WHAT DID THE REBBE TELL CHASSIDIM WHO FELT FORLORN TO DO?

Dear Reader Sh’yichyeh,

This Shabbos (Chayei Sara 5774) marks 22 years since we heard the Rebbe farbreng on Shabbos Parshas Chaya Sara 5752.

It has not been an easy 22 years. For many, these years have been filled with disappointments, doubts and frustration. There are bachurim getting married now who have never seen the Rebbe. The situation seems very shaky. Even for those who hold strong to their faith, the Yetzer Hara (Amalek) comes in all shapes and forms to try to weaken and cool down this special emuna.

It is to these doubts that I write the following: This is not the first time in history that there was a painful 22 year separation! The Torah tells us that Yosef HaTzaddik was separated from his father for 22 years.

How did Yosef handle this separation? He could have easily become depressed by the seemingly tough and helpless situation; his mother died while he was young, he was separated from his father, sold by his brothers, and put in jail in a foreign land. Instead, he remained upbeat and positive and eventually rose to become the ruler of Mitzrayim!

What was Yosef’s secret? How did he manage to stay positive despite the seemingly negative and depressing circumstances?

Firstly, he had strong faith in Hashem and believed in Hashgacha Pratis (Divine Providence). He knew that everything that Hashem does is part of a big and good plan. If Hashem willed on him all these circumstances, it was a test for him and a building experience for him. He did not allow himself to wallow in self-pity.

But then there was an additional secret. The Torah tells us (VaYigash 45:27) that when Yosef revealed himself to his brothers and asked them to bring their father down to Egypt, he sent wagons to bring him down. When Yaakov saw the wagons, “his spirit was revived.” What was so special about those wagons? Rashi explains: “He (Yosef) gave them a sign, viz., in what topic he was engaged when he (Yosef) separated from him (Yaakov). [That was] the section dealing with the heifer that was to be beheaded (עֶגְלָה עִרוּפָה) (Deut. 21), and this is what [Scripture] says, ‘and he saw the wagons עֶגְלָה that Yosef had sent,’ and it (Scripture) does not say, ‘that Pharaoh had sent.’”

By constantly reviewing the last “Sicha” of Yaakov, Yosef was able to receive the necessary strength to remain strong. He internalized the message of “עֶגְלָה עִרוּפָה” and that gave him strength.

What is the message of “עֶגְלָה עִרוּפָה”? The Rebbe explains (Likkutei Sichos Vol. 30) that the laws of עֶגְלָה עִרוּפָה apply when someone is alone in the field, and is murdered there. If, however, the person had been accompanied by “the elders of the city,” he would not have been killed. Yosef realized that as long as he stayed connected to the “elders of the city” – his Rebbe, Yaakov Avinu – then he would not be alone in “the field” in Mitzrayim and he would have the strength to survive.

Dear Chassidim: After the Histalkus of the Frierdike Rebbe, the Chassidim felt alone and depressed. They wrote to the Rebbe that they need Chizuk. What did the Rebbe tell them? To be like Yosef and review the last Sichos of the Frierdike Rebbe and they would be able to receive the necessary strength!

In the words of the Rebbe (Igros Vol. 4 page 23): “You write that you are feeling very lonely and you feel that your Avoda is weakening … It is from the Yetzer Ha’ra … look in the Sicha of 13 Tammuz 5710; it is a place where you can get strength from … If only Anash – and especially the Bachurim – would learn the Sichos of 5709-5710.” These are last sichos of the Frierdike Rebbe.

Dear Chassidim: We must learn and “live” with Sichos of 5751-5752. These Sichos were delivered and painstakingly edited by the Rebbe to be a source of strength in these trying times.

On Shabbos Chayei Sara 5752, the Rebbe spoke to the guests at the International Kinus HaShluchim and said the following words:

“The most recent innovation in the work of shlichus is to receive our righteous Moshiach in the true and complete Redemption. Indeed, the preparation for the coming of our righteous Moshiach is the most all-encompassing aspect of Judaism and includes all the other points and details of the work of shlichus … This should be done through one’s
explanation of the concept of Moshiach, as explained in the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, in a way that it will be received by everyone according to his intellect and understanding. This includes in particular learning the subject of Moshiach and Redemption, and specifically in a manner of Wisdom, Understanding and Knowledge. And since this is the Divine service of the time, it›s understood this applies to every Jew without any exception whatsoever!”

Let us tap into these wellsprings of strength. When the Hisgalus of the Rebbe happens, we will send the Rebbe “our wagons” full of our “עֶגְלָה עִרוּפָה” and “the spirit of their father Yaacov was revived!”

Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati and a well sought after speaker and lecturer. Recordings of his in-depth shiurim on Inyanei Geula u’Moshiach can be accessed at http://www.ylcrecording.com.