3833 —הסברת השימוש בתאריכים כלליים בברכות לשנה החדשה

B"H, 19 Tishrei, 5716. Brooklyn.

Haraha"g iy"a nu"n Rav Pe'alim Melachto Melachet Shamayim Yitzchak Hutner

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In response to your letter from the eve of Sukkot, in which you raised a question about the date in my letter—that it was written as 'Days of Selichos' without specifying the exact day—my intention is simple. The practice of noting the time in a letter or similar documents serves: (a) as an indication of when it was written and is relevant for secondary matters, as our Sages say 'because of fruits,' etc. In this context, the more precise the date, the better this function is fulfilled—even to the extent that in Jerusalem they would record even the hours. (b) Alternatively, it may relate to the content of the letter itself, as our Sages say: 'Merit is brought about on a meritorious day.' In such cases, the date depends on how long this merit continues—whether it is one day or a longer or shorter period—so it is appropriate to note the period rather than a specific day, as in 'the days were days of early grapes,' where 'days' is plural (see there in Targum Yonatan).

Since in my letters of blessing the main point is this second aspect—and it is proper that the recipient also emphasizes this—I therefore wrote 'Days of Selichos' as the date, since through this comes "with blessing and success."

With honor and blessing.

Due to the sanctity of the festival, my revered father-in-law, may he live and be well, did not sign personally; I am signing on his behalf.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that sometimes a general time period better reflects spiritual intent than an exact date. Especially for blessings tied to ongoing merit or themes like Selichos, emphasizing the period highlights its significance over pinpointing a single day.