8:00pm: Abandoning Mitzvos in the Name of Therapy; Is this World Good or Bad? Rabbi’s Inappropriate Behavior; World to Come for Women

This week’s edition of MyLife: Chassidus Applied with Rabbi Simon Jacobson, Episode 75, will air tonight, Sunday, here on CrownHeights.info, beginning at 8:00pm. This week Rabbi Jacobson will address the topics: Abandoning Mitzvot in the Name of Therapy; Is this World Good or Bad? Rabbi’s Inappropriate Behavior; World to Come for Women.

Workplace tensions can be quite challenging. The difficulty is only compounded when working for a Rabbi. “How should I deal with my Rabbi boss who always unfairly criticizes for nonsense and responds with anger? I learned in Hayom Yom that we should embrace rebuke, but is this true in every situation? Can you provide some sources from the Rebbe about a Rabbi working under another Rabbi?”

What kind of world-to come and yeshiva shel maala is there for women? What does Gan Eden look like for them? We imagine tzadikim sitting and learning. Where are the women? Are there male and female neshamos?

“I grew up in an observant but abusive environment. I am finally getting professional help.  I feel that daily mitzvos and Jewish guilt stand in the way of my growth. When I “frei out” and don’t feel the pressure of performing each mitzvah I feel more calm and light. Is this ok for the healing process?”

“I’ve read numerous psychology books over time and taken a deeper interest in the subconscious mind. I’ve recently come across the New Thought Movement. It seems that a lot of the ideas are based on Chassidus and specifically the idea of tracht gut vet zein gut creating a good outcome in reality, as explained by the Rebbe. The ideas from the New Thought Movement promote the concept that the Infinite Intelligence, or G-D, is everywhere, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and “right thinking” has a healing effect. Can you guide me whether I should/can read books about it being a frum Yid.”

Rabbi Jacobson will also review the following essays submitted in the MyLife: Chassidus Applied contest: “Staying On-Track” by Chaim Shneur Zalman Halperin, “Responding to Suffering” by Osher Gutnick, “Getting Through Grief by Choosing Joy” by Yael Hanover. These essays and others can be read online at http://meaningfullife.org/mylife/contest/.

This week we are proud to launch a new feature – the Chassidus question of the week: I am confused by a seeming contradiction in Chassidus about dirah bitachtonim: In some places it appears that transforming this inherently dark world into a divine home is a new innovation – a chiddush yesh m’ayin (see Tiku Samech Zayin. Shemos beis in Likkutei Sichos vol. 6). In other places we learn that the world is fundamentally a good place (a garden), and all that is needed is to reveal its inherent good (see the sicha of Yud Shevat Lamed Beis. The Yud Shevat sicha in Likkutei Sichos vol. 6). How do you reconcile these two approaches?

This hour-long dose of insights is meant to inform, inspire and empower us by applying the teachings of Chassidus to help us face practical and emotional challenges and difficulties in our personal lives and relationships. To have your question addressed, please submit it atwww.meaningfullife.com/mylife.

The topics in this Sunday’s hour-long broadcast will include:

• Applied Chassidus to Matos-Massei and the Nine Days
• Rabbi’s questionable behavior
• Challenges in working for a Rabbi
• Abandoning mitzvos in the name of therapy?
• Dirah Bitachtonim: creation or revelation?
• What type of world to come is there for women?
• The “New Thought” movement
• MyLife Essays: Staying On-Track; Responding to Suffering; Getting Through Grief by Choosing Joy

MyLife: Chassidus Applied addresses questions that many people are afraid to ask and others are afraid to answer. When asked about the sensitive topics he has been addressing, Rabbi Simon Jacobson commented, “I understand that the stakes are high, but the silence and lack of clarity on matters plaguing the community can no longer go unaddressed. The stakes of not providing answers are even higher.”

The on-going series has provoked a significant reaction from the community, with thousands of people viewing each live broadcast and hundreds of questions pouring in. At the root of every question and personal challenge tackled by the series is the overarching question: Does Judaism have the answers to my personal dilemmas?

In inimitable “Jacobson-fashion”, the broadcast answers people’s questions in simple, clear language while being heavily sourced. Each episode is jam-packed with eye-opening advice from the Rebbeim, gleaned from uncovering surprising gems in their letters, sichos, and maamorim that address our personal issues with disarming relevance. Simultaneously, Rabbi Jacobson is able to crystallize a concept quickly, succinctly, and poignantly for any level of listener.

All episodes are immediately available for viewing in the MLC’s archive and can be downloaded as MP3’s for listening on the go.

Questions may be submitted anonymously at www.meaningfullife.com/mylifelive.

NEW: MyLife is now available as a podcast and can be streamed or downloaded from iTunes.