Chabad Tokyo Japan

Throughout history, humans have sought joy. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve lived in peace and spiritual enlightenment, free from worry and hardship. Yet they were not content, leading them to succumb to the temptation of the forbidden fruit. Eve’s desire was not for the fruit itself but for a sense of individuality. This pursuit of ego led to disastrous consequences, with humanity deteriorating rapidly, moral corruption spreading, and the Flood coming upon the earth.

Upon leaving the ark, Noah became a farmer and planted a vineyard. He drank the wine and became intoxicated. Noah’s intention was to rectify the spiritual impact of the sin of the Tree of Knowledge by suspending his sense of self through drunkenness, hoping this would bring him joy. However, he soon realized that true joy cannot be achieved by escaping self-awareness through alcohol.

Sarah was the first to experience a truly joyous life, correcting the negative behaviors of Eve and Noah. She understood that joy does not come from self-experience, nor can it be achieved by escaping self-awareness, as Noah tried to do with alcohol. Sarah realized that joy comes from dedicating ourselves to something greater by connecting with G-d.

When Sarah gave birth to a son, she named him Isaac, which means “joy” and “laughter.” Isaac represents the Messianic era, a time when our lives will be filled with endless joy—the joy of serving G-d along with the kingdom of Moshiach. To rise above the ego, one must transcend oneself by becoming part of a larger mission. This mission is to improve the world by serving G-d and adhering to His seven Noahide laws. This will eradicate evil and bring about redemption.

*This is from a series of articles by Rabbi Bernstein Moshe.

This Torah portion tells us how Abraham came to cry for Sarah and to mourn her. (Genesis 23:2) According to the Zohar, Sarah represents the body, and Abraham represents the soul. Abraham mourns for Sarah’s death. The soul also feels sorrow over the body’s death.

The soul has attained freedom. It has escaped from the physical limitations of a human vessel. But now it cannot be genuinely close to the Divine presence. Only with a body can a soul create life, help others, and turn the darkness of a chaotic world into light, with the Torah and the 7 Noahide laws.

Only in a bodily form can a soul follow the seven Noahide laws and accomplish its task in this world of deeds. The soul wants to remain in the body because only with the body, through the seven commandments, can it touch the essence of G‑d. That is the significance of every commandment made on Earth. In the future, body and soul will reunite again at the resurrection of the dead. Eternally.

Judaism is more focused on life in the present world than on the afterlife. It teaches that every moment of life is precious and that people should follow God’s commandments to live a righteous and meaningful life. This viewpoint is the opposite of those who have chosen to glorify chaos, death, and terror.

This narrative reminds us of the relationship between the soul and the body. While the soul seeks its connection with the Divine, it also relies on the earthly vessel to fulfill its mission of illumination and observance of the Seven Noahide Laws. In the time of redemption, G-d will terminate the evil and renew the world.

Source: Likutei Sichot, vol. 1

*This is from a series of articles by Rabbi Bernstein Moshe.

Why do we give Abraham the credit for passing the test of the binding of Isaac? Isaac was the one who was ready to give his life for the will of G-d. For lofty souls such as Abraham and Isaac, giving their lives to fulfill G‑d’s command was no great test. The great test was for Abraham to refrain from weighing the ways of G‑d.

Abraham, for many years of his life, built a ladder of reason. He was a skeptic, a man driven by what made sense to him. With his keen, independent intellect, he concluded that there is a single G‑d who is beyond intellect. And so he fearlessly proclaimed to all the world. And then G‑d took this rationalism out from him. The same G‑d who had promised him that Isaac, his son, would be his heir, that same G‑d commanded him, “Take your son, your only son, the one you love, Isaac, and raise him for an offering on one of the mountains that I will show you.”

Reason and understanding had no place here. If you had asked Abraham at this point, “How does this make sense? How can it be resolved?” he would have no answer. Because there was no answer. No logic or reason. That is why, when Abraham finally arrived at the test of sacrificing Isaac all this challenge vanished into thin air.

