What Jews Really Mean by “Belief in God”

Good morning. The the breakfast is sponsored by the visels in memory of Danny's grandfather. It should have continued the receives infinite. He should have continued from his from everywhere all over the world. happens to be also that it's also the someone who he was very close to that's the ben which is today also so I don't know this is like a perk for kohan and levian but when I go to w when beny and I my father I go to wash there's the real ba >> and rebell yeah of course huh >> ah so let's sing the reven that we always uh kimat always Oh my. Oh yeah. Let it lie. Let it. Wow. Um was not like a teddy beard like you don't really see it in cut from his uh they're not they're not uh born the same way. He lost his whole family second world war. He was born around 1908 and um he went back to his hometown which was barracks and he met my grandmother and they had a a whole another family and uh they were very very close to the river and every year he would go visit him and uh he would ask for permission to make aliyah and it was his dream. It was his dream to come here to show his dream and every year they got the nine from uh 1971 the gave him a prophet said this is the year and uh he made her buried in the um every every sus in Russia my grandfather was able to sneak a little and he made sure everybody shook that little everybody shook you come home drunk And my uncle told me that they'll be able to fill up tears, bowls of tears. You just cry like kind just cried over the over the children and um just took my baby. He built something for me here and I can build on his dreams. >> Can you That's a That's a picture of him. >> That's Wow. Wow. arrested so many times. >> Okay. the the month of sponsored by the leishmas of my uncle anonymously for Miriam and Galiahis and like we said today's the sponsorships for Danny's grandfatherindelakov and the week is sponsored by my in-laws binyamin and Barbara Selski in honor of the bach mitzvah of their granddaughter my niece and muna batanya mala hanikman so all around okay first of all a good vtor this is now we're going on the way we're packing the bags we put it all in and uh now it's it's now it's game time now it's really game plan. So I'm just uh first of all a word of thanks to everyone for really giving their all and we should be benched to be for many more years with our with our families to to bask in the light of the sadikim and the words of the and the words of our heart should continue to illuminate >> and bring us to want to be alive and to be alive as a >> um about Uh I think half a year ago I was you know I have like my my in Toronto is like one of my favorite in the world you you know many of them they've been here a few of them were here at Shaaba they're the best they become they become part of our mishbah so the last time I was there I got in late Thursday night those whole shabas and I I was so tired but when I got there they have a kabura on Thursday nights late Thursday night in uh in uh what alternated homes. So one of the where I was staying is where the kabura was that night and they pulled out a safer that had told them to start learning. I looked at this safer I not with an in with a hey it was taken into captivity. And I'm looking at this safer. I'm like, this is like every everything. It's just you'll see. You'll see. I won't have to explain too much. You'll see. It's a safer that plugs in the foundations of all the things we're speaking about in a very massidical way. And it covers every rebi and every rav that any of us have learned, but in a mass way. Pasha, I don't have any other words for it. is dvash honey and um over the summer I met I I when I was meeting with Revberg we spoke about this safer and he was teaching it on chabas afternoons up in the mountains and uh you'll see it's just I am working on getting copies when I told my brother about this he says this the mab was my >> he lived in fare I think he's somewhere in in in in the five towns area now I'm not sure and Um he's the grandson of Repliski from Denver. The his mother's the daughter, if I got it right, his mother is the daughter of Repliski, which means his uncle, his mother's brother is B. It's that family. Is that family? Um there's a fuse for me. He has this one is just pash mashu kak. I want and I want to jump right into it. I am working I'm working on getting copies. I I spoke to someone early this morning even to try to work on it and cassed I believe this is a journey. This is a beautiful wonderful wonderful journey of limudas of foundations of basics that'll uh this is like the yak of halakaro packing the bags yala how you how you getting there because really there is no other way to hold on to what what what the experiences of were unless we unless we learn unless we speak unless we learn. So, we're learning Bashem. As you see, you're all going to be enticed to start reading ahead because it's not the hardest Hebrew. What I always ask in our not to read ahead because I want us to learn each each one is going to have something to share. You'll see as we go along. It's and I want it to be in a way that everyone's in this. We're learning this together. Where do we start off with has to start with and hashem is ale is vas. It starts from there and begins his journey with faith. not only to believe in the existence of and the authenticity, the true authenticity of the holy Torah to also believe in the exalted greatness of Hashem. How great Hashem is. Now, here's the kicker. Here's the kicker. who call and