The Phoenix Jewish news., 1960-04-08
JEWISH BOOK CORNER
Chossidim Lessons Timely

experience that Joy In the world
in pleasure, in service, in song,
and in dance, find that the Jew is
able to conquer sadness and Sor-
row because he has given all OF
his festivals, which were the SYM
Dol of joy.
Chassidism restored the joy OF
the Sabbath as no other movement
had ever done. In the villages
each family awaited the Sabbath
as the means to commune with
God, with joy and rejoicing-the
singing of the Sabbath melodies at
the table. A new light lifted the
people out of the dregs and degrad-
alton in which they found h M
selves. 1t carried them above the
poverty and the destitute grim
ness with which they were sur
rounded. The Chassidim actually
taught that the Jew on the Sab
bath obtained a new soul, an ad-
ditional soul by which he was able
to see and feel the spirit of G o d
everywhere.
This joy of living is something,
unfortunately, we have lost in our
world. We are so consumed with
pettiness that we forget the joy OF
simple things. Our minds are so
| attuned to the pursuit of social at
tainmentS that we forget that in
the household of our homes lies
the sacred sanctuary of joyous
communication. The Jew who has
left his faith has left the joy
his Jewishness behind. In its place
! has come the self-hate and the
self-despisal by which the Jew has
lost that joy that he should find
| in his JewiShneSS. Over and over
again Chassidism taught that un-
less the Jew would fulfill his life
| with a new and inspiring love of
| his past, he could not find inSpira-
| ton to give it to the new genera
tion..
Our age is no different than
any other age of mans history.
We all have the same problems,
| except we have more convent
ences. We have the same sorrows,
though we may be more morbid,
even though we have many ma
terial luxuries.
"Why shouldn't man in this age
be happy?" is the question I some
times find difficult to answer. The
cheerfulness which Chassidism
gave to life was something that
we as a people need to find sc
desperately today. Look for sim
cha, happiness, and you will al
ways find it.
This love of our fellow m n
perhaps is the thing that should
inspire us more than anything
else, for Buber says that Chassi-
dism taught something called
Avoda, service, not for glory MOI
for reward, but for the sake oi
service itself. To do thing for it.
self, "leshemoh," was in the eyes
of the teachers of Chassidism the
great mitzvah, the great com
mandment of life. To serve Goo
and man, to Chassidism, was to be
on fire.
We have not kindled within our
selves the same kind of enthus
iasm with which our forefathers
prayed. They had no magnificen
buildings, and theirs was not the
tremendous organization of reli
gion which we find today in oul
m d S t, but they had something
which we need. They had Havana
the spiritual intention with which
one pursued his deeds and his
prayers. 1t was this intention
which gave new impetus and life
to the estasy of Jewish existence
Havana gave the soul unity.
VIII a t, however, the Jew ha
most to learn from Chassidism i
the humble approach to life, TO
humility is something that is no
stressed in our time. For Chassi
.dism the humble man has n
I, spirit of the idea of modesty, con