Harry Potter and the Chanuka Story

The intention of the Greeks on Chanukah was rooted in something much deeper than decrees that Greeks imposed upon us in attempts to conform us to secular, Greek culture. In Al Hanisim, which we say in davening, it says that they attempted to make us forget our knowledge of torah. What’s interesting is that the ban on learning torah was just one decree, yet we set it aside as the over-arching intention of the Greeks. Firstly, what lead us to believe that, despite the additional decrees against the observing of Shabbat and circumcision, their main focus was the attack on torah? Secondly, the Greeks were exceptionally smart. Rambam himself knew and was even influenced by the brilliance of Greek philosophy. How could it be that a nation so intelligent wouldn’t find the torah appealing? Some of the smartest men in history have dedicated their lives to its in depth studies and philosophies. We seemed to be very attracted to their wisdom, but they didn’t appreciate the significance of ours.

Fortunately, the Chanukah story has such a strong parallel with the entire fifth book of Harry Potter that we may be able to understand the Greek mindset by looking in The Order of the Phoenix. First we need to substitute a few roles. Replace the leading force behind the harsh decrees and oppressive conditions put on the Jews with the one who did the same to Hogwarts (Antiochus with Fudge). Replace the second in command who carefully followed the instructions of their leader as well as implemented a few of their own tortures against the Jews with the one who did the same to Hogwarts (Army general with Umbridge). Replace the group of people who were behind the attempt to manipulate the Jews into seeing their opinions as the real truth with the group who was doing the same to the wizarding world (Greeks with the ministry). Replace the Jews who turned on their fellows and joined the opposing force with the students who did the same (Mityavnim with the Inquisitorial Squad). Replace the elderly, brilliant, and dominant leader behind the oppositional Jewish army with the one who played the same role behind Hogwarts’ army (Matityahu son of Yochanan Kohen Gadol with Albus Percifel Wulfric Brian Dumbledore). Replace the strong army leader who led the Jews to victory with the one who did the same for Hogwarts (Yehuda with Harry). Lastly, replace the outnumbered, under experienced Jewish army with the outnumbered, under experienced Hogwarts army (Maccabiim with Dumbledore’s Army). The story behind these characters are nearly identical.

Whenever Umbridge felt a lack of control or a threat to the ministry’s way of thinking, there would be a new decree mandating certain behavior or prohibiting certain actions. The decrees were more than a list of things you couldn’t do. They were designed to instill a sense of complete subservience to the ministry and, by extension, discretization of Dumbledore. There was no validity behind Dumbledore’s claims when the ministry portrayed him as a powerless fool. The Decrees were meant to assure a complete dismissal of any claims of Voldemort’s return. That being said, Fudge was the minister of magic. He wasn’t stupid, despite what almost everything we know about him would indicate. There are disappearances, dark marks, eye-witness testimony, unexplainable deaths, rouge dementors, and things were starting to feel a lot like the last time. Snape showed him that the dark mark had returned to his arm, which can only mean the Dark Lord’s return! How could fudge not see what was right in front of him?

Of course he knew the truth! We even have a few clear glimpses of Fudge being on the border of listening to reason. Dumbledore gives him a very strong speech in the end of the fourth book, and Fudge revealed what was actually going through his head.

-It seemed Fudge could think of no answer to this. He rocked backward and forward on his small feet for a moment and spun his bowler hat in his hands. Finally, he said, with a hint of a plea in his voice, “He can’t be back, Dumbledore, he just can’t be…”

That’s not what someone who honestly does not believe that Voldemort had returned sounds like. That’s what someone who knows the truth but is too terrified to admit it sounds like. Fudge remembered the conditions of Voldemort’s last reign of terror. He knew that accepting Voldemort’s return meant accepting a reality that he was absolutely terrified of dealing with. He needed to eliminate all traces of the fact the Voldemort had returned so he could go on living his lie in a state of comfort.

