Farbrengen 19 Kislev 5755, Kfar Chabad

00:04 Speaker 1 The Rishon LeZion, shlita, the honorable Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, shlita, all the distinguished people seated on the dais, each according to his honor and standing, and the holy and distinguished audience. How great the joy was when the choir began to sing “Blessing and Peace to the Nasi.” You could see the joy in people’s eyes—the shining, sparkling eyes, the wonderful dancing and the wonderful singing. But for all the great joy on this festive day, which truly is a festive day, there was a certain sadness in our hearts. Sadness at the absence of the Rebbe, who is now in the heavenly realms. And it cannot be denied: as Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu said, there is darkness this year. We feel that darkness. But, my friends, let us rise above it. The Rebbe is alive and with us. After all, the Gemara explicitly says: “The righteous, even in death, are called living.” And if that is said of every tzaddik, how much more so of a great tzaddik like him, who sustained the Jewish people for so many years with his Torah, his wisdom, his understanding and his great and good deeds, as one of the spiritual giants of our generation. So how can we make the Rebbe’s presence with us real, as though he were living with us today? As though he had sent us a message from his dwelling place, as though he were alive? How can we feel it? We will share a Torah thought, but not one of our own. We will share something the Rebbe said. The Rebbe said much Torah in his lifetime. From all his many teachings, I have chosen one passage that, in my humble opinion, reflects the Rebbe’s greatness, the Rebbe’s character and, if you will, all the greatness and glory of Chabad Chassidus. This is what the Rebbe taught twenty-five years ago, in 5734, on Parshas Vayeishev. He raised a question about the weekly parsha. The question is this: Yosef had two dreams. I will be brief; you all know Chumash very well. He dreamed of the sheaves bowing down to him, and then

02:17 Speaker 1 he dreamed of the sun, moon and stars bowing down to him. He had two dreams. In an entirely different context, we read in the next parsha that Pharaoh also had two dreams. First he dreamed of the cows, the lean ones eating the healthy, fat ones—and that is not what I came to discuss—and afterward he dreamed of the ears of grain, the thin ones swallowing the healthy, full ones. There, with Pharaoh, the Torah says, “As for the dream being repeated to Pharaoh twice, it is because the matter is firmly established by G-d, and G-d is hastening to bring it about.” It gives a reason for the repetition. Why were two dreams needed? What did the second dream add to the first? Only that it would happen soon, that it was coming quickly. So the Rebbe rightly asks: Why is no explanation given for the repetition in Yosef’s case? What was the purpose of it? One might say that the second dream added Yaakov and Bilhah—the sun and the moon—who were not in the first dream. But all of that could have been included in a single dream, and that would have settled it. There was no need for two dreams at all. Why two dreams? There are many answers to this question, both on the plain level and on the level of derush. But the Rebbe’s explanation is particularly interesting and shows his greatness. He says: If we look closely at the dreams, they are fascinating. Yosef’s first dream concerned physical, earthly things—sheaves in a field. His second dream was entirely in the heavens: the sun, moon and stars. It was a tremendous ascent from the first to the second, an instance of “ascending in holiness.” Yosef keeps rising higher. Pharaoh’s two dreams, by contrast, were both earthly, both concerned with this world, and they went from higher to lower. The Rebbe alludes to how, with Chanukah approaching, among the nations it is a matter of decreasing. What happened? First Pharaoh dreamed of cows, which belong to the animal kingdom. Then he dreamed of ears of grain, which belong to the plant kingdom—a lower level. So

04:24 Speaker 1 it goes from higher to lower. There is no real distinction there between the two dreams. Why, then, were there two? But Yosef’s dreams taught us something profound. They taught us a lofty, subtle idea. A Jew and a non-Jew do not each have only one world. First the Rebbe explains that a non-Jew has only one world: this world is everything. When this world ends, his world ends with it. Every Jew has two worlds. Even while living in this world, he has two worlds: this earthly world and the heavenly world. At this point I will stop recounting the Rebbe’s words from memory and read the passage as he wrote it. He writes: “A Jew is connected to both worlds, as His Holiness...” These are the Rebbe’s words, quoted word for word: “As my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, said when one of the interrogators threatened him with a gun during his imprisonment in Russia in 5687: Only those who have many gods and one world are afraid of a gun. But someone who has one G-d and two worlds has nothing to fear.” The Rebbe then continues to explain this whole idea: that a Jew, during his lifetime in this world, has two worlds. The Rebbe himself concludes with the image of “a ladder standing on the earth, with its top reaching the heavens.” That was Yosef. He stood on the earth. He dreamed of sheaves in a field. He too was earthly, but as a Jew he had the immense virtue of having his head reach the heavens: he saw the sun, the moon and the stars. That is the Rebbe’s explanation. My friends, see how wonderful this idea is, and how the Rebbe himself embodied it. He was a ladder standing on the earth with its top reaching the heavens. On that immense ladder that was the Rebbe himself—a great ladder standing on the earth with its top reaching the heavens—he raised countless Jews along with him.

06:33 Speaker 1 He sanctified the name of the Jewish people and the name of Heaven throughout the world. He spread Torah and mitzvos. What can I tell you? You know it all. There is no point in saying more about the Rebbe’s greatness. The more I say, the less I do it justice. Yes, it is all known, all widely known. What is there to add? That, then, was the Rebbe’s greatness: he was a ladder standing on the earth with its top reaching the heavens. Now let me tell you something. People tend to call me a chossid, but I was not born into the world of chassidim. Only later did I come to love Chassidus—no, to love Chabad Chassidus and become a great admirer of the Rebbe. How did that happen? Through this ladder. I will tell you a short story, and you will understand. My son wanted very much to study medicine and was accepted to study abroad, in Italy. He enrolled at the university in Siena and studied medicine there for a year. When he came to visit us, we saw that he was very distressed. “What is wrong?” we asked. He said, “There is no kosher food. I am having a very hard time with food, a very hard time. I go out myself, buy a chicken and have it slaughtered. There is no kosher food, nothing. It is a spiritual wasteland. There is no shul, no davening. There is a shul that opens once a year for the High Holidays. No davening, no Torah, nothing. So they suggested I move to Bologna. There is a university there too, but there is also Chabad. There is a kosher restaurant, a shul, everything. I am trying to transfer to Bologna, and it will cost money, and so on.” He told me about his difficulties. Of course, he is our son; we would help him with all our heart and soul, without a doubt. After he moved to Bologna, he would come back from time to time with stories, and he would write and call as well. About whom? I do not know his last name. “Rabbi Eliyahu”—that is what he called him. He was the shliach

08:20 Speaker 1 of the Rebbe’s who was active on the Bologna campus, and he would say: “We have kosher food; there’s no need to worry about food. Everything is kosher, morning and evening, on Shabbos too. And there’s spiritual nourishment as well. There’s a shul, there are communal prayers, there are Torah classes—even a Gemara class, if someone wants one.” They attend to both the material and the spiritual. At that moment I grasped how great the Rebbe was: he first took care of the material needs, the sheaves in the field. He saw to people’s livelihood and material needs—to students who were studying and, first of all, needed kosher nourishment in a kosher restaurant. But he didn’t stop there: the top of his ladder also reached the heavens. He also went and arranged a shliach for them, to teach Torah and organize Torah classes and communal prayers, and so on—the entire spiritual side. That is a ladder standing on the earth with its top reaching the heavens. That was the Rebbe. He raised up the entire Jewish people, all his chassidim. He brought them up the ladder with him, along his path from earth to the heights of heaven. Ladies and gentlemen, all that remains for us is to speak the words of Torah we have just spoken as though he were here with us, as though these words had been heard from his mouth. “The righteous are called living even after their passing.” He learned and taught so much Torah and left behind so many writings that it is as though he is alive. We need to strengthen ourselves, to take heart, and to continue to rejoice as well—to rejoice. Incidentally, let me tell you, this is not the time for lengthy speeches and reflections. Much of our grief over those who have passed is selfishness, because we are convinced, and need to be convinced, that after a person’s soul departs this world, it rises to a higher world, a spiritual world, a wonderful, exalted world. We grieve like the person who lost a pearl. The Midrash tells of someone who lost a pearl and was seen crying. They asked him, “Why are you crying? A pearl is a pearl wherever it is.” He replied, “Yes, the pearl is a pearl wherever it is, but I have lost it. I no longer have it.” That is selfishness. That is the point of the Midrash. The grief

10:18 Speaker 1 and pain over those who have passed borders somewhat on self-centeredness, on self-love. So let us know that the Rebbe continues to lead us, and he will continue to lead us, because he lives and remains among us—in his Torah, his deeds, and his words. In the merit of the Rebbe and of this holy day, this holy festival, may we be worthy. First and foremost, let us bless you, all those present here, that there always be joy and celebrations in your homes. May the Rebbe’s merit protect you and all his chassidim throughout the world, and all the Jewish people. And may we soon, in our days, merit the coming of Moshiach, our righteous redeemer, and the complete Geulah, speedily in our days. Amen and amen.

11:03 Speaker 2 Chazak uvaruch, and thank you to the esteemed Chief Rabbi of the city of Tel Aviv and head of its rabbinical courts, our distinguished friend, Rabbi Chaim David Halevi, shlita. Ladies and gentlemen, as we now come to invite and honor our great and eminent guest, the Rishon LeZion, we recall the great friendship, brotherhood, and special affection between the Rebbe and the Rishon LeZion over many long and good years. It undoubtedly awakens in all of us a profound longing, a profound longing for the Rebbe. With your permission, ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to invite the Rishon LeZion, the distinguished scholar and mekubal Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, shlita. Please. Your honor, the great rabbi, a tower of strength, the local rav, a man of great accomplishment in Torah and service, the distinguished Rabbi Ashkenazi—may Hashem protect him, grant him life and lengthen his days with many good years, and may he continue to spread and glorify Torah. Honored distinguished rabbis, each with his own greatness and distinction. My dear friend, the great rabbi, a tower of strength, a man of great accomplishment in Torah and service, whose mouth produces pearls and whose hands are golden in his writings and books, the distinguished Rabbi Chaim David Halevi, Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv and head of its rabbinical courts—may Hakadosh Boruch Hu lengthen his days with many good years. Honored members of the Chief Rabbinate Council of Israel, public figures, members of Knesset who work for the integrity of the Jewish people, the integrity of the Land, and the integrity of the Torah of Israel: may you have long and full lives. Today, speaking is especially difficult for me. Since Gimmel Tammuz, the situation in the Land has been difficult and has grown still more difficult. The mood of the Jewish people as a whole is heavy, and that of Chabad chassidim and those who cherish the seventh Rebbe is heavy. But today is a Yom Tov, and Yom Tov overrides mourning. I thought to myself: Where can we find comfort? I said I would go over the letters of the first Chabad Rebbe once again—the anniversary of his liberation is tonight—the great scholar, the G-dly mekubal, the great halachic authority by whose light we still walk today,

14:41 Speaker 2 the first Rebbe of Chabad, and see what he writes in his letters about how he comforts the Jewish people. And in letter 27, the opening says this: “What he wrote to the residents of the Holy Land, may it be built and established, to comfort them doubly with sound counsel upon the passing of the renowned scholar, a holy man of G-d, and so forth, Rabbi Menachem Mendel, may his soul rest in Eden.” He was not speaking about the seventh Rebbe. But if our Sages say, “His leaf shall not wither,” then how much more so his children, and how much more so that words of Torah will not wither. When the first Chabad Rebbe writes to offer comfort over the passing of Menachem, may his soul rest in Eden, he begins: “My beloved ones, my brothers and friends who are as my own soul, may Hashem grant them life forever, and their descendants with them—true offspring, blessed by Hashem, from now and forever.” That passage is said about you, Chabad chassidim. He continues: “I have come to speak to the hearts of the brokenhearted, who sigh and groan, and to comfort them doubly with sound counsel.” With what does he comfort them? How does he comfort them? He continues: “Whoever desires life, to cleave to Hashem, the source of life—his soul should cleave to Him through his service and be bound in the bond of life with Hashem, through the life-breath of our nostrils, of whom we said, ‘In his shade we shall live among the nations,’ which he left us, each and every one according to the degree of his true bond with him and his genuine love for him.” In other words, those who were bound to the seventh Rebbe during his lifetime—the bond remains, and we will soon see that it rises higher. He writes further: “When he sees his children, the work of his hands, in his midst, sanctifying His blessed name, which will be magnified and sanctified.” You, Chabad chassidim, continue to magnify and sanctify His blessed and exalted name in the Land and throughout the world. Those shluchim, as we have just heard, who illuminate the darkness of Greece, who illuminate the darkness within the heart; those shluchim who observe the mitzvos in very difficult circumstances; those who continue to put tefillin on people in the streets—“for many were with me”; those who continue to kindle the lights in the streets of towns and cities, in the Land and in the Diaspora, despite all the struggles; those who continue to give tzedakah

18:27 Speaker 2 and put tefillin on people and bring those who are distant closer. They are the ones who carry on and remain connected. And he continues further. It says in the holy Zohar: “The righteous protect the world, and after their passing, more than during their lives.” And the first Chabad Rebbe says: “They protect it materially and protect it spiritually.” He explains the words of the holy Zohar. When tzaddikim depart this world, “they are present in all the worlds more than during their lifetimes.” The first Chabad Rebbe asks: This requires explanation. “Granted, in the higher worlds they are more present” when they ascend there. But in this world, “how are they more present?” There, they rise ever higher. Here, how do we rise? And he says: “I received”—surely he received this interpretation through ruach hakodesh. The first Chabad Rebbe received through ruach hakodesh the interpretation that fits this day and our times. He says: “The life of a tzaddik is not fleshly; it is not material. The life of a tzaddik is spiritual. The life of a tzaddik consists of three attributes, which are vessels and garments, and this flows outward and influences his students. That is during his lifetime,” says the Alter Rebbe. “But after the separation, the soul remains, and anyone close to him can receive a portion of his spirit in Gan Eden, which is no longer within the vessel. And as it is written in Asarah Maamaros, ‘It is easy for his students’”—pay attention to what I am reading—“‘to receive his holy words, spoken with ruach hakodesh. It is very easy for his students to receive their portion of their teacher’s spirit: the faith, awe, and love with which he served Hashem.’” Not merely a radiance shining upon them, not merely a spirit in itself, but the person’s own spirit, which is revealed and rises from level to level, spreading among his students, each according to his capacity. For spiritual influence is drawn down only through love, the willing spirit of the heart. And in this way it is also enclothed within his students. But to conclude—pay attention, ladies and gentlemen—“Not only does it shine upon them, not only is it enclothed within them, but it shines upon them from above. There, a great union is brought about through his deeds and the Torah he studied all his days, which were sown in the field of holy apples,

22:12 Speaker 2 And it shines upon all his students who become servants of Hashem. That radiance from above brings thoughts of teshuvah and good deeds into their hearts, and all the good deeds are born of that radiance, which illuminates the lights sown in that field mentioned above. Did you hear that? Do you know the greatness of your standing on this day? Did you hear? Do you know the importance and greatness of tzaddikim in this world, in the physical world, and also in the World to Come? Did we know the Rebbe’s power during his lifetime here on earth? We saw his power in every sphere, and as the local rabbi mentioned, not one of his words fell to the ground. He encouraged and strengthened all the Jewish people, especially by bringing those who were distant closer, and especially by strengthening those living in the Land of Israel under every circumstance, right up to the most recent period of the Ashkenazim. And it is written that you are called the greatest of the great. We saw it amid great concealment, yet like the sun illuminating the stars across the earth. If these are the words of comfort written by the Alter Rebbe—and he says, “I received it,” surely through ruach hakodesh—they apply to our time as well. “This is my comfort in my affliction.” But that is not all. The well-known, famous verse, “He redeemed my soul in peace from the battle against me, for the many were with me”—every year, at every farbrengen, they explain and interpret it; they explain “for the many were with me.” “He redeemed my soul in peace”—in peace? After all, our Sages say that when a person is living in this world, we say to him, “Go toward peace.” When a person comes to the World of Truth, we say, “Go in peace.” The two must not be switched. How, then, does the Alter Rebbe cite this verse? He recited it when he received the news, the joyous news of his release. How does he rejoice with “He redeemed my soul in peace”? Does “in peace” refer to the World to Come? He was still alive; he went on living, expanding and glorifying Torah and spreading both the revealed teachings and Kabbalah. So what does “He redeemed my soul in peace” mean? This struck me today. And another teaching of our Sages came to mind. It is written of Reuven, “Reuven heard and saved him from their hands.” Reuven tears his clothes and says, “The child

25:40 Speaker 2 is gone, the boy is gone—and where can I go?” He feels the pain of the youth. He feels the pain of those older people who depend on the young. He feels the pain of people drifting away from the path of Torah and reverence for Hashem out of emptiness. “Reuven heard and saved him from their hands.” Our Sages say: “Rabbi Yitzchak said: Scripture comes to teach that when a person performs a mitzvah, he should do it wholeheartedly. Had Reuven known that Scripture would write of him, ‘Reuven heard and saved him from their hands,’ he would have carried him on his shoulders and brought him to his father.” And why didn’t he? The teaching goes on: “Had Aharon the Kohen known that Scripture would write of him, ‘He will see you and rejoice in his heart,’ he would have come out with drums and dancing.” And why didn’t he? “Had Boaz known that Scripture would write of him, ‘He handed her roasted grain,’ he would have fed her fattened calves.” And why didn’t he? Our Sages continue: “Rabbi Kohen and Rabbi Yehoshua of Sichnin said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi: In the past, when a person performed a mitzvah, a prophet would record it. Now, when a person performs a mitzvah, who records it? Eliyahu and King Moshiach. And Hakadosh Boruch Hu signs it with them, as it says: ‘Then those who feared Hashem spoke with one another, and Hashem listened and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear Hashem and contemplate His name.’” Ladies and gentlemen, Reuven wants to save him. Why doesn’t he go further? Why doesn’t he put the boy on his shoulders and take him to his father? Aharon the Kohen, who “turned many away from sin,” who “walked with Me in peace and uprightness.” Aharon the Kohen, of whom it says, “For the lips of a kohen should preserve knowledge, and they should seek Torah from his mouth.” Why didn’t he come out with drums and dancing? Boaz, a great member of the Sanhedrin—why didn’t he feed her fattened calves? They needed to know what would be written in the Torah. Had they known what would be written about them. We all remember that time when the last Rebbe, the seventh light—“all sevenths are cherished”—told us: “I have done my part toward the coming of Moshiach. Now it remains for you to act.” And in one of my conversations with him, I told him: “You cannot. You cannot absolve

29:05 Speaker 2 yourself and cast it onto others.” He said, “No, I will continue.” Reuven says: “I want to save the child.” “Reuven heard and saved him from their hands.” He did not carry him on his shoulders; he left it for the community to continue. He did not take the child to his father, so that the many would carry on. Aharon the Kohen says: “I am beginning to go out and rejoice in the joy of the first redeemer, the first moshiach, Moshe Rabbeinu. But I am leaving the drums and dancing to this generation, for you to carry on, for us to carry on.” To bring Moshiach—

30:02 Speaker 3 and go out to greet him with drums and dancing.

30:05 Speaker 2 Boaz, progenitor of royalty. Amram, progenitor of royalty. King David. Boaz says: “I am leaving it to you. You are the last generation. I began; you continue, and prepare fattened calves.” “He redeemed my soul in peace”—when the souls of the Alter Rebbe, the last Rebbe, and the great ones among you ascend to heaven, in peace in heaven, they are asked: “Moshiach has still not come. What did you do?” They say: “He redeemed my soul in peace. We did our part. We stirred people, spoke, shook them, reminded them, warned them about the coming of Moshiach. If he has not come, ‘for the many were with me.’ We leave it to the rabbinic community, to the many among your people, to continue along the same path. We did our part, as the Rebbe did. Our souls are at peace.” When they reach the World of Truth, they have stirred others and been stirred about the coming of Moshiach. But we say to them and to all the exalted tzaddikim: We here cannot do it alone. Through an awakening from below, we can rouse you there to bring about an awakening from above. Our situation is difficult. We are ashamed. An army, weapons, cannons, planes, a government—and they flee a fortress, a stronghold in the north. Soldiers flee a position in the south. Is that strength? Is that an army? They divide our land into pieces. Is that governance? Master of the Universe, we have taken blows, we have been punished. Enough and more than enough! Exalted tzaddikim, the Alter Rebbe and the last Rebbe, your deeds are inscribed on the tablets of our hearts. We will continue to stir people to mitzvos and good deeds. We will continue to kindle the lights in the courtyards of Your sanctuary, to continue the shlichus and all the good deeds. Onward. We have, as the Rebbe says in the passage I just read from Igeres Hakodesh, Epistle 27: you look upon them, upon us, and continue to shine upon them and upon us with that same holiness, that same purity, that same self-sacrifice. And today I have a question for Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, who entered the World to Come while still alive. Who writes it? Who writes it? Eliyahu and Moshiach. Rashi explains the verse, “Then those who feared Hashem spoke with one another.” Rashi says: “One” is Eliyahu, a hairy man,

33:58 Speaker 2 and “the other” is Moshiach. The love of all the Jewish people. “And Hashem listened and heard.” Master of the Universe, listen to Eliyahu and Moshiach. Eliyahu sees the troubles and ascends on high. Eliyahu and Moshiach see the troubles and the good deeds of the Jewish people and record them above, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu signs. With what does He sign? With the complete Geulah. Ladies and gentlemen, when I say “we,” I mean those of us from Sephardi and Mizrachi Jewry. People ask: What connection do we have to Chassidus? Perhaps it is because we are connected to the holy Arizal, the living Ari. But our mighty and glorious sage, the leader of all the Jewish people in exile, the towering scholar whose Torah and wisdom sustain us in every area—in the plain meaning of Torah, in Kabbalah, and in halachah—the great sage Rabbi Yosef Chaim, author of the Ben Ish Chai, of blessed memory: every particular halachah written in the Shulchan Aruch of Rabbeinu Zalman, he wrote in his Ben Ish Chai. He linked the Alter Rebbe’s unique soul, which encompassed all the Jewish people, to the halachos and laws for the Sephardi and Mizrachi communities in the Ben Ish Chai. The last Rebbe, the seventh, had a connection with the Rambam, who had a soul encompassing all the Jewish people. That same Rebbe saved Moroccan Jewry. And let them not be ashamed to say it: he saved Italian Jewry. And we must acknowledge that he saved Russian Jewry through underground activity—mikvaos and Torah. If there is a spark of Jewish life in Russia today, it is because of the Rebbe; it is his strength. If there is light today in every place where the light is kindled, where sparks are brought into the flame of holy souls, it is because of the shluchim who will carry on. We pray before the Creator of the world: Master of the Universe, act for the sake of the spilled blood of Your servants. They revile us, they humiliate us; they revile Your name. Act for the sake of Your great name. You tzaddikim, who are stirred and ascend on your Yom Tov—you holy souls—do not rest and do not be still. Shine upon us with light and radiance. Stand in prayer before the Creator

37:21 Speaker 2 World. Stand in prayer before the Creator of the world and say: How much longer? Stand in prayer before the Creator of the world, that Hakadosh Boruch Hu send blessing and success in all the work of your hands, for you and for all the Jewish people; that everyone who has gone out return home safe and sound, without the pain of a knife in the back; and that all the soldiers of Israel return home healthy and whole. May we merit to hear the shofar of Moshiach with wondrous speed, very soon, speedily and in our days, and let us say amen. And the deeds of the fathers are a sign for the children. The Rebbe says that the fathers give us strength through their words—their words of inspiration and encouragement. A sign is not something external; rather, strength is given to the children through the encouragement, the reassurance, the wonderful, heartfelt, deeply felt words we heard from the Rishon LeZion. We, the children, draw strength to continue growing stronger, to spread the message, and to continue the Rebbe’s holy activities. “Then those who feared Hashem spoke with one another.” And with the Rabbi’s permission, “Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu” has the same numerical value as “Then those who feared Hashem spoke with one another,” counting the phrase itself. Ladies and gentlemen, I now have the honor of inviting our distinguished guest, a dear and faithful friend of our community, the great scholar Rabbi Yosef Gliksberg, rabbi of the city of Givatayim and a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council. Please.

