The Papal Visit - The Rebbe's View

Apparently‪,‬ a group of Jews went to visit the pope in 1987. Regarding this event, the Rebbe spoke harsh words.

After the current pope's visit to Israel, where he met with chief rabbis David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef, I'm sure the same measure of repugnancy is due.

Here's a rough translation of some paragraphs the Rebbe spoke during a farbrengen, 6 days into the New Year 5748

תורת מנחם התוועדויות תשמ''ח - חלק א

6 Tishrei, page 111

"Last year there occurred an alarming event. Some who purport to speak on behalf of the Jewish public, as they themselves profess, went and behaved shockingly, of issues that relate to idolatry (עבודה זרה), which happens to be one of the 3 prohibitions of which it says 'You cannot pass it off, even should consequences lead to the opposite of life'.

"To make matters worse, they parade this affair in a blaze of publicity ... saying they saved face of Israel's respect, and will have brought eternal kindness towards Israel, as if no words can express the praise related to that famous meeting! Which, by the way, includes kissing of hands and fingers, calling each other in politically correct titles - issues of idolatry ... In addition, they flaunt their behavior as an ultimate achievement for the Jewish public's sake.

"And all this while we do not see Muslims or Buddhists chasing after him so hard. Yet nobody raises even the slightest objection!

"Although some show of protest was observed, it came through as a whisper because it was hushed up, in hope the fuss would be forgotten.

"They continue to hold their hand out, hoping to gain even more exposure, after having gained so much already ... and who is there to tell them to stop!

"Therefore, the only counsel to prevent this happening in the future is for those who can speak in the name of Torah and in the language of Torah to heed the words, 'Before mockers feel no shame' and go out to make an outcry against this.

"They must start with the positive and express, without hysteria, what real Judaism asserts. And even though 'You are a nation of a few', 'we have an Old Man behind us' - our Father in heaven, and even though 'Israel is separated and scattered among the nations', it is 'one nation'. On the contrary, because Jews are 'one nation', they were saved of all the impurities, and this is their importance - that 'their religion is unlike all other religions.'"

G-d's Imprint on Man

Inert matter cannot move on its own. Plant life can move by growing, but remains attached to the earth below. Animals were given freedom to wonder. Humans have, in addition, intellect to reason with.

Given that intellect, let's ask: What gives the human being that unique feeling of "independence" he feels as he goes about his daily life and daily business?

After all, in truth, he too is tethered to Nature's requirements to sustain his life. Nevertheless he seems to FEEL, after he replenishes his temporary needs for sustenance with gifts of Nature, as if he truly is an independent psychological nomad. During most of his waking hours, man usually feels he's the sole governor of his "free-wheeling" life.

Why should man be imbued with this feeling, when in fact empirically it isn't true? He is relatively more free from his immediate environment than is the stone, flower or cat, but wherefrom did that rather false notion of "freedom" he bears come from; Where COULD that come from?

To answer the question, we look for an analogy. A human can calculate. He then can create a computer to do calculations for him.

Similarly, G-d is independent. G-d is All There Is, and nothing BUT He exists. This is why and how He could imbue all us creatures with that "feeling" of independence. It is not true we are independent, but that illusory independence is at least "felt" to be true.

Just as a computer calculates based on code it received by human programmers, the human being can "feel independent" because that's how G-d wired him up - to resemble "the divine image by which he was created"

ויברא אלהים את האדם בצלמו, בצלם אלהים ברא אתו

(Gen. 1:27)

The name "Adam" can derive from the root word Adamah (earth); But it also derives from the root verb Adame (to resemble), "אדמה לעליון", in that man resembles the Creator in certain ways ‫-‬ as in feeling independent, having intellect or reasoning power, even given the power to procreate.

Rumor re: 5775

A discussion is brewing online within the Groner family, שיחי''ו (Rabbi Leibel Groner was one of the Rebbe's secretaries).

The story is that the Alter Rebbe was once reading from Pekudei 38:28, which mentions the sum of 1775 talents collected.

ואת האלף ושבע המאות וחמשה ושבעים

Instead of reading the "hei" of "ha-elef" (the thousand) with a "patach", he read it with a "tzeirei" (which turns the letter "hei" into 5).

