Siyum HaRambam 5748

00:09 Speaker 1 Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time. Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time. To this time, to the time, to the time, to this time, to this time, and brought us to this time, this time, to this time, to this time.

01:34 Speaker 2 Tuesday, Yad Eliyahu, the grand gathering for the completion of the Rambam.

01:40 Speaker 1 To this time, to this time, to this time, to this time, this time. Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, Who has granted us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time, this time. To the time, the time, the time, this time. The time, the time, the time, the time, the time, the time, the time, this time, this time. This time, this time, this time, this time, this time, this time, this time, this time, this time. The time, the time, this time.

03:23 Speaker 3 And in keeping with the custom of chassidim, we open every Chassidic farbrengen with a word from the Rebbe. A word from the Rebbe, who initiated and established the practice of daily Rambam study, His Holiness the Rebbe shlita. I have the honor of inviting the senior rabbi of Petach Tikvah and one of the leading members of the Rabbinical Court of Chabad Rabbis in the Holy Land, the distinguished Rabbi Dovid Chanzin, to open with a word from the Rebbe. Please.

04:00 Speaker 1 May it be Hashem’s will that the completion of the fourth cycle of Rambam study and the beginning of the fifth cycle—which will certainly be celebrated everywhere with great splendor and honor, as befits the honor of Torah, especially since this year is a year of Hakhel, “Assemble the people: the men, the women, and the children,” “so that they may hear, so that they may learn, and observe to do all the words of this Torah”—bring about greater strength and encouragement in studying the Rambam. This is especially emphasized in Rambam study: the Oral Torah set out in an orderly way for everyone, young and old, a course of study that unites many Jews. And the year 5748 also brings special emphasis to rejoicing at the completion of Torah. May it bring about greater strength and encouragement in studying the Rambam’s laws of the entire Torah. Together with this, it will inspire and increase study of the Shulchan Aruch of the Beis Yosef, particularly since this year marks five hundred years since the birth of the Beis Yosef; and study of the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, since this year’s completion of the Rambam falls on his yahrzeit; and study of the inner dimension of Torah, knowledge of Hashem: “Know the G-d of your father and serve Him with a whole heart.” This is the subject of the first four chapters of Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah, particularly as explained in Chabad Chassidus in a way that can be understood and grasped. Until we merit to study Torah in its ultimate perfection—“Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth”—its secret meanings and hidden mysteries, which will be revealed by Moshiach Tzidkeinu in a way that we can see them, culminating in “A new Torah will go forth from Me,” and in such a way that “no longer will one person teach another, for they will all know Me, from the smallest to the greatest.” That is, there are indeed differences between the smallest and the greatest, yet when it comes to “knowing Me,” knowledge of Hashem, they are equal—He Who makes small and great alike. And in the Rambam’s words at the conclusion of his book: “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of Hashem as the waters cover the sea.”

06:32 Speaker 4 The blessing of His Holiness, the saintly Gaon, the Rebbe of Ger shlita, will be brought to us by his chief gabbai, Rabbi Chanina Schiff shlita. Please.

06:51 Speaker 5 I should say, he asked me to convey his blessing to this gathering. May the Almighty help. Blessing and success. Those are the Rebbe’s words.

07:05 Speaker 4 Rabbi Zilbershlag will bring us the blessing of His Holiness, the Rebbe of Vizhnitz shlita. Please.

07:17 Speaker 6 To our teachers and rabbis who spread Torah and Chassidus, to the students of the Torah of Moshe and of the Rambam z”l, both those who are here and those who are not here: I hereby bring the blessing of His Holiness, our Rebbe of Vizhnitz shlita. In the Gemara, Megillah 3b, it says: “Torah study is greater than offering the daily sacrifices.”

00:05 Speaker 1 I have the honor of inviting our great and distinguished guest, the Rishon LeZion and Chief Rabbi of Israel, the renowned kabbalist Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, to share words of Torah with us. Please.

