CONTENTS

6
FEATURED ARTICLES

WEEKLY COLUMNS

4 Dvar Malchus
29 Parsha Thought
36 Thought
38 Crossroads
41 Tzivos Hashem

MEMORIES OF YESHIVA
Avrohom Drizin (Maiyor)

WORTH
12 AA PICTURE
THOUSAND WORDS
AND $3,000
Nosson Avraham

CHILD
16 EVERY
HAS HIS KEY

12

Nosson Avrohom

BELOVED
21 DEARLY
CHASSIDIM
Refael Dinari

KING IS IN THE
26 THE
FIELD FOR YOU
Nadav Cohen

THIRD SHABBOS
32 THE
MEAL CHABAD STYLE

Rabbi Yaakov Shmuelevitz ah

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2014-09-02 1:12:52 AM

DVAR MALCHUS

PURIFY OTHERS WITH

THE POWER OF THE
REBBE
Chapter 7 of Rabbi Shloma Majeskis Likkutei
Mekoros continues, discussing how the Rebbe
taught us in advance how to view the events of
Gimmel Tammuz 5754. (Underlined text is the
compilers emphasis.)
Translated by Boruch Merkur

4. [] Moshe Rabbeinu as
well as the incarnation of Moshe
of each generation, including
the Moshe of our generation,
my revered father in-law, the
Rebbe is present now [after
Yud Shvat 5710] as before and
continues to shine (like the sun,
which remains in the sky and
continues to shine throughout
the night). Had we gone
together with him, we would see
that he radiates with the same
force as before. (In fact, in a
more intense way.) But since
he has ascended to fantastic
heights, whereas we (have not
gone with him but) have stayed
where we are we cannot see
him physically (just as the sun is
not seen at night). Nevertheless,
even in this state, the Rebbes
light extends to all the Jewish
people, to all six hundred
thousand [general] souls. And
through these souls, the Rebbe
shines throughout the world (as
the sun shines from beneath the
earth to six hundred thousand
stars; as discussed above, the
light of the sun radiates through
the intermediary of the stars).
(Although we do not
perceive his light shining, that

is irrelevant, in accordance with

the saying of the Rebbe [Rashab]
nishmaso Eden, mentioned
above that the thought of the
horse about hay [i.e., the fact
that hay is its only concern]
doesnt rule out the existence of
angels!)
This concept is traced also
in nigla, the revealed, exoteric
dimension of Torah (as is the
case with all aspects of nistar,
the inner, esoteric dimension of
the Torah [that they are reflected
in the revealed dimensions
of Torah]) with regard to the
purification process of impurity
from contact with the dead,
by means of the ashes of the
red heifer. All the red heifers
are prepared and sanctified
with the ashes of the red heifer
produced by Moshe. Even when
one cannot utilize the mixture
made from the ashes of the red
heifer made by Moshe himself,
but merely by the ashes of
other heifers made later, the
ashes of the other heifers were
also prepared and sanctified
with the ashes made by
Moshe, specifically through his
involvement.
5. In light of the above we

can elaborate on the connection

of this concept with the words
of my revered father in-law, the
Rebbe, from the sicha mentioned
earlier, about eternal life Its
not only that one has individual
life, he also enliven others as
follows.
Upon encountering a Jew
who happens to be in a state of
defilement upon contact with
the dead, for no holy vitality
is detectable in him we must
purify him, enliven him with holy
vitality. It is indeed within the
power and capacity of each and
every person to accomplish this.
(Thus, it is also each persons
responsibility to do so.) It
follows then that ones influence
[to do so] is on account of the
power of Moshe It will always
be called by your name: the
heifer made by Moshe.
(From the address of Shabbos
Parshas Chukas, 9 Tammuz 5710;
Toras Menachem, pg. 119)

4. We spoke earlier about

what my revered father-in-law,
the Rebbe, said on 13 Tammuz
of last year on the topic of
chayim aruchim long life.
He called it true life, life without
interruption for matters of

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holiness are ein sof, eternal. We

had mentioned that being that
this was his last Chag HaGeula
prior to Yud Shvat 5710 [when
he was nistalek] the reason for
his speaking about this topic on
13 Tammuz of 5709 (but not on
5708 or 5707) is because then
there was a need to clarify the
concept of eternal life (foretelling
its imminent relevance).
To elaborate:
The word life can be
conveniently interpreted to
refer to Torah and Mitzvos,
which are said to be our life
(heim chayeinu). Or it can also
be interpreted to refer to other
things that are called life, as
our Sages say (Avos DRabbi
Nosson Ch. 34, end), ten are
called living [i.e., G-d, Torah,
Yisroel, a tzaddik, Gan Eden, the
Tree (of Life), Eretz Yisroel, acts
of kindness, wisdom, and water].
In order to clarify his intent,
the Rebbe qualified the term
by saying, long life chayim
aruchim. Everyone knows that
chayim aruchim means life
in the literal sense, physical life
(as the term is used in nusach
hatfillos, in Slichos, and the
like).
The Rebbe further
added: true life, life free of
interruption:
Even long life, including
life free of interruption, can
be happenstance. That is,
it just so happens that there
was no interruption, but an
interruption could have taken
place. In our case, we are
talking about a situation where
it appears to the naked eye to
have been an interruption. In
fact, according to Shulchan
Aruch there must presently be
several matters attended to,
etc. [the saying of Kaddish, for
example]. Thus, the Rebbe was
precise in saying, true life, life
free of interruption, to mean

true, eternal life that bears no

connection with the concept of
interruption.
The reason why true life has
nothing to do with interruption
as the Rebbe goes on to state and
conclude is because true life is
kdusha, holiness, and holiness is
ein sof, eternal.
The truth is that this concept
is understood from what is
written in Igeres HaKodesh
that The life of a tzaddik is not
physical life but spiritual life,
which is faith, and [the] fear and
love [of G-d]. For, everybody
knows (even the less astute)
that spiritual life in general, and
particularly faith and fear and
love, has no connection to death,
bearing absolutely no relevance
to it. But this was written many
years ago, and no one gives
it much thought, whereas my
revered father-in-law, the Rebbe,
spoke about this in recent times
and it has only now come out in
print.
5. From the above it is
understood that it is still
necessary to continue to fulfill
the Rebbes shlichus, as before.
There are those who think
that there is a difference now:
Before, it was necessary to fulfill
the shlichus the Rebbe charged
him with, since the Rebbe was
able to call him in for yechidus
or to write him a letter, saying:
How can this be? I have sent
you on a particular shlichus
and granted you kochos [the
capacity to succeed], so why
dont you fulfill the shlichus?!
Whereas now the person thinks
to himself he can do what he
wants
Preempting this attitude,
the Rebbe says that it is chayim
nitzchiim, eternal life, and of
consequence, all matters of
shlichus, as well as the capacity
to succeed in it, are in full force.
The Rebbe continues to enquire

even now, with all the same

concern, the same strength,
about the fulfillment of the
shlichus that he has charged
the person with already, and
which he continues to charge the
person with!
Some people, of course,
are bewildered about what Im
saying. However, the truth is
that we find in Tanach [a similar
phenomenon], The letter
arrived to him from Eliyahu
HaNavi (Divrei HaYamim II
21:12) several years after he
had ascended heavenward in
a tempest! Thus, what is the
wonder that even now the Rebbe
continues to send Chassidim on
shlichus?! Regarding the mode
of communication the Rebbe
has his methods. We dont have
to worry about the manner
by which the Rebbe gets his
message across; you can rely on
him! []
7. Each and every student,
adherent, and Chassid must
know that he is one of anshei
Moshe Moshes men (see
Torah Ohr Tetzaveh 83b, Seifer
HaMaamarim 5709 pg. 51 ff.,
among other sources). This is
something that is eternal, forever,
for the individual and for his
generation, until the coming of
Moshiach Tzidkeinu.
Moreover, those who have
not had a connection to the
Rebbe still have the opportunity
to be Chassidim of the Rebbe.
The point of the matter is that
there is no change whatsoever
between before and now.
If there were a change, it
is only an improvement, as
explained in Igeres HaKodesh
that after the histalkus, it is
easier to receive influence from
the life of the tzaddik, since his
life is no longer contained within
a physical vessel or garment.
(Toras Menachem 5710,pg. 129131, 12 Tammuz)

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MEMOIRS

MEMORIES OF

YESHIVA
Memories of R' Avrohom Drizin (Maiyor) from
the time he learned in Yeshivas Tomchei
Tmimim in Lubavitch, from a tshura that was
printed for the bar mitzva of his great-grandson,
Yehuda Leib Drizin. * Presented for 15 Elul, when
Tomchei Tmimim was founded.

EARLY YEARS

R' Avrohom Drizin

R' Avrohom Drizin was born

on 10 Cheshvan 5661/1900 in the
town of Maiyor in White Russia
(now Miyory in Belarus). His
parents were Dovber and Yehudis.
His grandparents, both paternal
and maternal, were Chabad
Chassidim.
His siblings, Yehuda Leib,
Chaim Yitzchok, and Chaya Sara
were murdered in the Holocaust
by the Nazis, may their names be
erased, along with their families.
R' Avrohom told about
his childhood and learning in
Tomchei Tmimim in Lubavitch
(in a special interview):
I grew up in a town that was
entirely Chabad, called Maiyor.
There wasn't even one shul of the
Misnagdim in our town. It was

very small, seventy Jewish families

and one goy.
Although we were Chabad
Chassidim,
Lubavitch
and
the teachings of Chassidus
were far removed from our
world. Lubavitch was far, both
geographically and in spirit. My
father, though a Chassid and a
talmid chochom, was a simple man
when it came to Chassidus and he
never traveled to Lubavitch.
It was at this time that the
Haskala and Zionist movements
spread all over Russia and greatly
affected the townspeople. In my
childhood I had three teachers:
one taught me Gemara, the
daughter of the shochet taught
me Tanach, Ivris, Dikduk and
writing, and the third teacher was
a gentile who taught me Russian
and mathematics.

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Lubavitch

When I was twelve I went

to learn in Droya, a town near
Maiyor. I learned by a melamed
who taught Gemara in groups. R'
Zalman Droyer and R' Bentzion
Shemtov learned together with me
there.
I would return home only at
the end of the zman (semester).
During this period we learned
eighty daf Gemara. The melamed
demanded
proficiency
in
everything we learned. Indeed,
if a pin was stuck through the
pages, we were able to say what
was written at that point on all the
pages the pin went through.
I finished learning in Droya at
fourteen and it was time to travel
to yeshiva. The question was which
yeshiva to go to. The rav of Maiyor
was a Misnaged. I don't know how
this happened, that a Misnaged

During this period we learned eighty daf

Gemara. The melamed demanded proficiency in
everything we learned. Indeed, if a pin was stuck through
the pages, we were able to say what was written at that
point on all the pages the pin went through.

was the rav of a Chassidic town.

He davened Nusach Ari and kept
Chabad practices but remained a
Misnaged.
The rav was a close friend
of our family and looked out for
the boys who learned Torah. He
recommended to my father that
I go to learn in one of the big
Litvishe yeshivos, in Slobodka or
Kovna, where there were famous
roshei yeshiva like R' Boruch Ber
Leibowitz and others.
It was hard for me and my
parents to decide. We were small

town folk who had no connection

with the big world, and we did
not know what the yeshivos were
like and which was preferable.
My older brother was a yerei
Shamayim although he did
not go to yeshiva. He finished
Russian gymnasium (high school)
and was in business. He was
unusually gifted, an ilui (genius).
He was also knowledgeable in
worldly matters and it was he
who decided that I should go to
Lubavitch.
My brother told us that in the
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MemoirS

THE BEET MIRACLE

The following story provides a small example of what the material
circumstances of the bachurim were like in yeshiva:
After I stopped receiving money from my parents, my material
circumstances deteriorated until I had nothing to wear. My last pair of pants
was torn. Pesach was approaching and how could I wear these pants on Yom
Tov? Having no choice, I bought needle and thread and decided to become a
tailor and fix my pants. Since I had nothing else to change into, I went to
the house where I ate that day and asked them to give me a room for a few
hours so I could sew and fix my pants.
This poor family in Lubavitch let me use a storage room where there was
a pot with borscht which was being prepared for Pesach. In those days, beets/
borscht was a main food item that the poor ate on Pesach.
The storage room was dark and I did not notice that the pot of borscht was
on the bench I was sitting on. After I fixed my pants, I got up, happy to have
my pants fixed for Pesach. But oy, as I got up, the pot fell and red beet juice
flooded the house, which was already clean for Yom Tov.
The owners of the house were stunned. They were now left without food
for Pesach in addition to the fact that the previously clean house was now a
mess. As for me, I wanted the earth to swallow me up. Poor people who had
done me a favor, had given me food to eat from the little they had, had been
repaid with my overturning their pot of beets. I felt terrible.
Then a miracle occurred which made me and them forget the beet
disaster. This family had an only son who had been drafted into the Russian
army at the beginning of World War I. He had been sent to the front and it
was many months since they had heard from him. All their inquiries failed to
provide them with any news of him. They were sure he would not return alive.
And then, just as the beet juice spilled all over the house, he appeared! The
sounds of joy echoed from one end of Lubavitch to the other and of course,
the beet catastrophe was forgotten by them and by me. They were sure he had
returned thanks to their hosting me.

