Written by Michelle Gold

WHY TIKKUN OLAM? 

The late David Baum, one of the finest pediatricians and humanitarian Zionists in Britain loved to tell the story of what I will rename as “The Unknown Boy and the Starfish,” borrowed from American Anthropologist, Loren Eiseley.[1] The story summed up his attitude about life. In my own version of the story, a young boy, who feels he has nothing in particular to offer the world, feels compelled to miss a day at the mall with his buddies to shop for crocs and  tchotchkes. Having just had his Bar Mitzvah, he heads down instead to the beach with his Jewish Mama. Seeing the Starfish dumped at shore, he begins to pick them up one by one to toss them back into the sea. 

If he chooses to ignore the problem, he imagines that the Starfish will die in the heat of the Boynton Beach, FL sun! A passerby snickers cynically and says “Hey, what’s the use of your actions. How can it matter to the world that you are saving the Starfish when there are thousands of them. You will never save them all. To this the boy responds, “For this one, it matters.”[2] This heart-warming story is the opening for a beloved book written by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks to amplify the sounds of the Jewish heartbeat for generations.

Tikkun Olam, is a phrase defined and redefined from the ancient days of the Mishnah to Modernity. The phrase, literally meaning “Repair (Mend) the World” serves as a motto for every Jewish mind and hopefully for all of humanity. Though we have suffered persecution, humility, and atrocities since the beginning of time, many of us still believe there is hope and there is a reason to bring this healing into the world. 

Today as I pen this paper, my heart is broken over a mass murder in Bondi Beach Australia. Sixteen deaths, forty injured from ages 10-87. A ten-year-old boy, Matilda Bee Britvan was killed and an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, Alex Kleytman was also taken from us.[3] Not more than two years ago, on October 7^th, there were mass murders and rapes in Israel. Jewish hatred is growing. 

Yet my people have been called to be a light to the nations, and we have been instilled with this passion to pass on goodness, kindness, and help in times of need. We are not unique by any means in our desire to “save one more starfish,” but we are unique in that we have not given up this divine calling in the face of so much terror. We are not the only ones who have suffered but the fact that we feel compelled to make a difference amid the suffering is a powerful testimony worth exploring. 

In this exploration of Tikkun Olam and its meaning over time, I wish to honour all the scholars, sages, and rabbis who have come before me to demonstrate heroic acts in their pursuit of social justice and ethical activism. I also wish to honour great Christians who have stood by and continue to stand by the Jewish people and the nation of Israel today. May we always acknowledge that we all fall short of G-d’s perfection. May we stand humbly in solidarity together to help the helpless.

Now, where did this concept of “Repair the World” or Tikkun Olam or “Mipnay (for the sake of) Tikkun Olam” begin? How did it evolve and how do continue this great legacy set before us? As I expound on the history of this great phrase, I will daringly add my own two “shekels” or cents. I will attempt to both celebrate Tikkun Olam, the sacred teachings and sages while also finding their possible limitations.

TIKKUN OLAM IN THE TORAH 

My intention of this essay is to address Rabbinic Literature alone. But I would be remiss if I did not begin with mentioning that every ounce of mending or healing, restoration, help, justice, and peace we perceive of or take hold of comes from the G-d of Abraham, Issac and Jacob. Only in the power of His great love are we motivated and activated. The pursuit of Tikkun Olam is a holy quest.

Before I hold ancient and holy literature in high esteem, I must first proclaim that Avinu Malkeinu, our Father and King is the inventor of all healing and restoration. Apart from Him we can do nothing. He is the creator of law, of light, and the giver of all gifts given to make a difference. As we seek to understand a man’s perception of what repairing the world looks like, we humbly acknowledge that all power and ability is found in Elohim. 

I also wish to preface this essay with three more foundational keys to keep in mind. First, we must know that Tikkun Olam is not exclusively for the Jewish soul. A person’s desire to bring healing in this world is entirely Biblical and inclusive for all mankind, for every man and for every woman and child. 

“It will come about after this; I will pour out My Ruach on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams; your young men will see visions. Also, on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out My Ruach” (Joel 2:28-29, TLV). Micah 6:8 also says: “He has told you, humanity, what is good, and what ADONAI is seeking from you: Only to practice justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your G-d.”

Second, repairing the world one person at a time is also entirely biblical. The Holy One, blessed be He cares about each human, individually and has given us all unique abilities. Throughout the Torah, Adonai heals the sick. In Genesis 20:17 the Lord heals Abimelech’s household of infertility. In Exodus 15:26 we meet our creator as The Lord who heals. “…For I am Adonai who heals you.” As seen in the story of the potter and the clay, even in our imperfection, we are also simply and uniquely G-d’s vessels. 

