993

BH. 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel 30 October 2015 Number 993 Price: $6.
00 Part 2 of 2
The international weekly heralding the coming of Moshiach
THE TEACHERS
TEACHER
CHINUCH DISCUSSION
WITH R NAFTALI ROTH
MAROONED ON A
FARAWAY ISLAND
SHLICHUS ON THE
WAY TO THE REBBE
LAUGHING
OUR WAY TO
REDEMPTION
BY RABBI HESCHEL
GREENBERG
BH. 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel
30 October 2015 Number 993
Price: $6.00 Part 2 of 2
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LONG LIVE THE REBBE MELECH HAMOSHIACH FOREVER AND EVER!

27/10/2015 13:24:49
CONTENTS
7
FEATURED ARTICLES
WEEKLY COLUMNS
3 Dvar Malchus
15 Bitachon Bytes
25 Parsha Thought
34 Tzivos Hashem
THE TEACHERS
TEACHER
Menachem Zigelboim
ON A
16 MAROONED
FARAWAY ISLAND
Nechami Genuth
IS A BORN REBBE!
22 HE
R Boruch Sholom Cohen
CHASSIDIC
22 28 ABUSINESSMAN
WITH
MESIRUS NEFESH
Dov Levanon
Beis Moshiach (USPS 012-542) ISSN 1082-0272

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Boruch Merkur
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10/27/2015 2:45:57 AM
DVAR MALCHUS
WE FOLLOW THEIR
LEAD AND PROCLAIM:
MENACHEM
IS HIS NAME
Of course, we (Chassidim) follow their lead (with

respect to our Rebbes and Nsiim. * There are
those who say that Menachem is the name of
Moshiach, as it is said, because the comforter
(menachem) is distant from me, even he that
should revive my soul. * Chapter Four of
Rabbi Shloma Majeskis Likkutei Mekoros Vol. 2.
(Underlined text is the compilers emphasis.)
Translated by Boruch Merkur
It is not just a Chassids sentiment

that his Rebbi is Moshiach. The
Rebbi himself stated that Lubavitch
Chassidim have always believed that
the Rebbi is Moshiach. Chassidim
should believe and proclaim, our
Rebbi is Moshiach!
ATTAINING THE HOLINESS

OF THE ALM-GHTY HIMSELF
8. [] Parshas Acharei contains
the commandment and warning
that there should not be a ratzo a
yearning to cleave to G-d through
spirituality without a shov a
return to the mission of perfecting the
physical world, making it a dwelling
place for G-d through Torah and
Mitzvos. (The result of having a ratzo
without a shov and its shortcomings is
illustrated in Parshas Acharei with the
description of the klos hanefesh, the
soul expiration, of the two children

of Aharon, in their approach before
G-d and they died.) Rather, there
must specifically be a ratzo with a shov
[which is the sustainable approach
to spirituality and one that is in line
with the Supernal Will of perfecting
the world. This approach diminishes
or negates the risk of their being klos
hanefesh, emphasizing the importance
of there being ongoing life in the
physical world] specifically as souls
(which are inherently predisposed
towards ratzo) within bodies (which
are predisposed towards shov).
The ratzo and shov must be united,
resulting in Supernal revelations being
drawn down and revealed within
keilim, the means to channel and
contain these revelations.
Parenthetically, this union of body
and soul finds further expression
in the eternal life of the Future Era.
(What is unique about the present

times, our generation, is that there
will be no interruption [no death
separating the finite life of this world
from the everlasting life of the World
to Come]). Indeed, the life of the
Future Era is specifically physical life,
but a manner of life whereby the soul
is nourished by the body [reversing the
current dynamic whereby spirituality
is supreme, and the body receives
nourishment from the soul].
The union between ratzo and
shov, G-dliness being manifest within
keilim, is accomplished in virtue of a
lofty level of G-dliness that transcends
the two,* a state of sanctity described
in Parshas Kdoshim. There the Torah
enjoins the Jewish people with the
commandment to (and capacity for)
Be holy for I [G-d] am holy. That is,
the status and condition of the Jewish
people, as they exist in the physical
world where the commandment of
Be holy, be distinguished (Rashi
on the verse), can apply is one of
sanctity (Be holy). Here in the
physical world, Jews have the capacity
to even attain the ultimate sanctity,
the holiness of the Alm-ghty Himself,
as our Sages teach, Yachol kamoni?
[according to the simple reading this
means] You might think that the intent
here is that you [the Jewish people]
are being commanded to be as holy
as Me [i.e., G-d himself]. Thus, the
Torah teaches, for I am holy [Divine
sanctity is reserved for G-d alone]
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Dvar Malchus
[but] according to the interpretation
of Chassidus, this teaching is stated in
the affirmative: Yachol kamoni You
are able to be as holy as Me [i.e., G-d
himself]. That is, each and every Jew
is able, capable of being, as Me,
like G-d Himself (as it were), attaining
the Divine sanctity of (for) I am
holy.
MOSHIACH:
YEARNING FOR GEULA WITH
BATED BREATH
The concept of holiness being
manifest specifically in the physical
realm is further emphasized in the
name of Moshiach (the redeemer),
who is called metzora leper the
Metzora of the House of Rebbi, who
sits among the impoverished, who
suffer from afflictions, those who
are stricken with leprosy and he
too [Moshiach] is a leper. That is,
Moshiach is present in the world,
in the time and place of exile, and
there, amidst the condition of exile,
he suffers the afflictions of exile
(as the Gemara continues, Says
Rav: If Moshiach is among the
living, he is, for example, Rabbeinu
HaKadosh If Moshiach is among
those who are presently alive, it is
certainly Rabbeinu HaKadosh,**
for he [Rabbeinu HaKadosh] suffers
from afflictions and is entirely
pious.***) And Moshiach peers out
in anticipation, looking with bated
breath and with yearning eyes for
the revelation (from the concealment
of the time and condition of exile).
Indeed, in accordance with the ruling
of Rambam, a king will rise up from
the Davidic dynasty, etc., it is the role
of Melech HaMoshiach to redeem
the Jewish people with the true and
complete redemption, which will never
be followed by another exile.
MOSHIACH:
PERFECT BUT SUFFERING
9. The aforementioned is also
connected with the second chapter
of Avos (which is being studied this

Shabbos Kodesh), which begins with
Rebbi states: Which is the proper
course that a man should choose?
That which is an honor for him and
which elicits honor from his fellow
man. []
(In his time) it was said of
Rebbi (Rabbeinu HaKadosh) that
If Moshiach is from among those
who are presently alive, it is certainly
Rabbeinu HaKadosh, for he suffers
from afflictions and is entirely pious.
Although he was entirely pious
for he had completed his service of
G-d**** nevertheless, he suffered
affliction, the ailments of exile. The
same is true of Moshiach (whose name
is the leper of the House of Rebbi):
although Moshiach attains the ultimate
state of perfection, he suffers and is
stricken with pain over the illness of
exile (as above sif 2).
WHAT IS THE FASTEST

WAY TO BRING MOSHIACH?
In light of the above, this is the
meaning of Rebbis statement, Which
is the proper course that a man should
choose? That which is an honor for
him and which elicits honor from his
fellow man:
A man refers to this man
(who is it at a level of greatness
perfection in everything) whose
deeds are wholesome and has rectified
everythingonly
the
extraneous
aspects, at the hem of his garments,
remain to be refined, etc.. His
superficial inadequacies are solely on
account of the exile, which was the
case with Rebbi [who suffered and
was stricken with ailments]. In this
generation the final generation of
exile, the Heels of Moshiach, when all
matters (the avoda that had to be done
throughout the duration of exile) have
already been completed and perfected
all the Jewish people are at this level
of near perfection.
The question is: Since we have
already completed our deeds and
our service throughout the duration

of exile, what is the proper course
(the easiest and quickest path among
all the pathways of Torah) that a man
(all the Jewish people as a whole)
should choose. What path should a
man, who has completed [all] matters
of avoda, choose in order to bring
about the revelation and the advent
of Moshiach?*****
The answer to this question is:
That which is an honor (Tiferes) for
him and which elicits honor (Tiferes)
from his fellow man:
Tiferes refers to Torah (Tiferes
that refers to the Giving of the
Torah), which, on account of its
tremendous virtue and power, can
join the two movements of ratzo
(drawing close and cleaving to the
Alm-ghty, Tiferes loseha) and shov
(drawing down below, Tiferes lo
min haadam), so that the Supernal
revelations are drawn down and
revealed within keilim (as above sif 6).
In so doing, the true concept of exile
(Supernal revelations) is revealed in
a manner that rules out the concept
of exile in the simple, literal sense, a
redemption that is never followed by
exile (as above sif 7 and sif 8).
(From the address of Shabbos Parshas
Tazria-Metzora, 6 Iyar; Seifer HaSichos 5751,
pg. 496-498)
NOTES:
*Footnote 61: by there first being the bittul of
shov, as above sif 6.
**Footnote 67: There (at the beginning of the
sugia): Those of the School of Rebbi Shilo
said that Shilo is the name of Moshiach, as
it is said, until Shilo arrives; those of the
School of Rebbi Yanai said that the name of
Moshiach is Yinon (like Yanai each would find
a Scriptural source for his name commentary
of Rashi there. Note the inference derived from
Rashis specific wording, each would find a
Scriptural source for his name and not that
the disciples would propose that Moshiachs
name is the same as that of their master), as it
is said, May his name be eternal; before the
sun, his name is Yinon; the School of Chanina
said that Chanina is the name of Moshiach, as
it is said, for as much as I will show you no
favor (chanina); there are those who say
that Menachem ben Chizkiya is the name of
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Moshiach (so it is in our versions of the text, but

the Yerushalmi and Eicha Rabba render it simply
as Menachem [omitting ben Chizkiya] ), as
it is said, because the comforter (menachem) is
distant from me, even he that should revive my
soul. See also Yerushalmi Brachos 2:4, Eicha
Rabba 1:51. Also see Likkutei Levi Yitzchok al
Maamarei Chazal, pg. 106, that all opinions are
true, and both these and these are words of
the living G-d. See there.
Of course, we (Chassidim) follow their lead
(with respect to our Rebbes and Nsiim,
especially my revered father in-law, the Rebbe,
leader of the generation): Yosef is the name of
Continued from page 33
4.
When everyone speaks about the
violation of Jewish sovereignty on Har
HaBayis, it turns out there was only
one clear voice that cried out years
ago that Har HaBayis is no longer in
our hands and how there were those
who wanted to abandon the holiest
site of the Jewish People and give it
to the Arabs. As always, this was the
voice of the leader of our generation,
the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach. In a
sicha delivered on Rosh Chodesh Iyar
5736, the Rebbe spoke about what
was then developing behind closed
doors on the transfer of sovereignty
over Har HaBayis to the Jordanians just as whats happening today:
Theres another matter of
nations gathering and kingdoms
thinking vain things: While this is
not connected with actual pikuach
nefesh, G-d forbid, it does pertain
to G-d and His Moshiach. What
they want to demand, and theyre
already demanding, etc., is that
the Jews should give away the holy
place of Kodesh HaKodoshim on
Har HaBayis, and thereby giving
strength, with permission and with
authorization, that they will fly there
the flag of the Arabs - (the Jordanian
flag).
While they thought that they
would keep this a secret, its already
not a secret for several days and
Moshiach, as it is said, The L-rd will set His

hand again the second time (yosif Adni sheinis
yado)to recover the remnant of the Jewish
people, etc.; Yitzchok is the name of Moshiach,
as it is said, Then He shall fill our mouths with
laughter (schok pinu).
***Footnote 68: Commentary of Rashi on the
Gemara. For this reason Moshiach is referred to
as The leper of the House of Rebbi, referring
to Rabbeinu HaKadosh, who is called Rebbi
for he [Moshiach] suffers afflictions and
ailments like him [like Rebbi] (Chiddushei
Agados Maharsha ibid).
weeks now. And there are those who

