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CONTENTS

744 Eastern ParkwayBrooklyn, NY 11213-3409

Tel: (718) 778-8000Fax: (718) 778-0800admin@beismoshiach.org

www.beismoshiach.org

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:M.M. Hendel

HEBREW EDITOR:Rabbi S.Y. ChazaneditorH@beismoshiach.org

ENGLISH EDITOR:Boruch Merkureditor@beismoshiach.org

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FEATURED ARTICLES

4 CHIEF RABBI OF THE LAND OF THE RISING SUNZalman Tzorfati

12 CONNECTING TO G-D AND OURSELVES THROUGH NATURENosson Avrohom

20 MAROONED ON A FARAWAY ISLANDNechami Genuth

26 THE WORLDWIDE SEARCH THAT LED BACK HOMENosson Avrohom

30 A CITY DIVIDED AND PIECED TOGETHERSholom Ber Crombie

WEEKLY COLUMNS 3 D’var Malchus17 Parsha Thought34 Tzivos Hashem

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THE SH’CHINA IN EXILE IN AMERICAFrom Chapter Three of Rabbi Shloma Majeski’s Likkutei Mekoros Vol. 2. (Underlined text is the compiler’s emphasis.)

Translated by Boruch Merkur

5. […] “Rabbeinu,” nasi ha’dor (the leader of the generation), is also the Moshiach (the redeemer of the Jewish people) of the generation,* like Moshe Rabbeinu (the first nasi) – “the first redeemer is the final redeemer.”** Indeed, it is known*** that in every generation there is “one who is fit in terms of his righteousness to be the redeemer, and when the time arrives, G-d reveals Himself to him and sends him on his mission, etc.” Of course, it is logical to presume that this person is nasi ha’dor, as explicitly mentioned in the Gemara (Sanhedrin 98b, and in the commentary of Rashi) regarding Rebbi Yehuda HaNasi, “Said Rav,**** if he is among the living, it is, for example, Rabbeinu HaKadosh.” “If Moshiach is among those who are presently alive, he certainly is Rabbeinu HaKadosh,” who was the leader of the generation.*****

From the above discussion it is understood that the main function of “Beis Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel” is the redemption from Bavel, empowering the Jewish people in their general avoda of transforming Bavel (the Diaspora) into Eretz Yisroel, as in the well-known saying, “Make this place (the Diaspora) Eretz Yisroel.” This transformation is accomplished first and foremost through building synagogues and yeshivos (“Mikdash M’at – a miniature sanctuary”) in the lands where the Jewish people settled.

Holiness is drawn from the shuls and yeshivos to all the lands of the nations, and this speeds up and brings about the fulfillment of the promise, “In the future, Eretz Yisroel will expand [its borders] throughout all the countries,” “for the entire world at that time will have attained the spiritual height of present-day Eretz Yisroel, and Eretz Yisroel itself will be at the level of present-day Yerushalayim. That is what the Sages meant in saying that Yerushalayim will extent across the entirety of Eretz Yisroel,” namely, that the synagogues and yeshivos of Bavel will be established there, attached to the Beis HaMikdash.

Since the main purpose of “Beis Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel” is the gathering and convening of the synagogues and yeshivos of Bavel to establish them in Eretz Yisroel, adjoining them to the Beis HaMikdash, “therefore it is (not only the primary “Mikdash M’at” of Bavel “that traveled from Kadesh and settled there,” but also) the very place of the Beis HaMikdash of the Future Era,” wherein the Mikdash of the Future will be revealed, and from there it will return to Yerushalayim.

6. The above sheds light on the “Beis Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel” of this generation, the home (synagogue and yeshiva) of my revered father in-law, the Rebbe, leader of the generation:

But first to preface with the Rebbe’s saying: “Lubavitch was

exiled ten times” – from Lubavitch (where there was the revelation of the inner dimension of the Torah, as elucidated in terms of understanding and comprehension (“providing sustenance”) through the teachings of Chabad Chassidus, throughout several generations) to Rostov, from Rostov to Petersburg, and from Petersburg it was exiled to outside that country, to Latvia, and then to Poland. Then Lubavitch was exiled to America. In America itself it journeyed to several places until “Beis Rabbeinu” finally arrived at its permanent location, the Rebbe’s shul and beis midrash, the headquarters of Lubavitch for the final (“everything goes according to the conclusion”) ten years (a complete stage) of the Rebbe’s life in this world. And even after the histalkus, “holiness does not leave its place.” In fact, holiness is always on the rise, until the advent of the righteous redeemer.

So too regarding the exile of the Jewish people at large. In this generation, the majority of the Jewish population are situated in the American exile. This is actually one of the reasons why nasi doreinu (for “the nasi is everything”) lived and resided, for his final decade, in America. From America, by means of his disciples and shluchim sent through the entire world, the Rebbe worked at disseminating Torah and Judaism as well as spreading the

Continued on page 16

D’VAR MALCHUS

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CHIEF RABBI OF THE LAND OF THE RISING SUNIn a historic ceremony, the shliach, R’ Binyamin Edery, was recently appointed

as Chief Rabbi of Japan. In an exclusive interview with Beis Moshiach he tells

of the behind the scenes dramas related to the appointment and tells of action

on behalf of farmers after the tsunami, about battles to bring Jewish people to

Jewish burial, and outreach to inmates, both Jewish and not Jewish.

By Zalman Tzorfati

The pictures of the bearded rabbi dressed in rescue gear and helping people in areas stricken with

radioactivity following the tsunami, which caused the breakdown of nuclear power plants, appeared again and again on the screens throughout Japan and became the talk of the day on Japanese media.

R’ Binyamin Edery is in Japan on shlichus for over fifteen years, operating quietly. The public became aware of him and his work mainly through tragedies, when he helped out after the tsunami and with the Israeli

bachurim incarcerated in Japan.Recently, as the Japanese

government’s sign of appreciation for his work, he was appointed as Chief Rabbi of Japan.

ONE AGAINST THE WORLDAs a shliach of the Rebbe

you were always the person to turn to for Jewish matters. What does an official government appointment signify?

It is important for many reasons. Take, for example, Jewish burial. Part of our shlichus work is to provide Jewish burial. Many Jews live in Japan.

Some of them arrived after the Holocaust and assimilated here. We regularly get reports about Jews who died and we work on getting them Jewish burial. Sometimes they are people we know who were in touch with us and sometimes they are people who live 1000 or 1500 kilometers away from Tokyo.

In every such instance it is a complicated process since the law in Japan is that bodies are automatically cremated. Sometimes, the non-Jewish family interferes and then it really becomes a battle. We once had a situation in which we legally

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fought a non-Jewish family that demanded cremation. I was able to delay the cremation for a month and a half while the body was stored in cold storage. Unfortunately, we lost in the end. I argued that the man visited our Chabad House and asked me personally for a Jewish burial, but the court maintained that since we had no official standing, we could not make a claim.

CLOSE CONTACT WITH THE EMBASSIESSo your official appointment

will help in cases like that?

Yes. While previously I had to try to come up with various ways of explaining to the judge why I was getting involved, now it is obvious and official that as Chief Rabbi of the country I am responsible for Jewish burial. This will enable us to save many Jews and provide them with a halachic burial.

Boruch Hashem, since the official appointment, whenever we hear of a Jew who is nearing the end of his life, we get him to sign a form in which he authorizes the chief rabbinate of Japan to take care of him after he dies.

We had someone here who learned in Tomchei T’mimim in his youth who went off the derech and lived here for nearly fifty years. Before he died, he asked his gentile family to allow us to take care of his burial and we were able to bring him to Jewish burial with a minyan, tahara, and shrouds.

We recently had a case of a very wealthy woman who died, a known donor to the State of Israel. She came here with her husband before the Holocaust and together they founded the biggest toy manufacturing

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company in Japan. Thanks to my official status, we were able to circumvent all the Health Ministry laws and the usual formalities in Japan regarding flying bodies and were able to send the body for Jewish burial in California, as the family requested.

Is there a Jewish cemetery in Japan?

Yes. In Tokyo there is an old cemetery, over 200 years old. The cost of burial is around $30,000. The Rebbe has even referred to this cemetery.

A Jew dies 1500 kilometers away from where you live and

the family is not interested in a burial. How do you get this information?

Usually through foreign embassies. Boruch Hashem we have good connections with all the main foreign embassies in Japan like the British, French, and American embassies. I have personal connections with over 115 foreign consulates. Every year, on the Fourth of July, I am invited to the American embassy to say a few words. We have close ties with them. They receive information about every citizen of their country who dies in Japan. When they know it’s a Jew, they immediately contact us.

***R’ Edery’s close connection

with the embassies mainly began with his work in prisons. It started

with visiting Jewish inmates, which turned into helping all foreigners incarcerated in Japan. Most of them, like the Israeli bachurim, are charged with transporting illegal substances.

Although he began his work to try to help Jewish prisoners, he quickly found himself helping and visiting non-Jewish inmates as well. He explains, “My work with non-Jews helps me make connections with Jewish inmates. As a result of this work, when any of the foreign embassies become aware of a case involving a Jew, they immediately suggest contacting me, and that is how

many cases come my way.”

RABBANIM SIGN TO THE APPOINTMENT R’ Edery’s certification for the

chief rabbinate of Japan is signed by a rare mix of rabbanim from across the spectrum of religious Israeli Jewry starting with the Badatz HaEida HaChareidis, Sephardic Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzchok Yosef, Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi Dovid Lau, as well as rabbis of cities such as R’ Yitzchok Dovid Grossman and dozens of other rabbis, most of them members of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate.

The authorities in Japan are not known to be particularly flexible and the laws there are strict. This is why the official recognition of the position of Chief Rabbi and the appointment of R’ Edery is a miracle.

“After the Israeli Chief Rabbinate approved and recommended the appointment, a bureaucratic process that took more than two years began. First, they had to decide which government office would deal with it. After they determined that it would be under the authority of the Ministry of Legal Affairs, it still took a long time. The Ministry of Legal Affairs conducted thorough, wide-ranging inquiries and checks with the usual Japanese meticulousness. After two years of discussions and investigations, I was invited by the Ministry of Legal Affairs to an official appointment ceremony.”

Despite R’ Edery’s great help to inmates and providing Jews with Jewish burial, the government’s appointment of him as Chief Rabbi is primarily an expression of thanks for

שמות הרבנים הגאונים לפי הסדר מימין לשמאל וממעלה למטה:הרב ציון כהן- אור יהודה • הרב אליהו אלחרר- מודיעין • הרב אליהו אילוז- אור עקיבא • הרב מנשה טיירי פרדסי'ה • הרב מרדכי אברמובסקי- זכרון יעקב • הרב יצחק ועקנין- מעלות • הרב משה ביגל- מיתר • הרב שמעון אלמליח- עתלית • הרב אהרון בדיחי- אבן יהודה • הרב דוד אוחיון- אלפי מנשה • הרב יוסף טולדנו- גבעת זאב • הרב מרדכי נאגרי- מעלה אדומים • הרב דוד ועקנין מנחמי'ה • הרב עמרם בית אל- ק. טבעון • הרב משה הבלין- ק.גת • הרב אברהם רוזנטל- אזור • הרב מאיר לדאני- תנובות • הרב הראשי לישראל הרה"ג הרב יצחק יוסף שליט"א • הרב

הראשי לישראל מלפנים- הרב שלמה משה עמר שליט"א • הרב הגאון הרב יצחק דוד גרוסמן- יו"ר מוסדות "מגדל אור" ורב העיר מגדל העמק.

