I am sorry, but it’s too easy to fall back on the default “what does Hashem want from us..we have to do teshuva”, i.e. that somehow it’s ALWAYS the Klal’s fault every time something bad occurs to us. Maybe, on the contrary, given the incredible tumah that exists in the world today and the way the gentiles and those who behave like gentiles live and think, that frum Klal Yisrael are truly fulfilling ‘Kedushim tihiyu,” and such an incident is no reflection on our behavior. We know that Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai taught “halacha: yadua, Eisav sonai l’Yaakov.” Maybe Hashem was sending a message,”wake up Yidden, you are in galus, you are becoming “mitzuyonim” like in Egypt and the hateful goyim are taking notice–don’t be so complacent, but take active measures to protect yourselves !” Yes, of course there is always a mitzvah of teshuva “Nachpesa deracheinu v’nachkora, v’nashuva AD HASHEM”- there is no end to returning and coming closer to Hashem, right up and until Hashem, kaviyochel, HIMSELF, as Rav Avigdor Miller,once pointed out in explaining this verse. And, yes, as long as Moshiach has not arrived, it means we have not done enough to bring him. But constant “klapping al chet” every time something bad occurs within our community is not necessarily a correct response, neither psychologically healthy nor spiritually correct. Perhaps the message is Hashem wants us to cry out more in tefillah to bring Moshiach. It takes an Adam Gadol to interpret events, and even anashim gedolim recognize that Hashem does not necessarily speak to us in ways we can clearly understand in our generation. We do not merit Nevuah or ruach haKodesh anymore.
I am sorry, but it’s too easy to fall back on the default “what does Hashem want from us..we have to do teshuva”, i.e. that somehow it’s ALWAYS the Klal’s fault every time something bad occurs to us. Maybe, on the contrary, given the incredible tumah that exists in the world today and the way the gentiles and those who behave like gentiles live and think, that frum Klal Yisrael are truly fulfilling ‘Kedushim tihiyu,” and such an incident is no reflection on our behavior. We know that Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai taught “halacha: yadua, Eisav sonai l’Yaakov.” Maybe Hashem was sending a message,”wake up Yidden, you are in galus, you are becoming “mitzuyonim” like in Egypt and the hateful goyim are taking notice–don’t be so complacent, but take active measures to protect yourselves !” Yes, of course there is always a mitzvah of teshuva “Nachpesa deracheinu v’nachkora, v’nashuva AD HASHEM”- there is no end to returning and coming closer to Hashem, right up and until Hashem, kaviyochel, HIMSELF, as Rav Avigdor Miller,once pointed out in explaining this verse. And, yes, as long as Moshiach has not arrived, it means we have not done enough to bring him. But constant “klapping al chet” every time something bad occurs within our community is not necessarily a correct response, neither psychologically healthy nor spiritually correct. Perhaps the message is Hashem wants us to cry out more in tefillah to bring Moshiach. It takes an Adam Gadol to interpret events, and even anashim gedolim recognize that Hashem does not necessarily speak to us in ways we can clearly understand in our generation. We do not merit Nevuah or ruach haKodesh anymore.