The Tree and Me

While still blanketed by snow and frost, the dormant trees are starting to wake up from their winter slumber. Within their dry, gnarled trunks, sap is beginning to flow. Tiny, premature buds are swelling on their branches. Spring is approaching and within a few short months, the trees will blossom. The seeds will sprout, the saplings will take root, and all of nature will be renewed.

The fifteenth day of Shevat, otherwise known as Tu B’shevat, celebrates this awakening. Since the Torah compares man to a tree in the field, we can explore the nature of trees to find personal insight and inspiration.

The paradigm of a healthy tree is one that has abundant, leafy foliage, and many deep roots. The Mishna associates the tree’s verdant branches with man’s wisdom. Wisdom is like a crown that glorifies and exalts its wearer. People appreciate wisdom and view it as splendor. Additionally, just as a tree is constantly adding more branches and leaves, a person’s thoughts and understanding are constantly being developed and expanded. Although branches and leaves are important, the Mishna cautions that without strong roots, the tree is frail.

Strong roots are good deeds. Although good deeds may not show personal distinction in the way that wisdom does, positive action is most essential for a healthy being. It is action that sets the course for growth, just as it is the roots that nurture the rest of the tree. A tree with strong roots stands firm, and no wind in the world can topple it.

By training ourselves to be good starting with simple, reflexive actions, we will eventually affect our wisdom and thought processes to be positive as well. Then, we will be likened to the tree that the prophet Jeremiah speaks about, "He shall be as a tree planted upon water, who spreads his roots by the river; who fears not when comes heat, whose leaf is ever lush; who worries not in a year of drought, and ceases not to yield fruit".

Twenty Years...

Twenty years ago today, I was five years old
Twenty years ago today, the family jumped into the car and drove back to the city
Twenty years ago today, I didn’t understand what was happening
Twenty years ago today, I was upset at being pulled away from my toys
Twenty years ago today, my sister (two weeks old) cried the whole car ride, waiting to be fed
Twenty years ago today, the corner to our house was blocked by police and crowds of people
Twenty years ago today, we cried
Twenty years ago today, we, physically, lost our leader
Twenty years ago today, we were lost and confused
Twenty years ago today, we did not know where we would get the strength to go on
Twenty years ago today, the Chabad community and the world mourned
Our Rebbe, our guide.

Today, I am twenty five years old
Today, I have a bit of an understanding of what happened
Today, I understand what we are missing
Today, we went on
Today, we grew
Today, I go to work at the Rebbe’s organization
Today, I teach young children about their heritage
Today, I see the Rebbe’s influence in all that I do
Today, I pray for Moshiach
Today, I ask “How much longer?”
Because enough is enough.
Our Rebbe, our guide.

Written on Gimmel Tammuz, 5774

The Shofar's Message

Moshe had lived in the same small village since the day born. As the years came and went, Moshe became restless and decided to venture off into the big, unknown world. After trudging the muddy country paths for many days, he finally reached the paved road leading to the grand city behind the mountains.

Moshe's eyes widened with amazement upon seeing the wonders of city life for the first time. Here people wore suits and lived in brick houses. Instead of bartering chickens and eggs, people were using strange objects called currency. He even saw kerosine lamps burning in the windows at twilight. Although deeply astonished at all these new sites, one episode stood out to him in particular.

It happened as Moshe was wandering through the city outskirts towards nightfall. Suddenly he heard shrill screams. "Fire!" "Fire!" A burly man in a red, brocade uniform ran to the panicked scene. He took out a special fire horn, and began to blow. The fire brigade responded quickly to the call, and together with the local residents, they formed a human chain reaching the river. Passing buckets of water back and forth, they rapidly extinguished the fire.

Moshe was astonished at the great turn of events, and immediately convinced the fire chief to give him the fire horn. Stashing his new treasure deep in his coat pocket, Moshe marched towards home, ready to enlighten his neighbors to the city wonders.

"Fellow villagers," he called, upon arrival. "I have been to the city beyond the mountain and have seen incredible innovations. Gather around and I will show you the most incredible invention I've encountered; the fire horn."

Moshe struck a match and held it to a thatched roof in the village center. Within moments, the shack was engulfed by angry flames that threatened to spread. Smiling confidently, Moshe withdrew his horn and began to blow. And blow. And blow. No miracle happened and the fire raged on. Eventually, the entire village burned down and a crimson faced, perplexed Moshe was left to contemplate his failure.

