ARE YOU A LIBERAL OR A CONSERVATIVE?

At the foot of Mount Sinai over 3,335 years ago we received the Torah. We accepted the gift still in its wrapping paper and promised to unravel it for the rest of our history. Every year, every day offers us the opportunity to look more deeply into the Torah, to peel back another layer of meaning, and to listen to its gentle song.

In 2019, an Australian documentary was released, available for streaming on Amazon Prime, called the Outback Rabbis. It follows two young Chabad families as they hit the Aussie bush on a road trip like none other, looking for Jews who are isolated and have little contact with the Jewish community to uplift them and connect them with their heritage. They offer Jewish books, a chance to lay Tefilin or light Shabbat candles, to connect with their Yiddishkeit once again. This practice was begun in the 1940s by the sixth Rebbe who sent the Yeshiva students out to remote American towns to find Jews and inspire them wherever they may be.

On July 13, In summer of 1962, the Rebbe addressed the students before their departure to go and spread Torah around the country. He said, paraphrasing.

The Hebrew word for “occupy,” contains the root for the word, a business. When Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says in the Mishnah that whoever is not “occupy” in Torah is rebuked, what he means is that we should treat Torah like we would a business.

Take a straightforward retail clothing store. The owner cannot sit at home and, “wait until someone comes to break down the door and plead with him to purchase some of his merchandise!” Location, location, location. The first thing the owner must do is rent a space in the center of town where his intended customers spend their time. He needs to get in the face of the customer so that even when a potential customer passes by but is not looking for clothes, they will remember where to shop when they do need clothes.

That is still not enough. Businesses that sell to consumers need to spend between five to fifteen percent of their revenue on marketing and advertising. They need to hire artists and writers, photographers and publicists, all so that they can push their brand to the forefront of people’s minds and hearts. Entrepreneurs need to hound after their customers without a shred of shyness.

And what is the objective of the whole enterprise? Profit. You don’t go through the pains of developing a business just to recoup the costs of your investment. is he called a merchant?”
You invest and you borrow so that you can make an incomparable return on your investment. You want to make millions!

Torah is our business. The number one rule about Torah study is — it cannot remain locked away in your home or your head. It is not enough to have the merchandise of the Torah secreted away in your bookshelves. It is also not enough to teach those who come breaking down your door, demanding for Torah.
We ought to take Torah to the center of town, where no one can miss it, and spread, share, and publicize the message of the Torah. We want to inspire others with it. Advertise, publicize, and market it in the same way we pursue clients or customers.

Our Torah must turn a profit. A W-2 employee is happy to do his work, fulfill his responsibilities, and go home at the end of the day. He does not carry the stress of the business’ success with him, but he will never strike gold either. He is content to discharge his duties and draw his paycheck.

A true business owner sees the potential for his business idea to turn a major profit. Hence, he is happy to invest money that he borrowed, because he sees the potential not only to return the loan but to generate a handsome profit. The annals of tech history are full of legendary founders who toiled for years, unknown and unappreciated, until their products finally saw the light of day, changed the world, and made them wealthier than humanely necessary.

But then there is the Richard Waynes of the world. Richard was the third co-founder of Apple alongside Steve Jobs and Wozniak. He was an older, more experienced guide for the two younger, erratic founders. Nervous about the potential for the brand-new company, and worried that he would be on the book for its debts, Wayne sold his 10 percent of Apple shares back to Jobs for a grand total of $800. That same stake today would have made him one of the richest people in the world.

Those that do not believe in the potential of a product, they see not the power in it, and can’t get excited about it. They will do what is asked, but they will lack the passion that pushes you beyond the call of duty, that keeps you up at night excited.

Now, we will appreciate the words of Reb Yehoshua ben Levi. He was NOT addressing the need for every Jew to learn Torah, by day and by night. The novel Insight of Reb Yehoshua ben Levi is about the Jew who studies Torah, perhaps day and night, but he is not OCCUPIED with Torah—he does not believe in the potential of Torah to change himself and the world.

Sure, he studies Torah and observes Mitzvot. But he possesses a defeatist attitude. What I put in I will take out. I will learn Torah and that’s it. This person does not see the nuclear energy in Torah; he does not realize he is sitting on a product that the whole world needs, wants, and craves.

Are you a conservative? People ask me. And I say: if that means giving machine guns to 18-year-olds without any background check, how can I call myself that? So, you are a liberal, they say. And I say: If that means that if I decide I want a new job instead of a baby I can abort the child, how can I be a liberal? If that means I need to force a four-year-old to be confused about gender, how can I call myself that?

I am not a liberal or a conservative. I am a Torah Jew!

Torah is the blueprint for creating a normal society, filled with compassion, love, justice, and responsibility. Torah can transform reality as we know it.

Torah can provide us with serenity when we feel overwhelmed with the burdens of living. Torah can provide peace when war wages around us. Torah gives us compassion when we feel hatred. Torah gives us strength and confidence when we feel weak. Torah provides clarity amid confusion. Torah can be the salve for our wounds, and for the wounds of the world.

Torah can change the world!

A man was visiting the Louver in Paris and he was looking at the most valuable collection of paintings. Try as he might, it didn't mean anything to him. He had no idea what was so beautiful and valuable here.  "These paintings aren't anything special," he said.

A man, who happened to be a fine artist, was standing nearby and overheard his comment. He turned to the man and said: "These paintings are not on trial. You are!"

The value, depth, majesty, relevance, and eternity of the Torah have been established. Torah has a good record. 3,335 years, and still going strong. Today we can rise to the opportunity and make this a year when the Divine art called Torah fills our home with its glory and splendor.

A HAPPY SHAVUOT and Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Yoseph Geisinsky