Going Out on Mivtzoim - Chanukah

00:01 Speaker 1 Look, time is short and there is a lot to do. There are many questions the bochurim asked here. So first I’ll give a general introduction to Chanukah. I’ll try to keep it brief, and that will also answer quite a few of the questions along the way. Afterward, I’ll address specific questions the bochurim asked. So, the whole subject of the Chanukah campaign: it was one of the campaigns the Rebbe pursued with tremendous energy. For those who asked, the Chanukah campaign began in the 5730s. Until then, when it came to Chanukah, the Rebbe mainly spoke about Chanukah gelt. From the beginning of his leadership, the Rebbe himself distributed Chanukah gelt. As is well known, there was an established practice that every year the Rebbe gave Chanukah gelt to the bochurim, the yeshiva students, and also delivered a sicha. That was during the first ten years. And even when the Rebbe stopped doing it himself, he continued to instruct that Chanukah gelt be given in the Rebbe’s name in all the schools and educational institutions. Throughout, the Rebbe wanted Chanukah gelt to be given. But the Chanukah campaign began in the 5730s, mainly toward the end of 5734. That was when the Rebbe began the whole effort of going out into the street, publicizing the miracle, and making sure every Jew lit Chanukah candles at the entrance to his home, facing outside. In general, 5734 was one of the years when the Rebbe began the great push for the campaigns. Before 5734, there hadn’t been so much of that. The tefillin campaign had begun earlier, but the other campaigns mainly took shape in 5734, 5735, and 5736. Those were the years of the campaigns: the Shabbos candle-lighting campaign, the mezuzah campaign—all ten campaigns. The Rebbe developed them in the middle of the 5730s, in ’34 and ’35, and that was also when the mitzvah tanks began. In 5734 the Rebbe started the mitzvah tank campaign, so the main

02:20 Speaker 1 push for the campaigns began in the 5730s, in the middle of that decade. The Chanukah campaign also began around that time. The Rebbe sent instructions to all the different places: in Eretz Yisroel, to go to the army, to camps and various other places. Later it extended to hospitals and nursing homes, and it kept spreading. Every year the Rebbe gave it a bigger and bigger push. It developed over the years. I don’t know exactly which year the Rebbe began encouraging public menorahs. Beyond going to hospitals and nursing homes and the like, at some point the Rebbe began saying to put a menorah in public centers and hold a central gathering. That, too, ran into many difficulties over the years. There were many battles with various places, court cases, and all sorts of objections. But slowly, didan notzach—we prevailed. In many places—I don’t know about every place, but I think in most places—this gradually became accepted in America, in various states: the practice of holding a public menorah lighting, with a large menorah in the middle of the city. Someone here asked about the menorah’s height, and we’ll get to that. Of course, even with a public menorah, they try to keep it from being higher than twenty amos, although there are certain grounds for leniency as well. But I believe there was an instruction from the Rebbe that the large menorah in Manhattan should not be higher than twenty amos. I don’t know whether that is so or not. How did they do it? Twenty amos is ten meters? Yes, approximately. So eight stories is the maximum according to halachah. That’s where this campaign comes in. Then, in the 5740s—especially 5746—this I already remember. I was already a bochur then. In 5746,

04:38 Speaker 1 the court case over the seforim began. The Rebbe brought about a revolution, because the court case began close to Chanukah. Consequently, in 5746 the Rebbe made a major push for the Chanukah campaign on the greatest possible scale. The Rebbe instructed everyone to go out, and to make an album. After Chanukah, the Rebbe instructed that a special album be made with all the pictures and all the countries where Chanukah candles had been lit. On Zos Chanukah, the Rebbe said to continue doing more even on Zos Chanukah—to light candles and keep the effort going. In short, the Rebbe made a very big push for it. In 5747, the Rebbe again said to make an even bigger push than the previous year and to make another photo album. So in 5746 and 5747, the Rebbe brought about a major change in the Chanukah campaigns, with far greater energy. I remember that around that time, the Rebbe delivered a sicha one evening. The next day, many bochurim didn’t go out on mivtzoim because they wanted to stay for a sicha. After Maariv, the Rebbe turned around. There was a microphone there, and the Rebbe took it and said: Instead of standing around here waiting to hear what will be said, they should go; it’s better to go out on mivtzoim. There’s a video of it; you can see it. They thought the Rebbe was going to deliver a sicha, and instead the Rebbe sent everyone out on mivtzoim. But the following year, 5748, the Rebbe delivered a sicha every night. There was a sicha every night because it was a Hakhel year. In 5749, too, there wasn’t a sicha every night; some nights there was and some nights there wasn’t. That’s how it was. Why did the Rebbe make such a tremendous push for the Chanukah campaign? The Rebbe himself said that Chanukah has a special dimension. If, in general, we must always look for ways to bring light, to act,

