CONTENTS

6
FEATURED ARTICLES

WEEKLY COLUMNS

3 Dvar Malchus
5 Moshiach & Hakhel
24 Parsha Thought
34 Tzivos Hashem

IT IS NOT ENOUGH
TO JUST MOURN OVER
THE BEIS HAMIKDASH
Menachem Ziegelboim

14 LUBAVITCHER
SOLDIERS
SPEAK OUT
Zalman Tzorfati

DREAM CHILD
20
Nosson Avrohom
20
REBBE RASHAB
26 THE
TOLD HIM: AT TIMES

YOU ARE A BEINONI

Shneur Zalman Berger

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2016-09-06 7:15:04 AM

DVAR MALCHUS

MOSHIACH
WILL TEACH US
THE YECHIDA
OFTORAH
770 is the House of Moshiach * Chapter
Eleven of Rabbi Shloma Majeskis Likkutei
Mekoros. (Underlined text is the compilers
emphasis.)
Translated by Boruch Merkur

6. [] In this generation, the

final generation of exile and the
first generation or redemption, we
are finishing and completing our
deeds and our service throughout
the entire duration of exile to
transform Eretz HaAmim, the
land of the Gentile nations of
the world even the lowest
possible place of the Diaspora,
the Lower Hemisphere (where
Mattan Torah did not take place)
into Eretz Yisroel. By elevating
the very lowest region, all other
places of the Diaspora ascend.
Uplifting the world in this way
is in virtue of Beis Rabbeinu,
located in the Lower Hemisphere.
Beis Rabbeinu is the place from
which light shines forth to the
rest of the world. Thus, the
entire world (even the most
remote corner) is transformed
into Eretz Yisroel, in fulfillment
of In the future, Eretz Yisroel
will extend to all the lands and
In the future, Yerushalayim will

extend to all of Eretz Yisroel.

All the synagogues and study
halls of the entire world will
adjoin to the Beis HaMikdash,
the Holy Temple, with the
true and complete redemption
through Moshiach Tzidkeinu.
The Moshiach (redeemer of the
Jewish people) of our generation
is the leader of the generation
(as above, Section 5). The main
thing, however, is that he is
the leader of the teachings of
Chassidus,* for the dissemination
of the wellsprings of Chassidus
outward (when your wellsprings
are spread outward, reaching
even the furthest possible
distance, spanning the entire face
of the earth) brings about the
advent of Malka Meshicha.
The latter discussion brings
to light the great virtue of Beis
Rabbeinu, the Mikdash Mat
haikari the main Miniature
Sanctuary, of the final exile,
for it journeyed from Kadeish

and settled there. Thus, It is

the place of the future Mikdash
itself; the Mikdash of the
future will be revealed there,
and from there it shall return to
Yerushalayim (as discussed above
in Section 4).
7. This concept is also
alluded to in the name of Beis
Rabbeinu in our generation:
Rabbeinu: Both the first
and second names of the Rebbe
allude to the redemption. His
first name, Yosef, is in the spirit
of the verse, It shall be on that
day that the L-rd will add (yosif)
[the effect of] His hand, a second
time to acquire the rest of His
people, who will remain from
Assyria and from Egyptand
from the islands of the seaand
He shall gather (vasaf) the lost
of Israel, and the scattered ones
of Yehuda He shall gather from
the four corners of the earth
(Yeshayahu
11:11-12).
His
second name, Yitzchok, alludes
to laughter and joy, which will
achieve its quintessence in the
true and compete redemption
by Moshiach Tzidkeinu, as it
is written, then our mouths
will be filled with laughter
specifically then, referring to
the Future Era,** when we will
say (specifically) to Yitzchok for

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Dvar Malchus
you are our father.
And Beis (Rabbeinu): The
building address is 770***
[Eastern Parkway]. The name of
Beis Rabbeinu, of course, comes
from this number, for all Jews call
Beis Rabbeinu 770. 770 is the
gematria of paratza you have
burst forth, in the spirit of the
verse, And you shall burst forth
westward, eastward, northward,
and southward. This verse
alludes to the fact that light shines
forth from this building to all
four directions of the world, and
in a manner of bursting forth
through boundaries, elevating all
corners of the globe to the status
of Eretz Yisroel (In the future
Eretz Yisroel will extend to all the
lands).

This particularly includes

the fact that all synagogues and
all study halls throughout the
entire world become established
in Eretz Yisroel and adjoined to
the Beis HaMikdash, with the
true and complete redemption
through Moshiach Tzidkeinu.
Regarding Moshiach it is said,
paratza alecha Perez, and our
Sages interpret that this refers
to Moshiach, as it is said, the
poretz will rise before you.

**Which is not the case in the time of

exile, for it is prohibited for a man to fill
his mouth with laughter in this world, as
it is said, then our mouths will be filled
with laughter (Brachos 31a).

NOTES:

****To note that Beis Moshiach is

numerically equivalent to paratzta
(770). Vduk.

Continued from page 5

will prove true, as we have

seen and continue to see the
fulfillment of the blessings of my
sainted father-in-law, the leader
of our generation.
And furthermore: A prophet
about whom another prophet
testifies that he is a prophet
is presumed to be a prophet
and the second one needs no
examination. This applies to
the leader of our generation, and
continues in the next generation
through his disciples. One
must immediately obey him
even before he gives a sign.
Similarly, it is forbidden to have
doubts about him and question
his prophecy, that maybe it isnt
true, and it is forbidden to test
him overmuch, as it says, Do
not test the L-rd your G-d as you
tested Him at Massa... But since
it is known that he is a prophet,
believe in him and know that G-d
is in your midst. Do not doubt
or question him... One believes
in the words of the prophet not
because it is the prophets speech,
but because it is G-ds speech

the kings? The Rabbis. More

specifically, it is the leader of our
generation, the judge, counsellor
and prophet of our generation
and the continuation of our
Rebbeim who preceded him.
The obligation to receive the
words of the leader is rooted in
the commandment of the Torah:
I will raise up a prophet for them
from amongst their brethren like
you and will put My words in his
mouth and he will speak to them
all that I command him. . . To
him you will listen.
According to the ruling of
the Rambam mentioned above,
if one has the qualifications and
perfection required of a prophet,
when this same person performs
signs and wonders, We do not
believe in him because of the
signs alone, but because of the
mitzvah Moshe commanded in
the Torah when he said, if he
gives you a sign, listen to him.
The sign is, He will tell you
things to come and his words

*To note that the teachings of Chassidus

corresponds to the level of the Yechida of
Torah (see On the Essence of Chassidus),
which is connected with the yechida of
the Jewish people, the soul of Moshiach
Tzidkeinu (as above in Footnote 53)

***To note the practice of great Jewish

scholars to teach allusions and lessons
in the service of G-d even from
mundane matters, and the like (such as
the number of a car in a train, which is
[seemingly] arbitrary, how much more so
is the number of a permanent structure
something that carries significance),
especially in our case, where the number
became the name of the building, as
discussed inside the text proper.

(From Kuntres Beis Rabbeinu

ShBBavel, Seifer HaSichos 5752, pg.
472-473)

through this prophet!

...One must make known to
all members of the generation
that we have merited that G-d has
chosen a person endowed with
free choice, who is incomparably
higher than the members of his
generation, to be your judge,
your counsellor, and the
prophet of the generation. This
chosen leader will provide the
instructions and advice relevant
to the service of all Jews and all
people of the generation, in all
matters of Torah and mitzvos,
and daily conduct in the manner
of in all your ways, know Him
and all your deeds (should be
for the sake of Heaven). [His
counsel has] extended to the
essential prophecy of immediate
Redemption
and
instantly
Behold he (Moshiach) comes.
Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva
of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati
and a well sought after speaker
and lecturer. Recordings of his indepth shiurim on Inyanei Geula
uMoshiach can be accessed at
http://www.ylcrecording.com

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MOSHIACH & HAKHEL

30 DAYS LEFT
TO HAKHEL
By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon

Dear Reader shyichyeh,

The summer months have come
and gone. We are now in the special
month of Elul, the month when the
king is in the field, and we have
special powers to strengthen our
connection with the Ribbono Shel
Olam.
Throughout the weeks leading up
to Elul 5748, a year of Hakhel, the
Rebbe kept on highlighting one very
important point: Lets not forget that
Elul is still part of Shnas Hakhel!
The natural tendency is that we
feel that, 1) We already have done
enough for the Hakhel campaign,
and 2) Elul is about preparing for
the next year. This is why it is so
important to internalize that we still
have a tremendous opportunity that
should not be missed.
The Rebbe (Seifer HaSichos
5748, page 595) says: People do not
like to feel left out of the action.
When a person sees another person
running to and grabbing an
opportunity, they usually join in as
well. They also start running and
grabbing, as they feel that if they do
not get involved now, there will be
nothing left for them. This is the way
that the activities of Hakhel should
be done in the month of Elul. It
should be done with such excitement
and enthusiasm that others will join
in and realize that they must grab
the last opportunity to receive the
tremendous blessings associated
with being involved in the activities

of Hakhel.
In addition to the general call to
strengthen the campaign of Hakhel,
there were a few other directives that
the Rebbe said at those farbrengens:
1. Each institution should appoint
a committee of three people (Beis
Din) who are not part of the
existing leadership or faculty of the
institution that will do check-ups
on the institution. They can have an
open and honest (impartial) view
and perspective on the continuous
growth of the institution. They will
be able to see in action if the great
ideas and resolutions were actually
implemented.
2. To strengthen the custom of
blessing in person and in writing
Ksiva Vachasima Tova to all
Jewish people, as is brought down in
sifrei Halacha and minhag.
3. To encourage as many people
as possible to fulfill the custom
(see Matte Ephraim, Orach Chaim
581:10) that one should have their
Tfillin and Mezuzos checked during
the month of Elul. It is a special
custom that brings special blessings
to the home.
This Shabbos is the Shabbos of
Parshas Shoftim. There is a chassidic
saying that goes as follows: Why
are there no Maamarim in Likkutei
Torah on Parshas Shoftim? Because
the Rebbeim want us to be focused
on the Sicha of Shoftim 5751!
That was a historic farbrengen.

The Rebbe spoke at length about

prophecy in our times.
[Parenthetically, I want to share
something that I heard from Rabbi
Yossi shyichyeh Paltiel: It is well
known how seriously the Rebbe
takes his takana of learning Rambam
every day. The Rebbe is seen holding
and learning Rambam on the way
to the Ohel. If you read the diaries
of the bachurim of that year, 5751
(printed in the weekly publication
Beis Chayeinu), there is an
observation that during the months
leading up to that sicha, the Rebbe
was seen learning the Rambam
Mada even though the cycle of
Limud HaRambam was holding
many sfarim later. After the Sicha
of Shoftim 5751, it became clear
that the Rebbe was learning the laws
of Prophecy, which are printed in
Seifer Mada of Rambam.]
The Rebbe gives us a very direct
and open message to spread to the
world:
In the last moments of exile,
the lesson for everyone of Shabbos
Parshas Shoftim can be understood.
There must be a Divine service
appropriate, measure for measure, to
the situation of Redemption:
One must publicize to ones self
and to all whom he can reach the
necessity to internalize the lessons
and advice of your judges and
your counsellors of our generation.
In general, these leaders are the
rabbis, as in the statement: Who are
Continued on page 4
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FEATURE

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IT IS NOT
ENOUGH
TO JUST
MOURN OVER
THE BEIS
HAMIKDASH
The yearning for the building of the Beis
HaMikdash is something that R Chaim Richman
feels not only in the Tammuz-Av months but all
year around. * An interesting conversation with
someone who works in the international section
of the Machon HaMikdash about the enormous
void we feel without a Mikdash.
By Menachem Ziegelboim

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Feature

Chaim
Richman
sounded surprised
that I was calling
him during the Nine
Days to hear about his work in
conveying the importance of the
Beis HaMikdash.
Then it was my turn to be
surprised. There is no better
time to discuss this!
He said, The month of Adar
is also a great time to talk about
the Beis HaMikdash, he replied.
And Shevat too, and Elul
Okay, youre right, I had
to say, having learned a lesson
at the very beginning of our talk
about the importance of living
with the Beis HaMikdash and the
Geula. R Richman added, Its
not only in Av that we pray, and
to Yerushalayim Your city return
with mercy.
I was silent.

