Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
Rabbi Matan Goldberger, rabbi of the IDF's officer training school, expressed the following thought on the Torah portion we read this past Shabbat:
"Parashat Va'etchanan ("I beseeched") gets its name from the pleadings of Moshe Rabbeinu. He beseeches God to allow him to enter the Land of Israel. At a certain point, God commands him to cease praying for this, that enough is enough.
We learn from this two important lessons: first, what a great privilege it is to live in the Land of Israel. Even Moshe Rabbeinu did not merit this, no matter of how much he desired and prayed to live here.
But we also learn the astounding power of prayer. What, in essence, is God telling Moshe Rabbeinu? Your prayers are powerful to the point where I am compelled -- as it were -- to stop you since prayer has the capacity to annul My decrees.
You are all invited to take these lessons to heart during the coming week -- regarding the awesome privilege of living in the Land of Israel and the awesome power of prayer."
