Open letter.
Published and distributed in 2006
B-H
Let us imagine a Jewish boy who grows up in the White House, in Washington, soaked in the murky atmosphere of political games so characteristic of every and any politician through the ages. This Jewish lad, however, does have an inborn feeling of justice, but we do not know about that yet. We do know that he received some Jewish education, which was limited due of his environment.
Would we consider him as a candidate, to be a leader of our nation? Would we consider him to be the spiritual leader of even a small Jewish community? Would we respect him, trust him, and come to him with our daily problems or happy events? Would some of us consider him “haimish or frum” enough to even talk to him?
Perhaps, maybe if he would do teshuva? So? He did. Does it qualify him to be a leader?
We assume that, for many of us the answer would be – no. But H-shem’s ways are not like our ways. His thoughts are not like our thoughts. He chose a person like this to be the head of all of us, Jewish people, and his name was- Moishe Rabaini. The Man who got us out of Eretz Mitzrayim. The Man who spoke with The Creator himself on our behalf. The Man who gave us our most valuable, most holy one and only treasure – The Torah.
Moishe Rabaini, a Baal Teshuva who takes advice from a ger, a convert, Yisro and even marries his daughter, is the Man without whom we wouldn’t exist as a nation- a klal.
We know about another one: a son of gerim whose parents did not even send him to receive a basic Jewish education. He grew up as a shepherd, even so, Moishe Rabaini is arguing with his Creator to send someone else instead to do his mission- Moishe Rabaini wants that Rabbi Akiva ben Yosef to take the Holy Torah from Heaven, it is not necessary to tell the whole story about Rabbi Akiva, but we do see that the history of our nation is filled with Baaley teshuva, Gerim and bnei gerim. They were prophets, Tanaim, later sages etc.
We meet them, Baaley teshuva and gerim in our days as well. Perhaps they are not on the same level as in the past generations, but we are also not on the level of our fathers, we have to admit.
When we look at them, we wonder, and sometimes find it hard to believe that somebody is willingly taking on the yoke of the Torah.
We pray for them three times a day “Al hatzadikim veal hachasidim veal ziknay sheayris amchu bays yisrual veal playtas bays sofrayhem veal geyrey hatsedek ve ulaynee”
Of course, we understand why we are praying for our righteous and devoted, for our sages and scholars. It is obvious to us, that without them we would not survive as a klal, nor as a nation. But gerim-converts? Why are they included in these most valuable parts of our nation? Why do we need them and why do we have this special prayer for them?
We have to admit once again, that many of us have difficulty with concentrating or even understanding our prayers. But in this case, even if we would put our minds in to it, we would not have an easy nor a sophisticated answer. We suspect there must be something special about gerim. We see that there must be a reason why the parsha of Kabulas (receiving) ha Torah has the name of a ger- “Yisro”. We also read the story of another convert Rus, on the anniversary of Kabulas ha Torah on Shevios but do we understand or even wonder why it is so?
Michtav M’ Eliyahu teaches us that the essence of our existence as a human being is our bechira – freedom of choice. As the family of bnei Adam, children of Adam, we have at least seven general possibilities of choosing between what is good and that which is evil. This quality makes us different not only from creatures of the three-dimensional world, for which purpose, according to Chazal, the trait of articulated speech alone would be enough. Freedom of choice also makes us different from creatures which exist high above of that which we can experience with our human traits or even imagination – the angels.
Part of humanity is privileged with 613 general categories of good and evil. The Jewish nation received a gift which allowed us to come closer to our Creator by fulfilling his commandments. Commandments which not only shape our feelings to our co creations and The Creator himself, but gives us the possibility of understanding our Father in Heaven, His so to say, character, His love of us, as much as we can comprehend it, with His masterpiece of worldly creations– our brain.
But, there is a catch. “Mesilas Yeshurim” of Rabaini Moishe Chaim Luzzato (Ramchal) and others teach us to work to put intention and thought to our performance of the commandments. Michtav M’ Eliyahu goes even further. For the commandments which we learned in our environment, at home by our parents or in class by our Rebbes, he gives credit for its fulfillment to them- parents and teachers! He says that only a small part of the merit of our performance of the commandment belong to us! Unless we work on ourselves to do the commandments consciously, we do have the merit, but we do not take everything that is given to us!
