contents - moshiach · english editor: boruch merkur [email protected] 4 | the pleasure of...

Beis Moshiach (USPS 012-542) ISSN1082-0272 is published weekly,except Jewish holidays (only once inApril and October) for $130.00 inCrown Heights, $140.00 in the USA& Canada, all others for $150.00 peryear (45 issues), by Beis Moshiach,744 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY11213-3409. Periodicals postage paidat Brooklyn, NY and additional offices.Postmaster: send address changes toBeis Moshiach 744 Eastern Parkway,Brooklyn, NY 11213-3409.

Beis Moshiach is not responsible forthe content of the advertisements.

© Copyright 2006 by Beis Moshiach, Inc

U.S.A744 Eastern Parkway

Brooklyn, NY 11213-3409Tel: (718) 778-8000 Fax: (718) 778-0800

[email protected]

ERETZ HA’KODESH72915 s cj rpf 102 /s/,

(03) 9607-290 :iupky

(03) 9607-289 :xep

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:M.M. Hendel

ENGLISH EDITOR:Boruch Merkur

[email protected]

4 | THE PLEASURE OF PREPARING FOR PESACH(CONT.)D’var Malchus / Likkutei Sichos Vol. 16, pg. 122-128

7 | A GIFT FOR THE REBBE Yud-Alef Nissan / Rebbetzin Rochel Hendel

10 | THE DAY OF REJOICING OF MOSHIACHTZIDKEINUPesach / Compiled by Menachem Shaked

16 | DANCING IN HONOR OF THE GEULAPesach Story / Menachem Ziegelboim

19 | HALACHA IS LEARNED FROM SHULCHANARUCH, NOT FROM MIDRASHIMFocus / Rabbi Sholom Dovber HaLevi Wolpo

22 | CELEBRATING GEULA IN GALUS18 Nissan / Menachem Ziegelboim

26 | ITCHKE: TO CROSS THE SEA ON AHANDKERCHIEF (CONT.)Chassid / Avrohom Reinitz

32 | CHABAD GADYAThought / Rabbi Yehoshua Dubrawsky

36 | MY PERSONAL REDEMPTIONProfile / Idit Aharon

40 | TRIAL AND ITS REWARDStory / Natan Avraham

45 | SHABBOS IN HEVRONPerspective / Aliza Karp

49 | AFTER GIMMEL TAMUZ: ‘TAKE THE TIME TOTEACH ME’Readers Writing

Wishing all our readers a kosher and freilichn Pesach.The next issue is due be”H for Parshas Tazria-Metzora.

CONTENTS

BEIS MOSHIACH - Erev Pesach 57664

[Continued from last week]

6. These two manners of Divine service find expression,in a general sense, also in the two general manifestations ofredemption: the redemption from Egypt and the futureredemption.

Regarding the Exodus from Egypt it says [B’Shalach 14:5],“for the nation fled” (haste), reason being that “the evil in thesouls of the Jewish people was still in its strength” [Tanya Ch.31; see FN 31]. Thus, we had to run away from evil (“thedefilement of Egypt” [ibid]) Indeed, this is the concept of“bread of affliction,” the Divine service of suppression.Whereas, in the Future to Come it will be, “not in haste shallyou go” [Yeshayahu 52:12], “the spirit of defilement I willremove from the land” [Zecharia 13:2], [symbolizing] a stateof sublimation, “rich matza.”

And this is the explanation of how “because you left Egyptin haste” is the reason why the matza of the night of Pesachcannot be rich matza (and not matza made of ingredients thatdo not ferment). Namely, since “you left Egypt in haste,”being that the evil was still in its strength (as mentionedabove), it demanded the service of obedience andsuppression, specifically “bread of affliction.”

7. The fact that we cannot fulfill our obligation on Pesachwith rich matza is not only because what it represents doesnot resemble the redemption from Egypt, which was in amanner of, “the nation fled” (obedience and suppression, asmentioned above), but also on account of the fact that “breadof affliction” (and likewise, the redemption from Egypt) hasan advantage over rich matza (and the redemption of theFuture to Come):

Although in the case of sublimation (rich matza) the evilis entirely nullified, there is still an advantage in suppression.Namely, the fact that specifically this service is connected

with the toil of the person, battling with opposition andoverpowering the evil.

In different terms: The concept of sublimation expresseshow the person becomes united with G-dliness, through thefact that he is purified, to the extent that his being does notpermit any room for evil. Suppression, on the other hand,expresses nullification and submission to G-dliness – thatalthough with respect to the person’s intellect and emotionthere is room for evil, he forces himself to do the opposite ofwhat his being demands and instead fulfills the SupernalWill.

This is one of the explanations of the fact that also in thefuture redemption there will be the remembrance of theExodus from Egypt [FN 34: Mishna Brachos Ch. 1, end. Andit is said, “As in the days of your departure from the land ofEgypt, I will show him wonders” (Micha 7:15), “As there wasfor the Jewish people on the day of their ascent from the landof Egypt” (Yeshayahu 11:16).], for the ultimate intent is thatthere should be both advantages. Namely, even when aperson has achieved sublimation – the complete purificationof his being, to the extent that there is absolutely no place forevil – there should also be the advantage of suppression [seeFN 35] (which is associated with the redemption fromEgypt), the nullification of the person, which is expressed inwork and toil.

8. The Alter Rebbe explains in Torah Or [Shmos, beg.] thatthe fact that it says regarding the redemption from Egypt, “Ishall bring you up, also ascend” [FN 37: VaYigash 46:4. Andin Torah Or mentioned above: So too in Shmos Ch. 3, verse14, G-d told Moshe about the final redemption, etc.] – twoelevations – comes to include a second ascent, which willoccur with the future redemption.

It is, therefore, understood that (precisely as the conceptof the redemption from Egypt will be “mentioned” – it will be

THE PLEASUREOF PREPARINGFOR PESACH

LIKKUTEI S ICHOS VOL. 16, PG. 122-128TRANSLATED BY BORUCH MERKUR

D’VAR MALCHUS

Issue Number 550 - BEIS MOSHIACH 5

efficacious – in the future redemption, so too in the converse,also) with regard to the redemption from Egypt there must beperceived and felt (the promise and speech [FN 38: which isconsidered an action (B’Reishis Rabba 44:22, among others)]of the Holy One Blessed Be He pertaining to the) the futureredemption.

The explanation of the matter: How can one effect inhimself that also when the evil is in its strength (and evenafter breaking himself, the evil still remains in its strength(just like regarding the Exodus from Egypt, which had to be,“the nation fled”)) he should have the power to wage warwith the evil (and to be victorious over it)? It helps to havethe recognition and perception that ultimately, the service ofsuppression will lead to sublimation.

Thus, even before the onset of the redemption fromEgypt, there was the mention and proclamation concerningboth elevations: “I shall bring you up,also ascend,” [i.e., there was mentionof] also the future redemption.

9. The fact that we mention thefuture redemption in the context of theredemption from Egypt means not onlythat we proclaim a concept that will bein the future, but also that it is a sourceof strength to be translated into aperson’s Divine service in present times– that immediately in the beginning ofservice (the exile of Egypt) there shouldbe a semblance of the futureredemption.

At first glance one can ask: Since weare still at the initial stages of the serviceof G-d and the evil is still in its strength,how can there be (even) a semblance ofthe future redemption, which ischaracterized by sublimation (that thereis no evil)?

The response: Although in thebeginning of the service of G-d there isnot the concept of nullification of (the existence) of evil, forwhich reason the service is in a way of waging war andobedience (as mentioned above in Section 5), thenullification and obedience must not be (only) in a way offorcing. Rather, the nullification itself must be connected withthe person’s “being”; his intellect and emotions should alsoconsent to the nullification and obedience. Then, one’sservice of obedience is with a geshmak.

That is, the future redemption as it is expressed in theredemption from Egypt is not the service of intellect andemotions unto themselves (which would eventually lead tosublimation, as mentioned in Section 5), but an aspect of theservice of suppression (associated with the redemption fromEgypt) – that the service of obedience is with pleasure.

(Similarly, the concept of the redemption from Egypt,which will be mentioned in the Future to Come, is an aspectof the future redemption: The primary ascent of the future isthe purification of the person’s being (sublimation), but thepurification will not be measured and limited only to theamount of purification that he accomplishes (correspondingto his being), but surpassing the capacity of his being (theadvantage of nullification).)

10. This also explains why the matza that the Jews ate inEgypt (as a preparation to the Exodus from Egypt) could havebeen rich matza [see FN 39], but on the other hand, it had tobe “matza that requires guarding”:

In light of the integration of the future redemption withthe redemption from Egypt, there is the possibility for richmatza also while in Egypt. However, the fact that in Egyptthere can be a semblance of the future is only with regard to

the detail of “rich” – that the obedienceitself should be with a geshmak – but notwith regard to the concept of “it cannot‘come to be fermented’” (sublimation);this cannot be when the evil is still in itsstrength.

11. This [point regarding richmatzos], however, is only applicablewhen we are still in Egypt, before theredemption. But departing from Egypt,after the redemption (so too with regardto the matza that we eat on the night ofPesach, a remembrance of the Exodusfrom Egypt), must be specifically “breadof affliction.” [See FN 40.]

The explanation of the matter: TheExodus from Egypt accomplished thatthe Jews no longer were “the servants ofPharaoh” and they became “the servantsof G-d.” That is, they were then holdingby accepting His kingship, may He beblessed, which precedes the obedienceof fulfilling G-d’s commandants (as the

Sages say, “One should first receive upon himself the yoke ofthe kingship of Heaven and thereafter he should receive uponhimself the yoke of Mitzvos [Mishna Brachos 2:2. SeeMechilta Yisro 20:3 among others]).

In this, a person mustn’t mix in the concept of his being,as the Sages say: the punishment of one who gestures beforethe king is the opposite of life [Chagiga 5b. See Likkutei SichosVol. 4 pg. 1050 and FN 13 there]. And therefore, in this, therecannot be the “taam” and geshmak of rich matza, becausereceiving the kingship of the Holy One Blessed Be He(becoming servants of G-d) is only through “bread ofaffliction,” absolute nullification.

(From the addresses of Acharon Shel Pesach and Shabbos Parshas Shmini 5726)

The nullification itselfmust be connectedwith the person’s

“being”; his intellectand emotions shouldalso consent to thenullification andobedience. Then,one’s service of

obedience is with ageshmak.

B”H 16th of Adar, 5766

MO’OS CHITIMTo All Anash and Temimim wha

Sholom U'vrocho!

Throughout the years, during the Rebbe's Purim Farbrengen (“Thirty days before the Chag(Pesach)”), the Rebbe would customarily remind and urge everyone concerning the importance ofcontributing Tzedakah for “Mo’os Chitim.”

It is well known that “Kupas Rabbeinu” endeavors to continue implementing all of the holyprojects and activities which the Rebbe has established. Amongst these activities is the Rebbe'spractice to extend financial aid to those families in need of their various Pesach necessities.

Accordingly, we are at this time urging and requesting each and every Anash memberand Tomim uhjha to contribute generously to “Kupas Rabbeinu,” in order to enable theadministration to provide for these families and thus afford them with the opportunityto celebrate Pesach with contentment and joy.

Regarding this Mitzvah it is stated: “Whoever increases (in giving) is praiseworthy.”

Unfortunately, the amount of families in need of this financial assistance is more thangenerally assumed. As such, the more generous your contribution to “Kupas Rabbeinu,”the greater the number of families receiving assistance will be.

And since, with regard to all Mitzvahs we are instructed to act with Simcha and zest, it is all themore pertinent with regard to the aforementioned, as it is of paramount importance that the fundsbe received and distributed as soon as possible.

In the merit of Tzedakah which hastens the Geula, may we merit the true Geula Shlaimah, withthe revelation of Melech HaMashiach - The Rebbe Nasi Doreinu, immediately, Mamash.

Chag HaPesach Kosher V'Sameach

Vaad Kupas Rabbeinu

P.S. 1) The traditional “Magvis Yud Shevat, Purim” can also be sent at this time, as well as all other Magvios.

2) All funds should be sent to the following address only; Donations are tax deductible In Eretz haKodesh:

KUPAS RABBEINU KEREN KUPAS ADMU”R

P.O. Box 288 P.O. Box 1247

BROOKLYN, N.Y. 11225 KIRYAT MALACHI – ISRAEL

Kupas RabbeinuLubavitch

(718) 756-3337 ^ P.O.B. 288 Brook lyn, New York 11225 ^ (718) 467-2500

eup, rchbu,j, bahtu, fe tsnur nkl vnahj

Yud-Alef Nissan, the Rebbe’sbirthday: We always knew that thisbirthday was very important, beingthe birthday of the Nasi HaDor. Wealways tried to give the Rebbe abirthday gift to please him and givehim nachas. After all, the purposeof a gift is to please the recipient.

I will share with you one of thebirthday gifts that I sent the Rebbe,28 years ago in 5738 (1978). Whenwe arrived in Tzfas 33 years ago,on the Rebbe’s shlichus, I had anumber of goals. One of these goalswas to teach kallos and marriedwomen the laws of family purity. Iwas also committed to workingwith the youth to be mekarev themto Yiddishkait.

I went to different schools andmade Shabbos parties with thechildren on Friday. The childrenalways looked forward to it. Whenwe saw that this was successful, weplanned a pre-bar and bas mitzvaprogram at Public School #3 in thesouth of the city. The principalliked the idea, as did thehomeroom teacher of the sixthgrade, Mrs. Esther Motai. Theyeven agreed to separate the boysand girls once a week for theseclasses.

So every week I gave a shiur forgirls as a preparation for their basmitzva (on my day off and ofcourse I wasn’t paid). The teachersattended it too and found it very

interesting. Various pamphlets onChassidus that talk about barmitzva and bas mitzva werehelpful.

We had a special notebook thatwe called “Jewish Thought.” Thegirls decorated it and lookedforward to the class. Mothers werealso happy about the class. I wasasked to speak at an eveningprogram for mothers and all wentwell.

In honor of Yud-Alef Nissan thatyear, I decided to send the Rebbethe most beautiful notebooks. Itold the girls about this and thecompetition was fierce. All the girlsworked hard to make their

notebook the most attractive.Excitement ran high – they weresending a gift to the Rebbe!

We wrote a nice letter and thegirls and teachers signed toheartfelt brachos in honor of theRebbe’s birthday and we sent thefive nicest notebooks with theletter.

To our great surprise, duringS’firas HaOmer I received a letterfrom the Rebbe, which containedthree letters: one for the girls ofPublic School #3, one for theteachers of the public schools ofTzfas, and one for me. In my letterthe Rebbe wrote, “Enclosed are twoletters for the teachers and students

YUD-ALEF NISSAN

A GIFT FORTHE REBBE

REBBETZIN ROCHEL HENDEL

7Issue Number 550 - BEIS MOSHIACH

N


and certainly, if more of anexplanation is required, you willfind the proper way to do so,” aswell as brachos.

To the girls, the Rebbe wrote:

I was pleased to receive,through Mrs. Chaya Rochel Hendel,your wishes and blessings for mybirthday along with yournotebooks. It has already been saidin the words of our Sages, who say,“Whoever blesses is himselfblessed,” from Hashem, the Sourceof blessing, Whose addition isgreater than the original.

I enjoyed seeing the notebooksthat are about Jewish-Thought andit is certainly superfluous toemphasize the p’sak din of ourTorah, the Torah of life, that themain thing is action, the action ofmitzvos and conducting oneselfaccording to authentic Jewishthought. Especially according tothe saying of our Sages that themitzvos were given to refine theJewish people, i.e., they refine andpurify – effecting the realm ofthought as well: “Hashem wantedto refine the Jewish people,therefore He gave them Torah andmitzvos.” May each of you and allof you together go from strength tostrength in all the aforementionedand may Hashem grant yousuccess. With blessing.

The Rebbe wrote an interestingletter to the teachers, which wecopied. We then explained to all ofthem the significance of the Rebbe’smessage. The success (and simcha)was enormous.

However, shortly thereafter, theSatan mixed in and one day asupervisor came and said thatChabad was no longer welcome atthe public schools in Tzfas. Ourwonderful work came to a stop andwe were quite upset.

I was reminded of all this and itoccurred to me that maybe we

should try to restart this program.May Hashem grant us success.

