Rabbis' Blog

As we were winding down the Chanukah Playland I received a message from a rabbinical student named Mendel. He is part of a group of six young men hired by Chabad of Texas Towns to bring the joy of Chanukah to remote Jewish communities and individuals across our great state. Their RV is outfitted with everything needed for such celebrations, including a giant menorah they set up in malls to host public parties.

On Sunday they were in Odessa, Texas and after setting up the tall menorah in the shopping mall, they fanned out to find some Jews with whom to share menorahs, dreidels, and latkes. Mendel encountered two Middle Eastern fellows excited to tell him about their many Jewish friends and acquaintances. In the middle of their conversation, they video-called an Israeli friend who used to live in the area and introduced him to Mendel.

“Avi, do you have a menorah for Chanukah?” Mendel asked.

“No,” he replied. “And I’m not sure where to get one tonight. I’m driving now and will be in El Paso in a few hours.”

Mendel immediately contacted me to arrange for Avi to get his menorah to do the mitzvah for the rest of the four nights of Chanukah. After some logistical arrangements, Avi left my home a few hours later with a menorah, candles, and a plate of schnitzel - and I was once again reminded of the powerful “web of light” the Rebbe gifted to the world with the global Chabad Lubavitch network and the fifty-year-old Chanukah campaign.

Since 1974 the mitzvah of menorah lighting and the Chanukah message have permeated the public square with giant menorah displays and reached the homes of countless Jews who would have otherwise forgotten about this holiday entirely. By now, there is hardly a location on the map where a Jew cannot somehow access the tools he or she needs to fulfill this crucial mitzvah of light.

As we pack away our menorahs, let us remember the message of ever-increasing light and utilize every opportunity to perform more mitzvot and encourage and facilitate others' doing so as well. Ultimately, the world will be filled with the divine light of all our combined mitzvot, with the arrival of Moshiach, who will usher in an era of true peace and tranquility for all.

Public menorahs are a staple of Chanukah all over the world. You can find one in famous locations such as the White House lawn and the Eifel Tower to the most remote places where handfuls of Jewish travelers frequent during the season.

El Paso has menorah displays in over a half-dozen locations, including the El Paso International Airport, San Jacinto Plaza, West Towne Marketplace, The Shoppes at Solana, Cielo Vista Mall, and University Medical Center.

It was not always this way. The mitzvah of kindling Chanukah lights is meant to be done in your home, with oil and wicks or candles. In 1973 the Rebbe launched the Chanukah campaign to publicize the observance and message of Chanukah to the world. The next year a menorah was lit in front of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, and public menorahs have sprouted everywhere since then, numbering over 15,000 around the globe today. They are not meant to replace the private menorah lighting at home. Rather, they serve as symbols of the universal Chanukah message for all and welcoming beacons for all Jews. 

While most welcomed and appreciated this new development in Jewish public pride and representation, some Jewish organizations frowned upon it and fought against it in the early days. I recently saw an internal memo written by the Rebbe to a Chabad rabbi facing stiff resistance to the public menorah, advising him to find a quiet and diplomatic way to influence the naysayers to stop their fight. Here is a rough translation of one of the talking points. Certainly, they wish to stop assimilation among the Jewish youth, etc. For the time being, lighting menorahs in public is the only way to inspire them [to remain connected and engaged in Judaism].

By now everyone admits that public menorahs are a positive and crucial part of the Chanukah culture and Jewish life in general, and there are countless stories of how the public menorahs brought Jews back to their Jewish roots. The reason for this is that the menorah represents the miracle of the oil. When the Maccabees liberated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem they found only one jar of ritually pure olive oil to rededicate the service of lighting the menorah. They lit up the menorah and that small amount of oil burned for eight nights until they could replenish the supply.

Although the Chanukah story includes dramatic stories of bravery and victory, the enduring symbol of the holiday is the “single jar of oil.” Oil is unique in that it never mixes with other liquids, and when placed on a surface, it permeates it entirely. The same is true about the Jewish soul which can never be diluted or completely extinguished, and - when awakened - impacts every aspect of life. Every Jew has an internal “single jar of ritually pure olive oil.”

