A Message from the Heart of Rabbi Yoel Pinto, Shlita
The Secret of the Future: Why the “Master of Joy” Passed Away on a Day of Fasting
My beloved brothers, holy Jews, and dear friends of the Shuva Israel community,
May G-d protect you, bless you, and fill your lives with abundant joy and success.
As I sit here, my heart is filled with a great and abundant joy. We are in the midst of the holy month of Tevet, and specifically, we are marking the Hiloula—the day of passing—of the holy and righteous Rabbi Nathan of Breslov, the faithful disciple of Rabbi Nachman.
Before we dive into the holy Torah, I want to pause and acknowledge the fire that is burning right now, even in the coldest places on earth. We have brothers right now in the freezing cold—minus 14 degrees!—who are celebrating, dancing, and learning. I want to thank Shimon Azulai for his incredible efforts in restoring electricity there; he fought tough battles to ensure that the light of the Tzadik continues to burn. When a Jew is determined to bring light into the world, no amount of ice or darkness can stop him.
But today, I want to ask you a question that touches the very core of our service to G-d.
We know a major rule in our tradition: “A merit is rolled over to a day of merit, and a liability to a day of liability.” Usually, the energy of a day dictates what happens on it. Purim is always a day of miracles. The 9th of Av is always a day of tragedy.
So, we must ask: How is it possible that Rabbi Nathan—a man whose entire life was a symphony of joy, hope, and faith—passed away on the 10th of Tevet? The 10th of Tevet is a day of fasting, a day of sorrow, a day marking the beginning of the destruction of Jerusalem. How does the “Master of Encouragement” connect to a day of despondency?
The answer, my dear friends, will change the way you look at your struggles forever.
The Fast of the Future
In the holy Beit Yosef, a fascinating and difficult law is brought from the Abudarham. He writes that the 10th of Tevet is so unique that if it were to fall on Shabbat, we would actually fast on Shabbat.
Think about that! We never fast on Shabbat. Even the 9th of Av, the day the Temple was burned, is pushed to Sunday if it falls on Shabbat. The joy of Shabbat is so powerful it overrides our national mourning. Only Yom Kippur—the “Sabbath of Sabbaths”—overrides the joy of the day. Yet the Abudarham says the 10th of Tevet is the exception.
The great Hatam Sofer asks: Why? What is so special about the 10th of Tevet?
He provides a revolutionary answer. He explains that there are two types of fasts: Fasts for the Past and Fasts for the Future.
When we fast on the 17th of Tammuz or the 9th of Av, we are looking back. we are crying over what was lost thousands of years ago. These are fasts of memory and mourning. Because they are about the past, they cannot stand against the current, living joy of Shabbat.
But then there are fasts about the future. A “Dream Fast,” where a person fasts because they are afraid of a bad dream coming true, is permitted on Shabbat. Why? Because you are fasting to save your future. You are sweetening a judgment that hasn’t happened yet.
The Hatam Sofer reveals that the 10th of Tevet is a Fast of the Future. Every single year, on the 10th of Tevet, the Heavenly Court sits in session and decides: “Will the Third Temple be built this year?”
When we fast on this day, we aren’t just crying over a siege in ancient history. We are pleading for the Redemption that is coming tomorrow. We are looking ahead.
Why the Tzadik Lives for “The Day After”
Now we can understand why Rabbi Nathan’s soul left the world on this specific day.
Rabbi Nathan spent his entire life writing books. In those days, writing a book was an agonizing, expensive, and physical labor. There were no computers. You had to buy expensive quills and parchment. You had to wait for the ink to dry on every single page. If you made a mistake, you had to start over.
Why did these Tzadikim choose to spend their lives bent over parchment instead of just giving live lessons?
Because they were living for the “day after.” They knew that one day they would leave this world, and they wanted their light to remain. They were investing in a future they would not physically see.
For a Tzadik who writes, the day of their death is the happiest day of their life. Why? Because that is the day their physical limitations are removed, and their teachings finally take flight across the world for all eternity.
Hashem “rolled” Rabbi Nathan’s Hiloula to the 10th of Tevet because Rabbi Nathan is the essence of the future. He taught us that no matter how dark the “siege” around your heart is, you must look at the Temple that is about to be built. You don’t dwell on the past; you build the future.
The Trap of “Abraham and Isaac”
My beloved brothers, this leads us to a deep psychological truth found in this week’s Parsha, Vayechi.
Our father Jacob (Yaakov) is about to pass away. He calls his grandsons, Ephraim and Menashe, and blesses them: “The angel who redeems me from all evil bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac.”
Look at the order. Jacob puts himself first. He says “My name,” and only then mentions the giants, Abraham and Isaac.
Wait—isn’t Jacob a man of ultimate humility? Why would he put himself before his holy grandfather and father?
Because Jacob knew human nature. Human nature is to value only that which is out of reach.
We look at the past and say, “Ah, Abraham and Isaac! Those were legends! If only I lived in their time!” We look at people far away and say, “If only I had their life, their family, their money.”
But the things we have right in front of us—the “Jacob” we saw every day, the family we live with, the opportunities we have right now—we tend to despise. We think, “If it’s here and it’s mine, it must not be that valuable.”
Jacob was telling his grandsons: “I know you will value Abraham and Isaac because they are memories. But I am the one who lived with you. I am the one you saw in your daily routine. Do not overlook the holiness that is right in front of your eyes. Appreciate what you have, first. Then go and learn from the others.”
Stop Comparing, Start Building
How many of us waste our lives comparing our “today” to someone else’s “yesterday”?
“Maybe if I was born in a different generation, I would be a Tzadik.”
“Maybe if I had a different job, I would be happy.”
My brothers, this is the message of Rabbi Nathan and the message of Jacob: Look at your present, and use it to build your future.
The 10th of Tevet isn’t a day of despair; it’s a day of construction. We fast because we believe the Temple can be built this year. We look at the “Jacob” in our lives—the current struggles and current blessings—and we realize that this is exactly where G-d wants us to be.
We don’t look back at the past with regret. We don’t look at others with envy. We look at the present with faith and at the future with joy.
A Blessing to You All
As we prepare for this holy Shabbat, I want to bless all of you.
May the merit of the holy Rabbi Nathan, who taught us that “there is no despair in the world at all,” protect you. May the merit of our forefather Jacob, who taught us to value our own portion, give you clarity.
This Shabbat, we are organizing buses to the Cave of the Patriarchs (Ma’arat HaMachpelah). All the prayers in the world pass through that holy place. We have arranged for police escorts and free transportation so that we can stand where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob stood.
I invite you to join us. Let us pray together. Let us look toward the future together.
May G-d protect the righteous Moshe, Rabbi Chaim Alush, and all the holy scholars of this Beit Midrash. May we see salvation, joy, and the building of the Temple speedily in our days.
Amen.
Mazal Tov and Blessings to all!
Based on the teachings of Rabbi Yoel Pinto, Shlita.
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