By the Grace of G-d
Dear Friend, Today I would like to ask you for your help. What characteristic do you think is unique about Thai society? Is there something specific that you have noticed about life in Thailand that is different to life in other places in the world? Here is why I am asking. During the course of the Simchat Torah, I was studying the talks of the Lubavitcher Rebbe from the Simchat Torah celebrations of fifty years ago. The theme was a basic one. It was based on the declaration of the Rebbe’s father-in-law and predecessor as he arrived on American shores in early 1940 that: ‘America is no different’. The leadership of the Jewish community in the USA at the time, had wanted to protect the Rebbe from disillusionment. They wanted him to understand that the landscape in America vis a vis religious observance was vastly different than that of the ‘alteh heim’ back in Eastern Europe. They hoped to influence the Rebbe to relax and adapt his religious ambitions to the reality of a religiously ‘laid back’ and ever increasingly secular American Jewish community. It was in response to this notion that the Rebbe passionately and valiantly declared ‘America is no different’ The Rebbe insisted that the same Torah and mitzvahs that flourished till the Holocaust in Europe, was relevant and applicable in the free country of America. It would be hard work and take years of perseverance, but it could be done. The Rebbe immediately embarked on the mission of achieving his goals to transform America to a place of Torah and Mitzvahs. Many Jewish immigrants were trying to melt into the melting pot of the American dream. The Rebbe, on the other hand, was influencing young men and women to take up the mantle of leadership and spearhead the growth of Judaism in America. (I know about this personally as my maternal grandfather Rabbi Abraham Hecht dedicated his life from the 1940’s onwards to realizing this mission). In his Simchas Torah address in 1969 the Rebbe added a dimension that was a gamechanger. In some ways, America IS DIFFERENT!!!! Those differences need to be highlighted and utilized. We ought to harness those very differences to enhance our Torah and Mitzvot observance. For example. One of those uniquely American characteristics is ‘publicity’. It is time to employ the American fixation on publicity for the service of G-d, said the Rebbe. And, continued the Rebbe, so it is in every locale. There are unique qualities and flavors in every country and culture. Unequivocally, Torah and Mitzvahs be scrupulously observed in each locale. No geographical location is ‘different’ and excluded from the Torah’s instructions on how a Jew is to live life. Yet, there are certainly uniqueness’s and differences inherent in each varied place. Those differences should be employed in the fulfillment of Hashems mission. I would like to apply this thinking to Thailand. Thailand is no different. The same Torah and Mitzvahs that are incumbent upon Jewish people living in Israel, America and any other major Jewish community, are obligatory to Jewish living in Thailand. This is the primary mission that Nechama and I have been entrusted with. To ensure that in Thailand the Torah and Mitzvahs are fulfilled just like in any other Jewish locale. Baruch Hashem, we have made some progress. There is still so so so much more to do, and we are raring to go and do it. Yet thank G-d in many ways it is now more possible than ever to observe Torah and Mitzvahs in Thailand. (The recent opening of the JCafe & Kosher Shoppe is a giant leap in enabling keeping kosher in Thailand). Now, we would like to begin to fulfil the next step of the Rebbe’s mission. We would like to identify the special and unique aspects of Thailand. And use those very DIFFERENCES in enhancing the observance of Torah and Mitzvot in Thailand. I would like to ask for your help. To identify those uniquely Thai things that can be harnessed in the enhancement of keeping the Torah and Mitzvahs. What in your opinion is a characteristic unique to Thailand, its people or its culture? Please respond if you can to [email protected] with a few words about how you think the uniqueness of Thailand can enhance our connection to Hashem. Thank you in advance for your valuable opinion. With blessings for a Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Yosef Kantor PS I can’t resist pointing out that the ubiquitous ‘tinglish’ (Thai/English) phrase ‘same same but different’ seems to sum up the above article 😊
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