Tuesday

In the Halls of the Sorbonne

Paris, late 1930s
Rabbi Yoel Reitzer lives in Antwerpen, Belgium. His father, Moshe Zev Reitzer was studying to become a pharmacist at “the Sorbonne,” attending some of the same classes as the Rebbe in the late 1930’s.

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…My father was from Grosswardein, a little town which at one time was part of Hungary, at another time it was part of Romania. He was called up to the military draft. He had a brother who had already moved to France to escape the draft. He advised my father to also come to France, so my father came to France. In the Old Country my father had studied at the Yeshiva of Maharam Brisk, one of the greatest Yeshivos in Hungary. But he had no livelihood, so he decided to study something. Otherwise he couldn’t make a living in Paris.

He studied at the Sorbonne. There he met a Jew - at the time he didn't even know who he was; later he became the Lubavitcher Rebbe. My father was in awe of him, the Rebbe would come straight to the lectures; and he didn't speak with anyone, he would come in, and as soon as the lecture ended, he would leave. He [my father] was very impressed by him he was extremely careful - my father told me - to guard hi eyes, not to see anything impermissible, He spoke to almost no one, and if he did say something, it was very brief.

There, he got to know the Rebbe a little. My father was a Torah Jew. He was still single. Apparently, the Rebbe appreciated him.

One day, the Rebbe said, "would it not be a good idea... There are a number of young boys wandering around in Paris, they have nowhere to study Torah, we need to ensure that they remain good Jews. Would you teach them privately?"

My father agreed. For my father it was a windfall, as well, because he deeded to eat [livelihood]. The [future] Rebbe pulled it together; this child, another one. Later, my father had a class at night with a whole group of boys - my father used to say, that when he left Paris, he went to Lyon - later when he hot engaged - the children were really crying - my father really loved children had a deep love of Torah. The children became very attached to him….

Monday

Love Every Jew

Love that Knows No Barriers

Circa 1942
Rabbi Dovid Edelman was a student at 770 during the 1940’s




Once I was standing with a few yeshiva students in the hallway of 770, the elevator opens up, and the Rebbe comes out. He comes over and tells us what went on upstairs between him and his father-in-law, the Previous Rebbe.

He says, “I was by the Rebbe, and I asked him if I am doing right. What is the question?” The Rebbe said that he said to his father-in-law, “I have an office here in the Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch and all kinds of people come in to see me – some very religious people, some not so religious people . . but I greet everyone friendly… Am I doing right? - Because some people who come in are very far away from Torah and Mitzvos, and I don’t say anything to them there about it; maybe they think it’s not so wrong…

"My father-in-law said to me: ‘it is in the nature that God created in a father and a mother that no matter how many children they have, they have enough love for all their children. That is the way God created the world. But if among a family one child has a problem with a hand or a let – he can’t move them – to that child the parents have a special love, a special closeness, because he’s lacking.

"So if a Jew comes in to your office that observes all the Mitzvos – you take him in wholeheartedly, a precious Jew. But suppose a Jew comes in to you who is ‘missing’ a hand – he doesn’t put on Tefillin, he’s ‘missing’ a foot – he doesn’t go to synagogue… To that Jew you need to have a deeper love, because he is lacking… the more he’s lacking the greater your love has to be to that Jew.’”

Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe Rabbi Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson love every Jew, non observant, love him/her more bum, dropout, Moshiach now - הרבי מליבאוויטש חב"ד הרב מנחם מענדל שניאורסאן, צריך לאהוב כל יהודי, חילוני, אינו שומר תורה ומצות – האהבה אליו צריך להיות גדול יותר, הורים שיש להם ילד עם בעיה רפואית, אבא אמה אוהבית אותו יותר כי חסר לו, ליובביץ, משיח עכשיו, 770

I Am Only a Transmitter

Judge Joseph Fisch
July 1, 1990



Excerpt –

Rebbe: “…and go from strength to strength, that all your judgments will be only in a preventive manner – not to punish someone, but to prevent someone from doing something that is wrong.”

Mr. Fisch: “You know Rebbe that in my courtroom, G-d willing, the inspiration of Lubavitch will always be present.”

Rebbe: “That is the inspiration of G-d Almighty, I am only a transmitter – trying to transmit without any changes.”

Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe Rabbi Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson tells a judge that his rulings should be preventive, not to punish. it’s not my inspiration, is the inspiration of God Almighty, I am only a transmitter, without any changes, 770, Moshiach now, judicial justice, law

Friday

Energy Independence

The Lubavitcher Rebbe calls on the united states to become energy independent and not rely on sources of energy from hostile countries and dictatorships

America’s Mandate: Energy Independence – Part 1



11 Nissan, 5741 • April 15, 1981
“Evil will come from the north.” The Soviet Union is a clear manifestation of this prophecy. At the same time, G-d bestowed the United States with the mission and the moral and material might to counter this evil. To succeed, however, America must be free of economic pressure from immoral dictatorships. If we rely on them for oil, this nation’s strength and influence is compromised.

"G-d would never allow America to be manipulated by small hostile states simply because they have some natural resource. America need only leverage its ability to produce domestic oil, which, in truth, it does have in abundance.

"This is not in order to wield US strength, or increase US power. G-d placed these resources in this nation’s soil, only so that, ultimately, it will be able to spread Torah’s justice throughout the world."

America’s Mandate: Energy Independence – Part 2



11 Nissan, 5741 • April 15, 1981
"There is a solution to America’s energy crisis: Solar Energy. Solar technology requires far less time to develop than other energy sources.

"What can a small group of Jews accomplish by discussing this issue amongst themselves? Maimonides rules that even a single statement based on Torah, has the power to tip the scales for salvation. Past experiences have shown that issues discussed here, have reached Washington.

"When hostile nations can no longer use oil to manipulate US policy, America’s influence will increase, without having to use force. G-d has blessed this Nation of Kindness with plentiful sources of energy to accomplish a mission – to promote true goodness throughout the world."
http://www.jemstore.com/

Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe Rabbi Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson calls on USA to be energy independent and not bound, beholden by rouge dictators and regimes. Totalitarian, soviet, Arab oil, Drill for oil, coal, natural gas, develop ssolar energy, alternative energy, Black gold, green energy, independent, wind turbines, power factories with solar power abundance, global warming, climate change, 770, Moshiach now

Rebbe's Entire Existence - Torah

Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine - 1921

Yona Kese grew up in Dnepropetrovsk at the same time the Lubavitcher Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson was there. He was a writer, who later became a member in the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset.


Click here to watch video clip

Here is an excerpt:

The house was an authentic Chassidic home. His father was a great Torah scholar, the rabbi of the city, and he carried great influence on a large circle of Jews. We mustn’t forget this is the time of the Bolshevists, with the beginning of religious persecution. And he carried with strength and pride - his responsibility a Rav.

“I was witness to Mendel's [the Rebbe] great diligence in Torah study. Whenever I found him - he never studied sitting down; always standing. I remember, as well, that already then, he was well-versed in physics and mathematics. I even remember, although he was Orthodox, that he would be visited by students, and even professors, to consult with him on problems of physics and mathematics. Apparently already then, [the Rebbe was] an incredible combination of knowledge; obviously, expert in Talmud, Jewish Law, Chassidic philosophy, and also in basic, secular knowledge.

“I remember him as a very modest person, totally hidden. And his entire existence, I remember, was Torah..."
www.jemstore.com

Chabad Lubavitcher Rebbe as a youth, his whole existence was torah study. Was consulted by students and professors in secular subjects. universityYkaterinoslav, Yekaterinoslav Shneorson -- הרבי מליובאוויטש חב"ד צעיר ב דנייפרופטרובסק ניקולאייב אוקראינה כל מציאותו הי' לימוד תורה, גם סטודנטים ופרופסורים נועדו איתו בקשר לפיסיקה ומטימטיקה, כל פעם שפגשתי אותו למד תורה בעמידה

Thursday

Daily Talmud Class

On January 30, 1933 Hitler was elected the German Chancellor. For a couple who was foreign and Jewish, it was time to get out of Germany. The Rebbe and his wife Chaya Mushka moved to Paris, where the Rebbe continued his studies at the University for Polytechnic at Mont Rouge and the prestigious University of Paris, known as “the Sorbonne.” David Fakler studied with the Rebbe.

Click to watch video

“The Rebbe gave a daily shiur (torah class) in Gemara. Everyone, even very secular Jews were drawn to the ‘Lubavitcher’, as the Rebbe was known at the time. When they spoke of him, they would say: “oh, the Lubavitcher - a unique man. He is not like all the other rabbis, people are drawn to him.””
http://www.jemstore.com/

Chabad Lubavitcher Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson in Paris gives daily shiur in Talmud Pletzel 25 Rue des Rosiers הרבי מליובאוויטש בפריז צרפת נותן שיעור גמרא (תלמוד) בכל יום פלעצל

True Love

The Meaning of Love

The Rebbe explains the true meaning of love to a young woman beginning to date. Not the stuff of novels and stormy passion - Chana Sharfstein



“…Then, to my great surprise, the Rebbe asked me about my very personal plans, about marraige. I told him that I had met several young men, but I had not met someone I wanted to marry. The Rebbe smiled broadly and asked my opinion about a specific young man. I swallowed hard. I could not believe it, but the question concerned a young man I had recently met. The Rebbe then asked about another young man I had gone out with, and a third, and I was totally overwhelmed. The Rebbe apparently knew everything about my life, certainly this aspect. I just shook my head and blushingly explained why each one was not the right one for me.

“Love, he explained to me, is not that which is portrayed in romantic novels. It isn't that overwhelming, blinding emotion that is portrayed in a romance. These books do not portray real life, he said. It is a fantasy world, a make-believe world with made-up emotions. Fiction is just that--fiction--but real life is different. And then, as a father to a daughter, he began to explain to me the meaning of real love.

“Love, he told me, is an emotion that increases in strength throughout life. It is sharing and caring, and respecting one another. It is building a life together, a unit of family and home. The love that you feel as a young bride, he continued, is only the beginning of real love. It is through the small, everyday acts of living together that love flourishes and grows. And so, he continued, the love you feel after five years or ten years is a gradual strengthening of bonds. As two lives unite to form one, with time, one reaches a point where each partner feels a part of the other, where each partner no longer can visualize life without his mate by his side.

“Smilingly he told me to put aside my romantic notions developed by my literary involvement, and view love and marriage in a meaningful way.

“I walked out of the Rebbe's office with a huge smile on my face. The Rebbe knew how to communicate with a dreamy young girl. He knew what to say and how to say it. His words, spoken from the heart, reverberated within my heart.”

Wednesday

Tzomah Lcha Nafshi

The Rebbe sings Tzomah Lcha Nafshi



"My soul thirsts for You, my flesh longs for You; as one in a desolate and dry land without water, so I thirst to behold You in the Sanctuary, to behold Your might and glory." (Psalms 63:2, 3). This song was first taught by the Rebbe on 28 Nissan, 5714 - 1954.

Chabad Lubavitcher Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn sings soul-stirring song Tzama Lecha nafshi Tzama Lecha Nafshi צמאה לך נפשי צמא לך בשרי בארץ ציא ועיף בלי מים כן בקודש חזיתיך ליראות עוזך וכבודך