Page 34 - HaMizrachi #26 Tu Bishvat USA 2021

THE PEOPLE AND THE LAND RAV KOOK’S TEACHINGS

Rabbi Chanan Morrison

Our Ties to the

Land of Israel

fter King David brought the – and Eretz Yisrael. This is our special Specific Connection
Holy Ark to Jerusalem, he com- portion in the Land. and Eternal Ties
Amanded the Levites to play their In a 1906 letter, Rav Kook discussed
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lyres and harps and sing G-d’s praises. the nature of this personal connection This is the meaning of David’s com-
mand. The verse starts with the indi-
He instructed them to thank G-d for His to Eretz Yisrael. The special distinc- vidual level: “to each of you I give the
many kindnesses, including the special tion of Jerusalem, the great mitzvah to Land.” It then adds the national level:
ָ
gift of Eretz Yisrael: ן ַ עָנ ְּ כ ץ ֶ ר ֶ א ת ֶ א ן ֵּ ת ֶ א ך ְ ל live there and develop the city, is well “the portion of your [collective] inheri-
ם ֶ כ ְ ת ַ ל ֲ חַנ ל ֶ ב ֶ ח. known. But if this is the case, why do tance.” Our bonds to the Land of Israel
“[G-d] established it to Ya’akov as a we find lofty tzadikim who chose to include our own personal connection
statute, an eternal covenant to Israel, live in other cities in Israel? Why don’t to the Land as well as the nation’s eter-
saying: To each of you I give the land they all make their home in Jerusalem? nal ties.
of Canaan, the portion of your inher- Rav Kook answered that every location This double connection is also
itance” (Tehillim 105:10–11; Divrei in Israel has its own unique holiness. reflected in the phrase ם ֶ כ ְ ת ַ ל ֲ חַנ ל ֶ ב ֶ ח,
HaYamim 16:17–18). As an example, Rav Kook noted some “the portion of your inheritance.” This
of the special spiritual qualities of Jaffa
The Hebrew text contains a gram- (where he then served as Chief Rabbi): phrase appears to be self-contradic-
matical difficulty not apparent in the the place where the prophet Jonah vis- tory, for chevel means a set, measured
translation. The verse opens with ited, and its role in the construction of area of land, while the word nachala
G-d’s promise to give each individual Solomon’s Temple. indicates an eternal inheritance for all
(ך ְ ל, in the singular) a portion of the times. Is our inheritance both mea-
Land of Israel. But the verse concludes “Jerusalem is highly cherished, its holi- sured and boundless?
ness is an overall holiness, and its set-
by referring to the Land of Israel as tlement takes precedence [over other In fact, our ties to Eretz Yisrael encom-
Background illustration of Rav Kook courtesy of www.gedolimcanvas.com
ם ֶ כ ְ ת ַ ל ֲ חַנ, using the plural “you” – your places in the Land of Israel]. Never- pass both aspects. We have a spe-
collective inheritance. theless, each tzadik perceived in his cific portion in the Land, our chevel,

Why this switch from singular to distinct inner soul that he belonged to according to our unique soul-qualities.
And we share eternal bonds to the
plural? the particular holiness associated with Land, our nachala, as members of the
a certain location, so he established his Jewish people, party to G-d’s “eternal
Two Connections residence there.” covenant with Israel.”
Rav Kook explained that we connect Rav Kook added that this was certainly Adapted from Olat Re’iyah vol. I, p. 203.
to the Land of Israel on two levels. true for the various tribes of Israel.
Our first connection is through the Each tribe was prophetically assigned
an area in Eretz Yisrael that corre-
ties that connect the Jewish people as sponded to its own unique spiritual 1 Igrot HaRe’iyah I, p. 35.
a whole to the Land of Israel. This is qualities.
an eternal bond for all generations.
Of course, our special ties to the Land
But there exists an additional layer: of Israel do not have to be expressed
the special connection between each geographically. We may find our con-
individual Jew and the Land of Israel. nection to Eretz Yisrael in a particular
There is a distinct match between sphere of occupation, building up the
each individual – according to his or Land in some material or spiritual Rabbi Chanan Morrison is the author of
her unique talents and soul-qualities fashion. several books on Rav Kook’s writings.

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