Chofetz Chaim: Loving Kindness

For most people, "Just be a nice person, " seems like an easily attainablegoal. Yet, in his famous work, Ahavas Chessed, the Chofetz Chaim distinguishes the gap between simply doing a chessed, an act of kindness and true love of chessed. With the deep insight for which he was known, thesage notes that many people regard chessed as an obligation: they would feelrelief if the charity collector happens to bypass their door. It's true thatthey would give if asked, and the action would be deemed a chessed, yettheir attitude falls far short of the ideal.With the goal of helping every Jew develop a positive mindset toward chessed, the Chofetz Chaim probes its importance in human relationships.Demonstrating that chessed is no less than an emulation of G-dly compassion,he reveals further that it links all Jews and underlies the Jew'srelationship with all Creation. With classic simplicity, the Chofetz Chaim encourages every Jew to strivetoward love of chessed in his or her own life. Loving Kindn