06:36 Speaker 1 and to have an impact, then Chanukah’s whole essence is bound up with that according to halachah and Torah. The mitzvah of Chanukah is to publicize the miracle—that is the mitzvah. It is to publicize the miracle at the entrance to one’s home, facing outside. The whole point of Chanukah candles is to illuminate the outside, the public domain. All the more so when we find ourselves in a darkness that is doubled and redoubled. The Rebbe spoke about how the exile was growing darker and more deeply felt as exile, and so we must add still more to “the mitzvah is a candle and Torah is light,” with greater strength and vigor, as we draw close to the Geulah, before the coming of Moshiach. All the more so with Chanukah candles, which are connected with the Geulah. That is why the Rebbe encouraged it. That was the reason, in simple terms. The Rebbe explained this throughout the years; you can see it from 5734 onward. The Rebbe would speak about it at farbrengens and explain it immediately after Tishrei. The Rebbe already began speaking about it at the Tishrei farbrengens. Later, on Shabbos Chanukah, or if it was Shabbos Mevarchim, the Rebbe spoke about the whole matter with the greatest energy, explaining at length that this is the whole point of Chanukah: publicizing the miracle at the entrance to one’s home, facing outside. Candles are meant to bring light. So certainly on Chanukah, with greater strength and vigor, there must be campaigns and Chanukah candle lightings outside. Another interesting point is that the Rebbe connected the Chanukah campaign with the tefillin campaign. There is a sicha on Chanukah in volume 5 of Likkutei Sichos. There the Rebbe explains the inner connection between tefillin and Chanukah: the Chanukah menorah is placed on the left, and tefillin are also worn on the left. Both must be placed on the left. Mitzvos generally belong on the right; the Chanukah light is on the left, like tefillin. The Rebbe explains the connection between tefillin and Chanukah at length. So whenever the Rebbe spoke about the Chanukah campaign, he also connected it with the tefillin campaign, and therefore this is

08:25 Speaker 1 There was another question the bochurim asked. Of course, Mivtza Chanukah should go together with Mivtza Tefillin. A bochur asked: What happens if you don’t have time to do both, only one or the other—tefillin or Chanukah? What should you do? It’s a very good question. I don’t know. L’chaim, my brother. Mivtza Tefillin is a Torah obligation, while Chanukah is rabbinic. Tefillin is a regular obligation, while Chanukah isn’t. But I’m not a rabbi who rules on halachah, so I don’t know what one should do. What’s certain is that both need to be done—tefillin and Chanukah. In any case, that is the Rebbe’s wish. This idea of Mivtza Chanukah came from the Rebbe. It was very important to him. Now, the yeshiva does it, and all the yeshivos around the world do it officially. The bochurim also asked about going on mivtzoim every day of Chanukah. All year, they go on mivtzoim only on Fridays. On Chanukah, they go every day. That, too, was the Rebbe’s idea, because Chanukah has a special emphasis on publicizing the miracle, and a special emphasis on the lights and on increasing them. That is also the purpose of the schedule. So the Rebbe wanted it, and it was with the Rebbe’s permission and encouragement, that the bochurim go out every day, shorten the learning session, and have time each day to go on mivtzoim. Some bochurim asked: Why don’t we do more mivtzoim? Boruch Hashem, there are bochurim here who go above and beyond in mitzvos and are already doing mivtzoim. Why not go out earlier? We could do more mivtzoim. That’s certainly a good point, and good for them. Boruch Hashem that the bochurim want to do more mivtzoim. There was also the opposite question: Why are we taking time away from Torah study? So there is a valid argument

