Question: What could the Jewish people have done to avoid the Holocaust? The Nazis expressly treated people like cattle, forcing them into boxcars and driving them into such a state where it was hard for a person to preserve human dignity.

Answer: The nation of Israel was obliged to pass the method of correction to the world, to stand at the head of the entire world and become a light to the nations.

We had to show to everyone the example of unity that humanity is destined to reach in order for all of the people, from young to old, to reveal the Creator. As it is written, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

But if we don’t fulfill our mission, then we contribute to the rise of the forces of evil in the world. Therefore, it is possible to say that, precisely because of the Jews, the Nazis were able to come to power—thanks to our inaction.

The Nazis persecuted Jewish people specifically because, if we allow to the evil force to rule, it above all rules over us. The entire fight of the forces of evil is directed exactly against the people of Israel, not against other nations, as the main war was ideological.

The ideologists of fascism especially studied Judaism and sensed that they needed to destroy the force of spiritual power that exists in the people of Israel. In this way, they were hoping to take this power into their own hands, instead of ours.

The method of connection (the wisdom of Kabbalah, the authentic teaching of the people of Israel) hasn’t opened up and hadn’t begun operating in humanity, who required it so much. Therefore, another force rose instead of it, the force of the Nazis that was destroying everything by separating humanity, driving it to the different corners of the world and distancing it from unity.

In fact, the Nazis allegedly stated, “If you are unable to unite all the nations of the world in the mutual bestowal to each other, then we will unite everybody by the Nazi methodology.” After all, the word “fascism” comes from “fascio” (union), “bundle, assemble from many stems.” In other words, the union, either good or evil, will be achieved in any case.

The Jews have the method of good union through the upper force in which we reach universal equality and freedom of expression. The wisdom of Kabbalah teaches us how to come to this.

However, if we can’t and don’t want to do this, as there are many opponents of this method amongst the people of Israel, by this we give freedom of action to the Nazi, fascist forces. This is what happened eighty years ago, and there is a great danger of a repetition of the Holocaust.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 4/28/16

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Independence Day: How To Be Independent

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Baal HaSulam honored Israel Independence day very much. He even had a special Shabbat silver knife with the writing “State of Israel” on it. He valued this day enormously. And indeed, Independence Day is a special day because it contains a root of the general correction of the world, of the soul of Adam HaRishon, which begins nowadays. We are inside this drop of semen that begins to develop and realize itself. Therefore this day is so special for us.

Let’s hope that from the birthday of the State of Israel we will come to the day of its real independence. That means we unite so that our connection will spread to the whole world and will oblige all other nations to be in the deep mutual connection as well. And then the entire world will reach independence.

The independence of Israel is a sign and beginning of the independence of the whole world. I hope that we will be worthy of our mission.

We celebrate not an independence day of some country but a beginning of the independence of the entire world from its egoistic nature. The Creator deliberately instilled egoism in us so that we could rise above it and, on top of it, build the image of man, Adam, similar to the Creator.

Therefore while building love for friends we must not forget that we are doing it in the name of the Creator. After all, through the love for friends we build our spiritual vessel. If we succeed to connect shattered parts together, by this we will create a place for the revelation of the Creator.

The Independence Day symbolizes a priceless gift from the Creator to humanity. After all, everything created by the Creator besides this day is produced by spreading of shattered desires from above downwards. Abraham, forefathers, the First and Second Temples that were destroyed, all of it was just a preparation.

The destruction followed by destruction until we reached the last, the longest exile. And finally this exile is over and now begins an ascent that starts precisely from the Independence Day. This is the very first date that was established by ourselves, what is called “from below upwards,” starting point of the correction.

Before that we were all the time just preparing for it by descending from above downwards. And Independence Day symbolizes beginning of the ascent from below upwards and this is why it is such a special day and Baal HaSulam was so happy about it. This is not an ordinary Zionism but a joy about correction of the entire world system.

So let’s wish ourselves not to stop in the middle of the way upwards and finish this ascent at the highest point.
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From a talk during a festive meal 5/11/2016

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Question: What is the strength of the human spirit and where does it come from? Why in the most difficult times of the Holocaust, exactly when people were on the brink of survival, they showed the highest spirit and retained human dignity?

