CONTENTS

9
FEATURED ARTICLES

WEEKLY COLUMNS

3 Dvar Malchus
5 Parsha Thought
21 Moshiach & Hayom Yom
34 Tzivos Hashem

THE YESHIVA THAT OPE

NED WITH ONE BACHUR
Nosson Avrohom

CLOSE-LIPPED
17 THE
CONTACT MAN
Shneur Zalman Berger

IN A NATURE
24 SHLICHUS
WONDERLAND

17

Goldie Kam

ALIYAH TO
30 THE
ISRAEL AND THE
YESHIVA IN LUD

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2017-01-24 12:22:12 PM

DVAR MALCHUS

BASI LGANI 5717

Beis Moshiach presents Section 6 of the maamer the Rebbe
MHM delivered on Yud Shvat 5717, in accordance with the
custom established by the Rebbe to review each year a section
of the Rebbe Rayatzs maamer Basi LGani of 5710. This year we
focus on the seventh section of the profound and foundational
Chassidic discourse.
Translated by Boruch Merkur

IMPOVERISHED OF
THE ABILITY TO BOND

6. The maamer continues that all of the above

pertains to the letter Daled, which is from the realm of
holiness. Its counterpart, however, associated with the
unholy realm, is the letter Reish. The unholy quality of
the letter Reish is alluded to in the verse, Vlarash
ein kol (literally, the poor have nothing) (Shmuel II
12:3), meaning that they [the poor, the forces of evil]
do not possess the aspect of kol, the power of Sfiras
HaYesod to engender bonding ki kol bashamayim
vaaretz (for all in the heavens and the earth), dachid
shmaya vara (that unifies the heavens with the earth).
Thus, unholiness literally has nothing.
The opposite is said of Yaakov (who embodies the
general concept of holiness): yesh li kol (I have kol,
everything; i.e., holiness possesses the aspect of Yesod).
The Rebbe adds that Daled is also related to the word
dibbur-speech. The letter Daled, which stems from the
realm of holiness, therefore signifies the revelation of
Divine speech. Divine speech gives rise to all existence
and sustains the entire universe (with the word of
G-d the heavens were made, etc.). The unholy forces,
however, especially when they prevail over holiness,
counter Divine speech, causing it to be concealed and
hidden, indeed silenced, as it is written neelamti
dumiya hechesheisi I made myself mute in silence
(Thillim 39:3).

RECOGNIZING G-D
IN THE FUTURE ERA

To further elaborate on the connection between

the concealment of Divine speech and the concept of
larash ein kol, consider the opposite effect, the full

expression of Divine speech in the Future Era, when the

Tzimtzum will be corrected:
Regarding the Future Era it is said, and the glory of
G-d will be revealed and all flesh will together see that
the mouth of [specifically the Divine name] Havaya has
spoken (pi Havaya dibber) (Yeshayahu 40:5). Now,
the world was created with G-ds speech, through Ten
Divine Utterances, articulated by the Divine name
Elokim (Vayomer Elokim BReishis 1:3). What
then is the meaning of all flesh will together see that the
mouth of Havana has spoken?
The answer emerges from the Mitteler Rebbes
interpretation of the verse, Praise G-d from the
heavens, praise Him from the exalted heights praise
G-d from the earth ... the beast and all animals, etc. All
individual creations in the heavens and the earth, all the
way down to the lowest depths, praise the Divine name
Havaya. At first glance, it is difficult to understand how
beings that were created through G-ds name Elokim
praise Havaya? It makes sense that beings created by
the Ten Utterances of Elokim chant Kadosh, kadosh,
kadosh Havaya (Holy, holy, holy is Havaya), because
it is possible to come to the recognition of the holiness
of Havaya that G-d is holy and separate, distinct
even through the name Elokim. But the fact is that the
verse specifies that all creations [not only recognize but]
praise Havaya (even the Gentile nations praise Havaya,
as it is written, praise Havaya all nations). How is it
possible that creations that stem from the Divine name
Elokim praise Havaya?
To answer, the Mitteler Rebbe offers a lengthy
interpretation of the verse, You shall know today and
place upon your hearts that Havaya is Elokim: The
Zohar speaks of the fundamental, universal principle that
Havaya and Elokim are one. Therefore, the creation of

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Dvar Malchus
beings with the Divine name Elokim is also in a manner
whereby Havaya and Elokim are one. It is just that
Elokim is analogous to a shield or sheath to Havaya, as it
is written, For a sun and shield is Havaya Elokim. But
since this shield and sheath is of the realm of holiness,
also through it all created beings can come to praise
Havaya, including praise Havaya all nations.
All the above, however, applies just to the present
era that in our time, only through the Ten Utterance
of Elokim can Havaya be reached. That is, the sun of
Havaya is only attainable as it is within the shield and
sheath of the name Elokim. But in the Future Era there
will be the innovation of the glory of Havaya will be
revealed and all flesh will together see that the mouth of
Havaya has spoken, for the Alm-ghty will bring the sun
out of its sheath. The sun of Havaya will emerge from
the shield and sheath of Elokim. Then the revelation of
the name Havaya will be seen as it is unto itself. Seen
and perceived, that is, not only by souls and angels, but
all flesh, including beasts and animals of the physical
world; all shall recognize that the the mouth of Havaya
has spoken.
This broad revelation is reminiscent of what is
written (in the Biblical story where oxen where used to
transport the Holy Ark), Vayisharna (literally, the cows
went straight; Shmuel I 6:12). Our Sages interpret (in
Tractate Avoda Zara 24b; see also Zohar II 137b, end,
ff.) the word vayisharna to mean that the cows sang
a song, shira, and they ask, What song did they sing?
Sing to Havaya a new song, shir chadash (Thillim
98:1). Here the Talmud alludes to the song of the
Future Era, as stated in Midrash (Tanchuma BShalach
10): The song of the Future Era, when there will be
a redemption that will never be followed by another
exile, is referred to in the masculine form [i.e., shir as
opposed to shira], sing to Havaya a new song, shir
chadash.
And the revelation of the Future Era will be in a
manner of all flesh willsee, even animals and beasts,
that the mouth of Havaya has spoken, for G-ds
speech will be revealed in the most overt fashion.

THE SILENCE OF A LAMB

In the present time of exile, however, it is the

exact opposite: G-ds speech is now in the ultimate
state of concealment, as it is written, Neelamti
dumiya hechesheisi (I made myself mute in silence).
Neelamti means mute, the opposite of speech. The
Tzemach Tzedek explains that this condition prevails
in the time of exile, as it is written, As the silence of a
lamb before it is shorn (Yeshayahu 53:7), the opposite
of speech. And he elaborates: As the silence of a lamb
before it is shorn it is specifically then, when the
lamb is to be shorn, that it is silent. Lamb here refers
to the Jewish people, Knesses Yisroel, corresponding to

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Sfiras HaMalchus. In the time of exile, when the lamb

(Malchus) is shorn shearing saaros (hair or wool)
it is silenced. That is, the Ten Utterances of Creation
are silent and mute, as it were, and the drawing down
of G-dly vitality into the world comes about through
garments and saaros, which conceal Divine speech.
The above resonates with what the Rebbe Rayatz
explains later in this section of the maamer (the seventh
section) that the light and vitality that enlivens Sitra
Achara, the unholy forces, is a mere haara dhaara, the
reflection of a ray. This light is the external aspect of a
superficial G-dly revelation and it is manifest in a most
unobtrusive way. Hair is symbolic of this process, for the
vitality of hair is not apparent. When hair/wool is cut/
shorn, no pain is felt, because the vitality within hair is
highly constricted. The vitality of hair, which must pass
through the barrier and tzimtzum of the skull, contains
only the most superficial aspect of bodily vitality. For
this reason it is called neelama-silence, the opposite
of speech.
The Tzemach Tzedek explains that this is also the
meaning of the verse, Neelamti dumiya hechesheisi (I
made myself mute in silence): Reishis Chochma points
out that the first initial of each word of neelamti dumiya
hechesheisi spells nida. (Nida alludes to the general
time of exile when Yerushalayim sinned grievously,
she became a wanderer (lnida haysa) (Eicha 1:8), and
Tzor [a city of the descendants of Eisav] was filled from
the destruction of Yerushalayim (Rashi Toldos 25:23).)
Nida is comprised of the letters Nun-Daled
(spelling nad-wander) and Hei, alluding to how
the final Hei of the name Havaya withdraws from the
letter Vav. That is, the final Hei, Sfiras HaMalchus, the
aspect of speech, wanders and distances itself from the
letter Vav, whose function is to draw G-dliness into the
world. The result of this dislocation is that Divine speech
is concealed and hidden, as it says in Zohar, since
they separated (Hei separated from Vav) neelamti
dumiya; since Vav withdrew from Hei Divine speech
is muted, silenced.
From this it is understood that the concept of
neelamti dumiya hechesheisi the acronym for nida,
whereby Hei wanders away from and withdraws from
Vav is the opposite of the concept of kol-everything,
Sfiras HaYesod, which unites the heavens with the
earth, joining the Vav (heavens, Zeir Anpin) with Hei
(the earth, Malchus). This also comprises the concept
of larash ein kol: Since there is no aspect of kol to
unite the heavens with the earth, the middos-attributes
(signified by the letter Vav) are not manifest and drawn
into Malchus (the letter Hei). Hei, in effect, wanders
away from Vav, resulting in the concept of reishus
(Reish) and poverty.
(To be continued beH)

2017-01-24 12:22:13 PM

PARSHA THOUGHT

4 TO THE
FOURTH
POWER
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

THE PARADIGM OF
REDEMPTION
The Exodus from Egypt
is the paradigm for the future
Redemption.
The
Exodus
introduced and instilled within
our psyches the power of
liberation for the future. Indeed,
we mention the Exodus daily in
our prayers for many reasons,
including:
First, to remind us that we
too have to get out of exile, and
that we can derive the power to
accomplish that from the Exodus
from Egypt.
Second, even as we live in
exilein these last moments
before the Final Redemption
we have the ability to rise above
the constraints imposed by exile
conditions and to be liberated
each day anew.
Obviously, the details of the
Exodus from Egypt are relevant
for our times.

FOUR EXPRESSIONS OF
REDEMPTION; FOUR CUPS
OF WINE
In the very beginning of this
weeks parsha G-d introduces

His plan for the Exodus by

couching the theme of liberation
in four different ways:
I shall take you out from
under the burdens of Egypt.
I shall rescue you from their
service.
I shall redeem you with an
outstretched arm and with great
judgments.
I shall take you to Me for a
people and I shall be a G-d to
you.
It was based on these four
expressions of liberation that our
Sages instituted drinking four
cups of wine at the Seder on
Pesach night.
Let us consider how do these
four expressions apply to our
lives in exile and, particularly,
how do they relate to the future,
and fourth, Redemption.

4X4X4X4
If we examine Maimonides
(whose Yahrtzait we observed
only last week on the 20th
of Teves) description of the
Messianic Age, we can discern
four stages; in fact, there are
several sets of four that pertain to

the Moshiach and the Messianic

Age, but first a prefatory note is
in order.
Contrary to a false belief that
has circulated in recent times,
we Jews believe not only in a
Messianic Age, but also that it will
be ushered in by a Jewish leader,
referred to as the Moshiach.
Indeed, there is no such thing
as
Redemption
without
a
redeemer. In Maimonides words
(Hilchos Melachim Chapter 11):
Whoever does not believe in
him denies not only the other
prophets, but [also] the Torah
and Moshe, our teacher.
How do we know who is
qualified to be Moshiach?
Maimonides, based on Biblical
and Talmudic sources, rules that
Moshiachs credentials require
that he meet four conditions:
First, he is a leader descended
from King David.
Second, he is steeped in Torah
and preoccupied with observing
its commandments.
Third, he is engaged in
influencing all Jewish people
to follow in the Torahs ways
and mends the breaches in its
observance.
Fourth, he fights the wars of
G-d.
One who meets these four
conditions, Maimonides rules,
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PARSHA THOUGHT

Contrary to a false belief that has circulated

in recent times, we Jews believe not only in a
Messianic Age, but also that it will be ushered in by a
Jewish leader, referred to as the Moshiach. Indeed, there
is no such thing as Redemption without a redeemer.

has established himself as the

presumptive Moshiach, even
before the actual Redemption
commences.
It is interesting to note that
Maimonides cites four Biblical
proofs for Moshiach and the
Messianic Age:
First, from Deuteronomy
(30:3-5) where the promise of
Redemption is made in four
segments: 1) G-d will bring back
your captives and have mercy
upon you; 2) He will gather
you; 3) If your dispersed will
be at the ends of the heavens;
4) G-d will bring you
Second, from statements
made by all of the prophets.
Third, from the prophecies
of Bilam. And interestingly,
there too, the Rambam divides
the proof from Bilam into four
segments.
Fourth, from the additional
cities of refuge the Torah states
will be established in the future.

