Ki Tavo
On the Very Special Son of Eliezer and Sarah of Okopy
Dear Friend,
With the 18th of Elul afoot, I think about my sweet parents. One of the great blessings of having parents is that it gives us the single best metaphor for our relationship with G‑d.
Heaven protect us, heaven protect everyone, from being orphaned at a young age! Is there any suffering that puts the soul in greater peril of despairing of the presence of G‑d?
It is only the greatest of souls that can reconfigure such a personal apocalypse into an opportunity to experience the metaphor in its purity and as a flesh-and-blood reality. “A father to the fatherless . . . is G‑d” (Psalms 68:6).
Such an extraordinary soul belonged to Yisrael the son of Eliezer and Sarah of Okopy, who came to be known as the Baal Shem Tov.
Only the Holy One, blessed be He, knows whether the Baal Shem Tov “needed” this terrible ordeal to come to his wisdom. All that we know is that he did not keep the wisdom to himself (read an exquisite story about that here). As we celebrate the birth of this extraordinary soul on 18 Elul, may we experience profound gratitude for the life of a man who, through his orphanhood at the age of three, was able to experience the sweet word Tatteh, “Daddy,” as a divine name—and who taught all of us how to get to know G‑d on such intimate terms.
Michael Chighel,
on behalf of the Chabad.org Editorial Team.
I can’t help but wonder why a person like me, who loves Judaism, was born a gentile. Why wasn’t my soul worthy enough to be born into the Jewish nation?
Naomi is married to a very busy, goal-oriented individual. She often laments how due to his overloaded schedule, they rarely spend quality time with each other . . .
The "personal" mitzvah of Bikkurim teaches that even as we explore our individual path towards G‑d, our personal journey and destiny is deeply intertwined with, and part of the process and progress of our nation.
A condensation of the weekly Torah portion alongside select commentaries culled from the Midrash, Talmud, Chassidic masters, and the broad corpus of Jewish scholarship.
For millennia, these were secrets, only to be revealed to a select few. What changed that allowed the Baal Shem Tov to reveal them, and his student's disciple to open the floodgates?
A teaching about the dream of Joseph, invoking the Kabbalistic narrative of the shattered vessels, and using gender to recast the tzaddik's role in the universal hierarchy of the cosmos—with which R. Schneur Zalman’s chassidic path began.
Napoleon rushed over to him, put his hand on his heart and said, “You are a spy!”
Late Friday afternoon, the sun begins to set behind the San Francisco Bay…
This melody’s opening reveals the remorse of the remorseful spirit, while the conclusion voices a strong hope for the acceptance and fulfillment of the worshippers’ petitions to the Almighty.
Chassidus teaches that throughout the month of Elul the Almighty is “unusually accessible” to every Jew as He displays “a smiling countenance and receives everyone with grace and favor.” Then, why are we not enjoined to be joyous?! In answering the question, this talk addresses the obligation to educate children, and reveals a unique kind of joy that lies at the core of the preparatory days of Elul. (Sefer HaSichos 5748, Shoftim)
In exploring the mitzvah of sharing Torah with others, we are empowered to be beacons of influence to our fellow Jews.
Several days before Rosh Hashanah we begin to recite the Selichot, a series of penitential prayers and liturgy.
Even when I am feeling fearless, I often find myself asking what I should do with it.
From their home in the Toco Hills neighborhood near the heart of Georgia’s capital city, Rabbi Yale and Rickelle New match teenage volunteers with children who have special needs.
University of Pittsburgh Chief of Staff Dr. Kathy W. Humphrey to be honored at Chabad event.
Cincinnati hospital visit with a sick boy turns into tefillin-wrapping and September campaign.
‘Going Kosher in 30 Days!’ in this 40th year of Rebbe’s campaign.
Each generation has its role in history.
From all the generations before us we inherited a wealth of dreams: philosophy, truths, wisdom and purpose. We are tiny dwarfs standing on the shoulders of their ideas and their noble deeds.
Our generation’s mandate—and destiny—is to make the dream real.