“Japan is full of idolatry and so when a Jew

comes to the Chabad House he is not interested

in hearing half-truths or polished truths. He wants the

whole truth! When things are said sincerely and people

see what sacrifices we live with just for this purpose, they

respect it and accept it.”

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his contribution to the nation following the last tsunami that devastated the country.

While all foreign representatives and whoever was able to, fled the area, and while the media warned of the danger of just being there, R’ Edery went every day to affected areas with trucks full of food and supplies. He distributed it all to residents affected by the tsunami.

A POTATO FOR THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Following his appointment, R’ Edery was invited to meet with the Deputy Prime Minister of Japan who is a powerful figure in the country. The purpose of the meeting was to formally congratulate the rabbi on his new position and make his brief acquaintance. The meeting, which was allotted ten minutes, extended to over an hour and a half! Japanese are precise and plan things down to the smallest details and every minute of the daily schedule of the Deputy Prime Minister is planned by his office months in advance. The only thing that can explain this aberration is that they did not expect the phenomenon which is R’ Binyamin Edery.

“I arrived at the meeting accompanied by some friends from the Chabad House who are key figures in Tokyo. According to Japanese tradition, each member of a delegation brings a token gift. I brought a potato.”

A potato? Are you serious?Yes. In Japan, there is a

certain type of sweet potato called Yakimo, which is a Japanese delicacy. It looks ordinary but the inside has a unique texture and sweetness. The top chefs in Japan broil it in a certain way which turns it into a delicacy.

The Yakimo is not easily obtainable and is considered a food which represents the culture of high society in Japan. You need to be really into Japanese gastronomy to understand the significance of this vegetable to the Japanese.

One of the mekuravim of the Chabad House is the owner of an agricultural company which grows and develops various breeds of the Yakimo and during the tsunami they distributed thousands of tons of this potato.

In the middle of the meeting,

With Chief Rabbi, R’ Dovid Lau

With the Sephardic Chief Rabbi, R’ Yitzchok Yosef

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I took out the Yakimo and presented it as a gift. I told him that we gave this out, in the thousands of tons, to those affected by the tsunami. The Deputy Prime Minister was very moved, both by the fact that a

foreigner knew about the Yakimo and that we had distributed it to the needy. He was so moved that he asked us to arrange a shipment of Yakimo for all employees of the ministry.

The atmosphere at the

meeting was so special that he wanted it to continue, on and on. He said he always saw me on the news and was amazed by my devotion to the Japanese people. He expressed great interest in all the work of the Chabad House and at a certain point we even did a Japanese dance, to the surprise of all those present.

***At the end of the meeting the

Deputy Prime Minister asked R’ Edery how he could be of help. R’ Edery, who surprised him earlier with the potato, continued to surprise him when he asked for government assistance for farmers in the areas affected by the tsunami, who still have not recovered from the damages and the radioactive leaks from the nuclear reactors.

As R’ Edery sees it, his concern for Japanese farmers is part of the activities of Melech HaMoshiach in the world, for Moshiach cares about humanity through his shluchim.

Shortly after the meeting, the Chabad House received a letter from the Deputy Prime Minister, in which he thanked R’ Edery for the fascinating meeting. He expressed his feelings about the special gift and blessed the chief rabbi with success in his activities.

The meeting with the deputy minister was broadcast in all the media and led to a series of meetings with other senior people in the Japanese government. The Minister of Agriculture asked him to lecture to the ministry staff about kashrus and many wanted to hear more about Judaism and the Seven Noachide Laws. This all came about following R’ Edery’s work in the wake of the tsunami.

***In recent years, R’ Edery

NOACHIDE OUTREACHYou talk a lot about your work with B’nei Noach. What’s the idea

behind your work with non-Jews?First of all, the Seven Noachide Laws is also one of the Rebbe’s campaigns.

Second, when a Jew sees that a gentile worships G-d, he is moved and he wonders, where am I in this story? When he sees that a gentile asks, what does G-d say, he says to himself, do I ask that?

We see this all the time. Every Shabbos that a Jew comes and sees a non-Jew who is utterly subservient to G-d, it gets him thinking very seriously. Work that could take years happens in an instant.

I’ll tell you a story that happened recently. A Japanese gentile, who is close with the Chabad House for years already, was very successful in life. One evening, he went for a drink somewhere. He met a young man and as they got to talking, the young man said he was Jewish.

The gentile asked him, “Do you know Rabbi Binyamin?”“Of course,” he said. “I know him but I don’t like him. I can’t go to him

because he’s always talking to me about my non-Jewish girlfriend.”The two sat and talked all night, and the non-Jew convinced the Jew,

based on things he had heard at the Chabad House, that for his good and for the sake of his girlfriend, they should break up.

“If I was a Jew, I would never marry a Japanese woman!” said the non-Jew.

At 5:30 in the morning, the two of them knocked at my door. I went downstairs and saw the two of them and wondered what they had to do with one another. I knew the Jewish guy; he had grown up on one of the religious yishuvim and had learned in a Litvishe yeshiva. I asked what was going on and they told me the story.

The Jewish guy wrote a letter to the Rebbe and the answer in the Igros Kodesh was, “‘False is grace and vain is beauty, a G-d fearing woman is praiseworthy,’ especially when speaking of a person who attended yeshiva …”

He was stunned. He asked me, “What do I do now?”I said, you write her a letter and say you’re not going back to her. You

send it by registered mail so she herself will open it. That’s what he did. Two weeks later he left Japan and went home.How do you explain Moshiach to B’nei Noach?First, there are things they don’t ask much about. They understand the

basics – that the Rebbe is Moshiach and Moshiach is good.Second, there are many righteous gentiles among them. Everything they

do is to fulfill what G-d wants. They are very serious people, businessmen and intellectuals, who study Chassidus and work to fulfill their role in rectifying the world.

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has started providing kashrus hashgacha under the KJ, which has generated great interest on the part of government offices and industries involved in the food business. The Chabad House also operates a kosher restaurant.

“In addition to the restaurant that offers high quality kosher food, the people who come also put on t’fillin. The restaurant is located opposite the university, which is attended by Jewish students from all over the world and many of them eat kosher food thanks to us. We also provide a hechsher on many products produced here which are marketed in various Jewish markets internationally. Lately, a hechsher was given to saki, a famous alcoholic Japanese beverage.”

THE BACHURIM INCARCERATED IN JAPAN

A few years ago, the frum

world was fixated on the “bachurim in Japan,” three Israeli yeshiva bachurim who were arrested for being in possession of illegal substances. They maintained that they were used by a third person who asked them to take suitcases for him and they did not realize what they contained, but that did not help them and they were sentenced to years in jail.

R’ Edery worked behind the scenes from the day they were arrested until they were released.

“The day after their arrest, the police contacted me and asked whether I knew them. I said I did not, but I would be happy to visit them. Within a few hours I had visited the three separate prisons where the bachurim were held and met with them. They were still in shock. I was the first person they were willing to talk to. They did not know who was on their side and who wasn’t. I gave each of them a Chitas and

encouraged them. After that, we kept in constant contact.

“Over several years, I went to visit them twice a week. Their families would come regularly to stay with us when they were in Japan. I was also invited to all their simchos in Eretz Yisroel and attended some of them.

“By the way, since then, I have an excellent connection with Rabbi C.Y.D. Weiss, the Satmar dayan of Antwerp Belgium, one of the most distinguished dayanim in the frum world, who personally got involved with the case and worked tirelessly until the bachurim were released.”

RABBI WEISS TESTS THE EDERY BOYS AND IS

AMAZED“Whenever Rabbi Weiss

came here, he would visit us and test my boys. He tested them in Gemara, Mishnayos, Chumash and Halacha. He was

With the Deputy Prime Minister of Japan

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very impressed and would keep saying, “I don’t understand how with the shlichus and in such a place, they know all this.” He did not understand how a child who does not learn in school could be on that academic level. I must thank Avromi Kenig of Migdal HaEmek who learns with them on the phone every morning and has been doing so for over seven years!

“Not just me, but my children too, the older ones and the younger ones, would go several hours by train to visit them. It was quite a sight. Picture a Jewish boy with a yarmulke and a knapsack asking a local Japanese person where the prison is. They sometimes got sympathetic looks

from the Japanese who thought they were visiting their father.

“My children still go to visit prisoners in jail. It is part of our shlichus and theirs. They talk to them and bring them parsha pages; it’s their mivtzaim.

“One time, there was a legal hearing in the case of one of the bachurim in the middle of Sukkos. I brought him a lulav because you couldn’t bring one to the prison. I gave it to him to recite the bracha and afterward he told me how much that bracha strengthened him.”

***“For years now, I travel all

over Japan to visit prisons. I don’t think there is a single city in Japan that has a prison where I have not visited both Jewish and non-Jewish inmates.

“In Japan, when someone is in jail, he is an untouchable. Sometimes even his immediate family shuns him. I once stood in the entrance to a prison and ran into someone who had just been released. I asked him where he was going and he said he did not have where to go and that his family disowned him. I gave him money so he could get to town and he thanked me warmly. He said that I was the first person who ever did something for him.”

AGAINST ALL ODDS – THE REBBE SAID TO APPEAL“I once met a young

Englishman of Sikh descent at the entrance to the prison. It was

at the time that the bachurim were held there. His wife was sentenced to eight years in jail for the same reason as the bachurim and he had come to Japan with his wife’s sister to try and gain her release.

“I said I wanted to help them. I knew a top lawyer who took relatively little money from them. When I returned to the Chabad House I wrote to the Rebbe about it and the answer I opened to said not to stop taking action.

“I understood from the letter that the Rebbe wanted them to appeal and I told them so. The problem is that in Japan it is very hard to appeal, and in 99.9% of the cases, the appeals are rejected. But I urged them to try. They submitted an appeal and the wife was miraculously acquitted. When I left the hearing they told

me they had won solely thanks to the rabbi’s blessing. Afterward, they came to a thanksgiving meal at the Chabad House and told everyone about the letter from the Rebbe in the Igros Kodesh, thanks to which the wife was released.”

ADDRESSING INTERMARRIAGE

One of the focuses of the shlichus in Tokyo, in addition to the usual Chabad House activities, is the fight against assimilation. In Japan there are quite a few Israelis who married local gentile women. R’ Edery’s agenda is to confront this problem, even if it means people will feel uncomfortable and might leave the Shabbos meal in the middle. Truth is truth, he says, and he believes that’s the only way to be successful in this area.

“We have an Israeli fellow who had a gentile Japanese girlfriend for years, and yet he had no compunction about coming to us, participating in all the programs and having Shabbos meals with us. Our approach is to speak about intermarriage directly. At one Shabbos meal, I brought up the topic from every possible angle and spoke in favor of marrying Jewish and about the detriments in marrying out.

“About 50-60 people were sitting there but that Israeli guy felt I was talking just to him. He came over to me and said, ‘It is not comfortable for me to continue sitting here while you speak like that; I’m leaving.’

“I said goodbye and hoped that I had done the right thing and Hashem would take over.

“By 11:30 that night everyone had already left and I was also getting ready to go to sleep. I heard knocking at the door and

“When a Jew sees a non-Jew who is utterly

subservient to G-d, it gets him thinking very

seriously. Work that could take years happens in an

instant.”

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I went downstairs and there was the Israeli guy. He apologized for coming so late and of course I invited him in.

“He had an interesting story to tell. He had gone back that night to his gentile girlfriend and told her what happened at the Shabbos meal and why he had left in the middle. He naively thought that she would empathize.

“Instead, she began cursing him and criticizing him for going out without her. He had not expected this and he angrily left their house for the Chabad House. He slept over at our place and the next morning was even the tenth man at the minyan. On Motzaei Shabbos we spoke for hours and this time he was more open to listening, but it still wasn’t easy for him to make a decision. We wrote to the Rebbe and the answer was to go to Eretz Yisroel. He said he had thought of doing that, in light of his mother’s repeated begging him to come home. The next day he bought a ticket and flew home.

“He was greatly inspired and when he landed in Eretz Yisroel he put on a kippa. He was hosted by a Chabad family that first Shabbos and he told them his story, how he had been with this woman for nine years and parting from her was so hard. The chevra

convinced him to call her and tell her that he had chosen the path of Torah. Since then, he became a baal t’shuva and has a beautiful Lubavitcher family. His mother thanked us for the continuity of her family, for he is an only child.”

MOSHIACH IN TOKYOThere is one thing you cannot

miss at the Chabad House in Tokyo, which is the focus on the Besuras Ha’Geula. It is unnecessary to ask whether this turns people off after hearing about the labor-intensive work of the Chabad House that places it at the forefront of Chabad outreach on the Asian continent.

“Japan is full of idolatry and so when a Jew comes to the Chabad House he is not interested in hearing half-truths or polished truths. He wants the whole truth! When things are said sincerely and people see what sacrifices we live with just for this purpose, they respect it and accept it,” says R’ Edery firmly but with a smile.

“When you live with Moshiach, your entire life becomes Moshiach; the children behave accordingly and help and clean up, they don’t raise their voices and they respect one another, for the Rebbe could appear at any moment.

“People sense if you are telling them the truth or are trying to sell them some half-baked ideas. When you do it right, then the external dress and publicity about Moshiach are not merely externals but something internal that bursts forth. The Chabad House is full of posters about Moshiach and Moshiach flags. We have rabbanim coming here, dayanim who belong to Satmar, and it doesn’t bother them; on the contrary, they respect it.

“The chairman of the Conference of European Rabbis (CER), the late R’ Aba Dunner z”l, would stay with us regularly whenever he came to Japan to help the incarcerated bachurim. He was a Litvak and kept Shabbos two days in a row (because of the International Dateline) and followed his customs, but that did not stop him from dancing Yechi together with our children.

“The first time he came here, he asked why we had to publicize our belief. I said, I am a Chassid and as a Chassid I follow what the Rebbe said. He was silent, he looked at me, and then he said that he had seen the Rebbe in private audiences and had attended farbrengens in 770, and that was the feeling he had too.”

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CONNECTING TO G-D AND OURSELVES THROUGH NATURE

Through nature, beautiful scenery, sounds and sights, R’ Shachar

Yaakov Zeliger, director of B’Reishit, teaches children to connect to

G-d, to themselves, and their hidden capabilities. * R’ Zeliger decries the

enticements the modern generation offers young people, and offers instead

an abundance of activities and exciting adventures that enrich a child’s

world and connect him to the incredible abilities he contains within.

By Nosson Avrohom

Photos by Y. Aharoni

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We are told that when the holy Baal Shem Tov was a boy, he would spend time

secluded in the fields and forests. This is how he connected to his Creator and grew in Torah and fear of heaven. When he was older and was a melamed’s assistant, he kept up his love for the great outdoors and praising his Creator.

During his wanderings he met the hidden tzaddikim who adopted him and taught him the secrets of Torah along with the powers of the various plants that grew in the wild and their properties.

From the Baal Shem Tov we learn that a lot of chinuch to believe in the greatness of G-d can be derived from nature. Nowadays, in the generation of the computer and technology, can we teach children emuna through contemplating the wonders of nature? Does this approach belong to the distant past or is it a useful tool today too, in shaping a child’s personality? Is this tool appropriate for every child? What good traits does nature build up in a child?

We spoke with R’ Shachar Yaakov Zeliger of Tzfas, wanting to hear from an expert in chinuch through nature, about what he does and what it accomplishes. R’ Zeliger founded the B’Reishit organization five years ago, with which he seeks to disconnect children from the computer and ignite a fire of emuna within them. He does this through group learning in which he teaches about plants, survival techniques such as starting a fire without matches, making strong ropes, how to sleep outdoors under hot or cold conditions, the

properties of trees and plants, and exposure to the great beauty of nature in the forests and fields.

“The move from the outdoors to the computer has created problems for many children that we did not see in the past,” he says.

Tell us about your organization.

The goal of the organization is intertwined with the story of my life. From a young age I felt a strong connection to nature. I was born and raised in the

Shomron area and I would hike in the groves and wadis and sometimes in the desert. For five years I was even a shepherd. At those times, when I would sit alone and take care of the sheep, I would be able to think and look around me endlessly, and when you meditate within nature, you are amazed by the harmony in the world around you. You personally experience “How great are your works, Hashem.”

I noticed plants that changed colors in the summer and winter. I saw plants that grew only in a certain season. I observed that nature provides place for

every creation and plant and one builds on the other. I asked myself, what is our place within all this beauty? It strengthened me a lot and built up my belief in a Creator and the One who runs the world. Later on I delved deeper and for some years I studied and researched 800 wild plants that grow in Eretz Yisroel.

Along with a love for nature, I was very attracted to chinuch. There were years I even neglected nature in order to teach. However, five years ago, I decided to combine the two,

chinuch through nature. That meditation in nature that built up my emuna is something I want to pass along to children. I see how the emuna of the children who were taught in our groups has a different, deeper perspective, in addition to the big bonus that nature helps develop good character traits.

What kind of children do you work with?

We have programs for two segments of the population. There are children who are in the “at risk” category, who

are on the verge of dropping out. The challenges and nature adventures we do with them are greater, like spending a week in the desert. Their enticement by all that the modern world has to offer is greater and therefore, to be successful with them, they need to work hard and prove themselves.

Then we have regular kids with whom we do more toned-down activities with more learning and depth. Our goal is that after working with them, the children will feel connected to nature and learn from it about themselves.

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Why is it important from an educational point of view, to connect children to nature? What does it do for them?

Someone who walks in nature and does not understand it, what does he see? He sees everything

superficially; he observes rows of flowers or thorns but it’s all foreign to him and definitely doesn’t teach him anything. Someone who knows how to recognize each plant knows that this particular plant looked

different a week ago, knows the name of every plant, and how it will look in a week. A person who knows how to identify sounds in nature, whether it’s a fox or an owl, knows that every plant and animal has a function; nothing tries to be like something else or to impress anyone.

Furthermore, every flower and animal has periods of growth and periods of decline, a time when it produces beautiful flowers and a time that it dries up, and nobody has a problem with this. In nature there is harmony; each one makes room for the other and nobody tries to be the other.

Think about what educational lessons can be derived from this. Any feeling of competition, that I should be like him or better than someone else, disappears. Each person has his role which is designated by G-d. It is not for nothing that Chazal compare us in numerous places to trees of the field. When a child internalizes this and understands it, his life becomes simpler and easier. He suddenly knows how to handle competition and the worthless exhibitionism of our generation, which is the bane of our educational system, in which nobody looks at himself and wants to be himself; each one wants to be the other.

Can you give specific examples of activities that you do and the educational results that you get and teach the children?

In nature there are many seeds, roots, and fruits that are fit to be eaten. For example, the fruit of the raspberry tree in the north, seeds of the rice-grass that grows in spring – a handful of the seeds of a rice-grass plant is comparable in quality to a loaf of bread. In the winter there are many plants that can be eaten; in

IDEAS FOR NATURE ACTIVITIES FOR PARENTS AND CHILDREN THAT COST NOTHING

1-Take water and go on a nature hike any time, not just vacation. Go out when it’s comfortable, early in the morning or late afternoon. Maintain a nice atmosphere and after the hike recount the enjoyable experiences you shared. What will remain in the child’s consciousness is the experiences that you spoke about and not necessarily what he actually experienced.

2-Using a thick rope, plan a course that requires you to climb up and down using the rope. Do it in such a way that everyone will have to help the other and be dependent on the other. This is a challenging, unifying, and unforgettable experience. You can also tie the rope to a rock and practice climbing.

3-Buy a whole chicken and out in nature light a bonfire around which you build a wall of rocks. When only coals remain, place the chicken on them, and cover it with boiling hot rocks. After an hour, the chicken will be ready to eat and very tasty. Using fire is an opportunity to teach responsibility and caution.

4-Set up a target at a distance that is age appropriate. Collect rocks and have the family compete in throwing stones at the target. It’s a fun experience for children to see their parents’ misses.

5-Go out into nature and listen to it. Have the entire family lie on the roof, close their eyes, and listen to sounds. Everyone must be perfectly quiet. See who can count the most sounds and can identify them. The winner is the one who heard the most sounds.

6-Buy water guns and take the family to the forest. Give each child a gun and have a water fight. It’s a very liberating and unifying experience, one which they will remember until 120.

7-Plan an outing along with a sleepover or just go on a sleepover. Come prepared with a tent, water, blankets, fire, flashlights, and food, of course. The kids will never forget it.

8-Go on a night hike with your children. Choose a night in the middle of the month with a full moon. Experience nature at night, look at the stars, listen to the sounds. Try and walk by the light of the moon without using flashlights.

9-Teach your children how to build a bonfire correctly. Start with straw, twigs, and thin branches, place large pieces on top, in size order, and have a contest to see who lights his bonfire with the fewest matches. This is also an opportunity to teach them how to light fires safely.

10-To end off, buy ice cream, cut a watermelon or any melon.Go out once a week, each time with another child to a quiet place in

nature. This is quality time which is worth more than countless fun activities that our generation offers.

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the summer you need to be more careful and knowledgeable. There are plants that can be eaten one way or another, depending on the season. For example, there is a plant mentioned in Mishnayos P’sachim as something that can be used for maror on Pesach. In the winter you can eat the leaves, but later on the leaves become thorny and it’s dangerous to eat them.

On the trips we make in nature, we teach this to the children which strengthens their sense of responsibility. They are responsible for knowing when yes and when not. Indirectly, this also greatly strengthens their self-confidence.

We have scouting activities in which we teach the children how to navigate so that even if they are lost, they will know how to reach their destination by using a compass. With the knowledge that he has, the child won’t panic. He will be calm and know that he can be in all kinds of situations and places. It’s a fantastic lesson for life and greatly strengthens a child’s ability to handle the classroom when he is “lost” in various situations. It happens that a child is at a crossroads and doesn’t know which way to turn. The understanding that in the end it will be okay and he will reach his destination strengthens his ability to deal with it, and decide what to do.

Generally speaking, the activities within a group setting bring about group spirit. In the groups that I run privately, children from all backgrounds participate: Litvish, Breslov, Sephardic, and Chabad. It creates tremendous achdus and each one learns to respect the other for his opinions and abilities. Sometimes, a child who is taken to be weak turns out to be the

best navigator whom they all rely on. And sometimes, the child who is physically the strongest is the one who carries the equipment on the trip. The dynamics this creates is astonishing and teaches perspective in life.

How do you get kids glued to the computer to join nature activities?

I understand where your question is coming from, but I don’t see the problem. Every child has a built-in curiosity and interest in special things. I challenge them and spark their curiosity.

We don’t offer exclusively educational outings; we have an activity called “David’s Slingshot,” which entails throwing a stone at a target. This activity develops concentration. Children try again and again until they get it. Children really like this. It’s not a daily activity so they don’t get bored with it.

A child with social problems participated in one of the groups. The children rejected him since he was fanciful, telling imaginary

stories about himself and his family. When he joined our group we immediately saw that he was a good marksman and he became the outstanding marksman of the group. Within a few days he was able, from a distance of 150 meters, to hit the electric pole, which is fantastic. The amazing thing was that since then, he stopped making things up. He was truly successful and could be

proud of what he did and he no longer needed to invent stories.

Have you also been successful with children who are labeled ADD?

Children with attention problems love our activities because of the adrenaline rush they provide. I will give them really big, challenging activities.

A few years ago, I taught a special education class with whom nobody had been successful. I used my knowledge of challenges within nature to get them to learn and this was the prize. Every time we went to the outdoors, I gave them a lot of freedom of movement within the framework I laid out for them.

I got this idea from the days I was a shepherd. When you pressure the sheep, chaos ensues and the sheep run around and are not calm. But when you are relaxed with them and give them space, they feel it and are calm. That’s what happened with the students of this class. I showed them that I relied on them and

When we teach a child about the plant world we

are actually teaching him to recognize himself

and accept himself as he is, the good qualities and the

negative ones; every person has his uniqueness and

mission in this world.

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each of them made sure to keep in sight of the other so they wouldn’t get lost. On every outing like that, we learned a lot through nature. At the end of the year I noticed that in nature the learning was most meaningful to them, far more than what I tried teaching them in the classroom.

We spoke until now about educational and social values. What about spiritual values?

Man is the crown of creation and when he is not connected to nature, to the earth, but to nonsense, that is when the spiritual problems crop up. Western culture loves to create a “cultural hero,” a false representation of a successful person who never fails and is good in every respect. When

we try to copy him and are unsuccessful, then we fall into despair and confusion. This is true for adults and all the more so for children. When we teach a child about the plant world we are actually teaching him to recognize himself and accept himself as he is, the good qualities and the negative ones; every person has his uniqueness and mission in this world.

On a deeper level, nature gets a person to think, and when you think, you understand at least a bit of the magnitude of the Creator, “lift up your eyes and see Who created these.” When a child gets to experience the greatness of Hashem from up close, and of course we talk about this, he becomes more of a believer and not just because he

was taught, but mainly because he experienced it with all of his senses.

R’ Zeliger considers his work superlative education and not just something to satisfy children’s liking for adventures or to provide them with interesting pastimes.

Throughout the year he has ongoing classes with yeshivos and elementary schools and he sees wonders with children whose self-confidence is low. Their self-image improves, fears vanish, and their emuna in Hashem is strengthened.

He recommends that parents take his lead, each with the knowledge that they have, to connect children to Hashem through nature.

wellsprings of Chassidus outward throughout all the countries where Jews have settled.

And since “to every place the Jewish people were exiled, the Sh’china was with them,” in this final exile – where the majority of Jews and the majority of their buildings are exiled in America, together with the nasi doreinu – the Sh’china is also exiled to America. And within the exile in America itself – “where (in Bavel)?” – in the “Mikdash M’at” of “Beis Rabbeinu.”

(From Kuntres Beis Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel; Seifer HaSichos 5752, pg. 470-1)

NOTES:

*To note that there is a spark of Moshiach in every single Jew. (Accordingly we can reconcile the teachings of our Sages on the verse, “A star has gone forth from Yaakov” (Balak 24:17), which refers to Melech HaMoshiach (Yerushalmi Taanis 4:5), and it refers to each and every Jew (Yerushalmi

Maaser Sheini perek 4, end). Both views are true and real, insofar as every Jew has a spark of Moshiach (see Maor Einayim Parshas Pinchas, end), the dimension of Yechida [of his soul], which is a spark of the general, aggregate Yechida, the soul of Moshiach (Ramaz to Zohar II 40b, among other sources). “The nasi is everything,” for the leader of the Jewish people includes within him the spark of Moshiach, the particular Yechida, of each and every Jew. Thus, the soul of the nasi is the general, aggregate Yechida, the soul of Moshiach, and he is, therefore, the Moshiach of the generation.

**See Likkutei Sichos Vol. 11, pg. 8 ff., where it is discussed.

***See Responsa of Chasam Sofer Choshen Mishpat (Vol. 6), end (siman 98), and see S’dei Chemed P’as Sadei maareches HaAlef, klal 70, among others.

****Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel, who is like Rabbeinu HaKadosh [Rebbi Yehuda HaNasi] in Eretz Yisroel (as discussed above in Footnote 40). Accordingly, we may infer that by Rav saying “it is Rabbeinu HaKadosh,” he is also ruling about himself* – that “it is Rabbeinu Sh’B’Bavel.”

*****See S’dei Chemed ibid: “In this manner,

in each generation, they would speculate among themselves who it is … Rabbeinu HaKadosh … in his generation they declared and knew that he is the one that is ready [for the mission of redeeming the Jewish people] … And so it is in every single generation: there must be one who is suited [to be Moshiach] should they merit [the redemption]. Also in this spirit, the disciples of the Arizal wrote that in his time it was the Arizal,” and S’dei Chemed concludes, “and all this is obvious.”

_____

*Reflecting the explanation of the [unusual] wording of the Mishna (Avos 3, beg.), “judgment and reckoning” (judgment and only thereafter reckoning). This teaching is brought to light by another Mishna (ibid 16): “one is punished with his knowledge and without his knowledge.” That is, after a person rules, “with his knowledge” [according to his opinion and sense of justice] in a case about someone else, he [thus] renders judgment upon himself “without his knowledge”; in accordance with his “judgment,” a “reckoning” is made as it applies to his own case. (See Likkutei Sichos Vol. 6, pg. 283, where it is discussed.)

Continued from page 3

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A PURE MITZVAHBy Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

WHY DID HE WAIT SO LONG?

The first Mitzvah given to Avraham, the very first Jew, was that of circumcision. As recounted in this week’s parsha, Avraham was 99 years old when he received this commandment from G-d.

Why did Avraham wait so long to be circumcised? According to the Talmud, Avraham had prior knowledge of all of the commandments and performed them without waiting for G-d’s command. Why not circumcise himself at an earlier age?

Numerous answers have been offered to this question.

ONLY ONCE!The most frequently

cited answer is based on the counterintuitive Talmudic statement, “one who is commanded to perform a Mitzvah and does it is superior to the one who is not commanded to do the Mitzvah and performs it.”

Thus, if Avraham had circumcised himself before being commanded by G-d, he would have lost the ability to do so by a Divine command in the future. One can only be circumcised once!

THE TWO DIMENSIONS OF CIRCUMCISION

Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (the founder of Chabad, also known as the Alter Rebbe and the author of the classic work Tanya) writes in his work Torah Or that there are two spiritual dimensions of circumcision. While it is possible to achieve the first level by way of the physical act of circumcision without G-d’s express commandment, one cannot attain the loftier level of spiritual circumcision without G-d’s assistance, as it is channeled through His commandment.

This loftier dimension of circumcision will be fully revealed in the Messianic Age. Avraham, however, sought to experience that level in his lifetime, which could only happen with G-d’s express commandment to him after living a life of total commitment to serving G-d by performing all of the Mitzvos of his own volition. Once he had attained the ultimate level of personal growth on his own initiative, he was ready for G-d to reveal this sublime level of spiritual circumcision.

KING DAVID’S DISTRESSPerhaps one can offer another

answer to this question. The Baal Shem Tov cited a passage

in the Talmud (Menachos 43b) concerning King David’s distress when he was bathing and it dawned upon him that he was naked and therefore not engaged in any Mitzvah. When, however, he realized he was circumcised he was comforted. He then sang praise to G-d for this Mitzvah and composed Psalm 12 which begins: “For the conductor; on the Shminis (an eight-stringed instrument).” According to the Talmud, the eight-stringed instrument also alludes to the Mitzvah of circumcision which occurs on the eighth day.

The Baal Shem Tov explains further that King David’s bathing is to be understood in spiritual terms. He wanted to cleanse himself of every vestige of sin and impurity. While doing so, he reflected on his life of performance of Mitzvos and realized that he was “naked.” The Baal Shem Tov teaches that King David’s nakedness, in this context, meant that he was bereft of all the Mitzvos because he could not find any Mitzvah which was totally pure. He was concerned that there might have been a trace of an ulterior motive in every Mitzvah that he performed.

It should be noted, that while it is true, as the Talmud states, “one should always do a Mitzvah, even if it is for ulterior motives,

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for from the ulterior motive one will eventually come to do it for pure motives,” nevertheless, doing things for ulterior motives is certainly not the ideal. A person of the stature of King David, in pursuit of total cleansing and catharsis, cannot reach complete cleansing so long as his Mitzvos are tainted, ever so subtly, with a motive of personal gain.

King David therefore felt that, at the very least, he needed to possess one unadulterated Mitzvah. He sought a Mitzvah free of even the slightest tinge of personal gain or ulterior motive. This was the Mitzvah of circumcision.

EIGHT DAY PURITYWhat distinguishes this

Mitzvah from all others? It is the only Mitzvah one performs as a newborn and is incapable of understanding the Mitzvah. An eight-day old baby cannot possibly do something for selfish reasons. It is the most pure Mitzvah one ever performs; as pure and innocent as the baby itself.

When King David considered the fact that he was circumcised at the age of eight days he was mollified. It was the Mitzvah that removed his spiritual nakedness.

This explains why he sang the psalm that alludes to the eighth day. This underscored the significance of circumcision occurring on the eighth day. It was not just the actual Mitzvah of circumcision that assuaged his feelings of nakedness but the eighth-day component of the Mitzvah.

INFECTIOUSWe still need to clarify the Baal

Shem Tov’s analysis of how King David’s concerns were allayed

by the Mitzvah of circumcision. While it is true that the Mitzvah of circumcision is untainted because it is performed when a child is just eight days old, how did King David cleanse himself from his perception that all of his other Mitzvos were tainted by ulterior motives?

Just as a local infected wound can spread and wreak havoc on the entire body, so to one “perfect” Mitzvah will spread its positive G-dly power and “infect” the entire person and all of the Mitzvos that he has performed. Circumcision is the positive version of the Achilles heel that renders us “vulnerable” to the unadulterated G-dly energy within our Mitzvos.

There is, however, one proviso. This Mitzvah of circumcision must not be compromised. When we are conscientious about our moral life and our physical relationships, we carry within us the incredible power of this unmitigated, pure Mitzvah which neutralizes any negative attachment to our Mitzvos.

This might explain the Talmudic statement (Eruvin 19a) that Avraham stands at the entrance of Gehinom [the purification process the soul goes through before entering Paradise] and saves those souls who are circumcised, provided that they have not compromised the integrity of that Mitzvah. When this Mitzvah remains intact it cleanses and rehabilitates all of our other Mitzvos, which, in turn, helps remove the stains of the transgressions for which Gehinom may have been warranted.

The premise that circumcision is the only Mitzvah for which there is absolutely no ulterior motive is alluded to in the

traditional blessing at a Bris: “Just as you entered into the covenant [of circumcision] so may you enter into Torah, marriage and good deeds.” What is the connection between circumcision and Torah, marriage and good deeds?

Chassidic masters have said that the underlying meaning of this blessing to the newborn infant is that just as when you were circumcised there was no ulterior motive, so too may you enter into Torah, marriage and good deeds with purist of motives.

AVRAHAM’S DIVINE MOHELWe can now find an additional

explanation for Avraham’s waiting to be commanded to circumcise himself rather than performing this Mitzvah voluntarily at an earlier stage of his life.

Avraham was keenly aware of the unique character of the Mitzvah of circumcision. He knew that it was the one Mitzvah that affects all of the other Mitzvos that one does. He had, however, a serious problem and it prevented him from voluntarily circumcising himself. He realized that what makes circumcision unique is that it is performed at the age of eight days, as explained above. Avraham was a mature adult and realized that his circumcision would not reflect the purity of the eight-day old child which “infects” all of the Mitzvos that one does with purity.

Avraham therefore had to wait for G-d to command him to be circumcised in order to endow his adult-version of it with the same measure of purity as an eight day old infant.

This explains why the Torah

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uses the words “Avraham was 99 when he was circumcised…” This passive way of phrasing the act of circumcision, Rashi explains, suggests that it was done to him; that G-d actually assisted him in the act of circumcision. Not only did G-d command him to do it but, moreover, G-d Himself was directly involved in this act. It, therefore, endowed the Mitzvah with the same measure of purity that an eight-day old child has when he is circumcised.

PRE-CIRCUMCISION AND POST CIRCUMCISION ERAS

Generally speaking, for all of our history, from the time

of Creation until the Final Redemption, we exist in a pre-circumcision mode. All of our Mitzvos are, by definition, incomplete; this is particularly so in the period of our exile. While, relatively speaking, circumcision does endow us with a Messianic purity, it cannot compare to the purity and integrity we will attain when Moshiach, the descendant of King David, leads us out of the tainted state of exile, which is likened to the foreskin that obstructs the purity of our souls.

Moshiach is the ultimate Mohel. He will be endowed with the most formidable G-dly power to cleanse us from our spiritual “nakedness” and usher in the

age when G-d will remove the “foreskin of our hearts.”

During these last moments of Galus we must prepare ourselves for the Redemption. Since Redemption is multi-faceted, we must also prepare in multi-faceted ways. The way to prepare for the ultimate circumcision aspect of the Redemption is to fulfill this Mitzvah, literally, with great joy coupled with efforts to bring purity and refinement to this Mitzvah by living a moral life. Guarding and protecting the purity and holiness of the Bris is our way of preparing for the ultimate Bris—the true and complete Redemption.

enough, before I boarded the plane, I was asked to take s’farim with me in my suitcase and I was given a few hundred dollars for that. From donors in the yeshiva I received some more money so that within a day I had a ticket. I remembered what R’ Bitton had told me and knew that what he said, he said seriously, and it had happened!”

The change and the “final blow” occurred during Tishrei at 770.

“On Shabbos B’Reishis, some of us bachurim from yeshiva were hosted along with the rosh yeshiva, R’ Ginsburgh. I hardly knew him and at the end of the meal I told him about the doubts and inner struggles I was dealing with. He listened to me and then said, ‘You crossed the bridge but you keep on looking back. The time has come for you to burn the bridge. Ask the Rebbe to remove the timtum (lit. denseness, i.e. spiritual blockage) of the mind and heart that you

have.’ He was tough and at first I was offended. I felt broken. But when I got up in the morning I was a new man. I decided I was leaving everything and becoming a Chassid and mekushar. The conversation with R’ Ginsburgh by the Rebbe was the ‘final blow’ that got me to erase my previous world, to delete all the thoughts and feelings whose source was ‘the other side’ and to change direction.”

BUILDING A CHASSIDIC HOME

Roni remained in 770 for another three months and then went to the yeshiva in Tzfas where he married his wife Naomi.

“The story of our shidduch is a story of divine providence. I had a few suggestions from Yerushalayim and my mashpia said I should thoroughly check out the second suggestion. When that did not work out, I thought I would take a break. That day, I was in an optical store in Tzfas which is owned by a Lubavitcher.

His wife, who was there, decided that I was just right for her friend.

“That same evening, I told my mashpia about the suggestion. It turned out that the optical store owner had come up with the same idea as the first suggestion that had come up for me already. The rest is history. After a few weeks we were chassan and kalla. We settled in Tzfas and immediately set out for Pushkar to help out at the Chabad house there.”

***After half a year on shlichus in

India, the Arads returned home and Roni entered kollel in the Chabad yeshiva in Tzfas to study for smicha.

He uses his highly unusual life story in order to be mekarev other wandering souls who visit Ascent.

“I sometimes speak with young men or even older ones and I find myself within their stories. I know what and how they think and what they are experiencing, and it’s easier for me to speak to them and show them the way.”

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MAROONED ON A FARAWAY ISLANDThe story of two sisters, young girls who took a

flight from Eretz Yisroel and instead of arriving

at the Rebbe for Rosh HaShana, landed in

Newfoundland. * A first-person story told in two

installments about shlichus on the way to the

Rebbe.

By Nechami Genuth

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This story happened fourteen years ago. When my sister and I chose to fly to the Rebbe on 23

Elul in 5761, we considered it a problematic date, but did not dream that this day would be historic.

We got a bargain flight on a Belgian airline with a short stopover. It was nearly a week before Rosh HaShana and we knew that since we were leaving early, it was almost certain that we would be the only Lubavitchers on the flight. And since this was the first time we were flying not on an Israeli carrier, we were a little worried about how we would manage.

When we arrived at the airport, we still hoped that we would find other Lubavitchers, but were disappointed. As we waited at the stopover in Belgium, we expected that all the additional passengers would be non-Jews and we were almost correct, but then we noticed one tall bachur. He wore a black yarmulke, had a little beard, wore a colorful mesh shirt and jeans. He did not look Israeli and it was only later that we learned that he was from a Chabad family.

On the flight to the US,

most of the passengers were not Jewish, but we consoled ourselves with the thought that most of the Israelis were concentrated together in the front of the plane. At a certain point, we noticed that there was a Chabad Chassid in the back who must have boarded the plane at the last minute in Belgium, but we did not attribute much importance to this at the time since we were sure that the hardest part of our trip was behind us. Little did we know, we were at the beginning.

27 PLANES LANDING ON A SMALL ISLAND

It was almost one in the afternoon, American time, and we were supposed to land in about an hour when we heard someone say, “Oy, we escaped terror in Eretz Yisroel and now terrorism has pursued us to America!”

I did not understand what was going on (English is not my strong point and the stewards spoke in English and French), but I saw that the people around me were very upset. Unfortunately, we were used to news of this kind in Eretz Yisroel, which had experienced nonstop terror that

year, and many of the Israelis on the flight were there because they wanted a break from that atmosphere.

We soon learned that the 9/11 terror attack which had occurred in America directly affected us. Plans had changed and we could not enter the US. Passengers were asked to put on their seatbelts because we were landing.

Twenty minutes later, the plane landed, I had no idea where. The doors opened just to air out the plane. There were no stairs and we could not go out.

The moment the plane landed, people surged for business class. This was because in business class there were phones, which were not available in the regular section. The people returned disappointed.

“We can’t make calls, the system is down due to the huge number of calls being made.” I realized that something very serious had occurred but still did not know what happened and what our next move would be.

“So what do we do now?” I asked the lady behind me, an Israeli in her fifties who seemed to fly frequently.

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“It looks like we will have to return to Belgium.”

“Then why did we land here?” I asked.

“Because the plane has to refuel,” she explained.

“How long will it take?”“It can take a long time

because we are in a very tiny airport and there are another twenty-seven planes waiting just like us.”

The plane was abuzz. People were having a hard time remaining in their seats. Most of the passengers got up, moved around, looked for someone to talk to ease the tension, and a babble of languages could be heard. We still did not know what happened.

Like everyone else, we walked around the plane and tried to glean information about what happened. I suddenly found myself facing the American guy with the yarmulke.

Our eyes met, we were quiet, but he was convinced we had approached him especially to ask questions. He uttered the following line in Hebrew, in a heavy American accent accompanied by pantomime, “A plane went into the Twin Towers.” We realized this was an evil terrorist attack and not an accident.

WHAT DOES HASHEM WANT OF ME NOW?

We continued walking around on the plane and I met an Israeli woman who was bent over a map.

“I am trying to find where we are now.”

“Where are we?” I asked curiously.

“We are on an island,” she said, surprising us.

“Really, an island where?”

“We are at the airport in S John’s, the capital of Newfoundland.”

Who would have believed we would get stuck on an island! I thought of all those thrillers I had read about forsaken places, from stories of the Baal Shem Tov to modern stories like The Lost Children of Tarshish. I felt like we had landed deep in an exciting plot and had instantly become the heroines of an adventure book.

“What do you think – why did this happen to us?” my sister asked.

“I don’t know,” I said, and I quoted the verse, “the hidden things are to Hashem, our G-d,” which popped into my mind.

“So what does Hashem want of us now?” we wondered.

We tried to strengthen our emuna, to believe that everything Hashem does is good and if we came to this place, it was with His divine providence. We had read stories from the time of the Baal Shem Tov in which he sent people to faraway places. It was only for them to arrive at some brook that had waited since the Six Days of Creation for a Jew to come, wash his hands in its waters, and recite a bracha. And now, here we were …

We decided that the best thing to do was to learn Chitas. We opened to the week’s parsha and began reading the portion for Tuesday in Parshas Nitzavim. It was very short and ended with the verse I had quoted, “the hidden things are to Hashem, our G-d, and the revealed things are to us and our children forever to do according to everything the Torah says.”

That was exciting. I had been learning Chitas every day for years, but I had never had anything like this happen before; it was inspiring.

AN IMPROVISED CHASSIDUS SHIUR

“How about we learn the maamer Chassidus we learned before?” my sister suggested. Before we left, we decided to take along material to learn on the flight to the Rebbe. We took some thin booklet so it wouldn’t be heavy to carry it. What we did not check out was how heavy it was in content… We took it without realizing it was deep and had abbreviations we did not know.

We had started learning and stopped in the middle. Now we decided to try a little harder. My sister suggested we ask the Lubavitcher we had seen earlier whether he knew the acronyms that were unfamiliar to us.

I agreed and that is how we became acquainted. We asked him to clarify the acronyms and he invited us to sit down in the two empty seats opposite him that were empty at the time, and he would teach the maamer to us. We agreed and he began to explain the maamer and managed to hold our interest. We had not noticed that we had drawn the attention of the passengers around us.

One non-Jewish passenger was so impressed by the surprising sight, as the entire plane was in turmoil, and there we were, sitting and calmly learning. He asked whether he could take a picture of us. It was only after we finished learning that the Lubavitcher introduced himself as Levi Yitzchok Garelik, and we realized he is the son of R’ Gershon Mendel Garelik, the shliach in Italy. He told us that ever since he married, he was living in Crown Heights.

R’ Garelik told us that he was returning from a family wedding

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in Italy and was on the way to a wedding of a friend in the US, but since he did not find a direct flight, he took this one. He said he is a mashgiach for kashrus and he flew often. As he spoke, he took out a treasure, his cell phone! He asked us for our home phone number and offered to call his wife, when calls could go through, and have her call our parents in Eretz Yisroel.

We took the opportunity to ask him some halachic questions connected with the flight and then went back to our seats with some sense of relief. For the past many hours I had been nervous – how would we inform our parents where we were? I was excited by the hashgacha pratis that the one Chabad Chassid on the flight was one of the few passengers who had a cell phone, and the fact that he was in Italy and had been forced to fly via Belgium just magnified the hashgacha.

We sat down and had no idea what would happen next. Nobody

knew how long we would remain here, whether we would be able to enter the US that day or have to fly seven hours back to Europe.

WE REALIZED WE ARE ALONE

An hour went by, and another. The sun was setting and it was only after being stuck on the plane on the ground for eight hours that we got the signal to disembark. We were also told that only women could take their personal belongings off the plane.

At that moment, the thought went through my mind to offer my help to R’ Garelik, but for some reason, I was shy. I tried to convince myself that if they said so, there was a reason for it. I assuaged my conscience by thinking that if R’ Garelik had something particularly important that he wanted us to take for him, he would ask us himself. I did not consider that perhaps it would

be hard for him to do so and I did not realize that we had not given him enough time to reach us. All the Israelis around us quickly rose and hurried toward the exit and we were afraid to lose them. It was hard for us to separate from them; we had become friendly with some of the girls and in a Hebrew speaking environment it was much easier for us, so we hurried too.

We went outside where night had already fallen. It was dark and cold. Fortunately, we had coats with us, though we still joined the rush to escape the cold and we were among the first to reach the nearby building.

We walked into the small, one story structure that was not reminiscent of an airport terminal. We had to have our bags checked and then we were sent to a bus waiting outside. We boarded the bus which was already packed and immediately began moving. It was only when were inside that we realized that

"אנחנו נמצאים בשדה תעופה מאד, מאד קטן, ויש כאן עוד עשרים ושבעה מטוסים המחכים בדיוק כמונו".

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we were on our own, surrounded by non-Jews. Somehow, we had managed to lose everyone else.

We were very tense, having no idea where we were going, we understood nothing! Why were we taken off the plane? For how long? To do what? The most stressful thing of all was that we had nobody to ask. We were alone in a strange place about which we knew nothing. We felt like two little girls who were lost in the big, wide world.

After a short drive, we stopped. We entered a circular sports stadium which had big signs that said “Canada,” and I realized that this island belonged to Canada.

In the center of the hall were huge screens on which you could watch the terrible attack that

occurred in New York. There were bleachers to sit in and in the outer circle was a circular hallway where tables were set up with food, fruit, bottles of beverages and dozens of phones which could be used to make free calls anywhere in the world.

We decided to call Eretz Yisroel. We spoke with our mother and she sounded calm. “I was very nervous until Mrs. Garelik called me. Now that I know he is helping you, I am relaxed.”

We did not want to make her nervous again by telling her that we had no idea where he was at that moment. There was a long line behind us waiting for a

phone and we hung up.

WHY DIDN’T WE THINK OF TAKING HIS T’FILLIN?

People slowly gathered and we met the Israelis from the flight once again and felt better. Then we noticed R’ Garelik walking with the tall American bachur and were somewhat calmer but not completely so.

R’ Garelik looked more concerned than he did on the plane during that long wait. He said to us, “You can take whatever you like from the fruit and water.” Then he said in a determined voice, “Wait here, I’m going to get my t’fillin!”

That one short sentence contained two messages. One, wait for me meant that from now

on you are under my supervision, which made us feel relieved. We knew that we could not manage in this place on our own. Second, the t’fillin! Oy! How come we hadn’t thought of his t’fillin when we got off the plane? How could I forget R’ Garelik’s need for his siddur, wallet, kosher food, and t’fillin? It never occurred to me to help him with that.

I felt bad for not having done the right thing and wanted to ask him, why didn’t you ask us to take it for you, but he had disappeared, together with the American bachur and another friend that he had discovered there.

I had no idea how he planned on getting his t’fillin, but I noticed the determination with which he said it. He did not say he would try, he said he was going to get them! That’s an enormous difference. He was going to fight for his t’fillin and would not return without them!

Why didn’t he ask us to take his t’fillin for him?

And if he had asked, would I have been able to explain to a non-Jew who never saw t’fillin, what they are, and how precious they are to a Jew who uses them every day?

Well, we had hurried off the plane without thinking too much and now we were waiting, alone.

Would he be successful? I had a feeling he would be, though I did not know how. But he seemed convinced! But then I feared he wouldn’t be, and then I felt guilty again for not having offered help. Would he get his t’fillin back still tonight? Would he try again in the morning? How long would it take him to come back? We were anxious.

In the meantime, we waited and waited. We did not consider leaving without him. We had already had that helpless feeling when we went on the bus, all alone, and we preferred waiting for him.

Thousands of people passed by. Every few minutes the door opened and a planeful of passengers walked in. The Israelis had vanished long before, I did not know where to, and more and more people kept coming and going. We realized this was a way station but did not know where people went from here.

We sat in a corner somewhere and watched. The people around us looked under stress and not surprisingly, for all plans had

I had no idea how he planned on getting his

t’fillin, but I noticed the determination with

which he said it. He did not say he would try, he said

he was going to get them! He was going to fight for his

t’fillin and would not return without them.

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been disrupted, baggage was taken from them, and they had come, against their will, to a place so different than where they had planned to go.

Among the hordes of people we could also see “our hosts,” the local people. They were giving out food and drinks and even blankets. They welcomed everyone with a smile and a compassionate demeanor that was so very touching. We waited there a long time and were given much caring attention. They came over every few minutes and offered some refreshments. Most of the food wasn’t kosher and we had to make do with bananas, oranges and bottles of water. We were really impressed by them.

The residents of the island managed to dispel the tension somewhat, but not enough, because time was passing and R’ Garelik still had not returned.

Another hour and another hour went by. We were tired after hours of no sleep, confused by the turn of events, and if the place hadn’t be so well lit up and bustling with people, we could have easily slept there.

We said the bedtime Shma and it was only by a miracle that we did not fall asleep, and then finally, we saw him.

RABBI GARELIK TOOK CARE OF US

R’ Garelik came back at 2:30 in the morning, accompanied by the American bachur and a frum guy whom he met who was invited to the same wedding, and

some local non-Jews. The main thing is, he had the t’fillin and he was elated.

We relaxed. I was happy to see the t’fillin and I could dispense with my pangs of conscience. He was happy that we had waited for him.

He felt fully responsible for us, Chabad girls from Eretz Yisroel that he had first met on the plane, and was so glad we hadn’t disappeared once again. We did not ask him how he had gotten his t’fillin back and he did not tell us.

“There are some very good people here,” he enthused. “It’s a very small city. On an ordinary day, by 9:00 they are all home and in bed, but today ...”

We went outside where a surprise awaited us, a magnificent limo. We were invited inside. The inside of the car looked like a living room. There were two very comfortable couches, one a seat for two and the other, longer one, could seat three. In the center was a coffee table and the walls were adorned with a homey display window and other decorations.

R’ Garelik looked amazed by it and he exclaimed, “Chassidim, l’chaim! Let’s farbreng!”

Upon getting his t’fillin his mood was elevated and he looked like one whose every problem had been solved.

The trip was short and a few minutes later we exited the limo and entered a large building whose function I could not discern. The building was nearly

empty. Some young people stood in the entrance and next to them were exercise mats. They looked friendly and they asked us, “Which language do you understand better – English or French?”

R’ Garelik motioned to them to leave us alone because we only spoke Hebrew and that he would speak on our behalf. I was so happy that there was someone to replace me in that exhausting endeavor of trying to speak English, at three in the morning, no less.

He spoke to them for a minute or two and then two Canadian girls joined us and we all went to the second floor. We stopped at one of the rooms and they opened the door for us and we saw a piano and two mats. Each of us was given three new blankets. Then they opened the room next door which also had a large musical instrument alongside three mats where R’ Garelik and the men went.

We spread out the blankets, one as a sheet, one as a pillow, and one as a blanket. We did not change our clothes because our luggage remained on the plane, and we did not know when we would get it. Where were we? Why was there a piano in our room? When would we get our clothes? Where would we sleep the following night? None of these questions bothered us at that time. We were so exhausted that the moment we lay down, we immediately fell into a deep sleep.

To be continued

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THE WORLDWIDE

SEARCH THAT LED

BACK HOMEIf you go to the Chabad yeshiva in

Tzfas, you can find Roni Arad bent over

a Shulchan Aruch and other s’farim as

he prepares for smicha. He looks like a

typical Chassid and it is hard to imagine

his tumultuous past.

By Nosson Avrohom

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ENDLESS SEARCHINGThe distance between what Roni

knows today about Judaism and what he knew in his younger years is like the distance between heaven and earth. “My mother was born and raised on a religious kibbutz, Sdeh Eliyahu, but in our home there was no tradition. The little that I knew I picked up in school and it was almost always about there being an upcoming holiday. There was no explanation as to what the holiday was about and what you did when it occurred. I grew up in an atmosphere which did not like religious people and that’s an understatement. The negative view against rabbis was denigrating to the extreme.”

In his childhood, Roni played sports a lot and focused on soccer. Some predicted greatness for him but he says he did not get past the stage of advanced play and he abandoned that dream. In school he was a student of opposites, i.e. he was gifted and did well in math and other subjects, but he had a difficult time focusing and sitting still in one place. “I was one of the first in Israel to be diagnosed as having ADD, although since then things really improved for me.”

He was born in a wealthy home in Ramat Aviv but always related to simplicity. At a young age, before bar mitzva, he knew he was seeking something deeper in life than his friends were.

“I was unwilling to live a boring life. My soul sought more serious, dramatic stimulation. As a young man I rebelled against convention and was addicted to musical events. I flew to Portugal, Zambia, and other countries in order to participate in festivals of the musical genre I liked. When I finished one experience, instead of taking it easy, I planned the next experience. I felt that despite all the abundance I was privy to, I did not really have it good.”

The hunger for a better world,

without jealousy and competition, took root within him back then and he was swept up in a search for a simpler, more natural, idealistic life.

“My friends and I believed in a Higher Power that runs things from above, it’s just that we did not refer to Him as the Creator of the Universe and Divine Providence, but as a ‘Universal Energy’ and other titles that we took from the spiritual-mystical books that we read. In our home we had many philosophical-spiritual books and my mother was involved in Reiki, guided imagery, and meditation.

“One powerful experience shook me up and led me to forgo serving in the army, and to wander off to an ‘ecological farm’ in the Arava region. It was when I was in the Neve Avivim Park in the area where I grew up. I looked around me at the trees, flowers and the ornamental fish that swam in the lake and I suddenly had the feeling that in nature there is incredible cohesiveness; one completes the next and there is no jealousy and competition among them; on the contrary. This led me to pack some things and escape from city life. I went to a nature farm away from civilization in the Arava where I spent a long time. Every day I would take care of the plants and talk to them. My clothing and behavior fit life in the desert. The couple who built the farm hosted me and in exchange, I took care of their baby. The farm was full of plants and greenery and my job was to water them. Life there was a delight.”