The Jewish people and the entire world are now experiencing a big test. Kingdoms are teasing one another. The Zohar says that close to the redemption there will be a test. As with Abraham, when standing firm when nothing seems right, when nothing makes sense, and yet we do what we have to do according to the Torah we fulfill the will of G-d who gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people and standing firm without hesitation and without giving any piece of land from the holy land which belongs only to the Jewish people. The Torah promises that finally, we will see the victory that only G-d can give. The test will vanish! Everything that is happening is part of the progress towards Moshiach and redemption.

*This is from a series of articles by Rabbi Bernstein Moshe.

In this week’s Parsha Vayeira, we learn about the inhabitants of Sodom and its neighbors who were destroyed because they became very wicked. The Torah states that they were “wicked and sinful against G-d, very much”. However, the wickedness of Sodom and its neighbors was a misguided overreaction to Noah’s flood. The flood generation was wiped out mainly because they practiced and allowed themselves robbery – taking one person’s property by force. The residents of Sodom, who were aware of this, declared absolute private property rights, meaning outlawing charity and hospitality. They saw charity and hospitality as unjust use of another person’s property meaning they took the sin of the flood generation to the extreme to the exact opposite. Total non-use of another person’s property. From this arose their wickedness against charity, kindness, and hospitality.

In their zeal, the people of Sodom did not realize that this reverse extremism was just as destructive as robbery. Therefore, since the world cannot fulfill its purpose of being G-d’s true home without acts of kindness, they acted against the Divine intention. Therefore it was necessary to eliminate Sodom and its neighbors, just like the generation of the flood. Nevertheless, since their intentions, however, were motivated by a desire to do the right thing, the Torah says that these cities will be restored in the Messianic era. It means that when Moshiach is revealed very soon, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will also return to being settled!

The connection between Sodom and Gomorrah and the 7 laws of Noah is that these laws are universal moral principles that apply to all human beings. One of these laws is establishing courts and ensuring justice in our world. With every small act of justice, we restore harmony to the world, therefore we must keep the laws of the 7 commandments of the sons of Noah because they maintain the existence of society. On the other hand, a city that acts to the extreme against the laws of 7 Noah’s sons (as seen in the city of Gaza) may find itself in an outcome similar to that of Sodom and Gomorrah.

*This is from a series of articles by Rabbi Bernstein Moshe.

Rockets have been fired into Israel’s territory many times, but thankfully, few people have been injured. Israel’s enemies, on the other hand, suffered heavy losses as a result of these rockets. These are undoubtedly miracles that demonstrate the extent of heavenly watchfulness over Israel’s land. The Torah (Deuteronomy 11:25) claims that G-d miraculously protects the land of Israel.

Natural miracles are superior to supernatural miracles because they have a higher spiritual foundation and originate from the Creator’s power, which unites nature and miracles, two seemingly incompatible things. The first commandment of Bnei Noah is the recognition that there is a single creator of the world who is taking care of every one of us and fulfilling his promises as given in the Torah.

The recognition of the divine supervision that surrounds us is part of the commandments given to Noahides and can strengthen our faith in the fulfillment of the divine promises to those who keep the seven commandments. The land of Israel is the safest place on earth as it is permanently watched by divine providence. Therefore it is only a matter of time before we see the hand of G-d and a huge winning of the war between the chosen people and the most evil forces on earth.

Our sages say that when you see wars on a global scale this is a sign that Moshiach is about to reveal. It is brought (Psalms 2:1): “Why have nations gathered and why do kingdoms think vain things? Kings of a land stand up, and take counsel together against the Lord and against His Moshiach?” All these are clear signs that we are on the verge of final redemption where the evil of the world will be eliminated and the final battle against Amalek, the greatest irrational anti-Semite throughout the generations will come to an end by his total destruction.

*This is from a series of articles by Rabbi Bernstein Moshe.