FOUR CHANGES FOR

THE JEWISH PEOPLE
Now that we know the criteria
for the Moshiach, we can discern
four changes that will occur
under his direction, specifically
with respect to the Jewish people.
First, he renews the Davidic
dynasty, returning it to its initial
sovereignty.
Second, Moshiach will build
the Beis HaMikdash-the Holy
Temple in its proper place.
Third, he will gather all of

the Jewish people to the Land of

Israel.
Fourth, he will reinstate all of
the ritual worship practices that
could not be performed because
of exile conditions.

FOUR FOR
THE ENTIRE WORLD
After
Moshiach
restores
the status of the Jewish people
and their observances to their
rightful place, the Messianic Age
then assumes a more universal
direction. Here too one may
discern four stages:
First, Moshiach will eradicate
the evil forces that persecuted the
Jewish people and stood in the
way of their ability to build the
Beis HaMikdash.
Second, Moshiach will then
eliminate the false ideologies
and religions that contradict the
Torah and lead the entire worlds
population to recognize that
there is only one G-d and serve
Him in unison.
Third, the entire worlds
population will live in peace and
harmony with the Jewish people.
Fourth, there will be no
hunger, war or conflicts for there
will be an abundance of good and
the entire world will be inundated
and deluged with the knowledge
of G-d.

THE FINAL STAGES

If we examine Maimonides
description of the final stage of

the Messianic Age we discover

that he refers to four changes:
In that era, there will be
neither 1) famine, 2) nor war, 3)
envy, nor 4) rivalry.
After describing what we will
no longer have to contend with in
the Messianic Age, Maimonides
then proceeds to enumerate four
positive phenomena:
1) For good will flow in
abundance; 2) All the delights will
be as common as dust; 3) The
occupation of the entire world
will be solely to know G-d; 4)
The Jews will be great Sages and
know hidden matters, attaining
knowledge of their Creator to the
extent of human potential.
Notice too that in the last item
describing the spiritual state of
the Jewish people, Maimonides
subdivides it into four:

1) Great Sages; 2) Know
hidden matters; 3)
Attaining
knowledge of their Creator;
4) To the extent of human
potential.

FOUR FOR OUR FREEDOM

Now
that
we
have
documented
the
ubiquitous
nature of the four aspects of the
future Redemption that stem
from the four expressions of
Redemption in relation to the
Exodus, we have to understand
how the number four relates to
our personal liberation from our
own internal exile.
The
number
four,
in
conjunction with the Seder
(which is full of fours, such as the
Four Questions, the Four Sons,
etc.), has been associated with the
four letters of the Divine name,
known as the Tetragrammaton.
This name of G-d contains the
force responsible for creation in
general and the human condition
in particular. Each one of us
possesses these four letters of

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G-ds name in our soul and

psyche.
However, just as these four
Divine letters are responsible for
our personalities, they can also
be seen as the forces to remove
the
exile-related
blockages
preventing us from experiencing
the full force of our G-dly soul.
The first step to freeing
ourselves begins with the letter
yud. This letter is the smallest
in the Hebrew Alphabet. It is
represented sometimes by a
geometric point that has no real
dimensions. This is the symbol
of humility. When we are full of
ourselves we are not receptive
to G-d. We can we see Creation
but only from within Creations
perspective, not from the point
of view of the Creator. The yud
expresses the essence of our
soul, that part which is always
connected to G-d but remains
covered up by exile. We must
put our own egos to the side and
allow our simple faith in G-d and
in His promise to redeem us and
bring our souls to the surface.
The second step is bound
up in the letter hei. This is an
expansive letter and it represents
expansive knowledge. Simple
faith alone will not suffice. To
be sure, we must develop a
foundation of unadulterated faith
in G-d and His ability to take
us out of both the universal and
personal exile. But we must then
apply our intellect to gain the
understanding of the dynamics

of liberation. In practical terms,

we must study Torah, particularly
the texts of Torah that deal with
Redemption, to saturate our
minds with Divine wisdom. This
will enable us to get our minds
out of their own form of exile.
The third step is centered
on the letter vav, which is said
to represent our emotions. Our
emotions are skewed by exile. We
lack desire and passion for G-d
and Moshiach since we direct
our love and fear only toward the
material and physical aspects of
life.
Once we have liberated our
faith (Yud) and achieved our
understanding (Hei) we can then
free our emotions (Vav). Instead
of harboring misdirected passion
for material things, our passion
becomes refined enough to love
the Higher aspects of life. At
that juncture we will desire and
yearn only for Moshiach and
the world of Redemption.
However, we can not only
rely on our faith and intellect
to generate the liberating
emotions; we must, as the
Torah states, direct the
knowledge to our hearts.
The fourth and final
stage in our efforts at
liberation is the final letter
of the Tetragrammaton, the
Hei. This letter is said to
correspond to the process
of communication of our
thoughts through speech and
action.

It is not enough to have the

proper faith, understanding and
passion. The proof that we have
internalized something to the
extent that it has truly affected us
comes when we translate those
newly attained thoughts into
speech and action. How may we
apply this to our circumstances
today? We should speak of
Redemption and translate our
belief, understanding and feelings
of Redemption into tangible
examples by breaking free from
our internal exile. We can do
that by acting in a redemptive
fashion. When we break out of
the elements that limit us and do
things that may be against our
nature to help others, we then
have successfully internalized
all four letters of G-ds name
and brought ourselves into a
personal balance that parallels
the four expressions and levels of
Redemption.

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Issue 1054

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PROFILE

THE YESHIVA THAT OPE N

Shaked Meiner was drafted into the undercover counter-terrorism
unit Duvdevan and operated past enemy lines with a sense of
mission on behalf of the Jewish people. * But his soul yearned
for a spiritual mission, and after searching in India, he became
a baal teshuva. This time, he enlisted in the elite unit of the
Rebbes Geula army. * Like Avrohom Avinu, he calls upon young
people to join the yeshiva he
started for baalei teshuva in the
Romema neighborhood of
Yerushalayim, so they can
recognize the One who
created the world.
By Nosson Avrohom

8 29 Teives 5777
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PE NED WITH ONE BACHUR

Issue 1054

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Profile

d like to introduce you to

the yeshiva Ufaratzta in
Romema, a Chabad yeshiva
for young men interested in
Judaism and Chassidus. This is its
second year. There are twenty-five
students, miskarvim, along with
a group of Tmimim who returned
from Beis Chayeinu and are
learning there as student-shluchim.
The yeshiva is located in
a spacious building and is a
Chassidic lighthouse, which
attracts many young people.
In addition to the learning
schedule, Nigleh and Chassidus,
like in every yeshiva, there are
numerous shiurim, workshops
and Shabbatons.
The staff includes Rabbi
Shaked Meiner who is mashpia
and rosh yeshiva, Rabbi Yinon
Giladi who gives shiurim in
Nigleh, Rabbi Zev Shenker who
gives shiurim in Chassidus, and
Rabbi Shmuel Lalum who runs
the smicha program.
Four dynamic young men
dreamed of starting a yeshiva
when they themselves were
still bachurim. The four are: R
Shaked Meiner, R Dovid Moshe
Gamliel, R Shmuel Shuraki
and R Amichai Korech. Said
R Meiner, Over time, I gained
experience of how to run a
yeshiva for baalei teshuva and
two years ago we held meetings
in which we discussed launch

The spacious beis midrash

planning and of course, how we

would raise funds.
After
many
exhausting
months of searching, they found
a building that met their needs.
Until then, no shluchim worked
in Romema so we were happy
that we could also do outreach
work there.
Before they met with the
landlord they wrote to the Rebbe
and asked for a bracha. The
answer they opened to in the
Igros Kodesh had a bracha that
the Rebbe gave for entering a
new building and mentioned
Yerushalayim.

One day the phone rang and it was the real

estate agent. He told us that the new owner had
finished renovating the building at a cost of hundreds
of thousands of shekels and then decided he wasnt
interested in using the space. He wanted to rent it out.
After brief negotiations he agreed to rent the renovated
building to us at the price we had offered a few months
earlier. This was a lesson in emuna and the realization of
the Rebbes brachos.

They arranged to meet

with the landlord but were
disappointed to hear how much
money he wanted. We offered
him half of what he asked but
promised that we would pay for
renovations. The place needed
serious fixing up. But he wasnt
interested. We left disappointed,
but Hashem had better plans for
us.
We continued looking for
a few more months but found
nothing suitable. By Av, we
were frustrated. We were ready
to open the yeshiva but did not
have a building. Although we
had seen many other buildings,
we kept thinking of the building
in Romema. In the meantime,
we heard that the building
had been sold to a developer
and was undergoing extensive
renovations. That was what
finally cemented our dream to be
in that place.
One fine day the phone rang
and it was the real estate agent.
He told us that the property
owner finished renovating at a
cost of hundreds of thousands

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The new dormitory

of shekels, and then decided he

wasnt interested in being there.
He wanted to rent it out. The
man turned out to be a nice guy
and after brief negotiations he
was willing to rent the renovated
building to us at the price we had
offered a few months earlier. We
got a shiny new building without
having to pay for renovations and
for the price we wanted.
The Rebbes brachos were
fulfilled. This was a lesson in
emuna and the realization of the
Rebbes brachos. Sometimes,
you just need a little emuna.
The yeshiva opened in Elul
with just one bachur. During
the year, other bachurim joined,
some of whom were ripe for the
taking as a result of the work of
yeshiva bachurim and shluchim
in the neighborhood and the
nearby city center. We built our
base mainly on talmidim who are
the products of Chabad outreach
in the center of Yerushalayim,
though of course we would not
turn away any interested young
men who became interested
in Judaism through any of the

Chabad Houses worldwide.

FACING TERRORIST FIRE

R Meiner grew up on a
pastoral yishuv called Amuka,
in the Galil. He was raised with
the ideals of independence and
working with your hands. Until
the army, I had never met a
religious Jew.
Despite his education, he
always believed in a Creator and
even prayed to Him.
I was a quiet, introverted
boy. At a relatively young age
I would pack a knapsack with
clothes and food and go to the
Negev alone and hike. I loved
the quiet in nature and the
extraordinary harmony there.
Meditating there led me to the
insight that there is Someone in
charge.
When he became of draft
age, he volunteered for the elite
undercover
counter-terrorism
unit Duvdevan. He served there
for four years. During his military
service he was part of numerous
operations and activities that
cannot be disclosed.

