contents

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featured articles WeeKlY cOluMNs

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tHe reBBe KePt His PrOMise

WHat dOes it MeaN tO Be a luBaVitcHer?

Rabbi Yossi Paltiel

4 13 30 33 35 38

Dvar Malchus Parsha Thought Memoirs Shleimus HaAretz Moshiach & Geula Young Chassid

26 He Must HaVe BeeN a Great tzaddiK

Menachem Ziegelboim
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Dvar Malchus

HOW COULD MOSHIACH COME UNEXPECTEDLY?! ALL DAY I AWAIT HIS ARRIVAL!
Bhesech hadaas cannot mean unexpectedly, its literal meaning, for one of the 13 Pillars of Jewish Faith is that I await his arrival [the coming of Moshiach] every day. clearly, anticipating the redemption is something that is encouraged by our sages, contrary to the literal interpretation of this saying... * the time of the redemption is something that necessarily transcends daas, a quantum leap over all rational calculation.
Translated by Boruch Merkur

MOSHIACH: BEYOND REASON

Chukas statute [a law that has no apparent reason] alludes to the transcendence of logic, lmaala mitaam vadaas. The connection of this concept to the redemption is brought to light by the Talmudic dictum (Sanhedrin 97a), There are three things that come bhesech hadaas (literally: unexpectedly): Moshiach, a found item, [and a scorpion]. Here, bhesech hadaas cannot mean unexpectedly, its literal meaning, for one of the 13 Pillars of Jewish Faith is that I await his arrival [the coming of Moshiach] every day. [Clearly, anticipating the redemption is something

that is encouraged by our Sages, contrary to the literal interpretation of this saying.] In fact, three times a day we ask G-d for the redemption in the Shmoneh Esrei prayer: may our eyes behold Your return to Tziyon. Throughout the week [i.e., apart from Shabbos and holidays] we also ask, May the scion of Dovid, Your servant, quickly flourish a prayer and supplication that can also be understood as a promise [i.e., our eyes shall behold Your return to Tziyon, and, the scion of Dovid, Your servant, shall quickly flourish.] The correct meaning of hesech hadaas is transcending daas, transcending the intellect and reason. That is to say, the

daas, the knowledge attainable in our times [the time of exile] is incomparable to the daas that will be revealed with the advent of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, when there will be the fulfillment of the promise, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of G-d You shall all know Me. The above pertains to the unique quality that characterizes the era of redemption, but the same is true regarding the time of the redemption. [That is, the moment when the redemption begins inherently evades prediction.] The time of the redemption is something that necessarily transcends daas, a quantum leap over all rational calculation. Thus we see that when it came to the exodus from Egypt, redeeming the Jewish people on Pesach, the Alm-ghty sprang upon the keitz, the predicted date of redemption redeeming the Jewish people earlier than planned]. (Moreover, also regarding Pesach the term chukas applies, zos chukas haPesach this is the statute of the Pesach [sacrifice] [providing further support to the notion that redemption is connected with transcending calculation and reason].)

4 9 Tammuz 5772

BUT All pREDICTED DATES fOR MOSHIACHS COMINg HAvE pASSED!

True, even according to the calculations and predictions of the kitzin, the dates forecasting the redemption, Moshiach should already have come by now. Many centuries have passed since the time regarding which it was said, kalu kol hakitzin all predicted dates for Moshiachs coming have passed. In fact, now we have already completed all aspects of the service of G-d, including polishing the buttons, as stated by my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, leader of the generation. And this is especially the case in the wake of Jews serving G-d in manner of chukas Bchukosai teileichu you shall

Alef the Alufo Shel Olam, G-d, Master of the Universe making it geula. However, the main thing is that the redemption should come about immediately mamash, literally, and bpoel mamash, in physical reality, in accordance with all the interpretations of the word mamash, including the connotation suggested by the OUR TIMES: AN ERA THAT expression mishus bayadayim feeling with the hands (i.e., IS pURE AND SANCTIfIED tangible reality), literally But all of this indicates within the Express service physical world. The Express service the especial connection of the Fully redemption shall indeed take FullyComputerized Computerized redemption to the present time, place within the yesh hanivra, an auspicious time, a time that is created existence, which unites Ave.Ave. 331 Kingston 331 Kingston pure and sanctified for the true with the yesh haamiti,nd Flr) Brooklyn NY 11213 (2nd(2 the true Flr) Brooklyn NY 11213 and complete redemption. It is existent Being, G-d Himself. in our time that we transform (From the address of Shabbos gola exile into geula Get your tickets within minutes! Get your tickets within minutes! Parshas Chukas, 7 Tammuz 5750, redemption, by means of Fax: (718) muga) Fax: (718) 493-4444 bilti 493-4444 drawing down, into gola, the walk in my statutes referring to serving G-d in a manner of self-sacrifice, transcending reason. Indeed, the Rebbe Rayatz, my father-in-law, stated that the service of this generation our deeds and our service, the deeds and service of our generation is characterized by self-sacrifice. []

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Issue 839

ProFIle

THE REBBE KEPT HIS PROMISE

This is the story of Aimee Cohen and her sons Yakir and Sagi. Its a story that began in a Chabad school in Morocco and continued with a personal connection to the Rebbe a letter and a special yechidus. THIRTEEN MINUTES IN YECHIDUS
Aimee Cohen was born in Safi, Morocco. Like many Jewish girls, she attended the Alliance school for teachers. When she graduated, she took a job at Beis Rivka in Casablanca, run by the shliach at the time R Yehuda Leib (Leibel) Raskin ah. Chabad schools at the time were desperate for professional and dedicated employees, and Aimee met the requirements. She became the girls madricha and was responsible for the secular studies curriculum. The challenge was enormous. The small staff had to deal with many students, some of whom did not know the basics of religious observant life. There were also discipline problems. Yet, the young madricha knew how to gain the girls cooperation. It was a pleasure to see the girls sitting and reciting the brachos together before and after meals, under her direction. Life wasnt easy for Aimee. She was orphaned of her father. Although she was of marriageable age, she hadnt yet succeeded in finding a husband. It was as an employee in a Chabad school that her personal relationship with the Rebbe began. In 5727 she received her first letter from the Rebbe. After a number of years of working in the Chabad mosdos, she went to the Rebbe in Sivan 5728/1968. R Raskin arranged yechidus for her, and he gave the Rebbe a report about her work. The Rebbe was sent a picture of 400 students sitting in the dining room and bentching under her guidance.

R Yakir TzemachHaKohen with his son Toim

She had yechidus for thirteen minutes. Much of what was said during that meeting she has not repeated till this day, even to her family. The Rebbe began by praising her for her work and said he had received very positive reports about her devotion to her students. Then she asked the Rebbe about her burning issue: shidduchim. The Rebbe told her, Change your location; change your mazal. Then he gave her

6 9 Tammuz 5772

a bracha that she marry and said, You will have Chassidishe children and grandchildren.

RABBI RASKINS TEN RUlES fOR A CHASSAN

Aimee returned to Morocco. She understood from the Rebbes answer that she should make aliya. R Raskin was sorry to see her go. He provided her with letters of recommendation that would help her as she continued

her education and looked for work in Eretz Yisroel. At the end of 5729 she made aliya together with her mother. First, she went back to school so she could get a teachers diploma that was recognized in Eretz Yisroel. Throughout this time, until she married, R Raskin kept in touch with her. He encouraged her to continue the Chassidic lifestyle she began in Morocco. R Raskins letters show his devotion to those who worked

alongside him, his Chassidic outlook, and his fiery hiskashrus to the Rebbe. An especially fascinating letter is one that he wrote that contains Ten Commandments for looking for a chassan. This is what he wrote (translation): BH 2 Kislev 5731 Casablanca, Morocco To Ms. Aimee Cohen, Blessings and Peace!

Issue 839

ProFIle
Many thanks for your invitation to visit you, and G-d willing the time will come for that too. I did not understand precisely which mosad you are in now; because if the advantage of the school is that they eat kosher, that is not enough, because the main thing is the environment, who the teachers are, etc. I would be interested in knowing how much time you need to stay there in order to get the certificates you need. As for the boy you met, it is hard for me to write opinions from a distance, especially when I dont know him. The first problem, that he is younger than you, is not bad, but the second problem is more significant. Since you write that you have a solution for this, that he will accept what you want, that is something else. I would like to ask some questions about this boy: 1 Whether he commits to put on tfillin daily, 2 To keep the laws of family purity as is written in Shulchan Aruch, 3-To daven three times a day, Shacharis, Mincha, Maariv, 4-To keep Shabbos, to cover his head, and to wear tzitzis, 5-To have set times to learn Torah, mainly laws about how to be a Jew, and 6-That he agree for you to wear a wig. 7-When Hashem gives you children, whether he agrees to educate them and raise them to Torah and mitzvos, 8-(Since you are already Lubavitch-Chabad) Whether or not he agrees that your lives be run according to the ways of Chassidus and mainly as per the Rebbes instructions, 9-If he has in fact accepted

R Matusofs letter of recommendation for Aimee Cohen

R Raskin in Beis Rivka in Casablanca

I received your letter from the month of Elul after I returned from America. I had a lot to do in Beis Rivka and did not find the time to write to you until today, mainly to respond to all your questions to the best of my ability. You write that your best years were when you were in Beis Rivka. I agree with you 100%, because Lubavitcher mosdos that are under the Rebbes leadership have a unique magnetism especially for those who are as devoted to the mosad with all their might as you were.

