Masaei: The Land’s Faithful

"You shall not defile the land in which you dwell, in whose midst I dwell, for I am Hashem Who dwells among the Children of Israel."(Numbers 35:34).
 
Rashi explains that since Hashem dwells among His chosen people even when they are spiritually contaminated, those who defile the land cause Hashem's Holy Presence to reside in contamination, a heinous transgression.
 
There's a world of difference between walking with muddy boots in a cow barn and in the King's palace. The cow barn is so soiled with impurity that a few additional clods of mud mean nothing. But, on the sparkling marble floors or on the exquisite Oriental carpets of the King's palace, even a small clod of mud is blatantly apparent and utterly unacceptable. One therefore wouldn't dare enter the royal dwelling with soiled shoes. Indeed, he or she would appear before the King with shoes immaculately polished to a mirror-like sheen.
 
One of the Torah's greatest praises of the Land of Israel is, "The eyes of Hashem, your G-d, are always upon it"[1]. Our sages explain that whereas each nation has an administering angel who implements Hashem's will in that given country, Hashem personally attends to the needs and affairs of the Land of Israel. Furthermore, the Land of Israel is the King's palace, as we learn here in the passage at hand, for Hashem dwells in the Land of Israel, permanently and not conditionally. This is a great privilege for those who dwell in the Holy Land, but also a major obligation and responsibility. Deeds that can be tolerated abroad are unacceptable within the boundaries of the Land of Israel.
 
In Hebrew, the Biblical tongue, the words "loyal" and "faithful" are both derived from the same root word, emuna. With this in mind, we can understand King David's description of those who merit dwelling with Hashem in the Holy Land: "My eyes are upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with Me."[2]"The faithful of the land" can therefore be interpreted as those who have emuna. Strengthening one's emuna is subsequently the best guarantee for success in the Land of Israel. The Gemara in tractate Ketubot refers to the Holy Land as the "land of emuna", for the level of Divine Providence is higher in Israel than abroad. Just as a higher level of conduct and deportment is required within the royal palace that outside, so too a higher level of emuna is demanded in the Land of Israel. If a simple transgression is much worse in Israel than it is abroad, then a breach of emuna is an outright contamination of "the King's palace".

Emuna, in the words of my esteemed and beloved teacher Rabbi Shalom Arush shlit'a, whose entire life is dedicated to spreading and strengthening emuna, entails three main points, as follows:
 
1.Everything is from Hashem – this is the first of the thirteen principles of the Rambam, that Hashem alone does, did and will do every deed. Ein Od Milvado – there is no one but Hashem. With this in mind, attributing one's grief or difficulties to anyone other than Hashem is total heresy.
 
2. Everything is for the very best – whether or not a person understands how a challenging situation is for his or her ultimate benefit does not alter the fact that everything Hashem does is the product of His limitless love for each of us and His concern for our welfare.
 
3. Everything has a purpose – none of us would do anything without an express purpose. It goes without saying that everything Hashem does has an express purpose, for everything is under His precision direction and guidance.
 
Any Jew, especially a Jew in the Land of Israel, must live with the above three points in mind always. We must remember that there is nothing without Hashem and nothing but Hashem. If our enemies succeed, it is because Hashem has enabled them to succeed. The answer to terror is not revenge and demonstrations, but teshuva and emuna. The "might of my right hand" attitude is a negation of emuna and a spiritual defilement of our Holy Land. Such an attitude in itself creates the negative spiritual forces that manifest themselves in terrorists, terror and other curses, Heaven forbid.
 
Just as we should live our emuna, we should never forget that Hashem is in our midst. Loyal subjects can and must always depend on their mighty King. There is no one else.