That was exactly the Greek mindset. They obviously recognized the brilliance of the torah! Alexander himself refrained from attacking the Jews because of the respect he had for the Rabbis and their torah. His successors took a different approach. There’s a famous story of R’ Akiva and Tarnus Rufus where TR came to R’ Akiva and asked what was better the creation of man or the creation of god. R’ Akiva responded that the creation of man was better. His proof was that people would prefer to eat a cake over a piece of wheat. R’ Akiva revealed to him that he knew TR wanted to lead him into a trap. He was going to ask why Jews do circumcision if that alters the way god created someone. Hashem puts things into the world and gives us the ability to improve them, but the idea of circumcision is completely against the Greek ideology. The Greeks worshipped physicality. They glorified the human body in its natural state. Sports were played without clothing to show off the perfection of the human body, and their arts reflected the same obsession with physicality. Their gods were simply more powerful humans who looked and acted like normal men and women. That was the reality they knew and loved. The Greeks, like Fudge, were not so blind that they couldn’t see the truth of what was in front of them, but the acceptance of the torah’s reality would be terrifying. Their lives were based on the significance of physicality, and to imagine a god who wasn’t “corporeal” (reference to the fifth intended), and a religion based on spirituality would have shook their entire world. They needed to eliminate all traces of the torah so they could go on living their lie in a state of comfort.

That’s the depth behind the decrees. They didn’t just outlaw Shabbat, circumcision, and torah because it made the Jews too different from them. Their actions were a reflection of a deeper desire to remove torah from the world so they wouldn’t have to face it. The second they gave in to the torah, they’d be accepting a reality that they were absolutely terrified of dealing with.

     

Harry Potter and the Reflections of our Fathers

           In this week’s Parsha, Vayeshev, Yosef finds himself in a difficult position. He’s the head of his master, Potifar’s, house, and he catches the eye of Potifar’s wife. She persistently tries to seduce Yosef, but Yosef maintains his resolve. On their final exchange, she grabs onto his clothing, but he denies her yet again. There’s an interesting Midrash (story brought down by the Rabbis that may or may not have happened) that says that when Yosef was fighting with his urge to give in to her, he saw a reflection of his father’s face, and then told Potifar’s wife no. This story is a bit troubling. Yosef seems to be doing just fine on his own. The simple text depicts Yosef as single handedly defeating his inclination to act immorally, and the Midrash almost diminishes his righteousness by suggesting that he needed this miraculous push of seeing a reflection of his father.

A good place to look for an insight into Yosef’s situation is when Harry sees a reflection of his father in the Mirror of Erised. For those who don’t know, the inscription on the mirror, when read backwards and parsed correctly, reads I show not your face but your heart’s desire. Dumbledore describes the mirror in a similar vain. He says, “It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts.” This is why you don’t need to know how it works or even what it is to use it properly. The mirror reflects an existing reality within you whether you acknowledge it or not. Ron looked into the mirror wanting and expecting to see Harry’s family, but instead he saw what he desired most. Quirrel wants to see how to find the stone, but because more than anything he wants to give it to Voldemort, he can’t see himself finding it. Finding it is just a means to his desire. The question is, if Harry’s desire is to see his parents, why does he get to choose to see something else? He focuses on the mirror, thinks that he wants to find the Philosopher’s Stone, and he sees himself finding it. If it were as easy as thinking something and seeing it on the mirror Quirrel could have done it too. Why is it that the mirror shows Harry whatever he wants to see as opposed to reflecting his actual deepest desire as it does for everyone else?

I’d like to suggest that it took Harry seeing Voldemort to realize that the only thing more important to him than seeing his parents was making sure Voldemort couldn’t cause anyone the same pain that he caused Harry. Voldemort told Harry that with the stone he could bring his parents back to life. More so than Harry realizing that Voldemort was lying, he realized that getting his parents back wasn’t worth bringing Voldemort back to full power. In one of the biggest challenges of Harry’s life he realized what was most important to him. His deepest desire changed, and I don’t think he would have seen his parents in the mirror had he tried again afterward. I believe there’s a similar understanding by Yosef. Seeing his father didn’t make him decide not to act; deciding not to act made him see his father. Yosef was in a difficult position. He could have been thinking about Potifar’s wife and the desire he had for her, or he could be thinking about his father, Yaakov, and the legacy he stood for. It took Yosef seeing Potifar’s wife to realize that there were things more important than physical desire. In one of the biggest challenges in Yosef’s life he, like Harry, realized what was most important to him. I think the Midrash is trying to praise Yosef. Despite his situation he chose to see his father, and the values that lead to this decision were the values that enabled him to say no.