When the Alter Rebbe read it as “5775” his Gabbai corrected him. The Alter Rebbe then said again “5775”, to which the Gabbai once again corrected him. This repeated itself 4 times. Thereafter the Alter Rebbe went into deep meditation. When he quit his meditation he opened his eyes and whispered to the Gabbai that “5775” had something to do with the coming of Moshiach.

Rabbi Groner verifies the authenticity of the Rebbe previously revealing this story to at least one of his secretaries.

It is believed this story's source comes from an as yet unknown "Polish" sefer.

(And, as a blogger Rafi points out, here, 5775 = תשועה
and "every time the word תשועה is mentioned in Tanach, it always has to do with David. No exceptions.")

That's David as in "משיח בן דוד".

Let's hope the Alter Rebbe's prophetic story is confirmed.
---
This link, however, says the 5775 issue best!

"Have Moshiach - Will Travel"

The Rebbe, the Moses of our generation (the 9th Nassi since the Ba'al Shem Tov‫(‬ is the "Head of the Jewish People",
 "ראש  בני  ישראל"
as the acronym of his title suggests.

He is the אתפשטותא דמשה in this generation and
גואל ראשון הוא גואל אחרון

Just as the head, which contains the brain, connects (via neurons) to all parts of the body, from head to toe, similarly the collective head of the Jewish body too connects with and reaches out to every Jewish soul, the world over.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe connects with every Jew. In any of Nature's infinite ways, the Rebbe can reach and touch every Jew, each in his own unique way.

The infrastructure to accommodate the Era of Final Redemption meanwhile stands in waiting. The technology to broadcast his revelation to every corner of the world is a few tweaks away from operation.

The Rebbe stands between God and the Jewish people as the perfect conduit for shepherding the faith of the Jewish people. The role of Moses, which is the role of the Rebbe, is to imbue every Jew with knowledge of and pure faith in G-d.

The Rebbe did his part, in that everything is primed for debut of the the final phase of redemption. Now "the ball is in the Jewish people's court" - for them to shape themselves into the final collective vessel. Every Jew can be switched "on" to Moshiach - if he wants.

The last thing left for Jewish people to do - is to accept the Rebbe as their redeemer, so he can assume his sovereign role (eg: link). Our sages tell us (not as crudely as I say it here) that, if there ain't no people to make him king of, then king he cannot be.

Recall the time King David, already anointed in public by Shmuel the Prophet, was on his way to kill Naval for insubordination. But the wife of his intended target deliberately crossed his path and reminded David that although he qualified as King, he was not yet officially king because the majority of Jews in Israel had not yet accepted him as such (See King David's Delayed Inauguration). King David acknowledged the truth she bore and turned back. He could not yet behave as king, even though his role already received divine sanction.

The Rebbe worked a lifetime to render his heartfelt mission. Already in early childhood he dreamed of Moshiach's arrival to redeem the nation. Since day 1 when he first took over the Chabad dynasty in 1950, he poured out tons of Chassidus, founded Jewish organizations and promoted Jewish awareness of the Redemption Era (which now most accept). He brought hundreds of thousands back to the religious fold and meanwhile planted his emissaries in every corner of the world.

The reason Chassidut blossomed in the world was to put into action a new tool to help effect the ultimate change the world requires. Chassidut opened the floodgates of a once secretive Kaballah and brought into the world a new light by which the coming generations will foster that transition. The 7th generation from the Alter Rebbe (or 9th from the Ba'al Shem Tov) merits today to finalize that transformation from exile into the Final and Ultimate Era of Redemption. For many years before that Moshiach was taboo or an esoteric yearning, far from a popular idea. The chassidic Rebbeim changed all that. The deep slumber of Jews in the diaspora has been shaken off. Every Jew today is ready to "travel" and hop on the bandwagon of Geulah.

All Jews carry business cards that read: "Have Moshaich - Will Travel!"

The Final and Ultimate Geulah can happen if every Jew or Jewish family would just do a little something towards the Geulah to crack it wide open already.

Who Owns the Torah?

Heard this anecdote worth repeating regarding the holiday of Shavuot.

On Shavuot we mark the holiday as the "wedding" of the Jewish people to Torah.

