Timeless Torah

Today’s Fax of Life comes to you just weeks prior to the holiday of Yud-Tes Kislev, popularly known as the Rosh Hashana of Chassidus. This auspicious date commemorates the liberation of the first Chabad Lubavitch leader from Czarist incarceration which vindicated the movement.

The Bible of Chassidic philosophy, so to speak, is the Tanya which begins by informing us of an oath that is administered to each and every soul before it descends to earth. This vow, which states that “you shall be righteous,” parallels a similar promise made by our patriarch Jacob when our forefather swore to be one with G-d just before he left for his personal exile.

Concerning this event, the Midrash comments that Jacob swore with the cognizance of “Bearah shel Sheva,” the source of his oath. A sincere promise may exert a powerful control and check on a person. But merely to remember a resolve while forgetting the original reason for making the resolution ends up being a fragile crutch.

We see this all the time. Young executives vow to work hard so they can make it to the top in order to be able to spend more time with their families. But, somehow, during their climb up the corporate ladder, they remember the promise but forget the original purpose. The result - successful CEOs who spend even less time with their children.

Jacob was a product of Isaac and Rebecca. His life was to be dedicated to the patriarchal ideal. So before venturing to the antagonism and indifference he was to find outside his home, he promised. Even more, throughout the course of time he remembered why he had promised. So although he left physically, he remained with his convictions.

The Zohar compares this to someone climbing down into treacherous well. Before descending, he secures himself with a strong rope to something above the pit. Otherwise, he may be lost forever. We, too, must anchor ourselves to the holiness, and Jewish lifestyle enjoyed by our grandparents and great-grandparents. We should not only find the old pictures and remember thereby that we are Jewish. We must try to comprehend why we are Jewish.