This week's reading tells of the last three (of ten) plagues and the subsequent escape of the entire Jewish nation from Egypt.
But G-d commanded the Jews to prepare for this monumental event in a very surprising manner: before beginning their arduous journey into the desert all Jewish males circumcised themselves and sacrificed and ate a sheep.
Why did G-d want them to do such things and what do they have to do with leaving Egypt?!
Also, this coming week we celebrate the Tenth day (yud) of Shvat; that date of the passing of the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe (1950) Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak and the date, one year later, that his son-in-law succeeded him.
There must be a connection between them, what could it be?
A Story of Jewish Education and Spiritual Awakening
To understand this here is a story.
About 250 years ago in the Ukraine, Jewish education was a big problem. Gentiles often left their children unlettered but not the Jews! That a Jewish child could be illiterate and unable to understand the wonderful, holy Torah was inconceivable!
In fact, education was so ingrained in the Jewish soul that even minimally (or non)-observant parents, which began to be more and more common, hired Torah teachers for their children.
One such Jew lived in a small village. He was well-off financially and personally considered himself to be far above living according to the antiquated Torah and its commandments but for some reason that he himself couldn't figure out, he wanted his children to learn Judaism.
The teacher he happened to hire was a young married Chassid, that we will call Yankel, who had to leave his home, wife and three children far away to come to teach in this village with an agreement that he could travel home twice a year; Tishre and Nissan, for the holidays.
But as the month of Tishrei approached his boss started to have regrets. He wanted Yankel to stay and lead the High Holiday prayers. True he didn't have much patience for Judaism the rest of the year but on the High Holy Days; Rosh HaShanna and Yom Kippur he went to shul.
But the cantor, the one who led the prayers had a terrible voice and his off tune singing made the short time he was there, pure torture. Now if Yankel agreed to stay in the village and lead the prayers then it would be different.
But when he asked Yankel to stay instead of going home, and even offered him a nice sum to do so, he was surprised to hear that Yankel had no intention of going home. Rather he said that he was going to see his Rebbe, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Laidi the (first) Rebbe of Chabad.
His boss couldn't figure out why Yankel would want to go see a Rebbe when He was a rebbe himself! Everyone in the village called him 'Rebbe Yankel'. What did he need a Rebbe for?
Yankel even tried to explain it to him; something about the Moses of each generation and a general soul, but he didn't understand a word. Yankel seemed to be a normal, intelligent young man. Why would he forego a visit to his family, or a nice cantor’s fee, for the holidays to see some Moses?
Yankel tried again and again to explain but his boss was too seeped in the mundane for anything to penetrate. Until finally Yankel just said, 'Listen, if you want to know what a Rebbe is, then why don't you just come to Liadi with me. It will be an adventure!'
It was all too spiritual for the boss and at first he refused. But after several days of hearing Yaakov ramble on, his curiosity got the best of him and he took up the invitation.
Yaakov was especially glad not only because it might awaken his boss' Jewish soul but also because he wouldn't have to walk for five days; his boss had a horse and wagon.
When they arrived in Liadi his boss was surprised to see hundreds, maybe thousands of religious Jews, Chassidim that seemed to know and respect Yaakov and when Yaakov introduced him they were friendly to him as well. They shook his hand warmly, spoke openly and in general the atmosphere was happy and positive.
He accompanied Yaakov to the place where they were staying but that night he saw that Yaakov, instead of just falling exhausted into bed as he did, seemed to be preparing for something. He was looking in his Siddur (prayer book) praying and swaying back and forth with such concentration that his boss had to interrupt and ask him why.
Yaakov explained that tomorrow after the morning after prayer, would be his turn to enter for 'Yechidut', a private audience, with the Rebbe and he is thinking about it.
His boss didn't understand a word but the next day they woke early and when Yaakov went to stand in line for Yechidut his boss also stood there for a while watching and then went back to the room to eat.
When he finished eating, he returned to look for Yankel and when he didn't see him, decided to stand in line for 'Yechidut' himself. He wasn't aware that each of the Chassidim there had been preparing intensely sometimes for years for this moment that they would be with the Rebbe, in fact he had never been aware of anything spiritual his entire life.
Finally, his turn came. He was next! The Rebbe's door opened and the Chassid who had been in before him came out. The Chassid had obviously been crying but he wiped his eyes, grabbed another Chassid and began singing and dancing.
The boss entered, closed the door behind him and there he was...standing before the Rebbe.
The room was quiet and very solemn but besides that he didn't really see anything special.
So he just stood there. After all, he thought to himself, he had put a lot of time and effort to come here, now the Rebbe has to do something.
The Rebbe looked up at him and said, 'Nu?' (usually Chassidim give the Rebbe a note with their name and request or question but he gave nothing.)
'What, Nu?' Yankel's boss couldn't figure what the Rebbe wanted.
"What nu?" The Rebbe answered rhetorically. "I will tell you what. Sometimes it could be that a Jew who doesn't learn Torah and doesn't care much about the commandments can come to do sins. For instance..." and the Rebbe proceeded to list, one at a time, all the sins that the Yankel's boss had done in the last few years.