The Nazis tried to lower people to the level of animals, but even in the concentration camps and ghettos Jews managed to keep their spirit and a sense of mutual aid, organized education and theater groups, and did anything that allowed them to feel human and to rise above their state.

Answer: This is a known psychological phenomenon. When a person doesn’t feel any possibility of changing what is happening, he is forced to agree with the powerful and ruthless force that squeezes him in a very hard vise. And then he can only bow and accept everything as it is. But inside this lowliness awakens the point of truth, the human spirit.

Sending us such difficulties, the Creator, at the same time, supports our inner spirit. And therefore we see that even while submitting to the pressure of this enormous force, man in the depth of his soul feels that this is his destiny, the upper force. This blow falls upon him from above and he has to bow and tries to survive preserving human appearance as much as possible.

Therefore, during the Holocaust we saw such examples of courage and overcoming. However, it is indicative that people just resigned, accepted what was occurring, and simply waited for this blow to pass.

This is similar to what happened to Rabbi Akiva who was sailing on the ship and encountered a violent storm. The ship split and sank, but Rabbi Akiva managed to survive, the only one from the entire ship.

When he was asked later how he managed to stay afloat, he explained that he grasped a log and every time a big wave surged, he bent his head. This way these waves instead of drowning him carried him to the shore.

It turns out that in the state when, in our world, an evil force that was given permission to destroy us is already evident, it is too late to fight it. After all, we already lost this war if we permitted the evil force to appear. By our behavior in relations with each other we allowed the Nazis to rise, come to power, and begin to rule over all the nations in Europe.

And by lowering our heads, we allow this force to pass over us, and we can reach the promised shore.

The thing is that Jews could have prevented the Nazis from coming to power if they had listened to the appeals of Baal HaSulam and other Kabbalists and had commenced the correction of the world. But we didn’t do it and led a normal life in the exile. The great Kabbalist Ari in the 16^th century urged starting the correction of the world. In his time, the period of exile had already ended and the period of redemption had begun.

If we don’t move together with the forces of redemption that have started to act in the world and we stay in exile as before, not wanting and even opposing the redemption, then we invite upon ourselves a reaction of very evil and dangerous forces of destruction. In this case they are revealed in the world and act against the people of Israel.
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From KabTV’s “A New Life” 4/28/16

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New Life #651 – When It Is Bad In The World, It Is Bad For Israel
Dr. Michael Laitman in conversation with Oren Levi and Nitzah Mazoz

Why does hatred toward the Jews increase when something bad happens in the world? What don’t the wise people in the world understand, and what crucial force of bestowal do the Jews have?

Summary

We can see that when everything is fine in the world and things are going well, Israel is left in peace. This was the situation in the restoration years after WWII. But since the 1960’s existential questions arose. For the first time people have felt that a home and a job were not enough and they began to look for a meaning in life. They began to feel that there should be a revolution, but it wasn’t really clear what type of revolution.

The internal reason for that is that the world is advancing toward a state of perfect mutual connection between people. We can see that throughout history when things are going well for the world, it is good for Israel, but when the world feels lost, it is bad for Israel.

Today, there are those who say that Israel is the operating force behind ISIS and behind the terror attacks in Paris. “The Jews have the money and they create crises, wars, and acts of terror wherever they find it necessary.”

This says that the nation of Israel is responsible for everything that happens in the world for better or for worse and that everything depends on the connection between people. The hatred toward us will not cease unless we connect as one man in one heart, according to “love thy friend as thyself.”
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From KabTV’s “New Life #651 – When It Is Bad In The World, It Is Bad For Israel,” 11/17/15

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Comment: During his interrogation, Mohammed Abrini, one of the three suspects in the terrorist activity in Brussels, stated that one of the targets of the terrorist operation was planned to be on the counter of the El-Al airline, meaning that the intent was to harm Israeli citizens.

Even before then, the Israeli Minister of Intelligence had expressed suspicion that a terrorist attack was being planned against Israeli citizens, but nobody believed him. In retrospect, it is probable that the terrorists were forced to change their plans when they discovered that there were no potential victims near the counter.

Following this statement, it is logical that they would blame the Jews because they tried to harm us, but when we weren’t there, they harmed others. This would mean that the Israelis were to blame.

