Exodus Magazine - January 2022 by Exodus Magazine

#231 | January 2022 • Shvat 5782

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5 | JEWISH SOUL

Hey You: The Humble Spirit

10 | FIRST PERSON

The Rebbe and the Writer

There are two paths that lead a person to develop a humble spirit in the presence of every person, and there are two differences in the outcome produced by these different approaches.

One night, a most unlikely visitor was standing on line: the writer and publicist, Natan Yellin-Mur, waited amidst a sea of black-clad chassidim and a sprinkling of casually-dressed Jews for his moment with the Rebbe.

— From the Rebbe's letters

— by Simon Jacobson

6 | MADE YOU THINK

12 | ASK THE RABBI

editorial jewish soul made you think jewish thought first person ask the rabbi our community simchas

The First Psychotherapist

What's in a (Parent's) Name?

The phrase “Jewish thinker” may mean two very different things. It may mean a thinker who just happens to be Jewish, or it may refer to someone who has contributed specifically to Jewish thought.

When we call someone by his or her Hebrew name, sometimes we call them by their mother's name, and sometimes by their father's name. When and why do we use each variation?

— by Jonathan Sacks

— by Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman

7 | JEWISH THOUGHT

18 | LIFE ON EARTH

The distinction between the permitted animals and the forbidden animals raises a question that has occupied many commentators: What distinguishes the permitted animals from the prohibited ones?

Even our failures are stages in ascent. Even our moral failures, as well as their consequence, are steps along the backside of the spiral staircase. Otherwise, we would be little gods.

— by Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz

— by Tzvi Freeman

Can Kosher Make Sense?

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

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4 5 6 7 10 12 13 17 18 21 24

Everything Is Constantly Rising Higher

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It never ceases to amaze me the extent to which mindset dictates reality. Personal growth, mindfulness, creativity, relationships, work — all are radically altered by attitude, mood, and perspective. When I’m in a positivity groove, I have better energy and more of it, greater focus and creativity. I feel light, and things just seem to flow. Think good, and it will definitely become good. It’s beyond wishful thinking. It’s beyond faith. It’s embracing positive determinism as an extreme sport, and it’s scientifically proven by researchers in a variety of fields, including positive psychology. You are where your mind is; if you want to get somewhere, be there now. When driving under extreme weather conditions (a great metaphor for life), you focus on the path away from it, not on the obstacle itself. If you focus on what’s in your way, chances are you’ll crash into it. A tightrope walker crossing the chasm focuses on the goal of reaching the other side, one step at a time, not on the daunting abyss below. Whether it’s your thoughts, mental conditioning, or the voices of others that you have internalized, negative thoughts bring you down and fill you with toxic energy. When you focus on what you don’t want, instead of what you do want, what you’re actually doing is inviting it into your life, giving it space, and propelling yourself in that direction. You will head in the direction you focus on. You want success? Think about what success looks like, not the failures you fear. It is tempting to succumb the power of the negativity bias. Negative thinking is an alluring outlet for frustration and angst. It provides a quick fix that makes it feel like

something is actually changing. It does have its time and place as a tool for decisive course corrections. But for the most part, negative thinking drains your energy, whereas positive thinking supercharges it. Negative thinking can take you out of a negative situation, whereas positive thinking heals the negativity within you and makes you more immune.

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Try replacing typical negative thoughts with positive ones to experience a different mindset, feeling, energy — and result: Replace what you fear with what you love. Replace what you despise with what you desire. Replace what you are avoiding with what you are doing. Replace what you are running away from with where you are heading. Replace how things suck with how they can be great.

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Success in life, however you define it, is about the quality of the journey. Staying positive is an ongoing struggle as we deal with the challenges of life, so we need constant reminders and focused exercises like the one above to keep us on the right track. Appreciate your achievements, big and small. Be grateful for who and what you do have in your life. Count your blessings. Don’t worry about what other people think. Don't overthink and overanalyze things, especially things you can’t change. Don't beat yourself up over failures, whether real or imagined. Don't engage in “If only…” thinking. Don't feel sorry for yourself. Don't complain uselessly in a way that is not constructive – venting doesn’t actually help unless it is followed by emotional nurturing or constructive problem-solving. Life is an adventure. Journey through it with the right mindset, and the destinations tends to take care of themselves.

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jewish soul

Hey You: The Humble Spirit From the Rebbe's Letters

n Tanya, at the beginning of chapter 30, cites our Sages’ statement: “Be of humble spirit before all men” (using the wording “Ha'Adam” for “men”). The source is Ethics of the Fathers 4:10, but that source uses the wording “Adam”, without a hei. Is this a printing error in the Tanya? All of the texts of the Tanya that I have seen use the wording “Ha'Adam”, employing the hei. If so, this is not a printing error. In the Mishnah in Ethics of the Fathers, we find two versions: one that uses the wording “Adam,” without a hei and one that uses the wording “Ha'Adam,” with a hei. In Tanya, the Alter Rebbe chooses the second version, including the hei. I must emphasize that the intent is in Tanya here, because as cited later on, there are several other places where the Alter Rebbe cites the version without the hei and indeed, this is the text that he cites in the text of Ethics of the Fathers in his Siddur. Every letter included in the Tanya is exact; there is nothing extra or lacking. On the surface, the above reflects a minor variance and there does not appear to be any significant difference between the [two versions]. Nevertheless, after slight contemplation, it appears that this difference is dependent on the explanation of the concept. Therefore here the Alter Rebbe follows the version “Ha'Adam” with a hei, while in another source he follows the version “Adam” without a hei. To explain the concept: There are two paths that lead a person to develop a humble spirit in the presence of every person: a) One is based on our Sages’ teaching: “Do not judge a person until you arrive at his place.” For it is his [spiritual] place that causes him to sin. By nature, he is excitable and his [natural] inclination challenges him with great and awesome battles. Every person must evaluate and appraise himself, [seeing whether] he is serving G‑d with the intensity of such an awesome war, as explained in chapter 30 of Tanya. b) Everyone possesses an advantage over his colleague, and that advantage is brought about by the colleague himself. To explain by analogy, in the human body, the feet are on the lowest level and the head on the highest. Nevertheless, the feet possess a positive quality: that one walks employing the feet and that they

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

support the head and the body. Moreover, when a person suffers a headache, blood is let from the feet and that heals him, indicating that the head counter-intuitively receives lifeenergy from the feet, as explained at length in Likkutei Torah, Parshas Nitzavim. There are two differences in the outcome produced by these different approaches. The first approach leads to feelings of lowness, sadness, and bitterness. Nevertheless, this is the quality [necessary to transform the person’s character], as our Sages declare: “A person should always arouse the good inclination against the bad inclination,” provided he overcomes it and in his conduct, “turns away from evil and does good,” as explained in Tanya, chapter 31. Moreover, this meditation will lead a person to be humble, not only in the presence of his fellow Jews, but also in the presence of gentiles. For example, if one will contemplate [the great expression of] honor which Duma ben Nasina showed his father (Kiddushin 31a) or the like. The second path leads to humility, but not to sadness. And it is effective only with regard to a colleague from among the Jewish people. For the Jewish people are like one complete body and every limb is connected to [all] others and

