Color Blind

"See, it's not about races just places; faces where your blood comes from; is where your space is, I've seen the bright get duller; I'm not ‘gonna spend my life being a color

" (MJ)

Are we using our colors to
make us brighter?

The majority of people see colors quite clearly and distinctly, and can tell the difference between their various shades. However, there is period of time that everyone becomes color blind - each and every night. Have you ever noticed that it is difficult to distinguish between different colors under dim light? Or how you cannot even recognize blue from red at all at night?

The first thing that happens is that the color receptors in our eyes are not sensitive enough to light in order to keep responding as it gets dark. As their responses get smaller and smaller, so do the differences in the color signals from the different receptors, and objects end up looking less colorful. As this continues and the light level keeps dropping, the color receptors, called cones, can no longer respond at all. A different type of receptor, called rods, can respond at these low light levels, but the rods do not have the capability to distinguish colors. Therefore, we basically see in strictly black and white at night.

Judaism is quite colorful. We come in many colors and shades. Different clothing. Different yarmulkas. Different dialects and pronunciations. But there is something we share in common - we are all Jewish. In broad daylight, it is easy to tell the difference between us - which isn't really a problem at all. In our prime, when the Beis ha'Mikdash stood tall and the Presence of Hashem was sensed by all, our uniqueness as individuals, though part of a glorious Nation, was a great attribute of ours. In fact, as we camped beside the Mishkan, we were clustered by sheivet. There was a distinction between us.

Yet, today and for the past 2,000 years, we find ourselves in a period of darkness. Our exile has blackened our eyes. It has stolen our light, our glory. It tore down our Beis ha'Mikdash as well as tore us apart from one another. 

It is during this time of night that we must adjust our vision. At night, we must become color blind. We must learn to shed our labels of one another. We must not allow our different colors to keep us separated. Indeed, this is the very source of our exile. During this darkness, we must recognize that it is not a matter of what color Jew you are, but rather that you are indeed a Jew!

As we near the date when we mourn the destruction of both Batei Mikdash, let us remind ourselves of who we are - and who we must be in order to merit the end of our darkness ... the day when Hashem will cast the ultimate light of the Final Redemption upon us, may it come soon in our days! 

Say to yourself ten times today:

"I love my fellow Jew! I love every single one of them!"