together with him being so exalted, he loves every single person from Israel and is always close to him. I could prove to everyone right now that you actually believe in what he said at least. Why? Why? Because well, >> we're here. >> We're here. But I'm saying but like you know everyone the whole the whole isal it's all about the world God's great so big he's so great but then what happens in I go under my talis and it's just me and the and that contrast between Hashem is an of as he's going to explain to us starting off with is believing in two different aspects. On the one hand sounds funny, right? I have to believe Hashem is so far and on the other hand that the is so close. How does that work? What does it mean that God is so far? God is the most uh what's that right the word premortal right of all premortals. There's nothing further in our concept of time than the and no even no angel nothing can because he's above the concept of grasping. God is above all these concepts of grasping. mean he's far from the concept of being able to put God into some kind of a like a container like this is what God is. The truth is that's why in the 12step program the only time I I had this like this like trouble with with with the lush is because they refer to it as the god of >> understanding >> of our understanding. So like that's how they always refer God of my understanding. God of our understanding here he's saying >> understand >> but but a Yid always realizes like the second that I understand him the pious is is that I don't right I'm not by the way I'm the biggest supporter of I'm not trying to khal ruin our Monday nights at 7 p.m. upstairs whoever needs it and it's it's been a tremendous kdish hashm what goes on here Mondays at 7 p.m. with the program. It's changing a lot. We have a 12step program upstairs in the social hall every Monday night 7 p.m. It has transformed f full families in the kila and also people that come from outside the kil. I'm not khala d. I'm just saying that was always something that I was struggling with because here what he's saying is endakas are the god al panmas there is no such thing as the god of my understanding. There's many ways to philosophically now stretch this and take this into many areas. The point that he's making over here is the is saying God is ra God god is far far in the concept not far from me far in the concept of my ability to comprehend what this concept of is that's now what does it mean that God is that God surrounds all Lord you fill all worlds and surround all worlds and Lord without you there is no world at all like that of Karov is that God is in every single detail every single single thing is godliness. There's everywhere. That's there's no place that's void of him. That's that's what close means. I want to make sure we're all there together. Right. What is rahuk? From my concept of being able to grasp that I believe that God is intimately involved in every single thing in the world. That's the rash you see at the end. Right. That is the slaving higher than any comprehension. the highest angel. began this sounds but he's would be the first person to say this even right now of that's in as we know that says none of the can be as such a thing whatever Whatever is revealed to us every single time we have this moment of aha. So is that true or is that not true? It's >> true. >> It's true. But what is it? >> Not complete. Well, he uses a certain word and and anyone that has studied knows where this what he's referring to. What word did he say over here? >> What's the ze to learn over there? The alter goes very deep into that whatever hagas we have is carne. It's just a it's like the outer like >> array. >> Array, right? What's the exact you used? >> Glimmer. Array. >> A glimmer. Yeah. But where's it where in its source like if you go closer and try to get closer and closer to that what happens to our eyesight? Right? So it's just a glimmer. It's just a glimmer that that that that's all it is. Which many people have to realize like when we do have the aha moment, right? So what what's the problem with it? If I go to the first thing the says, what do I say about my own? Ah, it's nothing. That's not true. It's a it's a it's a revelation. It's a beautiful gift. It's a kiss. Hashem saying, "I'm gonna I'm gonna send you a little I'm going to drop you a little heart here, but please like keep on keep on keep the journey going." Like keep on going. It's but don't think you the whole thing. You know, we we meet people like this quite often. They had an they had a what's the so you know some breast livers will have the and they'll be like I have to make sure every single Jew gets to um to say the tonal on the and that's the that's the MS and that's the only MS that exists in the world right and you have this in other as well obviously in Kimat everyone in this room has done that so we we do have to this but to say that that we capped the game didn't cop the game and in a right now as just a soul hasn't capped the game which comes to show us that our minds need to be rewired when it comes to amuna amuna has nothing to do with cracking codes has nothing to do with proofs has nothing to do with saying it's almost like that are obsessed with Candy Crush. You ever realize that it's you know right and they're sucking money out of you and you're putting this in this like all these things obviously. So first we're putting the foundations down and for some now this is the this is what talked to me so much for some people they're much more bothered by the