are sleeping and their sleep is sweet,
and they dont want to be woken up
from their sleep - and therefore, they
make as if they dont hear. However,
Washington knows about this, and
Yerushalayim and Tel Aviv know
about this, and those whose hearts
are pained by the downfall, a lack of
the upright stature and outstretched
hand in existence there - they know
this.
In the meantime, this comes in
the form of a demand and pressure,
etc., however, as has been mentioned
several times, when the non-Jew
sees that Mordechai neither bent
the knee nor bowed - this is not the
average way, as Rashi brings in his
commentary that when they fall, it
happens in this manner; but when
you have begun to fall before him
- when they rise, they rise until the
stars of the heavens.
They want to look for
justification, it saves Jewish lives,
etc., with all the explanations. In
the meantime, however, the nations
gathering and kingdoms thinking
vain things continues with this
frightening matter of Jews giving this
with their own hands. They made a
tumult about how they wont make
the Old City of Yerushalayim into
something national - (a city run by
three governments), and here they
come to something far worse - a
Jew will give the place of Kodesh
HaKodoshim with his own hands,
****Footnote 73: following the interpretation of

tzaddik gamor a complete tzaddik as in the
phrase, a vessel whose work upon it has been
completed (Likkutei Torah Drushei Sukkos
81a).
*****Footnote 74: beginning with the revelation
and advent of Moshiach within each and every
Jew, as is known, the verse, A star will shoot
forth from Yaakov, etc., refers to Melech
HaMoshiach (Yerushalmi Maaser Sheini 4:6),
insofar as each Jew possesses within a spark of
the soul of Moshiach (Maor Einayim, Parshas
Pinchas, end).
and they say that they are giving this,

and they give permission, allowing for
the flying of the flag of that kingdom,
Jordan, etc.
At first, it would seem that they
start arguing, whats the difference
if they fly one flag or another? Its
not pertinent, it has no relevance to
anyone, it has no place in halacha
with all the explanations in this
matter. However, this is not the place
to elaborate with alarming anyone,
how they absolutely rejected years
ago that it should belong to several
governments. They didnt even
want something ex-territorial, etc.,
but now (not a Jew but) a Gentile
acquires prominence, or in simple
terms, chutzpah - and he comes and
talks and explains the aforementioned
matter, not just about Chevron,
not just about Shchem, not just
about the Old City of Yerushalayim,
etc., on the contrary - the place of
Kodesh HaKodoshim with the Even
HaShsiya, etc., that they will hand it
over and fly a flag, etc., and this is not
the place to elaborate with alarming
anyone.
Even though they explain that
this will prevent bloodshed, how one
Jewish soul is a whole world and
this is a psak din of our Holy Torah,
the Torah of Life and the Torah of
Truth - but the real situation is that
theres no connection between them,
and this is not the place to elaborate.
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CHINUCH

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THE
TEACHERS
TEACHER
As the new school year begins, we met with
the veteran mechanech, R Naftali Roth, for an
important chinuch discussion. We raised an
array of questions and asked his opinion on
issues of the day.
Interview by Menachem Zigelboim
Photos by Ezra Landau
abbi Naftali Roth is

a well-known figure
in Chabad in Eretz
Yisroel,
known
by
young and old and people of all
backgrounds.
For many years
now, he has emceed major Chabad
events with sensitivity and warmth.
Many know him as a teacher
and mechanech for the past six
decades, as someone who is leading
the Chabad chinuch revolution for
nearly the past thirty years with the
founding of the Merkaz Chinuchi
Chassiduti.
I met with R Roth in his office
on Uriel Street in Yerushalayim.
He has many chinuch roles, but
even more important than that
are the enthusiasm and freshness
that he maintains. A few days
after the annual convention of
mechanchim, when hundreds of
mechanchim from all over the

country convened for three days
of learning and renewal, we sat
together to talk.
Let us begin with the
convention of mechanchim
that garners high praise for
its quality, professionalism,
and atmosphere.
It is able
to unite everyone.
Many
principals and teachers are in
touch with you and you respect
everyones views.
When did
this convention begin? Was it
the Rebbes initiative or yours?
How did the Rebbe regard it
over the years?
The idea to hold a convention
for mechanchim came up during
the big Hakhel gathering of
teachers that took place in 5748.
That was following the Rebbes
call and request, at the 13

Tishrei farbrengen of that year,
to hold Hakhel gatherings for
men, women, and the smallest of
children.
In concert with the director
of Tzach, R Yosef Yitzchok
Aharonov, it was decided to
arrange two large Hakhel
gatherings, one for school aged
children of all groups and sectors
to be held in Binyanei HaUmah,
and another one for teachers.
We sent our suggested program
to the Rebbe and the answer was:
I will mention it at the gravesite
for outstanding success etc.
The
childrens
Hakhel
gathering took place on Rosh
Chodesh Shevat 5748 and
the
Hakhel
gathering
for
mechanchim took place on the
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Chinuch
There is just one way to deal with the

outside influences, competing pleasures
and temptations, and that is to get students to
feel the sweetness of Torah.
Chag HaGeula, 12-13 Tammuz,
in Malchei Yisroel halls in
Yerushalayim.
The Rebbe responded warmly
and encouragingly about each
of the gatherings. Every ad we
produced for the Kinus was sent
to the Rebbe for review and some
were corrected by him. For the
childrens gathering, the Rebbe
suggested we produce a special
album. When we did so, the
Rebbes reaction was, Accolades
of grace to an amazing extent;
this album beautifies Tzeirei
Agudas Chabad.
When we reported about the
gathering for mechanchim, we
got a speedy response which
said: It was received and many
thanks, it caused much nachas
ruach, and may it be an ongoing
endeavor and with additions etc.
I will mention it at the tziyun.
Following the Rebbes bracha
for an ongoing endeavor,
R Aharonov reported to the
Rebbe about the idea of starting
a Merkaz Chinuchi Chassiduti
in conjunction with Tzach, as
well as the decision to have a
convention for mechanchim every
year. The Rebbe responded with
a bracha along with instructions
for the success of the activities.
A year later, 5749, the Year
of the Boy and Girl, I attended
the Kinus HaShluchim and one
of the instructions I was given by
the Rebbe was to find someone
to compile from the sichos
excerpts about the importance
of mechanchim and to print it.
By the time we had the second
convention of mechanchim that
year, the book HaMechanech was

printed and was given out as a
gift to the mechanchim.
Since then, every year, on the
day the convention began, we
received (through the secretary,
R Leibel Groner) a detailed
bracha from the Rebbe.
Of
course, the Rebbes special
attention toward this convention
shows how vitally the Rebbe
views it.
Over the years, has the
convention adjusted to the
changes going on during the
past twenty years in technology
and other things that we did not
have to deal with in the past?
The
mechanchims
convention is the highlight of the
many educational initiatives that
take place throughout the year for
the purpose of raising the level
of chinuch and instruction and
dealing with the challenges of the
time. These include addressing
the urgent need to keep on high
alert, to be warned of the dangers
that technology can bring with it,
along with keeping up with the
educational tools of technology
which can help those involved in
this most important shlichus, as
the Rebbe says to utilize every
tool for kdusha. Every year,
professionals are invited to speak
and clarify this issue.
A VETERAN MECHANECH
VERSUS MODERN
TECHNOLOGY
R Naftali Roth was born
in 5699 in the Shaarei Chesed
neighborhood of Yerushalayim.
In his youth he learned in

Yeshivas Chevron where he
became acquainted with Chabad
and became mekushar to the
Rebbe, until he was appointed
by the Rebbe as his man in
Yeshivas Chevron while he
learned in that yeshiva.
His educational career began
when he was quite young.
Over the years he started many
educational projects starting with
a Yeshivas Erev in Yerushalayim
for boys who wanted to learn
Torah beyond school hours. He
held administrative positions in
the Reshet Oholei Yosef Yitzchok
and then in Toras Emes Chabad
in Yerushalayim.
He never retired. Along with
his role as director of Tzach in
Yerushalayim, he started the
Merkaz Chinuchi Chassiduti and
initiated the annual convention of
mechanchim that have become

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educational models whose reach

extends beyond the realm of
Chabad educators. Along with
these endeavors, he serves as rav
of the Chabad community in the
Mattersdorf neighborhood of
Yerushalayim.
One
would
think
that
someone who started his chinuch
career in the old Yerushalmi
neighborhoods with boys of the
Old Yishuv, and then went on
to the first schools of the Reshet
that were founded in faltering
neighborhoods on the outskirts
of Yerushalayim, would not keep
up with the progress, technology
and the slew of gadgets that
draw childrens attention these
days. And yet, R Roth is up to
date and he has solutions to the
problems of todays youth. This
is the greatest testimony, that his
educational methods have proven
themselves to stand the test of
time.
The world is moving on,
some would say deteriorating,
and the world of education is
sensitive to this. As a veteran
educator, how can we preserve
and protect a pure chinuch
nowadays?
On the verse (Dvarim
26:11), and you shall rejoice
with all the good, the holy Ohr
HaChayim writes, Good refers
exclusively to Torah as it says
(Mishlei 4:2), I gave you a good
teaching, and if people knew
and felt the sweetness of Torah,
they would go crazy and chase
after it excitedly and a world full
of silver and gold would not be
considered to be worth anything,
for the Torah incorporates all the
goodness of the world.
There is just one way to
deal with the influences and
competing pleasures and that
is to get students to feel the

sweetness of Torah.
How should this be done?
First, every mechanech must
have a regular shiur in Chassidus.
Chassidus teaches us how to
transform Torah into something
exciting and joyous and how to
relate to Torah, not as a rulebook
or manual but as something that
touches a person in the deep
recesses of the soul.
The Rebbe Rashab said, A
Chassid creates an environment.
In order to preserve the pure
chinuch in our times, when
the environment is negative,
we need to create an opposing
environment. Of course, this
effort requires the teacher to
invest a lot in the spirit of the
classroom and to use many
experiential means to attract the
children. Also important is that
the aesthetics of the building and
the class contribute to creating a
good environment.
A teacher who prepares a
lesson properly and takes his
students abilities into account
will succeed in creating an
atmosphere of satisfaction with
the learning.
A small personal example:
Once a week, I devote half
an hour to each class for a
conversation that includes a story
and a Chassidic saying. The
students are invited to say what
they learn from the story and
most of the time, the number of
lessons and messages learned are
equal to the number of students.
This demonstrates that each
child lives with the story from
his perspective in accordance
with his inner world and you
can sense the sweetness that the
children feel in the story.
The unbelievable thing is
what happens with the Chassidic
vort from the Rebbes teachings.
The children live with the vort all
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Chinuch
week and repeat it at the Shabbos
table. The Rebbes teachings
bind them to him with a deep
bond.
At the end of the school year
I asked one of the classes what
they gained from the weekly
discussion. One of the students
said that thanks to the weekly
aphorism he had what to tell
people on the bus in order to
fulfill, when you go on the way.
Perhaps this is what the Rebbe
see things objectively.

An
inflexible way of thinking blocks
a teachers creativity and then
there are discipline problems. An
unbending way of thinking leaves
a person behind, in the past, and
does not enable him to move
forward to the future.
R Lior Inbar, a Chassidic
coach
with
professional
training and much experience,
demonstrated one way, out
of many, at the convention of
If we invest our energy and thoughts into living

with the Rebbe all the time, with his sichos, his
holy visage, learning a letter of the Rebbe every day,
telling stories about the Rebbe at every opportunity,
doing mivtzaim, there is no doubt that this will influence
the hiskashrus of our children to the Rebbe.
Rashab meant when he said:
A Chassidic aphorism leads to
clarity of mind and cleanses the
heart.
To summarize: In order to
preserve pure chinuch we need
to bequeath to children the
sweetness of Torah and mitzvos.
As a veteran educator who
grew up in a more conservative
world, so unlike today, how do
you maintain a freshness in
your thinking without becoming
fixated on outmoded standards?
That is a very important
question which we dealt with
this year at the convention of
mechanchim. One of the main
problems in chinuch in general
and discipline in the classroom
and at home in particular comes
from a fixed way of thinking. If
you think about it you will see
that a rigidity of thought prevents
the teacher from understanding
the potential that lies within a
child. A rigid way of thinking
does not allow a person to
mechanchim, of how to get out

of a fixed way of thinking. He
shared movement exercises and
games which lead to discipline,
self-control and motivation to
succeed.
Perhaps this is another reason
that lies hidden in the depths of
the Rebbe Rashabs words, that
it is obligatory for everyone to
spend half an hour every day
thinking about the chinuch of
children, with the emphasis on
thought. Every day, thinking
anew, in order to derive lessons
from the past and create change
in ones thought modalities in
anticipation of the future.
THE YOUNG GENERATION

IS JUST AS CONNECTED
TO THE REBBE
Despite the differences of
opinion, the family of Chabad
Chassidim all see eye to eye
when it comes to chinuch for
hiskashrus to the Rebbe, as
being of paramount importance.

