Exodus Magazine - November 2022

5 | JEWISH SOUL

To Be a Millionaire

We cannot expect of every “poor” Jew to be instantly transformed into a “millionaire” Jew in terms of total commitment to Torah. It is a step by step process...

— From the Rebbe's letters

6 | MADE YOU THINK

The Meaning of Making Money

“If life is full of meaning, why am I spending it hustling other people for their money?” Don't think this question was invented by our save-the-world-and-get-rich-too generation.

— by Tzvi Freeman

7 | JEWISH THOUGHT

Wealth and Spirituality

In order to probe the root of wealth, it is essential to ask some fundamental questions: Why does wealth wield such power? What lies at the heart and soul of money?

— by Simon Jacobson

think! again.

10 | LIFE ON EARTH Astronauts and Empires

there is this contrast, between the chaos among the people on earth, and the blissful aloofness of the people in space. But only on earth, in a physical body, can the soul truly experience the infinite.

— by Yoseph Janowski

12 | ASK THE RABBI Is Crypto Kosher?

What does Judaism have to say about cryptocurrency? Is it considered money according to the Torah? This is a great question, because there really is a very practical difference in Jewish law.

— by Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman

18 | PERSPECTIVES

The True Cost of Value

At the most basic level, the consumer society is sapping our moral strength. It has produced a society obsessed with money. When money rules, we remember the price of things and forget the value of things.

— by Jonathan Sacks

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The term peace usually elicits images of warring nations and sworn enemies coming together to make a pact to end hostilities. But is this really peace? Perhaps a more holistic approach to the concept of peace will result in a more comprehensive, just and lasting peace; not peace as the antithesis to war, but true peace as a state of being unto itself. Perhaps if each individual was at peace with himself and herself, then this could lead to universal peace. After all, if everyone was in a state of true peace, what would they have to fight about?

In Hebrew, the word peace – Shalom – is the same as the word complete, or fulfillment. Peace is a state of being in which people –as well as all people together and everything on earth – reach their ultimate purpose, or at least recognize it and strive toward it. The inhabitants of the earth are divided into four general classes: Inanimates, which do not grow or move, plants, which grow but do not exhibit locomotion, animals, which grow and move, and humans, which are distinguished by their faculty of intelligent speech (at least most of us). The purpose of each one is to transcend itself by elevating and becoming part of the higher class. Thus, earth, water and minerals reach their purpose when consumed by plants, becoming part of the plant itself. Similarly, plants fulfill their mission by becoming devoured and elevated by animals, and animals are elevated when consumed by humans.

But who consumes humans? G‑d, in His wisdom, left that up to us. Our purpose, like earth, plants and animals, is to transcend ourselves, utilizing the gift of consciousness

to reach a transcendent state of being. Some call it rising above the ego. Others call it spiritual enlightenment. Judaism calls it becoming G‑dly. We have the ability to be consumed by G‑dliness by constantly seeking to move forward and grow in our spiritual lives.

I was a little surprised to learn recently that the vast majority of North Americans still believe in some kind of Supreme Being. I would venture to say, cynicism and the wokeness of atheism aside, that all people sense that there is some kind of higher Force at work, even those who claim atheism.

As the saintly Rabbi Levi Yitzchok of Barditchev told a fellow who claimed that he was an atheist: “The god that you don’t believe in, I don’t believe in him either.”

Our G‑d consciousness, or belief, should not be relegated to an abstract illusion that remains aloof from our daily lives. It is something that – like anything we want to make real – needs to be internalized intellectually and manifest in action.

When G‑d comes knocking on our door asking whether we are fulfilling our mission, what will we answer?

The answer will depend on how much energy we put into making peace in the world – not so that the spiritual and physical realities live in peace like enemies who merely tolerate each other, but a true peace in which they become one. And when each individual and all of us collectively begin thinking and moving in this direction, what will we possible have to fight about?

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CMCA AUDITED

To Be a Millionaire

This is to acknowledge receipt of your celebrated book. I appreciate your thoughtfulness in sending me an autographed copy. I understand you are soon to publish a second book, and take this opportunity of thanking you in anticipation of a copy of it, too.

The world of business and finance is, of course, not the primary sphere of my interest. Nevertheless, many principles and even methods are common, or at any rate relevant, to various disciplines of human endeavor. I trust, therefore, that I may glean from your books some useful points that may successfully be applied in the area nearer to my sphere of interest, namely "how to make a million souls" — to paraphrase the title of your book — for Torah Judaism, which admittedly may be a little harder. And to make it by "retailing", for the approach and method to attain this goal, however, is not radically different. We cannot expect of every "poor" Jew to be instantly transformed into a "millionaire" Jew in terms of total commitment to Torah. It is a step by step process "retailing", but with the clear understanding that, while, concessions may be made to human nature on the road to a radical change, there can be no diluting or compromise insofar as the non changeability of Torah and Mitzvoth. If at any point in this gradual advancement commitment falls short of the goal, the goal is unmistakably clear. For the Torah, the "Torah of truth," is not subject to change. And our great teacher Maimonides declared it a basic principle of our Faith. This great "Guide for the Perplexed" (the title of one of his major works), and universally recognized doctor — of both the body and soul, was concerned not merely with the perplexed of his generation, but with the perplexed of all times, including, especially, those of our own day and age, when perplexities have perhaps never been greater.

It has been very encouraging to learn that you are utilizing your substantial influence and other resources in taking an active part to further the activities of Lubavitch to spread and strengthen Judaism in your community. Our representatives there have

informed me of your personal interest, which has found such eloquent expression in the text of your address to the Banquet, as I see from the copy received by me. I am told that it made a strong impact on the audience. This is certainly proof that it was a case of "words coming from the heart, which penetrate the heart," to quote our Sages. And, if I may be permitted another quotation, our Sages succinctly expressed human ambition, which grows with accomplishment, in the adage "He who has 100 desires 200, and having attained 200 desires 400" (not merely a further increment of 100). If this is so in mundane matters, how much more so should it be in regard to eternal spiritual values.

May G‑d grant that this should be so in your case, in your communal endeavors in behalf of the advancement of all matters of Torah. The utmost success is assured where the endeavor is a total one, in terms of "body, soul, and financial resources," to quote our Sages again. In other words, not only through generous financial contributions, but also through personal involvement, including the recruiting of friends to the

cause, by word and example, and in a way that all these efforts are permeated with inspiration and joy, reflecting all the spiritual capacities of ones' soul.

