Sicha of the Rebbe – Parshas Behar-Bechukotai

The Rebbe says:

1. In this week’s Torah portion Hashem (G-d) commands us to take care of our brethren in need and loan them interest free money . Hashem finishes off this commandment by saying, “I am Hashem, your G-d, Who took you out of the land of Egypt…” .

Our Sages learn from this verse that, “Anyone who accepts the yoke of the commandment regarding not taking or giving interest, accepts the yoke of Heaven; and anyone who throws off the yoke of this commandment, throws off the yoke of Heaven. This is because anyone who complies with the Mitzvah (commandment) of “Ribbis” (not taking or giving interest) also admits to the fundamental principal of our exodus from Egypt; and anyone who denies the Mitzvah of Ribbis also denies our exodus from Egypt” .

In other words, there is something unique about the Mitzvah of Ribbis which has a special connection to accepting the yoke of Heaven and our exodus from Egypt more than any other Mitzvah. We must try to understand this.

Quantifying Our True Worth – The Undefeatable Jewish Spirit

“How do you figure we humans got here in the first place,” inquired a young girl of her mom. “Many years ago,” said the mother, “G-d created Adam and Eve. They had children and grandchildren and so it all began.”

A few days later the girl asked her father the same question. “That’s a truly complex question my child, let me try to explain: Hmmm. . . Where do I begin? Well, to make it simple, many years ago there were monkeys, the monkeys gradually evolved into humans. . .”

Confused, the child determinedly returned to her mother: “Dad says that humans came from monkeys, how come you told me they were created by G-d?”