* * *

As the years went on, Chabadschools were opened in Tzfas. Iworked at Beis Chana and MachonAlte. Ten years down the road I satdown one day in Machon Alte andtaught the girls in a large room,when suddenly, a girl walked in.She greeted me heartily, and said,“Finally we meet!” We hugged andkissed as though we had bothwaited for this moment and it wasawkward for me since I didn’t feel Icould ask her who she was!

I began the shiur whilewondering who the girl could be.Who was so happy to see me? Itried to remember but came upblank. I decided I couldn’t ask herbecause she could feel insulted thatshe felt so close to me while Ididn’t even recognize her.

At the end of the shiur, shecame over to me and hesitantlyasked me, “Ah, where do we knoweach other from?”

We began to laugh. I tried toremember and finally placed her.She was Vicki, one of the girls inthe sixth grade in the bas mitzva

program at Public School #3. Shehad been there when the Rebbe’sanswer had arrived. Now, ten yearslater, she came to learn aboutJudaism.

That’s when we saw thefulfillment of the verse in Koheles,“cast your bread upon the watersfor after many days you will findit.” We became very close and shewas our guest on many a Shabbos.We also invited her parents. Herfather was the administrator of aclinic at the hospital in Tzfas andher mother was a lovely woman, achild of Romanian immigrants.

At first, there was someopposition from her parents but aswe learned from experience, wetake recalcitrant mothers toweddings of girls from the Machonso they see true joy (with amechitza etc.).

We took Vicki’s mother to oneof the girl’s weddings and thesimcha was so great that she said tome, “I’ve never seen simcha likethis. This is the kind of wedding Iwant for my daughter!” BaruchHashem, her daughter also had aChassidishe wedding.

Today, Vicki has seven children(or eight, I don’t remember) andruns a beautiful Chassidishe home.We’ve kept in touch and she’s trulya source of nachas to her parents.

How important it is to workwith the youth, for so much can beaccomplished with them. Israeliyouth do not study Judaism, soevery crumb given to them is soimportant and has long-rangeeffects.

You would be surprised, buteven the children who learn in ourown mosdos need chizuk. ErevPurim I went around to the classesin Ohr Menachem and Beis Chanain Tzfas. More than half the girls,who are not from Lubavitcherhomes but from religious homes,

In the end, the entirefamily traveled and

on the way, one of thefamily members read

the Megilla from akosher Megilla. When

he said Haman’sname and they had

nothing to bang with,the father honked!


do not hear the Megilla read onPurim day. This is because the menhear it early in the morning in shuland the women couldn’t manage tocome that early, and over the years,they left the work to the men.

However, the mitzvos of Purimare for women as well as for men!So we made a campaign in schoolthat whoever heard the Megillaread twice and took other girls orher mother along with her, wouldbe in a raffle for s’farim. The girlswere terrific! For the first time,they heard the Megilla at night andby day.

There was a woman who wantedto hear the Megilla read by daythanks to our campaign, but they

had to travel somewhere. In theend, the entire family traveled andon the way, one of the familymembers read the Megilla from akosher Megilla. When he saidHaman’s name and they hadnothing to bang with, the fatherhonked!

Now, for Pesach, the big mivtzais eating handmade shmura matza.One year, the girls in OhrMenachem-B’nos worked on this.The principal and teachersconvinced the girls, who convincedtheir families to eat only this kindof matza on Pesach. What a greatz’chus it is, as the Arizal writes,“Whoever is careful about a drop ofchametz is guaranteed he won’t sinall year.” What an impact eating

only handmade shmura matza has!

Surely every teacher, wherevershe may be, has an enormousinfluence on her environment. Wecannot take it easy; we mustpersuade everyone to buy onlyround, handmade shmura matza!

* * *

As we approach the special dayof Yud-Alef Nissan, let us eachthink of an appropriate gift for theRebbe, one that will please him.The Rebbe is here for us, constantlylistening to our problems andgiving us his brachos. Let us repayhim in some small way for all hedoes for us. Let us bring about thehisgalus of Melech HaMoshiachnow!


PESACH

PESACHPESACHPREPARATIONSPREPARATIONS

SIMCHA SHEL MITZVAThe cutting and threshing was

done with great joy, as well as witha seriousness that was apparent oneverybody’s face. All wore gartelsand wore hats on their yarmulkes. Itwas hot, and the work was donequickly as though they were used todoing fieldwork. The elderlyChassid R’ Zalman, with a wide anddistinguished looking beard and ashining countenance, with the sicklein his hand, was lithe as a youngman. It was clear that he wasspurred on by simcha.

Some of the men cut whileothers sang. The singing wasparticularly sweet and echoed in thedistance. On every face, one couldsee that something special wastaking place that day.

Immediately after they finishedthe harvesting and threshing, someof the crowd left, R’ Zalman among

them, to wash up. Upon his returnfrom the bathhouse, R’ Zalman woreShabbos clothes and Mincha began.R’ Zalman was the chazan and heused a Simchas Torah tune. Theydid not recite Tachnun.

R’ Zalman sang Aleinu to ajoyous tune and for the OsehShalom of the Kadishim R’ Zalmanwaited for them to flip him over in asomersault as was customary. If theyrefused out of respect for him, hewould say, “nu” and wait beforetaking the three steps of OsehShalom until they had to flip himand then R’ Zalman danced witheverybody.

(Likkutei Dibburim vol. 1)

CHINUCH FROM THEHOME

Erev Pesach in the 70’s one ofthe men whose job it was to helpRebbetzin Chaya Mushka, wascalled to her home. When hearrived there, the Rebbetzin gavehim a small sum of money thatremained from what she owed him

for the work he had done.

He asked her why she botheredlooking for him Erev Pesach whenhe didn’t need the money and hecould have spent Yom Tov withoutit.

The Rebbetzin’s answer surprisedhim. She said, “I was taught not toenter Yom Tov in debt.”

CHINUCH EREV PESACHThe Rebbe Rayatz related:

Among the preparations for YomTov was the job of removing theseals from the wine bottles,especially those with letters, and topartially remove the cork. Theywere careful not to allow the metalof the retaining wire to touch thewine. I did this in my father’s [theRebbe Rashab] room and was carefulnot to soil my clothing, especiallynot to ruin the shine of my newshoes.

My father knew what I wasthinking and said to me, “In thediscourse beginning with the words‘we were slaves,’ published in theSiddur, he [the Alter Rebbe]explains it with a parable of aminister sitting near a table set withall sorts of delicacies and under thetable is a dog who chews on thebones. How is it possible that the

A compilation of stories and short sayingsabout Pesach, from our Rebbeim and the greatChassidim.

THE DAY OFREJOICING OF

MOSHIACH TZIDKEINUCOMPILED BY MENACHEM SHAKED

minister would get off his chair andgo under the table to chew bones?”

This affected me and I wasashamed to look at my new clothesanymore. This is what you callchinuch.


THE SCENT OF GEULAThe atmosphere Erev Pesach

after learning the “Korban Pesach”was not merely by way ofpreparation for Yom Tov but wasYom Tov itself – simcha that comesfrom a good thought with thegreatest expectations for the comingof Moshiach.

Behold Moshiach comes, the BeisHaMikdash is built and we sacrificethe Korban Pesach, and we carry itout with such pleasure. Thepleasure of Erev Pesach wasdifferent than that of Simchas Torahor Yud-Tes Kislev. On Erev Pesach

there was a spiritual elevation ofpleasure and satisfaction.

Leil Shimurim (the protectednight) sparkled from every cornerand the scent of Geula emanatedfrom everything. The feeling that wewere in a special state was palpable,behold, behold, another momentand another moment, somethingwill happen that pertains to us Jewsalone.

In another hour, another half anhour, the sound of Hashem will beheard, which spews forth a blaze offlame, “It is Leil Shimurim toHashem, etc., watched for all theJewish people for generations.” Andall Jews throughout the world willunite in one thought, in one word,and in one deed, to joyously fulfillthe mitzva to recount the story ofour exodus from Egypt.

With such an elevated spirit,divorced of worries, we went to the

minyan for Maariv.


FOOD OF FAITHFOOD OF FAITH

EVERY JEW BELIEVESR’ Avrohom of Zembin related

that he was once by the TzemachTzedek, and the Chassidim saidabout a certain person that he was aheretic. The Tzemach Tzedek said,“He is not a heretic, rather, in emunahe has a mashehu [a tiny bit].”

As with chametz, whoseprohibition on Pesach is so severethat even a “tiny bit” is forbidden,the same is true, in a spiritual sense,regarding self-awareness, which isthe opposite of true unity.

(T’shura; Wolf, Rosh Chodesh Nissan 5760)

IT ENABLES THE FAITHTO PENETRATE

R’ Shneur Zalman Taybel asked:Since Jews are believers, children of


“Mayim Sh’lanu” – artwork by Zalman Kleinman

believers, what is unique aboutmatza that we call it “food of faith”?

The Rebbe answered: Emuna ingeneral is something that is makif(encompassing, not internalized) asit is explained in many places inChassidus, and the example isbrought from the Gemara of thethief who cries out to Hashem forhelp.

The matza enables the faith topenetrate inwards.

(HaMelech B’Mesibo)

HIDDURIMHIDDURIM

EXTRA VIGILANCEFOR PESACH

Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah, wife ofthe Rebbe Rashab, kept the Pesachutensils in a locked glass cupboardin the dining room. The key was ina drawer in the Rebbe’s desk. Onetime, the Rebbe looked forsomething in the drawer andnoticed that the key wasn’t there.

Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah related:

He asked me immediately if Iknew where the key was and beganto inquire and search for the key.There was a commotion in thehouse until finally the key wasfound between the papers.

We see from here the great carethat was taken. The Rebbe knewthat nobody dared to touch his deskyet he was so nervous since it wassomething having to do withPesach.

(Shmuos V’Sippurim vol. 1)

YOU DON’T RELYON THE GRANDMOTHER?!

One time, before Pesach, thecook in Yeshivas Tomchei T’mimimasked the T’mimim to wash the eggsthat would be used on Pesach. TheT’mimim said that as far as theyknew it was not customary to washeggs but the woman insisted andmaintained that they must be

washed.

The T’mimim asked RebbetzinRivka, who said, “We don’t washthem.”

However, even after this answerthere were bachurim who said thatperhaps they should wash themanyway as a hiddur and chumra.When the Rebbe Rayatz heard aboutit he said, “They don’t want to relyon my grandmother but on thecook?!”

(Likkutei Sippurim – Perlov)

ON PESACH WE DON’TTAKE FROM OTHERS

A Chassid from Karap broughtmashke to the Tzemach Tzedek forPesach. The Tzemach Tzedek said tohim, “We don’t use mashke onPesach!”

Even after the Chassid said,“Rebbe, I prepared it myself frompotatoes and there is nothing to beconcerned about,” the TzemachTzedek did not accept it from him.

(ibid)

MASHKE ON PESACH ANDACHARON SHEL PESACHRashag (R’ Shmaryahu Gurary,

the Rebbe’s brother-in-law) related:

The first night of Pesach 5663(1903), there was a meal in the largezal. During the meal, the topic ofmashke on Pesach came up. It was akabbala (oral tradition) from theTzemach Tzedek to be stringent inthis and not to use mashke onPesach.

The Rebbe Rashab said, “Ithappened that my father usedmashke on Pesach – on the last day,after midday.”

(ibid)

TODAY IT IS ANOBLIGATION

The mashpia R’ Shmuel Grunemrelated in the name of R’ Avrohom,

rav of Zembin:

“Shmura matza used to be ahiddur. Today it’s an obligation!”

(ibid)

SEDER NIGHTSEDER NIGHT

SPIRITUAL PLEASUREFROM THE MATERIAL

The first night of Pesach afterMaariv, the Rebbe Rashab and hisson (later to be the Rebbe Rayatz)went to the T’mimim’s dining roomin order to see how it was preparedfor the seider.

The Rebbe Rashab had muchpleasure from the cleanliness andorderliness and he said, “It isspiritual pleasure.”

(ibid)

WITH THE STORY WE GOOUT OF GALUS

For Rebbetzin Rivka every storywas alive and orderly. You felt thatshe relived the time that she heardthe story and her experience wasfelt in the telling of the story. Shewas also careful to say when andfrom whom she heard the story, andshe gave a general description of theone who told the story and thecircumstances in the course ofwhich the event took place.

She once repeated something sheheard from her father-in-law, theTzemach Tzedek, that made a greatimpact on her, which led her to tellstories with such great enthusiasm.This is what the Tzemach Tzedeksaid based on these lines in theHagada:

It is a mitzva to tell the story ofthe Exodus from Egypt: by tellingthe story of the exodus from Egypt,we go out of Egypt.

Even if we are all wise[chochma], all discerning [bina], allknow the Torah [daas]: a completeChabadnik, nevertheless,

It’s a mitzva for us to relate it: we



must relate Chassidic stories and inthe relating itself, we go out of Egypt.

(Seifer HaToldos Admur HaZakein vol. 4)

“TO BRING TO THE DAYSOF MOSHIACH”

There are two explanations tothis: 1) “To bring to the Days ofMoshiach” in the literal sense.Namely, with everything in theworld we need to contemplate howit will be when Moshiach comes.

2) “To bring to the Days ofMoshiach” – that during the Galusof the “6000 years of the world,”there must be the kavana (intention)in all the avodos that they lead tothe Days of Moshiach. One can bein Galus and not know that theultimate purpose of Galus is Geula,but one thinks that Galus itself isthe purpose, one is satisfied withGalus and wants to be like all thenations but doesn’t want to leave

Galus ...

This is the opinion of the Sages –that “all your days, to bring to theDays of Moshiach.” A Jew mustknow the purpose of Galus and prayto Hashem to merit the coming ofMoshiach.


WHOEVER IS NEEDY COMEAND MAKE PESACH

The Rebbe Rayatz related:

I heard from my father thatwhoever feels needy, should yifsach(from the root of the word “Pesach,”which means to jump), and he willbe lifted over.

Though, this is not an advantage,for this constitutes the differencebetween Polish Chassidim andChabad Chassidim. PolishChassidim rely primarily on theirRebbeim. They crawl in the mudand then rely on their Rebbeim to

get them out.

Whereas, the way of Chabad isto do it yourself, to get out of themud yourself. But you need helpfrom the Rebbeim, general help andspecific help. General help: to beshown the way at first, to knowwhat to do. Specific help: thiscomes afterward – that he is helpedin his avoda.


TO BRING TO ONE IN NEEDThe [one who would later be]

Rebbe was accustomed, in additionto ground horseradish, to put apiece of un-ground horseradish onthe ke’ara. Out of habit, RebbetzinChaya Mushka placed a piece ofhorseradish on her father’s [theRebbe Rayatz] ke’ara.

Her father smiled and said, “Idon’t need it.”

(Ateres Malchus)

“Baking Matzos” – artwork by Zalman Kleinman

A “GADOL” WHO NEEDSTO BE MEASURED

Once, during the seider with theTzemach Tzedek, during Yachatz(breaking the middle matza), one ofthe people present broke the middlematza and then checked to seewhich piece was bigger in order toput it aside for the afikoman.

Seeing this, the Tzemach Tzedeksaid, “A gadol which needs to bemeasured – a katan is bigger thanhe” (i.e., a great person whosegreatness needs to be measured – asmall person is greater than him).

(Likkutei Sippurim – Perlov)

TO JUMP ON THE WAGONIt is known that the Baal Shem

Tov would hide the afikoman of theother family members along with hisown. The servant once asked thathis afikoman be hidden too.

The Baal Shem Tov said, “Noteverybody can jump on the wagon.”

(HaMelech B’Mesibo)

SINCE I SAW THE REBBEThe Rebbe Rayatz related:

There were many paths in avodasHashem that one could learn whenwatching my father when he drankthe four cups and ate the k’zayis ofmatza and maror.

His holy countenance thatexpressed his great satisfaction,along with the tears that gushedforth when he ate the maror, wouldelevate the viewer above his ordinaryhuman nature. Reflected in themwere all the beauty and loftiness of“empowering the form over matter.”


SHVII AND ACHARONSHVII AND ACHARONSHEL PESACHSHEL PESACH

ROSH HA’SHANA FORMESIRUS NEFESH

The Rebbe Rayatz said:

At the night meal on Shvii shelPesach 5603 (1843) my paternalgrandfather, the Tzemach Tzedeksaid:

Shvii shel Pesach is RoshHaShana for mesirus nefesh. WhenMoshe Rabbeinu conveyed whatHashem had told him, “speak to theJewish people and they shouldtravel,” Nachshon ben Aminadavimmediately jumped into the seawith the power of mesirus nefesh ...

On this day, everybody can andmust accept upon himself the powerof mesirus nefesh, for Torah,mitzvos, and service of Hashem,

with mesirus nefesh for the entireyear.


THE DAY OF REJOICING OFMOSHIACH TZIDKEINUDuring the meal on Acharon shel

Pesach 5625 (1865), the Maharashsaid to his children that this day is,“Acharon shel Pesach,” the last dayof Pesach.

The Rashab, who was four yearsold at the time, asked his father,“Why is this last day of Pesach aYom Tov?”

The Maharash said to his son, R’


“HOW CAN WE SAY SH’HECHIYANUAT THE END OF YOM TOV?”

In the year 5725 (1965), 100 years after 5625 (1865), the Rebbetaught a wondrous message regarding the Geula from the story:

There is a special inyan on Acharon shel Pesach – the joy overhaving been careful about chametz throughout Yom Tov [an allusion tothe avoda in Galus]. This is because the next day (in YemosHaMoshiach) there will be no work or labor and so this joy won’t befelt, and preceding that (during Galus) we are not certain we willwithstand the test, with the various hardships that arise every day ofthe week.

However, one can ask: It says, “There is no tzaddik on earth whodoes good and does not sin,” and so what is the simcha that the sevendays of the holiday have passed (referring to Galus) when we’ve failedin the interim?

So we say that the simcha is that we did not fail specifically withchametz. Chametz, which is the opposite of matza, “food of faith,”represents avoda zara (idol worship) and everybody is careful aboutthat, even the most light-minded person, for emuna is a bequest to usfrom our ancestors, and every Jew is perfect in this.

Here the son asks: Since Acharon shel Pesach is unique, why don’twe say SheHechiyanu?

The Tzemach Tzedek explains that this holiday pertains to thefuture Geula and since Ben Dovid has still not come, we cannot say thisbracha for the joy of the day is mixed with sadness.

Before Acharon shel Pesach, we are still in the middle of the avodaand we don’t feel the pain that much but when we reach the conclusionof the holiday and we make it a Yom Tov, the cry bursts forth: How canwe say SheHechiyanu? Moshiach still hasn’t openly descended belowten handbreadths [i.e., he is still not openly manifest in this world]!

(sicha of Acharon shel Pesach 5725)

Zalman Aharon, “Maybe you cananswer the question?” But R’Zalman Aharon said that he did notknow.

Little Devorah Leah who was sittingnear her mother, Rebbetzin Rivka,got up and said that she knew.

Her father said to her, “If youknow why, tell us!”

Devorah Leah said: When theJewish people observe the sevendays of Pesach according to law andthey are careful about a drop ofchametz, then the last day of Pesachis a Yom Tov. All the Jewish peoplerejoice that they made it throughPesach and were not entrapped inthe great sin of chametz on Pesach.

The Maharash greatly enjoyedhis daughter’s explanation and withshining countenance said to her,“Devorah Leah, you have a goodhead!”

Afterwards, when the Maharashwent to his father’s home (theTzemach Tzedek) in order to servehim the Yom Tov meal (he servedhis father on Shabbos and Yom Tov),he repeated what his daughter hadsaid.

The Tzemach Tzedek said,“That’s a good, logical answer.”

He called over his threegrandchildren and said, “Today, thelast day of Pesach, is called Acharonshel Pesach, in other words, it is theconclusion to that which began onthe first night of Pesach. The firstnight of Pesach is a Yom Tovbecause Hashem redeemed us fromEgypt, and it’s the first geulathrough Moshe Rabbeinu, who isthe first redeemer. That was thebeginning.

“Acharon shel Pesach is our YomTov for the final geula. Hashem willredeem us from the final galusthrough Moshiach Tzidkeinu, the

final redeemer. So the first day of

Pesach is Moshe Rabbeinu’ssimcha, and Acharon shel Pesach isMoshiach’s simcha.”

(Seifer HaSichos 5700)

THE REBBETZIN’S DEBATEAbout forty years after the

previous story, on Acharon shelPesach 5666 (1906), the RebbeRashab heard a debate between hisyoung granddaughters, Chana andChaya Mushka. Chana maintainedthat Acharon shel Pesach is aholiday like all holidays whileChaya Mushka said it was differentthan other holidays and the proof is,when lighting the candles you donot say the SheHechiyanu blessing.

The Rebbe Rashab later said thatthis reminded him of what hadhappened on Acharon shel Pesach5625.

(Seifer HaSichos 5700)


“Burning the Chametz” – artwork by Zalman Kleinman

PART IThe great talmidim of the holy Baal Shem Tov, the

chevraya kadisha, were perplexed. Just a few hoursearlier, they had drawn the water for the matzostogether with their master, the tzaddik, withgreat joy. It was after Mincha on 13Nissan 5516 (or 5517- 1756 or1757) and the tzaddik’s facewas illuminated with aspecial light.

Only a few hourshad elapsed since thenand during thebedikas chametz, theBaal Shem Tovappeared to beupset. He graspedthe candle and byits light, one couldsee his worried faceand the occasionaltear.

His disciples,who knew that theirmaster’s approach tothe service ofHashem was alwayswith simcha,especially whileperforming amitzva, did notunderstand whathad happened todisturb the tzaddikto such an extent.

The Baal ShemTov finished the

bedikas chametz relatively quickly and closed himselfoff in his room for a few hours. Close to midnight, thetzaddik called for some of his select disciples and toldthem to recite the Tikkun Chatzos with certain mysticalintentions that he imparted to them.

He instructed them to recite theTikkun Chatzos near his room and

said that if they sensed that hewas suddenly quiet, they

too should stop recitingthe Tikkun. Instead,

they were to saycertain chapters ofT’hillim withtremendous devotionuntil they saw thathe had recovered.

The talmidimrealized that theJewish people faceda grave threat andthey immediatelysanctifiedthemselves withgreat trembling.They immersed inthe mikva and dideverything the BaalShem Tov instructedthem to do. Withfeelings of dread,they sat down nearthe Baal Shem Tov’sroom and recitedthe Tikkun withtremendous kavana.

Suddenly, they

16

PESACH STORY

DANCING IN HONOROF THE GEULA

BY MENACHEM ZIEGELBOIM


sensed that the Baal Shem Tov wassilent and as he had told them, theyimmediately began reciting T’hillimwith sighs and tears.

The Baal Shem Tov’s scribe, thetzaddik R’ Tzvi, entered the roomand told them that the Baal ShemTov was lying on the floor of hisroom with no signs of life. The holydisciples were terribly frightenedand they began to cry bitterly whilesaying chapters of T’hillim.

This went on until dawn whenthe other disciples came and learnedwhat had transpired that frighteningnight. Fear overcame them all. Theyrushed to immerse and busiedthemselves with yichudim and loftykavanos until signs of life were oncemore apparent in the tzaddik’s body.

The Baal Shem Tov had becomeextremely weak as a result of hisholy work but despite this heinstructed his talmidim to carry himto the mikva. He sat on a chair andwas carried by his fearful disciples.

After immersing, the Baal ShemTov’s face was white as snow. Hiseyes bulged in trepidation and allcould see that their Rebbe wassomewhere else entirely.

The Baal Shem Tov himself waschazan at Shacharis. Beforedavening, he instructed his talmidimto have the kavanos that he hadtaught them before the RoshHaShana davening. At the repetitionof the Shmoneh Esrei, the BaalShem Tov said the Aneinu prayer(recited on a fast day) with a brokenheart, emitting a cry periodically.

The holy talmidim were besidethemselves and were utterlyconfounded. They realized thatsomething terrible was in the offingand judging by their Rebbe’s painand actions it seemed likesomething unspeakably bad.

At the conclusion of thedavening, the Baal Shem Tov spoketo his talmidim about bitachon,

explaining that bitachon is when aperson doesn’t see any way out ofhis predicament and he trusts solelyin Hashem and anticipates salvation.He explained the midda of bitachonas it’s explained in the classic workChovos HaLevavos, and said thatstrengthening bitachon is donespecifically through simcha.

He told his talmidim to fast thatday and shortly before midday, hewent back to the mikva but thistime he looked joyous. From thetime that he spoke about bitachon,one could see that the Baal ShemTov had recovered and was feeling

more relaxed.

After immersing, the Baal ShemTov and his talmidim went to bakethe Erev Pesach matza.

At Mincha of Erev Pesach, heonce again told the talmidim tomeditate upon the Rosh HaShanakavanos and during the recitation ofthe Korban Pesach he looked bitteronce again. The talmidim weredumbfounded. They failed tounderstand what was taking placebefore their eyes.

Many of the talmidim said, after

Maariv, that they did not remembera Maariv like the one that first nightof Pesach. The Baal Shem Tovdavened with great d’veikus and hisvoice expressed both bitterness andsimcha. His voice sounded brokenand conveyed great pain but then itsounded joyous and full ofbitachon.

So too with the seider, whichwas with bitterness and greatd’veikus. As for the talmidim, theywere despondent and they said theHagada quietly as though it wasTisha B’Av. All realized that the BaalShem Tov was trying to bring aboutsalvation on this momentous nightbut was not yet successful.

PART IIEvery year the Baal Shem Tov

would pause while reciting theHagada and explain differentportions of it. That year, the tzaddikdidn’t stop at all. He read it straightthrough in a pleading voice mixedwith simcha, which caused thetalmidim to feel great anguish.Considering the circumstances, thetalmidim were not surprised by thechange in their Rebbe’s accustomedway.

While each of them sat there lostin thought, they suddenly heard theBaal Shem Tov laugh! They gazedupon his holy face and saw that hiseyes were closed as he laughedunrestrainedly.

Soon, the Baal Shem Tov openedhis eyes and said merrily, “Mazal tov,mazal tov, blessed is He and blessedis His great name, who chooses theTorah and Moshe His servant andYisroel His people, for also Hisnation (i.e., the simple folk) are onthe level of Yisroel and theyaccomplish more than Yisrolik BaalShem Tov.”

The talmidim failed tocomprehend this and saw only thata great change had taken place.They did not need more than that to


Their discussioncontinued until theyreached the second,

third, and fourthcups. Being exhaustedfrom the work of ErevPesach and under theinfluence of the wine,they got up and began

to dance joyously!

feel intensely joyous. Nobody askedfor an explanation of the bitternesswhich suddenly was exchanged forsupreme happiness.

PART III“Yesterday, while preparing for

the Festival of Freedom, I saw that aterrible decree was promulgated onone of the villages, where 400Jewish families live. Because of thisdecree, gentiles were going todescend on the Jewish homes on thefirst day of Pesach and attack theJewish people.

“When I saw this, I was terriblyworried and did all I could to annulthe decree, but no matter what Idid, I was unsuccessful. Seeing thatall our avoda to arouse mercy hadfailed, I tried to exert great effortthrough bitachon.”

At this point, the Baal Shem Tovtold them about one of the Jewswho lived in that area:

Lipa was a precious Jew ofaverage abilities, wholehearted inhis deeds and very charitable. Hedid much tz’daka and chesed withall in need. He and his wife had nochildren and they threw themselvesinto helping others.

Although Lipa was a simple Jew,he davened with great fervor, lovedTorah and those who studied it.This was thanks to the Baal ShemTov, or as they knew him, Yisrolik.They knew him from the period oftime that the Baal Shem Tov wentaround to the villages andsettlements in order to bolster thespirits of the Jews living in theseplaces.

Wherever he went he encouragedthe simple Jews, encouraging themto draw ever closer to their Fatherin heaven. One of the people whoheard his message was Lipa.

That Erev Pesach, Lipa and hiswife were busy preparing for YomTov. When Lipa returned from shul

that night the two of them sat alonefor the seider. Lipa recited Kiddushand his wife drank her cup too.Then they recited the Hagadatogether.

Lipa read from the Hagada andevery so often he would pause andtell his wife everything he hadlearned about the tribulations ourancestors endured in Egypt. Whenhe got to the part that said thedecree, “every boy that is born shallbe thrown into the river,” his wifeburst into bitter tears.

“Why are you crying?” worriedLipa. “It’s a happy holiday for us.

Hashem redeemed us from Egypt!”

His wife tearfully replied, “IfHashem had given us a child, Iwould not have treated him the wayHe treats His children! Here we areagain, back in Galus among thewicked goyim who oppress us. Whydoes Hashem help them? Are thegoyim who persecute us better inHis eyes than His children, theJewish people?”

The woman continued to speakwell of the Jewish people in contrastto the wickedness of the goyim. Sheeven added plaintively, “It says in

our holy Torah that Hashem willalways remember the merit ofAvrohom, Yitzchok, and Yaakov. Sowhy are we in such a difficultGalus?”

Lipa and his wife continued todiscuss it with Lipa maintaining thatHashem is just and his wife asking,“Where is His attribute of mercy?”

Their discussion continued untilthey reached the second, third, andfourth cups. Being exhausted fromthe work of Erev Pesach and underthe influence of the wine, they gotup and began to dance joyously!

This is what the Baal Shem Tovtold his talmidim, saying, “Whenthe woman spoke well of the Jewishpeople, there was a great tumult inheaven. The advocates of the Jewishpeople stood on one side in order tospeak well of the Jewish peoplewhile the prosecuting angels stoodopposite them and accused theJewish people with all their might.

“When I saw the commotion upabove, I felt great bitterness since Ididn’t know who would bevictorious.

“Suddenly, I saw that greatsimcha had broken out up aboveand all the accusations on thatvillage had vanished. It was thanksto the dance of Lipa and his wifeover the Geula of the Jewish people.When I saw this, I began to rejoiceand to laugh.”

The Baal Shem Tov removed ahandkerchief and placed it on thetable. He told his talmidim to graspan edge of the handkerchief and toclose their eyes. As they did so, theyall saw Lipa and his wife dancing inhonor of the Geula of the Jewishpeople.

The Alter Rebbe related thisstory to his grandson, the TzemachTzedek, as he heard it from theMaggid of Mezritch.

(Igros Kodesh Admur HaRayatz vol. 3)


He told his talmidimto grasp an edge of

the handkerchief andto close their eyes. Asthey did so, they all

saw Lipa and his wifedancing in honor of

the Geula of theJewish people.


DIFFERING MIDRASHIMAND A CLEAR HALACHIC

RULINGAlthough the Gemara brings

proof regarding “ischalta d’Geula”that when the trees of Eretz Yisroelwill bear fruit, “you have no endmore revealed than this” (Sanhedrin98a), as is written, “But you,mountains of Israel, you shall shootforth your branches, and yield yourfruit to My people, Israel”(Yechezkel 36:8), or as is stated inthe Talmud Yerushalmi that “theRedemption of Israel is like the veryfirst rays of the morning sun – littleby little,” etc., nevertheless, it canbe said with absolute certainty that

the Rambam was familiar with thesesayings of our Sages, and was expertin them no less than the rabbis ofour generation, and he still ruledthat there can be no Redemptionwithout Moshiach.

Furthermore, while it is knownthat there was much fierce disputeand opposition to the Rambam onmany subjects, to the point that hiss’farim were even burned (similar towhat happened in a later period toChassidic texts), nevertheless, wehave found no one who disagreeswith him on the issue of the order ofthe Redemption. On the contrary,everyone accepts his words.

If so, how can one possibly think

that actions such as that famousdeclaration out of London severaldecades ago or the establishment ofa “democratic” state dependent upona Christian and Muslim majority,and l’havdil non-observant Jews, orJews who sell their religion for abowl of lentil soup – nullify theRambam’s clear statement that theRedemption will begin specificallythrough Moshiach, who will turnthe bitter Galus into Geula?

