Being A Proud Jew On Purim

0:04Why do some Jews wear the tallit katan on the outside of their shirt while some wear it on the inside and some on the outside? So, that's simply custom and comfort. There is an importance of wearing tzitzit, which is a tallit katan, like this. is a mitzvah from the Torah, and anytime you wear a four-cornered garment as a man, you have to wear tzitzit. Now, there's no obligation to have it on the inside or on the outside; it's whatever you prefer. Some customs prefer it to be on the outside, like I have it right now, but some prefer it to be on the inside. Now, in regards to the customs, again, there are different reasons for it. One of the reasons that those who are wearing it on the inside do so is because the Arizal said that when you have the tzitzit on the outside, it could be enticing the mazikim, the negative spirits that are out there, and which, if you're not holy enough, can create damage, meaning they can attack you. So, it's better to have the tzitzit on the inside.

1:08Said that when you have the tzitzit on the outside, it could be enticing the mazikim, the negative spirits that are out there, and which, if you're not holy enough, can create damage, meaning they can attack you. Uh, so it's better to have the tzitzit on the inside. So, that's why those that wear it on the inside are following that custom, that teaching of the Arizal. On the other hand, there are others who say, listen, even though there are mezikim, and even though The mazikim could be dangerous. If you wear tzitzit, they'll protect you. And it's more important for you to be visibly Jewish, meaning to show your Judaism and the pride that you have in Judaism on the exterior, than it is for you to be concerned about mazikim. And therefore, you should wear You know your Jewish garments in such a fashion that you're noticeably Jewish, you know by your tzitzit, by the way you look. That's why, for example, the first time in the entire Tanach that the word Yehudi (Jew) appears is in Megillat Esther, and that Yehudi is Mordechai HaYehudi. Mordechai was the Jew. Why, you know, do they say Mordechai HaYehudi?

2:29Uh, why, why, why didn't they just say, "Obviously, we'd know he was a Jew because Mordechai was visually Jewish from far away"? He had a long and big fat peyos, just like, you know, I have, but magnified much, much more, that even from far away you were able to see that this is a Jew that's coming. There's no way that this guy is not Jewish, because obviously, especially in those times... It was very difficult to determine who's Jewish based on clothing because the clothing, everybody had similar clothing. They had the same attire, robes, turbans, etc., which made it challenging to distinguish between groups. So how could you tell who was a Jew, an Arab, or a Persian? The way Mordechai and the Jews identified themselves as Jews was their pelt, their unique clothing or markings. That's why these are also called simanim, signs. The first time the word "Jew" appears in the Torah is in Megillat Esther. So how can you tell this is a Jew and this is an Arab, this is a Persian? How would you know? The way that Mordechai and the Jews showed themselves as Jews was their attire, their pelisse. That's why these are also called simanim, signs. So Mordechai the Jew—the first time in the Tanach that the word "Jew" appears is in Megillat Esther.

3:39so uh as far as the uh back to the tzitzit question, those that are in the tradition of wearing the tzitzit on the outside, uh say that, listen, uh, you know, wearing it on the outside and being visibly Jewish is a very, very important mitzvah. In itself, it's not only showing your Jewish pride and your observance of the Torah and the mitzvot, but it also shows your fear of Heaven and not fear of men. You know, many times people say that they're not wearing a kippah or they're not visibly Jewish because they're afraid of anti-Semitism. This is complete nonsense of the yetzer hara. One time, he came to a community of Syrian Jews, and he noticed that many of the Jews in the Syrian community were Torah observant, but many of them were not wearing a kippah.

4:43Now, we're in a kippah. He said, actually, this is one of the stories that the Rabbi said recently. He said that he was there on a trip. One of the people in the community would actually teach every day. He would teach Gemara, serious Gemara. He was a Talmid Chacham. But then, the Rav saw him later on that week while he was in the community. He saw the man walking around with an uncovered head, no kippah. The Rav said, "Oh, hey, how could it be?" And the man said to the rabbi, "Rabbi, listen, you know, I'm scared of anti-Semitism. I'm scared of anti-Semitism." That's why he didn't wear a kippah. This, obviously, the rabbi didn't accept. He said, "At least wear a hat, wear a kasket, wear something." Point being is, if you're not covering your head as a Jew, it's not because you're afraid of anti-Semitism. It's because you're falling for the trap of the Satan, the Yetzer Hara, that's making you scared of man instead of making you scared of Hashem, because the whole point of wearing a kippah is symbolic of your fear of God. That's what wearing a kippah is; it's symbolic of your fear of God. You don't wear a kippah because you're not afraid of God. You're afraid of somebody else more than God, and that's a problem.

