There are no words.
This past Shabbat and Shemini Atzeret, when I arrived at Chabad for services, I was horrified to hear what was happening in Israel. Although details were scarce and there was no way for me to contact family and friends in Israel or read the news due to Shabbat observance, I sensed this was a calamity on a scale unprecedented in modern times. After a few minutes of shocked contemplation, I realized we were all at war and how the holiday would progress here in El Paso would matter to the Jews in Israel and the outcome of this war. Drawing from my studies and training for how to respond to such a crisis, I recalled learning that when the Yom Kippur War broke out fifty years ago in 1973, the Rebbe insisted the Jewish world fight the war by celebrating the Festival of Joy with more unbridled joy than ever before. The Rebbe explained this approach based on a foundational teaching from the Baal Shem Tov gleaned from the Tehillim and the Zohar. King David writes in Psalm 122, “G-d is your shadow.” Just as a shadow mimics the person’s behavior, similarly, in a way, G-d mimics our behavior. In the words of the Zohar, “When a person in this world projects joyfulness, G-d reciprocates with this same joy.” Of course, the Israeli military must crush the enemy with every natural means possible, the Rebbe declared but the inherent connection we have with our brothers and sisters in the Holy Land behooves us to elicit G-d’s blessings of success on the battlefield by channeling all our energy into the divine joyfulness of the upcoming holidays. Taking our cue from the Rebbe’s response to 1973 we celebrated with the Torah with a special intensity and now that the holidays are over we must channel all our energy, frustration and anger, yes, tremendous anger, into saturating the world with more Mitzvot. When I say there are no words, I mean a specific genre of words. The time will come for words of solace, words of encouragement, words of inspiration. But these are not words we need during the war. As our precious and holy soldiers crush the monstrous terrorists on the battlefields we need to join their fight through action. An integral part of action is words of action, words of moral clarity, and words of determination to raise the morale of the Jewish nation worldwide so that we can decisively win this war against evil. On a practical note: This is a war against evil and darkness and the most effective way to fight darkness is by creating more light. Jewish women and girls have the unique and cherished mitzvah of welcoming in the Shabbat by lighting Shabbat candles before sunset on Friday. The time for candle lighting today is at 6:18pm. Click here to learn how to do it and for the proper blessing. If you already light Shabbat candles every Friday, please encourage another Jewish woman or girl to start doing so. Jewish unity is crucial during these times. Please join us at Chabad on Tuesday, October 17, 7:00-8:00 pm for an event of Torah Study, Prayer and Charity in honor of our brothers and sisters in Israel. May our mitzvot and our joy illuminate the world, ensure our victory in this war and usher in the blessed era of Moshiach when peace and tranquility will reign for all.