* * *

Regarding the matter with your son, about which you write, it is surely unnecessary to emphasize at length the need to enlist the cooperation of good friends that they should do all they can to influence your son in the right direction. It is to be expected that he may feel freer to discuss the matter with friends than with parents or close relatives. In that case the friends could promptly refute whatever reasons he may have. Of course, this does not preclude your using your persuasion and influence.

I would like to add and this is also very pertinent in the present case that all the members of a Jewish family are like one body. When a particular organ of the body needs strengthening, it is given direct treatment as well as indirect, by strengthening the other organs in an extra measure, to benefit also the affected organ. Certainly, when parents strengthen their personal life in accordance with the teachings of G‑d, it is bound to have a benefit upon the children, directly and subconsciously. And, needless to say, there is always room for improvement in matters of goodness and holiness, Torah and Mitzvahs, which are infinite, being derived from the Infinite. And, as above, every improvement is a benefit, direct and indirect, also for the children.

It is certainly an encouraging sign that the son did not want his father to know about the problem, and may G‑d grant that it should be resolved satisfactorily and sooner than expected.

The merit of your dedicated work in the cause of education of Jewish children, of whom the Torah says, "You are children of G‑d your G‑d," that they should be brought up in the right way, the way of the Torah, will surely stand you in good stead to have true nachas from your son and all your offspring. EM

From the Rebbe's Letters

The Meaning of Making Money

Tzvi Freeman

If life is full of meaning, why am I spending it hustling other people for their money?"

Don't think this question was invented by our bourgeois bohemian, save the world and get rich too generation. It's been around since G‑d handed Adam a hoe and kicked him out of the garden. It's just that most of Adam's children worked that hoe with their hands. Today, we are all plowing the earth with our heads. And that can mean a pretty muddy head.

Many of us try to compromise—we'll get a tad dirty and try to wash up often. So we end up with a bifurcated life in which our principal occupation is making money, and finding meaning is a pastime.

What we really want is a way to have it all. We want to discover that selling widgets is actually a path to higher consciousness and that true enlightenment doesn't have to be accessed in serene meditation remote from humanity; you can grab it from a corporate desk overlooking downtown Atlanta. Maybe even from a law firm.

But if selling widgets is all about getting hold of other people's money, what does it have to do with living a spiritual life?

We have to re examine what business is all about. Perhaps business is actually about discovering meaning. About discovering jewels in that mud.

The master Kabbalist, the "Ari" (Rabbi Isaac Luria, 1534 1572), asked a similar question 500 years ago: If man is a spiritual being, why must he eat? Animals, it would seem, are less spiritual than people. Vegetables seem even lower; and the earth, air and sunshine would appear even lower. Yet vegetation is nurtured by those basic elements, animals are nurtured by minerals and vegetation, and human beings rely on all three. Why, the Ari asked, is the pyramid turned upside down?

Or maybe it's not upside down. Maybe, in some way, animals hold within them a divine spark that is far beyond anything a human can attain on his own. Maybe the deeper you go into the mud, the brighter the sparks of G‑dliness become, so that the greatest sparks are found in the muddiest places. Which means that the real reason we eat is not for ourselves, but for the sake of our food—to

uncover those sparks and connect them back to their source—and to one another.

Which is just what the Ari and his students taught: That all of human endeavor is meant to be a way to reconnect the world and reveal its G‑dly power.

However, there is a caveat to this process: In order to rescue a spark from its captivity within your food, you need to stay one step above it. If you're "grabbing a bite," the bite is grabbing you. If the food is demanding, "You must eat me now!" and you stoop and obey—then it's not the spark that's being lifted up; it's you that's being dragged down. Eating, the Ari explained, must be treated as any other spiritual activity, with composure, with mindfulness—as a human being.

Just like Adam with that hoe uncovered the power of the earth to produce bushels of food, so too our present day business is about digging value out of the abyss into which it has fallen. It is about finding meaning and exposing the secret power of the world around us. And not only the power to enhance human life, but also the power of miracles and wonders and beautiful deeds— the infinite light hidden in finite places.

The widget guy finds that infinite light

hidden in an inner city high school, when he realizes how his widgets could be used as a tool for teaching cooperation and literacy. The Atlanta executive reveals it in his office when he arranges for a weekly lunch and learn session with a local rabbi who discusses Talmudic business ethics. As for the orthodontist, she finds it every day in the wonderful smiles she brings to young people, especially the ones from underprivileged families, whom she treats pro bono.

The deeper we enter into the caverns of mundane life, the more brilliant are the jewels we find—as long as we stay above while we enter within.

As the Psalmist writes, "Those who go down in ships to the sea, who do their craft in the mighty waters; they are the ones to see the works of G‑d, catching His wonders in their net." 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.

WealTh and SpiriTualiTy

Simon Jacobson

In order to probe the root of wealth, it is essential to ask some fundamental questions: Why does wealth wield such power? What lies at the heart and soul of money?

Fundamental to Torah thought, is the essential perspective that every physical entity in the universe has a spiritual counterpart, or better yet, a ‘soul,’ an internal energy that shapes and vivifies each respective fiber of existence. The physical is merely a shell, that contains within it spiritual energy, which when manifested on the physical plane takes on the shape of this respective object.

What the Talmud (the ‘body’ of Torah) teaches us about the ‘body’ and nature of wealth, Kabbalah and Chassidus (the ‘soul’ of Torah) teaches us about the ‘soul’ of wealth.

The Tanya teaches us that wealth is “chayei nafsho,” ‘soul life energy.’ In explaining the power of the mitzvah of charity (which will be discussed later), the Tanya explains: [Charity] “which a person gives out of the toil of his hands, all the strength of his vital soul and energy is invested and embodied in the execution of his work or occupation by which he earned the money; when he gives it for charity, his whole energy ascends to G‑d. Even where one does not depend on his toil for a livelihood, nevertheless since with this money he could have purchased necessities of life, hence he is giving his soul’s life to G‑d.”

Because we invest so much of our energy into making money, it represents the very energy of life (as we see it).

Furthermore, our wealth reflects the unique allotment of “divine energy” given to each of us. Commenting on the Talmudic statement, “Torah is concerned over one’s wealth”: the Baal Shem Tov (founder of the Chassidic movement) explains: Within each person’s possessions, wealth and property lie divine spiritual ‘sparks’ that relate to the very root of his soul. These ‘sparks’ are the vitality that sustains each physical entity. It would not exist without the Divine energy within, which gives it its reason for being. Everything that comes a person’s way –their wealth, possessions, food, clothing and property – is a Providential indication that these sparks relate to the person’s soul. In

this way, each individual is allocated an allotment of spiritual divine sparks, in order for him to elevate these sparks. Proper use of this wealth, channels its energy toward a higher purpose, redeeming and elevating these sparks, thus actualizing the intended purpose of this wealth, and realizing the mission of you’re the person’s soul, and all the ‘sparks’ allocated to it.

The Baal Shem Tov goes a step farther: When one craves a material delight, even food and drink, it is actually ones soul craving and desiring the divine energy (spiritual sparks) within these items. People’s particular tastes and preferences are determined by the difference of their souls and the ‘sparks’ they are drawn to.

Being that wealth is “soul energy” because it encompasses all mans’ energy (as Tanya explains), therefore it contains all the ‘sparks’ allocated to us, and thus has special value, more than the individual sparks in specific areas of our lives.

This perspective on wealth throws light on the odd Talmudic statement, that Rebbe honored the wealthy. At first perusal this seems strange. Was this great sage swayed by wealth? Are the poor less deserving of honor than the rich?

Everything a person owns is a G‑d given opportunity for him to become a finer person and to serve in a better way. Wealth is a sign of greater opportunity. It indicates that G‑d entrusted this wealthy person with additional resources to perfect himself and the world around him. And gave him the ability to make that choice.

But every opportunity is also a challenge. Especially when it comes to personal wealth and success, a person has the tendency to feel that “my success is due to me and me alone – it is my intelligence and strengths that brought me this wealth.” This is the challenge of wealth, and a serious challenge it is: To not be deceived by your own ego that you are self made and self contained and your successes are due solely to your own initiatives and abilities.

The challenge is to recognize that “it was not my own strength and personal power that brought me all this prosperity. Remember that it is G‑d who gives you the power to become prosperous.”

The true approach to earning a living is recognizing that one’s sustenance comes from G‑d, and no amount of effort and ingenuity on ones part will increase it in the slightest. Why, then, work for a living at all?

Why need the laborer toil, the artisan create and the businessman deal if, in any case, G‑d will supply them with what they have been assigned? Because G‑d has commanded us to fashion a “vessel” through which He then promises to channel His blessings –“G‑d shall bless you in all that you shall do.” Our workday efforts, then, are nothing more than a formality, a natural “front” for a supernatural process. G‑d provides our needs, without regard to such natural criteria as a person’s expertise, capital and enterprise. On the other hand, G‑d insists on this formality, promising the bestowal of his blessing only when man creates the vessel enabled by his natural talents and resources.

These are the economics of faith.

At first glance, it may seem that there is little practical difference between this approach and the conventional approach that “my power and my physical might have generated this fortune.” Both agree that to earn a living one must utilize, to the utmost, the natural tools at one’s disposal, whether it is because these natural tools actually generate one’s income or because they are needed as a “vessel” to receive a unilateral gift from Above. In truth, however, these two approaches result in radically different behaviors in work, business and money management.

What happens, for example, when a business opportunity comes your way that may be cutting ethical corners or going against your religious beliefs, but it will increase revenue? This creates the dilemma of having to choose between your “religious beliefs” and your financial betterment. On the other hand, one who knows that his shop, and all the time and toil invested

in it, is only a channel for G‑d’s blessing, understands the ludicrousy in expanding the channel in a manner that violates the will of the supernal provider. This would be comparable to reducing the fuel supply of a power plant in order to allocate funds for the construction of additional power lines, in the hope that this would increase the net output of the plant. Certainly, it is important to put up power lines; without them, the energy produced by the plant wouldn’t reach its intended destination. But simply pulling more lines from the plant will not generate more power, especially if such activity is to the detriment of the power’s source. Thus, to violate any divine command (such as the prohibitions against stealing, lying, dealing in merchandise that causes physical or moral harm to its consumers, etc.) to increase one’s income is not only detrimental to one’s spiritual health — it’s also bad business sense.

A marked difference between these two approaches is how a person views his contributions to charity. From the conventional perspective, money given to charity represents a reduction in one’s financial resources. A person may still be moved to give out of compassion, duty or guilt; but he will weigh each dollar against the sacrifice it involves, against what he is “giving up” in order to give. On the other hand, to a person who believes that G‑d’s blessing is the ultimate and only source of wealth, charity is an investment. Indeed, to give to charity is far more effective an investment than any business initiative: the latter only serves to construct the channel (the nature of which in no way determines how much will be funneled through it), while the former stimulates the source, as per the divine promise/command, “tithe, so that you may prosper.” To such a person, it is also obvious that he will not ”save” anything by disregarding the divine imperative to aid a fellow in need.

Finally, these two approaches differ in the extent of their devotion to the building of a career or business. True, both concur that the natural effort must be made, that one must utilize, to the utmost, the tools at one’s disposal to earn a living. But what exactly

does “utilizing to the utmost” mean? To the person who sees his career or business as the source of his income, “the utmost” is an open ended parameter: the greater one’s efforts, the greater one’s success, or, at least, the greater one’s chances for success. Eight daily hours become 10 become 12 become 14. Second and third jobs are assumed to cover all possibilities. Plans and anxieties invade every waking (and non waking) thought.

On the other hand, when a person sees his career or business as nothing more than a vessel constructed at G‑d’s behest, “the utmost” is the utmost that G‑d requires. Anything beyond that is a waste of time and effort. And what G‑d requires is that we create a natural framework that would suffice as the receptacle for our most basic needs. Should He desire to grant us more than our most basic needs, He will do so —within that framework. Going to greater lengths will not increase the chances of this happening –on the contrary, it can only decrease them, by impinging on those pursuits and activities (prayer, Torah study, observance of mitzvoth) that relate directly to the source of all blessing.

This is the challenge of wealth and the meaning of charity. To recognize that though your work and effort was necessary to achieve this wealth, it is ultimately G‑d’s blessing that “makes you wealthy”. And this recognition is actualized by understanding the purpose of G‑d blessing you – in order that you use your wealth for a greater cause and to help others.

Rebbe therefore honored the wealthy. He saw their wealth as an indication of

their additional G‑d given opportunities. He honored them because G‑d honored them by bestowing upon then this wealth and entrusting them with its distribution to the needy. He respected their unique challenge to not be distracted by their wealth and to utilize it for good. Wealth is G‑d’s vote of confidence in the wealthy person that he will overcome the challenge and utilize his special gifts as an opportunity to utilize the wealth for a greater purpose than selfish gain, and to give and help others.

According to this ‘inner/soul’ understanding of wealth, we can appreciate the root of wealth’s power and its ability to consume us – both ourselves and others. It is the Divine energy that lies embedded in wealth that gives it its power.