requires them. This concept does not apply with regard to gentiles. When a person cannot battle against his evil inclination because of the heaviness in his heart and he must subjugate the evil inclination, to crush it and humble it. Hence, he will be humble even in the presence of a non-Jew. Therefore, [in this source,] the Alter Rebbe is careful to quote the text: “Ha'Adam,” with a hei. When, by contrast, we are speaking of one’s love for one’s fellow Jew, the above meditation is not relevant. Instead, one should contemplate how the entire Jewish people are like one body and everyone possesses an advantage over his colleague. Therefore [in sources focusing on this concept,] the Alter Rebbe cites the version “Adam,” without a hei. See Tanya, Iggeres HaKodesh, Epistle 22; Likkutei Torah, Parshas Nitzavim; and the maamar entitled Atem Nitzavim in the Siddur, Shaar HaElul. Similarly, when speaking about the Divine service of the righteous, and in general about higher levels of Divine service, not merely about efforts to turn away from evil, the meditation that one is inferior and abominable is not appropriate. Instead, one should meditate on how one’s colleague is superior and that one should not seek [supremacy]. In such a situation the version “Adam,” without a hei, is employed. See the end of maamar entitled VaYachperu in Torah Or, Parshas Toldos, the first maamar entitled Vayihi MiKeitz (ibid.), and the first maamar entitled BaYom HaShemini in Likkutei Torah. Based on the above, it is apparent that the primary version of the mishnah is “Adam,” without a hei, and therefore this was the version included by the Alter Rebbe in his Siddur. For the simple meaning of the mishnah concerns Torah study, teaching that a person should be humble in the presence of every person and learn from him. Alternatively, that even though one occupies himself in Torah study, he should be humble in the presence of every person. These concepts are relevant only to the Jewish people. If the addition of just one letter in Tanya hold so much weight and so many lessons, think how much can be learned from one word, one statement, or one concept, and certainly one chapter of Tanya! EM

made you think

The First Psychotherapist Jonathan Sacks

he phrase “Jewish thinker” may mean two very different things. It may mean a thinker who just happens to be Jewish by birth or descent – a Jewish physicist, for example – or it may refer to someone who has contributed specifically to Jewish thought: like Judah Halevi or Maimonides. The interesting question is: is there a third kind of Jewish thinker, one who contributes to the universe of knowledge, but does so in a recognizably Jewish way? I believe that something similar applies to psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. So many of the early practitioners of psychoanalysis, with the marked exception of Jung, were Jewish. Three of the most significant postwar psychotherapists were not merely Jewish by birth but profoundly Jewish in their approach to the human soul. Viktor Frankl, a survivor of Auschwitz, developed an approach he called “Logotherapy” based on his experiences whilst in the camps, focused on “man’s search for meaning.” Though the Nazis took away almost every vestige of humanity from those they consigned to the death factories, Frankl argued that there was one thing they could never take away from their prisoners: the freedom to decide how to respond. Aaron T. Beck was one of the founders of what is widely regarded as the most effective forms of psychotherapy: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Among patients suffering from depression, he found that their feelings were often linked to highly negative thoughts about themselves, the world and the future. By getting them to think more realistically, he found that their mood tended to improve. Martin Seligman is the founder of Positive Psychology, which aims not just to treat depression but actively to promote what he calls “authentic happiness” and “learned optimism.” Depression, Seligman argued, is often linked to pessimism, which comes from interpreting events in a particular kind of way that he calls “learned helplessness”. Pessimists tend to see misfortune as permanent (“It’s always like this”), personal (“It’s my fault”) and pervasive (“I always get things wrong”). This leaves them feeling that the bad they suffer is inevitable and beyond their control. Optimists look at things differently.

For them, negative events are temporary, the result of outside factors, and exceptions rather than the rule. So, within limits, you can unlearn pessimism, and the result is greater happiness, health and success. What links all three thinkers is their belief that (1) there is always more than one possible interpretation of what happens to us, (2) we can choose between different interpretations and (3) the way we think shapes the way we feel. This gives all three a marked resemblance to a particular kind of Jewish thought, namely Chabad Chassidut, as developed by the first Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812). The word Chabad stands for the initial letters of the three intellectual virtues, chokhmah, binah and da’at, “wisdom, understanding and knowledge,” which influence the more emotional attributes of chessed, gevurah and tiferet, “kindness, self-restraint and beauty or emotional balance.” Unlike the other Chassidic movements, which emphasized the emotional life, Chabad Chassidism focused on the power of the intellect to shape emotion. It was, in its way, an anticipation of cognitive behavioral therapy. Joseph was perhaps the first cognitive therapist. He was the first to understand the concept of reframing, that is, seeing the negative events of his life in a new way, thereby liberating himself from depression and learned helplessness. The moment at which he does so comes when, moved by Judah’s passionate plea to let Benjamin return home to their father Jacob, he finally reveals himself to his brothers:

“I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that G‑d sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But G‑d sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but G‑d.” Note what Joseph is doing here. He is reframing events so that the brothers will not have to live under an unbearable burden of guilt for having sold Joseph as a slave and deceiving their father. But he is only able to do so for them because he has already done so for himself. That is what makes me think that the work of Frankl, Beck and Seligman is Jewish in a way that Freudian psychoanalysis is not. At the heart of Judaism is the idea of human freedom. We are not prisoners of events but active shapers of them. To be sure, we may be influenced by unconscious drives, as Freud thought, but we can rise above them by “habits of the heart” that hone and refine our personality. We can’t all be Joseph, but we can learn what it is to change the way we feel by changing the way we think, and the best way of doing so is to ask, “What does this bad experience enable me to do that I could not have done otherwise?” That can be lifetransforming. EM

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

jewish thought

Can Kosher Make Sense? Adin Even-Israel Stainsaltz

he distinction between the permitted animals and the forbidden animals raises a question that has occupied many commentators: What distinguishes the permitted animals from all the prohibited ones? Why is a hyrax worse than some other animal? What is wrong with camels and pigs? Why is sturgeon caviar worse than salmon roe caviar? This question is not a new one, and similar questions can be asked regarding many other Torah laws. On this subject, however, the question is glaringly conspicuous. One of the reasons for this is the prominence of these laws in our daily lives and in Jewish law. Ever since we were exiled from our land and thus unable to fulfill most of the Torah’s commandments, the dietary laws form a central part of Jewish life. Separating milk and meat, avoiding non-kosher foods, and using the appropriate silverware for each meal take up much of our time and attention. There have been various attempts to resolve this question. Some have claimed that eating non-kosher animals is physically harmful, and from time to time claims arise regarding the danger of eating pork. It is true that pigs’ meat is sometimes infected with worms, which can cause one who consumes the meat without sufficiently cooking it to contract a parasitic disease called trichinosis. But if that were the reason for the prohibition, instead of prohibiting pork the Torah could have given much better advice – that one must cook the meat thoroughly before eating it. Others have claimed that pigs are prohibited because they were used for idolatry, while still others have claimed the reverse, that pigs were not considered fit even for idolatry, so they are certainly unfit for our consumption as well. There have been similar attempts to explain tzaraat, the leprosy-like condition described in the Torah. Maimonides, for example, explained that tzaraat is a type of disease. Ultimately, however, even he reached the conclusion that the tzaraat described in the Torah cannot be identified with any of the diseases known to him. On the contrary, especially in light of the fact that it can appear on houses as well as on flesh, tzaraat more closely resembles a miracle than a disease. In