THE BEIS HAMIKDASH

IS THE MAGNET OF THE
WORLD
R Chaim Richman is an
interesting person. He speaks
fluent Hebrew albeit with an
American accent. He runs the
international
department
of
the Machon HaMikdash in
Yerushalayim and has some other
jobs, as I will tell you soon.
I dont think I need
to
introduce
the
Machon
HaMikdash to the readers of
Beis Moshiach who have become
acquainted with the Machon
and those who run it in previous
articles. This time, we spoke
with R Richman, a descendant
of the tzaddik, R Levi Yitzchok
of Berditchev. He doesnt need
questions from an interviewer
to get the reader excited to
anticipate, really anticipate, the
building of the Beis HaMikdash
and to do everything so that it
happens as soon as possible.

HaMikdash is to inspire them

to think differently, so they
understand that there are 203
mitzvos of the Torah that have
to do with the Mikdash. Until we
have the Beis HaMikdash, a third
of the mitzvos we were given
by Hashem cannot be done.
This shows that we are missing
something essential in our Jewish
lives. As far as I know, we never
received a cancellation notice
for any of the mitzvos. If Hashem
commanded it, we need to do
it. The fact that we cant fulfill a
third of the mitzvos is a sign of
galus.
photo by Yirmi Van

What is the international

department
of
Machon
HaMikdash?
The
purpose
of
the
department is to bring the
message of the Mikdash to the
whole world, to those who dont
speak Hebrew. Since I am an
American, I was given the job. Its
a fact that the Beis HaMikdash
has a strong international appeal
because it truly is the place that
will be called a house of prayer
to all the nations. It is not just
the headquarters for the Jewish
people, but for all of humanity.
Lets talk about the Jews in
the Diaspora.
Unfortunately,
there
are
many Jews in galus who are
disconnected from the topic of
the Mikdash and that includes
religious Jews. Over the years,
the myth developed that the Beis
HaMikdash is something that will
only be relevant in the distant
future and is not something
current and pertinent. We
want to do everything possible,
according to halacha, to prepare
the Mikdash and the vessels.
My
job
at
Machon

DO YOU WANT
A BIGGER PAYCHECK?
R Richman has been working
at Machon HaMikdash for
nearly thirty years. During his
time there, he has written and
translated many books on the
topic of the Mikdash. He is a
sought-after speaker around the
world among Jews and non-Jews
on topics related to Jewish identity
and the Mikdash. He also started
the international department of
Machon HaMikdash and has run
it since its inception. He operates
a popular internet site with a lot
of material on the Mikdash. He
is also involved in fundraising
for Nezer Hakodesh, which is a
school for Kohanim. R Richman
also produces a weekly radio
program. Tens of thousands of
people from around the world
watch and track what is going on
at Machon HaMikdash and the
steps being made for the third
Beis HaMikdash. R Richman is
busy year-round and especially
this time of the year. And as I
pointed out earlier, this bothers
him.
What is our attitude toward
the Beis HaMikdash? R
Richman asks rhetorically. This
is an important question and one

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Enactment of the bringing the korban Pesach photo by Yoni Reif

that needs to be addressed all

year round. The Beis HaMikdash
does not belong just to Tammuz
and Av; it pertains to every day
of the year. For some reason it
has become popular to talk about
the Beis HaMikdash during the
Three Weeks while the rest of the
year people are busy with other
things.
R Richmans sincerity comes
across. At this time of the year,
everyone wants to show that they
are great mourners. We dont
listen to music or have weddings
or swim. Its as though they look
at the clock or calendar and say,
Oh, its time to mourn.
In my lectures and classes
I ask people if they like cake,
chocolate cake, for example. They
all usually say they do. Chocolate
is very tasty and its enjoyable to
eat, just dont remind me about
my diet. Right after eating the
cake, we say the bracha acharona,
Have mercy on us Hashem, our
G-d on Tziyon the dwelling of
Your glory and on Your altar and
Your temple. Now explain to me,
R Menachem, what connection
is there between the chocolate
cake that I ate and the altar in the

Mikdash?
The truth is I felt challenged.
The question caught me off guard
and it probably surprised you, the
reader, as well. I realized I had
better keep quiet and wait for
R Richmans answer. I enjoyed
listening to how he presented his
thoughts.
It turns out, everything is
connected with the Mikdash,
everything! Even the cake
I eat is connected with the
Beis HaMikdash. Our entire
lives, even our material lives,
are connected with the Beis
HaMikdash.
The Mishna in tractate
Sota notes something whose
significance is not always noticed.
Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said
in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua,
who was a Levite who served in
the Beis HaMikdash and went
through the churban, From the
day the Beis HaMikdash was
destroyed, there is no day without
a curse, and the dew does not fall
for a blessing, and the flavor of
fruits has been removed. Rabbi
Yossi says also the fattiness of
the fruits has been removed. In
other words, even our physical

pleasure of fruits is diminished.

What connection is there
between the Beis HaMikdash and
the flavor of fruits? Apparently,
because of the churban, the entire
world deteriorated and does not
have the power it once had. If we
dont have a Beis HaMikdash,
not only dont we have korbanos
and Kohanim doing the priestly
service, but our entire quality
of life has gone down, not
to mention all the rest of the
important values in a Jews life.
People are dealing with
day to day life. Why is the Beis
HaMikdash that necessary for
us?
This outlook reminds me of
the topic that angered Moshe
Rabbeinu, when those tribes
asked to remain on the other
side of the Jordan where it was
more comfortable for them. Their
possessions were more important
to them than even their children.
Your question is somewhat
ironic and I hear it even from
strictly religious Jews. Back in
the time of Chagai the prophet,
the Jewish people said it wasnt
the right time to build the Beis
HaMikdash. At that point in exile
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Feature

THE RED HEIFER IS WAITING IN A BARN

One of R Richmans jobs is raising red cows. He told me, We are raising
a herd of red cows here in Eretz Yisroel.
Despite the strict secrecy surrounding this project (whenever the topic
gets some exposure someone tries to cause us to fail) he agreed to tell us a
little bit about it.
There is a difference between a para aduma and a cow that is red. If
you google it, you will find hundreds, perhaps thousands, of red cows, but
they are not kosher for the mitzva. In order to purify the Jewish people, the
right color is not enough. It is not enough for it to be a para aduma; it needs
to remain kosher and for this to happen, there are specific conditions that are
needed to raise it, as well as attention and supervision.
What needs to be supervised?
It cannot be blemished, it cannot have a yoke put on it, it cannot be used
for work, and other conditions. Under the conditions of todays modern
barn, its not simple. Take for example the requirement to tag every cow
in the ear. Does that disqualify a para aduma? Or the food that they eat
there are types of food that can cause a tear in the stomach wall which
can disqualify them. The scholars at Machon HaMikdash have studied the
subject in depth and then studied the conditions under which cows are raised
today and have written a protocol about how a cow can be raised so that it
can be a candidate for a para aduma as described in Parshas Chukas.

I speak to Jews who do so many mitzvos, said

R Richman, breaking the silence. They say
that the topic of the Beis HaMikdash is merely one of
hashkafa, not all groups hold of it, and in general we
have developed over the generations.
they merely sought to survive and
didnt want to deal with building
the Mikdash. The prophet
responds, Is it time for you to
sit in your paneled homes while
this house is in ruins? How can
you be content at home while
Hashems house is destroyed?
Hashem continues and tells
the prophet to convey a message
to the Jewish people, Consider
your ways. You have sown much
and you bring in little. You eat
without being satiated. You drink
without getting your fill. You
dress, and it has no warmth.
And he who profits, profits into a
bundle with holes. The Midrash
Tanchuma says on this, You

have sown much and you bring

in little that happened because
the lechem hapanim ceased.
You eat without being satiated
that happened because the
nisuch hamayim ceased. You
drink without getting your fill
because the nisuch hayayin
ceased. You dress and it has no
warmth because the priestly
garments ceased. He who profits,
profits into a bundle with holes
because the temidin shel tzibbur
ceased. The Midrash concludes,
Why did all this occur? Because
the korbanos ceased.
If you think you will be busy
with your material concerns,
with parnasa and daily life,

and you can set aside the Beis

HaMikdash, Hashem is telling
you that nobody will have
material perfection as long as His
house is in ruins!
Furthermore, it says in the
Midrash Tanchuma that all the
material bounty in the world
comes in the merit of the avoda
in the Mikdash. As long as we do
not have the Beis HaMikdash,
the material abundance in the
world will be lacking. This is
not an additional punishment;
it is a direct consequence of the
churban. The Beis HaMikdash
brought material (and of course,
spiritual) abundance into the
world and if there is no Beis
HaMikdash, then there is no
abundance.
R Richman opens the
Midrash (Tanchuma Tetzaveh,
parsha 13) and reads:
Said Rav Huna bar Abba:
when the korbanos were brought,
a seah measure of [low grade
wheat from] Archilles produced
a seah of fine flour, a seah of
flour, a seah of coarse flour, a
seah of bran, a seah of ground
husks, but now [when there are
no korbanos] a person brings
a seah of wheat to be ground
and he only takes home what he
brought and a bit more. What
is the reason for the absence of
blessing in the wheat grinding?
Because the lechem hapanim
ceased.
The Midrash goes on to say
that when the korbanos were
offered on the altar, whatever was
offered from that species, blessed
the species. When they brought
the lechem matzos and the
lechem hapanim, the bread was
blessed. When they brought the
bikkurim (first fruits), the fruits
of the land were blessed.
The Midrash then gives real
life examples. There was a story
with Rabbi Yonasan ben Elozor

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who would sit under a fig tree in

the summer and the tree was full
of nice figs. When the dew fell,
the figs would drip honey and the
wind would knead it with dust
and a goat would come along and
would drip milk [from its udders]
into the honey and the milk
and honey would mix Rabbi
Yonasan called his students and
said, Come and see a sampling
of the World to Come. And why
is this so? Because then there
were korbanos.
R Richman closed the
Midrash, though not before
showing me other stories which
demonstrate
what
material
abundance there was in the
world in the time of the Beis
HaMikdash, and this was
because of the lechem hapanim
and the nisuch hayayin. He
gave me a long, thoughtful look.
There was a silent pause, a time
to contemplate and digest what
was said.
I speak to Jews who do so
many mitzvos, said R Richman,
suddenly breaking the silence.
They say that the topic of the
Beis HaMikdash is merely one
of hashkafa, not all groups hold
of it, and in general we have
developed over the generations,
etc. I ask them a simple question.
In the Torah there are two
commandments which have the
word, vasu in it, one is tzitzis
and one is the Mikdash. How
come people are particular about
tzitzis while the Beis HaMikdash
has become merely a hashkafa,
as it were? What is the difference
between them? When I ask this
question, they come up with all
sorts of contrived answers.

DRAWING THE PLANS

FOR THE MIKDASH
1948 years have passed since
the destruction of the second
Beis HaMikdash. In nearly 2000

photo by Yirmi Van

years, the Jewish people have

asked to return to their land and
have davened three times a day
for the rebuilding of the Beis
HaMikdash.
During the Three Weeks, the
people at Machon HaMikdash,
directed by R Yisroel Ariel, who
was one of those who liberated
the Old City, promote the topic
of the Beis HaMikdash heavily.
In the past, they held an
exhibit with many models of the
vessels of the Mikdash, and now,
when many vessels are ready, they
are shifting gears to the next stage
a fundraising campaign to draw
up plans for the construction of
the Beis HaMikdash.
Every building project of
this enormous size that needs
to get building permits requires
a lot of advance preparation,
says R Chaim Richman who
is responsible for this. After
careful research, we moved on
to practical architectural plans.
We started a few years ago with
a limited plan of the Lishkas
HaGazis where the Sanhedrin
sat, and now we are ready to
move on to the general plan.
Sketches? What is your
goal?

