Urgent Need for a Cure!

Judaism is really sick. Yes, you read right, Judaism is sick! We need a cure!

After 2000 years of exile, Jews are so used to exilic Judaism that it seems impossible for them to snap out of it. How can scattered people start thinking like a nation once again? How can we start thinking like healthy Jews?


Two examples:

1. I had a nice discussion with my parents and they brought up, with a lot of admiration, the fact that Chabad sent people to put tfillin on soldiers during the last Lebanon war. Now, this is really great and all, but it reminded me of a story I once heard. There was once a Chabad Rabbi, during a war, who did the same and told the soldiers to wear tfillin. When some wouldn't want to, he encouraged them saying: “Come on, if you wear those tfillin, you will be doing a mitzvah and this will protect you!”. One of the soldiers, a really holy person with a completely innocent mind, asked a very simple but powerful question: “What do you mean I'll be doing a mitzvah, am I not doing a mitzvah right now by risking my life for Klal Israel?”.

Don't get me wrong, I love Chabad. I also love the idea of everyone wearing tfillin. However, this perception that our closeness to God is dependent on a few mitzvot listed in the Shulchan Aruch rather than really on the overarching theme which all of these mitzvot are meant to convey is really a tragedy of exilic judaism. It is a sickness Judaism currently has!

2. One of my rabbis spoke to us recently about going to the army in Israel. More specifically, he spoke about the dilemma some hesder students sometimes have between going to the army or staying in yeshiva to learn. He then explained how going to the army was a way of serving God and therefore it was important for religious students to go. He continued by telling a story of a time where he had reserves on a Shabbat. When a friend of his who stopped being religious heard that, he offered to take his place and let the Rav go home for Shabbat. The Rav refused. His friend was shocked! How is that possible? Don't you prefer being with your family, going to synagogue, etc.. The Rav answered: The reason I am Shomer Shabbat is to be connected to God, not just to practice a set of rules. If today I can serve in the army, this is also a way to connect to God because there is nothing greater than defending Klal Israel. Therefore, I do not want to give away my opportunity of connection to God.

3. One of my friends, in complete innocence, just asked me on the bus: “If Eretz Israel is so important, why don't all the rabbis go there and tell us to go there? It's impossible that it really is that important!” Even though I'm sfardi, all I can say is: Oy!

Judaism is sick. We need to heal it. So, maybe we can send out mass emails asking people to read tehillim for the refua shelema of Judaism. Or maybe, we can work on understanding authentic torah, based on the goal of building a holy nation on the holy land through the practice of all the mitzvot, and not just based on following a list of mitzvot which, at most, give us personal satisfaction.

I know I will be praying to our refua shelema.