Featured Articles Weekly Columns: A Chassid and Shliach Who Was Truly Alive

CONTENTS
4
FEATURED ARTICLES
WEEKLY COLUMNS
3 Dvar Malchus
13 Parsha Thought
20 Moshiach And Hakhel
30 Bitachon Bytes
34 Tzivos Hashem
A CHASSID AND
SHLIACH WHO WAS
TRULY ALIVE
Menachem Ziegelboim
22 PROVIDENTIAL
ENCOUNTERS OF
CONVERGING SOULS
Menachem Ziegelboim
20
SHLUCHIM MUST
31 THE
BE AT THE FOREFRONT
OF THE BATTLE FOR
ERETZ YISROEL
Sholom Ber Crombie
Beis Moshiach (USPS 012-542) ISSN 1082-0272

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11/12/2015 11:22:10 PM
DVAR MALCHUS
A SIMPLE
RESPONSE
TO WHO IS
MOSHIACH?
What we know from the Zohar and the Midrash
is that there is a Rebbe. The identity of the
Rebbe, however, is not mentioned there. But
when the question is posed, whos who? there
is a simple response * From Chapter Four of
Rabbi Shloma Majeskis Likkutei Mekoros Vol. 2.
(Underlined text is the compilers emphasis.)
Translated by Boruch Merkur
1. My revered father in-law,

the Rebbe, told that after the first
few times the Alter Rebbe visited
Mezritch, and his affiliation with
Chassidim had become apparent,
his father in-law lost the position of
honor he had in his community. The
Alter Rebbe was clearly met with
great antagonization there.
Be that as it may, the Alter
Rebbe had a quorum of adherents,
and although it was just a meager
minyan a term the Rebbe used
when telling the story meaning
that among the men that comprised
the minyan were simple people,
nevertheless, since he had his
own personal minyan, a complete
congregation, the Alter Rebbe said
that he had no fear of the two.
When telling this story, my father
in-law, the Rebbe, never identified
these two men.
The Alter Rebbes minyan
included a man by the name of Reb

Shlomo Lekach Macher. He was
called by that name as his livelihood
was to bake lekach, cakes, for seudos
Mitzva, meals in honor of special
religious occasions. For at certain
times it is simply not appropriate
to eat regular cake; it is inadequate
for a seudas Mitzva. Thus, he was
known by all the Torah scholars of
the city, who would be invited to the
seudos Mitzva to honor the hosts
and the guests.
Reb Shlomo told that in the year
5531, still during the life of the
Maggid of Mezritch, the Alter Rebbe
farbrenged with his adherents during
the Shloshes Yemei Hagbala. In each
farbrengen the Alter Rebbe spoke
about how the Torah states that G-d
told Moshe Rabbeinu during the
Shloshes Yemei Hagbala, And they
will also believe in you forever. The
Alter Rebbe then posed the difficulty
that at first glance it appears like

a form of bribery, for in order for
Moshe to do his work of bringing
the Jewish people to Har Sinai, G-d
tells him that they willbelieve in
you forever.
The Alter Rebbe then cited the
interpretation of Even Ezra that
until then there were Jews who
were fraught with doubt in the
concept of prophecy. And although
it says, They believed in G-d and
in Moshe, His servant, it does not
say there that all the Jewish people
believed; there was a group who still
did not believe. It is regarding these
cynics that G-d promised, And they
too will believe in you forever.
In response to this interpretation
of Even Ezra, Ramban asserts that
we cannot say that Jews lacked faith
in prophecy. Thus, Ramban derives
a different interpretation of the
verse. The Alter Rebbe, however,
took up the position of Even Ezra,
explaining that although everyone
did in fact believe in the concept of
prophecy, there remained a doubt as
to whether Moshe was the prophet.
As my revered father in-law, the
Rebbe, put it: there was doubt about
whos who. And to address this
lack of faith in the identity of the
true prophet, G-d promised, And
they will also believe in you forever.
Continued on page 19
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OBITUARY
e were greatly saddened

to hear the news of the
passing of R Aharon
Eliezer Ceitlin, ah,
one of the Rebbes shluchim to Eretz
Yisroel, a mashpia in Tzfas, and
director of the network of Chabad
preschools in Tzfas. He suffered from
a lengthy illness and was only 62 years
of age.
R Ceitlin was born in Montreal
on 8 Tishrei 5714. His parents were
the mashpia, R Yehoshua Heschel
and Rivka. He was named for his
paternal grandfather who was killed
al kiddush Hashem. The personality
of his grandfather for whom he
was named as well as his fathers
special uncompromising Chassidishe
chinuch, shaped R Aharon Lazers
personality. He always strove
towards deep hiskashrus to the
Rebbe along with uncompromising
Chassidishe conduct and he always
demanded more of himself.
He went to Chabad schools in
Canada and when he graduated he
began learning in Tomchei Tmimim
in Montreal where he was a talmid
of R Menachem Zev Greenglass
and a mushpa of R Peretz Mochkin
about whom he would always relate
memories.
One of the stories that express
what R Aharon Lazer was about
took place when he was still a
yeshiva bachur. At a farbrengen in
honor of 11 Nissan, he took more
mashke than the gzeira allowed. His
father censured him as a result of
which he wrote a letter to the Rebbe,
asking for a tikkun for transgressing
the gzeira. The Rebbe told him what
to do to make up for it. After a short
while, when bachurim were selected
for shlichus to Australia, he was the
only one the Rebbe approved out
of the group of bachurim who had
transgressed the gzeira and did not
ask for a tikkun.
In 5733, when he was 21, he
was sent by the Rebbe with a group
of bachurim to distant Australia in
A CHASSID
AND SHLIACH
WHO WAS
TRULY ALIVE
Whoever knew R Aharon Eliezer Ceitlin ah,
knows that the words may his memory be a
blessing seem incongruous when speaking of this
totally alive Chassid who was a role model of a
life-force that is life-giving, in his very being and
conduct. * With a spark of hiskashrus in his eyes
and the fire of Chassidus burning in his heart, he
captivated thousands of people around the world,
connecting them to the Rebbe and the Rebbes
inyanim which filled his entire world.
By Menachem Ziegelboim
order to strengthen the local yeshiva.

R Ceitlin would tell the following
episode of how the bachurim
transformed the city:
In 5733 I had the privilege of
traveling on the Rebbes shlichus to
Australia with another five students.
A year later, the Rebbe announced
the mivtzaim campaigns. I wont

forget how a letter arrived from the
Rebbe with five lines, no more
soul request to increase strength in
all five campaigns (at the time there
were five mivtzaim: Mivtza Torah
that every Jew should learn Torah
every day, Mivtza Tfillin, Mivtza
4 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

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Mezuza, Mivtza Tzdaka every

home should have a pushka, and
Mivtza Bayis Malei Sfarim).
How inspired we were! It is
hard to convey. We simply turned
the city over. We were in yeshiva
in Australia and there were
shluchim along with talmidim
from
Chassidishe
homes
who were the majority of the
talmidim. In addition, there were
students who were just becoming
religious. When the Rebbe
started with the mivtzaim, we did
not think of taking along those
beginner students on mivtzaim
for they themselves needed kiruv

and could not be relied upon yet.
However, after the Rebbe sent
the soul request, we decided
that we would include those
bachurim. We did not send them
on their own. We went in pairs, a
bachur who knew more with one
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Obituary
TRAILBLAZER
R Ceitlin (third from left) with a group of talmidim-shluchim to Australia on a visit to

Shazar. Shazar is holding a Megilla which he received from the Rebbe
R Ceitlin (first from the left in the middle row) with talmidim in the yeshiva in Australia
of the newcomers. I remember

that evening, after learning in
yeshiva, when all the bachurim
left together and everyone
returned so excited.
As much as we worked
with those bachurim, learned
with them and farbrenged with
them in order to instill some
Chassidishe chayus in them, a
chayus of hiskashrus, nothing
was as effective as that night of
mivtzaim, when they spoke to
others about strengthening their
connection to Hashem. They
returned with an indescribable
uplift of spirit. After that, we
always took them on mivtzaim.
It created a revolutionary
metamorphosis!
***
In 5736, R Aharon Eliezer
married Itta Rus (daughter of R
Tzvi Greenwald of Kfar Chabad).
Between 5736 and 5738, the
Rebbe sent groups of shluchim
to Eretz Yisroel to the holy cities
of Yerushalayim and Tzfas.
The Rebbe announced this at a
farbrengen and said whoever was
interested should register with
the secretary. R Aharon Lazer
registered and he was among
those picked by the Rebbe to be
his shliach.
In Tzfas too, he stood out

from the crowd, being first for
all of the Rebbes inyanim and
mivtzaim. He was eventually
appointed mashpia of the
community and member of
the vaad of administrators and
the menahel of the network
of Chabad preschools which,
today, number dozens of schools
throughout the city. Over 1000
children attend them.
The
trait
that
most
characterized R Aharon Lazer
was his dynamism and his
resoluteness. He was never
fearful of carrying out that which
he knew was correct. Throughout
his years of outreach work, the
motif of blazing new trails was
always apparent. He was among
the first to carry out the Rebbes
wishes even in things which did
not seem possible.
R Sholom Levkivker, a
resident of Tzfas, relates:
One
of
my
childhood
memories, since I was in third
grade, is from the early years of
Ohr Menachem. Things were
not as organized as they are
today. Until first grade we were
in a nice building given to us by
the municipality in the center of
the city, but then Kiryat Chabad
was built and the members of the
community who lived in the old
city began moving there. So the
menahalim of the school which
had just opened looked for an
alternative place for our school.
When we started third grade,
the school was located in the
apartments owned by the Amidar
Corporation near Kiryat Chabad,
but at a certain point, the
company decided we had to leave.
One day, they sent construction
workers who began building a
wall blocking the entrance to the
apartments. Some of the students
ran to R Ceitlin who was the

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principal at the time. He quickly

came and was shaken up when he
saw the wall that had been built.
The contractor and his workers
and the people from Amidar were
still there and he began raising
a hue and cry which I will never
forget.
With a heavy American accent
he yelled about how his father
was moser nefesh as a child to
learn Torah in Soviet Russia and
here, in Eretz Yisroel, they did
not allow children to learn Torah.
His rant was effective because
it came from the heart. As was
his wont, he did not suffice with
that but yelled Shma Yisroel and
broke the wall. The contractor
and his staff together with the
various company officials were
embarrassed and they left without
reacting. They did not return and
we only moved when the number
of students doubled and we had
to look for a bigger place.
***
This was also the case with
the printing of the Tanya in
Lebanon, when all attempts
at obtaining entry permits to
Lebanon, which was under
heavy fire, failed. The IDF was
unwilling to grant approval to
Chabad Chassidim to enter with
a printing press. All doors were
closed. R Ceitlin, who had gone
to bed late at night, could not
begrudge himself the little bit of
rest and he got up after midnight,
and drove to the Command
Center of the IDF Northern
Command. There, following
a dramatic performance, he
managed to get in and meet with
the General Officer in Command
(GOC) of the entire northern
region in the midst of an ongoing
war, and convinced him to issue
the necessary permits. It was
his passion and hiskashrus to
the Rebbe that enabled him to
get a tough general on board.
R Ceitlin (left) at his wedding
His rant was effective because it came from

the heart. As was his wont, he did not suffice
with that but yelled Shma Yisroel and broke the wall.
The contractor and his staff together with the various
company officials were embarrassed and they left
without reacting. They did not return and we only
moved when the number of students doubled and we
had to look for a bigger place.
His fellow shluchim in Tzfas,

who were also involved, could
not believe it when he knocked
at their doors toward morning
and showed them the papers. By
five oclock, they were all at the
border checkpoint ready to enter
Lebanon and print the Tanya in
various Lebanese cities, a project
undertaken under heavy fire
and with the protection of IDF
soldiers.
Needless to say, R Aharon
Lazer took the opportunity not
only to print the Tanya but also
to do mivtzaim with thousands of
soldiers. It was one of the most
heroic campaigns that Chabad
Chassidim undertook in this past

generation.
R Ehud Bashari relates:
I first met R Ceitlin when I
learned in the yeshiva gdola in
Tzfas in 5741. Back then, the
Chabad schools in which he was
a senior partner were expanding
greatly and there werent enough
teachers. I was asked to teach
and I began working in chinuch.
I worked for a while until I
married. After that, we moved to
Kfar Chabad. We kept in touch,
at R Ceitlins initiative. Every
so often he would come to Kfar
Chabad to raise funds. On each
of these visits he would visit us,
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Obituary
R Ceitlin active in Lebanon
gathering with a point from the