The public menorah serves as the ultimate trigger for the Jewish soul. No matter how latent or dormant it may be, when confronted with the symbol of the “single jar of oil” its own internal “jar of oil” is awakened and drawn back to its source.

The ultimate Chanukah miracle.

I recently heard a friend discuss “how to win when you are losing.” How does one pull through the dreary days and the humdrum elements of life without losing spunk and spirit, and maybe even gain from the lows?

In 1798 the founder of the Chabad movement, Rabbi Shneur Zalman, known as the Alter Rebbe, was arrested on trumped-up charges of treason. His life was in mortal danger, and the devastation of the Chassidic movement he led seemed imminent.

In a miraculous turn of events, he was released from prison 53 days later, on the 19th day of Kislev - known as “Yud Tes Kislev”. After answering dozens of questions and proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that Chabad teachings and culture were no danger to society, the Czar approved the new movement.

However, as in all things, the initial arrest and subsequent liberation that occurred on the physical plane reflected a similar drama happening in the heavens. Chabad teachings are the deepest elements of Torah ever revealed to man, and the cosmos themselves questioned the appropriateness of disseminating such divine treasures. Eventually, divine permission was granted for these deep secrets to be revealed to the entire world.

In a letter to his friend and colleague, the revered Rabbi Levi Yitzchok of Berdichev, the Alter Rebbe described the moment he learned of his acquittal and immediate freedom. “I was reciting chapter 55 of Tehillim (psalms) at the time. When I reached the verse “Pada BeShalom - He (G-d) redeemed my soul with peace from the battle that came upon me,” before I could recite it, I was notified of my peaceful release.”

For the past 226 years the verse “Pada BeShalom” has not only personified the tremendous miracle of 19 Kislev and the epic victory of Chabad chassidism over all adversaries; it also expresses the entire mission of Chabad on a personal and global level.

One can be victorious in battle, either through aggression, by destroying and disposing of the enemy, or through peace by transforming the enemy into an ally. Chabad teachings educate us to view every challenge as an opportunity for continued growth and every enemy as a potential ally. Not through compromising our integrity or fudging the truth, but by seeing reality from a deeper perspective and finding the good in everything and everyone. This is called a peaceful victory, where everyone is a winner - for real.

Today is Yud Tes Kislev and millions around the world are celebrating the spiritual revolution this miracle unleashed, through festive dinners, with plenty of L’chaims and dancing. An essential part of the traditional celebration is singing the song composed for the words of “Pada BeShalom.” Listen to a recording here. Here are the lyrics.

But most importantly we can make “Pada BeShalom” our personal mantra as well, through studying more Chabad teachings and applying their lessons. This helps us appreciate how the humdrum of life is the divine process through which amazing miracles happen and is therefore permeated with meaning and purpose. Instead of being frustrated with and worn out from the dreary days, we learn to embrace every moment of life with true enthusiasm and flourish from every encounter.

May this year’s celebration of Yud Tes Kislev be the final accumulative one needed to reach the ultimate redemption through Moshiach, who will unleash a global awakening to these truths, and usher in an era of true global peace and tranquility, when all humanity will give thanks to G-d for “Pada BeShalom” - redeeming us from the many battles ravaging the world - in peace.

Lechaim!

On Sunday morning the world woke up to the news that the half-century Assad regime in Syria no longer existed. Two weeks earlier it was one of the most formidable enemies on Israel’s border, backed by Russia and Iran and a veritable lynchpin in the Axis of Evil threatening to throttle Israel. And within days it simply disintegrated.

There is no telling what the power vacuum will bring, and the types of policies the rebels will pursue. But without engaging in punditry - for which I have no credentials - I’d like to dwell on the fact that an evil regime, that seemed stable to every intelligence agency in the world, fell apart like a house of cards with no resistance.

In this week’s parsha we learn about the reunion between the two twin brothers Yaakov and Eisav. They had not seen each other in decades, and no love was lost between them. Eisav was still seething with rage that Yaakov had outsmarted him in receiving the blessings of destiny from their father Yitzchak. When Yaakov journeyed back to the Holy Land with his large family and fortune, Eisav gathered a force of 400 warriors to destroy them. Yaakov was saved by a miracle, as always, and they parted ways once again.

