Chutzpah In My Classroom

A Torah Anytime original series. I was once [music] giving a class to a big group of college kids talking about the responsibility every Jew has [music] to elevate the world. And right in the middle, no filter, no embarrassment. One kid, he just blurts out, "Yeah, but what do religious Jews who [music] just learn all day actually do for the world? What good are they?" The room froze and you [music] could feel the air tighten. And everyone was waiting for the explosion. But I looked at him calmly and I said, "You want to know what they do for the world? I'll tell you." When that Jew walks down [music] the street, when people see him, they're not just seeing a man. They're seeing God's presence walking in human form. They see him. They see God. He is a moving billboard advertising heaven. When people see that Jew walking down the street, they see morality. They see ethics. They see someone who stands for family and marriage and loyalty and holiness and discipline and humility and kindness. They are seeing self-control in a world of impulse. [music] They're seeing commitment in a world that quits. They're seeing purity in a world that mocks it. They're seeing responsibility in a culture that runs from it. They're seeing depth in a generation drowning in shallowess. They're seeing spiritual fire while everyone else chases noise. They see a man with a backbone, someone who won't sell out. They see a man with courage to stand tall and stand apart. They [music] see a man with hope. They see a man who has consistency when the world is in chaos. They're seeing humility. They see a man who bends to God and not to trends. They see a man with principles and not preferences. They're seeing a man with values that don't go on sale. They see a soul awake and not someone sleepwalking. When they see a religious Jew who just learns all day, they are seeing living proof that holiness, something they claim is extinct, is still very much alive and [music] well. That's what that learning Jew brings to the world. And I take a long look at that of those [music] college kids and I say that Jew walking down the street does more in 15 minutes than most people will do in their [music] entire lifetimes. And with that, I went on with the class. You see that mentality is not [music] arrogance. That's not superiority. That's the mindset of a person who remembers who they are. It's [music] a mindset of a person whose soul is plugged into eternity. Whose life is rooted entire and admission and in purpose. That's why the word world looks to the Jews for moral clarity. That's why we [music] get more attention and more scrutiny and more headlines than any other group of people on earth. That's why the 8 billion people of this world watch us and question us and analyze us because deep down the world knows [music] we are the moral compass. We are the guardians of Hashem's message. We are the ones carrying the light that won't ever [music] go out. We're not just another nation. We're Hashem's spotlight. We're his signal flare to humanity. We're his marketing team that markets truth. [music] And once a Jew understands that, once you realize the world is watching you because you matter, that's not pressure. That's pride. That's fire. That's your identity. It's our job [music] to stand tall and walk proud and show the world exactly who you represent.