When I told him of the Rebbe's greatness, he

asked me, So the Rebbe has two cows?

Litvishe yeshivos there were many

talmidim who were maskilim
and heretics. The situation was
especially bad in the small yeshivos
which existed in many towns.
There was no supervision in these
yeshivos.
The best yeshiva, said my
brother, is in Lubavitch. It's a
yeshiva that is organized and has
supervision and it's for you, he
said. And so it was decided that I
would go to Lubavitch.
My brother accompanied me to

the train station in a nearby town.

(At the train station I saw, for the
first time in my life, lit lanterns on
tall poles. My brother told me they
were lit by electricity.)

IN LUBAVITCH
I went to Lubavitch with a
letter of recommendation from the
rav in Droya. The journey took an
entire night. I arrived in Rudnia in
the morning and went to Lubavitch
from there. There were dozens
of other boys who came with me.

The entrance requirements were

tough and most of the boys were
not accepted. I was one of the few
who were accepted.
A widow and two children
arrived with me. One was thirteen
and the other twelve. The older
one was bright and he was
accepted right away. The younger
boy, who was of average ability,
was not accepted. When he was
told the news, he began to cry and
he continued crying for several
days. One day, the Rebbe Rashab
passed by and the boy went over
to him and said, I am an orphan
and I want to be a kosher Jew,
have pity on me, Rebbe!
Because of this impassioned
plea which was said with a broken
heart, the Rebbe told his son, the
menahel and later to be the Rebbe
Rayatz, to accept the boy into the
yeshiva.
The end of the story was that
the older, brighter brother left
Lubavitch shortly thereafter while
the younger, average brother
remained. He eventually became
one of the outstanding young
Chassidim.
(By the way, the ones in charge
of accepting new talmidim to
Lubavitch were told not to accept
talmidim who did not stand out
with extra cleverness even if
they were talmidei chachomim.
In Lubavitch they said that a fool
cannot be a Chassid.)

I AM STAYING IN
LUBAVITCH!
After being accepted, I went to
see the yeshiva. The yeshiva was
divided into three divisions: the zal
for older bachurim, the shiurim
for younger bachurim, and the
chadarim for boys my age.
I entered the zal and saw
that all the bachurim had beards
(until that point, I had not seen
bachurim with full beards before

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The Rebbe Rayatz, menahel of the yeshiva

their wedding) and wore shmattes.

Although I did not come from a
wealthy home, I had decent suits
while these bachurim were dressed
so pitifully. This shook me up and
made a terrible impression on me.
I decided to go home. I did
not want to stay in this place. But
the fact that I had been one of the
few to have passed the rigorous
entrance exam stopped me from
leaving immediately. I figured that
I couldn't leave until I stayed for
at least a few days. Then I would
go home. What can I tell you, in
those days I knew nothing about
the inner essence of Lubavitch.
(A close friend of mine by
the name of Shmuel, who came
with me to Lubavitch, could not
adjust to the lack of gashmius
in Lubavitch and wanted to
leave right away. But since it did

The Rebbe Rashab, founder of the yeshiva

not look good for him to leave

immediately, he stayed for a short
while. I remember that he wrote
a letter to his father, I hope to
soon leave this kur ha'barzel (iron
cauldron for smelting metal) ...
After a short stay, he indeed left
Lubavitch.)
The days passed and it was
Shabbos. On Shabbos no shiurim
were said. There was seder only
in the afternoon. At six in the
evening I walked into the zal and
saw an awesome sight which I
had never seen before. Dozens of
bachurim, at this late hour, were
still davening. I saw that they were
immersed in the davening. These
were the famous ovdim and there
were many of them. I remember
Hillel Pocheper, a tall and nice
looking fellow. His eyes were
closed and he sang with great
d'veikus. Both the tune and the

singer captivated me. I will never

forget that niggun.
At that moment I decided: I
am staying in Lubavitch!
As I said, I was accepted into
the chadarim, to the shiur of R'
Yechiel Komisar. He would say
very deep shiurim that captivated
me.
There was no dormitory for
boys my age. Those who had
money sent by their parents would
manage somehow, but those who
had no money had to eat teg, each
day at someone else's house. My
parents sent me six rubles every
month, a large sum. With that
money I rented a room along with
some other boys, in the home of
an older widow by the name of
Faiga Risha. There was an older
bachur who slept with us who
supervised us.

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MemoirS

The entrance to Miyory. On the left is R' Avrohom's grandson, R' Chaim Drizin

This went on until World War

I, when the entire Maiyor area was
cut off from Russia and annexed
by Poland. An iron curtain divided
between me and my family. Of
course, the money I used to get
from them stopped coming and
I had to leave my rented room. I
slept on a bench in the shul and
ate teg by balabatim in Lubavitch.

I AM PROMOTED
TO THE SHIURIM
Later on, I was promoted
to the shiurim, to the shiur of R'
Shmuel Ber Borisover. He was
a gaon and his shiurim were
fantastic and deep. I remember
that one time the Rayatz came
into our shiur. We were very
frightened. R' Shmuel was
immersed in saying the shiur and
did not notice Rayatz standing in
the room. Even after we motioned
to him he wasn't rattled. Instead,
he became like a gushing spring
with pilpul and bekius. We never

heard him reveal so much of his

scholarship as he did in that shiur.
I had been in Lubavitch for
three years and only then did the
hanhala allow me to go home to
Maiyor (the border with Poland
had opened and I was able to
visit). Until then they did not
allow me to go home in fear that I
would not return. The truth is that
I myself did not want to go home.
After three years, when I had
become a fiery Chassid, I finally
went home for the first time. I
remember my meeting with the
rav the Misnaged. He asked me
to tell him about Lubavitch and
about the Rebbe.
The rav had simple and
earthly sensibilities. For example,
the rav supported himself by
selling the milk of a cow that
the townspeople bought him.
When I told him of the Rebbe's
greatness, he asked me, So the
Rebbe has two cows? When I
saw that the rav had cockeyed
ideas about everything having to

do with the Rebbe, I explained

the Rebbe's great holiness to him.
But he wasn't satisfied until I told
him that what he said was like a
person going to the capital city
of Petersburg and saying that the
czar has two cows.
After I returned to Lubavitch
and after finishing with the
shiurim, I switched to the branch
of Tomchei Tmimim in Szedrin
which was a yeshiva for young
people. Over there, we began
learning on our own. I learned by
the mashpia R' Shaul Ber Zislin
who was a big maskil in the study
of Chassidus and had a superior
ability to explain things.
Much has been written and
printed in the letters and sichos
of the Rebbe Rashab and Rebbe
Rayatz about the special quality
of Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim.
The Chassid, R' Dovid Tzvi
Chein, known by his acronym
Radatz, called the period before
the founding of Tomchei Tmimim
before Mattan Torah.
I will tell you one way in
which the yeshiva in Lubavitch
was different than other yeshivos.
It was unique in discipline and
order. In Tomchei Tmimim,
everything was wondrously precise
and orderly. The mashgichim
and maggidei shiur were serious
people who were very particular,
about their time too. They were
never late or lackadaisical about
their work. We talmidim also had
to be very particular about keeping
to the learning schedule.
When a talmid was late by
one minute, he could be punished
for that. The mashgichim knew
every single bachur and knew
his material and spiritual state.
Hard tests were given according
to a schedule. Each talmid was
under constant surveillance by the
mashgichim.
Because
of
this
tough
learning regimen, not many of

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the bachurim who came from

all over Russia were accepted.
The hanhala selected only those
with very good heads, for to be
devoted to two types of learning,
Nigleh and Chassidus, which is
what Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim
innovated, and at such a standard
as demanded in Lubavitch, was
not for everyone.
Thanks to the overbearing
supervision, speed and precision
became ingrained in us. This
approach was maintained at all
levels. Even in the chadarim where
the young boys learned, there were
set and precise sdarim and strict
supervision. An older bachur, who
was like a counselor, received
instructions from the hanhala to
read the letters that the boys wrote
home and the letters that the boys
received.

WAR
During the extended period
I was not at home, the rav of
Maiyor urged my father to travel
to Lubavitch to see how I was
doing and what the yeshiva was
like. Although he was busy with
work and despite the big expense
involved, my father came to visit
me in Lubavitch. He was favorably
impressed by the orderliness
and discipline. Being a talmid
chochom, he was also impressed
by the high level of learning.
World War I began on Tisha
B'Av 5674/1914. Many Russian
Jews looked forward to the arrival
of the Germans. They thought the
Germans were their good friends,
for Yiddish is similar to German.
Many thought the Germans would
bring freedom and relief.
But the Rebbe Rashab hated
the Germans. He said about
Kaiser Wilhelm II Vilhelm: vil
helem (wants concealment). The
Rebbe predicted: the Germans will
conquer Russia, swallow it, and
choke it.

R' Avrohom Drizin

Once the war began, a new

and difficult era began in the life
of Lubavitch, a period in which

Lubavitch was revealed in all its

power concluded R' Avrohom.

Issue 941

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MIRACLE STORY

A PICTURE
WORTH A
THOUSAND
WORDS AND
$3,000
What connects a young artist who wants to buy
a pair of tfillin with a resident of Crown Heights
who pays $3,000 for a painting of the Rebbe
MH"M and how does all this become clear in an
answer in Igros Kodesh?
By Nosson Avraham
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry

oday, the Wolpin family is

on shlichus of the Rebbe
Melech
HaMoshiach
at the Upper Galilee
Regional Council. They previously
lived in Nachalat Har Chabad,
where the father, Rabbi Noam
Wolpin, served as an educational
counselor at the vocational school
in Kiryat Malachi.
The

following

remarkable

story took place with one of the

students, Ohr Chaim Zindberg,
as Rabbi Wolpin was concluding
his work at the vocational school
and preparing to move to northern
Eretz Yisroel.

a very positive change, and he also

foresaw what would happen with
this young man's artistic work,"
recalled Rabbi Noam Wolpin in a
voice filled with emotion.

"We see plainly how the Rebbe

guides everything along its proper
path. It can't get any clearer than
that. The Rebbe also gave a clear
bracha via Igros Kodesh that led to

"Ohr Chaim was not one of

my students. Our first meeting
took place completely by Divine
Providence. One day, as I was

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Ohr Chaim Zindberg with his painting of the Rebbe

walking through the dormitory,

I entered one of the rooms and
noticed a young man painting the
Rebbe on a large canvas board.
Hanging on the walls surrounding
him was a large and varied
collection of pictures of the Rebbe.
It didn't take much to realize that
this boy is an extremely gifted
artist. The portrait was of such
high quality that it looked more

like a photograph than a painting.

