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Yoseph Janowski
By the Grace of G-d

Kindness and Truth

I am writing this on the twenty-seventh day of the Hebrew month of Adar. Thirty-one years ago on this day, the Lubavitcher Rebbe had a stroke and fell at the Ohel (the burial place of his father-in-law, the previous Rebbe). The Rebbe went often to the Ohel, and prayed there for the multitudes of people who asked him for blessings.

During the more than fourty years that he was Rebbe, he interacted with leaders and laymen, giving advice and blessings, bringing inspiration and benefit to many.

These days, as the world seems so insecure with so much division and so many challenges, it’s perhaps a good time to reflect on some of the Rebbe’s viewpoints.

He promoted the seven Noahide laws which, at Mount Sinai, G-d instructed Moses to tell all the nations of the world to fulfil. Keeping these laws will bring peace to mankind.

The rise in crime in the United States is due to prayer being removed from public schools. Children grow up having no understanding as to why they they should live moral lives. In order to bypass the separation of religion and state (which was the reasoning of the U.S. Supreme Court for removing school prayer), the Rebbe recommended that a moment of silence be mandated in all public schools at the beginning of each day, and that parents can then tell their children what to think about during the silent moment, beginning with that there is One above Who conducts their lives, and the lives of their friends and families. This would motivate children to live their lives in a law-abiding way.

Regarding Israel, the Rebbe poured out tremendous effort to try to strengthen Jewish identity and security. This included codifying ‘Who is a Jew’ (as being someone who is born to a Jewish mother, or who converted according to halacha — Jewish law). And the government should declare that they will not give away any land (thus discouraging terrorists, who would then feel that they have nothing to gain from terrorism); and (without announcements) to settle as many points as possible in the West Bank. Also to institute the death penalty for terrorists (in order to eliminate kidnappings for prisoner exchanges). The current government seems very aligned to the Rebbe’s viewpoints.

He encouraged Jews all over the world to study Torah (including Chasidus, which explains the inner dimensions of Torah and G-dliness), and to fulfil Mitzvot — G-d’s commandments, which are delineated and explained in the Torah. And for this purpose he sent his emissaries to wherever Jews lived.

And the Rebbe encouraged us to be thankful to G-d for His boundless benevolence and miracles; and that by fulfilling His commandments, and publicizing the miracles that He does for us, we can hasten the Redemption, when, as G-d tells us (Micah 7;15) “As in the days that you left Egypt, I will show you wonders.” May it happen now.

About the Author
The author lives in Toronto, Canada. He has written for ExodusMagazine.org.
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