Harry Potter and the Four Sons

In the hagada, we read about the four sons: the smart one, the bad one, the simple one, and the one who doesn't know how to ask. For me, these titles are difficult to understand. Why do we call the first son smart, all he does is ask questions? You'd assume someone smart would teaching and not just asking. We call the second son bad, but based on his question he seems as smart as the smart son. The third son we call simple even though he asks the same amount of questions as the bad son. And while we claim the fourth son doesn't know how to ask questions, anyone who has been around Jews who know little to nothing about Judaism know that they're still able to ask questions on what we're doing. Even non-Jews can ask questions on it. How can you have someone who doesn't even know how to ask?

I think it helps to view these four characters like a different four characters we know of: Rowena Ravenclaw, Salazar slytherin, Godrick Gryffindor, and Helga Hufflepuff. It's interesting that Ravenclaw is "the smart house" because the smartest characters we know of (Dumbledore, Voldemort, Snape, James, serious, Hermione) are not in Ravenclaw! Rather what is Ravenclaw? It is the house for those who value smarts above all else. Padma Patil was shocked when she noticed how smart Hermione was that she wasn't placed in Ravenclaw. The entire school knew of Hermione's heroic and brave deeds at this point so why was Padma surprised that Hermione was in Gryffindor? It's because to a Ravenclaw who values brains above all else, someone who is that smart belongs in Ravenclaw since brains to them is the most important thing. Padma couldn't understand that Hermione valued her bravery over her brains. Similarly, the smart son is called smart not because he's already smart but because he values smarts and therefore asks numerous questions to increase his knowledge. As stated above, there have been members of Slytherin who were much smarter than Ravenclaws and even members who have been braver than Gryffindors. However, it's normally clear who belongs in Slytherin because they use their smarts, bravery, and all other positive attributes for bad. Similarly, the bad son uses his brain and asks an intelligent question. However, he asks only to mock them as displayed by his exclusion of himself from the question. He uses the word to you as opposed to "to us." And even though the smart son uses the same word, he says our god to include himself, which the bad son never says. Thus, like the Slytherins, he uses his brains for bad reasons.

Gryffindors are very interesting. To a normal group of unqualified, underage wizards, going directly to what very well maybe a trap set by Voldemort with an army if death eaters waiting for them would be a bad idea. However, to Harry and his fellow Gryffindors (and Luna who is a completely different story) they saw that Black was in trouble and they ignored all other details. To them it was "simple," and they did what they had to do. Harry says it him-self in the first book. Ron and Hermione are trying to stop him from going through the trap door because of all the trouble he can get into. Harry tells them that it doesn't matter about the points or about getting expelled. To him it's simple; he needs to save the philosopher's stone. Nothing else matters. A Gryffindor has the ability to completely look past the details and focus on what is simple and what matters most. While the simple son asks the same amount of questions as the bad son, his question is very different in nature from those asked by the smart son and the bad son. The simple son ignores all the details that they mention and inquires about the actions of the seder on the most simple and basic level.

Hufflepuffs have the quality of loyalty. They don't try to glorify themselves as everyone else does. They focus on everyone else before themselves. In the fourth book, Cedric could have easily been mad at Harry who was underage and somehow became the second Hogwarts champion. Harry's own best friend was mad, and we wasn't the one who's attention was being stolen. If he wasn't mad at first, he definitely could have been mad when Rita Skeeter made it seem that Harry was the only Hogwarts champion. None the less, he doesn't sport the anti-Harry badges that everyone else does. He also helps Harry figure out the egg clue. Yes Harry told him about the dragons, but in anger he could have easily justified not paying back the favor (especially given that Harry wasn't supposed to be in that competition in the first place). However, Cedric isn't just looking to glorify himself. Even when Amos Diggory says that Cedric is a better seeker than Harry, Cedric corrects him by saying he won unfairly. We see from the other houses a definite interest in fame and glory. Fred and George attempted to enter into the tournament, Ron sees fame and success in school in the mirror of erised, Phinneas Nigellus proclaims that everyone should remember Slytherin's involvement in Voldemort's defeat, and we don't get to know very many Ravenclaw characters all that well. What we do see is an active avoidance by Hufflepuff of attracting attention to themselves. Similarly, it's not that the fourth son doesn't know how to ask, rather the character described is the type of person, whom we've all had at a Seder, who doesn't speak up or draw attention to themselves. The hagada tells us what to do with them. It says to open their mouths by telling them they have an obligation to tell these things over to their children. If the person actually couldn't talk then telling them about this obligation won't help all that much. If they can talk but have other reasons for keeping quiet then informing them that eventually they'll need to be willing to discuss all these matters would be a good way to get them started in the discussion. Thus we see that the founding fathers of Hogwarts have a lot more depth than we thought, and by examining them we can better understand the four sons in the hagada.

