Thoughts from the
Lubavitcher Rebbe
The Month of Kislev
Page 13-THE NEWS-Novembef 1993
Fifth and Sixth Graders Wrote And Performed Play
By Rabbi Yossi Groner
The Hebrew month of Kislev
arrives in mid-November and
with its arrival come days of
brightness and joy. The most
famous holiday of the month is
the eight day festival of Chanuk-
ah which comes at the very end
of the month. But there are other
historic dates during the month
of Kislev which are worth ex
ploring.
But first it is important to
explain that every historical date
or holiday is not a day of
remembrance alone, but rather
a day of observance as well. The
classic example is the story of
Purim which is recorded in the
scroll of Esther. At the conclu
sion of the story there is an
instruction which says “And
these days [of Purim] are re
membered and observed.”
Our Sages explain that these
days are remembered through
their observance. When they are
observed properly and with
meaning, these days are properly
remembered. The same is true
of every holiday or day of
remembrance, it is remembered
through its observance.
On the 19th day of Kislev the
famous Rabbi and scholar Rab
bi Schneur Zalman of Liadi was
released from the S. Petersburg
prison in 1798. Rabbi Schneur
Zalman was a follower of the
famed Chassidic leaders Rabbi
Israel Baal Shem Tov and his
successor Rabbi Dov-Ber of
Mczritch. He was seen as the
leader of the Chassidic move
ment in Russia and Ukraine, and
was founder of the Chabad-
Lubavitch movement.
The Rebbe was wrongly ac
cused of trying to undermine the
sovereignty of the Russian Tzar,
due to his massive campaign to
support Jews in Israel. The
Rebbe had written many letters
to his followers all across Russia
to give whatever they could
financially to support the com
munity in Israel. He even sent
people to settle in Israel and
helped expand the community in
every way possible.
Israel, in that period of his
tory, was under the governship
of the Ottoman Empire of Tur
key. The Turks were at war with
Russia; thus The Rebbe’s oppo
nents misrepresented his help to
Israel as treason against Russia.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman's suc
cess in attracting thousands of
followers to his unique approach
to Judaism was seen as suspi
cious by other Jews and they
made an effort to stop him.
Eventually they convinced the
Russian authorities to take the
Rebbe into custody and he was
held for three weeks of intense
interrogation.
His arrest generated much
interest in the higher circles of
the Russian government, many
of whom visited the Rebbe in his
jail cell. Upon learning of his
brilliance and wisdom, the Tzar
himself visited the Rebbe and
was disguised
soldier.
as an ordinary
When he entered, the Rebbe
rose and greeted him with sal
utation accorded to a king. The
Tzar was surprised and asked the
Rebbe how he knew that he was
the Tzar, The Rebbe explained
that every king has an angel from
above accompanying him and
when the Tzar entered the cell,
the Rebbe felt the presence of
the angel.
After 3 weeks the Rebbe was
released with great fanfare and
made a respected citizen of
Russia for all generations to
come. This day has been estab
lished as a holiday for Chassidic
Jews and eventually spread all
over the world as a day of
liberation and a day of renewal
in the ways of Chabad Chassi-
dus.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman’s ap
proach was unique in the fact
that it was based on a deep
intellectual understanding of
G-dliness, yet it ultimately had
to lead to an emotional stimu
lation which produced intense
love of G-d and G-dliness. The
Rebbe promoted higher Jewish
education and reached out to the
masses with love and care.
The 19th of Kislev has become
a milestone in the annals of
Chassidic history, as it was the
day that passed all obstacles of
its time in promoting this new
and exciting way to serve G-d.
This day has in fact been coined
by the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe
as the Rosh Hashanah - the
New Year for Chassidic study.
Each year on this day Jews all
over the world gather to cele
brate this day of liberation by
reflecting on his life and philos
ophy and most of all by studying
his writings and making a com
mitment to increase in the study
of Torah and the observance of
its commandments.
The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rab
bi Menachem M. Schneerson
who is a direct descendent of
Rabbi Schneur Zalman and
leads the world wide movement,
holds a huge gathering of over
15,000 people on the night of this
historic day. For the past forty-
three years the Rebbe has ex
pounded on the significance of
this important holiday and
taught the many lessons learned
from this day. His talks are
broadcast live through a net
work of telephone hook-ups and
satellite broadcasts.
The festive atmosphere adds
to the observance of this day
which helps everyone reinforce
their commitment to Judaism,
May we tstke this opportunity
to extend our sincere prayers
that the Al-mighty G-d send the
Rebbe Shlita a quick and full
recovery and he should see his
true desire fulfilled with the
arrival of Moshiach and the
redemption of all of Israel.
The following article was
written jointly by Gali Beni,
Jessica Brandt, Sam Foner, Sam
Rose, Melanie Rousso and
Geoff Wexler.
During the holiday of Succoth
(on the fourth day of Choi
Hamoed) we performed a play
on the Ethrog and the mitzvah
of Tzedakah, The story is about
a man named Yakov who was
very poor. He took his last $20
to buy food and gifts for his
children.
It was on the last day of
Succoth that Yakov went out to
the market place when he was
approached by a person who was
collecting money to help marry
off a poor orphan girl. Yakov
gave his last $20 to the collector.
He was so moved by the need
of the poor orphan that he felt
compelled to help her with the
little that he had.
Yakov went to the local Syn
agogue and collected used Esro-
gim, and filled a large sack with
the citrus fruits as a gift for his
children.
On the way home he took a
wrong turn and lost his way and
he stopped to rest. He fell asleep,
and when he awoke he was
surrounded by the king’s royal
soldiers. They demanded to
know what was in his sack.
When they learned that it was
Esrogim, they quickly rushed
him to the king’s palace.
It seems that the king was
afflicted with a rare disease that
can only be cured by Ethrog
juice. The king was given fresh
juice extracted from Yakov’s
Esrogim and was quickly cured.
In thanks the king filled Yakov’s
sack with gold coins and sent
him home.
Yakov and his family were
never poor again. The lesson we
learn from this story is, when
doing a mitzvah and giving to
the poor you receive in return
much more than what you gave.
That is only one reason why you
should always do a mitzvah
when the opportunity arises.
The play was performed be
fore the entire school, by all of
the 5th and 6th graders at
Lubavitch Day School. The play
was directed by our Judaica
teacher, Channie Weiss. It was
narrated by Jessica Brandt and
Sam Foner.
Jewish Calendar
Candlelighting
Nov. 5
Nov. 12
Nov. 19
Nov. 26
Dec.
Dec.
5:06 p.m.
5:01 p.m.
4:57 p.m.
4:54 p.m.
3 - 4:53 p.m.
8 - 4:53 p.m.
(First night of Chanukah)
Dec. 9 - 4:53 p.m.
(Second night of Chanukah)
Dec. 10 -4:53 p.m.
(Shabbat and
Third night of Chanukah)
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Day School students performing Succoth play.
Younger students were an enthusiastic audience.
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