At the conclusion of the parsha, the Torah dedicates 43 verses to recording Eisav’s extensive legacy through the generations and their multiple alliances. Our sages relate that when Yaakov realized the enormity of Eisav’s influence throughout the generations he worried how the Jewish nation would fare in their shadow. Here is the teaching as it is recorded by the eleventh-century sage Rashi:

The camels of a flax dealer entered a city, laden with flax. The blacksmith wondered: “Where can all this flax be stored?” A clever person answered him: “One spark coming out of your bellows can burn up everything.” Similarly, Yaakov saw all the chieftains written above and wondered, saying, “Who is able to conquer all of them?” What is written afterward [in parshat Vayeishev]? “These are Yaakov’s descendants: Yosef…”; and it says: “The House of Yaakov will be a fire, the House of Yosef a flame, and the House of Eisav will be stubble.” A spark will emanate from Yosef that will destroy and consume all of them.

The dramatic saga of the Yaakov and Eisav relationship is an analogy for the struggle between good and evil for all time, and this teaching expresses the physics of these two forces. Although evil may seem like a formidable and intimidating force, it is inherently brittle and corrupt; even just one spark of goodness can consume it all.

Evil is dangerous and real. It must be confronted and destroyed. But remember the inherent advantage of goodness and approach the struggle with joyful confidence. World events this week illustrated how inherently weak evil is, and we can apply the same lesson to our personal struggles as well. Never identify with negative traits or vices, because their presence in your life is as permanent as a row of dominoes. One positive good deed, spoken word or even thought can set off a chain reaction to knock down all the nonsense and replace it with divine serenity, goodness, and purpose.

Even one spark can do it. Try it. It works.

In this week’s parsha, we learn about Yaakov’s journey to a faraway land called Charan. This place was geographically distant from his hometown, Be’er Sheva, and spiritually furthest from the divine atmosphere of the home he was raised in. Despite his struggles with his deceitful uncle and father-in-law Lavan, he was extraordinarily successful in raising a large family dedicated to the morals and values he embodied. How did he do it?

Last week, we learned that Yitzchak wished to bless his son Eisav in his old age. Rivka disapproved of the plan and engineered a brilliant ruse for Yaakov to receive the blessings instead. When Rivka learned through prophecy that Eisav planned to kill Yaakov in revenge, she instructed him to flee to Charan until Eisav’s wrath subsided.

To explain Yaakov’s sudden departure, she fretted to Yitzchak over Yaakov’s options for finding a suitable match from the local girls. In response to this issue, Yitzchak instructed Yaakov to travel to Charan and marry a girl from the Abrahamic family. The Torah then records “Yitzchak then sent Yaakov on his way.”

While the circumstances and results of their conversations with Yaakov were the same, there is an enormously meaningful difference between them. Rivka sent him off as a fugitive escaping the vengeful wrath of his evil brother. Yitzchak, on the other hand, sent Yaakov on a mission. He was leaving the same spiritual home and arriving in the same dark place, but coming there as a “Shliach” an emissary instead of a fugitive allowed him to thrive, not just survive.

This past weekend I had the opportunity and pleasure of participating in the International Conference of Shluchim - the Rebbe’s emissaries. Contrary to popular belief, the thousands who gathered in Brooklyn don’t necessarily share the same job descriptions. There were pulpit rabbis, fundraisers, teachers, lecturers, authors, program directors, and more. But the bond we share is that we are on the same mission.

The Rebbe declared that every Jew is a Shliach - an emissary of G-d to make this world a better and brighter place. When you adopt this identity, every aspect of life is elevated with new meaning, and every circumstance becomes the catalyst for tremendous growth.

One of my inspirational highlights of the conference was the moving story of Rabbi Yehoshua Soudakoff of Israel. He was born Deaf and has created a quiet revolution within his community, a place where Deaf people can explore and experience Judaism within their own culture. Please click here to watch this fascinating story.

