Ask the Rabbi
In the wake of the VTech tragedy, is there anything we can do to combat the feeling of helplessness?
By: Rabbi Backman
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: Opinion
In the wake of any tragedy, we look to do more good to combat the negative forces. A little light dispels a lot of darkness. It is up to us to find something in our lives which we can do to make a difference. Please check out www.hearts2hokies.com for some ideas.
Here is one idea; the special 'mitzvah' of ushering in Shabbat through candle lighting was very close to Prof. Librescu and his wife Marlena. As she explained, "Every Friday night, he would remind me when to light the candles to usher in the holy day of Shabbat."
When she was informed of the Chabad on Campus International Foundation's plans for a national Shabbat candle lighting campaign on hundreds of college campuses, she "was very touched."
The power of one; each one of us has the potential to make a difference in the world, to feel useful in any situation.
The Talmud tells us why did G-d create Adam as an individual and not create a whole family at once? To teach us the value of each and every life. That whoever kills a person is as if he has killed the whole world, and on the positive side, whoever saves one person, it is as if he saved the entire world. Not just because each person has the opportunity to be the beginning of a new line, like Adam, which will bring many others into the world, but also because each one of us has the potential to make a difference in the world to make it a better place for all.
Each one of us, no matter who we are, has the ability to effect change for all of us. One person can do incredible things when they set their mind to it. We sometimes overlook our abilities and our potential, we convince ourselves that we really don't make a difference and perhaps can't make a difference. In case you doubted the power of one, just look at how one person affected us all this horrible day.
Rabbi Eli Backman can be reached at chabad@umd.edu or themitzpeh@gmail.com
Here is one idea; the special 'mitzvah' of ushering in Shabbat through candle lighting was very close to Prof. Librescu and his wife Marlena. As she explained, "Every Friday night, he would remind me when to light the candles to usher in the holy day of Shabbat."
When she was informed of the Chabad on Campus International Foundation's plans for a national Shabbat candle lighting campaign on hundreds of college campuses, she "was very touched."
The power of one; each one of us has the potential to make a difference in the world, to feel useful in any situation.
The Talmud tells us why did G-d create Adam as an individual and not create a whole family at once? To teach us the value of each and every life. That whoever kills a person is as if he has killed the whole world, and on the positive side, whoever saves one person, it is as if he saved the entire world. Not just because each person has the opportunity to be the beginning of a new line, like Adam, which will bring many others into the world, but also because each one of us has the potential to make a difference in the world to make it a better place for all.
Each one of us, no matter who we are, has the ability to effect change for all of us. One person can do incredible things when they set their mind to it. We sometimes overlook our abilities and our potential, we convince ourselves that we really don't make a difference and perhaps can't make a difference. In case you doubted the power of one, just look at how one person affected us all this horrible day.
Rabbi Eli Backman can be reached at chabad@umd.edu or themitzpeh@gmail.com
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