It was a long journey from Mizrachi to Chabad. The fire of Chassidus burned in his heart for many years, but he was prevented from realizing his ambition of learning in Tomchei T’mimim. Over the years, he corresponded with the Rebbe; after his wedding, the Rebbe designated a shlichus for him in Mevo Choron, a communal yishuv belonging to Pagi (Poalei Agudas Yisroel). * This is the story of R’ Elisha Avni a”h, a shliach who energetically promoted the teachings of Toras HaChassidus for over thirty years and who passed away a few days before Pesach.
“There were times that I thought it would be easier for me to be on shlichus on a Shomer HaTzair (virulently anti-religious) kibbutz…” INEXPLICABLE YEARNING
Rabbi Elisha Avni was born in one of the locations that is most identified with the Mizrachi movement, Kfar HaRoeh. He was raised with the philosophy of Religious Zionism and his mentor was the Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Avrohom Yitzchok Kook. Nevertheless, from a young age he felt the Lubavitch spirit in his soul. He felt a constant tug towards Chassidus. When he was twelve, his father R’ Yeshaya put him in a summer camp in Kfar Chabad.
One of the powerful Chabad memories he had was from the time his family was on shlichus for the Jewish Agency in England. At that time, his father flew to New York and had a yechidus with the Rebbe that lasted over two hours. The purpose of this trip from Europe to the US was in order to meet with the Rebbe. His father did not tell him all the details of his encounter with the Rebbe, but over the years, he heard from his father many expressions of admiration towards the Rebbe regarding his leadership and righteousness.
R’ Elisha became very involved in Chassidic teachings when he went to learn in the yeshiva in Kfar HaRoeh led by Rabbi Tzvi Neria. The rosh yeshiva allowed Chabad Chassidim to visit the yeshiva and arrange shiurim in Chassidus for the talmidim. R’ Neria was also the one who brought Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengens into the religious high schools. When his teacher realized that Elisha was enamored with Chassidus, he warned him that it shouldn’t be at the expense of his study of Gemara, and he would have to make up the material in his free time.
“I had a tremendous desire to learn Chassidus. I was willing to lose most of my break time in order to be able to listen to Chabad lecturers who taught us the fundamentals of Chassidus. I felt that this was Truth.”
Elisha realized that Chassidus is not vertlach (pithy Torah thoughts) and not about shallow displays of emotion. He found depth in these teachings that put the entire Torah in a clear light of true avodas Hashem.
The one who first suggested that he write to the Rebbe was Rabbi Sholom Dovber Wolpo, who gave shiurim in Chassidus at the yeshiva. Elisha wrote a letter in which he mentioned that on his father’s side he was a descendent of the Alter Rebbe. He asked whether this meant he was related to the Rebbe. The Rebbe returned his letter and underlined the word “related.” Elisha, who was only sixteen at the time, was ecstatic.
“FOR NOW” MEANS FOREVER
R’ Elisha’s life wasn’t easy. His father died suddenly and was not alive for his bar mitzva, and his mother was very sick. His teachers took advantage of this sensitive situation to dissuade him from switching to a Chabad yeshiva. They spoke to his mother who accepted their view and asked him to continue learning in Kfar HaRoeh in order to attain his matriculation.
He wrote a letter to the Rebbe and described his situation and doubts. On the one hand, he did not want to hurt his mother; on the other hand, he yearned to study Chassidus. Two weeks later he received the Rebbe’s response. It was a long letter, at the end of which the Rebbe wrote, “Learn in a place which has abundant Yiras Shamayim and the study of Chassidus.” To Elisha, the answer was clear. Which yeshiva fulfilled those criteria? Only a Chabad yeshiva!
The pressure on him increased, and Elisha remained in his yeshiva until the end of the school year. Then he wrote to the Rebbe again. The Rebbe told him to consult with a rav moreh horaa in the yeshiva in which he learned. The rav that he spoke to suggested that he continue learning in Yeshivas Merkaz HaRav. There too, the fire of Chassidus continued to burn in him.
He learned in Merkaz HaRav for two and a half years, while regularly attending shiurim in Chassidus given by Lubavitchers in Yerushalayim. Despite all his teachers’ efforts to dissuade him from this path, he eventually joined Chabad.
One year on Yud Shevat, Elisha left yeshiva and hitched a ride in the direction of Kfar Chabad. After a few hours, he arrived in B’nei Brak and someone took him from there to Kfar Chabad, directly to the farbrengen of the mashpia Rabbi Moshe Naparstek. The mashpia won the heart of the young boy. He spent the night sleeping on a bench in yeshiva. From that point on, he became very attached to R’ Naparstek, who became his personal mashpia.
Elisha regularly attended the shiur in Chassidus that was given at the President Shazar’s home. Rabbi Adin Even Yisroel (Steinzaltz) gave the shiur which was in Derech Mitzvosecha. “I felt like I was flying,” said Elisha with a smile.
When he finished learning at Merkaz HaRav, he looked for a place to learn in peace without money worries. He went to a yishuv called Mevo Choron, a collaborative moshav. He knew that he could learn there without distractions while working part time.
Mevo Choron is on a hill in the north of Emek Ayalon near the original biblical Ayalon. The yishuv was founded in 5730 as a kibbutz of the settlement movement of Poalei Agudas Israel. After the Yom Kippur War, the settlers moved up to the present location and settled in permanent homes. There are about 200 families living there now, most of whom are Religious Zionists.
Elisha lived there until he married. His wife also wanted this way of life. Although he still looked and dressed like a Religious Zionist, inside he was a Chabad Chassid in every respect. The books in his home consisted of numerous works of Chassidus, maamarim and sichos.
In 5738, Elisha and his wife decided to move to Tzfas so that he could learn in the Chabad yeshiva there. One of the bylaws of the moshav stated that any member could leave in order to learn in yeshiva for a period of time of up till half a year, and this would be financed by the yishuv.
“I spent half a year in yeshiva and it turned me into a Chassid on the outside too.”
He loved the k’hilla in Tzfas and learned Chassidus while absorbing Chassidishe conduct from the mashpiim and rabbanim of the neighborhood. His day began at 6:30 with a shiur in maamarim of the Rebbe Maharash, and after davening he learned in the yeshiva. What won him and his wife over were mainly the love and friendship among people in the then fledgling k’hilla.
When six months were up, R’ Elisha wrote to the Rebbe and asked what to do next. Should he stay in Mevo Choron or move to the k’hilla in Tzfas? He also asked about parnasa.
The Rebbe’s answer surprised him and his wife. “Continue for the time being where you live now.” They understood the phrase “For the time being” to mean until Moshiach comes or until the Rebbe told them to go elsewhere.
“On the one hand, we were sad because we loved the community in Tzfas. On the other hand, we were very happy because the Rebbe had designated our shlichus for us in Mevo Choron. He had given us the task of spreading the wellsprings of Chassidus on the yishuv. I did not hesitate for a second. As quickly as we could, we packed our belongings, said goodbye to our friends and acquaintances, and returned to the yishuv.”
MOUNTAINTOP SHLICHUS
For Yud-Alef Nissan 5738/1978, R’ Elisha went to 770 for the first time. The experience increased the feeling of hiskashrus he had towards the Rebbe and Chassidus. The Chassidim, seeing the Rebbe and saying the SheHechiyanu blessing, all made him feel like he was floating. “It was like a dream,” he said.
Towards the end of the visit, he had yechidus. He asked the Rebbe for a bracha in his shlichus and the Rebbe spoke to him for several minutes. His knees shook and his teeth chattered. The Rebbe blessed him to increase greatly in the light of Torah, both in Nigleh and in Chassidus.
He later said that when he left the Rebbe’s room, he felt like he was hovering. He felt bad that he had forgotten to ask for a bracha “to have strength to farbreng.”
R’ Elisha returned to Eretz Yisroel in an elevated state. The first thing he did on the yishuv was to start a Tanya class and bring mashpiim to farbreng on the yishuv. R’ Tuvia Blau helped him a lot in those early days. He came often to farbreng and give shiurim. Later on, R’ Meir Mark came. He was on shlichus on a yishuv not far away.
R’ Elisha described his work on the yishuv in recent years as “a yeshiva on pleasant green hills.” It wasn’t like that nearly forty years ago when he started out. The strong nucleus of residents did not look kindly at his activities and they tried to obstruct his work. The fact that he had once been one of them made it easier for him to handle, but still, Chabad lecturers were examined with a fine-tooth comb by the rabbanim of the yishuv.
The beginning was not easy, because certain people on the yishuv were afraid of having the spirit of Chabad permeate the premises. They finally came to an agreement in which every Chabad lecturer would have to be approved of by the mara d’asra.
“There were times that I thought it would be easier for me to be on shlichus on a Shomer HaTzair (virulently anti-religious) kibbutz,” said R’ Elisha.
Oftentimes, he had to work secretively. The residents of the yishuv under his influence are distinguished people in the “knitted kippa camp” with a broad Torah knowledge.
Nevertheless, despite the difficulties, many became involved with Toras HaChassidus over the years, thanks to him. He felt the Rebbe’s brachos throughout. What caused him to change direction was his second visit to the Rebbe on Sukkos 5742/1981. It was a Tishrei full of giluyim.
When he returned to the yishuv after Tishrei, he went to the preschools and distributed pieces of lekach to the teachers. When they allowed him to address the children, he told them where the cake came from and then gave each child some crumbs. This paved the way to working with the children of the yishuv when, previously, he mainly focused on the adults.
One of the outstanding features of Chabad activity in Mevo Choron is the consistency, both in the work with adults and the work with children. R’ Avni took pride in this.
Until he became sick, his work on the yishuv was primarily in giving shiurim to men and women in Tanya and Chassidus and farbrengens on special days with a Lubavitcher lecturer. Tzivos Hashem for children has been operating for years, ever since the Rebbe urged working with children.
His wife Ruti Avni was always his full partner. She helps numerous women from the yishuv write to the Rebbe through the Igros Kodesh. She herself experienced miracles through the Igros Kodesh.
CONVEYING THE MESSAGES PROPERLY
Despite the great sensitivity needed in conveying the messages of Geula in a Religious Zionist yishuv, R’ Avni did not hesitate to convey the Besuras Ha’Geula. At the Lag B’Omer parade, which is a highlight of the year for the children of the yishuv, they send Moshiach balloons up into the air and ask Hashem to send the Geula.
“The approach is simple,” said R’ Avni. “The adults are tough nuts to crack, so we work with the children and they influence their parents. This is why a significant part of our work is with children. You can’t fool a kid. On Lag B’Omer, for example, we have a big parade and many adults take part too.
“In general, when it comes to Moshiach, a lot depends on how you say it. I remember that at one of the parades, R’ Zushe Partisan came to help out. I’ll never forget his fire, the truth he radiated. Nobody could resist him. When people see that we truly believe in this, they more readily accept it.”
NEXT GENERATION ON SHLICHUS
On 10 Nissan, after much suffering, R’ Elisha Avni passed away at the young age of 58. His funeral took place at the yishuv with over a thousand people in attendance. His daughters all married T’mimim and went on shlichus.
His oldest son-in-law, R’ Meir Cohen, said these parting words: “You are a Chassid; all your life you acted as a Chassid; you passed away as a Chassid on Erev 11 Nissan, the birthday of the Rebbe to whom you were so mekushar and devoted to carrying out all his horaos.”
A TASTE OF GAN EDEN
From R’ Yosef Hartman, well-known Chabad activist and a friend of the family:
I knew R’ Elisha as a child about fifty years ago when he was a camper in Gan Israel and I directed the camp in Kfar Chabad. He was a special person, one who loved and respected everyone. All his life he sought to strive higher in k’dusha and tahara, in learning of Nigleh and Chassidus.
He was a devoted teacher in the yeshiva high school in Beit Shemesh. Despite his illness, he kept going with optimism and hope. He wholeheartedly believed in Hashem and accepted his suffering with love.
He suffered a lot, but always continued with all the activities to spread Judaism and Chassidus with great energy and devotion. Although he dressed differently than the local population (a few years ago he began wearing a hat, sirtuk and gartel), he was beloved and respected by the members of the moshav and the staff at the yeshiva.
Two years ago, he spent Shabbos with his daughter Batya and son-in-law R’ Yosef Yisroel Solomon who lived for a while in Nachalat Har Chabad. They had a son born on Erev Shabbos, 11 Nissan 5770. That Shabbos, early in the morning, I met him sitting in shul and learning Chassidus. Then he attended the shiur in Chassidus given by R’ Mendel Wechter. In the afternoon he came to shiurim in Halacha, Chassidus, and Pirkei Avos. On Motzaei Shabbos he said excitedly to me, “On Shabbos I had a taste of Gan Eden.” He told me happily and proudly that he was approved by the hanhala of Tzach to be an official shliach in Mevo Choron.
His daughter just gave birth to another son. Elisha was unconscious and could not attend the bris, but after the bris he woke up suddenly and was able to see the entire family and part with them through a squeeze of the hand.
He was buried in the cemetery of the moshav which he loved so much. May he be a meilitz yosher for his wife, daughters, sons-in-law, and his only son (born with a bracha from the Rebbe) and all of Anash. May we speedily see the fulfillment of the verse, “Arise and sing those who dwell in the dust,” and he among them with the coming of Moshiach.