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

fact, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi writes that only supremely exalted individuals can be stricken with tzaraat, for only a spiritually exceptional person is worthy of experiencing such a miracle on his flesh. The same is true regarding spiritual purity and impurity: no clear explanations exist. We do not know why hedgehogs, chameleons, lizards, and snails are impure, while frogs are pure. There seems to be no reason why a frog, which is pure whether alive or dead, should be considered more exalted than a weasel or a mouse. However, the Torah distinguished between them, and we have no logical explanation for it. Generally, attempting to justify mitzvot by portraying them as intended for physical or even spiritual benefit ultimately proves futile. This does not mean that such a justification is necessarily unfounded, nor does it mean that one should argue the reverse, namely, that pig meat is actually better than cow meat, only that G‑d, knowing how good it is, nevertheless prohibited it to us. What it

means is that this type of justification can never be the central consideration. It is better simply to rely on G‑d and not attempt to give explanations. In the Torah, the words pure and impure appear in two completely different senses: in the list of animals that may or may not be eaten, and in the list of creatures that impart impurity when they are dead. These two lists are juxtaposed, even though there is no practical connection between them. Clearly, the statement, “it is impure for you,” regarding the camel and the hyrax has no relation – neither conceptually nor legally – to the statement “it shall remain impure until evening; then it shall be pure” regarding the creeping things. The first statement denotes that the animal may not be eaten, while the second denotes that these creatures convey impurity. Animals that may not be eaten are not, as a result, impure. When they are alive, they certainly are not more liable to convey

jewish thought

impurity; when they are dead, some are more liable to convey impurity, and some are less liable. For example, even though a snake may not be eaten, it is one of the creatures that do not convey impurity, neither when they are alive nor when they are dead. Sometimes the two different senses of the terms pure and impure intermingle in the text, as in: “To distinguish between the impure and the pure, between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten;” “Do not eat them, for they are things that must be avoided…and do not make yourselves impure through them, lest you become defiled through them.” Throughout the section, the laws of purity and impurity and the dietary laws are intertwined. This mixture demonstrates, first of all, that any attempt to explain these laws in a practical or rational way will prove extremely challenging. But it is important to stress that this mixture is intentional, and signifies that although legally and functionally the two concepts have nothing in common, they nevertheless belong to one common idea. The terms pure and impure refer neither to the cause of things nor to the way they work but to the distance that must be kept from them. There are things that we avoid, and there are things that we do not avoid, and the distancing of the impure – in all of the various senses of the term – is the subject of this section. In every generation and in every age, there are matters that a person simply accepts, without expressing any objections or casting any doubts. In Maimonides’ generation, for example, what was written in philosophy books was sacrosanct. In our generation, by contrast, philosophical literature causes no one to tremble, even philosophers themselves. To be considered a cultured individual, it is sufficient to pepper some of these ideas into one’s conversation, without needing to acknowledge them as the basis of the world’s existence. Our generation is a generation of psychology rather than philosophy. Today, the study of the mind is what determines the essence of the human experience in the world. No one

claims today that one should avoid pork because it causes intestinal worms, since all the mitzvot of the Torah can be explained as spiritual dimensions, relating to the human personality. According to this approach, the sole purpose of all mitzvot is to develop one’s personality, each mitzvah in its own way. In this context it is worth quoting Yeshayahu Leibowitz, who said that the Torah was not given to mend the personality’s torn pants. There is an element of truth in this. Whoever thinks that the exalted Torah was given so that man could attain peace of mind, lead a happy family life, love his fellow man, find favor in the eyes of society, or succeed in his affairs diminishes the Torah greatly. It is true that one who is steeped in the world of Torah generally does not suffer corruption of character, but that is not the primary purpose of the mitzvot. On the other hand, the Torah would never command us to do something that clearly damages or destroys the body. The Midrash states, “Nothing that is evil descends from above.”

That said, it is still quite a stretch to then pin everything on this point and search for each mitzvah’s physical and personal benefit. G‑d did not descend on Mount Sinai to provide information that can be found in a cheap psychology textbook – to explain how to improve one’s life and how to behave better. The psychological explanations for mitzvot are even worse than the medical explanations, which the Maharal criticized sharply, asking if it is conceivable that the Torah amounts to an article in a medical journal. In his time, at least, medical and psychological texts were expensive and difficult to access. Nowadays, most of this information can be found easily, for free, on the Internet. If this is the case, could it be that for that purpose alone G‑d Himself descended from the heavens? To try to interpret the laws of purity and impurity as expedients for personal development diminishes the Torah’s glory. Moreover, one must also remember something that is true of the Torah in its entirety, from “In the beginning” to “before the eyes of all Israel.” Although no individual can always uphold the truth, one must always remember that “the seal of The Holy One, Blessed Be He, is truth,” and it can never be forged. One explanation for this, in the name of the Kotzker Rebbe, is that G‑d’s seal is truth because a seal must be something that cannot be forged, and truth is the only thing that cannot be forged: The moment it is forged, it ceases to be truth. It is possible to make forged peace, forged wisdom, or forged beauty, but there cannot be forged truth. To be sure, there are times and situations in which it is impossible to appeal to truth. There are people who are not satisfied even when they are given a true explanation, because they are stubborn and short-sighted. Torah educators, from both earlier and later generations, have had to take this into consideration. Often the bald truth is not as exciting as a brilliant innovation, even if the latter idea may be faulty and questionable. Brilliant theories may appear to be the absolute truth, even when they are actually false. A person can live for twenty years on these falsehoods, satisfied with the lure of their cleverness, and never bothering to seek the actual truth.

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

jewish thought

When someone sinks to psychological or medical explanations, he need only peruse the section discussing the eight creeping things – for once, human psychology has little to say. What is the benefit of avoiding hedgehogs, chameleons, lizards, and snails? Why are the weasel and the mouse worse than the cat and dog? Why is it that earlier in the month of Nisan, this food is not harmful to one’s body or soul, whereas a few days later, when the 14th of Nisan arrives, if one eats it, one’s soul is cut off? Any attempt to impose artificial explanations on these laws – explanations relating to physical health or mental health – not only is problematic in itself but is a perversion of the truth, and that is truly unforgivable. The Talmud relates that “four entered the orchard (pardes). They were Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher [Elisha b. Avuya], and Rabbi Akiva…Ben Azzai gazed and died… Ben Zoma gazed and was stricken…Acher gazed and became a heretic…Rabbi Akiva left in peace.” Maimonides explains that this “orchard” refers to the study of other wisdoms and other disciplines, but the Vilna Gaon sharply criticizes this explanation. He argues that besides the fact that the explanation is fundamentally incorrect and constitutes an affront to the G‑d of truth, it reduces the Torah to a mere antechamber leading to a great hall, a preparatory stage leading to the study of the other branches of knowledge. This interpretation sets as the highest level, as the goal, something that is not worth pursuing. Rav Hai Gaon says that “it is not our way to cover up [the true meaning of] a matter and interpret it in a way that is not in accordance with the intention of the one who said it, as others do.” When we set out to interpret words of Torah, we try to explain them strictly in keeping with the true intention of the one who spoke them. This principle applies not only to methods of interpretation but also as a way of life. Sometimes, for various reasons, people build questionable, contrived explanations for the ideas in the Torah, reducing it to an