"We became close and we
often held discussions well into
the night. This young man was a
truly amazing individual whose
life's travails had brought him to
where he was, and his use of his
artistic talents had proven to be
very therapeutic. I knew that I
was about to leave my job with
the vocational school in favor of

a shlichus position while he knew

that he was about to complete his
studies there.
"Since we wanted to maintain
contact with one another, I made
some inquiries and discovered that
the Tel-Chai Academic College
had a special art program. I then
suggested that he write a letter to
the Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach
asking about his artwork and

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MIRACLE STORY

The Rebbe's answer

whether it would be appropriate

for him to learn in this program
while engaging in outreach
activities during his free time.
The young man happily agreed
and wrote a letter to the Rebbe.
The answer appears in Vol. 4,
Letter #942:
In my opinion, you need
to check the mezuzos in your
house, and before going to sleep,
learn a few lines in the sichos
of my revered and holy fatherin-law, the Rebbe, and draw
his holy face to the best of your
recollection. With the help of
G-d Alm-ghty, I hope that he will
give me good news that his sleep
has improved. With a blessing
for a long and good life adding
fortitude in Torah, mitzvos, and
good deeds.
"We read the answer together;
there was no need for anything
more. It was clear that the Rebbe
was encouraging and supporting
him to continue with his artwork
and paint his picture as well. As
a result, he joined us in our move
northward, becoming a virtual

member of the family. During the

period that followed he continued
painting pictures of the Rebbe.
Incredibly, for a variety of reasons,
this young man had been suffering
from a serious case of insomnia.
Ever since he had decided to
invest most of his time and effort
in drawing the Rebbe's image, his
nights passed uninterrupted as the
Rebbe had indicated, 'I hope that
he will give me good news that his
sleep has improved.'
"We hung the impressive
painting in the campus Chabad
House and everyone who came
in was taken by its great splendor.
The idea was to sell it and thereby
cover the cost of a strictly kosher
pair of tfillin for Ohr Chaim
and for his college art studies.
However, none of those visiting
the college could possibly afford
the high price we were asking for
this picture.
"About a month later, I chose
to take part in the International
Shluchim Conference in Crown
Heights. We decided that I should
take the painting to 'Beis Chayeinu

770', where there would be a

far greater chance of success in
selling the portrait at a higher
price to cover the young artist's
expenses.
"While it was extremely
difficult and cumbersome to carry
such a large piece of artwork
wrapped in numerous layers to
prevent damage, nevertheless, I
took it with me and bore witness
to constant examples of Divine
Providence
throughout
the
journey.
"As soon as I arrived in Crown
Heights, I went into 770 and
placed the painting in a prominent
spot. Before leaving Eretz Yisroel
we thought long and hard over
how much to ask from potential
buyers. We eventually decided to
set the price at $3,000 and from
there we would consider marking
it down. Several days passed and
no one expressed any interest.
There were those who looked
at the portrait for a long while,
however, the high price apparently
discouraged them from thinking
about buying it. The evening
before the Shluchim Conference
commenced, I asked the Rebbe for
a bracha that the painting would
be sold. The truth is I wanted
to put my worries to rest on this
matter and actually start enjoying
the conference.
"The following morning at half
past six, as I was going into 770 to
daven Shacharis, a longstanding
member of the Crown Heights
community came up to me and
inquired about the painting. He
didn't appear to me as someone
who could fork over such a large
sum of money. Nevertheless, out
of a sense of respect, I told him
about the piece of artwork and the
young man who created it. After
he looked at the painting for a
while longer, he asked me to wait.
He soon returned, having drawn
up a pre-sale agreement for me

14 10 Elul 5774
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to sign, assuring him in writing

that the painting was an uncopied
original. Then, without haggling
over the price I was asking, he
placed $3,000 in cash in my
hand. He told me that he and his
wife had been looking for a highquality oil painting of the Rebbe
for quite some time.
"When I returned to Eretz
Yisroel I gave the money directly
to the young artist and he
immediately used it to pay for his
college tuition and buy a pair of
Mehudar tfillin.
"At
one
of
the
first
opportunities we had, we opened
the answer that he had received
from the Rebbe just prior to our
move to the Upper Galilee and
we were quite surprised. While
we had focused on the first
answer dealing with drawing the
Rebbe Rayatz's picture, a quick
look at the letter on the opposite
page [Igros Kodesh Translated
Letters] revealed yet another

striking prophecy. The Rebbe

specified the exact amount for
which the painting had been sold
a few months earlier, even noting
the good news of the purchase of
tfillin that came as a result:
He gave over to you about the
content of our discussion, when
he offered to give $3,000 to print
the sfarim of my revered and
holy father-in-law, the Rebbe,
and I replied that he must make
certain that the son will start
putting on tfillin every day, and
only after he came back again
about the money, I told him
that there's no need for three.
It should be two and a-half,
and this should go for printing
the aforementioned sfarim. I
hope that he will fulfill the two
promises, both regarding tfillin
and the commitment to print,
and we can convey two [kinds of]
good news at once for all times.

Rabbi Noam Wolpin concludes

his unique story on the Rebbe's
portrait
with
undisguised
devotion:
"We see how the Rebbe
accompanies us every step of
the way. When we read the two
answers we felt that the Rebbe
was responding to our question
with tremendous precision and
accuracy.
"Ohr Chaim was most fittingly
named, as he continues now
to spread light and life. He is
completing his studies with an
even more amazing painting of
the Rebbe. Everyone around him
knows about the miracle he was
privileged to experience with the
Rebbe's bracha, and ever since he
began devoting his time to drawing
the Rebbe's picture, his emotional,
spiritual, and physical condition
has
improved
tremendously
beyond all measure."

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Issue 941

15

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CHINUCH

EVERY
CHILD

HAS
HIS
KEY
A teacher with thirty students
or a parent with six-seven
children and more soon realizes
that the educational approach
that worked with one child
won't necessarily work with
another child. Each child needs
to be regarded as an individual.
By Nosson Avrohom

16 10 Elul 5774
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ot long ago, a student

from another class
came over to me and
told me what was on his
mind. He said that for a long time
he felt that nobody cared about
him. He was overwrought and told
me that a few hours earlier he had
conducted an experiment. He left
the class and nobody bothered to
look for him during his hours of
absence.
Where were you all that
time? I asked. He told me about
a place where he spends hours
every day, the carpentry teacher's
room. When he mentioned the
carpentry teacher his eyes lit up.
When he described the projects he
made and wanted to show them
to me, I noticed tears in his eyes.
If only there were more arts and
crafts classes in school. I love
them, he told me enthusiastically.
Handicrafts are this boy's
strong point. Whenever there
is something to do with crafts,
he's the first to volunteer. He
made a nice wooden pushka and
built beautiful floats that were
used in the Lag B'Omer parade.
He has refurbished items that
seemed beyond salvage, but in the
classroom it is hard for him. The
conventional approach in yeshiva
is to sit in one place for many
hours, but this bores him and he
loses interest quickly.
There are many students like
him, some of them are quiet and
the problem is greater with them.
On a positive note, in recent years
the spotlight has been directed at
these students and yeshiva staffs
are investing a lot of work to
include them in the classroom. If
in the past, the teacher addressed
the bulk of the class and the other
students would make tea for the
teachers or become errand boys,
today the way of thinking is
different and no student is given
up on.

THERE IS NO CARBON
COPY IN EDUCATION
The Torah and our sages often
compare human beings to trees.
If you think about it, it's amazing.
Just as with human beings, in
the plant world no two plants are
identical. One plant needs more
water and another manages with
little, one needs more exposure
to the sun and the other does
better in the shade. One needs
other plants around it to support
its growth while another's growth
will be stunted by weeds growing
nearby.
There are plants whose peak
season is the summer while other
plants need cool, rainy weather.
Young saplings need great care.
Any strong wind or too much or
too little water can adversely affect
their growth. The same is true for
young children. If they grow up in
an environment which disregards
their needs, it will negatively affect
their development.
There are children who are
more sensitive and some less,
those with a temper and those
who are easygoing, those who
are adventurous and those who
are more cautious, energetic ones
and lazy ones, intellectual and
emotional, those who need a lot
of encouragement and those who
don't like that, those who need
peace and quiet and those who
like a commotion. The same is
true for talents; some enjoy music
and others like working with their
hands. Some are more spiritually
inclined and others are more
down to earth. Nobody is alike
and within every talent there are
manifold differences between one
and another. So too for brothers,
no child is identical to his sibling.
We can see this in a classroom
or within a family and we need
to pay attention to it. In the nonJewish world, the understanding
that every child has his unique way

of learning and understanding

really took off in the past twenty to
thirty years. The awareness that in
a heterogeneous classroom there
are differences not only in learning
styles but also in intellectual
abilities is something everybody
recognizes today.
As believing Jews, we know
that chinuch can't be based on
one approach. Shlomo HaMelech
wrote in Mishlei, Chanoch
l'naar al pi darko, which
means that every child has his
way of understanding. Chazal
emphasized that just as people's
faces are different, so too is their
way of thinking. The educational
perspective that sees the power of
the individual is sourced in Chazal
thousands of years ago.
When we recognize that
every child has unique abilities
and intelligence, we won't use
a uniform education approach
for all our students and children.
Each child is a world unto himself
and every child needs us to treat
him as an individual.
A teacher with thirty students
or a parent with six-seven children
and more soon realizes that the
educational approach that worked
with one child won't necessarily
work with another child. Each
child needs to be regarded as an
individual, with an understanding
of his inner world and the
challenges he has to deal with.
The same holds true for
parents. This is why, in the HaYom
Yom, the Rebbe quotes the Rebbe
Rashab (HaYom Yom 22 Teves) as
saying that it is an absolute duty
for every person to spend a half
hour every day thinking about the
Torah education of children, and
to do everything in his power
and beyond his power to inspire
children to follow the path along
which they are being guided, for
chinuch is something that requires
a lot of thought.

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Chinuch

R' Chadakov, a master

educator, once said that a teacher
should capitalize on a student's
talent and allow him to develop it
for good things.
An artistic student, for
example, should be encouraged
to develop his or her talents in a
kosher way. Why not suggest they
sit in a park and draw the wonders
of creation?
Likewise, a student who finds
it difficult to concentrate on his
learning, needs to find ways to
use his talents for other things.
For example, a child who made
something out of wood to decorate
his room, his Beis Chabad, will
be pleased with his work and this
will increase his yiras Shamayim
and his love for holy things and
mitzvos. The other students
will learn don't be scornful of
anything, when they see that each
student has something special that
he excels in.

FOUR ELEMENTS IN
DIFFERENT PROPORTIONS
Back to the example we started
with. The Torah and our sages
often compare a Jew's life to a
tree. In this weeks Parsha it says,
ki ha'adam eitz ha'sadeh (for
is man a tree of the field?). In
Yeshaya it says, k'yimei ha'eitz
yimei ami (as the days of the tree
are the days of my people) and in
Yirmiyahu it says, k'eitz shasul al
palgai mayim (as a tree planted

on streams of water), and those

are only three sources out of many
others comparing man to a tree.
The question is, why is a Jew
compared to a tree?
A tree needs four elements to
exist: earth, water, wind, and fire.
Similarly, people need the same
four elements.
Earth: The sapling needs to
be planted firmly in the earth. The
earth provides it with nourishment
to grow and room to develop its
roots. This is true for a child too.
Good chinuch is when a child
acquires firm roots.
Water: Rainwater is absorbed
in the earth and through the root
system it reaches the trunk of
the tree, its branches and leaves.
Without water, a tree dries up.
Torah is compared to water, as it
says, My word drips like dew.
Both rain and Torah descend
from heaven and slake the thirsty.
We need to educate not only for
material success but also to water
the child with Jewish ethics and
values.
Wind: A tree needs air to
exist. Air contains oxygen which
the tree needs as well as carbon
dioxide. In an atmosphere which
is not balanced, the tree will choke
and die. We need to train a child
in matters of the spirit so that his
connection to himself and the holy
Torah will be strong and deep and
not superficial.
Fire: A tree needs the light of

the sun to exist. The energy of

the sun is absorbed and causes
a chemical reaction which is
essential for the growth of the tree.
A child also needs fire, warmth,
lots of love, caring, inclusion and
attention.
Every child needs each of
the four elements but some
children need one of the four
more urgently. There are more
spiritually inclined children, there
are children who need more
love, and the teacher or parent
needs to be sensitive to the needs
of the child and provide them
accordingly.
There are teachers who
consider the benefit of the group
over the needs of the individual. If
one or two children disturb, they
are removed because the welfare
of the rest of the class comes
first. This is wrong because when
a child disturbs he has a certain
need. If we identify it and fill it,
his behavior will change. It is like
a hungry or thirsty child who is
uncomfortable and can't learn.
A teacher needs to love his
students like they are his own
children. When you love someone,
you are not willing to give up on
them. We as Jews and Chassidim
don't have the option of giving up
on anyone.
Nachas from children is the
greatest desire a parent has.
Hashem set it up so that anything
worthwhile
requires
effort,
building, growing. Wild grass
grows without care but wheat
and barley and other produce
that people eat require sowing,
watering, fertilizing, hoeing, etc.
The same is true for children. You
want nachas? Put in the work!
In order to tip the world to
the side of merit and hasten the
hisgalus, just one deed can do it
and who knows whether the good
deed of that child will be the one
to accomplish it.

18 10 Elul 5774
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ubhcr ,pue

Kupas Rabbeinu

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

Lubavitch
(718) 467-2500

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

(718) 756-3337

URG
REQ ENT
UES
T!
HUNDREDS OF FAMILIES ANXIOUSLY LOOKING
FORWARD FOR YOUR GENEROUS ASSISTANCE!
Boruch Hashem, Elul 5770
5774

To every member of the Lubavitcher community:

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

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

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

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

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

In the name of Vaad Kupas Rabbeinu

Rabbi Sholom Mendel Simpson

Rabbi Yehuda Leib Groner

P.S. Of course, you may send to Kupas Rabbeinu all contributions that you would send to the Rebbe; all
will be devoted to the activities to which the Rebbe would devote them.
You may also send Maimad, Keren-Hashono (this coming year 5771
- 385
5775
354 days), Vov Tishrei, Yud Gimmel
Tishrei Magbis etc. to Kupas Rabbeinu.
P.S. Please send all correspondence only to the following address.
KUPAS RABBEINU / P.O.B. 288 / BROOKLYN, NEW YORK 11225
Eretz Yisroel address: KEREN KUPAS ADMU"R / P.O.B. 1247 / KIRYAT MALACHI / ISRAEL

941b_bm_eng.indd 19

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FEATURE

20 10 Elul 5774
941b_bm_eng.indd 20

2014-09-02 1:12:57 AM

DEARLY

BELOVED
CHASSIDIM
A few people had a rare relationship with the
Rebbe, in which their love for the Rebbe shone
through powerfully and they merited that the Rebbe
reciprocated with a double portion of love and caring.