concept of raok and by others they're much more bothered by the concept of you hear what I'm saying are you don't understand by some people their struggle with being in the in the process by being part of the the game is the concept of that Hashem is so if it's so then why I'm just setting myself up for disappointment and and you know >> it's like a lack of or a lack of kind of >> kind of yeah now though but then you have those that are saying no no what they struggle with is I can't I can't deal with the concept of karov because if God is karov then what does that actually mean >> right >> I can't do anything I'm going to >> every everything is orchestrated to the most detail detailed detail >> which he'll say in a second but what does it mean about my own life >> why bother trying >> no it could have the same effect >> if I think I think if it's if God is so carov then why don't I feel it >> now another thing could be I'm not so >> right >> I'd rather it not be so carov let it be >> my web browser will able to like right you know my finger my thumbs will be feeling much better, my whole body will feel better about certain things. It's and and he's starting off by saying listen, you know, David Sax used to always say the most guardig thing. He said someone that denies the existence of God is like someone is like two and he has a conversation about it with someone is like two people that go to a restaurant and one loves his dish that he's served and one can't stand the dish that he's served. Right? So the person that doesn't like the dish that he was served, he basically says, "I can't stand this dish so much. I deny the existence of the chef." Sounds so funny, right? But that happens to us so much. Like I'm so disgusted with my dish. I mash that must mean that I I deny the existence of the chef. How did I get to there? Because I can't make sense of a god that gave me a dish that I don't like. Right? So, first of all, is is not saying good bad. We're not talking about that yet here. We're just saying like at at a table right now, you know, we're having audit this this is not maybe right now we'd say is God car maybe it's easier for us to say I feel the of but is just as easy for me to say while he's karov that he's so a hook >> bet because it's not something that sometimes it's like this and sometimes it's like that. It's constantly both. Constantly both. Always. I mean, the only time you'd probably feel like it's not is if you really tapped into his because then the concept of definitely overrides the feeling of anyone that's ever really been in the program. Anyone that has had that that daily, you know, committed relationship with knows exactly what we're talking about. Those moments are it is it's hard but ra I wouldn't say it so much at that moment but the pi theid would say 100% I still don't grasp anything but I feel the hashem so immensely powerfully in my heart okay that's so far helping us distinguishing between the two bikinas But now we have look what he says. And with all of this God, there's on every single thing in creation. who doesn't hold like this by the way >> right so the Rambam this is a famous this is a famous maklocus that seems to have a lot of ramifications we're we're holding here that you know it's not the raam or the or the balento but is saying you know not that they're not part of but you know I'm saying even even further back you know every single blade of grass the only reason why it it grows is because there's system at that moment grow big. But for now, we're talking about Do you know what that means? >> Yes. >> Like the egg of life, >> not just right. >> Right. Exactly. Like ku the detail of the detail of the detail of the detail to a flow of a certain wave that happens in the ocean. And it says like says wheat, right? That's that's placed in the in the earth. meaning the the the movement the placement of how wind the wind is going to blow towards the growth of all vegetation is also completely bash that's amuna doesn't mean that I have to understand it that's impossible we can understand it but it is like That like the says everything's through compassion and mercy. So we're very fine with like oh that's cool with nature and vegetation but what about us and that's the point of this to say I believe in God that the rain comes exactly what it needs to or to say that my mind you know that uh the birds you know whis they sing at that moment or the wheat or the barley or all those things grow and to say I'm such a because I believe that that's all then when it comes to your own dal amos doesn't need you to come down into this world to be nature runs by that's not God doesn't need us to come you know that's not that's a very boring creation you know that blueprint of creation is very boring the is exactly what you know he's going to say right now and this is the hardest thing in the We were speaking in the suka about bizos prison people go through bizos all the time to believe that that was now what would if someone came and insulted me someone hurt me someone stole from me robbed me I don't know whatever it is and then I have this concept right so where do I where do I get confused in that >> the free will aspect >> right because then what happens >> does he not have any um any respons responsibility. >> Does he not have any responsibility? Meaning that if someone came and mamish really ins like mamish insulted me, let's say insulted you. We go through this all the time. Be honest. This is the world we're in. So if I say everything's right, then what's