Victory is Ours!

To Jews everywhere, Tuesday, December 22 is also known as Hey Teves, the 5th day of the Hebrew month of Teves. To Lubavitcher Chassidim worldwide, Hey Teves goes by another name - Didan Netzach, or Victory is Ours. It refers to the famous court case where the question "who is the rightful owner of the Previous Rebbe's collection of books and original manuscripts" - priceless objects being sold surreptitiously by the late Rebbe's grandson -was answered by the verdict in a secular court in New York City. And that answer was: the very same owners of the Rebbe himself - his Chassidim, or followers, and not an inherited right of the Rebbe's family. It was an amazing decision, and one that kept those priceless works in a library for all to see, and not in the hands of private collectors.

But the concept of "Victory is Ours" goes further than books and libraries. It goes to the very essence of who we are. We are holy creations of the ultimate Creator, and Hey Teves is a day imbued with the spiritual capacity to connect with the Holy One, Blessed Be He. Today, the Heavens open up, and He hears our pleas, our complaints, and indeed, our demands. It's a day when the Creator truly belongs to all of us. So human race, it's time. Call Home.

* The photo above is entitled The Opening Sky by Armand Belakow.