It was a trial that had the potential to sabotage the sanctity of a movement. Yesterday, we celebrated Hey Teves, the 5th of Tevet. In Lubavitch, this is a holiday particularly devoted to the purchase and study of new Torah books. It stems from a tragic incident in which an estranged relative of the Rebbe was surreptitiously stealing treasured and sacred books from the revered library of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. This library was painstakingly collected and brought to the United States by the Sixth Rebbe of Lubavitch Rabbi Yosef Y. Schneersohn.
On the 5th of Tevet in 1987, the U.S. Federal court ruled in favor of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, restoring its rightful ownership of the holy books.
Why do Chassidim celebrate the court ruling of some valuable books as a spiritual festival? Granted, these books are quite valuable and have sentimental worth to the movement. But, how does that catapult a legal victory into a spiritual fete to be lionized and observed annually? Shouldn’t we just be grateful and move on?
A lesson from this week’s parsha Vayigash provides powerful insight.
We read about the reunion of Yosef (Joseph) and his family. First, the now-viceroy of Egypt reveals himself to his brothers and, finally, his father and the entire family move down to Egypt.
The opening words of the parsha are “Yehuda (Judah) approached (Yosef) and said…” Yehuda goes on to challenge the viceroy of Egypt with some harsh words, setting up a showdown. Of course, it all ends well when Yosef reveals himself. But, the commentaries point out that the opening scene of this parsha is very deliberate.
What was Yehuda expecting to accomplish by challenging Yosef, who had the power to execute him on the spot? True, he uses supplication as well. But, his approach was not one of pure submission. Why rock the boat in such a sensitive moment?
Fast forward to the moment that Yaakov (Jacob) actually departs Israel to relocate the family to Egypt. He decides to send one family representative ahead to establish a spiritual infrastructure. Instead of waiting until they arrive, Yaakov insists that Jewish life must be waiting in place on Day One. First and foremost, he sent an advance team to establish a yeshiva. Whom did he choose to send? Yehuda.
So, now we find Yehuda again at the forefront.
Why did Yaakov send Yehuda rather than rely on his own son Yosef, who was present in Egypt? Surely, Yosef would have known the ins and outs of Egyptian bureaucracy and could have navigated its challenges far easier than Yehuda?
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The Mystics explain that the confrontation between the brothers and Yosef was a spiritual debate. Yehuda and the brothers maintained that in order to preserve Jewish identity, we need to retain our sacred posture. We need to maintain a degree of separation from the world, to inoculate ourselves from unsavory influences and contact. A holy people should be in a holy land, unaffected by poisonous notions of a corrupt society. Yosef argued that the Jew is meant to influence the world, causing change by being enmeshed in the rigors of a materialistic – and even pagan – civilization.
Yosef was the victor in this debate – and the pioneer who brought his people into the defiled land of Egypt. Jews would need to adapt to a life in exile – now in Egypt and, in years to come, in many lands – from Iran to American and from Poland to Australia.
By design, G-d wants Jews to integrate into the world and bring sanctity to our surroundings.
However, Yosef’s view alone is insufficient. Were Yosef to create a Yeshiva, it would be a product of Egypt. The synagogues would mirror cathedrals and the yeshivas would mirror universities. Judaism would be bereft of its soul. It would be a reactive and subjective Judaism, created from the bottom up.
But, the Torah is G-d’s gift to the Jews, not the Jewish people’s discovery of G-d. And, certainly not the world’s discovery of truth. So, for Jews to survive in exile they need a connection to their spiritual identity that transcends their current civilization. The Torah needs to be passed on in unadulterated form, in an unbroken chain. The Jews in Egypt cannot create the Torah on their own. It must come from the Patriarchs and Matriarchs. It must be transported from the Holy Land. It must retain its sacred and transcendent quality.
In this regards, Yehuda is the victor.
Yes, we Jews will survive, indeed thrive, in exile. But, we will do so only because we hold on tight to the Tree of Life (see Proverbs 3:18).
The Torah is our guiding light and our key to survival. It cannot be diminished or compromised.
Yaakov realized that Jews cannot survive the long and bitter exiles ahead without Torah. And, for Torah to guide us, it must be pure and sacred.
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The sacred books in the Chabad library are not merely sentimental. They demonstrate – in real life as well as in symbolism – that the Torah is at the core of Judaism and, by extension, the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
So, if we are moved to care about the future of Judaism, we should do exactly what the Rebbe instructed for this sacred day. We should buy Jewish books for our home. They are the lifeline for Jewish continuity.