39:43 Speaker 4 Holy congregation. When I entered this holy place, I listened to the words of the mara d’asra, my friend, the distinguished Rabbi Mordechai Ashkenazi shlita. And from his words I heard not one voice, but at least five: voices of sorrow, of outcry, of mourning, of longing, of pleading, of hope. I heard all those tones in his voice. And I want to say this here: this place is called Beis Menachem. The prophet says, “As one whom his mother comforts, so will I comfort you; and in Jerusalem you will be comforted.” And a question is asked: What sort of comfort is this? What is the mother comforting her son over? What is the son mourning when his mother comforts him? If we say the son is mourning his father, and his mother comes and tells him not to mourn, to take comfort, that it is not so terrible and he can get through it—no, that is not plausible. I heard a great man explain: it is speaking of someone mourning his mother. The son is mourning his mother, and no one can comfort him in such grief, over the loss of all that a mother means to a person. Who comforts him? “His mother comforts him.” The mother herself, from the world above, from Gan Eden, from the world of souls: just as she comforted and encouraged him while she was alive, so she continues to comfort him even when he is mourning her. His mother comforts him—only his mother. So I say today to the holy community of Chabad, of Lubavitcher chassidim: the Rebbe, may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, was both a father and a mother. “My father, my father”—our Sages speak of “my father and my mother.” But the comfort with which, with Hashem’s help, you will soon be comforted is that “his mother comforts him.” The motherly care and love that were in the Rebbe, may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, will comfort you. They will comfort all of us, and in Jerusalem you will be comforted, speedily in our days, amen. Holy congregation, our esteemed teacher the Rishon LeZion, the distinguished scholar shlita, all the rabbis, the devoted public figures, and everyone seated here: this is not the first time I have had the privilege of standing here on the night of 19 Kislev, on 19 Kislev, and speaking in this holy place. But this time

44:05 Speaker 4 I feel both a particular difficulty and a particular responsibility in speaking before you this year, this difficult year. And I recall that when I spoke with the Rebbe, may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, a few months before he became ill, he spoke to me about the responsibility of the rabbis, of the rabbis of Israel, of those responsible for the rabbinate. The Rishon LeZion already alluded to this in his remarks, and was lavish in his praise—which was certainly not meant for me, but for the rabbinate as a whole—and said that responsibility for the generation rests—the leadership rests—with the rabbis. Perhaps this was a kind of last instruction from the Rebbe: that we continue to bear that responsibility. And as an old and faithful friend of this holy community, I ask myself: What can one say? What can one add? I read something in the latest issue of the Kfar Chabad weekly—perhaps the editor is here. I read a wonderful saying from the Rebbe of Ger, may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, and you will forgive me, but I read it—I learned it—in Kfar Chabad. It quotes the Beis Yisroel, who said before the Second World War: Moshe Rabbeinu says, “May Hashem, the G-d of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation, who will go out before them and come in before them, who will lead them out and bring them in, so that Hashem’s congregation will not be like sheep without a shepherd, who have no shepherd.” And he asked: If we are already speaking of such a man over the congregation, who will lead them out and bring them in, who will go out before them and come in before them—a true leader who guides them at every step, who goes not merely with them but ahead of them, and goes behind them as well—then what does the addition “so that Hashem’s congregation will not be like sheep who have no shepherd” mean? That would seem to be a far lower level than such leadership.

00:04 Speaker 1 Everything follows him. When the leader is no longer here, do you know where Hakadosh Boruch Hu is to be found? Where does the Shechinah rest? With the community. Suddenly you see: this is Hashem’s community. Not just any community—Hashem’s community. It is a community with ruach hakodesh, with the word of Hashem, with closeness to G-d. And this community, this holy community that is Hashem’s community, will, with Hashem’s help, continue to rise higher and higher for the good of our people, for our Torah, for our Holy Land, with Hashem’s help, until the coming of the righteous redeemer. A rabbi once asked me: What, what do you learn from...?

03:01 Speaker 2 Everything follows him. When the leader is no longer here, do you know where Hakadosh Boruch Hu is to be found? Where does the Shechinah rest? With the community? Suddenly you see: this is Hashem’s community. Not just any community—Hashem’s community. It is a community with ruach hakodesh, with the word of Hashem, with closeness to G-d. And this community, this holy community that is Hashem’s community, will, with Hashem’s help, continue to rise higher and higher for the good of our people, for our Torah, for our Holy Land, with Hashem’s help, until the coming of the righteous redeemer. A rabbi once asked me: What, what do you learn from the Rebbe? I said: I’m not great enough to learn from the Rebbe’s greatness. What amazes me is that there is no one in our generation who is such a man of truth: he stands by his positions, struggles for them, fights, is undaunted by anyone, and says what he has to say with determination and firmness. And at the same time, alongside that firmness and that truth, there is no one in our generation who is such a man of peace, a man whose right hand draws people close, a man connected with every circle and every kind of person, whose door and heart are open to every Jew on the right and on the left. Everyone finds a home with him. That is a lesson for communal leaders. It is a very important lesson. The verse was mentioned, one that is often quoted: “He redeemed my soul in peace, for many were with me.” Who are the many? My friends, who are the many? I saw three interpretations. Rashi explains: “many” means the prayer of the many. Metzudos says “many” means against many: although many fought against me, He redeemed my soul in peace. Other early commentators, Ibn Ezra among them, say it means angels. True, I was alone, says King David, but the angels were with me. I want to say, my friends, as we approach Chanukah: “the many into the hands of the few, the mighty into the hands of the weak.” That is a miracle Hakadosh Boruch Hu performs. But before that miracle, a miracle takes place in a person’s heart. For the question is: How do the few go out against the many? Where

06:14 Speaker 2 do they get the strength, the courage, to confront the many? Where does a weak person get the courage to confront the mighty? Well, there is a verse in Yoel: “Let the weak say, ‘I am mighty.’” When a weak person is convinced, when he has inner strength, when he has self-sacrifice, a willingness to give of himself and devotion to his goal, he does not feel weak at all. He says: I am mighty. And when the few must go out against the many, they do not feel few. They say: “For many were with me.” We are many; the angels are with us. The prayers of the Jewish people are with us. The strength of all the generations goes with us. The strength of the tzaddikim who lived in this world—those tzaddikim go with us. That is what I want to say here this evening. This inner strength found in the Chabad movement, which always says, “I am mighty” and “Many were with me,” and does not shrink from going out to struggle, to undertake missions, to face challenges, to act with the sense that we are the many and we are the mighty. “He redeemed my soul in peace, for many were with me.” This sense that the holy movement is a movement of mighty people, a movement of many—that, with Hashem’s help, will bring about for us the great miracle of “the many into the hands of the few, the mighty into the hands of the weak, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, the impure into the hands of the pure, and the wanton into the hands of those who engage in Your Torah.” May we merit, with Hashem’s help, to see Hakadosh Boruch Hu perform miracles for us as He did for our ancestors in those days, at this time. Amen. Thank you, and yasher koach to the great scholar Rabbi Yosef Glicksberg, rabbi of Givatayim and member of the Chief Rabbinate Council, for his words, the words of Chassidus, the wonderful things we heard at this farbrengen. My brothers and friends, my teachers and distinguished guests, I don’t know whether everyone here heard it, but perhaps some of the audience did—and hundreds of thousands heard yesterday on Israel’s national radio the forceful, uncompromising words of one of the nation’s elected representatives, who said: “The Land of Israel, the Torah of Israel, and the People of Israel are a trio that cannot be separated from one another. You cannot have one without

09:44 Speaker 2 the others.” My friends, I’m saying it much less forcefully than that man did—a man faithful to the whole Land of Israel, who fights this battle without compromise. A man who carries out and fulfills the Rebbe’s charge with determination, despite everyone, with all his courage and all his strength. Let us welcome and listen to Member of Knesset Mr. Rehavam Ze’evi. Please. After Gandhi’s remarks, we will hear a maamar of Chassidus.

10:45 Speaker 6 Honorable Rishon LeZion, shlita; honorable local rabbi; honorable rabbis; my teachers and distinguished guests. It has been almost three decades since I first entered the world of Chabad. I became attached to its teachings, was caught in its net, and learned to love its people, its shluchim, and our teacher and Rebbe, the Rebbe. At least twice a year I come here: once on 19 Kislev and once on Simchas Torah. I admit without embarrassment that at first I did not know exactly what 19 Kislev was. Why were we celebrating a holiday that was not a holiday for the entire Jewish people? But I soon discovered the meaning of 19 Kislev: it is a festival of Geulah for the community and for the individual. Yet I found in the Rebbe’s words that it is not simply a matter of the community and the individual. Rather, as he says: in truth, the Geulah of every Jew, even the very simplest person, is bound up with the general Geulah of all Israel. In my humble opinion, nothing could be more powerful or more profound. The Geulah is not only for kings, ministers, notables, and the great figures of this land and the world. The Geulah is for the last, humble Jewish person, and it is part of the general Geulah. I come from a Chassidic home, but from another Chassidic movement, and in Chabad Chassidus I discovered what I had not had in that movement. I discovered the wonderful union of Ahavas Yisroel, love of the Torah of Israel, and love of the Land of Israel. All three are of one piece, and none of them—not even two of them—has meaning, value, or lasting existence if the third is missing. The Jewish people have no meaning without the Land of Israel, and the Jewish people and the Land of Israel have no meaning without the Torah of Israel. The Torah of Israel has no meaning without the Jewish people and the Land of Israel. The three are bound together, and anyone who separates them finds himself cut off, barren and diminished, unable to understand the essence of Judaism, the essence of Chassidus, the essence of Chabad. During a conversation, on one of the occasions when I had the privilege of being with the Rebbe, I pressed him with a question. What troubled me then, as a young man, was why he

14:41 Speaker 6 was sitting there in a foreign land, in exile, instead of setting an example and coming to be with us here, here in Zion, which he spoke of so passionately, loved, and felt so connected to. I kept pressing him. In the end I understood something that is hard to grasp until you listen to that extraordinary man, that wonderful man, a man of truth and of values. I heard from him and learned from him that he knew the Galilee better than I did, though I had walked through the Galilee. He knew Judea better than any of us, though we had walked its paths. He knew Hebron, the city of our forefathers, and the lanes of Jerusalem. He lived those places; he was there, and they were with him. I was astonished. I had not known how this man, who had never yet set foot on the holy soil, actually lived in the Holy Land. And for the Holy Land and for its sake, he sat there so that the great number of people who followed him, walked in his path, and believed in him would remain Jewish, would remain believers. When I met Chabad shluchim in the remotest places in the world—truly remote places, where I could not have imagined meeting a Jew, just any Jew—I found a Chabad shliach there, under difficult conditions, teaching people born Jewish a little Judaism, how to put on tefillin, what Rosh Chodesh is, what a Yom Tov is, and what Shabbos is. This wonderful, great movement was brought into being by that extraordinary man, of whom I had the privilege to take in a little—just a little—of his teachings and his faith. Those who spoke before me have already said that these are difficult days for Israel, beginning with Gimmel Tammuz last year, when we parted from him, and continuing with everything we are going through now, with a government led and controlled by uncircumcised men or by foreigners, even if some of them call themselves Jews. They give up the land of our homeland, regions of our homeland, with a stroke of the pen, a wave of the hand, as though it were a commodity for sale. They buy a false peace from terrorist leaders who deceive us, while we face a long war and continue to sacrifice blood

18:40 Speaker 6 And sons. Since Rabin shook the unclean hand of the—of the modern-day Hitler, Arafat, we have lost a hundred people. These are difficult days for Israel. But when I enter the gates of Kfar Chabad, when I come to Netzarim, when I come to Kedumim—which today I have made my dwelling, my home—and meet Jews of faith, I know they cannot overcome us. They simply cannot overcome us. The faith in this beis midrash, among the holy gathering assembled here, is a thousand times stronger than all the decisions of the government and the President of the United States. The faith of every person who has gathered here together for this 19 Kislev farbrengen is more powerful, stronger, more overwhelming than any decisions they can make on Sundays there in Kiryat Ben-Gurion in Jerusalem. In recent days, the question has been whether to give up or not, to withdraw, to dismantle Netzarim or not. But in truth, the entire country is Netzarim. Kfar Chabad is Netzarim too; Gamla in the Golan is Netzarim too; Ein Harod and Merhavia are Netzarim too. Whoever dismantles Netzarim, G-d forbid—and may his hand wither if he dares do it—will go on and want to dismantle other things, or he may not want to, but will be forced to. The entire country is Netzarim, and we cannot allow it to be dismantled. As commander of the Central Command, I had the privilege of establishing Netzarim. Which government sent me to establish Netzarim? The Labor government headed by Golda Meir, of blessed memory. They, those giants, that generation of giants, knew what settlement was, what Eretz Yisroel was. They knew we had come here to conquer the land and make it our inheritance. “Conquer” was not a dirty word. We came to settle the land; settling it is a mitzvah. It is not a dirty word. A positive commandment. We came to inherit this land because it was promised to us by a Divine promise. Even

22:16 Speaker 6 those secular members of the Labor government at the time understood that. But the years passed, and we have a different government. A new government, “new” in name—a government energized by Meretz—that tries to do the opposite of what it promised its voters, as though that were of no importance. Statements like “Whoever withdraws from the Golan Heights will endanger Israel’s security,” and so on and so forth. And I think I may say to this government on behalf of all of you: “Take counsel, and it will be thwarted.” I will add just one more thing in closing. “Hashem will give strength to His people; Hashem will bless His people with peace.” Thank you.

23:42 Speaker 7 With our thanks—yasher koach, yasher koach—to Knesset member Rehavam Ze’evi, we bid farewell to the honored Rishon LeZion, the distinguished Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, and to the distinguished Rabbi Yosef Gliksberg, rabbi of Givatayim and member of the Rabbinical Council. Go in peace, and a happy Chanukah.

30:28 Speaker 8 Our master, Moshiach, our righteous Moshiach. Our righteous Moshiach. We have a good life. Long live our master, Moshiach, our righteous Moshiach. Our righteous Moshiach. We have a good life. Long live our master. Long live our master. Our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach. Hey, hey, lai lai lai. Hey, hey, lai lai lai. Long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Long live our master, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Lai lai lai lai lai lai lai lai. Lai lai lai lai lai lai lai. Long live our mas—lai lai. Hey, hey, lai lai lai lai lai lai. Long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. King Moshiach, forever and ever. Lai lai lai lai lai lai lai lai. Lai lai lai lai lai lai lai. Hey, lai lai lai lai lai. Long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Long live our master, Moshiach, forever and ever. Hey, lai lai lai lai lai lai lai. Lai lai lai lai lai. King—hey—long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Long live our master, our teacher and our Rebbe, King Moshiach, forever and ever. Lai lai. Lai lai

36:15 Speaker 9 lai hey lai hey lai.

36:16 Speaker 10 [unclear] through us, and we will go to Moshiach, and He will perfect His world. [unclear] through us, and [unclear] the redeemer of the world. Hey lai hey lai lai hey lai lai lai; hey, hey lai hey lai lai hey lai lai lai. [unclear] through us, and through us we will go to Moshiach, and he will redeem His world. [unclear] we will go to Moshiach, the redeemer of His world. Hey lai hey lai lai hey lai lai lai. Hey, hey lai hey lai lai. Hey lai hey lai lai. Hey, hey lai hey lai lai hey lai lai lai.

37:27 Speaker 11 Applause. More!

37:32 Speaker 9 And to Moshiach, and [unclear] in my world.

37:38 Speaker 12 More, nokh.

37:46 Speaker 9 The redeemer of the world, hey, lai.

37:55 Speaker 13 Hey, Eliyahu. Have you got the strength? Yasher koach to the Mona Rosenblum Orchestra, conducted by Mona Rosenblum. And, ladies and gentlemen, we will now study and hear a maamar of Chassidus by the Rebbe, delivered by the rabbi of Karmei Yosef, the distinguished chossid Rabbi Eliezer Brod. The orchestra and choir will play a niggun before the maamar.

43:08 Speaker 3 Everyone outside is invited to come in; there is room to listen to the maamar of Chassidus. “He redeemed my soul in peace from the battle against me, for many were with me.” The one whose Geulah we celebrate, the Alter Rebbe, writes about this that when he recited the verse “He redeemed in peace” in the Book of Tehillim, “I emerged in peace, by the G-d of peace.” From this it is understood that the verse “He redeemed my soul in peace” represents the concept of Geulah. Earlier still, there was King David, who wrote the verse “He redeemed my soul in peace” in the Book of Tehillim. King David meant that when Hakadosh Boruch Hu saved him from the war—the war in which his son Absalom was also involved—he wrote this verse and prayed, saying, “He redeemed my soul in peace from the battle against me.” Now, this prayer of “He redeemed in peace” concerns every Jew, as King David prayed: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, Hashem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” When a Jew comes and prays using the Book of Tehillim, his prayers will be accepted. It follows that these words concern every Jew: when he recites the verse “He redeemed in peace” in the Book of Tehillim, King David assured him that his words would be accepted. Nevertheless, it is clear that there is a difference between “He redeemed in peace” as it was for King David and “He redeemed in peace” as it was for the Alter Rebbe. More generally, there are three forms of “He redeemed in peace.” There is “He redeemed in peace” as it was for King David; there is “He redeemed in peace” as it was for the Alter Rebbe; and there is “He redeemed in peace” as it will be in its fullness in the future, with the coming of Moshiach. With regard to peace, there is a peace that comes only from winning a war. That is, there is an opposing force and there is a war, but one side prevails and wins. Then there is a higher level of peace, where the opposing force is afraid to come and fight at all. In other words,

