LIVING WITH MOSHIACH, Parshat Yitro, 5756 B"H LIVING WITH MOSHIACH Weekly Digest About Moshiach PARSHAT YITRO SHEVAT 19, 5756 FEB. 9, 1996 * Published Weekly By Lubavitch Shluchim Conferences On The Moshiach Campaign, Committee For The Blind * * * 5756 *********************************************** * TO RECEIVE THIS PUBLICATION VIA INTERNET: * * E-Mail: yys@dorsai.org * * FOR CHABAD-LUBAVITCH IN CYBERSPACE: * * E-Mail: info@chabad.org * *********************************************** THIS PUBLICATION IS DEDICATED TO THE REBBE, RABBI MENACHEM M. SCHNEERSON OF LUBAVITCH "I BELIEVE WITH COMPLETE FAITH IN THE ARRIVAL OF THE MOSHIACH. AND THOUGH HE MAY TARRY, I SHALL WAIT EACH DAY, ANTICIPATING HIS ARRIVAL." Maimonides, Principles of the Faith, No. 12 *********************** * TABLE OF CONTENTS * *********************** Introduction The Weekly Torah Portion The Rebbe's Prophecy Chof Bais Shevat Please Tell Me What The Rebbe Said A Call To Action ****************** * INTRODUCTION * ****************** We are pleased to present, to the visually impaired and the blind, our weekly publication, Living With Moshiach. * This week's issue focuses on Chof Bais Shevat. On Chof Bais (the 22nd day of) Shevat, Monday, Feb. 12, we commemorate the 8th yahrtzeit of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson, wife of the Rebbe. * Our sincere appreciation to L'Chaim weekly publication, published by the Lubavitch Youth Organization, and to the publishers of Sichos In English, for allowing us to use their material. Also, many thanks to our copy editor, Reb Mordechai Staiman, for his tireless efforts. * It is our fervent hope that our learning about Moshiach and the Redemption will hasten the coming of Moshiach, NOW! Rabbi Yosef Y. Shagalov Administrator Committee for the Blind E-Mail: yys@dorsai.org 10 Shevat, 5756 Brooklyn, New York ***************************************** * THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION * * Adapted from the Works of the Rebbe * ***************************************** Parshat Yitro This week's Torah portion, Yitro, contains the narrative of one of the greatest historical occurrences of all time: the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. Yet this is not readily evident by the name of the portion, which is called by the name of Moses' father-in-law. Every word, letter, and subtle grammatical nuance in the Torah teaches us volumes; how much more so, the names of the portions themselves. What then, is so significant about Yitro that the Torah portion containing the Ten Commandments is given his name? Yitro, described in the Torah as "a priest of Midian," was not merely a highly respected official in his native land. Yitro was the high priest of idolatry, who had explored every type of idolatrous worship and philosophy in the world. The Zohar explains that the Torah could not be given to mankind until Yitro had rejected each and every false god, and had publicly accepted G-d's sovereignty. Yitro was the symbol of the power ancient man invested in gods of wood and stone. It was only when Yitro declared "Now I know that the L-rd is greater than all the gods," that truth prevailed, and the Torah could be given. The most dramatic contrast occurs when darkness itself is transformed into light. In Hebrew this is called "the superiority (yitron) of light over darkness," a light which shines forth from a place it had previously been unable to reach. It is also interesting to note that Yitro's name is linguistically related to this as well. Yitro's acceptance of G-d also reflects the reason why the Torah was given on Mount Sinai. Prior to that time, the Patriarchs were already following the Torah's commandments, and Jews had studied Torah while in Egypt. What was innovated at Mount Sinai was the power to infuse the physical world with holiness, to combine the spiritual and the material simultaneously. The G-dliness concealed within the physical world could now be uncovered and revealed, according to G-d's plan. When Yitro not only rejected his false idols, but joined the Jewish people in their faith, it paved the way for future generations to transform darkness into light and to build a dwelling place for G-d in this world. A Jew's task is to sanctify his physical surroundings and imbue them with holiness. Yitro therefore merited that an entire portion of the Torah bears his name, for he personified the mission of every Jew and the reason for the giving of the Torah. * To further understand the above concept, i.e., what was innovated at Mount Sinai, was the power to infuse the physical world with holiness, to combine the spiritual and the material simultaneously. We present the following talk of the Rebbe: The Torah describes the revelation on Mount Sinai in this week's Torah portion, Yitro. G-d revealed Himself to the entire Jewish nation, giving the Children of Israel the Torah and its