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antechamber that leads to a wretched hall. When, after several generations, a person finally understands that the glorious castle of his dreams is no more than a hovel, he asks himself: Was it all worth it? Maimonides indicates that the lofty Pardes refers to Aristotle’s metaphysics. However, several problems arise. First, this idea does not appear in the Torah at all. Second, it fails to explain the mysteries of the Torah. Finally, and most importantly, is it worth living and dying for this purpose? Is it for Aristotle’s metaphysics that we sacrifice our entire lives? And even if we argue that, in truth, whoever keeps the Torah and the mitzvot will succeed in his business dealings, in his marital life, and in his interpersonal relationships – still, is even this success worth living and dying for? This idea can be seen, in the extreme, in the narrative sequence of the Torah. It begins with the dedication of the Tabernacle, the fire that descends upon the Altar and the

terrible tragedy of the sons of Aaron. On the day of the great revelation of the Divine Presence, Aaron’s two sons died “when they drew near before G‑d,” as it says, “I will be sanctified through those near to Me; thus I will be honored before the entire people.” And what follows the revelation of G‑d’s presence and the great tragedy that befell Aaron? What does the Torah offer as a reward? “These are the creatures that you may eat from among all the animals that are upon the earth.” If the Torah commands all this simply for the sake of a diet – whether for the body or for the soul – then the dietary laws and their reward are truly not worth the cost. When approaching the Torah, there is no point in considering the personal benefit to be gained, nor does one always find meaningful ideas. It is therefore good to recall the words of the Kotzker Rebbe to a man who came to him with questions about G‑d: “A G‑d who can be understood by anyone is not worth serving.” EM

first person

The Rebbe

and the

Writer

Simon Jacobson

or those seeking to meet the Rebbe, one opportunity to do so was at the conclusion of the farbrengens (chassidic gatherings). At the close of every festival, the Rebbe would distribute the traditional kos shel berachah (“cup of blessing”) to tens of thousands of people. Long lines would crisscross the large synagogue on Eastern Parkway and spill out into the street; often it was closer to dawn than to midnight when the last one in line received his ounce of wine from the Rebbe’s cup and a brief blessing from the Rebbe’s lips. One night, a most unlikely visitor was standing in line for kos shel berachah: the writer and publicist, Natan Yellin-Mur, waited amidst a sea of black-clad chassidim and a sprinkling of secularly-suited and casually-dressed Jews for his moment with the Rebbe.

Natan was born in Vilna to Torahobservant parents and was educated in that city’s world-renowned yeshivot. As a young man, however, Natan abandoned the beliefs and practices of Judaism in favor of secular Zionism. He became a leading Zionist activist, finally making his way to the Holy Land. There he joined Lechi (“The Stern Gang”), the most radical of the Zionist groups fighting for an independent Jewish state. But after the establishment of the state in 1948, as mundane politics replaced the ideological fervor of the pre-independence years, Natan became disillusioned with the cause for which he had fought with such vehemence. He turned fiercely antiZionist and pro-Arab. An eloquent writer, he regularly published articles defaming everything Jewish, and particularly the

Jewish state and its policies. Natan was in line for kos shel berachah that night because of his acquaintance with Gershon Ber Jacobson, editor of the New York-based Yiddish language newspaper, The Algemeiner Journal. Gershon Ber is a religious Jew and a Lubavitcher chassid; his paper is certainly pro-Israel and supportive of Judaism; but Gershon Ber also believes in journalistic pluralism and freedom of expression, and, to the consternation of many of his readers, he invited the self-proclaimed atheist and anti-Zionist to write for the Algemeiner and published the venomously anti-Israel and anti-Jewish articles the writer sent in. When Gershon Ber suggested to Natan that he meet the Rebbe, the writer accepted the invitation. As the two men approached the Rebbe, Gershon Ber introduced his guest. The Rebbe

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

turned to Natan, smiled broadly, and said: “I read all your articles.” Natan’s idea of a Chassidic rebbe did not prepare him for a person who reads newspapers, much less articles such as his own. But what surprised him even more was what followed. “When G‑d blesses someone with a talent such as yours,” the Rebbe was now saying, “one must utilize it to the fullest. This is a divine calling, and an immense responsibility. It is your G‑d-given power and duty to make full use of your capacity to reach out to others and influence them with your writing.” Thinking that the Rebbe was perhaps mistaking him for someone else, Natan asked: “Does the Rebbe agree with what I write?” The Rebbe replied: “One need not agree with everything one reads. What is most important is that one utilizes one’s G‑dgiven talents. When one does so, one will ultimately arrive at the truth.” Before the flattered writer could adjust to the unexpected turn the meeting was taking, the Rebbe’s next words struck a place in his heart he’d long thought to have been silenced forever. “Tell me,” said the Rebbe in a gentle yet firm tone, “what is happening in regard to the observance of Torah and mitzvot?” Not wanting to lie to the Rebbe by pretending to be observant, nor wishing to offend him with his atheism and antireligiosity, Natan replied: “A Jew thinks.” “But in Yiddishkeit,” countered the Rebbe, quoting the Talmudic maxim familiar to Natan from his yeshivah years, “it’s most important to do. ‘The primary thing is the deed.’” Natan returned: “At least with me it’s like in the story with the Berditchever.” Natan was referring to the story told of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev’s encounter with a Jew who was smoking a cigarette on Shabbat. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak, famed for his literal inability to see anything negative in a fellow Jew and his persistent advocacy on behalf of his people, said to the transgressor: “Surely you’re not aware that today is the holy Shabbat.” “No,” said the man, “I’m perfectly aware that it’s Shabbat today.” “Then perhaps you don’t know that it’s forbidden to smoke on Shabbat,” said

Rabbi Levi Yitzchak. “No,” said the man, “I know perfectly well what the law says about smoking on Shabbat.” Rabbi Levi Yitzchak lifted his eyes to heaven and cried: “Father in Heaven! How precious are Your people, Israel. See how a Jew is simply incapable of telling a lie.” There are many stories told of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev, so Natan was about to tell the Rebbe to which story he was referring. But before he could get out another word, the Rebbe rejoined: “The difference is that the Berdichever said this in defense of a another person, while you are saying it in defense of yourself…” With that, the meeting came to a close. The Rebbe poured some wine into Natan’s cup, blessed him, and turned to the next in line. Several months later, Natan was diagnosed with terminal cancer, G‑d forbid. The doctors gave him but a few months to live. Shortly before his death, he sent a sealed envelope to Gershon Ber, with a note stating that it contained an article which he wished to be published posthumously. Gershon Ber complied, and following Natan’s death, the article was printed in The Algemeiner Journal. “My dear reader,” Natan had written. “As you read this article, I am standing before the heavenly court being judged for all the actions I took and the choices I made in the course of my life. No doubt, I will be severely judged for living a life totally antithetical to anything Jewish. In fact, I have severe doubts that I will even be allowed to speak in my defense. This is why I asked your editor to print this now, as I stand before the heavenly court, in the hope that what is being read and discussed at this moment on earth will attract the attention of the Supernal Judge. For I have one merit which I want to present to the court in the face of all my failings and transgressions.” At this point, Natan related his exchange with the Rebbe at kos shel berachah. “The Rebbe said to me,” he concluded, “that I have a G‑d-given talent, and that it is my sacred duty to utilize it to influence others. This I did to the best of my ability, however misguidedly. This is the only merit I can claim; may it lighten the destiny of my soul…” EM

future tense

MOSHIACH MUSINGS

Nowadays, when it is not possible to bring offerings to the Holy Temple, never theless, we still have the ability to dedicate things to G‑d. When a person wants to dedicate something to G‑d, the Torah provides a way to construct special sanctity for all sorts of things. One can take time and dedicate it, conferring true sanctity upon it. If one says, for example, that he will study Torah at a certain time, sanctity is conferred upon that time. If one says that he will dedicate a certain place for studying Torah, sanctity is conferred upon that place. This is very significant, for it shows that we still possess the power to create genuine sanctity. If one wants to go further, he can also make himself holy. The Torah lists the booty collected during the war against Midian, including sheep, cattle, donkeys, and even people, regarding all of which the Torah delineates how much must be set aside as tribute to G‑d. One can understand this as a broader statement about our relationship with G‑d: One can take oneself and devote part of oneself to G‑d. As weak as one may be in other areas, every person possesses the power to generate real, objective sanctity. When a person vows to study Torah, his study will not always necessarily be on the highest level. N evertheless, he succeeds in creating sanctity, like the sanctity of the Altar, sanctity that rests upon a designated time or upon the commitment to study itself. He promised, and now he sits down and fulfills his vow, thereby changing something within himself. Even if we cannot build a real altar, a vow enables us to build a small altar, and to exercise our ability to generate holiness in the world.

