Why Don’t Lubavitchers Converse in Yiddish?

Episode 250: "Why Don't Lubavitchers Converse in Yiddish?"

Welcome to our weekly Shabbos program. This morning we bentched the month, and today we read the famous [parsha] — this is the month that the Frierdiker Rebbe came to America, to establish a mikdash, a dwelling place [for Torah] in America, because most of our people lived in America. [The idea is] to make a dira b'tachtonim — a dwelling place for Hashem in the lower worlds — because Hashem wants that we should make for Him a dwelling place here below. We are the foundation of this world; He gave us the Torah to do, to build, to bring down [the Shechinah]. And when we have the Beis Hamikdash, the Shechinah can rest upon us, above — [unclear] — and who can build the Mishkan, who can build the Mishkan? This is [unclear]. And when Yidden do what they're supposed to do, they will merit the binyan of the Beis Hamikdash. Each and every person has a Beis Hamikdash within them, and by doing the right thing they will build the Beis Hamikdash.

When the Frierdiker Rebbe came to America in 1940, he cried out to non-religious Jews — he saw them carrying pocketbooks [on Shabbos] — and he wrote about Shabbos, and the most important thing in those days, as we once mentioned, is: when you want to know if the fish is fresh, you smell the head; if the head is fresh, then [the rest follows] — if the heads [the leaders] are doing the right thing. He cried out that they were not doing enough at that time.

And just like in Mitzrayim — the first geulah — we were redeemed because of three things: because we didn't change our names, we kept our language, and even though we were among the goyim the entire time, parents taught their children how they should conduct themselves, how they should dress, and how they should speak. And this is how we grew up, and this is how we keep it.

I once heard — I heard this from a great mashpia, an older mashpia, I'm not sure if it was from [unclear] — he said, I'm not sure, but I heard from the mashpia that he said it this way: they used to call people [by a name] — they could come from Romania, they could come from Hungary, they could come from [unclear] — they would call them all "Polack." So [he said], if only we would have our outward appearance — our clothing — be the same, and our conduct be the same [we wouldn't be lumped together like that].

So here I want to mention something that I think is very important. I don't think I've heard anybody — any lecturer, any speaker — speak about it, I don't know why, and I'll tell you at the end why I'm saying this, because I feel I have a certain responsibility. You know, I have contact and a connection with many people who are from other [circles/groups] — and you know that some of them, I mean, they learn, they learn, they have their groups, the [Rebbe] is the biggest to them, and some people get brachos and look for miracles from the Rebbe, they wait for dollars — these are fine people, [unclear]. We would farbreng with them from time to time.

So there's a question that they asked, and it bothers them, and I thought I would bring it up because they're listening to this program, and it bothers them — and if it bothers them, it probably bothers others too. And they said: Chabad is as holy as holy can be, they learn [Chassidus] — why then do many [Lubavitchers] not show an example of what a chossid is? So I asked him, what do you mean, what do you mean they don't show an example, what are you trying to say? So this is what they were saying, and I thought I would bring it up.

All over the entire world — whether they're in America, whether they live in Williamsburg, in Boro Park, in Queens, in Los Angeles, wherever, in a city in Europe, in Antwerp [?], in England, in Israel, in Canada, in Australia — all [other chassidish groups] speak Yiddish. They speak to their children the way their father spoke, the way their grandfather spoke. Why, with all our learning, do we speak English amongst ourselves? And when we say "ad" [a word/term] in English — [they ask] — the Rebbe only speaks Yiddish. Even though the Rebbe speaks [in public] in front of millions of people, the Rebbe would never speak [any other language], and a lot of [the listeners] don't even understand Yiddish, but the Rebbe speaks in Yiddish. The [previous Rebbeim] spoke in Yiddish, [the Rebbeim before them] spoke in Yiddish — I'll tell you soon something about this.

Everything is Yiddish, of course — not only [in private], but even addressing the world. But when we sit down amongst ourselves, why do we have to speak in English? There are a lot — I mean, even thousands of [chassidim in other circles] don't know English either, but it doesn't matter, you [still] speak Yiddish amongst yourselves. But amongst us, even the children, they understand, amongst us the children speak in English. Why do we have to speak in English?

