One can ask a question: why would God allow so many prophets – a child I was studying with today, asked me, “why would God allow Jesus to do miracles?” – In fact, it states, amazingly in the Torah, that if a prophet arises who does miracles but changes one iota of the “constitution” Judaism, the Torah, they are false – but who gives this person the power to do miracles, well, God?!

To parallel, we find on one hand God says: when you go into Israel you must erase the idols and idolaters lest you are tempted to follow their perverted ways; yet later, God says, I will not allow the Jewish army to wipe them all out, to test the Jews.

For in essence, God is truth.

And truth cannot or does not, or wishes not, to be involved with untruth.

So many are the prophets, many are the “wisemen” but precious, precious few, have truth.

In fact, Chassidim teach, had the Alter Rebbe, not insisted on three words in the Tanya, that “truth endures forever,” hence exalting nothing less than a full acceptance, obedience to truth, an extra 50,000 followers would he have garnered.

And even within Judaism – many are the Torah branches, but the truth as Kabbalah calls the hidden wisdom of Chassidus, the “wisdom of truth” few and far between, indeed.

And I believe the reason can be explained, similar to the miracle of Chanukah.

It is not hard to find oil – to squeeze it.

But the miracle was a single jar – for the oil of truth, is very hard to find.

Against truth are empires (for their egos cannot tolerate the absolute unifying and humbling effect of truth.)

But one by one those empires fell, for they all were based on fiction – bizarre falsehoods (primarily meant to prove themselves morally superior.)

In fact, when the Jews found the single jar of pure oil – faced with the dilemma to light it in piecemeal, a bit for eight days (until new could be made) or all at once, the dictate of truth is, always to do what’s right!

And hence, as we span literally five millennia, looking at the rise and fall of empires, of notions, all that does remain is that single undefiled truth – which you can only discover if it is more precious to you than all the fantasies, the lies, the delusions etc. etc.

Mendy