The Farbrengen No One Knew Was Filmed

Just in time for Pesach Sheini, JEM has released newly discovered, full video footage of the Rebbe’s farbrengen from 5743 (1983)—a gathering that, until now, was believed to exist only in audio form.

Watch the Farbrengen here for free: https://jemtv.page.link/Umc9

In 5742, Rabbi Eli Blachman, together with Rabbi Chaim B. Halberstam, began the groundbreaking work of officially recording all of the Rebbe’s weekday farbrengens on video. Their vision marked a major milestone—capturing hundreds of hours of the Rebbe’s talks that are now readily available to audiences around the world. However, some of those early tapes were sadly lost over time.

As a bochur, Avraham Berns was involved in the technical setup for the simulcast of the Rebbe’s farbrengens, which included routing a video signal through equipment that, on occasion, allowed recordings to be made on VHS tape.

Just this past Wednesday, while sorting through old VHS tapes, Avraham discovered a tape labeled “Pesach Sheini.” Curious about the year and other details he brought the tape to the JEM offices. The JEM team identified it as the farbrengen of Pesach Sheini 5743, long believed to exist only in audio format.

Recognizing the historical importance of the find, the JEM team quickly moved to digitize, restore, correct the color and audio to prepare the footage for release—successfully making it available just in time for Pesach Sheini.

The farbrengen, held on the night between the 14th and 15th of Iyar, explores the message of Pesach Sheini—a day for those who missed bringing the Korban Pesach at its appointed time. The Rebbe emphasizes the empowering lesson that it’s never too late to reconnect and elevate one’s spiritual standing. He speaks about “leaping” in serving Hashem, showing how one can rise to higher levels even after missed opportunities, and draws a connection between Pesach Sheini and the upcoming Lag BaOmer, highlighting their shared themes of spiritual growth.

This powerful message now comes to life in a way never seen before, thanks to the remarkable discovery of the video. For over four decades, this farbrengen was known only through audio recordings—until now.

This is not the first time Avraham Berns has contributed valuable material to JEM. His dedication continues to enrich the archive, preserving moments that were thought to be lost. We thank him for this exceptional discovery, and express our appreciation to Rabbis Mendel Gourarie, Memkeh Schmukler, Yossi Wolowik, and Levi Labkowski of the JEM team for ensuring the farbrengen’s timely release to the public.

Watch it here for free: https://jemtv.page.link/Umc9

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