A horn is necessary when battling a fire, but not because it does something magical. Blowing a horn does nothing to extinguish a flame. The fire horn is essential since it alerts the populace, and summons the people to take action.

This Rosh Hashanah when we hear the shofar blast, let us remember the story of Moshe and the fire horn, and not make the same conclusion that he did. The ram's horn is an alarm that should arouse us to correct our deeds and repent. As Maimonides writes, the shofar calls, "Awaken you sleepers from your (spiritual) slumber. Search our your ways and return to G-d in Teshuva." The shofar, like the fire horn, rouses it's listeners to move and do what needs to get done. May the shofar's true message resonate within us all and may we merit a good sweet New Year.

(Based on the teachings of Rabbi Yaakov Kranz, the preacher of Dubnow 1740-1804)

Sefirah - A Lesson in Addiction Recovery

Whilst conquering an unhealthy habit or obsession, a newly resolute individual must meticulously avoid all known triggers. He must actively step away from his addiction, and avoid its presence until purged of its manipulative influence. Once strong enough, however, the individual must face his dependency so that he will truly defeat it and fully recover.

In Egypt, the Jewish people sunk to the lowest levels of immorality. After two hundred ten years under Egyptian influence, they led a depraved lifestyle with all sorts of hedonistic addictions. Just forty-nine days after their exodus, the Jewish nation managed to pull itself from the Egyptian mire and reach the pinnacle of elevation. It was ready to get the Torah.

The Jewish people were able to transform so significantly, because they had forty-nine days of sefirah, counting, before receiving the Torah. The word sefirah can also mean a beautiful sapphire gem, and as they counted each day in anticipation of the Torah, the Jews polished their natures until they shone with refinement.

Anything written in the Torah has a practical implication, and the journey from Egypt to Sinai is a lesson on addiction recovery and personality refinement. Upon leaving the shackles of addiction, we must completely stay away from that which had enslaved us. This is why Pesach celebrates the abstention from all leaven; the riddance of self-inflation and indulgence.

After a week of sefirah and working on our personalities, we can slowly reintroduce chametz, leaven, albeit in a healthy way; a positive self-esteem, courage to stand up for your convictions, etc. We continue transforming our once evil traits one by one until we reach Shavuot, a holiday where leaven is so refined that it is celebrated by offering two leaven loaves on the holy alter. 

Personal Passover Cleaning

As we frenetically aim to remove every small crust before Passover, I humbly suggest we not neglect to clean the crumbs from our souls. During Passover, we eliminate all inflated dough, and eat matzoh, the bread of humility. Just as we remove actual chametz, we can likewise rid ourselves of all vestiges of metaphysical leaven like a super-inflated ego, an overblown sense of self, or a false sense of pride.

In our hurried race through life, our inner selves can get overlooked and begin to require maintenance. Grab a feather duster, broom, or mop, and shake up that thick layer of dust lurking within you. When the dust settles and you can finally see what has been hiding, the clean up can start. The inner being is like an attic or storage cellar, and will quickly become cluttered if not systematically organized.

Spread before you all of your accumulated opinions, thoughts, and feelings, and assess them carefully. If you find something resembling chametz, like an unfavorable attitude, a grudge, or negativity, now is a good time to get rid of it. Our hearts, brains, and souls, are precious commodities and it would be a shame to occupy them with anything unconstructive. You will soon notice that the less negativity you retain, the more room you have for joyful experiences, and positive thoughts.

After all the chametz is removed, neatly arrange the things you plan to keep, and scan for anything you may have missed. Sweep your soul one last time, and perhaps make a more effective storage plan for the future. Congratulations! You are done. Enjoy the wonderful benefits of a chametz-free being, and a meaningful Passover.

Angel or Menace

In the Torah portion of Terumah, which generally falls out just before the holiday of Purim, G-d commands the Jewish people to create a mishkan, a tabernacle, and He will dwell in their midst. Amongst the furnishings of the mishkan we find detailed blueprints for the Aron, the Golden Ark, which occupied the Holy of Holies. G-d tells Moses to form two golden Cherubim with outspread wings to cover the ark, and to put the Tablets containing the Ten Commandments within.