commandments. However, the concept of Torah and mitzvot existed long before the Jews arrived at Mount Sinai. Our sages teach us that the Patriarchs and Matriarchs certainly learned Torah and performed mitzvot. What, then, was innovated by the Revelation on Sinai? The Midrash explains this question by means of a parable: A king once decreed that Romans were not allowed to go down to Syria and Syrians were not permitted to ascend to Rome. After a while the decree was nullified, with the king announcing that he himself would initiate the change. This is similar to how it was before the Giving of the Torah. "The heavens belong to G-d, and the earth He gave to mankind." There existed a separation between the heavens and the earth. At the Revelation, this decree was nullified, and a connection was formed between the heavens and the earth. G-d was the king who initiated the change, as we read, "and G-d descended on Mount Sinai." The "heavens" symbolize spirituality and G-dliness. The "earth" symbolizes the physical and corporeal aspects of our lives. When we say that before the Torah was given on Mount Sinai there was a division between the heavens and earth, what is meant is that there was no possibility of connecting the physical and spiritual realms. There was an unbridgeable gap between the two. The greatness of the Revelation on Mount Sinai is that this gap was actually bridged, opening for us the opportunity to unite the physical world with G-d and G-dliness. When we take the skin of a cow--a physical object--and write on this parchment a mezuza or tefilin or a Torah scroll, we transform it into something holy. A union is formed between the spiritual holiness of the words of Torah and the physical parchment, to the extent that the parchment itself becomes holy through its association. Similarly, when a Jew eats food in honor of Shabbat, he elevates the food from its physical state and makes it holy. This is the power that was given to us at Mount Sinai, the power to bring G-dliness and holiness down into this physical world. Before the Revelation, corporeality stood in contradiction to spirituality. A person who wanted to become close to G-d had to distance himself, to some extent, from the physical side of his nature. Physical actions could not be imbued with holiness. The Giving of the Torah granted us the ability to be connected and bound to G-d, while at the same time living a physical life. We can worship G-d through our eating and drinking, our work, even our everyday speech if we do these things properly. The physical needs not stand in the way of the spiritual. We have the power to actually transform corporeality into holiness. This is our task here in this world--to enlighten our surroundings with the light of Torah, and to make a fitting "dwelling place" for G-d. ************************ * THE REBBE'S PROPHECY * ************************ The Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson of Lubavitch, issued a call that "THE TIME OF OUR REDEMPTION HAS ARRIVED!" and "MOSHIACH IS ON HIS WAY!" The Rebbe stressed that he is saying this AS A PROPHECY, and asks us all to prepare ourselves for the Redemption, through increasing acts of goodness and kindness. LET US ALL HEED THE REBBE'S CALL. ********************************************* * IN LOVING MEMORY OF MY DEAR GRANDPARENTS, * * * * Reb Shmuel Pesach Ben Reb Yaakov Dovid * * Passed away on 3 Tishrei, 5755 * * * * Mrs. Fraidel Chedvah Bas Reb Zev Wolf * * Passed away on 4 Adar II, 5755 * * Pais * ********************************************* ******************** * CHOF BAIS SHEVAT * ******************** Next Monday, Chof Bais (the 22nd day of) Shevat, Feb. 12, we commemorate the 8th yahrtzeit of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson, wife of the Rebbe. Though precious little is known of the Rebbetzin, the few statements of hers that are public convey her brilliance, wit and personal insight: A young bride-to-be from a distinguished chasidic family could not be convinced by her grandfather to uphold a little-practiced custom that was not the vogue at her wedding. The grandfather asked the Rebbetzin to speak with the bride. When the young woman protested that none of her friends had acted in accordance with the custom and that she would be looked upon as being different, the Rebbetzin responded, "It's very modern to be different." "It's very modern to be different." From safety pins in the ears to "earrings" in other parts of the anatomy, from assertiveness training to personalized trainers, we strive, and to some extent succeed, to be modern, i.e., different. But how many of us have the courage to be "modern" when it comes to Judaism? The next time a book about a new spiritual path tops the best seller list, be modern and buy a book about the Jewish spirit. The next time a friend asks you to sign up for a lecture series at the local university, be modern and