8 9 Tammuz 5772

to conduct himself as such as of right now, then write to the Rebbe about all the details as well as the commitments you have made and ask his opinion if this is your match. (As for your saying that you wrote about this before and still did not receive an answer, that is not terrible since many people have lately not received an answer to their letters. You can mention in your letter that you wrote previously and still did not receive a response, and you can mention that you already met the Rebbe and that you worked in Beis Rivka in Morocco.) 10-All this should be with joy and without any pressures, and it would be good if you had a connection with a Chabad Chassid (maybe my sisters sonin-law and his wife who live in Kiryat Malachi Shikun Nachalat Har Chabad; his name is R Yehoshua Mondshine) who will help you with the serious problem. I think that through the Ten Commandments points that I wrote, you can decide what to do and may Hashem help you that all your decisions be good. With that I will conclude with the hope that everything works out well for you and that you write about what is happening with you. And in whatever way we can help, we will do so very happily. With blessings for everything good, materially and spiritually, Yehuda Leib Raskin P.S. Special regards from Mrs. Raskin and the children

The Rebbes letter to Aimee Cohen

R RASKIN REpORTS ABOUT THE fAIlED COUp

The shidduch referred to in that letter did not work out. Aimee, who was upset by this, wrote to R Raskin who responded in a letter dated Shevat 5731. The following are

excerpts from the letter in which he mentions how he misses the atmosphere that she helped create at the school: Dont be downhearted, for surely he was not your match. We Jewish people believe in G-d and everything G-d does is for the good; we just need patience. Over here there is not much new. There is much work. This year, 123 new students registered in Beis Rivka, so the total number of students is 400. We need a lot of reinforcements, especially suitable madrichot during lunch time. Whoever walks in to pay a visit during the noontime meal recalls the work you did. Now, every week, we publicize

a sicha of the Rebbe in French. I was able to obtain a copying machine and I organize all the work at Beis Rivka, and we send about 1500 copies every week to every school and shul. We set a price for the year at 5 dirham. Enclosed is the last sicha we put together here. He thanks her for the news that at the end of the year she will receive a teachers certificate, that is really nice. In a letter dated Erev Rosh HaShana 5732, R Raskin begins in the usual way: The situation is as always, there is a lot of work and we lack good teachers, especially madrichot, but then he tells her what preceded the usual situation.
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ProFIle
We were thrilled to hear the happy news about your marriage. A special thank you for the pictures that everyone was happy to see. Thank G-d, your happy day arrived and your personal life is settling into a routine. Yes, its a pity I was not present at your wedding, yet it is only physically that place and time separate us, but spiritually, there is no separation In any case, after all is said and done we rejoiced here and drank lchaim to you. Surely you and your husband will not mind if I ask about the Ten Commandments (as you refer to them), especially when now there is the added detail of family life in which one must be exceedingly careful in matters of purity etc. in order to merit to raise generations of Jews in the way of holiness and purity. I would be happy to receive a letter from your husband too about what his outlook on religion is etc. Surely you wrote to the Rebbe; and if you havent, it is not too late to ask for his bracha (especially when the Rebbe expressed one to you years ago). Over here there is nothing particularly new. The saying Much work, a lack of people, numerous problems from day to day always applies, but thank G-d we have upon whom to rely, our Father in Heaven, and His faithful servant the Rebbe who always gives us strength, encouragement, and courage R Raskin couldnt do more than write and encourage her. Unfortunately, the young Cohen family did not live a religiously observant life and the children were sent to secular schools. There were children and grandchildren, but they certainly were not Chassidish.

The Ten Commandments in R Raskins letter

Surely you heard what happened here regarding the coup that, thank G-d, failed. The king remains on his throne and may Hashem help him continue to rule. For those who were not here it is impossible to describe the great miracles that Hashem did for us. If, G-d forbid, the opposing side was successful, they would have simply, heaven forbid, made an end to the Jewish people (that is what they planned based on papers that were found afterward), but the Guardian of

Israel does not slumber nor sleep.

CHIlDREN AND gRANDCHIlDREN, BUT NOT (YET) CHASSIDISH

Aimee finally found her shidduch and married in 5732. From the reports he received from her, R Raskin sensed that leaving a Chassidic environment and not having a connection with Chassidim in Eretz Yisroel had had a negative effect on her. He wrote her:

10 9 Tammuz 5772

WHO WAS THE RABBI IN THE DREAM?

Their oldest son, Yakir Tzemach, was born in Beit Shaan. After graduating elementary school, he went to a middle school on kibbutz Beit Zera in the Jordan Valley. It certainly could not be described as providing a Jewish education. For high school he attended the naval academy near Netanya in the seamans track. Upon completing his army service, he married and studied economics and business management. He lived in the Kiryat Eliezer neighborhood of Haifa. One morning, Yakir woke up remembering a disturbing dream that he had during the night. He was standing facing an old rabbi who was sitting behind a wooden desk. The wall behind him was wood-paneled and the rabbi looked at him for a long time. Yakir had no idea who the rabbi was, nor could he identify where the rabbi was. As a rational person who did not believe in mysticism, he tried to forget about it. However, for four nights in a row he had the same dream. This was disturbing to him, and he began talking to people he knew about the dream. No one could explain it to him. At the end of the week, on Motzaei Shabbos, Yakir dreamt about the old rabbi again. This time, the rabbi was standing and praying and Yakir was standing next to him. Yakir couldnt take it any more and asked his brother Sagi for help. Although Sagi was also not religious, as a child he had been interested in religion and he had even spent a few years in yeshiva. This is why Yakir thought Sagi could be of help to him.

Yakir (right) with his mashpia, R Shmuel Frumer, at a Chassidishe farbrengen

Yakir knew from a psychology course he had taken that it was not possible to dream about something one had never seen. It bothered him that he did not recognize anything he had seen in his dream. THATS THE RABBI fROM MY DREAM!
A week later, Yakir had a dream in which he saw himself standing near the same rabbi in prayer. He remembers three words the rabbi said: Es Tzemach Dovid. Yakir couldnt place those words (which are from the Shmoneh Esrei). Not only hadnt he davened in his life, he had no idea what the Shmoneh Esrei is and how to use a Siddur. The one thing that sounded familiar was the word that was part of his family name Tzemach HaKohen. Yakir reported to his brother, who promised to look into the matter. Yakir couldnt put it out of his mind because every night that week he had the same dream. That week, Sagi went to a store called HaMatzliach. He is a computer technician and he was
Issue 839

Sagi asked him to describe the rabbi and Yakir said, He had a white beard and a hat... His brother smiled and said, All the rabbis look like that. Sagi suggested that Yakir visit various rabbis in Bnei Brak and Yerushalayim. Yakir did so, but the rabbis had no idea what to tell him. Although they had white beards and hats, none of them looked like the man he saw in his dreams. Yakir knew from a psychology course he had taken that it was not possible to dream about something one had never seen. It bothered him that he did not recognize anything he had seen in his dream. He told his brother that nobody knew what to tell him and that he had had enough and would stop thinking about it. Then he had the dream again, for the sixth time.

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ProFIle
asked to fix a printer. When he walked into the store he felt he had landed in another world. A man with a large yarmulke and a long white beard greeted him. On the spur of the moment, he decided to tell the man about his brothers recurring dreams. The man listened and then said, Send your brother to me. The bearded man in the store was R Shmuel Frumer, a shliach in Krayot who has brought hundreds of people closer to the Rebbe. Sagi reported to Yakir that there was a man who was willing to help. It took Yakir, who was busy with work over his head, an entire week until he was able to arrange a time to meet. He finally appeared one morning as the store opened. Yakir told R Frumer about his odd, recurring dreams. R Frumer went to the side of the store and took an envelope from his jacket pocket which had inside it a Mincha-Maariv siddur. In the binding was a picture which he showed to me. Yakir nearly fell off his chair. That was the man from his dream! And he appeared the same way in the picture as he had in the dream, with a wood-paneled wall behind him. Yakir had been seeing the Rebbe in 770. the world. R Frumer explained that this Rebbe also has demands that he makes of every Jew, and Yakir drank it all in. That day, Yakir committed to beginning to keep Torah and mitzvos. This was Sivan, a few days before his birthday on 8 Sivan (even this information was newly discovered during their meeting). Yakir began visiting the shul in his neighborhood, but he had no idea what to do in a shul. He was an intelligent person, a former naval officer in a managerial position with an academic degree, but when he stepped into the shul, it all seemed to be taking place in Chinese. When they told him for the first time to take a Chumash, he asked what that was. Then he learned that there is another book called a siddur. He was starting from zero. With his characteristic stubbornness, he overcame the difficulties. The local shliach, R Yossi Lifsh, helped him. Within a short time, Yakir made up a gap of years. He soon began wearing a kippa, his beard began to grow, and he started wearing a suit and sirtuk. He did all this under the guidance of R Frumer. He didnt miss any of his shiurim or farbrengens. He also spent a lot of time talking to him. Like his mother, Yakir decided to change his location in order to change his mazal. He moved from Haifa to Krayot and switched his three children to Chabad schools. His son Toim is a Tamim and his daughters Bareket and Maayan are Achos Tmimim. Sagi began following his example. His difficulties were less in the realm of knowledge and more in the practical implementation of Halacha. Hardest of all was to decide to run his family life as the Torah requires of a Kohen. After long conversations with R Frumer, he mustered the strength to make his move, and a short while later he started a beautiful kosher family.

THE REBBE KEpT HIS pROMISE

A few months later in Tishrei, Yakir went to the Rebbe together with his mashpia R Frumer. He was thrown straight into the intensity of 770 the huge crowd, the tfillos, the dancing at the Simchas Beis HaShoeiva, and the washing machine of Simchas Torah. The organized administrator discovered that it wasnt that bad to sleep at night on a mattress on the floor next to other Chassidim. The miracles began as soon as they began their preparations for the trip. It was right after the Twin Towers had fallen and the United States had toughened up the requirements for a visa. Miraculously, Yakir received his visa within half an hour. Simchas Torah is what is etched deepest into his memory. Although on Sukkos he broke his leg and had to have it put in a cast, he stood on the pyramid and watched in fascination as thousands of people danced for hours. Being a Kohen, he went up to duchan in the Rebbes minyan and trembled in excitement over the enormous zchus. The bearded man with the hat and Moshiach flag in the lapel of his sirtuk, who is strictly observant, along with his children and nephews, leave no room for doubt: the Rebbe kept his promise. Aimee Cohen has Chassidishe children and grandchildren.

CHASSIDISHE CHIlDREN AND gRANDCHIlDREN

Yakir sat and spoke with R Frumer for seven hours, from eight in the morning until three in the afternoon. He learned that he hadnt dreamed about just any rabbi, but about the Rebbe. They spoke about who this Rebbe is, the Nasi and Navi of the generation and Moshiach, whose very purpose of being is the revelation of Atzmus UMehus in

12 9 Tammuz 5772

Parsha thought

THE MOTHER OF ALL EXISTENCE

By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

THE UlTIMATE ENIgMA

This weeks parsha introduces a mitzvah-commandment that is described by the Torah as the ultimate enigma. This is the ritual of the para aduma-the Red Heifer. This ritual involved a person who had come in contact with a dead body who is thereby rendered tamei. This word, which defies translation, describes the diminished spiritual state of this individual. To purify oneself, the Torah commands us to take a completely red cow, slaughter it, burn it, mix the ashes with spring water and sprinkle this mixture on the affected person on the third and seventh day after his defilement. In describing this ritual, the parsha begins with the words: This is the statute of the Torah. The Hebrew word for statute is chukka, which our Sages state connotes a commandment for which there is no rational explanation. Generally speaking, the 613 Biblical mitzvos have been divided into three categories: mishpatim, eidos and chukim. Mishpatim are the rational commandments. Had the Torah not been given, we would have anticipated these mitzvos. Included in this category are the commandments against theft and murder. Eidos are the testimonial commandments that are dedicated to remembering

historical events or ideals. Observing the Shabbos is a reminder of G-ds creating the world, Passover is a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt and a Mezuzah is a reminder of G-ds constant protection of our home, etc. And though we might not have thought of these Mitzvos ourselves, once they were given to us they made sense. They are quite logical and reasonable. Chukim are the transrational commandments for which no reason is given and we cannot rationalize. And of all the commandments that are in this category, the one that stands out as being the most enigmatic is the focus of this weeks parsha: the ritual of the Para Aduma. Thus the parsha begins: This is the statute of the Torah, to underscore that this is the ultimate irrational commandment. Rashi, the principal Bible commentator, encapsulates all of the above in his opening comment: Because Satan and the nations of the world taunt Israel, saying, What is this commandment, and what purpose does it have? Therefore, the Torah uses the term statute. I have decreed it; You have no right to challenge it.

comment, seems to contradict himself when he offers a rather rational explanation for this Mitzvah in the name of Rabbi Moshe HaDarshan: This can be compared to the child of a maidservant who soiled the kings palace. They said, Let his mother come and clean up the mess. Similarly, let the cow come and atone for the calf. In other words, the Red Heifer (the mother) was the atonement for the sin of the golden calf (the child). This explanation would appear to place this ritual in the category of eidos/a testimony. The mother cow that is used in this ritual reminds us of the sin of the golden calf, [and that] it comes as an atonement [for it] just as a mother cleans up her childs mess. Why then is this mitzvah characterized as the ultimate enigma when it conveys a very reasonable symbolic message?

THE ENIgMA Of TSHUvA

Rabbi Dovber, the Maggid of Mezritch (the successor to the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of the Chassidic movement) explains that it is not the Red Cow itself that is the enigma. Rather the enigma is the whole concept that the person can find atonement through the Red Cow
Issue 839

MOTHER ClEANINg Up HER CHIlDS MESS

Yet, Rashi, in a subsequent

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Parsha thought

It is no wonder that the numerical value of the this negatively transformative experience. word Moshiach is the same as the word serpent (nachash). Only in the Messianic Age will we be totally REvERSINg THE REvERSAl cleansed of every trace of the impurity introduced by To elaborate: When G-d gave us the Torah, He gave us the original nachash/serpent.
and the process of Tshuva. One would have expected that the person who sins has severed his ties with his very G-dly source of life. If a person were to fatally injure himself, would mere remorse for his action bring him back to life? A transgression is a self-inflicted fatal injury. And yet, G-d has provided for the process of Tshuva (usually translated as repentance, but more accurately as return). This, the Maggid explains, is what our Sages meant when they stated that Tshuva preceded the creation of the world. The world itself that is governed by the rules of nature were preceded by a higher force; the power of overriding the natural system of cause and effect. Thus, the great Kabbalist, the Arizal, states that Tshuva is the supernal mother. Just as a mother precedes and is the source of the life of her child, so too Tshuva precedes and indeed sustains and nurtures the world. Tshuva is the mother of existence. The analogy of a mother for Tshuva explains Rashis comparison of the Red Heifer to the mother who cleans her soiled child. It represents the power of Tshuvathe mother of all existenceto remove the stain of transgression from the child. And it is this power of Tshuva, [that is] highlighted and represented by the Red Cow, that is the real enigma. The power of Tshuva is indeed one that transcends the bounds of logic and nature.

WHY SINglE OUT THE RED HEIfER?

One may still raise the question. The story of the Red Heifer is not the only time the Torah refers to Tshuva. Indeed, a good portion of the Book of Leviticus is about sacrifices that atone for our sins. What is so unique about this specific sacrifice? Why is this indirect reference to Tshuvai.e., the Red Cow that represents the mother who cleans the mess of her childrenthe one that is characterized as the ultimate enigma of Torah? The sin of the golden calf was not just one of the mostif not the mostserious violations of G-ds commandments, it was a total reversal of the entire process of bringing life to the world. In the very first day of creation of Adam and Eve, they dealt a crushing blow to life by listening to the seditious advice of the serpent and partaking of the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. When the Torah was given at Sinai, our Sages tell us, impurity and death departed from our world. That situation lasted only until the Jews worshipped the golden calf. That transgression reversed the life sustaining revelation of Sinai. The golden calf debacle was more than just a colossal failing; the entire Sinai phenomenon was undercut by

the capacity to bring eternal life to the world. The physical dimension of life would exist in tandem with the spiritual. As a result of the sin of the golden calf, we will not be able to restore eternal life until the Messianic Age when the world will be totally rid of all the negative influences. It is no wonder that the numerical value of the word Moshiach is the same as the word serpent (nachash). Only in the Messianic Age we will be totally cleansed of every trace of the impurity introduced by the original nachash/serpent. And while we have to wait for Moshiach to reverse the negativity of the golden calf, that process began with the introduction of the Red Heifer ritual. That introduced not just the power of Tshuva, but the power of Tshuva to bring about the complete reversal of the reversal caused by the golden calf. When we were told that the ritual of the Para Aduma is like the mother that can clean up the mess of the children, we discovered that we can connect to a primordial mother power that transcends, and can therefore mend, even our damaged connection to G-d, through Torah.

THE fOUR RESpONSES TO SIN

Our Sages tell us that there are four responses to sin: Wisdom says, Let the person who sinned be pursued by his own sin.

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Wisdom and logic dictate that negative behavior begets negative results. Prophecy says, Let the sinner die. Prophecy is the ultimate manifestation of ones spirituality. The laws of spirituality dictate that when we degrade ourselves and sever our connections to the spiritual realms, we are in effect severing our life line. Physical life is nurtured by its spiritual source. Torah says, Let the sinner bring a sacrifice and he will be atoned for.

Torah knowledge, which transcends even the spiritual sources of life, provides the sinner with a mitigating defense by suggesting that it is the animal in us that causes us to sin. Thus, the animal sacrifice is Torahs way of reducing the severity of the transgression. The Holy one blessed is He says, Let him do Tshuva and he will be atoned for. Tshuva, thus, transcends our connection to G-d through Torah. Tshuva not only gives and restores life, it even removes

every trace of impurity that a sacrifice cannot. To do Tshuva is to connect to the G-dly energy that preceded and transcended creation, just as Moshiach, our Sages say, transcends and precedes creation. We can now understand why the Red Heifer is the ultimate enigma of Torah. Its message of Tshuva and its reversal of the golden calf decline represent the enigmatic G-dly energy of the pre-creation past and of the Messianic Age future.

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FarBrengen

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A LUBAVITCHER?

The following is a transcript of a farbrengen by Rabbi Yossi Paltiel last year in Melbourne, Australia in honor of Yud-Beis Tammuz. WHAT A REBBE!
Tonight is Yud-Beis Tammuz, which is both the Rebbe Rayatzs birthday and his Chag HaGeula, the day that he declared to be the Yom Tov of his redemption. When the Rebbe Rayatz was a child, he was apparently something of a prankster. R Dovid Shifrin, a Lubavitcher Chassid who lived in America, recalled how the Chassidim used to say, The Rebbe [Rashab] has one son, and hes a troublemaker. R Dovid distinctly remembered how when the Rebbe Rayatz was two or three years old, he did an experiment. He took some snuff, and put it up a goats nose to see how it would react. It was a pathetic sight, to say the least. How could such a child become a Rebbe? one of the elder Chassidim asked. Yet, R Dovid Shifrin used to say, When [the Rebbe Rayatz] grew up, he became a Rebbe and what a Rebbe! I had a schoolteacher, Rabbi Fuchs, who came from the Belarusian city of Dzisna. He once told me the following story: When he was a child, he had an old melamed named R Chaim.

n a cold winter morning in Moscow, a rumor spread in town that a shipment of meat was due to arrive at one of the local butcher shops. Naturally, hundreds of people were soon in line, well before dawn, waiting several hours for this store to open its doors so that they could spend what few rubles they had to buy a couple of pounds of meat. When the doors finally opened at eight in the morning, they immediately announced that unfortunately there wouldnt be enough meat for everybody. As a result, they declared, the Jews might as well go home now. The Jews obediently complied. People continued to wait, and the meat still hadnt arrived. Finally, three hours later, at eleven oclock, they announced again that when the meat would come, there wouldnt be enough for everybody. Consequently, anyone who was not a member of the Communist Party was

requested to leave the line. The afternoon came, and at two oclock there was still no meat. As people continued to wait anxiously, there was a new announcement: Since there still wouldnt be enough meat, all those who didnt fight in the Great Patriotic War should go home. The line now shrank further. Then, at five oclock, the meat was finally coming, but there wouldnt be enough for all those who fought in the Great Patriotic War. Therefore, those who werent involved in the campaign to defeat the terrible Czechs were requested to please leave the line. Now, there was only a handful of geriatrics left. Finally, at eleven oclock at night, they were told that the meat was not coming after all. As the disgruntled old men crawled away, they said, You know, the Jews always seem to get the best of everything...

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He was the main teacher in Dzisna, and he was a Kapuster Chassid. Kapuster Chassidus no longer exists, but it was once a branch of Chabad. At one time, Chabad had four branches, one of them being the smaller branch of Lubavitch. During the half century between the 1860s and the First World War, Chabad was diversified into four groups. The Tzemach Tzedeks children moved away from Lubavitch and opened up their own outlets of Chassidus. When he was a young man, R Chaim was sent by his rebbe R Zalman Kapuster to Lubavitch to convey a message to his first cousin, the Rebbe Rashab, the father of the Rebbe Rayatz. The Rebbe Rayatz was then about four or five years old, and he was running around and having a great time. After R Chaim completed his mission in Lubavitch and gave his message to the Rebbe Rashab, he came out and saw this little boy. It was immediately clear to him that this was no ordinary child, and he asked to know who this boy was. Upon being told that this was the Rebbes son, he walked up to him and said, Shalom Aleichem, I am Chaim, the melamed from

How could such a child become a Rebbe? one of the elder Chassidim asked. Yet, R Dovid Shifrin used to say, When [the Rebbe Rayatz] grew up, he became a Rebbe and what a Rebbe!
the case during a circumcision, the Rebbe Rayatz cried. The Rebbe Maharash looked at him and said, Why are you crying? When you grow up, youll be a Rebbe, and youll say Chassidus clearly and lucidly.

