BS"D To our Event Crew, You were magnificent!
A big "yashar koach" to all of you- The dinner was a smashing success!
Please send me any press or links on the event that you come across. Hebrew or English- Paper or otherwise.
None of this could have been done without any one of you.
It was completely a function of amazing people working together for one purpose- As it says that we stood together by the Mountain: Ke ish echd be lev echad, like one person with one heart...
The Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that whole thing of the Purim story was that in the time of Esther and Mordechai, the Jews were split into two groups in Babylonia.
The "Ivrim", the political Jews and the "Yehudim", those who followed Mordechai, the nasi of his generation.
The Ivrim were the political Jews who put their faith in the government to protect them. Haman had no problem with these Jews. They completely felt that their connections in the government would save them. He was good friends with them and they with him.
The Yehudim? They were those who followed Mordechai. As we say: "Tov Lev" (but no kessef!) They put their faith in G-d and Mordechai HaYehudi, the leader of their generation.
When the decree finally came out, the Ivrim joined with Mordechai. It was with this unity that everyone was able to experience the miracle of Purim.
Today too. We have the political Jews who are looking to the United States, to its president and to foreign political leaders to and even the non-religious political leaders of Eretz Yisrael for salvation. They even look to the leaders of the Peace process and the leaders from the enemy side.
They look and follow, while those very "leaders" are driving the Land of Israel and its people off the face of the political map as a Jewish country. While they turn the very name: "Israel", "settlement", "settler" and "Jewish Homeland" into abhorred terms in the eyes of the nations with their heart desire to dance to the tune of foreign interests.
How many Jewish soldiers and civilians have died in each war because the army was held back by Israel's political leaders who refused to allow preemptive strikes when they knew from their intelligence and from the military that an attack was imminent? When they knew it would cause thousands of Jewish deaths?
How much oil do we have to buy today that was our own? But Israel gave it all away. Suez Canal rights, water, gas and worst of all Israel's land. All given by leaders who are Ivrim, afraid of the non-Jew and "what will the non-Jew think?"
Each of these given away to satisfy foreign governments and terror. (It is hard to say where one begins and the other leaves off)
Today, Rosh Chodesh Purim, we stood together on this point. Even the non-Jews who attended enjoyed our message and parroted our positive energy. Because this is our blessing! "Tisbarchu becha kol goy ha aretz". There will come a blessing through you for the nations of the earth!
When we, as Yehudim, (not as ivrim), come to the non-Jew and tell him without fear and with "iber gegebenkeit" (excitement) that Eretz Yisrael is the Jewish land as promised by G-d in the Bible, it gives them enjoyment. It gives them fulfillment-
In fact, when they are aware (as the Rebbe spoke of in 1969) that "ayn od milvado", "there is nothing besides Him (G-d)", so from the start, they don't even desire to war with us. In fact they join with us.
They enjoy knowing that just as in days of yore, we Jews still stand. Still are protected from above. Still live with miracles. This gives them a chayos. A positive energy.
Even we need to remind ourselves of this as well. That's right!
It is easy and seductive for one to fall into the same trap that the Ivrim found themselves in their generation. It is this same trap that is today leading Eretz Yisrael and leaders who could be doing something positive, even religious ones into a potential Holocaust as Glenn Beck pointed out so astutely last night. (Chas veshalom)
But the Lubavitcher Rebbe always says that a Jew has to "leben mit der zeit". Live with the parsha of the week and the events that unfolded in their time as their times of the year come up in our generation. These are times and moments that give a spiritual koach into our activities and enable us to overcome the spiritual and physical enemies today, just as we did in those times.
If we act as Jews. If we act with the same spirit that engaged Jews of those victorious times.
We enjoy the holiday, but living through the national tragedy that the Ivrim brought on their generation in those times was no picnic.
Today too, we have our Ivrim who claim to be our leaders and they are leading us into the abyss. It will only be with those of us who are the Yehudim, that G-d will bring about once again bring his great salvation and please G-d, the Ivrim will join us and become, as they did in Mordechai's time "Yehudim". With this great unity (as each of us is like the limb of a whole body that cannot lack even the loss of one part Ch"vs), we should all experience the final Geula. Bimhara beyamaynu amen.
I am attaching the Press release in case anyone has a use for it and for those who didn't get it. Thank you Sarah Lehmann for drafting it!
Collect Post Event Press Again, followup on the press response is so key after these events, so please collect and send me anything you find. - Thanks!
All the very very best, Signing off from Gush Katif Museum Headquarters in Chutz LeAretz, World Lubavitch Headquarters - Crown Heights USA Raanan Isseroff
* Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Shneerson - from Likutei Diburim from the 1940's. The same idea is brought up as well in "HaKriah VeHakedusah" a paper that was printed during the war years from 1940 until 1947.
Crown Heights Committee For Shleimus HaAretz
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