The unit I served in focused

on the Yehuda-Shomron area. At
a certain point during Operation
Cast Lead, I entered Gaza with
some of my unit. There were
open miracles in this battle.
Army estimates before the
ground troops entered were of
hundreds of dead, which did not
materialize.
We were told to go in a
camouflaged car into Gaza City,
drive along the coast and take
control of a multistory building
from where long-range missiles
were being shot into the center
of the country. Unfortunately,
we were exposed right near
our target and terrorists came
charging out of one of the
alleyways and shot an anti-tank
missile at our vehicle. An outright
miracle occurred. This missile
has a small bomb attached to it
to help it penetrate the target and
then there is a big explosion. The
missile penetrated the windshield
and continued on. Unbelievably,
only one soldier was lightly
wounded.
When we realized we had

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Profile

Anybody who is involved in connecting Jews

to the Rebbe and a few years ago I was on the
other side of the table knows that Yechi Adoneinu
attracts people. A Chassid who lives the reality that the
Rebbe lives, is full of life. All his activities and his actions
are animated, and people are attracted to something
that is alive.
been discovered, we decided
to ditch the car, remove our
disguising clothing and move
forward toward our objective on
foot. Whatever we did not have
to take we left in the car and
we started to charge towards
the target. Many shots were
fired, and the truth is we were
at a strategic disadvantage. We
walked down a narrow alleyway
between tall buildings, from
the roofs of which they threw
explosives at us. When we
arrived at the entrance of the first
building, it was locked.
Since the tools needed to
break in were left in the car, I
attached explosives to the door,
set it to blow up and it opened.
From that point on we operated
like automatons. As we were
taught, we cleaned out the
building. In one apartment we
saw a young man fleeing. We hit
him and he continued running.
We chased after him and saw him
enter a room full of weapons. If
he had discovered us first and
surprised us, we could have taken
serious casualties. In another
house we found a group of armed
terrorists hiding under the beds.
After only a few interminably
long minutes on the offensive we
completed our objective, and no
more missiles were sent from this
area toward Israeli cities.
What do you feel during and
after an operation like this?
There is no fear but there is

tension and high alertness. You

are operating in the zone. As far
as that specific operation, I can
say that although I had been part
of many operations before that,
I was in joyful spirits this time.
I felt uplifted and that it was a
privilege to defend my people.

SURPRISE
ON THE SILK ROAD
R Meiner is not a talkative
person. Say little and do much,
describes him well. But he finally
gave in to our pleading and
shared the details of another
operation that he was part of at
the casbah (enclosed open-air
market) in Shchem.
At the end of my training,
my peers and I were part of an
operation to locate a terrorist
mastermind who was hiding in
the casbah. This terrorist was an
expert in explosives and he was
responsible for sending suicide
terrorists all over the country. He
was also adroit at hiding.
Since the field conditions are
very complicated in the casbah,
we made extensive preparations.
We conducted several preliminary
scouting missions in disguise. For
various reasons it was decided
that the operation would take
place by day and not by night.
According to the plan, until we
arrived at our destination we
were supposed to be in disguise.
The minute we arrived at our
destination, we would show

ourselves. It turns out that the

spotters that the terrorist had
stationed on the nearby roofs,
identified us before the operation
began and they began whistling
to alert him of our arrival. The
muezzin also began calling out.
We quickly knocked down
the door to the yard leading to
the house where he was, and
then the terrorist poked his
weapon through the window and
began pouring heavy fire down
on us. Between one magazine
of bullets and the next we broke
into the house and completed the
operation. Miraculously, not one
bullet hit any of us.
For this and other similar
operations that are still top secret,
R Meiner and the other members
of the unit received the Chief of
Staff Medal.
After four years, he wanted
a break from this intensity
and decided to take a trip that
crossed the famous Silk Road
(regions of Asia that connect
the East and West from China to
the Mediterranean Sea). Before
leaving, he met with Omer, also
from his unit, who had made a
180 degree turn and had gone to
a yeshiva in Tzfas.
It was surprising to see
him with a beard and kippa. We
learned a bit of a maamer of the
Tzemach Tzedek about Ahavas
Yisroel, in which he explained
that all Jews are part of one
construct despite our differences.
I left on my extended trip with
this insight and I thought about
it a lot.
I hiked the Silk Road
for ten months and passed
through countries under terrible
dictatorships. In Kyrgyzstan, for
example, there was a big uprising.
I didnt know about it and arrived
in a city which was the capital
of the rebels and saw corpses
lying in the streets. The smoke

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A personal relationship with every student

from the bombing and shooting

of the army was still smoldering
everywhere.
At many stops on the way I
saw magnificent sights. Even if I
did not consider doing teshuva,
because I did not know what
teshuva is, it was clear to me
that our existence on earth is for
deeper purposes than becoming a
lawyer, for example. Throughout
this trip, I met no Jews except in
one place.
It was when I set out on
a two-week trip. Every night I
would pitch a tent on the side of
the road and continue walking
the next day. Since this trip
was in the summer, I had light
clothing and did not realize
that, unlike the climate in Eretz
Yisroel, in these areas it rains in
the summer too. And thats what
happened. One day, it began to
pour. My clothing was soaked
and I knew that the nearest
village was dozens of kilometers
away. If that wasnt enough, I
made a wrong turn at some point.
All the food I had in my backpack
was waterlogged. There I was,
walking in the rain with no food.
In areas like these, it is
possible not to see a human being
for days and even if you do, they
are often armed and dangerous.
After a few hours of walking
in the rain, I met someone who

explained my error. There was

no point in retracing my steps
so I continued forward. At night
I arrived at the border with
Chechnya where I pitched my
tent and got inside. I was very
hungry and freezing.
After a few minutes, I heard
footsteps approaching. I looked
up and saw a team of menacing
looking Russian soldiers. What
are you doing here? they asked.
Since I had learned a few words
of the local language, I managed
to answer that I was a tourist
from Eretz Yisroel and was
walking the Silk Road with the
plan of reaching China. I had
no idea what sort of response
to expect. Suddenly this soldier
responded excitedly to what I
had said and shared with me
the fact that he too is a Jew. Do
you realize how you look? he
rebuked me, and immediately
invited me into his large military
tent. He dried out my clothes and
fed me hot soup. He went all out
to help me, and I was reminded
once again of what I had learned
in the maamer about the Jewish
nation being one entity.
When R Meiner completed
his trek, he hopped on a flight to
India. He was looking forward
to meeting other Israelis and
conversing in Hebrew, after not
having done so for so long. He

arrived in Pushkar and took up

residence in a local boarding
house. One evening, we were
sitting together, a whole group
of backpackers from all around
the world. They were all gentiles
and I was the only Jew in the
group. At some point, each one
began bragging about all the acts
of kindness that they do, one
supports an orphanage, the other
a soup kitchen for the needy
and so on. Then they got on the
topic of morals and ethics, and
began to attack Israel for all of
our supposed crimes against the
Arabs.
This gave Shaked another
boost to the feeling that he
needed to connect more with
his fellow Jews. He sensed their
hypocrisy and didnt even bother
trying to set them straight.
Instead, he turned to the local
Chabad House where he met
R Shimi Goldstein. I told
him about the sweetness I had
sensed in the maamer that I had
learned with my friend Omer. He
opened the maamer Heichaltzu
and began teaching me. What
transpired within me is nothing
short of astounding. We had only
learned two lines and it already
became clear to me that I was
going to return to Eretz Yisroel
and become a baal teshuva.
Throughout my travels, I

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Profile
had been reading a thick tome
on modern psychology that is
well regarded in the free world.
The first two lines of Heichaltzu
condensed everything that work
had to offer.
Within a month, I found
myself back in Eretz Yisroel and
I went to learn in the yeshiva
in Tzfas. My immediate social
circle of friends was in shock,
but I felt that I had found my
place. It felt like my entire life
had been a search for the truth
that I discovered in yeshiva
between the pages of Gemara
and maamarim.

NEWCOMERS ALSO NEED A

PNIMIUSDIK CHINUCH
After a long period spent
in the yeshiva in Tzfas, where
he became a full-fledged baal
teshuva and even merited to
spend time in 770, he married a
girl from Yerushalayim and that
is where they set up their home.
During the first year of marriage
he learned in kollel, but from the
get go it was clear to him that he
wanted to set up a yeshiva to help
young people discover the light of
Torah and Chassidus. The same
sense of mission that carried him
throughout his military service
to physically protect the Jewish
people, continues in him today
on the spiritual plane.
My whole life I was involved
in things that gave me a sense
of shlichus. Obviously, after I
became involved in Chassidus,
it was even clearer to me that I
would devote my life to shlichus.
The steps of man are planned
by Hashem; the shliach of the
Midrachov in Yerushalayim set up
a center for baalei teshuva, and
asked me to run it. I worked with
bachurim there from morning
to night. When that framework
closed, I knew I would build
something similar.

What distinguishes your

yeshiva?
In my opinion there are three
key elements. First, excellent
material conditions, starting with
the accommodations, in a nice
and spacious building, and on
to the food. We are particular
that the food be nourishing and
plentiful.
Secondly,
we
maintain
personal conversations with each
student. Each student knows that
he has a listening ear with any one
of the staff members, all hours
of the day and on every possible
topic. Third, every bachur who
joins goes through an assessment
process to determine his level
of knowledge and abilities, and
we build a personal learning
program suited to each student
individually.
On any given day, the
yeshiva is visited by young men
who form a connection through
a kiruv project called School
for Chassidus, which is run by
R Shmuel Shuraki and offers
classes and chavrusa learning on
a day by day basis. Also, once
every month or two, there is a
Shabbaton with between 2030 participants. The approach
works. Most of our students
are products of these outreach
activities.
How does one educate a baal
teshuva in a pnimius way and
not just on an external level?
Your question is a good
one, not only in regards to baalei
teshuva, but to any student. On
this topic, there are countless
letters of the Rebbe and there
is also the Klalei Chinuch
Vhadracha of the Rebbe Rayatz.
The first rule is that we do not
compromise on any matter of
Yiddishkait. We see clearly that
not compromising arouses the
heart of the student, especially
those who are undergoing a kiruv

process in search of the truth.

Secondly, we need to be
role models, to walk the talk. We
need to examine ourselves on a
regular basis as to what extent we
are living the messages that we
want to communicate, and strive
to integrate them ever more.
It is also essential to believe
in the abilities of the bachur from
the very first steps that he takes
into the world of teshuva, when
he is still struggling and confused.
We need to convey that we are
confident that he will succeed,
and that his inner strengths are
far greater than he gives himself
credit for. At the same time, not
to ignore his difficulties, to feel
him and to know his limitations,
and to bolster him in the right
places and with the right words.
Beyond all else, we need to
teach that the Rebbe is the center
of our lives. In every matter and
issue, we must demand from the
student to seek what the Rebbe
wants from us. Regardless of
whether we are up or down
spiritually, the Rebbe is always
with us. As soon as a bachur
absorbs this outlook and it
resonates with him, even when he
gets older and leaves the yeshiva
to build his home and encounters
difficulties, he will be able to
handle them.
From the perspective of
someone who went through the
kiruv process and is involved
in reaching out to others, what
is the difference between the
Chabad approach and others?
There is an epic difference.
To my mind, someone who
became religious through other
groups and then comes to
Chabad, needs to redo the whole
process from scratch.
To such an extent? Why is
that?
In other communities, the
person remains as the center of

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his own universe. Obviously, he

has to work on his character,
daven, learn and do chesed, but
he still remains an independent
existence. When a Jew comes
close to Chabad, he is educated
that he needs to nullify himself
to the Rebbe. It doesnt matter
what you think and what you
want. The only thing that matters
is what the Rebbe instructed and
that is the way to go.
I remember that at the
beginning of my teshuva journey,
I had a study partner whom I
learned with regularly. I once
asked him if he wished to be a
tzaddik. He thought about it for a
moment and then answered in the
negative. When I asked him why,
he said that he has no interest in
becoming anything that could
conceivably create a conflict to

total bittul to the Rebbe. I was

impressed by his answer, and
then it clicked for me just how
internal and powerful is the bittul
of a Chassid to the Rebbe. That
is a guiding principle in Chabad.
What is the approach of
the yeshiva when it comes to
chinuch on the topic of Geula
and the identity of Moshiach?
The staff lives and breathes
the subject of the Rebbe as
chai vkayam. Anybody who is
involved in connecting Jews to
the Rebbe and a few years ago I
was on the other side of the table
knows that Yechi Adoneinu
attracts people. The very fact
that a Chassid lives the reality
that the Rebbe lives is what gives
him life. All his activities and
his actions are alive, and people



are attracted to something that

is alive. Additionally, we have
regular study sessions in the
sichos of 5751-52, and these
sichos are filled with great
revelations on the subject of
Moshiach and really drive the
messages home in a deep way.
When this is internalized, it
influences the externals as well.
What are your future plans?
The plan is to keep growing.
We have plans to increase the
number of students and to
intensify the outreach activities
of the School for Chassidus.
We want to expand the roster
of classes and activities aimed
at outreach. We also launched
a smicha program this year and
that is something we also hope to
build up.