I was also moved by the story of Dr. Brian Levin who, despite discovering Jewish observance and meaning later in life, serves as an emissary in such a powerful capacity through his medical practice. You can watch his story here.

May we live up to being G-d’s emissaries, transforming the entire world into a divine garden of peace and tranquility, and preparing it for the imminent arrival of Moshiach.

Although the entire land of Israel is known as the Holy Land, only specific cities are called “Holy Cities.” One of them is Jerusalem because it is the site of the Holy Temple. Another one is the city of Chevron because it is the site of the “Machpeila Cave” - the burial grounds of our patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov and our matriarchs Sarah, Rivka and Leah.

In this week’s parsha, we learn about the passing of our matriarch Sarah and Avraham’s efforts to procure a proper burial site for her. By prophetic vision, he knew that the cave in the property of Efron the Hittite in the city of Chevron was where the first humans, Adam and Eve, were buried, and he determined it the appropriate place for the first Jewish cemetery.

Ironically, Chevron is today one of the cities in Israel where it is complicated for Jews to live. Its thriving centuries-old Jewish community was viciously destroyed by a bloodthirsty arab pogrom in the summer of 1929. Even after the Israeli forces liberated the city during the Six-Day War in 1967, the official policy about allowing the rightful and truthful residents to return to it has been toothless and informed by intimidation and fear from our mortal enemies. As we read the parsha this week let’s appreciate that of all the sites in Israel, Chevron has belonged to us through legal purchase for over 3,700 years, 400 years before the Israelites settled the land.

But here is another important lesson we learn from the Torah narrative of the purchase of the Machpeila Cave. Instead of simply notifying us that Avraham managed to purchase the site, the Torah dedicates many verses recording specific details of his negotiations with the Hittite people.

This was the opening line to his request. “I am a foreigner and a resident among you. Allow me to purchase a piece of property that I can make into a family burial ground within the territory you control so that I can bury my dead wife.”

Why did Avraham find it necessary to present his residential status in their midst? He had been living in the land for over sixty years and it made sense for him to seek burial grounds locally instead of burying Sarah in his original birthplace where he was despised.

With his opening statement, Avraham signaled to the locals how he intended to negotiate with them. He acknowledged they had occupied the land before him and the only way he could own the burial grounds he sought at the time would be through legal purchase. However, if they refused to sell him the grounds he would seize it from them as “a resident,” since G-d had promised the land to him and his descendants.

Avraham’s posture was polite but firm. He was ready to do business fairly but clarified that the land's destiny, by divine gift, was in Jewish hands and not in Hittite hands.

To put it in more relatable terms, Mitzvot should be done with politeness and sensitivity to others, but all obstacles to doing a Mitzvah must be faced with ironclad confidence and uncompromising devotion.

Election season is a busy time for political scientists. During the campaigns, they predict the outcomes, and after the elections, they try to understand them. On both ends they rely heavily on the data, which is what all scientific regimens depend on: data, data, data. While most things in our world can be explained or at least probed with scientific methods based on reliable data, the existence of the Jewish nation today is one glaring exception. The stories in this week’s parsha portray how this anomaly is at the core of our Jewish identity.

Avraham was a man of genuine curiosity, intelligence, and integrity. When he discovered the truth of G-d on his own at a young age he worked tirelessly to promote monotheism in a society dominated by idolatry for centuries. He and his wife Sarah did this holy work together with grace and generosity through their legendary hospitality at the crossroads of civilization. Over time, he came to be respected by friend and foe alike, until all the nations unanimously designated Avraham as a prince and leader among them. But although they respected him, they mocked his monotheistic beliefs.

One of his chief critics was a literal giant of a king named Og. He often argued that although Avraham’s ideas were gradually gaining popularity, the fact he and Sarah had no children of their own meant monotheism was a passing fad in a world that would always remain dominated by idolatry. He predicted that Avraham would ultimately be a footnote in history.

When G-d blessed Avraham at the age of 100 and Sarah at the age of 90 with their son Yitzchak, all the world leaders, including Og, participated in the huge celebration held in honor of the Bris done with the eight-day-old Yitzchak. The Talmud relates that during the feast, Og was asked if he was reconsidering his prediction in light of the miracle of Avraham and Sarah birthing a son.