Roni was attending a spiritual festival in the south called Rambo when he suddenly remembered that it was his mother’s birthday. He left the crowds and went up a hill to get cell phone reception and called to wish his mother happy birthday. When they hung up, to the surprise of his friends, he impulsively left the festival and went home to be with his mother on her birthday.

“It later turned out that this was her last birthday. A short while later she fell sick and she died in a little over a month, leaving the entire family in shock.

“After the Shiva, I felt strongly that life is fleeting and it needed to be lived to the fullest. But I didn’t know how to do this. First, I returned to the Arava where I lived on a kibbutz, but after a while I felt drained and I flew to South America.”

Roni felt very deeply about searching for the meaning to his life, but at the time did not think Torah and mitzvos were where it could be found.

“I did not imagine that Judaism is a spiritual path. I thought of it as more of a way to preserve outdated tradition. Back then, I did not even have a love-hate relationship with Judaism since it simply did not interest me. My knowledge of Torah and mitzvos was so minimal that I did not know what Shma is or what kosher food is. I was an ignoramus.”

DISTURBING DREAMBefore flying to South America,

Roni went to a bookstore on Sheinkin Street and bought, among other things, books on Breslov Chassidus.

“Even now, I have no logical explanation for my buying those books at that time. I saw them lying there and spontaneously took them. In one of the books was a compilation of chapters of T’hillim and for four hours on the flight I tried to read it and ‘broke my teeth.’ It was an unfamiliar text and I set it aside. I did not relate to it, but amazingly, that night I had a strange dream which I felt was connected to the T’hillim.

“I dreamed that I was vomiting up my entire past and experiencing some sort of inner cleansing. I woke up terrified in the middle of the night and could not fall back

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asleep. It was my first encounter with something Jewish but it did not push me towards practice. It seemed ridiculous to me that in order to connect to G-d, I had to put on t’fillin or keep any rules. I was sure that Jewish spirituality was the ultimate antiquated religion.”

Roni went through more stages in which he worked on a horse ranch and as a manager of an exclusive restaurant in northern Tel Aviv. He made good money and lived well. He had a nice home, a car, and whatever he wanted, but he was bored. “I was at a loss for ideas. I had everything so why did I feel this way?”

The feeling of emptiness sent him back to the Arava and this time, he went further south to an ecological yishuv called Izuz situated on the Egyptian border.

“I looked for a ranch with sheep because I wanted to be a shepherd. I wanted to be alone and I found the opportunity on this out of the way yishuv. I spent two years there and was appointed the manager of tourism at the yishuv. For a while I felt I had found what my soul loved, but then thoughts about life, our role in the world, life and death, started up again. Now I know these were thoughts of t’shuva.”

ONE THING LED TO ANOTHER

Hashem has many agents at His disposal and one of them was the father of a good friend who worked with him on the farm. He exposed Roni to the depth and beauty of Judaism.

“Every time I joined my friend to visit his parents, it was Shabbos. I noticed that as soon as Shabbos began, he

stopped working and he became tranquil. It hit me that what I was really looking for, freedom and serenity, I wasn’t looking for in the right places. Freedom is not traveling on Shabbos. Freedom is not running after pleasures of this world. True freedom is being religious, a reality so out of the question for me at that time. It is by obeying the Creator’s rules that we acquire serenity in life.”

One time, after a long conversation, Roni received a siddur from that man and with his guidance, began saying Modeh Ani every morning. And before he went to sleep at night he read the Shma.

“I don’t know how I got there; it felt like an invisible hand was leading me. I did not rationally understand that Judaism is true; it was a heavenly connection. I have no idea what motivated me to relate to these texts. It was a deep, inner feeling, for I wasn’t raised this way.”

At this point, Roni remembered a childhood friend by the name of Ariel Ashkenazi who had become interested in Judaism as a result of which their friendship had ended. “One day I remembered him and decided to contact him.

“I remembered his parents’ phone number and was surprised to hear from his mother that he had become a Chabadnik, married, and moved to Tzfas. Since my friend’s father lived on a yishuv in the Galil near Tzfas, at the first opportunity I joined my friend on a visit to his parents. Then I stopped by to visit my childhood friend in Tzfas. I was taken aback to see him dressed like a religious person, with a hat and jacket. We spoke for hours.

“When I returned to Izuz, an interesting situation ensued in which many people on the

yishuv sat together and we spoke about ideals in this modern era. They were all ardent Leftists but the conversation focused on the settlers being the new pioneers who replaced the kibbutznikim. There was depressing talk about the dismantling of the ideals of the kibbutzim. In the course of the conversation, a line came out of my mouth that until today, I still cannot explain how I said it. I said that if I wasn’t working there, I would be keeping Shabbos.”

They all looked askance and Roni wanted to bury himself. He could not understand where that thought had come from.

A few months later he decided to fly abroad again, this time to the Balkan countries and he decided to keep Shabbos. “I didn’t exactly know how to keep Shabbos. I knew you can’t use electricity and drive a car.”

A good friend who was also becoming interested in Judaism urged him to take t’fillin with him even though he did not know how to use them.

“One morning, I tried to put them on and felt like someone who bought a fishing rod and did not know how to wind the string right; all the straps confused me. A few days later, I put them back in the bag and did not try putting them on again. I now know that within all this ignorance, my neshama was crying out, but there was no one to give direction.”

THE REBBE WILL HELPWhen he returned to Eretz

Yisroel he decided to live in Yerushalayim. He rented an apartment in Nachalaot and his involvement in Judaism went up a notch. In this picturesque Yerushalmi neighborhood lived many religious young men who

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were also perpetual “outsiders.” Roni found a chevra with whom he had a common language. They were all at some stage of searching and interest in Judaism. They taught him basic mitzvos.

“One morning, I felt a strong feeling of being completely wrung out. I decided I must choose a path and I resolved to do t’shuva.”

He called his Lubavitcher friend Ariel in Tzfas. For several hours, Roni expressed all his complaints and fears about the path of Torah.

“There was one question that really bothered me. How could the great, awesome Creator of the universe be involved in trivial things like what we eat? Ariel, to his credit, let me express everything on my mind. When I was done, he nicely explained the perspective of Chassidus and told me the line that Hillel said to the man who wanted to convert, a line I will never forget: You won’t learn everything on one foot. Judaism is deeper than you imagine.”

The next step was three t’fillos a day and two months after that decision, he was chazan on his mother’s yahrtzait in the Chabad yeshiva, Tiferes Menachem, in Yerushalayim, led by R’ Sholom Ber Marzel.

“I began visiting the yeshiva every day but there was one moment that made me decide to remain and become a bachur like the others. It was when I attended a farbrengen of the mashpia of the yeshiva, R’ Shmuel Bitton. I did not know him from before, but at a certain point, after a few cups of l’chaim, he hugged me and said, ‘Roni, you should know that Chabad is the truth.’

“I felt he was saying this from a place of truth and it made a tremendous impact on me. I decided to become a bachur like all the other bachurim, but the klipos that I was surrounded by did not disappear. Some more months went by until I registered for yeshiva in Ramat Aviv and I began learning there.

“I arrived at yeshiva on Chai Elul and the yeshiva was buzzing

with talk about going to the Rebbe. I spoke with the mashpia of the yeshiva in Yerushalayim, R’ Bitton, and he told me that if I really wanted to go, the Rebbe would help. He said this with utmost confidence.

“What happened within a day stunned me. That evening I attended R’ Goldberg’s farbrengen in Ramat Aviv. He spoke a lot about the necessity of going to the Rebbe. During the farbrengen, as everyone sang, he motioned to me the question – am I going to the Rebbe. When I motioned back that I did not have the money to buy a ticket, he motioned back that he was willing to try and get me half a ticket, if I got the other half. I was surprised but agreed. Things worked out in an amazing way.

“The hanhala of the yeshiva gave $100 to bachurim who went. My grandparents gave me another $100. My father, whom I had not seen in a long time, surprised me and gave me several hundred dollars. If that wasn’t

Continued on page 19

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A CITY DIVIDED AND PIECED TOGETHERYerushalayim is the heart and soul of

the Jewish People. Anyone who makes

concessions on our sovereignty over the Old

City cannot talk about a united Yerushalayim

and the strength of the residents of the eternal

capital of Am Yisroel. The General Security

Services and the country’s military echelon

know how to defeat the terrorists, but the

politicians refuse to give the order. The Rebbe

spoke decades ago about the censorship on

the security situation, covering up reports on

how the terrorist organizations were raising

their ugly heads.

By Sholom Ber Crombie

Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry

1.Prime Minister Binyamin

Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon are absolutely right. The truth is that there isn’t much they can do to change the situation. Assuming naturally that there are no plans to alter the strategic balance of power, what would be the purpose in initiating a military operation at this time? No one intends to go around East Jerusalem and confiscate knives from the kitchens of Arab homes. Furthermore, when the operation’s sole objective is defensive in nature, e,g., gathering terrorist weapons, such tactics will do nothing towards improving the nation’s security. On this basis, there is no reason to start a war against

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the terrorists. Thus, it should come as no wonder that the proposed solution is to erect metal detectors at the entrance to the Old City, as if there’s a lack of knives and other weapons inside Arab houses in the Moslem Quarter.

The real problem is not a lack of ability on the IDF’s part or options for an effective military operation, rather a lack of true desire to vanquish the terrorist enemy. While there are several proposals before the Cabinet on a workable military solution to the prevailing state of affairs, the government ministers prefer to take small steps to calm the national outrage and soothe public opinion. They could call for bold and courageous

measures. Although this would initially come at a high price, forcing us to deal with the pressures of international criticism, the deteriorating security situation will eventually stabilize. Unfortunately, all we get is a PR offensive on social media.

After Operation Protective Edge last summer, one prominent IDF officer said that the army could have retaken the Gaza Strip within seven hours, but those on the diplomatic track didn’t want to defeat Hamas. This is the very situation we confront today. We can defeat the terrorists, and we have a powerful and professional army that is capable of doing just that. The same Israel Defense Forces that devastated all the

Arab armies – through G-d’s Divine kindnesses and His openly revealed miracles – can also conduct a victorious war against the terrorist organizations. However, instead of dealing with security considerations, the leaders in Eretz Yisroel politicize the army, concerning themselves with what the international community might say. This is exactly what the Rebbe warned about decades ago, when few people really knew what was happening in the faulty decision-making process for the non-existent war on terror.

What does the Prime Minister think the end result will be? We went through the first intifada, the second intifada, and the waves of terrorist attacks after

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the Oslo Accords. How did the journalist Chagai Segal put it? “By my count, this is the eighth intifada, not the third.” What else has to happen ch”v before Yerushalayim finally becomes a safe place once again? Instead of gaining security, we lose another part of our sovereignty over Yerushalayim to the rampaging Arab hordes with every wave of terrorist bloodletting. Those of us old enough to remember can look back fondly to the days when we could move freely around Sh’chem and Yericho. We’ll apparently be able to speak to our children about when we could walk to the Kosel via the Arab marketplace and the Moslem Quarter. We might even have to tell them that it was once possible to go to the Kosel without close armed protection. Who knows?

