By the Grace of G-dBrooklyn, N.Y.

Blessing and Greeting:

Your letter reached me with considerable delay. In it you write about your background, etc.

As requested, I will remember you in prayer for the fulfillment of your heart’s desires for good in the matters about which you write.

You are undoubtedly right in believing that every Jew, man or woman, young or old, must do everything possible in order to live in a frum environment. The importance of this may be seen from the Rambam, (Maimonides), who was the “Guide for the Perplexed” of his own time, as well as the guide for the perplexed of all times, and who included this in his famed Code of Jewish Law, Yad Hachazaka. The imperative need for a Jew to live in a frum environment is further underscored in his concluding remark, that if this is not possible, the person “should seek out a cave to live in, or brush country, or the desert.”¹

Inasmuch as this is one of the imperatives of our Torah, called Torat Chaim, we have the assurance that “ ...he who is determined to purify himself, receives aid from On High.”² No doubt you will be able to find some mutual friends who will use their influence with your family to persuade them to go along with your good resolutions and encourage you in implementing them.

With regard to your mention of the fact that there are certain matters of Yiddishkeit which you find hard to grasp - surely you realize that none of us can understand the ways of G-d. However, one thing is certain, which is that this too is for man’s benefit, inasmuch as G-d is the Essence of Goodness, and it is in the nature of the Good to do good.³ As a matter of fact, it is not surprising that a human being cannot fathom G-d’s ways, considering the fact that the difference between a created being and the Creator is not a difference of degree, but of kind. It is only by virtue of the fact that G-d Himself has chosen to reveal certain things about His commandments and Divine Providence that we have any idea about it at all. Thus, He has also revealed in the Torah that there are certain instances where a person experiences trials and tribulations as tests of his or her faith and loyalty to Him and, as it is written, “For G-d your G-d tests you, to make known whether you love G-d with all your heart and all your soul.”⁴ Consequently, if it is indeed a question of tests, then the stronger one’s determination to stand one’s ground, the sooner the test is cancelled.

I trust that you follow the good custom of putting aside for tzedaka one tenth of your income. This is especially important in your present condition, which you describe as being confused, etc., for the mitzva of tzedaka has the peculiar quality of bestowing an added measure of understanding and insight from Above⁵ in matters which otherwise would be quite puzzling.

With blessing,