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Daily Chizuk #1326
Weekly Parasha
Kindness in Denials: Seeing Chesed in Unanswered Requests
The Secret of the Shekalim
One of the minhagim we have upon us in the days preceding Purim is זכר למחצית השקל. We give money as a reminder of the machazit hashekel, the half shekel of silver that they used to give during the days of the Beit HaMikdash. The Sefer Sha'areh Moshe writes, if we understand one of the underlying meanings of machazit hashekel, it will help us with another mitzvah, משנכנס אדר מרבים בשמחה, increasing our joy during the month of Adar.
Rashi writes in Parashat Ki Tisa regarding the machazit hashekel, that the Jewish people were commanded to give it initially, to be counted after the chet ha’egel. And because we aren't able to count people, they had to give a coin to be counted instead.
Perhaps the machatzit hashekel is also meant to be a reminder of this great deed of Avraham, to remind us to take to heart how valuable it is to accept the way Hashem deals with us. Many people could ask questions on the way things are happening in their lives. Nobody knows the troubles that befall each individual, especially now in the dor acharon. Our greatest zechut is the emunah that we have in Hashem, that He only does good even though we can't see it. Each time a person gives himself chizuk and tells Hashem, “I trust You, even though I don't understand why this is happening. I'll continue serving You the way I'm supposed to.” His level rises to the highest heights. With this emunah, a person will find more joy and truly be able to feel simcha, especially at this glorious time of year.
One of the minhagim we have upon us in the days preceding Purim is זכר למחצית השקל. We give money as a reminder of the machazit hashekel, the half shekel of silver that they used to give during the days of the Beit HaMikdash. The Sefer Sha'areh Moshe writes, if we understand one of the underlying meanings of machazit hashekel, it will help us with another mitzvah, משנכנס אדר מרבים בשמחה, increasing our joy during the month of Adar.
Rashi writes in Parashat Ki Tisa regarding the machazit hashekel, that the Jewish people were commanded to give it initially, to be counted after the chet ha’egel. And because we aren't able to count people, they had to give a coin to be counted instead.
Perhaps the machatzit hashekel is also meant to be a reminder of this great deed of Avraham, to remind us to take to heart how valuable it is to accept the way Hashem deals with us. Many people could ask questions on the way things are happening in their lives. Nobody knows the troubles that befall each individual, especially now in the dor acharon. Our greatest zechut is the emunah that we have in Hashem, that He only does good even though we can't see it. Each time a person gives himself chizuk and tells Hashem, “I trust You, even though I don't understand why this is happening. I'll continue serving You the way I'm supposed to.” His level rises to the highest heights. With this emunah, a person will find more joy and truly be able to feel simcha, especially at this glorious time of year.
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