Weekly Dvar Torah: A Queen, A Palace, and the Final Act

This week marks the 38th yahrzeit of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, the Rebbe’s wife, who passed away on Chof-Beis Shvat 5748 (February 10, 1988).

As a boy growing up in Crown Heights, the Rebbetzin was, to me, almost a mystery. I hardly ever saw her. This alone was astonishing. She was the wife of the most visible Jewish leader in the world — and yet she lived in near-total privacy. She drove herself, entered through side doors, avoided public appearances, and fled from honor as if it were danger.

At the time, it felt puzzling. Why would someone so central choose to be so hidden?

Only later did the Rebbe teach us that this was not a personal preference. It was a statement about reality.

After her passing, the Rebbe insisted — again and again — that we must learn from her life. Not from stories (he refused to share them), not from anecdotes (he guarded her privacy fiercely), but from what she represented. And what she represented, the Rebbe explained, was the essence of the Jewish woman.

Here is the paradox the Rebbe revealed:
On the outside, the Rebbetzin was the embodiment of modesty and concealment.
On the inside, she was Malchus — royalty — actively preparing the world for Moshiach.

In Kabbalah and Chassidus, woman is Malchus, kingship. She is the point where Divine infinity becomes physical reality. Only a woman can bring new life into the world endlessly, generation after generation. That is infinity wearing flesh and blood.

And yet, Judaism assigns her a quiet role.

How can the highest expression of G-dliness live behind the scenes?

Because the entire world is under construction.

The purpose of creation is to build a dwelling place for G-d — a palace where His presence will be fully revealed. But palaces are not built for workers. They are built for Queens.

So imagine the scene. Architects, engineers, bricklayers, electricians, plumbers — year after year they labor in dust, noise, and chaos. Now imagine the Queen arriving in the middle of construction and announcing, “This is my palace. I’m moving in.”

It wouldn’t work. She would be uncomfortable. She would be dirtied. Worse — she would get in the way.

A Queen does not belong on a construction site.

Her absence is not a demotion — it is the very proof that everything is being done for her.

For thousands of years, the Jewish people have been building G-d’s palace. The bricks are Torah. The mortar is Mitzvos. During construction, the Queen remains mostly unseen. Not because she is secondary — but because she is the destination.

And now comes the Rebbe’s explosive teaching:
We are living in Friday afternoon of creation.

The structure is standing. The walls are up. Now it’s time for furnishing, beautification, and final preparation. And that is when the Queen steps forward.

This explains not only the Rebbetzin — but the entire question of woman and man.

Humanity is one body. Some organs are visible. Some are hidden. The hands and feet are exposed, active, and seen. The heart and brain — the organs that actually keep us alive — are concealed and protected.

Visibility is not importance.
Exposure is not essence.

Men function like the hands. They act, build, teach, speak, and take the stage. Women function like the heart — hidden, sensitive, life-giving. You would have to be willfully blind to argue that hands are more important than the heart simply because you see them more.

The reason essential organs are hidden is precisely because they are too vital to expose.

For most of history, men occupied the limelight because construction was underway. You see scaffolding, not wiring. You see labor, not life-force. But as the palace nears completion, something shifts — the builders step back, and the reason for the building begins to step forward. It is no longer about how much was built, but about for whom it was built.

When Moshiach comes, concealment ends. The hidden becomes visible. The heart and brain can be revealed without danger. But even then, essence needs light.

That is the man’s role.

Man is the lamp.
Woman is the revelation.

Light does not replace essence — it serves it.

So men are not dismissed in the final act. They are reassigned. They shine so that the true glory can finally be seen.

And now we understand why, at this precise moment in history, the Rebbe elevated women — not as helpers, but as Shluchos.

When the Torah was given, G-d spoke to women first:
“Ko somar l’veis Yaakov.”
Because the home, the future, and continuity begin there.

Modern culture glorifies career and visibility and treats home and family as optional accessories. In Torah Judaism the first mitzvah is to bring life. Jewish survival in Egypt came from women. Moshe’s survival came from Miriam. There would never have been a Jewish future without Jewish women.

And this week, more than 6,000 Shluchos — Queens of Chabad Houses across the globe — gather together. Mothers of large families. Mothers of beautiful communities. Builders of warmth, faith, and eternity.

They are not supporting actors.
They are the reason the palace exists.

That is why the Rebbetzin’s yahrzeit is marked not with silence, but with the Kinnus Hashluchos. During her lifetime, she nurtured the world quietly, never interfering with construction. Now, as we approach the final revelation, she is brought front and center — not to violate her modesty, but to reveal its meaning.

The private Rebbetzin becomes the public teacher.
The hidden Queen prepares for her entrance.

And we, the workers, are nearing the end of our task.

Men: finish the furnishings. Polish the floors. Aim the lights carefully.

Because very soon, the doors will open.

And when the Queen enters the Palace with the King, the world will finally understand what all of this was for.

Mission accomplished.

Have a regal, fiery, and illuminating Shabbos,
Gut Shabbos

Rabbi Yosef Katzman