How do we successfully instill
this in children after so many
years of concealment?
It seems to me that the weight
that we give this question is
misplaced. If we just glance at
youngsters today, their belief in
the Rebbe is simply astonishing
and it is expressed in everything,
from mivtzaim, Chabad customs,
in learning the sichos and
maamarim and carrying out
horaos. Above all else is the goal
of going on shlichus which is very
popular among young people.
One small example would be the
reciting of Thillim on Shabbos
Mevarchim.
The number of
children and bachurim who get
up early and go to shul in order
to finish Thillim before davening
is huge.
The Rebbe, in his great
goodness and kindness, is
connected to each of his
Chassidim with chains, as the
Rebbe writes in his letter at
the beginning of his nesius,
Whoever became a Chassid at
some point and whoever became
connected to the Rebbe, which
automatically, as water reflects a
face, caused the Rebbe to become
connected to him, does not have
the ability to sever, G-d forbid,
this connection, since it also
depends on the Rebbe and he,
in his goodness and kindness, is
bound up with him in chains.
Therefore, instead of asking
how we can instill hiskashrus
to the Rebbe in our children,
we need to ask how to intensify
the deep-rooted hiskashrus they
have as a result of emuna in the
Rebbe. This is just like asking
how we can instill in ourselves
hiskashrus to Moshe Rabbeinu
after thousands of years of
concealment. The Torah testifies,
And they believed in Hashem
and in Moshe His servant, and

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that exists down to this day.

If we invest our energy and
thoughts into living with the
Rebbe all the time, with his
sichos, his holy visage, learning
a letter of the Rebbe every day,
telling stories about the Rebbe
at every opportunity, doing
mivtzaim, there is no doubt that
this will influence the hiskashrus
of our children to the Rebbe.
Whats needed is conducting
ourselves as Chassidim in actual
practice, to live with it 24 hours
a day, 365 days a year, and to get
them used to always asking what
would the Rebbe want us to do in
this situation.
What are your thoughts
about including secular studies
in the curriculum what is the
Rebbes view?
The Rebbes view is clear,
that we need to try as much
as possible to learn al taharas
hakodesh with limudei kodesh
only.
This is publicized in
Shaarei Halacha UMinhag and
in the Igros Kodesh and personal
responses.
In cases where kiruv is
involved and parents will not
give up secular studies like in
the Reshet schools, there are
instructions from the Rebbe
about having the limudei kodesh
first and using all the vacation
days to learn kodesh only, etc.
The world of chinuch is
experiencing a sea change in
every community.
Do you
see any signs of the Rebbes
approaches to chinuch finding
their way to the public at large?
First, the Rebbe repeats
how we see that with firmness
presented
pleasantly
we
accomplish more; chinuch is not
about punishments.
The Rebbes approach is
also about not giving up on any
child, that every Jewish child has
a chance, and not just a small
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Chinuch
Instead of asking how we can instill hiskashrus to

the Rebbe in our children, we need to ask how to
intensify the deep-rooted hiskashrus they already have
as a result of emuna in the Rebbe.
chance but a big chance, because
he is a Jew. This special principle
has conquered our generation
by storm. The Rebbe began this
revolution as soon as he became
Nasi when he addressed all the
Jewish people, not differentiating
between children of kibbutzim
who were estranged from any
religiosity to the children of
chadarim.
There were many gdolei
Yisroel who opposed this (at the
time) for this approach was new
to them. The Rebbe removed the
barrier separating and dividing
between children from various
backgrounds.
This approach was adopted by
all segments of the Jewish people
and is pretty much universally
accepted in all schools and
among all the kiruv movements
that arose over the years. The
guiding light of all the activities
is that every Jew needs to be
approached and given the feeling
that he is very dear to Hashem.
This idea was conceived and born
in the Rebbes beis medrash.
DEALING WITH THE

BURNOUT ISSUE
In every system that wants
to maintain perfection and/
or high standards, they do not
allow people to stay for more
than four or eight years (like a
military commander or the US
president). Maybe the same
thing should be done in chinuch
with mechanchim leaving after
a certain amount of time in
order to prevent the staff from
working when they have become
burned out.
As far as I know, the Rebbe
did not hold of stopping or firing
those with jobs in positions
of kodesh because of age or
fatigue. If you see your position
as a shlichus, you do not tire.
Chazal say that as Torah scholars
age their minds become more
settled. That is not to say that
if someone, G-d forbid, doesnt
treat his job properly, especially
in chinuch, that you can ignore it.
There are halachos in Shulchan
Aruch about how a teacher must
behave.
There are those in chinuch
positions who got there because
there is no need for a degree
or experience as is the case in
other fields. Is this a problem?
Should a teacher have to show
his certificate or is a talent for
chinuch enough?
In a long letter to Dr.
Goldschmidt, who was the
director of the branch of religious
education at the Education
Ministry, the Rebbe writes not
to forgo minimum requirements
of teachers, and that the teachers
need to constantly improve
and undergo more training. At
the same time, the Rebbe says
that what is important is for
the teacher to have a strong
worldview with devotion and
dedication to all that is holy
to our nation, and this finds
expression in his own way of life,
for then he will be able to instill
the power to stand strong in his
students too, without their being
confused by the changes on the
street and sometimes at home.
The Rebbe wrote this over
fifty years ago and it applies all

the more today.
There is no question that
someone who does not have a
talent for chinuch should not
take on this responsibility which
affects generations. And neither
is talent for chinuch alone
enough. Whoever is in chinuch
needs to constantly work on
improving himself.
The Rebbe has a wealth of
teachings about chinuch. Can
you give us one idea of the
Rebbes that we, as parents,
can implement today with our
children?
The
Rebbe
taught
us
something fundamental to
constantly think, What do I
need to do in order to get this
child to want to go in the ways
we are directing him?
The emphasis is on I.
What do I need to do. This
is in contrast to the improper
standard formulation in which
we constantly ask, What
should be done to a child who
does not behave properly, or
What should be done so that
a child behaves properly?
With questions like these we
are reacting, unintentionally, in
an impulsive manner driven by
personal interests. In most cases,
this wounds the soul of the child.
With the Rebbes approach
we will quickly come to know the
childs inner world and be able to
influence him in a gentle way with
a lot of love and encouragement.
This approach has proven to get
a child to want to go in the way
we are directing him.
We see countless examples
of how the Rebbe would point
things out to adults, and this
stood out with children, getting
them to arrive at positive
conclusions,
willingly
and
happily. Like the Kohen who
was about to marry a divorcee

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(against halacha) and the Rebbe

said to him, I envy you for the
test Hashem presented to you,
a line which turned the mans
world upside down, as the Rebbe
did not chastise but spoke about
himself on a personal level. Or
the example of the two girls who
stood on two sides of a street and
the Rebbe said to one of them
to greet the other with Good
Shabbos (as the Rebbe did
not want to walk between two
women, but did not want the girl
to feel put out) and numerous
other similar examples which we
saw at dollars and in daily life.
They will say it is hard, and
thats true, but it is much harder
to combat the child and end up
with failed results.
The Rebbes response to a report R Naftali Roth submitted about the success of the
Yeshivas Erev in Yerushalayim and distributing sifrei Chassidus
THE MECHANECH WHO

BEGAN TEACHING AT AGE
THREE
R Roth is known as an
outstanding emcee. For decades
now, he has been emceeing
Chabad events of all kinds and
in many locations, starting
with small events in elementary
schools and culminating in
national Chabad events. With
great confidence he stands facing
thousands of people and skillfully
conducts the program.
His first speech was
delivered when he was a young
child of three, as he faced the
empty chairs which he had lined
up outside. He put on a tallis
which was a tablecloth and he
began to declaim to his vast
audience.
I was copying the sermons I
had seen and heard in shul. I was
drawn to addressing a crowd, he
recalls with a smile.
Hundreds
of
thousands
of people have enjoyed his
officiating at events and he is
certainly a model for hundreds of
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Chinuch
Chassidim who will lead events in
the future.
When he grew older, he
became active in the Yeshivos
Erev organization. As part of
its activities, many events for
parents were arranged which
included contests and quiz games
for the youth.
I took on the responsibility of
emceeing and I remember always
looking for ways of stimulating
the audience.
A few years later, at the
beginning of the 70s, when he
was a young man, R Aharon Dov
Halperin, editor of Kfar Chabad,
asked him, You have a powerful
voice and you speak articulately.
Can you emcee the big Yud-Tes
Kislev event?
R Roth remembers that event.
It was a huge event that took
place in Yerushalayim for those
who attended Mizrachi yeshivos.
I got very emotional when I
went up to the stage, but boruch
Hashem it was very successful.
Since then, its all history, as they
say.
When did your educational
activities begin, and how, and
what has been the course of
your career over the years?
You would be surprised to
hear that I began my educational
activities at the age of threefour. My mother always said

that I would put chairs in a row
and lecture at them. Sometimes
I did this outside with rows of
stones and I would say Thillim
with them and teach them to say
thank you for everything, and
to say hello, etc.
From a young age I organized
the Yeshivos Erev and I received
encouragement and guidance
from the Rebbe. These letters
are now published in the Igros
Kodesh. I was a mechanech in
the Chabad school in Ganim by
my teacher, R Aharon Mordechai
Zilberstrom, and when the
Chabad school in Kiryat Yovel
opened, I was appointed the
menahel as the Rebbe instructed.
When the population in that
neighborhood aged and the
school closed, I went to work
as an educational supervisor in
Toras Emes.
As I said in the beginning
of this interview, in 5748 we
founded the Merkaz Chinuchi
Chassiduti of Tzach, and that was
when we really began developing
a broad range of educational
initiatives in the schools and
yeshivas. Many will remember
the Torah contests we held in
yeshivos, the Chidon Taryag
Mitzvos, and various educational

contests throughout the years.
I understand that today
too you are still involved in
chinuch.
Yes. I am director of Tzeirei
Chabad in Yerushalayim and
I am still active in the Merkaz
Chinuchi Chassiduti providing
educational guidance to the
public, direction for teachers,
and dealing with bachurim who
dont find a suitable yeshiva.
In the past five years I
have been happy to return to
the classroom and I am the
educational director of Seminar
Chaya Mushka and give shiurim
to girls of Ohr Chaya. I am also
mashpia in the Yiddish speaking
Oholei Menachem Chabad in
Beitar Ilit by my talmid who is the
principal, R M. M. Cohen.
So yes, now too, after dozens
of years of teaching, guidance
and chinuch, I enjoy every minute
of being with talmidim and
contributing from my experience
to raise Chassidishe talmidim.
We wish you that you,
along with your thousands of
talmidim and mushpaim, go
together to greet Moshiach
Tzidkeinu, bkarov mamosh.
Amen vamen.