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OBITUARY

know that R Nachman Elbaum carried out secret

missions between the Beis Yisroel of Ger (18951977) and the Rebbe, said Rabbi Tuvia Blau,
who had a special relationship with Ger over the
years. R Elbaums children also said that R Nachman was
the contact man between the Gerrer Rebbes in general, and
the Beis Yisroel in particular, and the Rebbe, and from the
Rebbe to them. When we asked whether they know what the
missions were about, they did not know. R Nachman was a
man who kept things to himself.
Our father was a real keeper of secrets and he never
told us anything about his missions, said his son, R
Aryeh. They relied on him a lot and he accomplished
much between Ger and Lubavitch. But he never told us
what these missions were.
R Nachmans widow repeated one key line that the
Rebbe said to her husband, from which we can imagine
how much R Nachman accomplished on the various
missions from the Rebbe, not always in his name: I
remember that the Rebbe once told him, They wont
listen to me; they will listen to you.
As the Gerrer Rebbe put it when he went to console the
family during the Shiva, He did not utter unnecessary
words.
Upon his passing, Beis Moshiach set out to trace the
life story of the man who took many secrets about Ger
and Chabad to the next world with him.

IN THE SIROTA HOME

R Nachman was born over ninety years ago, in
Poland. His father was R Yitzchok and he merited to
have the Imrei Emes (1866-1948) as his sandak. The
Elbaum family was Ger but his father was also drawn to
Breslov.
When R Nachman grew older he learned in a number
of yeshivos, including the yeshiva in Baranowitz. During
World War II he escaped with his father and after much
suffering and wandering they arrived in distant Tashkent
in Uzbekistan.
Due to the exigencies of the time, his father was
unable to raise him and gave him temporarily to R
Mordechai and Mrs. Rivka Sirota who were known
for their hospitality. They opened their home to Jewish
refugees, some of whom lived in their home temporarily
and some of whom lived there more permanently for a
year or two or more.
R Mordechai and his wife took care of all his needs,
and in their home he absorbed authentic Chassidus
thanks to the farbrengens that took place there, which
were attended by distinguished Lubavitcher Chassidim.
At that time, the family of Rabbi Levi Yitzchok
Bender, a distinguished Breslover Chassid, was also living

Rabbi Nachman Elbaum ah,

Gerrer askan and confidante
of Gerrer Admurim, passed
away recently. He was one
of the behind the scenes
contact persons between
the Rebbe and the Gerrer
Admurim. He did his job
with absolute secrecy so
that even his closest family
members know very few
details about the fascinating
missions he carried out.
With his passing, he took
those secrets with him.
By Shneur Zalman Berger

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THE CLOSE-LIPPED

CONTACT MAN
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Obituary

Two brothers-in-law who were friendly

with Lubavitch, R Yechezkel Besser (right)
and R Nachman Elbaum (left).

in the Sirota home for two years.

R Benders daughter, Ettel, later
told about the travails of the boy
Nachman:
Once, when I came home
(i.e. the Sirota home), I saw a
sickly, pale child who was ill
with typhus. I recoiled in fear of
contagion of this terrible disease.
When my father heard about this,
he ordered me to take the boy to
the hospital. This expressed my
fathers noble soul, that he did
not fear for the health of his only
daughter in order to save the life
of a Jewish child. My mother also
did not listen to the yelling of the
neighbors who warned us not to
endanger my life for the sake of a
strange boy.
With the encouragement of
my father, my mother replied,
In the merit of this mitzva, our
daughter will never get sick. I
remember that when I took the
boy into the vehicle that took
us to the hospital, everyone
was afraid of contagion, but I
was under my fathers orders

and I paid them no mind. I did

what I had to do until I saw him
accepted into the isolation ward
at the hospital.
The Sirotas sent tasty food
to the boy every day so he would
get stronger and recover. I
remember that Mrs. Sirota would
stand near the store in order to
get white rolls or white bread,
when during those crazy times,
even regular bread was hard to
obtain and nobody dared dream
about white bread, even in their
rosiest dreams.
R Mordechai and his wife
had a big part in the sick boys
recovery. After six weeks in the
hospital, he regained his strength
and was sent home healthy. It
was a miracle, considering the
epidemic at the time. The boy
was grateful to my father all his
life, for it was thanks to him that
he was alive. This boy grew up
to become a prominent Jewish
activist in New York, Rabbi
Nachman Elbaum.
R Lipa Klein, R Mordechai
Sirotas son-in-law, added:
Many years later, when my
father-in-law and I went to 770,
we went to meet with the boy who
had become a celebrated askan.
When we arrived at his office
on a high floor of a Manhattan
skyscraper, there was a level of
emotional intensity that is hard
to put into words. R Nachman
hugged and kissed my father-inlaw and did not stop thanking
him for saving his life and then
raising him.
After a while, Nachman
joined a group of children who
wandered from country to
country with the Anders Army
(an army that was loyal to the
Polish government in exile
based in London at the time).
He arrived together with these
children at the camps of the
Jewish Agency in Teheran. That

is when a new battle began, this

time, for his spiritual life.
The local staff in the camps
did all they could to remove any
sign of Torah and mitzvos from
the children. The children later
became known as the Yaldei
Teheran. Among the boys
there, young Nachman stood
out, for he fought fearlessly
to be able to do mitzvos. His
testimony is an important part
of the documentation of what
happened with these children.
The following was written in the
book, Yaldei Teheran Maashimim
(The Teheran Children Accuse):
There were some children
who, throughout all the traveling
in Russia, kept their peios and
only in Teheran were they forced
to remove their peios by the
madrichim (counselors). Those
children who refused had their
peios cut at night as they slept.
The madrich Gleicher tried
cutting Nachmans peios but was
unable to. Elbaum is the only one
whose peios were not removed.
After the Yaldei Teheran
moved to Eretz Yisroel, some of
them, including Nachman, were
given over to religious groups.
He went to learn in Yeshivas Sfas
Emes of Ger.
He eventually ended up in
America, where it seems he got
to know the Rebbe even before
the nesius. He was still a bachur
when one time at Mincha he was
told about a possible shidduch.
At that time, he was about to
travel to Europe for various
personal matters. He went to
Ramash to consult with him
and the Rebbe said not to go
to Europe as he planned but to
travel directly to Eretz Yisroel.
He did so and shortly after he
arrived, the shidduch with his
wife, the daughter of R Berel
Ludmir, was suggested to him.
R Ludmir was an outstanding

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talmid chacham and a Boyaner

Chassid, a descendant of the
Alter Rebbe. He was one of the
big esrogim merchants at the
time. The shidduch was arranged
and he married on 19 Kislev
5710.

PLANTING A CALABRIAN
ESROG IN KFAR CHABAD
There
was
a
special
relationship between R Nachman
and Chabad Chassidim. One of
the first things he was involved
in was the planting of Calabrian
esrog saplings in Kfar Chabad,
with the encouragement and
direct guidance of the Rebbe.
The story began in the years
following the founding of the
Kfar when esrog trees were
planted, but it turned out that
there was a high likelihood that
the esrogim were murkavim
(grafted and unfit for the mitzva).
Knowing that in Lubavitch there
was a custom to say a bracha on
a Calabrian esrog, R Nachman
offered to take Calabrian saplings
and plant them in Kfar Chabad.
The Rebbes desire was to
expand the kosher esrog orchards
on a large scale so as to heighten
the likelihood of these esrogim
surviving.
In those days it was a major
challenge to do, since besides for
having to travel to Calabria, Italy,
and determine the kashrus of the
esrogim and choose the right
saplings, with all the halachic and
logistical problems this entailed,
there was an additional, nearly
insurmountable, obstacle. The
Israeli Department of Agriculture
opposed importing agricultural
products from abroad. R
Nachman suggested that his
father-in-law, being a major
esrog dealer, focus on getting
the esrogim to Eretz Yisroel. The
Rebbe agreed to this suggestion
and R Nachman was the one

R Elbaum by the Rebbe

who went to Italy to start working

on it. From that point and on, the
entire matter was supervised by
the Rebbe.
In Milan of those days
lived a Chassid, R Mordechai
Perlov ah, and the Rebbe told
R Nachman to meet with him
in order that the transporting
of saplings be done under his
supervision as the certifying rav
who would give the hechsher. At
the same time, the Rebbe sent a
letter on 26 Cheshvan 5715 to
R Perlov with a brief synopsis of
the issue with some instructions
regarding the necessary steps.
He began the letter with, R
Nachman Elbaum, son-in-law
of the known esrogim dealer, R
Dov Ludmir, has set out recently
with the idea of taking seeds
and also saplings and cuttings
of esrog trees from Calabria and
planting them in Eretz Yisroel in
Kfar Chabad ...
It is interesting to note that
the Rebbe told R Perlov to
serve as the liaison between the
orchard owners and R Nachman
Elbaum. Indeed, R Nachman
met with R Perlov as the Rebbe

told him to do, and together they

went to examine esrog orchards,
to investigate which ones were
free of any concerns of grafting.
In a further letter, the Rebbe
refers to the concern about
orla (fruit produced by a tree
in its first four years of growth,
which cannot be used), About
the matter of orla, R Nachman,
and most importantly his fatherin-law, R D. Ludmir, have
experience in this. Therefore,
he can consult and find out
from them the details about how
to take a tree with part of the
underlying hard earth in a way
that will ensure that it is enough.
After kosher and good
saplings were found, R Nachman
began involving his father-inlaw and together they examined
the possibilities of transferring
the saplings to Eretz Yisroel.
They exerted pressure on their
connections in the right places
until their efforts were successful.
Around the summer of
5716, the work of transporting
the saplings was concluded
successfully. R Elbaum arrived
in Eretz Yisroel with about a
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Obituary
hundred young, tender saplings.
They were planted at first in
a nursery in Petach Tikva in a
moving ceremony at which three
distinguished Chabad rabbanim
of that time were present, R
Shneur Zalman Garelik ah, rav
of Kfar Chabad; R Avrohom
Pariz ah, and R Dovid Chanzin
ah.
R Elbaum was able to happily
report to the Rebbe about the
successful conclusion of the
project and about planting the
saplings in Petach Tikva. On 16
Iyar 5716 the Rebbe wrote him
a letter thanking him for the
good news and also asking that
the saplings be transplanted in
Kfar Chabad because there G-d
commanded blessing forever.
R Elbaum began looking for
the right area in Kfar Chabad
for the saplings. He found R
Avrohom Shmuel Garelik ah
who agreed to set aside place on
his property to plant the saplings.
R Nachman and R Avrohom
Shmuel signed a contract of
partnership for growing and
selling the produce jointly, and
the saplings were transplanted
joyously in Kfar Chabad.
That is how the second esrog
orchard in Kfar Chabad was
started, which produces beautiful
esrogim till this very day.

SENDING JEWS
AROUND THE WORLD
For many years, R Nachman
ran Ideal Tours, a travel agency,
which he founded. He had offices
in the US and Eretz Yisroel. As a
businessman and someone who
ran a successful travel agency, he
was a big baal chesed and many
Lubavitcher Chassidim benefited
from his kindness when they
traveled to the Rebbe. In general,
R Nachman had a big heart and
was always thinking about how to

do chesed for others.