Og mockingly pointed out some laws of social gravity. Ideological revolutions need large followings and this tiny baby was hardly a match for the mass of humanity comfortably entrenched in idolatry. In addition, Yitzchak was a full century younger than his father - an insurmountable generation gap - and there was no chance the young and probably progressive Yitzchak would ever buy into Avraham’s eccentric beliefs. “And besides,” Og concluded, “I can crush this little child with my pinky finger.”

Things did not work out according to Og’s expert and sage predictions based on the clear data available to him at the time. Four hundred and forty years later, approximately three million of Yitzchak’s descendants waged war on Og’s nation and their leader Moshe killed him with a spear blow to the ankle.

Jewish survival worries many people and recent events make this a valid concern. But searching for the answers or solutions to this problem in social sciences or any academic regimens outside of Torah is as silly as seeking medical advice from a cake recipe. Investing in Jewish education, observance and pride is the only way to ensure Jewish continuity. And it all starts with ourselves as individuals. When we study Torah and do Mitzvot proudly, we become an inspiration for others and pave the way for the realization of the divine promise to our patriarchs and matriarchs of a world enveloped in the awareness of its creator, which will usher in an era of true peace and tranquility for all.

Someone once asked me why Israel plays such an outsized role in the collective Jewish consciousness. Even Jews who have never been there, have no family living there, and have no grasp on the lifestyle of its inhabitants or its form of government, are very passionate about it.

Outside the Jewish community, there is a tendency to connect what is going on in Israel with Jews outside of Israel. This past year alone proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that what happens in Israel has an impact on Jews around the world. What’s the deal?

In this week’s parsha we learn about Abraham, the first of the Jewish patriarchs. His spiritual journey from his father’s heathen beliefs to discovering G-d the Creator of the world started the process of the creation of the present-day Jewish nation. Abraham’s dedication to G-d and literal self-sacrifice to popularize monotheism made him so beloved to G-d that he was chosen to be the beginning of what would become the “Chosen Nation.” A people entrusted with the awesome task of being G-d’s ambassadors to the world.

The narrative opens with G-d’s instruction to Abraham to move away from his birthplace and travel to “the land I will show you.” When he arrived in the area then called the Land of Canaan, G-d promised him the land would be an eternal inheritance for his descendants. This becomes an integral detail of the covenant G-d makes with Abraham, reiterated numerous times throughout the parsha.

So the Jewish connection to Israel is not coincidental or even historical. Our relationship to this land goes to the core of what it means to be a Jew. Even if we do not live in the geographical location called the Land of Israel, we are bound up with its destiny and whatever happens there matters very much to all of us wherever we may be.

The Rebbe explained that understanding this truth and projecting it to the world is a vital step to ensuring true and everlasting security for our brothers and sisters in Israel and by extension throughout the world. I encourage you to watch this 18-minute film produced by Jewish Educational Media, which presents this foundational idea based on the Rebbe’s teachings and guidance in connection with the ongoing security challenges faced by Israel.

Israel's Deed of Ownership: The Rebbe's Roadmap to Peace, Episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmY3-GXJ0Rs

Let us proudly cherish our connection to our eternal homeland and prepare the entire world for the era of Moshiach by doing more Mitzvot and encouraging everyone to increase in acts of goodness and kindness, which will usher in an era of true global peace and tranquility for all.

There is no need to update you on what’s been happening in Israel this past week. The Tuesday “beeper attack” on Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon and Syria, followed by the Wednesday “walkie-talkie attack” are being hailed as historic espionage operations. Most importantly, these attacks took out thousands of vile terrorists from the fight against Israel. Today an air strike eliminated the entire senior command of Hezbollah’s Radwan Forces; a group that is trained, armed, and poised to unleash “October 7th on steroids” type of attacks on Israel, Heaven forbid!