In a wedding ceremony, the bride is easily recognizable to all, whereas the groom looks very much like every other man around. The only way to know certainly who the groom is is to see who takes home the bride after the ceremony.

Similarly, regarding Shavuot, to know who really owns the Torah, who really marries Torah - it is he or she who takes the Torah "home" with them; That is, those who internalize this holy book's agenda.

The Next Israeli Election

Israelis can help Jonathan Pollard go free by placing him on a ballot for some position in Knesset, whatever the party. I know little about Israeli politics or how their elections operate, but surely - somehow - he can be made to qualify as an electable figure.

Either a new party can tout him as their candidate, or an existing party's leader can considerately forfeit his chairmanship for the sake of Pollard.

Then the people can vote. Many surely would vote for Jonathan Pollard. He could probably sweep in a broad victory.

Then, as long as America continues to hold this elected man incarcerated, she will be seen as the incorrigible impediment to his freedom to serve the country where, if he isn't yet, he be (made) an honorary citizen thereof.

The Rebbe, Rav Ovadiah - and a Pope

Here's a Rebbe story from 1964 (as per a Teshurah from a Simcha of Shlomo Giladi who recorded his Rav's anecdotes of an interlude at 770 [LINK]).

"... About that time, the protocol in Israel was that the Chief Rabbi of Israel served a life's tenure.

"At that time an event occurred that brought upon the entire country a public storm. The pope arrived in sovereign pomp to visit Israel.

"The Knesset very much wanted that the Chief Rabbi of then, Harav Nissim, should also come to meet with him and offer him his respects.

"He refused full-heartedly. Under the heavy pressure on him from the administration and from all members of Knesset who came to call to persuade him, he refused whole-heartedly.

"They fumed against the Chief Rabbi and legislated him out of office tenure, for he served out his "term" in office, thereby setting the rabbi out to pasture on retirement.

"The Rebbe railed and wailed against this political maneuver. He said it was huge chutzpah that they compromise the service of the Rabbi in Israel, etc. and therefore - it is forbidden for any rabbi to offer his candidacy for the Chief Rabbinate position.

"Nevertheless, two rabbis offered their candidacies, the Rav Ovadiah and the Rav Goren.

"Thereafter, when Rav Ovadia took office of the Chief Rabbi, etc., and in line with his position he wanted to visit the Rebbe, the Rebbe refused to see him ...."

Your Miracle Barometer

Are all miracles of equal import?

No, some demonstrate more or less divine impact.

Here's a barometer to help you decide the measure of a miracle's divine force: The closer the miracle cooperates with or mimics Nature, the loftier its source!

Take the miracle of the "burning bush". This could have, at first, appeared quite normal in that a dry bush could conceivably combust under the hot desert sun. At first, then, it could "fit" with a Natural scenario. Only when it failed to extinguish did the fire become recognized as a miracle.

We also saw such a miracle, that resembled a Natural process, regarding "The Persian Gulf War" (link).

Compare that with the miracle of the splitting of the Reed Sea in ancient Egypt that completely overwhelmed Nature and easily distanced itself from what might appear as a Natural phenomenon.

Your barometer will now tell you, and you might be surprised to learn, the Persian Gulf War registers as a "higher" miracle than that which occurred during the Egyptian exodus.

How then would you measure the miracle of the rebirth of the Land of Israel from its ancient roots? Given that it occurred in the aftermath of a slaughter that even Gentiles acknowledge as appalling, and therefore many nations of the U.N. in 1948 voted to create a Jewish territory out of sympathy, you have what resembles an "It's only natural!" consequence.

But now, with this insightful barometer, you can sense the greatness of this miracle. Even a Gentile historian familiar with the rise and fall of empires over thousands of years would recognize the rebirth of Israel as an exceptional miracle.

Two rational reasons explain why miracles wrought within the framework of Nature, rather than by trouncing it, derive from a higher order of revelation.

1) When a miracle breaches Nature (for example, when the Egyptian landscape was inundated with frogs, or when darkness paralyzed Egyptians for 3 days), Nature suffers an assault; An Infinite power creates a new reality that disregards Nature's constraints.

