Randy Yisroel Settenbrino is a writer, artist, and public intellectual whose work bridges theology, philosophy, and psychology. He is a passionate advocate for Israel and Jewish-Christian solidarity, and the founder of the Historic Blue Moon Hotel, recognized by National Geographic as one of the 150 most unique projects in the Western Hemisphere. Founder of Ohr Chodosh L ‘Zion, a cultural and spiritual initiative dedicated to restoring Jewish identity, courage, and moral clarity through the fusion of art, history, and living faith. His newest release on Amazon Between the Altar and the Sanctuary: The Life, Faith, and Fire of Rabbi Meir Kahane.
“What wrong did your fathers find in Me that they went far from Me, pursued emptiness, and became empty?" - Jeremiah 2:5.
Jeremiah’s question still confronts us. What is gained by departing from G-d? History has answered. Assimilation promised acceptance and security, yet it left the Jew estranged from his Source without attaining either.
Illustration: Rav Moshe Feinstein ZTS"L, the Gadol Hador, wrapped in tallit and tefillin, his eyes closed in contemplation of the unification, the oneness of all existence. Pastel on paper by Settenbrino.
Those still in the game embrace our history, the trials and triumphs, the persistence in the face of brutal adversaries. Yet if there had never been a Pharaoh, a Haman, a Titus, or a Hitler, it would still be worth being a Jew. We are Jews because G-d entered into a covenant with us.
In Orot, Rav Kook teaches that the soul of Israel is eternal. It may appear weakened through exile, persecution, or spiritual decline, but it is never extinguished. Even periods of spiritual decline can become the prelude to renewal. The soul thirsts for G-d.
The soul remains restless until it turns toward its Source. It senses what is missing. Much of what we pursue is an incomplete search for the Infinite. The deepest longing of man is for G-d. Therefore, nothing finite can satisfy him. This longing is the deepest reality of human life. It draws the individual, and through him humanity, toward redemption. Even when an individual is distant from Torah, that inner spark, the Divine image and covenantal bond, remains, calling the nation to unite in service to one another and to mankind, waiting to be ignited.
Beneath our countless desires lies a deeper longing. We often mistake achievement, relationships, beauty, recognition, or adventure for the destination, when they are expressions of a deeper yearning for closeness to G-d.
Rav Kook saw this longing as a defining feature of the soul, not an occasional religious feeling.
The distractions of daily life and the challenge of remaining yourself while fitting into your surroundings may conceal it, but they cannot destroy it.
Let a man take the first step toward being a Jew, and he will discover a growing familiarity. As he turns toward G-d, his inner thirst is transformed from vague longing into living communion. He reclaims his role. He offers his individual gifts for the sake of the collective mission rather than personal ego. His inner dialogue gives way to harmony instead of division. Once indifference gives way to commitment, he recognizes that his soul is bound to his ancestors and his people for the sanctification of G-d’s Name and the service of a greater good.
The rebirth of Israel is one stage in the gradual unfolding of redemption, in which the hidden soul of the nation progressively reveals itself in history.
Love of Israel follows from this truth, for every Jew shares in that soul. Unity does not require sameness. Distinct gifts attain their perfection when directed toward one Divine purpose.
Judaism orders life. From birth we enter the covenant. At maturity we accept the yoke of the commandments. We live by a sacred calendar, join ourselves to a community, establish a faithful home, raise the next generation, and return our souls to our Creator in serenity.
The blessing of being Jewish in this world is to live every stage of life with dignity, meaning, and purpose.
The blessing of the World to Come is to return to our Creator with fewer regrets, bearing a life of service, gratitude, and reverence for the gift of life He entrusted to us.
“What should a Jew do when he has lost the World to Come?"
“Be a Jew."
- Isaac Bashevis Singer, “The Boy Knows the Truth"
Being a Jew means answering foremost to a higher Authority.
Stop asking why they hate us. Start asking why G-d loves us, and how we can become worthy of His love.
“Teach Your Children Well"
I remember hearing that the degradations of sweatshop and tenement life, coupled with the burden of preserving religious obligations on American soil, gave birth to the popularized Yiddishism, iz shver tsu zayn a Yid-"It’s hard to be a Jew"-and that this outlook adversely affected an entire generation spiritually.
So, as we raised our kids, I would ask them collectively with a passionate holler, who loves being a Jew?
They would respond in unison “I do!"
Illustration: Altar Piece Oil on wood by Settenbrino. This image stands as a blessing over our table. It is the gate of entry into Shabbat, where food becomes offering, conversation becomes prayer, and the home becomes a small sanctuary in the world.
Make your home a sanctuary. Nearly two centuries ago Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch famously remarked that if he had the power, he would close all the Yeshivahs for a hundred years. His point was that Judaism is learned in the home. Torah survives when parents live it, teach it, and transmit it. No institution can replace a home animated by Jewish life.
The image of a mother absorbed in prayer, waving her hands over the Sabbath candles, helped sustain Natan Sharansky amid the cold isolation of the Soviet Gulag. No one will save our identity if we do not save our faith through the Jewish home, education, family tradition, the courage to believe, and mutual responsibility. The future will be secured when Jews once again choose to act and live as Jews.