Chabad of Pierce County: A Unique Jewish Organization

TACOMA, WA — Reading Brent Emery’s On Faith column in November 2009, “Learning to pray from a Jewish perspective,” and the recent first anniversary of the terror attacks in Mumbai, where the murders of the young Rabbi and his wife, Gabbi, and Rivki Holtzberg occurred, motivated me to introduce Chabad, an organization probably little known to Gateway readers.

Some Jews, like myself — having been fairly involved in Judaism during their youth, mostly during the years preparing for their Bar- or Bat-Mitzvah — fall away from their commitment over the decades. Deciding to re-discover my faith, I looked up Chabad of Pierce County.

Located just a couple minutes from the east end of the Narrows bridge, Rabbi Zalman Heber’s Pierce County Chabad offers a hospitable atmosphere to all Jewish people (together with any significant others, by the way; my wife is Catholic) in the area; to include returning neophytes like myself.

The program offers personal instruction, Torah studies (the Old Testament), social groups, holiday celebrations and meals. The Rabbi and his wife, Miriam, also hold public functions, like December’s first Uptown Gig Harbor Chanukah Menorah lighting, which was kicked off by Gig Harbor City Council member Derek Young.

The core of Jewish cohesion — Sabbath services — takes place on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings. The Saturday morning service concludes with a wonderful kosher meal prepared by Miriam, and it’s open to all attendees!

What does Chabad actually stand for? It’s an acronym derived from three Hebrew words: Chochmah, Binah and Da’at. They mean wisdom, comprehension and knowledge.

Chabad-Lubavitch is a Jewish movement that emanates from a branch of Orthodox Judaism (the most strictly practiced of the three levels of Jewish observance: Reformed, Conservative and Orthodox; although Pierce County Chabad neither expects nor insists on any particular level of observance) founded in Lubavitch, Russia, in the 18th Century by Rabbi Schneur Zalman, 1745-1812.

The best way I’ve been able to understand the differences between Chabad and “mainstream” Judaism is by focusing on Chabad’s concentration on more esoteric aspects of ancient Jewish philosophy. Some of you may have heard of Kabbalah (and, no, Madonna: “The Material Girl,” doesn’t belong to Pierce County Chabad, for those familiar with her claimed off-stage interests). It’s the Jewish mystical study which seeks to illuminate and divine the spiritual and supernatural connection between the creator, our soul and the physical realm in which our bodies reside.

In fact, speaking of the word “connection,” the ubiquitous Hebrew word “Mitzvah,” which you’ll hear a lot at Pierce County Chabad, means a connection to God, a commandment from God, or a good deed.

Chabad also concentrates on emphasizing the unique mission of all God’s people. The philosophy is intended to govern all of our everyday acts through the attributes of wisdom, comprehension and knowledge.

Co-existent with Chabad’s purpose of defining our everyday acts is one of Judaism’s core philosophies which recognizes that we have free will; but also, as Rabbi Zalman has explained many times during services, concurrent with free will is a higher intended purpose for all things that happen to us throughout the course of our everyday life, for this intended purpose is what defines the term divine providence.

So here’s an example of the concept: You get lost, end up spending a night unplanned somewhere, and in the course of talking with a stranger, you end up accomplishing an unintended mitzvah, somehow helping that stranger through simple conversation.

No discussion of the Chabad-Lubavitcher corner of Judaism would be complete without an introduction to Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, 1902-1994, the seventh in line and last Rebbe (spiritual leader) of Chabad. No one of his caliber has been found since, and Chabad continues to be inspired by his teachings and guidance.

Without going into the details of the Rebbe’s extensive and remarkable life, his works that involve education, the spreading of these more than 4,000 Chabad centers around the world, his extensive writings on spirituality, ethics and morality, Kabbalistic studies, charitable works and much more is truly noteworthy. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1994 for those accomplishments.

Chabad is a place to worship as it’s a “normal” synagogue, but it’s also much more. No matter if you’ve been practicing for decades, or you’ve been disassociated from the Jewish faith, the Rabbi and Miriam offer a welcoming and informal environment.

Additionally, there is a tremendous amount of information and numerous media downloads on chabadpiercecounty.com. I routinely load up my iPod with a fascinating array of audio classes that contain a broad range of related philosophy, theology and just plain old everyday wisdom.

So give Rabbi Zal or Miriam a call, or take a look at the Web site if you’re interested in checking out the intriguing organization and community! Rabbi Zalman and Miriam Heber can be reached at 253-565-8770.