Predictably many are accusing Israel of “initiating war” “crossing red lines” or “destabilizing the region,” which is patently false since the war has been ongoing in northern Israel since October 8th and even before that. Despite what all the fancy-sounding people called the situation until now, Hezbollah has been shooting rockets and doing all kinds of war stuff against Israel all this time. Close to 100,000 residents of over 40 communities in Northern Israel have been evacuated from the area and are still unable to return to their homes for close to a year.

Frustratingly, until this week Israel has been responding to Hezbollah’s aggression with restraint, excluding one preemptive strike against them at the end of August. Why did Israel suddenly take the conflict to new levels this week?

Since I am only privy to the information provided by the media, the only reason I can give for the drastic change is because on Monday, September 16 Israel's Security Cabinet updated the objectives of the war to include "returning the residents of the North securely to their homes." Once the decision was made that correcting the travesty of the evacuation was a priority of this war, Israel launched a brilliant Hollywood-style attack - years in the making - and set back Hezbollah close to the stone age.

In the spring of 1988, Israeli General Yossi Ben Hanan visited the Rebbe to inquire about continuing his career in the IDF. The Rebbe encouraged him to continue serving Israel in the IDF by focusing on achieving true deterrence against our enemies so there would be no need for war in the first place. When Yossi asked for a blessing that G-d give him the strength to do so the Rebbe responded: “Strength, you already have. But strength locked in a box - guarded so carefully that no one knows about it - defeats the entire purpose.”

This week’s epic espionage operations and today’s airstrike are the type of strength Israel possessed all along and will hopefully go a long way to achieving true deterrence against all our enemies and restoring security to everyone living in Israel. But it was only unleashed once the government updated its official war goals.

Here is the timely lesson we can all learn from all this. The month of Elul preceding Rosh Hashana is the annual time for personal accounting of the past year and preparation for the upcoming new year. We are all endowed with tremendous potential and can do great things, but most of our strengths remain locked up in the proverbial box, with many excuses to justify the status quo. Now is the time to reject the status quo and update our goals for the new year. That’s all it takes for the immense power within us to unleash a wave of goodness and kindness in the world ushering in the era of Moshiach when peace and tranquility will reign for all.

This Shabbat marks 80 years since the passing of the Rebbe’s father. Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneerson was the chief rabbi of Denipro, Ukraine, and the only leader of his caliber to operate in the Soviet Union throughout the 1930s. He heroically stood as a bulwark against their fiendish efforts to destroy Judaism there, paying the ultimate sacrifice as he passed away in 1944 relatively young in the remote region of Almaty, Kazakhstan after a lengthy exile. 

Aside from his legendary rabbinic leadership, Rabbi Levi Yitzchok was widely known for his brilliant Torah scholarship. His unique style of Torah analysis was to illustrate the unity between all genres of Torah scholarship. A passage in the Talmud revealed layers of mystical meaning, and a biblical verse, understood in a broader context, conveyed transformative inspirational messages. Here is one of his teachings.

There is a mitzvah to recite the “Shema” in the morning and the evening and the second paragraph called “Vehaya Im Shamoa” is recorded in this week’s parsha. Whereas the first paragraph of the Shema describes our divine service in altruistic terms, the second paragraph describes the transactional element of our relationship with G-d.

“And it will be if you hearken to My commandments that I command you this day… I will give the rain of your land at its time… and you will gather in your grain, your wine, and your oil.”

Most of us don’t pay attention to the fact that the Torah only specifies grain, wine, and oil because we understand they represent all produce necessary for nutrition and pleasure. However, Rabbi Levi Yitzchok focused on these three products to illustrate how this verse communicates a broader message than “if you obey G-d you will eat.”

Grain, wine, and oil correspond to Pesach, Purim, and Chanukah respectively, the three major holidays of our national redemption. The Israelites initially emigrated from Israel to Egypt so that Joseph could provide them with grain during a terrible famine, which ultimately led to their enslavement by Pharaoh. At the appointed time, their redemption was so swift, that they had no time to allow their dough (made from grain) to rise, and we commemorate it each year by eating Matzah (made from grain).

The Purim story formally begins with the royal feast dominated by wine drinking that led to Haman’s rise to power. Queen Esther ultimately destroyed Haman at a private wine party and we celebrate each year by drinking wine.

