Flashbacks from the Chabad International Convention
By Rabbi Avi
I spent this past weekend in NY at the Kinus Hashluchim - the annual Conference for Chabad Rabbis from all around the world.
Shabbat with over 3,000 Rabbis definitely leaves one with lots of inspiration and food for thought.
The weekend was capped by a beautiful banquet on Sunday night. Imagine the sight of a room with four thousand hats, four
thousand beards from sixty five countries and forty seven states. There is no hall large enough in the entire borough of Brooklyn,
NY to hold them. With over 4,000 Rabbis and lay leaders in attendance, the banquet has long since outgrown even the biggest
hotels. It was held this year at Pier 94 in Manhattan, and the sight and energy was truly awe-inspiring.
The annual gathering of Chabad emissaries is the highlight of my year. Our mission to reach every single Jew is evident throughout
the entire ballroom. Rabbis from every corner of the world are here today, yet tomorrow they will be off to their faraway
destinations, placing them within the reach of every single Jew in the entire universe.
As at every Jewish event the evening consisted of lots of food, speeches, and "spontaneous" dancing and singing. One of the
highlights every year is the roll call; it's no longer feasible to recognize each person - just recognizing each country and state
represented takes almost an hour!
Imagine 1 roomful with 4000 Rabbis dancing around tables and singing a Chassidic melody together. It’s hard to describe
the energy. In that 1 room you were able to see the effect that Chabad is having in every corner of the world.
The speeches and presentations were really beautiful, ranging from the guest speaker to words of Torah and inspiration, video
presentations, and more.
The guest speaker was Mr. Levi Leviev, the powerful diamond magnate, who personally bankrolls hundreds of Chabad
institutions in the former Soviet Union. He told the tale of ten Chabad envoys who 100 years ago arrived in Samarkand
to inspire the Bucharian Jewish community. To their chagrin, only ten boys agreed to attend their small cheder. The entire
generation was engulfed by a wave of assimilation, yet those ten boys in the cheder remained steadfast in their Jewish
observance. One of those boys was Mr. Leviev's grandfather.
It was this commitment to the individual, to every single Jew, that Chabad displayed to his grandfather and continues to
display to every single Jew that inspires him to stand side by side with the Chabad movement, ensuring that no Jew will
be left behind.
The highlight of his talk was the story of a girl from the country of Tatarstan who was born to a Jewish mother and
non-Jewish father. The mother felt an obligation to give her daughter a Jewish education and enrolled her in the local
Chabad day school. The father went along with it initially, but gradually changed his mind and decided to baptize her as
a Christian.
As they prepared for the ceremony on a Friday evening, the girl took the candles from the priest, lit them and
proceeded to say," Baruch ata adon-ai... Lehadlik ner shel shabbat kodesh .... Needless to say, there was not a dry
eye in the audience.
Another story was shared by Rabbi Nechemia Vogel, long-time Chabad Rabbi on campus at SUNY in Rochester,
NY. His father, Mr. Bobby Vogel, was a diamond dealer in London, England; he counted among his accomplishments
and responsibilities the founding and support of the Lubavitch Grammar School in London. As the school-and the
budget-grew, it became more and more difficult to continue. At the Rebbe's urging, the school operated under the
philosophy that every Jewish child deserves a Jewish education; if the child's parents were unable to pay, the burden
fell on the school's administrators and funders.
At one point, Mr. Vogel felt he had reached wits' end. He poured his heart out to the Lubavitcher Rebbe in a private
audience, proclaiming that he could no longer shoulder the increased burden of additional needy students. The time
had come, he felt, to turn some people away.
The Rebbe responded:
Mr. Vogel, you are a businessman, so I'll respond in business terms. Imagine you are carrying a heavy burden, a
load of rocks. But not just any rocks. The bag is filled with blue-white diamonds, stones of the greatest clarity and value.
Yes, the load may be great, but the reward is even greater. Now along comes an opportunity: Someone wishes to add
yet another blue-white diamond to your load.
Do you approach the added load as a burden? Do you look at this as an additional problem, one you would gladly
avoid if you could? Or do you excitedly shoulder the extra weight, rejoicing at your opportunity to add one more gem
to your horde?
Every child, every person, every additional Jew you can help, is a diamond of exceptional, inestimable value. The
person who turns to you for help is not an added weight; he or she is an additional treasured opportunity!
At root, on the soul level, it is exactly that message that stands as the inspiration for each of the Rabbis who were in the
room that night. Most of them serve communities in far-flung corners of the world, facing incredible hardships. But if we
can only maintain the right perspective, if we can look at the world and at people who need our help as opportunities
rather than problems, our priorities shift dramatically, and we can indeed each help make our world a better place.
I have come back with a boost – a renewed strength & energy to do what the Lubavitcher Rebbe sent us here for and that is to care for each and every single Jew and to be there for their needs, both spiritually and physically. I'm ready to continue the challenge.