45:52 Speaker 3 there is a potential opponent who, left to himself, would want to come and fight, but is afraid to go to war. Then there is a still higher level of peace, where the opponent ceases to be an opponent altogether. Not only does he not want to fight the other side; he makes peace with it, until they become one. In King David’s time there was a war, but King David won it in a manner of “He redeemed in peace.” In the future, however, “He redeemed in peace” will be fulfilled completely, for of that future time it is said, “I will remove the spirit of impurity from the earth.” Not only will all the Jewish people be great sages and attain knowledge of their Creator; rather, as explained in a number of places, there will be two periods in the future. There will be one period in which, as the Rambam writes, “The only difference between this world and the days of Moshiach is subjugation to the nations.” But afterward there will be a second period, when the world will reach a state of perfection: not only will the Jewish people serve Hashem, but “the occupation of the entire world will be solely to know Hashem.” Since the entire world will be occupied with nothing other than knowing Hashem, it follows that there will be no opposing force at all. The whole world will be in a state of holiness. These forms of peace are also found in a person’s avodah. In a person’s avodah at the beginning of the day—of which it is also said, “Little by little I will drive them out”—the first task must be “Turn away from evil,” followed by “do good,” until one reaches the higher level of “seek peace and pursue it.” At first there must be “Turn away from evil”: the G-dly soul must prevail over and defeat the animal soul. After that comes a higher state, in which the animal soul does not interfere with the G-dly soul at all, until one reaches the perfection that comes from the higher level

48:09 Speaker 3 in the soul, from the yechidah of the soul. The yechidah of the soul is a foretaste of the state of perfection that will exist in the future. When this level of the soul shines within a Jew, the yechidah of the soul, not only can the opposing force no longer oppose him, and not only does it not interfere with the yetzer tov and holiness, but it becomes nullified to holiness, to the point that it itself becomes part of holiness. May it be Hashem’s will that through a person doing his avodah in this way—beginning with “turn away from evil,” then reaching “do good,” until he reaches the revelation of the yechidah of the soul, “seek peace and pursue it”—we will also come to the revelation of the yechidah, the revelation of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, whose soul is on the level of yechidah. As a result, the One in the world, Hakadosh Boruch Hu, will also be revealed. Its ultimate fulfillment will be in the true and complete Geulah through Moshiach Tzidkeinu, very soon indeed.

49:25 Speaker 4 Yasher koach, and many thanks to the distinguished scholar and chossid, Rabbi Eliezer Brod, rabbi of Karmei Yosef, for reviewing the maamar of Chassidus. Ladies and gentlemen, Knesset member Rehavam Ze’evi mentioned in his remarks the idea—may it never happen—of removing the community of Netzarim. I’ve received an important note here: a special fund has been established to develop Netzarim, to strengthen it, renovate it and expand it. Outside there is a booth, or a table, a stand, where anyone who can make a donation from their maaser funds can do so. And, more generally, a group of people has undertaken to help develop the library in Kfar Chabad. May you all be blessed. Ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to host this evening a distinguished guest who was elected in recent days to head the Emanuel local council, and whose election Chabad chassidim played a major part in. From this holy gathering, this chassidic farbrengen on such an auspicious day, first of all we wish him great success in his position. May he serve for many years. May he stand firm in the struggle for the Holy Land and the integrity of Eretz Yisroel, as the Rebbe wished and as the council head promised when he was elected. Chabad chassidim wish you the blessing that you serve for many years. With the permission of everyone here, with the permission of the Chabad chassidim, I have the honor of inviting Rabbi Shmuel Landau, head of the Emanuel council.

51:55 Speaker 5 With the permission of the rabbis, shlita, and of this wonderful gathering of chassidim. This isn’t our first evening celebrating 19 Kislev; it’s already our second, and tomorrow a third awaits us in Ariel. The chassidim told me that there is a point in increasing the celebration and joy of this day. The more, the better, and whoever adds, more is added for him. As we all danced together here, I saw a beautiful yellow flag with a crown and Torah on it, and underneath was written the word “Moshiach.” In the excitement and devotion of the moment, I thought to myself about what every Chabad chossid knows from childhood: that the letters of the word “Moshiach” actually stand for Menachem Schneerson.

00:04 Speaker 1 Each one, each [unclear]. And as I sat listening to the words of the great rabbis of the generation who were here, I thought that perhaps, since the Rebbe passed away, we—even I, though I had not thought this through deeply—have forgotten our role. I thought that we are the soldiers, the real army entrusted with the security of the Jewish people, and that we have fallen from our peak. We are responsible for the security of the Jewish people. We are responsible for the wholeness of the Jewish people. If there is a breach in that security, we are to blame. We are to blame now that the Rebbe has not returned to life. We should have—we need to sit down; we should have provided security for the Jewish people. We should have told the truth, everything that needs to be said, about the entire spiritual struggle and the entire physical situation of the Jewish people. And now, when this brings peace, the great rabbis of the Jewish people can proclaim it as they did before. We no longer need to say it, because it already affects the Jewish people and their security. Now we need to receive a mandate from the public, from our country’s leadership, from the Jewish people, from all of Israel, from the wider public, from every tribe, from every... from all the countries that see the whole public and the whole effort to set things right. Under no circumstances. But there is also a way through, an interim solution, at least until the beis din restores things to their proper place. So we are spreading the icing of Torah over the cake of [unclear], the kindnesses of our forefathers of old. And again, it is a matter of hearing, seeing, and lending a hand to a city burning [unclear], with apartments at outrageous prices, [unclear]. Excuse me. We join the call of the head of the council today, on the memorial day for [unclear]: “Chabad chassidim, come and help! Come and help!” It is a very difficult issue.

03:19 Speaker 1 [Unclear] Mendel Gross. I’ll read out three points that need explaining. From then until now, a class has been held in Herzl’s building, a special class in Torah and Mishnah and [unclear]. It is a serious Torah class that helps him, makes things easier for him, but it does not require a yeshivah institution. From this one can derive the obligation of every... It is a house built on rock and cement. And that is the Knesset I want to build. So when I speak, I am not speaking about the entire Knesset. I am speaking about the people who will be with me in the Knesset, and about the people watching on television. Those are the people who will go with me to victory. I will build a Knesset in which there is no Rashi without Shas. And that is what—we made it clear that there is no Shas without Shas. Tell me: if there is Shas, there would be no Shas. I will accept any plan you can propose in which Shas will not be there. I want to see [unclear] the Knesset with me, and then Shas and all the leaders who will be seen [unclear] the Knesset elections. And as it will be, my friend Rabbi Levi [unclear]. I did not initiate it. The initiative was to give my class, which I give every day at twelve-thirty after Minchah, and at the shul it was initiated by [unclear]. The shamash, Mr. Aharon [unclear], was the one who established this initiative. And the Chazon Ish asked me to dedicate the daily class to the memory of Rabbi Sofer, who was so dear to us. I want to tell you that not so long ago, there in the first [unclear] where I dedicated it, I came to daven, and there was an elderly man with long hair in the shul. I was afraid to continue davening, but I came and dedicated [unclear]. That is what the Chazon Ish wanted me to teach in the class I dedicated to the yeshivah, in memory of Rabbi Sofer, who was so dear to us; and the person sitting here was dear to us too. We came to the shul on dark days. There were terrible days, dark days, and on those days—

07:39 Speaker 1 dark days—I gave them things, I gave [unclear]. It was not Rabbi Sofer who led us to do it, even on dark days. One day they said to me, “Today you can come, after what you did for us a year ago.” Do you know that I came to the shul and saw elderly men? What sort of peyos [unclear] all those dark days? I asked them, “Please don’t humiliate [unclear]; don’t come near.” The religious members agreed that they would really leave an impression on me. I told that to the chairman, Yoav Weiss. Unbelievable. The religious members agreed. He agreed, and especially me. “That will not happen,” he says. “I call you to order.” I said, “You call me to order, and in another two minutes I’ll throw everything out, gather everything up, and you can do whatever you want.” That will not happen. During the prayer for the president of the state, they took down [unclear]. I took one sign from [unclear], and when they explained what Women’s Day was, and they came down and I thought about them, I held up the sign. Then one female Knesset member came at me, shouting, “That’s mine, that sign!” I said, “Then it isn’t yours.” She jumped at it, and she—she—she did not know what [unclear]. Yes, but I threw [unclear] because she came at me. She filed an ethics complaint against me because I broke her sign. And in the end, the story ended well. That is what I want to tell you. I was facing [unclear], and she was supposed to [unclear]. If for a year they feel that I am against them or something, it will not work. She had her [unclear], but I fell silent. What does that show? What does it show about this matter? Above all, I will tell you that this is the problem we all have. Why do we look this way, so unripe? Tell me [unclear] such a story. It is unbelievable how many Jews do not know about it. But we have a path here to [unclear]. After all, he held—

10:13 Speaker 1 Minchah in her heart.