Now we can begin to understand why in the case of a baal tshuva, tinok shenishba, or convert born into a gentile family, the situation looks very different. They are accepting and fulfilling all 613 commandments consciously (of course we are using 613 symbolically as some commandments are impossible to fulfill in our days, for example: the lack of the Holy Temple makes us unable to bring korbunois).
It is consciousness that connects them, the devoted, righteous, and leaders of our nation (first categories of a blessing from the Shmone Esrei prayer) and Geyrey Hatzedek.
The reason for devotion and righteousness of the Tzadikim and Chasidim, is the consequence of their consciousness, try to understand please this difficult sentence.
There are other reasons why categories of people mentioned in the blessing “Al ha Tsadikim” are so valuable to us. There are more explanations, especially in writings of Ramchal –“Derech HaShem" and “Daas Tevunos” and through all of “Michtav M’ Elyahu” or its English version- “Strive for Truth” by Rav Eliahu Dessler. However, it is not the goal of this open letter to delve deeper into this topic, although we highly recommend these lectures.
We are privileged, to observe in our time a phenomenon which we did not experience in this scale for many, many, centuries. Thousands of people from lost generations are coming back to our only heritage which is, The Torah. Victims of Communism, Zionism and Consumptionism appreciate the value of living in harmony with their Father in Heaven Who gave them their lives. An unknown number of people are coming to the covenant of our father Avraham with understanding, as it was expressed by Rabbi Menachem Mendel from Kotzk, that Torah is the safest way to come close to the Creator of everything and all.
There are tens or even hundreds of kiruv organizations giving them an opportunity to come back and learn how to become Jewish. Some of these organizations and Yeshivos are doing a tremendous job of bringing people to become rightful members of the Jewish community. Unfortunately, not all of them have the ability to teach people how to be, and stay, Jewish.
Most of these people are leaving everything from their past lives far behind. Many of them are abandoning their hostile families and friends, losing jobs, moving to different cities in order to live with a Jewish community. They sacrifice everything that other people work so hard their entire lives to acquire.
We all feel happy seeing these individuals whose example gives us strength and the ability to improve our Emunah. However, there are thousands of people who moved to our neighborhoods. Sometimes they may come to our synagogue, yet we do not know, or even imagine their suffering. Some of them easily integrate with communities. Some of them made friends who are able to help them with their earthly matters, or spiritual needs. Although there are people who feel; they have no place to turn for help. With all their righteousness they are still human beings, who desire family or at least some other form of social life like everybody else. Their lives are limited to work, daily shiur, and synagogue.
Sounds almost great. What else does a man need in his life? Is it really like that?
Some of them are disappointed with their experience in a Jewish community, which constantly and still are improving itself (This is the reason why we have a Torah). They cannot find a job meeting their qualifications and education. They cannot afford tuition or tutoring for their children. There are hundreds of other problems which they, not only could have, but in fact they face in their lives.
Without a doubt, there are places where they can turn for help. Thank G-d, the Jewish community has many institutions and organizations which help people in their need.
“Call for help” is continuously repeated in many places through the entire Chumash.
“You should help an orphan, widow, convert and Levi (or any other person devoted to G-dly service)” This call comes from the mouth of Moishe our Teacher in his last speech. In Chumash Dvurim it repeats this concept in many forms and in different sequences so as not to make us think that any of these categories of needy are more important than others. Indeed, thank G-d, we have hundreds or maybe thousands of organizations to help them. How many of them are designated to help gerim?
Not only those born to gentile families but those who according to Chazal are part of our nation from Jewish, nonobservant parents?
Do you know any of these organizations? Can you name them perhaps? We do not ask you about Kiruv organization which help them become Jewish but one which will give them backup and support 5, 10, 15, years later. You might think that after such a long period of time they should be integrated within their local community? But who is going replace their Zaideis and Bubbies on Yom Tov and Chol ha- Moed? Or help them in possible spiritual crisis? Or explain to them and their children that they are not just shvache yiden mitt shlechte yichus as many see them? Or give them the possibility to ask for material help when they need it?
