a project of www.Chabad.org Shemot 5763 (2002) Moses’ Mother Comment Somewhere there is a boundary, a line that sepa- rates the near from the far, the within from the without. If you can straddle that line, if you can And the more they afflicted stand with one foot inside and the other foot out- them, the more they multiplied side, you can be both and the more they gained Responses to "A Dialogue on strength . Relationships Intermarriage" (Exodus 1:12) We got hundreds of e-mails with questions, criti- cisms and compliments, and requests for "the end- ing" of this captivating human drama. Some of them were too good not to publish... Freud's Great Freudian Slip Essay It appears in his last book, Moses and Monotheism, a strange work if ever there was one. It was published in 1939, by which time Freud had taken refuge in Britain... Deep Love Parenting Who Needs all those Parenting You cannot reach deeper Seminars, Anyway? within another than you reach in If you wanted to play tennis, would you play your own self. with a person who plays worse than you, or with If you love yourself for your a person who plays better than you? achievements, your current assets, the way you do things The Fork in the Road and handle the world -- and Story Between Vilna and Mezeritch... The ascent of the despise yourself for failure in tzaddik... The physical world according to Rabbi the same-- it follows that your Schneur Zalman of Liadi... The longer shorter relationship with another will way... Readings for Tevet 24 also be transient and superficial. To achieve deep and lasting Shemot — Exodus 1:1 - 6:1 love of another person, you Parsha It was the darkest hour yet in the history of the need to first experience the fledgling nation. Slaves in a foreign land, subject depth within yourself -- an inner to the cruelest of decrees. Just as it seemed that core that doesn't change with things could never be worse, a leader appears, sent time or events. If it is the true by G-d to redeem them. Then things do get worse essence, it is an essence shared by the other person as well, and deep love becomes unavoidable. For more information or to subscribe new material added daily! to one of our many insipiring This magazine contains sacred Torah periodicals log on to: material. Please do not discard. www.Chabad.org www.Chabad.org Comment Moses' Mother If you are outside of a problem, you can’t solve it. by Yanki Tauber If you are part of the problem, you can’t solve it either. You need to be both. The woman who gave birth to and raised Moses could not have been of the generation that was born in Egypt, the generation for whom galut was the reality. She could not have been of the generation born in the Holy Land, for whom galut was never One of the colorful figures in in the Talmud is a real. She had to be both. certain Rabbi Yirmyiah, famous for his incessant, unrelenting questioning. No sooner is a law cited, than Rabbi Yirmiyah has a half-dozen scenarios with which to test it: what if the situation were reversed? what if it were bigger, smaller, darker, lighter, nearer, farther? At one point, the patience of his colleagues reached its limits. They were discussing a certain law regarding food preparation on the festivals which differentiates between a pigeon found within 50 cubits (approximately 75 feet) of the pigeon house, or more than 50 cubits from the nest. “What would be the law,” asked Rabbi Yirmiyah, “if the pigeon is standing so that one of its legs is within the 50 cubit limit, and the other leg outside?” Rabbi Yirmiyah was ejected from the study hall. But Rabbi Yirmiyah has a point. Conventional wisdom would argue that a thing is either near or far — it can’t be both. But somewhere there is a bound- ary, a line that separates the near from the far, the within from the without. If you can straddle that line, if you can stand with one foot inside and the other foot outside, you can be both. And often, in the trajectory of our lives, we must be both. And in the history of a people, there must be leaders and visionaries who are both. The Torah tells us that when Jacob and his family came to Egypt, they numbered “seventy souls”. But the detailed list given by the Torah (in Genesis 46:8- 27), includes only 69 names. Our sages explain that when Jacob’s family departed the Holy Land, there were only 69 Jews; but upon their arrival in Egypt, they numbered 70. Who is the mysterious 70th soul? It is Jocheved, the mother of Moses, born “between the boundary walls” as the first Jewish family entered our first galut (exile). Comment | Relationships | Essay | Parenting | Story | Parsha | Week at Glance 22 2 2 www.Chabad.org Relationships opera fan who missed the final episode, so I will end with “Expiring minds want to know!” :-) Responses to "A Thank you. Dialogue on Dearest Rabbi, I have read this continuing story about intermarriage. I have my own views as well. Mine are from a child of Intermarriage" an intermarried couple. My father was a Jew and my mother was a Christian. Both of them were good people who loved each other and had no intention of hurting anyone. Most especially their own daughter. When I was born the decision was made to have me Editor’s note: Our regular readers will surely recall converted to Judaism. No questions asked. An Orthodox the “Dialogue on Intermarriage” we published in our rabbi was brought from New York... Devarim 5762 issue — a correspondence between As I grew I studied everything and left nothing unno- “Juan”, a graduate student in a large South American ticed. My religious identity was the greatest part of my city, and “Rabbi Gershon Abrahamson,” the local governing conscience. I didn’t study as much about Chabad rabbi (not their real names). Juan, who describes Judaism as I did Christianity, Islam, Hindu and himself as someone who “unfortunately does not have Buddism. I did my best to rebel against parents and thor- the honor of being a Jew”, had fallen in love with oughly let them know that this wasn’t fair. I had to “Paulina”, a Jewish woman; the two wished to marry, choose whether I am Jewish, and if I did that I dishon- but were met with vehement opposition on the part of ored my own mother. If I didn’t choose Judaism, I dis- the young woman’s family. Seeking to understand the honored my father. How could I do that to either one? So basis of this opposition, Juan wrote to Rabbi I dishonored them both... Logic doesn’t allow me not to Abrahamson. Their resultant correspondence, spanning choose, because by not choosing I have also chosen... 42 e-mails and 14 months, is a fascinating document on I ultimately chose G-d over both my parents and they love, marriage, religion, racism, anti-Semitism and had to deal with their own deeds for the rest of their Judaism — in addition to being a captivating human lives. Both of my parents did state that they would never drama. It also captivated our readers, who sent us hun- approve of intermarriage for any selfish excuse again. dreds of e-mails with questions, criticisms and compli- “Love isn’t enough,” is what my mother said, “not when ments — and requests for “the ending” (which was pub- there is G-d.” lished in our Ki-Teitzei 5762 issue). Some of them were I still to this day have painful memories because of too good not to publish — so here goes. (If you haven’t my parents’ intermarriage. I have dishonored my moth- read the “Dialogue” itself yet, go here). er in a way that I can’t change, and it was caused by intermarriage. I don’t expect many to understand my Dear Chabad On Line, view, but I do give great caution to anyone who wants to I have just finished reading the “Dialogue on try it. Not wise at all. Intermarriage.” It is fascinating, not only for its amazing wisdom, but The Rabbi’s entire presentation of his ideas struck me for the love, kindness, sensitivity and profound respect as an ongoing assault on the dignity of both Juan and his displayed by the two men for each other, for the young beloved Paulina. And every time he said he was merely woman, and for the issue at hand. “explaining” rather than “judging” opinions with which I would like to know, however, do we ever get to he disagreed, he was in fact severely judgmental.... His know the outcome of the underlying situation between goal is to change two young people to his way of think- “Paulina” and “Juan”, or, at least, whether there was ing, an easy thing to do, as most educators know. And in ever any conscious closure to the dialogue between the process he invokes G-d, family, society, the perpetu- Rabbi Abrahamson and “Juan?” Or did the discussion ation of Judaism. This is a lot of heavy duty ammunition just peter out? he uses in his “dialogue” with inexperienced young peo- ple. He will no doubt change their minds, which is his In typing this, I feel a bit like a voyeur, or a soap purpose all along.