The Tanya is a mystical religious text written by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the founder of the Lubavitch Chabad movement, in the late 18th century. It is studied by Chabad rabbis and congregants today; I read one chapter per day. (At that pace, coordinated with the Jewish calendar, one finishes in a year.)
Today's chapter seemed particularly poignant to me, given world events. It likened the spirit with which one should approach prayer to the sense of joy that a king would feel upon seeing his son released and returned from captivity:
"Now, all one’s intent in the surrender of his soul to G-d through Torah and prayer to elevate the spark of G-dliness therein—in the soul—back to its source, should be solely for the purpose of causing Him gratification, like the joy of a king when his only son returns to him after having been released from captivity or imprisonment, as has been explained earlier." (Chapter 41)
The theme of captivity recurs throughout Jewish texts. Evidently Jews were often subject to kidnapping and hostage-taking throughout the centuries. It is tragic -- but reminds us that we can endure this latest episode, as well.
This week's show will be slightly different from the norm: we'll focus on clips and topics, rather than guests -- and that, hopefully, will mean more input from the callers (unless you are all watching football on opening weekend).
Topics:
- The state of the economy
- The fight against crime
- The midterm election fight
- The struggle for peace between Russia and Ukraine
- The airstrike on the Venezuelan drug cartel
- The attempt to sink Kennedy
- The war in Gaza
- The case against Harvard
- The Trump presidency
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET / 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week's Torah portion includes several laws about conduct in civic and personal life, the common theme of which is boundaries -- setting bounds to what one may do at home, at work, and even in the battlefield.
One noteworthy passage concerns Amalek, the evil nation that attacked the Children of Israel as they made their Exodus from slavery to freedom. Deuteronomy 25:17-19 commands Jews to obliterate Amalek's memory.
The South African government accused Israel of genocide on the basis of a story about Amalek in the Book of Samuel, in which King Saul was commanded to wipe out the entire evil Amalekite nation.
Because Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quoted this week's portion -- "Remember what Amalek did to you" (25:17), the South African government claimed he was commanding soldiers to commit genocide.
It was an absurd and malevolent misreading of the Bible and of Jewish tradition. The commandment, as observed by Jews today, is to remember the evil of Amalek and fight ...