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BITACHON BYTES
AVRAHAMS UNIVERSAL MESSAGE:
BITACHON
IS NOT BINARY
By Rabbi Zalman Goldberg
ollowing the pact made

with Avimelech, the Torah
relates
that
Avraham
Avinu planted an Eshel,
and he proclaimed in the name
of Hashem, kel olam - , -
G-d of the universe. Expounding
on this verse, Chassidus explains
that the objective of Avraham
Avinu proclaiming kel olam was
not just to educate humanity that
Hashem is the king of the world,
(without which people may think
that Hashem doesnt exist ;)his
intention was also to impress upon
his audience that Hashem is one
with the world1.
In other words, even those
who believed that Hashem is in
charge of the world may still have
thought that He is separate from
it, as in kel Ha-olam. The
signifies that there is a separation
between the kel and the olam.
When the same statement is
made without a Hey, just kel
olam, it shows that regarding
Hashems rule over the world He
is one with it and not separate.
The significance of this will
be better understood by studying
the explanation of the Alter
Rebbe in Likkutei Torah2. The
statement that Hashem is one
with the world can be understood
in two ways: 1. that we are part
of Hashems reality, and 2. that
Only when one

truly believes
and feels that kel
olam, that the world
is no more than a part
of G-dliness, will his
Bitachon be real and
effective.
Hashem is part of our reality. The

latter understanding is heretical,
as it would anthropomorphize
Hashem chv. Of course Hashem
is omnipresent, but chv to
interpret that to mean that
Hashem is a corporal being.
The true meaning of kel olam,
says the Alter Rebbe, is that the
world is but a ray of Hashem3, so
to speak. Hashem is the source of
all realms and this world is only
an emanation from the source.
When we view this world as a
glimmer emanating from its
source which is Hashem, we give
a spiritual touch to the existence
of this world. For it is not just a
physical world as we see it; the
true reality is that the world is
a ray of G-dliness that became
material through tzimtzumim. All
this needs to be internalized, and
not just understood intellectually
and abstractly4.
This was the message that
Avraham Avinu was imparting
to his guests5. When bentching
Hashem we have to know that 1.
Hashem is in charge of the world
and He gives us everything we
have, and 2. that this Hashem
is one with the world in the
sense that the world is part of
Hashems reality.
The Bitachon message is that
a person can decide to rely on
Hashem because He is the master
of the world. But depending on
how he views Hashem will greatly
impact his Bitachon. If one hasnt
internalized that Hashem is one
with the world, there will be a
figurative gap in his Bitachon,
in which case the Bitachon is
incomplete. Only when one
truly believes and feels that kel
olam, that the world is no more
than a part of G-dliness, will his
Bitachon be real and effective.
Rabbi Zalman Goldberg is a well
sought after speaker and lecturer on
Chassidic thought. His writings and
recordings on the topic of Bitachon can be
accessed at http://www.gotbitachon.com.
.47 ''' '
. ,''
. ' ''
. '
. ,769 ' '' ''
)1
)2
)3
)4
)5
Issue 984
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STORY
MAROONED
ON A FARAWAY
ISLAND
The story of two sisters, young girls who took a
flight from Eretz Yisroel and instead of arriving
at the Rebbe for Rosh HaShana, landed in
Newfoundland, Canada. * A first person story
told in two installments about shlichus on the
way to the Rebbe.* Part 2.
By Nechami Genuth
CHASSIDIM EIN MISHPACHA

When I woke up in the
morning it took me a few
moments to figure out where I
was. I was in S. Johns, a small,
isolated city on a large island
called Newfoundland.
I sat on the mattress looking
for negel vasser, which is always
at my bedside in the morning,
but there was none, because we
hadnt found a suitable cup and
bowl. We left the small room with
a cup we had gotten on the plane
and looked for a faucet so we
could wash our hands and face.
We did not have to look hard;
just a short walk in the hall and
we found a bathroom.
Back in the hallway, we
approached the stairs which were
open like in a big mall, allowing
us to see what was happening on
the floor below. The place which
just last night was so quiet was
now bustling with people.
We felt we had been saved.
The thought that we could have
been down there with everyone
else made me shudder. I looked
at my sister and we both were
thinking the same thing, that
Hashem had sent us R Garelik
like an angel from heaven.
Do you think we would have
managed on our own with our
English?
English
I
could
have
managed, but even if they spoke
Hebrew here, if they would have
asked me last night where would
you like to sleep, after thirty
hours without sleep, I would have
definitely answered that I dont
care, they should decide.
We went back toward our
room and near the door we met
R Garelik. We told him we were
returning after washing our
hands and he surprised us and
said with a smile that he found a
creative solution to this problem.
In the hallway he had found a
plant in some kind of bowl and
he had taken the bowl and had
prepared negel vasser for himself.

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R Garelik, without words, gave

us the strong feeling that we
were not there alone. He treated
us like an older brother would
and we understood the meaning
of Chassidim are one family.
We went back to our little room,
closed the door, and appreciated
our privacy.
We davened Shacharis with
concentration and a sense of
shlichus. Who knows when, if
at all, since the creation of the
world, there were Jews who
davened here before us? Were
there ever Jews here at all? We
did not know.
There was a knock at the
door. The frum people in the
next room had brought us kosher
food. It wasnt much; it included
a big bag of potato chips, so big
it was almost the size of a pillow,
soy franks that did not need
refrigeration, and some granola
bars. There was also something
dairy, but since it was not Chalav
Yisroel we skipped it. Despite
this, I was surprised. I hadnt
thought that on this forsaken
island there was a chance of
finding products with a hechsher
and maybe we had been mistaken

about being the first Jews here.
We decided to look around.
We left our room and realized
that the building had been
previously used as a school. But
now, in nearly every classroom
there were exercise mats. In what
was formerly the teachers room,
dozens of telephones had been
installed, one of which we used to
call home for free. We had slept
in a side room which was used
as the music wing of the school.
This wasnt the first time in my
life that I had slept in a school,
but the previous times I had slept
in Chabad schools in various
places in Eretz Yisroel with my
classmates around me. This time,
I was with thousands of non-Jews
from all over the world.
We went downstairs and in
a large room were tables with
plenty of free food. We knew that
some of the food was definitely
treif and some was questionable,
so of course we did not touch it.
In another area were items like
cosmetics and things to occupy
children (there were hardly any),
all gifts from the locals, and since
our suitcases remained on the

plane, the locals gave out free
shirts. It was a strange sight to
see so many different kinds of
people all wearing the same shirt.
There were also some people,
mainly from Africa, for whom a
shirt wasnt warm enough and
since they did not have coats,
they went around wrapped in the
blankets they had received the
night before.
Everything around us looked
so strange. Now and then I
pinched myself to see whether
this was all happening or perhaps
I had dozed off on the flight and
soon I would wake up and realize
it was all a dream. Everything
we saw was so removed from
our lives. Only the small Chitas
we held reminded us of our
natural habitat and we felt
especially connected to it. When
we learned that days Chitas we
were surprised to see the verse,
if your outcasts are at the ends
of the heavens, from there He
will gather you and from there
He will take you and Hashem
will bring you to the land. We
felt that in this particular place,
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Story
we were able to live with the
parsha of the week in the fullest
sense.
We saw R Garelik now and
then. He went on mivtza tfillin
and he mainly found frum people
who were thrilled with the tfillin.
It was an unusual mivtza tfillin
but thanks to him, a frum group
came together which included
five or six Chassidim. We did
not see a single frum woman.
We looked for the Israelis that
we met on the plane but couldnt
find them and did not know
where they had gone.
together to New York. We are

leaving in another hour. We will
cross the border between Canada
and the US and by Friday we
will be at the Rebbe. He said
this as though it was a one or
two hour trip from Tel Aviv to
Yerushalayim. I thought I wasnt
hearing correctly, a two day trip
by car? With so little warning?
Then, when we felt that
maybe we were emotionally
prepared enough, we met R
Garelik again. He told us that the
plan had fallen through because
the United States had also closed
For kiddush, he made grape juice from grapes

that he squeezed by hand. We did not ask about
the rest of the menu.
TRAVELING BY CAR?
The idea that Moshiach is
coming now was more tangible
to me than ever with the collapse
of the Twin Towers, surely part
of the prophecy of the fall of
the West, and it occurred the
final week of a Shmita year and
it says, Ben Dovid [Moshiach]
comes Motzaei Shviis. We were
sure this was the last week of
galus and the first week of Geula.
How would we get out of here?
Would we fly on clouds back to
Eretz Yisroel? Or would we fly
via the USA on a plane? How
much longer would we be here?
An hour, two hours, a day, two
days, or more? Nobody knew.
Then we met R Garelik who
had a surprising suggestion.
This was a Wednesday and it
was close to twelve noon and
he said firmly, Get ready. A
group is getting ready to travel
off its land borders. So there we

were, still in the same place, no
flights out, no car, and clouds of
heaven were the only option.
THE CONSERVATIVE
TEMPLE
We did not know what to
expect here and we kept asking
ourselves, Whats the point
of this? Why had G-d sent us
here? My sister did not stop
murmuring Tanya by heart,
especially the end of chapter 33
which explains the advantage
of Torah study and tfilla in the
lands of the nations.
If there are no Jews here, at
least let us refine the place, she
said.
Then we met an Israeli girl
who said she was living here for
two years. She was sent by the
Jewish Agency in Eretz Yisroel.
She said that she was a teacher
and taught Judaism.

How many Jewish students
are there? I asked curiously.
In this school there isnt even
one Jewish student, she said,
surprising us.
Then
who
are
you
teaching Judaism to? I did not
understand.
The non-Jews, said she, as
though that was obvious.
She told us that there was
a tiny Jewish community of
twenty-five people and they had
a Conservative temple, which
was a half an hours walk from
where we were. R Garelik was
listening to what she said and
the information about the local
temple interested him. He went
back to his religious friends,
banged on the counter, and
announced, If we have to be
here for Rosh HaShana, we will
take over the temple and turn it
into an Orthodox shul!
He said that with such
Chassidic fervor and contagious
determination. Rosh HaShana
would be in five days and you
can imagine that nobody wanted
to celebrate this major holiday in
this place. R Garelik seemed to
be the only one for whom being
here was more of a challenge
than anything else. I did not
understand how he planned on
making such a dramatic change
in such a short time, but he
managed to get the new religious
community he had formed to
follow him. In the evening, he
invited us to join him on a visit at
the local temple.
The Conservative temple was
something I knew about only
from books and I pictured it as
something bizarre. But when I
actually walked in, I changed
my mind. The place definitely

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reminded me of a shul. There was

an Aron Kodesh, Chumashim,
and Siddurim, and we even found
a Siddur in Nusach Ari. What
was missing was a mechitza.
The people welcomed us
warmly and we spoke a bit to
the ladies. We got the impression
that they were happy to meet
representatives
from
Eretz
Yisroel among the many guests
who were on the island. They
were very generous and some of
them even offered that we sleep
in their homes, including an
Israeli woman who was married
to a local non-Jew in her second
marriage.
After a while, R Garelik
offered to blow the shofar and
they were willing. He took the
opportunity and gave a half hour
lecture too. We were unaware
at that time that R Garelik is a
well-known lecturer, but we saw
that the audience really enjoyed
it. The message was Jewish,
light and humorous, with the

main goal being to get them to
appreciate him so that the next
time he showed up they would
ask him to speak. Slowly, he
would gain their trust so that he
could make a drastic change on
Rosh HaShana.
Maariv began and the
religious Jews went to a side
room while we remained in
the hall. When davening was
finished, we went back to the
school where we slept. We tried
to imagine how we would be able
to keep Shabbos there without
wine, challa, and not being able
to cook. And where would we
light candles on the piano?
And would we arrange a table
on the floor of our room? Or
in front of thousands of nonJews? It seemed altogether
unrealistic. I wanted to ask R
Garelik whether we could look
for a Chabad House less than
thirty hours away, but I was
reticent since we did not have the
means to contribute toward the

expenses of a trip. On the other
hand, he had my full trust. If he
thought it was possible, then he
must have a solution. We went
to sleep early, with the thought
that the upcoming Shabbos and
maybe even Rosh HaShana that
followed it, would be spent by us
in the strangest way we would
imagine.
KNOCKING IN THE MIDDLE