He lived in New York
for several decades and was
considered a pillar of Ger in the
US. He was a regular visitor to
Beis Chayeinu, whether escorting
Gerrer Rebbes on their visits
to the Rebbe, or when he went
on his own to farbrengens,
yechiduyos, and for dollars.
R Nachman once went to
the Rebbe with his brotherin-law, R Chatzkel Besser. R
Nachman presented the work
entitled Likkutei Yehuda to the
Rebbe which was written by a
descendant of the Gerrer Rebbes.
R Besser told the Rebbe that R
Nachman brought a work from
the Torah of Ger. The Rebbe
responded that it was not the
Torah of Ger, for we all have one
Torah.
One time, the Elbaum family
had yechidus, both parents and
children. At a certain point, the
Rebbe said to the daughter, Mrs.
Devorah (Benedict), Do you
light a candle for Shabbos? The
Rebbe told her to start lighting
a candle. His son Aryeh was
learning in Telz in Cleveland at
the time and the Rebbe asked
R Elbaum why his son wasnt
learning in a Chassidishe yeshiva.
On another occasion, the
extended Elbaum family had
yechidus along with the Besser
family. The family members
stood in awe facing the Rebbes
desk while R Nachmans young
daughter Devorah, in trepidation
and awe, stood on the side near
the door. The Rebbe wanted to
let her know he saw her and he
said, Surely she is a rebbetzin of
R Nachman.
In general, the Rebbe showed
special affection for R Nachman.
One time, when he came to a
farbrengen at the end of a Yom
Tov, he was wearing his regular
hat and not his Chassidic spodik

which he wore on Shabbos and

Yom Tov. The Rebbe motioned
to him in surprise, Wheres the
spodik?
On another occasion, the
Rebbe said to him, Half the
world knows you and maybe even
the other half.
One time, a person passed by
the Rebbe for dollars and asked
for a bracha for the travel agent,
R Nachman Elbaum. The Rebbe
said, He should be successful in
sending Jews around the world.
Not much is known about
his private relationship with
the Rebbe, especially the secret
missions he was sent on between
Ger and Lubavitch. However, he
entered the Rebbes office many
times for this reason.
In a diary entry for Thursday,
4 Adar 5726 it says: At 10:45,
the brother of the Gerrer Rebbe,
Rabbi
Pinchas
Menachem
Alter, entered with R Nachman
Elbaum and they left at 11:15.
In a diary entry for Cheshvan of
that year we find that at about
1, R Chatzkel Besser entered
for about an hour and then his
father-in-law R D. Ludmir, and
that was also for about an hour,
and R Nachman Elbaum was
also there for about an hour, and
the yechidus ended at 3:30.
In recent years, he went
back to live in Eretz Yisroel and
was a regular presence in the
court of the Rebbe of Ger. This
past Chanuka he went for the
menorah lighting by the Admur.
Friday night, the seventh night of
Chanuka, he was at the tish and
a few hours later he suddenly
collapsed and was taken to the
hospital where he passed away on
Monday.
He is survived by a large
family, numerous descendants,
who go in the ways of Torah and
Chassidus.

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MOSHIACH & HAYOM YOM

A BREATH
OF SPIRITUAL
FRESH AIR
By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon

Dear Reader shyichyeh,

In the HaYom-Yom of 29
Teves the Rebbe writes: We are
day-laborers. [In the literature
of Chassidus], day is a code
word for light and, indeed,
our Divine task is a mission of
light, to illuminate the world with
the light of the Torah. In addition
to every individuals obligation
to see to it, with Gds help,
that his own spiritual state is as
it ought to be, his entire Divine
service should be focused on
making himself worthy of raising
up students who will be solidly
grounded, with their hearts and
minds dedicated to [Gds] inner
intent that it is not enough
to study nigleh, the revealed
dimension of Torah Law, and
to cherish holiness by observing
mitzvos. There must also be
Divine service within the heart.
This is also in line with the
well-known HaYom Yom of 30
Adar I: My father said: A chassid
creates an environment. If he
does not, he had better check
his own baggage carefully, to see
whether his own affairs are in
order. The very fact that he fails
to create an environment should
make him as broken as a splinter.
He must demand of himself:
What am I doing in this world?
It is only normal that when

a person is active, that there is

resistance from the status-quo.
People do not like to change. It
is inevitable that when a Chassid
starts working particularly
in his Avoda to get the world
around him ready to be Mekabel
Pnei Moshiach Tzidkeinu that
there will be resistance. There is
a Chassidish Vort on what we say
in Davening Oseh Chadashos,
Baal Milchamos that when we
want to do something new, there
will be a war, i.e., resistance.
A Chassid might feel the need
to spend his energy arguing and
fighting those that try to stop
him.
So it is important to
internalize the message of the
HaYom Yom of 14 Elul: From
my fathers guiding instructions:
Keep away to the ultimate
degree from a campaign of
attack. Not because we lack the
means of prevailing or because
of timorousness, but because we
must consecrate all our strength
exclusively to strengthening our
own structure, the edifice of
Torah and mitzvos performed in
holiness and purity. To this we
must devote ourselves utterly,
with actual mesiras nefesh, not
merely with potential mesiras
nefesh.
All the above is regarding

the general Avoda of a Chassid.

All the more so is it relevant to
the special Avoda of our time:
The most recent innovation
in the work of shlichus is:
to receive our righteous
Moshiach in the true and
complete Redemption. Indeed,
the preparation for the coming
of our righteous Moshiach is the
most all-encompassing aspect
of Judaism and includes all the
other points and details of the
work of shlichus. (Chaya-Sara
5752).
Being that our mandate is to
spread light, I would like to share
some thoughts of how to spread
the light based on two entries in
the HaYom Yom that speak about
light:
The first is from the HaYom
Yom of 6 Elul: The Tzemach
Tzedek related, The Baal
Shem Tov was very fond of
light, and said, Or (light) is
the numerical equivalent of raz
(secret). Whoever knows the
secret contained in every thing
can bring illumination.
The lesson to be learned from
this HaYom Yom is obvious: If
we want to bring illumination by
spreading the light of Moshiach
throughout the world we must
know the secret contained in
every thing.

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MOSHIACH & HAYOM YOM

What does that mean in
a practical way? We must
constantly be learning and
living with the Sichos of the
Dvar Malchus Sichos of
5751-52. In these Sichos the
Rebbe shared with us the deepest
secrets of how to see the secret
Geula that is contained in
all parts of creation. When you
learn these sichos your eyes are
opened to a new reality, a reality
that shows that everything that is
going on in the world including
things that we consider natural
occurrences (see footnote 55 of
Sicha of Korach 5751) are all
part of Geula and the revelation
of G-dliness in this world.
When we start seeing the
world the way the Rebbe sees
it, we will be able to illuminate
the world around us with this
special light. We become lanterns
of light and Where a lantern
is placed, those who seek light
gather around, for light attracts.
(HaYom Yom 13 Teves).
The second entry in HaYom
Yom relating to light is from
3 Shvata: Torah Or was first
printed in 5597 (1837) in Kapust
(without supplements) .... The
name of the author is fitting:
Shneur, (literally, two lights),
just as vahavta (you shall love)
in numerical value is twice that of
the word Or, light.
I think that there is much to
learn from this Gematria. If we
want to share light with another
person, we must make sure that
it adds up to VAhavta love
of a fellow Jew. In Chinuch there
is an apt chiasmus, The students
dont care how much you know
until they know how much you
care. Only through true Ahavas
Yisroel, can one share the light of
the Rebbe and Chassidus.
When a person feels that
your reason for speaking to him
about Mitzvos and Moshiach is

because that is your job and you

are filling a quota, they feel
used and are less receptive. On
the other hand, if the person feels
that you are speaking to them
about these things because you
honestly feel that it is in their best
interest and that you really care
about their best interest they
are much more receptive.
Until now, we discussed
seeing and spreading the light
of Moshiach. In a very special
Sicha (Toldos 5752) the Rebbe
revealed to us a higher level: Air
of Moshiach. We all recently
learned (in the HaYom Yom of
11 Teves) about the importance
of living in a healthy and pure
environment: Mans life is
dependent on the air around him.
Without air he cannot live and
the quality of life is dependent
on the quality of air. In an
atmosphere of Torah and mitzvos
there is healthy life. In a Gdless
environment life is diseased, and
one is constantly threatened with
the possibility of being stricken
with contagious maladies. The
first general step in healing
is to purify the atmosphere.
Purification of the air is the task
of every person familiar with
Torah and Torah-literature, and
is effected through the letters of
Torah.
The Rebbe teaches us that
we also must prepare ourselves
and the world around us for
the air of Moshiach. This is
when Moshiach becomes part
of your very existence. It is not
just something that we do; it is
connected to our very being and
essence, because Without air
Moshiach he cannot live.
In the words of the Rebbe in
that sicha:
In more detail: The concept of
All the days of your life to bring
about the days of Moshiach
expresses that immediately when

the essence of the soul awakens

(thus revealing the essence, and
only the essence, of its existence),
it feels in the very air it breathes
the concept of Moshiach, the air
of Moshiach, or in the words of
our Sages of blessed memory,
the spirit of King Moshiach.
It can be suggested that the
air (spirit) of Moshiach is
even higher than the light of
Moshiach, because the light of
Moshiach indicates the revelation
of Moshiach through his actions
(such as he will fight the wars
of G-d until he is victorious,
etc.). However, the air of
Moshiach indicates the essence
(the very life) of Moshiach.
That is, [this refers to] the
revelation of his existence (from
his earlier status as a leader) as
the King Moshiach. And after
the revelation of his existence
(air that is incomparable to the
light of Moshiach) begins the
revelation that all can see through
his activity (light of Moshiach).
One of the ways we purify
the air is through learning
Mishnayos by heart. As the
Rebbe writes (HaYom Yomof9
Sivan): The world is in need of
a purified atmosphere. Purified
air comes only through words
of Torah. Words of Torah offer
protection in general and for
each individual in particular.
The division of the Six Orders
of Mishna for memorization is
intended for when you walk on
the road. The Mishna or two
recited from memory wherever
one may be, in whatever sort of
place he may be, will illuminate
the bond between Israel and Gd.
The letters MiSHNaH are the
same as NeSHaMaH (soul). It
is extremely difficult to find the
words to express the tremendous
benefit, with Gds help, in the
general and individual protection
that constant repetition of
Mishna will bring. And there

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are no words to describe the

tremendous gratification one
thereby gives the Creator, may
He be blessed.
In a letter (Igros Vol. 1 pg.
242, to the legendary Mashpia,
Reb Vulf Greenglass) the Rebbe
gives a lengthy explanation how

by learning Mishnayos, one

brings the Geula. We will not go
through the explanation here but
it is based on a Midrash (VaYikra
Rabba 7) which states We will
be gathered from the Galus only
in the merit of Mishnayos.
Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh

Continued from page 33

illness are not physically fitted for any
labor, this second group is faced with
the question of having some provision
made for them to be able to exist.
I am therefore appealing to you,
as Directors of the Joint Distribution
Committee of whose great rescue
work I am fully cognizant, that
whereas
you
have
previously
supported these refugees in Europe,
that you kindly comply with the
following:
1) Please allocate a budget for the
support of these Chabad colonists for
a period of three years to enable them
to become self-supporting; and
2) Please allocate a budget for
the support of the indigent elderly
persons in Kfar Chabad who are in
need of constant assistance.
I shall appreciate your kind
attention to this memorandum
and urgent request of the Agudas
Chasidei Chabad of the United States
and Canada in the matter of your
worthy and necessary assistance to
the settlers of Kfar Chabad to make
possible their continued existence.
Upon your agreeing in principle
with this request, which I hope you
will kindly do, I shall be glad to
submit a detailed budget to you.
Sincerely
yours
and
with
blessings,

