Igrot Kodesh · Letter 445 — Engagement Blessing and Outreach Accountability

By the grace of Hashem, 15 Shevat 5709, New Year of the Trees, 'Man is like a tree of the field,' To the distinguished Chassid* who fears Hashem, Rav C. H.[1],

I greet you and bless you,

I am responding to your letter of 18 Tevet, to which lists were attached, which I received with delay:

A) I thank you for informing me that your daughter became engaged. May this union be sealed at a moment that, in every respect, will be good and fruitful. And these good tidings, which allow one to put into practice the Mitzvah* of loving one's neighbor as oneself, will draw others in their wake. You will therefore inform me of her marriage and, at a good moment, she will build an everlasting edifice, with all the interpretations one can give to that expression.

The Keter* [crown] that crowns the chain of worlds alludes in this way to the one received on the day of marriage. This crown evokes truth, corresponding to material abundance, and eternity, evoking, of course, the birth of children. It is also the lowest level of the creative Emanation* and the primary source of created beings, giving them life. Indeed, only Israel truly possesses it, as it is said 'you are bound to Hashem your Hashem, all of you alive today,' as the Avot deRabbi Natan* explains, in chapter 34.

This crown possesses life and breathes it into created beings, of which it is the primary source, according to the expression of the Rambam*, cited and commented upon by Chassidut*, 'Hashem Hashem is Truth.' He possesses true existence and is the Quintessence, such that 'He is a Hashem of Life.'

Now, the birth of children, life, and material abundance depend upon the influences that each person can receive.

You should consult, in this regard, Likkutei Torah*, the Chassidic discourses of 5666[2] and the Chanoch LaNaar* of the Rebbe[3], at page 38.

B) You will find enclosed the pamphlet that has just been published. You will make it available to the largest possible number of people.

C) I forwarded your lists to my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*, and then to the Ma'amad* committee[4].

I also requested individual receipts, as you wished. They have surely already been sent to you and you will confirm to me that you have received them.

D) You sent me, with your letter of 25 Iyar, five Shekels to acquire letters in the Sefer Torah*[5] and the same amount for the Siddurim*. I received them duly.

Perhaps the letter confirming that we had received them was lost. If you have not been notified of the Sefer Torah letters that were allocated to you by lottery, please let me know.

E) You tell me that it is impossible to promote the Ma'amad* in the city, among people other than the Chassidim* and the students of the Yeshiva*. You justify this assertion in various ways. Yet, two and a half lines earlier, you write: 'The Chassidim* are attached to the Rebbe with all their heart and all their soul, to the point of self-sacrifice. If they are ordered to slip through a crack, they will do so.'

I therefore apply to you the statement of our Sages that 'a person does not perceive to what extent Hashem comes to his aid.' It seems, indeed, that you do not notice to what extent the introduction of your argument is in contradiction with your conclusion.

In every place where the Ma'amad* was collected last year — in the United States, Canada, South America, South Africa — experience has shown that success was achieved, even if not always in equal proportion. And those who were responsible for this collection had no need to sacrifice themselves, nor even to slip through a crack. On the contrary, they were able to improve their own situation, materially and spiritually. Their respectability, in the eyes of all those they were able to contact, was thereby enhanced. These people became aware that, through their participation, they receive more than they give, including materially and financially.

Now, in your country, from what you tell me in your letter, people are prepared to give of themselves, which also includes setting aside one's own will and not being a victim of one's own rationality.

Here is what I wish to say to you. What I write here is not addressed to any one specific person, Hashem forbid, for who am I to determine that such a role falls upon such a man? In fact, I am addressing all of you, collectively. You possess, without doubt, the means to carry out the mission entrusted to you in the place where you currently find yourselves — namely, the dissemination of the wellsprings of the teaching of the Baal Shem Tov* and the Admor HaZaken*, among those living in France.

Now, there is only one source from which this teaching flows, and that is my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*. By attaching oneself to him physically, through 'that which would satisfy one's own needs'[6] and morally, ordinary water is transformed into living water. This is what the Torah* — which directs and governs nature in the most literal sense — rules, and this remains true wherever one may find oneself.