if I don't understand that properly, what do I what do I end up becoming? >> Wait a minute. What what do I end up becoming? a >> and doesn't want me to become a that's not the point. So the plug in here is to try to figure out so what does this mean that everything that you're doing is with me as well when it comes to when it comes to it's a separate thing but when it comes to that's where the that's where it gets very very testy. Isn't that where isn't that why he's meaning those we don't understand? We try to figure out where the where the is and all the bad things. >> It's an illusion because when Hashem is good to me, does that mean he's Karov? >> It feels >> it feels but it's an illusion. That can't be the determining that factor between and >> some would say that when when you are exactly >> a brass liver would say when I'm >> right when you when you're actually being insulted that's when he's more curved because it gives you the opportunity to No, the way what's happened to you is the carov and the way you relate to the other person >> is ra some people understand I told you the story when they were throwing right >> I remember that story when they were throwing they were throwing those things at me on stage and such a it was like I'm not >> nali tackled the stage cuz some some drunk kids came and charged me mom is oh I was playing he came and charged them off the stage So it was it was wild. But >> I told you that there was one yid >> that was waiting when he saw this happen, one of the technicians. So he came running after me after I left off stage and he put his head down right away asking for a >> baramacha calling. >> When did that download? >> 5 minutes ago. >> Oh yeah, >> I was waiting for the right moment. That was the right of the perfected moment. Perfect. Perfect moment. But why is the difference between you said that's a different thing >> meaning it's it's it's we relate to it differently because if it's I say I believe this is for my best it doesn't make me into a when it's someone else right and I just walk around as then and I and I'm kind of in this place of I'm not going to tell him anything because this was then another person's going to come and dump is all on me. I'll be muzza muza muza. At the end of the day, >> you see with God, I don't have anything I could actually do with another person. There's something I could actually do about it, right? There's all these different things we could do we could say about it. >> Yeah, >> it I don't know. Maybe it's possible if the person is holding and something happens to them and then they're just like they're feeling that it's from Hashem even they don't understand it and they're doing like of maybe what they could have done to you know and how they're going to improve themselves. Maybe maybe it could make them >> could be ideal that that that's a beautiful healthy way to deal with it. Of course >> that's a beautiful healthy way to deal with it. You know writes in I think it's what does he say then like that that comes after is you really have to believe at that moment that that's a moment of like okay I know this looks like I'm going to invite me right now because I can't get through this any other way. I can't get through I can't get through this any other way. >> What to but to what Zeb said that like if a person goes ahead and he's are you going to then go ahead the following day and give him a big hug with that you were saying before because you're still going to come and give by whatever coming to or whatever it may be. So that that's that's the difference was saying that you could do something about that but you cannot do can't do something about that. So the question then becomes that person who's are you going to still have a relationship with that with that individual sometimes sometimes it's like okay my so if person asks for forgiveness you you forgive them it doesn't mean you have to invite them to your shabas table the next week doesn't you know that's not necessarily the healthiest thing either yeah Ellie >> so the verse was on his yacht that's >> right >> he able to beloved Switzerland on this world in the biggest way. >> I know but I just want to say I beta didn't mention his name now because those stories about him messed me up so much >> because the spitting of the face because >> I felt so low after hearing those stories about like people spitting in his face and biz >> yeah all these things like >> I I want to bring it down to a place that I could actually do something with it. We know we have sadikim that lived like this. Of course, >> isn't that an implied version of everything we're learning >> to the It's an implied version in the most ideal state, but I wanted to dapka be in a on a level that we could walk out of here and feel like that we have a chance, you know, that that that's why that's why it's the only reason why I I I'm I'm nervous to da go to the sadikim about them because I don't know like if someone spat in my face and then I remember the story you know would I be so you know >> so I was you and saying I was about to say Reb Schlommo lived like this Schlommo lived he actually did live like this Schlommo lived like this people cursed at him spat at him mish they did and >> he loved him back >> only when he saw if someone if if they did it to someone else then he would say something but on himself he never did >> or with the Jews who >> that was about >> that wasn't about him yeah it wasn't about him okay one more paragraph okay so I'm just going to end the second paragraph I just