Rebbes sicha.
***
R Ceitlin was known for
his entrancing farbrengens. He
would farbreng with fervor and
speak in a way that captivated
his audience. He would farbreng
a lot, as per the requests of
shluchim around the world. He
always knew the way to reach
peoples hearts and it made
no difference how old they
were or their level of religiosity
or Chassidishkait. He would
speak before elder Chassidim
as well as before children who
knew nothing about Judaism,
at evenings for women, for
balabatim,
mekuravim,
and
even for shluchim and yeshiva
bachurim.
R Eliezer Ashkenazi relates:
A few years ago, I asked him
to come and farbreng with the
talmidim of Chanoch LNaar in
Tzfas. He happily agreed and
it was one of the most powerful
farbrengens we had in the
yeshiva. The bachurim sat there
for a long time and drank in
what he said. One of the things
he talked about was the special
atmosphere and anticipation of
the Geula that enveloped the
Chassidim in the 90s.
LEADING THE GROUPS

say lchaim, and emphasize to
us the importance of going on
shlichus. Melamdim are needed
in Tzfas, he would announce
every time.
One of those times, he
managed to convince my wife
and myself and we moved back
to Tzfas. We settled in the yishuv
Birya near Tzfas where we
work in shlichus in addition to
chinuch. When I am asked what
made me go on shlichus, I say

that R Ceitlin gets the credit.
R Ceitlin was a commanding
leader who pulled others after
him, due to his intensity and his
personality; you couldnt ignore
those attributes. When we would
arrange a meeting for the parents
at the preschools and he would
get up to speak, the parents
would be so inspired. In general,
he would start any meeting or
His hiskashrus to the Rebbe

penetrated every bone of his
body, in his very being. He lived
the Rebbe every moment, in every
circumstance, and in everything
he did. With every subject he
would ask himself: What does
the Rebbe demand of me? What
does the Rebbe want now?
He was a role model of
someone for whom the Rebbe
was the essence of his life. This
is what he was involved with and
this is what he would farbreng

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about at every opportunity. He

wasnt only talk; he walked the
talk. He did not merely live it,
he infused life into others. This
is what he radiated to everyone
around him. When he was
present, when you heard him,
when you saw him, you thought
it could not be otherwise.
He once said, When the
Rebbe turned 70, the Rebbe asked
for 70 new mosdos. If the Rebbe
told us this and demanded this
of us, then it seems that we too
can achieve this. Obviously, the
Rebbe demands of each person
according to his capabilities and
opportunities, but if the Rebbe
said this, we need to know that
we can do it. The Rebbe did not
demand unrealistic things of his
Chassidim.
As part of his chayus in the
Rebbes matters, he eagerly
brought people to the Rebbe
and connected people to the
Rebbe. He knew that every Jew
who went to the Rebbe would
be tremendously influenced. He
invested tremendous chayus into
this.
Before the first group arrived
at 770, R Ceitlin went to the
US a few times to arrange all
the details. He wrote to the
Rebbe about this and the Rebbe
responded, may it be with
great success and good news.
Before the arrival of the second
group, for Lag BOmer 5750,
he received an amazing answer
from the Rebbe that showed the
Rebbes special fondness, May it
be a kiddush sheim Shamayim in
good health and happiness.
The first group that he
brought to the Rebbe received
special attention from the Rebbe.
The Rebbe said a special sicha in
their honor and then even edited
the sicha. At the farbrengen that
Shabbos, the Rebbe answered
lchaim
with
a
luminous
R Ceitlin receiving a dollar from the Rebbe
He was a
distinguished
shliach, a menahel
of a big school, and
yet he conducted
himself simply. He
gave every person
his full attention with
tremendous caring.
countenance to the members of

the group and encouraged them
several times to sing louder. At
dollars too, they were singled
out, as R Ceitlin related, When
I passed by with the group, I
told the Rebbe that these people
are from the group from Tzfas.
The Rebbe gave each of them
two dollars for tzdaka and every
so often the Rebbe would ask
those who passed, Are you also
with the group that came from
Tzfas?
During their visit, they
submitted requests to the Rebbe
and the Rebbe responded with, I

will mention it at the gravesite,
to all of them. They did not all
understand what this meant and
some of them were annoyed by
the brevity of the response. When
all of R Ceitlins explanations
did not help, he wrote to the
Rebbe. In the Rebbes response
he underlined the words, I will
mention it at the gravesite and
added etc. etc. as if to say
that the blessing, I will mention
it at the gravesite consists of
numerous blessings. In addition,
the Rebbe wrote, And the
distribution of dollars in shul
includes quite a few [blessings].
And Chanuka gelt twice?!
i.e. what are they complaining
about?
A year later, in 5751, a group
of over two hundred people came.
They had a group photo taken of
them in front of 770, but about
thirty of them were missing for
various reasons. A few days later,
R Ceitlin submitted the picture
to the Rebbe and noted, They
were not all in the picture. The
Rebbe added the words, thats
surprising.
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Obituary
HAKHEL IN THE HEADLINES

Shortly before his passing, he told R Berel Lazar, rav of Russia, an idea
regarding Hakhel:
What is demanded of us this year is the inyan of Hakhel. When you think
about Hakhel you can wonder, what does it mean? We do this during other
years too make gatherings, give shiurim, deliver lectures, speak with people.
So what is the difference between a Shnas Hakhel and the same activity done
last year or next year?
The idea is that in the Hakhel year of 5748, after 22 Shevat, the Rebbe
associated it all with and the living will take it to heart. All of the Rebbes
demands were under this rubric. Even things the Rebbe spoke about in the
past, things he demanded in the past, he connected to Hakhel.
The heading is whats different, he explained. Do whatever you did
until now, but with the chayus of a new headline. The heading today is
Hakhel. Routine activities get a new headline act and a new energy; Hakhel.
This fresh new headline needs to be apparent, so that the fact that you are
living with the new topic is visible. There goes a Hakhel Yid! Everything about
you broadcasts Hakhel.
R Ehud Bashari relates:
As part of my work with him,
I joined the groups that flew
to the Rebbe in order to help
out. On these trips I was able to
see how a shliach of the Rebbe
conducts himself when in action.
He simply set himself aside
and devoted himself totally to
imbuing them with the messages
of the Rebbe. I remember that
when the group would arrive at
the first passport checkpoint and
the sending off of the luggage at
Ben Gurion Airport he would get
up on a crate and begin singing
Ufaratzta. All eyes from the
huge numbers of travelers at the
airport were upon him but he
didnt care.
On the plane he did not rest
for a moment. He would ask to be
able to use the sound system and
would say words of inspiration
not only for the group but for
the hundreds of passengers.
He would sing niggunim with
them and would sweep them up
into Lubavitch while they were
still in the air. I remember one
trip when a hundred people got
up and began dancing until the
stewardesses were afraid it would

affect the stability of the plane.
***
Even after the Rebbes health
was compromised in 1992,
R Ceitlin still brought people
to him. For Shavuos 5753, R
Ceitlin asked the Rebbe whether
to continue bringing groups.
When the secretaries read the
question to the Rebbe, the Rebbe
nodded yes.
Since then, even after Gimmel
Tammuz, R Ceitlin continued
bringing groups to the Rebbe,
knowing that being in the
Rebbes presence would have a
deep influence on them.
Over the years, he also
brought groups of girls to the
Rebbe for Chof-Beis Shevat,
the yahrtzait of Rebbetzin
Chaya Mushka. On these trips
he did not suffice with simply
connecting the girls to the Rebbe.
He invested tremendous efforts
so that the results would be
that whoever went to the Rebbe
would be devoted, heart and soul,
to him and would become his
shlucha. There were many cases
in which one farbrengen of his
with them, men or girls, or one

personal conversation, brought
about a significant change in
their lives.
HISKASHRUS WITH EVERY

FIBER OF HIS BEING
R Ceitlin was always in the
middle of things. His primary
commitment was to the Chabad
preschools in Tzfas. Despite the
prodigious difficulties he had
to contend with, he was utterly
devoted to it. He was willing to
suffer countless indignities so
that the Rebbes institution would
continue to exist for another day
and another hour, at any price
and no matter the situation.
Then there was his devotion to be
mashpia to Anash and Tmimim
wherever he was invited, in Eretz
Yisroel or abroad, farbrengen
after farbrengen, with his entire
being pouring forth Chassidus
and darkei hachassidus and
hiskashrus to the Rebbe.
He once described how
a Chassid who is mekushar
ought to look: with a booklet of
Rambam, the daily Chitas, and
the weekly compilation for that
week in one suit pocket, and in
the other pocket a copy of the
brief points of the daily sicha, the
weekly hanacha of the farbrengen
on Shabbos and a kuntres of the
maamer that the Rebbe recently
edited, so that both pockets are
full and the mind is busy learning
the abundance of material the
Rebbe gave us, running to do
mivtzaim or the regular learning
program in yeshiva or kollel.
He walked the talk. He always
had a story or a Chassidic vort,
a recollection of the Rebbes
farbrengen or a farbrengen of
Chassidim.
His hiskashrus to the Rebbe
was an example to others.
He never compromised or

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made allowances for himself

in anything having to do with
carrying out the Rebbes wishes.
R Aharon Shiffman, shliach
to Moshav Shefer near Tzfas,
relates:
R Ceitlin kept closely in
touch with the Chabad House
at the moshav. For many years
he joined me at the Lag BOmer
parade that we made there, and
his presence was a help. He stood
out when it came to the Rebbes
inyanim and people loved to
connect with him.
I remember how about a
decade ago, before the expulsion
from Gush Katif, I met him at the
grocery store in Kiryat Chabad.
He
was
uncharacteristically
downcast. When he saw me,
he sadly asked, how can this
be prevented? He did not ask
why, he asked how. He did
not only talk; he was a man of
action.
On the spot, he asked me to
join him and together we went
to the home of R Dovid Meir
Drukman of Kiryat Mochkin and
from there we went together to
Netivot. We somehow bypassed
the police roadblocks and arrived
at Kfar Maimon. We navigated
our way through the fields
and vineyards alongside the
youngsters. The entire time I was
impressed by his mesirus nefesh,
by his leaving his dignity behind
and his going forth to carry out
the Rebbes orders to cry out and
protest the expulsion decree.
You could see his caring in so
many ways. Because I was one of
the gabbaim of the central shul
in Tzfas, he would sometimes
tell me about improvements that
he thought ought to be made.
For example, he asked me more
than once why there were torn
Siddurim. Not many people
were bothered by using wornout Siddurim, but it bothered
R Ceitlin with a group that he brought to the Rebbe for 22 Shevat
He
spoke
from
the
depths of his heart
about the nachas
we shluchim need to
give the Rebbe. He
had mesirus nefesh
to make the Rebbes
name and the name
of Lubavitch beloved.
him. He was even willing to take

the responsibility for fixing torn
Siddurim at the shul.
His passionate caring for the
Rebbes mivtzaim is well known.
He not only arranged them but
also allowed himself to take
part in them personally and
financially.
Mrs.
Nechama
Navon,
principal of the Chabad girls
school in Tzfas, had this to say
about R Ceitlin being at the
forefront of every one of the
Rebbes inyanim:
R Ceitlin had mesirus nefesh
to carry out the Rebbes horaos.

I remember how thirty years ago
I began working as an educator
in a government-religious school
in the city. During those years,
we were thinking of opening an
Ulpana (religious girls highschool). In order to prepare
the girls for dormitory living,
they would come to me once a
week to sleep and eat. I looked
for someone to teach them
Chassidus in the morning and
R Ceitlin unhesitatingly agreed
to do it. Although they were
relatively young girls from homes
where not much was observed,
he was happy to undertake the
challenge. He came once a week
at seven in the morning to teach
Chassidus.
When the girls came to my
home erev Purim, I knew that
at home they would not hear the
Megilla. Upon asking him, R
Ceitlin dropped everything (and
he had so much to do) and he
came and read the Megilla for us.
He was a distinguished shliach,
a menahel of a big school, and
yet he conducted himself simply.
He gave every person his full
attention
with
tremendous
caring.
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Obituary
I wont forget a conversation
I had with him in which he spoke
from the depths of his heart about
the nachas we shluchim need to
give the Rebbe. He had mesirus
nefesh to make the Rebbes
name and the name of Lubavitch
beloved. It truly mattered to him
in the essence of his soul.
***
When the Rebbe raised the
level of intensity on the subject
of Moshiach, R Lazer was totally
permeated with the issue and
did a great deal to spread the
Besuras HaGeula. At one of his
farbrengens for bachurim he said
that at a certain point he had
the idea of making a Bruchim
HaBaim sign and hanging it at
the entrance to the cemetery in
Tzfas, For the dead will soon
be resurrected and they need
to know that we are happy to
welcome them.
He once told of an incident
that occurred when he was a
yeshiva bachur:
R Shmuel Zalmanov (one
of the editors of HaTamim and
Kovetz Lubavitch and the editor
of Seifer HaNiggunim) was once
in Montreal and between Mincha
and Maariv he spoke quietly with
R Peretz Mochkin. Together with
some others, we tried hearing
what they were talking about
and I heard how R Shmuel was
telling R Peretz about a Chassid
who told the Rebbe in yechidus
that the Rebbe always uses the
wording that Moshiach should
come soon mamash, and
mamash is an acronym for the
Rebbes name. The Rebbe said,

Let it be, as long as Moshiach
comes already. So it is clear
that the Rebbe is Moshiach! R
Peretz responded, Whats the
question? That is certainly the
case!
ROLE MODEL
R Ceitlin was alive in a way
that infused life into others. He
did not merely do his shlichus but
was a role model of a shliach of
the Rebbe who was permeated
with kabbalas ol and simcha to
carry out the mission he was
assigned. There was a reason
that Anash and shluchim all over
the world often invited him to
farbreng. Many became involved
in Torah and Chassidus because
of him.
One of the things he was
involved with was visiting
shluchim in the field. He was
devoted to the shluchim and
didnt worry about his comfort
or energy level. He spent days
and nights traveling in order to
strengthen shluchim and their
mekuravim.
Last
Chanuka,
instead of being home, he was in
eastern Russia with the shluchim
of Vladivostok, Khabarovsk and
Birobidzhan. He not only visited
but farbrenged with the people in
the community, with the families
of shluchim, talking to them and
encouraging them.
And after he left he kept in
touch and would write reports
about what he thought needed
strengthening and support.
***
Last Adar is when R Ceitlin
discovered he was sick and
since then he underwent many
difficult treatments with simcha
and bitachon that Hashem would
cure him. Chabad Chassidim
around the world prayed for him
and did mitzvos in his merit.
He got the bad news from the
doctors when he was about to
make another trip to shluchim.
Although the doctors told him
not to travel, he insisted he had to
and they had to strongly pressure
him not to. Even after that, he
asked rabbanim whether he had
to listen to the doctors and it was
only at the last minute that he
canceled his plans.
Even when he was in the
hospital, despite all the suffering
he endured, he continued doing
the Rebbes mivtzaim cheerfully.
He derived great joy from being
able to convince another person
to put on tfillin. Even in the
hardest times, he lived and
breathed the daily Chitas and
Rambam.
On Simchas Torah he
was able to get the aliya for
Chassan Torah and on the day
of his passing, with superhuman
strength, he managed to daven
Shacharis and put on Rashi and
Rabbeinu Tam tfillin.
Clear-minded, in the presence
of all his children, to the sorrow
of Anash and the shluchim, his
neshama rose up, laden with
Torah, mitzvos, Chassidus, and
chassadim.
www.MoshiachForKids.com
Check it out!! Educational and Fun!!
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PARSHA THOUGHT
THE FUTURE
IS NOW!
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg
JACOBS DOUBLE
DECEPTION
Esau comes home from the
field, weary and on the verge of
death and asks Jacob to feed him
some lentils. Jacob asks him to
sell his birthright in return. Esau
is happy to oblige him, as the
Torah recounts.
Years later, Esau comes to
regret his sale of the birthright.
Isaac, sensing that his end
was near, summons Esau and
offers to bless him. Rebecca
overhears them and has Jacob
disguise himself as Esau and
get the blessing instead. When
Esau realizes that he has lost the
blessings to Jacob he cries out:
Is that why he was called
Jacob? He has deceived me
twice! He took my birthright,
and behold, now he has taken my
blessing!
Why does Esau invoke the
birthright? If indeed Esau had
gladly sold his birthright to
Jacob, as was the case, it would
justify Jacob receiving the
blessings from Isaac that were
intended for the first born. Since
Jacob possessed the birthright
with Esaus full complicity, Esau
hardly had a case against Jacob.
Why then did he cry out about
the birthright, which was harmful
to his own case and buttressed
that of Jacob?
Esau, who was not known for
honesty or integrity, should have

skipped over that fact. He should
have complained that Jacob
stole his blessings as the rightful
first born son and owner of the
birthright that went along with
being firstborn!
Another question has been
asked. Why does Esau say
and behold, now he took my
birthright. Why now? He
could have put it, and behold he
has taken my blessing!
ESAUS TRUE INNER DESIRE

One may offer an answer
based
on
the
Chassidic
understanding of the Evil Impulse
known as the Yetzer Hara or the
Satan, who is charged by G-d to
entice us to sin.
Rabbi
Shneur
Zalman
of Liadi (known as the Alter
Rebbe) in his classic work, the
Tanya, citing the Zohar, states
that even the Satan truly wants
us to deny his blandishments
and resist the temptation to sin.
Satan is compared by the Zohar
to the harlot who is paid by the
king to test the princes morals.
In truth, the king wants nothing
more than his sons rejection of
her advances, which the harlot
also knows. While she has been
commanded to use all her charm
to ensnare the prince, she would
be more pleased and more greatly
rewarded if, in spite of her doing
everything to seduce the prince,

he would not succumb.
The Satan too truly wants us
to resist his efforts at getting us
to sin but cannot show that desire
because it would undermine the
test and sabotage the mission for
which he was chosen.
Esau is the symbol of the
Satan. He is in a perennial
struggle to destroy Jacob. In a
later parsha, Jacob is confronted
by an angel, whom our Sages
identify as Esaus angel, the
Satan.
When Esau condemns his
brother for taking his blessings,
usurping his power to entice
people to sin, he drops a
hint that the Satans real inner
desire is that the person resist
all the pressure and stay blessed
thereby avoiding the curses of
the Satan. Esau therefore invokes
the selling of the birthright to
Jacob as his subliminal means of
strengthening Jacobs claim and
the procurement of the blessings.
WHY THE P.R.?

However,
notwithstanding
the Satans true inner intention,
he cannot publicize it. G-d has
given him the unenviable mission
to be an enticer, seducer and
mischief-maker par excellence.
That is his G-d given role and he
may not, until Moshiach comes,
compromise his job. How then
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PARSHA THOUGHT
When we do Tshuva we travel into the future

even as we still have our feet rooted on terra
firma. This is precisely what our role in preparing for
Redemption entails: bringing the future into the present.
can we suggest that Esau was
dropping hints that undermined
his effort to take the blessings
away from Jacob?
THE POWER OF TSHUVA

TO REMOVE THE CURSES
It may be suggested that there
is one exception to that rule that
the Satan cannot undermine
his own case. When a person
seeks to do Tshuva (repent and
return to G-d), G-d helps the
person make that happen. His
assistance comes in the form
of a license given to the Satan/
Yetzer Hara to slip up in his
efforts and provides the person
with ammunition to keep the
blessings.
The Midrash states (on the
words Now, O Israel, what
does G-d your G-d, demand of
you?): The expression now
refers exclusively to Tshuva.
Thus Esau, the Satan, adds the
word now as a way of telling
us, the progeny of Jacob, that if
you do Tshuva I will vouch for
your blessings and justify your
right to them on the grounds that
you were given the birthright.
JACOB THE MAN OF THE

FUTURE
On a simpler level, but in a
fashion no less didactic than the
preceding explanation, we can
explain why Esau added that

Jacob took the birthright from
him.
The reason Esau was so eager
to dispense of the birthright when
he did was that he presumed
that the birthright was a
spiritual gift that carries with it
responsibilities, the dividends of
which will not be realized until the
next world. For one who doesnt
care for the responsibilities and
does not want to wait for his or
her reward in the next world, the
birthright would be useless.
Thus, Esau reasoned that
the birthright truly belonged to
Jacob, who always demonstrated
his interest in the future. Indeed,
this was indicated by his name,
Jacob, which implies the future.
The first letter is a yud which,
in Hebrew grammar, denotes
the future tense. Moreover, the
second part of his name ekev
means heel, or at the end.
The name Esau, on the
other hand, is related to the
word action, referring to this
physical world.
When Jacob appropriated the
blessings from his father, Esau
was livid. If the birthright was
intended for the next world, how
could Jacob, in good conscience,
take the blessings intended for
the here and now?
Thus, Esau cries to his father,
he is called Jacob not because
he is focused on the future, but
because he is devious. He wants
the birthright of the future and
also the blessings for the present.
He wants the proverbial cake and
to eat it too.
Yet we know that Jacob
was sent to receive his fathers
blessing by Rebecca. She was
greater in prophecy than her
husband as was true of all the
Matriarchs. Jacob was certainly
not guilty of any crime for taking
the blessings. Proof of that is that

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Isaac essentially endorsed and

confirmed the blessings to him
even after he discovered the ruse.
How could this be? How
should we respond to Esaus
argument that the birthright was
intended for the future, not for
this world? Furthermore if Jacob
knew that the birthright was also
for the here and now, and Esau
was not aware of it, that would
have rendered the sale of the
birthright null and void because
it was sold under false pretenses.
BRINGING THE FUTURE

INTO THE PRESENT
The answer lies in Jacobs
uncanny power to introduce the
future into the present. Jacob,
while engrossed by the worldly
pursuits of this world, was also
totally focused on the future.
It is said of all the Patriarchs
that G-d gave them a taste of
the future in this world. This is
especially true of Jacob, about
whom it was said that he received
an eternal inheritance and that
he, metaphorically, corresponds
to the Third Temple, which will
stand forever. Abraham and
Isaac, by contrast, represent the
two Temples that were destroyed
in the past.
RABBI AKIVAS LAUGHTER

One of the greatest Sages of
the Talmudic period was Rabbi
Akiva. His name is an Aramaic
version of Jacob. There is a
fascinating correlation between
Rabbi Akiva and Jacob in this
very regard. Rabbi Akiva was also
capable of seeing the future in the
present.
The Talmud relates how
when they saw the ruins of
the Bais HaMikdash Rabbi
Akivas colleagues cried while he
laughed. When they expressed
bewilderment at his laughter
he explained that in this very
tragedy of the destruction he
saw the prophetic promise of
rebuilding and glory. Despite
his appreciation for the ruins
in which the Temple now lay
(he too rent his garments upon
witnessing the sad spectacle), he
could also laugh because he saw
the future in the present.
APPLICATION FOR TODAY

