Exalted like a king; yet so close and accessible

The Rebbe’s demeanor is regal. People from all walks of life see the Rebbe as a powerful leader.

Just look at the picture of the Lag B’Omer parade and you see royalty.

The Talmud states, “A king speaks, and a mountain is uprooted.” The Rebbe too would say that he wanted a certain project to be undertaken and it was done (see next Paradox). The Rebbe has the power that kings would be envious of.

Yet, when the Rebbe talks to Jews of all walks of life, religious, non-observant, Chassidim, non-Chassidim, men, women, young and old, they all feel warmth, empathy and compassion. The Rebbe is able to relate to everyone on their level. The Rebbe makes everyone feel comfortable and everyone feels they are talking to their best friend.

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Has no army, but his word is a command.

As mentioned in the preceding paradox, the Rebbe’s wish is a command for thousands of his Chassidim and admirers.

However, the Rebbe has no conventional way of getting his ideas spread and implemented throughout the entire world. He did not own a radio or TV network or a major newspaper etc. He certainly does not have an army who were sworn to follow his commands.

The Rebbe just has people who respect, admire and love him intensely; reciprocating the respect, admiration and love he has for them.

If the Rebbe merely makes a suggestion, there are dozens, hundreds and often thousands of people who lovingly make his wish a reality. No one feels coercion or pressure; just conviction, devotion and love.

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A powerful leader yet so incredibly humble. Received more honor than most people but shuns it.

Moshe Rabbeinu was the humblest man on the face of the earth. But Moshe Rabbeinu also was the most significant person to have ever lived and he knew it because it says so in the Torah. The Torah testifies he was the greatest prophet and the one G-d chose to liberate the Jews and give them the Torah.

Yet, Moshe Rabbeinu was humble because he did not ascribe any of his talents and accomplishment to himself. Moreover, he was so close to G-d that in G-d’s presence he felt his own non-existence. He was therefore a transparent medium to channel G-d’s power and message.

In that tradition, the Rebbe knows his influence and impact; yet the Rebbe did not ever ascribe any of his accomplishments to himself but to his father-in-law, the Previous Rebbe.

When someone reported how one great rabbi told him that the Rebbe has “broad shoulders” to have accomplished all that he did, the Rebbe’s reaction was, “those are my father-in-law’s shoulders.”

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Emphasized individual initiative, but also channeled Divine assistance for every effort. 

Although the Rebbe emphasized the power that each individual possesses and that every Jew has a direct line to G-d, the Rebbe never stopped praying and interceding on behalf of every person who wrote to him.

The Rebbe always taught us to think positive and it will be positive, yet he made great efforts to intercede on behalf of those in need.

In the annals of Jewish history, we would be hard-pressed to find a person who would stand at the gravesite of his predecessor for many hours twice a week over the period of several decades. At these occasions the Rebbe would read and pray for the thousands of people who asked him for his blessing. 

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Criticizing inflated egos while advocating harnessing our egos for the good.

While an inflated ego is considered to be an abomination by Maimonides and particularly in Chassidic literature and more specifically in the Rebbe’s teachings, the Rebbe advocated using the ego to further Jewish knowledge.

The Rebbe advocated publicizing people who do mitzvos, having students write and publish their own Torah and Talmud interpretations.

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When people came to celebrate his birthday, he excused himself for troubling them to come to celebrate his birthday. Yet the Rebbe used the celebration as the impetus for the greatest revolution in Judaism.

The Rebbe is the last person who would want others to come to honor him on his birthday.

The Rebbe himself writes that a birthday is a private day intended for introspection. 

The Rebbe refused a phone call from the president of the United States on his birthday explaining that it was a day of private introspection.

Yet, when the Rebbe saw an opportunity to launch new institutions he did not hesitate to go totally against his own comfort and penchant for privacy.

On his 70tht birthday the Rebbe launched a successful campaign to establish 71 new institutions. The results were astounding, many more than 71 were established. It may be suggested that it took Chabad into a totally new trajectory, with exponential growth. ■