[NOTE: The author asks forgivenessfor the use of the word “l’havdil,” as itis the opposite of “democracy.”However, even if all Knesset Memberswere Torah observant Jews, the veryessence of “democracy” is againstTorah. The principle of going accordingto the majority applies only in aSanhedrin that decides by Torah law,and when a majority does not decideaccording to Torah, you have a case of“Don’t say,’A conspiracy,’ for all thatthis people says is a conspiracy”(Yeshayahu 8:12). The Gemaraexplains (Sanhedrin 26a) that “aconspiracy of evil is not counted,” andRashi comments, “Don’t think...thatyour count...is considered a majority.”This applies also in Eretz Yisroel, a

FOCUS

The fifth installment of Between Light andDarkness, Rabbi Sholom Dovber HaLeviWolpo’s provocative new guide for theperplexed regarding the establishment regimein Eretz Yisroel today and the tragic eventsthey have brought upon the Jewish People.

HALACHA IS LEARNEDFROM SHULCHAN

ARUCH, NOT FROMMIDRASHIM

TRANSLATED BY MICHOEL LEIB DOBRY


dictatorial regime in the guise ofdemocracy, where specifically on themost important issues, all partymembers must vote according to thecommand of their party leaders, even ifit is against their own conscience. Youwill not find such a dictatorship dressedas a democracy in any other country inthe world, not even the lowest ones,such as the regime in the former SovietUnion.

[I grew up in Russia, and I knowthe regime there quite well. When theyhad to do a certain thing in Russia,they would claim that the rules ofjustice and honesty obligated it.However, to declare openly andofficially that someone has to voteagainst his conscience is something thatnot even the leaders in the Kremlinwould do, and only in Eretz Yisroel dothey openly proclaim that they have tovote the party line against their will.Furthermore, when a Jewish KnessetMember, who is also a rabbi or the sonof a rabbi, wants to vote as his beliefsand conscience compels him to do, theytell him, “Just know that you are notyour own man. Your body and soul aresubservient to the party, and therefore,you are obligated to come and voteagainst your conscience – and if youdon’t, you’ll be thrown out of the party,your position, your job, and you, yourwife, and your family will suffer and bepursued for generations to come.”Then, after the vote, they go before themedia and explain how the motionpassed democratically via a majorityvote by the representatives of thepeople.]

It is incredible to consider thepossibility of finding someone whowould say that more than anyoneelse, he understands theaforementioned sayings of our Sages,and that he possesses the strength tocall into question the clear p’sak dinof the Rambam, the Raavad, and allother halachic authorities who standin agreement with the Rambam. Wealso must remember that theRambam’s ruling on this issue is

brought at the conclusion of YadHaChazaka, which begins with “Themost fundamental of foundationsand pillar of wisdoms is to knowthat there is a First Being.” It is,therefore, impossible to pick andchoose by saying that we accept thebeginning of the seifer in itssimplest terms, but ch”v not the end.[Even the halacha on the order of theRedemption is a “p’sak din,” especiallysince “believing in Moshiach” and“awaiting his arrival” are among thefundamentals of Judaism. It isimportant to note that the name givenby the Rambam to his seifer – YadHaChazaka – is connected to the

concept of “by a strong hand I willreign over them” and “that which entersyour mind...shall not be”! (Yechezkel20:32-33)] On the contrary, “theirbeginning is wedged in their end,”and if someone does not accept theend of Yad HaChazaka in itssimplest terms, this raises a doubtregarding his faith in “the mostfundamental of foundations andpillar of wisdoms.”

HALACHICALLY, THEREDEMPTION IS NOT“LITTLE BY LITTLE”

Although there are midrashim

that seem to speak in a different stylethan the above, and “these and theseare the words of the living G-d,” allthis was before the halacha wasestablished. Thus, after the p’sakdin, “Beis Shammai does notrepresent the Mishna in place of BeisHillel” (Berachos 36b), and whenRabbi Tarfon conducted himselfaccording to Beis Shammai (andinclined in order to read thenighttime Krias Sh’ma in a mannerof “as you lie down”), he was told,“It would be appropriate if youwould penalize yourself fortransgressing against the words ofBeis Hillel” (Mishna Brachos 1:3).Similarly in our discussion, we findthat prior to the establishment of thehalacha, there were differing schoolsof thought, and “these and these arethe words of the living G-d.”However, after the Rambam’shalachic ruling, it is clear that theingathering of the exiles would comespecifically through Moshiach, afterthe building of the Beis HaMikdash,and the Redemption would not be“little by little.” [NOTE: The FutureRedemption and Beis HaMikdash areon the level of Yaakov (see Shabbos118b, Pesachim 88a: “as Yaakov, etc.”),and Yaakov represents swiftness –“How did you find it so quickly?”(Bereishis 27:20).] This is becauseonly after a king from the House ofDovid will do all those things thatthe Rambam indicates, and when hewill build the Beis HaMikdash, andgather in the Jewish People from theremotest corners of the earth – onlythen will we know that he isdefinitely the Moshiach, as this willmark the True and CompleteRedemption.

Thus, before the building of theBeis HaMikdash and the ingatheringof the exiles through the Moshiach,we are still in Exile, and after theBeis HaMikdash will be rebuilt andthe ingathering of the exiles – thiswill be the Redemption. Therefore,


there is no natural “little by little”start to the Redemption, becauseimmediately when the time hascome, there will be Redemption, i.e.,the ingathering of the exiles and therevelation of “Moshiach Vadai” inthe blink of an eye (Sanhedrin 97b),“as you went from the land ofEgypt” (Micha 7:15), and “suddenlyhe will come to the palace of theMaster” (Malachi 3:1).

“ISCHALTA D’GEULA,”FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING

Furthermore, it can be said fromthe very outset that theaforementioned sayings of our Sagesdo not actually contradict theRambam’s halachic ruling. Theexplanation is that the “ischaltad’Geula” seemingly derived fromthem refers to the “beginning” thattook place at the first moment afterthe destruction of the BeisHaMikdash in the year 3828.[NOTE: The Gemara states (Megilla13b) that G-d brings the cure before theillness, proving that the Redemptionalready includes the time when the BeisHaMikdash existed. Thus, since theRedeemer of Israel was born at themoment the Beis HaMikdash wasdestroyed, he must have been conceivedbefore the churban, and even his hairwas completed, etc.] The Midrash tells(Eicha Rabba 1:51) about a Jew whowas standing in the field with hiscow. The cow mooed once, and aclever Arab passing by whounderstood animal talk told the Jewthat the Beis HaMikdash had justbeen destroyed. The cow mooed asecond time, and the Arab then saidthat the Redeemer of the JewishPeople had just been born,indicating his name, his city, etc.[NOTE: This Aggada also comes inconnection with practical halacharegarding the reasons for reciting of“Nacheim” on Tisha B’Av at Mincha,Kiddush Levana on Motzaei Tisha B’Av,and holding a chuppa on Motzaei TishaB’Av for someone without children,

when there is a concern that theshidduch might be called off. See alsothe Tashbatz (3:8) regarding the customof naming a boy Menachem who wasborn or circumcised on Tisha B’Av.]However, after this “beginning,” theMoshiach went into hiding (as theMidrash continues), thus markingthe start of the bitter exile r”l.

To pursue this point further, wesee (to the contrary) that themajority of the Beis HaMikdashburned the day after Tisha B’Av(Taanis 29a), i.e., after the cowmooed the second time. Thus, we

understand from this that even thebirth of the Redeemer of the JewishPeople, a matter of greatimportance, is still very far awayfrom the True Redemption or thestart of the Redemption. Therefore,we also don’t say “Shehecheyanu” onthe birth of the Redeemer of Israel,nor even “Hallel” – and certainly notwith a bracha. This is because it isimpossible to compare this type of“ischalta d’Geula” to the “ischaltad’Geula” from the Galus, aRedemption that will put an end toall exiles (unlike the Redemption

from Egypt), the True and CompleteRedemption that will come throughMoshiach Tzidkeinu.

EXPLANATIONS ON THEYERUSHALMI THAT THE

GEULA WILL BE “LITTLE BYLITTLE”

This is also the meaning behindthe saying in Talmud Yerushalmithat the Redemption will be “littleby little,” i.e., a “redemption” of thesame character as the birth of theRedeemer of Israel or a redemptionfrom the afflictions of the time ofthe Exile itself, “redemptions” thatcome with ups and downs. Theproof that the intention is aredemption in the figurative sensecomes from the Talmud Yerushalmi’sreference to the redemption ofMordechai and Ester. Thisredemption was not a complete one,as “we are still Achashverosh’sservants,” proving that we’re talkingabout a redemption from theafflictions of the time, unrelated tothe True Redemption that we prayfor three times a day during theyears of Exile. (All this is besides thefact that there isn’t even an “is’chaltad’Geula” in the figurative sense, andon the contrary, there has been anincrease in the darkness of the Exile,as mentioned above.)

Furthermore, it can be said thataccording to the TalmudYerushalmi’s interpretation, theRedemption through Moshiach canalso possibly be little by little, i.e.,stages in the Redemption throughMoshiach coming in close proximityto one another, yet in stages oneafter the other, during the True andComplete Redemption itself. (Allthis could only be if the Redemptionwas in “its time” [Sanhedrin 98a].However, now that all the appointedtimes have passed, G-d will notdelay them even for a moment, andthe start of the Redemption will takeplace immediately.)

The Rambam’s YadHaChazaka begins

with “The mostfundamental of

foundations...” It isimpossible to pick andchoose by saying that

we accept thebeginning of the seiferin its simplest terms,but ch”v not the end.


Rabbi Levi Yitzchok held theholiday of Pesach very dearly. He wasstrict about the halachos that pertain toPesach, and even when he needed toface down the communists, he insistedon punctilious care with regard to thebaking of the matzos for the Jews ofRussia. The communists, in turn,deferred to Rabbi Levi Yitzchok.

However, later, the tzaddik wasimprisoned days before Pesach 5699(1939) and was placed in the cellar ofthe N.K.V.D. He sufferedinterrogations, torture, andhumiliation. Ultimately, he was exiledto an exile within an exile, the latterworse than the former. Days passedbefore he arrived in forsaken Chili,where he lived out his sentence ofexile.

His wife, Rebbetzin Chana, motherof royalty, described their daily livesthere:

“Our room was in the home of one

of the Tatars: a husband, wife, andyoung child. In order to enter theroom we had to pass through acorridor, wet with mud, and the manymosquitoes that swarmed theredimmed the light. From the hallway,we had to pass through the landlord’skitchen and bedroom in order to get toour little room.

“To drink a bit of water you had towait a while until the sand settled andonly then could you drink. It wasdifficult for us to obtain water.

“At night we lit our room with asmall lamp that we had.

“The heat in the summer wasunbearable.

“Towards evening, when we fellasleep, the mosquitoes fell upon uswith a vengeance. Their buzzing andstinging bothered us very much andwe couldn’t get rid of them. There wasone defense against them and that wascompletely closing up every single

opening, every hole and crack, so theycouldn’t get in.

“Another possibility was to light afire with material that made a lot ofsmoke, which temporarily banishedthem. However, this method wasespecially difficult because the chokingsmoke was hard to take.

“When you put on a garment atnight you could not recognize it thenext morning. The garment was full ofblack dots where these creatures haddirtied it.

“This was life and we had to getused to it and live with it.”

And then came the month ofNissan, the month of spring.

The daily travails already seemed tobe part of their routine. Now, theirproblems were far more difficult andcomplicated: everything was chametz,the house was chametz, the utensilswere chametz, and where would theyget food kosher for Pesach?

The host family was very devout intheir beliefs, yet Rabbi Levi Yitzchokand Rebbetzin Chana got up the nerveto speak to them about theapproaching holiday of Pesach, whichnecessitated new arrangements in theirshared dwelling. They innocentlythought that as religious people, theTatars would understand and would bewilling to help them.

But the Tatars were annoyed thatthe Jewish couple used their precious

18 NISSAN

CELEBRATINGGEULA IN GALUS

BY MENACHEM ZIEGELBOIM

“When we recalled where my husband hadbeen the previous Pesach, behind bars in jail,we felt better and we felt the joy of the holiday.From this perspective we had what to rejoiceabout.” * A description of Pesach in Exile. *Presented in honor of the birthday of RabbiLevi Yitzchok Schneersohn on 18 Nissan.


water for other needs and without thinking much about itthey ordered them out of the house.

Now the situation was truly terrible because wherewould they get a place to live two weeks before Pesach?Instead of an atmosphere of geula, their galus was gettingworse!

A ray of hope was seen in a local woman who agreed,for the monthly fee of fifty rubles, to give them aprivate room with a separate entrance. Notonly that but they had wooden floor –what a treasure this was!

The offer came along with aproblem. The village womanhad wild children whomeveryone feared. The localpeople warned Rabbi LeviYitzchok and his wife notto take the roombecause they wouldn’tbe able to tolerate herchildren.

Like the Jewishpeople at the sea,they had no choicebut to go forward,into the mightywaters. They agreedto the woman’s offer.A week beforePesach, they movedtheir belongings tothe new dwelling.

Then they had toobtain new dishes andfood and they had stillnot found a way to do so.The main problem was inobtaining dishes for Pesach.The Rebbetzin made a specialtrip, about an hour from Chili,until she arrived somewhere where agroup of Jews from Kiev, religiouspeople who had been forced to exilethere, lived together. They also had arav and shochet.

The Rebbetzin stayed there for two days until shemanaged, with great effort, to get a large pot made out of acompletely new piece of metal. Since there was a G-d-fearing shochet, she ordered meat and even fish and askedthat they be brought on Erev Pesach.

Erev Pesach. All the work done previously to fix a closet

or kitchen implements, was taken apart, thrown outsidebecause of fear of chametz and they had no new utensils.

When it came time to burn the chametz, the morning ofErev Pesach, Rabbi Levi Yitzchok went out to burn thechametz – a few crumbs that remained for the purpose ofthis mitzva.

“What I saw, rent my heart,” wrote the Rebbetzin aboutthis scene.

The rav went out and lit a small fire andhe threw in the bit of chametz.

Immediately, his face was aflame andhe began reciting the “yehi ratzon”

that is said at this time. He saidit with copious tears.

“Just as I remove thechametz from my house

and my possession, soshall You remove all theextraneous forces,purge the spirit ofimpurity from theearth...” Tearschoked him and thewords were garbled.

This brief prayerwas so real to himand it so wellexpressed hissituation:

“And all the sitraachra and all the

klipos and all thewickedness destroy in

smoke” – there are nobetter words to express

the situation than thisshort prayer.

“And abolish the rule of evilfrom the earth” – Was there a

worse government than this, afterall its plots against the Jewish people,against its Torah and its purity, againstits leaders and customs, against itsrabbanim and children?

From the depths of his heart burst forth the silentconclusion of that fearsome prayer, “And all those whodistress the Divine Presence remove with a spirit ofdestruction and of judgment just as You annihilated Egyptand its idols in those days and at this time, amen, sela.”

Chili probably never saw an Erev Pesach like this and its

Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneersohn

earth never before absorbed the tearsof a pure Jew that came from a heartso pure...

* * *

Pesach night. Even in such a place,Hashem enabled Jews to perform themitzva of Hachnasas Orchim, fulfillingwhat we say in the Hagada, “whoeveris hungry should come and eat.” Therav and rebbetzin met a Jew andinvited him to their home and togetherthe three of them sat and made aseider.

To illustrate how deep was thegalus, outside the window stood localyouth who continuously mocked theJews and mimicked every move theymade.

“Of course their mockery didn’taffect us,” said the Rebbetzin, “and theseider went on. The Hagada wasrecited out loud and we performed thesimanim of the seider. When werecalled where my husband had beenthe previous Pesach, behind bars injail, we felt better and we felt the joy ofthe holiday. From this perspective wehad what to rejoice about.”

The seider lasted late into thenight. One would be hard put todescribe what the three ate as a“seuda.” The meat and fish that the goybrought Erev Yom Tov had completelyspoiled during the trip to their house,but this did not stop the rav fromreciting the Hagada with his usualenthusiasm. They sat there until two inthe morning with the “bread ofaffliction” and made the seider with all

the hiddurim.

The next evening they celebratedthe second seider with their guest whoremained with them throughout theholiday.

“We tried with all our might tobanish the spirit of oppression anddepression from among us and to behappy at least during these days. It wasdifficult but we overcame it all and

tried with all our strength to maintaina pleasant atmosphere of joy on theholiday,” concluded Rebbetzin Chana.

The next year the preparations forYom Tov were easier, thanks toamazing Divine Providence. It was aweek before Pesach. When Rabbi LeviYitzchok went to get his daily ration,he passed the large store designatedonly for special people and those withgovernment connections.

