Beis Moshiach #855

7/31/2019 Beis Moshiach #855

1/39


2/39

Lighting up the

gLoom of exiLe

with joy!Translated by Boruch Merkur

Yomim Tovim, holidays,are all about joy. For example,the eight days of Chanuka arereferred to as days of joy.Chanuka, of course, comes atthe end of the month of Kislev.

And since everything goesaccording to the closing, which

in this case is days of joy, it isunderstood that throughout theentire month of Kislev there must

be an increase in joy. In fact, thisemphasis on joy begins even priorto Kislev, with the precedingShabbos, Shabbos MevarchimChodesh Kislev, which blessesthe month of Kislev.

This increase in joythroughout this period should be

with greater strength and with

greater force, marbim bsimcha(increasing in joy, which is saidof the month of Adar), until anabundance of joy is achieved.The result of this additional

joy is profound: it brings aboutthe nullification of all thingsundesirable.

Why must We add

in joy noW?

The reason why the mainemphasis of serving G-d with joy

was revealed specifically in recenttimes is in order to counterthe increase in the forces thatoppose holiness that has likewisetaken place in recent times, thedarkness of exile, etc. In order tonullify this darkness, there needsto be a greater increase in the joyof Torah and the joy of Mitzvos.

To whatever extent the gloomof exile has increased in recentyears, joy must also be increased.In the time of the Baal ShemTov there was an increase of joythat surpassed the level of joyassociated with the time of the

Arizal. Similarly, in the time of

the Alter Rebbe the joy exceededthat of the time of the Baal ShemTov. And when speaking aboutthe doubled and redoubleddarkness of this generation,the final generation of exile, thegreat need for increasing in joy

was publicized by the RebbeRayatz, leader of this generation.Indeed, the Rebbe did so in amanner of hafatza, publicizingthis message in the common

tongue, even instructing it to betranslated into seventy tongues,all the languages of the world.

From this it is understood thatwhen we see that the opposingforces, the realm of darkness,is still visibly vibrant, to theextent that one may point withones finger and saying this(here referring to the forces thatoppose holiness), it is proof thatthe joy that was achieved up until

now was not sufficient to nullifythe existence of darkness. Thus,there is a need to add even more

joy.

How much more is this thecase when we see that in recenttimes the forces that opposeholiness (not only still exist butthey) have actually strengthened,one should not be affected by any

obstacles or obstructions, etc. Onthe contrary, one must furtheradd with greater strength andgreater force, as mentionedabove, marbim bsimcha inall expressions of joy.

The joy spoken about hereis, of course, the joy of holiness.

And when this joy is achieved iteffects the eradication of the evilof the Plishtim [i.e., frivolousrejoicing, the polar opposite ofthe joy of holiness], as elucidatedin the teachings of chassidus(see Toras Chaim Vol. 2, pg. 3 ff;

Likkutei Sichos Vol. 15, pg. 119)

on Parshas Toldos, the section ofthe Torah that we begin to readpublically during todays Minchaprayer.

Simply put, there should bean increase in joy connectedespecially with the month ofKislev, the days of Chanuka,and prior to that, Yud-Tes Kislev,

Yud and Tes Kislev, and howmuch more so, Rosh ChodeshKislev, and even prior to that,

Shabbos Mevarchim ChodeshKislev, when additional blessingsare drawn down for all matterspertaining to the month of Kislev(i.e., in addition to the blessingthat each day in Kislev has on itsown).

(From the address of Shabbos

Parshas Chayei Sara, Mevarchim

HaChodesh Kislev 5746, bilti muga)

Dvar Malchus

4 24 Cheshvan 5773


3/39

THE MAN WHO BEGAN

THE MOSHIACH CAMPAIGNOVER SIXTY YEARS AGO

In advance of the Kinus HaShluchim, we spoke

to Rabbi Zalman Abelsky, a Chassid who went

on a dangerous shlichus during the days of the

Rebbe Rayatz. His shlichus today is as chief rabbi

of Moldavia. We asked him questions about the

avodas hashlichus at this time, in light of the

Rebbes sicha to the shluchim in 5752: What

did the Rebbe innovate in that address? Why

werent he and his fellow shluchim surprised bythe new horaa? Isnt it better to talk about tllin

and mezuzos to the unafliated, rather than

Geula and who Moshiach is? How do you explain

the topic of Geula in a rational way to students?

What advice does he have for shluchim younger

than he, who are afraid to publicize the topic of

Geula and the Goel?

By Menachem Ziegelboim

I want to talk to youprimarily about the finalshlichus that the Rebbe gave theshluchim, but first, let us hearabout your shlichus work.

I have been in Moldaviasince Chanuka 5749, right afterthe onset ofperestroika. People

from Ezras Achim asked me togo on shlichus there and I askedthe Rebbe who said: haskama,

bracha vhatzlacha.

You were no youngster atthat time. At that age, to startanew in a primitive place, whenanybody your age would start

looking to take it easy wheredid you get the strength forthis?

I think that as a result ofhiskashrus to the Rebbe, everyJew, no matter who he is, shouldsay every day [M. Z.: he saidthis with a tune:] As long as my

6 24 Cheshvan 5773

IntervIew


4/39

neshama is within me, I thankyou for the privilege of being aChassid and mekushar and doing

what the Rebbe wants. Thisought to be the goal of a Chassid,to do what the Rebbe wants;other things are less important.

Boruch Hashem, after all

these years, weve accomplisheda lot. Any young man can comehere to live with hardly anymaterial or spiritual problems,even with young children. It tooka lot of work.

At the Kinus HaShluchim5752, the Rebbe said that the

only shlichus that remains is toprepare oneself and ones cityto greet Moshiach. Was that asurprise to you?

A surprise? Why should ithave been a surprise? Its thetopic that the Rebbe spoke about

in his very first maamer. Andsince then, we have seen that allthe campaigns and activities thatthe Rebbe did and led were toprepare the world for Moshiach.

I remember that after theRebbes first maamer (said on

Yud Shevat 5711) arrived inEretz Yisroel, I was in KfarChabad; it was then that Iimmediately realized what theRebbe was getting at activities

that would bring the Geula! Fromthis I understood that the Rebbe

would bring the Geula, for he isMoshiach. I began publicizingthis at that time.

Whoever examines that firstmaamer sees how the Rebbespeaks about how our shlichus isto draw the Shchina down fromthe seven heavens to earth, as it

was with the seven tzaddikimuntil Moshe Rabbeinu. TheRebbe said we are in the IkvisadMeshicha and the end of galus.Can this be interpreted in anyother way?

What did people think ofyour conclusions at that time?

Some accepted it and somedidnt. However, every week I

wrote to the Rebbe and told himeverything I was doing in hafatza.I wrote that wherever possible,

I publicized that the Rebbe isMoshiach. I didnt just announcethis; I said it in places where I sawthat this would be accepted, and Isaid it with lengthy explanationsso people could understand itintellectually. Obviously, there

were people who opposed talklike this, but over the years itpenetrated more and more.

What was the Rebbes

Issue 855 7


5/39

reaction to this?

The Rebbe always respondedthat he had received my letters,and encouraged me to continuemy work. The Rebbe knewprecisely what I was doing.

On 11 Nissan 5712/1952,I arranged a farbrengen in KfarChabad in honor of the Rebbes

birthday. Back then, this daywas not celebrated. I first wroteto the Rebbe and he gave hisconsent and asked that matza bedistributed at the farbrengen.

At the farbrengen, I prepareda telegram of brachos to theRebbe, which was signed by

Chassidim in Kfar Chabad. Init, we wrote explicitly about theRebbe and he will redeem usspeedily in our days. Althoughthere were Chassidim who didnot accept this way of talkingand made a whole story out of it

(back then already!), the Rebbesanswer arrived swiftly: Whoever

blesses is blessed.

Of course you know thatyears later some Chassidimpublicized the same messageand got it over the head fromthe Rebbe.

There were those who saidwhat I said and the Rebbe toldthem not to publicize it. I think

I am the only one who wasencouraged in this by the Rebbe.I dont know why, but the mostobvious explanation is that I didit very cautiously. In places whereI saw that it might not be wellreceived, I kept quiet. I can tell

you that it was received betteroutside than by the Chassidim.

In 5711, I worked for Peilim-Yad LAchim for a while. Weyoung bachurim would gather inthe shul of the old age home on

Allenby Street in Tel Aviv, wherewe would get our marchingorders for our next activities.Until the meeting got underway,

we would talk amongstourselves. Since some of us

were Lubavitchers and somewere from Litvishe yeshivos,the conversations were alwaysinteresting.

One time, one of the olderbachurim said to me that hehad heard that we refer to theRebbe as Moshiach and asked

what I had to say about this. Iresponded: Im surprised at you.

Why do you need to know whatwe, Chabad Chassidim, say and

what our opinion is? A Ben Torahlike you ought to know what theTorah says.

He was very taken aback bythis and asked me what I meant.For three quarters of an hourI told him about what it says inthe Prophets, Gemara, Rishonim,and various halachic works. Heand his friends asked questionsand I answered, to the best ofmy ability. At the end of theconversation, he said he must asksenior Lubavitchers whether theyagreed with everything I said, andif they did, he would also becomea Lubavitcher.

Since I knew what the elderChassidim would say, and thatthey would never admit to this,I tried to dissuade him. I said:I am talking to you about what

DAngeRouS ShLiChuS in RomAniA

Not everybody knows that long before Moldavia, R Abelsky was a shliachfor the Rebbe Rayatz to Romania, where he spent three years spreadingJudaism.

R Abelsky escaped from Russia in 1947 and together with a group of

Chassidim, arrived in Poking, Germany where he learned in the YeshivasTomchei Tmimim started there.

The Rebbe Rayatz asked the elders of Anash (R Nissan Nemanov, RZalman Shimon Dworkin, R Plotkin, and others) to recommend someoneto send on shlichus to Romania. They told some bachurim about this andthey expressed their willingness to go, but the Rebbe chose R Zalman

Abelsky.

It was a dangerous trip because Romania was a satellite of Russia. Asa Russian refugee who still sounded like a Russian, and who didnt haveidentity papers, it was dangerous to go there.

Despite the danger, R Abelsky, still a bachur, went there and spread

Judaism. Ever since then, he has devoted his life to shlichus. After finishinghis mission in Romania, he went to Eretz Yisroel where he immediatelybegan working for Reshet Oholei Yosef Yitzchok. He worked in chinuch formany years until he went to Moldavia.

One time, one of the older bachurim said to methat he had heard that we refer to the Rebbeas Moshiach and asked what I had to say about this. Iresponded: Im surprised at you. Why do you need to

know what we, Chabad Chassidim, say and what our

opinion is? A Ben Torah like you ought to ask what the

Torah says.

8 24 Cheshvan 5773

IntervIew


6/39

prophets said and the viewsof the Tanaim and Amoraim,Rishonim and great men, andyou want to know what zikneiChabad say? They are good andfine but they are not prophets,nor are they Tanaim and

Amoraim. I am talking aboutthe Gemara and you are talkingabout ziknei Anash!

After the Kinus HaShluchim5752, you returned to Moldavia

with a new focus.

Yes. As I said, it wasnt newto me in shlichus, but after thatsicha it became much moreintensified. In the newspaper that

we publish for the khilla,Istruki(wellsprings; roots) we began to

expand on the topic even morethan before. In the places whereI occasionally speak, schools andshul, I speak about our preparingfor the Geula. Our slogan is,End the Galus, Live the Geula.In Russian, it has a nice ring to it.

I spoke when we had theChanukas HaBayis for ourschools new building. There

were Chassidim present as well asgentile government figures and Ispoke about the preparations weneed to make for the revelation ofMoshiach. As always, when youspeak with faith, people accept

what you have to say and weknow that words that come fromthe heart enter the heart.

Wouldnt it be better to talkabout putting on tfillin everyday or about kosher mezuzosto those who are just becoming

aware of the importance of theirJewish background?

I always compare it to theGeula from Egypt, when Hashemsaid to Moshe to prepare thenation for Geula and he gavethe Jewish people two mitzvos,the Korban Pesach and mila.In the merit of these mitzvos,

we were redeemed from Egypt.The same is true now. We are in

a time when Moshiach shouldbe coming any minute and weneed to prepare for this. Part ofthis preparation is mitzvos, likeyou said. Every mitzva that wedo should be done by way ofpreparing to welcome Moshiachand this is part of refining the

world for Moshiachs coming.

Can this topic be taught?

In our schools, in yeshiva,in the girls school, and in shul,

I teach about Moshiach in acomprehensive manner thatenables our students to absorb itand understand. There are twoplaces in Torah that I base thison. One is the Rambam in theintroduction to his commentaryon Mishnayos, where he explainsat length that in every generationthere is someone special, and hedefines the concept of who isthe leader of the generation, the

Moshiach of the generation. Hethen gives signs by which you canidentify this man; that he teachesTorah throughout the world andpromotes the oneness of Hashemthroughout the world.

That is one of the mostimportant sources that explainthe topic rationally. I sometimesget into a conversation withLubavitchers and I ask them

how they know the Rebbe isMoshiach. Many of them donthave a clear answer. When youlearn the topic in the Rambamthere, you come out with a clearanswer.

Then we learn the sicha of

Beis Rabbeinu ShBBavel. Ifyou know this material well, youcan speak to whoever you like,rabbanim and professors, andyou will come out ahead becauseyou are based on Torah sources.This is what I recommend bedone in every school.

Do the students accept it?

They accept it not only onfaith but rationally. The Rebbeasks that we learn inyaneiMoshiach and do everything in a

way that is rationally acceptable.You need to provide the reasoningand explanations behind all theclaims and concepts.

What did the Rebbe innovatein that sicha to the shluchim in5752?

The Rebbe raised the levelof anticipation and preparationfor Geula to new heights and he

made it the focus (even thoughit had previously been the focustoo).

The Rebbe had raised the levelof anticipation before 5742 whenhe announced that the Hebrewletters of the upcoming year werean acronym for Thei Shnas Bias

Moshiach (it will be the year ofthe coming of Moshiach). Everyyear since then, he announced

with a certainty hayo tihiyeh (it

will be), Shnas Geulas Moshiach,Shnas Divrei Moshiach, etc. TheRebbe began speaking aboutMoshiach more forcefully and

with greater certainty. Previously,the Rebbe had spoken in moregeneral terms.

Starting in the 90s, theRebbe ramped up the level ofanticipation to even greaterheights, especially following

Issue 855 9


7/39


8/39

puRim in

CheShVAn?By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

the ConneCtion

This weeks parshawhichfollows the Akeida-the bindingof Isaac, where Abraham was

prepared to sacrifice his sonIsaac, passing his most importanttestbegins with the passing ofSarah.

The Midrash connects thesetwo events. When Sarah was toldof what was supposed to happento her only son Isaac, the shock

was so great that her soul left herbody. She never got the chanceto hear that, in the end, Isaac wasnot sacrificed.

CheshVan and adaR

The Midrash, commentingon the story of Hamans desireto have all the Jews annihilated,connects it with the passing ofSarah.

Haman considered all themonths of the year to determine

which one would be mostsuited for carrying out his

diabolical plan. Each month wasdisqualified by him because ofsomething good that occurred init that was favorable to the Jewishpeople. When he considered themonth of Cheshvanthe monththat we are in now and which hasno Holidayshe dismissed itas well because Sarahs passingoccurs in this month. Haman feltthat her merit would shield the

Jewish people.

The Midrash then statesthat after rejecting eleven of thetwelve months because of their

favorability to the Jewish people,he finally settled on the monthof Adar. Haman concluded that

Adar was an unlucky month forthe Jewish people since Mosesdied in this month. Little didhe know, the Midrash states,that Moses was also born in themonth of Adar and that his birth

would override the effects of itbeing the month in which hedied.

the diFFeRenCes

BetWeen saRahs

PassinG and moses

PassinG

The obvious question here iswhy he felt that Sarahs passingin the month of Cheshvan wouldrender that month a fortuitousmonth for the Jewish people and

would afford them protection

in her merit, whereas Adar, themonth of Moses passing, wouldnot afford them protection.

Why was Moses passing moreof a negative phenomenon thanSarahs? And if the passing ofa tzaddik generates positiveenergy, what is the difference

between Sarahs passing andMoses passing?

Commentators explain that in

truth it is not that Sarahs passingwas considered a good omen butrather it was the binding of Isaacthat precipitated her demise that

was the good omen. Haman was

concerned that the self-sacrificethat Abraham and Isaac exhibited

with the Akeida would renderhis efforts futile. And sinceSarahs passing resulted from herhearing about the Akeida, it wasconsidered to be an integral partand continuation of their self-sacrifice, thereby carrying withinit the merit of the Akeida.

Another answer to thisquestion may be that Moses

pleaded with G-d to be allowedto enter into the Eretz Yisroel and

was turned down. This suggestedto Haman that Moses passing

was a totally negative experiencebecause Moses was unhappyabout it.

At first glance, this answercan be challenged becauseSarahs death, too, was tragicand untimely. As the Midrashcited earlier states, her passing

was a result of the shock sheexperienced upon learningof the Akeida. Obviously, thecircumstances of her demise werealso less than desirable. Why thendid Haman think that her passing

would be a source of strength andprotection for the Jewish people

while Moses passing wouldprove to be detrimental to them?

Parsha thought

Issue 855 11


9/39

moses: the PoWeR oF

ComPLete RedemPtion

The truth is that Mosespassing was not simply contraryto his expressed will. In theend, Moses was convinced that

his place was actually with hisgeneration in the desert. As theMidrash puts it, G-d told Mosesthat in the days of Moshiachhe will arise with his flock andtake them to Eretz Yisroel. Hispassing, therefore, was an act ofsupreme devotion to his peopleto not forsake them even in theirdeaths.

Nevertheless, Moses passing

and his inability to enter intothe Land of Israel rendered

the Jewish nation vulnerable toHamans threat.

If Moses had entered the Landof Israel and had built the BeisHaMikdash-the Holy Temple it

would never have been destroyedand the Jews would not have

been exiled to Persia.

Haman thus reasoned that thevery fact that the Jewish peoplewere in exile is attributableto Moses passing. Thus, the

month of Adar symbolized andcontained within it the energythat undermines Jewish stability.There can be no better month,Haman thought, than the monthof Adar in which to furtherundermine Jewish existence.

Haman, of course, waswrong.

His mistake, the Midrash and

Talmud state, was that Moseswas also born in the month ofAdar, and indeed on the verysame day that he would die 120years later. Moses birth, whichintroduced the soul of the one

who would liberate the Jewish

people, overrode the negativeconnotation of the day that hedied.

How does his birth on thatsame day in the month of Adarameliorate the negative effects ofhis passing?

Moses birth introduced thevery notion of and potentialfor liberation. Moses soul wasinextricably bound up with

removing the shackles of galusfrom the Jewish people. And that

was what defined Moses very

existence and essence. Thus,the fact that he also died in thatmonth, enabling the subsequentexile, could not override hispositive energy of negating thenegative forces of exile.

Indeed, Moses personified theideal of complete Redemption.

As our Sages declare, Mosesis the first redeemer and Moses

will be the final redeemer. Thisdoes not mean that Moses andMoshiach is the same person,

but rather that Moshiachs powerand ability to redeem the Jewishnation, is derived from Moses.Moshiach internalizes the soulof Moses and all the ideals with

which he is identified. Mosesthus is the very engine of thefuture Redemption just as he wasthe engine of the first Exodus

from Egypt. And as it turned out,Moses was also the catalyst forthe deliverance of the Jews fromHamans decree because it wasscheduled for the month of Adar,the month in which the energiesof Redemption were introduced

into the world by virtue of itbeing the month in which he wasborn.

And while it is true that hispassing made it possible for theJewish people to degenerateand ultimately lose their BeisHaMikdash, it actually was,ironically, also responsible fortheir survival. If Moses wouldhave entered the Land and builtthe Beis HaMikdash it would

never have been destroyed, but bythe same token, the destructionof the Beis HaMikdash, ourSages tell us, spared the livesof the people. G-d took out His

wrath, so to speak, on the woodand stones of the Temple and noton the lives of the Jewish people.

In effect, Moses birth and hispassing both served to preserveand protect the survival of theJewish people. Therefore, the

month of Adar was quite anauspicious month for them andHamans plan was thus thwarted.

haRnessinG

the PoWeR oF moses

The lesson for our times is: itis through harnessing the powerof Moses that we will bring anend to exile and its threats to theJewish people. Moses personifies

two complementary ideals:

Moses is the ultimatepersonification of Torah. Indeed,in Deuteronomy the Torahactually ascribes the Torah toMoses: Moses commanded usthe Torah as an inheritance to theassembly of Jacob.

But Moses is also theexemplar of Ahavas Yisroel,

And whereas the righteousness of the men can

sometimes be clouded, allowing the Hamans of

the world to think that we are still vulnerable, they sense

that the righteous women are a more potent force of

good and salvation for the Jewish people.

12 24 Cheshvan 5773

Parsha thought


10/39

of total commitment to andwillingness to sacrifice everythingfor the sake of the Jewish people.

These twin traits of Torahstudy and Ahavas Yisroel are thusthe forces that we bring to bearthat will not only temporarily

delay the negative forces ofgalusthe Hamans of our ownday that threaten usbut willfinally and imminently bring thetrue and complete Redemptionthrough Moshiach.

the Feminine

PoWeR oF CheshVan

In light of the above, onemight entertain the notion that

we have to wait for Adar to availourselves of Moses power ofredemption. In truth, however,even in this month of Cheshvan

we are endowed with the powerof the matriarch Sarah, whosepassing occurred in this monthand whose passing we readabout in this weeks parsha. And

while Haman misconstrued the

character of Adar by thinking that

it would be an ominous time forthe Jews, he had no such illusionsabout Cheshvan. He knew of thepower that was vested in thismonth by Sarah.

This echoes the Talmudicstatement that the Jewish people

were redeemed from Egypt in themerit of the righteous womenand will be redeemed from thisexile in the merit of righteous

women, as well. And whereas

the righteousness of the men cansometimes be clouded, allowingthe Hamans of the world tothink that we are still vulnerable,they do sense that the righteous

women are a more potent forceof good and salvation for theJewish people.

The feminine power of

Cheshvan is further buttressed

by the passing of the matriarchRachel on the eleventh day of thismonth. It is she who cries for herchildren and refuses to take nofor an answer. G-d tells her torefrain from crying because Hehas listened to her prayers and,as a result, the children shallreturn to their borders.

Indeed, the word Cheshvanhas the numerical value ofMoshiach plus the letter Vav,

which is the letter of truth.This indicates that we want andexpect the true and completeRedemption that will comethrough our righteous Moshiachnow, in the month of Cheshvan.

At that time we will witnessthe dedication of the third BeisHaMikdash, which our Sages tellus was reserved for this month.

Indeed, the word Cheshvan has the numericalvalue of Moshiach plus the letter Vav, which isthe letter of truth.

and departure of Rebbi to aloftier place, a more advancedapproach to the service ofG-d, as our Sages say, Therighteous have no rest not inthis world nor in the World toCome, as it is said, they shallgo from strength to strength.That is, the righteous journeyand ascend from one spiritual

height to the next.The novelty here is that

when Rebbiwas about todepart (bshaas ptiraso)from this world, he said, Irequire the presence of my

children. With the event ofRebbis ptira departure,he began a manner of Divineservice that totally surpassed

his previous service. Thus,there is reason to maintainthat it possesses no relevanceto us. [Rebbi, Rosh Bnei

Yisroel, head of the Jewishpeople, even prior to hisptira

was exceptionally great. Nowthat he was totally removedfrom his worldly limitations,he had conceivably departedfrom any possible connectionto the rest of the Jewish people,

those who did not ascend withhim.] Rebbi, however, rules outthis misconception by saying,at the time of hisptira, Irequire the presence of mychildren. It is as if Rebbi weresaying: Notwithstanding thefact that I am now ascendingto an approach to serving G-dthat is utterly transcendent,

nevertheless I [still] rememberyou, and I shall rememberyou wherever I may be [i.e.,whatever spiritual heights Iattain]. In fact, your service hasan affect on me even at the mostsublime heights. Indeed, eventhere, I require the presence ofmy children. That is to say, notonly do the children need him,but to an even greater extent, heneeds his children.

Thus, all those things thatwere customary to be arrangedbefore Rebbi, remain in theirplaces: a lamp should continueto be lit in its usual place, thetable should be set in its usualplace, and the bed should beprepared in it usual place.

(Ibid 23)

Continued from page 42

Issue 855 13


11/39

MIRACLESIN LEBANONMuch has been written about the tremendous

work of Chabad during the war in the north. This

time, we wanted to hear about the war from

the perspective of two Lubavitcher soldiers.

* R Yankele Gloiberman of Shikun Chabad in

Lud served as an ofcer in a paratrooper unit

known as the 96th Division and was one of the

rst to arrive at the airport in Beirut. * R Eliyahu

Turgeman is a founder of Chabad mosdos in

Netanya, who had yechidus a few months before

he went to the Lebanon front. * Thirty years

since the war in Lebanon.

By Nosson Avrohom

It has been thirty years sincethe first Lebanon war, knownas Peace in Galilee. The

war began after years during

which PLO terrorist bands becameentrenched in Lebanon andattacked Israels northern border.Many Jews lost their lives andthere was tremendous destructionof property. The attemptedassassination of the Israeliambassador in London, Shlomo

Argov, was used as a justificationfor the war whose purpose was torestore peace for those living in the

north and to eliminate terrorists.

In the initial days of thewar, the Israelis were largelysuccessful. Within a short

amount of time, IDF forcesarrived on the outskirts of Beirut.Then, politicians underminedall the successes and halted thecampaign at its peak. The Rebbescreamed about the astonishinghalt in the campaign and theirresolution and spoke about thisa lot in his talks. On 22 Sivan5742 he said:

14 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


12/39

Only completing theoperation in a way thatguarantees the security andpeace of all Jews in the HolyLand can justify the loss of those

who died in this campaign, mayHashem avenge their blood.

Each of one of them is an entireworld and the endangerment ofa single one of them sets asidethe entire Torah. Therefore,since it was necessary toundertake this campaign inorder to secure the security andpeace of Jews in the Holy Land,they must complete it in orderto justify, to the extent possible,the korbanos that fell, especially

when doing so will prevent

additional korbanos. Not asingle additional Jew, who is anentire world, should be lost.

outReaCh undeR FiRe

Thirty years ago, when theDefense Minister and thenMajor-General Refael Eitan gavethe signal for the war, R YankeleGloiberman served as an officerin the paratrooper unit known as

the 96th

Division and was one ofthe first to reach Beirut.

Soldiers knocked at the doorof our home in Lud on Shabbosafternoon and informed me of animmediate mobilization. No one

was surprised, since everyoneknew that the tremendousrestraint in the face of terrorist

attacks in the north would haveto end at some point.

I told the soldiers thatsince this wasnt particularlyurgent, I would join the rest ofthe soldiers in the Division onMotzaei Shabbos at the jump-off base near Lud. For an entirenight we readied all the vehicles,the Armored Personnel Carriers(APC), tanks and artillerycannons, and with the first light

of day we left with semi-trailersin the direction of Nahariya. My

job was like the other fighters inthe unit, but I had an additionaltask evacuating the dead as

well as treating the soldiers inshock. In just one day I switchedfrom being the secretary ofthe Vocational School and thepersonal secretary of R Efraim

Wolf to being a soldier on thebattlefield.

The instructions were clear.

R Gloibermans tllin that frightened the terrorists to the point that they surrendered

In just one dayI switched frombeing the secretary of theVocational School and the

personal secretary of R

Efraim Wolf to being a soldier

on the battleeld.

Issue 855 15


13/39

The Israeli army was going toconquer Beirut and eradicate the

terrorist nests in Lebanon.That was our goal. When we

arrived in Nahariya, the divisionbroke up into two groups. Onegroup broke through from theeast, and the second group to

which I was attached came infrom the coastal direction. Theyput us on a warship from which

we disembarked at the coastalhighway that led to Tyre andSidon. The commanders thought

it would be a quick campaign,which is why they did not wantto clean out house after house,

but just wanted to reach Beirutas quickly as possible. The plan

was to flank the terrorists frominside Lebanon. The ones wholed the way were Shayetet 13,the elite naval commando unit ofthe Israeli Navy, a Special Forcesunit.

