Community Magazine January 2017

22 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE On the other hand, just as the Or Hahaim predicted, we are also witnessing an equally stunning resurgence of Torah. With every new level of impurity to which society falls, a new yeshiva, or several new yeshivot, open. With the launch of every internet site promoting decadence, there are dozens of new Torah books published, andnewTorah lecturesmade available online. For every soul that is lost to our culture of unrestrained indulgence, countless new chairs and desks are added to religious schools. For every Jewish youngster who falls prey to the secularist forces that abound in contemporary society, untold numbers of students enroll in institutions of advanced Torah learning. As He always does, Gd sent us the cure even before the illness. The process of forming the foundations of Torah learning on these shores was a long, difficult and grueling one, an achievement owed to the Herculean efforts of our parents and grandparents, but the process succeeded and the foundations were set in place just in time. Thanks to their hard work and sacrifice, and with the help of Gd’s unmistakable assistance, the explosion of Torah learning in our generation was well underway by the time we found ourselves mired in the shocking (let’s hope we still find it shocking…) abyss of decadence and immorality in which society finds itself. It is no coincidence that the number of Daf Yomi participants has grown exponentially specifically in the last two decades. It is no coincidence that the Talmud was translated into a readily accessible English format – and into other languages – specifically in our generation. It is no coincidence that the internet, the same tool that is used to spread the very worst aspects of mankind, has also been instrumental in spreading Torah throughout the world and inspiring Jewish souls far and wide. It is no coincidence that the same technology that is luring people off the path of Torah is being harnessed to learn, teach and disseminate Torah at the very highest levels. It is no coincidence that specifically our generation boasts yeshivot consisting of thousands of students diligently and passionately poring over sacred texts day and night. And it is no coincidence that specifically in our generation we are blessed with an unprecedented level of affluence that has enabled generous donors to support Torah study and dissemination on a scale that the world has never before seen. This is not some quirk of history. There is no irony whatsoever. This is precisely what the Or Hahaim foresaw: a generation that has fallen to the 50 th level of impurity, saving itself by hanging onto its “lifeboat” – its sacred Torah tradition. Just as Gd sent Moshe Rabbenu to save our ancestors from the spiritual quagmire of Egypt, He has facilitated a remarkable resurgence of Torah to save our current generation from the spiritual quagmire of contemporary society. He has given us precisely what we need to rescue ourselves and bring the final redemption. King Shlomo famously called Torah an “ etz haim – tree of life” (Mishle 3:18). When a person is being swept away by a powerful current, and as he feels himself starting to lose strength, he suddenly sees a large log floating in the water, he will use every last bit of energy he can muster to reach that log. Dedicated in memory of the pure neshamot of the Sassoon children