One can find a useful
application of the above for the
present day and age. While there
are few Jacobs and Rabbi Akivas
with us, we have the benefit of
living in the very last moments of
exile where we can already sense
some of the future. The Rebbe
exhorted us to open our eyes

to see the Messianic reality before
our very eyes.
Rather than creating a new
reality, the Rebbe revealed to us
that we merely have to uncover
the existing reality; the future
already exists in the present.
LINKAGE
Here is how to link the
explanation of why Esaus
complaint combined both the
loss of birthright and the loss
of the blessings, on one hand,
with the preceding explanation
concerning Tshuva.
One of the most important
properties of Tshuva is that it
can transform the past. This is
possible because Tshuva returns
us to our core soul, which is a
part of the Divine for whom past,
present and future are one. Thus,
the power of Tshuva can also get
us into the future.
This might explain why
Rambam
connects
Tshuva
with Redemption. When we
do Tshuva we travel into the
future even as we still have
our feet rooted on terra firma.
This is precisely what our role
in preparing for Redemption
entails: bringing the future into
the present.
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STORY
VOCAL
MIRACLE
The battle is not for your
voice but for your health.
* R Zvulun Katzavi, shliach
of the Rebbe in Ramat
HaSharon, experienced an
amazing miracle that left a
famous doctor stunned.
By Zalman Tzorfati

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Zvulun
(Ziv)
Katzavi is a shliach
in Ramat HaSharon
and a mashpia in
the Chabad shul there. He is also
a highly regarded lecturer. His
shlichus focuses on his giving
shiurim and lectures. He spends
most of his day giving shiur after
shiur around the country.
In a text that was recently
sent out to Chabad Chassidim
and hundreds of mekuravim, R
Katzavi wrote that he thanked
all those who had prayed for him
and miraculously, the problem
from which he was suffering
disappeared.
We spoke with R Katzavi
and after some hesitation he was
willing to tell Beis Moshiach what
he went through, from the bad
news to the big miracle.
THERE IS SOMETHING ON
YOUR VOCAL CHORDS
I use my voice a lot. With
many of the shiurim that I give,
I practically have to shout, either
because I am speaking in front
of a large crowd on Shabbos
or even during the week, but a
microphone is not available. I
recently felt that I was losing my
voice. I was getting hoarse very
quickly and sometimes, by the
end of a shiur, I was left with
hardly any voice at all.
It happened gradually and got
worse until it became intolerable.
It became physically difficult for
me to talk and I went to a doctor.
The doctor examined me and
said, I see something on your
vocal chords and it doesnt look
good. He recommended that I
make an appointment to operate.
I decided not to take a chance
and went to a doctor who is
considered the best ENT in
the country. He runs an ENT
department in one of the big
medical centers. It cost me a

pretty penny but I wanted the
opinion of a recognized expert.
I was given an appointment
for the beginning of Elul. The
doctor examined me thoroughly
with a camera that was lowered
down my throat. He immediately
saw the problem and called me
in for a talk. I began explaining
to him that every year I am a
chazan on the holidays and that
I give many lectures and that an
operation would sideline me for
weeks.
The doctor looked grave and
he interrupted me and said in a
low voice, Listen, Mr. Katzavi,
the battle is not for your voice but
for your health.
Then he explained that I had
a tumor on my vocal chords.
He tried to reassure me that the
situation was not irreversible, that
the growth did not look fatal as
of yet, but there was no knowing
what would happen if we delayed,
and there was no recourse but to
make an appointment for surgery
to remove the growth and send it
for a biopsy that would determine
the rest of my treatment.
I left him with a strange and
terrible feeling.
My thoughts
raced. I went home and for the
meantime, did not tell anyone,
not even my wife. In the evening
I had a shiur to give in Tel
Aviv. Its a weekly class which
is attended by dozens of young
people. I give the shiur along
with the musician and singer, Roi
Lavi. He plays and sings and I
teach.
the written diagnosis.

The diagnosis was written
in English and when I saw the
words verrucous carcinoma
written black on white, I felt like
a rock had fallen on my head.
The word carcinoma is the
general name for that disease...
Although the doctor had said that
the growth did not look typical
and symptomatic, still...
My head began to hurt but
just then Roi finished singing and
I had to continue the shiur. I
mustered my emotional strength,
folded the page and put it in my
pocket, and continued giving
the shiur as though I had not
just read something which could
change my life entirely.
Somehow, the shiur ended.
I went straight home. My mind
kept racing. I began thinking
about my shlichus, teaching
and giving shiurim which all
depended on my ability to speak.
I began to think about my life,
what I accomplished to that point
and what I had yet to achieve.
I thought of my plans for the
future, about my family, about
my wife and children.
It all churned within me. I
began speaking to Hashem from
the depths of my heart. I said
to Him, I have not finished my
work, I have so much more to
give
I arrived home and sat down
to write to the Rebbe. I wrote
about the doctors diagnosis and
that I am on the Rebbes shlichus
and I want to continue until the
coming of Moshiach.
VERRUCOUS CARCINOMA
STRENGTHENING EMUNA
AND BITACHON
At one of the musical

interludes, I took out the white
paper with the medical diagnosis
and began reading what it said.
Until now, my thoughts had been
on what he said and I hadnt read
I opened the Igros Kodesh

and in the letter I opened up
to the Rebbe gave a blessing
to someone that the medical
treatment should be successful.
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Story
The Rebbe mainly asked him
to strengthen his emuna and
bitachon, and the greater his
bitachon in Hashem who is
the Healer of all flesh and does
wonders, the faster and in more
complete fashion would the
salvation come.
I felt as though the Rebbe
was next to me and telling me,
dont worry, it will be all right.
At that moment I changed my
approach. I decided to go with
emuna and bitachon in Hashem.
It is not like I was the calmest
person in the world, but I kept
telling myself that Hashem is the
One who decides, and I was sure
that He would arrange things in
the best possible way. Since the
trying to preserve it from shiur to

shiur.
Erev
Rosh
Chodesh
Cheshvan, I went for a preoperation check-up. They put
a camera down my throat and
examined the area to make sure
that since the previous check-up
nothing had changed.
Two doctors conducted the
exam, one of them the assistant
to the director of the department.
During the exam, one of the
doctors said it looked to him like
only a cyst and not a cancerous
growth, but in either case, it
was something that needed to
be removed and he gave me
instructions for how to prepare
for the surgery. I let out a big
Dudu Fisher, the famous singer, was there and he

came over to me and said, Your voice sounds
great. You really dont sound like someone who needs
an operation tomorrow.
Rebbe wrote me about success in
the medical treatment, the next
day I called for an appointment
for surgery.
I had still not told anyone. A
few days later, the doctor called
to reassure me and he said that
the way that the growth looked
now, it did not appear to pose
any danger to life. I decided to
tell my wife about what was going
on and what the Rebbe wrote.
I went through the holidays
with the feeling of absolute
bitachon
in
Hashem
that
everything would be all right. I
did not tell people what was going
on; I told my fellow shluchim, the
khilla, and those who attended
the ongoing shiurim that I
needed a minor operation to
treat my hoarseness. I tried to
continue my work as usual, while
trying to control my voice and
sigh of relief but I was still not

completely convinced. After all,
the doctor who had examined
me at first was considered the
top expert in the country and he
sounded quite certain...
The next day, I got a phone
call telling me the doctor wanted
to operate as soon as possible.
They told me to show up the
following Sunday.
Shabbos
Parshas
Noach
is the Shabbos of selling the
aliyos in Ramat Aviv and I am
the auctioneer every year. That
means Im on my feet for about
five hours and using my voice
loudly. I prayed to Hashem that
my voice would hold out and
asked people to be quiet, because
my voice was a little fragile. I
also asked that they say lchaim
in my merit because the next
day I would be undergoing an
operation on my throat.
Dudu Fisher, the famous
singer, was there and he came
over to me and said, Your voice
sounds great. You really dont
sound like someone who needs
an operation tomorrow.
THE MIRACLE UNFOLDS

Sunday morning I went to the
hospital. It was a complicated
operation
under
general
anesthesia. A special implement
stretches the jaws, and they go
through the mouth to reach
deep into the throat to remove
the growth. The director of the
department was supposed to
perform the operation, the same
person who is considered the
biggest expert in the country,
who examined me and found the
growth.
Before the operation, I was
taken into an examination room
where the pre-op briefing took
place. They put the camera down
my throat again and the pictures
were shown on a large screen,
but there was nothing to see! The
doctor asked the one in charge of
the camera, Whats going on?
We dont see anything?
They started moving the
camera around my throat but
nothing significant appeared
on the screen. They decided to
remove the camera, checking
it from all sides, checking the
lighting, and then they put it
down again. The doctor stood
there bewildered. He asked me to
clear my throat and cough, to do
all kinds of things with my throat
and yet again, nothing looked
unusual. There were two tiny
polyps on the vocal chords but
there is no connection between
that and a frightening carcinoma.
The doctor was stupefied.
It couldnt be, he said to the
medical team. I saw with my

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own eyes a white wrinkly lesion!

With my own eyes! This makes
no sense!
The doctors, nurses, and
medical staff stood there,
dumbfounded.
I felt a chill. I began to realize
that this was the miraculous
moment. What the Rebbe had
written was happening before
everyones eyes contrary to all
natural expectations.
They took the camera out of
my throat and I could talk again.
I asked, what do we do now?
Nothing, said the doctor.
No surgery is necessary. Go
home. He asked me to come for
a check-up in three months and
released me.
Continued from page 3

The Alter Rebbe concluded:
Everyone believes in the concept
of Rebbe. We must know that the
Baal Shem Tov was Rebbe and
in this generation the Maggid is
Rebbe.
2. It says in Zohar that there
is an incarnation of Moshe in
each and every generation.
Being that every mystical
teaching has a counterpart in
nigla, the revealed, exoteric
dimension of the Torah, it
likewise says in Midrash that
there is no generation without
[righteous Jews] like Moshe
and the Avos. This teaching is
something that is accepted by all
Jews who believe in the words of
our Sages, who say that thats
the way it is. But the question is:
whos who? It is obvious that in
the generation of the Baal Shem
Tov it was the Baal Shem Tov
himself [who was the Moshe of
his generation]. Following the
Baal Shem it was the Maggid,
then the Alter Rebbe, etc., until
our generation when it is the
995_bm_eng2.indd 19
DID YOU SPEAK TO HIM?

Tell me, how can this be?
I asked the doctor. The week
before you clearly saw something
in my throat.
I have nothing to say, he
said, and he asked me, as he
pointed upward, Did you speak
to Him?
A lot, I replied.
Then that explains it, he
said.
A few hours after I came
home, I called all the places that I
had canceled shiurim for the next
few weeks and told them we were
on as usual.
Hardly anyone knew what my
situation had been and I planned
on telling about the miracle only
to the few people who knew about
Rebbe, my revered father inlaw.

Just as this is something that
was obvious then and as the
Rebbe said, telling the story, a
glimpse from a hundred and
seventy-five years ago now too
it is something that is obvious,
etc.
At the time when the Rebbe
came out with the Kol Koreh,
the proclamation that lalter
ltshuva, lalter lGeula
immediate repentance will bring
about immediate redemption,
Chassidim spread the message,
adding that it refers to the Rebbe
himself [i.e., he is Moshiach,
the one who will bring about
the Redemption]. One person
came forth with a complaint
and presented it to one of the
Polish Rebbes, expressing his
outrage about this radical
proclamation. How can we allow
Chassidim to publicize this Kol
Koreh, especially when they add
to it by identifying Moshiach
[as the Lubavitcher Rebbe]?!
The Polish Rebbe responded:
Lets consider the following.
the condition. But the Rebbe

apparently wanted otherwise,
since publicizing miracles, aside
from strengthening emuna and
bitachon in people, hastens the
Geula. I composed a text to
the members of the community
but by mistake, it was sent to a
list of hundreds of people who
receive notices from me about
shiurim. Within a few hours the
text had spread like wildfire and
the miracle was publicized on an
unexpected scale.
I am made small from all
kindnesses and all the truth;
for me it was testimony that
the Guardian of Israel neither
slumbers nor sleeps and the
Rebbes miracles continue to
occur and roll about, and we just
need to pick them up. By doing
so, we ourselves are uplifted.
We express our faith every day
that Moshiach will come. Some
say Ani Maamin (I believe
with total faith in the imminent
advent of Moshiach) verbally,
while others fulfill the obligation
in thought alone illustrating
our faith that Moshiach is here
[now, ready to redeem the Jewish
people]. But today, at this time, I
know that you are not Moshiach,
and I know of myself that I am
not Moshiach. So why does it
bother you that he is?
So too in our case. What we
know from the Zohar and the
Midrash quoted above is that
there is a Rebbe. The identity
of the Rebbe, however, is not
mentioned there. But when the
question is posed, whos who?
there is a simple response that
he is he. Early on it was the
Baal Shem Tov, then it was the
Maggid, then the Alter Rebbe,
etc., until [in recent times it is]
my revered father in-law, the
Rebbe.
(From the address of Shabbos
Parshas Naso 5720, bilti muga)
Issue 995
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MOSHIACH AND HAKHEL
THE
ULTIMATE
HAKHEL
By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon
Dear Reader shyichyeh,

On Shabbos Mikeitz 5751,
the Rebbe made the following
statement: When one is totally
immersed in a certain subject
and then encounters another
topic, it is human nature to
immediately search for and find
the connection with that subject
in which he is immersed, even
though this other topic has its
own issues and critical features.
I bring up this statement to
further explain the current series
that we are writing and learning
together each week. The Torah
is Toras Chaim, the Torah and
director of life. It is therefore to
be expected that there are many
aspects and lessons found in
each Parsha. Yet, this year is the
year of Hakhel and the Rebbe
demands that when one sees
you, he should say, There goes
a Hakhel Yid! Therefore, while
there may be many aspects to
each Parsha, we are finding the
Hakhel aspect of each Parsha
through the Sichos of 5748.
One of the central themes of
Parshas Toldos is the blessings
that Yaakov Avinu receives for all
his descendants from his aging
father, Yitzchak Avinu. The
blessings did not quite come in
the most conventional way, as
they were officially intended for

the older Eisav, but through the
intervention of Rivka Imeinu.
What did she do? The Torah
(27:9) tells us that she called her
pure and sincere son Yaakov and
instructed him, Go now to the
flock, and take for me from there
two choice kids, and I will make
them tasty foods for your father,
as he likes. And you shall bring
[them] to your father that he may
eat, in order that he bless you
before his death.
The Zohar (142a) asks: What
is the spiritual significance of
the two kid goats that only after
eating from them was Yitzchak
able to give the special and
eternal Brachos to Yaakov? The
answer is that the two kid goats
represent the Korban Pesach (or
Chagiga) and the Korban on
Yom Kippur.
The Rebbe (Toldos 5748
footnote 64) connects both of
these special Korbanos to the
concept of Hakhel.
The Korban Pesach, while
being a private Korban, was called
the Korban of the community, as
the Korban Pesach was brought
at a specific time and everyone
brought it together in the Beis
HaMikdash. Also, many people
joined together on a single
Korban Pesach, which represents

the concept of the unity of
Hakhel.
In addition, the Korban
Pesach was eaten as a dessert,
when everyone was satisfied
from their meal. Everyone
became satisfied from the
Korban Chagiga. Satisfaction
is a great equalizer. Everyone
needs different things to reach
satisfaction, but the Korban
Pesach was eaten when everyone
was on equal and unified
standing.
Secondly, Yom Kippur is
a very unique day, a day that
is known as Achas Bashana,
literally meaning once a year.
On a deeper level it is explained
as the day that unites all Jewish
people and makes them one,
through revealing our common
bond, our Neshama. This is the
concept of Hakhel, bringing
Jews together and revealing their
neshamos through inspiring them
to connect to Hashem.
This unity is expressed in the
unique Yom Kippur service of the
two goats. In VaYikra 16:1-34,
the Torah describes the service
that the Kohen Gadol (High
Priest) was to perform on Yom
Kippur in the Holy Temple. As
Yom Kippur is the holiest day of

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the year, and the day is one set

aside for atonement, the service
of the Kohen Gadol differed on
this day from every other day
during the year.
One of the distinguishing
parts of the service was the
taking of the two goats. The
verses tell us (16:7-10), And
he (Aharon, the Cohen Gadol)
shall take the two goats...and
shall cast upon the two goats lots:
one for Hashem, and the other
lot for Azazel. And Aharon shall
present the goat upon which the
lot for Hashem fell, and make it
into a sin offering. But the goat
on which the lot fell for Azazel
shall be set alive before Hashem,
to make atonement over him, to
send him away for Azazel into the
wilderness.
On this latter goat, the verses
tell us later, Aharon shall lay both
of his hands upon the head of the
goat, and confess over him all the
iniquities of the children of Israel,
and all their transgressions, and
all their sins, and he shall put
them upon the head of the goat,
and shall send (the goat) away...
into the wilderness.
There are many different
types of Jews. Some are on the
level of being constantly in the
Beis HaMikdash while on the
other extreme there are those for
whom their spiritual observance
is off the cliff. Yet the service
of Yom Kippur, which is the
revelation of the eternal unity
of the Jewish people among
themselves and their creator,
unites and combines both of
these extremes in a single unified
service.
Dear Reader: We started
with a quote from Mikeitz 5751.
Here is the continuation: And,
inasmuch as Jews are passionately
involved with the coming of
Moshiach, it is reasonable that
in all matters we should search
The service of Yom Kippur, which is the revelation

of the eternal unity of the Jewish people among
themselves and their creator, unites and combines both
of these extremes in a single unified service.
primarily for their association

with our awaiting every day that
he will come.
When we are learning about
the Korbanos of Pesach and
Yom Kippur, this awakens in us
our yearning and desire for the
ultimate Hakhel, in the third Beis
HaMikdash, with the revelation

of Moshiach Now!
Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva
of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati and a
well sought after speaker and lecturer.
Recordings of his in-depth shiurim
on Inyanei Geula uMoshiach can be
accessed at http://www.ylcrecording.
com.
Issue 995
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FEATURE
PROVIDENTIAL
ENCOUNTERS OF
CONVERGING
SOULS
R
Aharon Mordechai
Zilberstroms
educational career began
while he was still a young
man. He got involved in rescuing
Jewish children in France who were
given by their parents to Christian
monasteries right before they were
taken away to concentration and
extermination camps. The parents
hoped to save their children,
thinking they would retrieve them
after the war.
The Chassid, R Shneur
Zalman Schneersohn is known
for his tremendous work on
behalf of these children. He
saved hundreds of children and
brought them to the mosdos
he established. One of the
institutions was run by R Aharon
Mordechai Zilberstrom who,
along with the exigencies of
war and the need to escape, did
so much for the material and
spiritual relief of these abandoned
children.
One of those children was
Jean (Yona) Israelewitz. In
his moving diary he describes
what he experienced, his many

wanderings as well as his first
encounter with the director of the
institution, R Zilberstrom, who
raised his spirits and treated him
lovingly, and fortified his selfconfidence.
A SAD, LONELY SOUL

This is what he writes in his
memoirs (with some omissions)
from the year 5703/1943:
After a long, tiring march, we
finally arrived at an estate, the
size of which I had never seen
before in my life. In the center of
the property was a huge mansion.
The place looked abandoned;
there was nobody around and not
even a bird chirped. The silence
there made me afraid. The snow
continued to fall, soft and white,
covering the earth and trees with
a white covering. Everything
all around shone in a lustrous
whiteness. Here we are. We
have finally come home, said a
girl who brought me there.
We entered the property and
walked until we reached a large

iron gate through which you
could see a three-story house
surrounded by a spacious garden.
It was difficult to open the gate
because it was very heavy. We
entered the yard and walked
toward the house.
I looked at the house very
sadly and was afraid about
having to live in an orphanage
again. This institution looked
odd to me with its large windows,
as though meant for important
people. We stood facing the front
door. The wooden door was so
large that two people could easily
enter simultaneously. We opened
the door and found ourselves in
a foyer off of which was a long
staircase that led to the upper
floor. The ground floor was
divided; one side had a dining
room, a kitchen and a corridor,
and the other side had the game
room and an office.
An unfamiliar person came
out of the office and welcomed
us. He looked very serious and
wore black glasses which terrified

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Three souls on different tracks in

France, three people destined by
divine providence to meet time
after time; at a Jewish orphanage
in France, some years later in a
hospital in Yerushalayim, and at
a Shabbos table of a Yerushalmi
family. * The moving story of three
souls that fulfilled their mission,
each in its place. * From a book
about to be published about R
Aharon Mordechai Zilberstrom.
By Menachem Ziegelboim
Jean (
Yona)
Israele
witz
R Dovid Lesselbaum
R Aharon Mordechai
Zilberstrom
Issue 995
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Feature
me until my entire body trembled.
But the man received us politely
and respectfully. I later learned
that he was Aharon [Mordechai]
Zilberstrom. He greeted the girl
and asked me my name.
Jean, I replied.
How are you Jean? he
asked me. The trip wasnt too
tiring for you, was it? I hope you
will be happy here Jean.
I knew it wouldnt happen,
because I already learned that all
orphanages are the same. The
children are very cruel to one
another and hatred prevails. In
addition, this house looked too
big and strange with the large
windows and humongous doors.
The war years taught me
what fear is. All those years,
when suddenly, a group of

children came downstairs quickly
and by the time I managed to
figure out what was going on,
they had surrounded me and
stared at me as though they had
never seen a child before.
There was something that
bothered me very much. I
remembered what my brother
had told me on the train trip,
that I had to be a good boy and
behave like the other children and
be like them. But I felt very sad
and unfortunate and I suffered
greatly from the terrors. I felt
as if I was still under German
occupation, that whoever wanted
to could slap me, just for fun,
or grab me and send me to a
concentration camp.
One of those captured children, who were with

me in the monastery, later became the archbishop
of Paris. Before he died he asked that they say Kaddish
for him.
fear churned within me. I
remembered the time when the
Germans bombed France. All the
children in the monastery went
down to the bomb shelters, but
the counselor told me to stay
where I was because I am Jewish.
All that night of bombing, I heard
everything, the piercing shriek of
each bomb seemed to sound for
an eternity and I prayed to some
G-d that a bomb not land on me.
I did not know why I wanted so
much to be saved because I was
alone and cast aside, and in the
meantime, even if a bomb did not
kill me, my soul had already been
handed a death sentence. I could
not tolerate the blows and insults
of the counselors and children
anymore, which left my soul
scarred in a way that no medicine
could heal.
I still stood there thinking
The
director
introduced
me to the children. He said my
name was Jean and that I was
a very nice boy. He motioned
to me that I could join them. I
went with them and we began
talking about all sorts of things.
But I quickly felt that something
wasnt going right and that my
way of thinking was different
than theirs, because every time
I said something, they said it
was wrong. I was very insulted.
Suddenly, all the children
disappeared, vanishing just as
they appeared. I remained alone
in the room, not understanding
what had happened, why they
had disappeared without saying
a word.
Suddenly, a child returned
and called me, Jean, come eat
with us. I was very surprised
by this because I wasnt used to

going to eat that way. I knew that
we had to line up in two rows,
walk to the dining room, and sit
each in his place in utter silence.
If someone would say just a
word, he would immediately get
slapped in such a way that he
wouldnt forget it for a long time,
for it was absolutely forbidden to
speak during the meal.
When I heard them calling my
name, I couldnt believe my eyes
and ears, that I would be called to
the table and I would be able to
sit and eat without fear.
I sat near the other children.
One boy came over to me and
said I should go and wash my
hands. I told him, Oh, okay.
I got up while looking at my
hands. I was sure they were very
dirty which is why I had to wash
them, but was surprised to see
they were not at all dirty. I looked
for soap to wash my hands but
did not find any. The boy came
over and explained what to do.
Jean, what you need to do is
take this cup, fill it up with water,
and pour the water over your
hands. This was the first time
I had encountered this Jewish
practice of hand washing.
In this orphanage, everything
was different and I had to change
the way I lived, thought, and
spoke. I had to change my habits
for this was no longer the life I
was used to.
On the first day of my arrival
there, it was already evening.
I saw that each of the children
went to sleep on his own, without
someone telling him to go to
sleep. I remained alone in the
dining room. A boy came to call
me and said it was time to go to
sleep. I said, yes. He asked, You
dont know this? I said, no.
Come with me, he said,
and I will show you where we
sleep. Its on the second floor.

