We Don't Need All The Answers

This past year has been a year of incredible spiritual growth. Jews around the world have risen up to embrace and lean into their Jewish identity, growing in their connection to Torah and mitzvos and their relationship with Hashem. The Jewish people are more unified, and many have seen their definition of ‘Klal Yisroel’ expand greatly. More and more Yidden have awakened to seeing one another not only as brothers and sisters, but as one collective Nishmas Yisroel, a single entity of the Jewish soul. A new consciousness is spreading!

 As Harav Yussie Zakutinsky, shlita has shared repeatedly, every single Yid is literally a piece of the Divine presence, an otherworldly entity that is just trying to get acclimated to this planet, where he isn’t really from. Hashem gave us Torah and mitzvos to allow the Jewish soul to express itself and find context for itself vis a vis reality. A Jewish soul does not need to acquire a connection to Hashem, or a sense of Divinity, it just needs to find the proper medium to cultivate it and bring it from potential to reality, and the proper language through which to express it. 

Callout, Not part of article :A Yid is a piece of the Divine presence, an otherworldly entity that is just trying to get acclimated to this planet.

Because we are all one unit representing Hashem’s presence on this world, if there is even one Jew in the farthest corner of the world who has yet to discover his or her ability to express their divinity through Torah and mitzvos, we are all, to a certain degree, being held back from our mission. 

In an interview a little while ago, Rav Yussie was asked how to convert this awareness into concrete action. This notion of a collective Jewish people is nice, but how can we encourage or inspire non-affiliated Jews to find expression for their divinity through Torah and mitzvos? Won’t their secular lifestyle influence us in ways that are contrary to the Torah? Doesn’t outreach risk giving the impression that we are validating them for who they are and what they do or don’t do? For this and many other reasons, creating a mass spiritual awakening seems to be mission impossible. What is the game plan?

Rav Yussie’s response was that what he is focusing on creating in his shul (and spreading out from there) is a shift in mindset:

“Any activity has to be rooted in a clear intellectual construct to make sure it always stays on point and authentic to what it really is. The idea of a mission-oriented approach to rethink the way we view our fellow Jews, and start to see and value every single element of Nishmas Yisroel, is something we can do anywhere at any time. When you are in bed, about to go to sleep at night, think for a moment about how holy the Jewish people are. We, as individuals, have the power to decide who the Jewish people are and to bring out the holiness and purity of the Jewish nation. We need to have that foundation, intellectually speaking, of what a Jew is, and what Torah and mitzvos are in that context, to really internalize this idea that even if there is one Jew on the far end of the world – who is unable to express his soul through Torah and mitzvos – that means we are all limited. The first step is to really absorb that idea and allow it to soak in. 

Then we’ll be faced with this question: what do we do in practical terms to engage that Jew, and how far do we stretch ourselves to do it? At that point, we’ll have the siyatta dishmaya, the Divine assistance, to figure that out with the right sensitivities. But first we need to establish a very strong foundation of the right mindset.”

When confronted with a complex issue that seems impossible to resolve, Rav Yussie’s message is as simple as it is profound: We need to have the right approach to the topic, and Hashem will send Divine assistance to resolve it. The premise that we are the ones that need to figure out how to resolve every issue ourselves is flawed. We don’t need to have all the answers. 

Instead, we can focus our energy on having the right perspective and mental construct. In the case of Ahavas Yisroel, this means spending some time thinking. “The Jewish people are so holy! Every Yid is a chelek elokai memal mamash! I am pained for every Yid that is unable to express their soul through Torah and mitzvos, the Jewish mission cannot be completed without every Jew! Hashem, please help your children!”