As he walked by, the manager ofthe store suddenly stopped him andasked him in a whisper whether hewas from the Schneersohn family andwhether he came from Yekaterinaslav.When Rabbi Levi Yitzchok said he was,the man told him, to his great surprise,that his brother-in-law once had a dinTorah with the rav. Both sides camefrom a great distance in order to havethe din Torah with him, for theywanted him to declare the p’sak dinand no one else.

The man continued saying in awhisper that if Rabbi Levi Yitzchokneeded new utensils for Pesach hecould give it to him on condition thatnobody would know about it. Afterusing clever, roundabout methods sothat nobody would notice, the manremoved new glasses from his bag,which thrilled Rabbi Levi Yitzchok.

His joy did not last long though,for on his way home, the glasses felland all but one of them broke. Thisone glass served him well throughoutPesach.

(based on Yemei Melech and Eim B’Yisroel)


“We tried with all ourmight to banish thespirit of oppression

and depression fromamong us and to be

happy at least duringthese days. It was

difficult but weovercame it all andtried with all our

strength to maintaina pleasant

atmosphere of joy onthe holiday,”

concluded RebbetzinChana.

KK II NN GG SS TT OO NN HH OO TT EE LL

Only 1 minute from 770 ^ High Style Hotel in a small format ^ Fancy Studio Apartments@ Kitchen with all the latest technology appliances: Fridge, Microwave, Toaster

@ Breakfast, drinks in fridge all day

@ Broadband Internet

@ FREE calls & video Linen & Towels changed

Fancy Bath & Shower with plenty

of Shampoo & Soap

22112255--119966--77119977339955--337744--881177

[Continued from last week]

MOVE TO TAANACHIMAt the end of 5718 (1958), the

administration of the Reshetdecided to open a new branch inthe settlements of the TaanachStrip. The difficult task of foundingthe school and running it fell on R’

Itchke’s shoulders. He went toTaanach and at a meeting with thelocal residents he told them that hebeen one of the soldiers who hadconquered the area in the War ofIndependence, but this time he hadcome for a spiritual conquest, onthe shlichus of the LubavitcherRebbe.

At the end of that meeting, itwas decided that they would givethe Reshet one of the three shacksof the local school and the next dayOholei Yosef Yitzchok of Taanachopened.

Throughout that year R’ Itchke’sfamily remained in Tel Aviv and hereturned home only for Shabbos.Towards the end of the year, hiswife received a letter from theRebbe with the suggestion that theymove to Taanach so that the familycould be together all week.

Their house was completed onlyafter the Yomim Tovim and thenthe Gansburg family began theirnew lives in Taanach.

In accordance with the Rebbe’sdirective to dedicate time tospreading the wellsprings, inaddition to the tremendous workinvolved in running a school, R’Itchke began organizing aChassidus class for the male andfemale teachers. The shiurim tookplace in his home and theGansburg home turned into acenter for hafatzas ha’Yahadus inthe yishuv.


CHASSID

R’ Yitzchok Gansburg a”h, who was knownsimply as Itchke, was one of the great Chabadaskanim in Eretz Yisroel, and later in NewYork. * R’ Itchke was picked in 5711 to the firstVaad of Tzach and even decades later, close tohis passing, was an example of a Chassid whoalways remains young in spirit. * We havepublished many articles from his diary in thepast and it is a challenge to condense it all intoone article. * Portrait of a genuine Chassidwho, with utter hiskashrus to the Rebbe MH”M,fulfilled all the Rebbe’s directives withincredible devotion. * Part 2 of 2

ITCHKE: TO CROSSTHE SEA ON A

HANDKERCHIEFBY AVROHOM REINITZ


MOVE TO CHOLON ANDMIVTZA MATZA

In accordance with the Rebbe’sinstructions that R’ Itchke’s job wasto open a new school and run it fora year or two, after the school inTaanach was off to a good start, R’Itchke asked the Rebbe permissionto move to Kfar Chabad. He wantedto work at one of the Reshetschools in that area. The Rebbeagreed in principle, but said: don’tsuffice with the position of teacheror seek the easiest place, rather bean administrator in a place whereyou can make use of your talents.

The Reshet was asked to open anew school in Cholon. R’ Itchkeagreed to run the new school.There were 35 children in twoclasses in a transit camp nearCholon. They were taught in a two-room Sefardi shul in the camp.

Moving to the center of thecountry after living out in thesticks for two years with no easyaccess to anywhere, enabled R’

Itchke to implement the “MatzaExperience.” Tens of thousands ofchildren visited the matza bakeryin Kfar Chabad and learned aboutPesach.

Each child received a matza.Most of them, however, ate thematza before they boarded thebuses back home. R’ Itchke wantedthe children to go home with asouvenir that would last at leastuntil the seider, and he came upwith the idea of tiny bottles ofwine. When a student received asmall sealed bottle, he took care ofit and then proudly displayed the

gift he had received from Tzach toeveryone and poured himself a cup.

Young R’ Itchke’s creativeinitiatives weren’t alwaysappreciated by the old-timeaskanim. One of them decided totell R’ Itchke off, saying thateverything R’ Itchke did was notdone in the spirit of Lubavitch andthat there had never been aLubavitcher who wasted his time sothat a child could see how matzosare baked.

R’ Itchke was hurt by theseharsh words and he wrote to theRebbe. In the Rebbe’s three-pageanswer he analyzed R’ Itchke’spersonality and said he was giftedwith talents and energy, but twothings interfered with his ability touse them fully. These two things,said the Rebbe, were his deficiencyin working with others and hisbeing disorganized. The Rebbestrongly encouraged him tocontinue working for the Reshet,Tzach, and especially the summercamps, and said that when elderChassidim expressed thesesentiments they should be ignored.

The Rebbe said that he hadheard from his father-in-law, theRebbe Rayatz, that “action is themain thing” (which is also anexplicit Mishna). As for those whofollowed the elder Chassidim’sapproach – what were the resultsand how would Lubavitch look,asked the Rebbe, if people listenedto them on this point?

The Rebbe said that R’ Itchkehad permission to show the letterto those who advocated sitting anddoing nothing. The Rebbe urged R’Itchke not to despair and repeatedthat R’ Itchke was grantedsuperlative abilities and energy andhe had to use them to the fullestfor inyanei Chabad.

“Every single Jewishman and woman can

cross the sea on ahandkerchief if he orshe only believed with

simple faith.”


“A DAY AT THE YISHUV”AND HIS CONNECTIONWITH ARIEL SHARON

In the period prior to the SixDay War, R’ Itchke organized aradio program broadcast from KfarChabad. He called the program“Yom B’Yishuv – A Day In TheVillage.” Government radiojournalists went to Kfar Chabadand for an entire day theybroadcast live their meetings withthe Chassidim-farmers. At the endof the fascinating day, aChassidishe farbrengen wasorganized at the old shul.

Since R’ Itchke knew the radiobroadcaster, Dan Raviv, who wasthen recently appointed to thecultural office in the I.D.F., R’Itchke was invited to speak to thesoldiers before the war. He wentfrom camp to camp andencouraged the soldiers. The nightbefore the war began he spoke tothe paratroopers who conqueredthe Kosel. They were so moved byR’ Itchke’s faith that after regainingthe Kosel they sent a jeep to hishome to take him to the Kosel, theM’aras HaMachpella, and KeverRochel.

Ariel Sharon’s young son waskilled when a gun went off. A fewweeks earlier, Sharon had put ont’fillin at the Chabad stand at theKosel. When the Rebbe heard aboutSharon putting on t’fillin he askedwhether they had kept in touchwith him afterwards.

When R’ Itchke heard that theRebbe wanted them to keep intouch with Sharon, he went to bemenachem avel. Sharon asked himhis opinion, as a religious person,about the tragedy. R’ Itchke saidthat the Rebbe is the leader of allJewry and he feels the pain of everyJew, and Sharon should write tohim.

Sharon agreed and the next dayR’ Itchke came with other Chabadaskanim to Sharon’s home and took

the letter from him to send to theRebbe.

The Rebbe wrote Sharon a letterof consolation. This was the firstletter and the first personalconnection between the Rebbe andSharon. The letter was not sentdirectly to Sharon but to R’ Itchkewith a cover letter from thesecretariat that said that R’ Itchkewas to use his judgment as towhether and how the Rebbe’s lettershould be given to Sharon.

R’ Itchke went back to Sharon’shome with other Chassidim, gavehim the Rebbe’s letter, andexplained it at length.

“ITCHKE? THAT’SUNBEFITTING OF HIM!”

On Yud-Alef Nissan 5732, the

Rebbe’s 70th birthday, the Rebbeasked for 71 new Chabad mosdos.Since the school in Cholon hadalready been established and R’

One of them decidedto tell R’ Itchke off,

saying that everythingR’ Itchke did was notdone in the spirit ofLubavitch and that

there had never beena Lubavitcher whowasted his time so

that a child could seehow matzos are

baked...

SPREADING THE WELLSPRINGS INWARDR’ Itchke was also involved in spreading the wellsprings inward, as

it were. It was before Yud Shvat 5730 when the Rebbe announced thecompletion of Moshiach’s Seifer Torah. Chabad Chassidim yearned tohear the farbrengen that would take place on Motzaei Shabbos. R’Itchke asked the Rebbe and when he got the green light, he arranged ahook-up.

They put a long cord with a microphone that reached from thebroadcasting room to the shul. The other end of the cord wasconnected to a tape with a speaker with two phone lines next to it, oneto Eretz Yisroel and one to Montreal. And that’s how the farbrengen wasbroadcast live.

About 1000 people came to the first broadcast at Yeshivas TomcheiT’mimim in Kfar Chabad. When the Rebbe’s voice boomed out of theloudspeaker, tears came to R’ Itchke’s eyes as they did to manyChassidim. It was tremendously moving to hear the Rebbe farbrenginglive.

The next day, the Rebbe gave a bottle of mashke to Rabbi Tzvi HirshGansburg and told him to give it to his brother, the one who organizedthe broadcast, along with a “yasher ko’ach.” For about two years, R’Itchke was in charge of broadcasts until he moved to Natzeret Ilit at theend of 5732 and R’ Efraim Wolf took over.


Itchke knew that the Rebbe wantedhim to open new schools and torun them until they stabilized, hehad R’ Mordechai Alpert take overthe running of the school inCholon and he moved to NatzeretIlit, where he opened a new school.

The organization Pe’ilim,together with Rabbi DovidNachshon and Rabbi DovidTeichtel, arranged the registrationfor the nucleus of the new school.The Reshet school of Natzeret Ilitopened for the new school year of5733. Since they didn’t have aschool building, classes were heldin bomb shelters, but within ashort time they forged goodconnections with the municipality,which gave them apartments forthe school.

R’ Itchke brought his idea ofeducational exhibits to Natzeretand when representatives of thepedagogical center saw his work,they loved his unique educationalapproach and asked him to workwith them as an “Advisor for JewishAwareness.” They wanted him togive lectures for teachers and guidethem in religious matters.

R’ Itchke reported to the Rebbeand asked for his bracha. TheRebbe said: it is worthwhilebecause of hafatza and other[reasons] and you should continue,as long as it does not diminishfrom your main work.

Rosh HaShana 5734, R’ Itchkehad a serious heart attack. He wastaken to the hospital immediately,where the doctors stabilized hiscondition. Motzaei Rosh HaShana,his son-in-law, R’ Zalman Chanin,reported to the Rebbe and theRebbe’s reaction was: Itchke? That’snot befitting of him!

When R’ Itchke heard what theRebbe had said, he disconnectedthe machines that were attached to

him and with simple faith in theRebbe’s words he left the hospital.

In the months that followed, hehad to take it easy, but R’ Itchkewasn’t capable of sitting idly, so hedecided to visit the Rebbe. Heasked his doctor whether he couldgo on vacation to see the Rebbe inNew York. The doctor, thinkingthat R’ Itchke would be relaxingthere, approved the trip.

At this time, R’ Itchke’s son-in-law and daughter had a yechidusand at the end of the yechidus,when they were about to leave, theRebbe said to R’ Itchke’s daughter:

Tell your mother that they shouldexplain to the doctor that 770 isnot a convalescent home! If theytell him exactly what goes on here,including the shoving andcrowding, and he approves the tripanyway, then your father can travel.

Of course, once the doctorrealized where his patient washeading, he canceled hispermission and R’ Itchke had towait another few months until hegot the doctor’s permission for thetrip.

THE CANCELLEDSHLICHUS AND WORKING

AT MACHON CHANA

When R’ Itchke recovered fromhis heart attack and wanted to getback to work, he got an interestingproposal from R’ Berel Baumgarten,shliach in Argentina, to become anemissary of the Jewish Agency toArgentina to work with the Jewishcommunity there and to spread thewellsprings.

R’ Itchke liked the idea and aftergaining the Agency’s approval, hetook courses for six months toprepare him for the job. He studiedsafrus, sh’chita, mila, and more. Thenhe shipped his belongings by sea toArgentina and he and his wife flewthere with a stopover in New York.

Upon their arrival in New York,they found out that due to a suddencrisis in Israeli-Argentinean relations,they could not go to Argentina. Theirplans had fizzled and they were stuckin New York.

In the meantime, they wereoffered a job at Machon Chana. Theyasked the Rebbe about it and theRebbe said that since, by DivineProvidence, they were in New York,they should accept the offer, andremain and live in Crown Heights.

R’ Itchke, for whom activism forthe Rebbe’s work was in his blood,couldn’t refrain from communal workand he constantly sought originalways of disseminating the Rebbe’smessage. He got the Machon Chanawomen involved too and made anexhibit, which was seen by thousandsof Jewish children from all over NewYork.

At the beginning of the 80’s heedited the indices for the work of theRebbe Maharash. The Rebbe’s sicha isprinted in the introduction to thebook: “Those whom Hashem hasendowed with the gift of making

Bringing joy to prisoners

indexes must know that this is awondrous merit which leads (throughthe making of indexes) to an increasein Torah study by many Jews. Andsince he caused this, he receives partof what was learned through theindexes (as in the famous teaching ofthe Baal Shem Tov on the Mishna,‘two holding a tallis’).”

On 2 Iyar 5749 the Rebbe gave R’Itchke the job of publishing the SeiferHaT’mimim. The Rebbe said: I knowthat when I request something ofyou, it gets done.

R’ Itchke began working on theproject, but since the job required thecooperation of other people andmany mosdos, it took some months.On 15 Elul 5749, when he passed bythe Rebbe for “dollars,” the Rebbeurged him to print it at the earliestopportunity. R’ Itchke did theincredible and within a month, hepublished the first edition.

A SPECIAL CHAYUSFOR INYANEI MOSHIACH

AND GEULA

When the Rebbe began toemphasize inyanei Moshiach andGeula, R’ Itchke threw himself intothe subject and began spreading theBesuras HaGeula in various uniqueways. In the summer of 5751, hecame up with the idea of droppingthousands of leaflets with the Rebbe’smessage over the Catskills Mountains,where thousands of Jews vacation.

R’ Itchke wrote to the Rebbeabout it and included ten leaflets.Within half an hour, the secretaryreturned nine of them to him andsaid: The Rebbe took one leaflet forhimself and asked me to return therest so you’ll have more leaflets todrop.

R’ Itchke hired a small plane andbegan dropping leaflets. Thousands ofpeople were exposed to the BesurasHaGeula until the police ordered the


EXAMINING KIDNEYS AND HEARTIn Shvat 5724, after R’ Itchke devoted himself to making sure the

huge rally of students of the Reshet was a success, he felt terriblestomach pains with stabbing sensations. After taking an X-ray, thedoctor said he saw kidney stones.

The doctor said that R’ Itchke must have an operation to remove thestones. Since this sort of operation wasn’t done on Shabbos at that time,they had no choice but to wait until Sunday. In the meantime, he tookpainkillers to kill the pain.

Sunday morning R’ Itchke went to the hospital where the surgeonwas waiting for him. He said that before the operation he would takeanother X-ray to verify the stone’s location.

When he got the results, the doctor looked perplexed. He saidanother X-ray had to be taken since for some reason he couldn’t see thestone. When another X-ray didn’t show the stones either, the doctorconcluded that the X-ray machine wasn’t working properly and heasked R’ Itchke to go to the top floor where there was a newer model. Itwas only after the new X-ray machine failed to show any stone that thedoctor conceded that the stone had disappeared.