 

Harry Potter and the Three Crowns

Shavuot, the holiday celebrating our receiving of the Torah, is approaching. Much like the Jews in the desert, who, in the fifty days between leaving Egypt and receiving the Torah, went from the highest level of impurity to the highest level of holiness, we too are supposed to be improving ourselves and preparing. The question is which direction we are supposed to be heading. It's one thing to sit and learn for an hour. It's another thing to sit and learn all day, but with Torah it's more than just learning. The goal is to make it a part of our lives and fully emulate what it teaches. To do that takes more than preparation; it takes knowing the proper mindset with which to learn. Three of the most powerful things that god gave the Jewish people were the three crowns: Keter Kehuna (crown of priesthood), Keter Malchut (crown of kingship), and the Keter Torah (crown of Torah). To understand how to be someone who properly accepts the Torah, perhaps it would help to get a better understanding of the three crowns.

To understand the crowns, I'd like to compare them to three other exceptionally powerful objects: The invisibility cloak, the Elder wand, and the resurrection stone (also known as the deathly Hallows). These three objects, like the crowns, can be used to improve almost every element of one's life, but can also be very dangerous in the hands of those who don't know how to use them. First is the invisibility cloak. It's a gift and a privilege. It enables the wearer to do what no one else can do, go where no one else can go, and most importantly, it's passed down from father to son. Those who do not directly descend from Ignotus Peveral, will never be the rightful master. Similarly, being a priest is a gift and a privilege. The do the services of god that no one else can do. They go into areas of holiness that no one else can go to. And it too is completely contingent on the family line. Those who do not directly descend from Aaron will never be a Kohen. Second is the Elder Wand. It's an object of unrivaled power. It enables the user to grant himself nearly every one of his hearts deepest desires. However, as Voldemort found out, it does not work for just anyone. It, like all wands, will only yield results to one whom it was passed down to willingly or to one who conquered it from its previous owner. Similarly, Kingship grants you unmatched power. A king can acquire for himself nearly anything in existence. But, as seen numerous times throughout Tanach, kingship is only had by one whom it was willingly passed down to or who one conquered it from the previous owner.

Lastly, and I believe to be most exceptionally, the resurrection stone. It's the only deathly Hallow that does not need to be born into, passed down to, or won. Anyone could ideally be the rightful owner. But as Dumbledore explains, it takes one in a million (and there probably aren't a million wizards in existence). Its proper utilization is rare because, as Dumbledore explains, only one who intends to use it not for his own selfish reasons, but with the intention of enabling himself to help others can be its true master. A Jew who chooses to spend his or her time learning Torah knows what it feels like to be one in a million in spite of the fact that it is the crown that is available to anyone. It says in Pirkei Avot that one who studies with the intention of (not only studying, but) teaching, is given the means to study and teach. One who studies with the intention to practice, is given the means to study, teach, observe, and practice. Clearly, a proper and full utilization of the Torah (like the stone) is only reached when the intention is not only to use it to improve one's self, rather to help others, spread its goodness, and learn from it the acts of kindness we should be doing. Hopefully the time we have before Shavuot can be used to prepare to receive the Torah in a way which we can use it to enhance the lives of those around us and not just ourselves. Then, by Shavuot, we can accept the Torah in a way that will truly change our lives.

And for those who have difficulty staying awake during davening after a full night of learning, let's think back to the fourth book. Harry stayed awake all night before the second task learning things of the upmost importance, but because of his appreciation for the significance of the moment, he was still able to perform exceptionally the following morning. Chag Sameach.

