our souls in the world of souls, which is the true paradise for the soul. Only the Creator, who knows the value of the soul compared to the body, can seemingly be cruel to the body in such a manner in order to save the soul.

Here we have an illustration of how one who recognizes Hashem as "Our Father" and not just "Our King," perceives. Those whose perspective ends at "Our King," exclaim: Where is Hashem...??? Where is the mercy...??? And other similar expressions. However, one who perceives the Creator in completeness – Our Father, Our King – his thoughts are completely different; only a merciful one like Hashem can perform such surgery...

"I Haven't Lost Hashem"

A living example of one who feels Hashem as a compassionate Father, who no forces in the world could move from his place, is the holy Rabbi Yekutiel Yehuda Halberstam of Sanz-Klausenberg. Below is a brief description of his resilient spirit and faith in Hashem even in situations of bodily and psychological devastation:

Our teacher went through the seven circles of Gehenna that the accursed German tyrant, may his name be blotted out, established on earth, starting from the labor camps in Hungary, through the Warsaw Ghetto, the extermination camps of Auschwitz, Dachau, and others. He lost his wife and eleven children in the camps, who were killed sanctifying Hashem's name. Yet despite everything, his spirit was not broken, and he continued to live a life of Torah and kindness even there, in the shadow of death.

Immediately upon hearing from the American soldiers about the liberation, our teacher renewed his youth like an eagle. Not only did he continue himself in the ways of his holy forefathers in Torah and divine service, but he also immediately "teached to teach others," calling loudly "Whoever is for Hashem, come to me" and revived hope in the hearts of the despairing and mournful.

Our Rabbi restored faith to those far away and to those whose doubt gnawed at their hearts after the wrathful years they endured. He successfully rehabilitated thousands physically and spiritually, even when he himself had nothing. He cared for hundreds of orphans, married off hundreds of daughters. Even there, in the camps in Germany, he established a network of Talmud Torahs, small and large yeshivas, kollels for Talmud study, and Beit Yaakov schools, completing everything that was lacking for the surviving remnant.

When he ascended to the Holy Land, he established neighborhoods in Netanya and then in Jerusalem that included all educational and charitable institutions needed, homes for the elderly and sick, facilities for children, and more. In Netanya, he even founded a unique institution, the Laniado Hospital. He undertook massive projects that in the natural order required superhuman strengths, and not only that, he also authored seven volumes of responsa on Jewish law.

He, who experienced the Holocaust and its horrors, who seemingly should have been broken in body and soul, knew how to rise above his personal hardships and alone undertook to rebuild the ruins. If the achievements of the Rebbe were not recorded in writing, deeds that our eyes beheld, the future generations certainly wouldn't believe that one individual, a Holocaust survivor, was capable of setting aside his tribulations from the valley of tears and dedicating himself entirely to the service of Hashem for the sake of the community.

The secret of his success to overcome the sufferings of Job, especially the loss of his family, was explained by the holy Rebbe when he said: "I've lost all my family, I've lost everything – but I have not lost Hashem."

Only a Merciful One Like Hashem Can Perform Such a Surgery

The Rebbe of Sanz zt"l is one of many examples of the great and holy who lost their families and were not broken; on the contrary, they rose and elevated themselves in faith in Hashem, rebuilt families, and returned to the joy of life to the point where nothing was recognizable upon them. How did they maintain their stance? Amidst hidden faces, amidst complex trials they underwent, how did they remain faithful to Hashem? The answer is one: Only a merciful one like Hashem can perform such a surgery...!

The Rebbe of Sanz used to say: There is no Jew in the Holocaust who cannot tell of a "bag of miracles" that his eyes saw even in the most horrendous events.

This is what gives the believers the strength of faith, to see the points of light even in the curtain of darkness, the miracles of Hashem that show us in dark situations signs that say: Here I am with you... you are not forsaken... you are not abandoned...

The Creator's Perspective Versus Our Perspective

Man is composed of body and soul. People in the world see the body as the main thing, trembling and amazed at the loss of the body or the property much more than the loss of the soul. For example, a person whose car is damaged, whose leg or arm is injured, it captures his entire world, and that person, on the same day, if he neglected to attend a Torah lesson or a prayer, ignored the poor and wretched, harmed his neighbor and so on, does not pay attention to it to the point of anxiety and pain. This is human perspective, to see the sorrow of the body and wealth as dreadful and the sorrow of the soul as not dreadful.

In contrast, the perspective of the Creator is the opposite, to view the sorrow of the soul as dreadful and to give it healing and rectification even at the expense of the secondary body’s sorrow. Therefore, Hashem does not refrain from chastising the body, and if necessary, even with severe blows, the primary goal is to preserve the soul.

Not because we do not understand and see the true relationship between the body and the soul will Hashem refrain from acting according to the truth. An example of this is like a businessman dealing in bicycle marketing, with dozens or hundreds of bicycles intended for marketing every week, and his only son pleaded for one bicycle and the father, under no circumstances, acquiesced to his son’s request. When the father was asked why he does not address his son’s request, he replied: I know my son is irresponsible, and when a bicycle is in his hands, he might end up under the wheels of cars. Hence, the father cannot address the perspective of the son who views his father as cruel or stingy; the father must address the matter according to its true essence. So too, Hashem’s attitude towards us is according to the truth, and as much as possible with kindness and mercy, but entirely addressing us according to our understanding is impossible.

In the book "Life in Faith" by the esteemed Rabbi Yaakov Israel Kanievsky zt"l, it is written: "We see in it the finger of Hashem, for the beginning of the yoke’s removal, Heaven forbid, was organized in Ashkenaz, and from there spread to other countries, and also the decree to kill and destroy all the Jews came from that wicked country." Thus far are his words.

The article is taken from the book "Living in Faith." To purchase the book by Rabbi Yaakov Israel Lugasi click here.