R' Zalmon Jaffe

R' Yaakov Yehuda Hecht

By Refael Dinari

obody can come up with a

more compelling depiction
of the concern of a faithful
shepherd for his flock, the
love of a compassionate father for his
children, than the Rebbe's devotion to
his Chassidim and Jews.
A few individuals had unusual
relationships with the Rebbe.
Their great love for the Rebbe was
reciprocated with a double portion
of love. They weren't necessarily
shpitz Chabad, and some were
plain people. Some called them
pruste Yidden, but they were devoted
to the Rebbe with all their heart, soul
and might (money).
The topic is far too broad and the
examples far too many to offer an
exhaustive treatment of the subject
within the constraints of time and
space, but the following are a few

examples from whom we can learn

much.

MISTER MANCHESTER
R' Zalmon Jaffe was a well-to-do
man from Manchester, England. He
served as the president of the local
vaad ha'shchita. He fully utilized his
role, his position, his connections,
and his money to give the Rebbe
nachas and to bring the wellsprings
to cold Britain.
Before his first yechidus, in
5718, R' Bentzion Shemtov, who
was mekarev Jaffe to Chabad, gave
him a list of rules of protocol. In the
Rebbe's office he was not to shake
hands with the Rebbe, he was not to
sit down, etc.
When Jaffe finally had yechidus
at midnight the Rebbe stood up and
held out his hand. Jaffe said that

R' Moshe Yitzchok Hecht

R' Yitzchok Nemes

Issue 941

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2014-09-02 1:12:58 AM

XXIV

Feature
Shemtov told him not to shake
hands. So we won't tell him,
smiled the Rebbe.
After they shook hands, the
Rebbe invited him to sit down.
But I was told ...
It's okay to sit down the first
three times you have yechidus,
said the Rebbe.
When R' Zalmon sat down
he thought how this would be
the first and last time he would
be crossing the Atlantic. He was
right, though only partially so. It
was the first time. The last time,
which occurred after numerous

The Rebbe wrote to R' Zalmon

Jaffe: Since I saw him today with
a smiling countenance, enclosed is
$50 to distribute in his city.

Printed on page 285

R' JJ Hecht standing next to the Rebbe at a Lag B'Omer parade

trips, took place thirty years later.

Of course on that occasion and in
the private audiences that followed
this first one he stood like a
soldier.
During the visit the Rebbe
gave him unusual respect. When
someone dared to ask the Rebbe
what this man did to deserve
such respect when he hadn't
done anything for the Chabad
movement, the Rebbe said it
wasn't because of what he had

done, but what he would do.

Years later, when Zalmon Jaffe
mentioned this response to the
Rebbe, the Rebbe told him with
a smile that the answer was still
true.
The
conversations
that
the Rebbe had with him in
numerous private audiences and
at farbrengens were different
than the usual Rebbe-Chassid
conversations. They were the
kind one would have with a good
friend.

R' Zalmon sensed this and his

responses to the Rebbe were also
not the norm. He would explain
things to the Rebbe but did so with
genuine love.
At the end of one of the
many private audiences, said R'
Zalmon, I gave the Rebbe five
bottles of mashke for the Rebbe to
distribute at the farbrengen. The
Rebbe asked which farbrengen
and I said, it doesn't matter, the
Rebbe can choose to distribute
them to whoever he wants. The
Rebbe asked whether the bottles
came from Manchester and I said,
no, from me personally. I am sure
that the Rebbe can find someone
who deserves a bottle of mashke.
The Rebbe told him that he
had stopped giving bottles of
mashke to people because it had
become disorganized. R' Zalmon
told the Rebbe that he had given
the bottles of mashke to the Rebbe
because mashke lasts longer and
it is easier to give it out later, but
the cake dries out.
The Rebbe asked whether
there was a special reason that he
brought five bottles and R' Zalmon
said, No, the customs officials
only allow five bottles tax free.
The Rebbe asked, What will
I do with five bottles of mashke?
R' Zalmon said, Take them
home.
The Rebbe said, But I don't
like vodka.
Then the Rebbe thanked R'
Zalmon for the visit. R' Zalmon
said that the Rebbe's words of
thanks made a deep impression
on him. He was amazed that such
a great man as the Rebbe would
thank him for coming to visit
him. It's unbelievable. It left me
speechless, he wrote. On that
occasion, the Rebbe offered to
take him home in his car.
R' Zalmon's great love for the
Rebbe was boundless and now and

22 10 Elul 5774
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then the Rebbe had to set limits.

The Rebbe encouraged Zalmon to
write his impressions of the Kinus
Ha'Torah that took place on Isru
Chag in 770.
He once spoke and mentioned
that the Rebbe is the Moshe
Rabbeinu of our generation.
The next day, when he had
yechidus, he told the Rebbe what
he had said. The Rebbe pointed
out that this line about Moshe
Rabbeinu should be said only to
Lubavitchers.
At the end of the yechidus
the Rebbe stressed again that he
should publish what he said at the
Kinus Torah but should omit the
line about Moshe Rabbeinu.

The Rebbe talking with R' Zalmon Jaffe

XVII

THE HECHT BOYS

When the Rebbe Rayatz
came to America and announced
that America was no different,
he lacked American Chassidim
who spoke the language and
were familiar with the American
mentality and culture.
Shisha Sidrei Mishna is how
the Rebbe referred to the six Hecht
brothers. Two of them, R' Moshe
Yitzchok and R' Yaakov Yehuda
(JJ) each had an entire sicha said
about them in the 90's on the
Shabbos after their respective
passing.
The Rebbe even went out to
escort them at their funerals, just
as he did fifteen years earlier for
the funeral of their older brother,
Shlomo Zalman. When R' Moshe
Yitzchok passed away, the Rebbe
stood there for a long time looking
in the direction of the aron, even
after the aron had disappeared
from view.
Perhaps it was because they
were pioneers in the Jewish
revolution in America that the
Hecht brothers enjoyed special
signs of closeness from the
Rebbe. It was always known that

941b_bm_eng.indd 23

asked
R' Chadakov
how
Finally, After
when thethe
big yechidus,
payoff does Icome
through,
the Rebbe doesnt
hold back
hisRebbe
vision ofknew
even greater
blessing!
the
that this
time I hadn't davened

Maariv. He
said
that
Rebbe
a Jew's
I was
pleased
to the
read
that yousees
so quickly
saw theneshama
fulfillment of
G-ds
promise,
Test
me
now
herewith,
saith
our
G-d...
if I will
not
and every time a Jew davens, new lights are drawn
down
open for you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing
on him. That
night,
the (Malachi
light of
Maariv
waspledge
missing
from
more than
enough.
3:10).
Thus, your
of 500
for
Kfar Chabad, has been returned to you many fold. It is a pity that you
me.

did not pledge more, so that the benefit would have been so much
greater. I trust, however, that this will be a lesson for the future, to
7
the Hecht brothers
hadhow
a special
another
yechidus,
when he
remember
trust in G-d isInwell
rewarded.

relationship with the Rebbe walked in, he saluted the Rebbe.

butAtit one
was point
only there
in later
years,
The Rebbe
smiledthe
and
said, I
arose
a question
regarding
amount
of money
when
the
treasures
began
to
be
should
return
your
salute
but
what
Reb Zalmon was giving to charity, relative to his financial position:
squandered, and handwritten can I do when they see me from
notes and other
began even
to the
window
... is to remember that your
Whatthings
is perhaps
more
important
be publicized,business
that the depth
of
the
In
the
early years,
saidweR' began to
turnover has grown quite remarkably
since
connection became known.
JJ
Hecht,
the
Rebbe
told
me toto you that
discuss your Tzedoko contributions. I believe I mentioned
On 11 sometimes
Nissan 5730/1970,
get
involved
in
something
new,tisasheir,
the order is asseir first, and then comes the
when R' Moshe Yitzchok entered in addition to the usual things I
and sometimes it is reversed, namely, G-d extends His credit first,
last for yechidus, after rabbanim was involved with. I felt that it
increasing the turnover of business and a proportionate increase in
and Chassidim who came to bless was too much for me and that I
profits, expecting confidently that the asseir will follow in a
the Rebbe on his birthday, the couldn't do it. I took the key to my
commensurate
measure.office,
In yourput
case
theanlatter
order was
Rebbe welcomed
him graciously
it in
envelope,
and followed.
Hence,
the many
increase
Tzedoko
should
and said, There
were
hereof your
wrote
a notecontributions
to the Rebbe
that be
I at least
to the increase
the volume
especially, as
tonight butproportionate
acharon, acharon
felt Iincouldn't
do of
it business,
and therefore
in your
case, bli ayin-hora,
volume the
increase
chaviv (the last
is beloved).
I wasthe
returning
key so has
that been
the lma'alo

miderech hateva (supernatural).8

In later years the Rebbe became synonymous

using
Issue 941with
23
charity,
every occasion to distribute dollars to everyone he met, to be given
to charity; whether it was at Yechidus, Farbrengen or the famous
Sunday morning dollar line. In those early years, however,
the 1:12:59 AM
2014-09-02

Feature

R' Yitzchok Nemes (left) at a bris mila

Rebbe could take the role and pass

it on to someone more deserving.
When the Rebbe received the
note, he took a pencil and made
a long line through the letter. I
have no time to read nonsense,
the Rebbe wrote. Later, when R'
Hecht had yechidus, the Rebbe
told him, You need to be happy
that Hashem relies on you and
gives you this kind of work.
R' Moshe Yitzchok Hecht
wrote a similar letter after
dozens of years of shlichus in
Connecticut. From the Rebbe's
response we see that the Rebbe did
not only see himself as a friend of
the Hecht family but enumerated
the years of the friendship:
My personal advice to you
as a friend for forty years is, the
mosdos and activities that you
do in New Haven are great and
wonderful. You have succeeded
as the shliach of the Rebbe
Rayatz's, the shliach of Hashem,
and I believe with complete faith
that Hashem 'lo shanisi' [I did
not change] and the Rebbe, my
father-in-law stands and serves
up above and blesses and grants
success to his shluchim now as

he did then. The conclusion is

simple.
As an old friend, the Rebbe did
not let R' Moshe Yitzchok forget
the friendship. After he reported to
the Rebbe about the financial state
of the yeshiva in New Haven and
wrote that he asked all his friends
to donate $1000, the Rebbe
underlined the word friends and
added (in addition to a check for
$1000): From one of them he
surely did not yet take, and his
name is Menachem Schneersohn
and enclosed is a check for my
participation.
The Rebbe also made sure that
his friend would have nachas
from his son. On 30 Av 5737,
there was a bar mitzva celebration
for IDF orphans. The next day,
when the Rebbe arrived at 770,
R' Moshe Yitzchok was there and
the Rebbe went over to him and
said, You might not know it but
your son was the guest of honor
at the bar mitzva that took place
yesterday in Kfar Chabad and he
did very well.
On another occasion, when
he wrote to the Rebbe about
difficulties regarding the mosdos,

the Rebbe responded in this

unique personal style:
With some surprise I've
received word that he is acting
in recent days like the first
luchos which were given with
great fanfare, but although I feel
your pain, and from my flesh
I see for I also am pained, in
addition to the situation 1) in
New Haven (where I have 'some'
connection to the mosad) we
have a similar situation here or
something like it in our mosdos
which cry out for help I have
'some connection' with all these
mosdos and according to the
hanhala (and perhaps also
according to me) the space is
not adequate at all. It is like the
mosad is in my room in 770, not
in the courtyard of 770.
In any case, why don't you
and I and others do like the
second luchos which were given
quietly. It was in this manner
that they lasted.
R' Moshe Yitzchok received
another rare and astonishing
response after writing the Rebbe
on 15 Tamuz 5734: The Rebbe
should help and do it all.
The
Rebbe
responded,
Before they call out I respond
I have already done as you
advised and sent R' Moshe
Yitzchok Hecht there. As is
apparent from this letter and
the previous one you still do not
know him and the kochos he
was given. At least try to get to
know him now, and immediately
everything will change: the
state of mind, the bitachon in
Hashem, the day to day simcha,
etc. etc.