Indeed, according to the Tanya, the power of wealth embodies the sheer power of this material universe and all it contains, and thus offers us the greatest opportunity to transform the world through our monetary charity.

The Tanya explains that the entire purpose of existence (including the higher sublime realms) is to spiritualize the material world, to transform it into a “home for G‑d.” Each of us does so by utilizing our “corner” of this Earth and all we were blessed with – our wealth and possessions – toward elevating the ‘sparks’ within and thus revealing the true nature of existence. We take our part of the material world and instead of being distracted and using it solely for personal gain, we recognize that it is a shell, a vehicle and means for spiritual expression, a channel for a higher good.

Nowhere is this more powerfully expressed than in the act of charity. In all other mitzvot

“only one faculty of the soul is embodied, and than only at the time of the performance of the precept, whilst in the case of charity… all the strength of his soul is embodied…”

Virtuous acts are indeed good, and they elevate the soul, but giving money to charity is the most powerful way to spiritualize the material, for it means giving a piece of everything that we are – our abilities, our efforts, our ambitions, our compassion.

Charity relieves the inherent tension between matter and spirit by freeing the material world from its self absorbing tentacles, and allowing us to see within and above. Charity does not destroy or annihilate the selfishness of wealth and the material universe but rather transforms it into a channel for higher divine energy. Charity in its broadest sense is taking our physical corner of world and transforming it into a home for G‑d.

Charity is thus the greatest gift G‑d bestowed upon us: the gift of giving.

The Midrash relates a dialogue between the psalmist and G‑d: Said King David to the Almighty: “Master of the Universe! Why don’t you balance Your world and make equal the rich and the poor? Replied G‑d: “If such were the case, ‘Who shall keep kindness and truth?’ If all were rich or all were poor, how would there be an opportunity for human kindness?”

This offers us a radically different view on the uneven distribution of wealth and the diversity of economic classes: It is not merely a result of circumstances, opportunities or the efforts of our work; it is a result of G‑d giving the gift of wealth and the opportunity to be wise in knowing how to use it to refine this material world and fulfill our mission in

life. Just as G‑d continues to give — every fraction of time, every day on earth — charity allows us to give, thus becoming G‑d like ourselves.

Indeed, the wealth we share is not truly ours; it is something that G‑d has loaned us for our time on Earth, in order to allow us the opportunity to be generous and introduce kindness into the world. Those who have been blessed with more wealth, then, are those who have been blessed by G‑d with the opportunity and privilege to be more giving, to be more G‑d like. Philanthropy is not only about helping others, but recognizing that they are helping you. You realize that this additional wealth is really not yours but was given to you in order that you have the gift of being able to give and be generous, which enriches your entire life.

Thus, charity must be given with humility. If a wealthy person gives arrogantly, thinking that he is doing a great favor, he is sadly mistaken: the favor is being done to him. Recognizing this fact transforms the act of charity and makes it infinitely more compelling.

The universe as an intricate system of give and take; our entire existence revolves around this relationship. Just as plants, for instance, need the carbon dioxide that humans exhale, humans need the oxygen that plants produce. Charity is yet one more expression of this pattern: the giver and the receiver need one another. “More than the rich man does for the pauper,” say the sages, “the pauper does for the rich man”. Through charity, we introduce unity into a diverse world.

On its own, wealth can be a curse. By putting wealth in perspective, and recognizing why it was given to us, it becomes a blessing instead of a curse. And by using our wealth for charitable and philanthropic purposes, which are ongoing, instead of spending it all on the desire of the moment, our wealth becomes eternal. EM

Rabbi Simon Jacobson is the author of Toward a Meaningful Life: The Wisdom of the Rebbe and the director of the Meaningful Life Center (meaningfullife.com).

aSTronauTS and eMpireS

Yoseph Janowski

Ateam of astronauts from various countries, including the US and Russia, recently traveled to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX rocket. It has been described as a truly international undertaking, especially during these tumultuous geopolitical times.

Meanwhile, down on planet earth, regimes and empires are struggling to deal with dramatically intense internal and global challenges. Polarization in the US is threatening the nation's ability to remain vibrant and united. Russia's war in Ukraine is giving rise to growing discontent among Russians, to the point that many question how long Vladimir Putin can retain power. On a wider scale, the war is causing severe energy shortages for Europe just as the cold winter temperatures arrive, as well as economic and food instability around the world. China's economy is slowing for a number of reasons, including COVID shutdowns, which are causing severe hardships for the nation. Iranians are demonstrating against their oppressive regime. Though there have been similar demonstrations in the past, the current unrest seems more organized, pervasive and widespread, leading many commentators to posit that it may overthrow the government. These are just a sampling of the many issues confronting nations these days.

So there is this contrast, between the chaos among the people on earth, and the blissful aloofness of the people in space.

I like to think of spacewalks, videos of astronauts floating in the vacuum of space, with the vast reaches of the galaxy forming an endless, magnificent background behind them and all around them.

It reminds of the image of an embryo, simultaneously cocooned in the womb and floating free. It also helps me imagine what a soul might be like, before descending to earth, close to G‑d, floating in some divine, ethereal space.

Even though space is also part of our physical world, it serves as an apt analogy for the difference between heaven and earth. Earth has a hard, rigid, materialistic feel. Space reminds us of heaven, of the freedom and openness of the metaphysical. But only on earth, in a physical body, can the soul

experience a revealed joining of its essence to the Divine essence. And that, in a nutshell, is why we’re here.

We live and struggle with this duality on a daily basis. The only respite, besides some blessed moments of prayer and meditation, is Shabbat, when we attain a kind of peaceful solitude, rising above everyday life. After Shabbat ends, we recite the Havdalah the separation prayer, and praise and give thanks to G‑d Who “separates between the seventh day and the rest of the week, between holiness and the mundane.” The Rebbe teaches that He separates between holiness and

the mundane in order to bring the holiness into the mundane. Indeed, the Rebbe often blessed people with the expression: “May you have blessing and success, materially and spiritually, and materially and spiritually together.” The ideal objective is not only to experience spiritual heights and to appreciate the Divine blessings in the material, but to experience materialism and spirituality as one reality.

The level of awareness, being in a place of equanimity and oneness, attached our essence to the Divine essence, healing all wounds and uniting each individual within

himself/herself, and all individuals together. But what about global turmoil?

In the second chapter of the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has a disturbing dream that he can't remember. G‑d reveals the dream to the prophet Daniel, and Daniel relates to the king both the dream and its interpretation.

