We are in the midst of the difficult days of Bein HaMetzarim, days in which Am Israel mourns over the destruction it endured (most notoriously of the Temple, but the devastation was far more widespread) and galut HaShechinah (the exile, as it were, off the Divine Presence). There is probably no better time than now to analyze the causes of the destruction and the galut, and conversely, by remedying them we will merit, G-d willing, to renewed construction and redemption. In the following paragraphs we will endeavor to deepen our understanding of these issues.
 

"So said the Lord of Hosts: The fast of the fourth (month) and the fast of the fifth and the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth will be become for the House of Yehuda (days of) exultation and gladness and joyful times, and you shall love the truth and peace." (Zechariah 8:19) We must ask: what is the connection between the first part of the verse and the second part?
 

HaRav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch explains that the entire secret and foundation of the destruction and the redemption are contained in these words at the end of the verse. The truth and peace, they themselves brought on the two destructions, and they are the keys to the redemption. And we must pay attention to the order in which they are placed: The truth, and only afterwards peace. Nevertheless, we must remember: we must love both of them.
 

At the time of the first Temple, the populace was enthusiastic about the ideal of peace. They were so fervent about it that when the truth was an obstacle in the path of peace, they "bent" it with exceptional ease, or simply cast it aside so it would not interfere with the attainment of their desired goal. The widespread aspiration was to be like all the surrounding nations, and in order to engender relationships of peace and friendship and "to be part of the family of mankind" they adopted the customs and ways of life of the surrounding nations. The idea of "a nation which dwells alone" was anathema. They called their approach "peace" and their concept of peace became the yardstick by which truth was measured, meaning that they were loyal to the truth only as far as it didn't disturb the "peace." "Peace" became a sanctified, absolutely unchallengeable value, and anyone who cleaved to the truth was branded as an unenlightened zealot and an opponent of peace.

The openness and pluralism - to hear, to see and even to behave in the ways of different cultures, was a dominant force. For instance, in this spirit the king Achaz removed the altar from Damascus and set it up within HaShem's Temple as a shining example of openness, but of course without denying the legitimacy of HaShem's altar which "will be for me to visit." (II Kings 16:15) Likewise, hundreds and thousands of false prophets spread through Am Israel, crying out with all their strength "Peace! Peace!" Conversely, the men of truth were denounced as violating the peace, since they dared to voice the truth within the international fraternity of falsehood. Such was the long list of sufferings endured by Yirmiyahu, and such was the story of the striking of Micha after he was the only one who spoke the truth against four hundred false prophets who said what the nation wanted to hear from them. They forgot that peace is only secondary to the truth, which in fact is the only true peace.

We define truth as the correlation between man's recognition and reality, but in the broader sense, truth is when things are done in the appropriate way which fits the purpose and the goal. And in this way, upholding the truth is synonymous with keeping the peace in its deeper meaning – peace between Heaven and earth, between the action and the goal, between the accomplishment and the purpose. Therefore, "Everyone who learns Torah lishmah (with no ulterior motives) brings peace between the celestial entourage and the worldly entourage." (Sanhedrin 99b) And therefore, "Talmidei Chachamim increase peace in the world" (Brachot 64a) – real peace and not fake peace, as "There is no peace, says HaShem, for the wicked." (Yishayahu 48:22) Furthermore, the moment the moral backbone of the Divine truth is gone, counterfeit peace as well cannot endure over time.

The permissiveness and the erosion of truth which led to idol worship penetrated into other domains and paved the way to "A man defiled the wife of his fellow man" (Yechezkel 33:26) – a deed which perhaps most powerfully represents the complete destruction of truth and boundaries in favor of imaginary peace. From here the path was short to bloodshed, the obliteration of justice and the complete absence of basic human morality. The false prophets deceived the nation into saying peace – and there is no peace. Not only in the sense of invasion by enemy legions, but in its deeper meaning, that the "peace" which the originators of these ideas attempted to engender, in their way of "openness" and permissiveness, where everyone will hear, see and do whatever he wanted to – this is not peace! Not only in the abovementioned, authentic sense, but even the false peace which they attempted to ingrain shattered before them in a city filled with blood and the extortion of the helpless.
 

And so the prophet Yishayahu describes the sins which led to the destruction of the first Temple: "For your hands were defiled with blood… no one calls in justice and there is no honest judgment… their feet run to evil and they hurry to spill innocent blood, their thoughts are evil thoughts, robbery and destruction are in their trail. They did not know the way of peace and there is no justice in their path; their paths they made crooked for themselves, any one who treads on it will know no peace. Therefore, the way of justice is far from us… And justice retreats backwards, and righteousness stands afar, for truth has stumbled in the lane and integrity cannot come. And the truth has become absent, and one who turns away from evil (is considered) insane, and HaShem saw, and this was evil in His eyes because there is no justice." (Yishayahu 59:3-15)
 

And therefore, came HaShem, the King of Justice whose hallmark is truth, and tore away the veil of the false peace.
 