10:15 Speaker 1 on this side and a valid argument on that side. That is why there is a yeshiva administration, to whom the Rebbe gave the authority to decide how much time should be spent learning Torah and how much time going on mivtzoim. But in their free time, each person can certainly decide whether he wants to learn more Torah or go on more mivtzoim. In other words, what I want to say is very simple. These aren’t my ideas; they’re things the Rebbe said. As Chassidus teaches, this applies all year and even more so on Chanukah. A yeshiva bochur needs to learn Torah. We spoke about this last week too. A bochur’s whole life is Torah. It’s his vitality, his main focus, and his primary shlichus. That’s true all year, including throughout Chanukah—especially Chanukah, according to both Torah and Chassidus. Chanukah is connected with Torah. The entire decree of the Greeks was “to make them forget Your Torah,” so the fight against the Greeks is the opposite: on Chanukah we need to learn Torah with greater strength and vigor. In many sichos about Chanukah, the Rebbe said that we should increase our Torah study then, because the whole story of Chanukah involved a war against Torah. So on Chanukah there should be an increase in Torah study. The Rebbe said this many times. There are quite a few sichos in which the Rebbe called for increased Torah study on Chanukah. And within Torah study itself, I remember several times when the Rebbe spoke about increasing the study of the inner dimension of Torah. Chanukah is connected with oil, and as is well known from the sichos, oil penetrates inward. The Torah’s secrets and its deepest secrets—the inner dimension of Torah—have a particular connection with Chanukah. So on Chanukah we should increase our study of the inner dimension of Torah. Not only did the Rebbe say this; the Rebbe himself was a living example, delivering many maamarim on Chanukah. The Rebbe delivered many maamarim. There were

12:09 Speaker 1 years when the Rebbe delivered three maamarim. I think that’s the most, though perhaps there were more—I don’t know. But the Rebbe delivered many maamarim. In the 5730s and 5740s in particular, the Rebbe would hold a farbrengen on Shabbos Chanukah. Sometimes there were two Shabbosos during Chanukah, and there was also a farbrengen on a weekday during Chanukah. Sometimes the Rebbe would hold one at night in the middle of Chanukah, sometimes toward the end of Chanukah, and sometimes there were two weekday Chanukah farbrengens. The Rebbe held farbrengens on Chanukah; there were many maamarim and an abundance of Torah. Just a week ago, a whole book came out—the Sefer Hamaamarim for Chanukah. I don’t know the exact number, but there are some seventy or eighty, or perhaps more, maamarim that the Rebbe delivered on Chanukah. The Rebbe delivered many Chanukah maamarim and sichos, held farbrengens—an abundance of Torah. The Rebbe also called for Chanukah to be a time of Torah study, especially the hidden dimension of Torah, which is central to Chanukah. There is a great deal of Torah to learn, so there certainly needs to be Torah study on Chanukah. Now, a third question brings us to farbrengens. One of the bochurim asks whether there is a special reason to hold farbrengens on Chanukah. There certainly is, and the Rebbe said so too. I heard it from the Rebbe himself in 5749 and 5752, and the Rebbe said several times that the Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengens should continue into Chanukah. The Rebbe said that, as is known—and I remember that in 5749 there was a gathering of chassidim there—the custom was for the Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengens to continue into Chanukah, because Chanukah and Yud-Tes Kislev are connected. In particular, the Rebbe mentioned that, as is known, the Alter Rebbe’s second liberation was also on Chanukah. That is why chassidim have the custom of holding farbrengens on Chanukah. Once, the Rebbe said to hold farbrengens on every night of Chanukah. Another time, he said to hold them at

14:00 Speaker 1 least on the third and fifth nights, the two nights connected with the liberation. As is known, there are two versions of when the Alter Rebbe’s liberation took place: on the third night or the fifth night. Some say that there were actually two stages of liberation. The Rebbe spoke about this several times; there are a number of sichos on it. So what follows from all this? On Chanukah there should be a strong commitment to mivtzoim—not just once, but every single day. On Chanukah nights there should be Torah study, and there should be farbrengens. But how can you do it all? The Rebbe asks it of us, and the Rebbe gives us the strength to learn more Torah, go on more mivtzoim, and hold farbrengens too. Of course, there are only twenty-four hours in a day, but how those twenty-four hours are arranged depends on each person. So it is possible to fit it in. Sometimes the commitment isn’t a matter of quantity; it can be a matter of quality. But since all these things are asked of us, we have certainly been given the strength, and we need to do them. There are eight days of Chanukah, and one can arrange things over those eight days so as to take part in each of them. All right, now I’ll turn to the specific questions the bochurim asked. I don’t know who wrote what, so I’ll quickly read the questions and answer them. Some of the questions aren’t about Chanukah; they’re about mivtzoim in general. With Hashem’s help, there will be another class, when there’s time, and then we’ll talk about mivtzoim in general. For now, because time is short and there are many questions, we’ll focus mainly on those specifically connected with Chanukah. So the question here is: Why do we go on mivtzoim so late? Some people go home, go to eat