The purpose of the program

in particular, and all the work
of Machon HaMikdash in
general, is to fulfill the mitzva of
and make for Me a sanctuary.
Chazal differentiated between the
mourning for a loved one, which
serves the purpose of making the
adjustment to the new reality and
it is a commandment upon the
deceased to be forgotten from
the heart, and mourning for
the Mikdash. When mourning
for the destruction of the Beis
HaMikdash the point is to live
with the Mikdash and work to
rebuild it.
R Richman says that the
cost of the project is estimated
at a quarter of a million dollars,
typical for a building of this
size. He says the goal is not
only to raise enough money but
to enable people to be partners.
People are always wishing not
to have to fast on Tisha BAv
(because it will no longer be a
fast day). The question is, what
are they doing about it?
Obviously,
the
actual
construction will be done by
Moshiach, as the Rambam
paskens, that one of the ways to
identify Moshiach is he builds
the Mikdash in its place. But
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Feature
being involved in all aspects of
it inspires us to think about the
Mikdash as something real, and
it expands our longing for its
rebuilding by Moshiach.
It
is
this
perspective
that has led the directors of
Machon HaMikdash to start
preparing vessels for the Beis
HaMikdash. They do this by
first
extensively
researching
the details of the keilim. Tens
of thousands of people visit
the Machon HaMikdash over
the course of a year. Machon
HaMikdash is located in the Old
City of Yerushalayim and you
can say that people really feel
the closeness of the Geula as a
tangible reality when they see
the vessels of the Mikdash before
their eyes, the priestly garments
and other items associated with
the Mikdash.
Aside
from
raising
awareness, is there any other
purpose to making these
vessels?
As you noted, its a matter
of chinuch. Unfortunately, many
people think that the Mikdash is
not relevant. We are trying to get
the message across that the Beis
HaMikdash is Beis Chayeinu (the
home of our lives) and our lives
depend on its construction.
Although we are talking about
the most important, historic
building in Judaism, R Richman
says that in the third Mikdash
it is very possible that modern
means will be used to enhance
mitzva observance. A heating
system can be attached to the
kiyor which has to hold enough
water for every Kohen who is
involved with the korban tamid,
and maybe there will be an airconditioning system for the
Mikdash too.
In the scriptural sources,
the plans for the construction
of the Beis HaMikdash are

written down, which include

things like dimensions and
of course, the contents. The
rest of it can be changed and
adjusted as necessary. There
is no question that technology
plays an important role in avodas
Hashem.
I commented, Maybe there
will be apps for the third Beis
HaMikdash, and R Richman
smiled.

WORLD PEACE
In your role as director of
the international department,
I assume that you see how the
Beis HaMikdash is of interest to
non-Jews too. What can you tell
us about that?
There is definitely an
enormous interest on the part of
gentiles.
Why does it interest them?
Chazal say that Adam
was created out of dust taken
from the area of the altar, and
the rectification of humanity
depends on the service of the
Kohanim in the Mikdash. So
why is it surprising that people
feel a connection to the Beis
HaMikdash?
All the prophets, without
exception, speak about a vision
of the future Mikdash. If you
look at the prophecy of Yeshaya,
you will see that it says in the
future all men will go to bow in
the Mikdash and that will take
place every month and every
Shabbos. This is not something
that occurred in the first or
second Beis HaMikdash. Indeed,
according to the prophecy, even
non-Jews will go to the Beis
HaMikdash every Shabbos and
every month to bow to Hashem.
Look at chapter 2 of Yeshaya
where it says all the nations
will flock toward the house of
Hashem.

Those who are constantly

talking about world peace
need to know that it is the Beis
HaMikdash which will provide
peace for all nations. Hashem
Himself promises that this is the
place for peace.

NEXT YEAR IN
YERUSHALAYIM
Hashem gave me a very
precious gift in that He directed
me toward this Beis HaMikdash
project. I think that the topic of
the Mikdash is the heart of the
entire Torah. A Jew who lives
without any longing for the
Mikdash is lacking in all meaning
of what it means to be a Jew. If
you understand and relate to
the deep significance of the Beis
HaMikdash in the daily life of a
Jew, you dont need to set your
clock in order to get up to recite
Tikkun Chatzos, because you just
cant sleep. All of life which looks
normative to us is corrupted. As I
said before, the entire world, even
the material aspects of it, are
ruined and lacking without the
Mikdash. What does man seek,
after all? To lead a normal life.
I have been interviewed
on the subject of the Mikdash
numerous times and typically,
the press tries to denigrate
the whole subject. I tell them,
nearly every Jew has a seder, at
the end of which he says, Next
Year in Yerushalayim. He is not
referring to the Malcha mall or
the neighborhood of Ramot. He
means this, the Beis HaMikdash.
Just this week we produced a
new, two-and-a-half-minute clip
in which I explain why we break
a glass under the chuppa. Even
irreligious Jews do this.
The Beis HaMikdash is the
key to our Jewish identity. It is
the key to kvod Shamayim, to
world peace, and is the anchor
for global stability.

12 6 Elul 5776 - Hakhel

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ubhcr ,pue

Kupas Rabbeinu

jhanv lkn r"unst e"f ,uthab ,j,

Lubavitch
(718) 467-2500

P.O.B. 288 Brooklyn, New York 11225

(718) 756-3337

URG
REQ ENT
UES
T!
HUNDREDS OF FAMILIES ANXIOUSLY LOOKING
FORWARD FOR YOUR GENEROUS ASSISTANCE!
Boruch Hashem, Elul 5776
5776

To every member of the Lubavitcher community:

During this month of preparation for Rosh Hashonoh, the head of the New Year, we fondly recall our
Rebbes words that this is an especially auspicious time for strengthening our deep bond of
Hiskashrus with the Rosh Bnei Yisroel, the head of the Jewish people and leader of the generation.
Our Rebbeim explain that an important way to strengthen Hiskashrus is by participating in

the Rebbes activities and concerns, consequently, by supporting an organization that

brings together a number of these activities, the Hiskashrus is greater and stronger. Such

an organization is Kupas Rabbeinu, which seeks to continue many of the Rebbes activities and concerns without change from the way he would conduct them himself.

Every year at this time, the Rebbe would call upon us to contribute generously to help needy families
with their extra expenses for the coming months many Yomim Tovim. This also coincides with the special emphasis during this month of giving extra Tzedokah, (indicated in the Hebrew letters of the word
Elul, as explained in many Sichos etc.), as a vital way of preparing ourselves for the new year and
arousing Divine mercy upon us. See sicho in the Hebrew text of this letter.
We therefore appeal to every individual man and woman to contribute generously to Kupas
Rabbeinu, enabling us to fulfill the Rebbes desire to help all those who anxiously await our
help. The greater your contribution, the more we can accomplish.
Please do not forsake them!
Your generous contribution to Kupas Rabbeinu will be the appropriate vessel for receiving the abundant blessings of the Rebbe, who is its Nasi, that you may be blessed with a Ksiva Vachasima Tova
for a good and sweet year, materially and spiritually. May it help to bring the full revelation of Moshiach
- our Rebbe - immediately now!
Wishing you a Ksiva Vachasima Tova for a good and sweet year,

In the name of Vaad Kupas Rabbeinu

Rabbi Sholom Mendel Simpson

Rabbi Yehuda Leib Groner

P.S. Of course, you may send to Kupas Rabbeinu all contributions that you would send to the Rebbe; all
will be devoted to the activities to which the Rebbe would devote them.
You may also send Maimad, Keren-Hashono (this coming year 5771
5777 - 385
353 days), Vov Tishrei, Yud Gimmel
Tishrei Magbis etc. to Kupas Rabbeinu.
P.S. Please send all correspondence only to the following address.
KUPAS RABBEINU / P.O.B. 288 / BROOKLYN, NEW YORK 11225
Eretz Yisroel address: KEREN KUPAS ADMU"R / P.O.B. 1247 / KIRYAT MALACHI / ISRAEL

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FEATURE

LUBAVITCHER
SOLDIERS
SPEAK OUT
The commotion about the agreement with the army is still going strong and it
affects nearly every Lubavitcher home. We put the debate over the agreement
aside for now and investigated what its like to be a Chabad soldier. * Five
Lubavitcher soldiers, past and present, speak
about their army service. The military framework
is essentially problematic, they say. Proper
preparations and fortification before and during
service are mandatory, absolute necessities.
By Zalman Tzorfati

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he agreement made by the

Chabad roshei yeshivos
with the IDF regarding the
drafting of Lubavitcher
yeshiva bachurim stirred up quite a
commotion. Its a sensitive subject
which affects nearly all Lubavitcher
homes that have sons of draft age
or close to it.
It all began when the Tal
Law expired. The law requiring
military service was imposed
on the chareidi sector and
the military noose around the
necks of yeshiva bachurim was
tightened.
However, while the rest of
the yeshiva world is sort of being
ignored by the army and they
can continue sitting and learning
as long as they are not caught
by the police in vacation spots
or conducting criminal activity,
hundreds, and over the years
even thousands, of Lubavitcher
talmidim who leave the country
for a year on Kvutza lose their
status as a ben yeshiva.
The fact is that as of today,
many Lubavitcher men and even
bachurim are serving or have
served in some military capacity.
As to the percentages, this is also
a matter of dispute between those
who maintain the numbers are
minimal and those who maintain
its a big phenomenon. Whats
definite is that most of those
serving were drafted having no
choice, after consulting a rav or
mashpia and after all possibilities
to remain as a ben yeshiva were
tried.
We spoke with dozens of
Lubavitcher soldiers, past and
present, those who were drafted
against their will as bachurim,
and married men who, when
they needed to provide parnasa
for their families, considered
the chareidi tracks in the army
a good source of income and,
with some initiative, also a good

opportunity for shlichus.

We present to you the things
a Lubavitcher soldier has to
contend with in the military,
about opportunities that come
with military service, and what
the right preparation for entering
the army consists of. We have
differentiated between serving as
a bachur, where there is universal
agreement that a bachurs place
is in yeshiva and not in the army,
and serving as a married man,
about which the Rebbe says,
What do you see that your blood
is redder.
We
tried
to
bring
representative samples of the
various kinds of service. We
spoke with R Arik Malkieli,
director of the HaMachaneh
HaMeshutaf organization for
the inculcation of Jewish values
in the army and a senior officer
in the Reserves, who has served
in a variety of positions over the
years in the military rabbinate; R
Chaim Rivkin, a shliach in Rishon
LTziyon whose regular service
he did as a Golani soldier while
learning in a hesder yeshiva,
and who continues as an active
soldier in the Reserves; Shmulik
and Yossi, two married men who
served in the military rabbinate;
Motti, a married man who
finished his service in Shachar
(Sheirut Chareidim); Dudi, a
bachur who serves in Shachar
after being forcibly taken from
his home by the military police in
the middle of the night; Moishy,
a married man who completed
a significant tour of service as a
combat soldier.
Aside from the rabbis,
Rivkin and Malkieli, the other
interviewees asked to remain
anonymous.
We
respected
their request and gave them
pseudonyms, but what they
have to say reflects the authentic
voices of Lubavitcher soldiers.

DANGER MINES!
Are there more and less
spiritually dangerous places in
the army? We asked the soldiers
and we heard several answers.
You have to understand that
just being in the army is very
problematic, says Shmulik. My
job, boruch Hashem, enables
me to be less involved with the
general social environment of
army life, but I see with my
friends that its very hard to
maintain the spiritual level of
a yeshiva bachur, and even of
someone in kollel, when in the
army. Its like a field strewn with
dozens of mines; you need to
watch out. Im not talking about
a deterioration in Torah and
mitzvos, G-d forbid, but more
subtle things like gaon Yaakov
(Jewish pride) and refinement.
What can you do the
chitzonius (external) affects the
pnimius (that which is internal),
and when a young married man
in uniform boards a train, its not
with the same feeling as when he
wears a hat and jacket. I feel it
myself. It used to be, when I had
occasion to speak to someone
irreligious, I would automatically
go into shlichus mode and try to
see how I could influence him,
but today, when Im in uniform,
it doesnt come as naturally to
me.
Most, if not all, of the soldiers
agree with Shmulik about the
problematic elements in army
service. But Yossi maintains that
it also depends on the type of
position you have. First of all,
in the army, but not just in the
army, but in any work that is not
directly under the auspices of
Chabad or even holy work, the
rule is that all roads are assumed
to be dangerous and you need to
beware. Yossi recently finished
three years of service in the
military chaplaincy.

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Feature
In the army, if you have a
job that is connected with the
chaplaincy, by definition that
means
representing
certain
values. As such, the job requires
you to watch yourself and then
youre really saved from most
of the problems. But if your job
is something like a computer
technician, and you are posted
on a base and serve in a mixed
environment, obviously that is
much more dangerous.
R Arik Malkieli doesnt think
being in the army is any more
problematic than working in
the secular workplace. On the
contrary, in the army at least you
have a dress code and standards
of conduct which you dont
have in civilian life. If only all
workplaces in Tel Aviv were as
particular about laws of modesty
as they are in the army. True, a
man needs to be careful wherever
he is and everyone needs to
take personal responsibility for
his actions and thoughts, but
relatively speaking, the army
today is far more particular about
modesty and work conditions
than ever before. Obviously, its
better for a bachur to be in a track
for chareidim, because there you
also have the Law of Proper
Integration, which provides for a
suitable environment.