Do we have bigger problems as a klal or perhaps more important commandments to fulfill? Maybe? But not a single Mitzvah is repeated in the Holy Torah more times than Ahavas Geirim-love and help for converts. Why do you think is this so?
Yes, you could do a lot in this matter its true. But just as we do not count on righteous individuals when it comes to help orphans or widows there must be an organization, an institution, designated specifically for this category of our fellow Jews. Both categories of converts, namely born to Jewish or gentile families.
With the help of the Almighty we try to fill up this evident gap in an otherwise, well organized system. Many of us are gerim and Baaley Teshuva ourselves. We do understand the needs and unfortunately the sorrow of daily life of our fellow Jewish from adulthood, brothers and sisters.
In fact, before we established this organization, we were organizing many kinds of activities for our fellows and their children privately. That was when we realized that the need is much, much greater than our limited abilities.
Now we need your help.
It would be truism to say that we need financial help as that is how our Creator arranged the world. But this is not all that we need from you. For some people we will need to find jobs, for other tutors, for some families, to be invited for Shabes or Yom Tiv, but not only for the meal, that we can buy in a food store. They will need company, warm friends, which without pathetic behavior will help to find the clues of daily tasks of Jewish life.
These are just some of the things that with HaShem help “Bnai Avraham” is planning to do.
If any of you, as an individual or community wants to know more about how to deal with geirim, and Baaley Teshuva, or would like to hear of our past experiences, we are ready to meet you and talk to you.
We are ready to explain our motivations and goals as well as share stories of our lives, which some people consider as spiritually elevating.
We do not want to do anything alone without the endorsement and advice of our Admorim, Rabbunim and true Leaders of our nation. In fact, those who are aware about our activities already support us mentally and morally for which we deeply thank them.
We are also open to any ideas which you may have, in order to help us reach our goals.
by Matys Weiser.
Let us imagine a Jewish boy who grows up in the White House, in Washington, soaked in the murky atmosphere of political games so characteristic of every and any politician through the ages. This Jewish lad, however, does have an inborn feeling of justice, but we do not know about that yet. We do know that he received some Jewish education, which was limited due of his environment.
Would we consider him as a candidate, to be a leader of our nation? Would we consider him to be the spiritual leader of even a small Jewish community? Would we respect him, trust him, and come to him with our daily problems or happy events? Would some of us consider him “haimish or frum” enough to even talk to him?
Perhaps, maybe if he would do teshuva? So? He did. Does it qualify him to be a leader?
We assume that, for many of us the answer would be – no. But H-shem’s ways are not like our ways. His thoughts are not like our thoughts. He chose a person like this to be the head of all of us, Jewish people, and his name was- Moishe Rabaini. The Man who got us out of Eretz Mitzrayim. The Man who spoke with The Creator himself on our behalf. The Man who gave us our most valuable, most holy one and only treasure – The Torah.
Moishe Rabaini, a Baal Teshuva who takes advice from a ger, a convert, Yisro and even marries his daughter, is the Man without whom we wouldn’t exist as a nation- a klal.
We know about another one: a son of gerim whose parents did not even send him to receive a basic Jewish education. He grew up as a shepherd, even so, Moishe Rabaini is arguing with his Creator to send someone else instead to do his mission- Moishe Rabaini wants that Rabbi Akiva ben Yosef to take the Holy Torah from Heaven, it is not necessary to tell the whole story about Rabbi Akiva, but we do see that the history of our nation is filled with Baaley teshuva, Gerim and bnei gerim. They were prophets, Tanaim, later sages etc.
We meet them, Baaley teshuva and gerim in our days as well. Perhaps they are not on the same level as in the past generations, but we are also not on the level of our fathers, we have to admit.
When we look at them, we wonder, and sometimes find it hard to believe that somebody is willingly taking on the yoke of the Torah.
