Dear Readers sh’yichyu,
In honor of 20 Cheshvan, the birthday of the Rebbe Rashab, the founder of Tomchei T’mimim, I am happy to introduce our new series of articles: Chinuch of Yemos HaMoshiach.
For me personally, this series is long overdue. As my two main passions are Chinuch, as the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati, and teaching and writing about Moshiach, it was only a matter of time until these two were combined in their own series.
In this introductory article, I want to establish – and the only way that we as Chassidim establish things is with Torah and the sichos of our Rebbe – that 1) We live now in a very special era, the era of Yemos HaMoshiach (not to be confused with the Halachic Yemos HaMoshiach when fast-days are abolished etc.) and 2) Chinuch in our generation and Moshiach are not two separate things, rather two things rooted together at the very core. The foundation of Chinuch in our generation is Emuna and Moshiach.
In the words of the Rebbe:
“In these times – the days of Moshiach – in which we now find ourselves, we only need to open the eyes. Then we will see that the true and complete Redemption already exists, in the simple sense.” (19 Kislev 5752)
The Rebbe also states: “According to our Sages, the verse ‘Do not touch My anointed ones (Meshichoi)’ refers to the children who study Torah.”
One of the explanations of this statement, in addition to those provided by the commentators, is that the education of school children has to be in a manner that the children are completely permeated and absorbed with the ideal of Moshiach. Just by looking at a Jewish child, what should one see? Moshiach! His entire being is Moshiach, the realization of “You have been shown… there is none beside Him.” (Simchas Torah 5752)
The accomplishment of the Rebbe Rashab in founding the Yeshiva Tomchei T’mimim is explained in the well-known discourse “All Who Go Out to the Wars of House of David.” The students of the Yeshiva Tomchei T’mimim are the “soldiers of the House of David” who fight the wars of the House of David against those “who revile the footsteps of your anointed.”
The Rambam writes in his Laws of Kings and their Wars and the King Moshiach: “He [Moshiach] will fight the wars of G-d until he is victorious.” [That Moshiach will be victorious] is also indicated by what follows after “who revile the footsteps of your anointed,” in the words “Blessed is the L-rd forever Amen and Amen.” For “Amen” (and all the more so when Amen is repeated) testifies to victory in war, through which the coming and revelation of Dovid Melech HaMoshiach will be accomplished in actual reality. (VaYeira 5752)
In the coming articles, we will B’ezras Hashem explain directives and approaches outlined by our Rebbe for educating this unique generation. If anyone has questions on things that
will be written in these articles,
feel free to contact the author at
yeshivaslubavitch@gmail.com