1473 —הבהרת הקצאת צדקה ומעורבות ציבורית

B"H, 28 Adar, 5712.

Brooklyn.

Haraha"ch vavac"h iy"a nu"n etc. Naftali Kohen

Shalom u'Vrachah!

Your question (or wonder) was conveyed to me regarding what you heard from Mr. Rabinowitz, who visited me and said he was giving a certain sum. I told him I would put the money into a specific charity fund (Hachnasas Kallah), and he wondered why I needed to tell him what I would do with the money. This is understood according to our Sages (Chullin 94a), who forbade several things because they might mislead others; this is also mentioned in the poskim as noted in Ein Mishpat Ner Mitzvah. Since I saw that Mr. Rabinowitz thought these funds would go to another purpose, I was obligated by halachah to inform him that they would be placed in a specific charity fund.

I am interested to know if your honor takes part in communal activities in your city, especially regarding education matters.

Enclosed is a chassidic discourse of my father-in-law, the Rebbe zatzal, which has just been published.

With regards from vavac"h iy"a nu"n etc. Chaim Yaakov Gas and wishes for a kosher and joyous Pesach to all of you.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches the importance of transparency when handling charity funds and stresses communal involvement, particularly in education. He also shares recent chassidic teachings for inspiration during Pesach.