Igrot Kodesh · Letter 1346 — Health

By the grace of Hashem,
16 Teves 5712,
Brooklyn, New York,

Greetings and blessings,

I received with pleasure news of your shul* and its members[1]. I learned in particular that you have taken part in all of the accomplishments of my father-in-law, the Rebbe — in what he founded, what he directed, and what, baruch Hashem*, still continues. These accomplishments, like all that lives, develop and expand. Therefore I am sure that, from time to time, your participation will likewise grow.

A shul, as its name indicates[2], is a place where many Yidden* gather and unite. Of course, they are divided into several categories. Nevertheless, in the shul they are united.

There are also other reasons that lead one to assemble, for example for a commercial purpose. But the unity created in a shul is fundamentally different.

A gathering for a commercial motive is not authentic. Each partner joins the other solely to seek his own interest, that is, to make full use of what he himself possesses. It is, in fact, himself that he is soliciting through the personality of the other. Thus, when one considers that the other can no longer bring him what he expects from him, he breaks off their partnership.

A union based upon Torah and mitzvos* is fundamentally different, in particular within the framework of a shul. Its object is not personal and financial interest, but rather the fulfillment of a divine commandment — tefillah*, tzedakah*. All are then united by the collective desire to put into practice the Will of Hashem, which is generally expressed through ahavas Hashem*, ahavas haTorah*, and ahavas Yisroel*.

Such unity can be enduring, just as Torah and mitzvos are eternal.

I extend to you my brachah* that your shul be truly a place of gathering, uniting all its members and all those who daven there, as it is said[3]: "They will all form a single agudah* to do Your Will with a whole heart."

It is in this way that one can receive the brachah of Hashem, according to the needs of each — children, health, and material prosperity.

With my brachah,

Notes
(1) This letter was sent to several shuls.
(2) In Hebrew, Beis HaKnesses, house of gathering.
(3) In the machzor* of the Yamim Noraim*.