On Thursday, I visited the town of Lubavitch, the seat - the 'Capital'
- of Chabad Chassidism for 102 years, and home the Lubavitcher Rebbes
of those times.
I grew up with many stories of events, challenges and triumphs of the
Lubavitch community in Russia, and this little village was at the
epicenter of those stories and lessons.
It's small in size. At the same, it, in many ways, represents my
spiritual lifeblood.
While the village is very rundown and has no Jews, the fall of the
Iron Curtain has allowed for the construction of a new Chabad Center,
which is a hospitality center and serves as a testament to the town's
important history. The center has a wall with [as many] pictures [as
can be found] of the students who studied there from 1897, when the
Lubavitch Yeshiva - known as Tomchei Temimim - was founded.
But that's not why I went. I walked the fields, knowing that I was
following the tracks of spiritual giants, titans of true authenticity,
perpetual seekers of Divine unity.
We visited the graves of the two Lubavitcher Rebbes who are buried
there: Rabbi Menachem Mendel, known as the Tzemach Tzedek (passed away
1866) and his son Rabbi Shmuel, known as the Rebbe Maharash (passed
away in 1882).
To visit these graves was to embrace the spirit which they bequeathed
to the world, which is a sense of devotion to G-d, to Holiness and to
humanity.
The Rebbes' spirit and mission needs to live and reverberate in
Basking Ridge and Central NJ.
It does already. But we're not done.
ב"ה
Back to the Future - Lubavitch
Monday, 26 July, 2010 - 9:39 am
Posted by Rabbi Mendy Herson
Comments on: Back to the Future - Lubavitch
Profile
I'm MENDY HERSON, Executive Director of Chabad of Greater Somerset County. I was born and raised in NJ, and I’m the Rabbi at Chabad. Many people call me Mendy, which is just fine with me; I don't want the title to create too much distance between me and my friends (Some people wonder: Can you joke around with a Rabbi? Can you text him?). Spirituality and and Jewish thought are my lifeblood. And I'm thrilled to explore them with anyone, especially with people who disagree with me. When I can explore meaningful ideas with my local friends, to help us all better our lives, I feel like I've struck gold.
Basking Ridge has been a great place to live. My family (wife Malkie and my eight wonderful kids) and I really love it here. I have made some really great friends and look forward to the infinite possibilities that the future can bring.
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