SHACHAR DOES NOT

KEEP ITS PROMISES
When I repeat what R
Malkieli said to Motti and
Dudi, both of them having been
through Shachar, their reactions
covered a range from a bitter
smile to annoyance. If only that
was correct, says Dudi, who
is still in Shachar. The truth is
that as far as basic training he is
right, he corrects himself. Then
we were really under a military
watch which was reminiscent
of the hashgacha (supervision)

in yeshiva ktana (mesivta), in

a sterile environment in which
we saw nobody but ourselves,
mandatory participation in daily
shiurim, etc. But actually, after
basic training, you are sent to a
base and you are no longer under
the responsibility of Shachar
but under the commander there
and he can do as he pleases. For
the most part, all the promises
of Shachar vanish. They might
have good intentions, but from
experience I see they have no real
standing in the army.
What Dudi says sounds
harsh, considering the promises
of Shachar. I asked him for
an example. Ill give you one
little example from my service.
Right after training they sent
me to a base. The commander
welcomed me warmly and with
a smile, asked me whether Im
a Chabadnik, told me about his
special connection and love for
Chabad, and then he put me
in a very small room where two
female soldiers were sitting. He
pointed at a free spot and told
me, This is your office.
My world went dark. I smiled
so as not to offend anyone but I
immediately told him that I come
from Shachar and they promised
me separate work quarters. He
said, Sure, sure, it will take a few
days. Theres an office that will
be vacated and we will transfer
you there.
Now starts an inner battle.
You feel alone against a huge
system. Its not like you are part
of a large group that can make
a fuss. You are alone against the
commander who is a nice guy
and he promises you it will be
a few days. You dont want to
stir up trouble because you are
dependent on him and you want
to remain on good terms and
also, its not everyones nature to
make a commotion. And you are

a Lubavitcher and there is always

the feeling that you dont want to
offend those in the room.
In my case, fortunately I
discovered a shul not far from the
office where I was supposed to
sit, and I sat in the shul and from
there I did all the things I was
supposed to do. I figured they
would see I wasnt entering the
office and they would transfer me
to another office, but no. It went
on this way until I finished my job
on that base and was transferred
elsewhere. Afterward, I found out
that the person who preceded
me, also a religious soldier from
Shachar, had to sit in that same
office. They promised him a
few days too and he ended up
sitting in that small office for the
duration of his army service.
Moishy, who finished serving
in an elite unit, speaks of the
advantages of serving in a combat
unit. I served with hesder
yeshiva students but generally
speaking, serving in a combat
unit presents fewer challenges
than working in an office. At
the same time, there are many
other challenges that result from
spending long periods in the field,
such as obtaining kosher food
with a superior hechsher, mikva,
and davening with a minyan.

RESISTING
INDOCTRINATION
The problem with the army
is that its purpose is to change
you, says R Chaim Rivkin.
The army is not a benevolent
organization
that
suddenly
decided to take care of chareidim.
The truth is that they dont need
us in the army. Their intention
is to disconnect us from a life of
holiness and to integrate us into
Israeli society and the workplace.
All their plans are to further this
goal. From this perspective, the
army is far worse than a regular

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workplace, because when you

work in an insurance company
or high-tech company, even if
the atmosphere isnt religious,
theyre not coming to educate
you or change you. The IDF, by
contrast, has a clear goal and
thats what makes it problematic.
The soldiers in combat
units also have to contend with
physical difficulties. He gave an
example from his last experience
serving in the Reserves.
A few weeks ago, we were
called up for reserve duty. They
woke us at four in the morning
for an exercise that was extremely
hard physically. We finished at
ten in the morning and outside it
was already very hot. Then they
gave us two hours to rest. The
hardest thing to do then was to
start organizing a minyan and
read from the Torah. I had to
drive even the religious soldiers
crazy to get them to come and at
least hear the Torah reading so
we would have a minyan.
Motti, who just finished a
long stint in Shachar, agrees with
R Rivkin. He says that even if the
commanders are not constantly
thinking about changing the
chareidi, the atmosphere trickles
in. Ill give you an example.
We have a WhatsApp group of
Lubavitcher soldiers. Recently,
a soldier, a Chassidishe young
man, asked, Does the army have
a problem with me putting tfillin
on with people on the train? You
understand? Hes not someone
who is reading a newspaper or
using his time to nap. He wants
to use the train trip for mivtzaim,
but now hes nervous. He has
another
consideration,
i.e.,
whether its okay in the army or
not. This is the real problem.

DYING FOR SHLICHUS

I asked how they handle these
problematic situations. I was told:

R Chaim Rivkin
First of all, it all depends
on how you go into it, says
R Rivkin. To succeed in
contending with the army you
must go in totally infused with the
spirit of shlichus. If you decide
you are going in to influence
others, then its like shlichus on
campus or other problematic
places. Then the kashrus rule
of, since it is busy releasing
it does not absorb, applies.
Someone involved in giving does
not absorb. There is no other
way. In combat units there is an
expression, mural (lit. poisoned,
slang: dying for something). You
need to be mural for shlichus
and then you have a chance of
not being influenced and cooled
off.
When I was drafted, I
read many diaries of the Rebbe
Rayatz and stories of Chassidic
heroes in the Soviet Union and
it gave me a lot of strength, says
Shmulik. One of the things I
learned from them was the Rebbe
Rayatzs resolution not to be at
all impressed by them. I made
the same decision. I resolved
not to remove my Lubavitcher
hat throughout my service. That
wasnt easy. I got many fines and
punishments but I did not give in.

I felt that it was protecting me. It

was my sign that I wasnt going
to be influenced by the army
experience. I know others who
made their own resolutions in
dress or Chassidic behavior and
they stuck it out till the end. Its
what protected them.
For example, in the army
there
is
something
called
Education Days. It is part of
the armys goal to reeducate the
soldiers, to teach them Zionism
and the Zionist ethos, says R
Rivkin. On Sundays, before
returning to active duty, they
take us on outings to nationalheritage sites. The soldiers
love it. On principle I do not
participate in the Education
Days and the ceremonies. I told
my commanders: I came to
contribute. I am willing to give
and sacrifice. I did not come for
you to reeducate me. I have my
values and Im satisfied with
them. They dont need to be
fixed.
But it wasnt easy. To do this,
you need to be willing to stand by
your truth and pay the price. If
my plan was a military career and
I was hoping for promotions, I
dont know whether I could have
done this.

WHEN THE ARMY BOUGHT

LUBAVITCHER SHCHITA
As
mentioned
earlier,
Moishys main difficulties were
physical and he tells us how he
handled them:
As far as food, for a long
time I lived solely on canned
goods and tuna which I bought.
I had a barrel of water which I
used as a mikva in the mornings.
The special atmosphere in a
combat unit, the camaraderie
between the soldiers and the
connection to the commanders,
helped me. After a while, they

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Feature

In the army at least you have a dress code and

standards of conduct which you dont have
in civilian life. If only all workplaces in Tel Aviv were
as particular about laws of modesty as they are in the
army. True, a man needs to be careful wherever he is and
everyone needs to take personal responsibility for his
actions and thoughts, but relatively speaking, the army
today is far more particular about modesty and work
conditions than ever before.
saw I was serious, and the army
bought for me a set of utensils in
which I cooked food for myself.
When they wanted me to stay for
Pesach, my commander made
sure they bought for me another
set of new utensils and meat with
Lubavitcher shchita.
The need to constantly
maintain a shlichus consciousness
as a way of dealing with the
challenges of army service comes
up again and again. It demands
quite a bit of self-confidence,
courage, and assertiveness, and
not everybody was granted these
qualities. This led us to ask: what
would have helped you or what
do you think can help people in
the future in dealing with life in
the army?
In other religious groups,
there is tremendous preparation
for the army, whether its
preparatory military academies
in hesder yeshivos or even earlier,
in high school. This is in addition
to the fact that they consider the
army a sacred value. To them,
going to the army is a form of
avodas Hashem. When one of
their bachurim goes to the army,
its not what they call leaving
the system; on the contrary,
he is continuing. And they are
often drafted as a group, as a
continuation to their learning.
With us, however, a married man

in the army feels like he is out of

the program and he is usually on
his own as he faces a mammoth
and heavy-handed system. So he
needs tools to deal with it, says
Shmulik, who also has a practical
suggestion.
If there were gatherings,
yemei iyun or special farbrengens
for Lubavitcher soldiers in
which they were given chizuk,
where they would deepen their
feeling for shlichus in the army,
where the participants would
strengthen one another with how
they handle their challenges, it
would contribute a lot toward
strengthening the morale and
spiritual stature of the soldiers.

WANTED A CANDIDATE
FOR SHLICHUS IN THE IDF
Its like bachurim who go on
Merkos Shlichus, says R Rivkin.
They know they are going on
shlichus, not to tour and see the
world. They also get guidance
and prepare beforehand. It is
mainly the shlichus mindset that
goes with them even though they
actually get to see beautiful places
in the world. They know they are
on shlichus and they will focus on
that. Every free moment needs to
be used for mivtzaim. The same
applies to every married man who
serves in the army. He needs to

know that he has to utilize every

free moment for mivtzaim, even
though along the way he happens
to receive a salary and maybe
even acquires a profession too,
but the main thing is to spread
Torah and Chassidus.
In Shachar a few times a
year there are yemei yeshiva
which are mandatory, says
Dudi. These yemei yeshiva are
generally arranged by outreach
organizations like Arachim and
Hidabroot, as well as by religiousnationalist organizations. If there
were days like this organized by
Chabad, and instead of talking
about the greatness of keeping
Shabbos or doing mitzvos they
would strengthen the feeling
of shlichus in the soldiers, that
would help tremendously.
We tried to float this idea
to mashpiim. Some of them
said the topic is new and they
hadnt formed an opinion yet
while others expressed resolute
opposition to any official Chabad
relationship with the army, but
refused to be interviewed because
of the sensitive nature of the
issue.
One of the mashpiim said,
The current situation is better,
when there is no uniformity and
a certain percentage of bachurim
are drafted, than a situation in
which 85% over the age of 26 will
be drafted and military service
will become an official part of the
Chabad system.
I asked if after proper
preparation and upon entering
the army with shlichus uppermost
on ones mind, is it possible to
spread Judaism, Chassidus, and
knowledge of Moshiach?
There is no question that
being in the army is an excellent
opportunity for that, says R
Malkieli enthusiastically, and it
seems he speaks from experience.
In the army you come in

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contact with so many people that

you wouldnt meet in civilian life.
Many of them do not know what
a religious person is and they
certainly dont know chareidim
personally. When they meet
a chareidi soldier who serves
and contributes like them, and
they identify a Chassid as a
normal person, a nice guy, who
is devoted and a mentch, that
shatters many stigmas.
But that is only on condition
that you come ready to serve. It is
no different than any other place
of work. A man must maintain his
spiritual level. To learn Chassidus
every morning, daven as he
should, be a yerei Shamayim and
have a mashpia, and behave as a
Chassid.
As a military chaplain,
I would send a daily tip, a
short Jewish text that reached
thousands. Every day I got lots
of warm feedback. People want
to hear about Judaism when you
speak to them in a way they can
understand and as an equal.

FIGHTING THE
WARS OF G-D
Moishy who, as mentioned,
served in a combat unit, says, As
fellow combatants, many deep
conversations take place which
promote closeness and provide
the context in which to influence
others.
Even those who serve in

R Arik Malkieli

Shachar and even in the military

chaplaincy, have what to do when
it comes to influence. It is known
that those who enlist from the
Chassidic and Litvishe chareidi
world are not exactly the best
bachurim in yeshiva. There is
plenty of work that can be done
with them starting with just
plain chizuk when it comes to
doing mitzvos, and ending with
learning Chassidus and being
mekarev them to the Rebbe. I
had a chavrusa in Likkutei Sichos
with a Litvishe bachur who had
been very strong but then went
through a spiritual crisis and
enlisted. Until today, we keep in
touch and he always reminds me
that he remembers the sichos that
we learned. With the religiousnationalist and Chardal soldiers




who are relatively stronger you

can learn Chassidus and be
mekarev them to the Rebbe.
When I asked whether there
is a difference between serving in
the army as a bachur and serving
as a married man, everyone
agreed that the army is not the
place for a bachur, period.
Today, after the agreement
was made, this question is hardly
relevant since the vast majority of
bachurim are married by age 26
when they are required to enlist,
says Yossi. But if you are asking
in principle, then no, the army is
not a place for a bachur.
R Malkieli agrees. When
the Rebbe wrote that your blood
is no redder, it was intended for
married men. As for bachurim,
nobody disagrees that they
belong in Tomchei Tmimim until
they marry.
A married man is generally
more stable in his personality and
his identity, concludes R Rivkin.
He is already set into a certain
mold and therefore, the ability
to influence him is less than
for a single man who is not as
established. Even in dealing with
army bureaucracy, as a single
man serving in regular duty, there
is hardly any way to express your
opinions, but as a married man
you can more readily do things
the way you want. But even then,
it is only on condition that you go
in with a shlichus mindset.