They left Nahariya at noonon Sunday and after a few hours,

Gloiberman and his friendsdisembarked at the mouth of theBeirut River Valley with their goal

being to split Lebanon in two.They waited for the rest of thesoldiers who were invading overthe border and were involved inheavy fighting.

From the moment we setdown from the ship with thetanks, the cannons, and half-tracks to the shore, we were shot

at by terrorists who were at pointsspread out over the coast. Bombsand rockets landed on us and wetried identifying the sources ofthe shooting and returned fire.

Many terrorists were killedby the Shayetet who led thecharge. Several times, I saw death

before my eyes. Bombs landednearby, bullets whistled overheadand I prayed that no evil befall

me. Before I had left the house,I had taken a Tanya that I hadreceived from the Rebbe in 5740

with his personal signature. I feltencouraged by the feeling thatthe Rebbe was protecting me and

was with me.

We waited, fully exposed fortwo days on the coastal highway.Then we were under severeattack, which forced us to takecover in a ditch on the side of theroad until the air force took outthe sources of shooting.

Ill never forget howsaddened I was when we heardabout the death of Deputy Chiefof Staff General Kuti Adam inthe town of Damur, which was

near where we were located. Hewas a personal friend of mineand a great friend of Chabad andthe Rebbe. He often visited KfarChabad.

The greatest hardshipduring the war was maintainingChassidishe conduct. On theeve of the first Shabbos, mycommanders were shocked whenthey heard I was looking for amikva. We ended up finding astream and I immersed in it.

***

Then slowly, voices beganto be heard that spoke againstthe war. As the war continued,the high command caved in tothese voices and forbade shelling

buildings for fear of hittinginnocent civilians. As a result ofsaving Arab lives, more and moreyoung Jews were killed when they

were forced to clear out houseafter house. They were killed by

booby-traps that the terroristshad set.

I had access to two vehicles,a jeep and an excavator half-track, and time after time I hadto enter the battlefield under firein order to remove the bodies ofour dead boys or those who had

been wounded.

R Gloiberman in a military convoy on the way to Beirut

I spent an entire month at the front and myfamily did not hear from me. There were no cellphones back then. My son Shlomo was born while I wasaway and I heard about it later.

16 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


14/39

the teRRoRists saW

the tFiLLin and WeRe

aFRaid

Several times, RGloibermans life was saved andhe tells us about it:

One morning, before goingto battle against the town ofDamur, I put on my tallis forShacharis. Many soldiers puttfillin on with my help. Suddenly,

we saw an astonishing sight;armed terrorists were comingout with their families with

white flags of surrender. Oursoldiers quickly photographedthe amazing sight and I wasreminded of what the Rebbe

said, quoting the Gemara on theverse, And all the nations of theland will see that the name ofG-d is called upon you theserefer to the tfillin on the head.Those terrorists were taken bysurprise in their lairs and there isno question that many lives weresaved as a result.

Another miracle took placein the resort town of Jounieh, atown full of hotels frequented

by important people in the Arabworld. We went from houseto house in order to root outterrorists until we arrived at theHilton Hotel. The manager cameout and said that not a singleterrorist was in his hotel andhe asked us to take care of theplace. Then suddenly, a terroriston the fourth floor opened fire

with a machine-gun. In an openmiracle, no soldiers were hurt.

The bullets went right above ourheads. A shell shot from a tanksilenced the source of the fire.The soldiers were in utter shock.I felt I had been saved thanks tothe Tanya.

miVtZaim WhiLe

undeR FiRe

R Gloiberman recalled the

massive work of the ChabadMobile Tanks:

The tanks, led by RabbiDovid Nachshon and the

Lubavitchers from Tzfas, madean enormous Kiddush Hashemthroughout the war. Even before

we finished cleaning out an area,the mitzva tanks were there toraise morale. The missiles werestill flying and they, with mesirusnefesh, put tfillin on with thesoldiers and encouraged thesoldiers, most of whom had losttheir friends in battle. I rememberhow a mitzva tank came with

Chassidic music blasting to anarea that we had just taken over.The Chief Artillery Corps Officer,General Aryeh Mizrachi, wasflabbergasted by the nerve of theLubavitchers and wanted them toturn back. But after talking withthe soldiers and realizing howmuch their work was needed,he gave them the green light tocontinue. He himself went up on

a tank and blessed them.

R Gloiberman did not waitfor anyone and reached out toothers on his own:

We visited the magnificentshul in Bhamdoun, and visitedsome shuls in Aley. The shuls

were neglected. The Jews hadlong since left the area and on thefloor were Siddurim and otherholy books. We did not havemuch time, but did our best toclean up.

There are moments that I willnever forget. One of them wasErev Shabbos before going to the

airport in Beirut. I prepared todaven and I will never forget thattfilla. There were soldiers from arange of backgrounds includingmany from kibbutzim. Peoplestood there with tears in theireyes and sang Yedid Nefesh.There was a feeling that youdont encounter every day, theessence of what it means to be aJew, to be part of Am Yisroel.

R Gloiberman with Chief Artillery Corps Ofcer,General Mizrachi, in front of a mitzva tank in Lebanon

Issue 855 17


15/39

As soon as we finisheddavening, we had to make ahasty Kiddush and then we weregiven the order to move towardsour destination. On the way, wesaw some of our tanks that had

been hit by Syrian fire. There

were dead soldiers, but our orderwas to move. Unfortunately, theorder was changed at the lastminute and we did not enterBeirut. I wont forget how thepeople in villages near Beirut,

who supported President BashirGemayel, threw rice and candiesat us.

The hardest part was dealingwith the bodies of the dead, alongwith other difficulties like finding

kosher food. I would eat armyrations. Every night we soldiers

would gather in the fields andheat up the food on top of emptycans. I spent an entire month atthe front and my family did nothear from me. There were nocell phones back then. My sonShlomo was born while I wasaway and I heard about it later.

Until today, I keep in touchwith soldiers and commanders

from my division. I have awarm relationship with RonCohen who was our regimentdeputy commander, and today ispolitically active in Meretz.

the GReatest

satisFaCtion: that

We aRe the ReBBes

shLuChim

At the end of the war, RGloiberman was promoted to therank of captain.

Amos Yaron, who eventuallybecame a general, called meand promoted me. As soon asI went home, I sent a detailedreport to the Rebbe about whatI had experienced and about theoutreach to soldiers. I know thatsome men became baalei tshuva

due to our outreach. There is ayoung man who lives in Shoham,

who is very close to the Chabadhouse there. He was mekuravfollowing conversations aboutemuna that we had.

I returned to Lud with my

hair and beard white with dustfrom the road. We traveled a lotover dirt roads and sandy trails

without showers. It took me halfa year to recover from the sightsthat I saw. During that period, Idid not sleep normally. During

war, you cannot sleep normally;you have to sleep in uniform and

boots and be ready to move. Atany moment you can be wokenand you have to be ready for

battle. One night youre sleepingin an armored vehicle, and thenext night in an open orchard

where terrorists can attack at anyminute. You are constantly onthe alert and a lot of time has togo by before you can get used topeace and quiet.

However, the greatestsatisfaction is the feeling that

we are shluchim of the Rebbe. Ihelped hundreds of soldiers put

on tfillin. For some of them,it was the first time in theirlives. Many soldiers came fromHaShomer HaTzair (virulentanti-religious) kibbutzim andthey were inspired to Torah andmitzvos. The war opened a new

vista to them.

FiVe miRaCLes

R Turgeman was born in

Casablanca, Morocco. Hisparents were stationed there bythe French government. He wasa young boy when his parentscompleted their diplomaticmission and returned to Paris.

I grew up in a traditionalfamily and was sent to the Bnei

Akiva School called Yavne. Theschool taught me many Jewish

values and a love for Eretz

Yisroel. When I went to studylaw in university, my Jewishspark died down. Most of myfriends were not Jewish and theatmosphere was permissive.

I got to know Chabad at theuniversity. Since they knew that I

was Jewish, they constantly triedto rope me into Jewish activities,

but I wiggled out every time.The one who managed to get me

back to my roots was R PinchasPashtar. This was after I marriedmy wife who had just completedher studies as a speech therapist.

One Shabbos, I was walkingnear the Chabad house run

by R Pashtar while smoking acigarette. One of the people there

who saw me urged me to comeinside the shul for the farbrengenand Shabbos meal. I refused, buthe insisted and I finally agreed.The atmosphere was terrific. Imet many other young men whohad recently gone through whatI was going through and haddecided to return to their roots.

The following Shabbos, hewent to the shul again and thenhe began visiting every so often.R Pashtar had a profound effecton him. He eventually becamea baal tshuva and put back hiskippa and tzitzis on and starteddavening and keeping Shabbos.

What really effected me wasthe Rebbe. At the entrance to theshul was a large picture of theRebbe and everyone spoke abouthis greatness. I was impressed

by the Rebbes appearance. He

embodied everything I had beentaught in the past about prophetsand tzaddikim. I realized it

wasnt merely history but theliving reality.

In 5733, Eliyahu and hisfamily made aliya and settled inNetanya.

I was a fresh baal tshuvafull of energy to act. We beganorganizing farbrengens in many

18 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


16/39

shuls throughout the city.He worked for the Ministry

of Labor and Social Welfare inthe division dealing with youthfuloffenders. He later took on therunning of a Chabad house andstarted the Lubavitcher school.

In 5741 he went to the Rebbefor the first time:

Everything I heard about theRebbe before I went, and aboutthe intensity of the Chassidimand the experience, paled incomparison to what I actuallyexperienced. Literal Elokus(G-dliness). The first time Ientered 770 I burst into tears.

At 9:30 in the evening, peoplecrowded into the small zal forMaariv. Eliyahu was one of thelast to enter.

I was unable to utter thewords of the davening; I was too

emotional. The Rebbe put on hisgartel while looking at me withpenetrating eyes. He did not takehis gaze off of me and I could notmove in my great fear.

Before returning to EretzYisroel, he had yechidus duringwhich he presented his questions.At the end, he told the Rebbe hewas returning to Eretz Yisroel.The Rebbe gave him fifty shekels.

Afterward, when he asked RChadakov about this, he wastold that the fifty shekel noterepresented the fiftieth gateand as it says in the Gemara,someone who dreams aboutthe letter nun will experiencemiracles. Apparently the Rebbe

was hinting that miracles willhappen to you.

He experienced thosemiracles some months later when

the war in Lebanon began.

PuttinG on tFiLLin

saVed his LiFe

Eliyahu was drafted as soon ashe made aliya and he completedhis service as an officer in theCombat Engineering Corps.

When the military action beganagainst the terrorist nests inLebanon, he expected to get an

urgent summons to appear andserve in the army.

Our job in the engineeringcorps is one of the mostimportant in the advancementof the army. We are enlisted

before anyone else, because weare the ones who accompany thearmored corps, clearing the wayof mines and other objects thatcan interfere with heavy vehicles

moving into enemy territory. Nowonder that I was surprised whenall my friends were summoned

but they forgot about me.

The local command officerexplained to me that althoughit was surprising, that is whatthe army decided. Not everysoldier is drafted. If they needyou, theyll let you know. Twodays went by and the militarypolice knocked at my door. They

had come to arrest me for notshowing up. I went with them toan army camp in Haifa where I

was put on trial. All my attemptsto explain that I had not receivedany orders, and that they couldask the local command officer

whom I had seen two days ago,fell on deaf ears. They were goingto put me in prison for desertion,in a time of battle no less. That

was a very serious charge. At the

end of the brief trial, the truthcame out and I was pronouncedinnocent.

I was sent to join my unit. Ihad to wait for a military supportconvoy that would be heading tothe front lines. In the meantime,I heard about many dead and

wounded in our unit. Duringthe first days of war, the unit fellinto an ambush. I considered

Issue 855 19


17/39

tZiyon ChAtuChAS miRACLe

Tziyon Chatucha of Ramat Gan has specialmemories of the war in Lebanon and of his encounterthere with Chabad. He says Chabad protected him andhis buddies and saved them from death.

Chatuchas story begins during the difficult days ofthe war in Lebanon. By the Rebbes instruction, mitzvatanks were sent to the front. Chatucha says that themitzva tanks were new and surprised them all:

The Chabadnikim came to us, to the front line,with a new vehicle from America. They called it a TankMivtzaim, which we were seeing for the first time inour lives. They put tfillin on with all of us.

During the Six Day War, the Rebbe spoke aboutthe importance of tfillin for all the soldiers and how,in this merit, we would be victorious. The Rebbe citedthe verse, And all the nations of the world will see thatthe name of G-d is called upon you. This verse is saidabout tfillin and about how the enemy will fear those

who put on tfillin.

Mitzva tanks were sent to be with the soldiers at thefront and the victory in that war surprised everyone.

Chatucha recalls:

Our temporary base was a school in Beirut where Isaw the mitzva tanks for the first time. They gave me apocket Thillim for protection. A friend asked me whogave me the Thillim and I said the Chabadnikim hadgiven it to me. He went with me to the tank and they

gave him a Thillim too and asked him to put on tfillin.They also asked that he continue putting on tfillinevery morning. He said that he did not usually puton tfillin and was only doing so that day as a segulabecause of the war.

The story could have ended like hundreds ofthousands of others, but it has an unexpected ending.

About an hour after putting on tfillin, the group wasunder heavy bombardment and had nowhere to run.Chatucha and his friend were drivers who were sentto bring ordnance from the storage area. During theshelling they took cover in a tent that was the nearest

shelter. The tent was pitched between trucks loadedwith munitions.

Chatucha:

My friend was in the tent when the shelling beganand he had no place to run. A shell landed there andhe was saved because he hid behind the wheel of atruck. From there, he ran in the direction of the school.On his way there, another shell fell near him and hewas hit by shrapnel and lightly wounded. With his lastremaining strength he continued onward towards the

command post with the help of a friend. While running,he was hit by more shrapnel and he lost consciousness.

When the enemy shelling ended at night, we discoveredthat he was still alive and almost nothing had happenedto him. When I visited him, he told me with tears in hiseyes that he was sure that the tfillin he had put on thatday and the Thillim that he had with him had savedhim.

His story inspired the other soldiers and the next

day, a group of soldiers sat and read chapters ofThillim. Even the Chief of Staff Raful, who had comethere, could not stop them from reciting Thillim andhe smiled.

Chatucha concluded:

This story moves me till today. Over the years,when I prepare boys for their bar mitzva, I tell themthis story and how it was in the merit of the mitzvatanks that the Rebbe sent to us.

(From Chabad.info)

Tziyon Chatucha with Lubavitchers in Lebanon

20 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


18/39

this another miracle. Who knowswhat would have happened to meif I had been drafted on the firstday of the war?

As the war went on, I sawdeath before me two times. Onemorning, after an exhausting

night of laying in ambush,we returned to our forwardoperating base. We were filthyand exhausted from hoursof lying there without eatinganything. The base was locatedin a parking lot that the army hadtaken over and turned into animprovised base. In the center,they put up portable showersstalls made of light metal. Withme in the unit was a relatively

new immigrant from Turkey.We were both new immigrantsand had a common language.This enabled me to speak withhim regularly about Torah andmitzvos. He often agreed to puton tfillin.

That morning, the firstthing I wanted to do was put ontfillin. In wartime, you can neverknow when they will need youfor another battle or ambush,

so it pays to daven at the firstopportunity.

Before I put on tfillin, I wentinto his tent and urged him toput on tfillin, but he wanted toshower first. I dont know whatmade me insist, but I said, Imalso dirty but I want us to put ontfillin first and then Ill go withyou to the showers.

When he saw that I was

insistent, he put down his toweland soap and we went awayfrom the shower area to my tent.I hadnt finished wrapping thestraps when we heard the soundof an explosion, which shookthe entire camp. Everyone ranto hide. Within minutes we sawthat terrorists had gotten a beadon the camp and fired mortars,

which hit the showers. The

showers were ripped to shreds. Ifwe had gone there first, we wouldhave been goners.

the syRian tanKs that

didnt shoot

One day, we headed outon two APCs to accompany aconvoy of tanks into the Beirutarea. Early that night, we weretold to stop and not continuetraveling until morning. Wecovered the tanks and APCs

with camouflage nets. To oursurprise, we saw another threetanks parked only three hundredmeters away from us, facingBeirut. We were sure they

belonged to some other unit that,for some reason, hadnt informedus of their existence.

When dawn began to break,the command officer of the tankunit woke me up in a fright. Itturned out that those tanks wereSyrian! They had noticed us andnow, every second was critical.

Whoever recovered first wouldeliminate the other. At four in themorning, our soldiers crawled

to their positions, all of them inpure survival mode. They shotand destroyed the three Syriantanks without the Syrians firinga single shot. It was only when aplume of smoke rose among theirtanks that we calmed down.

It was an open miracle. Wehad parked at ten at night, anduntil four in the morning there

was a very short distance betweenus and them. If the Syrians had

noticed us, they would have shotat us first and we wouldnt havestood a chance. Everyone theresaid the HaGomel blessing.

miRaCLe at the BRinK oF

the aByss

Eliyahu experienced yetanother miracle when thesoldiers of his unit were traveling

towards the airport in Beirut,accompanied by a large convoyof tanks.

According to protocol, twoEngineering Corps APCs weresupposed to clear the way for thetanks but that day, the tankersinsisted on going ahead of theengineering people and evenreceived permission to do so.

We of the EngineeringCorps, traveled behind them. We

reached a section of the highwaywhere there was an abyss onone side with a tangle of trees.

We began moving a few dozensmeters on this highway when

we suddenly heard an explosion.Terrorists had hidden in thatforest and had shot a missiletowards the tanks but missed.The first tank immediatelyfired back. It was only after theterrorists were eliminated that

we realized the miracle we hadhad. It was only because of theinsistence of the armored corpsthat we were not in the lead,and without the firepower of atank we would have been sittingducks.

I experienced five miraclesone after the other. In eachsituation I could have lost mylife.

Issue 855 21


19/39

whAt mAKeS A

fiRSt-RAte SpouSe?I e ime f Mi, we wi bei d ve we eed. hw wi we be

be d e Mizv f tzdk? I e

ime f Mi, e m wi ve e

me e e d wi be

ei bie d me w wi we

d Kidd hcde? * rbbi ge

avz, r Yeiv lbvi f

ciii, bei ew eie dii

wee d w e we i pefm

Mizv i e ime f Mi.

By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon

Dear Reader shyichyeh,

This article is the first of ournew series, discussing Mitzvosin the times of Moshiach. We

will explore a number of mitzvosand discuss if and how we aregoing to perform them.

There will be many changesin the times of Moshiach. Basedon these changes, physical andspiritual, the fulfillment of certainMitzvos comes into question.

For example: In the timesof Moshiach, we will all be rich

and have all we need. How willwe be able to do the Mitzvaof Tzdaka? In the times ofMoshiach, the moon will have thesame strength as the sun and willnot be getting bigger and smaller,so how will we perform KiddushHaChodesh?

But before we get into details,

let us address a more basicquestion on this topic (addressedin our series Moshiach: What

We Believe):

Does not the Gemara (Nidda61b) write that All Mitzvos

will be nullified in the times ofMoshiach?

To appreciate the answer, wemust quote and explain the entireGemara. The Gemara in thatplace (Nidda 61b) discusses thelaws of Jewish burial. All Jewishpeople are buried in shrouds. Is

one permitted to bury someone inshrouds that are made of Kilayim(a garment whose fabric is madeof mixed material, of wool andlinen)?

Our Rabbis taught: Agarment in which Kilayim waslost ... may be made into ashroud for a corpse. R Josephobserved: This implies that the

commandments will be abolishedin the Hereafter.

The above Gemara thatseems to be implying that there

will be no Mitzvos in the timesof Moshiach directly contradictsother quotes of our Sages:

1) The Talmud (Sanhedrin90b) states: How is resurrectionderived from the Torah? Asit is written, And you shall givethere (in Yerushalayim) of theL-rds heave offering to Aaronthe priest. But would Aaron liveforever? He did not even enterPalestine, that truma should begiven him. But it teaches that he

would be resurrected, and Israelwould give him truma. Thusresurrection is derived from theTorah. This Gemara directlyimplies that we will be doingMitzvos in the times of Moshiach!

2) The Rambam (HilchosMegilla Chapter 2) quotes theTalmud Yerushalmi (Megilla 1:5):All the books of the Prophetsand all the Holy Writings will benullified in the Messianic era,

with the exception of the Book ofEsther. It will continue to exist,as will the five books of the Torah

and the halachos of the Oral Law,which will never be nullified.

In addition: There is a bigdifference between the laws ofman and the laws of Hashem.There are two sorts of statutes:

A) statutes that create life and B)statutes created by life. Humanlaws are created by life so they

vary from land to land according

22 24 Cheshvan 5773

MoshIach & geula


20/39

to circumstances. The Alm-ghtysTorah is a G-dly law that createslife. G-ds Torah is the Torah oftruth, the same in all places, at alltimes. Torah is eternal. (HaYom

Yom, 22 Shevat) Mitzvos arethe will of Hashem. He and His

will are one. Since He does notchange, His will Mitzvos donot change.

The Rebbe (Sichos Tishrei5752) provides a revolutionaryexplanation:

When Moshiach comes,the world will be very sensitiveto spirituality. We will followHashems will without having to

be commanded to do so. If onehas to be told to do something,

it implies that there are twoseparate existences, which arecommunicating with each other.

To understand this clearly,take for example the relationship

between spouses. The differencebetween a bad, good andexcellent marriage might bedescribed as follows:

Bad: The wife asks thehusband to take out the garbage

and he ignores her.Good: The wife asks the

husband to take out the garbageand he listens.

Excellent: The wife does nothave to tell the husband to takeout the garbage. He is sensitiveto her needs on his own.

When Moshiach comes,the Mitzvos will be annulled,meaning that we will not becommanded to do the Mitzvos;

we will be doing them naturally.We will be sensitive to G-ds willand desires even without Hisexpress commandment to fulfillthem.

The Midrash (Yalkut Shimonion Yirmiyahu 315) writes: If inthe Times of Moshiach one will

want to do the forbidden act ofpicking a fig on Shabbos, the fig

will scream at him to stop.

The HaYom Yom (15 Adar1) writes: It is said of the Timeto Come: A stone in the wall

will cry out and a beam from thetree will respond. At present,inert creations are mute; though

trodden upon, they remainsilent. But there will come atime, when the revelation of theFuture becomes a reality, whenthe inert will begin to speak,relate and demand: If a man was

walking along without thinkingor speaking words of Torah, whydid he trample upon me?

The earth that has beentrodden upon has been waitingfor millennia, ever since theSix Days of Creation. All kindsof living creatures have beentreading upon it all this time,

but it is waiting for a Jew (ortwo Jews) to walk on it whilediscussing Torah. But if they do

not say words of Torah, the earthwill protest: You too are just likean animal!

From the above it is clear thatwe will continue doing the 613Mitzvos. In our coming articles

we will discuss specific Mitzvosand how they will be performed.

When Moshiach comes, the Mitzvos willbe annulled, meaning that we will not becommanded to do the Mitzvos; instead, we will bedoing them naturally.

Issue 855 23


21/39

TANYATHERAPYBy Dr. Yetta Krinsky

The Baal Shem Tov taughtthat everything a personsees or hears contains amessage for him about

how he should act in the world, andhow he should serve his Creator.

In my work as a psychiatrist Iam privileged to be witness to andhonor transformative moments inmy patients lives. In fact it wasthrough my work that my journeyto observant Judaism began.

Time and time again Iwatched people heal from thingsI would not have thought itpossible to heal from: refugees

who had been tortured in theirhomelands, women who had beenabused as children, and otherhorrible tragedies. Searchingfor the secret that lay beneaththe surface of this inner healingprocess, I was lead to the work ofTanya, by the Alter Rebbe, RabbiShneur Zalman of Liadi, whereI found a conceptual frameworkdescribing the part of us thatis untouched by anything thathappens to us. It is our essence,the deepest part of our soul.

This was for me the mostprofound wake up call it ispossible to imagine, and I am stillto this day gratefully exploringthe ramifications.

I want to share a little of thisprocess with you.

somethinG aWaKens

I was asked to urgentlysee a woman with postpartumdepression. Many difficultexperiences and challenges hadconfronted this young womanand her family since the baby was

born, and they had taken theirtoll. In addition, she had had togive up breast feeding severalmonths earlier when the baby had

been severely ill in the hospital,and from that time on had foundit hard to bond with the baby.

During the interview she heldher 4-month-old baby at armslength, as the baby quivered andshook, seeking eye contact fromme but not from the mother. Themother told me in desperation,You see, she wants other peoplemore than me. She cries and

cries, she doesnt sleep, Im notsleeping, and worse still I dontfeel any compassion for her whenshe cries.

I had been seeing her for anhour and thought I would reallyhave my work cut out for me.Postnatal depression, mother-

infant bonding problems lotsof work would be necessary. It

would be a long uphill journey.But I could feel the pain and grief

behind the mothers apparentindifference. Thank G-d, at thatmoment something which I hadread that morning in the dailyTanya portion came to mind, andI said to her, You know what, Ithink there is a very deep bond;it just got a bit covered over

by all the grief and things thathappened. She is connected toyou and you to her in a muchmore profound way than herhaving to have eye contact withyou.

At that moment there was asoftening in the mothers facialexpression, her eyes glistened

with tears, she drew the baby

24 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


22/39

closer to her, and I saw the babybegin to respond differently.

Two days later, although therewas still much work to be done,the baby was calmer and sleeping

better and there was a visiblewarm reciprocity developing

between mother and child.So what was it that I read that

morning, by Hashgacha Pratis,which catalyzed this shift in themother-baby relationship?

In the beginning of Chapter46 of the first part of the Tanya,the Alter Rebbe tells us not togive up if we dont seem to feelany connection, or any love, inour relationship with Hashem(and why this is important we

will return to explore a littlelater). Because deep down, inthe deepest recesses of the heartof every single Jew, there is apowerful love inherited fromour Patriarchs Avraham, Yitzhakand Yaacov, and from MosheRabbeinu, the faithful shepherdof the Jewish people, which justneeds to be remembered and

brought into the open. Over the

next few chapters of the Tanyathe Alter Rebbe explains howto do this. But first to set thecontext

Bodies, souLs and

the PuRPose oF

eVeRythinG

We learn from Jewishmysticism that everything in this

world, and also all of the spiritualworlds, has a body and a soul.Even spiritual things whichseem to us to have no physicalaspect at all, for example angelsand even mitzvos themselves(Hashems commandments tous about how we should live ourlives in this world) also have a

body and a soul.

The word mitzvah itself,

which means commandment,shares the same root with the

Aramaic word tzavsa whichmeans connection or bond. The

body of the mitzvah a persondoes is the action itself, whichis commanded by Hashem, ourCreator, and Creator of themaster handbook of the worldand how it should function theTorah. The soul of the mitzvah isthe intention (kavana) we have

when we do the mitzvah.The Alter Rebbe likens a

mitzvah to a bird. The body ofthe mitzvah is like the body of a

bird, but for it to soar upwards itneeds wings. What are the wingsof a mitzvah? These are the loveand fear we have for Hashem thatmotivate our desire to do whatHe says and to cleave to Him.

How can we be commanded to love? It

seems counterintuitive, especially in the

upside down world we live in, where feelings and

what feels good rules.

Issue 855 25


23/39

The Alter Rebbe tells us thatwhen we do a mitzvah, such assaying a bracha over the food weare about to eat, giving to thosein need, lighting Shabbos candlesat the right time, learning Torah,etc., we draw powerful supernal

light into our souls, and into theworld, and refine the coarsenessand physicality of the world.Each mitzvah, one step at a time,leads to the ultimate completion,healing and purpose of the whole

world and creation, the comingof Moshiach, when all the world

will heal and transform into apeaceful, settled place.

We find ourselves in thisworld and we have a job to do.

Our bodies and souls comein a perfect match, chosen byHashem. No soul in a body thatever was before, or ever will beagain, has the particular missionof our soul, in our body, in thehealing of the world. Taking thisa little further the Alter Rebbetells us in Tanya that Hashemempowers us to fulfill our missionin a joyful and meaningful way.

What we want to do is to

remember and develop this loveof Hashem, which is in ourspiritual genes so to speak, sothat it will galvanize and give

wings to our learning of Torahand performance of mitzvos sothey can soar upwards and doall the amazing things they aresupposed to do. Each actionshould move us closer to thecoming of Moshiach and possibly

be the crucial one that flicks theswitch for the full, final turningover of darkness to light.

Whats LoVe

Got to do With it?

How can we develop a lovefor Hashem? In fact we arecommanded in the Shma, Andyou shall love the L-rd your G-d

with all your heart, and all your

soul, and all your might. Howcan we be commanded to love? Itseems counterintuitive, especiallyin the upside down world we livein, where feelings and what feelsgood rules. Perhaps the wholeidea of a personal relationship

with G-d has no meaning orrelevance to us, especially if wehave been brought up in a secularenvironment.

In Tanya the Alter Rebbereminds us of a completelydifferent approach. The headrules the heart. We are hard wiredto be able to make good choicesand use our intellect to decide to

whom and what we should attachourselves, then allow the feelings

to develop. This applies in all ofour relationships.

But in this case we aretalking about our relationship

with Hashem. We can work onourselves and can learn about thefundamental unity permeatingall of creation; where everythingthat exists, has existed and

will exist has a Divine Sparkwhich gives it life, is part of theDivine plan of the Creator of the

Universe and is moving towardsa fundamental wholeness, healingand completeness; where atevery moment the world itselfand everything in it and allspiritual worlds are called into

being through the reissuing ofthe Creative force of the Creator;

where everything that happens,even the turning of a leaf one

way as opposed to another onthe other side of the world hascosmic significance, meaning andpurpose in the Divine Plan andhow much more so the existence,thoughts, speech and action ofevery human being.

We can reflect as we see abeautiful sunset or sunrise, thatHashem did not have to makesuch beauty for us every day. Hecould have made a world in black

and white, or the transitionsbetween day and night plainand ordinary. When we are ina beautiful forest or garden wecan notice and enjoy the myriad

beautiful shades of green Hashemhas made for us. He could have

made one, all-purpose, suits-allgreen, but the beauty is for us.

But what if we are not intothat kind of learning, finding ithard to concentrate or apply itto ourselves or our own lives?Maybe we do learn, but it doesnot touch our hearts, or arousea real love for Hashem, which

will affect us and permeates all ofour thoughts, speech and actionto help us become who we are

meant to be in the deepest fullestsense.

heaRt to heaRt

The Alter Rebbe reassures usthat we need not despair, quotinga beautiful and powerful teaching

written by Shlomo HaMelech,the wisest of all men.

As water reflects a faceback to a face, so too ones

heart is reflected back to him byanother. (Proverbs 27:19)

He explains firstly in termswe can all understand, relatingto our own relationships. When

we have a faithful friend whois dependable, warm, loyaland true, this evokes a similarresponse back, a positivefeedback loop of escalating

warmth and attachment, justas I saw emerging between the

mother and child the first timewe met.

Now let us extend the analogyto our personal relationship

with our Creator. As previouslymentioned, it is a most essentialthing, yet we do not have to

build it up from scratch. It is aninheritance to each and everyone of us from our Patriarchs

Avraham, Yitzhak and Yaakov,

26 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


24/39

and from Moshe Rabbeinu, theFaithful Shepherd of the Jewishpeople. We already have thislove in our genes so to speak,concealed in the right side of ourhearts, the abode of our G-dlysoul.

We just have to remember it isthere and allow it to emerge fromits concealment. Then we will feel

warmth and love and heat, so tospeak, in our relationship withHashem, and it will energize ourconnection. As we know from ourpersonal relationships, when youlove someone you will happilyextend yourself and go that extramile for them, to do what pleasesthem or what they ask of you.

BeCause he LoVes us

The Alter Rebbe now givesus a beautiful parable. Imaginea great and powerful king whoabandons all the glory of hispalace, his throne, the myriadsof ministers and courtiers, anddescends with his retinue to thehouse of the lowliest peasant

who lives in filth and grime.

He raises him up, and bringshim back to the palace to hisinnermost chamber, where evenhis loyal ministers and courtiersare not allowed to enter .Therehe washes him and wipes himclean, and draws close to him, atthe level of kisses and embracesand fusion of spirit to spirit. Howmuch more so would that lowlypeasant feel a reciprocal warmthand love and attachment to the

king!Exactly so has Hashem, in

His relationship to us, abandonedall the spiritual worlds, upper andlower, and descended to Egypt(Mitzrayim, meaning a place oflimitation and constriction), thecesspool of obscenity and excessin the world. There we were, Hisenslaved children, Bnei Yisroel,sunk to the 49th level of impurity.

Any lower and we would neverhad been able to come out.Furthermore Hashem Himselfdescended, not though theagency of an angel or a seraph,and took us out and broughtus to His palace and innermostchamber and purified us in orderthat we should receive His Torah.

In the words of the beautifulchildrens picture book Whenthe World Was Silent, written byPhyllis Nutkis and Patti Argoff:

When Hashem gave us theTorah, the whole world was quiet.The people did not talk. The

babies did not cry. The birds didnot chirp. The fish did not splash

Hashem pushed everything away for us His

great innite light, and all the spiritual worlds,

higher and lower out of His unbounded love for us.

How can we not respond in kind?

Issue 855 27


25/39

and the ducks did not quack. Thesheep did not baaa. The goatsdid not maaa and the roostersdid not crow. The turkeys didnot gobble. The cows did notmoo. The wind did not swish.The leaves did not rustle and the

ocean did not crash. There wasno sound except for Hashems

voice. He said I am the One andOnly Hashem. And thenin Hisquiet, quiet worldHashem gaveus the Torah because He lovesus.

Because He loves us! Whatgreater gift can anyone give otherthan a destination, purpose,meaning, map, signposts,instruction booklet and a

connection to the Creator andMaster of everything?

Returning to the Tanya,the Alter Rebbe explains thatattachment at the level of kisses is

when our mouth utters Hashemswords, i.e. the words of Torah,particularly the laws about how

we should conduct ourselvesin the world (Halacha). Thelevel of fusion of spirit to spiritis when we use our minds and

intellectual faculties to attach,think and meditate on Hashems

will and wisdom as expressed inthe Torah. The level of embraceis when with our actions weperform the 248 positive mitzvosof the King, i.e. the actionsHashem wants of us.

undeR the ChuPPa

The Alter Rebbe goes

on to tell us that when wedo a mitzvah, we say AsherKidshanu BMitzvotav, thatHashem has sanctified us by Hiscommandments. This meansHe makes us holy. The wordkodesh means elevated, separateand sacred. This implicationof the word is illustrated in thestatement that the chassan saysto the kalla under the chuppa

Harei At Mekudeshes Li, youare sanctified to me, meaningthat you are now raised up andseparate from everyone else; it is

just you and I in a unique bondwhere we will become one.

This happens each time we

do a mitzvah. We are literallystanding under the chuppa withHashem, becoming one. At thatmoment, all the joy and awe andpower and trembling we feel atthe chuppa with our chassan,

but surely infinitely more so,is actually experienced by oursouls. Yet we are not able toconsciously feel this or we wouldliterally swoon (be nullified out ofexistence).

eVeRythinG is FoR us

The Alter Rebbe then exploresanother level of interpretation ofthese words of wisdom of KingSolomon to help us generate alove and appreciation of Hashemat an even deeper level, related tothe whole purpose of Creation.Such is Hashems love for us,the Jewish people, that in fact the

whole world was created for us.How so? Before the world

was created there was onlythe Infinite Hashem filling allspace. Not that space or timeexisted then; the concept ofspace and time are both createdconcepts, which only began at the

beginning of Creation as we readat the beginning of the first bookof the Torah.

Hashem had to conceal

Himself, withdraw His infinitelight so to speak, to make aspace or void within which the

worlds (upper and lower) couldbe created. Through the voidcreated by this great contractionor tzimtzum penetrated thekav, a single ray of Hashemsinfinite light, a chain of descentand additional contractions andconcealments followed until this

physical world could exist. Notjust this physical world per se butespecially our physical bodies,the bodies of the Jewish people.

Why? So that in this physicalworld, we, the Jewish people,should receive Hashems Torah,

and be partners in creationwith Hashem to create a dirabatachtonim, a dwelling place forHashem in the lower world. Theintention was that very place inthe world should be a place whereHashem can feel comfortable, athome, so to speak.

Hashem pushed everythingaway for us His great infinitelight, and all the spiritual worlds,higher and lower out of His

unbounded love for us. Howcan we not respond in kind, andpush away all the hindrances andobstacles that come up and tryand distract us from our serviceof Hashem, from reaching ourutmost potential in this world?Remember also that all thosehindrances and obstacles are onlythere to raise us higher and drawdown an even greater light intothe world.

We cannot do this just withour souls, which are literally partof Hashem. We can only do thisthrough our souls being vested ina body. Then we can work withphysicality and refine it, by doingphysical mitzvos. Even regardinglearning and davening, we do notfulfill the mitzvah unless there isphysical movement of the lips.