DONT FORGET TO WORK

Even in the years preceding
the nesius, R' Yitzchok Nemes a
young European child who came
to America with his family, having

24 10 Elul 5774
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2014-09-02 1:12:59 AM

escaped the Nazi inferno, had a

relationship with the Rebbe-to-be.
Ramash would often call him and
talk to him about various things.
After the passing of the Rebbe
Rayatz I was one of the bachurim
who had the zchus to daven every
day on the second floor. Nearly
every morning after davening,
Ramash called me and asked me
if I had anything to ask. I would
tell him everything that occurred
the previous day and the Rebbe
would listen attentively and give
advice. To me the Rebbe is not
just a Rebbe. He treated me like a
son. I'll tell you the truth, once the
Rebbe began to formally accept
people for yechidus it was hard for
me, because I was used to going
over to talk to him nearly every
morning.
R' Yitzchok had many stories
about his private audiences, like
the yechidus that he had before
his birthday. The line was long
and R' Yitzchok finally entered
the Rebbe's room at four in the
morning.
When I walked in the Rebbe
asked me, 'Yitzchok, did you daven
Maariv?' I had been so tense that
I figured I would daven after the
yechidus but my appointment kept
on getting delayed. It's interesting
that the Rebbe never asked me that
question other than that night.
The Rebbe added, 'Don't forget.'
After the yechidus, I asked R'
Chadakov how the Rebbe knew
that this time I hadn't davened
Maariv. R' Chadakov's explanation
was interesting. He said that the
Rebbe sees a Jew's neshama and
not just his body and every time a
Jew davens, new lights are drawn
down on him. That night, the light
of Maariv was missing on me.
One of the early years of the
nesius the Rebbe farbrenged on
Shabbos Mevarchim as always.
After the farbrengen, the Rebbe
got up and suddenly took me and

R' Moshe Yitzchok Hecht passing by the Rebbe for kos shel bracha with his grandson

When the Rebbe received the note, he took a

pencil and made a long line through the letter. I
have no time to read nonsense, the Rebbe wrote.

the chazan, R' Moshe Teleshevsky

for a short dance at the end of
which he wished us, 'I want to
come to you for happy occasions.'
When R' Nemes began dealing
in stamps, the Rebbe regularly
advised him. The Rebbe told him
to travel to Paris and said that
a certain market was good for
the stamp business. The Rebbe's
relationship with him was so
special that sometimes, when
he had a cash flow problem, the
Rebbe would give him a check
as a loan, without his asking
for it, without any time limit for
repayment.
The Rebbe constantly inquired
about his business, what he had
bought and sold.
The Rebbe insisted that he
travel frequently on business.
One year, the Nemes family was
planning to move about a week
before Pesach. R Yitzchok arrived
from Paris on the Wednesday

before and that day the Nemes

couple had yechidus. As always,
the Rebbe asked about the
business and wondered why he
had returned and hadn't finished
business. R' Yitzchok said that his
wife was about to give birth and in
a few days they would be moving
and it was almost Pesach.
Surprisingly, the Rebbe told
him to return to Paris. R' Yitzchok,
of course, did just that. The baby
boy was born on Friday night and
the new mother had to make the
move herself.
One time, when he returned
from a trip and gave the Rebbe
a report, the Rebbe said to him,
Yitzchok, you are a businessman
and have to remember to do
business. The Rebbe smiled as
he said this. R' Nemes was so
preoccupied with hafatza that
he could forget that the purpose
of his business trip was to do
business.

Issue 941

941b_bm_eng.indd 25

25

2014-09-02 1:12:59 AM

THOUGHT

THE KING IS

IN THE FIELD

FOR YOU
By Nadav Cohen

question that shluchim

are often asked is, where
did you learn to become
a shliach? Does Chabad
give a course before you go out on
shlichus?
For those who learn Chassidus,
the question sounds funny. What
would we learn in a course that
we need to love every Jew? That
we need to care for others? That
we need to be moser nefesh for
the Rebbe's ratzon? These are not
things that you learn that you need
to do or need to be.
A preparatory course will
definitely not turn a person into
someone who loves Jews or into
a moser nefesh. Chassidus needs
to be lived. Someone who learns
in Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim,
learns Chassidus, is connected to
the Rebbe, farbrengs, and lives
Chassidus, is someone who is
prepared to go on shlichus.

IS THERE STILL
HOPE FOR ME?

As to how to go about drawing

people closer to their Father in
heaven, that too will be found
throughout the teachings of
Chassidus, in every maamer that
we learn about the special bond
that exists between a Jew and G-d
and what we need to do to reveal
it.

There are maamarim in

which the point is particularly
emphasized, for example, the
maamarim that speak of the King
in the Field. Let us examine this
maamer from a slightly different
perspective than usual and see
what we can take from it for life,
for shlichus, chinuch, shalom
bayis, etc.
The original maamer is from
the Alter Rebbe and he asks, how
can we say that the month of Elul
has a lofty G-dly revelation of the
13 Attributes of Mercy and at the
same time say that the avoda of a
person in this month is with his
own efforts (an isarusa d'l'tata and
not an isarusa d'l'eila). The answer
is in the analogy of the King in
the Field. Indeed, in Elul there
is something lofty which we don't
have in any other month, Hashem

26 10 Elul 5774
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2014-09-02 1:13:00 AM

is more revealed than ever, but it is

not like the month of Tishrei when
the king is wearing royal clothing
and is in his palace. In Elul, the
king goes out to the people. He
goes out to the field and is not
dressed in royal clothes, and there
in the field he receives everyone
graciously and shows a smiling
countenance to all.
Similarly, although Tishrei
has a lofty revelation (which, as it
were, compels us to go to the king
isarusa d'l'eila), not everyone
can get in to see the king. In Elul,
the revelation is lower, it does not
draw a person as strongly (and
therefore, the knowledge that the
king is in the field does not compel
anyone to go and see him). On
the other hand, in Elul the king
greets everyone. Anyone can come
and it makes no difference what
he was until now or how distant
he was. His spiritual stature does
not matter, for the king receives
everyone.
***
A classmate from high school
(from the period before I came to
Chabad) recently called me. I had
kept in touch with him just barely
over the years but he knew that I
am Lubavitch now. He said that
he had an important question that
he had to get answered.
I promised to try and he said,
Tell me, can everyone do tshuva?
Even someone who committed the
gravest sins?
There is nothing that stands
in the way of tshuva, I answered
him.
Sometimes, a person reaches
a point where he thinks he can no
longer rectify his past. He thinks
that he can never do tshuva.
The Alter Rebbe tells us in his
famous analogy that in Elul the
king is in the field, in Elul he
receives everyone with a smiling
countenance.
Their
standing
makes no difference. Even

someone deep in klipa, someone

who threw off the yoke of Heaven
completely, can do tshuva.
A person's fear that he already
crossed the red line, that he went
too far, is a fear he has to get
over. To the person who has lost
faith, who doesn't think he stands
a chance, Chassidic teachings tell
him that Hashem did not give up
on you, He wants you too, He is
ready to accept you as you are,
just go toward Him.
(It should be noted, as per
the well-known observation, that
although the king is in the field,
if the Jew continues working his

for being a Jew. True, when a Jew

does mitzvos it gives Hashem
nachas, but even before that,
Hashem has pleasure just from his
being a Jew, before he does any
mitzvos at all.
When a Jew feels that Hashem
has pleasure from him without
his even doing mitzvos, it arouses
in him a pleasure in Hashem, a
pleasure in Elokus in a manner
that this is the very essence of
his delight, he has no greater
pleasure. This feeling of pleasure
is that which will motivate him to
accept the yoke of heaven, to do
Torah and mitzvos. We see this

The moment you decide to go to war, you

automatically have an advantage over your
enemy. The problem is when you don't fully commit If
you make a firm resolution, in whatever area of life it may
be, the very commitment automatically puts you above
the enemy.
field, planting, hoeing etc. and
doesn't approach the king, there
won't be a connection between
him and the king. The person
needs to leave his field work and
approach the king who is nearby.)
In many Chabad houses we
see this. A Jew becomes interested
and what appeals to him is that he
is accepted as he is, and not just
that, but he is received graciously.
He is shown love. This is true for
mekuravim and also true with
students and children.

LOVE NOT MANIPULATION

In the maamer Ani L'Dodi
5726
(Seifer
HaMaamarim
Meluket 4), the Rebbe explains the
analogy further. The description
of the king displaying a jovial
countenance alludes to spiritual
merriment, the essential pleasure
that Hashem has with a Jew just

behavior with the Rebbe who has

a deep love for every Jew, even
a Jew who does not do mitzvos
and even a Jew who goes against
the Torah. The Rebbe continues
to love him just for being a Jew.
This love is what gets a Jew to love
him in return, which gives him the
strength to overcome those things
that impede his progress, and then
he does tshuva.
This love is also seen in the
Rebbe's shluchim (a person's
emissary is like himself), who
are not willing to give up on any
Jew. Even a Jew who insists he
does not want to put on tfillin is
approached time and again and is
not given up on. After all, we did
not suggest that he put tfillin on
the first time because he's a nice
guy. We suggested it because
he's a Jew and that fact does not
change, no matter what he does
or says. Hashem continues to love
Issue 941

941b_bm_eng.indd 27

27

2014-09-02 1:13:00 AM

Thought

WHEN YOU GO TO WAR AGAINST YOUR ENEMIES

Over a decade ago, I was on a trip to the Far East to find myself. I
went to monasteries and ashrams and sought spirituality. It was because I
considered myself a spiritual and open-minded person that I allowed myself
to learn about Judaism too, to hear what Judaism had to say. As a young
Israeli who grew up in an irreligious environment, I did not imagine that
there is spirituality in Judaism. Like most Israelis who draw most of their
knowledge of the world from the media, I thought that Judaism is just a list
of the forbidden and the permitted that you had to abide by.
One Friday night I ended up at a Chabad house. I still did not know
what Chabad is and what Chassidus is but I walked in to hear what they had
to offer. They were in the middle of the Shabbos meal and the place was
packed with young Israelis who were touring India. I did not sit down with
everyone to eat but stood on the side to hear the rabbi speak.
It was Shabbos, Parshas Ki Seitzei, and the young rabbi there spoke
about the first verse in the parsha, When you go out to war against your
enemies. He asked, Why doesn't it say when you go out to war with your
enemies. What is meant by al on or over your enemies?
He said, The moment you decide to go to war, you automatically
have an advantage over your enemy. The problem is when you don't fully
commit. Then what we feel is how the forces of opposition are fighting us.
But if we make a firm resolution, in whatever area of life it may be, the very
commitment automatically puts us above the enemy.
I remember hearing this and liking it very much. In the spiritual process
I went through, I tried to move past bad habits and negative patterns of
thought that I had and this idea that he said suited me well. I did not admit
it yet, but from that vort I began to realize that I had what to learn from
Judaism and especially from Chassidus. Thanks to that vort, I moved closer
to Judaism. What a powerful impact one idea from the Rebbe's sicha can
have. We are promised that our efforts will not go for naught.
On Parshas Ki Seitzei the following year I was already in yeshiva. Now
I could learn the vort myself. I opened up the sources and understood the
idea in a deeper way. A Jew is above his natural world for he has a G-dly
soul and therefore the world cannot interfere with his avodas Hashem. All
that is expected of us in order to be in a position that transcends the world
is to go to war. To make a firm commitment that we are setting out on the
journey; when we commit to something, nobody can stop us.

him and the Rebbe continues to love

him, and we too continue to love
him.
If this love sounds like some sort
of manipulative tactic to get him to
put on tfillin, it's not
The same is true in chinuch.
Sometimes we need to show students
and children that we love them as
they are, without expectations; they
wait for this. They want to know
that our love is not conditional, there
is no hidden reason. We don't just
show them that we love them as they
are, we truly love them as they are.
The moment they believe that we
really love them they'll already come
on their own.
To conclude, Elokus needs to
be the greatest pleasure and this
provides the strength to overcome
obstacles. A mekurav comes to a
Chabad house and we don't ask
him to remove his earrings and get
a haircut. We learn Chassidus with
him and enable him to enjoy Elokus.
If he will derive pleasure from
Elokus, the rest will happen on its
own. So too for Chassidim, learning
Chassidus is a G-dly pleasure.
Having students feel pleasure in
their learning Chassidus is the goal
because when this happens, they do
tshuva.
Rabbi Nadav Cohen serves as Director of
Educational Programsat the Ascent Institute
of Tzfat and is the author of the critically
acclaimed GPS for the Soul, available at
amazon.com and kabbalaonline-shop.com.