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sources about Moshiach &Issue
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1037_bm_eng.indd 19
Rabbi Jacob Schwei

2016-09-06 7:15:17 AM

STORY

DREAM
CHILD
A moving story that began at a Chassidishe
farbrengen at a high-tech company when one
of the participants removed a bundle of dollars
that he received from the Rebbe and began
giving a dollar to each participant with a need.
* The amazing dream that followed completed
the circle with the birth of a baby to the
astonishment of the doctors.
By Nosson Avrohom

abbi
Tzvi
Shmuel
Neiman and his wife
Talia are part of the
Chabad community in
Ramot in Yerushalayim. R Neiman
works for the high-tech company
Elad Maarachot, which is located
in the building of the Courts
Administration in Yerushalayim.
His wife is a psychologist who has
helped many with her advice.
As of two years ago, they had
one son. Ten years had passed
since they married and their big
dream was to have a bigger family.
But reasons having to do with the
birth of their first child made their
dream seem unrealistic, and life
went on.
Im telling you the story

and I feel the chills even though

two and a half years have passed
since the miracle, said Tzvi in a
conversation we had with him in
the Microsoft offices in Raanana.
He is spending time there lately
while busy with a big project for
work.
As I am laying out for you
the background details leading
up to the incredible miracle
we experienced, I find myself
recalling the experiences and
feelings, the fears and the tests,
and the tremendously happy
ending. I am still amazed
and cannot believe this really
happened.

DOLLARS FROM THE REBBE

FOR ALL WHO NEED THEM
Like every Chassid and
mekushar to the Rebbe, along
with my professional work I
try to turn my workplace into
a platform for shlichus and
spreading the wellsprings. In a
high-tech company where the
work is demanding, it is hard to
do outreach work the way its
done in other, more open, places.
But even here, Ive found plenty
that can be done. In the building
of the Courts Administration
there is an office for the Rabbinic
Courts Administration, where
there is a special place designated
for davening. I began arranging

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farbrengens over there on a

regular basis and shiurim in
Chassidus on special days in the
calendar.
One
of
the
regular
participants at these farbrengens
is a well-known lawyer who serves
as the local assistant attorney
general. He is not a Lubavitcher
and in his appearance does not
look connected to the Rebbe, but
he lived in Crown Heights in his
youth and had private meetings
with the Rebbe. He also passed by
the Rebbe for dollars on a number
of occasions. His outlook on the
Rebbe is not that of a Chassid,
but he has a warm spot for
Lubavitch and greatly admires the
Rebbe. At every farbrengen that I

arrange, he shares stories that he

experienced when he lived near
the Rebbe.
Three years ago, before
12 Tammuz, I told him about
the upcoming farbrengen and
he promised to come and
even made a nice donation
toward refreshments. During
the farbrengen I mentioned
his donation and thanked him
for it and asked him to tell us
something he remembered from
the Rebbe. He described the
dollars scene in a way that was
unforgettable. He told us that a
quick glance from the Rebbe was
enough to make you feel that you
had been blessed and received
answers to all your questions.

Among the people present

were those who knew nothing
about the Rebbe giving out dollars
and they asked questions about
it. To my surprise, at a certain
point, he asked us to wait a few
moments and he went up to his
office and returned with a bundle
of dollars that he received from
the Rebbe.
It is an auspicious time,
he announced, and I will give a
dollar for bracha and hatzlacha to
whoever has sufficient reason for
it.
The one who came forward
first was someone from Givat
Mordechai whose wife was
very sick. He told about her
bleak condition and the lawyer
immediately took out a dollar
from the Rebbe and gave it to
him. When the man looked at
the date written on the dollar he
jumped up and said it was the
date of his anniversary. Everyone
present considered this a sign
that this dollar, which had been
received so many years ago, was
designated for this couple.
Sure enough, we heard a few
months later that his wife had
recovered.
After he received his dollar,
I decided that I also had to get
a dollar from the Rebbe. We had
only one child after ten years of
marriage and we wanted more
children. I said why I wanted the
dollar and the lawyer took out a
dollar from the Rebbe and gave it
to me. Everyone blessed us.
I held the dollar and was
very moved. I was the one who
organized the farbrengen and the
Rebbe gave me a gift. I did not
imagine how big the gift was.

A VIVID DREAM
After the first birth that
went smoothly, my wifes health
deteriorated and a routine

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Story

checkup at Hadassah Ein Kerem

miraculously
showed
that
during the birth an infection had
developed in the valves of her
heart. My wife was rushed to
open heart surgery, an operation
which saved her life. Statistically,
she was called a walking miracle.
The discovery of the infection
happened by chance, according to
the doctors, but we know it was a
miracle.
We were taking our first
steps toward Chassidus and
hiskashrus to the Rebbe at that
time. The surgery was scheduled
for Yud Shevat and the shliach
at the hospital was R Yonasan
Shpitzer who helped us during
that difficult time.
When
my
wife
was
released from the hospital, she
was diagnosed with lupus, an
autoimmune disease. When she
was released from the hospital,
the cardiologist, Dr. Dan Gilon,
told us unequivocally that the
chances of our having additional
children were nil, and we should
be grateful every day that my wife
had a second chance at life.
Years
passed
and
we
constantly dreamed of having a
larger family, but we understood
that according to nature this was
not feasible. There were times
that we made peace with our lot.
Now, after unexpectedly receiving

a dollar from the Rebbe, our hope

for another child seemed possible.
That night, I had an amazing
dream. In my dream, I saw myself
in a Lag BOmer parade in Crown
Heights. On Eastern Parkway,
I was walking past the platform
where the Rebbe stood. I stopped,
and the Rebbe held out a dollar
to me. I nearly stopped breathing
in my excitement. I raised my
hand and made a mighty effort
to take the dollar from the Rebbe.
It wasnt easy because of the big
distance between us and I had to
stand on tiptoe, but I finally did it.
I took the dollar and the Rebbes
face was shining. Then I woke up
agitated and shaken.
After that vivid dream, I
could not fall back asleep. I
figured that I had the dream
because I was excited about
the dollar I had gotten that day.
When I told my wife about the
dream, she was also excited but
our lives continued as always. As
the days passed, the strong feeling
dissipated.
Not much time elapsed and
we were told a baby is on the way.
We were in shock. Surprised and
thrilled. The dollar had brought
bracha.
Nine months went by and as
each day passed and everything
remained fine, it was a reason for
prayer and thanks. One of the

symptoms of my wifes condition

is that babies are born premature
at a stage when they cannot
survive. Our prayers and of those
who knew us pierced the heavens
and got stronger as the doctors
fear mongering and threats grew.
The doctors warned us about the
wanton danger we were taking
following the heart operation,
but our faith, and mainly my
wifes faith, was enormous.
Throughout that time we did not
stop receiving brachos from the
Rebbe in the Igros Kodesh which
encouraged us.
The answers were clear
and said, May the days of the
pregnancy be completed and she
give birth routinely and easily.
In another answer the Rebbe
wrote not to be concerned at
all about the heart problem. All
those clear answers strengthened
us tremendously. Thank G-d, my
wife gave birth to our second son
on time. A team of doctors was
around her bed when she gave
birth. They all wanted to see the
miracle with their own eyes.
My wifes cardiologist from
ten years earlier, with whom we
were still in touch, came from the
eighth floor to see the wonder for
himself. After the birth he shook
my hand and said two words:
Yesh Elokim (there is a G-d).
The nurse who came along with
him held the medical file. She was
also amazed and she asked where
we got the courage to go through
with all this.
Of course, the answer was
the Rebbe, the Rebbe, and
the Rebbe. Without the Rebbes
brachos and the dollar that we
got, we would not have had the
requisite strength.
In similar cases, right after
the birth the baby is whisked away
for tests and is watched carefully
in the NICU, but we didnt
experience that.

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REBBE, ABBA AND IMA

Our son was born on 29
Nissan, Erev Rosh Chodesh, but
due to medical concerns, the bris
was postponed to Lag BOmer.
As everyone stood around
the baby, I was reminded of that
extraordinary dream in which
I received a dollar from the
Rebbe during the Lag BOmer
parade, even though it was
actually 12 Tammuz that day.
Everyone knows Lag BOmer is
an auspicious day for brachos for
children.
We
named
our
son
Menachem Mendel. He is two
years old now and the first word
he said wasnt Abba or Ima but
Rebbe.
Continued from page 25
In terms of making an honest
accounting we must judge
ourselves:
Do we cry out with our mouth
Ad Masai-How much longer? Do
we say these words because we
were told to say them or do we say
them with heartfelt passion?
Do we use our mouth to teach
about Moshiach, and publicize to
our family, friends and indeed the
entire world the Rebbes prophetic
message that Moshiachs coming
is imminent?
Do we hear the sound of the
shofar blowing to tell us that the
Geula is imminent? Indeed, the
Rebbe informed us that from the
Six Day War and beyond, the
Great Shofar has been sounded
to herald the imminent arrival
of Moshiach. Have we made an
effort to hear the sound of that
Shofar?
Do we hear the announcement
of Redemption the Rebbe made,
quoting the Midrash, The Time
of Your Redemption has Arrived?
Do we hear the Rebbes

With Dr. Dan Gilon, senior cardiologist

statement (invoking prophecy)

of the imminence of the
Redemption?
Do we open our eyes to see
the tell-tale miracles that are
associated with Moshiach? The
Rebbe told us to open our eyes to
see that the Redemption is truly
right in front of us.
Do we have the keen sense
of smell to detect the presence
of Moshiach in our midst?
Moshiachs power of justice is
described in Isaiah as his ability to
smell justice. Since the Baal Shem
Tov taught that each of us has a
spark of Moshiach, we should
have developed a keen olfactory
sense of righteousness and sensed
the fragrance of Redemption
blowing in the wind.
The accounting of Elul is
to
reduce,
mathematically,
the many aspects of Judaism
and life to the one overarching
theme of Redemption. We can
accomplish this by changing our
minds chemistry by studying
Torah, particularly the Chassidic
teachings that relate to Moshiach.
This will certainly give us a

lesson in geography, with the

ingathering of Jews from all parts
of the earth to the Land of Israel.
Then economics will undergo a
major change; as Maimonides
writes that there will be an
abundance of everything.
Moreover,
there
will
be a convergence of all the
nations of the world speaking
different languages (so well
master linguistics) to the Beis
HaMikdash, the building of which
will require our mastery of Temple
architecture.
Indeed, when all this occurs
we will be able to look back and
appreciate our history.
While,
according
to
Maimonides, the laws of physics
will not change, the way we view
the physical laws will. We will
see the Divine in every physical
phenomenon.
G-d will reveal his healing
powers, advancing the art and
science of medicine to the point
where everyone will be healed.
But, please, dont change the
subject!

Issue 1037

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PARSHA THOUGHT

DONT
CHANGE THE
SUBJECT!
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

WHAT IS THE SUBJECT?

A story is told of a hapless
bank robber who approaches
the cashier and demands: Give
me $10,000 or else youll be
geography!
The startled cashier corrects
him, You mean history.
To which the bandit retorts,
Dont change the subject!

ACCOUNTING
AND JEWISH (NEW) MATH
While the subjects we will
discuss in this essay include
accounting, math and chemistry,
we are not going to change the
subject
Our subject is ostensibly
accounting because this is the
month of Elul, the month of
stock-taking, when we make an
honest accounting!
This is also the month of the
Jewish (new) math.
We can find several examples
of Jewish creative math:
The Talmud (conclusion of
Makos) states that there are 613
Mitzvos. However, the prophet
Chabakkuk came and boiled them
down to one (commandment):
A righteous person lives with
his faith. Indeed, there is a
mathematical basis for that

equation: 6+1+3=10; 1+0=1.

