From the life of R’ Yehoshua Shneur Zalman Serebryanski a”h.
After Pesach, R’ Zalman went to Sydney to raise funds for the yeshiva. In those days, it was a long trip by train until the border of New South Wales where he had to change trains for Sydney.
R’ Zalman was exhausted when he arrived. He was most disappointed when he found out that he had not come at a good time since a fund raising drive was underway for Eretz Yisroel. Many Jews in the community felt strongly about supporting Israel and after giving a nice donation it was hard to get them to part with additional money for a small institution in Melbourne.
Some of R’ Zalman’s acquaintances, especially Rabbi Abramson, got involved in helping him and thanks to their help, he was able to raise 1000 Australian dollars in three weeks, a nice amount considering the poor timing of his arrival.
R’ Zalman did not only want to collect funds in Sydney, but also wanted to recruit good boys for the yeshiva. In a letter that he sent to the Rebbe on Motzaei Shabbos, 19 Iyar, after he returned to Melbourne, he reported that he met “a fine bachur who learns diligently all day” whose name was Nachum Babroka. R’ Zalman heard from R’ Abramson that he was actively being mekarev the bachur and learned an in-depth shiur with him every day in the tractate Chulin. R’ Shimon Stillerman was also mekarev the bachur who wanted to learn Torah and learned Shulchan Aruch HaRav with him twice a week as well as Tanya. R’ Zalman was very impressed by the boy’s yiras Shamayim. He spent Pesach with his father, sister and brother-in-law and would not eat even what his sister cooked but cooked for himself in special pots.
The bachur’s financial situation was very difficult. His father did not work due to an illness and his married sister worked and gave her father her paltry salary, which barely managed to cover his living expenses. R’ Abramson arranged for the bachur to teach three students every day, when they came home from public school, and paid him five Australian dollars for this. This amount sufficed for his living expenses but he could not go on like that.
R’ Zalman was afraid for the boy’s spiritual fate since he was alone in Sydney, and he worked to convince him to go to the yeshiva in Melbourne. He suggested that Nachum come with his father and promised to find them a place to live and to hire the father for light work in the yeshiva. Nachum politely declined and explained that his father was unwilling to live far away from his devoted daughter and he could not go to Melbourne alone and leave his sick father in Sydney.
Before R’ Zalman left Sydney, he asked the boy to write to the Rebbe about his spiritual situation and he also told him that if he ever needed help, he should write to R’ Zalman who would do what he could for him. In a letter that R’ Zalman wrote to the Rebbe after his visit to Sydney, he wrote his impressions of the boy and concluded, “May Hashem have mercy on him to strengthen him and guide him because he is alone in Sydney and there is no [proper spiritual] environment.”
(Some time later, Nachum went to the yeshiva in Melbourne and after he finished his learning there he returned to Sydney).
A MENAHEL WITH KABBALAS OL
Although some years had passed since R’ Zalman had gotten involved with communal work in Australia, he still found it hard to get used to the role of being menahel of the yeshiva. As a recent emigrant from Russia, he did not relate at all to the Australian mentality and he did not know English well. The only thing that kept him going as the menahel was the sense of obedience to the Rebbe’s instructions. Since the Rebbe had assigned him the job of running the school, he put aside all his wants, both material and spiritual-Chassidic, and devoted himself to the job at hand.
He always felt that the Rebbe chose him to run the school not because of his special abilities, but because “where there is no man, strive to be a man.” In his great modesty, he always thought that if someone else had the job, he would be far more successful. This is the reason why, in many of his letters, both those quoted earlier and those which we will quote, he keeps asking the Rebbe to send someone more suitable than him to run the yeshiva.
We see an example of this in a letter he wrote on Motzaei Shabbos, 19 Iyar 5714:
We need to start getting ready to move the yeshiva and set it up in the new place, l’mazal tov, and I still have no idea how and in what manner to approach this work. May Hashem have mercy and help us with great success, in a supernatural way. I ask of the Rebbe to guide us with his holy instructions in every detail.
The Rebbe is well aware of my lack of suitability to run a mosad, especially in the situation here where we do not have someone suitable, not for work with the outside and not for teaching and guiding the talmidim (if it would be possible to send someone suitable here, at least for a limited time, it would surely be good but if that is not possible) since it is the Rebbe’s opinion that I should continue to be involved in this, then at least provide me with detailed and frequent instructions.
In those days, the mail from Australia to New York took a week to get there so that R’ Zalman’s letter, which was sent on 21 Iyar (since there was no mail service on Sunday), reached the Rebbe on 27 or 28 Iyar. The fact that the Rebbe’s response bears the date 28 Iyar indicates that the Rebbe found it important enough to respond immediately.
I received your letter of 19 Iyar and it is most surprising that after you and the rest of Anash have seen the outstanding success regarding the yeshiva in finding a building and buying it etc. you are still full of doubts at every step. As you write in your letter, you have no idea about how and in what way to approach this work. This is after you have been involved in this for years and balabatim have gotten involved that you would never have thought would do so. In addition to which, the Hungarian children have joined you, etc.
All the more so, in your previous country where the matter entailed mesirus nefesh, you were involved in chinuch and did not make conditions with the blessed Creator that you should see miracles at every step, for otherwise, you would not be able to continue the work. In your present country where even in natural ways there are opportunities to continue, and all the more so when there is no scrimping with miracles – it is only that it requires brief contemplation and opening of the eyes, at least a little.
MONEY FROM REPARATION PAYMENTS
In this same letter, the Rebbe refers to another topic. In those years, following the reparations deal between Israel and Germany, the German government also gave large sums of money to Holocaust survivors living in Jewish areas in other parts of the world. This money wasn’t given to individuals, but was sent to Jewish organizations who in turn divided the moneys as they saw fit.
R’ Binyamin Gorodetzky, the Rebbe’s representative in Europe, who was on good terms with leaders of the Joint, had nice sums of money transferred for Chabad work in Europe and in North Africa in particular. When they began sending some money to the Jewish community in Australia, the Rebbe said they should submit a request for the yeshiva in Melbourne. The request was accepted and the Rebbe reported to R’ Zalman about this so he would know to ask for money coming to the yeshiva.
The Rebbe also wrote about being visited by a Mr. Rabinowitz, the principal of a Jewish school in Sydney. This school was later transferred to R’ Pinchas Feldman, the Rebbe’s shliach. The Rebbe told R’ Zalman that he had heard from this man about the school that he was running, and “would that they be envious of him – as far as his strenuous efforts – to expand the mosad Oholei Yosef Yitzchok that is in Melbourne.”
CAN THE REBBE’S CHECKS BE REDEEMED?
At the end of the letter, the Rebbe responds to R’ Zalman’s reports about his meetings with previous talmidim of the yeshiva, and to R’ Zalman’s question about whether the Feiglin family could redeem the checks the Rebbe sent and issue their own personal checks instead.
The Rebbe encouraged him to continue being in touch with his former talmidim through letters and to try and get them to return to the yeshiva at least for some time. As for the checks, the Rebbe said that if the hanhala of the yeshiva approved, that was fine.
TELEGRAM
Even before receiving the Rebbe’s response to his letter, R’ Zalman received a telegram from 770 in which he was informed that they wanted to send R’ Yitzchok Groner to Australia to raise funds for yeshivas Tomchei T’mimim in Eretz Yisroel and the United States. The question was whether he gave his approval in that this would not work against the yeshiva in Melbourne’s best interest.
R’ Zalman thought the timing was problematic both for the yeshiva in Australia and for the yeshiva in New York. A general drive for the Chabad yeshivos could hurt the fundraising he was doing at that time for the local yeshiva. And because of local fundraising, people might not want to contribute towards the larger fundraising drive. Either way, both sides could lose out.
After thinking it over, he came up with another consideration that tipped the scales towards saying yes. He remembered that on R’ Groner’s previous visit to Australia he made a tremendous impression on the Jewish community. So he thought that if, during his visit, R’ Groner could act on behalf of the yeshiva, he could definitely help them arrange the yeshiva in its new place. It was worthwhile just for that for him to come.
R’ Zalman harbored the hope that maybe R’ Groner would agree to stay in Australia and he could finally give over the leadership of the yeshiva to someone charismatic and beloved, who knew English well and could greatly benefit the yeshiva.
So he sent a positive response to the hanhala of the yeshiva. A few days later, on 3 Sivan 5714, before receiving the Rebbe’s response to his letter, he sent another letter to the Rebbe in which he referred to R’ Groner’s mission and asked, on behalf of all of Anash and the mekuravim who wanted the yeshiva to succeed, that R’ Groner make efforts on their behalf.
R’ Zalman emphasized that since the talmidim from Sydney had left the yeshiva and only three of the Hungarian talmidim remained, whom the hanhala was not satisfied with (and who were likely to leave soon after a new rav came to their k’hilla and re-opened the yeshiva as his predecessor did), therefore, he thought it was worth changing direction and focusing mainly on reaching out to the larger Jewish community, asking them to send their children for a Jewish education after public school.
In such a situation, wrote R’ Zalman, they needed someone to head the mosad “who knows how to draw the hearts of the parents and the children, someone who would meet the demands of most of the community with his scholarship and yiras Shamayim as well as his knowledge of English and the mentality of the people there,” and who was more suitable than R’ Groner?
NO ROOM FOR DOUBTS
The Rebbe negated the idea of making R’ Groner’s visit conditional on his helping the yeshiva. He was going on a specific mission under certain terms and conditions and he couldn’t do something else. The Rebbe said he did not know whether it was possible to be involved in both things, but if it was, then surely R’ Groner would help to the best of his ability. The Rebbe also dismissed R’ Zalman’s claim that if the menahel of the yeshiva knew the language they would be more successful.
The Rebbe brought as proof the work of Chabad in other countries where they were very successful even though the heads of the mosdos were not local people and they did not know the language. (In those days there were shluchim in Morocco and Tunisia. When they arrived, they did not know the language. Shluchim were also sent throughout the United States even though they had recently come from Russia and barely knew English).
The Rebbe said he would repeat yet again what he wrote several times before that they must enlarge the yeshiva as much as possible, both in quantity and quality. He said Hashem is not unreasonable with His creations and surely it was within their ability.
The Rebbe expressed his great dissatisfaction that they were the only ones working on the yeshiva for the last number of months, especially as the Hungarian rav whose yeshiva had been competing with theirs had left the country and they had experienced outstanding success as far as purchasing the building, public relations etc.
The letter goes on to say:
And all the explanations that they write about that they do not have a great lamdan there who knows the local language etc. – the reality of the work of Chabad in various countries belies all these excuses. In general, what benefit is there from the excuses – it is certain that there needs to be a Yeshivas Tomchei T’mimim b’poel mamash also in Australia. The greatest proof of this is – since if not for this it is completely incomprehensible why Hashem Yisborach brought them there, as there doesn’t appear to be any material gain nor spiritual gain. It seems to me that I already wrote to them once the saying of the RaZA nishmaso Eden who said: “A Litvak (Lithuanian Jew) doesn’t believe until he counts over,” but not to believe even after counting…
HELP FROM WEALTHY PEOPLE
In the letter of 3 Sivan 5714, R’ Zalman reported about his meetings with wealthy people and potential supporters. For example, he wrote about Mr. Aryeh Neuman whom he had connected with the Rebbe. After Mr. Neuman wrote to the Rebbe about his business dealings, he received a reply blessing him with success and also urging him to help Chabad’s work.
After receiving this letter from the Rebbe, he invited R’ Zalman over and asked him to convey his thanks to the Rebbe for his brachos, and to tell the Rebbe that he was committed to helping the mosdos Chabad. As a first step, he convened a meeting in his home on Rosh Chodesh Sivan in which he was elected as a member of the building committee along with R’ Dovid Feiglin, R’ Menachem Mendel New (son-in-law of R’ Isser Kluvgant) and R’ Nosson Werdiger (R’ Zalman’s son-in-law).
R’ Zalman arranged with Mr. Neuman that the latter would invite some wealthy people to his home, including Mr. Gutwirth, the Feiglin family and other wealthy people, in order to hold an emergency fundraiser and to elect the financial committee of the mosad.
Mr. Neuman, who was in a bit of a financial bind at the time, told R’ Zalman that he could contribute 100-150 Australian dollars over several months. R’ Zalman suggested that he increase his donation to 500 dollars over a longer period of time so that the other wealthy men would be embarrassed to donate less than 500.
R’ Zalman wrote all this to the Rebbe and said he planned on suggesting to Mr. Gutwirth that he serve as chairman of the financial committee of the yeshiva. Although up until that point Mr. Gutwirth had not been involved in communal activity, R’ Zalman hoped that if he would agree to the appointment, he would naturally be more involved in communal activity on behalf of the yeshiva.
In conclusion, R’ Zalman wrote that the building should be available at the end of Sivan and if all went well, they could open the building on Rosh Chodesh Tammuz.
“I spoke with some of our mekuravim,” wrote R’ Zalman, “and they think the yeshiva should have a large library, not just of Chassidus but of Nigleh too, like the commentaries on Shas and responsa and other s’farim. We also need Siddurim, T’hillim, and s’farim for younger and older students. Aside from the money needed for this, we cannot obtain the s’farim here and perhaps it is possible to obtain them all through Merkos L’Inyanei Chinuch. Of course, the person involved with this will be an organized person who will know how to collect the necessary s’farim, especially the s’farim for the talmidim so that there will be enough and of the right quality, and that the shipping will be handled in an orderly fashion.”
At the end of the Rebbe’s letter cited previously, the Rebbe concludes:
It would be proper that when talking to Mr. Gutwirth they should remind him of the talk that we had between us, and they should add that although they do not know the content of our discussion – they are confident, especially as it was a long conversation, that when it will be made known here about his participation with all his capabilities in Yeshivas Oholei Yosef Yitzchok in Melbourne it will cause very great satisfaction.
As far as what you write that there should be a library of s’farim of Nigleh and Chassidus, that is a proper thing, and it seems to me that they already have a library of s’farim made up of those published by Kehos (although I have not heard a thing about the activities of the library and its impact). They should clarify the matter once again, and when they will send a list of those s’farim that are already there, they will supply them with whatever is lacking.
With blessings in all of the above – he who awaits good tidings,
(The Rebbe’s signature).