After the difficult scenes of recent months, many Jews refrain from walking to the Kosel along the usual paths, opting instead to take their cars via the bypass route. They always used to tell us that there was no reason to worry about walking through the Arab marketplace. After all, it was in the Arab merchants’ best economic interests to keep things peaceful. Economic interests supersede all other concerns – that’s a known fact. However, the pictures of a young chareidi, wrapped in tallis and t’fillin, fleeing in panic through the streets of the Arab market, make it abundantly clear that Arab hate is the prime motivation today. And if those pictures weren’t enough, we then saw the film clip of Adele Benita running with a knife stuck in her body, fighting for her life while the Arab merchants sat happily and drank Coca-Cola. Only the popcorn was missing for them to have a full entertainment experience.

All the myths about co-

existence with the Arabs, if we would just give them a means of livelihood and proper municipal services, have been proven false with every successive terrorist attack. They have no rational basis whatsoever; this is nothing more than good old-fashioned anti-Semitism, plain and simple. That’s the whole story to this never-ending conflict. It’s definitely not a clash over municipal issues or national policy; it may not even be a religious dispute. This is sheer blind hatred: “It is a well-established law – Eisav hates Yaakov.”

2.In the meantime, the pundits

are struggling to provide an answer on how we should define this new situation. We most definitely don’t have a war here. The reality of ordinary Jews being stabbed and murdered on a daily basis is far from being called a “war.” This isn’t even an intifada – yet. In today’s world, the rule of thumb is that if it smells like an intifada and sounds like an intifada, then it’s an intifada. However, in Eretz Yisroel, it can sound like an intifada, even feel like one, but Heaven forbid that we should call it an intifada. So how exactly do we define a situation where Jews are stabbed every day by Arab murderers? The most we can expect is the phrase “wave of terror.” In other words, the terror in Eretz Yisroel is an accepted reality, a routine fact of life. Just as there are waves of cold and waves of heat, there are also waves of terror. It’s part of the scenery.

The problem is not the Arabs – they were in Eretz Yisroel before and will be after the current “wave of terror” – rather it’s the message we convey to

them. When we convey a message of strength, they are terrified. However, when we cringe before them, they raise their heads. Since the last “wave of terror,” they haven’t been our good neighbors who followed the path of peace. They simply chose the path of fear. When we exercised our power of deterrence, they were silenced and we were victorious. But when the prime minister of Israel stands at the rostrum before the United Nations General Assembly and proclaims his support for a “two-state” solution, what can you expect from the hate-filled Arab merchants who want nothing less than to see us driven into the sea?

In the current situation, only instilling fear and dread within them can restore security to the Jewish homeland. There’s no need to collect all the kitchen knives from East Jerusalem and there’s no reason to do so either. However, it’s possible to go out on a military operation that will bring the IDF back into Arab cities throughout Yehuda and Shomron, it’s possible to declare the Oslo Accords null and void – especially since the other side has unilaterally broken them anyway, and it’s also possible to implement Jewish sovereignty over Gush Etzion or the settlement blocs – for starters. These are the steps that can truly tip the balance of deterrence in our favor and restore a feeling of national security. In addition, it sends a clear message that “the boss is very angry” and it wouldn’t be smart to provoke us.

However, instead of choosing this overall approach, Mr. Netanyahu prefers to deal with cheap public relations and proclaim that “the terrorists’ homes will be destroyed.” He just forgot to mention that he

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was referring to the terrorists responsible for the slaughter at the Har Nof synagogue last winter, whose homes had been scheduled for destruction long ago. We won’t discuss the fact that the homes aren’t really destroyed. The most they ever do is dynamite a few walls, and the next day, the money comes from Iran via Hamas and the house is rebuilt as if nothing has happened.

With all the madness in the streets of Yerushalayim today, it boggles the mind why its municipal government still hasn’t received orders to raze all illegally built homes situated near Jewish communities and thereby endangering the security of the people living there. In recent years, thousands of residential units have been erected near the city’s Armon HaNatziv and Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhoods. If someone wants to restore security to the citizens of Yerushalayim, he first must put a stop to the constant daily threats. When a woman living in Pisgat Ze’ev is afraid to open her window at night because there’s an illegal Arab house just yards away threatening her security, that’s a clear sign of a divided Yerushalayim.

3.The Rebbe was already

speaking about the loss of sovereignty over Yerushalayim immediately after the great victories of the Six Day War. While the entire Jewish People were celebrating the return of the Kosel and other holy sites, the Rebbe declared that there are those who want to give it all back. In dozens of sichos, the Rebbe mentioned Yerushalayim and the forfeiture of Jewish rule there. Even when the Rebbe cried out against the territorial concessions

stipulated in the Camp David Accords, he explained that they won’t be able to stand firm afterwards on Yerushalayim.

In one lengthy sicha (Motzaei Shabbos Ki Sisa, Parshas Para 5739), the Rebbe laid out the web of concessions on the way to recognizing ‘Palestinian’ autonomy and the loss of Jewish sovereignty. It turns out that even back in those days, there were those who tried to censor news about the violence against Jews and sweep relevant facts on the security situation under the rug. “The main thing is that they let the terrorists enter the Old [City of] Yerushalayim!” the Rebbe said. “They also hit Jews and Jewish soldiers there, and they keep it a secret, thinking that if the papers are forbidden to write about it, then the sixty or seventy thousands Arabs living in Yerushalayim won’t find out. Furthermore, if the military censors say that it doesn’t ‘pay’ to publicize this, the Arabs will cover it up and won’t tell about it to a brother, cousin, or relative living on the Jordanian side. This is a lie that cannot be used to deceive anyone, even a small child.

“And as we have discussed, since we are in a doubled and redoubled state of darkness, G-d does not wait until they realize that two plus two equals four, not five or three – and He shows that they have already been striking Jews r”l near Chevron, near

Sh’chem, and near the Old City of Yerushalayim, including even people in the army!”

The Rebbe continued: “The only thing that protects is the chief Guardian, i.e., ‘The Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps,’ except that G-d wants it to be based according to the ways of nature. Natural protection is when there are soldiers carrying weapons and they want to serve with self-sacrifice even for those who are “like grasshoppers in their eyes.” Several years ago, these people sent a “delegation” to Washington to ask for mercy and that they should take back everything conquered during the Six Day War – they’re even prepared to protect them! – using them not to let Jews settle along the border. Yet, a few months ago, they said that this was the only way to protect the border, and if it remains unoccupied, they can’t protect it, and therefore, Jews must settle there!”

And if those pictures weren’t enough, we then

saw the film clip of Adele Benita running with

a knife stuck in her body, fighting for her life while

the Arab merchants sat happily and drank Coca-Cola.

Only the popcorn was missing for them to have a full

entertainment experience.

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WHY WERE THEY

STILL HUNGRY?By D Chaim

Class just ended. All my classmates got up and rushed to the yard. I did not rush. I went down the stairs slowly in the direction of the yard that we played in, because I was busy thinking about what our teacher had just said.

The lesson was about look-ing forward to the Geula. The teacher said that the Rebbe intensified the anticipation of the Geula in an incomparable way to previous generations. I imagined the days when the Beis HaMikdash was the glory of Yerushalayim and I felt very strongly that we cannot sub-mit to feelings of galus. Galus is not a true state of being; it’s an abnormality that must be done away with. Ah, what I would give to be a child in Yerushalay-im in its glory days … At least at this time, I must strengthen my feeling of anticipation for the Geula.

When I reached the yard I saw my friends playing bois-terously. I was soon swept up in the game and my earlier thoughts were forgotten. Time passed and we finished the next lesson. Then we went down-stairs to the first floor to the lunchroom.

It wasn’t always that way. I remember learning in the lower grades when school ended ear-

lier. I would walk home with my older brother. He would eat lunch and then go back to school while I stayed home. Then the school began offering good meals for the students so they don’t have to go home in the middle of the day.

The teacher in charge of the lunchroom told an interesting story and I listened closely. It was a story about Rabbi Yona-san Eibischitz that goes like this:

R’ Yonasan was the advi-sor of the king. One time, the king became angry at him and wanted to punish him severely. R’ Yonasan ran away and hid. The king ordered to arrest him but his soldiers searched and could not find him. The king thought and thought until he came up with an ingenious idea. “Go out and announce in the streets of the city that tomor-row morning, everyone must show up in the marketplace plaza with a sheep.”

The next day, everyone showed up with a sheep. Af-ter the king’s servants weighed each sheep, they announced, in the name of the king, that in a month’s time they all had to come back with a sheep. The weight of the sheep had to re-main exactly the same as it was that day.

The people went home, not

knowing what to do next. No-body wanted to arouse the king’s anger but they had no choice. If they did not feed the sheep, it would lose weight, and if they fed the sheep, it would gain weight.

The old man, in whose house R’ Yonasan was hiding, re-turned home looking perplexed. When R’ Yonasan saw him he asked what was going on. The man told him the king’s order which was impossible to fulfill. R’ Yonasan said, “I have an idea. Continue feeding the sheep as usual but near the pen place a cage with a fox in it. The sheep will eat and won’t die, but its fear of the fox won’t allow it to put on weight.”

The old man did as he said and on the appointed day, the people showed up with their sheep. The weight of all the sheep had changed, with one sheep’s weight up and another sheep’s weight down. Only the weight of the old man’s sheep remained exactly the same as it was a month before.

When the king heard about this, he told his servants to search the old man’s house. The king knew that only R’ Yona-san could come up with an idea to keep the sheep at the same weight. And since the king wanted to capture R’ Yonasan,

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he came up with the order about the sheep. But R’ Yonasan realized this, of course, and he escaped before the king’s ser-vants came to the house.

The story was fascinat-ing. Then I got ready to leave the lunchroom and I heard one of the boys from a higher class say, “I’m still hungry.” I expect-ed him to ask for another por-tion from the lunchroom moni-tor but he bentched and left. I was a little surprised but did not think about it too much.

At the end of the day I went home and saw my older broth-er eating supper. When he fin-ished and was about to bentch, I heard him also say quietly, “I’m still hungry.”

That was strange! Why were they hungry when they had just eaten? And if they were still hungry, why didn’t they eat more? Why did he bentch? And how did the identical thing

happen both at home and at school?

After my brother finished bentching, I decided to ask him. “Shmuel, why did you remain hungry when you just ate?”

Shmuel said, “It’s because I ate that I said that.”

Now I was completely baf-fled. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“I’ll explain it to you,” said Shmuel. “The Rebbe says that a Jew yearns for the Geula so much that whatever he does, even mundane things, are ex-perienced with anticipation for the Geula. The Rebbe gives an example from eating and drinking, which are routine, constant activities. When a Jew yearns for the special meal of the Leviasan, Shor HaBar and the Yayin HaMeshumar, which we will have with the Geula, even when he eats now, he re-mains hungry for that future

special meal.“I guess I have to strength-

en my yearning for the Geula so that it affects me and I am actually physically hungry, but at the very least, I always try to put myself in that mindset, that I am still hungry for that future meal.”

I thought a bit and then said, “You know Shmuel, that’s amazing because just today, the monitor in charge of the lunch-room told a story that fits with what you just told me. Maybe that’s the reason why that boy I saw in the lunchroom said he was still hungry.”

I told Shmuel the story and ended with, “Maybe, just as the fear of the fox did not allow the sheep to put on weight, when a Jew truly longs with all his heart for the Geula, it can leave him with a feeling of hunger even as he eats, hunger for that special seuda with Moshiach.”

מודעה

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