Rabbi Eliezer Shemtov
I don't think anyone will argue that we are living in historic times. The only discussion will be with regards to why.
Many will say that we are in the worst of times, filled with unprecedented hatred. Hatred of others toward us, hatred among ourselves and hatred among others.
I want to propose here that we are actually living in the best of times; not in spite of all of these hatreds but precisely because of them.
Did I get your attention?
Good. Let's continue…
In the cosmos there is balance and symmetry. Each thing has its opposite. Love and hate are not really opposites; they are on the same spectrum of emotions. The true opposite of both is indifference.
When I love or hate someone, it is because I consider them important enough to warrant a reaction. And it is easier to turn a negative reaction into a positive one than to provoke a reaction where there is none.
It brings to mind when I proposed to a commercially successful individual to celebrate his success by making a significant donation to a school where his daughters were studying.
“I am flattered that you thought of me and that I have the ability to make such a donation. But, to give such a large donation one has to be emotionally attached to the institution, and I am not.” He went on to detail a number of complaints he had....
I thanked him and told him that I took his “no” as a “not yet.”
He laughed, thinking I meant it as a joke. I was serious.
I asked for a meeting with him and his wife to hear their complaints in more detail.
After an hour of conversation, I told them: I see that you are very angry with the things that are happening. I see that you are not at all indifferent and you are very emotionally involved in the quality of your daughters' education. Now you have the opportunity to do something about it... I invited them to join the school board to effect the desired changes.
The response to that proposal was “no (=not yet)” .....
The story ends with him agreeing to join the board “just for six months” to help expand and strengthen the board. This was about six years ago and he is still active. In those six years he donated much more than that “outlandish” amount, logical only for “emotionally involved individuals”.
Why do I share this story?
What is happening in the world today is nothing more than a variation —to the nth power, obviously— of this same story.
We must not be impressed by the way things look. We must know how to see what is behind it and how to help reconfigure things at their root so that hatred becomes love.
The key to achieve this is “clarity”. When one knows how to interpret things correctly, it will help to understand and make things understood in such a way that it leads to love instead of hate.
Let's look at an example:
One of the complaints of our enemies today —and perhaps since forever— is that we Jews consider ourselves superior. “See, the Jews consider themselves to be G-d's Chosen People.” At first glance it sounds “supremacist” and provokes hatred. Let's see what it is really all about.
While it is true that the Jewish people were chosen, the key question is: chosen for what. Notice that ‘chosen’ is not synonymous with ‘preferred’. The idea is that we were chosen to fulfill a specific responsibility. We were not chosen to dominate others but to fulfill a special function. It is the task of the Jewish people to be the guardians of G-d's word, the Torah, to cultivate the consciousness and welfare of mankind. When we assume and fulfill this responsibility with humility, diligence and love for our fellow man, who will want to hate us?
Many will disagree with me. To them I say, “I take your ‘no’ as ‘not yet.’” I say this not because I distrust them, nor do I say it because I trust myself. I say it because I trust them. I trust in the capacity of every human being to be able to find the truth if he or she searches for it with sincerity. I admit that it is not easy at all to be sincere. But I do not admit that the sincere search is not eventually crowned with success. That is how I was educated and that is what my life experience has taught me.
I invite you to challenge and refute this statement.
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In these times of darkness and uneasiness, the clarity and relevance of the teachings of the Rebbe, may his merit shield us, stand out more and more, even 30 years after his passing.
To those resistant and indifferent who see him as nothing more than 'a prominent religious leader', and not considering themselves 'religious' do not find it relevant to even evaluate what he says, I invite them to shed their prejudices, both about the Rebbe and about themselves, and nourish themselves with the clarity of his teachings, first and foremost for their own benefit. You may have to learn a new “language” to appreciate the concepts —as with any system of thought to which you are not accustomed— but I believe it is well worth it.
In this magazine you will find some of the Rebbe's teachings. If you want to learn more about his vision, as it relates to the individual and as it relates to Israel and society in general, you can start with the following sites:
Needless to say, I am at your disposal to try to try and clarify any doubts and to continue the conversation.
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As I write these lines, it has been 339 days (!) that some 16,000,000 hostages are still being held hostage in Gaza. 101 hostages are there physically, and the rest of us are there emotionally and mentally, attentive to every detail.
Why are we so affected by what happens to people we don't even know? I believe it is because the Jewish people are all one and when one part is held hostage we are all held hostage.
Here is a transformative teaching of the Rebbe. Since the Jewish people are as one organism, we all affect one another. Each of us has the power to affect the well-being of all. That is the theoretical foundation of the Tefillin campaign that the Rebbe launched in 1967 prior to the Six Day War. In the Talmud [1] we find Rabbi Eliezer's statement, based on a Bible verse [2], that fulfilling the precept of putting on Tefillin has the power to reinforce the protection of the Jewish people against their enemies, imposing terror upon them.
How can a Jew in Uruguay affect the situation in Israel by putting on Tefillin?
Once again, the Rebbe resorted to the example of an organism: when one has a problem in the heart, a medicine is injected into another part of the body. Although they are two different organs, they are part of the same body and share the same blood.
Let us take advantage of the pain inflicted upon us to realize how we are essentially and truly united in spite of differences that are totally superficial in comparison. Let us turn the effect of our enemies into a catalyst for the unity that will help us achieve victory over them.
With wishes for good news, may we all be inscribed and sealed for a Shanah Tovah Umetukah, may we celebrate Rosh Hashanah 5785 in Yerushalaim together with all the freed hostages, with the true and complete redemption from exile, with Mashiach in the lead.
Translated editorial published in Kesher Magazine No. 85, Tishrei 5785, Fall 2024, Jabad Uruguay
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Berajot 57a
Deuteronomio, 28:10
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