00:23 Speaker 2 When the leaders of the people gather—great Torah scholars, judges, Rebbes, rabbis, halachic authorities, community leaders, and leaders of the holy people, may they live long—we read in this week’s parsha: “And the waters were a wall for them on their right and on their left.” The holy Zohar says: “And the waters were a wall for them”—“water” means Torah. In the merit of the Torah, the Torah was a wall for them on their right and on their left. A Midrash cited in Daas Zekeinim Baalei HaTosafos says that at first, the waters were angry with them. It is speaking about the second verse. The angel Gavriel stood and said to the waters: “Beware of the Children of Israel, for they are destined to receive the Torah”—on their right, as it says, “From His right hand, a fiery law for them.” The angel Gavriel turned to the left and said: “Beware of the Children of Israel, for they are destined to put on tefillin on the left.” The angel Gavriel turned behind them and said to the waters: “Beware of the Children of Israel, for they are destined to wrap themselves in tzitzis, with the fringes behind them.” The Baalei HaTosafos explain there that this means that when wrapping oneself in the tzitzis, all four fringes are placed behind, as stated in halachah or in the teachings of Kabbalah.

02:08 Speaker 1 We are delighted to extend a heartfelt welcome, in the name of Hashem, to our distinguished and esteemed guest, the righteous scholar Rabbi Binyamin Zilber shlita, one of the leading Torah scholars and halachic authorities of our time, and one of those who truly and wholeheartedly serve Hashem. Welcome in the name of Hashem! I have the honor of inviting the local rabbinic authority, the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, the renowned Rabbi Chaim David Halevy shlita, to deliver words marking the completion of the Rambam. Please.

02:58 Speaker 3 And last but certainly not least, a warm and enthusiastic blessing for the Rebbe shlita, for his tireless work to increase Torah and the light of Torah among the Jewish people. In these few words, I express everything in my heart for the Rebbe shlita. The Rebbe accomplishes great and extraordinary things to increase Torah and mitzvos among the Jewish people, and this is very well known. Anything I add would only detract. It is exceedingly well known.

03:30 Speaker 4 With the permission of our esteemed rabbis, honored congregation, and students of the Rambam: In the final chapter of Hilchos Melachim, halachah three, the Rambam says: “In the days of the King Moshiach, when his kingdom is established and all Israel gathers to him, he will establish everyone’s lineage through the divine inspiration that rests upon him.” Moshiach will identify all the Jewish people by their tribes, as it says, “And he will sit as a refiner and purifier,” and so on, purifying the children of Levi first. First of all, Moshiach will establish the lineage of the tribe of Levi, of the kohanim and Levi’im. He will say, “This one is a kohen of established lineage, and this one is a Levi of established lineage,” and he will exclude those whose lineage is not established. Those among us who have been presumed to be kohanim or Levi’im, but whose presumed status is mistaken—who are not, in fact, kohanim or Levi’im—he will assign to the other tribes of Israel. The completions of the Rambam that we have merited to celebrate until now have taken place on auspicious, joyous days. The completion of the first cycle was on 11 Nissan. The completion of the second cycle was in Adar, a month when we increase in joy. Through Divine Providence, the third completion was on Yud Shvat, the yahrzeit of the Frierdiker Rebbe. The completion of the fourth cycle, which we are celebrating today, was on 24 Teves, the yahrzeit of the Alter Rebbe. The forthcoming completion of the fifth cycle falls on 10 Teves. We are confident in Hakadosh Boruch Hu that, just as we have merited until now to hold the completions on auspicious and joyous days, so too, when we reach the completion of the fifth cycle, with Hashem’s help, 10 Teves will already be a day of joy. The fast of the tenth will be transformed for us into gladness and joy with the building of the Third Beis Hamikdash—“the sanctuary, Hashem, which Your hands established.”

06:53 Speaker 5 Let us place Jerusalem above our greatest joy, and now hear a blessing for the city of Jerusalem from the Chief Rabbi of the holy city of Jerusalem, who has come to join us despite his weakness: the eminent Rabbi Shalom Messas shlita. Please.

07:17 Speaker 6 [unclear] And so we must uphold, strengthen, and put into practice the holy directives of the Rebbe shlita, who is in America, so that they spread throughout the world through his faithful shluchim, who resemble the one who sent them [unclear]. I pray that Hashem lengthen his days in robust health [unclear], and that he merit to see the Redeemer face to face, speedily and soon. May Hashem [unclear], have mercy on His people, and bring peace to His world, especially to our Holy Land. May we merit to sit each under his vine and under his fig tree. Amen.