Spirituality and healing are deeply roped together. Modern medicine appreciates the power of the mind to help heal the body, and the importance of a patient's spiritual state on the healing process. Any attempt to make our physical health better should be coupled with an upgrade in our spiritual health. On many levels, the body and soul run parallel.
A medical treatment will only have an effect if it is compatible with the patient. Dynamics such as blood type, genetic make-up and family history will determine whether a particular treatment is appropriate for a single person. A doctor would be derelict in their duty if they did not first investigate the patient's background before choosing a method of treatment. The same is true for spiritual remedies. Your soul's past must be taken into account before embarking on any spiritual path. If your past is Jewish, it needs Jewish spirituality to be healthy. Healing practices can be copied from any culture. Stretches and exercises, breathing and relaxation methods, herbal remedies and natural medicines, if they have been tried and tested and pose no danger, may be helpful, no matter where in the world they originate. These practices don't need to come from a Jewish source in order to heal a Jewish body. But once a remedy crosses over into the issues of the soul, your family history must be taken into account before it can be determined if it is appropriate for you. A healthy organism is one joined to its roots. Study Torah and connect into your soul's source. You need it for your health. It is not necessary for your doctor to be Jewish. But your spirituality has to. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Bluming, Rabbi Moss based on Igros Kodesh Volume 10 p38
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From the words of Isaiah engraved in the wall of the United Nations: “…they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks- Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” (Isaiah 2-4)
But it is difficult to imagine that in today’s world... how will it come about? The Messianic era, that we have been waiting for ever since the Temple was destroyed 2000 years ago, will bring in an unprecedented reign of peace. All nations will join under one G-d with a singular moral purpose. There will be no more war, no famine, and no internet. While religious and national identities will stay the same, the hatred between them will be gone. No blood has to be shed to achieve this. The force of ideas, not the power of weapons, will bring about the redemption. This means some ideologies will need to be adjusted and some beliefs rejected. But this can be done through introspection from within rather than fights from without. When truth lights, falsehood falls away. Sounds unbelievable? Look at history. Cultures have made changes. Even religions can reform. During living memory Germany was a murderous terrorist state, and Japan was a mortal enemy of the west. Those two nations are nothing like that today. Alright, it took losing a World War to get there. But look back a bit further in history. Christianity once condoned the slaughter of non-believers, and that stopped without a war. Had you lived in pre-war Germany or medieval Christendom you would have never imagined that such change is possible. But it happened. The Jewish people have always known that the impossible just takes a little longer. After 2000 years, the time is perfect. We are living in an era of surprises. So don't be surprised if Moshiach comes and changes the landscape. Those who were previously classified as enemies will be allies. They will willingly and happily unite. May it be soon. Menachem Mendel Bluming and Rabbi Moss Traditionally freshly laundered clothing isn’t worn during this time (other than Shabbat), however that is only if they are replaced for comfort or pleasure. Those who are used to changing their shirts regularly due to dirt or sweat in the heat of summer, may do so during the nine days as well, even if the shirt is freshly laundered from beforehand.
Menachem Mendel Bluming quoted from Rabbi Goldstein at ShulchanAruchHarav.com who sources this in Kinyan Torah 1:109; Piskeiy Teshuvos 551:17 I was just thinking: Why are there such a lot of restaurants in our neighborhood? Shouldn't there just be one restaurant? I have been able to count a dozen on one street!
