Parshas Bo

 

Hi there my junior Shluchim!
Am I ready? I mean really ready? Can any of us ever really be ready? What do I need to do to get ready? Will I even know when I am ready?
Okay, enough.
‘What is he talking about?’ I hear you asking. Well isn’t it obvious. This is what has been going on in my head almost all day, every day for the past few weeks. I’m talking about getting ready for the special day of Yud Shevat of course!
You see, in between all the other things that I’ve been busy with these past few weeks - which is quite a lot of things - and during any spare time that I have - which is not very much time - I have been trying to make some hachonos for Yud Shevat, which is coming up very soon indeed.
The first thing I did was to get out my good old lens collection. After all, in case you forgot, I am the famous Seeing and Lens Making professor (actually sometimes even I forget that). It is quite a large collection of lenses now, so it took me some time to find the lenses I was looking for, which was made worse by the fact that not all my lenses were in the box I was looking in. But in the end, I found what I was looking for, and I had them all there sitting on my desk. Do you remember them? Of course there was my famous and favourite COL lens, and then I took out my INSIDE lens and the LeNSeR lens.
Now that I had all the lenses ready for use, I just needed to work out how to use them. The COL lens was the easiest to figure out, probably because I have been using it so much in the last month, trying to look at things in a Chassidishe way, and thinking about how Getzel the Chossid should act. The INSIDE lens was a bit more complicated. It had been a while since I had taken a good look inside of myself. In fact I am sure that I could see some rust growing on it. So the first thing I needed to do was scrub the lens clean and make sure that it was really shiny and ready for use. I mean no one wants to use a rusty lens. A rusty lens is like a bunch of broken pens - it is no use to anyone.
Once my INSIDE lens was sparkling clean I put it to good use and had a really good look inside of myself to see what I needed to do to get myself ready for Yud Shevat. Boy was I scared by what I saw! My insides were not in too much of a good state. They were in serious need of some dusting and a bit of good exercise.
Well, it was lucky that I had already taken out my LeNSoR lens, because I decided that as a hachono for Yud Shevat I needed to do some serious Limmud, and sing a Nigun or two, and maybe hear a chassidishe Sipur or two. Actually it sounded like what I really needed was a good chassidise farbrengen to make sure that when I use the last part of the lens to wRite to the Rebbe, I will be the sort of chossid that will make the Rebbe proud.
Hope you manage to find all your lenses (don't forget to look under your beds too - I always find the most interesting things there), and that you manage to  get them all to work too!

Dr. Getzel

 

ט‘ שבט

סיום of משיח ’s ספר תורה
   In תש“ב (1942) the פריערדיקער רבי asked that a ספר תורה should be written to ‘welcome משיח ’. The writing was started on ב‘ אייר but for various reasons, it wasn’t finished at that time. Then, almost 28 years later the Rebbe asked that the ספר תורה be finished before the פריערדיקער רבי ’s 20th יארצייט . The סיום ספר תורה was held on Friday afternoon, ט‘ שבט תש“ל (1972), because that year י‘ שבט fell on שבת .

 

י‘ שבט
יאהרצייט of רביצין רבקה

רביצין רבקה Schneerson was born in Lubavitch in תקצ“ג (1833). Her father was ר‘ אהרן and her mother was רביצין חי‘ה שרה , the daughter of the מיטעלער רבי . In תר“ט (1849) she married her first cousin, ר‘ שמואל , who later became the fourth Rebbe, the רבי מהר“ש .

Once, as רביצין רבקה was leaving her husband’s study, the hem of her dress caught in the door.  Out of respect for her husband, and not wanting to disturb him, she stood there for several hours, until her husband came out of his study.

When ישיבת תומכי תמימים was started by her son, the רבי רש“ב , רביצין רבקה took responsibility for the גשמיות by taking care of the food for the תלמידים .  At meal times, she would make sure they were well, and that they had enough to eat.

רביצין רבקה knew many stories and it is from her that the פריערדיקער רבי heard a lot of the stories that were in his talks, letters and memoirs. She passed away on י‘ שבט תרע“ד (1914) and is buried in Lubavitch.

The בית רבקה girls' schools, founded by the פריערדיקער רבי in the 1940's, are named after her.

 

י‘ שבט
יאהרצייט of the פריערדיקער רבי

The פריערדיקער רבי , passed away on שבת morning, י‘ שבט תש“י (1950).  The לווי‘ה took place on Sunday afternoon, י“א שבט .  Here is a description from one of the bochurim:

‘At 12:30, the ארון was carried out onto the street, ... with the black שבת kapote spread out upon it.  The crush was terrible, with everyone wanting at least to touch the ארון …

[After the לווי‘ה ] we hurried back to 770, davened מנחה , and started our mourning.  Again, tears, sobbing, the saying of תהילים .  We are standing in his room, all eyes turn to the chair...and still the heart refuses to believe..’

‘ שבט
The Rebbe accepts the נשיאות

At a farbrengen on the first יאהרצייט of the פריערדיקער רבי , the Rebbe's son-in-law, ר‘ מנחם מענדל Schneerson, delivered a מאמר - ‘באתי לגני ’, showing that he accepted  the נשיאות .
One of the bochurim wrote in his diary:

‘After מעריב it was announced that the farbrengen to be given by the Rebbe would start at 8 pm.  Before long, there were over 800 people crowded into the בית מדרש ...

Later on in the farbrengen, one of the אלטער חסידים called out “...but we want to hear a מאמר !”

In the hall at that moment, total silence fell… and all eyes turned to the Rebbe.

At 10:40 the Rebbe began the first מאמר , ‘באתי לגני ’.  When it was over, the Rebbe, crying as he spoke, explained the mission of our generation - the seventh generation since the start of חב“ד חסידות - was “to bring the שכינה down to this physical world.”’

י“ג שבט
יאהרצייט of רביצין שטערנא שרה

י“ג שבט is the יאהרצייט of רביצין שטערנא שרה .  She was the wife of the רבי רש“ב , and mother of the פריערדיקער רבי . רביצין שטערנא שרה was in the house and saw her son being arrested for his work to keep אידישקייט alive in Communist Russia. After the פריערדיקער רבי was released, the family moved to Latvia and later, Poland. In 1940, they survived the bombing of Warsaw, were rescued from the Nazis who occupied Poland, and moved to the United States. רביצין שטערנא שרה passed away in New York in תש“ב (1942) and is buried in the אוהל .

 

When?
Sunday - ט‘ שבט תשס“ז

What time?
1:00 p.m ET, 5:00 p.m ET & 8:00 p.m ET

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Several years after the Rebbe accepted the נשיאות of חב“ד חסידות a certain businessman entered his office and asked for advice and a ברכה for his business.

The Rebbe often gave such advice and it was always accurate. One time he also advised the questioner to keep שבת and put on תפילין daily. When the man answered that it was too difficult the Rebbe replied. "You came from far away and spent much time to receive my advice on business although that is not at all my field. So why don't you take my advice in the field I am an expert in, אידישקייט !?"

The Rebbe handed the businessman a small amount of money and said that he would like to be his partner in a business deal. The pleasantly surprised man, almost not believing his ears, gladly accepted the offer. With such a partner, who could go wrong!?!

The Rebbe continued; "Now we are partners. Neither of us will do anything in this venture without the agreement of the other. Good? Now my advice to you is to buy furs (the Rebbe told him which type) and then report back to me."

Overjoyed, the partner went out and after a few days of checking prices and searching, he bought a few thousand dollars worth of furs and went back to report.

But the Rebbe was not pleased. "That isn't the type of investment I was thinking of. I meant a real investment; say, a half-a million dollars!"

The man almost couldn't believe what he was hearing. A half-million?!! He would have to borrow a fortune!! With mixed feelings he forced a smile and left the room. Half a million dollars was a huge amount of money fifty years ago.

The businessman felt a bit hesitant to go into such debt but encouraged by the Rebbe's optimism he, at first reluctantly but then with more enthusiasm, spent the next few days mortgaging all he had and borrowing huge amounts of money.

And there were other problems. He had to rent a massive warehouse for storage, and arrange a way to transport, and guard the furs. And it all cost money!

'But what do I care!' he told himself, 'I am going to make a fortune!! It would all pay off in the end!

A week or so later he finished it all and was back reporting every detail to the Rebbe who congratulated him on the good work and reminded again him not do anything without his consent.

Satisfied and certain the prices would soar he went home, ate dinner with his wife and family and made several לחיים ’s to the Rebbe and to the new future. That night went to sleep with a smile on his face, certain that tomorrow's financial page would have bold news!!

But it didn't. The prices didn't soar. They stayed exactly where they were...day after day for a month. "Ahhh, of course!" our hero tried to comfort himself, "Heh heh!! What a fool I was to think it would happen instantly! Good things take time!!"

But after two months he really began to worry. Each day was costing him a lot of money. He had to pay for the storage, interest on his loans, his money was tied up, and worse of all...the price wasn't raising. In fact, it was slightly dropping!!

He went back to the Rebbe and suggested that perhaps they should sell. But the Rebbe smiled and told him to be patient.

The price dropped steadily until two months later it was down 20 percent!! He was desperate. Time was against him! He rushed to 770 and again got permission to enter the Rebbe's room.

"Please, Rebbe" he asked wide eyed "The price is dropping. If I, that is, We, sell now I can at least pay off the loans I took. I'm sure I'll make the loss up elsewhere. Let's sell before it drops even more!"

But the Rebbe again assured him not to worry. Everything would for sure be all right.

But it wasn't. It's not that he didn't want it to be; he wanted it to rise, he believed it would rise. But it didn't.

In fact two months later fur prices were at an all time low. 40 percent lower than when he bought. It was a disaster!! He would be wiped out for life! His head was swimming. He had heard so many good stories about the Rebbe. He had been so sure! It seemed so right! It was a mystery, maybe it was because of his עבירות , but he had to get out! That was clear!!

"This will be the last time!!" He promised himself as he again went to the Rebbe's headquarters, got permission to enter and poured out his heart. But the Rebbe refused to agree.

A week later he mechanically bought a newspaper, as he had been doing for the last months, and with a heavy heart opened to the financial page; furs were UP...four hundred percent!

He ran to the nearest payphone to call the Rebbe...and the Rebbe answered "Sell"!!

He was rich!!!

Immediately after he cashed the check, he sped to 770 as though he had wings on his feet, again got permission to enter and gave the Rebbe a big donation.

"Now," he said joyously to the Rebbe. "Let's make another partnership!"

"I’m sorry," the Rebbe replied with a twinkle in his eye, "You are a difficult partner."

This .

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