You write me a letter which, when one considers its passivity, is indeed a reflection of the Chassidim* of your city, and in cold blood you decree that all of this does not concern the Jews of your city, with the exception of those in your neighborhood.

Let all the Chassidim* therefore be convened to a meeting and a moral accounting be established! How much effort has been made to bring other people closer? It will then become apparent that such reasoning is without basis and the reasons for failure will be clearly established.

A young man who was forced to flee his city, who does not know how to pray with fervor, who possesses no deep knowledge of Chassidut* and therefore does not meditate upon it during prayer, who was never a student of the Lubavitch Yeshiva* or of any other Yeshiva*, found himself in exile, in a place particularly remote — geographically as well as from Jewish centers. Yet, shortly after his arrival in this country, men and women began to write to my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*.

I will cite one example. A businesswoman receives a proposal — in this case, to rent a shop and an apartment located in one neighborhood or another of the city. And she asks my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*, what she should do. She has never seen him. She knows that he has never visited her city, nor even her country. She does not belong to the Chassidim* and does not descend from Chassidim*.

But this woman heard this young man who, speaking from his heart, said: 'The Jewish people has a Rebbe, who is not bound by the limits of nature. And whoever wants to be certain, in all matters concerning his affairs or the conduct of his household, must take no initiative without first consulting the Rebbe.' She recognized the sincerity of this young man, for truthful words do not deceive. She therefore consulted the Rebbe.

It is quite clear that such a woman can participate in the Ma'amad*, draw closer to Jewish practice. Very soon, without doubt, she will eat kosher*, observe the laws of family purity*. This is what a simple young man can accomplish, without self-sacrifice, without setting aside his own person, for such an approach does not offend his logic, does not run counter to human intellect.

Let us then reflect. Based on what he has seen with his own eyes, he knows the value of a word or a blessing from the Rebbe. His animal soul* [nefesh habehamit] concurs that it is indeed so — not as a result of deep reflection or meticulous consultation of books, but solely on the basis of his own experience and that of his friends.

Experience, in this case, has proven to him that when one relied upon the Rebbe's counsel, all went well, and when one did not, the consequences were seen. Thus, just as he naturally directs a friend to the address of a competent physician when the friend is in need, he says to one who is confused or confronted with a fundamental question of his existence: 'The Jewish people is not abandoned. There is someone you can consult.'

Moreover, he does not wait for his friend to come and ask him whether a Rebbe exists. Generally, his friend has no knowledge of such a concept. He will therefore take the initiative and explain that one cannot rely on one's own judgment, nor on that of the man proposing a match, the physician, or the intermediary, all of whom may be subject to error. But there is a sure means of freeing oneself from doubt. And our Sages affirm that words that come from the heart penetrate the heart.

I come now to the substance of your letter.

The best among the Chassidim* are in your city — those who have seen the Rebbe[7] and my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*. They have faced poverty and the most diverse trials. They study Chassidut* deeply and pray with fervor. They were first in refugee camps, among thousands of Jews longing with all their might to hear warm and life-giving words, words of encouragement and sympathy. And the younger among them wished to be guided: 'Where is the Moshe* who will take us out of Egypt* and its limitations, lead us on the path of life?'

And a question arises. How many people were drawn closer, through their intervention and effort, to the teaching of the Baal Shem Tov* and the Admor HaZaken*, during the time they spent in those camps?

I then wrote to the camp where the greatest number of Chassidim* were located, and asked that a spiritual Ma'amad* be established for all those there, particularly the young, considering that at the beginning of the process, the Ma'amad* did not necessarily need to be material.

I was answered that all of this was certainly very positive, but that one must first, at an initial stage, obtain a budget to cover expenses and that, more generally, such actions could be undertaken once the Chassidim* had found peace and quiet. Then, some of them would return to their camp and undertake this mission with self-abnegation!

Then, I encouraged action once more, through someone who was traveling there. It seems to me that a committee was then elected and that was the end of it. The results are well known.