THE MEMORANDUM
FROM AGUDAS
CHASIDEI CHABAD
A few months later, after the
passing of the Frierdiker Rebbe, the

Yeshiva of Yeshivas Lubavitch

Cincinnati and a well sought after
speaker and lecturer. Recordings
of his in-depth shiurim on
Inyanei Geula uMoshiach can
be accessed at http://www.
ylcrecording.com

Rashag sent a reminder to the JDC

in the form of a Memorandum,
detailing the financial need of the
Kfar Chabad residents. This memo
was dated March 12, 1950 [Adar 23,
5710]:
Gentlemen:
On behalf of the Agudas Chasidei
Chabad of the United States and
Canada, a national organization with
a membership of over 150,000 and
more than 200 affiliated synagogues,
we respectfully wish to submit the
following memorandum for your
worthy consideration.
You are already aware of the
great suffering that our Chabad
Lubavitcher refugees had to undergo
in Russia and other lands before they
were able to reach the Holy Land.
Thanks to the assistance of the Jewish
Agency and of the Israel Government
a large group of these refugees
were established in an agricultural
settlement now known as Kfar
Chabad at Safariah, Israel, and also
at the Rakevet Lud section of Lydda,
Israel. The self-sacrifice of these
Chabad refugees for Judaism while
yet in Russia is well known to you and
we do not have to stress this matter
to you. Only after many hardships
was this big group of our Chabad
Lubavitcher refugees finally able to
reach their destination and arrive
in Israel. These colonists have been
helped to establish themselves on the
soil and to engage in full agricultural
and farming activity, and thus be able
to gainfully support themselves.
However, we have received heart
rending reports of the great suffering
and need of a part of these settlers,

44 needy and indigent families, who

are too old and too sick to be able to
work. Their circumstances are indeed
most difficult.
In view of the fact that there is a
special fund in the American Jewish
Joint Distribution Committee for such
aid to sick and old persons unable to
work in these special contingencies,
we
are
therefore
respectfully
appealing to your worthy organization
to kindly consider our memorandum
and appeal most favorably, and to
please grant your kind subvention
to help alleviate the dire conditions
of these 44 unfortunate and needy
families, whose names are listed on
the attached list.
We respectfully ask you to kindly
grant a monthly subsidy of IL2200
(Twenty Two Hundred Israeli
Pounds) thus allowing a monthly
support of Fifty Israeli Pounds per
such needy family; and to kindly
grant this monthly subsidy on an
annual basis.
Thanking you in advance for your
kind attention and assistance, and
trusting that you will kindly comply
with our earnest appeal in this most
important matter, we remain,
Assuring you of our high regard,
Very respectfully yours,
Chairman Executive Gommittee
Rabbi S. Gourary

Attached to this memorandum was

a list of 44 elderly Chabad Chassidim
for whom assistance was requested,
with a description of their difficult
circumstances and social condition.

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SHLICHUS

SHLICHUS IN
A NATURE
WONDERLAND
A large picturesque town with one story
wooden houses and red tiled roofs, surrounded
by seventy clear lakes and dozens of islands.
The mountains with their primeval purity, and
vegetation as far as the eye can see. Frady Klein
of Bariloche, Argentina lives in the midst of this
magnificent scenery. She opens the doors of her
Chabad House to us and brings us into the life
of a young couple on shlichus, who chose to live
in a place where murderers who killed Jews al
kiddush Hashem found safe haven.
By Goldie Kam

THAT YOU MERIT TO

ILLUMINATE YOUR HOME
FROM THE OUTSIDE
My name is Frady Klein and
I am 25, married, and mother to
Shaina who is two and a half. I
am on the Rebbes shlichus in
Bariloche, Argentina for seven
years now.
I was born and raised in Kfar
Baruch in the Jezreel Valley. I am
the oldest child of my wonderful
parents, Rabbi Aryeh and Leah

Veg, shluchim on the yishuv.

I attended Chabad schools in
Natzrat Ilit, a thirty-minute drive
away.
As a girl, I greatly admired my
parents work in spreading the
wellsprings but I would complain
to my mother, What hole in the
wall did the Rebbe put you in!
In the afternoon, after school,
on Shabbos, and vacation, I
felt the loneliness and wanted
so badly to live in a community
and be surrounded by a social

environment.
Today, when I am on shlichus,
a 22-hour plane ride away from
all who are dear to me, it is my
mothers turn to ask me, Frady,
what hole did the Rebbe put you
in?
I married young, at 18, half a
year after graduating high school.
We did not think it would happen
so fast, but there was a persistent
shadchanis who pressured and
pushed and it happened.
Three and a half months after

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our wedding we saw an ad on a

Chabad website that someone
was looking for a young couple
to fill in for shluchim in Argentina
for three months.
Before that, we had spoken in
general terms how after our first
year of marriage we would look
for a place of shlichus in Eretz
Yisroel. After reading the ad, my
husband said, Nu, Frady, what
do you think about our going
there?
We asked the Rebbe through
the Igros Kodesh and the answer
was: May you merit to illuminate
your house from the outside.
We consulted with my husbands
mashpia who explained that
outside refers to out of Eretz
Yisroel.
We started making inquiries
about the place. Bariloche is a
stunning nature preserve, rated
seventh in the world for its scenic
views. It is a large picturesque
town with one story wooden
houses and red tiled roofs,
surrounded by seventy clear
lakes and dozens of islands. The
mountains with their primeval
purity, and vegetation as far as
the eye can see. Tourist season is
from Tishrei until Nissan when
the climate is moderate, 15-17

degrees C [around 60 degrees F].

During this season, about 35,000
Israeli tourists pass through.
Most of them are 21-24 yearold young men and women who
have finished their army service.
There are also older people:
businessmen, celebrities and
middle aged couples who are
traveling. The locals are relaxed
and friendly. The closest Jewish
community is in Buenos Aires
which is a 24-hour drive away.
In one of the hotels in Bariloche
there is a kosher mikva.
Why not? The Rebbe sends,
there is a rented place for a
Chabad House, there are Israeli
tourists, and as for money
there are wedding gifts. So we
decided were going.
While getting ready in
Eretz Yisroel and also during
the flights, there were many
difficulties. Rebbe, I whispered
from the depths of my heart, give
me a sign that we are doing the
right thing.
When we landed in Argentina,
we did not know a word of
Spanish and the taxi drivers
knew no English. Taxi drivers
pounced on us as we stood there
in confusion. One of them nearly
pushed us into his taxi. I glanced

at his registration and three

numbers jumped out at me: 770.
That was it the Rebbe was with
us!
We arrived at the Chabad
House. I wasnt yet 19 and my
husband was 21. We immediately
realized
that
wed
leave
pampering and relaxation to the
tourists and we got to work.
We saw that the building was
neglected and the walls were
covered with slime. I found
a crafts store in the area and
bought oak-tags, gouache paints,
markers etc. Boruch Hashem,
I am artistic and I rolled up my
sleeves and started filling the
walls with pictures of the ten
mitzva campaigns and the twelve
psukim. Within a week, the
place looked like a heartwarming
Chabad preschool.
There were endless things to
take care of: arranging permits
with the annoying bureaucracy,
filling the gas balloons, always at
odd hours which they designated,
contacting the family of a missing
tourist, preparing for 200 guests
on Shabbos. My husband started
raising money because our
wedding gifts were depleted, and
we needed to break our teeth
on Spanish every time we went
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Shlichus

We arrived at the Chabad House. I wasnt yet

19 and my husband was 21. We immediately
realized that we would have to leave the pampering and
relaxation to the tourists and we got to work.
out, all while wondering why,
once again, there was no hot
water in the faucets.
Within
all
this
daily
pandemonium, we felt that the
Rebbe was with us, paving over
the difficulties and smoothing the
way.
When the three months were
over, we were told the previous
shluchim were not returning. We
decided that we were staying.

100 KILOS OF
FLOUR A WEEK
For four and a half years, my
job was mainly heart to heart
talks, shiurim for girls, preparing
meals and serving them. When
Shaina was born, after many
prayers, I had to juggle between
the Chabad House and taking
care of our darling, active
daughter. I cooked for 1000
guests for the seder with her
strapped on me!
Every day, about 300 tourists
pass through and on Shabbos it
can be 400 guests for each meal.
All the food needs to be
prepared by me. There is no
grocery store across the street
with shelves full of kosher bread
and cake, that I can buy and
serve. In order to eat kosher,
everything has to be made from
scratch.
Every week we buy supplies:
crates of fruits and vegetables,
sacks of legumes, bottles of oil,
and about 100 kilos of flour. Our
food consists mainly of these
products.
We dont buy much fish since

it is very expensive. We cannot

have dairy or meat products
shipped to Bariloche, because it
is illegal to bring food products
into a nature preserve. Arranging
shchita here is expensive and
complicated, so meat is a luxury
we rarely have. There was a
period when we went half a
year without meat. I found an
excellent recipe for stir-fried soy
with vegetables. Everyone was
sure it was meat (there was a
vegetarian tourist who refused to
eat the dish until I divulged to her
that it was soy).
Local help is very expensive
so I do most of the work myself.
Over the years we bought
modern appliances and I have
found methods that help me be
more efficient in the kitchen.
I discovered that the easiest
course to serve in our restaurant
is malawach with a hard egg,
spicy tomato salad and a plate of
hummus.
I make the malawachs ahead
of time in a huge mixer that
handles eight kilos at a time. I
prepare 200 pieces and freeze
them so that when a guest comes,
it is ready in five minutes.

REGISTRATION REQUIRED
In order to be our guest on
Shabbos, you need to register
beforehand. Our Shabbos meals
have a good reputation among
the tourists and some of them
register on Sunday. We ask for
$3 (a fifth of our costs). You
need to fill out a card with your
full name, Israeli ID number, and
email address. The reasons are:

Name my husband and I try

hard to remember names. When
tourists come for Shabbos and
we address them by name, they
are very flattered.
ID number hopefully,
we wont need it, but some of
the hiking trails in the area are
dangerous and if someone is
missing we are contacted. We
must have their ID number in
order to proceed and involve the
rescue crews.
Email address we use it to
keep in touch. Today, after six
and a half years, my husband has
nearly 12,000 email addresses of
people who passed through our
Chabad House.
Before
every
Shabbos,
holiday, and special Chassidic
date, we send them an email
containing a sicha from the
Rebbe on the parsha, a short
Chassidic tale, and updates from
the Chabad House. There are
also reminders before holidays
about shofar, sukka, selling
chametz, etc.
They also send feedback,
regards, and good news.

