In Torah, a woman has every obligation of a man, and a man every obligation of a woman. Torah doesn't recognize man and woman as separate beings. They are one single whole, whether they are cognizant of one another or not. Each act is performed once through a single body. A body that in our world may appear as two, is seen by the Torah as one.

(This is actually a statement by Rabbi Isaac Luria, the great master of Kabbala. He explains that the man and woman are a single body--which is how they are considered in Halacha - Jewish law. So, for example, a woman also puts on Tefillin--only that she puts them on with her male body. If everything is working right, that should be her husband.)

If you think about it a lot, you might. The Baal Shem Tov taught that the way G-d treats each person is a reflection of that person's relationship with G-d. So if someone relates to G-d as the Big Ogre in the Sky that's out to get him, he could well end up with a self-fulfilling prophecy.

How about a friendly partnership as an alternative? Or maybe even some intimate communion?

Do you have a body? Did you say yes? So now tell me: Who is this "me" that has this body? Couldn't be the body--you can't say that the body has a body. So this is what we call the soul. More comprehensively, we are each the composite of a soul and a body. Explains why we're all so confused, right?

Each morning, we say in our prayers, "My G-d, the soul you gave me is pure." No matter what you do with your life, your soul remains pure. Even at the time you commit the worst crime, your soul screams inside like a captive woman, remaining faithful to her Beloved Above.

And now you want to take away from her that last opportunity to scream out loud for help?

You're born into this world and your time is limited. While here, the major decision you'll make is "Who's in charge?"

You can decide that the world is in charge. It sets the rules, and it's big and scary. You'll try to get as much as you can out of it without getting burnt too badly. But unfortunately, you'll have to work on Shabbat--that's one of the rules.

Or you can decide that you're in charge. Who knows, you may win. But there's going to be some stiff competition--a few billion people out there think the same thing.

The third alternative is to decide that the One Who Made This Place is in charge. You're just here as His rep. He says, 'I left some of this world for you to fix up. Give it a try and do your best. I'll be there to help you."

Now, this Big and Awesome G-d you're working for isn't planning to make things easy. You can bet on it that He'll throw a few mighty challenges along your path. How else is He going to get you to put your all into it?

But you can also rest assured that He's on your side every step along the way. And He's in charge. One hundred percent.

	Send to a friend
	To: (e.g. yourfriend@yahoo.com)
	Your Email:
	Your Name: