Kabbalah Connection: Mysticism and Unity in Prayer

 

Guest: Rabbi Jeremy Tibbetts, JLIC Director in Jerusalem and Director of Student Leadership for Yavneh

• Main Discussion Topics:
  • Building intentional Jewish community in Jerusalem for English-speaking young adults
  • Response to October 7th - Community shifted from internal focus to extensive outward aid efforts, including:
    • Processing ~70,000 shekels in donations
    • Packing 2,000+ meals
    • Running a 2-month camp for 100 displaced children

Featured Torah Teaching:

• Before prayer, one must accept the mitzvah to "love your neighbor as yourself"
• Prayer becomes more powerful when combined with genuine care and connection to community
• Importance of bringing others' struggles and pain into one's prayers
• Discussion of mystical understanding of prayer as affecting both internal spiritual state and external world

Guest's Background:

• Came to Orthodox Judaism from non-Orthodox background
• Studied Chassidut for several years before diving deeper into Kabbalah
• Currently pursuing Master's in Jewish Thought at Hebrew University
• Teaches mystical texts while emphasizing their connection to practical religious life and community building