In the dream there is a statue with a gold head, silver arms, a copper stomach, and iron legs. The feet and toes are a combination of iron and earthenware. A stone comes off a mountain, strikes the statue at its feet, and the statue crumbles. The stone becomes a mountain that fills the earth.

Daniel explains that the gold head represents Nebuchadnezzar himself. The other elements – silver, copper, iron, earthenware – represent the subsequent kingdoms that will follow. The last one represents a divided kingdom consisting of iron and earthenware. The iron will mix with the earthenware, but they won't stick together. Then G‑d will establish a kingdom (represented by the stone from the mountain) that will overrun the others and last forever.

Some commentaries specify that the silver is analogous to the kingdom of Media and Persia. The copper is Greece. The iron is Rome (where iron developed and propelled the Western Industrial Revolution. The earthenware is Ishmael. And though Edom will eventually mix with Ishmael, they will not cleave together. The fifth kingdom that will last forever will be the kingdom of Moshiach, a time when G‑d's glory will fill the world, bringing global peace and prosperity for all.

Sometimes it seems like this type of reality

is a distant dream, but on the other hand we can also see signs that perhaps this time is very close. Indeed, when we open our eyes to current events, we see how the Almighty is orchestrating a better world. Autocracies are dealing with immense challenges, which is weakening their alliance (including their alliance with North Korea). Iranian protests, beside weakening the rulers, are adding pressure on the US and Europe not to sign a nuclear deal with Iran, since it would provide funding to a tyrannical, murderous regime. Israel has discovered vast energy reserves beneath the Mediterranean Sea, at a time when Europeans need energy. With so many countries wanting to benefit from Israeli energy and technology, relations with the Jewish state have improved greatly, while the BDS movement against Israel has mostly fallen flat if not completely failed. Numerous Arab countries, afraid of Iran, have forged alliances with Israel, while certain Arab enemies (like Syria and Libya) have become weakened by internal conflict. These are just some of G‑d's tremendous kindnesses these days, guiding us toward a secure, peaceful, and prosperous world.

At this time of year, we are challenged to carry the inspiration of the High Holidays and the joy of Sukkot and Simchat Torah with us into the rest of the year – to fuse the holy with the mundane, the spiritual with the material. This consciousness of experience of oneness not only brings meaning and Divine blessings into our personal and collective lives, it opens us up to manifesting a world in which all is truly One. EM

Yoseph Janowski lives in Toronto, Canada.

future tense MOSHIACH MUSINGS

The time appointed by G‑d for the Redemption is a closely guarded secret. Nonetheless, we are offered many hints to recognize its proximity: when certain conditions come about, await the imminent coming of Moshiach.

Most of these conditions are quite disturbing, clearly displaying a situation of the very “bottom of the pit.” One major source describes the world condition in those days as follows: increase in insolence and impudence; oppressing inflation; unbridled irresponsibility on the part of authorities; centers of learning will turn into bawdy houses; wars; many destitutes begging, with none to pity them; wisdom shall be putrid; the pious shall be despised; truth will be abandoned; the young will insult the old; family breakup with mutual recriminations; impudent leadership.

The troubles and agony of the birthpangs of Moshiach, however, are not unavoidable:

As the Talmud asks: “What is man to do to be spared the pangs of Moshiach? Let him engage in Torah and acts of loving kindness!”

Moreover, there are also good and happy signs indicating the imminent coming of Moshiach: a good measure of prosperity; a renewal of Torah study; and opening of the “gates of wisdom above and the wellsprings of wisdom below,” evidenced also by scientific and technological discoveries and advances; a manifestation and propagation of the mystical teachings of the Torah; and also “In the time that Moshiach will awaken, many signs and miracles will occur in the world.”

THE IDEAL OBJECTIVE IS NOT ONLY TO EXPERIENCE SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS AND TO APPRECIATE THE DIVINE BLESSINGS IN THE MATERIAL, BUT TO EXPERIENCE MATERIALISM AND SPIRITUALITY AS ONE REALITY.

iS CrypTo koSher?

Rabbi Yoseph Y. Zaltzman

QWhat does Judaism have to say about cryptocurrency? Is it considered money according to the Torah?

This is a great question, because there really is a very practical difference in Jewish law whether something is considered a currency or a commodity. In most situations and transactions it makes no practical difference whether the item is actual currency or not –as long as it has monetary value it can be used for the purposes of a transaction in Jewish law. However, there are some examples that do have implications in Jewish law. One such example is when making a loan.

There is an explicit Biblical law in the Torah that prohibits charging interest or any kind of usury fee when making a loan to a fellow Jew. This law applies not only when lending money, but also when lending merchandise. In general, you can lend merchandise, but because the value of the merchandise can fluctuate, you have to return the same monetary value of the merchandise and not the actual amount of merchandise.

For example, if I borrow ten kilos of grapes from you when they were worth $10 per kilo ($100), and then return them to you when they are with $12 per kilo ($120), I am paying back more than I borrowed, which is considered a form of interest. Therefore, I should pay back $100 worth of grapes, regardless of the number of kilos. (In the example above I would return 8.33 kilos of grapes, even though I borrowed 10 kilos). There are some exceptions, such as an item of a very small value, like a loaf of bread, or if the item has a fixed price.

When it comes to currency, however, one can simply borrow and return the same amount of money. So we see there is a significant difference regarding whether we consider cryptocurrency to be actual currency, or an item/commodity. According to Jewish law, “currency” is defined as something that the sovereign government declared as the legal tender of the country, and/or is the generally

accepted currency used in that locale for transactions. Based on this definition, it is clear that crypto does not currently have the status of currency according to Jewish law. It is treated the same as a foreign currency, which is considered a commodity. Practically, that means that if you borrow bitcoin from someone, you need to return the value of the bitcoin you borrowed, not actual bitcoin.

While the laws of interest and usury are sometimes complex, the Sages teach that they incredibly important and special, possibly because they are so easy to overlook and sweep under the rug. But in these subtleties we have the opportunity to reflect refinement and attention to detail in our day to day lives, and bring G‑dliness into our hearts and the parts of our lives where seemingly “no one is watching.” In fact, the Torah tells us that in the merit of being meticulous about these laws of interest and usury, we will merit the coming of Moshiach and a secure dwelling in the Holy Land. EM

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.