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We went together to the

dormitory and arrived at a large
room that had at least twenty
beds. The room was still smaller
than the room at the orphanage
in Brunoy, which was double the
size of this room. I noticed that
in the center of the room were
two pails, one filled with water
and the other one empty.
The boy said to me, Jean,
youll sleep in this bed. He
pointed at the bed. I got into bed
without saying a word, because I
was exhausted by the long day. It
did not take me long to fall asleep
and I slept deeply.
When I woke up in the
morning, I saw that once again,
I was the only one in the room
and I wondered where the other
children had gone without telling
me. I quickly got up and rushed
to get dressed, afraid I would
be slapped for oversleeping and
being late. Despite this, I was still
very tired from the day before.
I went to the dining room.
When I stood on the threshold,
I saw they were all there already,
chattering to one another as
though it was a meeting room. I
was so surprised by this because
I had never seen it permitted to
speak during a meal without
problems. I quietly entered the
room so as not to draw attention
and I sat at a corner of the table.
But the man with the black beard
and black glasses told me, Jean,
go wash your hands.
Once again, I examined my
hands to see if they were dirty but
did not notice any dirt and I did
not understand why I needed to
wash them. Nevertheless, I went
to the sink and put my hands
under the faucet. A boy came
just then and said this is not the
way to wash hands and explained
again how to do it.
I returned to the table and
sat down. I waited to be given
R Aharon Mordechai Zilberstrom (second from the right) with R Shneur Zalman
Schneersohn (third from right) after the war, when R Binyamin Gorodetzky visited
the institutions for refugees founded by R Schneersohn
bread and a portion of food. I

waited a long time until one of
the teachers saw me waiting and
said, Jean, you need to take a
portion by yourself. I told him
that I dont know how to serve
myself and he said, Jean, over
here everyone serves themselves
and you dont need to worry, we
are free now. I could not believe
that children ate this way.
Before I finished the meal,
I heard the song of prayer that
I did not recognize and did
not understand [the Birkas
HaMazon]. My face reddened
in shame and once again, I felt
alone.
I continued eating slowly
and then went out to the yard to
breathe some fresh air. The yard
was empty and there was nobody
around because they had all gone
somewhere. I looked around and
saw that in the center of the yard
was a large stone basin and on it
was another stone out of which
protruded a decorated faucet that
continuously poured forth water,
but the basin never filled up.
R Aharon Mordechai (sitting in the center

with the hat and beard) with boys in
the institution in 5707 (while waiting for
Ramashs visit)
In the yard was a large oak

tree that was covered in snow.
I watched, enchanted by the
beautiful white sight and began
thinking about various things.
I felt a sudden tap on my
shoulder. I turned around and
saw the man with the black
beard and black glasses. I began
trembling in fear. I was sure
he had come to yell at me and
that he would hit me for going
outside or doing something bad.
Instead, he grasped my shoulders
Issue 995
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Feature
with his two hands and said in
a soft, quiet voice which I had
never heard in my life, Jean, how
are you?
Fine, monsieur.
What are you doing outside
alone?
I dont know.
Why arent you together
with all the other children?
I dont know where they
went.
He placed his hand on my
shoulder so gently that a pleasant
sensation spread through my
body and he said to me in a quiet,
pleasant voice, I know that it is
very hard to change ones life and
THE DIRECTOR
RAISED ME UP
Jean
(Yona)
Israelewitz
continues his touching account:
Those are my first memories
of R Aharon Zilberstroms
institution. I loved R Aharon so
much. He was a Chassid who
ran his life and the life of the
institution in a marvelous way.
He was a Chassid with a beard,
who knew how to combine
different fields of life such as
Torah with practical life without
one undermining the other.
Neither one of them was swept
into a corner like a worthless
child.
During the meal, R Dovid asked permission to

sing a niggun he especially liked that he learned
in the yeshiva, Chachmei Tzorfas. When he finished
singing the moving niggun, R Aharon Mordechai said
with a smile, Nu, thats a Chabad niggun!
that it is not a simple stage, but

everything will work out in time,
you will see, dont worry. Come,
lets go back to the house and
see what the other children are
doing.
We returned to the house as
we discussed all sorts of things.
When we walked in, he called
a boy named Simone and said,
Simone, you will teach Jean to
read and pray and you will be his
good friend.
Yes, rebbi, said Simone.
The rabbi spoke to me and
treated me gently and nicely and
made me feel welcome and that I
had a right to exist in the world, a
feeling I had never had until then.
That is how my life changed
and I returned to the Judaism I
had never known.
To me, R Aharon Zilberstrom

was a father, uncle, teacher,
brother, and most importantly,
someone who would never leave
me. Someone who transformed
me from a child who wasnt
worth anything, to a billion liras.
Despite all the love I felt for
the Jewish institution, the war
period still hadnt left me. It had
liberated Paris but it stubbornly
held on to me.
In R Aharons Jewish institute
I learned what real paradise is
like. Over time I learned to go
and wash my hands on my own,
to serve food to myself, and to
believe that someone was calling
my name. And most importantly,
that I was important to someone
and that I had a place in the
world.
That boy Simone, that R
Aharon with the black beard

asked to help me, taught me to
read and write and slowly, I felt
at home. More than any other
place in the world.
The mission, to get children
out of monasteries after the war,
was not at all easy. The Christians
had had a strong influence on the
children, providing them with a
new god who did not kill them,
for they were his children; I
thought so too.
My emotional state while
in the monastery was hellish. I
no longer knew who I was. My
thoughts constantly wandered
elsewhere so as not to think of
the hell I was living in. In the end,
I thought it wasnt easy being
a Jew and it was better to be a
Christian. I did not understand
why I had to be a Jew and what
difference it made if I was Jewish
or not. To me, Jews were a people
scattered over the world. We did
not have Eretz Yisroel; we had
nothing.
Staying
in
the
hellish
monastery only strengthened
this line of thinking. I was always
on the sidelines as though I had
been thrown into a corner of the
room; this was my punishment.
A punishment given without
prior warning and which was
not enforced by any law or
regulation.
When you sweep a room, the
remnants that you cant sweep
up into the dustpan are swept
into the corner of the room, so
they are not visible. They are not
important; not worth a cent. I
am that remnant. I am that child
who was not worth a cent. I am
afraid that no one will be able to
understand a situation like that
in which a child can do nothing,
who has no reason to live.
Then came R Schneersohn
who took me from darkness
to light. It was not easy and it

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R Dovid Lesselbaum (right) conversing with a mekurav
cannot be counted on the fingers

of a hand the number of times
the mission failed in other places
and the rabbi left Jewish children
in Christian monasteries, because
Christianity had already captured
them and placed a victory flag
on their hearts and they did not
want to go with him.
One of those captured children,
who were with me in the
monastery, later became the
archbishop of Paris and before
he died he asked that they say
Kaddish for him.
Along with the failures were
many successes, the success of
redeeming little captives, and I
was one of them.
RESCUE FROM MADNESS

AND LONELINESS
Jean (Yona) met his beloved
R Aharon again after both of
them had made aliya and lived
in Yerushalayim. Here too, he
remembered R Aharon in the
most positive way as he relates:
I left in France the little that
remained to me. Even in France
R Aharon Mordechai Zilberstrom (center) with children of

the institute. On the right: Jean (Yona) Israelewitz
after the war I felt

alone and I boarded a ship for
Eretz Yisroel. This was the winter
of 5709. I remember that we
celebrated Chanuka on the ship
upon which depended my entire
future.
On that ship I met someone
familiar to me. I did not
remember from where until it
came to me they called him
Dovid Lesselbaum. He, like
myself, had been in a monastery
during the war and wanted to be
a Christian, but they extricated
him, as they did me. He was sent
to a Jewish institution and was
in Yeshivas Chachmei Tzorfas in
Aix-les-Bains. Now he was on his
way, with me, to Eretz Yisroel.
We did not know one another
personally, but exchanged words
with one another and then each
of us went to explore the ship on
his own.
I arrived in Eretz Yisroel.
In my rosiest dreams I did not
imagine that I would ever have
the privilege to step foot in this
holy land. After a short stay on
Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, I went
to Yerushalayim and went to
learn in Yeshivas Chevron.

Acclimating was difficult. The
foreign language, the mentality
and culture and my lack of
understanding made it hard for
me to mingle with the masses. I
was very disappointed because I
had hoped that in a place where
everyone was Jewish, I would
finally feel as though I belonged,
but I still felt alone. The rosh
yeshiva, R Yechezkel Sarna,
suggested I leave yeshiva and
enlist in the army. As a good
student, I did as he said.
I joined the Givati brigade
where I did most of my military
service. However, an old ear and
head injury that had developed
when I had been in the monastery
started to act up again, an injury
that left a permanent stretching
of my face and affected my ear
leaving it mostly deaf.
I was hospitalized in Schneller
in Yerushalayim which had once
been a British military base and
which today belongs to the Jews.
Who remembered me and felt
he should come and encourage
me and visit me during that
time? R Aharon Zilberstrom, our
Issue 995
995_bm_eng2.indd 27
27
11/12/2015 11:22:36 PM
Feature
memorable director. At that time,
he ran an exclusive elementary
yeshiva which produced many
of the gdolei hador of the next
generation. Since he heard about
my condition, he came to do
the mitzva of bikkur cholim. He
would come now and then and
did not neglect me.
That was the second time R
Zilberstrom rescued me from
madness and loneliness.
On one of his visits, as
he was sitting there, another
person suddenly walked in. I
was surprised to see that he was
heading straight to my bed and
not that of another patient. How
strange! I wasnt used to more
than one regular guest but when
he approached, I recognized
him. It was Dovid Lesselbaum. I
hadnt seen him in a long time.
I introduced Dovid to R
Zilberstrom and Dovid was very
impressed. He wasnt used to
meeting such a refined, gentle
soul as was R Zilberstrom, who
was also a Chassid who was
active in all areas of life.
Thus
concludes
Yona
Israelewitzs memoirs.
FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH A

LUBAVITCHER
Years later, R Dovid himself
described his first meeting with R
Aharon Mordechai Zilberstrom
from his perspective:
I met R Aharon Mordechai
through an acquaintance who
traveled together with me on
the ship to Eretz Yisroel. The
acquaintance was in Schneller
hospital in Yerushalayim and I
went to visit him. Next to him
I saw an impressive looking
person who spoke French on an
academic level. It was R Aharon
Mordechai
Zilberstrom.
He
ran R Zalman Schneersohns
orphanage under whose auspices
many Jewish children were saved

from the clutches of the Catholic
religion.
That year, 5713, was a
stormy one when it came to the
educational system in Israel.
After enacting the Law of Public
Education, it was decided that
starting with the new school year,
the individual streams system
would no longer be in effect, by
which every citizen chose the
ideological type of schooling
he wanted for his children
(Histadrut,
Mapai,
Agudas
Yisroel, Mizrachi etc.). From
then on, all the streams would be
under central government control
and funding. The hunt for souls
began all across the country, with
each of the movements wanting
to register as many children as
possible. The country roiled.
There was nobody who was
not involved, in some way or
another, on behalf of one of the
movements.
R Dovid Lesselbaum wanted
to jump into the fray. He decided
to approach Agudas Yisroel since
he was distant from the Chassidic
worldview. The fact that Jewish
children would go to irreligious
schools was out of the question,
as far as I was concerned.
Then, in a conversation
with R Aharon Mordechai at
Jeans bed, I was reminded that
R Aharon Mordechai was the
director of the Shiloh Talmud
Torah in Yerushalayim. On
the spot I offered my services
in registering children for his
school. I did not know that he
was a Chassid. If I had known
I think I would have kept my
distance from him. I asked him
whether he needed my help in
recruiting students. No, he
said gently. We at Shiloh dont
have these problems, but I am a
Lubavitcher Chassid and your
help is certainly needed for the
Chabad school in the Malha