12:15 Speaker 2 Because what the investigator of Knesset Yisrael cannot see [unclear], since the discussion here turned left, [unclear] four hundred years, [unclear] and expected to complete all six orders in a year. But there is a point to it: [unclear] got up and said what they wanted. What is it about someone who studies the whole Torah? The Torah [unclear]. What happened? There is a story here. After that incident, [unclear]. I was in the Knesset; I stood on that lawn. There was not yet a [unclear], and it was already hovering over [unclear]. But there is no problem. “Why was it that miracles happened for the earlier generations, while miracles do not happen for us?” Why for the earlier generations? And by “earlier generations,” he does not mean the Men of the Great Assembly; miracles happened for them. Why do miracles not happen for us, the later generations, two thousand years ago? “If it is because of study, in the days of Rav Yehudah all their study was in Nezikin.” What do I mean? [Unclear] the order. If you say that the earlier generations learned Torah better than we do—no. In the earlier generations they studied only one order, Nezikin. We, the later generations, study all six orders of the Mishnah. Do we deserve miracles more than they did? But there is something connected to this. It is a great lesson for our generation. For the Amoraim said that they acted with self-sacrifice for the sanctification of Hashem’s name. Why do I say [unclear] the sanctification of Hashem’s name? Do you know why miracles happened for the earlier generations? Because they acted for the sanctification of Hashem’s name. And why not for us, the later generations? We do not act for the sanctification of Hashem’s name, and therefore we have no miracles. I asked myself: what does it mean to act for the sanctification of Hashem’s name? Because that evening there was a particular [unclear] involving the sanctification of Hashem’s name. There was nothing wrong with it. When we were here in the simplest homes—what did he do? I was sure that now—

15:04 Speaker 2 I would [unclear] him. Nothing terrible, and who knows what acts of righteousness, what things. Listen to a story. This was perhaps about half a [unclear] ago—already more than a year ago. He saw a woman and thought she was Jewish; she was wearing a red garment. He said, “What does this mean? Are people now worshipping a red dress?” It is not the way of Jewish women to wear a red garment; it is immodest. But the garment covered her; everything was covered. Rav Adda bar Ahavah got up and tore the red garment off her. And if you listen to what goes on here every night, there are people with nothing much to do with me. They told him, “She is not Jewish,” but they had nothing to celebrate. They said [unclear]. He asked, “What is your name?” She said, “Matun.” He told her, “Matun, Matun—being patient would have been worth four hundred zuz.” That is the end of the story. Why do you complain that we have no miracles? Is there anyone in the world today who does not complain about Knesset members? Why? Who is prepared to [unclear] and tear the garment off her? Is there such a thing? The Gemara says there is no such thing. Do not complain that there are no miracles—that is what the Gemara says. Rabbi Elazar told him [unclear], “I will not [unclear] Chabad.” If there is mesirus nefesh in the world today, it belongs to Chabad. I am not saying that to draw distinctions, because on Friday I was at Dizengoff Square, at a memorial for our twenty-two holy people. It is a disgrace. Nobody came. Those righteous people who talk about peace send us [unclear], and they do not even come to the memorials for our twenty-two dead. Out of a hundred and twenty Knesset members, only [unclear] came.

17:46 Speaker 2 [unclear] No one came. If I’m not mistaken, it was there in Dizengoff Square. Chabad people were there, putting tefillin on all the Jews who came. What about the respected Torah leaders? [unclear] claim they are members of the Knesset. [unclear] And then Clinton. And then Clinton, [unclear] the FBI. And then Clinton—I’m trying to [unclear], because you saw that this non-Jew speaks about love and Torah only with Jews. He tells me, “Marty,” [unclear]. He said there are ten Knesset members [unclear]. The entire Knesset was in my house. You saw something in the air; there was a concert, and he isn’t ashamed to show it. So I told him, “If you want me to bring him Benjamin, [unclear].” [unclear] Rabin [unclear] Kaddish. He answered me, “Then he’ll pay you back yet.” [unclear] But there will still be Kaddish. He admitted that it had been discussed in connection with the English in Holston. But personally, I don’t want to see that [unclear]. It’s like whiskey. I answered him, “[unclear].” He invited [unclear] to lunch, but he’s embarrassed. “Do you see me?” So I told him, “[unclear]. Do you see my Knesset members? Do you see me?” [unclear] Look in Israel: there is nothing greater than a kiddush Hashem. Don’t be shaken anymore; they aren’t ashamed. All right, I put it simply: I’ll present the matter of tefillin. After all, I insist that they do it, that they not give up, that they not give up—whether I succeed or not. So—

20:20 Speaker 2 The Knesset must not [unclear] until they are ashamed and stop. And it won’t work for them. I’m telling the truth. We have no salvation, because we have no salvation. I’m only ashamed in front of you. What did we hear earlier about Hamas? Intifada, terror. Come on—three days of darkness. They closed stores, closed restaurants, and to them it’s serious business. They showed mesirus nefesh. I’m ashamed to say it: we are concerned with material things, despite [unclear] what has happened to the Jewish people. Where are we? And so the call must go out from here: Enough complacency. Enough staying shut inside our homes. We must go out and destroy this enemy, until at long last we hear the call: We will not allow murderers to live. And from here, on this evening of 19 Kislev, [unclear], may his merit protect us, may we wake up, fight, and act with mesirus nefesh. And although our strength is small, G-d’s power is great. Then we will merit the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu speedily in our days. Let’s all applaud Knesset member Rabbi Saar Nacht[?] for [unclear] the Jewish people and sanctifying the name of Heaven. We wish him continued success in his struggle, until victory—until victory. Certainly. Rabbi Yosef Elidan[?]—I’ve been told he leaves at eleven. Eliyahu ben Achaim[?] is calling him. “Dad is waiting for you.” I hope he makes it. Eliyahu ben Achaim[?] is calling me. Come on, Rabbi Yosef Elidan[?]—eleven-twenty, eleven-twenty. That means in another twenty minutes, another quarter of an hour, he’ll hear, and then he’ll come to us. Today, [unclear]. He is, of course, a regular guest with us. But I’d like to invite Rabbi Yonasan Metzger, the rabbi of Tzfas, please.

23:15 Speaker 3 Ladies and gentlemen, [unclear]. Knesset member Rabbi Yosef Ba-Gad, head of the Nechalim yeshivah. It doesn’t matter, since I’m among the last speakers—or perhaps the last. You’ll hear all the guests and the questions. I’ll finish with a story, a story that carries its own message. A Jew needed to obtain [unclear], and came to the Rebbe to ask for a brachah. The Rebbe told him, “I’ll give you a brachah on one condition: the first business deal you’re offered, take it. Even if it looks as though you’ll lose money, take it. Even if it seems to you that you’re putting yourself at risk, [unclear]. Invest in the deal, and you’ll see how good it is.” The Jew thanked the Rebbe, shook his hand, and set off for home. It was a long journey, so he decided to stop at a hotel. When he entered the hotel, he saw [unclear]. There were several Jews there, some of them jokers in high spirits. [unclear] One of the main people there turned to the chossid and said, “My friend, tell me: do you believe there is a World to Come?” He replied, “What kind of question is that? Every Jew must believe there is a World to Come.” So the man said, “I don’t believe there is a World to Come.” “You won’t reach the World to Come if you don’t believe in it.” “I don’t believe there is a World to Come. You believe there is one? Are you willing to buy my entire share in the World to Come?” He replied, “Of course. I’ll buy your entire share in the World to Come.” “Give me ten dollars, and my entire share in the World to Come is yours.” The chossid remembered what the Rebbe had told him about the first deal he was offered: even if he didn’t know whether it was worthwhile, he should take it. He thought to himself, “[unclear] this man selling his share in the World to Come, selling—

26:17 Speaker 3 —his entire share in the World to Come. [unclear]” He said, “A written agreement, a written agreement...” He wanted a note stating that the man was selling his share in the World to Come. The man said, “Yes,” and [unclear] put down his name and address: “I am selling my share in the World to Come for twenty dollars.” [unclear] The Jew took ten dollars out of his own money. [unclear] And the chossid went home. The next morning, [unclear] the other Jew returned home and told his wife what had happened. “You know, that Jew started saying the most extraordinary things. I sold him my share in the World to Come, and he paid twenty dollars. Do you understand? Twenty dollars! That’s no small thing, twenty dollars. Do you understand what a story that is?” But she said, “You [unclear]. You sold your share in the World to Come!” [unclear] She told him, “No, I’m not prepared to live with a husband who sold his share in the World to Come.” So he said he would undo the deal. [unclear] He went back to look for that man. He left for the hotel and searched for the Jew. [unclear] He found the address and went there. [unclear] There were mailboxes; he had no telephone, but he had an address. [unclear] He had sold his share in the World to Come.