OF THE NIGHT
At three in the morning we
heard knocking at the door. We
opened it and there was a local
Canadian girl who told us to go
downstairs because our plane
was returning to Belgium.
People slowly gathered in
order to board a bus for the
airport. I had no idea what we
would do in Belgium; every place
beyond our small country seemed
hard to deal with. We expected R
Garelik to join us but he said he
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Story
was staying. I must try and get
home as soon as possible, but I
think you should go to Belgium.
He took a small paper out of his
pocket and wrote the names of
two shluchim in Belgium on it,
one was R Chaikin and the other
one I dont remember. He said
that when we got there we should
look up their names in the phone
book.
We said goodbye. This seemed
too hard for me. Who was I going
to ask for a phonebook and how
would I manage in Belgium, but
we relied on Hashem to help us.
We boarded the bus and after a
short ride we were at the airport.
The airport did not look like
a terminal at all. It was a onestory building that reminded me
of our local medical clinic. We
waited there from the morning
until the afternoon. Fortunately,
the time passed quickly. Most
of the Israelis were there, the
ones we knew from the flight.
The black athletes and most of
the gentile passengers preferred
to remain near the US, so the
atmosphere was Israeli. We
got a little bit of an explanation
about the place and mainly, it
created an opportunity for a sort
of mivtzaim that could be done
there in particular.
S. Johns is the city farthest
east in North America. The size
of Newfoundland is five times
that of Eretz Yisroel, but 99%
of it is not settled. It is hundreds
of kilometers away from other
settled places. This island is
one of a chain of islands in the
Canadian North Sea and from
there you can travel to the rest of
Canada by car, via bridges and
highways.
The airport was built for
military purposes in World
War II, but serves the locals

now, and sometimes is used
in an emergency. The city has
a hotel which was only able to
accommodate a small number
out of the huge numbers of
people who had landed there
and it was decided to give it to
the pilots. All the other travelers
had to go to the local university,
the high school and other public
buildings. The locals took care
of food and bedding. The Israeli
contingent was somewhere else.
They went touring together
and went shopping and most
of them refrained only from the
meat. They were impressed that
we had stayed away from all
food that we did not know for
sure was kosher. They asked us
questions like what we would do
if the plane would be going back
on Shabbos. Would we go? We
explained to them the concept of
pikuach nefesh (danger to life)
and they were amazed that it was
so clear to us that we would not
fly on Shabbos even if that meant
we had to remain in this far-out
place.
GOING BACK
After six hours of waiting we
boarded the plane at noon. The
plane left North America where it
was daylight and after two hours
of flying, it was nighttime. The
plane was half empty and most
passengers slept on several seats
including the stewards. (Since
they could not load the plane
with food before the flight, the
flight was quiet and the stewards
also slept.)
We arrived in Belgium late
Thursday night and were given
food in the airport. Of course we
chose kosher meals. My sister
pointed out that our position on
kashrus had gotten other Jews

to choose kosher meals too.
After the food was distributed,
we parted from the other gentile
passengers and only the Israelis
remained. We stood on a long
line and I have no idea how we
managed to be first.
We were asked, by officials,
whether we wanted to remain
in Belgium or return to Eretz
Yisroel. They explained that we
have the option of leaving early
Friday morning for Switzerland
and from there to Israel and
we would arrive there in the
afternoon. When the US was
open to foreign travelers again,
we could fly there at no charge.
We agreed.
I naively thought that most
Israelis would do the same as us,
but I was wrong. Most of them
decided to remain in Belgium and
only five other people decided to
return to Eretz Yisroel. In the
meantime, until the next flight,
they put us up in a hotel. We
traveled by mini bus together
with the other Israelis. I was still
holding the paper that R Garelik
gave me. I did not want to throw
it out as long as I was in Belgium.
Then Chani, one of the
passengers, asked me where I
planned on being for Shabbos.
Chanis parents were divorced
and her father, a Chabad
Chassid, lived in New York. She
was raised in Eretz Yisroel by her
mother who was not religiously
observant. In the period before
the trip, she had started attending
classes on Kabbala and had met
someone she wanted to marry
who wore a kippa. She still wore
pants but had started keeping
Shabbos and wanted to do it
right.
I realized that the paper R

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Garelik had given me would

come in handy and I gave it
to her and explained what she
should do. She had to find a
phonebook and be the guest of
one of these people. Who knows,
maybe thanks to that Shabbos,
we gained another Chabad
family? In any case, for us, a
Shabbos with the shluchim in
Belgium might be an option some
other time.
A minute before we entered
the hotel, one of the passengers
made a request: Try not to
cause any embarrassment for
Israelis. To us, it was a double
responsibility - that they shouldnt
say that religious people caused
any embarrassments.
We entered a magnificent
hotel. We showered, changed
our clothes, and rested a little.
At five in the morning we headed
back to the airport. We left in
two taxis, one with a religious
family and the other with my
sister, myself and another Israeli.
He was married, close to thirty.
When it came to the luggage, he
acted like a man, but all the way
he cried like a baby, That was a
nightmare. Why did this happen
to me?
We
appreciated
our
Chassidishe chinuch thanks to
which we always looked for the
shlichus angle and did not focus
on the hardship. A minute before
we parted I said to him, half
seriously and half-jokingly, I
wish I could speak to G-d and
ask Him what exactly I lost there
that I had to go retrieve.
He asked me with the
innocence of a child, Can we
speak to G-d?
I told him that it is possible to
pray and we see the answer from
Hashem in how things work out.
Who knows, maybe from then on

he started praying...
EVERYONE WRITES TO THE

KING!
We arrived in Eretz Yisroel
two hours before Shabbos and
contrary to all our expectations,
we spent Shabbos and Rosh
HaShana not in America, not on
an island, and not in Belgium,
but in the most familiar place to
us in the world, at home. We then
flew back to the Rebbe on Tzom
Gedalya.
When we arrived, we met R
Garelik who told us that he had
spent Shabbos on the island
together with some other frum
people that he found there.
Before Shabbos, he checked
all the bakeries in the place and
determined that there was no way
to obtain kosher bread. So they
divided a box of matzos that he
always takes with him when he
travels. For kiddush, he made
grape juice from grapes that he
squeezed by hand. We did not
ask about the rest of the menu.
He told us that on Sunday, air
space over the United States
was opened again but some of
the passengers no longer had a
reason to go there. For example,
some had missed a family
wedding. Others were unsure
whether to go to the US or return
to where they had come from.
Although they each belonged to a
different Chassidic group, they all
wrote to the Rebbe and based on
the answer they opened to, they
knew where to go. In the end, he
boarded a plane and paid $1200
for a one hour flight.
NOT THE END
finished but when we wanted

to return to Eretz Yisroel and
went to the airport, they told us
that there was only a flight to
Belgium because the flight back
to Eretz Yisroel already took
off. They spoke about $900
extra dollars and I realized that
for that price it might be worth
remaining until the following
Tishrei. I began saying a chapter
of Thillim by heart. Then we
discovered Shir, one of the Israeli
passengers with whom we had
become friendly. She ran over
to us and asked whether we had
a Tfillas HaDerech, which of
course we had. She resolved our
problem within a few minutes.
She went over to the right
official and they printed for us
another ticket on the spot. After
we boarded, we said the Tfillas
HaDerech together with great
concentration.
A week later there was a
farbrengen in our seminary for
those returning from the Rebbe
and they had me tell this story.
When I was done, Mrs. Sarah
Greenberg (former principal)
told me that we had conducted
ourselves properly but the next
time we should not rely on
miracles and should travel with
an organized Chabad group.
Why Hashem chose us to
land in Newfoundland, I dont
know. What I learned from it
was that if you truly want to, you
can keep the Torah anywhere.
I wish for all the Jewish people
that the next time we read in
the Torah, your outcasts at the
ends of the earth, that we merit
to see all the outcasts, physically
and spiritually, at the third Beis
HaMikdash in Yerushalayim,
together with the Rebbe.
We thought the story was
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COMPILATION
HE IS A
BORN REBBE!
From the Rebbe Rayatzs sichos from the night
of Shabbos Parshas VaYeira, Chaf Cheshvan
5706, in which he tells new details about the
birth and childhood of the Rebbe Rashab.
Presented by R Boruch Sholom Cohen
YOU WILL HAVE A

HEALTHY CHILD!
When
my
grandmother
Rebbetzin Rivka (wife of the
Rebbe Maharash) was pregnant
with my father (the Rebbe
Rashab, in 5620), she was very
weak because she had given birth
two years earlier to Raza (in
5618) and the year before that
she gave birth to R Avrohom
Sender (who passed away when
he was eight years old).
Her husband, the Rebbe
Maharash, went to his father, the
Tzemach Tzedek, and told him
about his wifes weakness. The
Tzemach Tzedek said she should
come to him.
When she came in the
Tzemach Tzedek said to her,
Mazal tov! It will be a healthy
child! And the Tzemach Tzedek
told her how to conduct herself
during the pregnancy and told
her to conceal her pregnancy as
much as possible.
The practice was to hide the
fact of the pregnancy in the early
months until it was obvious, to

the extent that women would
go to the mikva so that nobody
would know.
Then the Tzemach Tzedek
told his son, It will be a boy, but
dont tell anyone.
NOACH IS NOT THE TIME

Rebbetzin
Rivka
began
feeling labor pains on Parshas
Noach 5621. Her mother-in-law,
Rebbetzin Mussia, went to the
Tzemach Tzedek and told him.
He said, Noach is not the time
for this; its only an illusion!
I REVIVED MYSELF!
On Shabbos, Parshas Lech
Lecha, the Tzemach Tzedek said
a maamer in which he spoke
about the difference between
Avrohom and Yitzchok, that
Avrohoms avoda was to arouse
from below in order to draw
down the divine light, while
through Yitzchoks avoda there
was the actual drawing down of
that light in the worlds.
Afterward,
the
Tzemach
Tzedek said (about the birth): I
revived myself! Better Avrohom
(apparently he meant, if the baby
was born the week of Avrohom,
i.e. Parshas Lech Lecha) but this
is also good. He will be a healthy
child but the bris wont be on
time.
One of the people there asked
the Rebbe Rayatz: Was the Rebbe
Rashab born on Shabbos?
The Rebbe answered: No, he
was born in the middle of the
week.
A REBBE FROM BIRTH!

My father, after he was born,
did not cry a lot and he would
smile. When he saw light he
would laugh and smile.
Rebbetzin Rivka told this
to her husband, the Rebbe
Maharash, and said: He is a born
Chassid, with bittul.
The Rebbe Maharash told
his father what his wife said and
the Tzemach Tzedek said: She
is making a mistake. He is not a

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The Rebbe Rashab once said

about him: Angels are envious of
his prayers. Supernal sfiros do
not have that kind of light, the
kind made by his prayers when
they go aloft.
ATTAINING THE TRUTH

One
time,
R
Yaakov
Mordechai of Poltava asked my
father how to attain truth in
tfilla.
My father answered him in
surprise: How could you not
attain truth in tfilla?! When
you daven properly you attain
the truth. If you dont attain the
truth, that is an indication that
you are not davening properly.
HIS BROKENNESS WAS

HIDDEN
My father was a broken
man. He was broken within,
but this was not apparent
externally. He did not want
his brokenheartedness to be
apparent.
IN SEARCH OF PLEASURE
born Chassid but a born Rebbe!
ITS NOT A SMALL THING

When my father was three or
four, he once asked his sister,
Devorah Leah, what bracha he
should say on a certain food and
she told him.
When he found out that it was
a mistake (and another bracha
was supposed to be said), he
began to cry and said he would
ask his father for a tikkun.
Devorah Leah laughed and said:
Its a small thing, but my father
said to her: It is already no small
thing.
AVODA IS THE MAIN THING

My father did not hold of
learning a lot of Chassidus;
rather, a little bit but permeated
with avoda, i.e. worked through
and to daven with it.
When it drips from above,
that drop is worth more than a
bucketful from below.
THE ANGELS ARE ENVIOUS

In the city of Mikhlino there
was a man who spent a long time
on his davening every day, even
on Sundays and Wednesdays
which were market days.
My father would demand

of himself for having a
geshmak (sublime pleasure)
in understanding and grasp but
not having (so much) geshmak
in gefeel (having a feel for
something).
My father cherished the
teachings of Chassidus and loved
Chassidim.
YOU NEED TO KNOW

WHERE YOURE HOLDING
It used to be that Chassidim
knew where they were holding
(in their avoda) and where they
need to be holding. They knew
from which train station they
traveled and which train station
they were going to.
Issue 993
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Compilation
THE BIRTH ORDER OF THE CHILDREN OF THE REBBE MAHARASH

