Weekly Story: Gimmel Tammuz

by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

As we prepare for Gimmel Tammuz, there are various questions that have to be addressed, In general one is from the older generation that feels that it is already thirty years that this deep pain and agony of theirs has not weakened, but indeed intensified, and ask what is the best way to not only maintain our hiskashrus, but to strengthen it; that is a farbrengen in itself. 

However, being that there is a very large percentage of Lubavitchers including some of my married children and their spouses, as well as all of the students in every one of our schools who never saw the Rebbe, the question that is being asked by many of them is; what is our connection with the Rebbe?

They say, those of you who merited to have a yechidus, and/or received the Rebbe’s guidance, dollar, lekach, a kuntres or Kos shel Brochah from the Rebbe, can remember the exact time and date of that interaction. How much more so does this apply to someone who was miraculously helped or saved through a miracle of his. So obviously you have a connection and probably a strong one with the Rebbe.  What are we supposed to say to those who never had the opportunity and zechus to have such an uplifting experience? What experience do they/we have that connects us to the Rebbe.

Yes there are numerous boys and girls that have a very strong sense of hiskashrus to the Rebbe and learn his seforim and conduct their lives as he guides us to, but what are we supposed to say to those who may not feel this in a powerful way?

This is the question that the crux of this article is geared to, [and perhaps it will set the format and style I should b’ezras Hashem follow and write the biography of the Rebbe upon the completion of the two volumes of the biography on the Frierdiker Rebbe]. 

Therefore, your feedback and comments on this post will definitely be appreciated and taken into consideration. 

Everyone heard a story of how the Rebbe sent various shluchim or individuals to some remote place to meet a single Jew and help them with whatever they needed. There are stories of how the Rebbe provided matzah to individuals, prevented a Jew from chas v’sholom converting, and many other situations. When we hear a story of how the Rebbe heard their cries, it inspires us. That ability is unique to the Rebbe, and Boruch Hashem we were granted the zechus to be his chassidim.

Or when a person relates that they went on a Sunday morning to receive a dollar from the Rebbe, and the Rebbe wished them a Refuah Shleima, and only then did they go to a doctor who informed them that it is lucky that you came now, before you felt the symptoms, because now it can be healed, but if you would have come later, we are not so optimistic.

The way these stories are normally explained is, that the reason the Rebbe heard their cry and felt their pain is because the Rebbe is so exalted and above the physicality of the world, that the world doesn’t limit his vision or hearing, and therefore he can hear and see whatever is happening in the world.

Others may explain it by noting that because of the Rebbe’s righteousness he was granted Ruach HaKodesh and that gives him this unique ability.

This also explains why many contemporary tzaddikim, give brochos and their brochos are fulfilled, but at the same time, many of them said to their chassidim if you want a havtacha (guarantee), that the brochah would be fulfilled you would have to go to the Lubavitcher.

Yes, all of these demonstrate the greatness of the Rebbe, and while the above explanations are true, I would like to share a different perspective.

While some tzaddikim are called the Rov or in previous generations the Maggid of…, in Lubavitch the title was always the Rebbe. Rebbe is an acronym of Rosh B’nei Yisroel.

Chassidus explains that Rosh Hashanah does not mean the beginning (or leader) of that year, but it means the head of that year. This is based on what the Alter Rebbe writes in the beginning of Tanya, that just as the head encompasses the entire body, so too the entire Jewish nation is dependent and receives their sustenance from their head, and the entire Jewish nation receives it from the one who is leading the nation.

So if we think into this concept, we realize that just as our physical head/mind feels all of our pains and aches even those of our toenails, so too the one who is the head of the Jewish nation feels the pain of the entire nation.

It isn’t merely that the Rebbe hears or sees the person’s anguish and is there to help them; but it is that the Rebbe actually felt and shared their pain, because they are part of him.

This now answers our original question. How do we explain to those who never saw the Rebbe that they have a real and strong connection to the Rebbe? They didn’t have the same interaction as we did!

However, as explained, your good friend is one with whom you have common interests and good and positive interactions. However, our connection to the Rebbe is not based on that, but rather every Jew is part of the body of the Rosh of the Jewish people. 

Just as the Rebbe felt the pain of those Jews who cried out to Hashem, although they did not call out to the Rebbe as many of them didn’t even know of his existence, rather they cried out to Hashem. But they are a part of the Jewish nation, and the head feels their pain. The same is so with everyone who never saw the Rebbe: you too are part of the Jewish nation and subsequently in the larger picture, you are a limb or organ of the body called the Jewish people.

While your hands do not feel the pain that you have in your feet or stomach, your head does.

