That they were comfortable there and enjoyed it there. The shliach would find every opportunity to farbreng with them, and the gradual awakening of their neshomos was clearly visible.
A few years went by, with the group making slow but steady strides in their Yiddishkeit. And then, a few weeks ago, Itzik became engaged. His family were very excited for him, and decided to fly to this farvorfener loch in California, to celebrate with their Izzy in person.
Izzy rented a place that was walking distance from both the Chabad House and from the home of the shluchim, and it was decided that the family would spend the Friday night meal with the Labkowski family, in their home, and the Shabbos day meal in the Chabad House.
When the family showed up, it was an experience for both them and the Labkowski’s. They had heard about the work of Chabad, of course, but for the first time they were able to witness it from close proximity. And, for the Labkowski children, who were used to seeing Jews in any form, and not even the most secular-looking Jew would surprise them, were completely unprepared for the father, in his shtreimel and bekeshe, or for the brothers, in their long curly peios and chassidishe attire.
Very quickly, the two families became inseparable, each inquiring and learning about the others' work and lifestyle. During the meal, the guests from Eretz Yisroel shared the following story, of their personal experience with the Rebbe:
A Personal Miracle
After their marriage, the couple experienced numerous miscarriages, with the wife being unable to bring any pregnancy to a successful conclusion. The doctors in Eretz Yisroel were unable to find any cause for the problem, and their situation, coupled by the pitying looks that were constantly coming their way from the other members of the close-knit community in which they lived, were taking a toll on them.
Finally, they decided משנה מקום משנה מזל, it was time for a change, and they moved to New York, where they lived for a few years (this was the years 5749-5750). During the time that they lived there, they took advantage of the opportunity, every single Sunday, to come to the Rebbe for a dollar and a brocho.
Every week, the woman would ask the Rebbe for a brocho for זרעא חיה וקיימא, and the Rebbe would say to her “Brocho vaHatzlocho”. While in NY, they continued to visit doctors and specialists, but still with no results.
One week, for variety, she changed her wording when she came to the Rebbe, and asked for a general brocho. The Rebbe took a dollar, and handed it to her saying “This is for you”. He then handed her a second dollar, saying “This is for your husband”. And, then he handed her a third dollar, saying “This is for the children”!!
Of course, the woman was extremely excited and emotional over what she had just heard from the Rebbe. As she walked out, another woman, a stranger who had overheard the exchange, approached her excitedly. “The Rebbe gave you a brocho, you will have children. Here”, she said, pressing a “shir hamaalos” card into her hand, “take this, you will need it”!
The child who was born, was followed by another 6, who included our “Izzy”, all thanks to the brocho of the Rebbe.
“But the biggest ness”, the father concluded emotionally, “is the fact that we’re able to sit together with Izzy by an authentic Shabbos meal, and hear about his plans to start a true Jewish home”! (Of course, they had heard from Izzy about his visits to Chabad, but–knowing his past–they were sure that the reports were exaggerated, and that he was not involved with any of the spiritual aspects).
During the vort, everyone present was moved to hear the mother’s tearful declaration "שהגיענו...ברוך לזמן הזה!"
Recognizing Spiritual Growth
And then the older brother of Izzy, attired in his “shmoneh begodim”, gave an emotional brocho to the occasion, and shared the following:
“I know that I have just personally experienced what we just learned about in Torah– ויכר יוסף את אחיו והם לא הכירוהו. The brothers could not recognize in Yosef the brother whom they had left behind, because he was now on a spiritual level that was inconceivable to them. Likewise, to see Izzy now, with an appreciation for Yiddishkeit, resolving to start a true Jewish home על יסודי התורה והמצוה, is the greatest brocho and the biggest miracle! And all thanks to the amazing work of the Rebbe and his shluchim everywhere!!”
In chassidus the idea of והם לא הכירוהו is explained at length: For the shvotim, a necessary prerequisite to their avodas Hashem was being segregated from the world. The “world”, olam hazeh, promoted the narrative that אני ואפסי עוד, that מציאותי מעצמותי, and so on. In their avoda of connecting themselves with Elokus exclusively, they endeavored to be shepherds. To be able to focus completely on the Oneness of Hashem, it was necessary for them to distance themselves as much as possible from the world; from its distractions and false messages.
Yosef, in contrast, was on a higher level. Yosef was able to be in Mitzrayim, preoccupied with the detailed calculations and accounting of their national finance, and simultaneously be maintaining his unbroken and unbreakable bond with the Eibishter, and his unquestioning mindset that Ein od milvado! This was a level in avodas Hashem that was inconceivable to the shvotim. They could not imagine the possibility of reconciling these two, seemingly contradictory, ideas. To their understanding, either someone is involved with the physical vessels of olam hazeh, on the בכל אשר תעשה, or they’re focussing on how nothing exists besides the Eibishter, and the yeshuah of the Eibishter is completely independent of help from the world (from doctors or lawyers or accountants or strategies). But they didn’t see how both could possibly coexist.
[One of the senior talmidim of the magid was once by the Alter Rebbe. Subsequently, he wrote a letter to R’ Boruch of Mezhibuzh (who was an opponent of the Alter Rebbe), in which he wrote to him: “I don’t understand what you want from him. I heard him lein (read from the Torah), and I witnessed the way he was entirely “up above”, and despite that he didn’t miss a single tropp down here”!]
And, it is this that people have difficulty recognizing in the Rebbe’s shluchim. They can respect that shluchim have the mesirus nefesh, to tear themselves away from learning and davening and deal with mayors and media and mortgages and manipulation etc. They have to deal with charity campaigns and fundraising, with begging and borrowing, with seeking מתנת בשר ודם and הלואתם. But, the assumption will be that that must come at a steep price. The shliach must no longer be immersed in the world of the Breslover chosid,-of Torah and davening and kedusha.
והם לא הכירוהו. They don’t recognize that shlichus is not merely being concerned with the welfare of other Yidden. Shlichus is a higher form of avodas Hashem, resulting from generations of the revelation of chassidus, that transcends the gap between עליונים and tachtonim, between holiness and worldliness. The avoda of shlichus is the avoda–like the avodas Hashem of Yosef haTzaddik–of being in the world and interacting with the world and at the same time being exclusively and solely preoccupied with הוא אלבדו הוא ואין ואפס זולתו!
This is the calling, the mission, of every chossid in our generation! We were charged, and empowered, to live with the deepest understanding and appreciation of ein od milvado, even while we’re in and within olam hazeh. This comes through learning–and increasing in our learning–chassidus, and internalizing through avodas hatefilah, how the world itself is one with Elokus.
As we learn in the parsha of this week–when Moshe Rabenu was born the avodazara of Mitzrayim, of worshipping the Nile, was annulled. The Rebbe explains at length in a beautiful sicha that the avodazara of Mitzrayim (which they were trying to schlep the Yidden into ch”v) was attaching importance to nature, and attributing their livelihood to natural causes. This contradicts the emuna of Yidden, that ein od milvado.
The birth of Moshe Rabenu resulted in the annulment of this avodazara. The definition of Moshe Rabbenu is revelation of G-dliness in the world. From the moment of his birth, the very metzius of Moshe Rabenu dispelled this falsehood and illuminated the darkness (it was from the moment of his birth, as well, that נתמלאה הבית כולו אורה).
Every shliach–and every chossid in our generation is a shliach of the Rebbe–with the power of his hiskashrus to the Rebbe, has to further illuminate the darkness, and dispel the falsehood. We have to spread the message that there is no ‘nature’ that is separate from Elokus; Hashem and Elokim are one.
Every chossid is now focussed on preparing for Yud Shvat. Yud Shvat marks the bringing the shechina down the final stage of its descent;–from the רקיעא down to olam hazeh. It is revealing that there is no separation at all between rokia and oretz, between gashmyus and ruchnyus, between elyonim and tachtonim, because Hashem hu Elokim and there are not two entities because they are “chad mamash”.
And, this is the time for us to empower ourselves for this crucial mission,–by increasing our learning chassidus and avodas hachassids, so that each of us understands, acknowledges and lives with the mindset of Hashem hu Elokim!
On a Personal Note
We always knew that the treatment for my disease sometimes goes two steps forward and one step backward (the ultimate and complete cure will come from the רופא כל בשר ומפליא לעשות, only His treatment is complete, comprehensive and–even more than complete–in a way of מלכתחלה לא אשים עליך). So, lately, the treatment that I had been taking, has, apparently, stopped being as effective as it had been. And I was also suffering from increasingly severe side-effects and symptoms, which were making it difficult for me to function.
Well, we know–from the famous story with the Alter Rebbe vechulu–that every physician has a malach, an angel, through whom the healing is carried out. A greater physician has a greater malach. So, we decided that at this point maybe we would get better results from the American malochim.
So, I am back in NY now, and working with my team of doctors in Manhattan. And, as a credit to the NY-based angels, BHI have already experienced much improvement, since arriving here. In the coming days we will be doing some radiation, and then continue with other treatments, and BEH the improvements will all continue.
I want to take this opportunity to again thank everyone for all of the tefilos and Tehillim and hachlotos tovos that have been done for my zechus (both those that I’ve heard about and those that I may not yet have heard about). They are very greatly appreciated, they are, without any doubt, the most effective and powerful treatment!
On Another Note: Stay Tuned
IYH this week, beginning on Tuesday, chof daled teves, the Yeshiva will be holding our end-of-the-year Charidy campaign. It will run for 3 days.
I know everyone is being deluged with campaigns now,–so get ready to be deluged by one more!
L’chaim! Let us all increase in our learning chassidus, living with chassidus and our hiskashrus to the Rebbe, and may the Eibishter enable the finalizing of the bringing the shechina into the world, with the immediate hisgalus of Melech haMoshiach TUMYM!!!
Rabbi Akiva Wagner
לזכות שד"ב בן מרים שי', לאויוש"ט מתוך בריאות הנכונה וכט"ס בטובה נרו הנ"ג!
לזכות ר' יעקב שלמה שי' בן לאה נעכע, לרפו"ש ובריאות הנכונה ואויוש"ט!
בתוך כלל שאר חולי ישראל וכל הזקוקים לרפואה, לרפו"ש ורפו"ק תומ"י ממש ממש!
לזכר ולעי"נ השליחה חיל בצבאות ה' ראובן אברהם בן–יבלחט"א–הר"ר מ"מ שליט"א
לעי"נ הרה"ח והרה"ת ר' מ"מ ב"ר יהושע זעליג הכהן
לעי"נ רעייתו הרבנית גאלדא ע"ה אראנאוו
לעי"נ השליח ר' שמעון בן ר' מנחם שמואל דודה לוי שד"ר ע"ה
לעי"נ השלוחה מרים בת ר' יהושע ע"ה
ולעי"נ כל אלו שהלכו לעולמם לאחרונה, שישתדלו שמה להחיש תומ"י ממש את הגאולה האמיתית והשלימה.
