QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

*  What is the purpose of "evil?"  See Figure 1.
*  What should I do about that person who ________  (fill-in-the-blank with one of these ... bothers, annoys, hates, disturbs, can't stand, or, is mean to) me?  See story on Heaven and Hell.

The Kormona Rebbe (1806-1874) teaches how we should deal with enemies to enable a spiritually productive experience, following the path of the Baal Shem Tov (1700-1760).  Learn the techniques for this important spiritual practice through the ORIGINAL WORK of the Kormona Rebbe with COMMENTARY by Sarah Yehudit Schneider.  Find the right tools, improve your outlook!    

 Join us for a lively 4 session class, complete with PowerPoint.
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According to the Kormona Rebbe and the Baal Shem Tov,
the purpose of evil is to refine the good 

 (make the good even better),

while evil, which is an illusion, ceases to exist.   

 Figure 1
from our planned study book
  
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  Community Learning "THE SABBATH"  

 Book Discussion with Reno/Tahoe Rabbis

Heaven and Hell   

 "Years ago, in a small and rather poor village in Poland, there lived a wealthy and pious man named Yankel.  On day, Yankel invited all the leaders of the community to an evening banquet, promising them a feast worthy of gan eden itself.  Each of the guest was escorted as they arrived to a table set magnificently, with a place for each person.

As soon as Yankel entered the room he sat down and summoned the butler.  Carrying a bowl of hot soup, the butler walked over to the master of the house and placed it in front of him. Oddly enough, soup was not offered to any of the guests.

Sipping his soup, Yankel exlaimed, "Oh what delicious soup!  I am sure, my friends, you have never tasted such a a tasty soup."  After the soup, the next course was brought in, and once again the guests weren't served, and again Yandle remarked how delicious the food was.  Losing patience, one of the guests blurted out, "Reb Yankel, have you invited us to make a mockery out of us?"  "You promised," he continued, "a feast worthy of paradise, and here, not only did we not get to eat, but we have to suffer watching you eat."

Gently, Reb Yankel smiled.  "Indeed, this is a meal worthy of paradise," he told the frustrated guests.  "Paradise is a place where people love each other enough that they can take pleasure in another person's happiness.  There is no envy or jealousy in paradise, only love and understanding.  Now that you have understood the paradise part of the feast, dinner can be served."

The blissful feeling of heaven or the agonizing dread of hell is based on the choices we make.  Throughout life, we can either pick heaven or choose hell.  Heaven is inclusive, hell is exclusive.  In the heavenly paradigm, it is me and you; in hell, there can only be me or you.  To exist in heaven is to live in an embracing condition of openness and trancendence, whereas a living hell is where every person we meet is suspected as an enemy, and every experience we have is potentially threatening."

From R' DovBer Pinson, "Jewish Wisdom on the Afterlife:  The Mysteries, The Myths, & The Meanings," p. 153.    The tools for the spiritually productive way to "deal with enemies" are the same ones required to gain paradise. 

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