When It’s Possible to Live in Israel, It’s Forbidden to Live in Another Place

THE DAILY CHIZZUK BY MOREINU HARAV ELIEZER BERLAND SHLIT”A – THE LETTER OF THE OR SAMEACH TO THE SAN REMO CONFERENCE

TUESDAY, 23 KISLEV 5785 – “IF TEN SECULAR JEWS COME TO ISRAEL, TWENTY TORAH-OBSERVANT JEWS NEED TO COME TO ISRAEL”

These are his holy words:

NOW I READ THE OR SAMEACH ON THE SAN REMO DECLARATION.  THE SAN REMO CONFERENCE WAS AFTER THE BALFOUR DECLARATION.  AUSTRIA, CANADA, AND FRANCE CAME TO THE CONFERENCE AND SAID THAT THIS COUNTRY BELONGS TO THE JEWS.

There was an announcement there of all the nations except for the Arabs.  It was said there that if the Arabs didn’t agree, it was irrelevant; the Arabs must agree, Arafat must agree, Sadat must agree.  But all the nations already agreed immediately after the Balfour Declaration.  This was on 7 Cheshvan, the 2nd of November, 1917 – 5678.

This was before they conquered Jerusalem.  Jerusalem was conquered on Erev Chanukah.  Everything was already divided up in the east – this belongs to this sheik, this to Abdallah, this to the Aluwites, this to the Sunnis.  They divided up the entire Middle East, and didn’t give anything to the Jews.  The division was in 5676.  Now it was 5678, on 17 Cheshvan, the 2nd of November.

Balfour was one of the lords in the British parliament, and a number of lords worked it out so that they would also give the Jews something.  They distributed it only to Arabs, but in Jerusalem, there were already 50,000 Jews.  25,000 remained, because there was cholera, typhus, everything.  So from 50,000, there remained 25,000.  Read the book about Rabbi Chaim Sonnenfeld, where everything is described.

Then they decided in the British government to also give to the Jews; also the Jews need to receive something.  So they marked out what belongs to the Jews, and then all the nations gathered in San Remo – the Or Sameach says this.  In San Remo in Italy, the entire world gathered, all the enlightened kingdoms, and they issued an order that the Land of Israel would be for the Jewish people.  All the nations decided, and “with the permission of the kings, the fear of the oaths has been removed,” – the oath [to not go up to the Land of Israel en masse] was nullified.

In San Remo, they said: No, if Arafat still doesn’t agree, then the oath hasn’t been nullified.  We need for Arafat to agree.  Why doesn’t Arafat agree?

Someone from the Shin Bet travelled to Arafat.  Arafat said for him to come, “I’ll explain to him why I don’t agree.”  He said: “Listen, from Morocco to Adel, it’s all Arabs.  Why have you entered here in the middle?  Go to Johannesburg, take some island in the Pacific Ocean.  Why are you entering here in the middle?”

Arafat explained to the head of the Shin Bet, who came to meet him there in Beirut: “Everyone here are Muslims.  I don’t have anything against you,” he said.  “But why live here?  Go to another place.  Why did you choose to live precisely here, where from Morocco to Adel to Saudi Arabia, it’s all Arabs?”

In San Remo, they said that as long as Arafat doesn’t agree, it’s forbidden to come to the Land of Israel.  You need to go to Auschwitz, to the ovens there.  The Or Sameach said all of this.  And everything is with the permission of the kings, he said.  The fear of the oaths has been removed, and now we are with the permission of the kings.  The mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel has been revived, and everyone signed – all the Admorim, the Admor of Gur.  He was here in the year 5698.  Altogether, he was in the Land of Israel five times [5681, 5684, 5689, 5695, 5698].  After this, already after the war, he returned for the sixth time.

HE WAS HERE DURING PASSOVER AND SAID, “I AM MAKING ONE DAY OF YOM TOV.  I AM ALREADY [A RESIDENT] OF THE LAND OF ISRAEL.”  THEN HE SAID: “NOW I AM TRAVELLING IN ORDER TO BRING OVER 500 FAMILIES, BECAUSE WHOEVER CAME HERE, IMMEDIATELY GOT RID OF THE TEFILLIN.  EVERYONE WERE HILONIM (SECULAR JEWS).  ONLY HILONIM CAME.  BECAUSE THE MOMENT THAT IN 5657 (1897), THERE WAS THE [FIRST ZIONIST] CONGRESS, THEY [THE RELIGIOUS JEWS] SAID, “IF THE HILONIM RULE HERE, WE AREN’T COMING.”  BUT THIS NEEDS TO BE THE OPPOSITE.  IF THEY BRING TEN, THEN BRING TWENTY.  IF THEY BRING A THOUSAND, THEN BRING TWO-THOUSAND.  PEOPLE WANTED TO COME TO ISRAEL.  THERE WAS NO PROBLEM IN BRINGING TWO-THOUSAND, BUT IN THE MEANTIME, THERE WAS ALREADY THE DECREE OF THE WHITE PAPER [WHICH SEVERELY LIMITED IMMIGRATION].

So already now, it was “with the permission of the kings.”  All the kings gathered at the San Remo Conference – Canada, America, France, England.  And with permit of the kings, the mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel – which weighs equal to all the mitzvot of the Torah – was reestablished, and they didn’t relent on it.

IT IS WRITTEN IN SIFRI TO LIVE IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL, THAT IF IT’S POSSIBLE TO LIVE THERE, ONE SHOULDN’T LIVE IN ANOTHER PLACE.  IT’S FORBIDDEN TO LIVE IN THE EXILE.  THEREFORE, PEOPLE ARE ILL.  “UNTIL WHEN WILL YOU AVOID IT.”  AND IF HASHEM YITBARACH WILL GRANT AND EXPAND THE MATTER, THEN IT WILL GROW AND SPROUT LIKE A ROSEBUSH, LIKE IT GREW IN THE DAYS OF HATTIRSHATHA, WHEN THEY WERE UNDER THE PERSIANS.  ALSO THEN, IN THE TIME OF THE SECOND TEMPLE, IT IS WRITTEN THAT NOT EVERYONE CAME.  THEREFORE, THEY WERE LACKING FIVE THINGS IN THE SECOND TEMPLE.

https://vimeo.com/1041615042