Do you think we would be better off with just one big restaurant? I don't think foodies would appreciate it. Some go for Thai, others prefer Italian. The formal dining experience of one place suits some, while others want a casual night out. Family friendly fast food joints will not entice the fine diners, and fancy plates with a tiny little gourmet morsel in the middle will not be enough for hungry adolescents. Vegans don't seem to enjoy steak houses. Meat lovers don't always go for quinoa burgers. The wide variety of restaurants caters to all the varied tastes and moods. It isn’t possible to have a one-size-fits-all eatery. It's the same for synagogues. Each one represents Yiddishkeit through a different taste and unique angle. There are Sephardi and Ashkenazi ones, those that sing and shuls that don't, informal and intimate communal synagogues together with grand pompous ones, kid friendly and mature audience only. Long sermon-short sermon- no sermon. Every community flair fills a niche and attracts different souls. Each custom has its unique customers. This is not factionalism nor doubling resources. It is opening doors and providing options. The Jewish people consists of twelve tribes. Each had their personal slightly different way of praying, and yet we are all one People with a common Torah. Even the Temple in Jerusalem featured twelve different gates for each tribe to enter in their own way. Yet everyone ended up in the same Holy Temple. Every shul, together with its unique style, is a gateway to that Temple. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Bluming and Rabbi Moss PS. The above answer applies to sizable communities with a critical mass that can sustain many shuls. Smaller communities may not have that luxury. Either way, when we are committed to Torah observance and Jewish unity, we can pray all together or in our own communities and remain one people. ![]() Menachem Mendel Bluming is a Maryland rabbi who serves as executive director of Chabad of Potomac, where he strives to foster a Jewish community that is inclusive, educational and inspiring. Mendel Bluming has many classes which explore the celebrations and traditions that inform the Judaic experience. One recent article on the Chabad website brought focus to the question of who Rabbi Meir Baal Haness is and why, when charity is given, his name is traditionally repeated. In addition, charities that focus on assisting Israel’s poor customarily have the name “Rabbi Meir Baal Haness,” and the rabbi’s name is also uttered as a safeguard in times of danger. The roots of this tradition have to do with an incident that is coted in the Talmud which transpired during Roman times. When Rabbi Chanina ben Teradion was executed for instructing the Torah in public, his daughter was condemned to live and work in a house of ill repute. Rabbi Meir disguised himself as a Roman and arranged a bribe with a Roman guard to get her out. His advice to the guard was to utter “God of Meir, answer me!” if he got into trouble for this act. When the guard was sentenced to hang he uttered this phrase and went free, and the story of the miracle associated with the utterance spread among the people. In addition, the Talmud has Rabbi Meir counsel that all, regardless of being deserving or having lived virtuously, are considered God’s children. This is seen as a parable for providing to all who are poor and downtrodden, and why his name is associated with charity. The executive director and rabbi of Chabad Shul of Potomac, Mendel Bluming guides an organization that emphasizes the importance of inclusiveness and community. At the core of Menachem Mendel Bluming’s focus is family and education within the Jewish tradition as taught through the Chabad prism.
The word Chabad combines chochmah, wisdom; binah, understanding; and da’at, knowing, as a vehicle for serving and developing an awareness of G-d. G-d intended for a relationship with Him to encompass the entire person. Not only their experience (sukkah) and emotion (love of G-d) but even their highest intellect as the verse teaches in Divrei Hayamim Chronicles chapter 28, "Dah es elokay avichah viavdayhu bilev shalem", Know the G-d of your fathers and thereby serve him wholeheartedly. If a person leaves their mind or their heart out of the relationship it is not their full being who is serving G-d.That relationship needs to be nurtured and built, it takes work not just faith. A perfect example is that often one’s passion about Judaism is due to the fact that they happen to have been born that way- yet that leads to an important discussion asked of Rabbi Moss and here is his response:
The person asking the question assumes that I am Jewish by accident. That assumption is false. There is no such thing. The very basis makes no sense. The postulation "what would I be if I were born someone else" is as absurd as asking what if an pepper was actually a carrot, or an apple was a Samsung. I am what I am which therefore means that I can be no one else. My family, my birthplace, my past - this is me. My soul was picked to be born into a Jewish family. What this means is that I am the product of 1,000’s of years of Jewishness. I can question it. But it is who I am. Sometimes when a question is asked it’s a real question. And sometimes the question is a cop out. Like, "what if I were someone else?" That is an example of the latter. But even that we can assume comes from my Jewishness. Questioning our beliefs is an age old Jewish characteristic we inherited from our forebears. When you are born Jewish-you are born questioning. And with all the questions and all the tests over all the generations, Judaism is still standing solid. You and I, together with all Jews of today, are living testament to the eternity of Judaism. Only by you being you, and me being me. Rabbi Moss and Rabbi Mendel Bluming |
AuthorRabbi Mendel Bluming also dedicated six years to serving on the board of directors of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, where he received the Matthew H. Simon Rabbinical Award for exceptional communal leadership. Archives
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