But for a miracle to worm its way through Nature, without significantly disrupting it or drawing special attention, this can only be accomplished by conforming and intermingling with the finiteness of Nature. Because finiteness and infinity are opposites, the only way to render Nature intact during a miracle would be to draw the Infinite power from G-d Himself, because only G-d can exert control over the finite and the infinite. Only this highest source of potential can pull off such a miracle.

Lesser miracles can occur without summoning the highest powers available from the Infinite. As our sages tell us (Shmos Rabbah 19:6), "During the Egyptian exodus, I and My tribunal went before you; In the future, I will go Myself."

2) When a miracle breaches Nature, it demonstrates G-d's overpowering dominance, where Nature cannot stand in the way. However, if the miracle streams through Nature, camouflaged in natural events, it shows G-d also controls Nature. A miracle that disrupts Nature only shows that that power can defeat Nature, whereas a miracle wrought with the help of Nature shows that Nature too falls under the control of G-d!
(A conclusion from learning the Rebbe's Ma-amar of 1952
[Sefer Hama-amarim, Melukat, vol. 4,  pp. 225-234, "כימי צאתך מארץ מצרים"]. )

The Judenrein Miracle

Kid strapped into a car seat

Here's one miracle G-d does for every Jew: He has the Arabs hate Jews so badly they declare their countries "Judenrein"; By law these countries legislate themselves off-limits for the Jew.

Now is that not a miracle? Every Jew thereby need never step into any of these horror countries or depraved cultures.

Some liberal Jew might jump to attack such a politically incorrect attitude such a statement betrays in terms of denigrating the humanity of a large general population, but, of course, everything is in the eyes of the beholder.

You can consider the "Judenrein" policy of all Muslim countries as a distressing cognition, or you can see it as a blessing for every Jew in the world that he never ever need live or or step foot among such cruel and debased people.

Softening Up the World for Redemption

Good shoes in olden days, like those of today, were leather-made. But quality leather requires tanning, a process by which to soften it to become pliable; Otherwise the leather is too hard on the feet.

The root word for tanning, in Biblical Hebrew, is עבד, as in עיבוד עורות, the tanning of leather.

The term "to worship God", "עובד אלהים", like the work to soften leather, shares the same root word.

What has worshipping have to do with tanning? As it is in physicality, so it is in spirituality.
עובד הטבע = עובד אלהים

Chassidus states that אלהים has the gematria of הטבע. As we "work" the world (during worship) by learning Torah and doing God's commandments, we draw into the world a spiritual effect that incrementally accumulates collectively. As man refines his soul, not only his soul changes, but Nature - of the entire world - also benefits directly from this worship. The world at large changes as a result of a private Jew's worship. These incremental progressions bring the world closer to the Era of Redemption. The world is being "tanned" in preparation for the Final Era.

Meanwhile, as the world progresses closer to its Redemptive state, the individual worshipper retains the value of his input, for the reward reaped in the world to come, the light one merits to draw upon himself during Redemption, corresponds to the work he did BEFORE the Redemption. The ultimate future reward corresponds to the effort individually made BEFORE the Final Era, when the reward will be directly proportional to the work he or she expended during the days in diaspora.

This is what is meant by Isaiah (11:15) "והדריך בנעלים"
"... and Moshiach will lead [the Jews across dry passageways formed when the river splits] IN SANDALS".

Just as leather must be softened by tanning, the diaspora period too must be "softened", as Man works the world as he overhauls his own animal soul, striving to thrash his bovine lusts and turn ignorance of Torah into enlightenment. Each individual will thereby achieve a personal Redemption commensurate with the effort he put into his work during the exile period.
(Culled from the Rebbe's Ma-amar [Sefer Hama-amarim, Melukat vol. 4, "כימי צאתך מארץ מצרים"]. )

Not All Miracles are the Same

Miracles can occur by trouncing Nature, creating their own new reality that clashes with Nature; Or, miracles can weave their way through the fabric of Nature, making it appear as if it were a "natural" incident.

Examples of the former mode of miracle are the 10 plagues that struck ancient Egypt prior to the Jewish exodus. The latter mode is exemplified by the miracle of Purim, where, once the dots are connected on the grid of "circumstances", a clear pattern emerges that spells "miracle".

