6148 —דחיית השליליות וחיזוק המשימה של האדם

B"H, 2 Nissan, 5718.

Brooklyn.

Haraha"ch iy"a nu"n oseik b'tzt"z rav poalim Yehoshua Schneor Zalman

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In response to your letter from Motzaei Shabbos Kodesh, you have surely already received a reply to your previous letters. I notice in your letter a contradiction between the beginning and the end: you start by describing gatherings, farbrengens, speeches, etc., and how these have brought hearts closer together, but you conclude with “az altz toig nit” (so nothing helps), etc. Even though for several years now it has become common for darkness to be doubled and redoubled in the footsteps of Mashiach, nevertheless there must be some limit even to this—since only good and holiness are truly without limit; such boundlessness is not found in the realm of the opposite. My intention is that you should take a piece of paper and write down the difficult situation from two or three years ago compared to the state of the institution now; you will see progress that by nature had no place to occur.

To mention just two recent matters: (a) The allocation of four thousand lira plus five hundred for construction at the conference in Rome—at a time when the decision here was not to give even a penny, and even in Rome there was no natural effort that would have led them to agree to such a drastic change. (b) As you wrote in this letter about the Lieber family donating the entire sum that the yeshivah needs to pay for the building. I doubt whether—even given your current state of discouragement (where you find no rational explanation)—you could find any natural explanation for how this came about.

In truth, these proofs are only additional support; for there is already a clear instruction from long ago: anything that weakens activities for Torah and mitzvos certainly comes from the yetzer hara (see Hayom Yom 23 Sivan)—that is, it is the opposite of Melech Malchei HaMelachim Hakadosh Baruch Hu. And one who does not wish to deceive himself—as explained in Kuntres U'Maayan and many other discourses—knows that it is always one of two things: either it is with us or... Regarding willpower (as opposed to intellect), it makes no difference whether one neglects a minor matter or transgresses an entire principle. Understand that I do not write this as a sermon but rather to clarify: discouragement originates from the enticements and schemes of the yetzer hara. Just as one fights against its enticement when it comes to an explicit Torah commandment—which he would certainly reject outright—so too regarding these enticements.

It is understood—and obvious—that none of this means Chabad activities in Australia are perfect or beyond improvement; such perfection does not exist in our world after the sin of Etz HaDaas. It is well known that we are commanded not just to work but to work as one who truly wishes to accomplish; therefore one must always seek out deficiencies and fill or correct them—but not through discouragement or low spirits, which help no one—not even those matters about which you write.

As seen from this letter and previous ones—you still hold now by an extreme approach: that it is impossible to rely on anyone else for even minor or major matters; if you cannot do something yourself, this is supposedly proof that you are unfit for involvement at all. It seems absurd even to delegate trivial matters or those dependent on language skills etc., to others. From this approach comes an immediate result: there is no point consulting anyone else—since if you are capable yourself you need no advice, and if your intellect does not suffice then what can others add? But there is no basis for this after what our Sages say simply: "A single judge may only be one," and well-known realities seen everywhere need no proof.

May it be G‑d's will that you recognize the truth—that both your existence and others' can coexist; each complements the other. This should never cause anyone discouragement if he needs advice or guidance—or sometimes correction of an error—and not only should this never lead him to neglect his work but on the contrary! I await good news regarding all these matters, and may you ultimately stand firm on all these points with joy and gladness of heart—and increase strength in your beautiful portion where Divine Providence has placed you—to be among those who take a leading role in spreading the wellsprings [of Chassidus] throughout Australia.

May it be G‑d's will that all this happen with true inner joy and gladness—and with proper health.

Blessings for a kosher and joyous Pesach holiday, awaiting good news soon.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that discouragement comes from negative forces aiming to weaken one's mission. By recognizing progress, seeking help when needed, and working with joy despite challenges, one fulfills their unique role in spreading Torah values.