FC with Binyamin Q&A Feb.2.08

Daniel's Abba: What do you think about all our preparations for the sacks and ashes campaigns?

Binyamin: I am very excited because the Geula is near and it is approaching now at a very great speed. And the fact that Jews are coming together, wearing sacks on their bodies and ashes upon their heads, sitting upon the floor and weeping, beating their hearts and feeling so sorry for all their sins, wanting to do real teshuva, might be reason enough for Hashem to save Am Yisrael and bring us the Redemption with mercy.

The way to bring the Redemption closer is by lowering our heads and our pride, then looking up to Heaven and asking Hashem for forgiveness and mercy. And this (the sacks and ashes campaigns) is a very strong sign that the Geula is so close, you can taste it already.

But, unfortunately, most of the people are still wrapped up in their world of gashmius (materialism) which allows them physical pleasures that are much easier to attain (i.e. easier to attain than the pleasures of the Geula which involves a lot of hard work).

Abba: You have all spoken a lot against wigs. Someone asked me how can you - the autistic and brain-damaged people - interpret halachos (Torah laws). Only Rabbis have that authority, no?

Binyamin: That's true, but the matter of wigs does not fall under that category. It falls under the category of eating pork. No one can rule that pork is kosher. No Rabbi can rule that pork is kosher and the wigs of today are like eating pork. It is not even a question. There isn't even a question of whether wigs are permissible or not. All the wigs available today are forbidden to wear. Any person with even a little bit of common sense realizes that they are forbidden. It's just like when a woman walks around without a blouse - it is obvious that this is forbidden, one does not need to ask a Rabbi if that is permitted or forbidden.

When women began wearing wigs over a hundred and fifty years ago, because the goyim forbade Jewish women to cover their hair, the great Rabbis of that generation knew and saw visions of the future of wig-wearing and therefore forbade it.

Abba: But it's hard to stand up against everyone on this matter - our friends, the public, etc...

Binyamin: Now is the time for messirus nefesh (true devotion). A person looking for shortcuts will not live to receive our righteous Moshiach. A person who believes that his actions will go unpunished, that he can continue living his imaginary life, will not survive, G-d Forbid. We must return now to Hashem with all our will and all our might.

This means we must clean ourselves out of all the unnecessary things of this world and sit only in the house of Hashem (Psalms 27: "I will sit in the house of Hashem all the days of my life).

Soon, very great things will take place and then I will speak more in length.

I just want to remind everyone that there is only one way to be saved and that is by doing teshuva.

We must recognize the truth, make efforts to do the will of Hashem and not give ourselves all kinds of allowances. Become radical Jews! What does it mean to be a radical Jew? It means following the will of Hashem all the way, with all the hidur (elegance and flair).

Abba: How come you have been speaking so much lately about sacks and ashes?

Binyamin: Sacks and ashes are external things. A person wears a sack which is something materialistic, something you can touch, while its' purpose is to lower the person's pride (Shulchan Aruch) and bring him to a state of weeping and feeling that he lost out on a great and beautiful world; he lost Beis Hamikdash and the korbanos (sacrifices). He must come to feel the intensity of the great loss of these two things. He must realize the immense greatness of this loss.

The person sits on the ground wearing sacks on his body and ashes upon his head because he is in mourning. He weeps over everything he has lost on account of his sins throughout all of his reincarnated lifetimes. This is the time to weep, feel sorry and say to Hashem: "I sinned, I transgressed... forgive me and all of Am Yisrael, etc." and ask Hashem to bring us the complete Redemption, the third Beis Hamikdash, the korbanos and our righteous Moshiach.