PREPARATIONS
FOR SHABBOS
When the girls come to
register during the week, I ask
them gently to come and help
me on Thursday. Well peel
potatoes together and get to
know each other. Youll do
hafrashas challa and well take a
picture; it will be fun.
When
they
come
on
Thursday,
between
10-15
girls, I greet them happily and
immediately put my braincells to
work. To their surprise, I refer
to each of them by name (out
of hundreds of names that pass
through every week). Also, in
order to generate a warm feeling,
I try to find a person we know

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in common. It goes something

like this: Hi Shanny. How nice
of you to come. Where are you
from?
Shanny is surprised. How
did you remember my name?
Im from the yishuv Ayelet
HaShachar.
I do a brain search on the
yishuv and say, Ah, Im sure you
know the Chaimowitz couple
from there. They were here three
years ago. We made Danny a bar
mitzva here when he was 70!
Shanny says, Wow! They
are my neighbors! Of course I
know them!
Shanny feels at home, as
does Chein from Tel Aviv who
knows the musician who was
here four years ago. It goes like
this, Noa, you said youre from
Hod HaSharon? Did you go to
Yeshurun high school? Then
surely you know Gali Farkash
who was here last year. Yes,
tall with curly hair.
As we speak we peel
vegetables. I tell them about the
Lubavitcher Rebbe who sent
us here because every Jew is
precious to him like a diamond,
the Rebbe who said no Jew will
remain in galus.
There are three mitzvos that
I try to impress upon the female
visitors, the acronym ChaNaH:
challa, nidda, hadlakas neiros.
Starting with candle lighting:
this is the moment when a Jewish
woman stands alone, facing the
candles, the best time to make
requests of Hashem. Surely you
also have things to ask for.
The Rebbe says that a woman
is the mainstay of the home and
she gives to her family like a
candle whose flame can ignite
many other candles without
being diminished.
The word nasan (give) can
be read backwards and forward

because a giver receives! When

you illuminate the world, you
immediately bring abundance
upon yourself.
They ask questions and
always appear excitedly the next
day to light candles at the Chabad
House.
Then nidda, family purity:
I explain the importance of the

mitzva. It is also important to me

to dispel the myths on the subject
of the exclusion of women. I tell
them that the Rebbe said that in a
way, the entire world was created
for the woman. G-d created the
world over six days. On the first
day, light and darkness; on the
second day, the heavens were
divided; on the third day, the

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Shlichus

Two years ago, we were visited in the Beit

Chabad by a man who identified himself as the
son of a Nazi. He came to apologize for the atrocities
that the Germans committed against our nation. He
showed us pictures of the first school for the children
of the Nazis in Bariloche, from seventy years ago. It was
housed in the building that is today ... the Beit Chabad!

earth and seas and plants; on the

fourth day, moon, stars, sun; on
the fifth day, the birds and fish;
on the sixth day, animals and
the crown of creation man.
Note that in order for there to be
plants, first dry land was created,
and in order for the animals
to survive, there was food and
drink, the heavens and light.
When the first man was created,
it was all complete in his honor.
And who comes at the end when
man already existed in the world?
They smile at their new sense
of importance: Yes, the woman!
It was all ready for her, in her
honor.
And the woman is the one
who determines that a child is
Jewish.
They have many questions
and we talk and talk. When the
last one leaves, it is usually two in
the morning.
Challa: Every Friday I bake
challos from 23 kilos of flour. My
faithful servant is my mixer into
which I put 7-8 kilos of flour for
each batch.
They do hafrashas challa,
have their pictures taken, laugh,
braid the challos, and get into the
Shabbos spirit.

SHABBOS IN BARILOCHE
Shabbos begins with our
joint candle lighting. The flames
flicker as our lips whisper and

souls are ignited as the sun sets

in a dazzling display of colors.
Then the men go daven
Kabbalas Shabbos and I give the
girls a shiur on the parsha.
My husband leads the
Shabbos meals in the manner of
a true leader.
It is important to him to show
them how much he appreciates
me. Before they sing Eishes
Chayil, he announces, The
following song is dedicated to my
wife, and he jokingly threatens,
And whoever doesnt sing, wont
eat!
My husband makes kiddush
in a festive tone, then there is
hand washing and the guests sit
down to set tables. I dont sit for
a moment. I taste from the food
only on Friday My husband
and I then serve about 300
people a festive meal with all the
aromas of Shabbos wafting in the
air. The tourists also help out and
do some serving.
Every Friday I prepare six
kinds of salads, meat-stuffed
vegetables if there is meat, a
hearty soup, side dishes, and
challa of course. For Shabbos
day there is an enormous pot of
chulent.
During the meal my husband
tells a Chassidic story whose
message is Ahavas Yisroel
and everyone, hobos and rich
guys, Left and Right, from all
backgrounds, sing together,

Hinei Ma Tov Sheves Achim

Gam Yochad.

EVERY EFFORT COUNTS

People usually work 8-10
hours a day. Then they go home
and spend time with the children
and spouse, and eat supper
together. At our Chabad House,
there are days that we are on the
job for 17 hours!
Anybody can come in at any
time. A meal has to be served. A
tourist is missing. A bar mitzva is
arranged for people way over the
age of thirteen. A couple wants
guidance. Personal conversations
deep into the night.
A tremendous amount of
inner strength is needed to
make it through each day, and I
feel that the Rebbe who sent us
provides us with strength.
I always have to look
presentable. I cant walk around
in a nightgown, Crocs, and a
shmatte on my head. There are
always people around. I have
learned that if I want to tell my
husband something, I need to
text him.
At first, there were things that
got me down a bit. For example,
there was a girl who was very
interested and I put so many
hours into her and then she left
without keeping in touch.
I told myself that just the fact
that someone entered the Chabad
House and saw a nicely appointed
building, an attractive woman,
dressed modestly, a couple who
respect one another, and that she
got answers to her questions, was
a kiddush Hashem and brings
hearts closer together.
There are many encouraging
stories; heres one:
A year ago, two irreligious
girls came from Yerushalayim.
One was curious and talkative
and the other one was very quiet.

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They arrived in the middle of the

week and registered for Shabbos
meals. After the Shabbos meal
they stayed to talk. The talkative
one also had her mother and
grandmother, successful and
wealthy business executives, join
us. They took the opportunity
to ask questions. Unfortunately,
the questions were from the
less than flattering perspectives
with which the media portrays
religious Jews.
I had been on my feet since
the morning, moving back and
forth between pots, the baby and
the tourists. Now, after serving
400 people, it was eleven oclock
at night and I had to answer all
their klotz kashes.
Only Hashem knows where
I had the strength from. I
stood there for two hours and
answered them graciously. They
said goodbye and the quiet girl,
who hadnt opened her mouth
during the verbal attack, thanked
me very much. And that was it; I
didnt hear from them after that.
Winter begins in Iyar and the
snow can reach a meter high.
The tourist season is over and we
fly back to Eretz Yisroel and fall
into the arms of our family who
missed us. We eat and sleep at
normal hours and rest a bit. But
even there, we dont neglect our
shlichus work.
In Tammuz we arranged a
get-together for tourists in Tel
Aviv. 250 showed up.
A modestly dressed girl came
over to me and I remembered
her as the quiet one. She hugged
me and said, You cant imagine
what a change you made inside
me. That Friday night I saw you,
so young, thin, alone, facing off
with two older wealthy women,
who had tough questions. And
you were so strong and were
not fazed for an instant! When
I returned to Eretz Yisroel I

went to a seminary and boruch

Hashem, I am learning seriously
and growing.
A few months later she told
me she married a religious boy
and her parents, who initially
were so opposed, were having
much nachas from her.

JEWISH REVENGE
In the late 40s, the wife of
the President of Argentina was
a woman named Eva Peron.
She was very powerful as a
First Lady, and the decision to
provide refuge for Nazis is often
attributed to her influence.
Two years ago, we were visited
in the Beit Chabad by a man who
identified himself as the son of a
Nazi. He came to apologize for
the atrocities that the Germans

committed against our nation.

He showed us pictures of the
first school for the children of the
Nazis in Bariloche, from seventy
years ago. It was housed in the
building that is today
... the Beit Chabad!
Additionally, there is a short
film that shows the Nazi officer
Erich Priebke being confronted
by an American news crew
(which led to his subsequent
extradition to Rome to stand
trial), and the Americans caught
up to him exactly in the doorway
to our building! Scary...
In conclusion, I would like
to wish all of those involved in
shlichus in every far-flung corner
of the world, that we soon merit
to go on clouds to Yerushalayim
with our king leading us!!!

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CHABAD HISTORY

THE ALIYAH TO
ISRAEL AND THE
YESHIVA IN LUD
When 100 Chassidim sat in the Palestinian
Office in Paris * The condition of moving to
Israel is: Place us in a Chassidishe Kibbutz * The
Rashags trip to Israel to visit the refugees * The
beginning of the Chabad Yeshiva in Lud * These
Lubavitchers are known as fanatic * They work
with devotion and honesty * A very favorable
report was received about the Chabad Yeshiva
* Pirsum Rishon: The Frierdiker Rebbes letter to
the JDC regarding Kfar Chabad * The Refugees
Story Eighth Installment

mmediately
after
the
end of World War II,
Chabad
Chassidim
in
Israel
petitioned
the
Frierdiker Rebbe to agree to
the establishment of a Chabad
village in Israel, and in 1949
the Frierdiker Rebbe agreed for
Chassidim to move to Israel, and
so began an exodus from France
to Israel.
This installment presents the
story of the Chabad refugees who
were temporarily in France and
were resettled in Israel thanks to
the help of the American Joint
Distribution Committee (JDC),

and the story of the Rashags trip

to Israel to see how the refugees
are acclimating themselves to
their new homes.
Pirsum
Rishon:
This
installment also includes a letter
from the Frierdiker Rebbe to
the JDC office in New York
discussing the financial needs of
the new Kfar Chabad settlement
in Israel.
These fascinating documents
are part of the JDC Archives
(which were digitized and
uploaded online, thanks to a grant
from Dr. Georgette Bennett and
Dr. Leonard Polonsky CBE).

THE FRIERDIKER
REBBES LONGAWAITED APPROVAL
In a letter dated March 1, 1949
[Shvat 30, 5709] Mr. Leonard
Seidenman [JDC Paris] writes
to Mr. Robert Pilpel [JDC New
York] regarding the emigration
of the Chabad Chassidim from
France to Israel:
In reply to your letter of
February 24th, please be advised
that the story which you cite
from the Jewish Daily Forward
concerning the departure of a
group of Lubavitcher Yeshiva
Bochurim was correct
For
some
time
Rabbi
Schneerson,
whose
advice
had always been requested
concerning movement to Israel,
had consistently asked his
people to wait. Quite recently,
in reply to a letter from one of
his people here, he replied that
he felt that now was the time to
go. Immediately this first group
of over 100 went and sat in the
Palestinian Office until they were
all registered. They set only one
condition on their emigration
and that was that when they were
sent to Kibutsim, that they be
Chassidisher Kibutsim, and this

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kind of arrangement was made

for them. At the present time over
200 are registered of which 60
will leave after Purim, and then
we are expecting a large group to
leave after the Passover holidays.
There is still a large group that
hopes to get to America, but it will
appear that this recent statement
from Rabbi Schneerson will cause
60% of the entire group to move
on.
The present population of the
Lubavitcher Group is 598

This will introduce to you

Rabbi S.Gourary, the son-in-law
of the world famous Lubavitcher
Rabbi Schneersohn.
Rabbi Gourary is visiting
Israel with the problem of many
of his people who have arrived
there.
We have always had a very
friendly and close relationship
with Rabbi Gourary and I feel
sure you will be glad to extend to
him all courtesies that are in your
power.

THE RASHAGS
TRIP TO ISRAEL

THE YESHIVA FOR

RUSSIAN IMMIGRANTS

It was only a few months after

the wave of Chabad refugees
arrived in Israel, and their
resettlement was fraught with
difficulties, so the Rashag planned
a visit to Israel to inspect the
situation and figure out a solution.
On April 25, 1949 [Nissan 26,
5709] Mr. Moses Leavitt (JDC
New York) presented the Rashag
with a Recommendation Letter,
addressed to the Head of the
JDC offices in Israel, Mr. Harry
Viteles, to ensure he receives
assistance during his visit:
Dear Harry,

While in Israel the Rashag

worked tirelessly towards the
betterment of the refugees, and
one of his projects was to ensure
the Chabad Yeshiva in Lud, which
was called Yeshivas Olei Russia,
should be supported by the JDC.
To assist him in this venture, the
Yeshiva crafted a letter to the JDC,
describing the Yeshiva and asking
for financial assistance. This letter
was written on May 17, 1949
[Iyar 18, 5709] to the JDC offices
in Jerusalem [Translated from
Hebrew]:
Honorable Sir,

In accordance with our letter

dated the 6th of Iyar, in which we
have notified you that two months
before the holiday of Passover we
have established in Lud, Israel,
a Yeshiva and a Cheder for the
children of Russian refugees
and for the teenagers who have
arrived in Israel, for our schools
in Tel Aviv have not the capacity
to accommodate them.
The referenced Yeshiva which
was established by the Roshei
Yeshivos and directors of our
Yeshiva in Tel Aviv currently
counts with 40 students, and we
expect that with time the number
will grow tenfold, for the number
of immigrants to Israel is growing.
The income for our Yeshiva (a
Yeshiva which grows every day) is
almost nil when compared to our
many expenses which are needed
for its upkeep, and constantly
grow, such as a salary to teachers,
Mashgichim
and
directors;
feeding them, our students and
some of our workers; providing
accommodations and other needs
(as described in the attached
memo).
The directorate of our
Yeshiva respectfully asks your
honor to consider our current

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Chabad History
request and be a helping hand
to our young Yeshiva, to assist
and strengthen the institutions
with financial support for the
maintenance of the Yeshiva in
general, and more specifically for
feeding our students, to provide
our kitchen with foodstuffs and
equipment, for our institution is
young and needs support in every
department.
We give our deep heartfelt
thanks to you, in our name and
in the name of the children and
teenagers studying in our Yeshiva.