15:59 Speaker 1 And they lose hours, they lose time. Okay, so I’ve already answered that. That question is about Friday and Chanukah. Of course, it isn’t simple. On the one hand, we want to think about every Jew. The Rebbe would sometimes put it this way: We need to see to it that every Jew can light Chanukah candles, so we have to make an effort. On the other hand, the Rebbe also wanted, as we said, time devoted to Torah study and farbrengens. So in practice, there isn’t enough time for everything, and that’s why the yeshiva administration sets the times for the study sessions. That’s the schedule. The bochurim have time after Mincha at four. With Hashem’s help, that will be the schedule here in the yeshiva: Mincha at four, and at four-fifteen in the afternoon you’ll have time to go on mivtzoim. You have the rest of the afternoon, and then in the evening they’ll announce where people are being sent—to Chabad Houses and places with local candle-lightings. With Hashem’s help, they’ll arrange it here; Abba is organizing the whole thing. The rest of the time, of course, we need to learn and keep the study sessions as scheduled. By the way, here’s what the Chanukah schedule will be. I’m letting you know so you’ll be aware. Sunday morning is Erev Chanukah. The morning schedule starts as usual, but then there will be a break at two, and from three to four there will be a study session. They’ll learn the laws of Chanukah. With Hashem’s help, there will be photocopies. They’ll learn the laws of the holiday and Sefer Haminhagim, so they’ll know what to do on Chanukah. Mincha will be at four, and mivtzoim will start at four-fifteen. Sunset is at eight. So, with Hashem’s help, there will be supper here, and we also need to light the candles at sunset. Bochurim going on mivtzoim: if you can arrange to get back to your room and light Chanukah candles at sunset, that’s best. If you can’t, because there are some events

17:55 Speaker 1 you need to take part in, then light when you get back. But you shouldn’t light too late, because according to halachah, you need to light while people are still awake—or at least while members of the household are awake; that works after the fact. So try not to light too late. So that’s regarding that. The morning study session will start at eight-thirty: Chassidus from eight-thirty to nine-thirty, Shacharis at ten, and afterward a Nigleh study session until two. They’ll learn Nigleh in the morning, and then from three to four there will be a Chanukah study session. They’ll learn halachah and a sicha on Chanukah, so they can study the subject, along with halachah, Chassidus, and sichos. Boruch Hashem, there’s plenty of material for everyone. One hour a day will be the individual study session on Chanukah. A question asked here is—uh, I can’t read what’s written here. Why do we need to sell Chanukah candles instead of giving them as gifts, as we usually give things away? A lot of bochurim asked the question in a different way. Someone here asked because he finds it hard to sell them: How do you do it? So I want to tell you this. There’s a principle that the Rebbe himself spoke about many times: it’s human nature. If a person doesn’t pay for something, he doesn’t value it. It seems cheap to him. You didn’t pay for it, so it’s as though it isn’t important. If he pays for it, it matters more to him. That’s human nature. So the Rebbe wrote many times that with these things—when you sell matzos, you sell shmurah matzah, you sell Chanukah candles... Chanukah is a mitzvah that lasts eight days. Matzah is only for two days. So [unclear], and that isn’t relevant. But if you

20:09 Speaker 1 sell a candle or candles, if you sell matzah—then you need to... It’s not embarrassing. It’s not... People don’t see it as a problem. On the contrary, people see that it means this is something important. It has a price. Now, of course, we want the person to get it even if he can’t pay the price, so we give him a lower price. So seemingly the simplest approach is to say from the outset, “Look, precio sugerido”—how do you say it?—“the suggested price is such and such,” whatever the people in charge say, two hundred pesos, I don’t know what they said or what the minimum is. “But give what you can.” If he gives more, good for him. If he gives less, good for him too, and afterward you’ll need to hold a collection to make up the shortfall. But the basic point is that this is how it should be. It isn’t a drawback. It doesn’t mean that Lubavitch tries to do everything for free. There’s a principle. The Gemara says, “A doctor who treats for nothing is worth nothing.” The Gemara says that something given for free is valued as free. That’s human nature. The Rebbe even related something about the Frierdiker Rebbe: when the Frierdiker Rebbe would print the kuntreisim, the booklets that were later included in Sefer Hamaamarim Kuntreisim, he would put a price on each booklet. The price was printed on it. The Rebbe asked him, “What’s the point of putting a price on the booklet? Why does it need a price?” And the Frierdiker Rebbe answered that it’s human nature: when a person sees that something has a price, it becomes—