The 613 can be reduced to the
number 1 and it is the Mitzvah to
believe in G-d.
A second example of a more
radical mathematical trick is the
story of the chassid Reb Binyamin
Kletzker, (a disciple of Rabbi
Shneur Zalman of Liadi, known
as the Alter Rebbe, the founder
of Chabad Chassidus) who was a
businessman, but a very spiritual
one. After a long days work, he
would tally his profits. Instead of
writing the total in numbers he
wrote the Biblical phrase, There
is nothing besides Him. He
reduced all his accounting figures
to the oneness of G-d.
The
Rebbe
(see
Seifer
HaSichos 5751-Rei) did the
same mathematical trick when
he stated that the sum total of the
accounting of the month of Elul
is: Ad masai-How much longer
shall we remain in exile?
This is the subject that
we cannot change. All of our
creative energies have to be
rallied around doing our part
to bring Redemption. These
efforts include coming before
G-d and respectfully, but firmly,
demanding that He bring an end
to exile with all of its suffering
and pain.
In truth, this reduction is

also about the number one. The

Final Redemption is when G-ds
unity will be revealed fully to
the entire world. So, when we
ask for Redemption we are not
just expressing our desire for a
peaceful world; we are primarily
asking for a world that recognizes
the truth of one G-d. That
recognition will bring in its wake
peace and all the other incredible
blessings.

FAITH, UNDERSTANDING
AND PERMEATING
Returning to the three
examples of creative figuring;
although they convey similar
messages, we can discern three
different nuances.
Chabakkuk reduced all of
Mitzvos to one: Emuna-faith, by
merely tracing the Mitzvos to their
source and root, which is faith.
That reduction was a quantitative
one, from 613 to 1. In addition,
Chabakkuk did not transform
anything; he just took a larger
number of Mitzvos and traced
them to their root.
Reb Binyamin Kletzker, the
chassid businessman, reduced
all of his worldly business profits
to one G-d. While Chabakkuk
reduced all Mitzvos to one-faith in
G-d, Reb Binyamin took all of his
extensive earnings in the material
world and reduced them to the

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recognition of the oneness of G-d.

He actually made a qualitative
transfer of mundane earnings to
one supernal G-d.
The
Rebbe
took
the
accounting of Elul for all of our
past years commitments to Torah
and Mitzvos and translated them
into the cry and song of ad masaihow much longer, which calls
for Moshiach and Redemption
to materialize into our physical
reality. He demonstrated that
all of our Judaism is focused on
making the oneness of G-d a
palpable reality.
Chabakkuk
focused
on
believing in one G-d. Reb
Binyamin Kletzker applied his
intellect to understanding the
concept of Divine unity as it
related to his material existence.
The Rebbe spoke of how the
entire world will be permeated
with G-ds oneness.
In truth, the Rebbe did not
change the subject of Elul, just as
Chabakkuk did not truly diminish
Judaism by reducing the 613 to
1. Rather he demonstrated to us
that if we focus on the one it will
facilitate the 613.
Similarly, the Rebbe did not
eliminate the all-encompassing
accounting of Elul, rather he gave
us the inner meaning of all our
Elul accountings for all of our
observance of Torah and Mitzvos.
The Rebbe taught that, in fact, all
of Judaism is geared to the future,
making this world a G-dly world,
a world of Moshiach.

THE ROOT AND THE END

Some have interpreted the
Rebbes message as a call to
strengthen our Emuna-faith just
as Chabakkuk had preached in his
time.
But in truth, there is a
fundamental difference:
Chabakkuk gave the Jewish

people of his generation a formula

to advance their commitment to
the commandments by giving
them the foundation of all
Mitzvos: Emuna-faith. When we
have faith in G-d we will try to be
faithful to Him by learning what
He wants of us and implementing
that in our lives.
Faith is thus the root and
foundation of Judaism.
What the Rebbe innovated/
revealed, based on many of the
earlier teachings of Torah, is
actually the sum total of Torah
and Mitzvos. All of Judaism
revolves around and is directed
towards the objective of making
the world a dwelling place for
G-d, which will come to fruition
in the Messianic Age.
While faith is the core and
genesis of Judaism, the Messianic
Age is its full flowering, its ultimate
goal. So if we have to make an
evaluation and assessment of our
Judaism throughout the year it has
to be connected to the ultimate
goal of bringing about the Final
Redemption.

NO TO ANTINOMIAN VIEWS
One should not misconstrue
this concept and think that
the Messianic Age is separate
from the observance of the
commandments. On the contrary,
Maimonides (Mishneh Torah,
Hilchos
Melachim;
chapter
11) makes it crystal clear that
Moshiachs task is to make it
possible for us to fulfill all of
the commandments in the most
comprehensive
and
perfect
fashion.
The primary test to determine
whether one is qualified to be
the Moshiach is his fidelity to
Torah observance. The reason
we rejected certain individuals
proposed as Moshiach in the past
was precisely because they did

not meet this criterion. Tellingly,

they advanced antinomian views,
advocating the abrogation of
certain or all of the Mitzvos.
The reason all of Judaism
revolves
around
Moshiach
and the Messianic Age is that
we will be able to observe the
commandments in a most
complete fashion in that time.
But, whereas in the past, when
we were in the initial or middle
stages of our journey towards
Redemption, our focus was more
on the journey and not so much
on the destination, now that focus
has changed.
According to the teachings
of the greatest Jewish leaders of
the past century, particularly the
Rebbe, we have completed the
journey and the focus must turn
to the end result of our collective
efforts of commitment to Judaism.

CHANGING OUR CHEMISTRY

It is not enough for us to want
Moshiach and even ask for the
final Redemption. The Rebbe also
wants us to develop intolerance
for Galus and a passion for
Redemption. The Rebbe wants
us to change the chemistry of our
minds.
The only way to accomplish
this change is through the study
of Torah, particularly the sections
that deal with Moshiach and
Redemption.

CONNECTION TO PARSHA
This is the connection to this
weeks parsha, which talks about
placing judges at all of our gates.
The reference to gates has
been understood to include
our bodys own gateways to
the outside world. Our eyes,
ears, mouth and nose should be
guarded.
Continued on page 23
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PROFILE

THE REBBE RASHAB TOLD HIM:

AT TIMES YOU
ARE A BEINONI
Profile of a Chassid from the generation of
founders of Tomchei Tmimim in Lubavitch, the
Gaon and Chassid, Rabbi Yisroel Noach Blinitzky,
the mashpia who served as an outstanding role
model for the Tmimim.
By Shneur Zalman Berger

he Chassid, R Yisroel
Noach Blinitzky, was
born at the end of Nissan
5643/1883 to R Efraim
Ber and Mrs. Chana Blinitzky, in
the town of Kurin in the Konotop
district of Russia (now Ukraine).
His parents were Chassidim of
the Tzemach Tzedek and the
Maharash, and they named their
son for a son of the Tzemach
Tzedek, R Yisroel Noach of
Niezhin, who passed away on the
first day of Chol HaMoed Pesach
that year.
R Yisroel Noach and his
brothers
were
considered
geniuses in learning. In their
youth
they
were
already
knowledgeable in all of Shas. R
Yisroel Noach himself would say
that he and his brothers would go
home for the Pesach break, and in
their free time they would sit and
learn Gemara together as their
mother stood off to the side and

listened with great enjoyment.

When he was fourteen, he
attended the wedding of the
Rebbe Rayatz. Many years later
when the Rebbe asked him to
print the hemshech Sameiach
Tisamach 5657, a series of
maamarim that were said for
the Rebbe Rayatzs wedding, he
asked him to write details of what
he saw at the wedding.
In Cheshvan 5661, when he
was seventeen, he was accepted
into Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim
in Lubavitch. He learned there
and basked in the rays of the
Rebbe Rashab for two years. The
first maamer that he heard was
on Shabbos, Parshas VaYeira,
VHu Omeid Aleihem, and he
lived with this maamer his entire
life.
In Lubavitch he acquired
the nickname, Yisroel Noach
HaGadol, since in yeshiva
there was another bachur named

Yisroel Noach (Chatzkavitz,

may Hashem avenge his blood)
who was nicknamed Yisroel
Noach HaKattan. The nickname
HaGadol was given to him
because he was tall and some say
it was because of his greatness in
Torah and Chassidus.
R
Yisroel
Noach
was
possessed of a warm heart and
was a very emotional person. His
bedtime Shma was so emotional
that sometimes he fainted. A
short while later he would rouse
himself and continue reading
with great sobbing. And yet, he
would daven Shacharis with a
minyan the next day.
The great effort required to
recite the Shma for hours affected
his health. The Rebbe Rashab
found out and told him that from
then on, his personal avoda did
not need to focus on the avoda
of tfilla but on learning. He did
so and was extremely diligent in

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both Nigleh and Chassidus. His

diligence and knowledge were
legendary to the point that the
Rebbe Rashab said about him
that you could rely on his first
impressions on a given topic.
As for his genius, the story is
told that one time Rashbatz tested
him. Rashbatz was the mashpia
in the yeshiva and a distinguished
Chassid. During the exam,
R Yisroel Noach explained
something said by the Maharsha
and when he finished, Rashbatz
asked him, What does it mean
at the end where the Maharsha
writes vdochek ktzas? R
Yisroel
Noach
immediately
launched into seven questions on
this explanation of the Maharsha,
which is why the Maharsha ended
as he did. Rashbatz was amazed
by R Yisroel Noachs genius and
he rose and kissed him on the
forehead.
His grandson, R Yosef
Yitzchok
Gansburg,
relates

that his grandfather received

a number of horaos from the
Rebbe Rashab about learning
Chassidus. He once asked
whether he could learn the works
of other Chassidic schools and
the Rebbe replied that Likkutei
Torah contains everything. The
Rebbe also told him not to learn
Chassidus according to topics as
is done in Nigleh, but to learn it
in the order it appears in the sifrei
maamarim.
The Rebbe Rashab referred to
R Yisroel Noach as outstanding
among his fellow Tmimim. It is
told that one time, before Sukkos,
R Yisroel Noach was covering
the sukka with schach together
with friends. The Rebbe Rashab
and Rebbetzin were watching
from the window. The Rebbe said
to the Rebbetzin while pointing
at R Yisroel Noach, You see?
He covers it differently than the
others.
R Yechiel Kalmanson writes

in his book that one time the

Rebbe Rashab said to R Yisroel
Noach, At times you are a
beinoni.
***
R Yisroel Noach learned in
Tomchei Tmimim from 5661 to
5663. Then he became engaged
to Shterna, the daughter of the
Chassid, R Yitzchok Yaffe, who
was known by Chassidim as R
Itche Dissner for his hometown.
Before the shidduch was
finalized, the parents of the
chassan and kalla met. The
meeting took place in Lubavitch.
His future father-in-law had
yechidus and told the Rebbe
Rashab about the suggestion
to take R Yisroel Noach as his
son-in-law. The Rebbe Rashab
approved the suggestion. R Itche
asked the Rebbe about R Yisroel
Noach and the Rebbe said,
When he sits alone in a room he
also has fear of G-d.