In the history of our Rebbeim, printed to date, we are not told the year
of birth of R Avrohom Sender, and even the birth order of the Rebbe
Maharashs children are written in two different ways. One way: 1) R Shneur
Zalman Aharon (Raza), 2) the Rebbe Rashab, 3) R Avrohom Sender, 4) R
Menachem Mendel. Another way has R Avrohom Sender listed first.
In a sicha of the Rebbe Rayatz, he tells how the Rebbe Rashab called
R Avrohom Sender, my older brother. It also says in that sicha that R
Avrohom Sender died at the age of eight, in the lifetime of the Tzemach
Tzedek, so that he had to be born before the Rebbe Rashab, as the Tzemach
Tzedek passed away in 1866 when the Rebbe Rashab was five-and-a-half.
However, in this sicha it refers to R Avrohom Sender being born one
year before the Raza, which would make him the firstborn son of the Rebbe
Maharash.
THE REBBE RASHAB AND

POLISH ADMORIM
Ramash (our Rebbe) asked
the Rebbe Rayatz: Did the
Rebbe Rashab meet with Polish
Admurim and did he discuss
Chassidus and Kabbala with
them?
The Rebbe Rayatz replied:
My father met with them but did
not speak to them at length about
these matters.
THEY CALL HIM REBBE

The Rebbe Rayatz said: We
need to farbreng tomorrow (on
Shabbos, for Chaf Cheshvan, the
birthday of his father).
He added (about the need to
farbreng) [referring to himself
in the third person ed.]: They
call him Rebbe, and learn his
maamarei Chassidus. Is it not
shameful for him that they are
associated with him (and are
LIVE SHIURIM 0NLINE
called his Chassidim)? However,

when they farbreng, this (that
they are called his Chassidim)
will descend and come down into
action.
THROUGH
BROKENHEARTEDNESS
I once heard my father say
that you dont achieve anything
through being brokenhearted.
And I once heard my father say
that through brokenheartedness
you can achieve everything.
The Alter Rebbe demanded
(of his Chassidim) that the main
thing not be understanding as
much as feeling. And he said that
he succeeded with just one of
them.
The Rebbe Rayatz explained:
One can explain that what he
meant was that he only succeeded
in the one area of feeling (that his
Chassidim should have a feel for
G-dly matters) but to implement
that understanding not be
primary he did not succeed in.
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CHITAS
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SHIURIM IN LIKUTEI
SICHOS KODESH
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PARSHA THOUGHT
LAUGHING
OUR WAY TO
REDEMPTION
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg
SARAHS LAUGHTER
One of the enigmas of the
Torah is the way in which Sarah
received the news that she was
going to be a mother at the age
of 90. In this weeks parsha, the
Torah states, And Sarah laughed
at her insides, saying, After I
have withered shall I again have
clear skin? And my husband is
old!
The Torah then recounts how
G-d expressed his displeasure
with
Sarahs
laughter
to
Abraham, Why is it that Sarah
laughed saying, Is it even true
that I shall give birth, though I
have aged? Is anything beyond
G-d?! At this appointed time I
will return to you at this time
next year, there will be life, and
Sarah will have a son.
As it appears, from even a
cursory examination of the text,
Sarah was expressing doubts and
even mocking her ability to bear
a child. The question has been
raised, how could a woman as
righteous as Sarah express such
misgivings?
Moreover, Rashi informs us
that Sarah was an even greater
prophet than Abraham. A
prophet is one whose head is in
the heavens but whose feet are
on the ground. In other words,

a prophet is in touch with the
Divine and its message for us on
earth. How could Sarah so miss
or ignore G-ds message to her
that she would have a child?
SARAHS DEFENSE
AND ITS REFUTATION
A simple defense of her
laughter could be that she heard
the news from pagan-looking
wayfarers and not prophetically
from G-d. Why should she be
faulted for doubting the blessing
of a pagan?
This, however, does not seem
to be a valid defense for Sarah.
Her superior intuition (another
form of prophecy) should have
told her that there was something
to the pagans message. The
fact that these strange and
unexpected guests landed in
their home during the scorching
heat of the day, when no human
could possibly venture outside,
should have alerted her to take
their words seriously; they were
G-ds conduit to deliver a Divine
message.
Moreover, this occurred, as
Rashi states, just three days after
Abraham circumcised himself and
entered into an eternal covenant.
Shouldnt that have alerted her

to the reality that G-d was using
the guests to convey a special
message? Sarah, of all people,
should have seen through the veil
of appearances and recognized
that their blessing truly emanated
from G-d.
Now we are back to square
one. Considering her heightened
level of spiritual perception,
Sarah could be justly faulted for
her lack of seeing through the
veil. The question thus arises
anew, why did she laugh and
express doubt?
Another question: When
G-d reprimands her He asks
Is anything beyond G-d?
Rashi comments on the word
used for beyond-hayipalei
and translates it three ways:
Is there anything muflawondrous, muvdal-separated and
mechusah-covered? Why did
he offer these three translations?
And why didnt G-d just state is
it impossible for G-d?
When
discussing
truly
righteous people we have to
be cautious not to project our
own sense of weakness and
shortcoming onto them. Their
flaws are on a completely
different plane from our own.
This is especially true with regard
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Parsha Thought
to the Patriarchs and, arguably,
even more so with respect to the
Matriarchs, who were in total
sync with G-d.
NEVER DOUBTED
Keeping this introduction
in mind, one may suggest that
Sarah never truly doubted G-ds
ability to grant her a child at the
age of 90. On the contrary, Sarah
sought to magnify the miracle
and extol its extraordinary and
unparalleled nature to cause the
greater excitement she needed
to combat a nefarious syndrome
that seeks to desensitize us to
G-ds miracles.
therefore sought to emphasize

the sheer impossibility of her
becoming a mother. She was way
beyond the age of child-bearing,
and according to our Sages, she
didnt even possess a womb. In
addition, Abraham too was old
and past the natural age of siring
a child.
The more she reflected on the
sheer impossibility of her having
a child, the more impressive the
miracle would be for both the
cynics and herself. By focusing
on the impossibility of this
miracle she sought to enhance
her own excitement and utter
amazement over the miracle of
having a child.
When discussing truly righteous people we have

to be cautious not to project our own sense of
weakness and shortcoming onto them. Their flaws
are on a completely different plane from our own. This
is especially true with regard to the Patriarchs and,
arguably, even more so with respect to the Matriarchs,
who were in total sync with G-d.
To explain:
One of the tactics of the
insidious force of Amalek (the
nation that attacked the Jews
upon their departure from
Egypt and became a symbol of
the internal evil force that seeks
to destroy whatever warmth
we experience for matters
of holiness) is to diminish
our
excitement
when
we
witness a miracle. To the more
sophisticated souls Amaleks
reaction to the miracle is this:
Dont get so excited about the
miracle. After all, G-d could do
anything; whats the big deal?!
Sarah knew that if this miracle
occurred there would be all sorts
of cynics attempting to minimize
her ardor and enthusiasm. Sarah
There is a story told of the

famous 19th century Sage,
Rabbi Moshe Sofer (known
for his classic work, Chasam
Sofer), who made a loan to a
businessman who was on the
brink of bankruptcy. When the
man returned from his successful
business trip he returned the
money and also brought the
rabbi a beautiful watch as a gift
and token of his appreciation. In
front of his assembled students
the rabbi took the watch and
expressed his admiration for its
beauty and effusive praise for this
exquisite piece of jewelry. Then
he returned it to the astonished
businessman saying that he was
forbidden to take the watch since
it would constitute interest which
a Jew is forbidden to give or take.

Now it was the turn of the
students to be puzzled. If he
was forbidden to take it why did
he show such admiration for it
and relish holding and caressing
it when he had no intention of
keeping it?
The Chasam Sofer explained
that not charging interest on a
loan was a great Mitzvah that he
would rarely have an opportunity
to fulfill. He therefore wanted to
magnify the value and beauty of
this piece of jewelry to enhance
the joy of the Mitzvah.
Here too, we may posit,
Sarahs incredulity was not
doubt,
G-d
forbid.
On
the contrary, it was her way
of increasing the degree of
wonderment at this miracle
and demonstrating that it had
absolutely no natural basis. At
face value this was an admirable
gesture.
ITS BENEATH SARAH

Why was G-d upset with her?
The answer may be that Sarah
was expected to be at an even
higher spiritual level, where the
most incredible miracles should
not elicit amazement. Sarah was
at a level where she was in touch
with G-ds transcendent order.
She should have become excited
and filled with joy without having
to reflect on all the reasons
why her pregnancy would be
an incredible miracle. Sarahs
closeness to G-d and sensitivity
to His transcendence should have
made this miracle seem normal.
In other words, she should
have been excited by her close
proximity to G-d and not to the
extraordinary miracle.
Thus G-d tells Abraham, Is
anything wondrous, separated
and covered from G-d? Is
there anything that would

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be considered unusual and

miraculous for G-d? Why then
should Sarah, who was so in tune
with G-ds transcendence, think
it was wondrous?
The reason Rashi takes the
word used here hayipalei and
renders it with three translations,
wondrous,
separated
and
covered, is that G-d manifests
Himself in three ways, as will be
explained next.
THE THREE DIMENSIONS

OF THE ALEPH
The Rebbe frequently referred
to the teaching of the Alter Rebbe
that the difference between Golaexile and Geula-Redemption
is the single letter Aleph. This
letter has three meanings: On
the lowest level it means Master,
referring to G-ds role as the
Force behind everything that
exists. In the days of exile, G-ds
presence within creation is
hidden; with the advent of Geula
it will be revealed.
The second level represented
by the Aleph is the dimension of
G-d as the Teacher of the world;
the One whose knowledge is
currently separated from us.
G-ds wisdom is unfathomable
but in the Messianic Age even
that dimension of G-d will
become accessible.
The third level rearranges
the letters used to spell Aleph
to read peleh, which means

wonder. While G-ds intellect is
elusive and separated from us it
is still in some way connected to
the world. In the Messianic Age
we will be exposed to the most
inscrutable aspects of the Divine
which even transcend His hidden
wisdom.
This, then, might be the
underlying meaning of G-ds
rebuke to Sarah. Sarah, you
are on such a high level; you
are in touch with the concealed
dimension of G-d. Sarah, like
Abraham, would go around
and reveal to people that there
is a Creator and Master of this
universe. For you, G-d is not
covered.
Moreover, G-d intimates to
Sarah, You have even penetrated
into the hidden knowledge
behind creation. Sarah, like
Abraham, was exposed to
esoteric knowledge. Abraham,
our tradition informs us, was the
author of the Kabbalistic work,
Seifer Yetzira, which contains
Divine wisdom.
G-d then alludes to Sarahs
connection to His most wondrous
and esoteric dimension. On that
level there ought to be no more
incredulity about a miracle than
there is about the most natural
phenomena. Sarah should not
have to have psyched herself
into excitement about this
miracle.
In Crown Heights area: 1640/1700AM
SARAHS HUMILITY,
NOT CYNICISM
When Sarah denied that she
laughed she was sincere because
her laughter was not, G-d forbid,
cynicism. Sarah, in her humility,
could not imagine that she was
at the level where laughing to
enhance excitement for the
miracle was considered a flaw.
G-d, who knew her true value,
felt that it was out of place.
As we stand on the threshold
of the Final Redemption through
Moshiach, we will soon be
exposed to, and elevated through,
the three levels of the Aleph. We
will uncover the Divine within
creation, fathom elusive Divine
wisdom and experience G-ds
utter transcendent wonders. At
that time we will all laugh, but not
with incredulity. It will be with
unmitigated joy at having gained
the level where we no longer have
to be amazed about G-d and His
miracles because we will be one
with Him.
worldwide, online: www.RadioMoshiach.org
USA NEW phone: 347 990 1136
Issue 993
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PROFILE
A CHASSIDIC
BUSINESSMAN WITH
MESIRUS NEFESH
Profile of a Chassid, R Nachum Yitzchok
Pinson, presented to mark his passing on
22 Cheshvan.
By Dov Levanon
Nachum
Yitzchok
Pinson, may Hashem
avenge his blood, was
born in 5645/1885
in Pahar. His father, Yosef, died
when Nachum Yitzchok was a
little boy, and he went to live with
his grandfather. His grandfather
was a farmer who worked land
he sharecropped from one of the
gentile landowners in the area.
The grandfather, son of one
of the Chassidim of the Mitteler
Rebbe, was a talmid chacham
who had set times for learning
Torah and he learned with his
grandson until he was ready for
yeshiva. The boy learned in a
yeshiva near where they lived
until he was 17. Then he went
to Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim in
Lubavitch.
After completing his studies
he returned to his grandfathers
home and married. Within a few
years after his marriage he had
four sons and a daughter.
WHY LIVE IF MY SONS