G-d makes His Presence felt by way of miracles. Miracles are meant to broadcast that a higher divine power exists. The miracle, however, can derive from a LIMITED INFINITY, on the one hand, or it can project from a higher source yet, one of UNLIMITED infinity.

(Infinities, of course, can be variegate. A line possesses an infinite number of points. But the infinity of the number of points on two lines relates to a higher order of magnitude.)

Why should miracles where Nature can be toppled or beaten be of lesser "voltage" or sourced from a lower Infinity than that which masquerades in Nature's garments?

Above-Nature miracles show that their source is "stronger than Nature". But it fails to transmit that which miracles "hidden within Nature" reveal. These have an advantage; When the miracle is configured inside of Nature's guidelines, it shows that Nature ITSELF is ALSO under the control of God. The loftier miracle shows that NATURE ALSO EXISTS UNDER GOD'S MASTERY.

There's another reason too. The world is one of finiteness. If a source of limited infinity is used to create a miracle, this infinity cannot co-exist with Nature without upstaging it. In order for infinity to coexist with the finite, only a source from God Himself can drive such a phenomenon because God exists everywhere, both in the infinite as well as in the finite.
(Culled from the Rebbe's Ma-amar [Sefer Hama-amarim, Melukat vol. 4, "כימי צאתך מארץ מצרים"]. )

Persian Gulf War in Retrospect

Miracles, by definition, override Nature. While some miracles subvert Nature, others may well co-operate with it.

Here are examples of both types.

The miracles that occurred in ancient Egypt, such as the splitting of the Reed Sea that created a dry passageway for the Jews, or when water turned into blood for the Egyptians - overruled Nature, "hijacked" it, for the sake of the Jewish people.

In contrast, a recent miracle that occurred in Israel exemplifies the type of miracle that streams through Nature mostly "co-operating" with it. This happened during the Persian Gulf War when Iraq launched 39 Scud missiles (each the size of a bus) at Israel and not one life was lost thereby. (Compare that with what happened when one single Scud missile landed in the American compound in Saudi Arabia about that time; It killed over a score of soldiers.)

The miracles during the Persian Gulf War, because they did not appear to supplant Natural , derived from a source of divinity much higher than that which produced the miracles in Egypt 3,326 years ago.

All Israelis know of and can recount miracles that occurred to them or their friends in the Israeli wars. All these miracles, by virtue of the fact that the miracles did not overwhelm Nature, but rather enclothed themselves within Nature's "garments", as it were, points to an elevated source of Godliness that drives them, one much loftier than for those that happened for the Jews during the exodus from ancient Egypt.

Such miracles that "hide" within Nature will continue to occur until an even higher source for more fantastic revelations will usher in the Final and Ultimate Era of Redemption in all its stunning glory.

Maximizing Lymph Flow

A secret to good health is good circulation of the lymph, for wherever lymph drainage from intercellular tissue is thwarted, cells suffer oxygen deficiency and waste backup. Prolonged stasis of this kind leads to inflammation or damage of tissue and its myriad of symptoms, depending on where the tissue is choking.

Of course muscle movements, as during exercise, inch the lymph along. But a more dynamic movement occurs in the chest during deep breathing. Exercise increases blood flow to the lungs. Increased pulmonary blood flow causes an increased exudate in the pleura of the lungs. And the greater the pleural exudate, the greater the resulting lymph flow. A large flow of lymph in the chest helps drainage from the lower portion of the body as well.

To maximize blood flow to the lungs, you can lie down during exercise and breathe deeply. Normally the apex of lungs get very little blood flow. By lying down and breathing deeply, the apices too get a strong influx of blood, and contribute to a greater lymph flow.

As in the days you left Egypt - I will show wonders!

Set aside for now the fact that everything that Nature is - is miraculous. Let's just consider the continuity of Nature as "normal".

Beyond the "normalcy" of Nature, then, there exist 3 different forms of miracle that will supersede Nature.  In other words, within the fabric of Nature itself, miracles can stream through it in 3 ways.

The most obvious miracle imposes its own set of rules that counteract the laws of Nature. An example of this type of miracle is the splitting of the Reed Sea. Whereas normally the sea bed is covered by ocean, during the Jewish exodus from Egypt the elements of water, wind, earth and the fish - all had a change imposed upon them to conform with the miracle's agenda.

