Explanation of Miracles vs Mezuzas

Dear Friends,

We recently sent out an email detailing two stories of people whose health situation improved after checking their mezuzahs. As usual we received great feedback from this email; however, we also received responses questioning the premise that having a kosher mezuzah actually wields an influence that bears tangible results on our physical lives. After all, what about all the people who have kosher mezuzahs on the doors of their homes, yet suffer from poor health?

The fundamental importance of this subject calls for a serious and considered response to the challenge. Let us first delve into the question and clarify it in the broader context of the Jewish religion.

In Judaism there are two axiomatic beliefs that are relevant to this discussion: a) G-d instructs us to do certain things and not to do certain other things, and b) There are appropriate consequences for following these instructions or failing to do so. These two beliefs are absolutely integral to the essence of Judaism, as may be understood from even a cursory glimpse of the Torah and our prayer book, and as codified by Maimonides in his 13 fundamental principles of the Jewish faith.

The objection is often raised, however, that our daily experience does not always reflect a discernible system of such Divine reward and punishment. How are we to make sense of all the good people who suffer and the sinners who prosper?

Throughout the ages, dealing with this question has posed a difficult challenge for many brilliant minds. The approach that is universally applied to answering the essence of the problem is simply expressed by the verse: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not My ways.” In other words, the human mind is by its very nature incapable of accommodating the unfathomable Divine reasoning and the plan G-d has in store for each of us. The holocaust is a prime example: the human mind simply cannot understand how such evil was permitted to be perpetrated on the innocent. Nevertheless, regardless of our inability to understand everything, we are to have faith that in the end every person will receive his just reward commensurate with how he lived his life on Earth. The reward may be paid in one way or another, in heaven or on Earth, but G-d will come through on His word in the end.

This approach provides a framework with which we may understand the general concept of Divine reward (and punishment) for following His instructions. However, when it comes to the mitzvah of mezuzah this approach remains unsatisfactory, for the Talmud and other classical Jewish sources make it absolutely clear that we regard the mitzvah of mezuzah as a means of providing Divine protection for a Jewish house’s inhabitants. (Interestingly, this applies even when the home’s residents are not actually present in the house.) How are we to understand this protection and what it means in practical terms? In what way is its reward of protection different than the promise of reward for keeping any of G-d’s other commandments?

The Bach explains that whereas the reward given for the other commandments may be seen as an extraneous consequence of keeping the mitzvah, the concept of Divine protection is intrinsic to the mezuzah itself – the very act of having the mezuzah affixed to the house calls into effect Divine protection (aside from the other rewards that it elicits). The Lubavitcher Rebbe likened this to the example of the protective gear worn by a soldier on a battlefield. The measure of safety and protection provided by such items is not viewed as merely an outside and essentially unrelated consequence of the soldier following protocol and wearing his gear; rather, the very essence of the protocol to wear such gear is the protection and safety inherent in wearing it.

Now to get to the heart of the issue, we need to take the analogy one step further. It is self-understood that even though a soldier’s helmet and armor are designed to protect him, they cannot provide an absolute guarantee of his present and future safety. At the same time however, nobody would endorse a policy of not wearing such armor just because its protection is not infallible!

In the very same manner, having a kosher mezuzah absolutely works as a measure of Divine protection for a Jewish house’s inhabitants. This explains the veritable abundance of stories in Jewish folklore attesting to miraculous healing and other forms of recovery that occurred as a result of affixing kosher mezuzahs. Nevertheless, this does not mean that such inhabitants will necessarily be impervious to any and all misfortune, just as military armor does not guarantee its wearer of being completely impenetrable to attack.

As mentioned at the outset, the subject of this discussion is a very deep and intricate one. While the foregoing presents a framework of ideas, there is much more to be said on the topic. If anyone would like to discuss or clarify the matter further, please don’t hesitate to reply by email or phone (866-MY-RABBI).

As we are about to enter the sad time of the “Three Weeks”, when we remember tragic events of Jewish history, may we all merit to experience only revealed blessings in our individual and collective lives in the present and future.

Mezuzah Check

The laws governing what makes a mezuzah kosher are numerous and complex, and it often happens that the ravages of time can cause the lettering of a kosher mezuzah scroll to become blemished and thus invalid. Jewish law prescribes the intervals at which mezuzahs should be checked to ensure their continued kosher status.

However, in addition to these regular examinations there is a highly commendable and often strikingly successful tradition for individuals to have their mezuzahs checked as a defensive measure against adverse circumstances, particularly the misfortune of ill health. The following episodes illustrate two rather different incidences of such an experience.

Long Distance Protection

One day Rabbi Aron Wolf received a phone call from a Chicagoan gentleman wishing to have his mezuzahs checked. During the conversation he revealed that he was prompted to take this action as a result of various ailments and difficulties that had beset members of his extended family. His mother in-law, in particular, had been struck by a serious illness, and although she lived far away in Florida he nevertheless felt that checking his own mezuzahs at such a time was an appropriate course of action for him to take.

Sure enough, the gentleman’s hunch proved to be right on the mark, and in a startlingly precise manner at that. All of his mezuzahs were indeed kosher, with the exception of one. The sole invalid mezuzah was the very mezuzah that had been affixed to the door of the guest room, the very room in which his mother in-law stayed whenever she came to visit her family in Chicago!

From China To Chicago To Pinpoint An Infection

Rabbi Wolf recently received a phone call originating from a highly unusual location – China! The young man described how his grandfather, Dr. BK, had been taken to the intensive care unit of a hospital near Chicago. The patient was suffering with debilitating symptoms of an infection that had spread throughout his body, but the hospital staff had been unable to locate the exact source of the infection in order to treat it effectively. Meanwhile, Dr. BK’s constitution was being severely worn down as even breathing became increasingly difficult.

At a loss for what he could do to help his grandfather all the way from China, Dr BK’s grandson suddenly had a brainwave. After some quick searching he found the number for the Chicago Mitzvah Campaign, picked up the phone and asked Rabbi Wolf to check the mezuzahs at his grandparents’ home.

Rabbi Wolf hurried over at the first opportunity and found that indeed, the home’s current mezuzahs were invalid. He thereupon immediately affixed new, kosher mezuzahs to the house. Soon thereafter Dr BK’s hospital doctors pinpointed the source of his infection and began a suitable course of treatment. A short while later his recovery began to pick up speed and move steadily towards full recuperation.