The Assyrian Greek empire launched its war against Judaism by intentionally defiling all the olive oil in the Holy Temple compound. When the Maccabees regained control of the Holy Temple, they were graced with the miracle of finding a one-day supply of ritually pure olive oil that miraculously burned brightly for eight days in the Menorah, commemorated each year on Chanukah through lighting candles for eight nights, preferably of oil.

Now we can read the paragraph as saying “If you hearken to My commandments… you will merit redemption.”

As the world stumbles from conflict to conflict and ricochets from crisis to crisis, we are assured that every Mitzvah we do hastens the realization of the ultimate redemption through Moshiach who will usher in an era of true peace and serenity for all.

They say reality is more bizarre than fiction, but this week I was genuinely surprised to see the insanity the world can offer. Israel was persuaded to engage in cease-fire negotiations, even though Hamas refused to participate, and the media reports progress was made. Surely this episode will feed comedic skits and parodies for generations, and I would laugh at it too if it did not impact the security of millions of our brothers and sisters in the Holy Land.

Without commenting on the substance of these negotiations, or whether Israel should negotiate with murderous terrorists in the first place, the fact that one side of a conflict could be dragged to the negotiating table and “negotiate” with the other side in absentia makes me wonder what the world has come to. When cynicism becomes the norm and reality no longer matters, one can wonder how it is possible to navigate such a world, let alone make it a better place for all.

But the teachings of this week’s parsha allayed my fears. We learn how Moshe reviewed the story of the “Giving of the Torah” at Mt. Sinai when G-d communicated the Ten Commandments. That pivotal event marked the beginning of the process of revealing the inherent divinity and goodness embedded in every detail of the universe. It was a once-in-history moment when everything was aligned with its creator and purpose, to show how with hard work and following the script it can become the revealed truth.

Several days ago I read a letter the Rebbe addressed to a Chabad activist in Israel from 1952 where the Rebbe invoked the difference between an Artesian Well and a regular well.

A regular well is a hole in the ground deep enough to reach water, which can be found everywhere. To access the water one needs to either send down a bucket or install a pump to bring the water to the surface. An Artesian Well is a hole drilled in an area of rock and soil that stores water under pressure. Once the water is reached, it flows to the surface automatically. As long as you remove the rock and soil holding it down, the water bursts forth with tremendous strength.

This helped me appreciate that at Sinai we learned our world is like an Artesian Well. We don’t need to change anything or introduce anything new. All the moral ugliness and cynicism are just rock and soil covering up the life-giving waters of divine goodness contained beneath the surface. By removing the “rock and soil” by living up to the Torah’s morals, ideals, and instructions the purpose of creation can be realized and the beautiful era of redemption can begin.

But you never know which rock or clump of soil removed will reach the water. We must therefore be vigilant to utilize every opportunity to do Mitzvot and encourage others to do the same. The much anticipated and needed global changes will flow on their own.

August 3, 2024, marked five years since the terrible shooting at Walmart that killed 23 people and injured 22. Based on my conversations over the last week, my observation of how the tragedy lives on in the collective memories of many is this. While the trauma and pain are still raw, and the consequences of that hateful crime continue to reverberate in the lives of so many, there is a focus on positivity.

Last week, an ADL panel discussion about hatred concluded with a suggestion for everyone to do more acts of kindness on August 3rd. A new play about the shooting debuted in El Paso entitled “Acts of Kindness,” a title meant to capture the phenomenal response of El Pasoans that day who lined up to donate blood and the many others who went above and beyond to support the victims and their families. At another event, a victim who shared her story emphasized the many miracles she experienced, her gratitude to G-d for the blessing of life, and her determination to leverage her suffering to help others.

All this tells me El Pasoans have an appetite to write the story of August 3rd with a positivity bias. It’s a good thing because focusing on the good is the healthiest way to heal from such a blow even without whitewashing the severity of the crime and its horrors, and ensuring that justice is done.

This week we will observe the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, Tisha B’Av. Starting Monday, August 12 at sundown through Tuesday, August 13 at nightfall Jews around the world will fast, wear non-leather shoes and recite lamentations to commemorate the destruction of our Holy Temple in Jerusalem and several other national Jewish tragedies.