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not say that without love, perhaps we cannot properly live out Tikkun Olam. The Shema recited all around the world in Jewish households and congregations for centuries reflects that love is the basis for all healing, restoration, and restoration. “Hear O Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. Love ADONAI your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. (Deuteronomy 6:4, 5, TLV) Leviticus 19:18 says "You are not to take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people but love your neighbour as yourself. I am ADONAI." 

MISHNAIC TIKKUN OLAM… LEGAL LIMITS?

Like the lyrics to the Disney song, “Beauty and the Beast,” Tikkun Olam is like a tale as old as time except that it is not a tale. Unbeknownst to me, this phrase I grew up with has roots extending back to the Mishnaic and Talmudic eras (approx. 1st Century BCE – 6th Century CE). To properly understand the worldview of the Tikkun Olam in Mishnaic times, it is vital to understand that that Orthodox Jewish Community and some other groups believe that this Holy Book was handed down by G-d himself at the time of Moses! 

Unlike beauty and the beast, perhaps the Torah (the first five books of Moses) and the Mishnah, handed down at Mt. Sinai, are more like two beauties. Whether one agrees or not as to the divine nature of this literature, let me attempt to explain its enormous value and authority. It is my hope to shed light on the fact that during Mishnaic times, we can see Tikkun Olam in the Mishnah.

The Mishnah, known also as the Oral Torah ((Torah Shebe’al Peh) is considered one of the holiest books of Judaism. Becoming acquainted with Jewish life, one can see how the Mishnah was extremely necessary in that it taught a person how to specifically carry out and obey the laws of Moses and other mandates of Torah. While some today might view the laws of the land as restrictive, an in-depth study reveals how the statutes of the Mishnah fostered freedom and advanced the cause of social justice! 

Tikkun Olam is brought to life in and through these legal explanations and rulings because they provided safety for those who were less powerful so they could not be taken advantage of. Without the ancient legal codes, it would have been anarchy. But justice and peace were held in high priority. Knowing that a community could find protection, justice and restoration through the law ought to give one reason for great pause and possibly applause. Just imagine what it would life would be like if there were no rules about stealing or killing or harming someone’s property. 

In even the closest and most loving agricultural communities, one must assume there were more than occasional misunderstandings about property, borrowing, and protecting a person’s animals. Without such laws, someone could injure your cow, depleting your provisions. Again, just like today, there were disagreements about what it meant to rest on the Sabbath day, what was and was not holy, and even arguments about the custody of children, and unpaid debts. And so, it is evident here that the law was necessary to bring Tikkun Olam. 

WHERE DID IT BEGIN?

One of the first times we see “Tikkun Olam” mentioned to keep justice is in Gitten 4:3 of the Mishnah.[4] Succinctly stated, Hillel the Elder (also known as Hillel HaZaken”) issued a ruling to help people in financial need obtain loans. In his video, “How the Talmud Understands Tikkun Olam,” Rabbi Devin Maimon Villarrea explains that in the year of the “Shemitah” or Sabbatical year, all debts were cancelled so that lenders became reluctant to issue loans to the needy.[5]When Hillel instituted this document (called the Prozbol) which allowed debt to be transferred from the private sector to the public Jewish court system. This was a loophole created to help those in need. 

In the same chapter, prior to the Prosbol, we see a divorce ruling where Rabban Gamliel the Elder enacted a ruling that a husband could not gather a court to cancel a get (divorce document) while the messenger is already on the way to the wife. This was done for the sake of Tikkun Olam to prevent a situation where a woman might remarry, thinking she was divorced.[6]

Following each ruling listed in Mishnaic passages like this one, one will clearly and surprisingly discover the purpose vividly stated in the ancient text: “Mip-nay Tikkun Olam,” translated in English as “for the betterment of the world.” Because of this prozbol, Gitten 4:3, the lenders could now write the loan before the Sabbatical Year began. Rabbi Villarrea says, “Hillel ensured that the flow of credit continued, thereby helping the poor get the loans they needed, which he viewed as the higher ethical imperative.” The enactment demonstrated “how to preserve a larger structure of fairness and justice even if that means - in the Moment, NOT doing what feels fair.”[7]

Additional examples of legal codes providing a sense of fairness, justice or Tikkun Olam are found in Gitten 4:6. In this passage, captives could not be redeemed for more than their monetary value.  Torah scrolls and other holy items were not to be purchased from gentiles for more than their monetary value “for the sake of Tikuun Olam.”[8] In these cases, a positive deed in the immediate moment is presented with the tension of a larger unintended consequence to avoid.