22:09 Speaker 1 it becomes more important to him. Whether in practice he paid for it or not, paid more or paid less. But if a price is printed on it, that... Later they stopped doing that because it was no longer customary, I don’t know. But stating or suggesting a price doesn’t make us look like beggars looking for money. Any normal person understands that candles cost money. There are candles here; this costs money. So it’s not... Now, if someone can’t afford it, fine—you don’t argue with him. That’s how I’ve handled this in my life. Why sell them specifically on Chanukah, and not sell matzah before Pesach? That isn’t correct. The Rebbe also spoke about shmurah matzah. There was a shmurah matzah campaign from the Rebbe: to see to it that as many Jews as possible—every Jew—would have shmurah matzah, at least one matzah, at least three matzos. That’s a campaign we do. The only difference is that Chanukah falls during the yeshiva term and Pesach falls during the break. So some bochurim may not know about it, but the Rebbe’s shmurah matzah campaign and the Rebbe’s Chanukah campaign had the same force, the same enthusiasm. Maybe Chanukah had even more enthusiasm because of what Chanukah is, as we explained earlier. Okay, a question someone asks here: What’s the idea of going out in a shirt without a hat and jacket? I don’t know what the question is. A puffer coat, yes or no? Huh?

23:45 Speaker 2 No, there’s a rule. There’s a rule.

23:49 Speaker 1 No, no. No, that’s not what’s written here. Someone else asked about clothing. Someone asked about a Chanukah shirt. There are shirts with Chanukah written on them, right? With a jacket on, you can’t see it. Do you need to take off the jacket so people can see the shirt, for pirsumei nisa? Good question. Yes, why not? I mean, generally speaking, you should go out on mivtzoim with a hat and jacket. Right? Just by hashgachah pratis, Rabbi Lipsker was here yesterday and told a very interesting story. Rabbi Lipsker was speaking about the shluchim, and he related something the Rebbe once told him in yechidus. The Rebbe said to him, “When a Jew goes out to engage with—when he goes out into the street or goes out on mivtzoim”—no, the exact wording was—“he needs to be dressed in a way that makes the difference between him and the street openly visible. The difference between him and the street should be openly visible.” Afterward, he asked the Rebbe whether that meant a kapote and a hat. The Rebbe said, “I mean dress, and speech and conduct as well.” That’s how he told the story. Right? So what does that mean? I think it means this: a bochur should go out on mivtzoim with a hat and jacket. That’s our uniform—we’re soldiers. We’re not just ordinary people out on the street. We’re soldiers, and soldiers have a uniform. Now, it’s hot, right? The air conditioning is on here, so you don’t feel it. But out on the street it’s very hot. So if a bochur is standing on some street corner, or at a shopping center or wherever, standing in the sun and getting hot, there’s no problem with taking off his jacket—especially if he has a shirt with Chanukah written on it. No problem. Wear that shirt, and so on.

26:12 Speaker 1 For the Chanukah campaign, that’s fine. But if you can, for example, wear a hat without the jacket, at least have some part of your clothing that makes it clear you’re a yeshiva student, that you’re different from people on the street and dress differently. See? Some students make a point of at least keeping their hats on... right? Each person should do what he can. But of course, you shouldn’t be embarrassed. Some people are embarrassed, and that’s already a problem. Embarrassed in front of people on the street? “Do not be ashamed before those who mock you.” On the contrary, you’re a shliach, you’re a rabbi, you’re going to bring Yiddishkeit to people, and you need to go with that conviction. Now, if someone is Sephardi and his custom is not to light beside the door, should we tell him to light according to our custom or his? Clearly, we don’t interfere with people’s customs. We need to respect all customs. If someone has a different custom, there’s no problem with his lighting according to it. If someone has no custom, we tell him how we do it. Another question here: Is it better to light in the street, or in someone’s home when you don’t know for certain whether he’ll light later? You have to decide that on the spot. First of all, if you’re doing outreach during the day, lighting in the street isn’t relevant. Presumably the question is about after sunset, right? Outreach you’re doing after sunset. If you think the person won’t light at home, it’s better to light with him where you are, so you can be more certain. Clearly, that’s more... But if you can encourage him to light at home, then he should light at home. There’s an advantage to lighting at home, with the members of the household, the family. In the street. Hm? Light in the street without a bracha? Why without a bracha? He should light with a bracha. He should light

