A
New Attitude Toward Bringing Moshiach
By
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Ginsberg
In
connection with Yud Shvat, the Rosh HaShana of Hiskashrus, I bring you the
following excerpt of a letter written by the Rebbe Rayatz, describing his love
for and connection with his Chassidim.
It
is a very emotional letter. "Everything I possess in the merit of my holy
fathers," the Rebbe Rayatz writes, "belongs to them, wherever they may
be." He explains that his only desire, his only objective, is to help his
Chassidim physically and spiritually. At the same time he makes it clear that he
fully expects and requires them (us!) to work hard, and laments their inaction.
The
letter is printed in the Igros Kodesh of the Rebbe Rayatz, Volume 11,
pages 104-105 (free translation):
To
reiterate what I have already written many times, the fate and future of Anash,
may they live and be well, depends on our avoda, as I now realize after
arriving in this country. With each passing day and many nisyonos, I see
that life’s treasures remain out of reach and unattained, on account of a lack
of avoda, lack of attention and eyes that are closed… Every day is like
a year to me, in my longing and inner desire to encourage Anash to love
one another as brothers and establish specific times for learning Torah and
Chassidus together.
The
time has come for the weak to say, "I am strong," in fulfillment of G-d’s
word as conveyed through his holy servants, our Rebbeim, who are alive and with
us today as always. And the only reason is the inability to see and feel, due to
the overwhelming demands of daily life.
But
the absolute truth is that "many waters cannot quench" and will never
extinguish (G-d forbid) the sparks of light of the G-dly flame that exists
within each and every member of Anash.
I
beg the Almighty to send us His help from On High, in the merit of our holy
Rebbeim of blessed and saintly memory, whose souls abide in Gan Eden and whose
memories protect us. May the abundant mercies of our Father in Heaven (may His
Name be praised and exalted) be aroused on behalf of Anash and their
families, together with all of our brethren, the Jewish people. May He improve
their material plight and provide them with sustenance, and may they be raised
and awakened in the spiritual sense to follow the path they have inherited.
With
my entire heart, soul, and being I dedicate myself to the betterment of Anash,
their children and their children’s children, may they live and be well.
Everything I possess in the merit of my holy fathers belongs entirely to them,
wherever they may be, may Almighty G-d bless them "in everything, of
everything, and with everything,"spiritually and physically. This is my
aim, my sole desire, and my portion in life.
I
look forward to the time when the elders of Anash, yeshiva
students and Tmimim, and everyone else possessing a heart and emotions, will
stand by my right side and devote themselves to the holy work of awakening and
arousing others to the goodly light. And good it will be for them, both
physically and spiritually.
Yud
Shvat 5761 is exactly a "yovel" (a jubilee; 50 years) since the
Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach officially accepted the nesiyus with the maamer
"Basi L’Gani."
The
Rebbe’s nesiyus actually began in 5710, at the very moment of the Rebbe
Rayatz’s histalkus. According to Chassidus, the world cannot exist
without a Rebbe, a "neshama within a physical body," acting as
a channel or "connecting intermediary" for the G-dly vitality that
sustains it. In the Rebbe’s own words (free translation; Volume 26 of Likkutei
Sichos, page 7):
There
must be a "Moshe" in every generation in whom the neshama of
Moshe is invested…his spiritual life endures forever, in the physical world,
by being clothed in the body of the Nasi who exists in every generation.
Nonetheless,
there is still a special significance to the day, one year later in 5711, when
the Rebbe publicly accepted the nesiyus with all its ramifications. Yud
Shvat 5761 is, therefore, an even more meaningful milestone than usual.
On
how to prepare for the great and holy day of Yud Shvat, the Rebbe stated on
Shabbos Parshas VaEira 5750 (Seifer HaSichos, Volume 1; free
translation):
On
the tenth day of the eleventh month of this year, 40 years of the nesiyus
of kvod k’dushas mori v’chami Admur will be completed, as the ninth Nasi…
The Moshe Rabbeinu of our generation declares, "You have dwelt long enough
on this mountain…" All of our deeds and service have already been
perfected, in astounding measure, and in a public manner… Therefore, the Moshe
Rabbeinu of our generation, my father-in-law the Rebbe, makes the following
announcement: "Turn and go…and possess the land which the L-rd swore to
your fathers" – the entry into Eretz Yisroel, with the true and
complete Redemption…
At
this extremely auspicious time for the Geula – "in the fortieth
year in the eleventh month, etc." – the final preparation and very last
requirement before entering the Land with the true and complete Redemption is
for each and every Jew to live up to his obligation and utilize this auspicious
time to bring about the Redemption in the literal sense: strengthening belief in
the coming of Moshiach; anticipating and demanding his arrival; and the main
thing, increasing in Torah and mitzvos, especially in disseminating the
wellsprings outward. This applies to men, women, and children, each individual
according to his abilities and circumstances.
And
on Yud Shvat 5750 the Rebbe declared:
Every
Jew of this generation can now be said to "grasp the knowledge of his
teacher," kvod k’dushas mori v’chami Admur, the Nasi of
the generation (and "the Nasi is everything")…especially
since this generation is the last generation of exile (as explained above), and
the process of refinement has already been completed (through "our deeds
and service") over the past several thousand years.
[This
is unlike in past generations when, had the Redemption occurred then, a number
of sparks would have remained to be refined (individually). This is also why
some tzaddikim of past generations did not attempt to "push"
the End of Days (although they had the power to do so), even though they
recognized the terrible suffering involved in exile \ that the Divine presence
is also in exile, etc. Their reason was to prevent any sparks from "going
to waste…"]
This
is surely the highest point in time for the Redemption…
The
above also answers a question that is now being asked by many: What is the
special service associated with the 40th anniversary of the hilula of the
Rebbe Rayatz, the Nasi of our generation?
The
avoda required at present must be expressed in a new manifestation, and
based on a new foundation: "grasping the knowledge of his teacher."
In
simple terms: Everything the baal hilula demanded of us – learning
Torah with diligence and devotion, observing mitzvos b’hiddur, and
especially, disseminating Torah and Judaism and spreading the wellsprings
outward – must now be done utilizing a new approach and attitude, "a
nayer shtel." This new way of thinking must be in accordance with
the "knowledge of the teacher," the Nasi HaDor, rather than
according to how we perceive things ourselves.
This
also pertains to the study of Torah (especially the teachings of the baal
hilula), which, aside from the purpose of a general increase in
understanding, must also be carried out with a new approach and predicated on a
new foundation, based on the inner meaning of the concept of ‘Rebbe.’
Moreover, one’s overall conduct, in keeping with the baal hilula’s
directives, must also be in line with this new approach.
Adding
a particular detail or rule to one’s avoda, even a very big one, is
simply not enough. Rather, a person’s entire existence must be transformed
until it "grasps the knowledge of his teacher." At the same time, this
new approach must trickle down and affect even the smallest details. With a
minimum of reflection, every individual can surely find the most appropriate
areas in which to begin the process.
To
put it another way: Every individual must now become a new
"institution," utilizing his Torah, avoda, and the performance
of good deeds, based on an entirely new foundation: "the knowledge of his
teacher."
With
these words, the Rebbe called on us to undergo an essential transformation. From
now on, our whole way of doing things must be different. Instead of maintaining
our own approach we must adopt the Rebbe’s, and make sure that it influences
all aspects of our lives.
We’ve
entered an entirely new period, the Rebbe explained. Whatever existed till now
is insufficient to meet our current needs. Even adding another detail isn’t
enough, if we’re still playing according to the old rules. "You have
dwelt long enough on this mountain." The old order of avoda is
obsolete. "Turn and go," the Rebbe enjoins us. Make a sharp turn in
your way of thinking. And afterward, you may proceed to "possess the land
the L-rd has sworn to your fathers…"
This
"new approach" was immediately demonstrated by the Rebbe. Starting off
gradually and slowly intensifying over the next few weeks and months, every word
and action seemed to be permeated with Moshiach and Geula.
As
with any "radical" change in thinking, the Rebbe helped us get used to
the idea over time. (This was similar to the early days of the Rebbe’s nesiyus,
when the avoda of the seventh generation was first articulated publicly.
As is known, many members of the "old generation" had trouble adapting
to the new emphasis in avoda, and were not easily won over.)
The
first open declaration of a "new era" and "way of behavior"
in which "the only thing left is ‘All of you stand ready for the building
of the Third Beis HaMikdash’ " was made by the Rebbe on Shabbos Parshas
VaYigash 5747, the first Shabbos after Hei Teives – "Didan Natzach."
On that day, the Rebbe told us not to worry that people might think he was
"talking wildly," because the truth had to be told without fear of how
others would react. Furthermore, the world was ready to hear it.
At
that point, even the Rebbe’s "style" of speaking started to change.
(One example: A few weeks later the Rebbe declared that the "last buttons
had already been polished." This was an extremely radical statement, as the
Rebbe had never said such a thing before.)
This
idea was emphasized even more in connection with Chaf-Beis Shvat 5748, when
Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, o.b.m., passed away. In fact, the Rebbe made a
comparison between the "new period" we had just entered with the one
that began on the 11th of Shvat 5710 (and the 11th of Shvat 5711), when the
Rebbe first began to describe the special nature of the avoda of the
"seventh generation" from the Alter Rebbe.
There
were many other changes, as well. From that point on there were no more farbrengens
on weekdays, maamarim ceased (even in the "sicha niggun"),
the Alter Rebbe’s "Niggun in Four Parts" wasn’t sung at farbrengens,
and the Rebbe gradually stopped giving sichos on Rashi and Rambam. What
the Rebbe did speak about incessantly was the very last "end date,"
the fact that our times are the climax of history, and that the Geula is
going to happen imminently.
Then
came the "fortieth" Yud Shvat, when the Rebbe began to speak about a
"new approach" that was essentially the approach of the Nasi HaDor.
Everyone
was shocked, especially the "chozrim" and those who wrote down
and recorded the Rebbe’s sichos kodesh for posterity. Instead of the
Rebbe’s unique style they had been accustomed to for decades, they were
hearing something entirely new. Not only was the Rebbe mentioning Moshiach and
Redemption unusually often but basically, that’s all he was talking about!
Whereas
in the past, Shabbos farbrengens opened with the "Rebbe’s Niggun"
(based on the Rebbe’s kapitel Tehillim), now they began with
"Zol Shoyn Zein Di Geula," sung with the words "Es Kumt
Shoyn Di Geula" ("The Geula is Already Coming"). Then
there would be a rousing rendition of "Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu V’Rabbeinu
Melech HaMoshiach L’olam Va’ed."
In
general, the Rebbe would start off by speaking about the unique times in which
we live, on the very threshold of the Redemption, say a few words on the weekly parsha,
and immediately connect it to the coming Geula. Over and over the Rebbe
emphasized that very soon we will actually be in the Third Beis HaMikdash, with
the "foundation stone" (which does not undergo any change, even of
"g’niza," etc.). One phrase that was mentioned frequently
was, "…and this is the main point – that we will already be in
Yerushalayim and in the Holy of Holies."
The
resulting sichos were almost entirely devoted to discussing Moshiach and Geula.
For as the Rebbe himself once put it to a Poilishe Chassid,
"They say that I am ‘crazy’ about Moshiach, but I really mean it."
As
has been explained, a yovel is called an "olam" (world),
the "fiftieth gate" (50 years), the "etzem" (essence)
that is higher than all giluyim (revelations), etc. Having reached such
an important milestone, the practical directive to be taken is, in the words of
the weekly Dvar Malchus, "…that all of a person’s experience –
his entire being, encompassing everything – are holy to the Nasi HaDor,
by being filled with and permeated with the idea of fulfilling the shlichus
of the Nasi HaDor, the Final Redeemer, whose primary function is to ‘bring
about the Days of Moshiach’ in actuality."
In
simple terms, we have to do what the Rebbe shlita wants us to: learn
about Moshiach and Geula so we can "live with" Moshiach and Geula.
Tirelessly and unceasingly we must continue to "bombard" the Almighty
with our pleas for the Rebbe’s full hisgalus before the eyes of the
world, until the declaration of "Yechi" pervades all of
Creation.
"Yechi
Adoneinu Moreinu V’Rabbeinu Melech HaMoshiach L’olam Va’ed"
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