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On the 20th of the month, my landlord emailed me a link: “You can pay your rent right here on this website.”

Since we moved to our current apartment around seven years ago, I have paid the rent diligently. I may have been late by a couple of days once in a while, but I certainly never missed a payment. This April, however, deep into the month I still had not paid my rent, and so he reached out to me.

Now this landlord owns thousands of apartments all over the city; I don’t know exactly how many buildings he owns, but I know it’s a lot. I figured this was a mass email sent out to all the tenants who still hadn't paid, so I didn’t respond.

The next day he sent a follow up: “GM, I had sent you an email about paying rent online. Have not heard from you yet. Pls call this AM in this regard, stay safe.”

Clearly, this was not a mass email. Oops! This was personal; he knows that I have not paid and has personally reached out to me himself, not through any of his numerous employees. So I responded. 

“Hope all is well with you,” I wrote. “Unfortunately I am not in a position to pay rent this month. Our entire operation has been shut down. Our shul, preschool, Torah classes and many other programs have all moved to Zoom, and donations to our Chabad center are down by 90 percent. Is there any way you can help us in this unfortunate time?”

Like millions of people across the world who are having this conversation with their landlord, I am not unique. Someone emailed me a few days ago, “Rabbi, this is the darkest period of my life. It has never been worse; my income is down to zero and I have lost all my money.”

My landlord replied immediately: “That is a big chunk of change to ask for. I have a bank breathing down my back.”

And then I realized that my landlord does not own the building I live in—the banks do! He owes them money, and he may in fact be in an even worse position than I am. “The more possessions we have, the more worries we accumulate,” the Mishnah tells us.

So who is responsible for the damages that have been caused by the coronavirus? Is it my fault that my operation has ceased to exist? Is it the landlord’s burden to bear? Is it the banks? Who is ultimately responsible?

But then I asked myself, how have I been able to pay rent the last few years? Of course, it’s all G-d! Yes, I work hard. Most mornings I am up at 4am, and my work is essentially helping other people, but I still have to pay my bills each month. And the one who has helped me until now is G-d. In fact, the Torah promises us, “G-d shall bless you in all that you do.” 

How is the doctor who has patients streaming through his practice able to pay his bills? We might assume it’s his skill and experience, but of course that’s not it. It’s G-d. 

How is the lawyer, who is inundated with high-paying clients, able to pay her bills? We may chalk it up to her superior intelligence and excellent education, but that’s not it either. Of course not. It’s G-d. 

And how about the finance guru who is raking it in through stocks? Is it because of his clever investment strategy? Of course not. His success, too, is all thanks to G-d. 

The same G-d that enabled the doctor, lawyer, finance guru, and me to pay our bills the last few years will continue to do so now. But we must create a vessel, a portal if you will, for that to happen. We can’t sit back and expect the money to flow from heaven. We must work and create natural channels for the blessings to come our way. 

Lest we think we are smart and tough and resilient and responsible for our own successes and earnings… this would be a huge mistake! The one who has been paying our bills is G-d.

And so now, during this difficult period in our lives, who will help? Of course, G-d will! We still have to put in the effort, and perhaps even redouble our efforts, but at the same time we must increase our faith in G-d and know that He will not abandon us.

As for me and my landlord, for now we’ve worked out a mutually satisfactory deal for the next three months, after which hopefully all will be well again. 

Moses was the most humble person to ever walk the earth - “V’ha-ish Moshe anav me’od mikol ha’adam,” the Torah tells us.

Why is that?

Kabbalah explains that when Moses looked to the future and saw Jews living today, he was humbled. 

Moses, whose greatest accomplishment was facilitating the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai 3,332 years ago, was humbled when he saw that despite being forced to close down all our yeshivas and communal learning structures for the first time in history, there is an unprecedented amount of Torah classes being given over Zoom, Facebook, Youtube and Instagram. He was blown away by our dedication. 

Moses, the master of tefillah, greatest prophet and communicator, was inspired when he saw that despite all minyanim and shuls being shut down across the globe, we haven’t stopped praying. We’ve transformed our homes into places of tefillah, and joined forces over Whatsapp to say tehillim in groups; more davening is happening than before! 

Moses, the greatest leader in history, was humbled when he saw that although we have been orphaned of our Rebbe, our leader, for 25 years, we haven’t fizzled into oblivion. We have been forced to become our own leaders, even in isolation. 

Moses, who was taught us the true meaning of ahavat Yisrael with his willingness to sacrifice his own life to save the Jewish nation, was awestruck to see that despite the economic crisis and financial fear we’re facing, we have exhibited unprecedented levels of kindness and generosity during this pandemic. So much tzeddakah has been given, hatzalah volunteers are working round the clock, and doctors and nurses are putting their very lives on the line. 

Moses, who performed the greatest miracles, smiting the Egyptians with 10 plagues, splitting the sea for us, and feeding us in the desert for 40 years, looked at our generation and saw that despite our low spiritual status, we have the ultimate self sacrifice and love for Hashem and His mitzvot—the greatest miracle of all! 

On the 28th day of Nissan in 1988 the Rebbe gave a fiery talk and declared: “I have done all I can possibly do to bring Moshiach. Now I turn the matter over to you.” These words have never been more pertinent than in our times. We are doing all we can, but we can always do more. Let’s push ourselves and see what miracles we can procure.

The big question on everyone’s lips this week is whether we’re ready to re-open the world or if it would be wiser to stay shuttered for longer.

On the one hand, we’ve been in isolation for six weeks already and the world’s economy has been virtually decimated. Millions of people are out of work and it’s extremely difficult (and sometimes dangerous) for people to remain isolated.

On the other hand, if things open up too quickly, the virus will likely have a resurgence putting many more lives at risk. And we know, saving a single life is akin to saving the entire world.

And so, the debate rages on. Economy or health? How and when can we reopen? Under which conditions? How can we stagger it? What else do we need to have in place?

The truth is, this question is not new or unique to our day and age. It’s one that is asked every time a child is born.

On the one hand, the soul would love to stay in Paradise, pure, untainted, enjoying it’s isolation with its Father in Heaven, where each second is infinitely more pleasurable than anything this world can offer.

But on the other hand, in order to make this world a better place, the soul needs to descend into the physical realm, enter a body, and start refining the world around it.

Unfortunately, doing so endangers the soul. It can become contaminated from all the falsehood that exists in this world. Every time a person lies, cheats, steals, deceives, violates Shabbat, or eats non-kosher food, more damage is done to the soul than any coronavirus can possibly inflict. The coronavirus only harms a person in this physical world; spiritual damage affects a person both in the current world, and in the World to Come.

Ultimately, the decision is made to send the soul into the world, and G-d empowers it to succeed, equipping it with the tools to combat the hurdles and overcome the temptations that it will inevitably encounter. The mind rules the heart; if we so desire, we can overcome temptation and perform only mitzvot.

In fact, it says as much in this week’s Torah portion, Tazria-Metzora. The Torah discusses a woman giving birth, referring to the soul desperately cleaving to G-d. We tell the soul, “We know how much you want to stay with G-d, but you can only fulfill your mission in the physical world. We need you here. It will be hard, but we’ll give you the tools you need. You cannot opt out. We need you too badly.”

And with this coronavirus, too, eventually we will need to re-open the world. It’s our mission. We cannot continue without it. But when we do, we will not only take the necessary physical precautions such as wearing masks and gloves and using Purell, but also the spiritual ones which will fortify us and enable us to fulfill our mission in this world!

Hope to see you soon in the real world!

Rabbi Uriel Vigler