Omer Yankelevich was the first-ever female haredi minister of Israel. As heaven would have it, she was appointed Minister of Diaspora Affairs just after the Covid-19 pandemic struck. At the time, I was serving as a rabbi in London and her words to Anglo-Jewry will stay with me forever.

“I grew up in the Soviet Union, where Jewish practice was severely curtailed. And yet, my parents and grandparents made certain decisions that made me who I am today. They could have sat back and said, ‘It’s not our fault. There’s nothing we can do.’ Sadly, that’s what most Jews did. And we cannot blame them. But today, their children and grandchildren are mostly ignorant of their Judaism.

Right now, shuls everywhere are closed. Schools are closed. Chedarim are closed. Youth groups are closed. We don’t know how long this will last. Trust me, nobody thought that communism would last 70 years. But one day, your children and grandchildren will look back and consider how their parents and grandparents responded not just to the physical crisis, but also to the spiritual crisis. With everyone stuck at home, each person must become their family’s rabbi, schoolteacher, madrich and camp counselor. The decisions you make today have the potential to impact generations.”

Prior to Moshe’s passing, he delivers a warning to the children of Israel that they must continue to observe the Torah’s ways. For, if they do not, calamity will befall them. When that happens, “In the morning, you shall say, ‘If only it were night,’ and in the night, you shall say, ‘If only it were morning;’ from the fear of your hearts … ” Today’s daf discusses the meaning of the Torah’s cautionary words.

רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ מִיּוֹם שֶׁחָרַב בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ אֵין וְכוּ׳ אָמַר רָבָא בְּכׇל יוֹם וָיוֹם מְרוּבָּה קִלְלָתוֹ מִשֶּׁל חֲבֵירוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בַּבֹּקֶר תֹּאמַר מִי יִתֵּן עֶרֶב וּבָעֶרֶב תֹּאמַר מִי יִתֵּן בֹּקֶר הֵי בֹּקֶר אִילֵימָא בֹּקֶר דְּלִמְחַר מִי יָדַע מַאי הָוֵי אֶלָּא דַּחֲלֵיף

רש”י: אלא דחליף—מי יתן והיה זה יום הבא כזה שעבר

“Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua: From the day the Holy Temple was destroyed, there was no day that was not cursed. Rava said: Every day’s curse is worse than that of the previous day, as it states, “In the morning, you shall say: ‘If only it were night,’ and in the night, you shall say, ‘If only it were morning.’” “Which morning does the verse refer to? If you say it refers to tomorrow morning, who knows what will be? Rather, the verse refers to this morning that already was.”

Rashi: “If only the coming day were like yesterday!”

Many people look nostalgically to the past, reminiscing about how good things were in the “good old days.” They reminisce about times gone by when life was pure, simple and straightforward. But was life really that uncomplicated? Of course not. Every era has its highs and lows.

Let me share a little secret with you… We are currently living in the good old days. There will come a day in the future, when we’ll look back to the times we are living in today and yearn for the good days of our present lives. The secret to life is—instead of looking backwards— nostalgically longing for times in the past that are long gone, we should be grateful for the times we live in today.

And then again, as you read this, your longings for the past may very well be justified. When Minister Yankelevich addressed her British audience, we were in the midst of an unprecedented crisis. At such times, it’s tempting to despair and pine for days of yore. But her message was that doing so would simply shirk our responsibility. How often do we hear people complain about the lack of leadership in our day and age? “All of our gedolim are gone!” They cry. But that’s not true.

Today, we conclude Masechta Sotah. The tractate closes with a strange exchange about humility and fear of sin. The mishna teaches that when rebbe died, humility and fear of sin disappeared. Rav Yosef replies to the teacher, “Don’t teach that humility is gone, for I am here,” and Rav Nachman says to the teacher, “Don’t teach that fear of sin is gone, for I am here.”

And with that, the tractate ends, leaving us completely baffled. Did rebbe’s passing see the end of these traits or not? And how could these rabbis have the arrogance to boast that they embodied humility and fear of sin? Isn’t it contradictory to publicly declare one’s humility?! And likewise, if you do fear sin, shouldn’t you keep that to yourself?

Here’s what these great rabbis were expressing. When they heard the teacher bemoaning the lack of leadership in their time, they stood up and responded: “Don’t say humility is dead. I am here. Don’t say fear of sin is dead. I am here.” They weren’t saying it out of arrogance. They were assuming responsibility and stepping up to the plate of leadership.

Looking to the past and deciding that there’s no leadership today is an excuse for inertia and hopelessness. Are we on the same level as our gedolim of yesteryear? Perhaps not. But that’s no justification to sit around in a state of despair. On the contrary, if we don’t step up, it becomes a free-for-all where anything goes—after all, if there’s no leadership today, then can we blame the average person for his poor behavior?

Rav Yosef and Rav Nachman wouldn’t accept such a forfeiting attitude. Their message was: “If people believe humility is dead, then they will be arrogant, if people believe fear of sin is dead, they will sin. We’re not going to let that happen in our time. Today might not be the same as yesterday, but that is no excuse to shirk your responsibility to step up and lead.”

How many times have I walked into someone’s home who has proudly shown me the beautiful picture of his Zayda—an ehrlicher Yid mit a langer bord, a sincere Jew with a long beard? Beard or no beard, will your einiklach, your grandchildren, be able to point with the same pride to your picture?

Today, we are living in the good old days of the future. Whether the Almighty is calling you to lead your community or your family, you have the opportunity to become the gadol of today and future generations. May you accept the mantle of leadership that today’s generation needs!

Rabbi Dr. Daniel Friedman is the author of The Transformative Daf series and the founder of the Center for Torah Values. www.transformativedaf.com