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The aptitude for sanctity is passed down from the patriarchs from generation to generation forever. This gives life and strength to every individual in Israel and eternal hope for the nation. That is why we [still, after all the time periods of the apparent cessation of the zchut avot] say in tefilla, "and He remembers the goodness of the patriarchs and brings redemption to their descendants." What did change and can change is that the sins of the whole and the individual can cause the great light to disappear for periods of time so that it is not revealed in the life of the nation. This causes the nation to fall until a later time at which anguish atones for sins and the divine light shines again due to repentance and good deeds. The power of the divine name’s sanctity, which is connected to the nation as a whole, then resurrects the hidden sanctity passed down from the forefathers, to the full degree that a great, living, and holy nation requires.
Z’chut avot brings a broad moral power, which encompasses all of the best attributes, which cause the nation to operate based on kindness, justice, and charity. Since the nation lives based on a broad moral foundation, it is able to build in unity a proper social structure. There is a strong mixture of a general spirit and a practical social order, which, as a unit, are uniquely able to foster the sanctity of the individual Jew. This is because it is possible for them to draw strength from the source of divine sanctity that exceeds the level of human morality and social justice, which are subjectively tied to the values of the time. In contrast, when the nation draws from a divine source, they are greatly elevated, as we see is true of Israel even when they exist alone, not including any impact on the world around them. Actually, when the sanctity abounds, its bright light extends beyond the nation, as the House of David is capable of doing, as the pasuk says about Mashiach, "He shall adjudicate between nations and shall rebuke many nations." These elements depend on z’chut avot, and their influence is continued by the power of the patriarchs.
However, sin causes interruption of zchut avot, until it is resumed at the correct time. The gemara tells us of four interruptions, for different moral failings. The first general fall in the moral level took place at the time of Hoshea. Failings in the social order took place at the time of Chazael, King of Aram. The internal failures of individuals took place at the time of Eliyahu, making it necessary to break from the normal halachot of korbanot at Mt. Carmel. There was a continuation of the positive state in Judea; however, that too weakened at the time of Chizkiyahu.
Various Rabbis
Various Rabbis including those of of Yeshivat Bet El, such as Rabbi Chaim Katz, Rabbi Binyamin Bamberger and Rabbi Yitzchak Greenblat and others.
Moreshet Shaul Moreshet Shaul: A Crown and its Scepter – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 294-5
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
P'ninat Mishpat A Non-Contractor in Changing Times – part I
(based on ruling 85128 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Moreshet Shaul Our King on Rosh Hashana, Our Father on Yom Kippur.
Based on Aroch Siach, p. 221 (Rav Shaul Yisraeli)
P'ninat Mishpat A Non-Contractor in Changing Times – part II
(based on ruling 85128 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Moreshet Shaul Hashem Is your Shadow – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 420 – an address from 1941
Parashat Hashavua Happiness for the Right Reasons
[With painful longing, we share these divrei Torah from our co-Rosh Kollel for close to 40 years, Harav Moshe Ehrenreich zt”l.]