 

 

 

 

Harry Potter and the Unfulfilled Prophecies

A very interesting question can be asked on this week’s Haftara, which is taken from the beginning of the book of Melachim. Natan the prophet is very concerned with a rebellion started by Adoniahu to take over the throne as David, the current king, nears the end of his life. Natan instructs Batsheva, David’s wife, to inform David of the severity of the rebellion, and David is now greatly concerned as well. The issue is that Natan had a prophecy that he shared with David in the book of Shmuel Bet that Shlomo was going to be the next king. So what is there to be worried about? In fact, one can suggest that the only reason Natan asked Batsheva to tell David is because Natan assumed that David wouldn’t listen to a word he said given the prophecy had already made about Shlomo being the next king. From an on-lookers perspective, that’s a good point! Why should David be worried? Why should Natan be worried? He was the one who had the prophecy.

                I think Harry asks a very important question that will enable us to understand what exactly is going on in Melachim. In the chapter The Lost Prophecy in book five The Order of the Phoenix, Harry is speaking with Dumbledore about the prophecy that Trelawny made 14 years prior. Harry realizes that the prophecy is referring to him, but then Dumbledore says something very interesting. “The odd thing, Harry,” he said softly, “is that it may not have meant you at all. Sibyll’s prophecy could have applied to two wizard boys, both born at the end of July that year, both of whom had parents in the Order of the Phoenix, both sets of parents having narrowly escaped Voldemort three times. One, of course, was you. The other was Neville Longbottom.” Harry then asks the crucial question, “Then - it might not be me?” But then Dumbledore gives an unfortunate answer. “I am afraid,” said Dumbledore slowly, looking as though every word cost him a great effort, “that there is no doubt that it is you.” “in marking you with that scar, he did not kill you, as he intended, but gave you powers, and a future,”. What’s being discussed is a non-definite prophecy that is not only not particular to one person, but didn’t even need to be fulfilled. So much of the conclusion was contingent on those involved fulfilling the prophecy when they didn’t need to. Dumbledore explains that had Voldemort heard the end of the prophecy, he may have completely re-thought his actions. There are hundreds of prophecies that have simply never been fulfilled, and they’re just sitting in the hall of prophecy. They’re waiting for those involved to either act or pass up on the situation that would fulfill the prophecy.

                Now we can understand why Natan and David were so nervous. I’m not the first to suggest this answer. The Abarbarnel, one of the most prominent and well known commentators on Tanach, suggests the answer seen in Harry Potter. Abarbarnel says that Natan’s reaction can be explained by the fact that a prophecy is not a guarantee. A prophecy is an allusion to a situation that will arise wherein that prophecy could be fulfilled, but, depending on the actions of those involved, doesn’t have to be. David’s solution to the rebellion is to appoint Shlomo as king immediately to show anyone on Adoniahu’s side that the king is against him. This works perfectly, and Shlomo is not only anointed as king, but the very situation that could have foiled the prophecy, was the one that caused Shlomo’s anointment. However, nothing was a guarantee.   

 

 

Harry Potter and the Ever Spinning Sword

That Ba’al Shem Tov asks a great question on this week’s Parsha. When Adam and Chava are kicked out of Gan Eden, Hashem guards the entrance with a spinning sword. While that’s a very difficult guard to get around, there are periodical gaps in the protection, and it is possible to get through. When looking for a good way to protect the entrance, would not an unbreakable wall be significantly better?

I think a similar question can be asked on the first Harry Potter book, The Philosopher’s Stone. It comes up multiple times that Hogwarts is the safest place for the stone to be kept, but when it comes down to it, all the finest protections were defeated by three first-year Wizards. As gifted as they were, this needs to raise questions about the quality of the stone’s protection. It’s not that the teachers couldn’t have come up with better protections, it’s that their protections were clearly flawed. There was a way to beat every obstacle. If you couldn’t get passed Snape’s protection without the right potion then DON’T PUT THE RIGHT POTION IN THE ROOM! The same idea can be applied to almost all obstacles. Don’t make the chess pieces playable, don’t put the right key in the room with all the keys. And if Dumbledore needed to get the Stone, firstly he can lift the apparition ban (seen in the sixth when they practice Apparition in school), secondly he could then take the key or the potion with him when he goes. The tasks are difficult, but clearly beatable when they don’t need to be. The only thing protecting the Stone is the mirror, and it doesn’t get there until January. It was virtually protection-less for six months.