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Profile
After this praise that was
said about the bachur in the
Rebbes room, the shidduch was
immediately finalized. The couple
married not long afterward.
The young couple wanted to
settle in Dissna where the kallas
parents lived but they had no
money to rent a house there. The
Chassid R Boruch Yosef Kozliner
came to their aid. He was a close
friend of the kallas father and he
arranged living quarters in his
courtyard where the couple lived
for a long time.
The couple had a store that
sold legumes which his wife had
started before she married. After
Shacharis, which took several
hours, R Yisroel Noach would go
to the store to help his wife. Many

in mathematics and he made a

living from being a bookkeeper.
For a long time he worked as
a treasurer and accountant for
a tobacco factory belonging to
the Chassid, R Tzvi Gurary.
They say that one day R Yisroel
Noach left the factory carrying
a large sum of money. Robbers,
who
apparently
knew
his
routine, pounced upon him and
demanded the money but he
felt a great responsibility for the
money, which wasnt his, and
he ignored their threats. They
began to beat him but he fought
them off. When they realized that
he wasnt going to give in easily,
they ran away.
This event generated much
respect among the factory

One time, before Sukkos, R Yisroel Noach was

covering the sukka with schach together with
friends. The Rebbe Rashab and his Rebbetzin were
watching from the window. The Rebbe said to the
Rebbetzin while pointing at R Yisroel Noach, You see
him? He covers it differently than the others.

of the customers would wait for

him because he was exceedingly
careful with the weight and
always added extra.
After he married, he still
went to the Rebbe Rashab every
Tishrei. He would leave home on
Rosh Chodesh Elul and would
make the long trip, arriving by
Rosh HaShana.
A few years after their
wedding,
they
moved
to
Kremenchug in the Ukraine
where many Chassidim lived.
They had six children: Aharon
Yosef, Mendel, Yitzchok, Chaya
(Majeski), and Rivka (Gansburg)
and another daughter who died
in childhood.
R Yisroel Noach excelled

workers. It also became known

to the local authorities who
esteemed
him
greatly
for
this. When the communists
confiscated R Tzvi Gurarys
factory and turned it into
government property, they left
R Yisroel Noach in his position
of accountant as a sign of their
esteem for his courage and
responsibility.
Despite all the work he did, it
did not diminish his learning of
Chassidus. He himself once said,
There is not a stone on the road
from my house to the factory that
I did not think Chassidus as I
walked over it.
After
the
communist

revolution,
all
yeshivos
throughout Russia were closed
down.
Yeshivas
Tomchei
Tmimim had to go underground.
The yeshiva was divided into
many
divisions
that
were
scattered throughout many cities.
The bachurim learned in hiding
places and in small groups. The
persecution and surveillance of
underground yeshivos caused
some of the yeshivos to move
constantly from place to place. If
someone who taught Torah was
caught, he was exiled and some
were even killed.
Although R Yisroel Noach
had an official position and made
a good living, he continued to
run the yeshiva in Kremenchug
with great sacrifice for a number
of years. As the menahel, he
had to find hiding places for
the bachurim, pay for clothing,
food, and places to sleep. He also
made time to test the bachurim
every Shabbos. The division in
Kremenchug at that time had
about a hundred talmidim.
His good friend from the
time they learned together in
Lubavitch, the Chassid R Meir
Gurkow, describes this work in
his memoirs:
At that time, he was burdened
with work at the tobacco factory
belonging to the wealthy, R Tzvi
Gurary, and he stayed in this
job even after the factory was
confiscated by the communists.
But R Yisroel Noach, despite
being preoccupied with his work,
used his remaining strength to
maintain this yeshiva. The other
Tmimim also supported him.
Every Shabbos, I would go to
another shul to speak on behalf of
the yeshiva, but the small amount
we collected was never enough
for all the yeshivas needs.
R Gurkow goes on to write
how R Yisroel Noach sent him
to collect money for the yeshiva

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in different towns throughout the

Soviet Union.
Another fundraiser that he
appointed was the Chassid, R
Chaim Nisselevitz. His travels
weakened him and he returned
home sick and he had to stop.
His wife gave birth to a daughter
and during the birth she fell sick
and was in critical condition. R
Yisroel Noach went to visit them
and he said to Mrs. Nisselevitz,
If you allow your husband
to continue raising money, I
bless you that you will recover.
She gave her consent and her
husband took to the road again
to collect money for the yeshiva.
A short while later she had a full
recovery which was miraculous.
R Sholom Ber Labkowski,
rosh kollel in Kfar Chabad,
relates:
The yeshivas financial state
was precarious and R Yisroel
Noach borrowed money from the
factory account where he worked.
One day, the factory workers
found out that in a short time a
government committee would be
coming to inspect the financial
running of the factory. R Yisroel
Noach was afraid that during the
inspection they would discover
that the coffers were empty. The
factory workers, gentiles, who
loved him because of his warm
treatment of them, quickly took
out whatever money they had
with them. They filled up the
coffers again until the inspection
was over.
One of the talmidim of the
yeshiva at the time was the
Chassid, R Michel Rappaport.
He later related how the talmidim
of the yeshiva found out about
the arrest and release of the
Rebbe Rayatz:
On Rosh Chodesh Tammuz
1927, I was about thirteen
and I went to the yeshiva in
Kremenchug the learning was

Talmidim in the yeshiva in Kremenchug

done in secret so the Yevsektzia

wouldnt know about it. They
came a number of times to check.
When I arrived at yeshiva,
the Rebbe was in prison but we
talmidim were not informed of
this fact until one Friday, R
Yisroel Noach, the menahel,
came at eleven in the morning
and we saw him enter the shul
and kiss R Shmuel Leib Levin
and only then did we all find out
that the Rebbe had been freed.
The next day there was a big
kiddush.
***
By request of the Rebbe
Rayatz, the Chassidim in the
Soviet Union were asked to write
about the mikvaos in their cities.
On 17 Av 1928, R Yisroel Noach
wrote a coded letter to the Rebbe
in which he described the mikva
in Kremenchug:
There is no mikva at all and
in order to form a group to learn
this tractate [of mikvaos, i.e. to
build one] we need to learn with
them at least thirty days [i.e. a

sum of money equaling thirty is

needed] and then the rest will
build on their own. In that letter
he also wrote about the mikvaos
in two neighboring towns.
Even during those crazy
times, he continued writing to
the Rebbe Rayatz and he received
replies with wondrous content,
which express a very deep and
heartfelt connection. Some of the
answers are printed in the Rebbe
Rayatzs Igros Kodesh.
In recalling those days
in Kremenchug, R Hershel
Abramov related:
When I was a boy, there were
eleven shuls in Kremenchug, two
of which were Chabad. One was
called the small Chabad, and
the other was called the big
Chabad. The yeshiva was located
in the big Chabad.
Every Motzaei Shabbos
there was a Melaveh Malka in the
home of one of the Chassidim,
with nearly forty Chassidim in
attendance. These meals had a
special atmosphere since they

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Profile
were attended by all the great
Chassidim who lived in the city
and in nearby Korokiv. Among
the regular participants were: the
brothers R Berke, R Dovid Leib,
and R Avrohom Aharon Chein,
R Dovid Gurchaber, R Shimon
Levin, and others. The main
speaker was R Yisroel Noach.

They held him forcibly by his

gartel and did not let him go and
dance. He suddenly flung off the
gartel, slipped out of their hands
and joined the dancers with
great joy. He said, On Simchas
Torah, Hashem provides other
kochos. He danced and danced
energetically like a young bachur

He was a pnimi who did not speak about himself,

but I saw that he had imbibed a lot of mashke and
I figured this was an opportunity to penetrate the world
of this pnimiusdike Chassid. I asked, Yisroel Noach,
what are you thinking about now? Whats on your mind?
He looked at me with his wise eyes and brokenheartedly
said, I am thinking about my life and trying to find even
one time that I had a genuine thought of repentance.
In 5690, the government
closed down Yeshivas Tomchei
Tmimim and during the years
that followed they closed many
shuls, including the two Chabad
shuls. The Chassidim were
undeterred and they procured
a room in the Yurovsky shul
where the Chabad minyan took
place.
My internal image of
Kremenchug
is
definitely
Simchas Torah in the Yurovsky
shul. The night of Simchas
Torah, after Maariv, everyone
went to R Yisroel Noachs home
where they farbrenged. R Yisroel
Noach Blinitzky spoke on topics
of Chassidus until midnight and
then hakafos began.
R Yisroel Noach suffered
greatly from pains in his feet.
One year, his family decided
to prevent him from dancing
hakafos so his pain would not
get worse. When it came time
for hakafos, his sons took hold of
him and said, Father, dont go to
dance since you suffer so much.

until the end of hakafos.

R Yaakov Krichevsky adds:
I learned in the public school
in Kremenchug. During recess,
they gave out sandwiches with
broiled meat to the children. Of
course I did not eat the treif food
and in order not to starve I would
slip out of the schoolyard and go
to R Yisroel Noach Blinitzkys
house, for he lived nearby. There
I would eat a slice of bread
and had a cup of milk that was
watered own due to the poverty
in his home. Thanks to R Yisroel
Noach and his wife Shterna, I
wasnt hungry during the day.
***
World War II. The Germans
conquered more and more parts
of the Ukraine. R Yisroel Noach
and many other Chassidim
fled Kremenchug. After much
wearying travel they arrived in
Samarkand in Uzbekistan which
was far from the hostilities.
R Yisroel Noachs impressive
spiritual stature won the hearts
of the Chassidim in Samarkand

and he became one of the main

speakers at farbrengens. R Meir
Gurkow describes this in his
book:
All the young married men
strengthened themselves in having
set times to learn Nigleh and
Chassidus; nobody was absent.
At certain times they farbrenged
with brotherly love and they
strengthened one another to be
involved in Torah and avoda. They
were all happy with their lot. The
brachos that were wished when
drinking lchaim were always the
same that Hashem should help
us see the Rebbe again. Leading
them was the famous R Yisroel
Noach Blinitzky. Although he
was old and weak, his heart was
always aroused and they treated
him with respect.
R Sholom Dovber Butman
of Tel Aviv also remembered him
from Samarkand:
In Samarkand, R Yisroel
Noach was considered a special
personality.
Until
today
I
remember the time I brought him
shalach manos when I was a child.
The table in the foyer was full of
mishloach manos that everyone
sent him since he was considered
one of the great Chassidim.
When the Chassidim arrived
in Samarkand, secret minyanim
were arranged in different homes
of Chassidim. The Minyan, with
capital letters, was in R Yisroel
Noachs house and was called,
Yisroel Noachs Minyan. R
Nissan Nemanov, the mashpia,
davened there, as did R Yehuda
Chitrik. R Yisroel Noachs house
was small with just two rooms. In
one room was a weaving machine
which supported the family and
the minyanim took place in the
other room.
In Samarkand, R Yisroel
Noach also started secret yeshivos
and he was an active member of
the chevra kadisha and the bikkur

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cholim that were started for the

many refugees.
During the war years there
were tremendous shortages and
sickness spread. Aside from that,
rumors of the atrocities against
the Jews began to circulate.
This was on the mind of every
Chassid, but R Yisroel Noach,
who was every inch a Chassid,
had entirely different thoughts.
As the mashpia, R Mendel
Futerfas, related, During one
of the war years the Chassidim
in Samarkand farbrenged in
honor of 12 Tammuz. It was a
particularly warm farbrengen and
everyone drank a lot of mashke.
I saw the Chassid R Yisroel
Noach was exhausted. He lay
down in a corner to rest. When
I looked at him, I noticed that
he was deep in contemplative
thought. He was usually very

quiet and a pnimi who did not

speak about himself at all, but
since I saw that he had taken
a lot of mashke, I realized this
was an opportunity to penetrate
the world of this pnimiusdike
Chassid. I went over to him and
asked, Yisroel Noach, what
are you thinking about now?
Whats on your mind? He
looked at me with his wise eyes
and brokenheartedly said, I am
thinking about my life and trying
to find even one time that I had a
genuine thought of repentance.
At the end of the war, like
many other Chassidim, R Yisroel
Noach wanted to cross the border
out of the Soviet Union. On his
way to Lvov he passed through
Tashkent which also had many
refugees. For many there wasnt
anywhere to stay. R Yisroel
Noach and his family were hosted

by R Shmuel Galperin, a friend

from the yeshiva in Lubavitch.
After a long journey they
arrived in Lvov where they
waited until they could join one
of the groups smuggling over
the border. The entire family
had false documents stating
they were Polish citizens. Each
of them had to study and review
their new names as written on
their passports so that the border
control inspection would go
smoothly.
R Yechezkel Brod relates:
A problem cropped up
during the inspection when the
soldier read the Polish name of
the Chassid, R Yisroel Noach
Blinitzky, and he forgot the new
Polish name. But he knew to keep
quiet. When the border guard
asked him angrily why he didnt
answer, one of Anash explained,

