"It’s a Matter of Human Decency”

The Rebbe writes to the Chassidim about the importance of connecting Jews with the Rebbe

This letter was sent to R’ Shlomo Chaim Kesselman,
at that time, the Previous Rebbe’s emissary
for the collection of maamad (referred to in the letter by the code word nifneh).

There was a young man who was forced to flee from his location. Now this person is not one who has a connection with the Divine service of [meditative] prayer. He is not devoted to the abstract contemplation of Chassidus (a maskil), nor to the applications of these teachings in his efforts for self-refinement (an oved). He does not [even] have a beard. He never studied in Tomchei Temimim or in any other yeshivah. 

This person journeyed to a very distant place, one far removed in both a physical sense and in its connection to Jewish life. After a short time passed, men and women from that place began sending letters to my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita.

For example, a businesswoman who was offered an opportunity to rent a store and a dwelling either in one part of the city or another asked the Rebbe Shlita to decide what she should do. She has never seen him. She knows that my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita, has never been in her city, nor even in her country. She is not part of the Chassidic brotherhood, nor are her roots there.

But she heard the young man [mentioned above] speak sincerely, with words coming from the heart, that there is a Rebbe among the Jewish people, that he is not bound by the limitations of nature, and that a person who wants to follow a secure path — be it in business or in directing his household — should not raise his hand without asking the Rebbe. She saw that the young man’s words reflected his inner feelings, because words of truth can be recognized, and she asked that her question be written [to the Rebbe].

As a matter of course, such a woman is connected to nifneh. She is drawing closer to Judaism. No doubt, in the near future, her home will be conducted in keeping with [the mitzvos of] kashrus, taharas hamishpachah, and the like. These are the fruits of the activities of a simple young man who did not act out of mesirus nefesh or kabbalas ol. For none of these activities runs contrary to his understanding, not even to the understanding of his mortal intellect.

Think [about this] for a moment: Based on his actual perception, it is very clear to him that the Rebbe’s words are the Rebbe’s words, and his blessings are blessings. Even his animal soul accepts this [premise], because it did not come to him as the result of a process of intellectual give-and-take or the analysis of texts, but from experience — his own and that of people he knew.

This provided evidence that obeying [the Rebbe’s instructions] leads to a positive outcome. And when one does not do so, the results are unfavorable. As a result, just as he is not at all embarrassed to tell his acquaintances who are in need the address of an expert doctor, so, too, when he sees a person who is confused or confronted by a fundamental life question, he tells him: “The Jewish people are not without assistance, Heaven forbid. There is someone we can ask.”

Moreover, he does not wait until his acquaintances come to him to ask if there is a Rebbe, by and large they don’t know what a Rebbe is. Instead, he goes to them and explains to them that they should not depend on their own understanding — not on the shadchan, the doctor, or the broker — for all of these involve doubts. Instead, he has a secure path with which to resolve his doubts. As our Sages commented: “Words that come from the heart enter the heart.”

To focus now on the subject of your letter: Your community contains the finest members of Anash; …[After leaving Russia,] they were located in a [DP] camp among thousands of our Jewish brethren who were thirsty to hear a warm and live word [of Jewish content], something that would stir them and bring them close [to their Jewish heritage]. The young people among them were fundamentally seeking direction, [asking]: Where is the Moshe, the man who will lead us out of our boundaries and limitations and show us the path of life?

I ask you: How many [of those] people were added to [those involved in] the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov and the Alter Rebbe through your efforts and the labor of your souls during the time you stayed in the [DP] camp?

***

Obviously, if you meet a person and tell him: “Sir, give [me] money and I will give it to so-and-so who is several thousand miles away whom you do not know and with whom you do not share a connection, but [he] is a person of exceptional and lofty qualities,” you will be looked at as a charlatan.

On the other hand, it is [equally] obvious that when a person who believes with simple faith — i.e., [faith] that directs all his powers — that [the Rebbe’s] knowledge and blessing have power over all matters and [this person] knows that his colleague must make a decision concerning a fundamental matter involving his children, health, or prosperity, or he is in danger, Heaven forbid, [he would try to connect that other with the Rebbe].

 If there was any hope or even the shadow of a possibility that [the other person] would listen to his words, human decency, ahavas Yisrael, and [the risk of] danger to life would motivate him to run after his colleague and tell him: “Have mercy on yourself and on the members of your household and on all those close to you. Do not rely on your own understanding. Study Chassidus. Develop a connection with [the Rebbe]. Follow his words and then you will be successful.”

As is well known, there is a promise from the Alter Rebbe: “When Chassidim will make an effort, they will be successful.”

…In Paris and its surroundings you come in contact with hundreds and maybe thousands of our Jewish brethren each day. …How many of these thousands of people turned [to the Rebbe] with a question concerning an operation, a shidduch, a blessing for Rosh HaShanah or the like? If, however, you would have told them who the Lubavitcher Rebbe is, [sharing] a story, even without explanation, [and] on the second occasion [sharing] a portion of his talks and then his directives, many people — they, their descendants, and their descendants’ descendants for posterity — would connect themselves to the Tree of Life. They would increase the light in their homes and become “Moshe’s men.” …They would take part in maamad and support all of [the Rebbe’s] institutions eagerly, with a pleasant disposition, not merely out of respect.

***

When I was in Paris a year and a half ago, I spoke [about the matter] several times until ultimately it was decided (apparently, out of respect) that the Committee for Nifneh would become involved with the people of the city. It is evident that those involved would be the appropriate ones to deal with those who are — at present — distant [from Jewish practice]. From time to time, I inquired and investigated what was being done in this regard and I discovered… that nothing is being done…

Do you really think that the obstacle is the people of Paris and its surroundings? ■

Igros Kodesh vol. 3, letter #445; translated in “I Will Write it in Their Hearts” vol. 4