5927 —ההצלחה בחסדי ה' ונזקפת לזכות העושה; ואין להתייאש מיסוד שיעורים

B"H, 17 Kislev, 5718
Brooklyn.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I acknowledge receipt of your letter of 2 Kislev, in which you write about the state of the shiurim that are learned in your beis midrash, and that this is by the kindness of G‑d, blessed be He, and that perhaps someone else could also have done it, etc.

Now in general, everything a person does is by the kindness of G‑d, blessed be He; but G‑d, blessed be He, says that when one acts oneself, He then grants success in His abundant mercy, and therefore it is credited to the person's account^[1].

And as for what you write, that perhaps someone else would have accomplished more:

The only result of such a thought should be that, since someone else can accomplish more, and you too are one of the children of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov^[2], you too must surely be able to; so one must do more, and in the end there will be success in this too.

And as for what you write about the shiurim, that for the time being you have not succeeded in establishing them:

I hope that you do not, G‑d forbid, despair of this, and that in the future too you will make efforts for it. For one cannot know when is the auspicious time Above and the auspicious time below^[3]; it may well be very soon. Without effort, surely nothing will come of it, and without effort no shiur will come into being.

And especially suited for this are the days of the month of Kislev, the month of miracles and redemption^[4].

I am sure that you know the significance of Yud-Tes Kislev; nevertheless, enclosed is a booklet for Yud-Tes Kislev^[5], written at the time by my father-in-law, the Rebbe, of saintly memory, the story of the festival of redemption and its moral lesson; and you will surely make use of it in a fitting way.

With blessings for good news, in joy and gladness of heart.

Notes

1. Credited to the person's account (פאררעכענט אויפן חשבון פון דעם מענשן): Although everything is by G‑d's kindness, His will is that a person act himself, and then He grants success; therefore the deed is credited to the person.

2. One of the children of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov (פון בני אברהם יצחק ויעקב): He too is a descendant of the Patriarchs and was given the same powers; if another can do more, so can he. So the conclusion from "perhaps someone else would have done more" is that he himself must do more.

3. The auspicious time Above and the auspicious time below (עת רצון למעלה און עת רצון למטה): A time of favor from Above, and a time when the hearts of the listeners below are open. One cannot know when it will come, and it may come soon; so one must not despair, but continue to make efforts, for without effort no shiur will come about.

4. The month of miracles and redemption (חדש הנסים והגאולה): Kislev: the month of the miracle of Chanukah, and of the redemption of the Mitteler Rebbe on 10 Kislev and of the Alter Rebbe on 19 Kislev.

5. A booklet for Yud-Tes Kislev (א חוברת י"ט כסלו): A booklet for Yud-Tes Kislev containing "the story of the festival of redemption", the account of the Alter Rebbe's imprisonment and release, written at the time by the Previous Rebbe, and its "moral lesson", the practical instruction to be drawn from it. The same booklet was sent with other letters this month: see 5897*, 5909, 5912 and 5916.

Summary

This letter answers a man who credited the shiurim in his beis midrash to G‑d's kindness and thought someone else might have done more. What a person does by his own effort is credited to him; if another could do more, he too can, since he too is a child of the Patriarchs. He must not despair of establishing new shiurim, for no one knows when the auspicious time will come, especially in Kislev; a booklet on Yud-Tes Kislev is enclosed.