Jeremy Tibbetts: 'Being a spiritual seeker is not in vogue'

For Rabbi Jeremy Tibbetts, Jewish mysticism is all about turning inwards: both individually and religiously. While he did not grow up Orthodox, Rabbi Jeremy was exposed to Hasidic teachings for the first time at eighteen years old and found that there was something “deeply healing” about the Torah. Over the past decade, he has dedicated himself to studying mysticism and has grown fluent in the writings of the Arizal, Rabbi Isaac ben Solomon Ashkenazi Luria, and other mystical thinkers. 

Rabbi Jeremy Tibbetts is the co-director of the JLIC Jerusalem Community alongside his wife, Emily. He studied public health at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and currently learns at Yeshivat Siach Yitzchak in Efrat. He is also the director of student leadership at Yavneh on Campus, where he works with students on over forty college campuses to help build local Jewish communities.

Now, he joins us to answer eighteen questions with Rabbi Dr. Benji Levy on Jewish mysticism including the role of mysticism in daily life and how each person can find their own “piece of Torah.”

Here are our questions: 
What is Jewish mysticism?
How were you introduced to Jewish mysticism?
In an ideal world, would all Jews be mystics?
What do you think of when you think of God?
What is the purpose of the Jewish people?
How does prayer work?
What is the goal of Torah study?
Does Jewish mysticism view men and women the same?
Should Judaism be hard or easy?
Why did God create the world? 
Can humans do something that is against God’s will?
What do you think of when you think about Moshiach?
Is the State of Israel part of the final redemption?
What is the greatest challenge facing the world today?
How has modernity changed Jewish mysticism?
What differentiates Jewish mysticism from the mysticism of other religions? 
Does one need to be religious to study Jewish mysticism?
Can mysticism be dangerous?
How has Jewish mysticism affected your relationships with yourself and with others?
What is a Jewish teaching that you always take with you?