And how did the final destruction come about? When Yochanan ben Kareach warns Gedalyahu be Achikam that Ishmael ben Netanyah is plotting to kill him, and that this could bring on the final destruction of Israel and the dispersion of the remnant of Yehuda, Gedalyah answers him: "You are speaking a lie about Ishmael." This was the extreme expression of grasping onto peace, and completely ignoring the truth.
 

In the second Temple, conduct went to the opposite extreme – only the truth was important, and peace was not valued at all! Extreme hatred between Jews was rampant, the nation was torn into factions which loathed each other and fought against each other incessantly. Just as peace devoid of truth is not peace, so truth devoid of peace is not truth, since truth can only flourish on the basis of peace. And even if not all act according to the truth, as long as in a certain situation, keeping the peace will not blemish the heart of the truth, then it is an absolute obligation to cleave to it. First "Distance yourself from evil and do good," however, immediately afterwards, "seek peace and pursue it." We cannot seek peace by forfeiting this foundation of distancing ourselves from evil and doing good. However, as an indispensable part of this, seeking peace must come immediately afterwards, and balance it. The truth can arise and take root only by virtue of peace.
 

Therefore, the Sages said: "Yerushalayim was not destroyed until they based their judgements upon the law of Torah." (Babba Metziyah 30b) This time around, there was judgement, but there was only judgement. Behavior "beyond the letter of the law", kindness and peace – these were all foreign concepts to them. This type of truth, devoid of any trace of peace – this as well cannot endure. And one who has become accustomed to entirely disparaging peace, and to zealously pursuing the truth even at the cost of offending people or compromising other values – in the end he will always find only the side of the truth which is beneficial to himself, and he will treat this personally advantageous truth as if it is absolute truth. In this way, society degenerated into a morass of arguments and principles, all of which contained some truth, and every one discounting his fellow man like the dust of the earth.
 

And therefore came Hashem, whose name is Peace, and shattered this idol of false, divisive truth with the destruction of the second Temple.
 

And how did the destruction of the second Temple come about? It began with the incidents related in Masechet Gittin (57) of the chicken and the hen, and of the wagon axle. Because of inflexible fanaticism, minor events were blown out of all proportion – things which held no Divine truth which justified waging war (as opposed to Mattityahu and his sons). However, the final destruction came about because of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, when not even one of the sages took initiative to make peace between the rivals, and in the end, when Bar Kamtza came with a blemished sacrifice from the Caesar, Rabbi Zechariah ben Avkulas said: it is forbidden to offer it, for the people will say that blemished sacrifices are offered on the altar! And when it was proposed to kill Bar Kamtza (to prevent him from informing to the Romans) Rabbi Zechariah said: It is forbidden to kill him, for they will say that one who mutilates a sacrifice is put to death! This was an extreme case of pursuing the truth, with no attempt to achieve peace. We failed to understand that the truth itself requires pursuing peace, without which it cannot exist. Of course, we are not talking about a situation where peace compromises the heart of the truth, but about a local, defined exception to the formal truth, where this exception as well is necessitated by the Divine truth (as in the case of pikuach nefesh).
 

And this is what the prophet teaches us: When will Beit Yehuda have exultation and gladness and joyful times? When we will understand the mistakes which led to the destruction and remedy them. When we will know that first of all our obligation is to pursue the truth, which will not change its face on every whim, and will not be sold for lentil stew (cheaply), or for a fraudulent peace of a smile or hug from the official representatives of deception upon this earth, or a covenant of friendship with the enemies of truth. However, immediately afterwards, we must also commit ourselves to loving peace, which fosters pursuing it everywhere possible, even if it means giving up all which is precious to me – as long as I do not give up that which does not belong to me.
 

In our generation as well resonates the call of the prophet Zechariah. We have yet to entirely liberate ourselves from our misleading definitions of truth and peace. As Yeshiva students, it is easier for us to see this happening, on a grand scale, in society at large which is outside of the walls of the Beit Midrash. But of course, for us the task of achieving an authentic balance between truth and peace begins with each and every one of us.
 

May it come to pass that we and all of Am Israel will merit soon to love truth and peace appropriately, and by virtue of this, these days will turn into exultation and gladness and joyful times, speedily and in our days, Amen. And the prophecy of Yirmiyahu (33:6) will be realized: "Behold, I will bring to it healing and remedy and I will cure them, and I will reveal to them the opulence of peace and truth."