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28 10 Elul 5774
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2014-09-02 1:13:00 AM

PARSHA THOUGHT

IN PRAISE
OF MIRIAM
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

REMEMBER MIRIAM,
BUT FOR WHAT?
One of the narratives repeated
in this weeks parsha concerns
Miriam, Moshes sister, who
spoke ill of her brother, as
recounted earlier in the Book
of Numbers. As a result of this
indiscretion, she was afflicted
with tzaraas (a skin lesion, which
renders a person ritually unclean
and in quarantine). In this weeks
parsha, the Torah admonishes us
to be careful in treating these skin
lesions. Then the Torah exhorts
us to Remember what G-d, your
G-d, did to Miriam on the way
when you left Egypt.
Rashi
gives
a
simple
explanation for the juxtaposition
of these two themes. Tzaraas is
punishment for slander. Miriam
contracted tzaraas because she
spoke ill of her brother. The
Torah continues that to avoid this
punishment one should remember
how Miriam was afflicted.
Three questions arise when we
analyze this verse:
First, why does the Torah focus
on Miriam? Isnt mentioning her
name in this context itself a form
of slander? Why would the Torah,
which even avoids mentioning
something derogatory about a
non-kosher animal, go out of its
way to put down Miriam?

Moreover, Miriam was

arguably one of the most righteous
people ever to have inhabited
this earth. In many ways she
is considered to be an equal to
Moshe. In her merit the Jews were
given water in the parched desert.
Miriam is credited with having
convinced her parents, and all
of the Jewish people, to continue
with their family life despite
Pharaohs cruel decrees. Miriam
was a prophetess of note. Couldnt
the Torah have stated that people
should avoid speaking ill of others,
lest they risk tzaraas? Why the
emphasis that it happened to
Miriam? Why place such a holy
woman in an unfavorable light?
One might answer that a lesson
involving an actual person is more
effective than one taught through
a fictional character. The moral
of the lesson is further reinforced
when we know that a woman as
righteous as Miriam herself can be
afflicted.
These
answers,
however
sound, do not fully justify the
Torahs mention of her by name
here and rehashing an incident for
which she was punished and fully
absolved. The Talmud states that
one may not remind a penitent of
his or her sins because it causes
them distress. Doing so, the
Talmud states is onaas dvarimverbal abuse; a serious crime.

The question becomes even

more insistent when we recall that
Jewish tradition requires us to
recite this verse as one of the Six
Remembrances that a Jew must
remember daily, juxtaposing it
with the Exodus from Egypt and
the giving of the Torah at Mount
Sinai. Why should Miriams
transgression be etched in the
collective memories of Jews for
all time? How could we do that
to anyone, let alone to one of the
most righteous of individuals?!

WHERE AND WHEN

The second question pertains
to the end of the verse. Why does
the Torah emphasize the where
and when of the incident with
Miriam: on the way, when you
left Egypt?
And thirdly, why does the
Torah say it happened when
you left Egypt, when it actually
occurred about a year after the
Exodus? In the Book of Numbers
the
narrative
of
Miriams
humbling was linked with the
spies who returned from scouting
the land with a slanderous report.
Rashi explains that the spies who
witnessed Miriams punishment
should have learned a lesson from
her not to indulge in slander. The
spy storyand by extension the
narrative of Miriamoccurred
over a year after the Exodus. Why

Issue 941

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29

2014-09-02 1:13:00 AM

Thought
then does the Torah refer to it
as if it happened right after they
departed from Egypt?

A TZADDIK SINNING
AN OXYMORON
To
answer
these
three
questions we must resolve an
even greater anomaly: how was
it possible that a woman of the
caliber of Miriam to disparage
Moshe? A truly righteous person
remains above the pettiness
of common individuals. The
righteous and holy woman that

GROWTH OF A TZADDIK
The answer is that G-d sees
how the tzaddik wants to grow
and knows that the strongest
spurts of growth occur only after
one has fallen. But there is a hitch.
The tzaddik will never voluntarily
do something to degrade himself
and can therefore never grow as a
Baal Tshuva can. G-d, therefore,
orchestrates the tzaddiks fall
so that he or she can be helped
to rise to an exponentially higher
level. The tzaddiks sins are, in
actuality, opportunities for him

Whenever we learn the lesson of Miriam and

engage in positive speechcertainly refraining
from negative speech of otherswe enhance Miriams
position and empower her to unleash the forces of
Redemption on our behalf.

was Miriam certainly was above

slander and she certainly knew the
greatness of Moshe.
In truth, when the Torah
records the transgressions of
the most righteous and holy
individualssuch as Abraham,
Moshe, Aaron, Miriam, et al.
one must not take it at face value.
The tzaddik, as Chassidus teaches,
has completely transformed his or
her evil impulse into an impulse to
doing only good. For the tzaddik
to willingly transgress is like a
sane person inflicting severe
bodily damage on himself. The
challenge for the tzaddik is not in
dealing with personal evil but with
maintaining a constant striving to
reach higher and higher levels of
righteousness and holiness.
In light of this enlightened
view of the tzaddik the question
comes into even sharper focus.
How can a tzaddik do something
that is contrary to G-ds will?

or her to reach higher levels of

connection to G-d.
In this context, there are two
categories of tzaddikim. The first
type of tzaddik is obsessed with
his or her spiritual state. It is
well known that one cannot grow
spiritually without helping others.
This tzaddik therefore does
everything within his or her power
to help others materially and
spiritually. However, this tzaddiks
focus remains on solidifying his
or her connection to G-d through
spiritual advancement.
There is another category
of tzaddik, whose entire raison
dtre is to lead and nurture the
Jewish people. Everything they do,
including their personal spiritual
development, is subordinated to
the needs of the Jewish people.
They are willing to sacrifice
everythingmaterial or spiritual
assetsfor their people.
Thus, when G-d wants to
grant them their greatest wish,

G-d orchestrates their temporary

decline in ways that will be
beneficial, first and foremost, to
the Jewish people.
Miriam, along with Moshe and
Aaron, was clearly in the second
category. She was a faithful
leader of the Jewish nation, whose
obsession was her flock and not
her own spiritual advancement.

THANK YOU FOR

SHATTERING THE TABLETS
Another illustration of this
phenomenon is Moshe, who
shattered the tablets, our Sages
tell us, to save the Jewish people
from terrible calamity due to
their transgressions with the
Golden Calf. There was nothing
holier or more precious to Moshe
than the Torah, particularly the
very Tablets containing the Ten
Commandments.
Nonetheless,
Moshe was willing to sacrifice his
relationship with G-d, as it was
channeled through the Torah,
for the sake of the Jewish people.
G-d therefore induced Moshe
to shatter the Tablets to save his
rebellious but beloved nation.
The greatest praise that can be
given to Moshe is for his desire
to sacrifice everything for his
people. Indeed, this is how Rashi
explains the very last verse in the
Torah, which speaks of Moshe
performing great wonders in the
presence of all of Israel. According
to Rashi this praise alludes to
his shattering of the Tablets, in
response to which G-d exclaims
yasher kochacha sheshibarta,
more strength to you for having
shattered them.
Similarly, it may be suggested
that Miriams mild slander of
Moshe was induced by G-d so
that all future generations of
Jews should learn how damaging
speaking ill of others can be.
Miriam, as a faithful leader of the

30 10 Elul 5774
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2014-09-02 1:13:00 AM

Jewish people for her generation

and for all future generations
was more than happy to be
remembered for eternity as the
one who suffered on account of
her indiscretion. No greater
praise can be given to this type of
tzaddik who sacrifices for his or
her people.
In light of the above we can
now reinterpret the verse which
states: Remember what G-d your
G-d did to Miriam on the way,
when you left Egypt.
It does not say remember how
G-d afflicted Miriam with tzaraas,
but simply what G-d did to
Miriam. In addition to the simple
meaning, it also conveys the idea
that G-d was the one who induced
her to disparage her brother in
order to suffer the consequences.
Each time we remember
Miriams transgression and

particularly how she suffered for

it, we are singing her greatest
praise. Her entire being was
selflessly subordinated to the wellbeing of the Jewish people for all
times.

and became a powerful lesson

for all future generations, she
guaranteed that the Redemption
dynamic would endure, alive and
well, thereby empowering us to be
liberated from our own Galus.
We, too, are on the way to
our own Exodus. Indeed, we are
CATALYST FOR
at the end of the road and are
REDEMPTION
poised to enter into the Promised
To magnify her praise, the Land with Moshiach. Just as we
Torah adds on the way, when you needed to learn the lesson from
left Egypt. Prior to the Exodus, Miriam at the beginning of our
Moshe was concerned that the journey, today as we stand at the
Jewish people might not deserve end of the road, it behooves us to
Express
Expressservice
service
liberation because of the many invoke Miriams contribution to
Fully
FullyComputerized
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Whenever we331
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nd
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Issue 941

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31

2014-09-02 1:13:01 AM

STORIES

THE THIRD
SHABBOS MEAL

CHABAD STYLE
By Rabbi Yaakov Shmuelevitz ah
Former shliach in Beit Shaan

he Rebbe explains that

the Chabad custom of
not washing and eating
challa at the third Shabbos
meal is because at this meal there
is a lofty level of holiness that is

a microcosm of the future time,

so that for the body just a taste is
enough. There are those who err
and think that in Chabad we do
not eat a third Shabbos meal at all.
This is incorrect. We do not wash

for bread but we definitely try to

eat mezonos.
This week's column is about
stories that took place at the third
Shabbos meal. In light of what

32 10 Elul 5774
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SITTING ON THE FENCE

Kfar Gideon is a religious
moshav in the Jezreel Valley. R'
Eliezer Gewirtz is the shliach
for all the yishuvim of the valley
and he also spreads the light of
Chassidus among the religious
and Chassidic residents of Kfar
Gideon. One of the best times for
this is the third Shabbos meal.
When Mincha is over, the rav
of the yishuv, R' Lifshitz, sits with
some worshipers to have the third
meal, but many others go outside
to schmooze. That's R' Gewirtz's
opportunity. He sits on the fence
in the yard of the shul and around
him gathers a large crowd whom
he holds enthralled with Chassidic
tales and ideas from the Rebbe's
sichos on the parsha. In short,
they farbreng.
For many of the participants,
this is their only weekly
opportunity to learn Chassidus
and connect to the tree of life.
R' Gewirtz informs everyone of
what they need to know about any
upcoming holiday, farbrengen,
shiur,
birthday
or
central
gathering.

HOT OFF THE PRESS

was said above, in most Chabad

houses there is a third Shabbos
meal, albeit without washing. They
serve mezonos and sing niggunim.
From my many years of
experience I've learned that
just hearing the niggunim has a
deep effect and draws everyone
closer to Torah, to mitzvos and
Chassidishe feelings.
In Beit Shaan, for example,
there are some people who come

to daven Mincha at the Chabad

house, rush home to eat the third
meal, and then quickly come back
to the Chabad house to hear some
ancient niggunim, the hachana
niggun for the maamer and the
maamer itself. They all know
already that these moments, of
the niggunim and the maamer,
are precious and lofty. Absolute
silence reigns and everyone listens
to the niggunim and the maamer.

R' Michoel Reinitz, shliach in

Rechovot, has moving memories
of the years 5749-5750, when he
was on kvutza by the Rebbe. Back
then too the bachurim fulfilled the
Rebbe's horaa to gather people
on Shabbos and to visit shuls in
nearby neighborhoods and review
the Rebbe's teachings. R' Reinitz
and his chavrusa walked for about
an hour to Canarsie where there
was a shul of American balabatim
who were happy to listen to the
divrei Torah.
We would listen to the Rebbe
at the farbrengen and as soon
as the farbrengen was over we
bachurim would leave in pairs
for our usual neighborhood. We

Issue 941

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Stories

A GOOD REASON TO OPEN YOUR WINDOWS FOR KIDDUSH

R' Dovid Tal, shliach in the yishuv Timrat near Migdal HaEmek, told
me about his first days on shlichus in Timrat.
In those days R' Dovid and his family lived in a ground floor apartment.
On the floor above them lived a family which did not like religion, to say
the least. Every attempt by R' Dovid and his wife to suggest any mitzva or
to offer an invitation to a Shabbos meal was dismissed politely and firmly.
Whenever R' Dovid recited Kiddush on Friday night or during the
day, he would open the windows. Perhaps someone walking by would
hear Kiddush once in his life.
One day, Mrs. Tal met her upstairs neighbor who said to her that
every Friday night they wait to hear the Kiddush from downstairs begin.
Her husband then takes a cup of wine in his hand and repeats every word
of the Kiddush after R' Dovid.
After this surprising disclosure, hearts were opened and the two
families became friends. It was a bond which led to much Torah study
and mitzva fulfillment.

would arrive at the shul when the

people had already eaten the third
Shabbos meal and we would repeat
what the Rebbe had said that day at
the farbrengen. What we said was hot
off the press.
During the summer there was
plenty of time after the farbrengen to
walk leisurely and arrive at the shul in
plenty of time, to sit down with the
people who were eating and to repeat
what the Rebbe had said. During
the winter, when the days are short,
sometimes the Rebbe's farbrengen
ended close to sunset and then we
would have to race and hope that
the people were still waiting for us
so we could say a few words before
Shabbos was over. And they? They
waited for us. They sat and waited.
As soon as we arrived they said, ah,
the Chassidim from Lubavitch finally
arrived.
One Shabbos there was a
blizzard. The pavements were
covered in slippery ice and it was
hard to walk even a few steps. Before
the farbrengen with the Rebbe, we
wondered whether we could get to the
shul after the farbrengen. As soon as
the farbrengen was over, we looked
at one another and it took a second,

we both knew we were going! We

slipped a few times on the ice and
it was a long way, and maybe the
stars were already out, but we finally
arrived at the shul. The people in
shul were so impressed. They said
Lubavitch is really something else, no
matter if it's hot in the summer or icy
in the winter, Lubavitch always comes
through.
We were told that before we
arrived a big debate erupted at their
third Shabbos meal about whether
we would show up or not. The rav
of the shul, R' Jungreis, insisted that
Lubavitch would come no matter
what. When we arrived there was a lot
of excitement and everyone listened
closely to what we quoted from the
Rebbe, things we had heard less than
an hour before.

