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Dear Friend, Hope you are well as we land safely into a restful and meaningful Shabbat/ Presidents Weekend. Just this week on one of my journeys, I noticed an interesting anomaly at the Essex Street station; a platform that is both uptown and downtown (pictured above). This got me thinking about a running theme at our Shabbat table discussions; as a people are we headed from or to the golden era of time? Some two thousand years ago the Rabbis of the Talmud had noted (Shabbat 112b) 'If the early generations are characterized as sons of angels, we are the sons of men. And if the early generations are characterized as the sons of men, we are akin to 'less-than humans', this sentiment is reflected in Jewish law as it is quite rare for the Achronim to dispute a law laid down by the earlier Rishonim ie we are headed way downtown intellectually. With that said, as we approach the final lesson of the Winter 2019 'Six Great Thinkers - One Thousand Years Of Jewish Thought' it becomes crystal clear that there is a powerful evolution for the good taking place in Jewish thought in both breadth and depth especially pronounced in the realm of the esoteric. Rabbi Judah Halevi may not have had access to esoteric thought period, Maimonides is at the very least a closet Kabbalist, Nachmanides opens the gate to this wisdom, The Ari opens a floodgate albeit to a select few, The Bal Shem Tov develops this mystical thought further into Chassidic thought and makes it available to every last shtetel dweller And now for the grand finale: February 19, 7:30pm, 'The Rebbe- The Endgame: Essential Theology Through Global Activism. This evening will be in Farbrengen format. Don't miss it. Ladies and gentleman, we find ourselves at the summit of downtown AND uptown, the best of times, the worst of times, one day further from the giving of the Torah; at the same time let us focus that we are fortunately one day, one hour, one split-second closer to the arrival of our righteous Moshiach and peace for mankind. With every best wish, Rabbi Shmuel Metzger |