Afterward, the Chassidim* became aware — and it seems they were helped in this — that one must have pity on the Jews, from whom efforts were being demanded in vain. The hope was therefore expressed that all would go better once they were definitively settled. Yet the same principle remains in effect — or more precisely, the same disorder. You have been settled in your city for more than a year now. How many activities are being conducted in Paris and its surroundings?

A year and a half ago, when I myself was in Paris, I intervened in this sense, on several occasions. In the end, it was decided — no doubt to show me deference — that the Ma'amad* committee would also devote itself to the other Jews of the city. Of course, the action had to be entrusted to those capable of addressing people who, for the time being, are still distant from Jewish practice.

From time to time, I tried to find out what was being done, and I was told that nothing whatsoever was happening — neither for the spiritual Ma'amad* nor for the material Ma'amad* — two activities which, except in exceptional cases, must go together and can only be sustained in that manner.

For my own part, I would have been delighted if someone had at last informed me that certain aspects of the activity were unknown to me, that dozens of people had not only been influenced and were contributing to the institutions, but, moreover, had accepted the teachings of Chassidut*, had become Chassidim* or, at the very least, had drawn somewhat closer to the Rebbe. Your letter has proven to me that this is, for you, entirely out of the question.

Certainly, preserving the integrity of the community requires intense and continuous effort, but the guarding of the Temple* was itself only one form of divine service, and not all the Kohanim* were assigned to it.

It is quite clear that if one says to someone: 'Jew, give me money that I will send to someone located thousands of kilometers from here, whom you do not know and who has nothing to do with you, but who nonetheless possesses immense qualities,' one will be taken for a fool.

But it is equally evident that if one believes, with a pure faith reflected in each of one's faculties, that the Rebbe's counsel and blessing are decisive, one must feel the sense of humanity, the love of one's neighbor, to suggest it when one encounters someone who has an important decision to make — concerning children, health, or prosperity — or who is in a situation of danger, Hashem forbid.

As long as there is hope, the slightest possibility that he might follow this advice, one must pursue it and say to him: 'Have pity on yourself, on the members of your family, and on all that concerns you. Do not rely on your own judgment. Study Chassidut*, attach yourself to the Rebbe, and act according to his counsel. Thus you will succeed.'

And it is known that everything the Chassidim* undertake is crowned with success, as the Admor HaZaken* emphasizes.

It is said that one cannot draw a proof from the fact that one has not seen a certain thing. Nevertheless, this rule does not apply to what is commonplace, as the Siftei Kohen* and the Admor HaZaken* state in the Shulchan Aruch* Yoreh Deah*, chapter 261. I have seen several letters, originating from your city, that were addressed to my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*. I have not found a single one that came from a person who had just drawn close to the Lubavitch movement under the influence of one of the Chassidim* living there.

In Paris and its surroundings, you come into contact with hundreds, perhaps even thousands of Jews. You know what the Rambam* says about speech, and indeed you speak together, at greater or lesser length. How many among these Jews have consulted the Rebbe regarding a surgical operation, a marriage, or asked for a blessing for Rosh Hashana*?

Now, if one were to tell them who the Lubavitcher Rebbe was — a simple account with no commentary whatsoever — and if, the second time, one were to convey a few points of his teaching, how many Jews, with their children and grandchildren, until the end of generations, would have bound themselves to him, illuminated their homes, and become 'people of Moshe*'?

You should consult the Chassidic discourse entitled 'And Amalek* came,' which is found in the enclosed pamphlet. In my humble opinion, you can also consult the discourses in Torah Or* and Torat Chaim*, according to which the 'people of Moshe*' are those who are deeply submissive to him. In this pamphlet, that expression alludes to those who are bound to the Rebbe, the equivalent of Moshe* in his generation, and has therefore not been commented upon.

This is therefore how one contributes to the Ma'amad* and strengthens the institutions — with joy and goodwill, and not solely out of deference.

Instead of all this, one person reserves himself for his own institution and another occupies himself with his business. One is content to give to the Ma'amad* generously. One justifies this by claiming readiness for self-sacrifice, in your expression. But the mission to be accomplished has, it seems, not even been begun.

