Letter and Spirit

This week, as we approach summer vacation, we present a letter the Rebbe composed especially for the Talks and Tales, a monthly children’s magazine which Rabbi Nissan Mindel authored in English for over 47 years (at the behest of the Frierdiker Rebbe, and which the Rebbe checked over each and every issue for the duration of the 47 years before they went to print). The letter contains a wonderful message to children and adults alike about the importance of Torah learning and Mitzvos during the summer months.

This week, as we read the Parsha of Moshe sending Shluchim, we present a letter from the Rebbe in which he clarifies the appropriate role and activities of shluchim. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe to Rabbi Benjamin Blech of Yeshiva University, a well known lecturer and Jewish leader, in which he encourages Rabbi Blech in his exemplary work for yiddishkeit – specifically for taharas ha’mishpacha – and in general praises Young Israel – analyzing the significance of its name. A second letter from the Rebbe to “Mr. Young Israel,” R’ Yitzchok Meir Bunim, is included as well. The letters, written originally in English, are from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe on the topic of “simple” faith – in which he gives an analogy from nature and its complexity with its underlying essential simplicity. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, as we prepare for Shavuos, we present a letter from the Rebbe in which he gives an answer to the question: since we live in a society based on law and order, are the laws of the Torah still relevant today as they were thousands of years ago? The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe in which he clarifies the concept of shmitta – going beyond the limited understanding of it as merely a sabbatical for the land to recoup its strength. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, as we read in the Torah Parshas Emor El Hakohanim, we present a letter from the Rebbe dealing with the question of hereditary classes in Judaism, such as the aristocracy of Kohanim and Levyim, which seem to not be consistent “with the otherwise democratic orientation of Judaism.” The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a document found in the Archives of the Rebbe’s trusted secretary Rabbi Nissan Mindel, containing highlights from this week’s Parsha – Acharei – along with the Rebbe’s handwritten notations. Rabbi Mindel’s daughter, Mrs. Frida Schapiro, says she believes that this article was written for the monthly Talks and Tales, which Rabbi Mindel authored for 47 years and every single issue of which the Rebbe checked over before going to print.

This week the world marked Holocaust Remembrance Day. In honor of the occasion, we present a letter from the Rebbe addressing the common question: why the Holocaust? The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, as we read in the Torah Parshas Shmini, we present a letter from the Rebbe to a supporter of the Rebbe’s “Wild Project” in Eretz Yisrael – a project that goes above and beyond the regular and the usual – in which the Rebbe goes into detail about the special significance of “eight” and its transcendent quality. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter  from the Rebbe, sent during the days of Sefiras Ha’omer in 1974, in which he explains that Sefirah is a mitzvah that transcends time and place, and reflects our inner longing for true liberation from our inner limitations and confinements. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe in which he thanks the donor of a new Aron Kodesh for 770, who personally handcrafted it from wood and gifted it in honor of the Rebbe’s 72nd birthday in 1974. The Aron Kodesh still stands in its place today, over 40 years later. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

As we approach the holiday of our liberation from Egypt and our becoming a nation, we present an eye-opening letter of the Rebbe in which he emphasizes the crucial importance of Jewish national identity in education, and in particular in the education of individuals with special needs. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe on the important role Jewish women played in our redemption from Egypt and subsequent receiving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, in addition to the women’s initiative in their contributions for the mishkan and refusal to participate in the golden calf. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe on the importance of accepting the yoke of Heaven – and in general the authority of our leaders – the lack of which leads to the spirit of ecumenism and interfaith dialogue, which the Rebbe addresses in this letter. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present a letter from the Rebbe written shortly after Purim in 1951 (a little over a month after he accepted the Nesius), in which he thanks a group of students for the Shalch Manos they sent him. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, we present an article about Parshas Mishpatim from the Talks and Tales children’s monthly magazine, which Rabbi Nissan Mindel authored for close to 47 years, every single issue of which the Rebbe carefully checked before the magazine went to print each month.

This week, as we read in the Torah Parshas Yisro, we present a letter from the Rebbe discussing the deeper significance of the Ten Commandments – the connection between the profound principle of monotheism contained in the first two commandments and the apparently  simple and obvious injunctions of the last few commandments. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, in honor of Tu B’Shvat, we present a letter from the Rebbe on the significance of the New Year for Trees and its connection to Yud Shvat and Bosi L’gani. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, in honor of Yud Shvat, Rabbi Sholom Ber Shapiro of Nissan Mindel Publications shares with our readers a copy of an original, unique letter from the Rebbe, with his handwritten notations, written right after the histalkus of the Previous Rebbe on Yud Shvat, 1950, to one of the Rayatz’s well-known supporters.

This week, as we read in the Parsha about Golus Mitzrayim, we present a letter from the Rebbe on the question of horoscopes, and whether a Jew is allowed to consult with one, being that Egypt was steeped in these practices. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.

This week, as we read in the Torah Parshas Shemos, we present a letter from the Rebbe in which he emphasizes the importance of a Jewish name. The letter, written originally in English, is from the archives of the Rebbe’s personal trusted secretary, Rabbi Nissan Mindel.