By the Grace of G-d

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"Message from the Rebbe," freely adapted for ESL from Lubavitch International, Vol. 2, No. 1 ('90), p. 3

We are at an amazing time in history. Many harsh governments have been replaced, leading the people of the world to a higher standard of morality. Now is a good time to think about how these changes happened, and about how to continue this process and make the good changes permanent. The Torah sages taught that G-d is the Essence of goodness, and He created this world as a result of His desire to do good things. It says in Psalms 145, "The L-rd is good to all, and His mercies are over all His works." Those who are good want to do good things for others, and G-d expressed His goodness by creating the universe. This is how the universe and all life receive G-d's goodness.

Everything that happens in the world, even things that look bad, such as natural disasters, will bring something good. This is like the bad inclination within people. People really want to do good things, but G-d also gives them opposite feelings so they will have a free choice. If G-d made the world totally good, without any effort by people to make it good, then people would not think that goodness is something special.

It is important to realize that when a person works against something bad, either out in the world or inside of himself, he should not be fighting. Instead, by concentrating on the good in people and in the world, and by bringing out the good, the bad will be overcome by the good, and the bad will eventually disappear. G-d gave people free choice, but He also gave us what we need to help us choose to do the good thing. He gave us the first set of moral rules, that apply at all times and for all people, so we can live in a good and civilized way. These rules are the Seven Laws of Noah, and they give us G-d's definition of "good" which applies to all people. We know from history that if people make up their own ideas for what is good and moral, this can change, and many people will think about it differently. It is very clear to teachers and policemen that scaring people or threatening them with punishment will not help them to know what is the right thing to do. Instead, people need to be taught that in Heaven there is always "an eye that sees and an ear that hears" what we are doing and saying, and G-d can give us a reward for doing good, or give the opposite if we do not-good things.

After the great flood, G-d gave these Seven Laws to Noah and his family, who we all came from. With these laws, Noah and his family knew that people would not ever become wicked again like they were before. These laws are the basis for morality: we must make courts of law, and we must not believe in idols, curse G-d, murder, commit incest, steal, or eat meat that was taken from a living animal or be cruel to animals. From these rules and their extensions, we can find out what is the moral thing to do.

Our religious freedom gives us the special opportunity to teach and encourage more people around the world to keep these Seven Laws. By keeping these laws, which are given by G-d's goodness, all people are united together by this moral responsibility to G-d. This unity increases peace and harmony among all people, and this will bring the ultimate good. As King David said, "How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity."

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