Dzisna. Fifty years passed, the Rebbe Rayatz assumed the leadership of Chabad-Lubavitch and eventually went through the experience of his imprisonment and subsequent release. During the thirties, after leaving the Soviet Union, he frequently visited various parts of Europe, and he came to the Lithuanian capital of Vilna, not too far from Dzisna. By this time, R Chaim was an old man, his own rebbe had long since passed away, and he thought to himself, Kapust may be in competition with Lubavitch, but Im no fool. When will I have another opportunity to see a Rebbe? He journeyed to Vilna and made an appointment to see the Rebbe Rayatz. As he entered the Rebbes room, the Rebbe stood up and said, Shalom Aleichem, Chaim, the melamed from Dzisna. At the Rebbe Rayatzs bris, his grandfather the Rebbe Maharash was the sandek. As is normally

A pACT fOR MESIRUS NEfESH

Of all the Lubavitcher Rebbes, I think that the one whose life had the least private and personal element was the Rebbe Rayatz. The Previous Rebbes life was indescribably challenging. From his earliest years, his experience was one of dedication to other people, to the community. I remember that when I was a child, my father told me the following story, and it made me feel really bad for the Rebbe Rayatz. When the Rebbe Rayatz was fifteen years old, he used to travel with his father away from Lubavitch for weeks at a
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Thus, at the Ohel of his holy father and grandfather, THE REBBE BElONgS TO the Rebbe Rashab made a covenant with his THE CHASSIDIM AND HE WIll pREvAIl young son that he would be prepared, if necessary, to You may recall the terribly sacrifice his life for the Jewish People. painful affair over the Rebbe
time. According to the Rebbe Rayatz, the official reasons given were regarding medical purposes, but the real issue was that his father wanted to spend time with him alone. He said that the Rebbe Rashab had a ritual: Each Monday, they would leave the dacha where they were staying, travel to Lubavitch, and pay a weekly visit to the Rebbe Rashabs mother, the Rebbetzin Rivka, to fulfill the mitzvah of kibud eim. He would make her a cup of tea, and sit and farbreng with her. Sometimes when he was away from Lubavitch, he would come home just for the weekly tea on Monday, and then return to wherever he was at the time. One Monday morning, after the Rebbe Rayatz finished davening Shacharis, he traveled to Lubavitch with his father, and made the customary visit to see his grandmother. The Rebbe Rashab sat and chatted with her for a while, made her a cup of tea, and then they got into the wagon for the trip back to the dacha. The next day, a Tuesday, the Rebbe Rashab told his son that they were going back to Lubavitch. When the boy asked why, his father replied that since it was his fifteenth birthday, he wanted to take him on this Tuesday to the Ohel of his grandfather and great-grandfather, the Tzemach Tzedek and the Rebbe Maharash. When they arrived there, the Rebbe Rashab told his fifteenyear old son, the future Rebbe Rayatz, I have decided that from this moment forward, you are going to be my personal secretary, my right-hand man, in all matters of community service. I have brought you here to make with you an Akeida, similar to what Avraham Avinu did with his son, Yitzchak. Thus, at the Ohel of his holy father and grandfather, the Rebbe Rashab made a covenant with his young son that he would be prepared, if necessary, to sacrifice his life for the Jewish People. For all intents and purposes, the Rebbe Rayatz ceased to have a private life from that moment on. He was totally involved, from head to foot, in all the tremendous suffering endured by Russian Jewry at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century. His father didnt make a move without him. I was reared on self-sacrifice, the Rebbe Rayatz said later. Theres one interesting aspect to this story: When the Rebbe Rashab was fifteen years old, his father, the Rebbe Maharash, made no such covenant with him. Similarly, the Tzemach Tzedek did not do this with the Rebbe Maharash when the latter reached this age. The Rebbe MHM largely had a private life until the age of forty. I cannot think of another Rebbe who was essentially sacrificed upon the altar of public service and dedication to world Jewry at such an early age. It is undeniably true that the Rebbe Rayatzs entire life was devoted to others.

Rayatzs sfarim. The Rebbe and the Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka were engaged in a struggle with their own sister [in-law] and nephew. We call it Didan Natzach, but for the Rebbe and the Rebbetzin, it was an incredibly agonizing and personal episode. They were involved in a very serious and intense conflict with the people closest to them. The Rebbetzin was called upon to testify in the famous court case, and was even subjected to cross-examination by the opposing side. The lawyers asked her, What did your father own? What did he possess as personal property? My father owned nothing, the Rebbetzin replied, tallis and tfillin perhaps. At the end of the deposition, she made her famous statement of, My father belonged to the Chassidim, he belonged to the Jewish People. The remarkable story of the Rebbe Rayatzs life and his tremendous self-sacrifice is indeed a tragic and painful one. It represents the story of Jewish suffering, bloodshed, and loss of identity. He had an unbreakable principle that you dont give up. Its not a question of winning or losing; its a question of not stopping. The Rebbe understood that he was fighting a losing battle, but he continued to fight it on principle. If you read the descriptions of the story of the Rebbe Rayatz on Yud-Beis Tammuz, you get the very distinct impression that he did not expect to survive the ordeal. The end results were a total shock to him. He acted

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with complete self-sacrifice al Kiddush Hashem, advocating that his followers do the same. This was a time of terrible religious persecution, and he saw that his redemption was not due to the Soviets. This was a direct message from G-d: You will prevail. If not today, tomorrow; but you will prevail.

A SHORTAgE Of SIfREI TORAH IN RUSSIA?

As we stand here today, the world is certainly not a perfect place, but we now understand the story of Yud-Beis Tammuz that started nearly eighty-five years ago. Could anyone have imagined that there would come a time when there would be a shortage of Torah scrolls in Russia? When Rabbi Hollander ah visited the Soviet Union in 1960, someone took him into a synagogue in Leningrad and showed him a pile of hundreds of Torah scrolls, lying one on top of another in the basement. Take them, his companion told him. Theyll go to waste here. Upon his return home to New York, Rabbi Hollander went in for yechidus with the Rebbe and told him about this discovery. Since Eretz Yisroel has a terrible shortage of Torah scrolls, why shouldnt we just transport them from Russia? Dont touch them, the Rebbe replied. There will come a time when Russia will have to import Torah scrolls. Its taken a while, but the Rebbe saw his victory over the Russian bear as a victory for Yiddishkait to flourish in the same place where it had once been so severely suppressed, defiled, crushed, and destroyed. When someone becomes a Rebbe, its a great thing for his Chassidim. However, for the

After he gave her the details of the entire episode, the Rebbetzin said, I dont know whats happened to him. I gave birth to him, I raised him, but I dont recognize him anymore. Every night after yechidus, theres a puddle of tears on the floor...

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Rebbe himself, it isnt that much fun. When the Rebbe Rashab was a little boy, before he could even speak clearly, he would say, I dont want to be a yebbe [sic]. Theres only one yebbe, but there are lots of Chassidim. In other words, being a Rebbe is a rather lonely position. When the Rebbe Rashab passed away, he left clear instructions for his son the Rebbe Rayatz in his will. In regard to the standard functions of the Rebbe in Lubavitch strengthening the yeshiva, teaching Chassidus to the Chassidim, encouraging Chassidim to serve G-d according to the principles of Chabad, such as davening with kavana, etc. this was his mandate and his mission. It is well known that Chabad Rebbeim never attracted very large audiences. This was not an issue for them, as they didnt see themselves as the Rebbes of the masses. They wanted to be the Rebbes of the rabbanim, the mashpiim, the roshei yeshiva, the teachers, the shochtim, etc. In other words, the leaders of each shtetl traveled to Lubavitch, absorbed chassidus, came home to their communities, and shared their experience. Unlike other Chassidic sects, in Lubavitch, if there were two to three hundred people coming for Yom Tov, then that was a lot of people. started receiving letters. A rabbi was jailed in one city, a second one ran away from his post, a third one quit, and he discovered that Judaism in Russia was in a rapid state of collapse. Where are the rabbanim? he said to himself. Where are the Jewish leaders? Where are the people whose job it is to stand up to this oppression and aggression? The answer: They were afraid for their own lives. Thus, the Rebbe Rayatz decided to put aside his own personal endeavors and to see what he could do to stop the tide of abandonment and resignation. This marked the beginning of his efforts of total devotion and selfsacrifice in the Soviet Union. In 1922-1923, he called in a few people, and sent them throughout the length and breadth of Soviet Russia on reconnaissance missions. They went to every city, and they had to report back to the Rebbe on the number of Jewish residents, functioning synagogues, regular participants in prayer services, mikvaos, chadarim, etc. One can be sure that when they returned from these missions, they didnt have much good news to report. There was a Chassid named R Simcha Gorodetzky, who spent the final years of his life in Eretz Yisroel. At this time R Simcha was in his late teens, a bachur in Tomchei Tmimim, when he suddenly became very ill. The doctors said that there was no chance for him to recover, giving him no more than a couple of months to live. As a result, the yeshiva told him to go home. Why should I go home? he asked. Well, dont you think youd like to see your family? they said. Listen, I can die here too, you know, he replied. Id rather stay in the yeshiva. He liked the energy and vitality of Tomchei Tmimim, and while he was too weak to learn, he preferred to spend his final days there. Someone told all this to the Rebbe Rayatz, who immediately called R Simcha in for yechidus. Such sentiments represented the very essence of the Rebbes philosophy on life. Listen, the Rebbe told him, youre too weak to learn and youre not going home. Ill make you my shliach. R Simcha lived well into his eighties. Apparently, the doctors were slightly off in their life expectancy predictions.

YECHIDUS IN A flOOD Of TEARS

R Simcha used to travel all over Russia on the Rebbe Rayatzs shlichus. Once he came to a certain city, and he met with many different people. When they heard that he would be going back to see the Rebbe, they told him, Please tell the Rebbe that I lost my job. Please tell the Rebbe that Ive been threatened. Please tell the Rebbe that I have no work. Please tell the Rebbe that I want to give up the rabbinate because I dont want to lose my children, etc. There wasnt one piece of good news. R Simcha returned to Rostov, and he went to yechidus with the Rebbe Rayatz, holding this list of issues. Part of R Simchas job was to inform the Rebbe about what was happening all over Russia and to give reports on any personal requests he was asked to submit to the Rebbe. He starts reading out of his notebook, and the Rebbe suddenly begins to shed a torrent of tears, sobbing uncontrollably. After the Rebbe Rayatz calmed down, he heard

STEMMINg THE TIDE

Chabad Rebbeim set a course for themselves, as based on the Alter Rebbes model of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. Chabad is a much deeper and more involved form of Chassidus, and perhaps not for the faint of mind and heart. The Rebbe Rayatz sought to continue that tradition. In his personal correspondence, he wrote that he

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the next sorrowful account, and the crying and sobbing started all over again. After this uncomfortable scene repeated itself three or four times, R Simcha started backing out of the room. This was a very difficult thing to watch, and he simply couldnt stand it any longer. Where are you going? the Rebbe Rayatz asked him. People are expecting you to deliver messages. Deliver every single one of them. He stood in the Rebbes room for six hours, as the Rebbe essentially cried his way through the night. As he walked out of yechidus, he meets the Rebbes mother, the Rebbetzin Shterna Sara. She took one look at R Simchas shell-shocked appearance and asked him what happened. After he gave her the details of the entire episode, the Rebbetzin said, I dont know whats happened to him. I gave birth to him, I raised him, but I dont recognize him anymore. Every night after yechidus, theres a puddle of tears on the floor...

JEWISH EDUCATION ABOvE All ElSE

Then, the Rebbe Rayatz began to act, and he was a bigtime operator. He sent his people to all sorts of places and began to fill in the gaps. If one person was removed somewhere, he sent another one to take his place. For a period of a few years (19231927), the organization was incredible. There were hundreds of shluchim all over the U.S.S.R. making certain that Yiddishkait wouldnt die. One of the most amazing stories was when the Rebbe Rayatz happened to meet a very high-ranking Communist Party official on a train. The official told the Rebbe that he had an elderly father whom he loved very much, yet whenever he offered money to his father, the latter refused to take it because he considered his son to be a heretic. The Rebbe wrote later that he knew this officials father, as he was one of the teachers in the underground yeshiva that the Rebbe was supporting.