We pray for them three times a day “Al hatzadikim veal hachasidim veal ziknay sheayris amchu bays yisrual veal playtas bays sofrayhem veal geyrey hatsedek ve ulaynee”
Of course, we understand why we are praying for our righteous and devoted, for our sages and scholars. It is obvious to us, that without them we would not survive as a klal, nor as a nation. But gerim-converts? Why are they included in these most valuable parts of our nation? Why do we need them and why do we have this special prayer for them?
We have to admit once again, that many of us have difficulty with concentrating or even understanding our prayers. But in this case, even if we would put our minds in to it, we would not have an easy nor a sophisticated answer. We suspect there must be something special about gerim. We see that there must be a reason why the parsha of Kabulas (receiving) ha Torah has the name of a ger- “Yisro”. We also read the story of another convert Rus, on the anniversary of Kabulas ha Torah on Shevios but do we understand or even wonder why it is so?
Michtav M’ Eliyahu teaches us that the essence of our existence as a human being is our bechira – freedom of choice. As the family of bnei Adam, children of Adam, we have at least seven general possibilities of choosing between what is good and that which is evil. This quality makes us different not only from creatures of the three-dimensional world, for which purpose, according to Chazal, the trait of articulated speech alone would be enough. Freedom of choice also makes us different from creatures which exist high above of that which we can experience with our human traits or even imagination – the angels.
Part of humanity is privileged with 613 general categories of good and evil. The Jewish nation received a gift which allowed us to come closer to our Creator by fulfilling his commandments. Commandments which not only shape our feelings to our co creations and The Creator himself, but gives us the possibility of understanding our Father in Heaven, His so to say, character, His love of us, as much as we can comprehend it, with His masterpiece of worldly creations– our brain.
But, there is a catch. “Mesilas Yeshurim” of Rabaini Moishe Chaim Luzzato (Ramchal) and others teach us to work to put intention and thought to our performance of the commandments. Michtav M’ Eliyahu goes even further. For the commandments which we learned in our environment, at home by our parents or in class by our Rebbes, he gives credit for its fulfillment to them- parents and teachers! He says that only a small part of the merit of our performance of the commandment belong to us! Unless we work on ourselves to do the commandments consciously, we do have the merit, but we do not take everything that is given to us!
Now we can begin to understand why in the case of a baal tshuva, tinok shenishba, or convert born into a gentile family, the situation looks very different. They are accepting and fulfilling all 613 commandments consciously (of course we are using 613 symbolically as some commandments are impossible to fulfill in our days, for example: the lack of the Holy Temple makes us unable to bring korbunois).
It is consciousness that connects them, the devoted, righteous, and leaders of our nation (first categories of a blessing from the Shmone Esrei prayer) and Geyrey Hatzedek.
The reason for devotion and righteousness of the Tzadikim and Chasidim, is the consequence of their consciousness, try to understand please this difficult sentence.
There are other reasons why categories of people mentioned in the blessing “Al ha Tsadikim” are so valuable to us. There are more explanations, especially in writings of Ramchal –“Derech HaShem" and “Daas Tevunos” and through all of “Michtav M’ Elyahu” or its English version- “Strive for Truth” by Rav Eliahu Dessler. However, it is not the goal of this open letter to delve deeper into this topic, although we highly recommend these lectures.
We are privileged, to observe in our time a phenomenon which we did not experience in this scale for many, many, centuries. Thousands of people from lost generations are coming back to our only heritage which is, The Torah. Victims of Communism, Zionism and Consumptionism appreciate the value of living in harmony with their Father in Heaven Who gave them their lives. An unknown number of people are coming to the covenant of our father Avraham with understanding, as it was expressed by Rabbi Menachem Mendel from Kotzk, that Torah is the safest way to come close to the Creator of everything and all.
There are tens or even hundreds of kiruv organizations giving them an opportunity to come back and learn how to become Jewish. Some of these organizations and Yeshivos are doing a tremendous job of bringing people to become rightful members of the Jewish community. Unfortunately, not all of them have the ability to teach people how to be, and stay, Jewish.
