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👉 The latest in our series on Chasidic Wisdom for Startups!
Remove any barrier to adoption of your product. Unique to the Rebbe’s approach to Judaism was the focus on using technology and innovation to make Jewish engagement and action accessible to everyone. When the Rebbe announced the Tefillin Campaign in 1967, he galvanized his followers to take to the streets offering Jewish men and boys ages 13 and up the opportunity to wrap tefillin—a sacred pair of small leather boxes containing biblical verses worn on the head and arm—and recite a prayer.
Riffing off the hippie buses, Chasidim created Mitzvah tanks, that could bring Shabbat candles, tefillin and other mitzvahs to people on the streets.
Judaism was made public and immediate.Short interactions lead to longtail growth. Though the Rebbe focused on immediate often onetime actions, these deeds were not viewed as isolated events.
From the point of view of chasidic thought, a onetime mitzvah forges an infinite bond with G-d. Thus single actions, if discrete in their performance, have eternal results.
Even from a strictly psychological point of view, the personal judgement one makes to publicly take part in Jewish action on the street - don tefillin, attend a menorah lighting or simply respond to the query, “Excuse me, are you Jewish?” - is a deeply experiential moment, that causes the person to consciously claim and act their Jewish Identity.
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Once again we’ll be partnering with our friends at CYP Brooklyn for Shabbat 500 on June 28th! Use code TechTribe and grab a seat at our table!
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Read
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Ever heard of Lachoudisch, a local variety of German containing many Yiddish and Hebrew words, still spoken by some non Jews in Bavaria.
Finally, a look at the history of song and its preservation in Mordechai’s latest.
SHABBAT SHALOM FROM VENICE