ask the rabbi

What's in a (Parent's) Name? Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman

When we call someone by his or her Hebrew name, sometimes we call them by their mother's name, and sometimes by their father's name. When and why do we use each variation?

child’s Jewishness is dependent upon the mother. Her very thoughts during conception have more of an effect on the child than the father’s. As such, it is appropriate to invoke the mother’s name when we are praying for mercy for the child.

The general custom is that for a matter relating to familial affiliation, we use the father’s name. This is based on the verse in Numbers: “They declared their pedigrees according to their families according to their fathers' houses…” Indeed one's tribal affiliation and whether one is a kohen or a Levite is dependent upon one’s father. Thus, if one is getting called up to the Torah or signing a Jewish legal document such as a ketubah (marriage contract), we use the father’s name.

On a spiritual level, the mystics explain that, in general, women are associated with the Divine attribute of binah (understanding), which is also the source of the attribute of gevurah (judgment). The attribute of judgment, in its source, binah, is pure and holy without any harshness. All of the harshness that we see coming from the attribute of judgment is only how it manifests itself down here in this physical world. Therefore, when we mention the mother’s name, we are trying to arouse and evoke the attribute of binah that precedes and transcends judgement.

However, when we are beseeching G‑d for someone in need (as is the case with special prayer for one who is ill), we generally use the mother’s name. When King David prayed for himself, he repeatedly referred to himself as “your servant, the son of your maid,” mentioning his mother, not his father. Additionally, the Talmud states that “all incantations the name of the mother.” Although we are almost always sure who the father is, we are even more sure who the mother is. According to the Zohar, when praying for mercy (especially when it comes to the saving of a life, as is the case when praying for one who is ill), we want to be as precise as possible, so we use the mother’s name. On a deeper level, a Jew's spiritual essence is inherited via his or her mother, as evidenced by the fact that Judaism is passed down matrilineally. When praying for another, we want to emphasize their essential and eternal link to G‑d, as derived from their mother's side. Although both man and woman (together with G‑d, of course) are partners in the creation of the child, the child is mostly formed by the mother. Physically, the child develops in the mother’s womb, and spiritually, the

On the other hand, once the person has passed away (aside from the fact that we do not want any connection to the attribute of judgment at all), we mention the father’s name based on the verse in Numbers quoted above – in memorial prayers like Yizkor. While on the discussion of evoking the mother while praying, we bear in mind the mothers who themselves pray. Indeed, we find in Scripture that it was specifically in the merit of the tearful prayers of our matriarch Rachel that we were redeemed from the Babylonian exile. We pray that G‑d once again hear the tearful cries for mercy from our mother Rachel, take us out of this exile and finally bring healing to this world! EM

Читатели спрашивают, существует ли еврейское средство духовной помощи в трудных или ответственных ситуациях жизни: если кто-то, не дай Б-г, заболел, или предстоит важное событие – экзамен, интервью для работы и т.д. Еще иногда говорят: «Мы переехали в новый дом, может ли рабби прийти и освятить наш дом?» Существует ли универсальный способ, помогающий еврею в разных ситуациях? Чтобы, как Вы выразились, «освятить новый дом», еврей должен поставить мезузу. Не брызгать водой, как это принято у некоторых, а установить мезузу прежде всего на все двери, ведущие в дом. Если это квартира, - то на входную и балконную двери. Если это дом, - то на центральный вход, на дверь, ведущую во двор и на гаражную дверь. В идеале мезузы должны стоять на каждой двери жилища. Понятие «освящение дома» связано только с мезузой и ни с чем иным. А теперь о помощи в трудное время. В еврейской традиции имеется действенное средство, помогающее человеку, оказавшемуся в неприятной ситуации. И этим универсальным средством евреи пользуются уже на протяжении двух тысяч лет с того времени, как Царь Давид написал свои Псалмы. Известная всем «Книга Псалмов - Теилим» Царя Давида является одной из самых читаемых книг в мире, а уж тем более для евреев... The article above is excerpted from the Russian edition of Exodus Magazine. To subscribe, please visit exodusmagazine.org or call 416.222.7105.

Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman is the Senior Rabbi of the Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario. You can Ask the Rabbi at jrcc.org or fax to 416.222.7812. To meet with Rabbi Zaltzman in person, feel free to call 416.222.7105 to book an appointment. Appointments are generally available on Wednesday evenings after 7pm. Rebbitzin Chiena Zaltzman is also available for private consultations by appointment on Wednesday evenings from 9 to 10pm by calling 416.222.7105.

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

‫ב”ה‬ ‫ב''ה‬

Our

JANUARY 2022 | SHEVAT 5782

Community

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

PUBLIC MENORAH LIGHTINGS

JANUARY2022 JANUARY

ONE SHABBAT ONE WORLD

JANUARY

10 SHEVAT EVENT

01/12 01/17 JANUARY

TU B'SHEVAT EVENTS

RABBI Y. ZALTZMAN BIRTHDAY FARBRENGEN

T H E M O N T H I N R E V I E W. U P C O M I N G E V E N T S & P R O G R A M S .

Like every year for the last thirty plus years, the JRCC hosted a Chanukah Public Menorah Lighting at Mel Lastman Square, where a giant Menorah is lit on the first night of Chanukah. In addition to the JRCC rabbis, staff and community leaders who attended, several local dignitaries offered their greeting, and the event included a concert and children’s entertainment. There were also local Menorah Lighting events in Woodbridge and North York, and several JRCC Branches hosted Chanukah events for adults and for children in their neighborhoods complete with a menorah lighting and free refreshments including Chanukah staples like latkes, donuts and chocolate coins, as well as popcorn and cotton candy. Notably, there was a large event at the Promenade Mall on December 5 hosted by the three JRCC branches in Thornhill (West Thornhill, East Thornhill and South Thornhill) that attracted a large contingency of Thornhill residents.

VIRTUAL CHANUKAH WONDERLAND

Hundreds of families participates in a socially distanced Chanukah Wonderland program on Sunday, November 28. Usually, Chanukah Wonderland is a grand carnival that draws thousands of visitors. This year, a unique program was devised where the joy of Chanukah was brought to people’s homes in the form of a box filled with supplies for activities, Chanukah candles, treats and other Chanukah goodies. The virtual live-streamed program began with a Build Your Own Menorah master-class, followed by an entertainment show and a series of interactive workshops. Parents and children loved the interactive, hands-on aspect of the program, and the combination of the virtual format with the delivered materials.