The next type of miracle is less obvious because it "respects" the laws of Nature without altogether "breaking" them. An example is the miracle of Chanukah. Although the Hasmoneans (חשמונאים) used swords in battle, their sword-fighting ability seemed miraculous in that so few could overcome so many Romans. So, although Nature was, in fact, abrogated during the fighting, an observer could have thought otherwise, seeing that the battle proceeded within the framework of Nature. Similarly, the fact that some oil lasted much longer than it should have may have seemed to an observer as an accident of "Nature".

Another example would be the miracles that occurred during the Purim story, where all those "circumstances" in a maze of events could easily be seen for what they were - an outright miracle - albeit within the confines of a "Natural" framework.

The miracle that transcends Nature, such as all the water in Egypt turning to blood, or the splitting of the sea, has its source in a level of divinity LOWER than that which respects the laws of Nature. The miracles of Chanukah and Purim that streamed through Nature, therefore, derived from a level of Godliness that was higher than the source that provided the miracles during the Egyptian exodus.

When the lowest level of the Infinite is "plugged into", it cannot cooperate with Nature. This level, from the Infinite, therefore, taps a limited infinity. The more that Nature conceals the miracle, the higher the source of Godliness tapped into to produce that miracle.

The very highest root of divinity produces miracles entirely disguised within the fabric of Nature. The target of this miracle, for whose sake the miracle occurred in the first place, usually does not recognize a miracle occurred! An example would be, where someone broke his leg on the way to the airport, only to find out later this airplane he failed to board exploded in midair.

Silent miracles run deepest.

There where God's handiwork to produce miracles accommodates Nature's guidelines, without "breaking" the latter's laws, demonstrates that control is exercised omnipotently over both Nature and miracles to mesh synchronously, without either phenomenon disturbing the other.

This highest source of divinity for weaving miracles through the fabric of Nature will be given visibility when the process for the Era of Redemption ramps up.

Regarding that future, you would think the prophet Michah (7:15) spoke silly when he said,
"As in the days you left Egypt - I will show wonders!"

  "כימי צאתך מארץ מצרים אראנו נפלאות"

Didn't Michah know that which our sages would teach us, that miracles in the Era of Redemption will far outclass the "mere" miracles that highlighted the Egyptian exodus (Brachot 12b)? Why even mention them when they'll be dwarfed by those to occur in the future? It's like praising a record-breaking Olympic champion for some high-school event he won in his junior years. Who could care about that?

In fact, because the future's redemptive miracles will be so phenomenal compared to those of the Egyptian redemption, in that they will tap the highest source for streaming miracles - plus the fact that they will thence be VISIBLE ("I will show you ..."), explains it.
(Culled from the Rebbe's Ma-amar [Sefer Hama-amarim, Melukat vol. 4, "כימי צאתך מארץ מצרים"]. )

Another PLO Miracle - Dressed in Nature

In trading land for peace, as Israel did with Egypt, when Egypt got back the entire Sinai Peninsula, Israel today is willing to offer the PLO a state of their own.

Back in 2000, Israel was willing to offer the PLO more than 95% of the land in question. The PLO refused.

Now too the Israelis would have surrendered more territory to the PLO, but the PLO decided to unify with Hamas, recognized as a terror organization by most of the world.

Now suddenly the "peace negotiations" screeched to a halt. The PLO, recognized as a non-terror organization by much of the world, though it teaches its next generation to hate and kill the Jew, now again saved the Jewish nation from certain catastrophe.

These are open miracles. They may appear as nondescript political incidents to the casual observer. But to a Chassid from Chabad, whose Rebbe told him we are living in the Era of Redemption, albeit in its initial phase, these incidents are nothing short of miraculous.

After all, all the PLO really had to do is say, to any offer that comes their way, "Yes, we'll take it", and then, as they now do demonstrably in Gaza, they can continue to chisel away more and more Jewish territory and meanwhile spawn more terror across a wider range.

Their "hardening of the heart", by spurning the foolhardy offer, is a miracle attired in Nature, that otherwise would have doomed the Jewish nation, God forbid, with immense tragedy.