Gimmel Tammuz: How to end a love affair with nature

By Rabbi Daniel Green

Crown Heights, NY

On this day 26 years since we saw the Rebbe last, we focus on one thing - Rebbe. In our corporeal lives that are conducted, for the most part, as per the edicts of nature, the one thing that defies this natural conduct is, again, Rebbe.

When it came to carrying out a shlichus, whether we found it within our natural abilities or not, a Lubavitcher always rose to the occasion. Why? Rebbe.

When it came to going on tahalucha amidst a torrential downpour, or dancing the entire night on the street during Simchas Beis Hashoeva till the wee hours of the morning, trying to keep our eyes open due to sleep deprivation, we did it - and without batting an eyelid. Why? Rebbe.

I say this now to every Lubavitcher, and we all know it to be true, from the very core of our being. And as the Rebbe enunciated, on the 24th of Teves, 5712 (1952), that every Chassid engraves, deep into his heart, the following:

אז מער ווי דער אויבערשטער און ליובאוויטש, מער ווי דער אויבערשטער און תורת החסידות, מער ווי דער איבערשטער און תורה, איז מער גארנישט ניטא!

“Other than Hashem and Lubavitch, other than Hashem and Chassidus, other than Hashem and Torah - there’s nothing else!” All other considerations, even conforming with the guidelines of nature and normalcy, then, were included in - “nothing else.”

And this, my friends, is what defines a Chassid as opposed to a non-Chassid. A non-Chassid, albeit a properly observant and pious Jew, conforms to normalcy and nature more readily than a Chassid, who prefers to go the supernatural route.

Here are a few examples, among many, of the Chassidic tendency to somewhat shun normalcy and to treat nature condescendingly.

1. Studying Torah exclusively. Whereas most religious parents the world over balance their elementary-aged sons’ Torah study with a proper secular education, to enable, when the time comes, the young men to generate more substantial incomes - Chassidim choose chadarim that offer no secular studies at all, so that their children be immersed in strictly holy educational pursuits until marriage or until they need to become breadwinners. So while nature says, be wise and invest in your child’s financial future - Torah says, give your child Torah, and only Torah. Chassidim choose Torah over nature.

2. Metzitzah bipeh. At a ritual circumcision, after removing the foreskin, a mohel must suction out the blood in order to prevent infection. The proper way to do this, Halacha mandates, is by mouth, which provides the best suction (after which the mohel spits out the blood, of course). However, in 2012, the city of New York passed a ban on metzitzah by mouth, citing evidence that this ritual led to infants contracting herpes. A majority of doctors, privy to the modern-day sensitivity to microorganisms of which the Talmud “might not have been aware” (or so they thought) inspired the government’s ban. Furthermore, many Orthodox (non-Chassidic) rabbis too approved of the ban, citing that pikuach nefesh, saving a life, comes first, and that mohalim should comply with the medical knowledge and use a straw. Throughout the city, Chassidic mohalim continued to do the ritual by mouth, albeit illegally, and went on to combat the decree in court, refusing to abandon a Jewish practice for generations, and moreover, one prescribed by Shulchan Aruch as the correct and safe way to perform the ritual. Chassidim were not phased by doctors’ testimonies and empirical evidence provided by the government’s legal counsel (arguing vehemently therewith, claiming it faulty and inaccurate) and were ultimately successful in stopping the city from meddling in religion. Again - Chassidim went with mind over matter, with Torah over (what the majority of doctors assumed to be) nature. 

3. Having large families. While many non-Chassidic couples show prudence in unrestrained procreation, whereas the cost of raising each child, from birth till marriage, is simply astronomical - from newborn diapers through yeshiva tuitions - which naturally, is beyond the means of most parents, Chassidic couples take the Torah’s words “Be fruitful and multiply” literally. Instead of taking precautions in order to live within their natural financial ability, they choose to elicit supernatural powers to somehow manage, in order to bring as many Jewish souls into the world as possible. 

(This list can go on and on, but I need to get to the point of my article).

At the epicenter of this disobedience to the laws of nature is… That’s right. Rebbe.

So did Gimmel Tammuz affect this? No. Not the slightest. Well, not until recently. Very recently.

How did it happen? How did Lubavitch, the epitome of Chassidic disrespect for nature in modern times, suddenly fall in love with nature, with doctors, and with state and city governments?

Why was 770 only opened a few days ago, while every shul in Williamsburg has been open since before Shavuos? Why is Oholei Torah still closed, while schools in Williamsburg were open since before Pesach? Why is Oholei Torah zal not planning to open for the school year of 2020-2021, in compliance with the state’s restrictions on congregating in a study-hall of its proportions? Why are large Chabad summer camps in New York not planning to open, leaving many kids without a Chassidic summer experience. (These children have suffered enough - spiritually, socially and mentally - by being deprived of a school environment for months, and now, they will be deprived of overnight camp as well. While the Rebbe shturemed about the summertime necessity and golden opportunity for every child to be immersed in chinuch al taharas hadosh, a.k.a. Gan Yisroel, 24-7, even those who did not have this privilege throughout the year - this summer, many such children will be without!)

Why are Chabad Houses throughout the nation still closed, while state governments have opened up almost everything else, yet Chabad chooses to be more prudent?

Why has our movement become so overly cautious and legally obedient, and in fact going way beyond, in many cases, even the restrictive policies of governments? Why has every Lubavitcher child become a Zoom zombie, while other Chassidic circle’s kids defied governmental crackdown on classical Judaic education, and studied in person with a real rebbie and with their peers for the past few months?

To sum it up, Lubavitch seems to be espousing the consideration of nature, reacting to the fear of statistical possibilities of medical danger, rather than considering the profundity of the supernatural - opening yeshivas, shuls, Chabad Houses, and its flagship overnight camps.

It’s just so uncanny, so uncharacteristic of us!

Can it be because we haven’t seen the Rebbe or heard his holy and entirely supernatural directives for 26 years?

Is it because we have become controlled by doctors, even if they call themselves “Chabad” doctors, who put nature first?

(Some have erroneously announced that Jews are obligated to listen to the majority of doctors’ opinions in every situation, but this notion is simply incorrect. Halacha only obligates a Jew to follow the advice of a doctor when the doctor attempts to heal or diagnose an unwell patient, but not necessarily for merely preventative medicine for a healthy individual, or for a community as a whole. The law that involves adhering to a majority of doctors’ opinions is when an ailing person is unsure if he is able to fast on Yom Kippur, in which case he must subscribe to the opinion of the majority of doctors, or rather, to even one doctor with more expertise than the majority. But if most doctors, even the biggest experts feel, for example, that a certain essential Jewish activity like Torah learning or davening can indirectly lead to the possibility of sakanas nifashois, there is no precedent in Halacha that obliges us to follow their orders and abandon the practice. Even a non-essential, completely secular activity like smoking cigarettes, for example, which a large majority of doctors caution against in the strongest of terms - poskim, including Rabbi Moshe Feinshtein, refused to ban Halachically on grounds of these doctors’ professional consensus, since the danger is merely a statistical possibility, a future causation, and the doctors’ orders are strictly preventative. Sure, it is unwise, and even reprehensible, to smoke. My point is, nonetheless, that if the greatest of poskim couldn’t see the majority of doctors’ preventative orders as grounds to restrict a completely optional recreational activity like smoking, then how can we, in good Halachic conscience, keep shuls and yeshivas closed, based on the so-called Gedalia Society’s recommendation of prudence and preventative safety?)

Am Yisroel Chai!

Chassidus tells us that nature comes from the name Elokim. In fact, this name of Hashem has the numerical value of the word “hateva” - “the nature.” Alternatively, the miraculous is an expression of a higher name of G-d - sheim Havayeh. This is why Pharaoh said to Moshe - “I don’t know Havayeh, and I shall not send away the (Jewish) people.” If Pharaoh didn’t recognize G-d, then how did his magicians report to him that a plague was etzba Elokim - “the finger of G-d”?! Rather, Pharoah and the Egyptians could only recognize the Creator as the source of nature, the name “Elokim.” Moshe Rabeinu, however, was claiming that Hashem is completely beyond nature, sheim Havayeh - and to this quintessential name of the Alm-ghty, Pharoah was oblivious. The ten miraculous plagues helped him and the rest of the world perceive the truth, for miracles are a revelation of this transcendent name of Hashem, His true, unconcealed identity. 

And so, to all my fellow Chassidim, in Crown Heights and throughout the world:

Today is Gimmmel Tammuz. It’s been 26 years. 26 is the gematria of sheim Havayeh. Let’s go beyond nature - let’s stop being afraid; afraid of doctors, afraid of Cuomo, afraid of Di Blasio, afraid of golus.

We are Lubavitch. We are beyond all this.

As we recite daily, during Kadish, yehei shmei raba mivarach… “May His great name be blessed, forever and for all eternity,” referring to the transcendent name of G-d, that is entirely beyond nature. And as our sages assert, “Whoever says ‘yehei shmei rabba…’ with all his might, a g’zar din of 70 years is ripped up!” Chassidus explains that seventy is seven, the natural traits of the animal soul, times ten, including all the detailed counterparts of these traits, indicating the human condition of being plagued with a life-long addiction to nature and natural impulses. This condition can be ripped up, however, by summoning and revealing the transcendent energy of Hashem’s presence, shmei raba, throughout the universe. Just as the first redeemer introduced this reality in Egypt, the first exile - so too, the Rebbe, the final redeemer, introduces it in the final golus.

And especially now, in our present situation:

It’s seventy years since the Rebbe assumed leadership, yet we’re facing a g’zar din of shivim shana - a temporary aversion from our former selves, a numbing addiction to nature, to doctors’ ordering us to limit Jewish observances, R”l, to compliance with government’s religion-monitoring restrictions, etc.

It’s time to rip up the g’zar din. Today is Gimmel Tammuz, 26 years, bigimatria sheim Havayeh! Let’s reveal our connection to the Rebbe, our recognition of the supernatural, and our unwavering commitment to Torah and mitzvos, to all the Rebbe’s horo’ois, including being a “Hakhel Yid”, constantly looking for the opportunity to gather Yidden together, to congregate our people in unity and in large numbers (not just on “Zoom”), without any distancing (as the Rebbe instructed in 5748, and indicating that this instruction was to continue every year, even after the year of Hakhel had concluded), to serve Hashem beyond reason, and mainly, to bring Moshiach now!!!  יחי אדוננו מורנו ורבינו מלך המשיח לעולם ועד!

Opening synagogues or fighting obesity?

How wonderful! New York has decided to allow communal prayer. Well, almost.

Today the state authorized houses of worship to function at 25% of their normal capacity.

While other non-residential structures that involve retail or professional congregating can now operate at 50% of capacity (and airplanes can fly in and out of NY at full capacity) - religious activity, according to the state, is either more detrimental to human life, or rather, less essential.

But don’t get me wrong - phase two is good news for NY Jews:

Whereas during phase one, when shuls were permitted to open with no more than ten visitors, on a first-come-first-serve basis - religious ecstasy was thought to ensue! But things got a little tricky when the first ten included a female or under-aged male (neither of whom helpful in the formation of a quorum), or if one of the ten had to leave the sanctuary to use the restroom - there was no minyan!

But now - synagogue capacity at a whopping 25%? Jews are jumping for joy!

Only problem is - how do they stop the naughty and law-breaking 75% from trying to get in? How can the NY faithful reduce synagogue attendance, so that state law is not snubbed?

Furthermore, just how can Jewish houses of worship accurately determine “normal capacity”? Does it mean the crowd expected for Yizkor services on Yom Kippur (which would mean every square foot of the shul occupied, and then some), or the early Monday morning service (which might mean the same ten retirees who had been coming even prior to phase one)?

No one really knows, and there is no “normal” in Judaism anymore anyways.

However this plays itself out, one thing is bound to happen - discrimination against the overweight!

That’s right! This 25% law is unfairly targeting people of “extra” body mass. All law-abiding synagogue administrations are undoubtedly planning to enforce the government’s “religion-controlling” regulations, and, in attempt to keep the congregation at only 25% of capacity, will be admitting only its skinniest congregants, so that only 25% of the space is occupied by possible covid-carrying body flesh, while the more pleasantly plump shul-goers will be encouraged to stay on their porches, on grounds of pikuach nefesh, saving the lives of their fellow community members!

Sorry, but this isn’t fair! Obese lives matter. 

Fat is the culprit

Indeed, after months of sheltering in place, New Yorkers have put on considerable weight. No work and no working out - playgrounds, gyms and fitness centers were closed for months. No places of public amusement, no bowling alleys, no nothing.

And with all the shuls and study halls closed too, what else were people supposed to do? Eat! That's right, and that's all we've been doing since Purim!

So this seems to be what the government had in mind with its discriminatory, 25%-of-normal-capacity law. It's like a tough love message to all us overweight Jews:

You wanna daven? - lose a few pounds!

Eliminate those bulging bellies, keep the fullness of your house of prayer to a safe minimum! You will be healthier; your synagogue will be healthier; and your state will be healthier!

From erudition to rotundity

On a more serious note (and I hope I didn’t offend anyone - this three month shut-down took its toll on every New Yorker’s physique, psyche, and tact):

Let’s take a deeper look at the weight gain spurred on by covid (which incidentally means “weight” in Hebrew). I refer to a different type of flabbiness, not one that manifests in the midriff or that comes off by dieting.

Of this fat, Kind David wrote: 

Tafash kacheilev libam, ”Their heart became thick like fat,”

Ani toras’cha shiasha’ati, “But I delight in Your Torah.” [1]

Intriguingly, the word tafash, which means “becoming fat,” is Hebraically synonymous with the word tipeish, a fool. Foolishness is the “fatness” of the heart - a thick-skinned callousness that hinders one’s intellectual agility and spiritual sensitivity. David stayed “in shape,” so-to-speak, because he “delighted” in G-d’s will and wisdom - Torah study.

Others, the Psalmist bemoaned, got fat. Spiritually fat.

Sadly, this is what seems to have happened in Brooklyn. When all Torah study came to an abrupt halt, every yeshiva, beis medrash, cheider [2], etc., was shut down - it took a spiritual toll. And not only were all these - the bastion of our faith - closed for months, but they still haven’t been allowed to reopen yet! Yeshivas are not permitted to be functioning at this time! The whole Jewish world stands by and watches - becoming less and less sensitive to what’s happening.

A Talmudic precedent

As referenced in a previous op-ed (Schools still closed? Something's fishy...), Rabbi Akiva insisted on teaching Torah publicly despite a government ban on such activity. His law breaking was subject to the criticism of a fellow sage, Papus ben Yehuda, who felt it in the Jews’ best interest to abide by the Roman’s regulations, suggesting that closing yeshivas will save Jewish lives. Shockingly, Rabbi Akiva called his contemporary a tipeish! [3]

Classical commentaries [4] point out the striking significance of this Talmudic expletive, keeping in mind that Papus, known as an exceptional tanna and chacham, a celebrated rabbinic scholar and genius, was far from a fool:

The word shofeit, a prominent member of the Talmudic judiciary, is spelled with the same letters as the word tipeish - shin pey tet - with the exception of a letter vav. This extra letter has the numerical value of six, which represents the six orders of the Mishnah, the Talmud.

Herein lies the intrinsic and linguistic transition from a sage to a fool. Papus the Wise lost his “vav” - he abandoned Mishnaic study, albeit due to a government crackdown. As such, the “shofeit” became a “tipeish”, the sharp and agile Torah mind became fattened and coarsely insensitive, entertaining the notion that Jews can survive without yeshivas!

(This metamorphosis was not merely the removal of one letter from the word, but the remaining letters, in fact, shin pey tet, became entirely reversed - tet pey shin! That is, standing by idly while yeshivas were closed, not only did an esteemed chacham simply lose his spiritual sensitivity and intellectual prowess, but his logic started to see things backwards, exactly opposite to prudent and sound Torah judgement!)

And this is what seems to have happened to us. Instead of crying out and joining together for the furtherance of Judaism, many of us still feel that keeping yeshivas closed is in our best interest! Many don’t realize how dangerous this is - for our very existence!

Bottom line

Dear Jewish communities of New York, and moreover, of the entire world:

It’s not too late to get back into good spiritual shape - to quickly shed those nasty galut pounds, to get into a geulah mindset [5], and, as King David concluded the verse, delight in Torah study, assiduously and unabashedly! [6]

Let us avert the decree by increasing in Jewish pride and demanding our religious freedoms, by opening all yeshivas, and shuls too for that matter, promptly and unreservedly!

Am Yisrael Chai!

[1] Psalms 119:70. Metzudot Tziyon Ibid.

[2] institutions of religious Jewish learning, at every age and level!

[3] Sifri (Va’etchanan 6)

[4] Ben Yehoyada (authored by Rabbi Yosef Chaim of Baghdad, the Ben Ish Chai) - B'rachot 61b

[5] Galut - exile. Geulah - redemption, through the imminent coming of Mashiach.

[6] Getting rid of “galut” fat is not accomplished by setting dietary limits, but on the contrary - hungrily devouring more and more Torah, without any limits, with relish and delight! Bon appetit!

Gimmel Tammuz - Crown Heights welcomes all guests!

By Rabbi Daniel Green,

Crown Heights resident

23rd of Sivan, 5780

Last week, I wrote a dissertation in response to a most painful and bewildering letter issued by the Beis Din of Crown Heights, dated Sivan 10 (June 2, 2020), in which the said entity made its case to render guests coming to this community from abroad a Halachically questionable activity, and hence, requested any and all people considering the trip to cease and desist. Since the Beis Din graciously provided Halachic sources therein, a greatly appreciated gesture on its behalf which it hadn’t done thus far in any of its other perplexing coronavirus-related rulings, I took the time to thoroughly examine the sources, and to appreciate the logic behind them.

Appalled and dismayed from the implications of the said sources, I felt it a moral obligation to share them with the public - so that Torah scholars, here and abroad, many of whom not proficient in the English language, be able to research the matter for themselves, since, sadly, radical and grossly incorrect expressions of rabbinic authority have tragically befallen our community, and I had no choice but to respond decisively and scholarly. 

Over the past few days, I’ve had numerous requests to translate my dissertation. Since it is somewhat detailed and lengthy, I will hereby attempt to give a synopsis of the aforementioned sources, as well as my refutation thereof, including some new thoughts (ein medrash b’lo chidush) for the benefit of the English readership of Crown Heights (click here - https://rabbidanielgreen.blogspot.com/2020/06/blog-post_11.html - for the original dissertation in full).

As we approach Gimmel Tammuz, at a time wherein all medical experts as well as all government agencies currently permit plane travel, it would seem obvious that visiting the Rebbe’s shul and daled amos are essential for every Chabad Chassid. Sadly, however, some doctors, not necessarily the biggest medical experts, feel they have the right to dictate policy in the Rebbe’s shechuna, as “Chabad doctors.” The fourteen individuals, including several hatzalah workers, have requested that guests not come to Crown Heights this year, neither for Gimmel Tammuz nor for Tishrei of 5781.

Whereas the government has placed no ban on a pilgrimage to the Rebbe for the holy day, nor for the holy month of Tishrei, it follows that these doctors acted on their own accord. The Beis Din of Crown Heights as well, in light of these Chabad physicians’ orders, requested that no out-of-town Chassidim come to the neighborhood for simchas, Gimmel Tammuz, or Tishrei. 

In an attempt to make this a Halachic issue, the Beis Din stated that by visiting the neighborhood, a guest would be creating a grama b’nizikin, an indirect causation of harm, by potentially increasing covid 19 cases in our midst. In smaller print, it brings several sources that express the extreme caution one must take to avoid even the slightest risk of endangerment to lives.

The risk of a guest becoming infected or infecting others with the virus, according to the Beis Din’s letter, is minimal, and can be considered a s’fek s’feika, a “doubt of a doubt,” in which case one would generally be lenient when it comes to most types of Torah prohibitions, with one exception: matters of physical danger.  Or maybe not.

The two possibilities depend upon the general reason a s’fek s’feika, when applied to all prohibitions, should be permissible:

Is the s’fek s’feika allowance because (1) it is considered a chazaka, a halachic assumption as grounds to render a questionable situation prohibition-free, or (2) is it considered a roiv, a practical, quantitative majority - i.e. the majority of possibilities being entirely permissible - demoting the probability of prohibition to improbable?

1. If the permissive nature of the s’fek s’feika is a halachic assumption, then it would not be strong enough to reduce the caution that needs to be applied to a life-threatening danger.

2. If however the s’fek s’feika is permissible because it is likened to a majority, and an overwhelming majority at that, then it can be applied to any situation, even one of life-threatening danger, and can demote the possibility of risk to improbable, and thus, irrelevant.  

The Beis Din brought proofs from exegeses of the Pri Megadim to support option one, that the rationale to be lenient does not stack up against even the remote possibility of physical danger.

Thereafter, in lieu of a seeming contradiction and uncertainty on the Pri Megadim’s behalf in subsequent commentary, as to which of the two options is in fact correct, the Beis Din referenced a teshuva of Rabbi Shneur Zalman Fradkin, in his magnum opus Shu”t “Toras Chesed,” who brings proofs to support option two, but suggests that when it’s easy to avoid being lenient in a doubly doubtful chance of danger, one should do so. 

Based on this premise, the Beis Din deduced that in the case of travelling to Crown Heights for Gimmel Tammuz, a s’fek s’feika, a doubly doubtful and very remote possibility of danger, and one might assume that he or she can be lenient and disregard the said remote possibility - nonetheless, since it’s easy to avoid the s’fek s’feika altogether by not travelling, that would be the right thing to do.

I protest this position in the strongest of terms.

For a G-d fearing individual, especially one who adheres to the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s teachings, observing Gimmel Tammuz is not “easily avoidable.” Travelling to one’s Rebbe is not  superfluous or intrinsically valueless, like all the cases to which the Pri Megadim applies option one, rendering the s’fek s’feika leniency powerless in the face of even remotely possible physical danger. Coming to the Rebbe’s daled amos is not a matter of choice, and does not depend upon convenience. It is a matter of dire essence to every Chassid. Far more essential than protesting police violence or racial injustice in Manhattan or on Eastern Parkway, this mitzva cannot be easily discarded by members of our creed.

This practice, in fact, is one that a remote possibility of danger does not override, as the gemara states: “Shluchei mitzva einam nizokim,” those involved with performing mitzvos are not at risk of being harmed! 

The above is applied in practical halacha as well, and is universally accepted. The only exception to the rule is when a peril is tangible and forthcoming - sh’chiach hezeika or k’via hezeika. A s’fek s’feika, as the Beis Din described our present situation, would not fall under these categories.

This, then, is the deeper explanation behind our state government’s perplexing health policy at the moment. Matters of essential need are permissible under its mandate, whereas superfluous and non-essential items are restricted. Why, one might ask, does an activity’s description as essential or non-essential have any effect on the risk it presents to one’s well being?

But alas, the distinction may emanate from this very Talmudic concept. Matters of essence are not overridden by a possibly doubtful danger, only by extreme and acute, actual danger. Why? Because we believe in a Creator, Who creates us, knows us, and knows our essential needs - and takes responsibility for our existence. We live our lives in accordance with His will, and we trust that He continue to give us life and protect us from harm’s way. 

We do not fear remotely possible harm when carrying out our essential needs, because we are human, and need to live, and need to trust that G-d will protect us. Alternatively, in reference to non-essentials, we show prudence in the wake of potential danger, even when a slight or doubtful risk presents itself.

Essential to Jewish life is not only making pilgrimage to the Holy Temple (when it stood in Jerusalem), or to a revered spiritual leader, a rebbe, rosh yeshiva, or reish galusa, but to all mitzvos, including praying in a quorum of men, and to the Biblical adage, b’rov am hadras melech, that when it comes to honoring G-d, the more people congregating the more honor is bequeathed the King. For example - the mitzva of praying in a synagogue as opposed to making a minyan in one’s own home (or on one’s porch), as the Magen Avrohom writes in Orach Chayim siman 90 - the King’s glory is increased in numbers, and one must pray in the shul!

Regarding such essential activities, shluchei mitzva, one need not be afraid of remote possibilities of danger, “einam nizokin” - only tangible and frequently relevant calamitous situations.

Especially when the remote possibilities are non-existent, and only based on percentages and chances that do not constitute a Torah-recognized danger by any means. For example, a possible scorpion lurking in the rubble does not necessarily override the “shomer mitzva” factor (“The one who keeps a mitzva” - in this case, checking for chameitz - “will not know of harm,” Koheles 8:5), since any possible scorpion’s presence in and of itself is unknown. (As opposed to the threat of vexing the non-Jewish next door neighbor, whose presence is in certainty, but whose vexation is in question.) 

A possible new breakout, G-d forbid, of covid 19, is purely speculative, but non-existent! It cannot be used to dissuade Jews from observing mitzvos, or else we will effectively be ending Judaism, since such speculation will never cease!

This, then, is the frightening position of the members of Crown Heights’ rabbinical court. As long as even one case of coronavirus exists, they seem to maintain - Jewish essentials like praying in a synagogue, studying in yeshiva, honoring the King in the multitudes, as mentioned, must stop!

And when the coronavirus fear fades away (and it’s fading away rapidly, to the uncanny oblivion of the Beis Din), any other bacterial or viral infection that is somewhat more contagious than the flu, or even just the flu, which kills thousands each year, will have the same devastating effect on our permission to observe!

I must add that the Beis Din’s unreasonable concern for a remote health risk as a deterrent to the performance of essential Jewish observances, as illustrated above, is not about potential risk to the guest, who is most likely not an octogenarian or a diabetic. And the concern is not that the guest will directly cause harm to others, because most of the guests are not harmful people, and would not likely be making the journey with symptoms of illness. It is only for a remotely possible indirect causation of harm to others that the Beis Din is concerned. “Grama binizikin” itself happens to be a controversy amongst our sages, yet another factor that diminishes the severity of the traveller’s “dangerous” violation, albeit a mere s’fek s’feika, of the rabbonim’s public health mandate for Crown Heights. 

And the accusation is most troubling.

An unborn fetus, the Talmud relates, who threatens its mother’s life, is considered a rodef, a predator, and should be aborted. Once the fetus’s head emerges, however, it is considered human life, and aborting it would be considered murder. Even if allowing its birth to continue would cost the mother her life, the child’s life cannot be terminated to preserve his mother’s, for he too is a human being and deserves to live. Ein dochin nefesh mip’nei nefesh. The baby is not a rodef, he’s just living.

Likewise, a person who engages in living his life, performing activities essential to life, is not indirectly endangering others! His life matters too, and this life is immeasurable and essential, and cannot be considered a mere statistic, an indirect “predator” to a public health agenda; and for this reason, neither governments, doctors, nor rabbis can prohibit such engagement, save a situation of dire and tangible (meaning clear, present, and definable) danger!

The rabbonim who referred to Chassidim coming to the Rebbe for Gimmel Tammuz or Tishrei a “grama binizkin” are basically delineating that such a pilgrimage is completely non-essential, and can easily be eliminated from Chassidic life - like an unborn fetus, a not-yet human life, that can easily be eliminated if the mother’s life is threatened. This is a gross misrepresentation of Chassidic philosophy, let alone Talmudic theology. Guests coming to Crown Heights is no less important than the entirety of Chassidus Chabad, like the baby who is just as human as his mother.

And the reality is that no one’s life is in danger here. The Beis Din’s restrictive policies, surpassing those of the government as well as its public health experts, fail to realize that not only are the guests coming to Crown Heights, as shluchei mitzva, themselves safeguarded from the remote possibility of harm, but that their coming is essential to our community as well. As hosts, community members, and the community as a whole, perform a most praiseworthy and lofty mitzva, hachnosas or’chim, which surely safeguards them too.

And there is a further “essential business” consideration here as well, for the economy of our neighborhood depends upon the influx of guests Gimmel Tammuz and Tishrei, as well as the kinusim of the shluchim and shluchos. Retail store owners realize much of their revenue from these annual seasons! Immeasurable harm would be inflicted upon these businesses if the rabbonim “get their way,” Heaven forfend. The success of these entrepreneurs directly affects our mosdos, yeshivas, shuls, etc. (Although there’s no sign that any of these are going to be allowed to open anyways).

But most of all, the essential necessity for our communal hachnosas or’chim is not only financial - there is a much deeper concern here: the inherent emotional and spiritual benefit. Having guests from abroad infuses us with spirit and joy, giving us meaning and resolve. It is an inundation of faith and fellowship that boosts our morale and energizes us with the essence of the Chabad philosophy, ahavas Yisroel and achdus Yisroel. Especially at this time, a whopping 26 year (bigimatira sheim Havayeh, midas harachamim) since we haven’t seen the Rebbe - all we really have is each other! We need to band together, with brotherly love, and b’rov am hadras melech! And “each other” means the worldwide body of Chasidus Chabad, from all continents, lands, and languages speakers. We are one unit, and we need to farbreng together, in the Rebbe’s daled amos, without any distancing! We’ve had enough distancing - it’s time for togetherness and unity, to bring the golus to an end!   

The Beis Din’s attempt to isolate Crown Heights hurts not only its spiritual well being, but practically, the mental and emotional well being, the physical and life sustenance, of all its inhabitants! Health of the nefesh is no less important than that of the guf! After months of isolation already, sheltering in place, with no schools, playgrounds, etc. - our youth, families, and morale have been damaged inestimably. And now, to add insult to injury, not only has the Beis Din done nothing to address the harm perpetrated against our community by the government’s debilitating policies, and continuing to prohibit schools or summer camps from opening, its restrictive policies of further isolation are only snubbing these vital spiritual needs more profoundly.

The desolation and melancholy that would be experienced due to an empty and vacant shechuna this Gimmel Tammuz can chas visholom weaken its health, whereas the simcha that comes from influx of guests and even the mild disarray associated therewith is something that will uplift the residents and lessen any potential health concerns.

Dear rabbonim:

Realize that the effect of your seemingly innocuous request, but in reality, vicious decree, is to metamorphose the Rebbe’s neighborhood into a ghetto that even other Jews cannot visit, a cordon sanitaire, isolated in the name of an inexplicable ideology that threatens Judaism unrelentingly - keeping all yeshivas, chadorim, overnight camps, closed - indefinitely! Incidentally, for the school year of 2020-2021, yeshivas are still planning to open - but via Zoom! And as of today’s date, without a word of objection from your Beis Din!

And I conclude with an important disclaimer:

My intention is not to attack anyone personally, I attack only the harmful and misguided ideas, and the irreparable damage already done to the neighborhood we so love, and more importantly, the Rebbe so loves.

And even if my heartelf pleas go unanswered G-d forbid, I must enunciate my remonstrance, and for the following reason:

Many years, in fact many generations, ago, there was another community whose dayanim sought to restrict the influx of guests therein. They created a charter, wrote public letters, and surely had many good reasons to stop visitations from out-of-towners.

The town was called Sodom.

True, the Bet Din of Sodom may have been responsible for its anti-hospitality measures, but all inhabitants were held to task. When leaders make a mistake, a mistake fundamentally antithetical to Torah, following them blindly might be an even bigger mistake.

If our rabbis continue on this path, chas vichalila, so be it. Whoever doesn’t agree, however, needs to speak up. Which is what I did with this letter.

Fellow Crown Heightser, if you feel like I do, that something has to be done to show all Chassidim, all Jews for that matter, world wide, that they are welcome here, especially on Gimmel Tammuz and Tishrei, please make your voice heard, and together we can make a difference.

It’s not too late. 

May we immediately see an end to the darkness, to the illness, and to the golus, and behold the Rebbe, Melech Hamoshiach, with the true and complete geula, the unification of gantz k’lal Yisroel, and the building of the third Beis Hamikdosh, teikif umiyad mamosh!