Наступление Осенних праздниковРош Ашана и Йом Кипур совсем скоро. В Рош Ашана Вс-вышний судит все свои творения, определяя для них предстоящий год. В молитве «Видуй» - «Покаяние», кото-рую несколько раз произносят во время праздничных служб, перечисляются все мыслимые грехи, которые человек может совершить. Почему побуждение к греху овладевает человеком? Может, это связано с проступком Первого Человека – Адама, который, как известно, в тот же день, когда его сотворил Вс-вышний, ослушался Творца. Ранее мы с Вами не обсуждали проступок Адама, - мне не хочется употре-блять слово «грех» по отношению к святому Первому Человеку. Общеизвестен тезис, что человечество страдает из-за совершенного Адамом греха. Это правда. Правда? Так что же совершил Адам, почему его проступок называется грехом, и чем этот грех обернулся для человечества? Талмуд объясняет, что Адам не должен был трогать виноград, который назывался древом жизни. Виноград? Я слышала, что было яблоко или даже инжир...

The article above is excerpted from the Russian edition of Exodus Magazine. To subscribe, please visit exodusmagazine.org or call 416.222.7105.

SUKKOT COMMUNITY EVENTS

Hundreds of people of all ages participated in dozens of events and celebrations during the week-long Sukkot festival, referred to in Judaism as "the time of our rejoicing.” JRCC Branches hosted several events, parties for children, as well as special events for adults.

The children’s Sukkot events featured music, prizes, children’s entertainment, and holiday-themed crafts and activities that made the holiday spirit palpable – including, of course, eating in the Sukkah and shaking the lulav and etrog. In addition to the family parties, JRCC branches also hosted evenings specifically for adults to focus on their own spiritual growth and social activities, and to experience the joy of Sukkot and “Simchat Beit HaShoeva” in their own way.

Some of the Sukkot-themed events included Sushi Under the Stars, Soup in the Sukkah, Scotch & Steak in the Sukkah and a Sukkah Hop where people travel as a group from sukkah to sukkah in the neighborhood.

Special events were also held for teens and seniors. See picture gallery on page 16.

SHABBAT FOR YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

On September 30, over 100 people attended the first monthly Shabbat Dinner of the new year for Jewish young Professionals at the JRCC East Thornhill. The evening featured a gourmet dinner and entertainment, and an inspiring address by Edward Kholodenko, the CEO and President of Questrade. Space was limited and the event was quickly booked to capacity. After an enjoyable and uplifting evening of connecting to our Jewish heritage and to one another, everyone is looking forward to the next event. For more information and upcoming events, please contact Dovid Faynberg, the organizer of the Young Professionals programs at 416-222-7105 x245 or Dovid.faynberg@jrcc.org.

S. RICHMOND HILL & MAPLE CHALLAH BRAIDERS

NOVEMBER 10

WEST THORNHILL COMMUNITY SHABBAT DINNER

ART & SOUL COURSE, EAST THORNHILL

24

MARVELOUS MEZUZAH CASES

MARVELOUS MEZUZAH CASES

elected mayor of Vaughan Steven Del Duca.

Congratulations

JrccEastThornhill.org/MezuzahCase

We are fascinated by artists. Their work embodies what we want our lives to be: beautiful, meaningful, purposeful. But art is not only for artists. It’s for anyone who craves to know how to live more creatively, more deeply.

Braiders Challah

Faces of the Community

Dina Ulitsky

Please tell us about your family background. My grandparents on my father's side are from Kherson, Ukraine. My grandfather, Pesach Kaganov, was, as his last name indicates, a Cohen. Judaism was observed in their family, but not exactly in the way we observe it now, being members of the Lubavitcher community. They had kashrut, holidays, traditions.

I know very little about my grandparents on my mother's side. My grandfather died at the front at the beginning of the war, and my grandmother died when I was still young.

The following story illustrates the role of Jewish tradition in my grandparents’ family.

My parents were ordinary Soviet Jews, without an external traditional component in their life. My father was an architect. My mother worked in a drawing bureau. When my husband and I were at the first stages of our return to Jewish observance, we were planning to attend the kaparot ritual on the eve of Yom Kippur, which entails waving a live chicken above our heads before it is is slaughtered. I called my mother and said that we had to get up very early to go somewhere. To which she exclaimed: “Ah, so you are going to wave the chicken!” I was very surprised and asked: “How do you know about this?” She replied: “Well, every year dad brought home chickens and roosters and waved them over the heads of the whole family.” For context, the family did not reside is some random town but in the city of Leningrad. This means that in the family of my grandfather (whom everyone called Boris, but, as it turned out, his Jewish name is Benzion), Jewish traditions were observed. I always thought that my mother's name was Elizaveta Borisovna. But as a teenager I saw my mother's passport open and saw that her real name is Leya Bentsionovna.

How did you come to start keeping Jewish traditions?

One day I happened to come to the Kabbalah Center. The mysticism of Kabbalah was intriguing to me, and I succumbed to persuasion to buy a whole set of twenty-six for $500. My husband, Arkady, was surprised by my interest in Kabbalah. He advised me to contact the rabbi of the community, Rabbi Zaltzman, to find out his opinion. It turned out that the rabbi knew about this center, and their practice of insisting people purchase numerous expensive books.

From that time on, Rabbi Zaltzman became our weekly guest, and we would share long, intimate conversations about Jewishness, and about the Rebbe. Through these encounters, Jewish truths were brought before us for the first time. In preparation for the next visit to the rabbi, my husband (and he is a physicist by profession who worked with NASA) opened a book by Stephen Hawking (an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and astrophysicist) related to the theory of the formation of the Universe (the Big Bang), and prepared a list of questions. Rabbi Zaltzman said that he was not a specialist in the field of physics, and advised my husband to speak with Professor Herman Branover, an Israeli physicist from Ben-Gurion University, a worldclass scientist who would be vositing Toronto for a series of lectures. After meeting with Professor Branover, Arkady understood the answers to questions related to the topic of “Science and Religion.”

And then I called a taxi, gave the driver all the books I bought at the Kabbalah Center, and asked him to take them back.