5:56That's a very serious problem, so it's important for a Jew to be visibly Jewish. You can see that they're Jewish. Now, there's no obligation for you to wear the Hasidic garments or the tzitzit outside or anything like that. You can wear it on the inside. You could wear a, you know, a kippah, or you could wear a hat. But the point is to do something. To do something. You don't have to wear a beard. You don't have to have a beard. But certainly, that doesn't mean that you're allowed to shave your face with a razor. The point being that a person needs to know that their Judaism should not be separate from their life in any way. should not be separate from your life in any way. In fact, it should be something that you're proud of, that you're taking with you. Now you're going to say, wait, but what about if some Nazi kills me because I look Jewish or robs me?

6:57If you truly believe in the Torah, you'll know that the Gemara in Masechet Chullin, page 7, says that even before you prick yourself in the finger with a needle, there has to be a judgment in Shamayim to determine whether you deserve it or not. Meaning that no one can help you or hurt you if it's not the will of Hashem. Therefore, whether you are wearing a kippah or not wearing a kippah, wearing tzitzit or not wearing tzitzit, that is not the determining factor of whether anti-Semitism will affect you or whether someone will rob you. What's going to determine that is whether you have merits or obligations, whether you deserve to have the suffering or you don't deserve to have the suffering. And that's based on you following the Torah or ignoring the Torah. If you follow the Torah, then you don't have to worry about anyone helping you or hurting you because everything that's happening to you is the will of Hashem.

7:58Everything that's happening to you is the will of HaShem. But if you don't follow the Torah, then of course you're going to disagree with what I say. You're going to disagree with the Torah. You're going to rationalize things. You're going to say, no, but you don't understand where I live. People are this, people are that. Listen, Chabibi, I grew up in a place where my school was in the projects. I grew up in a place where gangsters were my classmates. Okay, I'm very, very familiar with danger. I'm very familiar with death. I'm very familiar with a lot of things that are not so "rabbi-ish." I understand. I'm not delirious. I'm not oblivious. I'm very, very well familiar. I've had all types of people go in and out of my life who need some help, need some of this, need some of that. I help all types of people. I have some students that, unfortunately, their communication to me is only once every few months because they're in jail for different types of crimes that it's better not to hear. I have some people that, you know, have gotten out of jail—all types of wonderful people that we try to help in every way, and I've seen a lot. Their communication to me is only once every few months because they're in jail for different types of crimes that it's better not to hear. I have some people that, you know, have gotten out of jail—all types of wonderful people—that we try to help in every way, and I've seen a lot. So, for a second, don't think it's because I'm ignorant of the world. It's not. Simply said, the Torah tells us clearly who runs the world. "Ein od milvado"—there is nothing else but Him. The moment we fear anything but Hashem, we are already veering towards the road of idol worship.

9:07For a second, don't think it's because I'm ignorant of the world. It's not simply said; the Torah tells us clearly who runs the world. Ein od milvado—there's nothing else but Him. The moment we fear anything but Hashem, we are already veering towards the road of idol worship. of idol worship. Anytime you fear anything but God, you're already on the path of idol worship. There are different levels of idol worship. The Gemara says that Avraham Avinu had 400 segments to the tractate of Avodah Zarah, meaning there are different levels of Avodah Zarah. It's not so simple as just a statue. There are different levels of Avodah Zarah, and when a person fears God less, that already means they're on the road. closer to idolatry and further from Hashem. They fear Hashem more; that means they're closer to Hashem and further from idolatry. So when a person says and justifies them not being visibly Jewish to the extent where you literally can't tell whether they're Jewish or not—if they're not wearing a kippah, they're not, you know, they're not learning Torah, at least nothing to speak of that anybody would even recognize—the problem they don't realize is that...

