It had already been several hours since any Jews had entered the Chabad House. I had to do something. I felt that the Rebbe was giving me encouragement and ordering me to “take action.” I told my shlichus partner that I was going right out into the street to proclaim: Dear Jews, the city of refuge is here before you, come inside…
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry
Over a period of several months, two yeshiva bachurim, Yonatan Binyamini and Tzvi Zaifrani, served on the Rebbe’s shlichus in Playa-del-Carmen, Mexico, after the regular local shluchim, Rabbi and Mrs. Chaim Brod, left for an extended stay in Eretz Yisroel. The youthful T’mimim took their place in the outreach programs among the numerous tourists who come to the city. Many of these tourists were Israelis, as was a sizable portion of the local Jewish population.
On shlichus in general, and particularly when working with backpackers in remote locations, you encounter some fascinating instances of Divine Providence. Every shliach working in such a place has some amazing miracle stories that he has personally experienced.
HaTamim Yonatan Binyamini recalls one such episode:
“After we had received the Rebbe’s bracha to make the trip, we set out for Playa-del-Carmen. We quickly moved into place and started organizing the Chabad House programs – prayer services, Torah classes, kosher meals, and other means of spreading Judaism.
“Among the many regular activities, we would welcome the tourists coming to visit the Chabad House as we listened attentively to their personal stories. We would then use the opportunity to expose them to the teachings of Chassidus and the sichos of the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach.
“One Thursday night, the two of us were sitting together. The Chabad House was totally empty at the time – a somewhat rare occurrence. The weekly Torah portion was ‘VaEschanan,’ and we were learning a sicha about the cities of refuge. The Rebbe explains that there were signposts along the roads to the cities of refuge with the word Miklat (refuge), to make it easier for those fleeing for their lives after killing unintentionally to find one of these cities.
“The Rebbe continues to state that the concept of a ‘city of refuge’ also exists in the spiritual realm, referring to the Torah protecting a Jew from the evil inclination in pursuit. Just as the cities of refuge require large signposts to guide those trying to find them, similarly we find in spiritual life. We must go outside the city in search of perplexed Jews who don’t know where to turn, and we must lead them to the Torah to rescue their souls.
“However, the Rebbe adds that there is still a difference between material signposts placed along the roads and spiritual signposts. The material signposts stand in one place and take no initiative, and only if a person notices them will he know which route he must take. In the case of the spiritual signposts however, we must take the initiative by making an effort to save a Jew and lead him to the Torah. Chassidus teaches us that it’s not enough to be static; a Jew must constantly be ‘on the move.’ He cannot wait until another Jew comes and asks for directions. As soon as he sees that he can help someone else, he should run to him and show him the way to the ‘refuge.’
“At that very moment, something started to ‘burn’ within me. The Rebbe’s words began to penetrate deep within my soul. It had already been several hours since any Jews had entered the Chabad House, and I had to do something. I felt that the Rebbe was giving me encouragement and ordering me to ‘take action.’ I told my shlichus partner that I was going right out into the street to announce: Dear Jews, the city of refuge is here before you, come inside…
“It was ten o’clock at night, but that would not deter me. I went outside and started to shout that all Jews are invited to come in to the city of refuge – the Chabad House. I did this for about ten minutes. This was no simple operation: The streets were deserted, and my shouting disturbed the evening quiet. Dogs began to yelp, and people closed their shutters in fear of the ‘lunatic’ roaming around outside.
“At a certain point, I returned to the Chabad House, and we continued to learn the sicha.”
“Less than five minutes later, an Israeli couple came into the Chabad House in a very excited state. ‘Who was screaming about Jews and a city of refuge?’ they asked. I pleaded guilty.
“‘Why were you yelling?’ they continued to inquire. I told them about the sicha that we were learning, and how the Rebbe taught that we have to go out and call to everyone to come in without waiting for someone to turn to us. ‘We have been educated according to the teachings of Chassidus,’ I added, ‘and we learn that everything that a Jew sees or hears is by Divine Providence. We have implemented the Rebbe’s request in practical terms,’ I explained, doubtful if they would understand.
“The woman was on the verge of tears. After they sat down and had something cold to drink, they said that they had been living for some time in Moscow, where they were learning to become dentists. During the break between semesters, they decided ‘to see the world’ and go on a backpacking trip. ‘We came to the city in the wee hours of the morning, and we had already spent a whole day looking for you – but to no avail,’ they informed us. ‘We were now just walking down a nearby street, and we agreed that if we couldn’t find you there, we would give up.’
“‘Your Rebbe is amazing,’ the man explained excitedly. ‘Just a moment before despairing, we heard someone crying out in Hebrew about a city of refuge and inviting Jews to come into the Chabad House. We followed the voice, and that’s how we found you…’
“That Shabbos, they were our guests together with another group of Israelis and local Jews. We continued to meet up with them each day, give them kosher food, help the husband to put on t’fillin, and learn Torah.
“The following Wednesday, they came to say goodbye before moving on to the next stop on their journey. At this point, the wife turned to the shlucha, who was also there with her husband, and asked if she could learn something with her – a little spiritual ‘provisions’ for the way. The shlucha directed her to the bookshelves and said, ‘Pick a seifer of your choice…’ The tourist went to the shelf and chose the most colorful seifer there – Maayan Chai. Incredibly, she opened the seifer to the very sicha from Parshas VaEschanan in which the Rebbe speaks about the spiritual signposts for cities of refuge in our times.
“She began to read, and then became speechless,” HaTamim Yonatan Binyamini said as he concluded his amazing story. “We saw how this example of Divine Providence had a powerful effect upon them and reawakened their long dormant connection to the path of Torah and mitzvos.
We exchanged e-mail addresses, and then went our separate ways. After the couple finished their Mexican tour, they returned to Moscow to resume their studies. We continue to be in touch with them on a regular basis, as we hope to hear happy tidings from them both.”