6417 —הזדמנות הפצתית שהוחמצה בכנס עולמי של חוקרי תנ"ך

B"H, 25 Tammuz, 5718.

Brooklyn.

Hanhalat Tzeirei Agudas Chabad, Tel Aviv branch, may Hashem be upon them for life.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I have been informed that in about two weeks there will be, in the Holy Land may it be built and established, a world gathering of representatives of Israeli youth from several countries [I believe the exact date is 7/28 and in Jerusalem may it be built and established], and it would be proper for the Chabad brotherhood to immediately consult among themselves how to utilize this opportunity for Chabad matters, and especially for spreading the wellsprings. It seems to me that I have written several times that such opportunities are Divine providence for influencing many countries and lands much more easily than usual, Those that are in need of spiritual refinement are gathered together and brought to the place where the refiner is found; only, it is necessary to awaken him from his sleep and slumber so that h ^[1] will make full use of this opportunity.

The above, regarding sleep and slumber, is connected to the fact that some time ago there was a global gathering of Bible scholars and also scientists. It is obvious that each one would have been interested to know about the Chabad approach or at least to receive some of its books. And it seems that all the activists among Anash together in Eretz HaKodesh did absolutely nothing—utterly nothing—to take advantage of this opportunity.

I tried to find several ways to judge favorably this absolute lack of action in such a case (where it takes no contemplation to recognize the hidden possibilities within it), and I found only one justification: that it simply did not occur to anyone to think about this. And even this justification is itself understood from the opposite extreme.

It is known from the explanation of  the Rebbe Maharash, how is it that a maidservant or bondwoman can come up with the deep logical arguments of Tannaim, Amoraim, Rishonim, and Acharonim—arguments that are seemingly far beyond her level? Rather, when something truly matters to a person—even a maidservant or Canaanite slave with minimal intellect can reach the depth of those aforementioned sages' reasoning. And from an affirmative statement you can infer a negative one—as in all matters of Torah...

May it be G‑d's will that our recent arrival from the days of redemption—12th and 13th of Tammuz—should break through even this doubled and redoubled darkness above, specifically with kindness and mercy.

With blessing for good news.

Summary

The Rebbe urges us not to let opportunities for outreach pass by unnoticed. Even when excuses seem plausible, true care for a matter should awaken action. We must break through inertia with kindness and seize every chance to spread Torah values.