Sunday, February 27, 2011

Do You Love Him?

You are a passionate Zionist. You believe in the sanctity of the state and the army. You see a Jew walking down the street with his black hat and suit. You know that he doesn't serve in the army, will not send his children to the army and would never dream of saying Hallel on Yom Ha'atzmaut.

Do you love him?

You are a Charedi Jew. You see a man with a big knit yarmulke "packing heat" [a pistol bi'laz]. You know that his kids go to bnei akiva and that he has a special krias hatorah every Yom Ha'atzmaut.

Do you love him?

You are a Lubavitcher Chossid. You see a Jew who you KNOW would never learn the Tanya. He doesn't believe in it. His Rebbe is the Vilna Gaon.

Do you love him.

You went to YU and believe in Torah Umadda. You see a Jew who you know believes that the ideal Jew doesn't go to work rather he learns his whole life in kollel.

Do you love him?

Do different Jews really love each other or do we just talk about it?

Do the SAME type of Jews love necessarily love each other?

Avraham Avinu was the paradigmatic Ba'al Chesed. Sodom was a society of anti-chessed. Avraham davened that Hashem should save them.