(Manachat) neighborhood.
R Dovid was taken aback.
That was a calamity for me,
he said candidly. A Chassid?
Thats unbelievable. R Aharon
seemed such a serious and
sympathetic person ...
Jean wrote in his memoirs:
The yeshiva in France taught
him to be a real Yekke and he
never expected to encounter a
refined, gentle individual, well
rounded in all areas of life, and
with a Chassidic appearance like
R Zilberstrom.
R
Dovid
Lesselbaum
continued:
A second shock from R
Aharon Mordechai was the fact
that he said Chabad Chassidim
were planning on opening a fifth
stream within Israeli education. I
was stunned. Youre a Chassid?
How can that be? Its impossible!
And who are these Chassidim
who are opening an educational
movement? What do they
have to do with chinuch? With
pedagogy? Where would they get
teachers from? And anyway, what
did I have to do with Chassidim?
Nevertheless, I went to
register kids in Manachat (where
the Reshet school was established
for the 5713 school year) so
that they wouldnt fall into the
hands of the Histadrut and be
sent to irreligious schools. I
began registering children mainly
among those who were French
speaking.
The registration was a success
and Reshet Oholei Yosef Yitzchok
opened.
A NIGGUN THAT PROVIDED

CLOSURE
The relationship between R
Lesselbaum and R Zilberstrom
became closer. His initial fear of

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Chassidim in general and Chabad

Chassidim in particular slowly
dissipated, even though R Dovid
was certain he would never
become a Chassid.
He was once invited to
a Friday night meal at the
Zilberstroms in their modest
Yerushalmi apartment. During
the meal, R Dovid asked
permission to sing a niggun he
especially liked that he learned
in the yeshiva, Chachmei Tzorfas
(this niggun is sung in Mizrachi
groups after Lecha Dodi). When
he finished singing the moving
niggun, R Aharon Mordechai
said with a smile, Nu, thats a
Chabad niggun!
That was the final blow
which destroyed my preconceived
attitudes against Chassidus, said

R Lesselbaum.
As a result of this connection
R Dovid began attending Tanya
shiurim given by the rosh yeshiva
of Yeshivas Toras Emes, R
Moshe Aryeh Leib Shapiro.
What attracted me most
were the magical moments of the
niggunim on Shabbos between
Mincha and Maariv. I would go
every Shabbos and feel that the
niggunim were simply taking me
to hidden spiritual destinations.
R
Dovid
Lesselbaum
eventually became a Lubavitcher
Chassid and today he is one
of the veteran settlers of Kfar
Chabad.
He
disseminates
Chassidus in French and edits
Sichat HaShavua in French.

***
Three souls from France,
two of them in monasteries and
one who rescued souls; three
people distant from one another,
physically and spiritually. They
met at an orphanage, a hospital,
and at a Shabbos table. By
wondrous divine providence, one
soul met another, one soul drew
another one close.
Jean concluded his memoirs
thus:
Until
today,
Dovid
Lesselbaum tells me that thanks
to me he is religious and a
Chabadnik. Its unbelievable how
one person can create an entire
world of generations.
Continued from page 30
Reb Nochum Chernobler8 were

among them. The Alter Rebbe
demanded of his Chassidim to
give with an open hand to Yidden
in Eretz Yisroel even when
income was low9.
When internalizing that all
of our possessions and money is
truly G-dly, the first choice for
the use of our possessions will be
to serve Hashem, either by giving
generously to tzdaka or through
other ways of serving Hashem,
rather than serving our own
comforts and pleasures.
Rabbi Zalman Goldberg is
a well sought after speaker and
lecturer on Chassidic thought.
His writings and recordings on the
topic of Bitachon can be accessed

at http://www.gotbitachon.com.
his wife and asked, Are you sure

that all the food was distributed
to the poor and there is none
left?
Im quite sure, but Ill go
check, she said.
Sure enough, she found some
crusts and scraps of food which
she immediately donated to the
poor and only then was Reb Levi
Yitzchak able to sleep soundly.
There were many great
tzaddikim who gave away the
money they received to tzdaka
before considering their own
needs. The Baal Shem Tov7 and

. '',) ''1
.) '' 2
. 70 ') '' '' 3
' ,1 ' ,) '' ''4
.39 ' ,6
.126 ') '' '' 5
) '' ' 6
.18 ' ''
stories in Stories of the Baal 3 )7
Shem Tov vol. 3 pg. 59, quoted
.from Shivchei HaBesht
) 8
.479
. ) ' ''9
.' '
Express service
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984 is

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995_bm_eng2.indd 29
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worldwide live broadcast: www.RadioMoshiach.org
BITACHON BYTES
HOW TO MANIFEST
THE DIVINE
POTENTIAL IN ALL
YOUR POSSESSIONS
By Rabbi Zalman Goldberg
fter being sent away by

King Avimelech, Yitzchak
became very successful1.
He cultivated the soil and
enjoyed the results of supernatural
success. Rashi2 brings two
explanations for what happened.
One explanation is that the miracle
was based on the estimation before
anything grew, i.e., the output of
the crop was much higher than
originally anticipated.
The second explanation is
that the miracle took place in
reference to an estimation of
how much maaser was to be
given, i.e. after the produce
had already grown. In other
words, according to the second
explanation, the miracle was a
corollary of Yitzchaks resolve
to tithe his income based upon
the produce that had already
grown. The miracle was that his
produce suddenly multiplied one
hundred-fold.

The true meaning of maaser3
(and essentially tzdaka as well,
as we will soon see) which was
given to the Levi, is that from my
possessions, there is a definite
unspecified part that I am

obligated to give to Hashem. By
contrast, when dealing with the
presents given to the Kohen there
are specific parts of the animal
etc. that at the onset belong to
the Kohen. And with regard to
Truma given to the Kohen, there
is no specific amount that must
be given to Hashem. It could be
a little more or less. By the tithing
for the Levi however, there is
no specific part of the produce
that must be given to Hashem;
the owner has the option of
choosing where the tithe should
come from. However, exactly ten
percent, no less, must be donated
to the Levi. So only by maaser
given to the Levi is everything
the owners and any part of it
could potentially be part of the
obligatory tithe with which the
mitzvah will be fulfilled.
In other words, the mitzvah of
maaser represents a world which
is mundane as we see it and
every part of it must be able to be
elevated to Hashem. So in every
part of the world there is the real
practical potential to see that the
physical world is all Hashems.
This is essentially the goal
of Midas HaBitachon4, that our

lives with all its mundane aspects
should reflect Hashem, and thus
be devoted to Hashem in every
way. The outcome of this will
be Bitachon in Hashem, in every
situation of life, from inside out.
In this manner did Yitzchak
give maaser5, revealing how
all of his possessions and
acquisitions were all Hashems,
even if in actuality only a certain
amount was given, but all of his
possessions reflected Hashems
will by being part of the potential
maaser. This is why he deserved
such a huge miracle in which his
produce multiplied after already
growing, for once his whole
worldly being was elevated to a
level of G-dliness, his possessions
became a vessel for a reflection of
Hashems greatest miracles.
Perhaps this can explain the
conduct of various tzaddikim,
amongst them Reb Levi Yitzchok
Berditchever, who would not
leave even a morsel of food in
his house overnight that hadnt
been distributed to the poor. The
story is told6 that one night Reb
Levi Yitzchak could not sleep. As
much as he tried, sleep eluded
him. At one point, he turned to
Continued on page 29

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CROSSROADS
THE SHLUCHIM
MUST BE AT THE
FOREFRONT OF
THE BATTLE FOR
ERETZ YISROEL
For the Rebbe, the struggle to preserve
the territorial integrity of Eretz Yisroel is a
struggle for the path of Torah.
By Sholom Ber Crombie
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry
THE REBBES MESSAGE

MUST BE HEARD
Last
week,
thousands
of the Rebbes emissaries
gathered in Beis Chayeinu for
the
International
Shluchim
Conference. Quite often, the
conference takes place in
the background of serious
developments on the world
scene. This time, the shluchim
arrived from all over the world
as a new intifada continues
to spread throughout Eretz
HaKodesh. While weve already
gotten used to recent events,
what we actually have here is
the unsettling routine of an
average of two terrorist stabbings
per day. Its like listening to a
typical news report with weather
updates on overnight rainfall. A

stabbing in Chevron, a stabbing
in Yerushalayim, another murder
victim added to the endless list of
mourning. Thats todays news.
And so it goes...
The shluchim gather as Eretz
Yisroel is engulfed in turmoil,
particularly in Yerushalayim,
Yehuda,
and
Shomron.
However, its much more than
that. The terrorism has also
struck cities like Raanana,
thereby placing the countrys
soft underbelly at serious
risk. As a direct result of this
rampage, the message emerging
from the recent International
Shluchim Conference must be
an
unrelenting
continuation
of all efforts in the Rebbes
holy campaigns to dispel the

darkness of exile and lead us to
the Redemption. The shluchim
are not the representatives of
some neutral Jewish organization
marketing a nice and acceptable
form of Judaism, giving out
jelly donuts on Chanukah,
graggers on Purim, etc. First
and foremost, Chabad-Lubavitch
is a Chassidic movement based
on the Rebbes teachings. The
Rebbe has a message for the
world: the announcement of the
Redemption while striving for a
complete (and uncompromised)
Nation,
a
complete
(and
uncompromised) Land, and
completeness in all of the Land,
together with a complete (and
uncompromised) Torah which
all of these are interdependent.
Thus, while the terrorists
continue to run wild, our shlichus
must be sharpened even more as
we spread the Rebbes message:
the Land of Israel for the People
of Israel according to the Torah of
Israel.
This is not just a mission of
encouragement for the Jewish
Issue 984
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11/12/2015 11:22:39 PM
CROSSROADS
People at this critical time, rather
a change in approach. If we want
the message to be internalized
properly, we must convey it in the
clearest way possible, especially
as the scourge of violence brings
havoc to the streets. What are
we supposed to do when Jews
tend to have a poor memory? If
we dont explain to them now
that the current rise in terrorist
activities is a direct product of
the weak policies of recent years,
they will continue to support the
division of Yerushalayim and
the transfer of the citys Arab
neighborhoods to Hamas just
or injuries. Jewish ethics have

clear guidelines in the war on
terror, foremost among them: If
someone comes to slay you, slay
him first and He who has mercy
upon the cruel will eventually be
cruel to the merciful.
The Rebbes message must
be heard as a clear statement
of Torah. For the Rebbe, the
struggle to preserve the territorial
integrity of Eretz Yisroel is a
struggle for the path of Torah,
where it is written that the Land
of Israel belongs to the People of
Israel and the only way to ensure
Anyone who tries to find reasons for Arab

terrorism is a fool. Hes looking for justification
why they murder Jews, instead of understanding that we
must close ranks, bring greater unity among the Jewish
People, and stand firm on our Divine right to Eretz Yisroel.
This is the only true answer to the brutal and murderous
Islamic terror.
as long as they leave us in peace.
It is specifically due to the
Rebbes shluchim warm and
friendly demeanor that they
possess the strength to get the
message across to their listeners.
The Rebbes struggle on the issue
of shleimus haaretz does not chv
stem from nationalism, rather
from a true and genuine sense
of concern for every Jew and his
personal security. Therefore, we
must emphasize that the Torah of
Life forbids genuflecting before
the nations of the world. Its no
longer a question of one form
of ethics or another, because
we have the only true Jewish
ethic. This ethic demonstrates
real compassion for any loss of
life, and its specifically for this
reason that the terrorists must be
totally destroyed to stop them
from causing any further deaths
true security is according to the

Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim,
Sec. 329.
WHY IS IT FORBIDDEN TO
ASCEND HAR HABAYIS?
Two weeks ago, a red line was
crossed. After a campaign lasting
several months in the ultraOrthodox newspapers about
how the current wave of terror
is the direct result of discussions
on Jewish sovereignty over
Har HaBayis, the Mishpacha
magazine publicized a manifesto
in Arabic, asking the potential
terrorist not to kill chareidi Jews
after all, were with you. We
too are against ascending Har
HaBayis.
The journalist who publicized
this
despicable
message
apparently thinks the recent
terrorist attacks have been
justified. He adamantly claims

that the sole reason for Jews
being murdered is because Jews
are going up to the Temple
Mount and angering the Arabs.
Theyre killing Jews? Nu, what
did you expect? We annoyed
them He obviously forgot the
more than one thousand terrorist
victims murdered since the Oslo
Accords, not to mention the
thousands more from the days
of the Fedayeen guerrillas. He
also forgot that even before the
founding of the modern Jewish
state in Eretz Yisroel, Jews were
already being slaughtered there.
Even then, this was apparently
due to talks on Jewish sovereignty
over the holiest site of the Jewish
People
However, the main thing
he forgot was that the halachic
prohibition against ascending
Har HaBayis stems from its
great holiness to Am Yisroel, and
not the opposite chv. The strict
Torah limitation on this subject
has nothing to do with submitting
to the threat of Arab terror or
concern over angering the Wakf.
It is solely based on the pasuk
Any outsider who approaches
shall be put to death.
Strictly from a theoretical
standpoint, lets say that we
knew where the holiest spot on
Har HaBayis was located and
we would be permitted to ascend
there in a state of spiritual purity.
Wouldnt the chareidi journalist
from the Mishpacha magazine
still claim that the current wave
of terror is the direct result of
annoying the Gentiles? As far as
hes concerned, walking to the
Kosel and definitely through the
lanes of the Old City constitute
an unnecessary aggravation of
their feelings. What about Jews
living in the Holy Land and in
Yerushalayim to boot? How can
the Arabs possibly live with that
in peace?