want to say I have friends who were walking with him in walked to the hotel with him and and mameish haish would spat him and cursed him. They one time didn't even let him get close to the kotto tishov the whole story. Remember the story tishov they didn't even let him get close to the kotto. They were spitting at him and screaming at him and they bet they they he couldn't get he couldn't get there the previous heard about this and a few hours later there's you know I don't know how it works today if they let the rebas in on tish of with the car it wasn't as big as it was as it is today it' probably be impossible but back then so they did and they see the option is coming out of the taxi and Schlommo was coming out of the taxi with him and uh he went up to the hotel and the rabbi said to him, "Now's a good time for you." No. And he wrote the he wrote that that beautiful not the one that you guys know the one that's less known because the truth is when you are able to bring down at a moment that seems totally all sh instantly that that that is true but that's a very very high level when someone insults you when someone's and to then do that and I don't want to set people up for for disappointment. I want to work with on a level of a way that we could do something with it. Let's finish this paragraph. God doesn't ignore anybody. This is a basic tenant of faith. does not ignore and doesn't hide himself to the point of not being able to be found on any level to anybody. You know what's the most thing in the world on the level of how much >> how much he loves us. Now a a a burning id is saying why why is that the thing that's the that I want to be the least thing that's that's that's not we need that more than anything I need I need to feel that more than anything that you love me and that that thing he says come and he explains look what the look says You know what? Roaring. What's like a lion says, "No one can even fathom the love. All worlds above and below, all continents, the whole world, all beauty of the world, everything that exists in the world was created for. And if Brazil clips this and puts this viral, we will get more hate than we've ever gotten. This was all created for his kinder for everything. Everything, you ever been anyone here ever been to Cape Town? Cape Town. >> Cape Town is one of the most gorgeous places you'll ever see. When I went there, so I I m that I was shocked at. I never saw such beauty before, physical beauty in my life. And I was walking with the rough there who was a talid also of my rashiva rander and he said to me, you remember the remember what the r used to say? He's like, you know, when Mureno was leaving Mits really, God told him take a right, but he heard take a left. >> Yeah, because basically it's it's it's a stupid it's not a stupid joke. It's just a funny whatever. You had to be there. You have to see it. All that beauty that beauty that's like this he said he said that real beauty is is that when you see something beautiful right away when you're in love with someone or something it makes you think of that thing. So anything beautiful that you see in the world if you really are holding in love with your wife what do you see at that moment? You see your wife. So all the beauty that exists in the world when Hashem sees it what does he think of? He thinks of us. These are things that are right. This is what the Israel is. for them. All the goodness of the world was created for them. They are the and the root of all creation. These are this falls under the category of amuna. If someone says to you, do you believe in Hashem? So usually we think that means do I believe God exists? That's not the Jewish question and answer. When someone asks you from a Yiddisha perspective, do you believe in God? What are they really asking based on this? >> God is involved in everything. >> A is do you believe that God is involved with every single thing in the world? >> B do you believe that all beauty in the world was created just for you kind? That's what it mean. That's the question. Do you believe in God in a Jewish way in a non-Jewish way? It's more do you believe in the power of a creator or do you believe God created the heavens and the earth? That's not This is what I wanted to get really end with. That's not our way of understanding amuna. Amuna isn't does God exist or not exist. It's like a it's so cheap. A yiddish way means do you believe in God? At least for now. It means a few other things we'll see in a second also. It means do you actually believe that God is a impossible to fathom but on the same instant involved intimately in every detail of your life? And B do you believe that whatever you think love is God's love for you starts from the place that you can't even imagine could be could be real that you can't even imagine could be real. These are the this is these are principles of faith that we that we're plugging back into. We're going to stop here. This safher will continue basm next Monday and let me just explain Wednesday we're starting a new safer as well which I'm very very excited about and I want to see if we could do both of them parallel and that is the safer aya from Sasson which is a another one of these uh a gift to our generation that we could finally begin to understand what RVuk was talking about. Um that's that's another journey. We'll start that on Wednesday. And I'm working on those. We already have half of those far in stock and I'm ordering now uh more. So we should have and you going to do a zim now. Yeah. Do a zim. Okay.