After the war, in a car provided by the American headquarters, the Rebbe set out to wander and search the surrounding villages with the motto: “I seek my brethren!” In these places, a few Jewish individuals had survived here and there, having hidden during the days of wrath in attics or bunkers. Due to their long isolation from the outside world, they believed, like Lot’s daughters in the cave, that the Jewish people had, God forbid, been exterminated as intended by the wicked Hitler, may his name be blotted out. Some thought that they were the only Jews left, with no hope of continuing as Jews.
Every day, the holy Rebbe traveled to a different town. He would enter the center of the village or town and try to engage in conversation with the people he encountered on his way. As someone who appeared to be merely curious and inquiring about this and that, the conversation would eventually turn to the topic of Jews. Sometimes, it would be revealed, through an inadvertent slip of the tongue, that a survivor was staying in a certain house. The Rebbe, of blessed memory, would tirelessly follow every clue, hoping to trace a forgotten Jewish individual still hiding. Once he found them, he would speak to their hearts and persuade them to join him, promising to bring them to a place with many fellow Jews.
Many of these survivors followed him to Feldafing without any real desire. They were seemingly comfortable where they were residing. After all, the American occupiers provided food and support to the survivors wherever they were found, even to those who were living among the non-Jews of their own free will, without requiring anyone to go to work, earn a living, or the like. However, the Rebbe—who possessed remarkable powers of persuasion—convinced them to return to their brethren.
The people were still stunned and traumatized by the horrors they had endured. Some openly declared that after the great catastrophe that had occurred, they had no desire to return to live as Jews. However, the Rebbe, in his wisdom, knew how to respond to them, assuring them that he had no intention whatsoever of demanding such a thing from them. His sole intention was only to improve their physical well-being, so that they would no longer be at the mercy of the non-Jews. He asked, “Is it not better to be among brothers, who are your own flesh and blood?”
One particular case is known where the Rebbe persuaded a young Jew to join his camp: the young man argued that the Rebbe would surely not allow him to go to the cinema, and therefore he did not wish to follow him. However, the Rebbe promised him that when life returned to normal and a cinema opened for the refugees, he would give him money to buy tickets for the shows. The Rebbe even kept this promise for a short time until the young man emerged from his spiritual fog and returned to being an exemplary Jew.