It’s no coincidence that the mirror didn’t start off protecting the stone, and only when Harry discovers it, and Dumbledore can make sure he knows how to work it, that it’s then moved. It wasn’t moved in January because that was it’s time to be moved, it was moved in January because now Harry knew how to beat it. The protections around the stone were beatable because protecting the stone was not Dumbledore’s main goal. His goal was to train Harry to be able to beat them, and once he figured out how, he’d be ready to face what was waiting for him. This was necessary practice because Dumbledore knew that Harry would need to learn how to defeat Voldemort for the future. Harry explains in the last chapter that Dumbledore knew that he was going to go after Voldemort, and he wanted to prepare him.      “So what happened to you two?” said Harry.

 “Well, I got back all right,” said Hermione. “I brought Ron round — that took a while — and we were dashing up to the owlery to contact Dumbledore when we met him in the entrance hall — he already knew — he just said, ‘Harry’s gone after him, hasn’t he?’ and hurtled off to the third floor.”
 “D’you think he meant you to do it?” said Ron. “Sending you your father’s cloak and everything?”
 “Well, ” Hermione exploded, “if he did — I mean to say that’s terrible — you could have been killed.”
 “No, it isn’t,” said Harry thoughtfully. “He’s a funny man, Dumbledore. I think he sort of wanted to give me a chance. I think he knows more or less everything that goes on here, you know. I reckon he had a pretty good idea we were going to try, and instead of stopping us, he just taught us enough to help. I don’t think it was an accident he let me find out how the mirror worked. It’s almost like he thought I had the right to face Voldemort if I could…” Harry wouldn’t have gotten much practice in if no one could get past any of the obstacles. It seems pretty clear that protection was not Dumbledore’s aim.

This is essentially the Ba’al Shem Tov’s answer. Hashem could make it impossible for us to enter Gan Eden pretty easily, but that’s not his goal. He wants it to be possible. He wants to make it difficult enough that we need to work on ourselves significantly before we can get in, and that’s his goal. He hopes, not to guard Gan Eden, rather motivate us to use our lives for training. If we work on ourselves, work on our service of god, work on our fulfillment of his mitzvoth, then we, like Harry, will find ourselves with the abilities to easily defeat the obstacles in our way.  

Harry Potter and the Month of Elul

 

We find ourselves in the month of Elul- A month in Jewish history marked by reflection and repentance. Our focus should be on more than just crossing misdeeds off our lists from the past year, but to really change our natures to better ourselves for the year to come. It’s a long and difficult process that is no doubt riddled by frustration (no pun intended). At some point in this process we may, like many others, come to a point where we believe that the areas in which we need improving are so deeply ingrained within us or have become such a comfortable habit that changing is impossible. It’s times like these that we need a role model. Someone who was worse off, from an earlier age, and then repented in a complete and indefinite manner. I’m talking, of course, about Severus Snape.

Old Snivilus had bigotry deeply seeded within him for as long as we know him. As just a young boy, before he arrived at Hogwarts, before he could have been influenced by those around him (he grew up in a muggle community, and his mother married a muggle. He had no pure-blood supremacists to influence him) he already felt that wizards were better than muggles. And by extension, muggle-borns were inferior. When Lily asks him whether or not it makes a difference that she was from a muggle family, he hesitates and says no only because of how fond he is of her. We see on the Hogwarts Express his affinity for Slytherin, and by his fifth year he knows that he wants to become a Death-Eater upon leaving school. Sirius tells Harry about Snapes affinity for curses, and when we see him fight James in the fifth, James’ spells were embarrassing but harmless. Snape struck blood on his first chance.

Then Snape hit rock bottom. He realized that the cruelty of his ways may cause him to lose the single most important thing in his life. He runs to Dumbledore and is subsequently put through what should be, to us, a familiar three step process. On Dumbledore’s instructions Snape admits all that he had done wrong. He admits to working for Voldemort and that he informed his master of the prophecy he overheard. Snape then admits guilt.  Dumbledore asks him if he is remorseful, and he responds that he’d rather be dead. Lastly, Dumbledore makes him renounce his ways, and he agrees.