And this has been the case for more than a year, in a city where several dozen Chassidim* reside — those whom the Rebbe[7] called 'lights that illuminate.' Now, as my father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita*, recalls, when a torch is held up in the midst of darkness, all gather around it.

Do you truly believe that the entire problem lies with the Jews of Paris and its region?

I will offer a pleasant explanation. This terrible exile is a consequence of the breaking of the Tablets of the Law, without which the engraving [charut*] would have brought us freedom [cherut*][8]. But the Tablets of the Law were broken on account of the golden calf, which revived the impurity caused by the sin of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

According to Chassidut*, this sin followed from the diminishment of the moon*[9], which itself resulted from the shattering of the vessels* in the spiritual world of Tohu*, a consequence of the Tzimtzum*[10]. Now, what was this Tzimtzum*? The inability of the Light to illuminate outward — the fact that it maintains its own definition and cannot depart from it — as the Likkutei Torah* explains.

I repeat once more that these words are not addressed to any specific person, Hashem forbid, but to the entire community, in general. You will no doubt show my letter to whoever may be concerned by it. It is evident, of course, that its sole purpose is to exchange views with you and to express my own perspective, without reproducing the conduct of Yosef*[11], Hashem forbid.

No doubt many will ask by what right I permit myself to speak in this manner, and will advise me to remedy my own faults first. And they will likely be right in everything they reproach me with. But this does not in any way alter the situation and the conclusion that imposes itself.

I hope you will not hold it against me — not even intellectually — for having written you this letter, which must not call into question our good relations.

I conclude by asking you to convey my greetings to the entire community.

I have not shown this letter to the Ma'amad* committee here. I have, however, sent a copy of paragraph E) to Rav B. T. Shem Tov*[12], but I did not tell him who was the recipient of this letter, and you will do in this matter as you see fit.

Here is why I sent this to Rav B. T.*[12]:
1. Perhaps he will derive benefit from it for his own mission.
2. When I was in Paris, he was also one of the great advocates of inaction, being convinced that a development of activity would come later.

ב״ה ,ט׳ סיון ,תש״ט

הוו״ח אי״א נו״מ וכוי מהר״י שי׳ רבינסון

שלום וברכה!

לפי שיחתנו הטלפונית אמש ,עצרנו במהלך היום את ההמחאה ,כבקשתו.

כיון שעוד לפני חג השבועות הבטחנו לשלם למדפיס ,אנו מנהלים אתו

משא ומתן שימתין ,על סמך הבטחתו ]של הנמען[ ,שבמשך 10ימים אקבל

ממנו בשורה טובה .אני בטוח שבעזרת ה׳ יעמוד בהבטחתו ,כדי שלא יהי׳

צורך לעצור חלילה את העבודה באמצע.

למותר להזכיר את מאמר חז״ל )תענית ט ,א( -עשר תעשר ,עשר

בשביל שתתעשר .היינו ,שכאשר יהודי נותן צדקה ,זהו מקור וכלי לפרנסה.

והרי הוא רואה את זה בפירוש ,בפרט בתקופה האחרונה ,שכ״ק מו״ח הרבי

שליט״א ממציא לו ענינים של פרנסה ,ולא רק זאת ,אלא גם את הכלי

המתאים לקבל זאת ,שזהו ענין הצדקה ,על-פי מאמר חז״ל הנ״ל ,במילא

פליאה גדולה היא אצלי ]זה ש[הוא מעכב דבר טוב .ומאחר שהוא סוחר

ומבין עסק טוב ,אינני צריך להאריך.

הנני מקוה שהוא וכל הנלווים אליו יחיו בקו הבריאות בשלמות ,ויתן

ה׳ שתזכו לקיום ברכות הרבי שליט״א .בפ״ש וברכת כט״ס

חרב מנחם שניאורפאהן

יו״ר ועד הפועל

מצג

מהעתק המזכירות.

מהר״י שי׳ רבינסון :אגרות נוספות אליו -לקמן תתקמז .א׳קטז .א׳תע.

לתוכנה ראה לעיל אגרת תפר .לקמן אגרת שלאחרי זו.