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The belief ultimately comes from your
soul. So I think the better connection a
person has with his soul the better
chance he has of believing.
Now he can do things to strengthen the
connection with his soul and I think
that ultimately mean belief will come.
So sometimes one needs to take a leap of
faith. It's not blind faith because
ultimately it's it's the idea of
creating a cle a vessel
that can contain that that faith because
if faith is really beyond us. So how do
we bring faith in us? So there's talk in
cabala inidic philosophy of how to bring
that faith in us but if if it's if
you're if you're a closed vessel then
that faith can't come in. So you're
going to struggle. So there are ways to
bring that faith in us and ultimately
the beginning is that you take one step
for Hashem, Hashem will take a thousand
steps towards you. And so it takes that
leap of faith on in some way. Now we
don't mean blind faith because we're all
about learning, but it does take a bit
of of of surrender, a bit of submission,
and to create an opening where Hashem
can then come and fill that space up
with with some faith. So that's I think
a part of it. Are you talking about
belief in God or belief in the Torah?
Both. Because Because in in my universe,
God's not a belief, it's an
understanding, right? I I can get to the
point where
>> I see the world that we live in a finite
world and that nothing finite can create
itself. Something always has to be acted
upon in order to be created. Right? We
have this glass here. It's not going to
just appear. some something needed to be
act to acted a another finite thing
acted upon this finite thing in order
for it to be created.
>> Okay,
>> which means that the question is where
does the first finite thing come from?
Because if there has to always be an
action of creation,
so where did the first thing come from?
Where did the first finite thing ever
come from? And that had has to be the
infinite. It has to be outside of the
finite. Okay.
>> And for me that makes sense. It makes
logical sense. So like I I'm not a very
intellectual person but I think it's
almost intellectually lazy for when
people go oh when people are asked well
what
>> believing in God okay that's easier for
many many people because it doesn't mean
it doesn't really equal what I need to
do. A divine creator doesn't translate
into and now I have to do X Y and Z. But
once we we add a step from divine
creator to divine creator that decided
to communicate with us and not just just
saying hello but saying hello this is me
and this is what I want from you there
there's there's more steps and now this
what I want from you it also has a lot
of detail. So, but it's the same thing.
Divine creator, which is what I was
referring to, and the idea of believing
in that, which is having amuna
is is is is a process. And then there's
the details. Once we get to the idea of
okay, I got to do something for this
god. That's the the the highest level of
belief is when I I I do something about
it. Action speaks louder than words and
thought and everything. So when I do for
that God, that's the testimony that I
truly believe. It's the belief that
trickles down through every faculty of
your body to your toes, to your tippy
toes. And that's that's the testimony to
the belief. How did you get to the
belief that the creator of the universe
gave the Torah, spoke to the Jewish
people at Har Si and was like, "Here you
go. Follow this.
How do I Okay, that's a that's an
interesting question. Um,
how did I get to the point where I
believed that the Torah was true to the
degree that I was ready to to act on it,
live it.
Okay, this might take a few tries, but
let's this will be that f my first try.
I lived 20 years of my life
For all intents purposes, I was on a
path that was set. Not many things were
going to change except my bank account.
How many zeros were depending on how
successful I was 20 years old, you know,
grew up fast, working from the age of 12
in the family business,
15 already managing a family business.
Uh by 20 owning a family business. And
my goal was to move to take a business
in the Bahamas, Paradise Island, and and
become a millionaire. Open up a a a
resort wear, clothing, swimwear, resort
stuff.
>> Was this the business your family was
in?
>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It was a beach beach
wear, but you could get fancy. And of
course, if you're on if you ride by
Paradise Island, where a bunch of boats,
big cruise ships dock, and they come
shopping. So that was a step that would
have led to millionaire status if once
we had proper investments, the proper
locations which was in the works in the
works. Uh instead of becoming a
millionaire, I actually had a
life-changing experience and changed my
life. My whole life changed in the
Bahamas. I got to give a shout out to a
nice man named Quincy, a native Bahamian
that lived in the Bahamas that worked
for us. He was a devout devout Christian
and he kind of in some bizarre way while
we were you know after work hanging out
with some beers and some pin coladas as
I mentioned you know just shared with me
his a day in the life of Quincy that he
feels God's with him everywhere and he
is a very strong believer in in God and
it's not that he convinced me to believe
in God it just woke up what was in me
from when I was a kid and had also
experienced learning about God in a in a
summer camp I used to go to summer camp.
