Posted to Chabad News on
Lubavitch Archives
Left: Rabbi Moshe Kolodny looks at documents on the activities of the Rebbe Rayatz to assist Jews during the Holocaust. Right: Dovid Zaklikowski outside the Manhattan offices of Agudah.

Dispelling Agudah’s Erroneous Information on Chabad and the Holocaust

Over the past few months Lubavitch Archives director Rabbi Dovid Zaklikowski (the “Chabad Archivist”) has been doing research on the history of the Rebbe Rayatz, the sixth Chabad Rebbe, during the Holocaust.

Rabbi Moshe Kolodny, the director of the “Orthodox Jewish Archives” or the archivist of the Agudath Israel of America, has a vocal opinion about the Rebbe Rayatz. His overreaching statements are known and published extensively in interviews he gave.

However, it is clear that Rabbi Kolodny did not how the Rebbe Rayatz teamed (amongst other organizations) with, someone who he most probably knows more about that anyone else, Rabbi Jacob Rosenheim, the director Agudath Israel World Organization.

The Chabad archivist went to meet the Agudah archivist to present Rabbi Rosenheim’s correspondence with the one who led, at the time the Chabad relief efforts, Rabbi Shemaryahu Gurary, known as the Rashag.

What ensued was a fascinating admission by Rabbi Kolodny that he was mistaken in his beliefs, “I didn’t know! I would have never made those claims!”

The missing pieces of the two organizations archives speak volumes. What is in the Agudah’s Archives does not exist in Chabad’s and what is Chabad’s does not seem to be in Agudah’s. Missing pages are clearly nothing new in archives, but both came to the conclusion that there is more to still be found.

The two archivists made up to meet again, as they both continue to plow through their respective archives, on more clues on the Rebbe Rayatz’s rescue efforts in conjunction with Agudath Israel.

Related Articles

12 Comments

  • to #2

    The article is pretty clear that Mr. Kolodny’s “vocal opinion” and “overreaching statements” about the Rebbe Rayatz were not respectful, and therefore not articulated in the article. It does however make the article rather anemic without going into the issues, and does not leave the reader terribly well informed.

  • Kolodny

    Any relation to the Kolodny, Rabbi Yitzchok Kolodny that taught in Lubavitch Yeshiva, a tomim himself, that was in the group of American boys that went to Otwok?

  • are you serious??

    do you want every piece of shmutz to be written on a chabad forum??

    we should be thankful that finally rabbi kolodny will now be well informed and will not spill hatred anymore.

    thank you!

  • jeff

    Agudah has always promoted the position that Lubavitch only cared to bring the Frierdiker Rebbe to America, and did nothing to help others during the holocaust. The FR’s correspondence proves otherwise, and very strongly so. We now await for the people in Agudah to retract their years long position of besmirching the good name of our Rabbeim.

  • Yitzchok Kolodny

    Our family (Harav Yitzchok Kolodny Zt’l) is not related to the Agudah librarian. It is known that R’ Yitzchok was a chosid muvhak of the Rebbe Rayatz and afterwards the Rebbe OB’M. We have in our possession a series of 32 letters between The Rebbe Rayatz and our Zaida Z’l. The titles given to our Zaida R’ Yitzchok from the Rebbe Rayaatz range from Yedidi Hatalmid Hachosuv V’Hachi Naaleh to Yedidi Baal Midos Tovos. All the letters are signed by the Rebbe Rayatz. There are a multitude of additional letters signed by the Mazkir as well. Also, Zaida Zt’l was part of the Kvutza of American Bochurim that made it out of Poland as the war broke out along with Hecht, Bistrisky etc.

  • Pinchos Woolstone

    Please clarify the underlining issues brought up in the Article.
    We need to understand what was written by the Aguda regarding the Rebbe Rayatz over the years and what specifically did Rabbi Kolodny of the Aguda said and or wrote about the Rebbe Rayatz.

  • emes

    There is a hasroas cheirem against this Ko;lodny for being machzik his daughter in arko’oys and being involved in lots of terrible mesirah. Yordim le’gehonom le’dore doros ve’einom olim.