In one of our later meetings, Rabbi Zaltzman spoke about the need to convert our kitchen to a kosher kitchen. We answered him: “Rabbi, our food is already kosher – we don’t eat pork, we don’t mix meat with milk, because we don’t consider it good for health.” After a brief explanation of the essence of kosher, we realized that our understanding of this concept was far from the truth and made the important decision to kosher our kitchen. As I began separating the meat plates from the dairy plates and shifting them from shelf to shelf, I became increasingly confused. By that time, Rabbi Zaltzman had already told us a lot about the Rebbe, about his relationship with every Jew. A small portrait of the Rebbe stood in our kitchen. And so, looking at the portrait, I mentally turned to the Rebbe, asking for participation in this process. When all the cabinets and drawers had already been emptied of dishes and thoroughly washed, I decided to check one of them. Despite the fact that the box was previously cleaned, I noticed some kind of shine in the far corner. Reaching out, much to my surprise, I found a dollar coin. Holding this dollar in my hands, I thought in confusion: “How did he get there, because everything was already removed.” I remembered Rabbi Zaltzman talking about the Rebbe giving every Jew a blessing along with a dollar for to give to charity. The question arose: I started the path to Jewishness together with my husband, so where is the dollar for him? Obeying an incomprehensible impulse, I looked into the same mystical box. Something flashed again in the corner, and I took out a second dollar coin. Everything that happened just went beyond reality. But that was not the end! An unknown force again drew me to the box. I open it, and in the same corner I found a small card that was usually distributed by Lubavitcher organizations at the time that was called “The Good Card.” So I felt the presence of spirituality and connection with the Rebbe was manifesting in this process in a real way. To be continued.

perspectives

The True CoST of Value

Jonathan Sacks

To whom is an international corporation answerable? Often they do not employ workers. They outsource manufacturing to places far away. If wages rise in one place, they can, almost instantly, transfer production to somewhere else. If a tax regime in one country becomes burdensome, they can relocate to another. To whom, then, are they accountable? By whom are they controllable? For whom are they responsible? To which group of people other than shareholders do they owe loyalty? The extreme mobility, not only of capital but also of manufacturing and servicing, is in danger of creating institutions that have power without responsibility, as well as a social class, the global elite, that has no organic connection with any group except itself. As for moral responsibility, it seems that that too can be outsourced. It is someone else’s problem, not mine.

This has profound moral consequences. George Soros writes of how in his early years as an investment manager he had to spend immense time and energy proving his credentials, his character and integrity, before people would do business with him. Nowadays, he says, deals are transactional rather than personal. Instead of placing your faith in a person, you get lawyers to write safeguards into the contract. This is an historic shift from a trust economy to a risk economy. But trust is not a dispensable luxury. It is the very basis of our social life. Many scholars believe that capitalism had religious roots because people could trust other people who, feeling that they were answerable to G‑d, could be relied on to be honest in business. A world without trust is a lonely and dangerous place.

It was precisely the breakdown of trust that caused the banking crisis in the first place. We sometimes make the mistake of thinking that the market is a shrine to materialism, forgetting that its keywords are deeply spiritual. “Credit” comes from the Latin “credo” meaning “I believe.” “Confidence” comes from the Latin meaning “shared faith.” “Trust” is a word that has deeply religious resonance. Try running a bank, a business or an economy in the absence of confidence and trust and you will know it

can’t be done. In the end we do not put our faith in systems but in the people responsible for those systems, and without morality, responsibility, transparency, accountability, honesty and integrity, the system will fail. And as it happens, the system did fail.

With this we come to perhaps the most profound truth of the Judeo Christian ethic. That ethic, based on justice, compassion and respect for human dignity, took moral restraint from “out there” to “in here.” Good conduct was not dependent on governments, laws, police, inspectorates, regulatory bodies, civil courts and legal penalties. It was dependent on the still, small voice of G‑d within the human heart. It became part of character, virtue and an internalized sense of obligation. Jews and Christians devoted immense energies to training the young in the ways of goodness and righteousness. A moral vision, a clear sense of right and wrong, was present in the stories they told, the texts they read, the rituals they performed, the prayers they said and the standards the community expected of its members.

If you were Jewish, you knew what it felt like to be a slave in Egypt, eating the bread of affliction and the bitter herbs of slavery. You knew what it felt like to be homeless for forty years as you wandered through the desert. You knew the call of

Isaiah, “Learn to do good, seek justice, rebuke the oppressor, defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.” You had social justice engraved in your neural pathways. When I asked the developmental economist Jeffrey Sachs what motivated him in his work, he replied immediately, tikkun olam, the Jewish imperative to heal a fractured world.

Christians did likewise. They did not need regulatory bodies to ensure that they worked for the common good. They knew they were morally responsible, even if they were not legally liable, for the consequences of their decisions for the lives of others.

Economists call this social capital, but it is not a given of the human condition. Societies where self interest trumps the common good eventually disintegrate. That is why societies at the peak of affluence have usually already begun on the downward slope to decline. The fourteenth century Islamic thinker Ibn Khaldun argued that when a civilization becomes great, its elites get used to luxury and comfort, and the people as a whole lose their asabiyah, their social solidarity. Giambattista Vico described a similar cycle: “People first sense what is necessary, then consider what is useful, next attend to comfort, later delight in pleasures, soon grow dissolute in luxury, and finally go mad squandering their estates.”

This was said first and most powerfully

by Moses long ago. The theme of his great speeches in the book of Deuteronomy is that it is not hardship that is the real trial, but affluence. Affluence makes you complacent. You no longer have the moral and mental energy to make the sacrifices necessary for the defence of freedom. Inequalities grow. The rich become self indulgent. The poor feel excluded. There are social divisions, resentments, injustices. Society no longer coheres. People do not feel bound to one another by a bond of collective responsibility.

Individualism prevails. Trust declines. Social capital wanes. When that happens, you will be defeated.

Those who believe that liberal democracy and the free market can be defended by the force of law and regulation alone, without an internalized sense of duty and morality, are tragically mistaken.

At the most basic level, the consumer society is sapping our moral strength. It has produced a society obsessed with money: salaries, bonuses, the cost of houses, and expensive luxuries we could live without. When money rules, we remember the price of things and forget the value of things, and that is dangerous.

The financial crisis was caused, at least in part, by banks and mortgage brokers lending people so much money at such low interest rates to buy houses, that house prices rose rapidly until investing in a house seemed the best you could make. More people borrowed more money and house prices rose yet higher, until everyone felt that they were richer. But in real terms we weren’t. Ignoring values and concentrating on price, we mortgaged our future to feed a fantasy. Like other historic

bubbles, it was a moment of collective madness, of the essentially magical belief that there can be gains without losses; forgetting that the larger the gain, the bigger the risk, and that the price is often paid by those who can least afford it.

In general, the build up of personal debt happened because the consumer society encouraged people to borrow money they didn’t have, to buy things they didn’t need, to achieve a happiness that wouldn’t last. The Sages of the ancient world said: Who is rich? One who rejoices in what he has. The consumer society says the opposite. Who is rich? One who can buy what he does not yet have. Relentlessly focussing on what we lack and what others have, it encourages feelings of inadequacy that we assuage by buying a product to make us happy, which it does until the day after, when the next best thing comes along and makes us feel inadequate all over again.