We were like, my brothers and I were the
first cure of campers from like 45 years
ago before it was a thing. And we got
exposed to this idea of God and Judaism
and Shabas and don't tear toilet paper
as kids. And uh you know at 25 years
old, 20 20 years old. So I was really
done. I was tired 20 years old of just
living for to make money and to spend
money to make more money going around in
real circles feeling really really
empty. You know, you can pour so much
into you. You could try to fill yourself
up with so much what's supposed to fill
you and you're empty. And that's what I
was. I was at 20 years of life empty.
And I said, if this is what life is
about,
this can't be. This can't. I was looking
for a new life. And somehow in search of
my millions, I gave up the millions and
decided to start a brand new life at in
that spot on that day with this Quincy
guy and just a little bit of thinking
about. That's it. Done. I was done.
>> What did he say something to you? Did
like what was this what was that spark
that all of a sudden because you hear
these stories in in Judaism that people
had great careers were making millions
of dollars and gave it up to go and
teach in a yeshiva or spend their time
learning.
>> I guess timing was a big part of it. I I
believe that Hashem did me a kindness
and so to speak gave me like a wakeup
kiss because it's hard to do it on your
own. It's hard to really break out of
that being like dreaming, sleepwalking
through life. It's hard to wake yourself
up. Sometimes we need help. And there's
a thing I learned later on in cabalistic
philosophy called a kiss or an awakening
from above. And I believe Hashem said,
"You my cutie gave me a nice kiss on my
forehead. I'm not heretical, don't
worry. I mean, I don't mean he literally
came and gave me a kiss, but uh and I
and I and I kind of had a lot of help
and I kind of woke up. I just woke up at
20 years old.
>> I find that that is a place that people
struggle with. I have a very close
friend in the States who's Christian and
we'll talk
Torah. We'll talk Bible to each other.
And there there's like a struggle to get
past the
that right a Hashem, his ruach
walked through the garden. Walked
through the garden. It's like there's
almost like a block to be able to say,
"No, he didn't actually walk. It's just
a metaphor in order for us to understand
that Hashem was in his own manner in the
garden." They see he reached out a hand.
They think it's an he thinks it's an
actual hand. And where I look at it,
it's it's very in order for me in order
for
me to get across something to you that
maybe you don't necessarily
understand from your own experiences. I
can give you a mushell, how would I say
mushell in an analogy in order for you
to try to understand. And when I try to
explain that to him, he it doesn't click
that it can be an analogy. See I what I
find interesting is but immaculate
conception he can get daddy that's okay
look to each his own I guess on some
level but what I'll say is this it's
funny you you you kind of jumped into a
very interesting topic about this idea
of how what is God and what does it mean
that God is here with us and so just to
touch on it quickly
>> it doesn't have to be so quick
>> fine when the Bible says that God was
kind of like walking through the garden
so that means that that the way the way
God would walk through a garden that's
how God was walking through the garden.
Um it it means that he was manifest in
the garden and there was an idea where
there was an able ability for Adam to
feel to feel his presence and to feel
the the idea of his presence leaving.
Um that's that's that's what happened in
the garden originally when when Hashem
created Adam and Eve. So they they were
able to experience the divine presence
in that garden with them. There was a
unity between God's manifestation of
godliness in the world. We call it in
Hebrew the divine presence. And after
they sinned, there was a separation
between that divine presence and Adam.
And when the Bible says that God was
walking through the garden, so it's it's
really written in a passive way, which
means that God was caused to walk, which
is interesting. The most literal
translation would be Adam and Eve's
actions caused God to walk away from the
garden, to walk away from them, and to
ascend to a place above the the to the
heavens. And that distance is what we're
experiencing today. This idea of uh uh
difficulty to believe in the reality of
of God is not an intellectual thing. We
can intellectually understand that there
has to be some kind of creator to this
world. It's the idea that God ultimately
started off in this world with the world
in the world where we didn't have to we
didn't have to learn about him. We we
were able to experience godliness. Adam
and Eve originally were able to
experience godliness not just learn
about it. So today we learn about
godliness. Uh people, it's funny, people
say when they go to the cult, they have
this unbelievable feeling,
you know, and and again, a person can
can arouse themsself to have a feeling.
I would question whether it's a
legitimate real feeling or not, but I
would never, you know, discourage
anybody because if you have an arousal
and you feel like Hashem kind of came to
you and touched you in some way,
>> do you not feel an energy? Do you not
feel an energy shift when you go down to
the hotel?
