Dear Alumni Sheyichyu!
Sholom U’Brocho!
Mazel tov to Eli Wasserman on the occasion of his engagement. Mazel tov to Avrumi Freeman on the occasion of his engagement. Mazel tov to Levi Matusof on the occasion of his engagement. Mazel tov to Aron Liberow on the occasion of his engagement. May they use out the period of yokor mikol yokor to its’ utmost! Mazel Tov to Rabbi and Mrs. Shlomo (Spu) Barber on the birth of their son. Mazel Tov to Rabbi and Mrs. Yehuda Shomer on the birth of their daughter. Mazel Tov to Rabbi and Mrs. Shmulik Raices on the birth of their daughter. May they bring them up lTOveCHuMAA”T mitoch harchovo, and to be true chayolim/os! (If anyone is aware of any mazeltov’s that I omitted please let me know).
Thank you as always for the feedback, it is much appreciated.
Following are some excerpts from the farbrengen of Rabbi Berel Mockin this past Shabbos, Parshas Bolok (Shiva Asar beTamuz nidcheh) with the bochurim of YLT and the staff of CGI Montreal:
There was a Viznitzer chosid, apparently a respected Rov, who was in a yechidus with the Rebbe (in the - relatively - earlier years). During his yechidus he said to the Rebbe: “I know that chassidim don’t ask questions on their Rebbe, but I am not a Lubavitcher chosid, so perhaps it is permissible for me to question the Rebbe”.
The Rebbe told him to feel free to ask what was on his mind.
The chosid asked the Rebbe: What is the point of the mivtzoim that the Rebbe initiated? They go and convince someone to put on teffilin, but we know that – in most cases – the person goes back to his previous lifestyle, and doesn’t change in any way. What, in that case, was achieved? Does the few moments of teffillin, or whichever other mitzvah, justify all the time and effort that goes into it, if there is no long term benefit?
The Rebbe replied: “A Jew wakes up on Yom Kippur. He takes a shower, shaves, and sits down to eat breakfast (not kosher, r”l). He reads the paper, and then he drives to shul, and sits there for 2 hours, until the service is over”.
“Those 2 hours”, the Rebbe concluded, “zeinen gevunene sho’ois” [they are “won”, i.e., despite the fact that he is not changing anything in his behavior, neither before or after going to shul, the 2 hours that he spends in shul (and then, at least, is refraining from any desecration of Yom Kippur, and perhaps does some positive acts as well) is a victory; - an achievement].
This story encapsulates the position of the Rebbe with regards to mivtzoim: When a Jew performs a mitzva, this is his neshomo connecting with Hashem. That is not something that can be measured in time, because the neshomo and the Eibishter transcend time. Thus, the few moments that he spends putting on teffillin, and connecting with Elokus, are infinitely more valuable and genuine and real than the hundreds or thousands (or more) of hours that he may spend on meaningless – or even sinful – activities.
As the Alter Rebbe writes in Tanya (Perek 25): "ויחוד זה למעלה הוא נצחי לעולם ועד", the union with the Eibishter that is reached through performing a mitzvah is eternal and everlasting; - it is only down here on this world that it is confined to limitations of time.
[The Rebbe once expressed a similar idea regarding the readiness of the world for Moshiach: When we look at the world around us and all the evil that is constantly perpetrated, we may wonder, how can the world possibly be ready for the coming of Moshiach. The Rebbe, however, pointed out that there is a basic flaw in this thinking. When we are looking at the amount of goodness it the world, it is cumulative. All of the good deeds that were performed from the beginning of time, all the mitzvos and maasim tovim and acts of goodness and kindness from the beginning of time, they all join together to form a collective force of good that is infinitely potent and unstoppable. We can imagine the immenseness and power of this holy force. In contrast, any aveiros or evil in the world are temporary, afterwards the person can do teshuva, or receive his due punishment, and the evil is wiped away without a trace. So all that there is, is whatever evil is currently being perpetrated in the world, which – as terrible as it may be – pales in comparison. This is because good is permanent, it is inherently real and true, and whenever it takes place – for however long – it is part of eternity. Evil on the other hand is inherently not a genuine existence, it is by its very nature temporary and passing].