28:19 Speaker 1 with a bracha; there’s no problem. Okay. We’ve already spoken about shirts and jackets. What about modesty? It’s summer here now. In summer there’s a lot of immodesty. Yes. It’s dangerous, and of course it isn’t good. So here’s the principle the Rebbe gave. It applies to outreach in general, and we’ll discuss it further when we talk about outreach in general, because there are many details. But it applies specifically to the Chanukah campaign too. The point is this: The Rebbe spoke several times about how a yeshiva student is like the flask of oil. The flask of oil was sealed with the seal of the Kohen Gadol. As is known, our teachers say that “flask of oil” has the same numerical value as “impure.” So the flask of oil alludes to impurity. What does that mean? The flask of oil was sealed with the seal of the Kohen Gadol, and because it bore his seal, the impurity did not reach it. The Greeks defiled all the oil, but they could not defile the flask sealed with the Kohen Gadol’s seal. What does that mean spiritually? The Kohen Gadol is the Rebbe, and the flask of oil is a yeshiva student. So a student is a flask of oil sealed with the seal of the Kohen Gadol. In other words, when he goes out into the street, he doesn’t go alone. He knows he’s going on outreach because the Rebbe sent him. He bears the seal of the Kohen Gadol, and his mindset is: “I’m here not because I like the street. I dislike the street; it’s not my place. I want to be in yeshiva, but I’m going with the seal of the Kohen Gadol. The Rebbe sent me, and that’s why I’m going.” When a student goes with that mindset, the Rebbe watches over him. He has protection.

30:12 Speaker 1 Then, naturally, you go and do outreach; you accomplish something. There’s a principle the Rebbe stated several times, which applies to outreach in general: “When one is occupied with expelling, one does not absorb.” It’s a principle in halachah: when a person is busy giving to others, he doesn’t take anything in. So when you go on outreach and your purpose is to give, to bring Yiddishkeit, to find a Jew, your mind is occupied with finding that Jew—not, G-d forbid, with taking anything in from the kelipah, the evil, the darkness and the impurity of the street. A student therefore needn’t be afraid. He should go with the confidence of someone who fears Heaven. It’s also worthwhile to keep a picture of the Rebbe in your pocket. The Rebbe wrote to several students who asked about this that it is a segulah. Go with a picture of the Rebbe and with that mindset. Then, from the outset, you won’t look where you’re not allowed to look, and you won’t, G-d forbid, fall into things you shouldn’t. That’s the principle; that’s how it should be. In practice, though, you have to take care not to enter places that may be immodest. There are stores you cannot enter. Places that are openly immodest—you shouldn’t enter them. According to halachah, you’re forbidden to enter them. So you really must be careful not to go into such places. It makes no difference: you can’t go in, even if you know for certain that there’s a Jew there. If a place is openly immodest and you know it could affect you, you certainly may not enter. That’s clear. People often ask about speaking with women. Of course, you can give something to a woman if she approaches you. There’s no need to... look at the floor; nothing has happened. You don’t have to go to extremes. It’s

32:09 Speaker 1 a normal thing. A woman comes up to you and asks for a menorah or something else. You give it to her, say hello, and answer her. But you have to know where to be careful: don’t get into a conversation with a woman. You’re a man and she’s a woman; you mustn’t get into a conversation with her. If she asks you something, you answer her. That’s all. If she offers you her hand because she doesn’t know, then according to halachah, you tell her, “I’m religious; I’m not permitted to. Judaism doesn’t allow us to do that.” People accept that. I’ve never had a problem with it in my life. You immediately say, “For religious reasons, I can’t touch you,” and they immediately apologize, and everything is fine. Nothing has happened. You shouldn’t be embarrassed to say it. It’s halachah, and that’s simply how it is. So you should answer questions, but try not to get drawn into conversations or matters that are personal. You have to be careful. There are also the laws of yichud. You certainly may not enter a store when no one is there except a woman and remain inside with the store closed. The door needs to be open. You go in and leave whatever you came to leave there. This applies to outreach in general. Yes, no, no, no—you have to be careful. These are laws relating to yichud and the like. If a student feels he’s having distracting thoughts and improper thoughts, and they are troubling him, I suggest—and he must do this—that he speak with a mashpia and ask what he should do. What I’ve said until now is how things ought to be. But sometimes a student may have a strong desire, a passion,