5 TEVET FARBRENGEN

CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES Friday, Jan 7, 2022

4:39 PM

Friday, Jan 14, 2022

4:47 PM

Friday, Jan 21, 2022

4:56 PM

Friday, Jan 28, 2022

5:05 PM

January 2022 / Shevat 5782

jrccbookstore.org

The Chabad festive day of the 5th of Tevet (a.k.a., Hei Tevet), which celebrates the day the US Federal Court ruled in favor of Chabad regarding ownership of a priceless library of Chassidic manuscripts. Learn more at jrcc. org/5tevet. To celebrate the occasion, the a farbrengen gathering was held in the new location of JRCC of Willdowdale & the City. The JRCC Bookstore also marked the say with its annual 5 Tevet Book Sale, offering 10% off its entire inventory containing the best selection of Jewish Russian books in North America, plus many great English and Hebrew books. Learn more at

SHABBAT DINNER FOR YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

The first of hopefully many Shabbat Dinners for Young Professionals was held at the JRCC East Thornhill on the Shabbat of Chanukah, December 3, organized by Dovid and Yehudis Faynberg. It was an evening full of meaningful interactions, singing, and words of wisdom, including an engaging talk by Dovid Faynberg. In addition to regular Shabbat Dinners, which provide and meaningful activity boost to young people in the community, the JRCC East Thornhill hopes the group will evolve into a hub that serves their spiritual and social needs to young people of all backgrounds, providing them with personal, engaging opportunities to network with one another, connect with their heritage and foster their Jewish journey. To join the next Shabbat Dinner and find out about more events for Young Professionals, call Dovid at 416-222-71-05, ext. 245.

Photo of the Month

‫ב"ה‬

SHABBAT C OM

Join the JRCC branch near you for a Friday night dinner commemorating the Rebbe’s leadership.

A new program for young teens, JGirls, premiered last month. Girls got involved in community volunteer work packing Chanukah gifts for sick children, baking cookies for seniors- as well as fun activities and interesting food themes. This program runs monthly on Wednesdays. More info at Jrcc.org/jGirls. Next event on Jan. 26.

For more information and to register: 416-222-7105 or www.jrcc.org/shabbaton

D IT Y

FRIDAY, JANUARY 7, AT 6 PM • Woodbridge: 12 Muscadel Rd. • S. Richmond Hill & Maple: 9699 Bathurst St. • Concord: 411 Confederation Rd., #14 • West Thornhill: 1136 Centre St., Unit 2 • East Thornhill: 7608 Yonge St., #3 • South Thornhill: 28 Townsgate Dr. • Rockford: 18 Rockford Rd.

All COVID-19 regulations in place.

• Willowdale: 17 Church Ave.

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Explore Jewish topics of your choice: Torah Studies, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Talmud, Chassidic Philosophy, Torah & Tea for Women... Don’t see the class you’re looking for? Let’s create it together!

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WelL-ConNected It’s not what you know. It’s what you do.

A M O N T H LY S E R I E S O F C L A S S E S F O R WO M E N

PART 1: UNROLL

THE SCROLL

The mystery of the mezuzah, that little parchment that keeps your home safe—and sacred.

Monday, January 3 – 8:00 pm PART 2: MAKE

YOUR OWN GLASS FUSION MEZUZAH CASE

with award winning glass artist Marcella Rosemberg

visit: jrcc.org/classes 14

Thursday, January 13 – 8:00 pm RSVP: JrccEastThornhill.org/rcs

January 2022 / Shevat 5782

Faces of the Community Elena Gordon Software Engineer Please tell us a little about your family. My husband and I are raising two wonderful sons, age twenty and sixteen. Our eldest is a student at university and is actively involved in student Jewish life, and is a member campus Jewish organizations, which makes me very happy. The youngest is in grade 11. My husband works as an engineer at a leading Canadian aerospace company.

CELEBRATING RABBI ZALTZMAN’S BIRTHDAY

MONDAY, JANUARY 31, 8 PM AT JRCC ROCKFORD 18 ROCKFORD RD.

t a v h S ’ Tu B EVENTS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12 JRCC East Thornhill: FRUITS AT THE SHUK

SUNDAY, JANUARY 16 JRCC S. Richmond Hill: TU B’SHEVAT CREATIONS MONDAY, JANUARY 17 JRCC Concord: KIDS FEST WWW.JRCC.ORG 416.222.7105

Tell us about your profession. I am a software engineer, and I also have a bachelor's degree in economics. But it so happened that by profession I did not work a day in that field. After completing my studies in Israel, I served in the IDF while studying at the Open University. After the army, I got married, and my husband and I got a job at the Israel Aerospace Company (IAI) where we worked for twelve years until we left for Canada. In Canada, I worked for various Jewish organizations. For the last two years I have been the Program Manager at the Canadian Forum of Russian-Speaking Jewry, a charitable organization founded by philanthropist and businessman Marat Ressin. The Forum is funded by private donations that are distributed to various Jewish cultural projects. We carry out some events ourselves. I really enjoy my job because I feel that it is important to our community. Where does your family come from? I was born in the city of Dnepropetrovsk (now Dnepr), where I lived for sixteen years. My great-great-grandfather on my mother’s side, Ilya Pinsky, lived in Yekaterinoslav (Dnipro), a famous Chassid in the synagogue of the father of the Rebbe, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson. We are trying to determine what his exact role was there – my cousin is checking information in the Ukrainian archives. My grandparents spoke Yiddish when they didn't want us to understand them. I remember my great-grandmother, Tsipa, was very religious – she ate only kosher food, which she had difficulty getting in the synagogue. Before Passover, my parents helped her bake matzah. My mother told me that they baked it at night, and in the morning my great-grandmother would smuggle it in a suitcase and deliver matzah to Jewish families. We celebrated Jewish holidays as best we could, although it was not easy. My grandfather on my father's side came from Kamenets-Podolsk. He was a violinist, served in the war as a radio operator and survived by some miracle. Two of his brothers were killed in the first week of the war, and the whole huge family was murdered in the camps. At the time when we lived in Ukraine, anti-Semitism was rampant, and I experienced it myself in full. In 1991, a Sunday Jewish school for teenagers opened in our synagogue, and my sister and I began regular Jewish classes. There we studied Hebrew, celebrated my Bat Mitzvah, and attended various Jewish events held in our city. In 1992 we attended to the Jewish camp that had opened. After studying for a year at the Polytechnic College, I passed the exams for the Na-Ale program and left for Israel on my own. Only a year later the whole family joined me. The last years of our stay in Israel were very difficult for us psychologically: the city of Ashdod, where we lived, was constantly being bombarded by mass shelling from Gaza. The children were small and we were very worried about them. This was the main reason why we had to leave our beloved Israel. The fact that my sister had moved to Canada in 2009 for the same reason also influenced my decision, since we always lived side by side and saw each other every day. She had two small children at that time, and I really missed my nephews and my sister. We arrived in Canada in 2011 and settled next to my sister. Our mother also lives next door to us. Despite the fact that part of the family gathered in Canada, we all love Israel very much and I consider Eretz Israel my homeland. What do you do in your free time from work? Do you have any hobbies? I really like to travel. I am a little fond of esotericism and Kabbalah. And I also like to do everything that can be done with your hands. My latest hobby is modeling flowers from polymer clay. If you had the opportunity to meet with any person in history, who would it be, and why? I would like to meet with Faina Ranevskaya, the great actress who was also known for her wise aphorisms. I read a lot about this unique woman, about how difficult her life was and how she had to achieve everything herself, taking into account the opinion prevailing in artistic circles that she did not have what it takes to be an actor. At a young age, she was left alone - her whole family emigrated. But until the end of her days she remained a very cheerful, albeit lonely person. She was incredibly talented and had an unsurpassed sense of humor. Her biting expressions, well known among the people, will be remembered for a long time. What are your plans for the future? I plan to continue to develop the Forum in order to create a cultural and educational center for Russian-speaking Jews in Canada closely connected with Israel, which has its representatives in all provinces and cities where Russian-speaking Jews live.

