What is the difference between apathy and ignorance? I don’t know, and I don’t care. - Author Unknown
I got a call from a fellow Chabad Shliach asking how to get more Shluchim to adhere to the Rebbe’s request of distributing handmade Shmurah Matzah to their entire Jewish community for Passover. He noted that most shluchim can’t even fathom that they can get it to every household.
The reality is that sometimes we don’t think big enough. We are all apathetic to certain things. Not that we think it’s bad, we just can’t fathom doing something on such a large scale, or, it’s not in our wheelhouse.
The Jews in Egypt couldn’t listen to Moshe due to the limitations of exile. They were so deep in the “grind” of “working so hard” that they couldn’t imagine a time when they would be free.
To liberate them, Hashem sent 10 plagues in a specific order.
The first step to getting out of our personal limitations, our personal exiles, is to convert the cold water into blood, which is warm and the source of life.
The second plague was frogs; cold yet alive. The frogs went into the ovens, the ultimate sacrifice, to cool down the passion and excitement for this physical world and those things that are not holy.
To rid yourself of exile, we need to bring energy and warmth to all holy matters. To be excited about an upcoming class, prayer service, or other spiritually inclined events. Coldness and apathy are the beginning of being stopped by the “dark side”. We need to be excited; it’s just a matter of time before we no longer remain involved.
Then, we work on becoming apathetic toward the physical world and not to get excited about physical things.
Get passionate about the good and become less passionate about the physical world.
If my fellow rabbis and I would get enthusiastic and passionate about giving matzah, moving beyond the exile mindset, we would be able to imagine a different world. One that does provide spirituality (Shmurah Matzah is called the bread of faith) to every single Jew in town. If we take a step back and become less passionate about the insignificant, we will be able to reach every single Jew in our communities.
What is your messianic vision, and what is the exile mindset that is holding you back?
Have a liberating Shabbos,
Rabbi Kushi Schusterman