The most important message of Shavuot
An article in The Jerusalem Post:
My comment:
I think today, when national unity in Israel has again become the only foundation for our existential war and survival, the importance of Shavuot needs to focus even more on the condition in which the Torah was given and which conditions also served as the basis for the first Jewish Nation.
And those conditions were the “supernatural” — above the inherently selfish, egoistic, individualistic human nature — unity and mutual guarantee. Each and every individual present pledged to such totally selfless and unconditional unity despite “camping around the Mlount of Hatred.”
Since then, we have completely forgotten that “unity” is not some political slogan or religious mantra.
True unity and mutual guarantee — where each individual is totally and unconditionally responsible for each and every individual in the Nation — is a crucial and primary condition for life and it has to be learned and practice above and against our instinctive nature.
One of the greatest sages of our modern times, Rav Yehuda Ashlag — Baal HaSulam — wrote two landmark articles (Matan Torah, HaArvut) on this topic, and in our perilous times, these articles should be necessary educational materials for our children and daily guide for all of us.
If we can’t revive and maintain that original unity and mutual guarantee, Shavuot also symbolizes, we will remain in a very dangerous and uncertain position since our continuing “unfounded hatred” against each other weakens us while it invites and strengthens our enemies.