28:16 Speaker 3 “If he gives me back the note, [unclear] the ten dollars?” The chossid told him, “No. A deal is a deal. You made it, and that’s that. I’m not going back on it.” [unclear] “But my wife realized what a terrible gap there is between us. [unclear] I have the Rebbe’s instruction about the first deal, and I’m not budging.” [unclear] He asked the Rebbe for an answer: “I made the sale, [unclear], and I’m afraid to go to the World to Come without my share. Your chossid absolutely refuses to give up the deal.” The Rebbe told him, “From the story you’ve told me, my chossid is right. A deal is a deal. You signed and he paid. Why should he give it back now? I may be able to influence this chossid to give up the deal, on one condition.” “Whatever you ask of me, Rabbi, I’m willing.” So the Rebbe told him, “If you’re willing, the deal can be undone on condition that you fulfill the chossid’s wish and pay [unclear].” The man said, “[unclear].” The Rebbe said, “I’ll call the chossid, and we’ll ask him.” The chossid had been waiting for several weeks for this proposal to materialize. [unclear] “The chossid estimates it at thirty-two thousand dollars.” So the man said, “Please, write a check for thirty-two thousand dollars.” Thank you. He took the paper and remembered. I remember the offer that fell through. [unclear]

30:17 Speaker 3 To that Jew. After he finished, he said, “[unclear]. I did everything you told me. I didn’t spoil anything. But tell me, what’s going to happen here today? With Hashem’s help, I’ve secured at least thirty-two thousand dollars a day for the World to Come. How am I going to get that today?” He says to the Rebbe, “It all depends on your attitude toward the gold that was stolen during your lifetime. You distanced yourself from your World to Come for the sake of gold and pearls, and you even justified the Jew who invested his entire fortune in gold. But what is written in Heaven? What is he investing in the World to Come? Now that you have a share of the gold, [unclear], you’ll live that life, a life of thirty-seven hundred years.” That’s the point, my brother. But I can’t give you that. He says, “Gentlemen, we need to sharpen our awareness every day. Even the person who needs to give [unclear], and the person who needs to light the first Chanukah candle—it gives life [unclear]. And is the second candle you light on Chanukah worth as much as the Chanukah candle? That’s life. Life.” I can tell you that in [unclear], I had to be here in Israel on Friday at three o’clock, as Shabbos was coming in, and I happened to look northward on my phone in the Sheinkin area. It used to be an area of Chassidus, of religious children—that was the place. Today Sheinkin has become synonymous with wealthy people whose entire world is their apartment. In my innocence, I thought, what could be wrong with that area? On a Friday, [unclear], I hadn’t had a chance to walk around there, but I

32:38 Speaker 3 know people aren’t out there at midnight. I see cafés full of mothers and their children, twenty and thirty years old, who have come to celebrate [unclear] Shabbos night. I hope that’s what you want, [unclear] Shabbos night itself. A large part of your work, Hashem, is [unclear] a child asking whether next Friday he is supposed to [unclear]. Give a little child a key. You give him a key, with his name on it; it’s a key to the door, and he goes into the house. And when he has a note, she gets it and says, “Okay, I’ve found my daughter. Now take your schnitzel, put [unclear] inside it until lunchtime.” And give the child a key to Mom and Dad, too. They aren’t staying with their father, so that will be good. So there’s a child—and then I understood—and at Lior’s, all night long, he senses that something is wrong with his car’s driver, because he doesn’t need his [unclear]. So they gave the child a key, and he had the affection of a mother and father. I didn’t quite understand what was so strange about it. A little child doesn’t know what time it is; he doesn’t know that it isn’t [unclear]. This is a child who was told to do things bigger than himself, and there was food for him. For that, I need to be a little child and [unclear]. His father invested in him and gave him that. This is the child who gave you all of that when he was a baby. The share that comes my way in this world, right from the beginning, costs a great deal, and it may take us a little time. We can see the reality. I came with joy, with my own joy, and apparently, because we need to help bring that joy, we’ll return to it again in the heart of Tel Aviv—one for me and one for you.

34:54 Speaker 3 First of all, it is the wish of every one of you, of everyone sitting here, that what began here as a first seed of the Vilna Gaon, [unclear], and the wisdom and love of holy Jews who continue on this path—we should simply thank Hashem for the joy, and thank Hashem wholeheartedly, with blessings for every single Jew in the Land and [unclear], at every time and in every place. For this, through the Rebbe, we will set out on his path and make ourselves heard by those who do not know [unclear] our path. May we merit to lead them and share with them, as much as we can, these lights, as shluchim of the Rebbe shlita. Let us just conclude with a blessing for each and every one: good health and great success in fulfilling your roles.

36:04 Speaker 4 Whoever wanted to [unclear] the story of his financial situation, which was much [unclear]. He was certain [unclear] would have to sacrifice his life; he would have shown [unclear] to the Nazis, trying to [unclear] for the covenant. For his brother had already [unclear] in Jerusalem. Throughout the year [unclear]. In the words of [unclear], the Rebbe, that man who faced the test died al kiddush Hashem. But enough. Because he refused to settle with them in the cold desert, [unclear], he showed his young soul, [unclear], his voice, [unclear] Yehoshua, the priest who saved [unclear]. There is no one like him, [unclear]. But thank you very much. I think that’s enough already; we’ve arrived. Six years—a Jew was murdered. Who was it? A suicide bomber. He tried to kill. Come on, that’s it. Who was it? What happened? People, people bleeding. All those [unclear]. It’s a story like some horror film. It’s frightening, frightening. It’s frightening, [unclear]. There are people—it could have been a hundred dead. You are [unclear]; what a shame. Because the Jews [unclear] soldiers, if they hadn’t been [unclear], they would have remained here in [unclear], in a caravan, which could have been divided into [unclear] and five. I don’t need to tell you. No, I didn’t say that, I didn’t say that. I didn’t say that. Just like that. I’ll tell you, [unclear] in your life. My [unclear] is now fifteen; he’ll turn sixteen. All is well, everything is fine. He invited me so I wouldn’t run away; I need to bring [unclear] his wife. When we reached the house, the girl was shouting, and the poop had stayed with her. The poop, they explained to me, is every dog’s emotional baggage. Thinking about it, if someone acts like that, [unclear]. All my baby’s [unclear] remained. I came in order to live.

38:57 Speaker 4 That was our fear, and it came back one by one. I don’t know. We had two children. They had [unclear]. We didn’t have that. We really said: What do we do with the poop? What do we do with [unclear] the children at home? And from there I went. I keep dealing with the poop. It doesn’t matter. We don’t have to do anything. Poop is poop. We don’t have to. We don’t have to do anything. We made a mess. But we have patience. We don’t have to. What I’m telling you—I don’t know how this isn’t clear to me. I’m telling you, [unclear] for us, for [unclear], so that we no longer have headaches over the sick people. We can’t give them any more. We need to look after our [unclear]. But we need to preserve our strength. Do you know how crazy it was for me after all that? We can’t go on like this. We need to preserve our strength. There are the—the runs of fourteen days, and those who have confidence in words, but not in deeds. Confidence isn’t—it’s no secret—there’s no guarantee it will help. Why? Because we are in the midst of the storm of war, a war with no end date. And so, after the war—that can’t be, I’m saying exactly that, it really is [unclear]. So the question is whether I really have a major obligation to the fourteen days and the eleven days, or to—fine. That was one of the conditions here: when there is Israeli security. I was thinking how to put it—security. If this war was a war that went well, then it couldn’t be one war in one place. It would have to be a kind of war. It would be a war of—of one on one. Sorry. Security isn’t something you can simply establish. No, no

41:28 Speaker 4 way. So what is security? There is, after all, what’s called a certain kind of [unclear], another kind of guardian. Look, my friends, there is a great deal of information. Anyone who—Israel’s whole outlook is the law. That is how the Jewish people should conduct themselves. And that is what is happening there. Because what good does it do? I have all the goodwill of [unclear]. What’s the connection? What’s the connection? Are you trying to tell me there’s no other way out? You’re telling us, you’re telling us. If I were—if it were possible for me.