Furthermore, when one sees that someone has a genuine desire to help them, it is natural that you appreciate that interest and reciprocate that kindness.

So when the Rebbe stated that a faithful shepherd does not forsake his flock; in essence the Rebbe was stating and promising that he will always be available to all us, including those who weren’t yet born, and will continue to help us. That includes even the youngest member of Tzivos Hashem, the organization that the Rebbe established for his members. Therefore, when he is connected to you, you are automatically connected to him.

A Taste of Chassidus 

In this week’s parsha, Hashem instructs Moshe that the leaders of each tribe shall place their staff in the mishkan. Then Aharon’s staff blossomed and grew almonds.

The commentaries explain that the reason it grew almonds is because almonds are the fastest fruit to develop. They continue that this is a sign that when a Kohen gives the priestly blessings they materialize almost immediately, as the blessing of a Kohen also has this quality.

We have to understand what this mean in practical terms?

To explain this concept, we first have to understand the concept of why we pray three times a day for our needs. Weren’t we already judged on this during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? 

The answer given is that while the ruling was that kindness should be given to that individual, that decision was in the supernal world of Atzilus. However, being that the person is in this physical world. which is on a much lower level, there has to be another judgement and that is the daily judgement.

In simple words or perhaps terms this can be explained that the judgement of Rosh Hashanah was that the person should receive a certain amount of pleasure. But pleasure can be derived from numerous factors. They can be spiritual or intellectual pleasure, or it can be physical pleasure. So the daily judgement is about what kind of pleasure are you going to actually receive. 

This can be explained from a known story of the Baal Shem Tov. 

A wealthy Jew came to him and requested a blessing for children. He had been married for numerous years, but his life is empty because they weren’t blessed with children.

The Baal Shem Tov replied, Hashem has bestowed His kindness upon you, as you are quite wealthy. If you are willing to forgo that kindness, I can bless you with children. The man replied I am definitely willing to do so, and as foretold he lost all of his money and possession, but he was blessed with children. 

So you see that even when the blessing is in this world, not just in a spiritual sense, as he was enjoying the benefits of Hashem’s kindness, nevertheless prayer, particularly prayer of a tzaddik, can change it to a different form of kindness. And that is the concept and purpose of  daily prayer.

To explain how we too use this dual or double judgement in our life on a daily basis, we will give the following scenario.

A friend of yours informs you about a member of the community that is going through challenging times and can use some financial and emotional support.

Hearing him describing that person’s plight may even bring tears to your eyes and you resolve to definitely participate in the campaign. But then a day or two may go by and you didn’t act on that resolve, and you decide that you must do something. 

However, at that moment you ask yourself how should I help out? Should it be financial support or emotional support, or perhaps the best thing I can do for him is that I give him some advice and guidance?

Then even after you resolve that question, you ask yourself another question, how much money or time should I allocate to that person? So you see there is a new or another question which requires a new decision, and this is the reason of our daily prayer.

In essence when a decision is made on an intellectual level, it doesn’t automatically translate in action on a practical level and to accomplish that one needs to consider it again how should they actually conduct themselves. 

However, there is a question on this. On Rosh Hashanah we are requesting not just kindness in abstract forms, but in tangible forms that it reaches us in this physical world, we request specific things. Therefore, the decision and judgement that was decided was not in spiritual or abstract terms but in practical terms, so what is the necessity of repeating these practical requests on a daily basis?

This chasm between a decision being made and its implementation can happen, if the decision is an intellectual decision. For a thought of the mind to come into action, there is a process of considering or thinking about it, then discussing it and finally acting upon it. However, if the decision is because that is my desire, then I will immediately carry it out without any interruption. 

In essence this is the difference of something going through the natural way of creation (seder histalshilus) or going above and beyond it.

This explains why Aharon and his descendants the kohanims blessings are fulfilled speedily fulfilled without any interruption.

As explained a few weeks ago, the priestly blessings have the quality of being a blessing that the blesser has the ability to pick up that ‘item’ you requested and hand it to you. in other words it is in their reach. Yet it also has the quality that it can create a new desire in heaven, that this should be His will.

Creating a new desire is higher than the normal way of the world. Being that this is above the norm, so therefore, they are no interruptions in that blessing taking effect immediately.

May we all merit that the blessing and prophecy that the Rebbe said to us numerous times, that we are on the threshold of Moshiach’s imminent arrival and he redeeming us from this exile, be fulfilled immediately, and we will once agin merit to be with the Rebbe in the third Beis Hamidasak NOW!

Rabbi Avtzon is a veteran mechanech and the author of numerous books on the Rebbeim and their chassidim. He can be contacted at avtzonbooks@gmail.com

He is also available to farbreng in your community.