Mendel Bluming | Blogger

What a US President says in his inaugural speech very often sets the tone for his presidency. The only way to know for sure if his inaugural address will inspire; to know if he will keep his promises and commitments is to look in retrospect once a little time has passed. This week marks the 70th anniversary of the inaugural address of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. But this was a most unusual candidate, in that he had no desire at all to be elected to the office of Rebbe. While candidates usually run for the position, this candidate had been running from the position. But this night, after a full year of refusing the title, the Rebbe relented. And the words the Rebbe spoke that night was clearly a historical inauguration address. There were no dazzling campaign promises, no melodramatic oaths of office. There was no soaring rhetoric and no thundering theatrics. 70 years later we look back and realize, with an overwhelming sense of gratitude, that the R...

The Mourner's Kaddish is recited for the departed, to assist in their soul's journey upward. For eleven months after the passing, the soul ascends gradually to its place of rest. And then each year, on the anniversary of its passing, the soul graduates to an even higher place in Heaven. The Kaddish said down here by the living helps ease the journey of the soul up there.   For this exact same reason we say Kaddish at different junctures in the prayer service. Our prayers are a ladder up. We begin on earth and we slowly climb heavenward, each section of the service a step higher. The Half Kaddish is inserted between sections of the service, when the soul of the person praying is about to ascend to the next level. The Complete Kaddish is said at the end of a service, to deliver the prayers just said to higher realms. And the Rabbi's Kaddish is recited after studying a Torah passage. Just as the Complete Kaddish delivers our prayers on high, the Rabbi's Kaddish delivers ...

Unsurprisingly, Merriam-Webster has chosen “pandemic” as their word of the year. It has been the most researched, analyzed and studied word in all of 2020—a year that has certainly left its mark on the world.  But may I humbly suggest that perhaps the word “humility” better represents the year we’ve just endured? If there’s one thing 2020 has hammered into our consciousness, it’s humility. This time last year, we had grand plans for 2020. Certainly none of us could have predicted what happened next! In fact, as we ushered in the New Year, the pandemic had already begun in China. As it spread, the world was shaken to its core. We were entirely unprepared; we had no tools to handle the situation foisted upon us. Without doubt, the events of 2020 will feature heavily in history books. We thought we had the mightiest weapons in our arsenal, including F16s and hydrogen bombs, and then we discovered just how powerless we are against a tiny, invisible virus. Humbling.  Even as it spr...

Note received:  “I have to admit, I am angry. I was brought up Jewish, attended a Jewish school, and have only known Judaism as my religion. Now I am told I have to convert, because my mother never formally became Jewish. Isn't it a little unfair that all my life I was more Jewish than my friends, was subjected to anti-Semitism, and then I am told I need to convert?!”   Here's a thought... I completely understand your frustration. It can't be easy to hear that you need to convert to your own religion. But please don't take it personally. This is not a reflection on you. The entire Jewish nation went through exactly what you are going through now. After leaving Egypt, where they suffered as slaves and were tormented for being Jewish, the Israelites reached Mount Sinai. There they were told they had to formally accept the Torah, and convert to Judaism by immersing in a mikvah. They could've had the same complaint as yours. We've always been Jewish, we have...

The realities of Chanukah exactly 2159 years ago forced the Jews to find a way to light the menorah with one seemingly inadequate cruse of oil. Amazingly it lasted not only for that Chanukah but to this day.   In 2020 the realities forced us to somehow make one measly cruse of oil work. We had to find ways to make Chanukah joyous despite not being able to congregate and celebrate together.   In 2020 YOU found a way to make one small jug work. You expressed love and care despite physical distance. You supported and sustained the community despite the hardships of this year. Yes I have seen many marriages strained by the pandemic yet I have also seen so many marriages strengthened. When we spend so much time together we realize how much we need each other and how worthwhile it is to invest in relationships with family that are all too often neglected.   Finding the good in 2020 starts with Chanukah. That one small cruse of oil looked measly but now in hindsight it was a pow...

Take a dreidel and spin it. Let everyone watch. It's fascinating. You never know which side it will land on. It could fall on the Gimmel, which means you win all, or the Shin, which means you lose all. It may land on Heh, and you win half the pot. And sometimes it ends up on Nun, and nothing happens. It all seems totally random. But really it isn't. Every spin has an exact amount of kinetic energy to cause a measured number of turns. The table surface provides an exact amount of friction, and the air pushes the dreidel in a certain way, so it falls exactly as it is supposed to. Nothing is left to chance. There is an exact science to the spin. We just don't get it. Life is like that. It may seem random sometimes. Things just happen, you win or you lose, it falls this way or that for no apparent reason. But that is just how it seems. There is a divine hand spinning the world. Every turn is deliberate, every experience you have is supposed to happen, and whether you win or...

A foundation of Chassidic teaching is that, as taught in Tanya chapter 12, we can control our behavior, which includes our thoughts, speech and action. We can usually control what we do, and also what we say. But can we really control what we think? Can I control what will pop into my head? I got this response from a ‘friend’ some time ago: “Apologies for not responding sooner to your emailed message. I actually did receive it the first time. But I ignored it. I didn't even open it. And it was deliberate. I decide which messages I open, and which I don't. Just because an alert pops up on my screen does not mean that I have to react to it. I may not be able to control the messages that arrive in my inbox, but I can certainly control whether or not I open them. And I didn't open yours.” You may not be able to control the thoughts that pop into your head. But you most certainly can control your reaction to them. If an inappropriate thought enters your mind, you have the choice...