2482 —ניחומים, השתתפות בהתוועדות, ומנהגי תפילת אבלים

B"H, 23rd Adar II, 5714.

Brooklyn.

Haraha"g vavac"h iy"a nu"n oseik b'tzt"z Moreinu HaRav Moshe Aryeh Leib Shapira

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I was shocked to receive your letter in which you write about the passing of your mother, may her memory be a blessing. May Hashem grant that from now on you will know no pain or distress, G‑d forbid, and only good will be found for you speedily in our days.

With blessing.

P.S. Thank you for your letter—even though it was brief—about the recent farbrengen and that you also participated in it. Surely you will continue to do so in the future, and the more details you include, the better. Surely my letter to the administration of the yeshivah has already been received long ago and they will respond to it.

In response to your question: according to our custom, a mourner does not lead the prayers except on days when Musaf is recited (and even then, he does not lead Maariv). Therefore, it is understood that on Purim he does lead the prayers. Certainly you have seen the customs of mourning and yahrzeit printed in the booklets from Yud Shevat and 2nd of Nissan 5708 and 5709 (in booklet Pei Chet).

Summary

The Rebbe offers comfort after a loss, encourages ongoing participation in farbrengens with detailed reports, and clarifies specific customs regarding when a mourner leads prayers—referencing published guides for further details.