The Torah, this week, tells us that one who builds a new home must make a fence around his roof, lest the owner bring bloodshed into his home when the faller falls from it.
Rashi comments that the victim is called “the faller” because he was judged worthy of falling by Hashem, and he would have fallen off a roof regardless.
However, the homeowner is given the advice that by doing this mitzvah, he will merit that it doesn’t take place at his home.
More than the practical aspect of creating a “safe” spot on the roof, it’s the merit of the mitzvah which protects the homeowner from being involved in another’s death.
This also teaches us a fundamental lesson in free will. Though someone may choose to harm another, if it wasn’t ordained in Heaven, it won’t happen. The faller was judged worthy of death and that’s why he fell, not because the roof was unsafe.
Such an understanding is crucial for all aspects of our lives, because Hashem is intimately involved in every moment of every day.
If we didn’t get the raise, or that aliya, or that client, we shouldn’t be upset at the boss, the gabbai, or the competitor. We must remember that it’s all from Hashem, and if we suffered a loss, it’s because He’s trying to tell us something.
Thought of the week:
Find joy in each day not because life is always good, but because G-d is.