sign up for a lecture series at the local Chabad Lubavitch Center. The next time suggestions for restaurants are offered for that high-powered lunch, be modern and suggest a kosher restaurant (most major cities nowadays have at least one kosher restaurant). And think of the Rebbetzin, who was so utterly modern that she cared not a bit about what "modern" conventions say. She remained the Rebbe's most ardent and devoted follower, so much so, that the Rebbetzin once stated, "His [the Rebbe's] will is my will." "G-d alone knows the full extent of her greatness," the Rebbe said during the shiva for the Rebbetzin. As the Rebbe stated in his first public discourse, all sevenths are precious ... we are the seventh generation ... the last generation of exile and the first generation of the Redemption. In the Redemption, when the G-dly essence of everything will be revealed, we will surely appreciate the Rebbetzin's true greatness. **************************************** * PLEASE TELL ME WHAT THE REBBE SAID * * Weekly Torah Insights For Children, * * Adapted from the Works of the Rebbe * **************************************** Parshat Yitro Just before the giving of the Torah, all of the Jewish people gathered around Mount Sinai. The mountain was surrounded by fire, and a heavenly cloud settled on top. The entire world came to a halt as the sound of the shofar was heard; thunder roared and lightning flashed in the background. In the Talmud and in the Midrash, our Sages tell us more about what happened then. Rabbi Akiva tells us that the Jewish people could actually "see the thunder and hear the lightning." Why does Rabbi Akiva tell us this? Many other miracles took place at that time: All the birds stopped chirping precisely at the moment the Torah was given, flowers and fruit-bearing trees sprouted forth from the desert mountain, and most important--the Jewish people actually heard G-d tell them the Ten Commandments. Is Rabbi Akiva just adding another miracle? No. Rabbi Akiva is teaching us something very important. He is teaching us how a Jew should look at the Torah and the world around him. We usually see physical things, but not ideas or thoughts. Yet our ears can listen to ideas--even deep and holy thoughts about G-d. The Torah guides a Jew to gaze deeper into the things that appear before his eyes and to look for the things that his ears have heard about. G-d hides His holiness in the things around us. Even though we cannot see it, it is still there. It is our job to look deeper, to find that holiness, and to reveal it. Every mitzvah that we perform helps us reveal that hidden holiness. For example, a delicious red apple. The Korean grocer says, "Its color is so red, its shape is perfect and it tastes delicious!" He sees the apple as a nice, tasty fruit. But a Jew who makes a berachah (blessing) on the apple is looking at more than just a fruit. He sees the blessing of G-d, and thanks Him for making the fruit grow. This is what Rabbi Akiva meant when he said that the Jews could see what is heard--that the Torah makes it possible for us to look deeper and see the holiness in the world around us. In his own life, Rabbi Akiva set an example of how to look deeper than what our eyes can see. He once accompanied a group of Sages who passed the site of the Beis HaMikdash after it was destroyed. Suddenly, a fox darted out from the rubble. Spotting the fox, the Sages burst out in tears. "How terrible! Look what has happened to our holy place!" they cried. But Rabbi Akiva did not cry; instead the Sages saw him smiling. "How can you possibly rejoice while seeing this destruction?" they asked him in wonder. "I am happy because I am looking beyond what my eyes see," replied Rabbi Akiva. "Just as G-d carried out His warnings to destroy the city, He will also fulfill His promise to rebuild the Beis HaMikdash. The destroyed Beis HaMikdash helps me see the rebuilt city of Yerushalayim and hear the sounds of geulah (the Redemption) approaching." ******************** * A CALL TO ACTION * ******************** The Rebbe's slogan is: "The main thing is the deed." Hence, we present suggestions from the Rebbe's talks of what we can do to complete the Rebbe's work of bringing the Redemption. POSITIVE DEEDS: "The yahrtzeit should, as is Jewish custom, be connected with deeds undertaken in memory of the departed. The Hebrew expression for this intent, l'ilui nishmat, means "for the ascent of the soul." Our deeds help elevate the soul of the departed. Then, the higher levels that the soul reaches are drawn down and influence this world.... Also, it is proper that gifts be given to charity in multiples of 470, the numerical equivalent of the Rebbetzin's name." The Rebbe, 22 Shevat, 5750/1990 ========================================================== = End of Text: Living With Moshiach, Parshat Yitro, 5756 = ==========================================================