Dear Friends,
Hello from chilly New York!
This weekend the International Conference of Chabad Rabbis is convening in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and it is guaranteed to be a uniquely powerful experience.
Thousands unite to share and learn, participating in stimulating workshops and programs over four days with a gala banquet planned for Sunday evening. It is truly one of the most inspirational environments and a privilege to be present.
A plethora of ideas and goals will be verbalized and internalized. A record number is attending this year, more than 6,000 rabbis and communal leaders from 100 nations around the world. The mind boggles!
And when I walk around, I keep hearing, “Oh yes, we’ve heard of the world-famous Chabad of Naples!” So kudos to each and every one of you for being part of this amazing family.
While I am here, I will have the opportunity to visit the Rebbe’s resting place and will be humbled to pray on behalf of my valued community and family. It is a Jewish tradition to visit the resting place of a saintly person with the heartfelt wish that he join our prayers to the Almighty, for blessings for ourselves and our loved ones.
It would be my honor to include you and your loved ones in my prayers on this day. If you would like me to include a special prayer, please please fill out this form with your name and your mother's name (preferably the Hebrew or Yiddish names), and those of anyone else you would like me to mention, I would be glad to have them in mind as well. If there's a specific need you would like me to pray for, please mention it as well.
We’ll gather from around the world in a moment of connection and prayer to God for our families, for our community, and for the world at large. What words come to mind? Powerful, inspirational, energizing and spiritual.
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Here’s a short thought:
I remember when Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, of blessed memory, was the keynote speaker at the Chabad Conference, and he shared the following.
He spoke about his encounters with the Rebbe and the tremendous impact they had on his life.
“Good leaders create followers; great leaders create leaders,” he said.
Rabbi Sacks was a living testament to that. After graduating, he was considering a career in economy, law, or philosophy, and he sought the Rebbe’s advice.
But the Rebbe had a different suggestion: he should become a rabbi.
The rest is history.
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Here is the thing about leadership:
Most people feel that it’s simply out of reach. They believe you need specific qualifications or abilities, that you must be on a higher level than everyone else.
The Rebbe taught us that this is not the case.
He encouraged us to look past fear, past self-doubt, past the quiet inner voice that says, “Who am I to make a difference?”
Instead, he urged us to see ourselves for what we truly are: natural-born leaders, endowed by G-d with the ability to influence, uplift, teach, and inspire those around us.
We can, and we should, be leaders. We just need to be willing.
“Do you know an Alef? Teach an Alef” the Rebbe would say. Don’t say “oh, I know just an Alef” or “maybe I should wait until I learned also Bet and Gimel”. Even if you know one letter in the Torah, you already have enough to be a leader and teach those who don’t know it yet.
So regardless of our “official” titles or occupations, let us each embrace this privilege and responsibility of leadership. It can be as simple as becoming a positive influence in your circle, standing up against antisemitism, sharing a word of Torah, offering encouragement to someone who is struggling, or bringing another Jew a little closer to their heritage. Not only do they uplift others, we transform ourselves and help move the world toward what it is meant to be: a world of peace, harmony, and blessings.
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In my absence on Shabbat, Rabbi Levi Chanowitz will lead the services, and thank you to Matthew Wayne for sponsoring the Kiddush.
Shabbat Shalom with Love & Light,
Rabbi Fishel & Ettie Zaklos