My Comment: The terrorists’ implication is that: “Through its policies, Israel arouses terrorism. As a result, other people are killed. Therefore we are asking the Europeans to pressure Israel to withdraw from foreign soil. Then the terrorism will stop.”

This policy is working wonderfully, especially since it corresponds to the desires of the Europeans. They don’t want to see the Jewish people exist, especially the Jewish nation. Soon we will see how they will go out against Israel in partnership, hand in hand.

The reason for this is that internally in the nations of the world hatred exists toward the Jews for not carrying out their historical role, and I can understand them.

The Jews must unite and bring the world the world the method of unification through the example that they give to the nations of the world. If the Jews don’t carry out their mission, then the world doesn’t need them and will want to annihilate them. Conversely, if the Jews were to do this, the world would carry them on their shoulders with pleasure and make them into their teachers. This is what the world subconsciously wants.

Everything is in our hands. We have no reason to blame the terrorists or other people. All of those who are currently against Israel are right since Israel has not corrected itself and is not carrying out its role.

Let’s hope that the people of Israel will still understand their historical mission, get smart, begin to unite, and show the whole world an example of unity, which the world needs so much.
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From KabTV’s “News with Michael Laitman” 4/14/16

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New Life #650 – The Relations Between Israel And The Nations Of The World
Dr. Michael Laitman in conversation with Oren Levi and Tal Mandelbaum ben Moshe

What is our nation founded on and to what extent does the attitude of every person in Israel to his surroundings affect the whole world, and why do we all have to do our best to reveal the positive force that connects us?

Summary

The wisdom of Kabbalah tells us about the general system of reality, about the still, vegetative, and speaking levels, a system in which all its parts are connected. Humanity has evolved to a level in which it can manage the whole system and reach the level of the Creator. The first step toward that was done by Adam, a man who lived 5,776 years ago who was the first Kabbalist.

Hatred broke out in ancient Babylon. Abraham our patriarch taught people to connect and to manage reality. There were those who joined Abraham and there were those who opposed him. Eventually he left and moved with his people to Canaan. Abraham’s group developed and grew in the connection between them, and then disputes broke out between them and they fell to unfounded hatred. The hate between us brings about hate throughout the world, which means that the development of the nations of the world depends on the relations between us.

There are two paths we can follow toward the same predetermined goal: the path of suffering or the path of the Light.

The quality of the connection between us determines the quality of the relations between all the people and the nations of the world.

We are naturally managed by the evil inclination, the force of the ego, the negative force, and the connection adds the positive force. Every Jew is measured by his attitude to other Jews. It makes no difference whether one is on the right or on the left side of the political map, we are all one family. If we are aware of the relations between us, we will bring peace to the whole world and will all ascend to the next dimension.

We are facing a new level of consciousness called the soul, the human level, the level of perfection and eternity. Hatred between the right and the left sides of the political map has been around for years, but we will not be able to connect without the positive upper force. The positive force will connect us, raise us above the gaps between us, and show us that the differences between us are natural.

We all know that a system needs to be built from different parts that operate in harmony.
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From KabTV’s “New Life #650 – The Relations Between Israel And The Nations Of The World,” 11/12/15

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Comment: A group of scientists from Tel Aviv University examined the correspondence of the garrison force at the 600 BC Tel Arad fortress and concluded that the Bible was written several centuries earlier than has been believed until now.

As we all know, the Torah was written after the return from the exile in Babylon because there were not enough educated Jews who could write it. Now following this discovery scientists are re-examining when the Bible was written.

Answer: The first book about the wisdom of Kabbalah was written by Adam about 5,770 years ago. During the time between Adam and Abraham, there were several other writings by different Kabbalists. Abraham, as Rambam claims, wrote many Kabbalaistic books, but only one remained until our days, The Book of Creation. Abraham, who lived in ancient Babylon 3,500 years ago, gathered a group of people who became the nation of Israel with time. All the members of the group had to learn how to read and write. They spoke Hebrew because Hebrew and Aramaic were the languages spoken in ancient Babylon.

Abraham’s group was founded in order to attain the upper world in the connection between people. On this basis, they naturally understood the origin of the letters, the roots of the words, and felt the language of the branches, the upper attributes of the world, which have no names, called roots, and are named by their consequences in our world, which are called the branches.