The Rebbes efforts were unbelievably effective. It wasnt just his self-sacrifice; he literally created an entire underground network, funded through his connections in the United States. The Joint Distributing Committee had a permanent representative in Moscow, a Dr. Rosen, whose code name was Shoshanna. The Rebbe would go to him and clandestinely receive considerable funds for outreach activities. He once came to Dr. Rosen and said, I need $40,000 (a staggering sum of money in those days) for the next six months. When Dr. Rosen told the Rebbe that he could only give him $20,000, the Rebbe replied, I cant even take $39,999, because that would be one dollar less than we need. That was the nature of the negotiations. The Russians couldnt understand all this, because they had done so much to destroy everything Jewish. The truth is that it didnt bother the Communists if old people went to daven in shul; the main issue was

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FarBrengen
the children. They realized that as long as there were no children in the synagogues, the Jewish nation rl would cease to exist. For his part, the Rebbe understood that the most emphatic answer to the Soviet challenge was educating Jewish children. It became a war of principles. The Rebbe raised himself and his Chassidim to a level of preparedness for self-sacrifice Al Kiddush Hashem. There can be no other explanation. While Judaism believes in life, it also believes in principle. In the famous Gemara about Rabbi Akiva teaching Torah to children during a time when such conduct meant certain death, his disciples asked him: on the basis of what authority does he permit himself to do this? Even self-sacrifice Al Kiddush Hashem has its limits; teaching children Torah is not something that demands of one to risk his very life. Rabbi Akiva replied with the metaphor of the fox and the fish: As long as the fish are in the water, they stand a chance for survival. If the fish leave the safety of the water, regardless of whether theyre being pursued or not, they have no hope. In short, Jews without Torah arent Jews; theres no point in staying alive without living, and as a result of adhering to this principle, Rabbi Akiva paid the ultimate price. Yet, we learn in Torah sources that the question was raised: Was Rabbi Akivas act halachically valid? One of the answers brought was that Rabbi Akiva was allowed to do this, but not anyone else. Rabbi Akiva was a Torah giant, a leader among the Jewish People. He knew the type of moment that warranted selfsacrifice al Kiddush Hashem, and the Rebbe Rayatz duplicated this accomplishment. This was mesiras nefesh in the truest sense of the word. Fight for Yiddishkait until you can fight no longer. total ridicule and discrediting of religion, G-d, Torah and mitzvos. For this reason, the Rebbe Rayatz pleaded, Dont send your children to the treife schools. However, this was no simple task. According to the law in the U.S.S.R., if you didnt enroll your children in their schools, they would arrest you and put you in jail, your children would be sent to orphanages, and you would never see them again. So what exactly was the point? The Rebbe Rayatz said, Principle. Dont think about the consequences. Just dont do it. The self-sacrifice that the Rebbe demonstrated, which was then duplicated by his Chassidim, was literally unimaginable. I had a great-grandfather, a Chassid named R Yisroel Nevler, who had the privilege of sitting in Soviet prisons, as did many of his contemporaries. He had a most interesting custom: He would stand up against a wall on Yom Kippur and daven nonstop for twenty-four hours, something that demanded incredible physical and spiritual strength. He had three Gentile cellmates, and when they saw this, they were absolutely overwhelmed. Tomorrow youre getting out of jail, they told him. Anyone who can pray to G-d for twenty-hours straight in a cell is not staying here. And thats exactly what happened. The very next day, the prison officials came and released him. When he arrived back home to the surprise of everyone, he entered the house and saw a school knapsack. When he asked for an explanation, his wife, my great-grandmother, told him that they had sent several of the girls to the secular school. Im going back to jail this minute, R Yisroel replied. The girls never went back to that school again.

pRESERvINg THE EMBERS

The Rebbe called in nine of his students from Tomchei Tmimim to make a minyan, and he then took out a Torah scroll. He told each of these bachurim to place his hand on the scroll and swear that they would fight to preserve the embers of Judaism in Russia until the last drop of blood. Such was the mood, the environment, the spirit in their world at that time. The Rebbe led by example; he didnt hide. He put himself out there at tremendous risk. One of the issues that the Rebbe Rayatz fought for with the greatest passion was Dont send your children to the treife schools. The Soviet Union may have been an evil empire, but it wasnt a stupid one. It was brilliantly orchestrated and designed. The Bolshevik Revolution succeeded because almost half a century of careful planning went into its eventual triumph. The people at the helm may not have been nice guys, but no one would accuse them of being fools. They understood that the preservation of the state depended upon the indoctrination of the young. They invested everything in their schools. When I was on a train in the Soviet Union in the late eighties, I met a couple. The husband was a physician, and the wife was a kindergarten teacher. Yet, she earned more than he did, because the Communists knew that the school institution was the vehicle to sustain their regime. The government created the most powerful level of mind control the education of children. As a result, one of the most significant parts of this process of indoctrination was the

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This is the kind of life the Rebbe Rayatz inspired his Chassidim to live, and as we all know, many of them paid the ultimate price.

DONT STOp TEACHINg THE CHIlDREN!

Were talking about this story now nearly a century later. Yet, whats interesting is that regarding many of the descendants of those Chassidim who lost all connection to their Judaism because their father or grandfather had been executed, the self-sacrifice reappears two or three generations later. I have cousins, the offspring of my paternal grandfathers nephews, who had been murdered in the thirties at Stalins orders, and they are now coming back to Yiddishkait. Self-sacrifice Al Kiddush Hashem appears at times to be an incredible waste, an absolute tragedy. However, as difficult as this is for us to fathom, its a part of our religion. Theres a time and a place for it. It seems totally ridiculous and useless for people to live at such a level of mesirus nefesh, especially when theres no obligation to do so according to Halacha. Yet, there is a time to have self-sacrifice Al Kiddush Hashem, and the era of the Soviet Union was such a time. When the Rebbe Rayatz made farbrengens, instead of discussing Chassidus, he would often speak about the Marranos. There was a famous occasion during the Purim farbrengen before his arrest, when he tore open his shirt, pointed to his bare chest, and said, When you see this body burning, dont stop teaching the children! Finally, they arrested him, because they came to the understanding that he must be stopped. This couldnt be grasped

rationally. The Soviet Union was a nation of hundreds of millions of people, and the Rebbe Rayatz was involved with perhaps tens of thousands of Jews. While this is a considerable number, how terrible could that have been? Yet, when you went into Soviet law enforcement offices, there were two photographs on the wall under the heading The Enemies of the Communist state. They were Leon Trotsky, Stalins chief political nemesis, and the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

The only explanation was spiritual in nature: They believed that as long as the Rebbe was around, maintaining his fierce opposition, continuing to fighting on whether he succeeded on a large scale or not, he was the arch-enemy of the Soviet system. They feared that his counterrevolution would threaten everything achieved by the Bolshevik Revolution... [To be continued iyH]

Issue 839

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12-13 taMMuz

ACTION IS THE MAIN THING

Directives for 12-13 tammuz
pROpER pREpARATIONS
1) In 5748, the Rebbe MHM said that the beginning of the days of the redemption of the Rebbe, my father-in-law, leader of the generation, 1213 Tammuz, this year, must be in accordance with the rule of poschin bivracha (opening with a blessing): Gut Yom Tov. (Sichos yemei hageula 12-13 Tammuz 5748) 2) These days are remembered and done. The entire event with all its particulars, including those people who were involved, etc., should be in a manner of remembered a strong remembrance, to the point that it affects action and done. (5748 ibid., p. 10, note 35) 3) The proper preparations for celebrating the days of redemption, 12-13 Tammuz, in every location, especially includes making good resolutions to increase in all areas of Judaism, Torah and mitzvos, especially spreading the wellsprings outward, starting with studying the teachings of the baal hageula [i.e., the Rebbe Rayatz], his maamarim and sichos, etc. (5749 p. 12, Chukas 5750) 4) Study the maamer Asara sheYoshvim vOskim baTorah, for the printing of this maamer and its distribution at the first celebration of 12 Tammuz provides us with an eternal directive to learn this maamer during the yemei hageula 1213 Tammuz each year. (12-13 Tammuz 5748) 5) This study should be done brabbim [with many others], as one understands from the contents of the maamer and letter that the desire of the baal hageula was that it should be learned together with many others, in a manner of Asara sheYoshvim vOskim baTorah. (5748) 6) Having no other choice, it can be learned with fewer than ten people, and can even be learned alone; however, it is best to try as much as possible to learn it with ten others. (5748) that they will certainly use these special days of 12-13 Tammuz until the 15th of Tammuz, when the moon (of the month of Geula) is full, which is the perfection of Geula three days (three times is a chazaka) to arrange and continue the farbrengens of the yemei hageula. (13 Tammuz 5749, Chukas-Balak, 12 Tammuz 5749) 10) At the farbrengens, they should take on good resolutions in all the matters mentioned above, and how good it would be if at each of these farbrengens there would be three good resolutions in the three areas of Torah, tefilla, and chesed. (ibid.) 11) In 5748, the Rebbe made a new suggestion. Those who wanted to could write down something new that he did or even better, three new things that he did throughout the year, in the spirit of the baal hageula. (12-13 Tammuz 5748) 12) The purpose of this suggestion is to arouse those not yet affected, rl, and perhaps they will be ashamed that they have not yet been able to fulfill this special suggestion. (5748, ibid.) 13) All this applies to men, women, and even children, [the latter] who do not act completely lishma (for the sake of Heaven). It is of primary importance to bring the children to a point where they can write, as well, that during the course of the year, they presented the baal hageula with three new things. (5748)

HOlDINg fARBRENgENS UNTIl 15 TAMMUz

7) In 5751, the Rebbe said to make the preparations for the farbrengen of the Chag HaGeula on a suitable day, and that depends on the circumstances of the particular location whether it should be on the 12 of Tammuz or the 13th, or on both days, or even on the days that follow, especially Shabbos. (Sicha Parshas Chukas 5751) 8) At the farbrengens where Jews will gather together, people should encourage and support one another to accept good resolutions and additions in all areas of Judaism, Torah and mitzvos, and in spreading the wellsprings outward. (ibid.) 9) In 5749, the Rebbe said

24 9 Tammuz 5772

14) In 5750, the Rebbe said, in connection with the 63rd year since the redemption of 12-13 Tammuz, and the 110th birthday of the Rebbe Rayatz, that it would be advisable to: a) Increase in giving tzedaka in multiples of 110 or 63 pennies, etc. (Balak, 14 Tammuz 5750) b) To continue the farbrengens of Chag HaGeula on the 14th, 15th, 16th, with the strong hope that the 17th of Tammuz will be transformed into joy and gladness and holidays. (ibid.) c) To strengthen public classes so that there will be ten who sit and study Torah, since the baal hageula has associated his celebration with that maamer. (ibid.) d) Learn the maamer, Ten Who Sit and Study Torah 5688. (5750) e) Say and learn chapter 111 of Tehillim with the commentaries, especially the Tzemach Tzedeks reshima on the chapter. In addition, give the wise and he will become even wiser; according to each ones ability, each should increase his avoda in Torah study and fulfill mitzvos in a beautiful manner. (5750) 15) Emphasize the belief in the coming of Moshiach and the anticipation of his coming: I await him each day that he should come. This especially includes studying Torah in inyanei Geula, beginning with the weekly sidra. (sicha ChukasBalak, 12 Tammuz 5749) 16) [This also includes studying] the final two chapters of the Rambams Yad HaChazaka, entitled Laws of Kings and their Wars, and Melech HaMoshiach. Learning these topics should be in a manner of He who studies the laws of...it is as if...