Most of these people are leaving everything from their past lives far behind. Many of them are abandoning their hostile families and friends, losing jobs, moving to different cities in order to live with a Jewish community. They sacrifice everything that other people work so hard their entire lives to acquire.
We all feel happy seeing these individuals whose example gives us strength and the ability to improve our Emunah. However, there are thousands of people who moved to our neighborhoods. Sometimes they may come to our synagogue, yet we do not know, or even imagine their suffering. Some of them easily integrate with communities. Some of them made friends who are able to help them with their earthly matters, or spiritual needs. Although there are people who feel; they have no place to turn for help. With all their righteousness they are still human beings, who desire family or at least some other form of social life like everybody else. Their lives are limited to work, daily shiur, and synagogue.
Sounds almost great. What else does a man need in his life? Is it really like that?
Some of them are disappointed with their experience in a Jewish community, which constantly and still are improving itself (This is the reason why we have a Torah). They cannot find a job meeting their qualifications and education. They cannot afford tuition or tutoring for their children. There are hundreds of other problems which they, not only could have, but in fact they face in their lives.
Without a doubt, there are places where they can turn for help. Thank G-d, the Jewish community has many institutions and organizations which help people in their need.
“Call for help” is continuously repeated in many places through the entire Chumash.
“You should help an orphan, widow, convert and Levi (or any other person devoted to G-dly service)” This call comes from the mouth of Moishe our Teacher in his last speech. In Chumash Dvurim it repeats this concept in many forms and in different sequences so as not to make us think that any of these categories of needy are more important than others. Indeed, thank G-d, we have hundreds or maybe thousands of organizations to help them. How many of them are designated to help gerim?
Not only those born to gentile families but those who according to Chazal are part of our nation from Jewish, nonobservant parents?
Do you know any of these organizations? Can you name them perhaps? We do not ask you about Kiruv organization which help them become Jewish but one which will give them backup and support 5, 10, 15, years later. You might think that after such a long period of time they should be integrated within their local community? But who is going replace their Zaideis and Bubbies on Yom Tov and Chol ha- Moed? Or help them in possible spiritual crisis? Or explain to them and their children that they are not just shvache yiden mitt shlechte yichus as many see them? Or give them the possibility to ask for material help when they need it?
Do we have bigger problems as a klal or perhaps more important commandments to fulfill? Maybe? But not a single Mitzvah is repeated in the Holy Torah more times than Ahavas Geirim-love and help for converts. Why do you think is this so?
Yes, you could do a lot in this matter its true. But just as we do not count on righteous individuals when it comes to help orphans or widows there must be an organization, an institution, designated specifically for this category of our fellow Jews. Both categories of converts, namely born to Jewish or gentile families.
With the help of the Almighty we try to fill up this evident gap in an otherwise, well organized system. Many of us are gerim and Baaley Teshuva ourselves. We do understand the needs and unfortunately the sorrow of daily life of our fellow Jewish from adulthood, brothers and sisters.
In fact, before we established this organization, we were organizing many kinds of activities for our fellows and their children privately. That was when we realized that the need is much, much greater than our limited abilities.
Now we need your help.
It would be truism to say that we need financial help as that is how our Creator arranged the world. But this is not all that we need from you. For some people we will need to find jobs, for other tutors, for some families, to be invited for Shabes or Yom Tiv, but not only for the meal, that we can buy in a food store. They will need company, warm friends, which without pathetic behavior will help to find the clues of daily tasks of Jewish life.
These are just some of the things that with HaShem help “Bnai Avraham” is planning to do.
If any of you, as an individual or community wants to know more about how to deal with geirim, and Baaley Teshuva, or would like to hear of our past experiences, we are ready to meet you and talk to you.
We are ready to explain our motivations and goals as well as share stories of our lives, which some people consider as spiritually elevating.
We do not want to do anything alone without the endorsement and advice of our Admorim, Rabbunim and true Leaders of our nation. In fact, those who are aware about our activities already support us mentally and morally for which we deeply thank them.
We are also open to any ideas which you may have, in order to help us reach our goals.
by Matys Weiser.