33:58 Speaker 1 a burning urge. Then he needs to ask his mashpia, without embarrassment, whether he should go on outreach despite that, whether he must not go, or whether he should wait a few weeks or some other period. I’m sure that a knowledgeable mashpia will tell him what to do and how to work on it. But of course, don’t be foolish. Don’t think outreach is so important that even if you’re falling into forbidden conduct, you should keep going. G-d forbid that outreach should become a mitzvah performed through a transgression. You should do a mitzvah with the mindset that you’re going with the Rebbe, you’re going with Heaven’s help, and you’re going to give to others. Then outreach shouldn’t cause a problem. If a student can’t control himself, he really needs to ask what to do. Another question: May one sell a menorah to a non-Jew? There’s no problem; you may sell a menorah to a non-Jew. You should tell him that it’s a Jewish practice, but as far as I know, it’s permissible to sell him a menorah. And of course, there’s no problem asking for plenty of money. He doesn’t have a mitzvah, so it costs what it costs. Why is lighting Chanukah candles such an important mitzvah that we make sure every Jew lights them? As explained in many maamarim and sichos, there is something special about the Chanukah lights. Besides being a mitzvah, they have a special connection to light, to illuminating darkness, to mesirus nefesh and to Geulah—all the things we most need in our times. That’s what the Rebbe explained, and almost every year the Rebbe spoke about Chanukah as a special mitzvah with a special power to reveal the power of a Jew’s yechidah, the power of mesirus nefesh. It has a special power to illuminate

36:06 Speaker 1 The world outside—so it has a special power to illuminate the world. And that is why Chanukah affects the soul more than another mitzvah, because of this special quality of Chanukah. There is a great deal to say about this, but I think that if the students take the Rebbe’s sichos on Chanukah, they will see how the Rebbe explains it. It is very clear that Chanukah has something very special that brings light, joy, and vitality, particularly into our own darkness, into our struggle with the yetzer hara. Okay, here is another question, about mivtzoim in general. There are some very, very good questions here, but they are not about Chanukah, so we’ll leave them for the next time we talk about mivtzoim in general. One moment, one moment. First let’s answer what’s written here. There are questions here. I think this is one of them. If you have only one menorah, and there is a man and a woman: according to halachah, both are obligated. Strictly speaking, both a man and a woman are obligated, but it seems that the man has a greater obligation than the woman. So, apparently, you should give it to the man, even though both were part of the same miracle. I hope that... it will. I don’t feel comfortable asking people for money on mivtzoim. I understand that. I don’t feel comfortable either, but I think that if you do it very matter-of-factly, you are not asking for money. You tell him, “There’s a suggested price; pay what you can.” So if he has the money, he’ll pay. If he doesn’t, that’s fine. I have nothing to add to that. But really, people don’t take it as badly as we think. It’s in our heads. Okay, this question isn’t about Chanukah.

38:13 Speaker 1 About the caravan, the parade of cars—what is the point of it? Okay. The Rebbe encouraged it. The Rebbe would even come out and watch it.

38:29 Speaker 3 The Rebbe.

38:29 Speaker 1 Huh?

38:29 Speaker 3 The Rebbe.

38:30 Speaker 1 I don’t know if the Rebbe started it, but once it began, the Rebbe encouraged it. The students started it, and the Rebbe would stand and watch. There are even pictures where you can see the Rebbe gesturing with his hand as they went out. It started with Chanukah, and afterward it continued on other Yomim Tovim as well. The Rebbe was very much in favor of it. It’s a tremendous way of publicizing the miracles, and that’s the reality. A caravan with lots of cars and everything, disrupting traffic. So now the question is whether that’s a chillul Hashem. Someone wrote here that the caravan causes a chillul Hashem. Of course, what people call a chillul Hashem is often in their own heads. I mean, you can think of anything as a kiddush Hashem or a chillul Hashem. If you ask an opponent, he’ll tell you that going out on mivtzoim in the street to put tefillin on people is a chillul Hashem. In his mind, it is. Some people think that walking down the street in a hat is a chillul Hashem. Others think that if you wear a jacket in the summer, that’s a chillul Hashem, because in the summer you’re supposed to dress lightly. What do you mean, going around dressed like that? Are you crazy? It happens often. I’m walking down the street and people say to me, “What, aren’t you hot?” So that’s a chillul Hashem? It’s nonsense. Who decides what is a chillul Hashem and what is a kiddush Hashem? Halachah decides—not you, not what’s in your head, not your gut feeling. The fact that some people might laugh at you doesn’t determine whether it’s a chillul Hashem or a kiddush Hashem. If you do things according to Torah and halachah, it’s a kiddush Hashem. If you do things against Torah and halachah, then it’s a chillul Hashem. That’s the definition of kiddush Hashem and chillul Hashem. A chillul

