The Previous Rebbe’s Difficult Trip

Historic Treasures of Chabad in America — Episode 3: "The Previous Rebbe's Difficult Trip"

A gutn voch. Welcome to our weekly program, Historic Treasures of Chabad in America, through the Mindel Archives.

I'd like to tell you a little bit about the journey of the Frierdiker Rebbe, who came to America in 1940. The whole journey was very, very uncomfortable — there were a lot of winds, storms. The Rebbe, the Previous Rebbe, was not feeling well, and at one point he fell off the bed onto the floor. Rabbi Mindel went with somebody else to pick him up. As soon as they came to pick him up, he asked, "Did anybody else fall?" They said no. Rabbi Mindel said that he felt the simcha of the Frierdiker Rebbe — he was pleased that nobody else had fallen. Then they picked him up and put him back on his bed.

Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah, the Previous Rebbe's mother and the Rebbe Rashab's Rebbetzin, was there. She kept saying to him — because the Frierdiker Rebbe was not well, having gone through so much in Russia, and was coming to America to "break the ice" of America — she would say to the Eibershter: "Eibershter, tzores host du nisht, un du gibst mentshn tzores" — "You don't have troubles, but you give people troubles; my son is not well." "Gelt host du a sach, un du gibst keynem nit" — "You have plenty of money, but you don't give anyone any" — meaning her son needed money to build Chabad. She asked the Eibershter that He should help the Frierdiker Rebbe. She said this all the time on the ship.

When the Frierdiker Rebbe came here, there was a big Kabbalas Panim, and he went to a hotel — this was before 770. He took his whole family there, and the few supporters he had were there with him. After three or four weeks they decided, "We should try to help the Rebbe — let's make a Melave Malka, a dinner, so the Rebbe should have a few dollars to build Chabad in America."

Now, why a Melave Malka? Because in 1939 these people had made a Melave Malka for the Frierdiker Rebbe. Here I have a letter written by the Frierdiker Rebbe in 5699 (1939) to Mr. Stolman, one of the supporters. The Rebbe writes: "Sholom u'vracha. Here I am to express my gratitude for participating in the Melave Malka in the Jewish Center" — they had made a Melave Malka in the Jewish Center, which is now Oholei Torah. That was the first Melave Malka made for the Frierdiker Rebbe. He thanks Mr. Zalman Kramer, and the Frierdiker Rebbe gives his bracha. That is the letter.

So they thought, since the Frierdiker Rebbe liked the idea of a Melave Malka, let's make one here in America as well — this was before our Rebbe came here.

So, motzei Shabbos, they got ready. Rabbi Mindel wheeled the Frierdiker Rebbe, who was in a wheelchair, into the kitchen, where people were getting ready. Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah was sitting next to the Frierdiker Rebbe. When the Melave Malka was ready, they called Rabbi Mindel over and said, "We are all ready — tell the Rebbe we can wheel him into the dinner, to the Melave Malka. But we have a program — here is our program; show it to the Rebbe before he comes in."

So Rabbi Mindel took the paper and went to the Previous Rebbe in the kitchen and told him they were ready for the dinner, but that they had a program. The Rebbe said, "Can you read the program for me?" So he started to read. The first item was that they were going to sing a Zionist song — this was apparently their custom before a dinner. The Frierdiker Rebbe said to Rabbi Mindel, "Tell them, this song we cannot sing — we will not sing it."

Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah was a little shocked — here were people who wanted to help the Frierdiker Rebbe, her son, who had made him a dinner, and he was telling them what they could and couldn't do. But — the Rebbe said what he said. Rabbi Mindel went back to the people and told them that the Rebbe said this song could not be sung at the Melave Malka. They were a little shocked. A few minutes later they had a meeting among themselves, and then came back and said to Rabbi Mindel, "Tell the Rebbe, if we can't sing this song, we have to walk out."

Rabbi Mindel went back to the Frierdiker Rebbe and told him they said they would walk out if they couldn't sing the song. The Frierdiker Rebbe said to Rabbi Mindel in Yiddish: "Tell them, let them go and be well. Just as Hashem was with us in Europe, He will be with us in America." Rabbi Mindel went back to the people in the hall and told them what the Rebbe said — "you can go and be well; just as Hashem was with us in Europe, Hashem will be with us in America." Most of the people walked out. Some stayed. Afterward, Rabbi Mindel wheeled the Frierdiker Rebbe into the hall, and they had the dinner.

Of course, they didn't make much money, since a lot of people had walked out. But this is how Chabad in America began — with that Melave Malka, with those few people.

Here we see how the Frierdiker Rebbe did not compromise on anything. As we know from the interrogation in Russia, when they put a gun on the table, the Frierdiker Rebbe said: "Whoever has only one world is afraid of this toy; whoever has two worlds is not afraid." And here too, over a niggun — a Zionist niggun — he would not compromise. He had strong principles. This is how we can learn how Chabad started in America.

And we also see here ahavas Yisroel — when they came to pick him up after he fell, he wasn't worried about himself; he was selfless. He was worried about whether another Jew had gotten hurt.

B'ezras Hashem, next week we will continue — after this Melave Malka — with what the people who remained asked the Rebbe to do.

I hope this program will strengthen our connection with the Rebbe. A gutn voch.