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Issue 839

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12-13 taMMuz

HE MUST HAVE BEEN A GREAT TZADDIK

A story describing the cold cruelty of the communist empire and reflecting on the terrifying odds from which the Rebbe Rayatz was redeemed.
By Menachem Ziegelboim

There was an old kasketwearing Jew by the name of Yisek [Yitzchok] Faguskin, who would go every morning to the Kollel Tiferes Zkeinim in the Chabad shul in Bnei Brak. Although he was over eighty he didnt need a cane, his mind was sharp, and he came to the Kollel in order to learn a little Torah and to enjoy the Jewish atmosphere, which he missed out on all those years in Russia. Nobody knew that years before Yisek had been a senior judge in Stalinist Russia. He decided the fate of thousands of citizens who were guilty of crimes against communist law. Among these thousands of individuals were Jews too, and even a few Chassidim. No, he doesnt remember their names since many years have passed since then, but he does clearly

Rosh HaKollel Rabbi Zushe Gross

recall their faces and demeanors. The following story took place four years ago on the 15th of Sivan, the anniversary of the day the Rebbe Rayatz was arrested and taken to the N.K.V.D. building where he endured great

suffering as he himself describes in his diaries. On that day, the head of the Kollel, Rabbi Zushe Gross, related the story of the Rebbes arrest and liberation. He described the crimes of which the Rebbe was accused, and concluded with his release and redemption. Yisek Faguskin listened to the story and smiled. Yes, he said, I was a senior judge in the communist system. With that opening line, Rabbi Gross and the other members of the Kollel learned about Yiseks past for the first time. I am very familiar with how they operated. It didnt take much to get called before a judge and punished severely. But if you think that we judges decided peoples fate, you are mistaken. I will relate one story, one of many that I remember, which will demonstrate how justice was

26 9 Tammuz 5772

meted out in Russia. *** I was a senior judge at the time Stalin was killed in 1953. As you know, Stalin murdered millions of his citizens in order establish his position and to purify Russia of the decadents. After his death, Khrushchev rose to power and the decision was made to reexamine the files of tens and hundreds of thousands of citizens who had been judged under Stalins rule. Some of these people were freed. I reviewed many of these files and decided each matter. One day I came across the file of someone who had been sentenced twentyfive years before. The file had been signed by an investigator who had since been promoted and had achieved the rank of general in the Ministry of Justice,

Nobody knew that years before Yisek had been a senior judge in Stalinist Russia. He decided the fate of thousands of citizens who were guilty of crimes against communist law. Among these thousands of individuals were Jews too, and even a few Chassidim.

the Yustitzia in the Ministry for Internal Affairs. Who was this person? His name was Vladek, and he was a simple farmer who lived on the banks of Lake Baikel in Siberia, in a small and peaceful village. One day at the end of the 20s, he and some friends decided to open a fishing business in order to earn an honest livelihood. They invested a lot of money, bought two motorboats, and began fishing in the lake. The fish they caught were

of superior quality because the lake was free of poisons and dangerous chemicals. Within a short span of time, they were extremely successful and established an artel (a cooperative). The government wasnt happy with their accomplishment, and one morning three trucks packed with soldiers arrived in the village. The soldiers dispersed among the passersby and attacked them, and then forced them on to the trucks and covered them with

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12-13 taMMuz

How could this man have spied for Babylon? I asked him, without concealing my surprise. After all, Babylon was a nation of ancient times?
tarpaulins. Vladek was among those who were caught and forced on to the truck and taken to the G.P.U. for investigation. He spent days in a dark, damp cell without being informed why he had been arrested. When he was finally taken to his first interrogation, he was told that he was guilty of spying. Who did you spy for? asked the interrogator gravely. I didnt spy, answered Vladek innocently. Vladek was instantly beaten by two soldiers who stood at his side. He underwent many interrogations, but each time Vladek assumed some mistake had been made and so he never admitted anything since he had nothing to confess. At one of his interrogations, Vladek was warned that he had 24 hours to think over his decision, and if he did not confess to spying he would be beaten to death. Vladek lay in his cell and didnt know what to do. He was famished, desperately so. He was also nearly out of his mind with fatigue. In the end he broke and decided to admit to spying, but he didnt know what to say about which country he had been spying for. Since he was an ignoramus, and barely knew how to read and write, he wasnt clever enough to invent the information they wanted. He figured that if he would tell them he spied for Germany, they would ask him what information he gave them, how he obtained it, and they might even ask him to say a few words in German, which he didnt know. He didnt know what he would answer to that, and then he would be guilty of both lying and spying! Vladek wracked his brains and suddenly he reminded himself of a scene from his childhood, when his grandfather took him to hear the priests lecture. He remembered that the priest had mentioned Babylon and Vladik rejoiced and decided to say he spied for Babylon. At his next interrogation, Vladek admitted that he had spied. The interrogators face lit up. For which country? he asked. For Babylon, answered Vladek in his most sincere tone of voice. The interrogator was thrilled and quickly wrote down the information and had Vladek sign it. Vladek received a bowl full of black kasha for his trouble, a delicacy he hadnt tasted in weeks. A few days later he was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment, and on the appointed day he and the other prisoners left by train for the labor camp. Nearly 25 years had passed and Stalin died, and I was given his file. I looked into the matter and was surprised to learn that this man had admitted to spying for a country that existed thousands of years ago. In order to properly investigate the matter, I found out that the interrogator who had extracted the confession had been

promoted to the rank of colonel in the Ministry of Justice in Moscow. I called the department he worked in and asked to speak to him. In those days there were hardly any phones, and it took hours until the man was located and we were connected. I reminded him of the case which had taken place at the end of the 20s and he remembered it. How could this man have spied for Babylon? I asked him, without concealing my surprise. After all, Babylon was a nation of ancient times? There was a long moment of silence on the other end, and then he said, Yes, I remember it well, but what could I do after receiving a direct order from Mayazhov to fill a certain quota of prisoners? In order to fill the quota, we didnt care who was guilty and why. We took whoever was available and sent them to Siberia in the best cases, and in the worst cases we sent them to the next world. Once he admitted to this, I ordered that Vladek be freed and even be given a token compensation. Broken by his years in the labor camp, all Vladek wanted was to return to his village on the banks of Lake Baikel, and to see his friends, his beloved lake and boats. When he arrived back in the village he discovered that nothing was left of the place, and he was the sole survivor of all his friends. *** This is a story which I was personally involved in, concluded Yisek, and when I hear the story of the great Rabbi who was imprisoned, I am amazed. I am astounded about how he was freed when his crimes were so serious. He must have been a great tzaddik...

28 9 Tammuz 5772

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MeMoIrs

MY PARTNER IN LIFE
heishke grew up in a chassidishe family, but he still had a lot to learn about the chassidishe customs that his wife brought from her parents house, which she made a part of their joint home.
By Rabbi Yehoshua Dubrawski ah

IT All BEgAN WITH A CHAvRUSA

It would require more than one volume to write about my life with my partner in life. However, it is not important and is absolutely unnecessary. Yet, I would like to mention certain interesting moments in our life together and in the period before our lives were joined, which are, perhaps, important for our future generations to know. During the last year and a half that I was in Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim in Brunoy, I learned with some bachurim who were behind in their learning and needed help. It would not be embarrassing to write about one such bachur. Today he is a wellknown rav in a shul in Crown Heights, R Mordechai (Mottel) Gurary. He is the son of one of the famous women in Lubavitch, Ettia (then Levitin). She was very short but very clever, sharp and a Jewess with a passion. She lived in the yeshiva in Brunoy. Her husband,

R Zalman Levitin, was the mashgiach and mashpia in the yeshiva. Her son Mottele (now R Mordechai) was like an apple that did not fall far from the tree. He was smart, mischievous and he had a tongue. His mother once came to me to ask a big favor. Her son was so sharp that he wasnt impressed by anyone, so it was hard to find someone to learn with him. She was sure that he had a certain degree of respect for me. So she really wanted me to start learning with him. I began learning with him. I dont remember how much we learned and what I managed to accomplish, but she was right about one thing I did not end up having any positive learning experience with him.

SHIDDUCH SUggESTION
Ettia was very friendly with my mother. One fine day, she came with a smirk and said that she wanted to repay me and thank me with a shidduch. Who did she have in mind? A

girl by the name of Asya Menkin. Yes, none other than my devoted, faithful companion in life. I knew the family and had even seen the girl before in the course of my wanderings. My mother knew her too. And my uncle Zalman Shimon (then rosh yeshiva in Brunoy and who was like a father to me) knew Asyas father, R Sender, from Tomchei Tmimim in Lubavitch. In short, they agreed. The problem was that I too had to agree and that went hard; not because she wasnt good enough for me, on the contrary. How was I a match for such a frum, Chassidishe girl? But thanks to my weak character and strong pressure from relatives, I consented. I thought I had time and until a letter would be written to the Rebbe there was plenty of time for things to change. We met, as is customary (how many times is an utter secret, i.e. I dont remember). Apparently we liked one another, but when we began talking about writing to the Rebbe, my confused conscience rose to the fore, for if not now then when? I had to inform Asya who I was and what

30 9 Tammuz 5772

I was about! I started negotiating with my mother that before writing to the Rebbe, I wanted to write a letter to Asya and inform her what sort of prize was the person who planned on becoming her chassan. My mother began to cry and I couldnt bear that. I told her that if not to Asya, I would write to the Rebbe and ask him whether to conclude the shidduch despite the fact that I hadnt told her the less than impressive truth about myself.