January 2022 / Shevat 5782

JRCC Directory

JRCC Program Spotlight

416-222-7105 | www.jrcc.org Jewish Russian Community Centre of Ontario

EAST THORNHILL EVENING KOLLEL Imagine if you could study with the Sages, like the one and only, Moses, Maimonides (Rambam), the Alter Rebbe, Rabbi Schneur Zalman, founder of Chabad, and the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Well, in a sense you can. Because they put their life into their teachings, by studying their teachings we are studying with them, connecting our souls to theirs, and to the infinite wellspring of blessings and wisdom found in the Torah. To make such in-depth, text-based study accessible to students of all ages and backgrounds, the JRCC East Thornhill has introduced and evening Kolel, or study group, for men from 8:30 to 9:00pm Sundays to Thursdays. Each night of the week features a different teacher and topic, including Jewish Law, Weekly Parsha,

Chassidic Teachings (Tanya), Ethics, and open Q&A sessions. All study sessions take place in English, with original texts in

Torah study happening in our community will be a source of tremendous indemnity and light for everyone,” explains Rabbi Mendel Zaltzman, Director of JRCC East Thornhill. “Not only will those who participate gain advanced knowledge, study skills and personal growth for themselves, level, but they will surely share the wisdom they gain with their family and friends, extending the light to the entire community.” The Kolel is open to anyone, and you can join every night, or whichever night(s) fit your schedule. It is best to register in advance, but feel free to be spontaneous and drop in any time. A modest stipend is available for Jewish-Russian youth up to age thirty.

Hebrew and/or Aramaic. “Our hope is that having regular, consistent, in-depth

For more details and to register contact David Faynberg at 416.222.7105 x245 or dovid.faynberg@jrcc.org.

5987 Bathurst Street, #3 Toronto, ON M2R 1Z3 Canada Office Hours: Sun: 12 — 5 Mon to Thurs: 9 — 6 • Fri: 9 — 3hrs before Shabbat

JRCC BRANCHES JRCC of Ontario: 5987 Bathurst St., #3 Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman x278 Roi Aftabi, COO x257 JRCC Woodbridge: 12 Muscadel Rd. Rabbi Avrohom Yusewitz x261 JRCC S. Richmond Hill & Maple: 9699 Bathurst St. Rabbi Avrohom Zaltzman x247 JRCC Concord: 411 Confederation Parkway, #14 Rabbi Avraham Weinstein x 249 JRCC Affiliate CRC of Thornhill Woods: 8808 Bathurst St. Rabbi Chaim Hildeshaim x224 JRCC West Thornhill: 1136 Centre St., #2 Rabbi Levi Jacobson x240 JRCC East Thornhill: 7608 Yonge St., #3 Rabbi Mendel Zaltzman x227 JRCC South Thornhill: 1 Cordoba Dr., Party Room Rabbi Levi Blau x288 JRCC Rockford: 18 Rockford Rd. Rabbi Shmuel Neft x235 JRCC Affiliate Jewish Gorsky Assn.: 465 Patricia Ave. Rabbi Dovid Davidov x255 Downstairs JRCC Willowdale and the City: 5700 Yonge St. Rabbi Yisroel Zaltzman x231 JRCC Sheppard & Bathurst Senior’s Building 4455 Bathurst St., Party Room / Mr. Roman Goldstein x221 JRCC Lawrence & Bathurst Senior’s Building 3174 Bathurst St., Party Room x221

JRCC AFFILIATES Danforth Beaches Rabbi Shalom Lezell (416) 809-1365

Durham Region Rabbi Tzali Borensein (905) 493-9007 Georgina, Ontario Rabbi Yossi Vorovitch (905) 909-8818 Hamilton Region Rabbi Chanoch Rosenfeld (905) 529-7458 London, Ontario Rabbi Lazer Gurkow (519) 438-3333 Niagara Region Rabbi Zalman Zaltzman (905) 356-7200 Ottawa, Ontario Rabbi Chaim Mendelsohn (613) 218-8505 Waterloo Region Rabbi Moshe Goldman (519) 725-4289

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS L&M Gelfand Daycare JRCC Daycare and Preschool x501

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JRCC Hebrew School Sunday and after-school program x225 Institute of Jewish Studies Classes & Lectures for Adults x221 Exodus Magazine Monthly Publications in Rus & Eng x222 JRCC Bookstore & Library jrcc.org/bookstore x221

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Holiday Programs x234 Events, Parties & Holiday Awareness Jewish Identity Verification x237 Mazal Makalski jewishidentity@jrcc.org Simcha Gemach x234 Chanie Zaltzman chanie.zaltzman@jrcc.org Volunteering x254 Get involved in your community!

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January 2022 / Shevat 5782

SHARE THE JOY! the ex odus ma g azine s im cha sectio n

IT’S A BOY!

Elon David Barshai Aidrian Joseph Bonfa Niko Gregory Bulman Noam Neithan Brunshtein Dylan Edelshtein Dorian Iacobovitz Yeshaya Yehoyada Kholodenko Elazar Landa Arthur Livshitz Binyamin Yehuda Mashiyev Leo Schocher Milen Zubkov Benjamin Blau

Celebrate your Jewish birthday! To learn more on when and how to celebrate your Jewish birthday visit

IT’S A GIRL!

Roza Rowan Lily Topol Ilana Josephene Grouzman Amelia Berkovitz Lyla Riva Korenev Eliana Minos Ora Shimanov

BAR-MITZVAH! Shmuel Borodkin

MARRIAGE!

Baruch Lipovenko & Elisheva Tornek

Wishing you much health, happiness and nachas, from the rabbis of the JRCC Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman (Senior Rabbi) Rabbi Avrohom Yusewitz, Rabbi Avrohom Zaltzman, Rabbi Avraham Weinstein, Rabbi Chaim Hildeshaim, Rabbi Levi Jacobson, Rabbi Mendel Zaltzman, Rabbi Levi Blau, Rabbi Shmuel Neft, Rabbi David Davidov, Rabbi Yisroel Zaltzman

www.jrcc.org/birthday

January 2022 / Shevat 5782

CHUPPAH

OPSHERN

BABY NAMING

PIDION HABEN BAT MITZVAH

For information, call 416.222.7105 x247, email BarMitzvah@jrcc.org or BatMitzvah@jrcc.org

BAR MITZVAH

GIVE YOUR CHILDREN THE BAR/ BAT MITZVAH THEY DESERVE

For the next special event in your friend’s or family’s life, post a special greeting ad in Exodus Magazine’s Simcha section. For details call 416.222.7105 x222