The boss couldn't believe his ears! At first, he was startled, how could he know!? But then he realized what happened; it was Yankel! He must have told the Rebbe all this!! Why, that snake!!
As soon as the Rebbe finished, the boss turned, walked out the door and began looking for the culprit; the informer!!
By the time he found Yankel he was burning mad. He grabbed him and began yelling. 'How could you stab me in the back?! I've treated you well and even brought you here... and you told that Rebbe my sins!!? Why I'm going to..." but he saw that Yaakov was bewildered.
"What? Me? I would never! G-d forbid! What, I told your sins to the Rebbe?? Why, I don’t know what you do! How could I know if you did sins?? How could I possibly know? Just think! And even if I did, I wouldn't tell the Rebbe! G-d forbid! That is loshon hara (slander).
"Well, if it wasn't you then who could it be!!" his boss sputtered. "It was you all right! You can forget about working by me again! You're lucky I don't punch you. Just keep away from me from now on!" And he turned in anger and stormed away.
But after a few minutes it dawned on him that what Yankel said made sense. Yankel had no way of knowing. But on the other hand, how did the Rebbe know? Why did the Rebbe tell him? What did he want? It was too confusing. He decided to leave.
Meanwhile Yaakov stood in line again to the Rebbe, told him what happened, how now was out of a job and asked him to help.
So a few moments later Yankel's boss, who was in his room packing his suitcase, heard a knock on his door, opened up and saw a Chassid saying that the Rebbe wants to see him.
In a few minutes Yankel's boss was back in the Rebbe's room listening to the Rebbe explain that all he said was that it's possible for one to do sins, not that anyone actually did them. And even if someone did do all those sins they could easily be corrected. In any case Yaakov never told him anything.
For the first time in his life Yankel's boss didn't feel like a boss and he didn't like the feeling... but he sensed it was the truth. Suddenly he noticed the Rebbe. This man obviously cared about him and wanted him to be a Jew. He had been fooling himself and the Rebbe was peeling off his foolishness.
His eyes began to fill with tears as the Rebbe told him that beginning now he would have to change his attitude to G-d and the Torah and learn to act and think differently.
Yaakov's boss left the room a humbled man as though the Rebbe turned on a light that showed him that his life had been in the shadows; a complete bluff. He remained in Liadi, became a genuine Baal Tshuva and came home a happy Jew.
The Deeper Meaning of the Exodus and Yud Shvat
This answers our questions about the Exodos and about Yud Shvat.
When the Jews left Egypt, it wasn't just for physical freedom. They didn’t have to leave Egypt for that. After Egypt had been decimated by the ten plagues they could have remained there as a free nation.
Rather it was to achieve spiritual internal freedom.
That was the goal begun by Moses and which will be completed by Moshiach; to inspire the Jews to leave their false egos and connect to G-d; namely begin to love, fear, trust and rejoice with the Creator and His Torah and to use the world accordingly.
That was the goal of circumcision and the Pesach sacrifice. The Egyptians were the epitome of egotism; decadence and idolatry, and the Jews had been under their evil influence for over two hundred years! Circumcision freed them from lust and the Pesach offering from idolatry (the lamb was worshiped in Egypt); thus removing their inner barriers to believing in G-d and Moses His servant.
Just as in our story; the Rebbe made Yankel's boss remove his false ego before he could reveal and internalize the truth of Judaism.
And even more; the eating of the Pesach offering was the first time in history that the mundane act of eating meat revealed the Creator in this world and elevated the consciousness of those eating it to a higher spiritual level.
And these were also preparations for Moshiach: Circumcision just before the journey and the slaughtering the god of Egypt before the very eyes of the Egyptians required self-sacrifice (M'sirut Nefesh) faith and optimism. And these three are necessary to bring the future Geula.
This is the connection Yud Shvat and the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe.
The Rebbe’s life was one of Self-sacrifice, faith and optimism. And he made these qualities available for our generation when he defied Stalin's forces in Russia and later melted the coldness and indifference of American Jewry.
As his successor pointed out in his acceptance 'speech'; ours is the seventh generation of Chabad Rebbe's (beginning from Rabbi Shneur Zalman). Just as Moses, because he was the seventh generation from Abraham, built the Tabernacle and revealed G-d in this world so will our generation, the seventh from the Alter Rebbe, merit to see Moshiach and the Third Temple and all mankind will leave all limitations!!
The world will be filled with the knowledge and realization of the Creator Himself; the source of all spirituality.
And as the Lubavitcher Rebbe said repeatedly; this should happen at any moment. We are standing on the merits of thousands of years of Jewish service, hopes, prayers and suffering. Now just one more good deed, word of even thought, if done with selfless JOY can bring .... MOSHIACH NOW!!!
Rabbi Tuvia Bolton
Yeshiva Ohr Tmimim
Kfar Chabad, Israel
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