Our bodies are physical and

corporeal and have their ownlusts and desires and urges forphysical pleasures and delightsof this material world. However

we are told that that throughthis great descent of our souls which before they came downto this world were basking in thelight of Hashem in heaven intothis lowly physical body chosen

by Hashem, and performing

28 24 Cheshvan 5773

Feature


26/39

these mitzvos which are theconnections with the Infinite, wepurify and refine and transformthe darkness of this world, eventhe places of deepest impurity,into light. Not just light, but alight which is even more powerful

than the light which existedbefore we came down to thisworld.

so that We

shouLd Find him

For those who struggle withthe details Hashem expectsfrom us, there was a beautifulinterview on Living Torah(shown Motzaei Shabbos 21st

Iyar) where Mr. David Stauberdescribed a yechidus (personalaudience) that he and his wifeand father-in-law had with theRebbe. He went in reluctantly,influenced by experiences in hischildhood when Judaism had

been presented as punitive andrestrictive. He asked the Rebbe,If G-d is so big and infinite,

why does He need all these tinydetails? The Rebbe responded

that the details are not for G-dAlmighty; rather they are for us.Hashem desires that we shouldfind Him, and connect with Him,and relate to Him. ThereforeHe has given us the path to findHim, out of His love for us. NotG-d forbid that we should bepunished if we get something

wrong, but that we should findHim.

As water reflects a face to aface, once we start to reflect onthese ideas or at least introducethe possibility that there might

be more going on here than

meets the eye, something willbegin to awaken inside us. Itis there already. It just needs to

be brought into the open andallowed to blossom.

In addition, the more we pushaway everything for Hashem outof our love for Him, how muchmore so does Hashem do so forus in an ever increasing cycleof increasing love. It is one stepat a time, one little flicker of

response after another, just as Isaw emerging with this motherand child. And this is possible forevery single Jew, no exceptions.

dRaWinG CLoseR

eVeRy moment

The last time I saw this youngwoman, who continues to bondmore and more warmly to her

baby with the passage of time, she

expressed the fear that the earlyblock in the bonding might causelong term damage to the childand to their future relationship.

We discussed times of niddain a marital relationship (times

when the couple is not allowedto touch). Not only do these

times not block the warmth andcloseness in the relationship, onthe contrary, the couple mustfind different ways to relate andexpress love and affection, whichthen contributes to a deeperlevel of closeness, each time the

woman immerses in the mikvaand they come together again,than there was before.

It is precisely the apparentlack of connection this youngmother felt which spurred thisnew-found closeness which is,and will continue G-d willing,to be expressed and valued moredeeply day by day, year by year.

Perhaps one could also saythis about the darkness and

perceived block in our connectionwith Hashem in the time of galus(exile). An even greater levelof closeness and unity in ourrelationship and oneness withHashem will soon result.

Just as each child shouldhave a blessing to have the bestpossible bonding, to be ableto grow and thrive in a lovingenvironment, allowing he orshe to become exactly who he/she is meant to be in the worldin a joyful and peaceful way, soshould each of us be blessed withthe deepest possible bond withour loving parent, Creator ofHeaven and Earth.

The author can be reached at

[email protected]

Issue 855 29


27/39

SPREADING

HEALINGAND LIGHT

When Dr. Ofer Steier was in school, he waslabeled as a child who was unt for an academic

program. * When he became a baal tshuva, his

father said, Be anything, just not a Chabadnik.

* Today, Dr. Steier is a veterinarian. Between

operations and inoculating cows he is mekarev

Yidden to Torah, Chassidus and to the imminent

arrival of Moshiach.

By Menachem Mendel Arad

Imet Dr. Ofer Steier for thefirst time five years ago whenhe and his wife Inbal came tomy parents for Shabbos. Dr.

Steier, who looked like a newbie,was young and clean-shaven, andwore a white knitted yarmulke. Hesat next to his wife who looked likean ardent Lubavitcher. If at first I

thought this was a case in whichthe wife was ahead of her husband,

when I heard the young doctorsstory and how much iskafia andishafcha he had done in his life, I

was amazed.

We recently met again. Thistime, Dr. Steier had a beard and

wore a silk sirtuk and a hat. Hewas learning Chassidus before

davening on Shabbos. If notfor the smile and the sparkling,determined look in his eyes, Imnot sure I would have recognizedhim.

The next day, I asked himto tell me his life story and howhe became a Lubavitcher, sothat our readers could see hownothing stands in the way ofones will, and how harmonycan be preserved even when thetwo people living together are asdifferent as can be.

Poisonous atmosPheRe

Ofer was born in Tel Aviv inthe 60s. His mother had beenraised in a traditional home

where they kept Shabbos andkosher, but it was his father whoset the tone in his home. Thekitchen was treif, Jewish holidays

were not celebrated, and Jewishconcepts were off-limits. Whenhis father found out that religiousJews were moving into Tel Aviv,he moved his family to Kibbutz

Ashdot Yaakov in the JordanValley, far away from any hint ofreligiosity. His father even startedan organization whose goal wasto help religious Jews drop out ofreligious life and acclimate to asecular lifestyle.

Ofer grew up hearing horrorstories about people who became

baalei tshuva and how this

30 24 Cheshvan 5773

ProFIle


28/39

caused the break-up of families.Conversations in their homerevolved around consultations

with lawyers to save the childrenof baalei tshuva or at least tosave family property so thatit didnt fall into the hands ofthe baal tshuva, along withrequests for emotional supportfor a spouse and children when afamily member went off the deepend and did tshuva.

To Ofer, religion wassomething foreign. Today,as a Lubavitcher Chassid, hesees things from a differentperspective.

In recent years, they are nolonger fighting against religion

in kibbutzim. They are simplygrowing up in utter ignoranceabout anything Jewish. They

celebrate holidays with theabsence of any religious content.For example, Shavuos, MattanTorah, is celebrated as anagricultural holiday by dancing

with produce. Even if they eatmatza and chametz on Pesachand it looks like disdain forreligion, its not. It is the thirdand fourth generation that grewup in abysmal ignorance.

I was sure there is a Creator,but there was nothing Jewish inmy world to translate this belief

into action. I remember speakingto Hashem as a boy (although,

when I got older, I tried pushingthis belief away), but I grew upcompletely ignorant. Of courseI was exposed to Tanach, butconcepts like the Mishna andGemara were foreign to me.

I asked Dr. Steier to pausein his chronological account and

Ofer grew up hearing horror stories about people

who became baalei tshuva and how this caused

the break-up of families.

Issue 855 31


29/39

to jump ahead to his fathersrelationship with him now, afterhe has become a baal tshuva.

My father is no longerinvolved with his organizationagainst baalei tshuva. Obviously,my becoming religious was

very hard for him and for me.Grandchildren, my children,

whose connection with theirgrandparents is pure and void

of personal biases, are the oneswho can reestablish ties betweenparents and children.

Apropos of grandchildren,he is reminded of a story. Theiroldest child was home-schooleduntil mandatory school age. He

was a very special, charmingchild with a beautiful appearance.He had a gorgeous shock of hair.The grandfather, uncles andcousins loved him and enjoyed

hearing his chochmos. Then,at the age of three, his hair wascut and he wore a yarmulkeand had peios. The extremetransition from a cute child to a

dos (pejorative term for religiousperson) turned his grandfatheroff at first, but then the childsnatural charm won him over andunited the family.

Dr. Steier has advice for

people in his situation:

Debates are not helpful.Even explanations are notconvincing. I learned fromexperience that when you argueor try to explain, or to presentthe Torahs view or even defendreligious people, it just doesnt

work. After consulting withmy mashpia, I am careful toavoid any loaded topic even if

its coming from my family andnot from me. Even when theyask a question, I refer them tosomeone from whom they canget an answer and dont expressmy opinion.

a FiRm Commitment

at the end oF a non-

ChassidiC FaRBRenGen

Back to his life story:

At a point when Ofer hadno good job prospects, he sat

with a childhood friend for asort of farbrengen. It wasnt aChassidishe farbrengen in theusual sense, but it did haveplenty of Ahavas Yisroel, caringand closeness. They sat togetherfor an entire night and triedto analyze Ofers personality,character and hidden abilities.

During their conversation theypolished off two bottles of

whiskey and in the end, theyconcluded that he should becomea veterinarian.

When I began to pursuethis career, I realized how hardit was. I had a relative who gota 93 in biology and over 700points on her psychometricexams (similar to SAT) and yet,

she remained on the waiting list along time for vet school and wasnever accepted.

When I looked into placesin the world where veterinarystudies could be pursued, welearned that in Holland it works

by lottery. In other words, youcan study for years and in theend, not be accepted. In South

Africa, because of the reversediscrimination, only blacks got

jobs. In the US, the educationwas very expensive. Theremaining options were Spain,Germany, or Italy. I picked Italy.

When we arrived there,Inbal, my wife, studied jewelrydesign and worked in that field

while I studied. My classeswere much harder than I hadanticipated. At first, we tooka crash course in Italian. Easy

Dr. Ofer Steier, then and now

32 24 Cheshvan 5773

ProFIle


30/39

conversation in Italian is onething, but speaking fluently, notto mention learning in Italian, is

very hard. Italian is one of themost complex languages becauseit has fourteen tenses.

I learned that nothing stands

in the way of persistence; youjust have to want it. I begantranslating all my textbooks fromItalian into Hebrew and learnedorally. I sat for hours withoutgetting up and reviewed names,concepts, medical terms and

various scenarios.

After five years of studyingall

Documents

Beis Moshiach #855