INSIGHTS:
The Young and the Fearless
What our children can teach us in the face of disaster
Illegal Entry
When even the highest authority cannot keep the queen from her king

The Young and the Fearless
by Dovi Scheiner

Haman[1] was in high spirits as he exited the palace gates. His hateful plot, calling for the destruction of the Jewish people, had just received the endorsement of King Ahasuerus.

In the distance, Haman spotted his arch-enemy Mordechai, who had encountered three young Jewish students as they were returning home from school and had paused to engage them in conversation. Haman edged closer to overhear their discussion.

“What did you learn in school today?” Mordechai questioned the children. The first child replied, “Do not fear sudden terror, nor the destruction by the wicked when it comes.”[2] The second child responded, “Contrive a scheme, but it will be foiled; conspire a plot, but it will not materialize, for G-d is with us.”[3] “To your old age I am [with you]; to your hoary years I will sustain you; I have made you, and I will carry you; I will sustain you and deliver you,”[4] answered the third child.

Hearing the childrens’ replies, Mordechai’s heart brimmed with joy. Unable to contain himself, Haman approached Mordechai demanding that he explain the sudden improvement in his mood. Mordechai responded, “I rejoice in the good news the children have brought me, that I should not fear the evil plot you have conspired against my people.” Haman became enraged, vowing that when his plot materialized, he would strike the children first!

Haman’s plot imperiled the fate of the entire Jewish people. In this extreme period of crises, the eyes of every Jew focused on their leader Mordechai, wondering what his response would be. Remarkably, upon becoming aware of this grave threat, Mordechai’s first act was to engage a number of school children in conversation. What did Mordechai hope to glean from the children and what was it about their message that reassured him?

The hearts of the children that Mordechai encountered were full with faith. Their comments reveal their reliance upon G-d in dealing with three kinds of struggles. The first child speaks of faith in its simplest form, when faced with devastation and destruction. When “the destruction by the wicked comes” and all hope seems lost, G-d may still be found. Our faith in His underlying beneficence and compassion helps us withstand our most painful struggles. The second child has faith that “the plots of our enemies will not materialize.” He expresses the belief that G-d is at all times working for our protection, even where we are unmindful of impending danger. The third child shows faith in the face of the seemingly inescapable frailties accompanying “old age.”  As nature takes its course, we trust that G-d is “with us,” to help “sustain and deliver us.”

Faith forms the foundation of our people. Through our faith we connect with G-d and in the merit of our faith we are afforded Divine protection. Mordechai appreciated that when our faith is firm we are invincible and that when our faith falters we become vulnerable. He knew that the people had compromised their relationship with G-d, when they bowed before a “statue of gold”[5] erected by King Nebuchadnezzar, whose reign preceded that of Ahasuerus by some thirty years.[6] Mordechai wandered the streets of Shushan in search of a definitive sign, a clue to clarify the true standing of the ongoing relationship between the Jewish people and G-d. He knew that the fate of the Jewish people now, as always, relied upon the state of their faith and dedication to G-d.

Mordechai wandered and he wondered, but when he encountered the young students returning home from school, he wondered no more. As Mordechai experienced the unblemished faith held by these children, he knew that the heart of the nation was in the right place, or, if not yet, that it would soon be. In so eloquently expressing their unbending faith in the deliverance of the A-mighty, in the face of oppression both potential and actual, the children reassured Mordechai that the soul of the people stood steadfast and secure. In the event that the elders could not match the intensity of these youngsters, the children could be counted on to fan the flames of faith.

So how do you take the pulse of a people? You speak with the children! In the running of a nation, the youth comprise the engine. If we teach our children to fear none other than Almighty G-d, then they will in turn inspire us to truly connect with the very values we preach. In the merit of the pure faith of our children, our people will forever stand secure, as we read in Psalms, “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings You have established strength, because of Your enemies, to silence foe and avenger.”[7] Now more than ever, this is a lesson we cannot afford to overlook… our “homeland security” depends on it!

Adapted from a talk of the Rebbe, Purim 5726[8]

All servants of the king... know, that any man or woman who shall come to the king, to the inner courtyard, unsummoned, there is one law for him—to be put to death—unless the king extends to him the golden scepter...

Thus, I shall go to the king, unlawfully; and if I perish, I shall perish...

Esther, 4:11-16

The Torah, say our sages, speaks of the physical realm and alludes to the spiritual realm.[9] On the surface, it narrates the physical history of Israel and lays down the laws of physical life; but within its words lies a spiritual story and a spiritual law, charting the supernal relationship between G-d and His people and legislating the inner life of the soul.

Thus, chassidic teaching explores the inner dimension of the Book of Esther, which tells the story of Purim. On the “physical” level, we read about the Persian King Achashverosh, the heroic Queen Esther, the wicked Haman, etc. On the esoteric level, King Achashverosh is “the King Whom the beginning and the end are His,”[10] Queen Esther is kenesset yisrael, the collective soul of the people of Israel, and the entire story describes the sublime drama of their relationship.

Therein lies the deeper significance of the above-quoted lines, spoken by Queen Esther to Mordechai. Generally speaking, there is an array of laws that govern who may enter into the “inner courtyard” and under what circumstances. There are certain ways in which we are permitted to approach G-d, and certain areas into which we are forbidden entry. As all servants of the King know, there are places where no mortal dare venture.

But there comes a time when a soul must go to her King, lawfully or not. A time when nothing matters—not the penalty for unbidden entry, not the illegality of the deed—save the need to storm the gates of the King’s most intimate chamber and arouse His mercy upon His subjects.

Based on an address by the Rebbe, Purim 5711 (1951)

Adapted from the teachings of the Rebbe by Yanki Tauber