There are only two instances in Torah, where the word Cherubim is used: Presently, in regards to the construction of the Holy Ark, and previously, in the first Torah portion of Beraishit, when Adam is banished from the Garden of Eden.

 The Torah recounts that upon eating the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, G-d expelled Adam from the garden and prevented him from reentering by a guard of destructive angels called Cherubim. Now, as the Jews are constructing the tabernacle, our sages explain Cherubim to mean innocent children, etymologically related to the Aramaic word Cheribah, child.

How can the same word Cherub have two diametrically opposed meanings?

Precisely within these two narratives lays our answer. Every child has the capacity to be angelic or destructive, depending on values he or she is raised with.

Adam’s life in the Garden of Eden was a life free of toil. It was a life of abundance, with everything available and accessible to him. G-d withheld just one thing from him, the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. The irrational desire for the one forbidden thing, drove Adam to his ruin, and created menacing angels.

Everything has its source in Torah and our sages explain that the source for Haman is hinted to in the words “Hamin haetz hazeh…” “Have you eaten from this tree...” referring to the incident of Adam, where he could not control himself from the one thing that was prohibited to him.

Like Adam, Haman’s destruction, too, was a result of a lack of self-restraint. He was the second in command to the Persian king Achashverosh, and possessed the king’s signet ring, giving him absolute power. Nevertheless, Haman said, “All this means nothing to me when I see Mordechai the Jew.”  Riches and supremacy left him discontented, because he lacked one thing, the subservience of Mordechai. Consequentially, Haman became obsessed with schemes to destroy Mordechai, paving the way to his downfall.

The Cherubim on the Golden Ark, on the other hand, had the faces of angelic children. They were founded upon the Ark that contained two sets of Tablets. The first pair of broken Tablets imbued a sense of humility, as they were incomplete, and the second pair of Tablets included all the explanations and lessons found in Torah. The contents of the Ark provided the Cherubim with solid base of morality, humility, and self-discipline.

Today, as our world enjoys unprecedented bounty, we vividly see the consequences of unfettered plenty and instant gratification. More people90o than ever are plagued by addiction, depression and narcissism. If a child does not know the virtues of restraint, self-control, and satisfaction with what they have, they can grow to become angels of self-destruction. Conversely, if a child has a strong foundation of morality, modesty, and restraint, they enjoy contentment, satisfaction, and peace of mind. When children are taught these important lessons, they become virtuous angels worthy to grace the Ark in the Holy of Holies.

Yehudit

Twilight descended on the beleaguered city of Bethulia, Judea, casting the city in a shadow of despair. Only that morning, the famine-struck inhabitants resolved to surrender to the Greeks, should relief not arrive within five days. Yehudit, the aristocratic daughter of Yochanan the High Priest, disagreed.

“A Jew should always have faith in G-d and never place time limits on his salvation,” she adamantly insisted. Unable to witness the distress of her brethren, Yehudit decided to take action. She would attempt to seduce the Greek general and bring deliverance for Bethulia.  With firm faith and resolve, the beautiful young widow and her faithful maid wound their way past the city gates and into the enemy encampment below. 

General Holefernus was charmed by her beauty, and invited Yehudit to a private feast in his tent. With guile and cunning, Yehudit fed the unsuspecting general salted cheese and aged, undiluted wine. As Holefernus fell into a drunken stupor, Yehudit unsheathed his sword, murmured a silent prayer, and promptly chopped off his head. She hastily returned with her grisly prize and roused the townspeople to wage war against their oppressors. the Greek soldiers panicked at the loss of their general, and the Jews secured a miraculous victory.

Yehudit merited salvation because of her unrelenting faith and bravery. She infused pride and courage in the hearts of her brethren and ultimately inspired the Maccabees in their fight to preserve Judaism.

This is why Jewish women have a custom to refrain from working while the Chanuka candles are lit. The Greeks passed many harsh decrees against the Jews, but the decrees against the Jewish women were particularly appalling. The Jewish women never despaired, and the Chanukah story is replete with valiant women like Yehudit, who courageously defended the Jewish way of life. This Chanuka, as we light the menorah and celebrate the great miracles, let us reflect upon the heroic women of our past, and resolve, like them, to uphold our Jewish values and inspire our people.