Notwithstanding the excruciating pain and suffering we endured from all this destruction, our sages framed it with the following story. An elderly arab walked past a Jew plowing his field with his cow. When the cow mooed, the arab, who understood animal languages, said to the Jew, “Stop plowing your field and tear your garments because your Holy Temple was just destroyed.” A few minutes later the cow mooed again and the zoolinguist said, “Arise and rejoice, for your savior, Moshiach, was just born.”

This story illustrates that while the destruction of the Holy Temple was a historic disaster and must be observed as such, it can also be viewed as the demolition that precedes the construction of a much grander edifice than the previous one because the potential for redemption was born as the exile commenced. This is why the only prayer authored by our sages to be recited during the Amida service on Tisha B’Av, known as “Nachem,” concludes “Blessed are you G-d, the comforter of Zion and builder of Jerusalem.”

Instead of viewing Tisha B’Av exclusively as a sad day, we can apply a positivity bias and view it as Moshiach’s birthday. While we observe the mourning rituals with the memory of what was lost, we focus on the future and our ability to shape it. As Maimonides declared, one good deed, spoken word, or thought can tip the scales and bring salvation to the entire world through Moshiach. May this occur immediately, Amen.

This week brought the much-welcome news that over half a dozen horrible people were killed and will never again have the opportunity to kill and maim thousands and instill terror in millions. The traditional expression reserved for such monsters is “may their names be erased forever.”

But chopping off some of the snake’s head (there are more to go) certainly “raised the temperature” in the region and many are worried about what Israel’s enemies will do in retaliation. In such times we must increase our prayers and mitzvot, and most importantly strengthen our faith and trust in G-d that our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world will be safe.

Which brings us to an interesting topic in this week’s parsha. As the Israelites prepare to enter the Promised Land the Torah identifies its borders with specific landmarks and roads on the northern, southern, and eastern fronts, with the Mediterranean Sea as the western border.

If the Jews were poised to conquer the land, why was it necessary for the Torah to limit its borders? Why not wait until the war ended and determine the homeland based on its outcome?

If Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel) is simply a homeland for our nation, conquest could be a reasonable way to mark its borders. However, G-d promised this land to the descendants of Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov because it is the “Holy Land,” and holiness is defined by the Torah, not through battle.

Before the Jews entered Israel, no area on earth was inherently holy. Even when they constructed the Mishkan (the mobile sanctuary) in the desert - with the chamber called the Holy of Holies which housed the Holy Ark, the manifestation of the Divine presence in this world - the ground on which it stood remained a regular piece of land once they moved away from it. When they settled into Israel, it became holy ground forever, where the ground itself is associated with numerous mitzvot. Although sometimes control of more territory is necessary for security purposes, the inherent holiness of the ground remains limited to the borders delineated in the Torah.

Israel’s holiness is not only expressed in the Mitzvot done with the produce of the earth within its borders, the space itself contains a certain sanctity conducive to Divine service and spiritual growth. That’s why Jews throughout the ages yearned to immigrate there in order to advance their spiritual journeys.

In the mid-1800s a pious student of the third Lubavticher Rebbe requested his blessing for a successful move to Eretz Yisrael. The Rebbe replied, “Why must you go there for spiritual growth? Make Eretz Yisrael here!”

Those four words express everything we need to know about our identity as Jews and our connection with the Holy Land. As G-d’s ambassadors to the world we have the mandate to permeate every person we encounter, every thing we do, and every space we are in with divine awareness and purpose. While the Jewish legal ramifications of Israel’s holiness are limited to its biblical borders, its metaphoric message transcends all limitations of time and space. We all can and should make our immediate environment a holy space as well.

So as the eyes of the world are upon Israel (as always) let us remember it is our homeland because it is the Holy Land. And through nurturing and developing the holiness of our immediate surroundings, by learning more Torah and doing more Mitzvot, we strengthen the sacredness of Israel and hasten the advent of the era of Moshiach when war will cease and peace and tranquility will reign for all.