He couldn’t explain it and certainly R’ Itchke had no idea what hadhappened. It was only a few days later when his father-in-law andmother-in-law, Reb Folle and Rivka Kahn, returned from the Rebbe,that R’ Itchke realized what had happened.

On Sunday, 12 Shvat, the Rebbe received the guests who had comefor Yud Shvat, among them R’ Itchke’s in-laws. During the yechidus, inresponse to one of his father-in-law’s questions that had been written onthe note he submitted, the Rebbe said: He should continue in his holywork with simcha and goodness of heart and give much nachas, and hewill certainly continue and ascend in holiness and may Hashem granthim success.

When the Rebbe finished saying this, the Rebbe indicated that thesewords were also meant for R’ Itchke.

As the yechidus continued, the Rebbe said: Your son-in-law is,baruch Hashem, healthy. He is immersed in his work and probablyexerted himself tremendously in the last few days in preparation forYud Shvat, because when he does something he does it with all 248limbs and 365 sinews, but now, baruch Hashem, it’s not so bad...

R’ Folle and his wife, who knew nothing about what had happenedon Shabbos and about the kidney stones and the operation that waspostponed for Sunday, asked the Rebbe which son-in-law he wasreferring to.

The Rebbe said he was referring to the young son-in-law. They thenrealized that R’ Itchke must have experienced some problem with hishealth but they did not imagine what had actually occurred.

When they returned to Eretz Yisroel R’ Itchke heard what the Rebbehad said in yechidus and he knew who had made sure to remove thestones from his kidneys.


pilot to end the flight since they hadgotten complaints. It turned out thatthanks to those who complained, theleaflets got more publicity, becausethe radio and television stationsreported about the old rabbi who wasbeing interrogated for throwingleaflets. Naturally, they reported thecontents of the leaflets too.

In 5753, after the miracle ofHurricane Andrew, when the Rebbemotioned that they should stay inMiami although the National Guardwas ordering people to evacuate, R’Itchke produced a professional videoof the Rebbe’s prophecies includingthe main prophecy of Moshiach’scoming.

That same year he made the“Yemos HaMoshiach” exhibit. It wasexhibited for the first time at theRambam School in Flatbush, wherethousands of children visited it. Fromthere, it set out on a huge truck andtoured the U.S. At a later point, hehad it flown to Eretz Yisroel andexhibited at numerous Chabadhouses.

The yearning for Geula,understanding its importance as wellas the need to ask and hope forMoshiach’s imminent coming, wasconveyed to all the thousands ofvisitors. They began to see and feelhow the Geula is becoming a realitybefore their very eyes.

Even in his senior years, R’ Itchkedidn’t rest on his laurels but lecturedon inyanei Moshiach around theworld. He also produced aprofessional video about the BesurasHaGeula with a message for all ofhumanity.

In recent years, R’ Itchke was notwell but he accepted his sufferingwith love. He did not allow thosearound him to sense his suffering andhe greeted everybody graciously.

He is survived by hisextraordinary wife Gitta, his son YosefSimcha Gansburg, shliach in Toronto;his daughter Nechama Chanin wife ofShneur Zalman Chanin; his daughterFraidy Brod wife of Yisroel Brod ofKfar Chabad.

The Rebbe stronglyencouraged him to

continue working forthe Reshet, Tzach,and especially the

summer camps, andsaid that when elderChassidim expressedthese sentiments they

should be ignored.

R’ Itchke Gansburg in the doorway of his mobile exhibit near 770

15 passenger van for all your travel needs:airports ,pick ups, weddings, etc.long distance trips, and light moving

@@asv ,gupv@@j,ubu,@@vucku, eybu,

ykpui: 1668-877 )817( /leT

pktpui: 7393-996 )719( /lleCaru, vxgu, ctr. hartk 003-018-8050


The famous song “Chad Gadya”has holy origins and manykabbalistic allusions have beenfound in it. Who composed it?When was it composed? We don’tknow, but the author was certainly atzaddik who concealed secretmatters with great brevity within thewords. Over the years, variouscommentators wrote explanationsfor this song, approaching it withvarious paths of the Pardes of Torah(i.e., the simple meaning, allusion,homiletics, kabbala).

[In Hisvaaduyos 5747, vol. 2, p.689, the Rebbe says, “As it says inthe song, “Chad Gadya,” at the endof the seider night. Although it isnot the Chabad custom to say it, thewhole matter exists in its entirety,etc. In fact, it is at a level beyondthe limitations of speech.”]

Pesach night is when all areinvited to come and take part in thejoy of the Geula, and the questionsof all Jewish children areentertained, from the wise one tothe simple. So, perhaps there isroom for a simple Jew to try andseek out its meaning.

The Exodus from Egypt is thefoundation for a Jew’s avoda, for“each and every day” one must “seehimself” going out of all limitations.Therefore, we can posit that duringthe lofty moments of Pesach, whenthe mind has been expanded by fourcups of wine, this song comes toremind a Jew who he is so he cangrasp only the joy of holiness andnot mix in other things.

The imagery of the song – thegoat, cat, dog, etc. – containsreferences to periods and changes in

a person’s physical life. It draws ourattention to the “animal soul,”whose every move draws a persondownward, and reminds us how aJew must, using the powers of hisG-dly soul, constantly stand onguard.

“ONE GOAT THAT FATHERBOUGHT FOR TWO COINS –

ONE GOAT, ONE GOAT”The first period in a Jew’s life is

“one goat that father bought,”childhood, the period of “breaththat has no sin,” for the young bodyjust received the pure neshama.However, “father bought” – ourFather in heaven “sold” theneshama, i.e., He brought it downto this world. “For two coins(zuzei)” – to a place where there is aconstant battle of choice betweentwo paths. “Zuzei” is related to theword in Hebrew meaning“movement.”

Each of the two paths can beaccessed with no more than a “zuz,”a slight movement. A little turn tothe right can save the soul; a slightturn to the left can lead todestruction. These are the basicfacts of life with which we start out.

However, the market where thegoat is sold has its own rules, itsown dynamics. Hashem created manin such a way that he quickly – justlike the pure white goat –experiences a change along the linesof, “the inclination of man’s heart isevil from his youth,” and so wecontinue...

THOUGHT

Various explanations have been presented for“Chad Gadya,” yet this Aramaic song, thefinale of the Hagada for countless Jews,remains a mystery. * One can findcommentators that explain it as referring toperiods of Jewish history while others explainit mystically. * Chabad ears always hear adifferent tune, a tune that demands innerwork without the concessions of self-love. * AChassidishe Chad Gadya!

CHABAD GADYABY RABBI YEHOSHUA DUBRAWSKY


“AND A CAT CAMEAND ATE THE GOAT”

The child grows a little bit olderand already begins to show his“claws.” He develops the trait ofcruelty and the desire to be cruel tothose who are weaker. A kitty catsometimes seems cute but it actuallyhas a wild streak, sometimesexpressed in a nasty, painful scratch.

The angel of a baby that we onceknew, before our very eyes turnsinto a destructive toddler who“swallows” the goat. And we yearnfor the: one goat, one goat! Hownice it was with the pure infant.

But the animal soul doesn’t restquietly. It grows, and the lack of aproper educational environment onlyhastens the process in which thechild is drawn after the obstinacy ofhis heart and temperament, andthen...

“AND A DOG CAMEAND BIT THE CAT”

The child’s development isreminiscent of a dog that mauls thecat: the cat is a nice house pet, afterall. It is easy to assert oneself as itsmaster and it’s not that brazen orwild. But over the years a childbecomes more bold. He becomessoiled by all the filth from the streetand reveals not only his claws but

also his sharp teeth. These are thewild maturation years, when you canhear a chutzpa’dike retort that ringsin your ears like barking and makesyou just as anxious.

The “doggie” doesn’t stand stilleither and if he isn’t tied down withan “educational leash,” which meansa yoke of Torah and daily t’filla, thenthe dog – which still symbolizes“man’s best friend” – deterioratesand...

“AND THE STICK COMESAND HITS THE DOG”

The boy becomes a youth andbegins to land blows even on the

dog’s loyalty, that somehow stillconnected him with his spiritualroots. The stick is uprooted from itssource and is an independent entity,separate from the tree that is plantedin the earth and connected with the“power of growth.”

The youth acquires a strangestubbornness and the opposition of astick. He looks down on his “oldfashioned” parents and wants toescape and assert his independence.His natural middos are riled up andhis yetzer is tougher than ever. Allthis together opens the door for thethought that the world is“something.”

However, even this stick, despiteits hardness, is connected with hisformer self, as Chazal say, “Toss astick into the air and it will land onits root side.” Just draw him a bitclose to the spiritual world and hewill revert back to his spiritual roots.

This is the time to grasp the“stick-youth” and stand him on hisfeet. If you don’t, then the next stepis...

“AND A FIRE CAME ANDBURNED THE STICK”

The fire of lust, especially thefantasies about the happiness to befound within the pleasures of thisworld, burns up even the innernature of the stick to be drawn to its

During the loftymoments of Pesach,when the mind hasbeen expanded by

four cups of wine, thissong comes to reminda Jew who he is so hecan grasp only the joy

of holiness and notmix in other things.

root. Man throws himself into thefiery furnace of the vanities of thisworld with passion. He is so blindedby the enticements of this world thathe doesn’t feel his neshama cry out:“One goat, one goat...” Ah, howdistant I have become from therefinement of once-upon-a-time!This is a period which can endcatastrophically, Heaven forbid.

However, the author of “ChadGadya” continues with other stagesin life. A person can sometimesmuse: Nu, the ardor of youth willpass and the blood will quiet down,and a person will acquire somebrains. Yes, this can happen...

“AND WATER CAME ANDEXTINGUISHED THE FIRE”

Water, the opposite of fire, iscold, calculated intellect thatextinguishes the fire of the middos.A person gets older and experiencesseveral serious disappointments inlife. Even from the perspective ofhuman intellect, one can discern theemptiness and vanity of this world.

However, if it all comes solelyfrom human intellect, without thewarmth of Torah and mitzvos, thiscan lead to undesirable results thatcome from feelings of angst anddespair (so that the fire and the willto live might be completelyextinguished, ch”v). Additionally,even under better circumstances,salvation will not come from theintellect.

It’s a fact: Sometimes we meet oldpeople and it seems that we can relyon their judgment, but suddenly...

“AND THE OX CAME ANDDRANK THE WATER”

Given a meager opportunity, the“goring ox” comes with its hornsaimed forward, yes, even for therational old man, and in an instant,the last drops of the waters ofintellect dry up. It might be becausehonor was withheld from him or

even a remnant of jealousy anddesire that lingers despite thelimitations of age. Meanwhile, thepowers of the intellect were scatteredin all directions and in their placeappeared “an ox with a shtraimel.”

As usual, Chazal express itsuccinctly, “The elderly of the amha’aretz (those ignorant of Torah),the older they get, the more theirminds become confused.

[Chassidus tells us that evenwithin those who learn Torah dwellsthe “king who is old and wise”

(referring to the yetzer ha’ra), whorears up to “gore” occasionally.]

The author of “Chad Gadya”doesn’t stop here but puts out awarning sign against anotherdanger...

“AND THE SLAUGHTERERCOMES AND SLAUGHTERS

THE OX”Even when “man” and his soul

powers rise up above the animal andhe even takes a knife and slaughtersthe “ox” in the proper fashion (e.g.,

the repentance of those who “playwith dice,” i.e., those who gamble,they break the pieces of their game),he can imagine that he vanquishedthe yetzer ha’ra, all the wild animalswithin him, that he went through itall and no ox will overtake himanymore – so what’s the problem?

We tell him: “Do not believe inyourself,” etc. The yetzer ha’ra nevergives up! Even when the “ox” islying there dead he uses evensharper weapons (which is why hisname “angel of death” suits him) –and he can “slaughter theslaughterer.” The yetzer ha’ra cantrap a person the very moment hethinks he “caught the bull by itshorns” ...

“AND THE ANGEL OFDEATH CAME ANDSLAUGHTERED THE

SLAUGHTERER”For the truth is that a person can

never rely on himself: “If not forHashem helping him, he would notbe able to withstand him” (i.e., theyetzer ha’ra). A person needs greathelp from Heaven; he must arousemuch Heavenly mercy, and then...

“HASHEM CAME ANDSLAUGHTERED THE ANGEL

OF DEATH”This is the goal and purpose of

all Jewish life, and here theconclusion of the song connects withthe beginning: the “father,” ourmerciful Father in heaven, Who“sold” the hapless goat in themarket-the world, Himself fulfills“and I will descend to save him,”and He extricates the “scatteredsheep, which is Israel,” from themire of Galus.

This is what Hashem showed uswith the Geula from Egypt. And Hewill show it to us again in acomplete and eternal fashion soon,with the true and completeRedemption, in our times.


The “father,” ourmerciful Father in

heaven, Who “sold”the hapless goat in

the market-the world,Himself fulfills “and Iwill descend to save

him,” and Heextricates the

“scattered sheep,which is Israel,” from

the mire of Galus.

Congregation Lubavitch - 770 Beis MoshiachB”H

With great joy and thanks to the Alm-ghty, You are cordiallyinvited to attend the chassidishe farbrengens in honor of

YUD AALEF NISSAN104th birthday

of tthe RRebbe, MMelech HHaMoshiach

to be held in “Beis Moshiach” 770

Motzoei Shabbos, Yud Nissan 5766 (April 8th)

at 9:30 pm

featuring

special guest speakers in English

LIVE ON THE INTERNET

WWW.770LIVE.COM

Wishing everyone a kosher and happy Pesach

The GGabboyim

Long Live The Rebbe King Moshiach Forever and Ever

In memory of ha’rav ha’chassid R' Avrohom o.b.m. Drizin

Amsterdam is a pretty city withbrown, white, and red-roofed homesand numerous narrow and elongatedwindows. There are canals that windthrough the streets with pleasureboats, yachts, and houseboats. Theweather is nearly always cloudy likethe sky. It’s all one big cloud.

A legendary city. Everyneighborhood that you pass isanother page of a book of fairy tales.

This is what I heard aboutAmsterdam from friends, who hadcome back from there enthusedabout it. I was only fifteen, and theirdescription of Amsterdam, the bigcity, appealed to me and one day Ipicked up and went there.

I was nineteen and I walked the

streets and feasted my eyes on thesights, seeking the ancient legends.

I didn’t rest for a moment. Iwalked for hours and even returnedtwice to the same place. I nearlyasked, “Excuse me but do you knowwhere the legend is?” Everything wasthere: the windmills, the red-roofedhouses with narrow, elongatedwindows, a stream meandering inthe middle of the avenue,restaurants, and entertainment.

However, the shining pages ofthe legends in my mind werenowhere to be found. I went to sleepvery late and hoped that the nextday I would discover what I hadn’tfound on the first day.

The morning came along with

the feeling of disappointment. Ifigured that in another day or two Iwould leave. It was a pity to wastetime there.

Divine providence caused me toremain there and I got a job withgood pay in a dark pub, dark inmore ways than one...

Days passed and my senses weredulled. Part of me slept whileanother part of me wanted so badlyto wake up.

Before I left on my trip, mybrother, who had become a baalt’shuva, gave me three books andsaid, “Take them. Always keep themwith you. They are protective andaside from that, they contain muchwisdom. Read them. Promise me.”

So the books went with me everyday to work. A promise is a promise.Sometimes they sat there near theglasses, really like some kind ofsegula.

One time when I called homeand asked what was new andwhether any holiday was coming up,they told me, “Tonight is the firstnight of Chanuka.”

I thought of Chanuka, EretzYisroel, and the menoros in thewindows, the pouring rain and thecandles, their flames dancing invictory. My feeling that I was missingout engendered an idea. I would alsolight the first light. And that’s what Idid. While at work, I put a candle


PROFILE

A first-person account of a young lady inAmsterdam who turned her life around andwas redeemed from what she describes as “theforty-ninth gate of impurity.” * It all beganthe time she poured out her heart in a letter tothe Rebbe that she wrote on a napkin in arestaurant. * As her story continues, shemerited, by Divine Providence, to experiencea surprise happy-ending along the way.

n

MY PERSONALREDEMPTION

BY IDIT AHARON


on the counter where drinks areserved to pathetic souls in the city oflegends...