FULL HOUSE
R' Dotan Korati, shliach to the
college for business administration
in Rishon LTziyon and who puts in
a lot of work there during the week,
spends Shabbos in Neot Ashalim
in Rishon L'Tziyon. As soon as he
moved there, representatives of the
vaad of the Sephardic shul asked him

to become their rav.

From the outset, he tried to
arrange farbrengens at the shul
but realized that the people were
not accustomed to lingering after
Shacharis. The few who stayed were
on pins and needles and then rushed
home. In contrast to that, between
Mincha and Maariv they have plenty
of time and are used to sitting
together for the third Shabbos meal.
The rav joined this meal/farbrengen
which lasted a long time each week.
R' Korati tells Chassidic stories and
sichos of the Rebbe. More and more
people keep joining from all over the
neighborhood.
R' Korati describes the colorful
crowd which sits around the table:
On my right sits Moshe, one of
the young people in the neighborhood,
who took on the job of ensuring
absolute silence when I speak. Anyone
who tries to talk during the drasha is
glared at and is immediately quiet.
On my left sits Shmuel, a 50 year
old insurance agent from Russia. His
'job' is to amplify what I say and to
support it with various insights from
the sources and kabbala.
One time I said, 'Now you will
hear a nice sicha from the Rebbe.'
Shmuel immediately stopped me with
a question. 'What do you mean by a
nice sicha from the Rebbe? Are there
nice sichos and not nice sichos? Are
you the one to decide what is nice?'
I had no choice but to admit that
my choice of words was poor because
the Rebbe really doesn't need us to
grade his sichos.
Among the participants there is
also the gabbai of the shul who loves
the Rebbe and always says so. There
is also the head of the vaad of the shul
who recently returned from a visit
to Vienna and who had what to say
about the Shabbos meals there with
Chabad.
They all support and encourage R'
Korati's work and ask him to give as
many shiurim as he can.

34 10 Elul 5774
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THE THIRD SHABBOS

MEAL IN KFAR TAVOR AND
NATZRAT ILIT
R' Yeshaya Hertzl, rav in
Natzrat Ilit and formerly rav in
Kfar Tavor, shared some stories
and ideas from his many years of
experience in both locations.
He first referred me to a letter
from the Rebbe about the third
Shabbos meal. In a letter from
5717, the Rebbe writes about the
great advantage of these sorts of
things for students in high school,
for we see how such matters
are mekarev them and this is
the only way that the messages
are engraved within them. The
holiness of Shabbos helps in
general and even more so in the
time of the Will of all Wills.
R' Hertzl emotionally recalled
a rare instance that he witnessed.
It was Shabbos Parshas Naso, 12
Sivan 5751, right after Shavuos,
when the Rebbe suddenly arrived
in the zal with a cup of water. He
washed his hands for the meal and
the few Chassidim who were there
at the time found themselves in
the midst of a surprise farbrengen.
R' Hertzl then went on to tell
about his personal experiences:
In our community I was

always particular about attending

the third Shabbos meal at the shul
where they wash and eat challa
and many other things. The crowd
(mostly Sephardic) sang tunes
and piyutim as is their custom
and I taught them to include the
Chabad
niggunim.
Everyone
enjoyed spending the time singing
and listening to divrei Torah.
One of the high-ranking
members of Mafdal (the Mizrachi
Party) regularly attended these
meals and after a short while
he learned the niggun Bnei
Heichala with the Alter Rebbe's

meal. Did they lack food at home?

They inquired and found out that
it wasn't just the food. It was the
atmosphere, the niggunim, the
sitting together, the stories and
the holiness of Shabbos which still
hovered at that exalted hour.
A custom that R' Hertzl
instituted even back in the Kfar
Tavor days was that even his
little children would sing loudly.
Sometimes the young children
reviewed a maamer Chassidus by
heart (like the bar mitzva maamer)
or said a dvar Torah. It turned out
that people really liked hearing the

We were told that a big debate erupted at their

third Shabbos meal about whether we would
show up or not. The rav of the shul, R' Jungreis, insisted
that Lubavitch would come no matter what.

tune. He was so enamored of the

niggun that he would come from
far away just to hear it again and
again.
It wasn't just him. As time
went on, dozens of young and
old came to the third Shabbos
meal and ate challa and sardines.
It became the talk of the yishuv.
Many parents wondered why
their children flocked to the third

children sing. Word got around

and more and more people joined
the meals.
Actually,
concluded
R'
Hertzl, each of those meals was
a long Chassidishe farbrengen
that had a great impact on all the
participants in the fulfillment of
mitzvos and their involvement in
Chassidus.

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Issue 941

941b_bm_eng.indd 35

35

2014-09-02 1:13:01 AM

THOUGHT

ARE WE G-D'S
EMPLOYEES OR
HIS PARTNERS?
A point from the weekly Dvar Malchus
with a relevant message.
By Aryeh Yehuda

enachem and Yisroel

are partners who are
as close as brothers.
They do everything
together and always consult one
another. Their shared dream has
always been to open a junk-metal
recycling plant.
The dream became reality.
Menachem and Yisroel run the
plant like a well-oiled machine.
The specialized factory wasn't
built overnight. They planned all
the details and made sure nothing
was omitted. And of course, they
did it together because Yisroel
doesn't do anything without
Menachem and Menachem doesn't
do anything without Yisroel.
One problem arose for which
they did not find a solution. A
successful business is one where
the boss is involved in the workers'
lives. Otherwise, he doesn't know
what's really going on and can't
run things as well as he might.
You understand? In order
to make an impact from within,
you must be there, explained
Menachem to Yisroel.

A solution was finally found.

Yisroel would dress up as an
employee. This way, he would
be able to experience what the
employees experienced, thought
and felt.
Menachem continued going
to the office while Yisroel showed
up in workmen's clothes. The
first morning, when Menachem
made the rounds, he went over
to Yisroel and asked him, Did
you remember to punch your card
today? He winked as he asked
and they both chuckled. At the
end of the day, they met in the
office and exchanged impressions.
It's something else entirely.
When you see things on the
ground, you notice many details
that you would never see from the
boss' perspective.
The days passed and Yisroel
slowly forgot his position and
began working like a regular
employee. At the end of the
month, Menachem was astonished
to see Yisroel his partner standing
patiently on line and waiting for
his paycheck.

On second thought, that's

just the way it ought to be, said
Menachem to himself.
Many months went by until
that fateful morning. Menachem
was carefully arranging the papers
on his desk when Yisroel suddenly
walked into the office. He did not
arrange an appointment and did
not ring the bell. He just walked in
and sat down. The dust and grease
on his dirty overalls did not belong
in the office atmosphere.
I think we got a little off
track, began Yisroel. I almost
forgot that we are partners and I
run the business just like you. Am
I supposed to get a salary from
you? The factory is mine! Do I
need to listen to your orders when
I can give orders to the employees
just like you? We built this factory
together. We are partners!
My acting like an employee
was useful but we can't forget the
truth; I am the boss just like you
are and without me this factory
wouldn't exist.
Menachem nodded and said,
Of course you're the boss just
like me but in order for the factory
to produce results, we need to
continue with this arrangement. If
you won't be the 'perfect employee'
with all that implies, we won't get
'into the head' of the employees.

36 10 Elul 5774
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When you stand on line, only then

do you truly feel how an ordinary
employee feels.
I understand, said Yisroel.
There is an inherent paradox
here. On the one hand, I am really
a worker but inside I will always
remain a partner. It's all a matter
of perspective. When I stand on
line to get my paycheck and the
employees grumble about the low
amount, I immediately recall that
I'm the boss. How reassuring that
is!
***
Am Yisroel, listen to what
the Menachem-Consoler has
to say, Anochi anochi hu
menachemchem (I, I am your
consoler). Don't forget that we are
partners with G-d in the creation
of the world. Who did Hashem
consult? Us! That's the way He
wants it to work so that we can
refine the lower world. Because

Continued from page 40

to the situation in which we find
ourselves today as well. The army
moved two kilometers toward the
neighborhoods surrounding Gaza,
but they would not enter Gaza
itself. In the meantime, sixty-four
of our finest fighting men, may
G-d avenge their blood, were
killed in action as the government
prematurely halted the operation.
Now, when we have to send our
forces back as we undoubtedly
will the lives of our soldiers will
again be at risk.
In a sicha on Yud-Gimmel
Tammuz 5742, at the height of
the public storm surrounding
Operation "Peace for the Galilee"
(the First Lebanon War), the
Rebbe incisively analyzed the
international debate with the
following explanation: "To what
is this comparable? To a fearful
person who enters an operating

only when the boss dresses up

as an employee can he enter the
workers' world.
At the same time, we can't
allow ourselves to be swayed. We
must always remember that really
I am a partner and the entire
sifting the sparks operation is my

against the concealments of the

world with this battle hymn,
we will surely sense the victory
and the Ki Savo (when you
will arrive) already with the Ki
Seitzei (when you will go out).
The Ki Savo is an explanation of
the Ki Seitzei.

When we conduct ourselves as true partners

we will surely succeed in bringing about the
complete Redemption.

personal initiative! When you go

out to war upon your enemies,
Rashi explains to mean that
the verse speaks of a voluntary
war because to the partner
it's optional. But once he dresses
in the dusty workman's clothes,
the work is obligatory and he will
stand on line to receive his pay.
When we go out to do battle

To fully appreciate the lessons

we can each derive from this, we
ought to learn the Dvar Malchus
inside. And when we conduct
ourselves as true partners we
will surely succeed in bringing
about the True and Complete
Redemption, when we will be
reunited with the ultimate Partner,
who will be revealed in all His
kingly glory.

room and sees the doctors starting

to do surgery on someone who
is ill. As soon as he sees the first
drops of blood, he begins to
plead with the doctors to stop the
operation, wait until the wound
heals, and then they can continue
the surgery How can you
possibly operate when the sick
person's blood has been spilled? It
should be obvious to anyone what
the doctors would say to such an
idea!
"Similarly, we find regarding
the security situation of millions
of Jews living in Eretz HaKodesh.
After they start one operation, a
'frightened and softhearted person'
comes along and asks them to
stop in the middle of the operation
because they have to hold a
meeting, determine everyone's
opinion, and request the advice of
the nations of the world And so
it occurred during the second and

the third operation. Now, we are

already in the middle of the fourth
operation, and there are still those
who think that in order to achieve
peace, it's better to avoid lifesaving
treatment and stop in the middle
of the operation after suffering
hundreds of casualties!
"How is it possible to take
such chances regarding millions
of Jews? They've already seen
three times that such conduct
causes calamitous results! And as
mentioned, this same situation
keeps repeating itself! Of course, it
isn't exactly by a hundred percent,
but the idea is close enough. These
people persistently contend that
we can't ignore the international
pressure, nor can we conduct
ourselves as 'a nation that will
dwell alone,' suggesting that this
is the way to bring peace, justice,
and integrity to the region!"

