Wednesday, July 30, 2008

A Call to Arms!

In the world we live in...
People go about their lives and obligations, running from one errand to the next. People don't take time to stop and think.
We have developed the most advanced forms of communications, but we have yet to learn how to communicate with ourselves.
Sometimes it seems that we are running and running, but what are we running from? It seems like all those places we are running to are just pretexts to cover up the fact that we are really running away from something which is particularly frightening to us.
Could it be that we are running away from ourselves?
Could it be that we are filling up our lives with other people and events, only so we won't be forced to confront ourselves?
What is it that we are so scared of? Who is that enemy which lies inside of us?
More importantly, how do we fight it?

Reb Yisroel Baal Shem Tov was amongst the most important Jewish innovators of the past few centuries. The path of Chassidus which he established teaches a person how to know himself, and how to reveal the true good which lies within each one of us, and how to use that good to confront our real enemy: the feeling of void brought about through not feeling our attachment with G-d.

In this blog, we hope to discuss how the teaching of Chassidus, as it is developed through its Masters throughout the generations, is applicable to each and every Jewish soul, especially in today's generation. We will attempt to show how every one of us can use its light to combat our own individual darkness.

There are two types of soldiers. Those who fight in infantry, as an army. There, although each fighter is certainly an individual, the enemy is a general one, and the fight is the same. Throughout the generations, Chassidus has historically left room for such types of battles. Entire battalions accepted upon themselves to battle a specific form of evil, as a group.

But today, the enemy has become highly specific, and individual. We have seen how lone terrorists and guerrillas have brought down powerful armies. The time has come for the forces of Light and Good to fight back with the same weapons. The time has come for partisans who fight with the Light of Chassidus!