A Storm Wind

There are times in which order leads; you know this from life. Everything stands in its place, life proceeds in routine, everything is mended and fine. And there are times in which chaos rules, and this too we all know... worlds collapse, orders overturn, wars break out. In times of chaos, it is precisely out of the storm that something new begins to be born: a forest is built after a fire. A tree grows from a rotten pit. Thus revolutions begin. Rav Kook speaks of a 'storm wind,' a kicking, wild, boundless force. In moments of war and upheaval it has its place. Then calm and order do not suffice. One must break through. This is a wind unsuited to peaceful life, but it is vital when life itself collapses. Thus, among other things, the State of Israel was established. But the storm is not a goal. It is a temporary stage. Its role is to break, not to build. The complete edifice grows in the end out of the repair that comes after the chaos. In times of war it is important to recognize the value of the storm! And within the process, to remember always that it is a stage within a mended life.

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