BRIT

BAR &BAT MITZVAH CLUB

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life on earth

Everything Is Constantly Rising Higher Tzvi Freeman

ur universe was created through a cascade of descent. It began with the emergence of infinite light, the unbounded, unknowable wisdom of the Creator. Then that light was entirely removed. Darkness, emptiness. And then a fine, carefully aimed trickle of light, a glimmer of the divine state of consciousness that had departed. And then a stepping down of that current of consciousness, finely tuning itself again and again to invest within yet more and more discrete restrictions of time and space, and yet lower and lower. As the human psyche compresses the unbridled energy of raw desire into a tame and ordered intellect, and then sweeps aside that intellect so that palpable emotions may emerge, and then ekes out a dim shadow of those emotions as the articulations of conscious thought, which then emerge out of consciousness to become audible words and even physical gestures—so too, but on a vast cosmic scale, the divine consciousness compresses and constricts itself, stepping down and down again and again in uncountable descents, until our tangible, measurable, hard and solid reality could emerge. A universe of such constricted consciousness, like a pebble lying on the ground, it knows no roots. A reality that looks and feels as though it has no origin beyond itself. A thing that just is. Light became darkness, oneness became otherness. The objective: That afterward will follow ascent after ascent. At every moment, a more receptive world. At every moment, a greater light than has ever shone. Since that was the divine objective, that is what actually occurred. Once the descent was complete, a relentless ascent ensued. “And the heavens and the earth were complete…on the seventh day.” The word for complete — va-ye-choo-loo — also means to yearn. Heaven and earth began to yearn to return upward, as the Creator desired they should. The souls that dwell in their heavenly place above perceive this, as do the tzadikim (righteous) in this world. The sages tell us that those who devote their lives to the pursuit of

Torah wisdom have no rest, neither in this world nor in the World To Come, because spiritually they rise constantly higher and higher. Why had they not reached this higher place beforehand? Because a moment ago it did not exist. At each moment, through their persistent toil of wisdom, a new, higher realm of existence emerges into being out of hidden mystery, to which they then ascend through the labor of their souls. The rest of us, however, perceive only a world of cyclical rise and fall. Indeed, that is how history is described by the Kabbalists. As the moon waxes and wanes, they explain,

so the souls of humankind have their times of glory and luminance, and their times of diminution and darkness. But the truth is that what appears to us as descent is a crucial stage within a continuous ascent. It is, after all, the entire objective of the universe which preceded its creation. Indeed, it preceded all of existence. And if so, there is no place from which even a seed of an idea of opposition to this ascent could emerge. Nothing, not you nor I nor any of G‑d’s creations could possibly stand in its way.

life on earth

The Baal Shem Tov provided a magnificent analogy for this illusion—encapsulating in a single image that for which the Etz Chaim, the principal work of Lurianic Kabbalah, spends many chapters: Imagine yourself standing at the foot of a tall pillar. At the top of this pillar you can make out the entryway into a house. So you begin your ascent on the stairway upward. But the stairway turns out to be a spiral staircase. With your first step, the spiral has already taken you to the backside of the pillar. Your objective has fallen out of view— and you fall into confusion. You thought you were on the path to ascent, but instead you’ve entered into darkness. Nevertheless, you persist to the next step and to the next. Eventually you come back around to the front of the pillar, to see that you were rising higher and closer all along. In this way, the Baal Shem Tov explained the verse, “Seven times a tzadik falls and rises.” The fall, the descent, is actually a step towards rising yet higher. It is a necessary and crucial development in the act of being a tzadik. Why? Because, as explained in many other instances at length, between one stage and a higher stage there is always an intermediary stage—the painful stage of leaving the first stage behind. Even in the chain of descent by which this universe was originally created this was true: A lower state of being could only emerge once the original, higher state was utterly submerged and hidden, as though it were not in existence. And so the chain continued until it arrived at our material realm of existence. All the more so when it comes to an ascent to a higher state of being. If it is a true ascent, it requires a complete divestment of all sense of form and self. Think of the acorn that must begin to decompose in the earth before it begins to grow into a mighty oak. Or how a caterpillar must dissolve its form within its cocoon before transforming into a butterfly. So too, for the tzadik to enter a higher state of being, he must traverse the back side of the spiral staircase—the stage of dissolution of self. This bitul, this abandonment of your previous stature, feels like a great fall. But

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

if you could view yourself from a larger context, you would see you are steadily rising. This is what the Baal Shem Tov meant when he said that, although he was capable of ascending to heaven in a storm like Elijah the Prophet, he wanted to undergo the process of “and to dust you shall return.” Why? Because the lowest possible descent— returning to dust—is a preparatory stage to a yet higher ascent than rising to heaven in a storm. And since such a preparation is crucial in order to attain this higher level, it is in truth

not a descent at all. Rather it is a stage in a yet higher ascent. Classically, this process of descent for the sake of ascent is represented in Torah literature by the cycle of the moon, its light ever waning and waxing. And indeed, at that point when the moon’s light to us wanes entirely and disappears, that is when it stands closest to the sun. As its dark side faces us, the light side that we cannot perceive is absorbing the sun’s light from a position yet closer than the earth. The Jewish people identify with the moon.

life on earth

For us, too, those times of darkness are when we are truly closest to G‑d in all His essence. It is then that we absorb the strength we need to reach the highest heights. When the wisdom of King Solomon shone throughout the world, the nations were at peace. The Zohar says, “The moon was full.” Meaning, the Jewish People were at their apex. And yet, says the Etz Chaim, that was only the sixth phase. The seventh phase and the ultimate fullness of the human soul will be achieved only after this very long exile of Israel among the nations. When it concludes with the coming of Moshiach very soon, the world itself, and every individual within it, will shine divine light. From where does the world receive this power to shine? From the time of our exile. In our descent, not only the Jewish People, but the entire world is climbing higher. Our failures, too, when viewed from their inner reality, are also stages in ascent. Even our moral failures, as well as their consequences—from the outside they are ugly and despicable, tearing us away from our goal and from our connection to all that is divine, but from an inside view, from a place that knows the latent power of every soul that must eventually awaken and carry it back home, a place that can perceive a future in which all things will ultimately be repaired, from such a vantage point they too are steps along the backside of the spiral staircase. They must be, because otherwise we would be little gods. This is fundamental to our faith, the reason we do not worship anything or anyone—not even the most divine of the holy angels— nothing other than the one G‑d. Maimonides counts this as number five of the thirteen fundamentals of our faith: We are allowed no intermediaries between ourselves and G‑d. Because all of them, whether of earth or heaven, are only “tools in the hands of their User.” To give any credence to a star, an angel, a force of nature, or a human being is to concede that they are empowered to achieve something outside of G‑d’s plans. That is the very root of polytheism and its origin, as

Maimonides explains in great length at the outset of the Laws of Avoda Zarah. It is the antithesis of Jewish faith. True, the human being—unlike the angels or the forces of nature—has been endowed with free will. As Maimonides explains elsewhere: Just as the Creator desires that fire should burn and water should flow, so He desires that a human being should have moral freedom. But to believe that this freedom of ours can somehow interfere with G‑d’s chosen theme for His universe—how is that different from any other form of polytheism? Does our free

will then render us little gods, G‑d forbid, that we can worship ourselves? Rather, no matter how great a setback, how messy a failure, the ascent continues just the same. At every moment, the world is rising higher. EM Rabbi Tzvi Freeman, a senior editor at Chabad.org, is the author of Bringing Heaven Down to Earth and more recently Wisdom to Heal the Earth. To subscribe to regular updates of Rabbi Freeman's writing or purchase his books, visit Chabad.org. Follow him on FaceBook @RabbiTzviFreeman.

January 2022 / Shvat 5782

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