Birthday Wishes Dignitaries Sent to the Rebbe

Welcome to our weekly program, The Inside Story of Chabad in America, through the Mindel archives. We are now around three weeks before [Yud Alef Nissan], the Rebbe's birthday, and every year, in honor of the Rebbe's birthday, public figures — religious and non-religious — leaders, dignitaries, politicians, from the entire world, send good wishes to the Rebbe in honor of his birthday, in all different languages: Hebrew, English, Yiddish, we have Spanish, French, Portuguese, Russian, even Arabic. I have letters here that were sent to the Rebbe in Arabic — fascinating letters wishing him well. These are not the regular [letters]; this is a special pile that the Rebbe gave to Rabbi Mindel — all the letters that people wrote — because we had to answer, to give them brachos. He didn't answer all of them, but he answered some. So here I have a pile, all the letters that were sent from people to the Rebbe. Look at it, listen: so today I want to share with you some correspondence from Eretz Yisrael only, and next week I want to share with you from America, from Europe, and from other places.

I wish to also mention, here in this [connection — unclear], the Congress made the declaration that the Rebbe's birthday should officially, every year, be called a Day of Education, and as you know, I think they started in '75 — I'm not sure. So we have over here, which I'll share with you — today I will share with you some of these letters that people sent to the Rebbe when he turned 90, and also some over here in this pile are letters [from when] he had the heart attack in 1988 and people wished him a refuah sheleimah, and also in 1992, when the Rebbe had a stroke.

So here I'm going to read to you who sent the Rebbe [wishes], that I have here in this pile, from Eretz Yisrael only. [unclear] — the division of celebrities together, and also the [unclear] — these are the people that sent brachos. As we once spoke, the Rebbe wore three crowns, he was a Nasi. You see how many thousands and thousands from all over the world — they went to the Rebbe for dollars — and also it was associated with the world who sent people to Washington, as we're going to mention next week. [unclear] — so, so many letters.

And here I have also, from the chief rabbis — beautiful letters that he sent to them: Rav Shapiro [?], Rav Lau [?], and also Herzog [?] — but he didn't sign; it says "b'shem" [in his name] — his gabbai signed the letter. That's as far as the chief rabbis.

Now I have here [letters from] the Roshei Yeshiva of Israel. By the way, there's a letter here from Rav Hutner — he was close to the Rebbe. He didn't have [sons], so the Rebbe gave him a bracha. He has one daughter only; she lives now in [unclear].

Also here we have letters from [various rabbis of] Israel — we have [unclear names — "arapin Jose Levine"] together, and from [unclear] it says Rav Steinman sent a beautiful letter — I don't know what year, I have it over here. Also [Rav Bunim? — unclear], he is a maggid shiur in the yeshiva in Ponovezh, he also [sent a letter]. And also we have here from the organization/school [unclear, sounds like "Malachi"] in Tel Aviv. We have it from the Young [unclear], here also from the consulate — you have a beautiful [letter from] David Grossman [?], and from Ashkelon, a community leader, [unclear], a vocational school, [unclear], the Israel Mental Health Association, their administration, from El Al — everywhere, beautiful letters.

Now, El Al — it's important to mention that Rabbi [unclear name] was a mashpia, he was very much involved with El Al, and he wrote, and the people from El Al wrote to the Rebbe, and the Rebbe wrote back beautiful letters.

Now I have here also political community leaders: Elie Wiesel, quite a few letters; the Israeli Embassy, Yaakov Herzog, Ariel Sharon, [Zalman] Shazar, President of the Medinah; the Prime Minister — it's Ben-Gurion — in [unclear] in 1970, she sent [a letter] — and also David Levy. I have here the Minister of Science, [developer — unclear], the mayor of [Nissan? — unclear], the mayor of [Richardson? — unclear] — you have here Kaufman, Joshua, Knesset, the Israeli Defense [Forces — unclear]. Anyway, you have over here people that sent [wishes].

Now also, some people made a different style of the cover. I will read over here a proclamation that [unclear — possibly the Governor] made — just one, I mean, it says... this is the 82nd birthday — behind us here, what is that — they say... I'm going to read now in English, the proclamation:

"World Jewry is now celebrating the 84th birthday of its revered leader, the renowned sage, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, [who] has in the past proclaimed a Day of Education, and the President of the United States and the Congress of the United States has designated Education Day USA in his honor. He is now engaged, as was written, [in] a campaign for Sifrei Torah to unite all Jews throughout the world, and over six million Jews have already registered their own letter in one of the Sifrei Torah. This year marks the 851st anniversary of the birth of the Rambam, [author of] the Mishneh Torah, Maimonides, and through the Rebbe's efforts, tens of thousands of people throughout the world have now concluded his major halachic work, Yad HaChazakah, through the study of its chapters each day during the entire year, for the second time, and have immediately started his work for the third time. The Rebbe's educational activities throughout the globe have enriched and strengthened the religious, educational, cultural, moral, and ethical fibers of all citizens of the world. Now, therefore, I" — this is the government, State of New York — "do hereby proclaim April 20th [or] July 13, 1986, as the 85th Day, the 85 Days of Education." And then they put a stamp — I'm going to share this with you maybe next week.

Here I have [Yitzchak] Shamir — [sent] from San Diego, a bracha for his birthday. Here from El Al, Senator [unclear] — all [these] when the Rebbe turned 84 — you wouldn't think he's still [in the] army — and then he gives him a bracha.

Here we have from [Zalman] Shazar — historic — here is a letter, and this is written in his own handwriting to Rabbi Mindel. He wrote that the Rebbe told Rabbi Klein to tell Rabbi Mindel to answer many of the people — I'm just reading — to answer them, and this should be their answer. He answered — other answers, but quite a lot [were answered] because of those letters. This is from Rabbi Klein's handwriting.

Here we also have a letter — he wrote a beautiful letter to the Rebbe, but here he wrote something else also, besides the bracha, and he wrote that he had a talk with the Rav HaRoshi [the chief rabbi] — that's anyway for next episode.

Here you have, from — where is this — this is from Beersheva. Then you have over here, also from Aluf Sharon. And also I have over here — inside, there's about four pages that he wrote to the Rebbe, a question, and the same [person], this was the mayor of [unclear], and he gave it to the Rebbe to answer.

And then over here we have from Ben-Gurion, but it says on top, the Rebbe wrote "lo nidpas" ["not to be printed"], and there's a reason why this letter should not be printed — this is from David Ben-Gurion, it's a [sensitive — unclear] letter.

Here we have brachos from — this is [Shazar? — unclear], this is another letter from other people, another bracha, but it's with different words over here.

Here we have from David Ben-Gurion a letter, these are about four or five pages — besides the bracha, he discusses certain matters — and by the way, Ben-Gurion was [unclear], his secretary [unclear] — anyways, "HaMisrad [Rosh HaMemshalah] Medinat Yisrael" [the Prime Minister's Office, State of Israel].

This is from Montreal, and also [half/another letter] is from Shapiro, Nevada — and this is another letter from one of the Rebbeim [Chassidic leaders] — I think this is a beautiful letter — this is from the Belzer [Rebbe], I think, in a few words. This is from [unclear] — there's somebody asking the Rebbe, thanking him for sending him [something].

This is a letter [from] Lawrence [?] — okay, I'm not going to say what this is. Okay, now this is from the mayor of [unclear — "Golden"] — this is from 1970.

How she was connected with that — unbelievable — and this is from [unclear]. Anyway, there is so much here from — this is [unclear]. It's not important — [the Rebbe] was careful never to send [the word] — it's the Medinat Yisrael — and then, in San Diego, because — it's left, to [mark] the Rebbe's birthday — is now, by the way, it's [unclear]. I don't think ever — maybe he did once, probably didn't — never mentioned the word "Medinah" — he always used to say, instead, "Eretz Yisrael." He never mentioned the word [Medinah] — some [letters are] not for the Medinah, but they mentioned [it] within — a million times he was careful to say "Eretz Yisrael" instead.

Anyway, here's from [before — unclear], the [unclear], 85.

Okay, this is — okay, I think we don't have time anymore. Here we see how much the Rebbe got letters — from thousands and thousands, whichever side — from [our] people, and from not [our] people, from the entire world. So here, I'm not going to continue, because there's so much here in this pile. So I imagine next week we're going to continue with the people that sent from Europe, from the United States, and from Canada. Thank you.