If you are an American, you may be about to vote. Or perhaps you have already done so.
No matter whom you voted for or what the outcome, one thing is certain: this election year has left America more fractured, angry and divided than it’s been for a long time. Especially troubling for Jewish people of every party is the degree to which anti-Semitism has made a frightening return in public discourse.
But there is something we can do about it. This week’s Torah portion, Lech Lecha, speaks of the journey our forefather Abraham took from his father’s home in Charan, a most hateful place, to the Promised Land. It is a journey that we can also take towards our inner refinement: We must leave our negative desires, the bad influences of society, our habits, until we reach the inner promised land of transcendence and unity.
We must bring this country together, and by finding that core inner unity we all possess, we can elevate the conversation and remind every member of our great nation that while we might strongly disagree, we are still united as one.
The Lubavitcher Rebbe once shared the following wish with New York City mayor David Dinkins:
“In the near future, the ‘melting pot’ [of America] will be so active that it will not be necessary to underline every time [when speaking of others] ‘They are Black,’ ‘They are White,’ ‘They are Hispanic,’ etc., because they are no different. All of them are created by the same G‑d, and created for the same purpose, to add to all good things around them.”
The candidates would best serve their supporters by sharing with them the Rebbe’s strong, powerful and important words: “We were all created by the same G‑d, for the same purpose.”
That purpose, and our journey on earth, should be paved with acts of lovingkindness—of mitzvahs and goodness—that truly make us great.
Mordechai Lightstone,
on behalf of the Chabad.org Editorial Team