Coincidentally, we see the same exact three step process in Rambam’s Hilchot Tshuva (laws of repentance). In Elul we should feel that we have hit rock bottom, and that our ways are causing us to lose the most important thing in our lives, our closeness to god. We must run to Hashem and go through  a three step process. Rambam says the first step is admission. To start the process of returning we need to acknowledge all that we have done wrong. The second step is regret. After saying what we’ve done we still must express remorse over our actions. The final step is to renounce our past ways for the future. As if Dumbledore were reading the next chapter of the Rambam, he immediately gave Snape a mission. He has Snape come before Voldemort, as he had done before, but this time he’d be working for Dumbledore and correcting what he did wrong. Rambam describes that the ultimate form of repentance is being in the same situation in which you had made your mistake and acting correctly.

Of all the things we can take from Snape, I think the most important one is one that he did not chose to do rather was forced upon him. Even after Snape crosses over to Dumbledore’s side, he still has the dark mark. It’s a constant reminder of who he used to be that he holds with him as he grows. Even though we repent one year, and even though we were supposed to feel as if we were completely forgiven we still need to do more repentance for the ways we renounced the previous year. Like Snape we’re supposed to carry our mistakes with us as we move forward to gain a better understanding of why what we did was wrong to enhance our growth process and connection to Hashem.

Harry Potter and the 3 Weeks pt. 2

 

Not only can the periods when we had and did not have a Beit Hamikdash be compared to the periods without and with Voldemort, many similarities can be drawn between the actual events that took place as well as the characters who arose in those times. As the period of the first Beit Hamikdash was nearing the end, there were two prophets and leaders in Israel who had found themselves at a difference of opinion. These men were Yermiahu and Chananya, and their story is remarkably similar to that of Dumbledore and Fudge. The story begins in the end of the fourth book when Harry told Dumbledore that Voldemort had returned. Dumbledore, however, did not seem entirely surprised to hear this news. He then made a bold statement to the school that Voldemort was back, and he was basing this on more than the testimony of a 14-year-old boy. His brilliance and track record of being correct most of the time gained him the belief of those under his influence. This was up until Fudge came out and rejected the notion that the Dark Lord had indeed returned. There was an immediate shift in the dedication of the people from Dumbledore’s side to Fudge’s. What’s fascinating is that anyone who would open there eyes would see just how much sense Dumbledore was making. People were missing, people were dying, and there was an appearance of the dark mark not even one year prior. It should have been obvious that Voldemort was soon to return. I believe their denial was in two-fold. Firstly, it’s much easier to accept good news. Secondly, and more importantly, they were convinced that their interpretation was correct. Voldemort had died the night he attempted to kill Harry, and there is no magic that can bring people back to life.

Dumbledore, however, possessed a broader prospective. He was able to look at the same occurrence and more accurately understand it. He had a hunch that Voldemort had made horcruxes, he had a hunch as to how Harry stayed alive, and he had a hunch as to what happened to Voldemort if it wasn’t death. To a less keen eye, Voldemort was dead, and he wasn’t coming back. Dumbledore asked fudge to see reason and acknowledge the position he’s in. Acknowledging that Dumbledore was correct would affect his popularity, but would ultimately benefit the people on the whole. Fudge decided to maintain his resolve, and Dumbledore went his separate way (his exact words being “We have reached a parting of the ways.” Time eventually revealed that Dumbledore was correct, and Fudge lost all credibility as disaster struck.

Yirmiahu makes a bold statement as well that the Jews were going to be attacked and kicked out of Israel. Yirmiahu’s brilliance and track record may have eventually won over the people over whom he had influence, but there was another man, Chananya, who had a great deal of influence, and when he came out and rejected the notion that the Jews would be kicked out, there was an immediate shift in the dedication of the people. What’s fascinating is that anyone who would open their eyes would see just how much sense Yirmiahu was making. People were rebelling, people were violating the commandments of Hashem, and they didn’t warrant Hashem’s continual protection. It should have been obvious that the Jews were soon to be taken over. I believe their denial was in two-fold. Firstly, it’s much easier to accept good news. Secondly, and more importantly, they were convinced that their interpretation was correct. Chananya had a prophecy with relation to the Jews and their safety status, and without getting into the specifics of the prophecy or his interpretation, on the surface, Chanaya’s interpretation seems to be a logical one.