Another compelling example of how the Mishnah promotes Tikkun Olam or the “betterment of the world” is demonstrated in securing the collateral of debtors for not-yet-paid loans. There are limits on what can be done with collateral when a debtor does not pay his loan. The lender could not just go into the house by force and take valuables but had to be overseen by the court. This assured that the more powerful could not take from the less powerful and the reason given by Mishnah again is “for the betterment of the world or civilization. (Tikkun Yishuv Ha Olam)[9]

It is interesting to note that collateral or a pledge (called a Mashkon) at that time might have been the debtor's land, or any valuable asset given by the borrower to the lender to hold until the loan was repaid like tools, utensils, livestock, jewellery, or a garment.[10] G-d gives commandments to protect people’s property and lives. 

Thankfully, it is worth including here that G-d created great judges to help enforce human safety. A famous quote from Talmud from Rambam says: “"Every judge who judges a true judgment according to its truth causes the Divine Presence (Shekhinah) to dwell in Israel, as it is said: 'G-d stands in the congregation of G-d; in the midst of the judges He judges' (Psalm 82:1)."[11] In contrast, Rambam follows up with a warning that a judge who does not judge fairly causes G-ds Shekhinah (presence) to depart from Israel. By judging fairly, he has performed Tikkun Olam. 

A 13th Century Spanish Rabbi and Moralist, Rabbeinu Yonah spoke of fair judgment this way: “after the world was created it is preserved through these things (justice, truth and peace) - that through judges that judge between people does the world continue.” Because were it not for law the powerful would conquer all others...”[12] Again, without the law, there would be social chaos.

This could be a great motivation for us. If we believe that G-d protects His people, then why wouldn’t we protect His people as well? In theory it sounds right. But what if the laws alone do not bring social justice? The law assumes human beings will follow it. What if people fail to obey? What if mothers do not teach children that it is not ok to steal and what if fathers exacerbate their children regardless of the law? Can legal fixes fix internal brokenness? 

LURIANIC TIKKUN OLAM (The Metaphysical Limit)

Around 16^th – 18^th Centuries, Isaac Luria re-imagined the term Tikkun Olam to a doctrine of cosmic and spiritual restoration. He re-explained the beginning of Genesis to include a great shattering of vessels somehow showering rays of divine light. One might find it difficult to grasp or explain the stunning cosmic metaphor and Kabbalistic contributions he made to the Jewish world because it is mystical and profound. In his book, To Heal a Fractured World, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks allows us to understand Rabbi Luria and his views quite powerfully and clearly. 

“Rabbi Isaac ben Solomon Luria (1534–72), was known as the Ari. Luria had grown up in Egypt, acquiring expertise in both Jewish law and mysticism (the kabbalah). He had spent two years on an island in the Nile, pondering the great mystical text, the Zohar, and came to Safed to study with Moses Cordovero.”[13] Isaac Luria emerged from a dynamic network or study circle surrounded by master Kabbalists in Safed. This inner circle or network was populated by exiles of the Spanish Inquisition whose collective trauma and mystical devotion laid the groundwork for his revolutionary Kabbalistic system.[14]

This tells me that Luria’s teaching was birthed out of great contemplation and that he was surrounded by the greatest of scholars who suffered beyond what is imaginable. According to Rabbi Lord Sacks, those in Luria’s group included the greats like Talmudist Rabbi David ibn Abi Zimra (Radbaz), the mystic Moses ben Jacob Cordovero, Joseph Caro, author of one of Judaism’s greatest law codes, the Shulhan Arukh, and the mystical poets, Shlomo Alkabetz and Eliezer Azikri. 

Rabbi Luria’s spiritual theory began with a question about how the G-d of the universe could possibly be infinite and yet also exist amid the finite. His theory, inspired by the Zohar, includes the theory that at the beginning of time in Genesis, G-d had to withdraw (tzimtzum) for a time so that there was this great shattering of vessels (shevirat ha-kelim) with divine light. Our responsibility on earth is to gather that divine light to bring Tikkun Olam. 

The goal is cosmic, but the method is based on flawed human ritual performance and is subject to spiritual limitation. The Lurianic fix leaves a longing for both divine immanence and intimacy. Lurianic Kabbalah leaves me in a state or asking, can G-d be simultaneously Infinite and Intimate? According to Kabbalah, can the infinite co-exist with the finite? It is not clear to me how the divine presents Himself in the sparks or how we should gather those sparks, though Rabbi Jonathan Sacks is so careful to appreciate and synthesize Isaac’s teachings.

