2614 —התמקדות במשימה הייחודית של הפצת חסידות באיטליה

B"H, 25 Nissan, 5714.

Brooklyn.

Haraha"g vaharaha"ch iy"a nu"n oseik b'tzt"z Mordechai Kohen

Shalom u'Vrachah!

Your letter was received, and you have surely received my letter with the holiday blessing. I also received a letter from vavac"h iy"a nu"n Yisrael Naeh along with his essay.

After this introduction—that I am not entering into the content of the essay and surely it fits the situation in your location, especially as you write that it makes a good impression, and presumably this means it has also had a practical effect, at least bringing readers closer to Jewish matters—I must say that this was not my intention. As I wrote explicitly, my intent was for Chassidus topics and their surrounding ideas to be printed in Italian. I emphasized several times in my letters that I mean selections from talks and holy letters, etc.—because there are certainly those who know Italian who are already involved in spreading the spirit of Judaism generally.

And one must not forget the warning of Scripture: 'Karmi sheli lo natarti' ("My own vineyard I did not guard")—even within holiness itself there is 'my own vineyard,' meaning something unique that no one else will handle, and there are shared vineyards that others will also tend. The same applies here: everything that leads to Torah study and mitzvah observance is very necessary, and obviously our community members and students should devote themselves to this wholeheartedly. But it is essential that they also engage in spreading Chassidus. About this I have written several times to the Avrech R.Y....

It is understood that I do not mean to rebuke but rather regarding future action: it is necessary to provide him with excerpts from holy talks or letters of our leaders as well as easy essays suited to the nature of Jews currently in Italy, and strive for him to translate and print them, etc.

Certainly you will not take offense at this letter of mine because this is what the times demand. I did not write the above to Avrech R.Y., because for several reasons I want the initiative to come from you without him knowing that this was my intention—so he should not be discouraged G‑d forbid.

With blessing—awaiting good news.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that while general outreach is important, each community has a unique mission—in this case, spreading Chassidus in Italian—and those capable should focus their efforts accordingly for maximum impact.