LEAD TIDBIT:
Another Look at DAYEINU
First glance at the DAYEINU song at the Seder raises several questions of the same type: If “A” and not “B”, DAYEINU. Would it have been enough had we gone through Yam Suf but had the Egyptians not drowned? We would have been in big trouble. What do we mean by DAYEINU? The standard answer is that DAYEINU means, “there would be sufficient cause to acknowledge and thank G-d”, even without the next thing that is mentioned. There is something in each line in DAYEINU of value to us, that requires and inspires us, to thank G-d for it.

The question is often asked about the statement, If You had brought us near to Har Sinai, but not had given us the Torah, DAYEINU. How could that be? The purpose of being at Har Sinai was to receive the Torah. The answers given point to the experience of single-purposed unity upon our arrival at Sinai, as well as the miraculous aspects of the Sinai experience, aside from the Torah which we received there.

Dayeinu not withstanding, the question is still a good question. The answer gives us pause to appreciate the special features and lessons of the Sinai experience, but the question itself must be acknowledged as making an important point: That the receiving of the Torah was the purpose of coming to Sinai. It was the purpose of getting out of Egypt in the first place. And the purpose of all the other events mentioned in the various lines of DAYEINU.

And as we celebrate Shavuot, Z’man Matan Torateinu, we must reflect that no matter how many, many reasons we have to thank HaShem, is His “choosing us from all the nations, by giving us His Torah” that is THE ultimate cause of our eternal gratitude to G-d... because it is the ultimate reason that we exist as a nation and as individual Jews.

Now let’s continue the thought by looking further in DAYEINU. The Torah was not the end of the story. The Torah has a G-d-given, preferred venue, that being, of course, Eretz Yisrael. The receiving of the Torah would certainly given us sufficient cause to thank G-d. DAYEINU. But there was more to come. Had He taken us into Eretz Yisrael and not built us the Beit HaMikdash, that too would have been sufficient cause to thank G-d. And those of us who are privileged to live in Israel must thank G-d every day - even with our less than perfect government. But that’s for a different Lead Tidbit. How are we to understand If You had brought us into Eretz Yisrael, but no Beit HaMikdash, DAYEINU. Again, it is certainly not enough. So much of our Jewish Life is lacking without the Beit HaMikdash. But there is sufficient cause to thank G-d for Eretz Yisrael, even without the Mikdash. But on the other hand, just like Har Sinai and the Torah, Eretz Yisrael and the Beit HaMikdash are not equal. For all that the Har Sinai experience gave us, its significance comes from the Torah which we received there.
For all that Eretz Yisrael is to us, its significance comes from the fact that this is where the Torah is supposed to be lived and where the Beit haMikdash is supposed to stand.

Eretz Yisrael withouot Torah, is like a body without a soul. The Torah is our soul. That soul is supposed to have a body. And that body is the People of Israel in the Land of Israel. And the Beit HaMikdash is the heartbeat of the body-soul entity.

This in no way should be interpreted as trivializing the significance of Eretz Yisrael. Without Torah learning and observance and values, Eretz Yisrael spits us out. With Torah, with Eretz Yisrael, and IY”H with the Beit HaMikdash, the People of Israel can achieve the goal G-d set for us back in the proximity of Har Sinai - And you shall be a kingdom of kohanim and a holy nation. Chag Samei'ach.