“Each religious act we do has an effect on the ecology of creation. It restores something of lost harmony to the cosmos. Or, to use another term from Lurianic kabbalah, it ‘unifies the divine name’ and helps mend the breach between G-d’s essence and his indwelling presence (Shekhinah) which is currently in exile…cosmic catastrophe progressively healed by individual deeds which, though they seem small and local, ‘mend the world’.[15]

As we approach the Chanukkah and Christmas holidays, we acknowledge that individual deeds are necessary. If we were to embrace Lurianic Kabbalah, however, we would be left without knowing how many individual deeds it would take to experience G-d’s Shechinah or indwelling presence. Is there danger of denying that the Jewish scriptures require a sacrifice to be forgiven? Could collecting fragments of light truly reconcile us with Elohim? It does not seem to be the case at all. 

The New Covenant, however, provides for us something less limited than a Cosmic solution. "For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to G-d through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by His life!" (Romans 5:10, TLV) Colossians 1:20 also says “and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross."

Even Rabbi Sacks ventures to say that according to the Alenu prayer, read in our Siddur (Holy Prayer Book) every Sabbath, “It is G-d, not us, who will perfect the world.”[16] There are too many eloquent quotes by Sacks, but I feel I cannot do justice by putting them in my own words. G-d creates order, man creates chaos.” is one such quote.[17]

“Justice in the Hebrew Bible is thus more than a matter of law. It restores a broken order. By suffering the wrong he inflicted on others, the wrongdoer comes to feel remorse. He or she repairs the damage they have done.”[18] The feature of great significance which Sacks does mention is the is the idea of Messianic hope in the world to come. This restoration is explained as something macrocosmic, and on a spiritual meta-physical level - to end all war and strife according to Isaiah 11:9. 

As we sing songs about Immanuel this holiday season, G-d with us, dwelling inside of our hearts, we Messianic believers can rejoice that G-d did in fact withdraw for a moment when he atoned for us as our Passover lamb. We believe G-d is infinite (transcendent) and yet also intimate. He is the Immanent Immanuel- G-d with us. He can be omni-present yet also his divine light can live in us when we ask Him simply to come dwell in us. We are His tabernacles. Yes, each small act we do for justice mends a fracture in the world. But no, we do not do this alone. 

MODERN TIKKUN OLAM…THE ETHICAL LIMIT

As we understood from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the Lurianic Tikkun Olam, though a compelling metaphor, had its limitations. Sacks left us with these words in his chapter on Tikkun Olam: “Tikkun Olam in the Lurianic sense is about the soul, not the world; the spirit, not the body; metaphysical fracture, not poverty and disease. Lurianic kabbalah is at best a metaphor, not a prescription, for the forms of social action I have described in this book.”[19]What then does Modern Judaism prescribe for mending the world? 

To better understand how the Modern world defined Tikkun Olam or mending the world, we need to understand how hi changed drastically and suddenly in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. In his article, Rethinking Jewish Modernity, Scholar and Jewish Professor, Arnold M. Eisen speaks about a double shock which caused an enormous shift in Jewish life. Eisen explains that for the first time, our people experienced emancipation after two millennium of living in ghettos without civil rights to say the least. They were now individuals and less attached to a thriving community, Judaism was viewed less as a set of religious beliefs and more focused on ethical and secular political and communal work. 

“Judaism in the modern period should not be viewed as a set of beliefs concerning revelation, closeness and G-d, but as a set of actions and beliefs, such actions in the nature of the

modern case being defined primarily as ritual but including communal,

political and professional activities”[20] The views of Sacks seem to be in harmony with the Eisen in that he saw the Modern View of Judaism as not passive, but active. While Kabbalah provides cosmic meaning and explains why the word is fractured, Modern Judaism tells how to perform the repair with ethics. 

If I should try to explain this in my own words, mine would pale in comparison. This quote from Rabbi Sacks is deeply moving and so eloquently said: “Jews did not believe, with the Manichaeans or Gnostics, that the physical world is a vale of tears to be transcended. It is the world G-d made and pronounced good. 