ARENT TMIMIM?
R Nachum Yitzchok was
a businessman who worked

hard to support his family. As a
result, he was unable to properly
supervise his childrens chinuch.
His sons attended schools that
were run in the spirit of the time
and place. Torah is good with
derech eretz, was a common
refrain among the local Jews.
The women would say, Derech
eretz precedes Torah, and since
these children wouldnt become
rabbanim anyway, it was enough
if they knew just a little Torah.
The ignorant men followed their
wives and for G-d fearing Jews
it was very hard. (In those days
there were no schools for girls yet
and they were exposed solely to
the secular winds that blew in the
streets of Russia.)
This bothered him very
much and a number of times he
prevented his sons from learning
secular studies, but he felt he did
not have the power to oppose
everyone around him including
relatives.
In Starodub, where he lived,
he was the only Lubavitcher.
Being busy with business, and
being isolated, adversely affected
his firmness when it came to his

childrens chinuch and he gave
in. He consoled himself that the
day would come when he would
earn some money and would be
able to correct the damage.
But
unfortunately,
his
business was not doing well and
he had to travel even more. Of
course, when he wasnt at home,
his children were completely
unsupervised
and
became
friendly with other children who
were not the type their father
wanted them to associate with.
One day, when he returned
from a long trip, he observed
his children and was very upset.
Why live if my children wont be
Tmimim? he asked himself and
he decided he had to find a way
out of the situation.
GOVERNMENT INSPECTION
Those were the difficult
years after the Revolution. The
communists began making laws
against yeshivos and they were
shut down, one after another.
Throughout the area there wasnt
a single yeshiva. The closest
branch of Tomchei Tmimim
was at a great distance, such that
R Nachum Yitzchok, given his
difficult financial situation, could
not allow himself to spend the
money for the trip.
He thought it over and then
packed up his gold watch and

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R Nachum Yitzchok Pinson with his sons in Nissan 1937. Second from the left is R Nissan Pinson, shliach in Tunisia (d. 2007)
some of his wifes jewelry and

ran to a goldsmith where he sold
the items in exchange for cash.
The next day, he asked his wife
to prepare some food for the
trip for himself and his sons,
Tanchum who was bar mitzva
and his brother who was two
years younger. He was going to
take them to yeshiva.
His wife anxiously asked,
How can you do that? Send

little children so far away to a city
where they have no relatives or
even friends to look after them?
It got out to the extended
family and R Nachum Yitzchoks
house had many visitors. They
tried to explain to him that this
wasnt the time to insist on Torah
study when the government was
fighting against it. It was time to
send the children to government

schools so they would become
doctors or engineers, and
contribute more to the country
than if they wasted their time in
yeshiva.
R Nachum Yitzchok however,
was firm in his resolve. His wife
knew, despite her compassion for
her children, that her husband
was right. In tears, she packed
Issue 993
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Profile
their bags and the next day said
goodbye to her husband and
children.
When they arrived at yeshiva,
after three days of traveling, they
found it in an uproar. That day,
government officials had come to
inspect the yeshiva. Fortunately,
someone had informed the rabbis
of the yeshiva ahead of time and
the students had immediately
dispersed. When the inspectors
arrived they did not find a single
student.
The frightened R Nachum,
who suddenly realized how
serious the situation was, refused
to leave the city for the next two
and a half weeks until a new
together and divided what they

produced according to the days
that they worked. Since they
did not have anyone to run
the kolkhoz in the area, and R
Nachum Yitzchok knew how to
manage a farm business, he was
taken to work at the kolkhoz.
The kolkhozes, which were
the ultimate expression of true
communism, were an abject
failure. The bitter farmers, who
were forced to sell their produce
to the government in exchange
for meager prices, didnt work
too hard. Consequently, there
was a severe lack of food and
many people tried to leave the
kolkhoz.
The interrogator exploded, You counterrevolutionary! You think youll teach me?! I can
teach you! In my house I have more sfarim than you do!
place was arranged for learning

and the rosh yeshiva promised
him personally that he would take
responsibility for the children.
These boys grew up to be
Chassidim, G-d fearing, and
lamdanim, all thanks to the
mesirus nefesh of their father.
WORKING HALF A DAY

AND LEARNING HALF A
DAY
After returning home, his
financial situation got even worse.
The government nationalized the
stores and raised taxes so that he
had no money with which to buy
food.
The
situation
grew
worse when the government
announced that the only way
to work was in a kolkhoz. The
government confiscated land
on which communal farms were
established, and farmers worked
The situation for the Jews

was dire. Like Pharaoh before
he enslaved the Jews, the
communists first turned to the
Jews and sweetly promised that
they would not have to work on
Shabbos. However, they broke
their promise and whoever did
not work on Shabbos lost out on
wages. R Nachum Yitzchok was
forced to remain on the kolkhoz
and he suffered from starvation.
The daily allotment was a little
bread with vegetables, an amount
that did not suffice for even one
meal.
His two sons had to leave
yeshiva and went to Charkov
where the Tmimim helped them
find work weaving so as to be
able to help the family.
In 5690, R Nachum Yitzchok
was able to run away and he
went to live in Charkov near his
sons. From the day he arrived
there things changed for the
better. He and his sons had

ample livelihoods. The three
of them opened a business to
manufacture pins and were very
successful.
The boys did not work more
than half a day. The other half,
they learned together with many
other bachurim who had a similar
arrangement.
OPEN HOUSE FOR GUESTS

It was a time of arrests
and persecution. The group of
Chassidim in Charkov knew
that the secret police was after
them. R Nachum Yitzchok tried
not to sleep at home. His son
Yehoshua, who already had a
beard, also tried to sleep away
from home. An old bearded
man did not have to worry that
much, but a young person with
a beard was demonstrating that
he was against the ideas of the
Revolution!
R Nachums home was open
to guests. Any Tamim who came
to town was given information
in shul about his house, despite
the danger involved. Once
a year, the house hosted the
annual fundraiser for Maamad,
a gathering which was attended
by R Nissan Nemanov and
R Zalman Shimon Dworkin,
who were among the appointed
directors.
And it wasnt only for
hospitality. R Yehuda Chitrik
told in his memoirs that when
the Rebbe heard rumors that they
were planning on building on top
of the old cemetery in Rostov, he
wanted to move his fathers grave
before the wicked ones touched
it. R Chitrik himself was afraid
to travel since he knew that the
Russians were after him. The
one who volunteered to replace
him was R Nachum Yitzchok.
When he got there, he saw that
construction had been halted

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and the grave did not have to be

moved.
IN THE TRAP OF THE

INFORMER
In Tishrei 5699/1938, the
famous informer arrived in
Charkov, a snake dressed as
a Chassid. In shul, he met a
graduate of the yeshiva he had
learned in who was not too smart
and who gave him information
about all the Tmimim in the
city. He sent him to sleep at R
Nachum Yitzchoks house. Aside
from him, the evil man visited the
homes of some Chassidim who
did not suspect him, including
R Meir Gurkov and R Avrohom
Boruch Pevsner (of Charkov).
Motzaei Shushan Purim, at
one in the morning, there was
loud banging at the door which
frightened the sleeping members
of the house. With faltering
steps they went to see who the
uninvited guests were. At the
door were two NKVD agents.
As soon as they entered, they
warned everyone not to move
and began conducting a search
that lasted for hours. In the end,
they noticed a few lines that were
written on the last page of one
of the sfarim, the address of the
Rebbe in Vienna.
To
them,
this
was
incontrovertible proof. They had
caught Schneersohns agent,
his contact man in Russia. That
night, the other two Chassidim
mentioned above were also
arrested.
Right
after
the
arrest,
his children tried to obtain

information about where he was
taken, but were unable to. After a
few days, his son and household
received a summons to appear
for interrogation. They were
extremely frightened and debated
about whether to go or not. They
ultimately decided to go.
The
interrogator
was
charming and he asked questions
that werent that suspicious
sounding. When there was a
break in the questioning, the son
Yehoshua tried to ask whether
they knew where his father was,
and he was directed to ask the
other interrogator, a Jew. The
interrogator exploded, You
counter-revolutionary! You think
youll teach me?! I can teach you!
In my house I have more sfarim
than you do! Yehoshua realized
he wouldnt get any information
from him and left in great
disappointment.
When the government person
at his place of work tried to get
information from his friend
the procurator general, he was
told that R Nachum Yitzchoks
situation was worse than the
rest, because people kept asking
about him. That meant he had a
lot of friends and he was a very
dangerous counter-revolutionary.
That is how the Stalinist logic
worked.
FINAL RESTING PLACE IN

SIBERIA
Only later did they find
out the purpose of the strange
interrogation.
The
Russians
simply wanted to see whether his

children followed in his footsteps.
When they found out that his son
had a beard and his daughter
dressed modestly, they decided to
send him for five years of labor in
Siberia.
On Pesach, R Nachum
Yitzchok was in the same room
as R Meir Gurkov. They had
three sugar cubes and an onion
and a half. That was supposed to
last them for eight days!
On the fourth day, he was
terribly weak and could not get
out of bed. It reached the point
that the gentile prisoners who
would kill for some food, made
the effort to get him some sugar
cubes.
After a few months he was
transferred to a distant camp. He
was sent to the Urals in Siberia.
His children discovered his
location thanks to the mesirus
nefesh of his son Tanchum who
went with a bottle of vodka to
the camp and met the wife of the
commandant of the camps. He
bribed her for information about
where his father was. He met his
father and was able to give him
clothes and some food.
When he returned, he told his
brothers about his visit and they
prepared packages to send to
the camp. A few weeks later, the
packages came back stamped:
Deceased on...
R
Nachum
Yitzchoks
strength gave out and he died on
22 Cheshvan 5702/1941 at the
young age of 57.
ADD IN ACTS OF GOODNESS & KINDNESS
TO BRING MOSHIACH NOW!