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Profile
while circling his finger near his
forehead, that he was not normal.
He miraculously passed the
inspection.
He arrived in Paris together
with other Chassidim and lived
there for a few years.
A Tomchei Tmimim yeshiva
was founded in Brunoy, near
Paris, at the end of 5707. In
addition to the staff that ran
the yeshiva, the Rebbe Rayatz
appointed a Vaad Ruchni and a
Vaad Gashmi. R Yisroel Noach
was given an important job in
each.
In a letter, the Rebbe Rayatz
wrote, I hereby appoint
as the spiritual administrative
committee to Yeshivas Tomchei
Tmimim in Paris my esteemed
friends R Avrohom Eliyahu
Plotkin director, R Nachum
Shemaryahu Sasonkin, R Yisroel
Noach Blinitzky, R Shlomo
Chaim Kesselman, R Betzalel
Wilschansky deputies.
As to an administrative
committee to oversee financial
and material matters, I hereby
appoint my esteemed friends
R Yisroel Noach Blinitzky
director, R Peretz Mochkin,
R Isser Kluvgant, R Chaikel
Chanin, R Yisroel Leibov, R
Chaim Minkowitz, R Shmuel
Betzalel Altheus, R Bundevitz
deputies.
The yeshiva actually had an
organized administration and
the two committees that were
formed were supposed to help
the hanhala with its work. In his
role on the vaad ruchni, R Yisroel
Noach would go from Paris
(where he continued to live at
first) in order to test the talmidim.
In his role on the vaad gashmi, he
would take care of the yeshivas
bookkeeping and he did so even
when he reached a ripe old age.
Many talmidim of the yeshiva
remember how every day, R

HE WOULD SAY
*In Tanya it says that the
wicked are full of regret;
yet, we dont feel any regret.
*The Tanya can be
learned on various levels. It
can be learned in the world
of Asiya or Yetzira or Beria
or even the world of Atzilus.
Nissan Nemanov, the mashpia
and menahel of the yeshiva, would
go to R Yisroel Noachs house
and talk to him for a long time.
Many did not know that during
this time they would calculate all
the expenses and income of the
yeshiva. Despite their spiritual
greatness, they were involved in
material matters with the utmost
bittul since this is what the Rebbe
wanted.
Years later, he moved from
Paris to Brunoy and then the
talmidim saw him every day, such
that his unique persona served as
a role model of a true Chassid.
His many talmidim attest
that his davening inspired them
tremendously:
He davened with a niggun
and with such sweetness, they
say. When davening was over
in the yeshiva zal, he went to
his room where he continued
learning Chassidus. His davening
was interspersed with a special
tune, the well-known Pilpul
Niggun, and now and then he
would stop and sing, continue
and cry. He did this for a long
time every morning, and his
davening became a byword
among the talmidim to the point
that they recorded it.
One of his grandsons, R
Chaim Blinitzky of Kfar Chabad,
said that he once recorded

his
grandfathers
davening.
The recording was copied and
distributed among the family and
talmidim who say that every time
they listen to his davening, they
feel a special inner inspiration.
We can learn about R Yisroel
Noachs character from what the
Chassid, R Tzvi Hirsch Katz, a
talmid in Brunoy, said:
This is what the perfect
person looks like: He has the
head of R Avrohom Eliyahu
Plotkin, the heart of R Yisroel
Noach Blinitzky, and the bittul of
R Nissan Nemanov.
Although R Yisroel Noach
was one of the leading speakers
at farbrengens in Kremenchug
and Samarkand for years, he did
not farbreng for the talmidim in
Brunoy. He would sit next to R
Nissan Nemanov with utter bittul
and did not speak, even though
he was older than R Nissan.
***
He had a busy daily schedule.
His Shacharis took several hours
and then he sat and learned
Gemara and Mishnayos and sifrei
Chassidus.
Whoever knew R Yisroel
Noach said he learned Shas
and Mishnayos assiduously. He
finished Shas more than ten
times and as far as how many
times he completed Mishnayos,
his talmidim and relatives have
different numbers, but all agree it
was dozens of times.
R Sholom Dovber Butman
once dared to ask him how many
times he completed Mishnayos
and he answered, Fifty times.
When R Butman repeated this to
R Yisroel Noachs son, R Aharon
Yosef, he smiled and said, My
father doesnt like to remember
how many times he finished but
its definitely more than fifty. Its
important to note that R Butman
left France about thirty years
before R Yisroel Noach passed

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away so he must have completed

it many more times.
When he would say Thillim
for a sick person or for some
difficult situation, he would say
it while sobbing. Sometimes he
finished the book of Thillim
three times in a row. His son R
Itche said that during the years
that he learned in yeshivos out
of town, he would return home
only once every several months.
One time, he returned home
for Chol HaMoed Sukkos. The
night of Hoshana Rabba he heard
quiet sobbing in the middle of the
night. He was very frightened for
there were no little children in the
house and he did not know who
was crying. He got out of bed
and walked in the direction of
the sound until he saw his father
saying Thillim and crying.
R Yisroel Noach was a
personal role model for the
talmidim of the yeshiva. When
his oldest son, R Aharon Yosef,
once had yechidus with the Rebbe
and asked, in his fathers name,
for permission to move to Eretz
Yisroel, the Rebbe said, Why
does it bother him to stay in the
yeshiva? When he walks into the
zal he adds yiras Shamayim to the
Tmimim.
A past talmid of the yeshiva
in Brunoy, R Yosef Yitzchok
Gurevitch, presently a mashpia in
the yeshiva in Migdal HaEmek,
spoke about this personal example
for the talmidim:
When I was a boy, there
were times that we learned
together with the bachurim in the
yeshiva. R Yisroel Noach would
always come in for a few minutes
before Maariv and would learn
at a table near where I sat. One
time, he saw that some of the
children began talking instead of
learning in the final minutes of
the session. He told them it was
time to learn now. There was an

A letter from the Rebbe

to R Yisroel Noach

impudent talmid who defended

himself by saying that only one
minute was left till the end of the
learning session. R Yisroel Noach
immediately said, In one minute
you can review in thought the
entire order of the hishtalshlus.
Due to his old age and
infirmity he did not travel to the
Rebbe, but he was mekushar to
the Rebbe in a unique fashion. We
can learn what hiskashrus is from
the conversations he would have
with those who just came back
from 770. These conversations
were a source of tremendous
excitement for him.
The Chassid R Bentzion
Grossman often visited Brunoy
for his work. He spoke about
another important aspect of R
Yisroel Noachs conduct:
He was very particular about
all the daily mitzvos, to do them
with enthusiasm and great feeling,
as though he was doing them for
the first time in his life. He was
careful about davening with a
minyan, the birchos hanehenin
and answering amen. He did all

this with great concentration.

R Yitzchok Goldberg, rosh
yeshiva of Tomchei Tmimim in
Migdal HaEmek, said:
Whoever heard his amen
yehei shmei rabba knew that each
time it was special. Each time
anew you could see on his face
and hear in his voice a unique
excitement. There is a wellknown anecdote that the Rebbe
Rashab said about him that his
amen yehei shmei rabba pierces
all the heavens.
As far as his exactitude in
everything, especially halacha,
his family tells that when his wife
passed away, it was decided she
would be buried in Eretz Yisroel.
However, at that time, there was
a strike at Frances international
airline, Air France, and her burial
was postponed. Everyone wanted
to see R Yisroel Noachs conduct
on Shabbos during this difficult
time when his deceased wife was
in the next room. His grandson,
R Chaim Blinitzky, says that the
family was surprised to see how
he ran the Shabbos table as usual,
and sang niggunim as though
nothing happened.
***
In the final years of his life R
Yisroel Noach needed assistance.
His son, R Aharon Yosef, helped
him a lot and for this he received
the Rebbes blessing for a long
life. He, the son, passed away at
the age of 96.
One of the doctors who helped
R Yisroel Noach, by the name
of Ezriel, also merited to receive
warm words from the Rebbe in a
letter published in Igros Kodesh.
R Yisroel Noach lived till the age
of 99 and passed away on 10
Cheshvan 5743/1982 and was
buried on the Mt. of Olives.
May this unique Chassid and
mekushar continue to be a source
of inspiration for us all until the
complete revelation of Moshiach.
Issue 1037

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33

2016-09-06 7:15:22 AM

TZIVOS HASHEM

D OVID THE
POLICEMAN
(OR AD VIS OR)
By Zalman Bin-Nun

The road was nearly empty.

A few cars silently zoomed
by on their way to their
destination. On the right were
tall mountains and on the left
was a gurgling stream. Ahead
was the long, winding road.
We were moving quickly
when suddenly, flickering red
and blue lights blinded us. Loud
sirens could be heard outside
and a particularly irritating
voice announced, The white
Toyota, pull over please.
My father stopped the car
a few meters before the police
car that was parked on the
side of the road. He waited for
the policeman who came over
to the car in a menacing way.
License and registration
please, ordered the policeman.

My father took out a bundle

of papers from the glove
compartment. The policeman
returned to his car and spent
a few minutes there. My father
looked relaxed and said there
was nothing to worry about,
we did nothing wrong.
A short while later the
policeman came back and said,

1037_bm_eng.indd 34

Excuse me sir, ahem You

are free to continue on your
way. That was a spot check
to make sure all was in order.
I am happy to inform you
that we did not find anything
wrong and all your paperwork
is in order. Drive safely.
Thank you! said my
father with a smile and then
he motioned to the policeman
with his finger to wait a
minute. The policeman looked
at him questioningly. My father
gently said, Do you know that
in Yemos HaMoshiach you will
change jobs?
The policeman gave my
father an odd look and said,
First of all, thank you for
telling me. My name is Dovid
and Im pleased to meet you,
Yisroel (he saw my fathers
name on the papers). But why
do you say that? Would they
fire me in Yemos HaMoshiach?
Did you find something wrong
with how I carried out my
responsibilities?
My father was quick to
reassure him. Definitely not!

You did your job just fine,

but picture the wonderful
era of Yemos HaMoshiach, a
world without wars, people
with no problems, everyone
doing what Hashem wants,
nobody even considering doing
anything wrong or forbidden.
Why would we need policemen
when everyone is law abiding?
The policemans forehead
I
thought.
in
furrowed
saying
youre
what
tand
unders
but do you mean to say my job
will be unnecessary and that I
will be unemployed?
answer
fathers
My
policeman.
the
astounded
You have nothing to worry
about. In the Geula, the job
will be different and more
challenging. The job will be
called yoetz-advisor and the
goal will be to advise people
in how to behave properly. I
dont know whether you will
continue wearing your uniform
but you certainly wont have
handcuffs and a gun will be
completely unnecessary.
The policeman smiled and
my father continued. In the

2016-09-06 7:15:23 AM

The policeman looked a the picture and said, I

era we are in right now,
, know him for some time now
we can start living that little despondent. He replied
but I did not know he is the
way and feel how its the For the Geula? How much
we advisor and judge. What does
time of Moshiach. So even longer will it be? How can
that mean to me?
now you can start working know what will take place
will
Simple, said my father.
as an advisor and do less of then and when Moshiach
I
me,
Believe
generations advisor,
come?
y
The
actuall
ing
punish
and
the policing
would do whatever I could if the Rebbe, gave specific
work.
what and how.
instructions about how to
The policeman nodded I knew
My father, who liked bring the Geula process to a
and said, Thats amazing!
ed, successful conclusion.
That is precisely what I was Dovids answer, explain
s
proces
the
of
The policeman was very
arguing with Chaim about. As part
going
is
tion
genera
excited and he took our
Hes my partner in the that our
d
merite
have
we
phone number and arranged
patrol car. Chaim says every through,
time we stop a car and find
a problem, the
driver should pay
the highest fine,
and cars without
problems
any
traffic
and
violations should
be
immediately
sent on so we can
continue catching
wrongdoers.
however,
I,
always say that
we can handle
things differently
these days and
influence drivers
and advise them
genuine to learn these instructions
a
o
on how they ought t
who with my father.
judge
and
advisor
act. When a driver does
the
of
people
the
leads all
He waved goodbye and we
something wrong, I give
to continued on our way. From
path
the
on
tion
genera
and
g
them a serious warnin
Geula. He provides advice that day on, Dovid became
maybe a small fine and I
and instructions in the a regular guest of ours. The
tell them precisely how to
service of Hashem, he gives shiurim that he learned led
beware and how to behave
blessings, and guidance in to his doing good deeds to
the next time. When drivers
all aspects of life. He cares hasten the Geula. When he
have done nothing wrong, I
about every single one of us. understood that the advisor
give them encouragement
This special advisor is known of the generation wants us to
and advise them how to
as the Lubavitcher Rebbe, publicize this, he did so.
continue driving safely.
Melech HaMoshiach.
Not surprisingly, the next
So you didnt actually
happy
was
an
policem
The
time a police car stopped us,
the
to
said
I
know
r. Chaim, Dovids friend, got
familia
ing
someth
hear
to
policeman, that you are
He took a Moshiach card out and with a big smile he
starting to carry out your
with the Rebbes picture on said, I have some advice for
role as advisor for the Geula
it out of his wallet. He kissed you!
shleima.

Issue 1037

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35

2016-09-06 7:15:06 AM