While this idea should go far in motivating us to put our efforts into mivtzoim and outreach work, it has a more personal relevance as well. Just as we are engaged in mivtzoim to bring the unaffiliated – or non-practicing – Jew on the street a bit closer to his heritage, so to we have the responsibility to endeavor to bring the unaffiliated – or not-enough-practicing – Jew within each of us back to his or her roots.
We have to do mivtzoim with the hippie inside of us, - to drag him to do a mitzvah (even when he’s not so in the mood), to learn a blatt gemoro (even when there are much more interesting things going on) or to spend more time davening (even though it’s so much easier to let his mind wander).
And here, too, the question can be asked, what is the point? Let’s say I’m successful, I manage to harness myself and focus on making a brocho with the proper kavono, or on spending a few minutes learning. But I know from experience that most of the time I will be doing other things. Most of the battles I end up losing. Perhaps I know that I am often involved in activities that I shouldn’t be doing; - in giving in to the temptations of my yetzer hora. What then is the worth of the few moments that I spend doing what’s right, if I know it won’t last, if my general behaviour doesn’t really change?
[Or a bochur can think: I spend two months in the summer in camp. Then I spend the first three months of the year reliving and remembering my camp experiences. Then I spend three months planning for camp, and another 2 months getting ready for camp. I’m left with (if I’m lucky) 2 months to learn Torah. Is there a point in the 2 months of learning, when most if my year revolves around camp? Wouldn’t it be better to just make a winter camp for those 2 months as well?]
But the truth is that this message of the Rebbe applies to each of us. We need to know that any time and energy that we spend on Torah and mitzvos, on Yiddishkeit and chassidishkeit,, is real and everlasting. Regardless of what else we do with the rest of our time, those activities are priceless, and can never be overestimated.
Of course, we strive to spend more time learning, more time davening and more time on good deeds. But we should never underestimate the value of whatever time we spend during which we are doing what we are meant to be doing.
Bilam, in his brochos, proclaimed "מה טובו אוהליך יעקב". Bilam had intended to speak negatively about the Yidden. He wanted to point out “Oholecho Yaakov” the tents of Yaakov. A tent is temporary, it is transient, it is passing. He wanted to criticize and accuse that even when Yidden study Torah, it is in the manner of a tent; - it is temporary and passing, and afterwards they go back to being who they were before.
But the Eibishter made him declare the truth, that "מה טובו אוהליך", - how goodly are your tents. Even when they’re tents, even if they may be temporary and not lasting, still they are so beautiful, so precious, so invaluable!
The point is – don’t get disheartened by the realization that you may be doing a lot wrong, perhaps losing numerous battles with the nefesh habehamis. Of course, we need to resolve and endeavor to change what has to be changed. We have to make a cheshbon hanefesh during krias shma she’al hamitah and decide that tomorrow will be “gohr andersh”! And we have to do whatever it takes to ensure that that actually happens.
But in the meantime – whatever dismal and depressing discoveries were made during that cheshbon hanefesh don’t detract or diminish from the importance and preciousness and pricelessness of whatever good and important things we are involved in, and we have to continue to give them their deserved respect and attention (and feel good about them, even as we strive to correct what needs to be corrected).
[During one farbrengen, the Rebbe objected strongly to something that took place. He expressed extreme displeasure about what was done, and was screaming about the damage that was caused, his pain visible. The chosid who was responsible, to whom that particular sicha was (primarily) addressed, was understandably chastised and downhearted. After the farbrengen, which was followed by the distribution of kos shel brocho, he was (presumably) afraid to go by the Rebbe. If he was “zoche” to such a tongue-lashing in public, what could he expect when he goes by the Rebbe personally? But when his turn came to receive kos shel brocho from the Rebbe’s hand, the Rebbe smiled to him warmly and remarked: “Dos nemt nit tzu fun di alle gutte zachen” [“This doesn’t detract from the many good projects (that you are involved in)”].
You have the ability to spend a minute learning, or saying one brocho properly or refraining from doing one thing wrong? Grab it! That moment is priceless, no matter what is happening (in the meantime with all of the rest of your time.