JDC: WE NEED
MORE INFORMATION
In a letter dated May 22,
1949 (Iyar 21, 5709) Mr. Harry
Viteles (JDC Israel) writes to
Mr. Moses Leavitt (JDC New
York) describing a phone call
with Rashag about his various
requests, including the request for
financial assistance to the Yeshiva:
Rabbi Gourary called today.
He had three requests:
3. One of their Yeshivoth
had
recently
arrived
and
established itself in Lydda. They
apply to the JDC for assistance.
I replied that the application
would be investigated and a
report submitted either to the
Cultural Committee, New York,
or to the Cultural Committee for
Israel, whichever will be quicker.
1949: The Life in the Yeshiva
During the months that
passed, the JDC office in Israel
reviewed the application and
then presented a detailed report
about the Yeshiva, recommending
that sizeable monetary support be
provided to the Yeshiva:
Part
of
the
Lubavitch
Chassidim from Russia managed
to escape and smuggle across
boundaries and immigrate to

Israel. These Lubavitchers are

known as fanatic to the Torah
already in Russia and many of
them were jailed for supporting
and disseminating Torah among
the Jews.
Several dozen families of
Lubavitcher immigrants from
Russia settled in Lud and
immediately opened a Yeshiva for
their children and for orphans
whose parents are still in the
immigrant camps of the Jewish
Agency.
They received a building
for the Yeshiva which needs
some repairs, which houses the
classrooms, sleeping rooms, the
kitchen and dining room.
The Rosh Yeshiva is Rabbi
Melech Kaplan who was teaching
Torah to Lubavitch children even
in Russia, and sat in jail for this
sin. The director of the Yeshiva
is Rabbi Zusha Wilmovsky, he is
busy day and night in collecting
funds, and he comes only once or
twice to the Yeshiva.
The institution consists of
two parts: a Talmud Torah and
a Yeshiva. The Talmud Torah
has two classes, each with
its own teacher (a student of
the Lubavitch Yeshiva Achei
Tmimim in Tel Aviv) who
teaches them Torah, Rashi, and to
the second grade also Talmud. An
hour and a half a day they learn
the subjects: Hebrew, Nach and
math by local Haredi teacher,
who receives his payment from
the government.
The children are barefoot and
almost naked; they speak Yiddish
and Russian and have learned
to certain extent the Hebrew
language.
These students do not receive
any support from the Youth
Aliyah because the institution
still has not been recognized by
the Youth Aliyah.
The Yeshiva has only one

Shiur (class) and Rabbi Melech

Kaplan teaches them every day
apart from an hour and a half that
they study Hebrew lessons, Nach
and math by the local teacher.
30 students eat inside the
institution, and 20 sleep in the
institution (10 eat lunch only) ...
We cannot say that the
cleanliness and the diet are
satisfactory. Three times a day
students are given meals that
I cannot believe it satisfies the
students. The sleeping rooms
are not outstanding in their
beauty and cleanliness. Furniture
is absolutely insufficient. The
kitchen is not equipped with the
necessary tools. Close to forty
students study in the Yeshiva:
over 20 in the Talmud Torah
and nearly twenty in the Yeshiva.
All the students are children of
refugees whose fathers are either
still in camps or have arrived
already but didnt settle yet. A
substantial number of the students
are orphans without a father and
without a mother. Their faces
show suffering and poverty.
The Yeshiva building has 12
rooms and two stores and the
building needed many repairs.
Rent is IL 93.60 per year.
It is appropriate to note the
full dedication of the Rosh Yeshiva
(who has a family of 7 persons)
and the director, both whom live
in extreme poverty (The Rosh
Yeshiva received only IL 80 for
four-five months) and their
sole priority is to establish the
institution, and to the institution
they give their lives.
There is no doubt that the
studies (especially the Talmud
Torah) and the Seder in Yeshiva
needs many changes, but at the
same time we should give this
Yeshiva considerable support,
for both the directors and the
students are in an extreme
situation.

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In the Yeshiva they learn

in Yiddish and spirit of the
Lubavitcher community is in all
walks of life.
According to their budget
expenditures are IL 513 per
month, and their income is about
IL 200 per month. (IL 100 for
Teachers, IL 50 for the director,
IL 265 for food, and IL 35 for
supporting the students, laundry,
etc.).
The people who lead the
Yeshiva work with devotion, and
we have found them to be honest
people.
For now they have not
received any support from the
Rebbe in America or from any
other institutions.
The Vaad Hayeshivos gave
them during the last few days
the first fifty pounds (according
to our demand, although they
would have done it without us),
and their income is mainly from
Lubavitch Chassidim in Tel Aviv
and those close to them.

A VERY FAVORABLE
REPORT WAS
RECEIVED
This report was submitted
to the main JDC office in New
York, and they responded in a
report about some of the Yeshivos
and institutions in Israel, which
included recommendations on how
much to give each organization:
4.
Talmud
Torah
and
Yeshivah Olei Russia, Ludd
A very favorable report was
received from the JDC office in
Israel with the suggestion that a
monthly subvention in the amount
of IL 100 be allocated, since it has
been the Committees practice
to start with a modest allocation.
Dr. Kahn recommended an
allocation in the amount of $160
for November. This was duly
approved.

THE SUPPORT TO THE

YESHIVA IS MOST
INADEQUATE
In continuation to this report
Mr. Harry Viteles (JDC Israel)
wrote a letter to Mr. Solomon
Tarshansky (JDC New York),
on December 18, 1949 [Kislev 27,
5710], complaining about the fact
that they limited the amount of
support due to the Chabad Yeshiva
in Lud:
4. With regard to paragraph
(2) of your letter:
(a) Our understanding is that
applications from Yeshivoth new
and old will be considered and
approved by the Committee in
Israel
(b) We consider the subvention
of $150 for the Yeshiva Olei
Russia, Ludd as most inadequate
less than one-third of the amount
which we recommended

PIRSUM RISHON:
THE FRIERDIKER
REBBES LETTER
On November 14, 1949
[Cheshvan
22,
5710]
the
Frierdiker Rebbe wrote a letter to
the directorate of the JDC in New
York, discussing the new Chabad
village in Israel, Kfar Chabad,
and describing the various
financial needs of its residents:
Greetings and Blessings:
You are aware of the fact that
we have been enabled with G-ds
help to establish in the Land of
Israel our first Chabad Colony
for our refugees from Russia,
which colony has 5500 dunam at
Safariah near Sarafend, situated
about twelve miles from Tel
Aviv, and bears the name of Kfar
Chabad.
The Israel Government and
the Jewish Agency have consented
to furnish the entire budget for
this settlement and have allocated

the sum of Twenty Five Hundred

Israeli Pounds (IL2500-) for
every family that has been settled
on the land in this colony which
sum will be paid by the Jewish
Agency within three years. The
initial payments for this purpose
have already been made.
In view of the fact that it will
take three years to establish this
Chabad colony, therefore
1) There exists the vital
problem of providing these people
with some income during these
three years; and
2) Since there have also been
settled many families in the same
colony of Kfar Chabad who on
account of their old age and
Continued on page 23
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TZIVOS HASHEM

D O NOT
FORGET US
The story you are about to
read was told by the Chassid,
Rabbi Asher Sasonkin zl, the
son of the gaon and Chassid,
Rabbi Shemaryahu Nachum
Sasonkin ztl who was the rav
of Batum in Georgia and at
the end of his life, mashpia in
Yerushalayim.
R Asher had a good friend
hard
through
went
who
times in Soviet Russia. He
suffered from persecution and
surveillance on the part of the
KGB, the secret police. Leaving
his home always entailed
nervousness about what would
be. Every step he made was
known to those who shadowed
him.
He and his wife had no
children although they had
been married many years.
They prayed a great deal and
shed rivers of tears, perhaps
Hashem would have pity on

is
Decades passed without any attend a family simcha that

happening in two weeks.

connection between them.
R Asher was surprised by
Many years later, R Asher
knew
was also allowed to leave this invitation since he
couple
the
years
many
for
Russia. He moved to Eretz that
his
Yisroel and from there, he did not have children. But
him
telling
now
was
went to see the Rebbe. Upon friend
bar
arriving in Crown Heights, the that his son would be
them.
.
two friends met! It is hard to mitzva
difficulties,
many
After
Your son? Your son is
describe their great joy, after
the couple was finally allowed
so many years of separation becoming bar mitzva?
to leave Russia. After that, R
when they did not know what
Yes! We are soon going to
Asher lost contact with his
had become of the other. They be celebrating the bar mitzva
friend and knew nothing about
spent hours together, enjoying of our son!
what he was up to. From time
one anothers company. R
The friend knew why
to time, R Asher felt a great
Ashers friend told him:
Asher was so surprised,
R
but
longing for his good friend,
dear friend, because all the years he knew
my
,
Asher
out
he had no way of finding
I am happy to invite you to him, he did not have children.
about him.

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He told R Asher what had

occurred since they last met.
He told him what happened
since he left Russia, how he
and his wife had gone to top
doctors who were unable to
help them. Then, fourteen
years earlier, they decided to
have yechidus with the Rebbe
and tell him that they decided
to adopt a boy since many
years had passed without their
having children of their own.
The Rebbe listened and
asked, Why adopt? You need
to raise your own child! But do
not forget us.
Hearing this, the couple was
stunned. They had only hoped
to receive a bracha and words
of encouragement. They had
not dreamed the Rebbe would
give them what amounted to a
promise that they would have
their own child.
However, they did not
understand the last thing the
Rebbe said. What did the Rebbe

mean by saying they should

not forget him?
The friend said, I had an
idea. At the next farbrengen,
when the Rebbe gave out kos
shel bracha, I would go over
and ask him to clarify his
instruction from the yechidus.
And thats what I did. At
the end of the next holiday,
in Tishrei, when the Rebbe
distributed kos shel bracha, I
joined the line and repeated to
the Rebbe what he said to me
about having a son but added
that I did not understand
what he meant about not
forgetting us.
Very simple, said the
Rebbe with a smile. Name the
baby for my father-in-law,
the Rebbe!
I was very happy that
what the Rebbe said to me in
yechidus was clarified, but the
great joy was soon gone when
I remembered that my fatherin-laws name is Yitzchok! I

was very concerned about

what could happen with him
when the Rebbe said to name
the baby Yitzchok.
Once again, I was in a
turmoil and did not know
what to do. I decided that in
order to spare myself more
months of worry, I would
go back for kos shel bracha
and ask the Rebbe for an
explanation.
I went back on line and
when I reached the Rebbe
again, I said, Rebbe, my
is
name
father-in-laws
Yitzchok!
The Rebbe said, Then give
the baby his first name.

***
When he finished telling his
interesting story, he got up
and said to his friend R Asher,
This is my son Yosef who was
born thirteen years ago, after
the blessing and promise of the
Rebbe, and who will be bar
mitzva in two weeks.

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