39:57 Speaker 1 Hashem is, for example, when you buy something and don’t pay for it; that’s written in halachah. A Jew who doesn’t pay and causes financial problems brings about a chillul Hashem. A Jew who behaves recklessly in the street—that’s a chillul Hashem. So I’ll get to the caravan. According to halachah, ... it’s a kiddush Hashem. Jews openly displaying their Judaism certainly is. Now, you have to be careful not to do things that could cause a chillul Hashem. If the students in the caravan start shouting like madmen, fooling around, running from one to another, and turning the place into a madhouse, that could be a chillul Hashem. But if the students behave properly and do things properly, the caravan itself is a tremendous kiddush Hashem. That’s clear. So it’s a project that should be organized as beautifully and orderly as possible. But there’s no need to be so afraid of it either. You have to make sure it’s done the right way. It could be, it could be. It could be. No, no, no, no, no, no. There’s no mitzvah to be inside the mitzvah tank. No. There’s value in having a caravan, and there’s value in going on mivtzoim, and you have to see what’s right for each person. There’s no mitzvah that everyone has to... It doesn’t say that, no. Is there a point in giving out olive-oil lights on mivtzoim? No. The Rebbe always encouraged giving out candles because that’s practical. Olive oil doesn’t work for this. Candles are perfectly fine according to halachah; there’s no problem with them. Of course, if someone is inclined to do the mitzvah in a more meticulous way, you can tell him to go to a store and buy olive oil, but don’t make that the campaign. Why do they make such a tall menorah? For pirsumei nisa, to publicize the miracle, but you should try to keep it below ten meters, as we said. Why is there more shturem about Chanukah? We’ve already discussed that.

42:07 Speaker 1 Before the Rebbe began the Chanukah campaign, was there even any such concept? I don’t know; I didn’t understand the question. Is it true that the Rebbe invested more in Chanukah than in other mivtzoim? In a number of years that was the case, though not necessarily every year. There were many years when the Rebbe encouraged Mivtza Chanukah in an extraordinary way. For all the reasons we mentioned, when there were times of greater darkness, the Rebbe called for more shturem in Mivtza Chanukah. We saw that clearly. In general, Mivtza Chanukah has a special significance because it illuminates the darkness. That’s very important. Is there a point in giving a menorah to someone who doesn’t look like he’ll light it? Certainly. We believe a Jew has a soul, and once he has Chanukah candles, perhaps in another ten minutes—or another five minutes—he’ll feel some yiras Shamayim, and if he has a menorah, he’ll light it. Is it better to learn on Chanukah or to go on mivtzoim all day? We’ve already answered that question. We also answered about sufganiyot on Chanukah, and about going on mivtzoim every day. Okay, good. Oh, it’s late. What’s the schedule? We’ve already discussed it. We’ve already discussed the caravan. We’ve discussed that too. What if mivtzoim make you late for seder? Of course you need to get to seder, but seder is shorter on Chanukah, so the students have enough time for mivtzoim, for sleep, for looking after their health, and for getting to seder. Mivtzoim are absolutely no excuse for not coming to seder. Quite simply. Okay, politics between two elderly women because you gave one a discount and not the other. You have to be careful not to create problems like that, but you can say at the outset, “This is the price, and if someone can’t afford it, that’s okay.” We’ve also already said that there’s no problem regarding non-Jews and Jews. In short. So, guys, we have to make a big shturem

44:11 Speaker 1 as Chanukah approaches. There may be questions here that I haven’t answered yet, but anyone who didn’t get an answer can come afterward and ask. And most importantly, may we merit the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu already, and may we merit to see the Kohen Gadol lighting the menorah in the Beis Hamikdash, and so on.

44:30 Speaker 4 Amen.