Some [people] told me, when it comes to farbrengens — speaking to what can be holier — he has to speak in English, he has to speak in English, English, if he's speaking to the outside world — fine. But [amongst ourselves], why English? So they were saying, maybe it's gone so far that [people] don't even know — they don't even know. And besides, this is very important — people think, and I hear from [some], that this is "kiruv," that's all it is. I said [to them], it's not — it's part of, it's part of [outreach], but that's not the [whole reason]. Some people think that, chas v'shalom, maybe something has crept into us, that we don't even know how to speak Yiddish anymore, and that's why we're speaking English — maybe we have to work on it.

So this is one thing that I wanted to bring up, because they were mentioning it, and I'm sure many other people in America mention it too — why we speak [English], why we don't speak Yiddish. It's a different time also. They were also saying — there is a uniform we have, we have a jacket, we don't wear it long, fine, but when we go outside we wear a hat, we wear a coat, we button right over left — this is a Lubavitcher "uniform" that everyone speaks about, but not the Yiddish.

Since I'm sure these people are listening to this program — they told me they do — I want to say something. I have no [perfect] answer as to why we speak [English], why we don't speak Yiddish amongst ourselves, amongst Anash. And even if we have people that don't understand Yiddish, so they don't understand — they'll learn, or they'll ask — it doesn't mean [we shouldn't try]. I would suggest that these people should discuss it with others about it. And the truth of the matter is, nobody's perfect. This is one of the things that is not perfect — only Hashem is perfect, you know. Once somebody asked, "Give me a [match/shidduch suggestion for a rebbe to follow]," and [the other] said, "I know one thing — what is his [one flaw]? That's all I want to know. I don't want to know his [many qualities], what's his [fault]?" So [the answer came back], "He has none." [And he said], "Then I don't want him, because every person has [some shortcoming] — only [Hashem] doesn't have one." So if this is the only [shortcoming we have], then it's okay — but it's something that has to be addressed, and nobody speaks about it. And they think that [we] don't know how to speak Yiddish, which is not the case, because they listen to the [Rebbe's talks].

So I want to say two things here, and then I'll finish off why I feel I have a responsibility to say this. When my first child was born — it was my birthday — my wife and I went in to the Rebbe with the child. The Rebbe turns to me and says, "What are you going to speak to your child?" So I said [Yiddish]. And the Rebbe turns to my wife, "What are you going to speak to your children?" She says, "Hebrew, maybe English, because she's more fluent in Hebrew." So the Rebbe answered her [that Yiddish is] very important, but [since] she says she's better in Hebrew — from here we learn [that one should speak what one is fluent in, but ideally Yiddish]. I have to admit, in the early years we started with Yiddish, but then the children started to come home from school, and we switched, and we went into English. And it's — I should listen to the Rebbe, and we should speak only what the Rebbe wants us to speak. So I feel a certain responsibility to tell you how important it is to learn [Yiddish], even though I didn't — which I did, I mean, my children know how to speak Yiddish, but they could have been better [at it].

One more thing: when they took the Frierdiker Rebbe — the KGB took him — they took him into a big, big room; this was the most dangerous time for [Lubavitcher chassidim]. They put him in a large room to interrogate him. This is a story that the Frierdiker Rebbe himself wrote, and he writes that there were fifteen people in the room from the KGB, and each one had a gun next to him on the table, and they said to the Frierdiker Rebbe, "Answer us in Russian." The Frierdiker Rebbe knew Russian very well. So the Frierdiker Rebbe answered them — at such a time, not in Russian, but in Yiddish — at a time, G-d forbid, when doing something wrong could mean twenty years in prison, or who knows what. But Yiddish is important — why, I don't know, we have to find out why. It's not [just a side matter]. Now, [the Frierdiker Rebbe] said: when you teach a small child, teach him properly, don't teach him the way other schools do, and you'll see — by teaching this way [you accomplish more]. Maybe it's the same thing — our parents spoke Yiddish, our grandparents in Europe spoke Yiddish, and all the children [grew up] speaking it. And over here, this is something [we should consider].

Also, the Rebbeim always spoke against the modern — we spoke about this in our program a few weeks ago — about the latest styles, so we have to stay away from all these things. And through this, just like we went out of Mitzrayim, the same thing — if we keep up [these traditions], then Hashem will take us out of the galus. Next week we'll continue our weekly program. Thank you.