Many books were written in the time between Abraham and Moses because all the Jews were highly educated from Abraham’s time onward. Since the exile in Egypt onward, the Jews left Egypt on a totally different level of consciousness and attainment because during their life in slavery they got to know their work in the ego. During the 40 years of wandering in the desert they began to write the Torah for all the nations.

It says that Moses taught his students along with his assistant Joshua. Moreover he taught all the people because the Levites engaged in the general education and teaching of the nation.

Question: How long did the writing of the Torah (Pentateuch) take?

Answer: The Torah was gradually created during the 40 years of wandering in the desert. Everything the nation of Israel underwent in practice took place internally in their spiritual roots, and they expressed this in the book called Moses’ Torah.

When they lived in the land of Israel after the building of the First Temple and then after the building of the Second Temple, they wrote all the other books including the “Prophets” (Naviim), the “Holy Scriptures” (Ketuvim), and the Mishna.

From the time the two temples were destroyed and before they were exiled, the Talmud was written, and all the other books were written while they were in exile.

The Torah says that there wasn’t a child from Dan to Beer Sheba who didn’t know the Jewish laws and who didn’t know how to read and write. They knew most of the books by heart because that was the ancient method of studying; students had to learn by heart what the teacher taught them.

Question: This means that there was never a break in literacy.

Answer: Since the time of Adam, in those circles where Kabbalists lived, there was almost universal literacy. Abraham eradicated illiteracy among the ancient Babylonians who joined him.
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From KabTV’s “News with Michael Laitman” 4/14/16

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New Life 553 – Holidays: Independence Day – The National Symbols
Dr. Michael Laitman in conversation with Oren Levi and Yael Leshed-Harel

Why is the Menorah (the seven branched candelabrum used in the Temple) the symbol of Israel? When will there be peace between us and our neighbors? And how is our independence as a nation expressed?

The seven branches of the Menorah symbolize wholeness. 7×7=49: 49 gates of impurity and on the other hand, 49 gates of purity. The wisdom of Kabbalah will help us illuminate like the Menorah. It teaches us how to build a connected egalitarian society.

The olive branches symbolize the aspiration for peace, but it will be attained only when we reach peace between us. When our relations shine like the Menorah, we will be rewarded with peace in the world as well. This will be the outcome.

The land of Zion and Jerusalem refers to the fact that we want to leave the hatred we feel and return to brotherly love, to the state of wholeness and beauty. Man’s inclination is evil from birth. A person naturally cares only about himself. We have to develop the good inclination in us.

A yearning Jewish soul refers to the fact that we were as one man in one heart in the past and we yearn for that. True independence means independence from the evil inclination, from the narrow egoism.

To be a free nation means free from the evil in us, from unfounded hatred. Even when I want to do something good, I suddenly discover that I operate only for my own sake. A person who lives in “being a free nation” sees everything in life through the point of connection.

If we connect in love, most of the problems will disappear from the world because it is the bad relations between us that are killing us. When we connect in love, the state of Israel will improve miraculously and everyone will want to follow our example.

It is customary to have barbecue parties during this holiday, so it is a good idea to include a connection workshop that will ignite a new spirit in us.
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From KabTV’s “New Life 553 Holidays: Independence Day – The National Symbols,” 4/14/15

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On the background of a wave of anti-Semitism that is growing stronger and concern about another Holocaust, there is a solution that we have not considered. During the week when we stop to remember the millions who perished in the Holocaust, let’s understand why Jews are hated in the world.
From Rav’s film in Hebrew 5/5/16

Watch Into Truth: Cracking the Jewish Riddle

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Question: Baal HaSulam wrote in his article, “The Last Generation,” Part 1: “and they will come to the Messiah, to Jerusalem, and he will teach them this Torah.” Who is he talking about and who is the Messiah that they will come to?

Answer: All the nations of the world will turn to the upper force of nature, the force of unity and love that will pull humanity out of the original sin, of the ego. This force is called Messiah, stemming from the Hebrew root “Limshoch – to pull.”

We can summon this force only when we have a desire to ascend spiritually to the level of absolute love and bestowal that is based on complete fear of fulfilling the general commandment of the Torah, “love thy friend as thyself.” This level is called complete fear, Ira Shalem, or Jerusalem. If you wish to fulfill that, you are invited to take part in our courses.
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