Rav Berland’s Words for Memorial Day

MEMORIAL DAY FOR FALLEN SOLDIERS OF THE WARS OF ISRAEL AND VICTIMS OF ACTS OF TERROR – AM YISRAEL UNITES TODAY TO REMEMBER THE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JEWS WHO MERITED TO BE KILLED FOR KIDDUSH HASHEM (THE SANCTIFICATION OF HASHEM’S NAME), VICTIMS OF MURDEROUS TERROR ATTACKS AND SOLDIERS WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES TO DEFEND AM YISRAEL IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL.

ON THE OCCASION OF MEMORIAL DAY, WE BRING THE WORDS OF MOREINU HARAV ELIEZER BERLAND SHLIT”A ON THE LEVEL OF THOSE KILLED FOR KIDDUSH HASHEM.

“He lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, three men were standing over him, and he saw and ran to welcome them at the entrance to the tent, and he bowed on the ground” (Bereishit 18:2).  It is written “[he] saw” twice.  It is not written what he saw.  “He saw three men” – these were the angels Michael, Rafael, and Gavriel -- Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov.  Therefore, it is written another time “saw.”  It is not written what he saw.  The Midrash says that he saw here the Ten Martyrs, because Avraham ran to welcome the Ten Martyrs.  Anyone who is killed for Kiddush Hashem, Avraham comes out to welcome them.  “He saw and ran to welcome them at the entrance to the tent,” and he bows to the souls that are killed for Kiddush Hashem!  All of this is alluded to here.  “I said, ‘I saw and behold, a golden menorah.’”  Whoever is killed for Kiddush Hashem becomes a golden menorah, “a menorah of pure gold,” because all Am Yisrael are menorahs – a golden menorah.  There are no wicked among Am Yisrael, there’s no such thing.  Everyone does teshuva (repentance), everyone regrets.  At that second, that moment, everyone regrets.  Because the moment that a person commits a transgression, a heavenly voice emerges and tells him, “You transgressed, ‘how long will fools love foolishness?’” (Mishlei 1:22).

“His eye beheld all that is precious” (Iyov 28:10) – this refers to those who were sacrificed for Kiddush Hashem.  Hashem smelled the scent of religious persecution.  Hashem smelled that this was a pleasing fragrance – this is a generation of religious persecution.  When a person dies for Kiddush Hashem, this is the highest thing that can possibly be!  There is nothing higher than this.  A person comes into this world only to leave with Kiddush Hashem – for this he comes into the world, the entire creation.  “His eye beheld all that is precious” – this is referring to all those who die for Kiddush Hashem.  The main thing is to die for Kiddush Hashem.  We only came to this world to die for Kiddush Hashem – this is the only reason we were created.  Rabbi Natan writes in prayer 87, that the first prayer a person needs to pray is, “I want to die for Kiddush Hashem, that on my last day there will be a Kiddush Hashem” -- that a person will live 120 years like Rabbi Akiva, and on his last day, there will a Kiddush Hashem!  It is written that the Beit Yosef (Rabbi Yosef Karo) died for Kiddush Hashem.  But he died a natural death?!  They say, “No!  There are such inner sufferings.”  The Rebbe says that already one doesn’t require any suffering, because I took all sufferings onto myself.

A Jew who merits to be killed for Kiddush Hashem ascends straight to Gan Eden.  There is no such thing as killing a Jew!!!  A Jew ascends straight to Gan Eden!

Rabbi Akiva’s disciples said to him: Rabbeinu – to such a degree?!  He said to them: “All my days, I was pained by this verse, ‘will all your soul’ – even if your soul is taken.  When will this verse come to me that I should fulfill it.  All my life I was pained – when will it come to me that I should fulfill it!  I waited for this verse from the day I was born, from the age of forty, I waited for this moment that they would scrape my flesh with iron combs.”  Moshe was taken aback.  God said to him, “Silence, so it rose to thought at the beginning.”

All those who are dying for Kiddush Hashem…today, every day, people are dying for Kiddush Hashem, then “No eye has seen, O God, but You” (Yeshayahu 64:3).  It is written that whoever dies for Kiddush Hashem, no creature can comprehend his reward, his light.  Then, he basks in the radiance of the Shechinah (Divine presence).  He learns Torah from the mouth of the Kadosh Baruch Hu.  Even someone who was Hiloni (secular) their entire lifetime -- but the moment that they die for Kiddush Hashem, even someone who was totally wicked, everything is forgiven for them, and they learn Torah from the mouth of the Kadosh Baruch Hu!

So is this the Torah and its reward?!  The Kadosh Baruch said to Moshe, “Silence!”  All this is brought in Lesson 64 (Likutey Moharan).  All Lesson 64 is about, “Silence!”  Anyone who dies for Kiddush Hashem, his reward is such that “no eye has seen, O God, but You.”  No eye has seen it.  No eye can see it.  Anyone who is killed for Kiddush Hashem now – every day, we hear about more and more soldiers who are killed now for Kiddush Hashem, then one has to say, “No eye has seen, O God, but You.”  They merit to a level that no creature can merit to, even during the resurrection of the dead!!

(THE SHIURIM WERE COLLECTED AND EDITED A LITTLE.  IF YOU FOUND AN ERROR IT SHOULD BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE EDITOR, AND NOT, CHAS V’SHALOM, TO MOREINU HARAV SHLIT”A)