‘Go to the Lubavitcher Rebbe and Ask Mechila’

Welcome to our weekly Motzaei Shabbos program. A few months ago I mentioned this program — that years ago the Rebbe wanted that I should teach in the yeshivas of Brooklyn, and until today, many times now, these [students] are already Rabbis themselves. Some of them are in Lakewood, in Baltimore, and in Cleveland. So we get together from time to time for a farbrengen, and it's nice.

They asked me a question, and I would like to make things straight here, and if they have this question, I'm sure other people also have this question. They asked me why isn't the Rebbe in touch or involved with [unclear] — this was the question that they have, and many people have this question also. They tell me, "The Rebbe — look, the Rebbe is in touch with politicians, with PR people, with chief rabbis, military people, government officials, Reform rabbis" — they see letters [from] rabbis — I don't know, you're not allowed to call it "Reform rabbi" or "Conservative" — "people, Senators, scientists." But they don't see — at least they didn't see — and they want to know why the Rebbe is not involved, or doesn't even sometimes meet with them.

So I want to use this program — and I know they're listening to this program — so I want to get the record straight. First of all, there are many, many letters, questions and answers, and I have many, many letters in English and in Hebrew and in other languages. I want to give you examples of how the Rebbe was in touch — of his leadership in the world; we don't know how the world would look without him.

The Rebbe sent many, many people to Rav Moshe Feinstein [?], and there were letters back and forth. As a matter of fact, Rav Moshe Feinstein [?] went to the Rebbe, and they spent quite a while together, and the Rebbe gave him a pair of tefillin — I don't know if he wears them or not, I don't know, but I know the Rebbe gave him tefillin. There was a connection, there was a closeness between them.

Another example: Harav Hutner, zichrono livracha — he was the Rosh Yeshiva [?]; he learned with the Rebbe as a [unclear] in the early years. And as a matter of fact, I don't know if people know that he wrote to the Rebbe asking for a bracha for a child — he didn't have children, and he needed a bracha from the Rebbe. The Rebbe gave him a bracha for a child; he had a girl, he didn't have a boy. And as a matter of fact, she — she just passed away about a half a year ago; she was older, she was a great mechaneches [?], she was known — I think her name was Bruriah [?] — she was known in Eretz Yisroel and even before, in America.

So we see the connection. The Rosh Yeshiva of Telshe [?] — we knew him very well, my father was very close to him — and he was the Rav; he came, I think he even came to a farbrengen in Cleveland.

Now I want to tell you a story, maybe I mentioned it once. They were all close to my father. So Rav Gifter [?] came over to my father and said, "I want to tell you something, but please say it over to the Rebbe" — he had a way of talking. What was it? He says there was [a Rosh Yeshiva] in Telshe [?], and he was a Rosh Yeshiva, he says, a good [unclear], and I heard that he spoke not [respectfully about the Rebbe]. "I called him over, doctor [?], and I asked him, did you speak about the Rebbe [this way]?" He says, "Yes." So he says to him, "Take your suitcase" — those days, years ago — "take a Greyhound bus, go to the Rebbe, take off your shoes, go ask mechila, and when I find out that you asked, I will take you back. Please say it over to the Rebbe what I just told you." He's asking my father [to tell this to the Rebbe].

So when my father went to the Rebbe years later, he told the Rebbe what happened, and the Rebbe leaned back — the Rebbe usually, by yechidus, never leans back, and the same goes also by farbrengen, he always sits leaning forward, he doesn't lean back — he leaned back with a big smile, and he says, "A darkness and concealment was removed" — that means the Rebbe was so happy to hear this. I don't know if he ever wrote — I don't have any letters that he wrote to the Rebbe about it, but he did speak to people about the Rebbe.

I just want to give you an example of how the Rebbe — it was, it was in touch, or at least they wanted the Rebbe to know that they're not against him.

We know that Rabbi Eliezer Silver [?] — you know that in 1943, before, in wartime — Silver was very much close to the Rebbe. There was a march of 500 rabbis; they went to Washington three days before Yom Kippur, to President Roosevelt. The Rebbe and the Frierdiker Rebbe worked together — the Frierdiker Rebbe wasn't feeling well, so I think the Rebbe was the one who organized the delegation — part of it — to go on that march. There was Rabbi [unclear] the representative, and Rabbi [unclear] the representative, and Rabbi [unclear] was sent then, and this is what he worked out, I guess, with Silver — they were close. We have over here letters — there were times that the yeshivos needed money, they were almost about to close down years ago, and the Rebbe gave money — these are [things we have letters about], and there are more. I'm not going to name all of them; they are letters. So the people that think the Rebbe is not in touch or involved — that's a mistake.

Now, you know there was a Rabbi — [heard as "Helmet"] [?]. He traveled back and forth — I think they have letters with him — and he went to the Rebbe many times, and I think we need a special program about what happened with him, because he lived in Cleveland, so we were also close with him; he told my father a lot from the Rebbe.

The Rebbe went to [visit him] when he lost his daughter — I think it was in '53 or '54 — and they were sitting and talking, they had a conversation. I think one of the questions was — it says that a sinner is full of mitzvos like a pomegranate [is full of seeds] — so he asked, if he's a sinner, how can he be full of mitzvos? So the Rebbe answered him, "I also have a question — how can he be full of [sins]?"

And he came to the Rebbe when [the Rebbe was sitting shiva] for the Rebbe's mother — I remember, I was young then, I remember when he came in, they were there, I think, quite a long time.

My Rabbi Mindel was very close to President Zalman Shazar, so President Shazar told him that when he was by the Rebbe, he started to speak about [unclear — "Z"], whatever it was — it wasn't [said] the way it should have been — so the Rebbe grabbed his hand like that and didn't let him speak further. He says — I think he says, I don't remember exactly — and he didn't let him speak further. This is how Rabbi Mindel told this — what Shazar told Rabbi Mindel.

The Frierdiker Rebbe worked together with him about people from Romania, and I remember that this was by the Rebbe — I remember that the Rebbe gave him his aliyah. The Rebbe, usually, years ago, before the Rebbe davened with the minyan, he came out Monday and Thursday in 770, and the Rebbe came in, and usually he had his [seat] — so the Rebbe saw him and said to the gabbai, "Give him my aliyah." And they were in touch about a lot of things.

The Gerrer Rebbe, the Beis Yisroel, was very [close] — when the Rebbe sent, I think in '57 — I have the whole [story] over here — in '57, when he sent 15 [students], after the tragedy — there was Rabbi [unclear], and there's more — 15 [students] — and he sent Rabbi [unclear] and Rav [unclear] to go to the airport, to the plane, to greet them, to see the Beis Yisroel. And the Beis Yisroel was very happy, and asked them to give regards to the Rebbe.

And by the way, the Beis Yisroel — during the '67 war, I know people know this — people wanted, before the war, people wanted to leave; he asked, "I need to know what to say — to stay or not." So, in other words, he relied on the Rebbe. So there was a closeness — the Beis Yisroel was close with the Rebbe, everybody knows.

And there's [a story] with the — this I heard, there's different — I heard that, in Poland, after the Rebbe got married, right after — maybe the Beis Yisroel [?] was there too — the Rebbe's uncle said to the Rebbe, "Let's go and visit the Gerrer Rebbe." I don't know, maybe the Rebbe didn't want to or didn't have time, but the uncle said, "Please, let's go, I'm going to see him." So the Rebbe said, "Okay, I'll go with you, only on condition that you won't tell him who I am" — that he is the son-in-law of the Frierdiker Rebbe.

So they went, and the Gerrer Rebbe gave shalom to the uncle, then he turns to the Rebbe and gives him shalom — I think that when he gave shalom he had gloves on, I don't remember exactly, but anyway, he was holding his hand and he didn't let go. So he asked his uncle, "Who is this young man?" He wasn't allowed to say, but he couldn't hold himself back, and he said — so the Gerrer Rebbe was holding his hand tight, and he says, "He has a very warm hand." The connection — I mean, it was there also.

The Rebbe also, I think, went to his levaya [?] — I think the [reason] was... I mean, there's much more. Even there's letters — as far as Baba Sali [?] wrote to the Rebbe back and forth. So you can't say that the Rebbe — I just want to show you there's much more, how much, besides being involved with the entire world — the connection he had for Klal Yisroel was something unbelievable.

But one thing I want to say — this was special, and next week I'm going to tell you exactly an amazing delegation that the Frierdiker Rebbe sent to the Rebbe. But not today — today I just want to mention that the name was Rabbi Yekusiel Yehuda [the Klausenburger Rebbe] [?]. He visited the Frierdiker Rebbe in 1946; he met the Frierdiker Rebbe, and the topic of discussion then was what's the best way to save the sheyris hapleitah, the remnants of the survivors that were left in Europe. This was in 1946. And he praised his love and dedication to Yidden — how much he loved the Yidden.

Two years later, in 1948, the Frierdiker Rebbe sent a mazel tov letter to him on the occasion of his marriage — he got married; this was his second marriage. He had lost eleven children and a wife — the Nazis shot eleven children and a wife. And in 1948 he got married again, and on the 29th of Teves 1948, the Frierdiker Rebbe writes very warm letters about him — calls him a "clear looking glass" — about his leadership.

So even though our Rebbe never met him face to face, nevertheless we can see the way they wrote back and forth — there was a great interest between them. And next week I will share with you something very, very special about this.

So again, the Rebbe — he, and everybody, whether it was from [an observant background] or not yet — never liked to say the word "not religious," just like he doesn't like to say "there is no," because "no" is far. So also, whether one is observant or not yet, the Rebbe was in touch with all these millions and millions of Yidden.

So I just want to get the record straight. Next week we'll continue our weekly program. Thank you.