>> I mean, not not on not as a a regular
thing. It's it takes a lot for me to
have a an feeling of of of of and it
could be my own emotional experience. It
doesn't necessarily mean that God
>> Rabbi, you are emotionally stunted. I'm
kidding.
>> Okay, that's
>> I mean I had an awakening that I believe
happened to me, but I I don't have one
every day. You know, maybe maybe I
should be. Maybe we all should be. But
uh again, if we're talking about belief
and how to believe. So there's a
distance between feeling Hashem because
we've created this distance and again
through I think uh I think the best way
to do it again I I had a different path
because Hashem kind of called me you
know when when Hashem calls you and and
wakes you up the way I woke up it's it's
it's hard to ignore but then it went
away. It doesn't stay forever and then I
have my work to do like everybody else
has their work to do. We all have work
to do. I have I have you know very bad
days, negative days. We all have that.
But but the initial rebirth, this
initial, you know, reconnecting as a
20-year-old adult,
that was a gift. That was a gift. Now,
if if everyone's going to get that gift,
so what can I say? We I I pray Hashem
should gift everybody with an
opportunity to have that that that that
start, you know, when you when you want
to, you know, like when a when a father
is trying to teach his kid how to ride a
bike. I remember doing it with my son
and then the big mistake of letting go
and then he, you know, had his
experience there. He learned how to get
up from when the back falls. But
imagine, you know, a kid can't start
that bike on his own. You a a kid that
never rode a bike can't get up, pick up
the bike, pick himself, put on the bike,
and and and start riding. Someone has to
do it for him. And so I think the
beginning of all this, maybe with what
you're struggling, you can't do it
without help. So maybe the first thing
that you should do and everyone should
do out there that's that's that's
feeling that it's hard to to take that
first step and to make any progress in
this belief in God or belief in the
Torah or belief in the oral Torah or
belief that God doesn't want you to tear
toilet paper. Whatever you have you're
struggling with. I struggled with the
toilet paper thing. Interesting just to
digress for a second. Not same topic but
not me, someone else.
Um there was a guy that this is I heard
the story and I believe it's true. Not
my own personal story. Um a guy went to
hear about Judaism and they taught him
for whatever reason about the laws of
selecting borer meaning on on Saturday
on Shabbat one is not allowed to take
the bad from the good and then once you
have a rule there's a lot of questions
and details that come with that rule. So
they sat there for a half hour, an hour
talking about the rules of how you can
select things you want from what you
don't want on Saturday. And he was an
intellectual and he walked away from
that class with one of two choices. This
is the way I heard the story. Beautiful
story. He said either they're all insane
or this is all real. There is no way to
to put a middle ground in this. either
Borer is from God or they're crazy
because that's Bor can't exist in my
life unless it's from God or or we're
nuts. And he chose that it's from God
and he became religious. Very
interesting.
>> The culture of Ben is that we believe
that we believe that we were chosen by
God and this is what we're supposed to
follow. This is part of our culture and
naming it something like Judaism kind of
separates it from we have people who are
ben Israel and we have people who
practice Judaism.
I hear what you're trying what you want
to get out. I think uh and I think it's
very normal and natural to to have these
thoughts. I think we all do. The problem
is this. We got to be practical and we
got to understand that in things work a
certain way in in the world. You know,
when you start with Abraham, okay, so it
was just Abraham and then of course his
wife Sarah, Isaac, Ishmael. When you get
to to Jacob with 12 sons, so you have
things branching out. Each child, each
son is going to have a wife and their
own kids. And people are unique and can
branch off into many different avenues,
many different ways. Um the idea of
having a nation is something deeper,
something bigger, but it all exists at
the same time. There's an individual,
there's an individual, and then there's
an individual that's part of a of a
bigger picture of part of of part of a
whole. uh we are a Jewish nation that
are millions of people but every
individual person is has his own
personal unique place and purpose in his
own personal life and his own personal
connection with Hashem and this of
course extends to everybody in the
world. So yes, you're right. We should
we should it should be personal. It
should be about just me and my
uniqueness and how I can find my place
in this world, my path in this world and
my God. And he is my God. When we say
and when we say Adonai, it's my master.
It's that's master. And in other places,
we say my God. God is mine. Now, that's
a big thing to say because he wants to
be mine, you know, and certainly I'm
his. And and if I want to be his, it
makes it even sweeter. And that's very
personal.