EISHES CHAYIl
Once again, my mother enlisted Uncle Zalman Shimons help. This time, he spoke uncharacteristically tough. If I believed that the Rebbes consent to the shidduch was holy and true, since he sees the truth, why shouldnt I rely on his answer? If you are not suitable, the Rebbe wont agree to the shidduch. I was bested once again. I wrote a letter to the Rebbe and received his consent and blessing. Boruch Hashem, the shidduch took place and we married in Paris and Asya became my loyal devoted and true life partner; my dearest friend till this day. We hope to continue together until the coming of the righteous redeemer. I dont want to describe everything that happened before the wedding, the wedding itself, and after the wedding, as interesting as it may or may not be. I want to relate that when I married my lifes partner, I knew that she was frumer and more Chassidish than me, and in the course of our life together I may have dickered with her a bit regarding her extreme piety. On the other hand, her

In the center is the Rav of Sharmash, R Naftali Hirtzke Koenig zl

Over here, we had even bigger problems because of the noise. There were bigger accusations and threats, this time from a gentile who lived opposite us. He once got down on his knees like a madman and swore he would shoot me In short, my lifes partner continued to run things as she did previously.
packed with bachurim who sat at our table on Shabbasos and Yomim Tovim. There were those mehadrim who enjoyed our table on weekdays too. It reached the point that I was called to a din Torah, as will be related. From where did my wife get this practice?

Chassidishkait and frumkait had a positive effect on her husband generating a certain degree of balance. With a huge jump I will skip to the time we arrived in Brooklyn in 5715/1955-1956. At first I worked very hard, day and night, hiring myself out for peanuts. Nu, this is not relevant to anyone and is not interesting to know except as it pertains to my wife who despite my paltry earnings ran the house in the most amazing way. From the few crumbs I brought home, she brought to the table many tasty dishes. Again, this is not what is important. Asya brought a family custom that amazed even great Chassidim and men of works. Thanks to that, our house was

STORMY NIgHTS
Nearly all the years of her childhood and youth she lived in Kutaisi, Georgia, which hosted the main outpost of Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim in the 1930s, during the worst era of persecution of religious Jews in general and Chassidim in particular (the truth is that in Georgia the persecution was less than in other locations in Russia. Why? Who knows?)
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MeMoIrs
The home of Asyas parents, Sender and Ada Menkin, served as a sort of hostel for the yeshiva bachurim of Kutaisi. Their home wasnt large, but the bachurim often slept there wherever they could find a place (sometimes it was under the table). They did not earn much but there was always something for the bachurim to eat. There were times that Asya and her sister Zlata, who were little girls, would stand for many hours on line in order to obtain bread for the bachurim. Their brother, Leibe Henech (who passed away as a bachur in the yeshiva in Samarkand), was outstanding in this trait. Here is just one little example. His parents bought him a warm, short coat for cold days which he never wore. He always found a yeshiva bachur who needed it more. In short, Asya brought a great load of customs like these. Many were the stormy nights in our home. The bachurim of those days (who are grandfathers today) made a much bigger commotion than they do nowadays. Our landlady, Rebbetzin Viller, lived underneath us. She regularly complained that she could not sleep because of the commotion at our table until late at night. She pleaded with me and I asked the bachurim to have pity on a widow, but my importuning had very little effect on them. For example, one of the bachurim who came to us and then a second and a third became a chassan in the middle of the night when he left the Rebbes yechidus room. The bachur took a bottle of mashke, came to our house with some friends, and obviously, the noise they made could be heard a bit further than the landladys bedroom. Then one morning, I received orders to go to the beis din in Williamsburg for a din Torah. I was stunned someone was calling me to a din Torah! Who? Why? I was a poor laborer who did no business with anyone (the hazmana did not say who was calling me to the din Torah). Well, if I was called, I had to go. apartment opposite 770 but not much changed. From the even smaller kitchen, my wife brought out even bigger meals to the table for the guests, relatives and yeshiva bachurim. Over here, we had even bigger problems because of the noise. There were bigger accusations and threats, this time from a gentile who lived opposite us. He once got down on his knees like a madman and swore he would shoot me (this is not the place to tell how we had to call the police and so on). In short, my lifes partner continued to run things as she did previously. Sadly, my wife in later years could not continue this way of life due to serious health problems and we hope that Hashem will speedily heal her. My writing about her is explicitly not for her, because she adamantly opposes it. I have made an exception in order to provide an example for the grandchildren and greatgrandchildren so they continue in this way. *After the war, spiritual leadership formed in the DP camps. Those living in the Poking DP camp consisted mainly of religious Jews who were Lubavitchers and those from Russia (which is why the chief rabbi was Rabbi Dubrawski), while in the Landsberg camp there were Jews from other countries (Poland, Hungary, Romania, etc.) who were led by the Klausenberger Rebbe ztl. Under the leadership of the rabbinic board (Vaad HaRabbanim) in Landsberg were various religious institutions that formed in the various camps including branches of Agudath Israel which were called, Agudath Israel Tachas (under) HaRabbanim in Landsberg.

lEgAl fORM
When I went to the beis din for the din Torah and paid for the din Torah, I found out that the av beis din, the Dayan, was the Rav of Sharmash, R Naftali Hirtzke Koenig. I knew him from the DP camp in Poking where he had been rav of the Aguda Tachas (under) * and my grandfather, R Mendel Dubrawski, had been the chief rabbi. In the beis din room they sat in adjoining rooms. I heard that my grandfather once helped the Rav of Sharmash arrange a divorce. He was considered a big talmid chacham in Hungarian parts. I asked the Dayan who had called me to a din Torah and he said, Rebbetzin Viller. He then immediately asked me whether I was related to Rabbi Mendele Dubrawski. I said he was my grandfather, to which he emotionally replied, Ai ai, where do you find Jews like that today? The Rav of Sharmash gently told me that this wasnt exactly a din Torah, but compassion for a widow. I will placate her and gave her a note (not an actual psak din) that if you dont stop the noise at night, you will try to find another apartment. I said we were looking for another apartment in any case and the Dayan parted very warmly with me. We soon found another

32 9 Tammuz 5772

shleIMus haaretz

PUBLICIZE THIS!
Translated by Rabbi Binyamin Schlanger

Interview with the Gerrer Rebbe, 9 Elul 1978 The Rebbe: I wish for a strong stand and determination with all matters pertaining to peace. (Liquor was brought in and the Gerrer Rebbe said: L chaim, May it be a good year.) The Rebbe: (Visible and revealed good, L chaim.) We mentioned determination

[leading to] and peace. Since you are the elder of the Chassidic Rebbes in the Land of Israel, it would be worthy that you go public and publicize with determination the Law of Shulchan Aruch that when [an enemy army approaches] asking for no more than straw and stubble, this demands a stand with weapons of war, and May fear and trepidation befall them.

The Gerrer Rebbe: Yes, in fact we see that the Song [at the splitting of the sea] is written in the past tense, with the phrase May fear and trepidation befall them in the present, (the Rebbe pointed out that this is written in the future tense). Meaning, the Song relates to the past, while G-d throwing His fear has to be in our times.

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shleIMus haaretz
The Rebbe: Since there are those who are fearful and weakhearted, and we need to be assured that they will not weaken the hearts of their brothers, there is a need to publicize this law, [not specifically bound up with the holiness of the Land], this being applicable to any concentration of Jewish people [even outside of Eretz Israel], even on Shabbos to go out armed, even when they want no more than cattle fodder, because they are on the border. Such a public notification will have a strong effect. Now is the time! Firstly, we read this in the Torah this last Shabbos [Shoftim], that the Kohen, leader or judge must strengthen the people. Secondly, this will bring a benefit that the weakhearted will not mix in. I once said regarding the weak hearted, surely one should do something so simple: convince them that there is nothing to be afraid of! Yet, we see that the Torah says the opposite: He must go and return to his home. There is no time to change his mind to ensure that he will not melt the hearts of his brothers as his own is. He can go home and do so many good things at home. Were you to go out with the strength of Kings the Rabbis, with all the fortitude of Jewish law this would have its effect above, and have a responsive effect below. The Gerrer Rebbe: The Kings are the Rabbis is stated in the plural. The intent is not [that] just one should make such a stand. The Rebbe: I will make the effort to find several more. There are already more. What is needed is that one should go out with strength. You mentioned earlier that many matters connected with the fear of G-d have become easier. Efforts must be made. Everyone is in agreement that this is life-threatening. The Gerrer Rebbe: Perhaps you should come to Eretz Israel and work on this? The Rebbe: (With a smile) I will put in my efforts to effect change from here, where there are also those who are fearful and weak hearted. Now is the time to do this. The Gerrer Rebbe: We are working on this already. The Rebbe: But only in secret. The path to peace I will give peace in the Land is I will lead you upright, with an upheld head [publicly] (Rashi). My father-in-law once gave an analogy of a lantern. When this stands in the middle of the street, people and Jews gather around. When the lantern is not in the middle of the street, people dont see, and we dont know who agrees and who disagrees. If we know the law, it must be publicized with the strength of Kings the Rabbis. [There will be much more than a few tens!] The Gerrer Rebbe: There is the organization of the Moetzes Gdolei HaTorah. The Rebbe: Until they get round to publicizing this, it will take a long time. They will make a meeting, bring a secretary, etc. and all the other good things. It is documented that the laws of the Beis Yosef [author of the Shulchan Aruch] were decided with 200 Rabbis of great standing. So there are already 200 who believe in this! Dear reader, Please take a few moments each week to copy, paste, and email this sicha to 10 friends, asking your friends in turn to email the same to 10 further friends, ad infinitum. Thereby you will be taking a strong and active part in the Rebbes battle to protect the lives of millions of Jewish people whose lives are so endangered. This is, as the Rambam writes, Milchemes Hashem, and we will see it through to the final Nitzochon!
Please go to http:// beismoshiachmagazine.org/true-peace/ where you will find the current sicha.

34 9 Tammuz 5772

MoshIach & geula

WILL THERE BE NON-JEWS IN THE TIMES OF MOSHIACH?

By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon

Dear Reader shyichyeh, In this weeks article we will begin a discussion about a very basic question: Will there be nonJews in the times of Moshiach? And if yes, what role will they play?

gENTIlES IN THE TIMES Of MOSHIACH

The Navi Yeshaya says (2:24): And it shall be at the end of the days, that the mountain of the L-rds house shall be firmly established at the top of the mountains, and it shall be raised above the hills, and all the nations shall stream to it. And many peoples shall go, and they shall say, Come, let us go up to the L-rds mount, to the house of the G-d of Jacob, and let Him teach us of His ways, and we will go in His paths, for out of Zion shall the Torah come forth, and the word of the L-rd from Jerusalem. And he shall judge between the nations and reprove many peoples, and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift the sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. And the Navi Zephaniah says (3:9), For then I will convert the peoples to a pure language that

all of them call in the name of the L-rd, to worship Him of one accord. The Rambam (Hilchos Melachim 12:1) follows this line in the same manner. Do not presume that in the Messianic age any facet of the worlds nature will change or there will be innovations in the work of creation. Rather, the world will continue according to its pattern. Although Yeshaya (11:6) states: The wolf will dwell with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the young goat, these words are a metaphor and a parable. The interpretation of the prophecy is as follows: Israel will dwell securely together with the wicked gentiles who are likened to a wolf and a leopard, as in the prophecy Yirmiya (5:6): A wolf from the wilderness shall spoil them and a leopard will stalk their cities. They will all return to the true faith (they will keep the 7 Mitzvos for Bnei Noach) and no longer steal or destroy. Rather, they will eat permitted food at peace with Israel, as Yeshaya (11:7) states: The lion will eat straw like an ox. What will the non-Jewish people be doing? According to Chazal, they will be helping the Jewish people with all their physical chores, thereby allowing the Jewish people to serve

Hashem. The Navi (Yeshaya 49:23) says: And kings shall be your nursing fathers and their princesses your wet nurses; they shall prostrate themselves to you with their face on the ground, and they shall lick the dust of your feet, and you shall know that I am the L-rd, for those who wait for Me shall not be ashamed. The Gemara writes: Whoever is careful with the Mitzva of Tzitzis will merit having thousands of non-Jewish servants in the times of Moshiach. The interesting thing about this slavery is the fact that it will all be voluntary! Because of the revelation of G-dliness that will be in the times of Moshiach, it will be clear to everybody that the Jewish people are Hashems chosen people. It will be clear that if one wants to connect with Hashem, it is through connecting to His people. On their own initiative, they will ask to help the Jewish people serve Hashem.

