I recently received an email from a good friend of mine encouraging me to watch a video clip on YouTube filmed in Kruger National Park in South Africa.


It's one of those amazing moments captured on film by some amateur photographers. A baby water buffalo taking a stroll with his family is attacked by a group of hungry lions that chase away the older water buffaloes and keep their prize, the baby. After a tug-of-war in a water hole with some menacing crocodiles, the lions finally sit down for their

The buffaloes surround the lions with amazing symmetry.

feast. To their surprise, however, the water buffaloes return with their family and friends. The buffaloes surround the lions with amazing symmetry and, after a dramatic fight, they succeed in saving their baby through teamwork and unity.


When I saw this film clip, I found myself intuitively cheering on the buffaloes and identifying with them. Not only because the buffalo was the underdog and we as Jews can relate to that, but because I was impressed by their strong sense of family and community, which I learned exists even among animals. The buffaloes did not give up and abandon their offspring, but came back with their entire community to save him. This amazing commitment to their young against all odds resonated within me very deeply.


I believe that we have a lot to learn from the animal kingdom. This story has an amazing message for the Jewish community in the twenty-first century.


The single greatest challenge that the community faces today is the vicious forces of assimilation. Like hungry lions, they are preying on our youth with great zest. The forces of assimilation are actually made up of many diverse sub-categories (crocodiles) that are tirelessly eating away and robbing us of our most precious commodity - our children. Missionaries, cults, intermarriage, ignorance and anti-Semitism are just a few of the "crocodiles" that are preying on our children on campuses around the world, in the streets and in the workplaces. In fact, according to most recent statistics, forces of assimilation are unfortunately succeeding to rob us of our children in staggering numbers.


How do we counter such formidable forces that threaten the very future of our people?


First of all, like the water buffalo, we must never give up on our children. No child must be left behind to be devoured by the "lions and crocodiles" of assimilation. Then, like the buffalo, we must pool together all of our community resources to save our children.

...just a few of the "crocodiles" that are preying on our children.



What does this mean in practical terms? Basically, we cannot rely anymore on the efforts of individuals and outreach groups alone to change the tide of assimilation. While the valiant and heroic efforts of individual people and groups are praiseworthy and extremely successful, they are still falling short of averting the looming spiritual catastrophe threatening the very future of our people.


Only through the collective efforts of absolutely every member of the community will we succeed. We must draft every single Jew who cares about the future of our people in order to succeed in saving the Jewish people.


As the Lubavitcher Rebbe once said: "Every Jew who knows the Hebrew letter Aleph has the responsibility to teach Aleph." Only when we all become outreach workers will we succeed. Like the buffalo, we must go back and call our friends, every one of them, to join in our efforts to save our children now.