Simchat Torah

Simchat Torah

The grand finale of the holiday of Succot is Simchat Torah lit. the
Happiness of the Torah.

Two questions arise from this:

1) Why don't we make the rejoicing immediately after the holiday of Shavous
(which is the Holiday celebrating the receiving of the Torah).

2) What is there to be happy about?

This story will begin to answer both questions.

There was once a king that had a very simple looking daughter. This king was
a very great and powerful ruler and therefore everyone was surprised when he
took a simple man for his son-in-law.

But the most surprised was the son in law himself.

He couldn't refuse the King, because Kings cannot be refused. But on the
other hand, he had great difficulty getting into the mood at the wedding
festivities. "Something must be really wrong here" he kept thinking to
himself as he kept nodding to everyone, and forcing the biggest smile he
could.

After several months however, he began to realize that his wife was very
normal and something even more wonderful than he could possibly imagine. He
began to think differently or her. In fact, he began to think that maybe he
was a also somehow a very special person if the King himself chose him to
take his daughter's hand.

So he made a great party and invited everyone, even the King himself
attended. In the middle he announced. "Today I am a very happy man, not only
have I gotten a royal wife but I myself am royalty" And the rejoicing was
unlimited!!

So to, when the Jews received the Torah they thought "Maybe there is
something wrong here, why is G-d giving us this, must be that no one else
wants it"

But after a while, when they realized that not only is the Torah a great
treasure, but also that G-d gave it to us because we are a special people we
rejoice"

One reason that the holiday comes after Succot is that the Holiday of Succot
celebrates the fact that G-d surrounded and protected the entire Jewish
nation with "Clouds of Glory" the entire forty years that they were in the
dessert. If so, we should celebrate it immediately after Pesech when these
Clouds began.

But instead we wait for the end of the Holidays of Judgment, Rosh HaShanna
and Yom Kippur to show that we won the case!! G-d still loves and protects
us, we are still His special beloved people despite all of our sins and
mess-ups the entire year.

The culmination of this love is Simchat Torah, reminding us that the reason
He loves us now is the same exact reason that He loved and chose us on that
wedding day 3300 years ago at Mount Sinai. Because we are special, the
direct relatives of Abraham Isaac and Jacob.

So we don't have to worry too much about what is happening in Israel now, no
matter what everyone thinks. Whether it is the weird identity-less Israeli
'government' or the Jew-haters of the world, It's not true.

We are G-d's people, G-d is the King of the entire creation, He gave us His
Torah because He loves us and He will protect us (like He did against the
Scud missiles) and show us great miracles and then we will really rejoice
with the Torah.

This is what the Jewish people have been waiting for, for thousands of
years, and praying for three times a day, " The Moshiach (tzemach Dovid)
please send fast because we wait for Your salvation ALL DAY"

And the Lubavitch Rebbe promised that it will happen NOW!

Chag Smeach with Moshiach NOW!!!!

Rabbi Tuvia Bolton
Yesiva Ohr Tmimimim
Kfar Chabad, Israel

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