Rosh Yeshiva’s Stance Versus Rebbe’s Emphasis on Saving Lives

The Inside Story of Chabad in America — Episode 176

Welcome to our weekly program, The Inside Story of Chabad in America, through the Mindel archives.

A few years ago I mentioned that the Rebbe had told me, years ago, that I should stay in a yeshiva — meaning I should teach in a yeshiva — and I wanted to leave to other places. The Rebbe said, "But davka you should stay there." He mentioned this to me a few times. So, till today, I am connected with these talmidim, and some of them are already Roshei Yeshiva, some of them are already in the mercaz, I'm... married [unclear], they even have a club, and they listen to this program.

So we mentioned in this program a few weeks ago that in the English letters of the Rebbe, the Rebbe expresses himself much more clearly than in the Yiddish correspondence, than in the Hebrew. We spoke about this already — that the English letters are for the whole world: for frum people, for not-frum people, for scientists and doctors, Roshei Yeshiva — everybody, everybody, on all subjects. It's unbelievable. And by the way, b'ezrat Hashem, in two weeks the sixth volume of the English letters is coming out — that's [unclear].

So we had a farbrengen with these talmidim, with my talmidim, not long ago, and there was quite a large crowd, baruch Hashem. And they asked me a few questions. One of the things they mentioned was the policy of Chabad: sitting and learning — Yiddishkeit, learning, learning — or should we go and rescue Jews, kiruv work. What is the [Rebbe's] view on that? They wanted to know, since the Rebbe answers all, all answers, so they asked me if I could find a letter stating what the shitah of the Rebbe is on this. And since they listen to this program, I found a letter, and I hope they're listening now, because that answers what they asked.

Now, by the way, at that gathering, one of the talmidim — maybe the mashgiach — told me that he heard a story from his Rosh Yeshiva. What's the story? There were two bochurim sitting and learning, and they looked out the window and saw that their friend had a car accident. So one of them closed the Gemara and went — he called [for help] — and he helped his friend, and he went to the hospital, and he stayed with him at the hospital. He had to have an operation, and he was worried about him, and he was constantly there three, four days in the hospital with him. Then he came home and he took care of him, and [unclear] — this is what he did, this was amazing.

Then he came back to learn, sat down next to the other bochur, and the Rosh Yeshiva said to him like this: "What you did is excellent — you went and you helped, pashut, you had to help — but the other one, the one who continued learning, you are even greater than him, because by your learning you saved his life." This is what the Rosh Yeshiva told him.

So they wanted to tell me this story that was discussed there, and that's why I felt I should read to you today a letter of the Rebbe, so we'll know what the Rebbe feels about this.

Now, before I read that letter, I want to tell you about another letter where [the Rebbe] answered somebody who asked: it says that learning Torah, studying Torah, outweighs everything — so why doesn't the Rebbe stress more Torah? Not that the Rebbe doesn't — the Rebbe always speaks Torah, the Rebbe always says we should learn Torah — but should it be, let's say, ninety percent Torah and the rest chesed, or the other way? Why, if "Talmud Torah" [outweighs everything], does the Rebbe emphasize chesed so much?

So the Rebbe answered him like this — I hope my talmidim are listening now — "You are right, Talmud Torah is connected with the highest thing. When is Talmud Torah connected with that? When all the things that come before it, that the Mishnah speaks of, are done properly." It says, before that, these are the things for which a person is rewarded in this world and in the World to Come: What are they? Honoring your parents — that's one. When a person honors his parents properly, as it says, "honor the father that is within you, and the mother that is within you" — if you do this properly; when you do acts of kindness properly to everybody; when you never miss attending the study hall, you are careful about that; when you have an open house for guests, and you don't pick and choose — "oh, I'll choose this one, I like this one better, not this one" — but anybody who comes to the house, even if you don't particularly like them; when you visit the sick; when you help toward a bride [hachnasas kallah]; when you bring peace between husband and wife — if you do all those things properly, then the Torah that you learn outweighs everything.

Then, as it says, "Talmud Torah keneged kulam" — but "im ein kemach, ein Torah" — if there is no flour [sustenance, good deeds], there is no Torah. I mean, whoever says, "I only have Torah" — that's not it; the Torah has to come together with it. It's not enough just to learn Torah and acquire knowledge alone. So this is what the Rebbe answered to this person, and this is what I wanted to mention now.

Now I'm going to read a letter — what the Rebbe said to somebody:

"Sir, I am in receipt of your letter. It seems to me that you are devoting too much attention — moreover, as I see from your writing — to the arguments concerning the policy of Lubavitch. As I see from your writing, some of the critics of Lubavitch, judging by your argument, do not seem to look for the truth, but rather are trying to justify their own conduct, which deep in their hearts they feel is not as it should be.

"I will attempt to clarify this matter for you briefly, by means of the well-known teaching of Hillel HaZakein, Hillel the Elder, and what he said: 'What is hateful unto thee, do not do unto others.' Accordingly, suppose we ask the students of the kollel who claims it is right for him to sit and study Torah, disregarding the plight of his fellow Jew who is in need of help to be brought closer to Yiddishkeit, on the basis that he will help him some years later — how would you feel, if the situation were reversed? This is to say, suppose you were born into a non-religious family, and under the influence of the circumstances you were not only unaware of Chassidus but even of a yeshiva altogether, yet you reached a stage where you felt you wanted to identify yourself with Torah and mitzvos and the Jewish way of life. No one is taking an interest in you, but there is a boy sitting in a kollel, desiring to advance his own knowledge of Torah. You appeal to him to help you, but he says, 'Sorry, I still wish to advance my own knowledge of Torah, I will see what I can do for you in a couple of years' — how would you feel then?

"I am aware of the argument that no such policy existed some fifty or a hundred years ago, when there was no doubt that the primary duty of a Jewish boy was to sit and learn Torah. This was years ago, but we must not forget that the situation was quite different two or three generations ago. In those days, especially in Eastern Europe, where the bulk of world Jewry was concentrated, the Jewish home was a kosher home, the streets were also Jewish, and there was no immediate danger of assimilation or intermarriage, God forbid. Under such circumstances, the important thing was to make a Torah scholar out of the ignorant, and a greater lamdan out of a smaller lamdan.

"In our days, unfortunately, it is not a question of raising the level of Torah knowledge among Jews — it's rather a question of actually saving Jews, that they should remain Jews, in the very plain sense of the word. This obviously takes precedence over everything else."

Sometimes the Rebbe does say, in letters, that people should continue learning; sometimes [that they] should go do kiruv work. But in general, the shitah of the Rebbe — this is the episode — sometimes the Rebbe says that the mitzvah to help a fellow Jew, even at self-sacrifice, began with the Alter Rebbe, author of the Tanya, which has been accepted by all Jews — not because he was the Rebbe of Chabad, but because he was one of the most outstanding Torah scholars of his day. This has continued from generation to generation, down to my father-in-law [the Previous Rebbe] of saintly memory, who received semicha at the age of seventeen, and who was also a great Torah scholar, though he never boasted about it. He too would have preferred, under other circumstances, to sit and learn Torah day and night.

Yet when a terrible crisis arose in Russia, and a new regime took power — a ruthless regime which openly declared war against religion in general, and the Jewish religion in particular — and when almost everybody else fled for his life, leaving Jewish communities without spiritual guidance and support, it was my father-in-law of saintly memory who rose single-handedly to defend and preserve Torah and mitzvos in Soviet Russia. He was the only one who supported yeshivos, regardless of whether they were chassidishe or non-chassidishe, and who provided facilities to teach even a child of communist parents in some remote place. And in fact, at this time there are thousands upon thousands of Jews in Soviet Russia — it is only due to the real self-sacrifice of my father-in-law of saintly memory, and his disciples, who actually suffered persecution and torture, as is well known.

And this — the Rebbe also mentioned, in another letter — that nowadays, Hashem yishmareinu, a spiritual death is worse than a physical death. Russia was a physical [danger]; now it's a spiritual death. There it was both spiritual and physical; now it's [primarily] spiritual. So when we see people whom we can save from intermarriage, or something like that, so of course, of course you have to go and save them — this is chesed.

One more paragraph which I think is very important for the listeners to hear, what the Rebbe says:

"Finally, one simple test as to the sincerity of the critics of Lubavitch is this: are they indeed dedicated one hundred percent of the time to the study of Torah, or are they taking time out to carry on debates and arguments, to read newspapers, and to do other things which, though legitimate in themselves, are time-consuming — and this time could be applied to helping other Jews in need of help? I venture to say that the argument that they do not wish to join in any such activities as Lubavitch is engaged in, by reason of their devotion and dedication to the study of Torah, is rather questionable."

So this is the shitah of the Rebbe, and this is the answer to what I wanted to read today, because this was the conversation we had at that farbrengen, and this makes things clear. Of course Torah is important — it is the most important thing, and when you learn Torah you have to learn — today you have to learn day and night, and everything is connected to that; you connect yourself to the Rebbe through learning Torah. But that's not to say that if there is a fire burning outside, you should continue learning and not go help. This, I don't think, is the shitah of the Rebbe.

In any case, since we're getting closer to Matan Torah, the giving of the Torah, the most important thing is not just "na'aseh v'nishma" — you have to do, first, na'aseh, and then you have to know that you have to do the mitzvos.

And the Rebbe often — the Rebbe always says, in a telegram before Shavuos — we will continue our weekly program next week. Thank you.