Yirmiahu, however, possessed a broader prospective. He was able to look at the same prophecy and more accurately understand it. He knew that the safety Chananya had understood was a misinterpretation. Yirmiahu approached Chananya and asked him to see reason and acknowledge the position he’s putting himself in. Chananya decided to maintiain his resolve, and, as it says in Yimiyahu 28, 11, the prophet Yirmiahu went his separate way. Time eventually revealed that Yirmiahu was correct, and Chananya lost all credibility as disaster struck.

Harry Potter and the 3 Weeks

We’re told that the third Beit Hamikdash will be the best of all three. It may even be a time where god is so clear in the world that there will no longer be sin. We may return to how the world was in Gan Edan. But why? What makes the third Beit Hamikdash so qualitatively better? What enables the generation to live such an ideal life? We see this dynamic of three periods of ideal living surrounding two periods of disaster in the Wizarding World. Up until Voldemort’s first rise to power, the Wizarding World was happy. There were bumps along the way like Grindelwald, but Dumbledore took care of him before he did too much serious damage. They were living in an ideal, peaceful time- one when they did not have to worry about death eaters, dark marks, or coming home to find their loved ones dead. What more could someone ask for? However, despite their blissful life style, they were not happy; they were normal. They didn’t know how it felt to be expelled from a care free life style and plunged into fear with no sanctuary. They were completely under-appreciative of their freedom.

Then came the first rise. An experience so mortifying that it tore families apart, massacred a generation, and left those who experienced it terrified even of the name of the man involved. They were begging for freedom, and, finally, it came. This generation now knew how to appreciate the lives that used to be taken for granted. But their bliss just wasn’t as sweet as it was the last time. The name Voldemort caused fear when he, himself, was not there to do so. Death eaters who kept themselves out of Azkaban were living amongst innocent and scared people. Worst of all, they knew it would come to an end, and freedom with an end in sight can hardly be called freedom. Dumbledore, Snape, Black, plenty knew that Voldemort was not completely defeated even if some couldn’t come to terms with it. Even fudge knew he would one day return. There was even prophecy that foretold his return, they were “free”, but not like the last time.

Then Voldemort returned to start a reign far worse than the last one. He took over the ministry, he killed hundreds, and this time there was no Dumbledore to rely on. When things looked darkest, and nearly all hope was lost, Voldemort was defeated and the Wizarding World was, yet again, free. This freedom was a complete one, all the feelings of the first time came back; it wasn’t missing a detail. And this time the perfect bliss they had, was the one they so desperately craved for so long. There was no under-appreciation. In addition to the state of life being exactly how it was in the beginning, and in addition to the fact that it was, this time, being experienced by those who felt suffering, and in addition to the fact that this time they knew it would last, it came after the worst, most desperate period of suffering. They lived in a complete feeling of happiness and comfort that the world had never known before.

This is the experience of the third Beit Hamikdash that awaits us. The Jews in the time of the first Beit Hamikdash had it all, but they never lost it. They never had their walls surrounded and were never starved to death. They were never stripped of their freedom, and they never had the most precious thing in their lives taken away. They had the Beit Hamikdash, but they never wanted it as much as we do now. The second generation knew how it felt to long so desperately for its rebuilding, but they didn’t have the same Beit Hamikdash. The open miracles that the first one had were not seen by the second.  Even worse, they knew it would come to an end; there was even prophecy that foretold it. The second would be destroyed, but the third would be eternal. How could they take true pleasure in a Mikdash centered life that would soon end?

Then comes the third generation. We don’t know it exactly what the world will be like, but we can expect a happiness and ideal life the likes of which the world had never seen… because it’s logical. We’re promised the restoration of the miracles that hadn’t been seen since the first. This time we won’t dread the end; its forever. This time it’s in a generation that knows how to appreciate it because we’ve fasted and mourned for it for 2000 years! This time it comes after a suffering so much longer and harder than had ever been seen before. There is no past comparison to what awaits us, and it does await us. This is among the last prophecies that have yet be fulfilled in a long line that was foretold thousands of years ago. Right now we’re in the suffering period, but its length and hardship is building the greatness of the event soon to come. An event so great that it should be physically painful that it has not happened yet.