It is no accident that despite the fact that until recently we were affluent beyond the dreams of previous generations, we were not measurably happier. We turned children into mini consumers, giving them mobile phones instead of our time. The result, in Britain, is a generation of children more unhappy, more prone to depression, stress, eating disorders, and drug and alcohol abuse than they were fifty years ago. The consumer society turns out to be a highly efficient system for the creation and distribution of unhappiness.

It goes deeper still. We know – it has been measured in many experiments – that children with strong impulse control grow to be better adjusted, more dependable, achieve higher grades in school and college and have more success in their careers than others. Success depends on the ability to delay gratification, which is precisely what a consumerist culture undermines. At every stage, the emphasis is on the instant gratification of instinct. In the words of the pop group Queen, “I want it all and I want it now.” A whole culture is being infantilized.

My late father, coming to Britain at the age of six fleeing persecution in Poland, knew poverty and lived it. But he and his contemporaries had a rich cultural, communal and spiritual life. He enjoyed

classical music and the great painters. He loved synagogue and his faith as a Jew. The Jewish communities of the East End, like some Asian sub communities today, had strong families, supportive networks, and high aspirations, if not for themselves then for their children. Of the gifts of the spirit they had anembarrass de richesse. Can we really say that the world of brands and status symbols, of what you own rather than what you are, is better? What of the future if we really are fated to years of recession?

What will that mean for a culture where happiness is defined by material possessions? It will mean the maximum of disappointment with the minimum of consolation. Whether our social structures are strong enough to survive this is wholly open to doubt.

A good society has its own ecology which depends on multiple sources of meaning, each with its own integrity. I want to draw attention briefly to five features of Judaism, largely shared by Christianity, whose role over the centuries has been to preserve a space uninvaded by the market ethic.

The first is the Sabbath, the boundary Judaism draws around economic activity. The Sabbath is the day we focus on the things that have value but not a price, when we neither work nor employ others to do our work, when we neither buy nor sell, in which all manipulation of nature for creative ends is forbidden and all hierarchies of power or wealth are suspended.

It is the still point in the turning world, when we renew our attachment to family and community, living the truth that the world is not wholly ours to bend to our will but something given to us in trust to conserve for future generations, and in which

the inequalities of a market economy are counterbalanced by a world in which money does not count, in which we are all equal citizens. The Jewish writer Achad Ha am said that more than the Jews have kept the Sabbath, the Sabbath has kept the Jews. It is the one day in seven when we stop making a living and instead simply live.

The second: marriage and the family. Judaism is one of the great familial traditions. Many of its supreme religious moments take place in the home between husband and wife, parents and children. Marriage is where love and loyalty combine to bring new life into the world. If Jews have survived tragedy, found happiness, and contributed more than their share to the human heritage, I suspect it is because of the sanctity with which they endowed marriage and the way they regarded parenthood as their most sacred task.

Third: education. Since the days of Moses Jews have predicated their very survival on education. They were the first civilization to construct, two thousand years ago, a universal compulsory education, communally funded, to ensure that everyone had access to knowledge. They even said that study is holier than prayer. Jews are the people whose heroes are teachers, whose citadels are schools and whose passion is the life of the mind. Sergey Brin, co founder of Google, once said that he came from one of those Russian Jewish families where they expected even the plumber to have a Ph. D. Jews did not leave education to the vagaries of the market. They made the market serve the cause of education.

Fourth: the concept of property itself. Deeply embedded in the Jewish mind is the idea that we do not ultimately own what we possess. Everything belongs to G‑d, and what we have, we hold in trust. There are conditions to that trust. As the great Victorian philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore put it, “We are worth what we are willing to share with others”. Hence the long tradition of Jewish philanthropy that explains how Judaism encouraged the creation of wealth without giving rise to class resentments.

Finally, there is the Jewish tradition of law itself. It was William Rees Mogg who

first drew attention to a connection between Jewish law and economics I had never thought of before. In a book he wrote about inflation, The Reigning Error, he said that inflation – like high levels of debt – is a disease of inordinacy. It happens because of a failure to understand that energy, to be channelled, needs restraints. It was the constant discipline of law, he says, that provided the boundaries within which Jewish creativity could flow. It taught Jews self restraint, and it is the failure of societies to practice self restraint that leads to inflation or unsustainable debt.

So the Sabbath, the family, the educational system, the concept of ownership as trusteeship, and the discipline of religious law, were not constructed on the basis of economic calculation. To the contrary, they were ways in which Judaism in effect said to the market: thus far and no further. There are realms in which you may not intrude.

The concept of the holy is precisely the domain in which the worth of things is not judged by their market price or economic value. This fundamental insight of Judaism and Christianity is all the more striking given their respect for the market. Their strength is that they resisted the temptation to believe that the market governs the totality of our lives, when it fact it governs only a limited part of it, that which concerns goods subject

to production and exchange. There are things fundamental to being human that we do not produce; instead we receive from those who came before us and from G‑d Himself. And there are things which we may not exchange, however high the price.

When everything that matters can be bought and sold, when commitments can be broken because they are no longer to our advantage, when shopping becomes salvation and advertising slogans our litany, when our worth is measured by how much we earn and spend, then the market is destroying the very virtues on which in the long run it depends. That is the danger that advanced economies now face. At such times the voice of our great religious traditions needs to be heard, warning us of the gods that devour their own children, and of the ruins of once great buildings that stand today as relics of civilizations that once seemed invincible. EM

Rabbi Dr. Sir Jonathan Sacks, of blessed memory, was the former Chief Rabbi of the UK and the Commonwealth and a member of the House of Lords. He was a leading academic and respected world expert on Judaism. He was the author of several books and thousands of articles, appeared regularly on television and radio, and spoke at engagements around the world.

JOBS & SERVICES

Fiera Foods Job - page 27

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REAL ESTATE & BROKER

Michael Basin - page 22

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RESTAURANTS & GROCERIES

Freshco- page 22

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Do

have a Confirmation of your Jewish Identity?

• Confirmation of Jewish identity is needed for a variety of circumstances, such as: Baby naming, Brit, Daycare, School, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Marriage, Aliya, Burial plot, Funeral.

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• The longer you delay, the more difficult it becomes – documents get lost, witnesses move or pass away. A certificate confirming your Jewish identity will help you, if your Jewish lineage is ever questioned. Do it for your peace of mind and that of your family. Upon completion, you will receive:

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