Special Story: Gimmel Tammuz

by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

I was asked to farbreng this past Shabbos in one of the local shuls, however, due to the guidelines I demurred. Some people asked me to put down one of the points that I would have stressed in the farbrengen. Since I often farbreng with bochurim, this thought is geared towards them and their parents. I will present it as a letter to our youth.

Dear Mendy sheyiche

In our farbrengens and discussions you often mention the fact, that I, as well as your parents sheyichyu were zoche to hear the Rebbe farbreng, receive dollars from him, receive answers to questions or brochos for whatever we wrote in our pa”n to him. We have our connection from years ago and we can hold on to it. However, you Mendy, you are named after the Rebbe, you only can see him in a video, and you feel it is not the same as participating in a farbrengen, when the Rebbe is speaking in the same room as you. So you ask, how can you have a true hiskashrus to the Rebbe?

Yes, every week you went on mivtzoyim, and you hope that you can speedily return to that special shlichus. You learn a sicha or a maamar, and truly try to understand what the Rebbe’s teachings. You are conducting yourself like a chassidishe bochur, but you feel that your hiskashrus is not strong enough.
So let me respond with two answers.

Reb Hillel Paritcher was instructed by the Mitteler Rebbe to travel to the colonies he established in the distant Ukraine. Every year, after Shavuos, Reb Hillel would leave Lubavitch on this three month journey and return to his hometown for Rosh Hashanah. Reb Hillel’s visit to the various towns accomplished tremendously; chadorim were established and proper melamdim were hired. Shochtim, mohelim and sofrim were taught and encouraged to settle there, there was rejuvenation amongst hundreds and thousands of Jewish families.

One year, one of the people bemoaned to Reb Hillel and said, Rebbe, ever since I met you some years ago, I am trying to improve myself. I try to daven properly, I try to learn something more, but alas, I look at myself and see the truth, I am where I started, I was and empty vessel and remained an empty vessel. What was accomplished? NOTHING!!!

Reb Hillel gently replied, you accomplished great things, and I will prove it from your own words. Years ago, it didn’t bother you that you were what you now call an empty vessel, but now you are bemoaning that fact. Is that not a tremendous accomplishment?!

So my dear Mendy, take Reb Hillel’s words to heart. The fact that you feel that your hiskashrus needs improvement, that itself demonstrates your hiskashrus to the Rebbe.

One who has no hiskashrus, would not feel that it is lacking.

But the truth is much more than that: your hiskashrus is strong and probably stronger than mine, and many others who were by the Rebbe’s farbrengens.

There is a maamar of the Mitteler Rebbe, as well from the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek that asks the following question. The possuk states, If a man has two wives, one who he loves and one who he dislikes and each one has a son….

The question is, we know that whenever the Torah speaks about a man and a wife, it is a reference to Hashem and the Jewish nation. There is only one Jewish nation, hence, only one wife. What is the Torah referring to, when it states Hashem has two wives?

However, although there is only one Jewish nation, there can be two kinds of relationship between Hashem and the Jews. There is the time period when there was an apparent closeness between Hashem and the Jews. This is referenced with “the wife he loves” and is speaking about the time period where the Jews were in the midbar received the Torah and were protected by the clouds of glory and sustained by the muhn for forty years. Similarly, this is also referring to the years of the Beis Hamikdash, when miracles were visible to all every day. Those are what we often call ‘the good old days’, when the sun was shining brightly.

Then there are the dark years of exile and often brutal persecution, they are referenced by “the wife he dislikes”.

The possuk continues, ….And it will be on the day he chooses to give his inheritance, the man may not give preference to the son of the beloved wife, as the other son is his first-born.

This is a metaphor about when Moshiach comes, may it be speedily in our days, the question will arise, who deserves the credit? Whose actions brought about this tremendous revelation? The simple answer is for us to look to the giants of yesteryear, the tzaddikim and great outstanding chassidim, and say it was them.

However, the possuk states, no, not them! Don’t point to the Jews who lived in the days where G-dliness shined. Don’t look at the Tanaaim and Amoroim, the Tzaddikim and phenomenal chassidim of yesteryear. Yes they were definitely great and deserve credit for what they did, however, we should realize, the children that grew up in the days of “darkness”, are the ones who deserve the credit.

I saw the Rebbe, I heard the Rebbe and I received brochos and guidance from the Rebbe, So yes, I try to be mekusher, but my hiskashrus is based on a relationship, of understanding, appreciation or whatever you call it. But it is based on something.

You on the other hand didn’t have the ability, so what is your hiskashrus based on, it is only on the Rebbe’s essence and nothing else. And that is what the possuk is stating; the children that grew up in a time of concealment, they are the ones that deserve credit. Keep it up, and inspire us.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

This post is l’zechus a speedy and complete recovery for my sister Chaya Rivkah bas Cheyena together with all cholei Yisroel. Also in honor of the yom holedes this week of Shloime ben Rivka Zlata, may it be a gezunte year and may he be blessed ba’kol, mi’kol, kol.

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