During the month of Tamuz we begin a period of mourning known
as the Three Weeks, which culminates next month on Tisha B'Av. What are we
mourning? Many tragic events for the Jewish people happened on Tisha B'Av,
including the destruction of the two Temples, the Expulsion from Spain, and
the outbreak of World War I, which is seen by many as the "beginning of the
end" for European Jewry.
At times of distress, such as those mentioned above, it is
only natural for a person to seek help and Psalm 121 addresses this subject.
It begins by asking the question
that any person in distress asks:
I raise my eyes to the mountains;
from where will my help
come? (121:1)
When we are in trouble, we frantically search the horizon for
any signs of rescue. And yet, as the psalmist goes on to tell us, if we want
to regain a sense of inner strength our best course of action is to turn our
gaze inwards.
My help is from God, Maker of heaven
and earth. (121:2)
Many people acknowledge that there is a Creator of the
universe - a "Maker of heaven and earth" - and yet this knowledge is not a
source of comfort to them when trouble strikes. A reason could be that for
them, God is only "out there" - a Being that is too far away to care about
them during their hour of distress.
However the psalmist tells us that this is not so:
He will not allow your foot to falter,
your Guardian will
not slumber.
Behold, He neither slumbers nor sleeps,
the Guardian of
Israel. (121: 3-4)
Not only is God near to us, He is always watching over us. But
does this mean that nothing bad will ever happen to us? And if so, how do we
explain the terrible suffering caused by the many suicide terrorist attacks?
With this juxtaposition of ideas, we learn something important
about how to perceive the world and its current events. If God "neither
slumbers nor sleeps," then nothing can happen without His willing it to
happen. He promises us that nothing that is harmful to the journey of our
souls during this lifetime can happen to us.
Because we live mainly in the physical world and only have a
glimmer of understanding about the soul's purpose in this world, it is only
natural that during times of trouble we concentrate on the physical suffering
that the body must sometimes endure. However, this psalm is asking us to
remember that we also have a soul - which is our true essence. And because the
soul is eternal and can never be destroyed by evil, the psalm concludes by
saying:
