All Hell is Going to Break Out... But Which Hell Exactly?
We all heard the President’s threat to our enemies: All hell is going to break out. And the phrase struck me curiously, because I’m not sure we all understand the word “hell” the same way.
In almost ever class I have taught, during some Q&A, someone raises the question “Do Jews believe in Hell?” It’s a complicated question, because it requires deprogramming ourselves from the Western/Christian notion of reward and punishment.
As far as our tradition is concerned, Hashem wants each of us to live full and productive lives of Torah, Avodah and Chessed. He also wants us to understand the destructive nature of living in opposition to these ideals. In the event that a person neglects to do Teshuva for their errors, Hashem in His great kindness gifts us the chance to fix up our mistakes once we leave this world. In place of doing the hard work of fixing ourselves in this world, we carry that over to the next world. That’s Gehinom in a nutshell.
Fascinatingly however, Chazal (ערובין יט:א) tells us that there are three openings to Gehinom in this world!
וְאָמַר רַבִּי יִרְמְיָה (בַּר) אֶלְעָזָר: שְׁלֹשָׁה פְּתָחִים יֵשׁ לַגֵּיהִנָּם, אֶחָד בַּמִּדְבָּר וְאֶחָד בַּיָּם וְאֶחָד בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם.
And Rabbi Yirmeya ben Elazar also said: There are three entrances to Gehenna, one in the wilderness, one in the sea, and one in Jerusalem.
The Gemara goes on cite various pesukim, proving that these Openings to Hell exist in these three locations. But the entire discussion seems peculiar; being that Hell is experienced by the soul. Why then would there need to be entry points in this world?
The Maharal (גבורות ה’ מז) explains:
Our sages are teaching us that there are three fundamental principles in the Torah, each of each were taught to us in a particular place.
- Hashem is Real, and there is no force or power outside of Him. This was the paradigmatic lesson of Yetzias Mitzrayim, which culminated in the crossing of Yam Suf.
- The Torah is Real. This was the lesson which we learned in the desert, standing at the foot of Har Sinai.
- Hashem cares about the affairs of humanity, and is directing human history. This truth is experienced most palpably in Eretz Yisrael, and even more so in Yerushalayim.
In each of these “places” there is a distinct possibility of missing the point. Failure to absorb the profundity of these truths, then, is an entryway into a life of depravity and immorality. Essentially, the denial of any of these three principles will necessitate a painful process of Teshuva in this world or the next.
The Maharal goes on to explain that these three foundations are repeated and reviewed every year as we experience the Shalosh Regalim: Pesach reminds us that Hashem is Real, Shavuos reminds us that the Torah is Real, and Succos reminds us that Hashem cares about us.
To that end, I’d like to suggest that in this war which Klal Yisrael is fighting, there is in fact the possibility for All Hell to break out. (And it would seem that the President was unwittingly expressing a deeper truth than he knew.)
At this perilous stage in the conflict, we need to remember that the goal of the war is not just about bringing back the hostages; nor is it simply to destroy Hamas. Both of these aims are essential obligations. The primary aim of the war is to restore the honor and stature of Klal Yisrael as the nation of Hashem.
Throughout our long and tumultuous history, we have been attacked, murdered, raped and kidnapped for many “reasons”. And behind all of them is the the truth that we represent the possibility for humanity to transcend the violence and hedonism that has defined most of history.
We are the people who taught the world that Hashem is real, His Torah is true and He cares about the things we do.
We don’t know what this Shabbos will bring. Perhaps our brave soldiers will once again engage in full-scale combat. Perhaps we will see the surrender of our enemies and the return of our brothers and sisters from inhumane captivity.
Either way, our goal remains the same: Ensuring that we, in our own lives, are closing our gateways to Gehinom. If we are successful, perhaps we will soon merit the swift end to all those who attempt to deny the destiny of Hashem’s People. When that day comes, the gates of Hell will finally slam shut for good – ביום ההוא יהיה ה’ אחד ושמו אחד.