Issue 993
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CROSSROADS
ITS TIME FOR A
DISPROPORTIONATE
RESPONSE
This is Rule No. 1 in the war on terror:
You cant defeat terrorism if youre being
expected to mind your manners. In order
to defeat a maniacal terrorist, we have to
make it clear to him that we know how to
act just as maniacal as he is.
By Sholom Ber Crombie
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry
1.
What is the reason for the
current wave of terror? Talk
about Jewish sovereignty over
Har
HaBayis?
Inadequate
trash collection services in Arab
villages? Discrimination against
the Arab residents of East
Jerusalem? The Israeli state-run
media is involved with trying to
find rational explanations for
terrorist activities. Why do they
want to murder us? Why does
a person making a respectable
living get up one morning, take a
car from the telephone company
where he works, and use it to
commit an act of merciless
carnage?
Those
looking
for
an
explanation for Islamic terror have
forgotten that Jews were murdered
in Eretz Yisroel back in the days
of the 5689 Tarpat pogroms and
the Fedayeen attacks of sixty years
ago, may their killers names be
erased. This was long before we

liberated Yehuda and Shomron
and restored Jewish sovereignty,
albeit symbolically, to Har
HaBayis. It is a well-established
law Eisav hates Yaakov. They
hate us because they want Tel
Aviv and Tzfas. Their hatred has
absolutely nothing to do with
their trash not being collected
on time. Apart from that, what
kind of educational message are
we sending? Sensation-seeking
columnists and commentators
have been babbling for the past
month that this wave of terror is
an Arab outburst of fury, due
to failure in providing them with
proper municipal services. This
essentially means that anyone
whose garbage hasnt been
picked up or hasnt benefited
from
national
infrastructure
programs can go out and kill
innocent people as an expression
of protest...
Journalist
Shimon
Riklin
claimed last week that from the
point of view of Israels political
left, the situation started getting
worse when an Eritrean national
was accidentally killed in the
terrorist attack at Beershevas
central bus station. Sadly, this
is the reality today. Those same
people among us bow their heads
before the nations of the world
and cry out, Sorry that we won,
frightened to say proudly that
this is our land. Instead, they try
to explain why our murderers
are right and were the guilty
ones. However, when terrorism
strikes against non-Jews and
those striking are Jews, then
suddenly there can be no rational
explanation for acts of violence.
Subsequently, this becomes an
opportunity for a whining selfcriticism accompanied by selfblame, as if the callous declaration
of the President of the state of
Israel was true: My people have
chosen the path of terror.
2.
At every such round in the
war on terror we repeatedly bear
witness to the painful fact that the
government of Israel isnt really
prepared to fight for its homeland.
This is not based on the belief that
this is our land, and therefore,
we have the inherent right to
defend ourselves, rather we have
to apologize for tending to our

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security and causing harm to the

original residents of this land of course, our murderers, the
Arabs. First and foremost, every
step taken in the war on terror is
measured against the question:
How will the world perceive it and
what will they say about us?
Just a couple of weeks ago, a
debate was held between Knesset
Member Yinon Magal and one of
the leftist media commentators
on the preposterous idea of
imposing an evening curfew
on
Yerushalayims
Arab
neighborhoods,
where
the
terrorists come out from to
commit their acts of bloodshed.
Naturally, the political left was
shocked by the very suggestion.
However, they forgot that the
terrorists can freely roam around
Yerushalayim, while the citys
frightened Jewish residents are
closed up in their homes and the
streets remain deserted. The sight
of thousands of policemen and
soldiers in every corner, standing
ready to prevent the next terrorist
attack rl, might seem totally
normal to them. On the other
hand, placing the terrorist under
house arrest and not letting the
residents of East Jerusalem roam
freely outside their homes as a
means of protecting innocent
lives is totally groundless in their
estimation.
Which residents of East
Jerusalem are we talking about?
Those who danced on the roofs
when our women and children
were being murdered. And we
have to show them mercy? These
are the same heartless people who
calmly sat and drank Coca-Cola
while Adele Benita ran through
the streets of the Old City with
a knife stuck in her body. They
are a fifth column, teaching the
profession of terrorism while
their schools teach Jordanian
anti-Semitic learning programs,
inciting children to kill. What
would happen if they would pay

the price just once and understand
that when terrorism emerges from
their villages and neighborhoods
it will exact severe retribution
from them? Were talking about
collective education, not collective
punishment. This is the way of
deterrence: Its not enough to
take measured steps to stop the
terror, we must act with all our
strength by taking irrational
steps. However, the political left
in Eretz Yisroel ties the hands of
the security forces, and instead
of the terrorists sitting in curfew
conditions while we walk freely in
the streets, we are the ones sitting
in fear and panic in order that
they can leave their homes and
prey on their victims. And what
will we do with the fact that there
are Arabs roaming around who
want to kill us and they can reach
the city center at any time and
threaten human life? For this, we
will invest billions in round-theclock security, placing thousands
of soldiers and police officers in
the streets of Yerushalayim - on a
scope of two at every bus stop!
The political left loves to talk
about the heavy price it cost us
to maintain the settlements. Yet,
it turns out that one week of
combatting the wave of terror
cost the state at least five billion
shekels! It went for the continual
security safeguards, calling up the
army reservists and policemen,
renting hundreds of cars and
turning them into police vehicles
to bolster national defense and
municipal protection. All this cost
the Israeli taxpayer five billion
shekels just on last weeks wave
of terror.
3.
As a result of the current
situation and concern for my
personal safety, I went last week
to a special group activity at
Sacher Park in Yerushalayim.

This wasnt an in-depth session
of Torah study, rather a judo selfdefense program on how to deal
with attempted knife attacks.
In short, heres a typical Israeli
pursuit for every father during
these routine times.
At the conclusion of the
program, after we learned how
to grab the knife, strike the
assailant in the proper places,
frighten him, etc., the instructor
proceeded to tell us the most
important principle in struggling
with a potential terrorist. You
may not remember everything
youve learned here. In a moment
of trial, when you are faced by an
insane terrorist, its very difficult
to start acting according to the
rules weve taught here. However,
its important to remember that
in such a situation you must be
aggressive. We usually try to react
forcefully while keeping things
within proportion. We try to
disarm the attacker, even hit him
but not to go overboard. This is
the mistake made by most people
being attacked with a knife. To
subdue the terrorist you cant
settle for defensive fighting. You
must act aggressively, using all
your strength and every means
available to neutralize the killer.
Strike him mercilessly, like a
madman. Make him understand
that youre the wild one now. Go
absolutely crazy and show him no
pity. Only with such tactics, even
if you are cut and wounded, can
you manage to fight him off.
It turns out that this is Rule
No. 1 in the war on terror. You
cant defeat terrorism if youre
being expected to mind your
manners. In order to defeat a
maniacal terrorist we have to
make it clear to him that we know
how to act just as crazy as he is.
Continued on page 5
Issue 993
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TZIVOS HASHEM
A ONCE
IN A LIFETIME
OPPOR TUNIT Y
Presented for Chaf Cheshvan, the birthday of the Rebbe Rashab.
By Nechama Bar
R Moshe sat outside his sid. A few days ago I was called
asked
home studying a seifer. The by the Rebbe Rashab. He
and to
fruit trees in the garden wafted me to travel to Vitebsk
Rebbe
a delightful fragrance and the go straight to you. The
a bicolorful flowers contributed to- found out that you have
by the
ward a relaxing environment. chel (a booklet) written
Moshe loved this magical spot. Tzemach Tzedek.
Moshe looked at the Chassid
Here he felt his mind open up
to
him
for
easier
in bewilderment. How does the
and it was
Torah.
tand
Rebbe know I have such a booklearn and unders
Suddenly, he thought he let?
I dont know, and its not
heard footsteps approaching the
house. He looked up and saw a important, said the Chassid.
Chassid approaching the bench Whats important is that the
he was sitting on. Something Rebbe wants to buy it from you.
important must have brought He said he would pay you a lot
of money.
him.
Moshe
you?
Moshe smiled and looked
How can I help
man.
iliar
around at his fine living room
asked the unfam
I
I would like to speak to you and said, As you can see,
not
am
I
.
money
for
for a few minutes. I have an dont lack
a Chassid and do not have to
important request for you.
your Rebbe. Tell the RebMoshe got up and invited obey
be that I will not sell the bichel
the Chassid into his house. The
for all the money in the world.
Chassid saw that Moshe was
I appreciate its worth which is
a rich man, for the house was
why I want to keep it.
large and spacious with exThe Chassid tried to perpensive furniture and beautiful
him, to explain and resuade
leather
a
on
carpets. They sat
Moshe was not interbut
quest,
began.
couch and the Chassid
selling.
wasnt
He
ested.
I am a Chabad Chas-
The Chassid left in great

disappointment. He reported
to the Rebbe sadly, I I am
so sorry but I was not able to
carry out the assignment. He
is a wealthy man and money
does not convince him. He said
he will not sell the bichel at any
price.
The Rebbes face turned
grave and after a few moments he said firmly, Go back
to him and say that if he agrees
to sell the bichel for the money I offered, fine. If not, I will
take him to a din Torah. The
Tzemach Tzedek did not sell his
writings! If someone has them,
that means he stole them!
The Tzemach Tzedek was my
grandfather and we are inheritors. Those writings belong
here.
The Chassid trembled and
rushed back to Moshe to repeat
what the Rebbe said.
When he heard the Rebbes
sharp rejoinder, Moshe became
frightened and he immediately
agreed to sell the bichel for the
sum the Rebbe offered.

993_bm_eng.indd 34
10/27/2015 2:46:17 AM
The Chassid went

back to the Rebbe, took
the large sum of money, and
hurried back to Moshes house to
buy the bichel.
Moshe was not too happy to
see the Chassid. He realized he
would now have to part with
the precious booklet that he so
wanted to keep for himself. He
went to a side room, carefully
took out the booklet from where
it was hidden away, and gave it
to the Chassid with trembling
hands. It was obviously hard for
him to part from it, but he had
no choice.
The Chassid grasped the treasure emotionally and said goodbye to Moshe. All the way back,
he held the precious bichel, to
protect it. He sang lilting Chassidic tunes and being so happy,
he felt as though the trip was
much shorter.
He joyously entered the Rebbes room and gave him the
993_bm_eng.indd 5
holy bichel. The Rebbes

face lit up when he held
it and he smiled broadly. He
asked the Chassid, What reward
would you like for the trouble
you took to bring me the bichel?
The Chassid, who was a simple man (and had not expected
the Rebbe to ask him a question
like that) did not think much
and said, I want the Rebbe to
write that I should receive a
certain amount of money every
week.
The Rebbe agreed and said
he would make sure he got the
money. The shliach left the room
happily. Outside the room were
some Chassidim who asked him,
What happened in the Rebbes
room?
He told them all about the
important mission he had been
on and how he had finally succeeded in carrying it out and
how the Rebbe had asked what
reward he wanted.
Nu, so what did you ask

for? they were curious to know.
The Chassid told them.
Oy vay, said the Chassidim.
Thats what you asked for? You
could have asked for reward in
the World to Come!
Oy, how come I didnt think
of that? exclaimed the Chassid.
He impulsively opened the door
to the Rebbes room and walked
in.
What would you like? asked
the Rebbe.
Rebbe, I regret what I asked
for. I want to make a different
request.
What do you want?
I want the Rebbe to promise me a share in the World to
Come.
The Rebbe looked at him
kindly but said firmly, No. You
had one chance to ask, no more.
10/27/2015 2:45:59 AM

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BH. 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel 30 October 2015 Number 993 Price: $6.

The international weekly heralding the coming of Moshiach

LONG LIVE THE REBBE MELECH HAMOSHIACH FOREVER AND EVER!

Beis Moshiach (USPS 012-542) ISSN 1082-0272

Tel: (718) 778-8000

Of course, we (Chassidim) follow their lead (with

It is not just a Chassids sentiment

ATTAINING THE HOLINESS

soul expiration, of the two children

(What is unique about the present

of Avos (which is being studied this

WHAT IS THE FASTEST

our service throughout the duration

4 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

Moshiach (so it is in our versions of the text, but

Continued from page 33

Moshiach, as it is said, The L-rd will set His

weeks now. And there are those who

****Footnote 73: following the interpretation of

and they say that they are giving this,

6 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

abbi Naftali Roth is

mechanchim from all over the

call and request, at the 13

There is just one way to deal with the

year, the book HaMechanech was

In his youth he learned in

8 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

educational models whose reach

is to get students to feel the

see things objectively.

If we invest our energy and thoughts into living

mechanchim, of how to get out

THE YOUNG GENERATION

being of paramount importance.

10 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

that exists down to this day.

Instead of asking how we can instill hiskashrus to

DEALING WITH THE

fifty years ago and it applies all

12 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

(against halacha) and the Rebbe

THE MECHANECH WHO

activities at the age of threefour. My mother always said

Mitzvos, and various educational

14 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

AVRAHAMS UNIVERSAL MESSAGE:

ollowing the pact made

Only when one

Hashem is part of our reality. The

CHASSIDIM EIN MISHPACHA

16 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

R Garelik, without words, gave

and maybe we had been mistaken

our suitcases remained on the

together to New York. We are

For kiddush, he made grape juice from grapes

off its land borders. So there we

and taught Judaism.

18 17 Cheshvan 5776 - Hakhel

reminded me of a shul. There was

light and humorous, with the

means to contribute toward the

KNOCKING IN THE MIDDLE