This upcoming Tuesday marks 20 years since the passing of our beloved Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, may his merit protect us.
As this milestone anniversary nears, books are being filled (including by Jewish literary giants Steinsaltz and Telushkin) conferences are being held, and documentaries are being released, all which attempt to decipher and understand what made the Rebbe the Rebbe.
The Zohar states that a tzadik's influence is greater after his passing than in his own lifetime. Today, twenty years after the Rebbe's passing, this axiomatic statement is borne out as the Rebbe's inspiration continues to bring light to the Jewish people all over the world...be it in Bangkok or Berlin, Helsinki or Houston, Melbourne or Mexico, Vancouver or Vietnam. Like Maimonides, he was once in a millennium scholar and leader whose influence continues to widen and reverberate.
But for me, the Rebbe is simply my Rebbe, my teacher. As I teenager, I could sense keenly his love for humanity, and his concern for every human being. I felt empowered by his deep respect for the Jewish woman and the importance of her vital role in Jewish continuity. I was awed by his selflessness, his courage in challenging the status-quo, and his strength is standing up for Jewish values. As a teenager, I connected to his faith in the youth, his calls for action, and his belief in the destiny of the Jewish people.
But as I write all of this, I recall a video of a person's encounter with the Rebbe that I had seen a while back:
A New York city councilman, visiting the Rebbe, was impressed that the Rebbe recalled in precise detail a conversation that had taken place between the two of them some 19 years earlier, where the Rebbe had asked him to advocate on behalf of Jewish education. "You're amazing!" the councilman exclaimed to the Rebbe. "to remember that; it's nineteen years ago. Nineteen years!" To which the Rebbe responded with a beaming smile: "and what will be the benefit for the community that I am amazing?" The councilman laughed, as he understood the Rebbe's point. He pledged to do more for Jewish education.
So, as the books are written, the seminars held, the memorials celebrated, I hear the Rebbe's words in my mind: What will benefit the Jewish community if I am amazing?
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz says that the Rebbe did not leave a legacy, he left marching orders. Meaning, that in true fashion of what the Rebbe would have wanted, we honour this spiritual giant, not by remembering, but by doing more on behalf of the Jewish people and to benefit all humanity.
To this end, we pledge to re-double our efforts on behalf of unaffiliated youth. We invite you to reach out to your circle of friends and make a difference in their lives. Invite the lonely to your table, share shabbat with a friend who doesn't celebrate, fill your home with Jewish books. Do a Mitzvah that you find hard.
Let's honour the Rebbe with action. Let's honour the Rebbe by making a difference for ourselves and for those around us.