One candle seemed too few tome and I decided that I would lightno fewer than eight candles. Eightcandles lit in a dark, gentile bar in acity of unfortunates. In a freemoment, I opened one of the s’farim,Tzivas HaRibash or Tanya and I read,a little bit each time. My soul powersdid not tolerate too much light...

The next day too I lit the candlesof the menora. It was late afternoonwhen a man walked in. He pausedin the gloom to look around. Ilooked at him and somethingseemed odd. He had a beard! And hewas wearing a cap. He glanced at thecandles and froze. He looked atthem and around the room and thenback at the candles and at mestanding behind them.

He was thunderstruck and Iknew it. He was Jewish! Withfaltering steps he came in and satdown at one of the high bar stools.

I asked him in English, “Whatwould you like to drink?” and he

said, “Beer.”

While I poured him a beer andwithout looking at him, I added inIvrit, “You’re Jewish, right?”

“Right,” said the young man witha noticeable tremor in his voice.

“You’re religious or from areligious home?” I asked confidently.

“Right,” replied the man asthough even if he wanted to answerotherwise he would be unable to doso.

“So why are you here? Why areyou in this awful place? What areyou looking for here?” I asked himchallengingly.

“I, I just came to drink a beer,”said the man defensively.

“Beer? Does a Jew need to drinkbeer here? Is there no beer at aquarter of the price in the grocerystore around the corner?” I askedquietly but firmly and I added, “I seebefore me a Jewish man who graspsthe truth on the one hand, whiletrying to flee from it on the otherhand. How can you do this toyourself?”

“And what about you? What areyou doing here? Doesn’t the truthpertain to you too?” he saiddefiantly, turning the tables on me.

“You’re right, but there’s nocomparison between us. I didn’tgrow up in a religious home, noteven in a traditional home. But I stillknow it’s the truth. I have proof! Doyou see these s’farim? I read themwhen I can and maybe one dayHashem will help me do t’shuva. I’vetried a few times without success.”

In the meantime, the man hadfinished his drink and he left thepub. I was so overwrought that Iturned my face to the wall and wept.I whispered, “Master of the universe,if you do not forgive me or I am notdeserving to live in Your Shadow, atleast return him, this lost son, toYou. Save him. He doesn’t belong

with lies!”

While I wiped my tears, the mancame back, this time with sure steps.He put a large bill on the counterand said, “This is for you, thankyou,” and he left.

I took the bill and whispered, “Ifyou help me Hashem, to do t’shuva,when I return to Eretz Yisroel I willdonate this money to tz’daka.”

And from that day on, somethingstirred in my soul. It seemed likebusiness as usual but inside it was asthough something drew me to afaraway childhood and memoriesfrom a land even further away; frommy life and the life of my motherand even my grandmother a”h.

I was engulfed in sadness. Ididn’t like my job nor did I likeAmsterdam. The people seemed soforeign to me and a strong feeling ofloneliness took the place of thesensation of lightness that regularlyaccompanied me on all my travels.

One evening I was sitting in acafé and I knew there was nowhereto go. Then I remembered theRebbe. The Rebbe I had dreamed of,the one I had seen in the newspaperand didn’t know what he wanted ofme; the Rebbe my brother didn’tstop talking about.

I took a white paper napkin andwrote to the Rebbe about what I felt,about my lack of gratitude foreverything and about the memoriesthat took me so far away, even to theAtlas Mountains of Africa, while Inever set foot there. At the bottomof the napkin I noted that just as Ihad seen the Rebbe in a dream andas many had been helped by him, sotoo, little me asked him to help meso that all feelings of fear anddistress that choked me woulddissipate.

I knew that you don’t getsomething for nothing, so Ipromised that I would return toEretz Yisroel and begin doing

“The chiddush of the futureRedemption as compared to theexodus from Egypt is that in theexodus from Egypt there was arevelation from Above that wasnot the result of avoda. (Andeven though they counted 49days, in such a short period oftime it wasn’t possible by virtueof their own avoda for them toleave the 49 gates of impurityand be so refined). Whereas,with the future Redemption, itwill come as a result of the avodaof the Jewish people that beganwith the exodus from Egypt, torefine not only oneself but alsoeach one [refining] his portionof the world.”

(Sicha Shmini 5720)

t’shuva.

I folded my letter and put it intomy pocket. And then, somethinghappened immediately that I willnever forget. I felt as though myentire being was emptying out. Mythoughts disappeared along with thefeelings. I was like a hollow pipewith a strong, pleasant breezeblowing through it. I felt suddenlyemptied...

I was sitting on the same chair,holding a cup of coffee with my eyesfixed upon some spot. One minute,two. No more. I searched inward,deep within the maze of thoughtsand feelings. What was happening?What remained? Nothing.

I was shocked to discover that Iwas left as an empty vessel. It’s notthat I forgot who I was, Heavenforbid. It’s that all the unpleasantfeelings had disappeared. Thedistressing thoughts and sadness hadvanished. The feeling of greatfrustration had gone.

I immediately realized theenormity of the miracle. Not onlydid the Rebbe answer me instantly,but he even fulfilled my request inthe most immediate way. Now it wasas if he was telling me, “You areemptied; all is clean. There is nopast. From hereon forth it dependsonly on you. What you choose willenter the present. You are beginningon a clean, new page and you areresponsible for what will be writtenthere.”

Those distressing feelings neverreturned. A week after thatincredible evening that was stillfresh in my mind, I found a letterfrom my brother in my mailbox. Itwas six pages long and began withthe good news that he was engaged,a “chattan.” What a strange word.The rest of the letter containedkabbalistic ideas and pairs of wordsand gematriyos about the couple.

At the end of his long letter

appeared one lone line, which beganwith, “Where are you? Where areyou? Where are you?”

I didn’t need more than this. Iburst into tears that reverberatedback at me from all the walls of thehouse. Where was I? Indeed, wherewas I? And the thought made me crysome more.

I looked again at my brother’sletter and his great concern for meradiated out from that one sentence.

Where was I? Where was I andwhere was he? He was a wise youngman and I was simply a lazy good-for-nothing who remained hereinstead of doing the right thing.

A week later, I landed at BenGurion airport and my brother wasthere, waiting for me.

“So that you don’t run away...Ibrought handcuffs with me, pleasegive me your hands...” We laughed.What bliss. It was so safe here, so

protected. And my brother lookedlike someone who had returned froma trip around the sun. What ashining face!

And that’s how my t’shuva began,not that easily, a trip with abeginning but no end.

I married, baruch Hashem, andas a Lubavitcher Chassid went to770. I was in my eighth month andthough it wasn’t easy, I was happy todo it, to be there.

One day, as I walked my usualroute to 770, I met a friend fromEretz Yisroel who is not aLubavitcher. She suggested that Ijoin her for a day of learning in BoroPark. It will be great, she promised.

The lecture hall was packed withpeople. All types were there,chareidi women, religious andnonobservant women, old andyoung. The lecturer, a well-knownrabbi, entertained and taught uswith his parables, stories, and broadknowledge. I sat there and thought;How did I come here? What do Ihave to do with this lecturer? I ampast the message being conveyedhere because I took the big step longago!

The time passed, and my earsremained alert. “If you’re here,there’s a reason,” I said to myself.“Maybe, by listening to the speaker,you will be inspired to furthert’shuva.”

The rabbi continued speaking,“We have no idea what effect actionshave on our lives, even words.Sometimes, even something we seecan leave a tremendous impressionon a person’s soul. I have a story likethis to tell you. And for you, ladiesof Boro Park, this story will speakespecially to you...

“A little while ago I visited afriend, a Rosh Kollel inYerushalayim. He brought me to thelarge room where the men learn inpairs. While I stood there, enjoying


“I didn’t grow up in areligious home, not

even in a traditionalhome. But I still knowit’s the truth. I haveproof! Do you see

these s’farim? I readthem when I can and

maybe one dayHashem will help medo t’shuva. I’ve trieda few times without

success.”

the sight of the men learning andhearing their voices fill the spaciousroom, my friend whispered to me,‘You should know that every manhere is an ongoing story of heroism.’

“‘He looked around the room,seeking a particular person andfinally found the person he waslooking for. He pointed at him andsaid, ‘You see him with the gray suit?Five years ago, he left his parents’home in Boro Park, left yeshiva andbegan working in order to earn somemoney so he could travel abroad. Hebarely looked different than agentile. He made some money andwent to Europe with the feeling thatthere was something there that hewas missing out on.

“‘He went to Holland and it wasChanuka when he entered a bar andthere, to his surprise, was a menoraon the counter, shining bright! Itwas the third night of Chanuka butfor some reason all eight lights were

burning.

“‘He met the girl who had lit themenora, an Israeli, who gave it tohim over the head for abandoninghis traditions. This had a

tremendous effect on him, especiallywhen the girl herself wasn’t religiousyet she chose to speak up even inthat impure place.

“‘And he, who had come from anexcellent home where love for Torahand mitzvos were a mainstay, haddropped it all for what? For nothing!He returned home and from there hecame to us. Baruch Hashem he ismarried and they are expecting theirfirst child.’ And this is the story thatthe Rosh Kollel told me.”

I sat there, in shock, feelinggoose bumps. Joy filled my heartand I was full of thanks to Hashemfor allowing me, the girl in the story,to return to Him with love.

This is a true story about mypersonal redemption. It was asthough Hashem Himself descendedto my forty-ninth gate of impurityand redeemed me from there.


“I didn’t need morethan this. I burst into

tears thatreverberated back atme from all the wallsof the house. Wherewas I? Indeed, where

was I? And thethought made me cry

some more.”

B.H

LUXURIOUS EFFICIENCY ACCOMMODATIONS

RECOMMENDED

FOR THE UPSCALE GUEST VISITING

C R O W N H E I G H T S

W I T H V E RY D I S C R I M I N AT I N G TA S T E

FOR RESERVATIONS PLEASE CALL

(718) 774-0088

ATTN. GUESTS/VISITORS

Very nice apartment(1 block from 770)

Fully furnishedSleeps up to 12 people

Available on daily or weekly basis(917) 699-3937

Raskin's“if i t grows we have it”

Fruit and Produce Emporium WHOLESALE & RETAILMichal & Aaron Raskin

Consistently

Superior

335 Kingston Ave. Brooklyn NY 11213 * Tel: (718) 756-3888 756-2221 * Fax: 756-2440

We Deliver

40

It was three o’clock in themorning. It was a chilly nightoutside the Chabad House in Eilat,but inside, there was an embracingand warm chassidic atmosphere. Thefarbrengen continued with full force.Story after story, feeling after feeling,and an expression of true, open, andintense love for the Rebbe.

The participants were seatedaround the mashpia, HaRav Avraham

Shmuel Bukiet. Some were yeshivabochurim, others were new“mekuravim” who came to theyeshiva, together with students withthe Lithuanian-brand yeshivos, andyoung people from the United Statesand Argentina who were touring inthe vacation city.

“L’Chaim!” Rabbi Bukiet’s voiceagain broke the silence.

“L’Chaim v’livracha!”

“The following story occurredtwenty-two years ago, in Adar 5744.In those days, I was living with myfamily in Kiryat Ata, where we wereserving as shluchim of the RebbeMH”M. At one point, my wife and Iwere blessed with the birth of a son,and as a result, I found myselfcoming regularly for about a week tothe Rambam Hospital in Haifa.

“During one of my visits to theward where my wife was staying, Inoticed that another hospitalizedwoman had been brought into mywife’s room. At a certain point, mywife and her new roommate began afriendly chat. At first, theconversation was pleasant andcordial, but soon afterwards, thewoman began to tell sadly why shewas in the hospital. She said that shewas not a healthy person, and inaddition to her varied medicalcomplications, she had only onekidney after the other had to besurgically removed.

“Despite the fact that she was notTorah observant, you could tell thatshe felt a sense of appreciation forJewish tradition and for Torahobservant Jews. The conversationcontinued, as I listened in from theside.

“She proceeded to tell how thatdue to her weakened physical state,she was not allowed to becomepregnant. Now, in light of the fact

This woman, a resident of Tirat HaCarmel, wasquite far from a life of Torah observance,however, it appeared that my words had made apowerful impression upon her. She agreed toconsider the matter seriously. Her husband, whoalso joined the conversation at a certain point,appeared to be even further away from Torahand mitzvos than her. As expected, he was not allthat enthusiastic about placing his trust in theRebbe’s bracha, and he urged her not to considerthe option of writing to the Rebbe. Apparently, herdesire for a child was much stronger, and she gaveher consent that I should write to the Rebbe in hername, and she would do whatever the Rebbe said.

TRIAL AND ITSREWARD

BY NATAN AVRAHAMTRANSLATED BY MICHOEL LEIB DOBRY

STORY


that she was in the early stages ofpregnancy, her doctors ordered herto have an abortion r”l. They warnedher that continuing the pregnancywould place her life and the life ofher unborn child at grave risk. Shewanted very much to have the baby,but the doctors would not leave herin peace. They added that in allmedical history, a woman in hercondition had never given birth –and even worse.

“She appeared broken andcrushed. Her emotional state wasextremely difficult, and now shewaited to hear what we had to say.The realization flashed through mymind that if this woman had beenbrought specifically into a room withmy wife, a shlucha of the Rebbe, thiswas an obvious case of DivineProvidence.

“At this point, I joined theconversation and told her that I ama chassid of the Lubavitcher Rebbe,and that I was prepared to write aletter to the Rebbe for her, layingout the whole story and requestingthe Rebbe’s advice and bracha. Ithen proceeded to tell her about thenumerous miracle stories that haveoccurred due to the Rebbe’s brachos,however, there was one condition towriting the letter – she had to makea commitment to do whatever theRebbe said.

“As I said earlier, this woman, aresident of Tirat HaCarmel, wasquite far from a life of Torahobservance, however, it appearedthat my words had made a powerfulimpression upon her. She agreed toconsider the matter seriously. Herhusband, who also joined theconversation at a certain point,appeared to be even further awayfrom Torah and mitzvos than her. Asexpected, he was not all thatenthusiastic about placing his trustin the Rebbe’s bracha, and he urgedher not to consider the option ofwriting to the Rebbe.

“Apparently, her desire for a childwas much stronger, and she gave herconsent that I should write to theRebbe in her name, and she woulddo whatever the Rebbe said.

“When I returned home thatevening, I made the preparations forcomposing a letter to the Rebbe, andlaid out in writing the entire sadstory. A few days passed, and ananswer was received from the Rebbe:‘Continue her pregnancy. I willmention it at the Tzion.’

“I was gripped by a feeling oftremendous excitement, and Iimmediately rushed to show her the

letter, as I urged to fulfill thepromise made between us, despiteall the difficulties confronting her.Indeed, I was not mistaken, as themedical staff was of the opinion thatthe pregnancy must be terminated,believing that its continuation was acontradiction to all the rules ofmedicine.

“From the moment that thewoman told the doctors that shewanted to continue the pregnancybased on the bracha that she hadreceived from the Rebbe, a stubbornand uncompromising pressurecampaign was waged against her and

me. The director of RambamHospital himself called mepersonally into his office andrepeatedly emphasized the gravity ofthe matter in very clear terms: ‘Awoman with such a health conditioncannot possibly give birth. I don’tknow who the Lubavitcher Rebbe is,but I’m the one who’s in charge hereand it’s my responsibility.Furthermore, even the Rebbeunderstands a little about medicine,you didn’t send him any medicaldocuments on the case. How canyou possibly take such an immenseresponsibility upon yourself?’ hegrowled.

“When he saw that I wassteadfast in my opinion that theRebbe is not someone who is limitedto the laws of nature, and that therewas no chance of altering his words,he changed to a much harsher tone.‘Look, if something happens to her,they won’t put you on trial nor eventhe Lubavitcher Rebbe – but me! Iam not prepared to take suchresponsibility. If she continues torefuse to have an abortion, I willorder her to be released from thehospital.’

“The pressure from all directionswas tremendous. As a born andraised chassid, I was not particularlyfazed by it. But, go and explain to afamily that has no connection toYiddishkait, and surely not to thepure faith in tzaddikim, that she hasto listen to what the Rebbe saidagainst all the learned opinions ofthe doctors.

“The husband even went so far asto frighten his wife by saying thatshe is willingly taking her own life.However, the shepherd neverabandons his flock, and through mydiscussions with her, I hadawakened her emuna, and therecame tremendous help from Heaven.She held firm against all thepressure.