CONvERSION TO JUDAISM IN THE ERA Of MOSHIACH

If the above that the nonJews will see the truth of Hashem is true, why will they not want to convert to Judaism in the times of Moshiach? The real underlying question

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is: Will the Jewish people be accepting converts in the times of Moshiach? This is the topic of an argument in the Gemara (Brachos 57b): Our Rabbis taught: ... If one sees a place from which idolatry has been uprooted, he says, Blessed be He who uprooted idolatry from our land; and as it has been uprooted from this place, so may it be uprooted from all places belonging to Israel; and You shall turn the heart of those that serve them to serve You. Outside Eretz Yisroel it is not necessary to say Turn the heart of those that serve settled among you (Yeshaya 45:15); he who only lives with you in your poverty shall be settled among you; but no other. However, it is to be noted (Meiri on Yevamos) that this is only a general rule. If, however, a non-Jew is serious about his commitment to Judaism and is extremely persistent in his insistence upon conversion, he may be able to convince a Beis Din to convert him. Regarding the question of whether or not we will be accepting converts from Amalek, see the seifer Yemos HaMoshiach Bhalacha Vol. 2 page 390. Sukka; go and carry it out. Straightaway will every one of them betake himself and go and make a booth on the top of his roof; but the Holy One, blessed be He, will cause the sun to blaze forth over them as at the Summer Solstice. And every one of them will trample down his booth and go away, as it is said, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.

WHAT CAN WE DO TO pREpARE THE NATIONS Of THE WORlD fOR MOSHIACH?

The Rambam (Melachim 8:10) states: Moshe was commanded by the Almighty [at Mount Sinai] to compel all the inhabitants of the world to accept the commandments given to Noachs descendants. The Rebbe (Korach 5751) addresses a common concern: One might still raise a question, as others have done. Even if one were to do ones work to perfection, even reaching the level of dissemination (which implies total commitment and self-abnegation), one might question to what avail is it, considering the fact that you are the least among the nations and that there are the seventy nations who so outnumber the one lamb, Israel. In other words, what will be the worlds response to the Jewish efforts to disseminate the wellsprings to the remotest reaches in an effort to hasten the true and complete Redemption when they do not understand the meaning of these efforts? Granted, they are noble and sublime, but one might object: we have to consider the worlds reaction! The answer is clear: The

The world is ready and completely receptive! When a Jew performs his work properly, transcending all limits and constraints, and simultaneously channels these efforts within the parameters of nature, he will see how the world, nature and the nations of the world will assist him in his work.
them to serve You, because most of them are idolaters. R. Simeon b. Elazar says: Outside Eretz Yisroel also one should say this, because they will one day become converts The accepted opinion is like that of the Chachomim (Rabbis). This is evident from the ruling in the Gemara (Yevamos 24b): Our Rabbis learnt: No proselytes will be accepted in the days of the Moshiach. In the same manner no proselytes were accepted in the days of Dovid HaMelech or in the days of Shlomo. R. Elazar said: What Scriptural [support is there for this view]? Behold he shall be a proselyte who is converted for My own sake (Or who is converted while I am not with you (Rashi), i.e. while Israel is in exile and forsaken by G-d), he who lives with you shall be

The Gemara (Avoda Zara 2b-3a) describes in detail a discussion that will take place between the non-Jews and Hashem: In the times of Moshiach, Hashem will give rewards to those who learned Torah and kept the Mitzvos. Since the nations did not accept the Torah, they will not receive that reward. The nations will then plead: Offer us the Torah anew and we shall obey it. But the Holy One, blessed be He, will say to them, You foolish ones among peoples, he who took trouble [to prepare] on the eve of the Sabbath can eat on the Sabbath, but he who has not troubled on the eve of the Sabbath, what shall he eat on the Sabbath? Nevertheless, I have an easy command which is called

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world is ready and completely receptive! When a Jew performs his work properly, transcending all limits and constraints, and simultaneously channels these efforts within the parameters of nature, he will see how the world, nature and the nations of the world will assist him in his work. This is particularly true now that so many of the impediments are no longer here. (And as was noted earlier, even the Soviet Continued from page 38 if the boy would be let free, he and his friends would continue to make trouble. But I would also like to offer to take responsibility for him. He can do community work for our synagogue, like repairing the damage that he and his friends made, for starters. After that, theres plenty of other work waiting for him. Everyone in the room was taken aback; even Mendy, who knew his father to be extremely kind-hearted, was surprised. The official just raised his eyebrows, and commented, If you prefer it that way, that is fine with us. This young man will be required to check in with the probation officer once a week, with a letter signed by the sponsor, which in this case would be you, Rabbi Levi. The letter should affirm that he had fulfilled the required hours of community work that week to your satisfaction. The official gave a stern look at the boy.

Union has undergone significant changes for the better.) On the contrary, we are witness to the miracles and wonders that have occurred, specifically in the last two years (of miracles and of wonders I shall show him, 5750 and 5751, respectively). The time has thus arrived notwithstanding the need for supernatural changes (the miracles and wonders of the true and complete Redemption)

that these supernatural energies permeate the nature of the world itself, so that the world itself assists in the blossoming of the Redemption. Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati and a well sought after speaker and lecturer. Recordings of his in-depth shiurim on Inyanei Geula uMoshiach can be accessed at http://www. ylcrecording.com. because he truly cared for their welfare, he wanted to help them do Tshuva. Hashem therefore told him to make a copper snake on a pole and hold it up high to remind them that it is not the snake that harms or heals, but that Hashem is dealing with them according to their deeds. When I saw the young man, I realized that prison would certainly not help him, nor would just letting him go free be a solution. By sponsoring him to do community work for the shul, Im giving him the message that I care about him, not just about rectifying the damage that was done. Many months later, Mendy saw how true his fathers words were. The young man had lost his tough look and became the Rabbis most enthusiastic and loyal helper. This story is based on a true incident. The lesson is based on Likkutei Sichos Vol. 28, pp. 138148.

We will be sending an officer to check on you every so often, as well as follow-up phone calls to the Rabbi. Any more trouble, and I assure you that you will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law! On the way home, Mendy asked his father: If you felt bad for the boy, why didnt you just let him go? And if you thought that he deserves to be punished in some way, why did you have to offer to sponsor him? Mendy, I learned what to do from Moshe Rabbeinu! From Moshe Rabbeinu? The Rebbe describes in a sicha the kind of forgiveness that we can learn from Moshe Rabbeinu. When the Yidden complained against Hashem Yisborach and Moshe, in Parshas Chukas, Moshe did not take personal offence. Do you mean when Hashem sent snakes to bite them, and Moshe davened for them? Exactly. He did not only seek to save them from the snakes, but

TO BRING MOSHIACH NOW!

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Young chassID

HOW TO TRULY FORGIVE

By M.E. Gordon

The Levi family was used to people knocking on their doors at any time of day or night; after all, it was known throughout the city that Rabbi Levis home was as open and warm as his heart. His sincere empathy for anyone with any problem, his wise advice, and his valuable connections with political leaders, medical specialists and philanthropists drew people from all walks of life. That night, however, the knock on the door had a different sound to it. Mendy ran to the door and checked through the peephole to see who was knocking so firmly at this time of night. He gasped when he saw two tall uniformed policemen waiting for the door to open. Mendy stepped back and turned to call his father. His father came to open the door, and calmly invited the officers in. Mendy was a bit frightened; after all, just twenty years ago, a visit from the police under the previous government would have boded no good for religious activists like his father. Mendy had to take a deep breath and remind himself that the present authorities encouraged freedom of religion and protected the rights of their Jewish citizens. In fact, they respected the Rabbi and had helped him numerous times. Mendy stayed in the background, wondering why the policemen had come. We are sorry to disturb your evening, Rabbi Levi, began the taller of the two. But as we were making our rounds through the streets, we discovered a group

of delinquent youths vandalizing your synagogue. Most of the boys ran away, but we did manage to catch one of the young hoodlums. We need you to come with us, first to the synagogue to assess the damage, and then to the station where we are holding the boy, so that you can sign that you wish to press charges. The second policeman, who looked like a figure from a history book with his handlebar moustache, added, It may take a couple of hours until you get back home. I may have to bring my son along, commented Rabbi Levi. My wife and daughters are out tonight at a special womens program, and I dont really want to leave him home alone. That will be fine, he looks old enough to behave responsibly in the police station, observed the officer with the moustache. Mendy wished that his sisters would have seen him riding through the streets in the back of a police car, but to his chagrin, the streets were empty. When they reached the shul and saw the damage, however, Mendys excitement turned to anger. His parents had worked so hard and under such difficult circumstances to build this shul and create a vibrant Jewish community, yet these hooligans had the nerve to mark the synagogues walls with anti-Semitic graffiti and break the windows. The tall officer even said that when they came upon them, the boys had been preparing to light a fire in the

Aron Kodesh! Boruch Hashem the police had discovered them in time. Mendy was glad that at least one of the perpetrators had been caught. He certainly deserved whatever punishment they would give him. After making sure that the Sifrei Torah were untouched, father and son went with the policemen to the station where the accused was held. They were ushered into a room where an official sat, looking through a pile of papers. He had a no-nonsense air about him, and even the two policemen seemed intimidated by him. Bring in the detainee, the official told the policemen. The policemen obeyed immediately, and brought in a tough-looking boy who could not have been older than seventeen. Mendy somehow got the impression that the defiant expression on his face was just a cover-up and that underneath was a really scared kid. The official turned to Rabbi Levi. We need you to sign papers that you agree to press charges against the young man. What will happen to this boy if I dont sign, and what will happen if I do? If you dont sign, hell go free with a warning. If you do sign, then he will either have to spend some time in prison, or if someone takes responsibility for him, he can exchange the time in prison for an equal amount of time doing community service. Mendy noticed the boys face pale when the word prison was mentioned. Okay, then Ill sign, said Rabbi Levi. Mendy felt bad for the boy, but figured that his father was probably worried that Continued on page 37

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