995_bm_eng2.indd 32
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Anyone who tries to find

reasons for Arab terrorism is a
fool. Hes looking for justification
why they murder Jews, instead
of understanding that we must
close ranks, bring greater unity
among the Jewish People, and
stand firm on our Divine right
to Eretz Yisroel. This is the only
true answer to the brutal and
murderous Islamic terror.
THE ANSWER TO
TERRORISM: JEWISH
EDUCATION
In a sicha from Yud Shvat
5736, the Rebbe taught us
what to do in a situation of the
nations in a commotion:
When the nations begin to
conceive plans which are hostile
towards G-d and His anointed
one, we must then forestall these
schemes with our own methods.
This is achieved when Jews rally
together, with all the commotion
not rl against G-d and His
anointed one, which are (Do
not touch My anointed ones
and refers to) the little Jewish
children learning Torah rather
in order to speak about and take
action in matters of Torah and
mitzvos, beginning with My
anointed ones these are the
Jewish children learning Torah.
Although any time during
the year is appropriate for such
undertakings, there are some
occasions which require these
activities to be performed with
greater intensity, as we see the
commotion being made from
the nations gathering and

kingdoms thinking vain things.
Even though we know that their
plans are vain and frantic, and
Contrive a scheme, but it will
be foiled; conspire a plot it
will not materialize, since G-d
is with us, nevertheless, since
the hands of Eisav have become
more forceful, there must be an
even more forceful response by
the voice of Yaakov, far more
than in usual times.
Therefore, when we hear
that a new chapter is opening
in the nations gathering and
kingdoms thinking vain things,
above all, we must know that
it is in vain. However, since
G-d did not create anything in
His world without purpose,the
very fact that such a report
has reached us is in order to
increase the voice of Yaakov
(thereby nullifying the hands
of Eisav), and particularly, we
must intensify in those matters
of a comparable nature, in a
manner of precede his shekels
with your shekels. Thus, when
the nations speak against G-d
and His anointed one,wemust
speak about the greatness of G-d
and the greatness of His anointed
Ones, Jewish children learning
Torah the magnitude of Jewish
education, and how relevant it is.
When the nations scheme
against Eretz Yisroel HaShleima
and Yerushalayim, the city where
Dovid encamped, wemust speak
in a manner of commotion and
planning with all the uproar
that the Torah demands that
they are an inheritance from our

fathers, and G-d gave it to the
Jews as an everlasting covenant
the Land of Israel to the
People of Israel with the Torah of
Israel.
Thus, it is appropriate here
to mention the following point:
Since there are many tens of
Jews present here today (the
Shchina rests upon every group
of ten Jews), and all the Gentiles
together are no more than
seventy nations [since He set up
the borders of the nations per the
number of Bnei Yisroel and
the entire number of the children
of Israel (traveling to Egypt) was
seventy], therefore, we must find
seventy Jews to make a ruling
on the wholeness of the Land of
Israel, the Torah of Israel, and the
People of Israel. Since this will be
a definitive Torah ruling, it will
definitely endure. As we derive
elsewhere, whoever occupies
himself in studying the sections
of Torah which deal with the
sacrifices it is counted as if he
personally offered a sacrifice;the
same holds true regarding one
who involves himself in rulings
relating to the wholeness of
the Land of Israel, the Torah of
Israel, and the People of Israel.
This is the only reason
for wasting Jewish time on the
commotion and empty plans of
the nations, time which could
be better utilized learning Torah
and performing
mitzvos. The
explanation for this is the need to
increase the voice of Yaakov in a
comparable manner...
ADD IN ACTS OF GOODNESS & KINDNESS
TO BRING MOSHIACH NOW!

Issue 995
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11/12/2015 11:22:39 PM
TZIVOS HASHEM
LESS ON
FROM A MINE
By D Chaim
moving
was
Everything
along as usual on that sunny
day. The gold mine was humming with dozens of miners.
One operated the excavator
machine, another miner slowly
climbed up with a load. They
all worked hard, sweating and
putting in a lot of effort.
what
dreamed
Nobody
s.
minute
few
a
in
happen
would
ing?
someth
hear
you
did
Jay,
It was Alex, one of the miners,
who heard a muffled rumbling
from the distance.
No, I didnt hear anything,
said his friend.
Alex was not reassured.
He was afraid that there was
a lack of security in the mine
which could lead to his being
buried alive. When a few minutes passed and the noise persisted, Alex went over to the
foreman and tried to alert him
to the impending danger.
The foreman listened to him
and said, Dont worry. Those
are noises that weve been hearing regularly lately. They must
be coming from the new machines being used in the area.
When Alex saw that the
foreman wasnt nervous, he
calmed down too and went
back to work. Some more time
went by and then suddenly,
the noise got louder and could
be clearly heard by everyone throughout the deep mine.

People shrieked and some of
the miners hurriedly ran to the
elevators. Some of them tried
their luck running toward the
emergency rooms.
A few seconds passed and
the mine collapsed! The walls
caved in and thick clouds of
dust were everywhere. Rocks
bounced all over and dozens of
miners were buried deep in the
earth.
Darkness. That is what the
miners who were buried alive
first saw. A heavy darkness
that you could almost touch.
They did not dare to move even
a single step in fear that they
would trip over something.
Alex did not have time to
think what would have happened if he had left the mine
before the tragedy took place.
He was busy with attempts to
extricate his foot from under a
pile of rubble. Are you alive?
he heard Jay ask him.
Yes, he whispered, as
though nobody was allowed to
hear him.
Little by little, thirty-three
miners discovered that they
were miraculously alive, but
their situation was bleak. They
were buried alive deep in the
mine, more than 600 meters
under the earth. At first, they

still anticipated rescue workers
coming, but they slowly came
to the realization that the rescue workers were sure they had
all died.
Weeks went by! The strong
desire of the miners to remain
alive enabled them to find solutions for survival. One of the
miners found food that had
been set aside in the mine in
case of emergency and he carefully distributed a little bit at a
time so the food would last and
provide for all of them for as
long as possible.
One miner set forth a schedule for them: when they would
go to sleep, when they would
get up, and so on. That is how
they kept their sanity. Over
time, their eyes adjusted to the
darkness which enabled them
to walk around. They all tried
to remain hopeful that the day
would come when they would
be rescued from the depths of
the earth. Only Alex lost hope.
He barely even opened his eyes.
One day, the miners heard
a weak and distant sound of
drilling. The rescue workers
are coming! exulted the miners. Every day the sound came
closer until the miners saw
the edge of the machine. They
quickly wrote a note that they
were alive and attached it to

995_bm_eng2.indd 34
11/12/2015 11:22:40 PM
the drill bit. Hope filled their the rescue that finally came.
***
hearts. Now, when people knew
they
surely
alive,
they were still
Shneur, the person in charge
would make every effort to get of Tzivos Hashem activities in the
them out.
neighborhood, finished telling the
Jay felt bad for his good true story of the Chilean minfriend Alex, who looked so down- ers that happened five years ago.
cast. Alex sat wrapped up in his The children were enthralled by
corner, his eyes closed. He hardly the story.
ate. He had lost hope a while ago.
It really happened? asked
They
what?
one of them.
Alex, you know
Very
out!
us
are trying to get
Yes, said Shneur. The
soon we will be out of here!
whole world knew about it. It is
Alex did not believe him. also a mashal (parable) for our
You just want to cheer me situation today.
up. There is no way we are
The Rebbe says
ever getting out of here. the
is
world
for
ready
But Alex, pleaded Jay, Lis- G e u l a .
ten! Hear for yourself the sounds
of drilling. Do yourself a favor
and listen, pay attention and
you wont have to be convinced.
But Alex, having been
underground for so long,
believed there was no
way to get out. He
did not open his
eyes or listen
with his ears.
Even when the
rescue workers
reached him
and carried
out,
him
his eyes remained
closed. He
opened
them only
when he
the
felt
of
rays
sun
the
caressing his face.
Then he felt
bad about all
the time he
had spent in
sorrow. He could
have opened his eyes
and happily anticipated
995_bm_eng2.indd 5
We just need to open our

eyes and contemplate the events
happening in the world, learn
the Rebbes sichos from 57515752, and realize how the world
is truly ready for Geula.
Just like Alex the miner, if
he would have opened his eyes
and paid attention to what was
going on around him, he would
have realized that he was about
to leave the hole so soon, so too
with us, and even more so. We
need to look around us with
Geula eyes and then we would
see how immediately, in the next
moment, we are going out of
galus to the final Geula.
11/12/2015 11:22:12 PM

Featured Articles Weekly Columns: A Chassid and Shliach Who Was Truly Alive

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Featured Articles Weekly Columns: A Chassid and Shliach Who Was Truly Alive

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CONTENTS

Beis Moshiach (USPS 012-542) ISSN 1082-0272

744 Eastern Parkway

Tel: (718) 778-8000

1. My revered father in-law,

included a man by the name of Reb

that at first glance it appears like

e were greatly saddened

order to strengthen the local yeshiva.

the mivtzaim campaigns. I wont

4 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

Mezuza, Mivtza Tzdaka every

for they themselves needed kiruv

R Ceitlin (third from left) with a group of talmidim-shluchim to Australia on a visit to

of the newcomers. I remember

In Tzfas too, he stood out

6 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

principal at the time. He quickly

R Ceitlin (left) at his wedding

His rant was effective because it came from

His fellow shluchim in Tzfas,

Chassidim undertook in this past

R Ceitlin active in Lebanon

gathering with a point from the

LEADING THE GROUPS

made me go on shlichus, I say

His hiskashrus to the Rebbe

8 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

about at every opportunity. He

R Ceitlin receiving a dollar from the Rebbe

countenance to the members of

and the Rebbe responded with, I

HAKHEL IN THE HEADLINES

stewardesses were afraid it would

with them, men or girls, or one

HISKASHRUS WITH EVERY

10 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

made allowances for himself

R Ceitlin with a group that he brought to the Rebbe for 22 Shevat

him. He was even willing to take

to carry out the Rebbes horaos.

Rebbes name. The Rebbe said,

honesty or integrity, should have

ESAUS TRUE INNER DESIRE

everything to seduce the prince,

WHY THE P.R.?

When we do Tshuva we travel into the future

THE POWER OF TSHUVA

JACOB THE MAN OF THE

explain why Esau added that

14 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

Isaac essentially endorsed and

BRINGING THE FUTURE

RABBI AKIVAS LAUGHTER

APPLICATION FOR TODAY

exhorted us to open our eyes

16 1 Kislev 5776 - Hakhel

medical centers. It cost me a

the written diagnosis.

At one of the musical

I opened the Igros Kodesh

trying to preserve it from shiur to

Dudu Fisher, the famous singer, was there and he