“A few days later, I received an



urgent phone call from her. It turnedout that the trial that she had beenenduring was not quite finished. Thedoctors at Rambam Hospital haddecided to discharge her in ordernot to take responsibility for hercondition. She was transferred to theCarmel Hospital across town.

“In light of these developments,she was very worried. Upon herrequest, I sent another letter to theRebbe, explaining everything thatshe was going through and the newdevelopments over the last severaldays. The Rebbe’s reply was not longin coming: ‘I already answered tocontinue her pregnancy. I willmention it at the Tzion.’ Once again,I came to the woman with a clearanswer, and I strengthened her withassurances that she has nothing toworry about, after being privilegedto receive such guidance.

“Around this time, I concludedmy shlichus in Kiryat Ata and movedwith my family to Kfar Chabad. Wecontinued to remain in contactduring the first few weeks after mydeparture, however, as time passedand my schedule becomeparticularly busy, we were no longerin touch with one another.

“A few months later, I received a

telephone call at my home. Theperson on the line identified himselfas the director of Carmel Hospital inHaifa. At once, my whole bodytensed. I asked if something terriblehad happened, but the esteemedprofessor’s calm tone of voiceimmediataely assuaged my fears. Heinvited me to participate in amedical conference to be held thefollowing day at the hospital, whichhe connected to the story of thiswoman.

“I arrived at the hospital the nextday. I quickly understood that this

was not just your standard ‘let’sdrink a toast,’ but a major publicevent. A large assembly of doctorsand nurses gathered in one of thehospital’s main halls, and among theparticipants was the director ofRambam Hospital! One speaker afteranother came up to the rostrum tolaud and praise the Rebbe, whosebracha caused something above andbeyond the natural limitations ofmedical science.

“The woman and her family werealso in attendance, and the emotionon the woman’s face was evident forall to see.

“The cause for all the greatexcitement was the fact that thebirth had been easy and normal.

“To my great surprise, I wasasked to say a few words, and I tookthe opportunity to speak about thegreatness of the Rebbe, as Isharpened the distinction betweenthe varying levels of faith,emphasizing the kind of faith that isdemanded from us by the leader ofthe generation.”

“L’Chaim!”

“L’Chaim v’livracha!”

“May we merit to be true‘mekusharim.’”

One speaker afteranother came up tothe rostrum to laud

and praise the Rebbe,whose bracha causedsomething above andbeyond the natural

limitations of medicalscience.

Make a “Mivtzah Kashrus” in your own computer!Introducing JNET-The world wide web without the world wide worryTM

While The Internet can be a helpful tool for business, education

and personal use it can also be a potentially dangerous one.

That's why J Net was created.

Using exclusive multi-tiered intelligent filtration, the J Net portal

is probably the most effective consumer resource for eliminating

material not conducive to our needs.

More than virtually foolproof, J .NET is also easy - both to

install and use. Plus its available in both dialup and high speed

DSL and backed by highly trained customer service experts that

will solve your problems fast.

Most important, you can now get the JNET Advantage for only

a bit more than non-filtered on line providers.

If you're ready for the world wide web without the world wide

worry, you're ready for JNet.

DIAL UP DSL Unlimited Access 24 Tech Support

4 Profiles per Account Web Mail

Call us toll free at 1-866-866-JNET (5638)

(mention code “770” for special ANASH Rate)


I got back to Hevron an hourbefore Shabbos. Although I had beena guest in the Hachnasas Orchimbuilding during the week, forShabbos I vacated to make room forthe seminary girls from the Chabadseminary in Ramat Shlomo,Yerushalaim, who were spendingShabbos in Hevron. I moved into theoffice-turned-guest-room, in thehome of the Chabad Shluchim,Danny and Batsheva and theiradorable, rambunctious children.

It was Erev ShabbosMevarchim, the Shabbos whenwe bless the new monthwhich will start in the comingweek. Four o’clock Hevrontime made it nine in themorning in New York. Dannyhas a phone that works overthe internet. It has a 718 areacode and operates as if it is inNew York. With an hour togo, I quickly made calls fromthis phone to remind myT’hillim group members backhome that it was ShabbosMevarchim. It was fun to hear thereactions when I told my friends Iwas calling from Hevron.

I lit candles with Batsheva andsunk onto the sofa to rest after anexciting afternoon. But then Iremembered... the reason I alwayslike to spend Shabbos in Hevron,above visiting other interesting

people and places, is because of theFriday night service in M’arasHaMachpela.

By the time I got there, thewoman’s section was almost full. Theseats that is. The isles were stillempty. I knew that in time even theisles would fill up with girls, somedraped in white, others draped incolors, but all the girls would havethe distinct hilltop look thatcharacterizes the residents of Yesha.

Even the out of town guests blendedinto the dress code. There werevirtually no high heels, tight clothes,and heavy make up.

I went straight up to theMechitza. I like to move aside thecurtain and watch the dancing. TheMechitza is solid wood almost fivefeet high, above which is an openweave design of thin metal strips, so

you can only see the other side ifyou are up close, and of course ifyou lift the curtain that covers themetal design.

If I tell you the singing anddancing of Kabbalas Shabbos at theMaara are a manifestation of themagic of Hevron, where material andspiritual combine... Don’t believeme; go see for yourself.

There was an interesting mix ofmen: the Hevron residents,

Chassidim, and clean shavenYeshiva students. Add to themix some soldiers, yes, evenafter the tragedy of GushKatif, they are welcomed tojoin the Davening. Nowsubtract from the mix all theexternalities, because Fridaynight at the Maara there isonly brotherhood, unity andSimcha.

Which reminds me, Ishould mention that theDavening is led by Simcha

Hochbaum. He is very sincere, softspoken, and at the same timepowerful. Although at this point theFriday night Davening at the Maarais able to surge, flow and elevatewithout him... when he is there, heis the maestro.

A girl in the front row offered meher seat. (I guess I don’t look soyoung after all.) But I declined.There is no chance to peek through

SHABBOS INHEVRON

BY ALIZA KARP

Kever Yishai and Rus

PERSPECTIVE


the Mechitza when seated.

Following the Davening I went tothe dining room of the HachnasasOrchim building. The Cohens and Iwould be eating with the seminaryand taking part in their program. Iopted to sit with the girls instead ofat the head table. I enjoyed them.

The feature speaker for theevening was Mrs. Miriam Levinger,one of the leaders of the NashimTzidaknios, whom the Rebbereferred to as righteous women, whoestablished the modern Jewishcommunity in Hevron throughMesiras Nefesh MAMOSH, completeself-sacrifice, by breaking into andliving in the Beit Hadassah building.Miriam’s story is one I have heardmany times and have written about,but I had never heard her tell theentire story start to finish. It wasfascinating. Of course, her MesirasNefesh for Hevron did not end atBeit Hadassah; it continued for manyyears before the community becamewhat it is today.

Then Batsheva spoke to the girlsand answered their many questionsuntil it was getting late and wedecided to head home to get somesleep before Shabbos MevarchimT’hillim in the morning.

As I mentioned in the originalstory of Givot Olam, there had beena new Seifer Torah brought toHevron the week before. This SeiferTorah had been used in Gush Katifand is now housed in the MittelerRebbe’s until it can return to GushKatif. (It has an interesting storywhich I will tell at the end of thisShabbos report.) This was the firstShabbos that the Mittler Rebbe’sShul had a Seifer Torah of its own(in recent times) so I joined theMinyan there on Shabbos morning.

The Mittler Rebbe’s Shul ismodest in size, with no designatedplace for women. Miriam Rhodesfrom the nearby village of Bat Ayinwas visiting Hevron for Shabbos.

Together we transformed the smallarea that serves as an entrance way,into a woman’s section.

Following the davening, Miriamand I climbed up the hill to TelRumeida, where we were havingKiddush with Ephraim and AnyaRosenstein and family in theircaravan home. The Rosenstein’s hada full table of a variety of guests.There were four young men fromBoro Park. I think they were BobovChassidim. They sat near Ephraimand did not interact with thewomen, and we sat near Anya anddid not interact with them. Everyonewas happy. Ephraim brought us all

into the conversation when he spokeabout the Parsha interactively withhis children.

It was a delightful lunch. Justbefore Anya served desert a neighborcame in and asked the men to cometo Mincha at nearby Kever Ruth andYishai. What happened next wasinteresting. Now that the men weregone the women sang a few songsand chatted a little, but before longthe atmosphere became tranquil.One by one each of us picked up aseifer to continue our ShabbosMevarchim T’hillim. I looked up fora moment and took a mental pictureof the girls and women from

teenager to grandmother (that’s me)all saying T’hillim. The youngerwomen were comfortably positionedon the living room furniture and weoldies were by the table a bit moreformal... but we were all sayingT’hillim.

Later I was planning to join theSeminary girls for their tour of theneighborhood. I rushed back to theCohen’s to take a short nap. I foundtheir dining room full of Chabadbachurim. These were the boys whomade up the Minyan in the MittlerRebbe’s Shul in the morning. Irealized that one of the boys wasElchonan Hellinger, the one whowas largely responsible for the SeiferTorah in the Mittler Rebbe’s Shul. Imade a mental note to speak to himlater to get the story from thesource.

Simcha gave the tour to theseminary girls. He mixes in manyinteresting stories and Biblicalreferences so that even placesfamiliar to me, took on more depth.Our tour finished at Beit Hadassah.As we were walking back toAvraham Avinu neighborhood, wherethe girls were staying and which iscloser to the Maara where the girlswere going for Mincha, I noticedMiriam Levinger was walking theopposite direction. I walked over tosay Good Shabbos and to thank herfor the stories she had told us thenight before. She mentioned she waswalking up to Kever Ruth and Yishaito say T’hillim. I decided to join her.

As we were walking up the hillan Arab boy was walking down. Hewas probably about 10 or 12 yearsold. As he was about to pass us, hesaid something. Immediately Miriamresponded in Arabic, a harsh tone inher voice. I asked her what she said.She told me that she had told himhe should go to sleep and neverwake up!

I asked her if she spoke Arabic.“No,” she answered calmly, “I only

We gain their respectby showing self-confidence and

intolerance of socialinfractions such as weencountered. Gainingtheir disrespect can

mean death.


curse in Arabic.”

The Arab boy had said somethingto us, but neither of us knew whathe said. I questioned whether or nother tough response would reinforcefeelings of hostility in the youth.Miriam pointed out that had it beenthe other way around, a Jewish boysaying something to an Arab woman,that the Jewish boy might not live totell the tale. She explained to methat this is their culture, this is whatthey understand and therefore, thisis how we need to speak to them.We gain their respect by showingself-confidence and intolerance ofsocial infractions such as weencountered. Gaining theirdisrespect can mean death.

Miriam then told me how it waswhen her children grew up inHevron. Now we walk throughstreets that few Arabs pass through,but when she first settled in Hevronthese same streets were teeming withArabs. And her family has survivedto tell the tale.

I understood that Miriam and herhusband have dedicated their lives –totally – to preserve the physicalconnection of Am Yisroel to M’arasHaMachpella and Hevron. Because ofthem, and others like them, tens ofthousands of Jews visit Hevron andthe Maara every year. The Rebbe wasvery supportive of the Levingers, inperson and by mail. After all,Hashem promised us a physicalconnection, not just a spiritual one.The Levingers, together with a smallgroup of families, have preserved

our connection to the heritage thatHashem promised us. Theirinfluence is not restricted to Hevron.Far and near they have served as anexample to others, givingencouragement through examplethat it can be done. Because of theirperseverance, many have beeninspired to live in and protect otherparts of our Holy Land.

We reached the Kever of Ruthand Yishai, the father andgrandmother of Dovid HaMelech,the author of the T’hillim. A perfectplace to say more ShabbosMevarchim T’hillim.

On our way down, we stopped tovisit Rebbetzin Raanan, a closefriend of Miriam’s whose husbandwas murdered by a terrorist sevenyears ago in their home in TelRumeida, which at the time was aflimsy caravan. Rabbi Raanan was awell respected and loved leader. HisRebbetzin is now living in BeitMenachem, the new apartmentbuilding in Tel Rumeida. I wasthrilled to meet Rebbetzin Raanan,another incredible woman ofHevron.

When Shabbos was over, Iquickly checked my email onDanny’s computer and then headedfor Yerushalayim for a MelavehMalka with Shaena, who is originallyfrom Winnipeg, Canada, as I am, buthas been living for more than thirtyyears as part of the Toldos AronChassidim in Meia Sh’arim. If youremember from the Givot Olamstory, I was buying the present for

her when I saw the pictures of theRebbe. I was now on my way to giveher the present, which, it turnedout, she liked very much.

Every week some of her childrenand grandchildren join her forMelaveh Malka. She is the queen asher daughters come to help clean upfrom Shabbos and serve the food.Everyone is dressed traditionally,Meia Sh’arim style, and is refreshedafter a restful Shabbos. There wereplenty of infants to go on the laps ofthe adults. Everyone there wasclearly experienced at dealing withchildren of all ages.

What a difference. A few hoursago I was with Miriam Levinger whocontinues to dedicate her life for hernation. And now I am sitting in acommunity that cares for themselvesexclusively. This is not my lifestyle,but I can see it also has its strengths,mainly, it has strength! Thesecommunities were here before thestate, and I don’t know how to saythis, but as the state is in a phase ofself-destruction, these communitiesare not fazed.

I love and respect the differentlifestyles that make up the mosaic ofAm Yisroel, but I must admit, themore I learn about the lives andphilosophies of the various waysToras Yisroel is observed by AmYisroel, I thank G-d for the Rebbe’sguidance and Chabad Chassiduswith its unique blend of perceivingthe material and physical and itsclear path for Ahavas Yisroel.


Dear Editor,

Please help me to understand how after [GimmelTamuz] the Rebbe will come back and bring theredemption.

I have attempted to speak to countless ChabadLubavitchers about this, but all brush off the question.

If you can show me this, for what its worth, you willgreatly help and improve my live and clearly, my entireJewish outlook.

I understand the concept of Moshiach already, this isnot what I am asking to be taught. I am asking how after[Gimmel Tamuz] the Rebbe will come back and bring theRedemption.

If this really means everything to you, I hope that youshall take the time to teach me.

mezzanine_76@etc.

* * *

First and foremost, the majority of our readers likelywould disagree with the premise of this question, namely,the notion of a passing.

Although I doubt anyone would deny the events of “theeulogizers eulogized and the embalmers embalmed andthe gravediggers buried,” as witnessed on 3 Tamuz 5754,nevertheless, if that premise is accepted it is impossible toresolve the logical conclusion: who is our current leader?

Everyone in Lubavitch is unified in the fact that theRebbe still leads us; that is not at all disputed. Our readersare generally of the opinion that the Rebbe is alive andwell; it is merely we who are faulty in our vision. Thisconcept of continued life, despite appearances, issomething that has its precedent set in Torah (re. YaakovAvinu, as mentioned, and Moshe Rabbeinu, and RebbiYehuda HaNasi). Torah is the only power to determinereality; not our perceptions.

Those who hold that there was a passing (such as oneof the secretaries of the Rebbe, who told me: “How can Ibelieve anything different? I tied the gartel on the Rebbe[‘sbody].”) are left with difficulties understanding the timewe live in, but when it comes to the notion that the Rebbeis still Moshiach, they largely agree. (To quote RabbiHerson, dean of Morristown, who said at a farbrengen inTiferes Bachurim after Gimmel Tamuz 5754: “EveryLubavitcher Chassid believes the Rebbe is Moshiach!”) Thequestion, ‘How exactly such a resurrection will take place?’probably cannot be answered (even by the greatest andmost open-minded scientist), since it will be miraculous.

But according to either approach, the Rebbe willsimply appear (as the Rebbe said regarding the RebbeRayatz, “from the roof, through the window or the door,etc.”) and continue with the long-awaited true andcomplete Redemption. May it happen now!

AFTER GIMMEL TAMUZ: ‘TAKE THE TIME TO TEACH ME’

ProfessionalReasonable24 hour serviceBoxes available upon request.

Y.S. MMOVINGYossi

Tel: 718-467-0171

Cellular: 917-805-7757

contents - moshiach · english editor: boruch merkur [email protected] 4 | the pleasure of...

Documents