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CROSSROADS

LOSING OUR
PROTECTIVE
EDGE
After a military operation lasting more than
seven weeks (!), the Israel Defense Forces still
didnt obliterate the five rocket launchers that
caused national paralysis. This was because they
were still searching for the telephone numbers of
Arab families still in Gaza to protect the missile
sites, to ask them nicely if they could please
vacate the premises, as if they couldn't hear the
rockets firing over their heads, hour after hour
By Sholom Ber Crombie
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry

1.
In a little more than two years,
the first American president to
publicly embrace the Moslem
world and remove U.S. armed
forces from the Middle East will
complete his second and final
term of office. While he may be
departing from the White House
at that time, the seeds of discord
that he left behind in the region
will take many years to uproot.
The president of the United States
who dreamed much about peace

with the Moslems gave a warm

endorsement to the Arab Spring
and the world has been trembling
in fear ever since. It started like
any other local revolution and it
ended with the rise of the ISIS
terrorist organization, one of the
most dangerous of its kind ever
encountered in the global war on
terror.
Its not that there wasn't any
insane radical Islamic terror
before the earthquake we have
experienced in the Middle East

during recent years. Such cruelty

and bloodthirstiness was already
evident in the region eighty-five
years ago during the pogroms of
1929, when the Arabs of Chevron
and Tzfas slaughtered Jews with
a merciless brutality that human
beings cannot fathom. However,
in later years, these murderous
organizations have not dared to
carry out similar massacres, not
because they have quenched their
thirst for blood, but because they
are being suppressed by authorities

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far stronger or tyrannical than

they are. As soon as the dam burst,
and someone thought that you
can fight Islamic terror through
democracy, flowers, and love,
the terrorist madness reached a
new low in its cruelty. Again, this
was not because someone had
changed his outlook, rather due
to the realization that it was now
possible.
The world has been closely
following the genocidal activities
of the brutal ISIS terrorist
organization, failing to understand
that the only difference between
ISIS and Hamas is the latter's
greater expertise on how to
get its picture taken. Those
sanctimonious know-it-alls who
have been so shocked by ISIS'
campaign of slaughter in Syria and
Iraq are the same ones who cry
out against every missile the IDF
fires at Gaza in their misguided
objective of saving enemy lives.
This is also what happened
with our Arab neighbors. Anyone
who thinks that success in war is
measured by whether or not we
managed to destroy the enemy's
military forces is making a
mistake. Our successes in the Six

The world has been closely following the

genocidal activities of the brutal ISIS terrorist
organization, failing to understand that the only
difference between ISIS and Hamas is the latter's greater
PR expertise. Those sanctimonious know-it-alls who have
been so shocked by ISIS' campaign of slaughter in Syria
and Iraq are the same ones who cry out against every
missile the IDF fires at Gaza...

Day War and the Yom Kippur War

were not because the IDF had
annihilated the Arab armies, but
because they had terrified them.
They absorbed some frighteningly
painful blows and they understood
that it's not smart to mess around
with us. Yet, while the Syrians
have rehabilitated their army,
there still remains a magnificent
aura of absolute quiet along the
border with the Golan Heights.
Ironically, the border with the
strongest Arab army in the Middle
East, whose people hate us more
than any other Arab neighbor, is
by far the quietest lasting now
for decades.
Then comes along the smiling
Mr. Barack Hussein Obama and

with one fell swoop he restored

the color to the cheeks of radical
Islam. It would seem that the
schools and institutes on fighting
terror will be debating for years
over the cataclysmic errors made
by the dazzling silver-tongued
former community organizer from
Chicago. All he wanted was to be
nice and pleasant. This is the same
person to whom so many people
in Israeli politics are pressuring
the prime minister to listen and
act according to his suggestions
on surrendering to the terrorists.

2.
In the chronicles of the kings
of Israel we learn about two
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CROSSROADS
kings who waged war against the
Philistines but only one emerged
victorious. One was Shaul, the
first king of Israel, who was
blessed with the spirit of G-d and
who rescued the Holy Ark from
captivity. While Shaul was most
exalted among people, a pious Jew
with true fear of G-d, he failed to
vanquish the Philistines in battle.
The reason for this was his pity for
the Philistines.
Even before his pity for the
sheep of Amalek and his failure to
fulfill G-d's command to wipe out
Amalek entirely, Shaul had mercy
on the Philistines. He accepted the
argument of Golyas, who claimed
in the name of Jewish ethics that
there is no reason to go out to war
when thousands of people would
be killed on both sides. Therefore,
Golyas claimed that Shaul should
send out one man from the camp
of Israel to fight against him, and if
their warrior would be killed, that
would be a sign that the Philistines
had been victorious. Shaul agreed,
and he then searched for a suitable
champion to fight Golyas instead
of opening general hostilities.
He promised that the man who
defeated Golyas would receive
much reward, since he [Shaul]
had accepted Golyas' claim that
Jewish ethics rejected the taking of
innocent lives.
Eventually, it was Dovid who
went out to fight Golyas. After
he felled the giant Philistine with
a rock fired from his slingshot,
Dovid asked Uriah HaChiti for
the keys to Golyas' vest in order
to decapitate him. Why did
Dovid have to cut off Golyas'
head after he had already killed
him? To show the Philistines
that he was prepared to wage war
against them mercilessly without
any unnecessary adherence to
"moral principles." He thereby
succeeded in terrifying them and
subsequently defeated them in
battle.

Thus, we learn that the Jewish

ethics of war and the opposing
argument was already in
existence back then. Last week,
military commentator Alon BenDavid revealed that from the very
start of the conflict, the cities of
southern Eretz Yisroel and its
hundreds of thousands of residents
were being paralyzed by a mere
five small rocket launchers. So,
what would have been the problem
to fire a few missiles to wipe these
launchers out? Incredible as it
may sound, it turns out that three
of these launchers were located
near a school and two more near
a residential building that the IDF
had failed to contact the families
living there to request that they
evacuate... This is the reason
why hundreds of thousands of
residents in the south woke up
each morning to the horror of
missile attacks and air-raid sirens,
and why four-year old Daniel
Tragerman was killed by mortar
shrapnel when he failed to reach
the bomb shelter in time.
If this wouldn't have happened
in Eretz Yisroel we wouldn't have
believed that it was true. Yet, after
the conduct of the recent so-called
war by the government of Israel,
a.k.a. the wise men of Chelm,
you can believe almost anything.
When the Israel Defense Forces
couldn't reach these Arab families
in Gaza to ask them to leave the
area, the Jewish residents along
the southern perimeter drifted
between hope and despair, as
we learned once again that it's
impossible to fight terrorism
through methods of peace and
appeasement. We should leave
such creative and subtle methods
to far less hazardous concerns and
annihilate the terrorists with full
force, down to the very last one.

3.
Eight years ago, after the

Second Lebanon War, throngs

went out into the streets
demanding the resignation of
then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert,
after one hundred and ten IDF
soldiers were killed during that
conflict. To our great regret, after
sixty-four soldiers and six civilians
were killed during Operation
"Protective Edge," the public atlarge still remains quiescent,
incapable of understanding that
those entrusted with the task of
fighting this war were simply
afraid to win. After a military
operation lasting more than seven
weeks (!), the Israel Defense
Forces were unable to destroy
the rocket launchers. This was
because they were still searching
for the telephone numbers of Arab
families, still in Gaza to protect the
missile sites, to ask them nicely
if they could please vacate the
premises, as if they couldn't hear
the rockets firing over their heads,
hour after hour, and they dont
understand that their houses are
potential bombing targets.
Apparently, it was unclear
to the IDF whether those living
in the immediate vicinity of
terrorist rocket launchers really
understood that their lives would
be in danger when IDF missiles
bombed the launch sites. This fact
reveals how perverted the ethics
of Israeli policymakers really are.
They simply accept as a given
the idea that not every launcher
automatically becomes a military
objective regardless of where it
might be located.
During the First Lebanon War,
the Rebbe cried out about the
person who entered an operating
room and told them in fright to
stop the surgery when he saw
the first drop of blood. It would
appear that the Rebbe's words
were guided by his amazing
ruach ha'kodesh, as they pertain
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TZIVOS HASHEM

GEULA
MONOPOLY
By D. Chaim

Throw the dice, it's your turn,

I urged Shmuli who was lost in
thought. Shmuli jiggled the dice in
his hands, then tossed them on the
board. He got snake eyes (six and
six).
Wow, you get another turn,
enthused Mendy, my brother who
is two years younger than me.
Shmuli's soldier landed on a street
in Yerushalayim.
Great! exclaimed Shmuli.
The city of Yerushalayim is now
part of my property.
Shmuli quickly handed me
some mitzva bills and I gave him
the deed for the Holy City. Shmuli
played another turn and his soldier
landed on the policeman's square.
Go to jail, Mendy declared in a
policeman's voice and handed me
the dice. Now it's your turn Berel,
go.
You've probably figured out
by now that the game we were
busy with that afternoon was the
popular Monopoly board game, but
it wasn't the regular Monopoly. It
was a redone version of the game
and we kids were the first in the
world to play it! Sounds like an
exaggeration? Let me tell you how
we got this special Monopoly:
As you remember from previous
weeks, Shmuli and I became

friendly with the older Sholom, the

owner of the print shop. You might
also remember the nickname we
gave him, the suspender man. On
our last visit to the print shop, when
we discovered what the special
books with the holes are (they were
Tanyas written in Braille for the
blind), Sholom made another offer.
Follow me. I want to show
you something that will definitely
interest you, he said mysteriously.
We followed Sholom across the
large shop, being careful not to get
too close to the huge machines that
were all over the place. Sholom
stopped next to a wooden office
desk and we saw a game board on
it. He opened the board on the desk
and said, This is a new version
of Monopoly that I want to print.
What's special about it is that all the
properties are concepts from the
Geula.
We studied the board and saw
properties like the Beis HaMikdash
and Mt. of Olives Museum. Sholom
gave us time to look it over and then
said, I came up with this version
and most of the details fit the world
of Geula but the square with the
policeman saying Go to Jail is
still there like in the old version.
Sholom pointed at the policeman
on the board and said, I would like

you to take the board, play with it

and come up with an idea for Geula
squares. If you have an idea by
tomorrow night, I will give you both
a new Monopoly.
We hurried to my house and
began to play. It soon became
nighttime and Shmuli had to go
home. You can guess what I was
thinking about until I fell asleep
and then also in my dreams! Right,
I thought and dreamed about the
policeman and about what would be
a good substitute.
The next day I met Shmuli
in class and was disappointed to
learn that he still had not come up
with an idea, like me. We decided
to tell some friends what we were
looking for. We told them about
the challenge. When we finished,
Shneur, who is known for his sense
of humor, said, I suggest that we
put an ad in the paper: A position
in the Monopoly game has become
available. Whoever wants to submit
himself as a candidate should speak
to Shmuli and Berel. Good terms
for those who qualify.
We burst out laughing at this
original idea and then suddenly
noticed the quiet in the classroom.
We looked toward the door and
noticed, to our surprise, that the
teacher had already walked in.

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Tzivos Hashem

Recess was over without our

realizing it. We were embarrassed,
but our teacher realized that we
simply hadn't noticed and he merely
asked us to sit down.
Then he said, Maybe you
can tell me what is keeping you so
busy that outstanding students like
yourselves are not ready for class on
time?
After being embarrassingly late,
we did not feel like telling the class
about our assignment but we had
no choice and Shmuli urged me to
get up and tell them all.
Maybe the teacher will help
us come up with an idea, he
whispered encouragingly.
I stood up and told about
yesterday's visit to Sholom's print
shop and I showed the teacher the
new board. The teacher looked at
it, copied the general idea on the
board so everyone could see it and
then said, I think I have an idea,
but before I say what it is, I would
like you to try and come up with
something too.
All the kids wracked their brains
and then, all of a sudden, I have no
idea where it came from, an idea
flashed into my mind.
One minute, we just learned
about this! I exclaimed. The
teacher smiled and said, I think
you are heading in the direction I
was thinking.
I concentrated for a while and
then the idea became clear. I asked
the teacher permission to speak
and then said, In Parshas Shoftim
we learned the Rebbe's sicha about
'restore our judges as at first and
our advisors as in the beginning.'
In the sicha it says that in the Geula
there won't be policemen because
there will be no evil and there will
be no need for policemen to arrest
criminals. The policemen will be
replaced with advisors who will give
good advice that people will accept

I finished my speech and sat

because it will be given with thought
The class applauded.
down.
person
for the welfare of the
Great idea, said my teacher.
receiving it.
So the square on the board with I will add that now, when we are
we
the policeman should be changed on the very threshold of Geula,
the
to
start
of
sort
for a square with an advisor! The already have a
time
card that goes with it (Go to Jail) situation that will be in the
have
already
we
only pertains to galus, a time when of Geula, and
the
it is necessary to force people to the advisor of our generation,
Melech
Rebbe
obey the law. It can be exchanged Nasi Hador, the
for an 'advice' card which someone HaMoshiach.
That night, we went to the print
who lands on that square will pick
up. There is no need for the jail, shop and after Sholom heard the
of course. It can be exchanged for idea he also said, That's a terrific
a 'session of the Sanhedrin' the idea. Now the Monopoly board will
'judges,' who issue instructions and look exactly as our world will soon
look, a world of Geula.
piskei Torah to the Jewish people.

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