On the other hand, its failings, inequities and corruptions are neither inevitable nor to be accepted with resignation. It is this ability to hold together a sense of the goodness of creation and the evil it contains, thanking G-d for the one, working in G-d’s name against the other, that marks Judaism as an activist, future-oriented faith. Tikkun Olam involves the recognition that the world does need repair, rather than Stoic acceptance or ascetic denial.[21]

While celebrating this godly urge to make a difference, evidence of limitations or incompletion rear their ugly heads as we look at Modernity. Professor Eisen mentions Émile Durkheim (1858–1917), one of the founding fathers of sociology. Durkheim spoke of individualism and lack of community or “Sacred connections” as a sort of crisis for the soul. With no roots and no normal, this left people in a state of moral mediocrity. “"We are going through a stage of transition and moral mediocrity," he concluded in The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life. "The old gods are growing old or already dead, and others are not yet born."' The only hope lay in a rational religion, cantered cognitively on science but built around sancta related to the nation and to occupational groups.”[22]

We see it then and we can see it today that secular Modernity has failed to provide the purposeful meaning people crave. This left the twenty-first century with many choices and less meaning. Performing acts of kindness without a deep connection to Adonai creates a void in meaning that even Rabbi Sacks has illuded to. This is why the Messianic Hope found in the Hebrew scriptures is so compelling to me. What good are we doing our souls if we maintain our dignity without true connection with the divine?

In conclusion, I do not hold the opinion that Messianic faith and belief in Messiah excuses us from Tikkun Olam. I am suggesting that we can only truly mend the world when Messiah is dwelling in us. In Messiah, we do not need magic or mysticism because we are connected to the source immanently and intimately. When the Messiah, Yeshua, made atonement for us, He gave his life and was resurrected on the third day. He gave His Ruach, His very breath, to dwell in us, giving us power beyond our human limitations. 

This indwelling power and Shechinah is better than any social justice the world could ever offer because it causes us to act righteously and do good. With the Ruach in us, the law is written on our hearts, and we become those broken vessels. His glorious beauty shines in us. Apart from this, because of human nature, we are in danger of selfish ambition. 
    Jonathan Sacks gave this glorious quote to stir us up in doing good deeds: “So each of us has our own task, our unique gifts, our singular contribution to make. For each of us there is something no one else could do, and it is not least for this that we were created. As long as there is hunger, poverty and treatable disease in the world, there is work for us to do. As long as nations fight, and men hate, and corruption stalks the corridors of power; as long as there is unemployment and homelessness, depression and despair, our task is not yet done, and we hear, if we listen carefully enough, the voice of G-d asking us, as he asked the first humans, ‘Where are you?’[23]

As compelling as these words are from Lord Rabbi Sacks, I am reminded of our human limitations and the limitations of every prescription mentioned here for mending the world. Modernity seems to say, “Science will save us.” Post-Modernity seems to realize that Science and politics have not fixed our souls, leaving us with a minimum of meaning. We have moved so far from community to individualism; it appears the divine connection has been lost.  

The "old gods" of secular systems Eisen referred to, cannot give us the life we need to keep going. The "maximum of choice and minimum of meaning" that Sacks warned us about has often left us exhausted. Modern social justice is a noble effort, but as Arnold M. Eisen noted, we are "referred back to ourselves" without a deeper anchor. Without the anchor of community, we find that our own strength simply isn't enough to sustain the work of repair. The spiritual reality seems to be what Durkheim and Eisen have insinuated- that this loss has led to cynicism.

Yeshua, our Messianic hope fulfilled, is the complete and infinite answer to all limitations., making Tikkun Olam possible to a degree in this world and unequivocally in the world to come. Let us now think for ourselves and consider that Yeshua, the Jewish Messia,h is calling us today.

He is asking you, his Jewish mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters: “Where are you?” Since the beginning of time, He has been pursuing His people. The book of Isaiah describes Him as Counsellor and King, Ben-Elohim and Mighty G-d. (Isa. 9:6) He has fulfilled countless prophesies and wishes to dwell within us in love, peace, and power. 

He has said “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble but take courage; I have overcome the world!” (John 16:33, TLV) Tikkun Olam truly begins when the One who repairs divinely dwells in the one who overcomes. 

Bibliography

Eisen, Arnold M. “Rethinking Jewish Modernity.” Jewish Social Studies 1, no. 1 (1994): 1–21.

Maimonides, Moses. Mishneh Torah: Hilkhot Sanhedrin. n.d.

Pergram, Chad. “Bondi Beach Attack Underscores Capitol Hill Friction on Antisemitism.” Fox News, December 16, 2025. https://www.foxnews.com/video/6386515246112.

Sacks, Jonathan. To Heal a Fractured World: The Ethics of Responsibility. Kindle Edition. Schocken, 2005.

Sefaria Community (Translator), trans. “Mishnah Bava Metzia.” Https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Gittin.4.4?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en. Sefaria, December 15, 2025.

———, trans. “Mishnah, Tractate Gittin.” Https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Gittin.4.4?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en. Sefaria, December 15, 2025.

 Villarreal, Devin Maimon. How the Talmud Understands “Tikkun Olam.” Valley Beit Midrash. 2021. Video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUseHYDfvOc.