Rav
Avigdor Miller on Chabad Lubavitch
Transcription
of answers to questions at the Thursday night lectures
Let's say you're a Satmarer Chasid or let's say
you're a bochur in a yeshiva in Lakewood or in the Mir, or let's say you're a
chossid of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, it's not enough to say I accept him as my
rebbe, I look up to him. No matter how holy you consider him, not enough, you
have to study his milahs. Now this may seem exaggerated. I'm going to show you
soon that it's not exaggerated. You have to study his individual and specific
virtues.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, "All Things Declare His Glory," Tape #511, 40:06
Q: Can you justify the motives of two groups of
chassidim who are in conflict with one another?
A: Are you referring to the trouble between
Lubavitcher and Satmar?
Q: Yes, I had that in mind.
A: Alright. Now, in this connection we have to
know that we are talking about two groups of devoted Jews. There’s no question
that the Lubavitcher are devoted Jews and there’s no question that the Satmerer
are devoted Jews. Now, I wouldn’t listen to any one party who say the other one
is not. There’s no question that both are Jews, they have among them
people who are full of love for their ideals, to serve Hashem. And therefore,
we enter this subject - and I’ll say it briefly - with the greatest caution. As
follows. Whatever they do, it’s their business. Whatever their motives are,
it’s their business. We ourselves, outsiders are not fully aware of the motives
of one or the other. If we would be aware, we would see that it’s not as empty
as you think. Everybody who is a frum Jew has some motive for what he does. And
therefore, we say as follows: Yivoreich es Beis Yisroel - Hashem should bless
the Beis Yisroel. Only we hope that He will bless them in such a way that they
will bless each other too. We hope the time will come when everybody… (THE
RECORDING ENDED HERE).
Rav
Avigdor Miller, "You Should Reign," Tape # 475, 1:32:15 (September
1983)
Q: What is the whole, why are the misnagdim so
violently opposed to rebbishe brachos?
A: My friend is this on the subject or off the
subject?
Q: Yeah, what you just said before about ....
(Inaudible)
A: Which misnagdim are opposed to rebbishe
brachos? Tell me one.
Q: I asked my Rosh Yeshiva one time for a bracha,
he said, rebbish, I told him that I went to a rebbe for a bracha and (he gave
me the bracha?) sarcastically.
A: This is off the subject but because you're
an old friend of mine I'll give you an answer. "Why are the
non-chassidim opposed to a blessing given by a chassidic rabbi?" And the
answer is the only time they are opposed is when they think that he is not a
rabbi. When they think that he's only a man who dresses like one, or who has
put up a sign on his door. But when they really consider him a talmid chochom,
a learned man, then nobody is opposed to his brachos. If it's an ignorant man
then what good will it be? How can he expect to avail himself of such a thing
at all without a merit? So therefore he has to be first of all a talmid chochom.
אין בור ירא חטא ולא עם הארץ חסיד (Pirkei Avos 2:5). You
want to be a chossid you can't be an am ha'aretz. And if want to be a rebbe of
chassidim you have to be more than a (non)-am ha'aretz; you have to be a big
talmid chochom.
Q: But would Reb Moshe be opposed to the
Lubavitcher Rebbe?
A: The Lubavitcher Rebbe is a big talmid
chochom.
Q: Reb Moshe Feinstein wouldn't be opposed to
the Lubavitcher Rebbe?
A: Who wouldn't be?
Q: Reb Moshe Feinstein wouldn't be opposed if
someone wants to go to the Lubavitcher Rebbe?
A: No he would not. He respects him, he has a
high regard for him. They have high regard for each other. No question about
it. The Lubavitcher Rebbe is a big talmid chochom! He's a thinker and a talmid
chochom. Not only the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Plenty of rebbes I can enumerate, no
question about it, no question about it. It's off the subject. I'd like to
comment to you, but that's enough.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, "Free Will," Tape #R-11, 26:50
We must justify the just. That's a very great
mitzvah. Speak up for the just man and show that the accusations against him
are unjustified. How false is everything that's said against the Jew. But not
only what the nations say against the Jew. How false are the accusations that
Jews make against Jews. If we study two kehillas Satmar and Lubavitch. We see
how beautiful are these two kehillas. Satmar is a beautiful kehilla. I had
personal contact many years with Satmar. I even spoke to the Satmar Rav, the
old one, zichron l'bracha. The new one I knew well, very well. But the old one
I met personally once at midnight in his home. I knew many of them personally.
Satmar brought a new dimension to America. There's another beautiful kehilla
called Lubavitch. I know them personally too. A Lubavitcher was once my rebbe
when I was a boy. I learned an entire mesechta kesubos with him. For nothing.
He taught me free. And so I have a love for both of these kehillas. Sometimes,
not in general, sometimes one of these kehillas, one of the people from these
kehillas might say something against another one. And we have to learn to
disregard these words. Vehitzidku es ha tzadick. They are two kehillas of
tzadickim. You must know that. When I say Satmar I mean all of the Satmar
kehillas. All of them. I don't mean each person is a tzadick gamur. But in
general, there's no question that their way of life is tznius. Lubavitch their
way of life is tznius. Satmar they are devoted to avodas hashem. They go all
out to serve Hashem. Lubavitch, all out to serve Hashem. No question about
that. They are not the only kehillas. I have plenty to say about the German
kehillah. I love the German kehillah. As a boy I davened every Shabbos in a
German shul. I can sit four hours in the afternoon, Shabbos afternoon, in a
German shul. These kehillas we have to appreciate. And all the things that are
said against them we have to learn how to refute. Vehitzidku es ha tzadick.
R' Avigdor Miller, "Loving His People
2," Tape #528 1:06
Q: Is there one main leader of Klal Yisroel
today?
A: That’s not for me to say. We have leaders
Boruch Hashem. But I must tell you I disagree with the attitude of being
mivatel someone else’s gadol. Gedolim can be here. Gedolim can be there, and we
have to appreciate all of them. And even though there are machlokes between
them, be machlokes between the gadolim, we should stay out of it. It’s
fire! We shouldn’t say a word. So if Rav Shach, let’s say, and the
Lubavitcher may have sichsuchim, I don’t know if they do, they have, none of
our business. It’s fire of Gehenom to open your mouth. It’s a tragic mistake to
mix in. And the wisest way is to say nothing and to have the greatest derech
eretz for all those people who are recognized. After all, the Lubavitcher Rebbi
is recognized by many people. And Rav Shach is recognized by many people. So we
should recognize both of them. That’s the way we should do.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, "Learning the Stratagems of Life," Tape # 901
(January 1993) 1:23:27
Rav Miller: The answer is, it's bluff; they
don't want any guidance. It's just mischief they're looking for. The ones who
want guidance are getting it. Thousands come to the Lubavitcher Rebbe. He gives
them plenty of guidance in everything in life. The Satmar Rabbi is giving
guidance in everything in life. And the reason that the Roshei Yeshivos are not
giving guidance is because people are not coming to ask them. That's all. Plain
and simple. They're not asking them.
Rav Avigdor Miller, "Hyrcanus’ Downfall," Tape #R-22
Questioner: That should be the question.
Rav Miller: Alright, so the question has to be
discussed -- but not here, you understand. My point is that a question of such
importance has to be discussed among our great men. That's their job and you
can be sure it has been discussed and it's being discussed. And therefore they
are our parliament. Let's say for example, the Bobover Rav. He is a man with a
very good head and he is very much interested in people. If the Bobover Rav
doesn't come out and say “Go out and protest”, it's a p'sak that you shouldn't
The Lubavitcher Rebbe is a very great man and he knows all about what's doing
in Soviet Russia. There's nobody who is as conversant with conditions in Russia
as the Lubavitcher Rebbe is. Nobody, even the American intelligence, foreign
intelligence, does not know what's doing in Russia as much as the Lubavitcher
Rebbe. I can tell you this. Because, he has his agents; the whole of Russia is
covered with his agents. And he is in contact with them constantly. And if he
didn't come out and say: “Protest”, then it's a p'sak din from one who is most
competent both from the point of view of knowing the facts and the point of
view of loving the Jewish people; because he loves the people, and also the
point of view of being a gadol, he's a gadol. So, he's most competent. Now,
that's only the beginning because there's a whole list of great men in whom we
have full confidence. They know the facts. Now, if they don't say “go out”, it
means it's a p'sak din, because they're responsible people. If they felt that
it was necessary or useful, they wouldn't keep quiet. We know that they're the
kind of people that wouldn't keep quiet. And therefore, if they do keep quiet,
it's a p'sak din. That's why I asked if you have names of authorities who
sanctioned this, come out with them, let's hear!
Questioner: Well, okay. I would say that the
rabbis in our community, the Sephardic community, have endorsed this.
Rav Miller: Rabbi Katzin came out for it?
Questioner: I would say that he authorized.
Rav Miller: It's either yes or no. Did he or
didn't he?
Questioner: He sympathized, but
Rav Miller: Sympathized is something else. Did
he say you should demonstrate? Questioner: He didn't say you shouldn't.
Rav Miller: He didn't say you shouldn't! So how
can he keep quiet in this important issue?
Questioner: But you're criticizing those who
have demonstrated.
Rav Miller: Get me straight, get me straight.
Don't put any twist in my words. I'm saying, "Did Rabbi Katzin say you
should go out and do it? If it's important, how can he keep quiet?"
Questioner: Others have in the community.
Rav Miller: So he didn't, so he's off the
question. Now, who else?
Questioner: You cannot say that the Lubavitcher
Rebbe from here knows what's going on in Russia because Russia has big secrets
that nobody knows.
Rav Miller: The Lubavitcher Rebbe knows all the
secrets. I tell you, he knows all the secrets. I know he knows because he has
his followers in Russia. The headquarters of Lubavitch up till recently was in
Russia and he has a lot of very good people still there. And when they come out
- they're coming out little by little - and they tell what's happening, they
know. They're organized and they have contacts and they are not saying anything
about making trouble for Russia.
Questioner: The people who have left have said,
as a matter of fact. The people who know a lot have said to start trouble.
Rav Miller: The question is if we'll take these
people on one side, and the Lubavitcher on the other side and let's weigh them,
who is more responsible? Who has more worries for the Jewish nation? Whose
utterances bear more weight?
Questioner: The people who've been there have
more reliable information.
Rav Miller: So what? The Lubavitcher have just
come from there! The Lubavitcher come all the time from there.
Questioner: So, I'm saying the people who've
come from there have said to speak out.
Rav Miller: But the Lubavitcher don't say that.
Lubavitcher, they are coming and don't say that.
Questioner: The people coming from there are
saying that! The people!
Rav Miller: The Lubavitcher are people too!
Lubavitcher are people!
Questioner: They're out protesting. It's not
something quiet. They're trying to show to the world that they care. They want
this struggle to be brought in front of the world.
Rav Miller: The fact that they're trying to do
it doesn't mean that they're sanctioned by great men or that it's the right
thing to do. The question we're coming down to is the original thing that I had
pointed out before. Who makes policy for the Jewish nation? That's the
question. That's all. Who makes policy for the Jewish nation? Rank and file? Or
the ziknei hador? If we are Torah people, it's the Torah leaders. That's all we
look to. We don't look to anybody else. It's a question of being a Jew. A Jew
knows where to look for leadership. A Jew doesn't look for leadership to
anybody else. You just can't help it. You can't get away from the principle of
the Torah, שאל לך אביך ויגדך זקניך ויאמרו -
ask your elders, the sages, they'll tell you. You can't ask anybody else.
That's why I asked, did Rabbi Katzin say that? So you say somebody did, let's
hear their names.
Rav Avigdor Miller, “Hyrcanus’ Downfall,” Tape
#R-22
Hashem loves tzadickim. Therefore, our job now
is to find out who are the people He loves. So now some people, they come from
Crown Heights will say Lubavitcher Rebbe. Hashem loves Lubavitcher Rebbe.
If you come from Monsey, certain parts of Monsey, Hashem loves Rav Yaakov
Kamenetsky. If you come from the East Side, they Hashem loves Rav Moshe
Feinstein. If you come from Williamsburg, Hashem loves Satmar Rav. And in my
mind there's no doubt that they are all right. But it's not enough for us.
Hashem loves tzadickim, He loves the Jew who lives in Crown Heights. Plain
Jews. He loves the plain Jews who live in Monsey. They are the tzadickim.
Tzadickim means people who keep the Torah.
Rav Avigdor Miller, "Loving His People,"
Tape #204
Q: If our generation is the עקבתא דמשיחא, the generation of the footsteps of
Moshiach, why should our generation be the lowest of all generations?
A: Now, I don't know if this is the generation
of עקבתא דמשיחא, that I can't tell you, but let's say it
is. The answer is — you know what it says: כי יראה
כי אזלת יד — When Hakodosh Boruch Hu will see that all the power is gone
from us, ואפס עצור ועזוב, that there is
nothing left, ואמר אי אלקימו, and we will see
there is nobody to help us, so that’s when Hakodosh Boruch Hu will come to
help.
That's what the Chofetz Chaim said; he said,
“Please Ribono Shel Olam. It’s getting late and we’re going lost.” He said,
“Please come quickly and help us.” That's a reason why Moshiach should come —
just because we’re the lowest of all generations. Of course, it would much
better if Moshiach should come because we’re so good. However, nobody knows
what can happen yet — don’t be so sure that this is the end; it can chalilah
get much worse.
I want to tell you a word from the old
Lubavitcher Rebbe — I'm not a Lubavitcher, but the old Lubavitcher Rebbe said
something. In his time, they published a newspaper called הקריאה והקדושה — it was the old Lubavitcher Rebbe. And
there was a certain year when they said Moshiach is going to come this year. He
put himself out on a limb. "Moshiach will come this year,” he said. It was
years ago – the old Rebbe, not this one. And the Lubavitcher? They were
organizing, making pronouncements: “This year! This year!” Everyone else was
ridiculing it.
And the year passed by and nothing happened. So
I offered him a consolation; my little cheap consolation I offered to them. I
said, “The Lubavitcher Rebbe is right; he was right. He himself redeemed many
Jews from going lost; he was a Moshiach for many Jews.”
Who says your job is to worry about the
Moshiach for the whole Klal Yisroel? What about yourself? You're living only
once in this world, and your job is to be a Moshiach to rescue at least
yourself. And if somebody comes and rescues you like the old Lubavitcher Rebbe
did, he’s also a Moshiach. The old Lubavitcher Rebbe founded a yeshiva in
Rochester, a yeshiva in Buffalo, a yeshiva in Boston. He founded yeshivos
wherever he went. In those days they didn't have such a thing. It was before
Torah U'Mesorah.
How many children, how many Jewish boys and
girls was he a Moshiach for? And therefore Moshiach came; in a certain sense it
came. You have to worry only about the whole Klal Yisroel?! You have to worry
about each one of us! So Moshiach did come!
And therefore, although it's a virtue: אחכה לו בכל יום שיבוא – Everybody should
hope every day that Moshiach should come, but in the meantime get busy and
redeem yourself. You hear that? Don't wait. There’s a lot to accomplish.
Rav Avigdor Miller, “Preface to Pesach 14,”
Tape # 593
What’s your
opinion about what Rav Shach recently said about Lubavitch?
A: This questioner brings up the words of Rav Shach in reference to
Lubavitch. So let me tell you once and for all where I stand on that
subject. I am nobody, but I'll tell you what I say. I say keep out of it.
Keep out of it! That's all. If somebody has something to say, a gadol,
that's his business. Another gadol, OK. But if I would go
into it, it's just yetzer hara. That's all it is. And
therefore I say keep out of it. That's all. When Korach started with Moshe
Rabeinu, there were some people who didn't know anything. Korach was an adam
gadol, he was a very important person, and some
people thought maybe Korach is right. But they kept out of it and
that saved them. And so, keep out if it. That's what I advise everybody.
Don't be involved. Don't be a מתערב בריב לא לו —
don’t mix in a quarrel that’s not yours. If it's not your quarrel, don't
get involved in it.
Shlomo Hamelech says, מחזיק באזני כלב עבר מתעבר על ריב לא
לו – Like the one who grabs the ears of a dog, so
too is the one who gets excited about a dispute that’s not his (Mishlei
26:17). When a man seizes the ears of a dog, that’s the same as getting
involved where you don’t belong. You know, when you seize the ears of a
dog, it's hard to let go. Let's say you were angry at the dog or you were
frightened and you seize its ears. Oh no! Now you made a big mistake
because you can't let go. The dog is angry at you now, and you’re
stuck. Same thing also if you’re מתעבר על
ריב לא לו – if you get into a quarrel that's none of your business.
Who told you to get involved in it? Now you can't let go –you're stuck. And
therefore don't start up with it. Keep out of it.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, “Beloved Diversity of Israel,” Tape #
870 (April 1992)
The best way to repent is when you’re standing online in the
bank, you look in your bankbook, and you have a fat wad you’re going to
deposit. That’s the time to do teshuva. Or when you’re sitting in your house
and you consider you have a roof over your head, it’s not raining in, it’s not
raining enough, or even a little, still it’s a great blessing. And it’s warm
inside. There’s no snow on the carpet. Look through the window and you see a
homeless dog, running through the snow, looking at garbage cans, what does he
find, at stray morsels. And you are snug in your home, warm. That’s the time to
think of repentance. The chasson is standing under the chuppah, and at his
side, steps aside and looks, and there’s his kallah, a beautiful kallah and you
have to understand, no accidents in the world. Mei Hashem ishah l’ish. All
these things are gifts from heaven. And the chief purpose of these gifts is to
spur him on to become better. But in case he doesn’t, in case he is deaf to
these pleasant messages, in case he forgets that they come from somewhere with
a capital S, then at least let him not ignore the message of the rebukers. When
his mother scolds him, talking about a pious mother, when his father scolds,
pious father, otherwise there’s nothing to listen. When his rebbe points out
something to him. When some old person says don’t do that. They’re all
messengers from heaven. When he sits in the synagogue and he hears how the baal
sidria reads the tochecha, where Hakodesh Baruch foretells what will happen
when the Torah is transgressed, you shouldn’t listen merely to the words like
one listens to something that’s said as a meaningless ritual. He should take
these words to heart. When he says krias shema, erev oo’boker, וְהָיָה אִם שָׁמֹעַ תִּשְׁמְעוּ אֶל מִצְוֹתַי And the Torah warns him twice a
day. Krias Shema is a message from heaven. A (inaudible) shel maaleh. It’s an epistle from heaven, it’s a letter sent from
heaven, krias shema. That’s how to read it. We read krias shema like a letter
from heaven. And each time we’re expected to take the message to heart. If you
read in the newspaper that this or this Rosh Yeshiva made a statement, by no
means make the fateful error of thinking it’s too extreme. If this and this
Chassidish rebbe made a statement, beware of thinking that you know better.
Because not forever are they going to speak. Even one statement is enough. It’s
sent from heaven for a benefit. There are many fools who in their overweening
arrogance and ignorance believe they understand more than these old rabbis from
Europe. Anything that comes from Europe you know is nothing. It’s only what’s
produced in America is wise. You see the wisdom of this country. And so an old
European rabbi, the Satmerer Rav, for years and years while he was still
healthy, he warned, now he’s nebach sick, Hashem should give him orech yamim, he’s
sick now, but when he was healthy, he issued a warning. Oh, there are so many
wise people who ridiculed what he said, “against Israel,” that already
sentenced him to being canceled out. Lubavitcher Rebbe zol zein gezunt. Rosh
Yeshivos. But even lesser messengers, who come to us. Or the Chumash or the
Siddur because we are constantly coming across these messages from heaven, only
we recite them, we say them by rote, and we ignore what they have to tell us.
How fortunate is the one who learns how to listen. Ashrei Adam shomaia li. How
fortune is the man who listens to Me, Hashem said. Oh you say certainly, if Hashem
spoke to me I’d listen to Him. No that’s not what it means. I’m speaking all
the time to you. I speak to you from the siddur every day. וְהָיָה אִם שָׁמֹעַ תִּשְׁמְעוּ I speak to you from
the mouths of the gadolim, the great men of the generation. I speak and speak constantly.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, “Bitachon,” Tape #017, 25:51 -33:04
Now to eat in Rebbe’s house,
actually not such a bad thing. Cause if you would enslave your mind to Rebbe.
Not so bad. If it were up to me, I would eat gladly in Rebbe’s house. Because
I’d be a slave to Rebbe. So what’s better than that? What’s the purpose of
having freedom of mind? In order to get the right mind. So if you take your
freedom of mind, in order to make yourself a slave to a great mind, a true and
holy mind. It’s the best thing. So for us, it’s no question. It depends. Let’s
say the Lubavitcher Rebbe invites you. He says, Shabbos come into me. Eat at my
table. So forget about what you heard tonight [about the danger of eating at
the tables of certain people]. Say, gladly. Because you’ll be enslaved. You’ll
sit at his table. Whatever he says, you’ll say yes. It’s good. You can be sure
it’s good. If the Satmar Rav will invite you to his table for Shabbos. Accept.
Accept.
Rav Avigdor
Miller, “At Someone’s Table”, Tape #212, 37:08
And therefore, it’s a problem. When
we’ll all come together, there will be a problem. Mi b’rosh? Who will be the
leader? Will the Lubavitcher be the leader? Or the Satmar will be the leader?
Who’s going to be Moshiach? HaKodesh Baruch Hu will decide that. Be we are not
worrying about Moshiach right now. We are talking about coming together. We’ll
have to solve all our differences.
Rav Avigdor Miller, “Exile”, Tape
#604 106:48
Even if it’s a brow beaten little
rabbi, but he’s capable of helping you. Of course, if you can find someone better
and even better and even better certainly. If let’s say if Rabbi Shach will
accept you as his personal friend and spend time with you, certainly. If the
Slobodka Rosh Yeshiva will accept you as his talmid, certainly. If the
Lubavitcher Rebbe will let you in to spend time with him certainly. But it’s
difficult.
Rav Avigdor
Miller, “Don’t Be an Orphan”, Tape #415 1:00:38
You must love your fellow Jews like
yourself. You should have a national pride in the Jewish people. You must love
Jews. I’m not talking about this Jew or that Jew. Certainly, it must be this
Jew or that Jew. But you must have a love for Jews. By the way, Jews means only
frumme Jews. Not frumme Jews are not Jews. They are anything but Jews. A Jew is
only somebody who is loyal to Toras Hashem. Whether it’s a Lubavitcher or a
Satmer or a Lakewood yeshiva man or he comes from Yerushalayim or Bene Brak
whether he’s in Chaim Berlin or Mir Yeshiva Veyahafta L’reyecha Kamocha, you
have to love all frum Jews. That’s the second foundation. Now, when you are
proud of belonging to the bnei melachim then you are going to succeed in
learning Torah shel baal peh.
Rav Avigdor
Miller, “Loyalty to Hashem’s People, Tape #416 56:52
And therefore, we come back to the
great principle that if you want to love Hakodesh Baruch Hu you’ll have to love
His people. I’ll quote from the Chovos Halevovos an important statement. All
the statements are important. It talks about Ahavas Hashem. How to love Hashem.
That is the end of the Chovos Halevovos and the greatest madreiga. Now in perek
Hai of Ahavas Hashem he says אבל מפסידי האהבה באלהים what are the
things that interfere with the love of Hashem. There are certain things that
interfere. רבים מאד There are many things
interfere. But only one he specifies. The rest he just alludes to in general. And
this is the one he specifies. Now pay attention. ומהם
השנאה באוהביו. If you have a hatred towards the ohavei Hashem. If you have a
hatred against certain Jews. Let’s say you hate Satmar or you hate Lubavitcher
or you this or you hate that, you hate Hungarian Jews or you hate Polish Jews or
you hate Lithuanian Jews you have to know it won’t permit you to love Hashem at
all. And not only all of the Lubavitcher and all of the Satmar or all the
Lithuanian, but even some of them. You have to love Hashem’s people in order to
fulfill the Ahavas Hashem.
Rav Avigdor
Miller, “Loyalty to Hashem’s People, Tape #416 1:06:34
We have to know that in those days,
the Jewish leaders were not like today. Today a Jewish leader is scorned even
by the Jewish nation. The Torah leaders are not recognized by the Jewish people
today. Of course, in Torah circles, but outside -- let’s say the Lubavitcher
Rebbe or the Satmarer Rav or the Rosh Yeshiva to the big yeshivas they are not
considered the leaders of the Jewish nation by the general multitude of the
Jews. There are many Jews who don’t even know about these leaders. But in the
days of old, the leaders of the Jewish people were the aristocracy.
Rav Avigdor
Miller, “The Talmud, Tape #477 26:08
In Soviet Russia, Lubavitcher Jews make mikvaos. You can't make
anything in Russia without government permission, but they make mikvahs. You
know how to make a mivkah even in America – you know how difficult it is? But
in Russia, it’s a million times more difficult.
But I know, they made mikvaos in Russia. In the worst times, they made
mikvaos. They taught Torah to children in yeshivos in Russia in the worst times.
How do you make a yeshiva in Russia? You know that running a yeshiva you’ll be
punished that the children get taken away from their parents and given to
gentile parents to be brought up and you’ll never again hear of your children.
And still they did it. An old man describes it. A visitor walked in – he wanted
to see a local yeshiva. He heard there was a yeshiva. He walked into the little
shul that remained. That was when shuls
still remained. Now there are no shuls left except in one place. He walked in and there was nothing but an old
shamash sitting all by himself. So, he
said to the shamash, “Where are the talmidim?” So the shamash said, “What kind
of talmidim? No talmidim! What are you talking about?” So the man went
out. As soon as he went out, the boys
started sticking their heads out from all the places and they came out again. So,
the Jews persisted even in Soviet Russia.
That’s some nisayon! And we
persist to this day. And the frum Jews don’t send their children to public
schools. It’s a sacrifice. Chas v’chaliah. Public school is so much
easier – easier to lose your child. And the frum Jews– they are moiser nefesh
to maintain their own schools. And we are the same that we were when we stood
at Har Sinai. We said נעשה ונשמע – no changes.
Rav Avigdor, “Service by Ear,” Tape # 231 (June 1978), 1:20:54
From written
material:
That’s why it’s a beautiful thing
when people have pictures of tzaddikim on the walls of their home. Now some
people have a prejudice against pictures. There are some very, very pious
people like that, but we’re not like that. We do have pictures. Let’s say a
picture of a girl in the meadow, maybe standing in a garden. But such pictures
gentiles can also have. I like landscapes too. I like pictures of nature. You
can have that too, why not? So while you’re looking at the landscape, you’ll
think about the creation that Hakadosh Baruch Hu made for our happiness. But
why not pictures of tzaddikim too? A picture of the Rambam. A picture of Vilna
Gaon. If you’re a Lubavitcher, a picture of some of the rebbes.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, Toras Avigdor, Parshas
Vayakhel Pekudei, 5780
And that’s why we identify with all observant
Jews, whether they’re Jews in Teiman or Lakewood or Lubavitch or Bnei Brak or
in Boro Park or Baltimore. Wherever they are, we identify with them because
we’re one with them. Whether they’re Sephardi Jews, whether they’re Syrian
Jews, whether they’re Egyptian Jews. All the Jews who are loyal to the Torah,
that’s our people. That’s the Am Echad of the Hashem Echad and we have to
identify with them – you can’t feel like he’s an outsider. A Galicianer can’t
think, ‘I’m a stranger to a Hungarian Jew.’ No, we’re not strangers to anybody
if they’re loyal Jews.
Rav
Avigdor Miller, Toras Avigdor : Parshas Vayechi 5780
Once you understand that you’re climbing a ladder, then all Rebbes
become ‘My Rebbe.’ All Rebbes! The Satmerer Rebbe! Ahh! Zol ehr lang leiben!
He’s a wonderful man. A big warrior; and he accomplished for us so much. The
Lubavitcher Rebbe, zol ehr lang leiben! He accomplished so much and he’s still
accomplishing. They should both be our Rebbes because they both can bring us to
Hakodosh Boruch Hu and that’s all that matters. That’s the only thing asei
licha rav is for, after all. Hashem comes first! Don’t ever forget that Hashem comes first. You're in this world for
Hakodosh Boruch Hu and nobody else.
Rav Avigdor Miller, Toras Avigdor, Lech Lecha 5781
Yoni* did not speak clearly. ‘Go to the Lubavitcher!’ said Rabbi
Miller. In response to the boys' puzzled
expressions he explained, “The Lubavitcher chassidim speak clearly. The Rebbe
enunciates his words and his chassidim emulate him. You should learn from them.
The Rebbe sends them to talk in shuls. They arrive with energy and open their
mouths and speak clearly, like their Rebbe, without stammering. This is how
every ben Torah should be able to speak.”
Rav Avigdor Miller - His Life and His Revolution, p. 210