Who’s Afraid to Go Outside?
Rav Menachem Mendel of Lisk, the father of Rav Naftali Tzvi of Ropshitz, was a paradigm of the mitzvah of Hachnosas Orchim. This was true all year, but especially on Sukkos, when we welcome the Ushpizin. The Zohar Hakadosh speaks strongly about the obligation to welcome human guests into one’s Sukkah in addition to our saintly spiritual guests.
When he arrived home one Sukkos night, he was dismayed to find that there were no guests who had been invited. And so he refused to begin the meal until he found guests to eat with him But his young son was hungry, and anxious to begin. When he saw that his father would not make Kiddush until a guest was found, he decided to take matters in his own hands.
The boy took an old bekesha and an old shtreimel that had been his father’s. He went out to the street and found a non-Jewish man and told him that if he put on this disguise, he would be given a really good meal. Of course, the non-Jew agreed, and the boy proudly brought the guest that he had found to the Sukkah.
When the Lisker Rebbe saw the guest, he was overjoyed. He went to say Kiddush, unaware the guest was a gentile from the street.
In the middle of the seudah, however, he realized that his son had fooled him. He asked the boy, “Naftali, what’s this? Why did you bring a goy into my Sukkah?”
The Ropshitzer Rebbe answered, “Tatteh, tonight is the Ushpizin of Avrohom Avinu. Tell me Tatteh, what type of guests did Avrohom Avinu have? Did he not also have non-Jews in his home? How could it bother you that a goy is sitting at your table with a shtreimel?”
If we zoom out from the war for just a moment, it’s important to remember that there’s a dream that we are fighting for. A dream that we will inspire all of humanity.
That's the tefillah of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur – that the whole world will recognize that Hashem is King. We are yearning for a day that the Beis HaMikdash will be a place of tefillah for all people.
But engaging with the rest of the world is so complicated, so fraught, and we're rightfully cautious about our involvements and interactions. We're worried about anti-semitism, and the influence of outside cultures. We know of the dangers to the chinuch of our children and our personal safety.
But beyond all the pragmatic concerns, there is a deeper issue: That we’re simply not confident enough in the righteousness of our lifestyle. We're not comfortable in our own skin.
Addressing this fear, the Sifsei Chaim on Chumash notes that Sukkos is the opposite of Pesach. On the night we left Egypt, we were instructed to stay confined inside. Indeed, for all generations, the Korban Pesach must be eaten indoors, in one place.
But on Succos, we are obligated to leave. We sit outside, exposed to the elements, with the confidence that Hashem has our backs. Cleaned from the faults and failures that have held us back, we venture boldly into a the world to represent Hashem and His Torah.
More than any other time of the year, Sukkos is the festival of bitachon; the knowledge that eventually we will win.
May we merit to see it soon.