6543 —השגחה פרטית ו"כל מה דעביד רחמנא לטב עביד", וכח האמונה הפשוטה

B"H, 8th of Marcheshvan, 5719

Brooklyn.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In reply to your letter of Sunday.

At an auspicious time, all those about whom you write will be mentioned at the holy resting place of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, of saintly memory, whose soul is in the hidden treasuries on high, may his merit protect us, each one for what he needs, in keeping with the content of your letter.

Surely for someone like you, and for your wife, may she live (about which our Sages said, אשתו כגופו דמיא "his wife is like his own body" (Bechoros 35b)), and for the members of your household, may they live, in general, it is superfluous to explain at length the matter of the individual Divine Providence of the Creator and Ruler of the world over each and every Jew, and that He, blessed be He, is the essence of good. From all this it is understood that מפי עליון לא תצא "from the mouth of the Most High does not come forth" (Eichah 3:38) anything but כל מה דעביד רחמנא לטב עביד "whatever the Merciful One does, He does for the good" (Berachos 60b). And although sometimes it is difficult to discern and understand this with eyes of flesh and with the intellect of flesh and blood, this lack of knowledge does not change the reality. Moreover, when one strengthens oneself in this simple faith, which in truth is found in every Jew, since of each and every one of them it is said מאמינים בני מאמינים "believers, the children of believers" (Shabbos 97a), then, in the words of the Alter Rebbe (Igeres HaKodesh, end of section 11), באמת נעשה הכל טוב גם בגלוי "in truth everything becomes good, also in a revealed way" (Igeres HaKodesh 11).

And this is also the theme of the day, according to the saying of the Alter Rebbe, מ'דארף לעבען מיט דער צייט "one must live with the times" (Hayom Yom, 2 Cheshvan), with the weekly portion, which is the portion of Avraham Avinu, the first of all believers, who bequeathed this faith to all Jews until the end of all generations, as is explained in many places (Bereishis 15:6; Tanya, ch. 18).

And as is likewise explained, the more one strengthens one's trust in the above, the more G‑d's blessings increase in what one needs in general, and especially in meriting to see the good with eyes of flesh as well.

With blessing for good news.

Publisher's notes

The saying of the Alter Rebbe (פתגם רבנו הזקן): See also above, letter 6537, and the sources noted there.

Summary

This letter teaches that everything from Above is for the good even when it cannot be seen, and that strengthening the simple faith every Jew inherits from Avraham brings blessing and lets one see the good openly.