The Role of Diaspora Jews Today – Like a Bundle of Reeds with Dr. Michael Laitman
The Role of Diaspora Jews Today Dr. Michael Laitman explores today’s role of diaspora Jews with “Like a Bundle of Reeds” executive editor, Chaim Ratz and political analyst, Masha Shayovich. “Like a Bundle of Reeds” is a TV series originally broadcast on JLTV based on the book of the same title. It deals with the following topics: * Are we Jews different from other nations? * Why was I born Jewish? * Why is there anti-Semitism? * Could the Holocaust happen again? * What can I do? * Why are there Jews? Download the eBook version of “Like a Bundle of Reeds” for free here » http://www.bundleofreeds.com(also available is the softcover version for only...
A Holiday Full of Light
by Dr Michael Laitman Hanukkah is known as “the festival of light.” But the rise in anti-Semitic incidents from France to New York casts quite a heavy shadow on our lives. Can we cast it away? Can we blow away the dark clouds gathering around the Jewish people? Apparently we can. Since the world is examining our every move with critical eyes, it means that we, the people of Israel, can also influence the world much more than we dare (or like) to think. If we build a society based on mutual love and mutual connection, it will become a role model to the entire world. But once we do, says Rav Kook, we will change our fate—and the fate of the entire world—to the better. Here is his poetic description of the connection between the people of Israel and the correction of the world: “Since our own vocation is ever standing, accompanying the vocation of the whole of Nature—whose law is to complete all creations and bring them to the apex of perfection—we must guard it devoutly for the life of us all, which is kept within it, and for the whole of humanity and its moral development, whose fate depends on the fate of our existence.” (Appeared in HaPeles, a rabbinical magazine, Berlin, Germany, 1901) Rav Yehuda Ashlag (author of the Sulam [Ladder] commentary on The Book of Zohar, also wrote about this topic in his matter-of-fact style: “The people of Israel, which has been chosen as an operator of the general purpose and correction … contains the preparation required for growing and developing until it moves...
Maccabees vs. Greeks, Round II
by Dr. Michael Laitman Hanukkah is a great time to discuss hedonism, the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of ethical principle, which the Hellenists nurtured so enthusiastically. I would like to present an idea that may sound novel to many of you, but is actually at the basis of Jewish thought. On the face of it, there is nothing wrong with wanting to enjoy. In fact, our very nature is that of a desire to receive pleasure. The Greeks knew how to make the most of human nature. They were masters at cultivating culture, sports, science, and architecture all to our amusement. Opposite them were the Maccabees. They maintained a very different approach—that human nature is rotten to the core, as it is written, “The inclination of a man’s heart is evil from his youth,” and “Sin crouches at the [womb’s] door.” To be sure, the Maccabees (or Jews who didn’t subscribe to Hellenism), did not object to cultivating culture, science, or technology. It is more that they objected to the self-centered implementation of our skills and talents, to the glorification of the self rather than of the common good. This is why the Greeks admired winners and adored competition. The Jews, on the other hand, cultivated “love your neighbor as yourself” as their ideal. Granted, the implementation of the ideal was not as ideal as the notion itself, but that, in general, was the goal toward which they aspired. It was not as though the Maccabees were ascetics. They, too, aspired for the ultimate happiness. The difference between them and the Greeks was that they knew that...
Why Jews Are Feeling the Heat
Why Jews Are Feeling the Heat by Dr. Michael Laitman, originally published in the Times of Israel. This last summer was hot in every sense here in the Holy Land. Most of our attention was focused on what was probably the longest military campaign we experienced here in many years. The most unique aspect of the dramatic summer we had to go through was that it ultimately marked and emphasized the dead end we have reached. The battle is over, but there is still a threat and there is nowhere for us to escape. The moment one round of conflict was behind us, the shadow of the next was already hanging over our heads. Each time we stall for different reasons and postpone any decision making, hoping that things will somehow work out on their own, they don’t. In fact, things haven’t changed for decades. The drama inside and around Israel only continues to escalate, a clear sign that we are really missing the point. The prophet Jonah found himself in a similar situation thousands of years ago. The plot reads like an adventure novel. Jonah receives a mission from God to help the people of Nineveh (who are not Jewish) overcome the mutual hatred they feel and fulfill the principle of love thy neighbor as thyself. It was Abraham who first fulfilled this idea and founded the Jewish nation on this basis. Renowned British scientist and historian, Paul Johnson wrote, “What would have happened to mankind if Abraham hadn’t been a man of sharp perception and if he had stayed in Ur and kept his ideas to himself...
The Very Source of Anti-Semitism
” The very source of anti-Semitism is that the Jews are subconsciously carrying within them the method of connection, the key to happiness, namely the wisdom of Kabbalah.” Dr. Michael Laitman, Like a Bundle of Reeds...
The Workshop as a Tool of Connection – Like a Bundle of Reeds with Dr. Michael Laitman
The Workshop as a Tool of Connection Dr. Michael Laitman discusses the workshop as a tool of connection with “Like a Bundle of Reeds” executive editor, Chaim Ratz. “Like a Bundle of Reeds” is a TV series originally broadcast on JLTV based on the book of the same title. It deals with the following topics: * Are we Jews different from other nations? * Why was I born Jewish? * Why is there anti-Semitism? * Could the Holocaust happen again? * What can I do? * Why are there Jews? Download the eBook version of “Like a Bundle of Reeds” for free here » http://www.bundleofreeds.com(also available is the softcover version for only...