President Javier Milei of Argentina Joins Event Commemorating Rebbe Incognito

by Moshe New – chabad.org

Thousands gathered Monday evening at the Kirchner Cultural Center in Buenos Aires to pay tribute to the enduring legacy of the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory.

The event, scheduled a week before the 30th anniversary of the Rebbe’s passing, saw a cross-section of Argentina’s burgeoning Jewish community gather to honor the Rebbe, and note especially the tremendous impact he has had and continues to have on Argentinian Jewry.

At one point of the night, giant screens across the room displayed images of President Javier Milei’s visit to the Ohel, the Rebbe’s resting place in Queens, N.Y.— his first trip overseas as president-elect. Little did those in the hall know that Milei himself was seated inconspicuously on one of the balconies.

“He came because of his personal relationship with the Rebbe, because of his appreciation for the Rebbe,” Rabbi Tzvi Grunblatt, director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Argentina, told Chabad.org. “He didn’t want to be seated with any political person, or any big enterprise person, he just wanted to be there as one of the people.”

According to Grunblatt, Milei sat in attendance for the entire two hour event, and requested that the organizers not announce his presence so he could honor the Rebbe, not in the persona of President but rather as the man Javier Milei: an admirer and student of the Rebbe.

“He [Milei] told me that ‘it was important for me to be here’,” Grunblatt says. “He didn’t publish any picture or statement on his otherwise prolific social media accounts because his relationship with the Rebbe is a private affair.”

Among other dignitaries at the event were Eyal Sela, Israel’s ambassador to Argentina; and Amos Linetzky, president of AMIA, the central umbrella organization for Jewish organizations in Argentina.

Speaking to national TV network La Nación+, on Tuesday, Grunblatt explained the importance of honoring the Rebbe.

“A Rebbe is a teacher… a spiritual teacher, a teacher who shapes a person, who gives them content, who gives them direction, who gives them light,” he said in the nationally-aired interview.

“The Rebbe … had an impact of lifting the Jewish people after the Holocaust and Communist persecution. He revived their entire spiritual life,” Grunblatt explained to the nation. “On one hand, the Jewish people had achieved the establishment of Israel, but the Rebbe revived the Jewish spiritual life around the world, sending teachers, making young people into teachers and leaders, sending them to China, Alaska, Congo. Today there are 5,000 Chabad centers worldwide.

“But besides [this distinct impact on the Jewish world], the Rebbe brought a universal message, universal for every human being. That we must and can transform the world,” he said.

When asked by the anchor what the secret of the Rebbe’s success was, Grunblatt had a simple answer: Education.

“What is the secret of the Rebbe? Education in values, sincerity, dedication, humility, and true, pure faith in G‑d,” the rabbi explained. “Pure faith makes and generates a pure man. And when a person is next to a man of faith, the person is contagious.”

The conversation shifted to both what the Chabad-Lubavitch movement was all about and specifically why people go to the Ohel, and more specifically why the president went there upon learning of his election to office.

“It’s a sacred place, a place that generates inspiration,” Grunblatt responded. “If we go to biblical sources, we see that 3000 years ago people were already making pilgrimages to the graves of holy men to ask because they have a special way of inspiring the person and connecting with G‑d.”

What, the anchor wanted to know, had President Milei found there?

“I think he found peace, he found sincerity, kindness, and connection with G‑d,” Grunblatt said. “Because, deep down, the human being, when they achieve connection with G‑d, he achieves happiness, stability, and meaning in life. The president reinforced that connection with G‑d through the Rebbe’s teachings and specifically by reaching that holy place.”