Igrot Kodesh · Letter 1375 — Faith & Bitachon

By the grace of Hashem,
27 Teves 5712,
Brooklyn,

Greetings and blessings,

I have duly received your letter of 14 Teves, in which you speak to me of your teaching of Chassidus* and of the chassidishe* gatherings you have organized these days. I thank you very much for having communicated to me this good news. At all times, one is hungry and thirsty to receive it, and there is no good but Torah and mitzvos*. But how much more so at the present era, especially when this news concerns places that are distant — in spirit of course, for geographical distance does not matter in this regard, even though it is sometimes at the source of moral distance.

Of course, this does not mean that everything is systematically being done well. Unfortunately such is not the case here. And I have already told you several times that one of your principal missions was defined by my father-in-law, the Rebbe, in the following terms: "A good teacher is not content with teaching the talmidim*. He moreover leads them to acquire their autonomy in study. His success cannot be appraised solely by the conscientious talmid who is diligent in his study. His effectiveness must also be established with the one who is by nature lazy, who has only limited means."

Now, it is the same for what concerns you. Your essential mission consists of forming Yidden* who keep mitzvos, chassidim*, and bringing it about that ultimately this movement extend to the entire world. For this, you cannot be content with teaching the Chassidus that your listeners are accustomed to hear, and then asking them for a contribution to the institutions. You must awaken in them the desire to want all this, and above all to build, around you, a chassidishe environment. For this, you must gather a few young chassidim.

It is for this reason that I have asked you, on very many occasions, to inquire into the means by which chassidim could earn their livelihood in your city. These are chassidim whom you know. You are familiar with their nature and you are aware of their needs. Unfortunately, none of this has been done.

More than this, I suspect you of considering your arrival and your settlement on the spot as a departure into exile. Each day, you wait impatiently to be able to free yourself from this exile and to settle, in a good and propitious moment, in Brooklyn or in Williamsburg. It is, of course, impossible that such thoughts not affect your work, not be an obstacle to the full accomplishment of your mission.

Moreover, it is clear that in such a case you do not invest yourself deeply. In Toras Sholom, on p. 41, the Rebbe Rashab says: "One finds oneself there out of submission, but one would like to be elsewhere, to leave. Certainly, one is active in this manner, but why not do so with truth? One must really be where one is. Only thereafter can one go to another place. As long as one is acting here, one must be here. It is in this way that the action is true." You will consult the long development of this text.

How much more so for what concerns us. Your present mission has an essential character. Chazal* show the importance of separating the wheat from the chaff. We have just seen that "one must really be where one is." If this is the case, you should bring other chassidim to the place. Thus, you will no longer be alone. Now, you are currently seeking the opposite. You hope that by remaining alone, people will at last take pity on you and free you from this exile.

With my brachah* for success in your communal and personal concerns,

ב״ה ,ה׳ כסלו ,תשי״ב

ברוקלין.

. . .אינני מרוצה .כפי שמראה מכתבה ,אותו בטחון בשם יתברך שיש

לצפות מבת ישראל בכלל ומאשה חסידית בפרט ,איננו במדה הראוי׳ אצלה.

ובמילא זה משפיע על הבריאות שלה וגם על ביתה.

כל יהודי -איש ואשה -צריך לזכור תמיד ,שהשם יתברך המנהיג את

העולם הגדול ,הרי אין כל ספק שהוא מנהיג גם את העולם הקטן של כל

אחד מאתנו ,וכשם שיש לו דיעה בעולם הגדול ,כך ודאי יש לו דיעה בעולם

הקטן ,וצריך לסמוך עליו ,שודאי הוא מנהיג לטובה ,ולא צריך להפריע לזה,

ע״י חוסר בטחון בו ברוך הוא ,או ע״י דברים שאינם על פי תורה ,שאחד

מהם הוא שלום בית.

עד אחרי ביאת המשיח ,אין אדם ללא חסרון ,במילא ודאי שכשם

שלאחד יש חסרון ,כך גם לשני יש חסרון ,וכיון שלא רוצים לפתוח ולהדגיש

אגרו ת־ קור ש -מתורגמות)א׳רעח(

את החסרון האישי ,כך לא צריך להדגיש ולהגדיל את חסרון הזולת .כך זה

צריך להיות אצל כל היהודים בכלל ,ובפרט כשמדובר אודות בעלה ואבי

ילדי׳.

לא באתי לומר לה מוסר ,אלא להסב את תשומת לבה שמצבה אינו כה

חמור כפי שהיא מתארת לעצמה ,ואינו יוצא מהכלל כפי שנדמה לה ,וכל אחד

מכם צריך להעלים עין מדברים ]מסויימים[ ,ועדיף למצוא את הדרכים שיהי׳

אצלכם שלום בית .וכאשר שורר שלום בית ,זהו הכלי בו השם יתברך יוצק

ברכה והצלחה עם בריאות טובה ,פרנסה ונחת מהילדים.

לדעתי ,היתה צריכה לבקש מהרופא שלה לתת לה הוראות אודות

האכילה והשתי׳ שלה והנהגת הבית ולעשות כפי שיורה והשם יתברך ודאי

יעזור לכם שהכל יהי׳ בזמן ובאופן טוב ובהצלחה.

בברכה.