5909 —חיות ואור פנימי בחינוך הדור הצעיר, ומסירת שיחות חסידותיות לתלמידים

B"H, 9 Kislev, 5718

Brooklyn.

The veteran Chassid, a G‑d-fearing man, distinguished and honored, engaged in communal needs^[1], our teacher Rabbi Eliezer, may he live

Shalom u'Vrachah!

After a most prolonged interruption, your letter of 5 Kislev was received, with good news^[2] that you have seen good fruit from your toil in the field of education in purity and holiness: that the students continue in the tradition of their fathers even after completing their education in the institution in which you serve,

and may it be G‑d's will that this success arouse in you added strengths, that is, not only to activate the revealed powers of the soul, but also to draw from the wellspring of the hidden powers^[3], in order to add courage and, what matters still more, vitality and light in your activity in this field. For if in all matters success depends on the measure of vitality and light in the activity, how much more so in matters connected with the young generation, which yearns and thirsts for a word that is alive and warm, saturated with an inner light that breaks through and illuminates everything around it.

In connection with this, I was especially pleased to read at the end of your letter that you recognize the benefit of conveying Chassidic talks to your students. The catalog of the Kehot publishing house is being sent to you separately^[4]; in it you will see what has been published here in the various fields, and you will choose what suits the character and level of knowledge of the pupils. And since time is a loss that does not return^[5], it is worthwhile that even before receiving the catalog you try to find it among Anash in the Holy Land, may it be built and established^[6] [among them, with Mr. Z. Wilimovsky, P.O.B. 4595, Tel Aviv, or with Rabbi Avraham Pariz, 16 Bar Kochba St., Petach Tikvah]; and from them you can also acquire the books you choose.

Surely you know the story of the luminous day of Yud-Tes Kislev^[7], which is fast approaching; a booklet is being sent to you separately (written at the time by my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, of saintly memory^[8], though with his name concealed, for certain reasons), and surely its contents will interest those you influence as well.

With blessing for success in your holy work of raising the glory of Yisrael Saba^[9], and for good news in all the above.

Publisher's notes

Printed in Likkutei Sichos, vol. 22, p. 371, and completed from the secretariat's copy.

Our teacher Rabbi Eliezer (מו"ה אליעזר): Breuer, Hadar Ramatayim.

The institution in which you serve (בהמוסד בו מכהן): Netzach Yisrael.

Notes

1. The veteran Chassid... engaged in communal needs (הוו"ח אי"א נו"נ עוסק בצ"צ): Titles of honor: הוותיק וחסיד, איש ירא אלקים, נעלה ונכבד, עוסק בצרכי ציבור; מוה' = מורנו הרב. The recipient is R. Eliezer Breuer of Hadar Ramatayim, an educator at the Netzach Yisrael institution (see the publisher's notes).

2. With good news (בבשו"ט): בבשורות טובות.

3. The hidden powers (כחות הנעלמים): The success should arouse in him not only the revealed powers of his soul (intellect and emotions) but its hidden, deeper powers too, so as to add vitality and light to his work; for the young generation thirsts precisely for a living, warm word saturated with inner light. ז.א. = זאת אומרת, "that is."

4. The catalog of the Kehot publishing house... separately (בפ"ע הקטלוג דהוצאת קה"ת): בפ"ע = בפני עצמו, "separately" (by separate post). קה"ת = קרני הוד תורה, the Chabad publishing house. הו"ל = הוציאו לאור, "published."

5. Time is a loss that does not return (הזמן אבדה שאינה חוזרת): Time that has passed does not come back; so he should not wait for the catalog to arrive by post, but obtain it at once from Anash in the Holy Land.

6. Anash in the Holy Land, may it be built and established (אנ"ש באה"ק ת"ו): אנשי שלומנו בארץ הקודש תבנה ותכונן.

7. The story of Yud-Tes Kislev (פרשת יום הבהיר י"ט כסלו): The liberation of the Alter Rebbe from his imprisonment in Petersburg, "the Rosh Hashanah of Chassidus" (see Hayom Yom, 19 Kislev).

8. My revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, of saintly memory (כ"ק מו"ח אדמו"ר זצוקללה"ה נבג"מ זי"ע): The Previous Rebbe, R. Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn. The booklet on Yud-Tes Kislev sent to him was written by the Previous Rebbe, though his name was not printed in it. The same booklet was also sent with letters 5897b, 5912, 5916 and 5927.

9. Yisrael Saba (ישראל סבא): "Grandfather Yisrael," Yaakov Avinu (in the language of the Zohar), meaning the whole Jewish people and its ancestral tradition: his work in education raises the glory of the Jewish people.

Summary

This letter rejoices that the recipient's students keep the tradition after leaving his school, and asks him to draw also on the hidden powers of his soul, since success depends on the vitality and light in the work, all the more with the young, who thirst for a living, warm word full of inner light. It sends the Kehot catalog so he can choose Chassidic talks for his students without delay, and a booklet on Yud-Tes Kislev written by the Previous Rebbe.