6595 —מורשת משפחתית, הפצת תורה ומצות, ולימוד חסידות

B"H, 9th of Kislev, 5719
Brooklyn.

The veteran and Chassid, a G‑d-fearing man, distinguished and honored, etc., our teacher Reb Meir Shachna, may he live^[1]

Shalom u'Vrachah!

My secretariat conveyed to me the content of your letter, and your communal work in matters of Taharas HaMishpachah in your pure camp; and also that you descend from the illustrious family Reich of Warsaw, and your grandfather was the brother of the Rav and Chassid^[2], etc., Reb Meshulam Reich, of blessed memory^[3].

May it be G‑d's will that "the rock from which you were hewn"^[4] add in you the vitality and fervor that is within the soul of each and every Jew, in a way that they have their effect in matters of Judaism, Torah and mitzvos in general, and in spreading them in your surroundings, wherever your hand reaches^[5], in particular. For in our era it is the holy duty of each and every one to spread Torah and mitzvos in all his surroundings, in a way that brings to actual practice — and this is the whole of man (as it is written), "Fear G‑d and keep His commandments"^[6]; and we have been promised by Chazal, "you have toiled and you have found"^[7]. Especially since you are in a place where, by report, for the time being^[8] there are not many G‑d-fearing people "who tremble at the word of G‑d"^[9], which increases the worth of each and every one^[10][11]. And certainly the Holy One, blessed be He, the Creator and Ruler of the world, gives the ability and the possibility to fulfill this great task.

Since you descend from a family of Chassidim and of in-laws of the families of our Rebbeim, I hope that you have fixed times^[12] for the study of the teachings of Chassidus, in addition to fixed times for the study of the revealed Torah.

With blessing for good tidings^[13] in all the above, and with greetings^[14] to all your colleagues in the holy work of strengthening the pillar of purity in your camp; and "one mitzvah draws another"^[15] in all matters of the mitzvos of our holy Torah,

In the name of the Rebbe^[16] shlita

Notes

1. Reb Meir Shachna (מו"ה מאיר שכנא שי'): Frankel, of Wellington, New Zealand.

2. The Rav and Chassid (הרה"ח): הרב החסיד.

3. Reb Meshulam Reich, of blessed memory (משולם רייך ע"ה): ע"ה = עליו השלום. R. Meshulam (Shilem) Reich (c. 5594–5669) was among the prominent Chabad Chassidim of Warsaw. He married Rivkah, daughter of R. Baruch Shalom, the eldest son of the Tzemach Tzedek, and thereby became related by marriage to the house of our Rebbeim. He lived for a time in Lubavitch and was supported at the Rebbeim's table. The Previous Rebbe relates that on Simchas Torah the Rebbe Rashab and his brother R. Zalman Aharon would go to his home with song and dance. He printed several Chabad seforim and served as an emissary of Kollel Chabad. He was close to the Chiddushei HaRim of Ger, who would ask him about the Tzemach Tzedek and the ways of Chabad Chassidus.

4. "The rock from which you were hewn" (צור מחצבתו): After the pasuk, Yeshayahu 51:1: "Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug", and the next pasuk: "Look to Avraham your father." That is: the merit of his ancestors and his illustrious family, from which he was hewn, will add strength and vitality in him.

5. Wherever your hand reaches (בכל מקום שידו מגעת): Wherever his strength and influence can reach; he should not excuse himself because it is outside the area of his particular communal work (family purity).

6. "Fear G‑d and keep His commandments" (את האלקים ירא ואת מצותיו שמור): The words of the pasuk, Koheles 12:13: "The end of the matter, all having been heard: fear G‑d and keep His commandments, for this is the whole of man."

7. "You have toiled and you have found" (יגעת ומצאת): Megillah 6b: "If a person tells you, 'I have toiled and not found,' do not believe him... 'I have toiled and found,' believe him." There it is said of words of Torah; the Rebbe applies it also to toil in spreading Torah and mitzvos.

8. For the time being (לע"ע): לעת עתה.

9. "Who tremble at the word of G‑d" (והחרדים לדבר ה'): After the pasuk, Yeshayahu 66:5: "Hear the word of G‑d, you who tremble at His word."

10. Each and every one (כאו"א): כל אחד ואחד.

11. Which increases the worth of each one (שזה מגדיל ערכו של כאו"א): Along the lines of Avos 2:5: "In a place where there are no men, strive to be a man." That is: precisely where there are few G‑d-fearing people, the responsibility and importance of each individual grows.

12. Fixed times (קביעות עתים): After the saying of Rava, Shabbos 31a: "When a person is brought to judgment they say to him... Did you fix times for Torah?"

13. Good tidings (לבשו"ט): לבשורות טובות.

14. With greetings (ובפ"ש): ובפריסת שלום.

15. "One mitzvah draws another" (מצוה גוררת מצוה): Avos 4:2: "for one mitzvah draws another"; and the Bartenura there: "one who does one mitzvah finds it easy to do another." That is: their work strengthening family purity will lead them to add in the other mitzvos as well.

16. The Rebbe (כ"ק אדמו"ר): כבוד קדושת אדוננו מורנו ורבנו.

Summary

Replying, through his secretariat, to a man in Wellington, New Zealand who works for Taharas HaMishpachah and descends from the Reich family of Warsaw, related by marriage to the Rebbeim, the Rebbe blesses him that his ancestry add fervor to his work. Every Jew today must spread Torah and mitzvos wherever his hand reaches, all the more in a place with few G‑d-fearing Jews, where each one counts more. As a scion of Chassidim, he should have fixed times for Chassidus as well as nigleh.