10:26this answer that I'm providing, they don't have the spiritual tools to accept it. Why? Because you're living a life that's so far away from the Torah that none of what I say makes sense to you because the way you calculate things is based on your perception of them, your emotional connection to them, and your understanding of them with the tools you have. And the tools you have are the secular world. So you're seeing on the news, this Jewish guy got attacked. That Jewish guy got attacked. That synagogue got burned. That guy is a terrorist. You're seeing things based on the human perspective, and therefore, you're going to determine based on the human perspective that if you are less visually Jewish, that means that you are going to increase your safety. Just like people think that the more weapons they have in their house, the safer they are. This is antithetical to the Torah because that means that you're giving something else power above God. If a person is protected by God, that means that nobody in the world can hurt them, even if they're inside Gaza.

11:39even if somebody shoots directly at them. How many miracle stories have there been of people being shot, attacked, contracting diseases, or having accidents? All types of miraculous events happen where it's simply said that HaKadosh Baruch Hu decided, "Today is not the day you're going to die." Even though the laws of nature, logic, and science declared you were going to die, God said no. Endless amounts of miracles have happened throughout history, and endless amounts of miracles happen every single day. The moment we remove our understanding that everything is a miracle—whether the open miracles, the hidden miracles, or even the things we've grown accustomed to, like blinking and seeing—we little by little veer towards idolatry. The moment we remove ourselves from everything being a miracle, we, little by little, veer towards idolatry, towards things that are antithetical to the Torah. So if you are already on the Torah path,

12:45and have humbled yourself to a certain extent to realize that not everything is going to make sense to you right away, but certainly it's the truth if it's coming from the Torah. Then you will be able to learn more and more and get closer to Hashem. But if you're going to If you're going to simply rely on your own logic, it's going to be very difficult for you to live a life of Torah. Now, I'm not saying that you should go into a camp of terrorists and tell them, "Listen, I'm Jewish, but don't worry, you're not going to touch me." No one is saying to put yourself in open risk. Wearing a kippah does not increase your risk and Wearing tzitzit does not increase your risk any more than wearing a hat, any more than going to certain neighborhoods, or anything else. The reality is that if you say that a kippah increases your risk, then put on a hat. There are plenty of non-Jews who wear hats, so what's your justification for not wearing a hat? Now, if you say, okay, the tzitzit increases my risk, fine, so put the tzitzit inside. No one knows what's under your shirt. Why aren't you still wearing tzitzit?

13:57What, just in case they decide to undress you? The point being is that a person needs to know that HaKadosh Baruch Hu knows the real reasons for why we do what we do and really what's behind it. Many times when a person is connected to Hashem, the more connected to Hashem they are, the more they are open about their Judaism, happy about their Judaism, proud about their Judaism, and confident about their Judaism, and no one in the world can scare them. No one in the world can scare them. The further a person is from the Torah itself, but they're close to, let's say, the superficial part of Judaism, such as the customs, they might enjoy Purim but not necessarily Yom Kippur; they might like Chanukah but don’t necessarily appreciate Rosh Hashanah. They may enjoy Pesach but only the Chol HaMoed, not Yom Tov. Therefore, the more people are close to the customs and the traditions, but not the laws, the more difficult it will be for them to feel the Torah. But as a person learns more and more Torah, they're going to realize that Hashem is the one who rules the world and no one else. And, there's nothing for you to be afraid of—not an army, not a battalion, not a terrorist group, not a governor, not a president, not a boss, not a customer, not anything. The more difficult it is going to be for them to feel the Torah. But as a person learns more and more Torah, they're going to realize that Hashem is the one that rules the world and no one else. And there's nothing for you to be afraid of, not an army, not a battalion, not a terrorist group, not a governor, not a president, not a boss, not a customer, not anything. (Hashem is the Hebrew term for God used in Orthodox Jewish contexts.)

15:20The only thing you need to be afraid of is once you know that life becomes much, much more pleasant. We must reach such a high level of kedusha through Torah learning and good deeds that we finally realize everything comes from Hashem. The decree didn't come from Haman, and the salvation didn't come from Mordechai. Everything is from Hashem. All your problems are not caused by others; it's Hashem talking to you, trying to get your attention.