9927 —על ההתנחלות בחברון, המציאות הפוליטית, וחשיבות מבצע תפילין

B"H, 3rd of Tammuz, 5730.

Brooklyn, NY.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

Mr. Eliezer sheyichyeh Levene

Shalom u'Vrachah! I acknowledge receipt of your letter. Regarding its main point about Chevron and settling there, it is somewhat surprising that although you are apparently present on site, you do not seem to know that from the outset there was no agreement on this matter and it was not accepted by a significant portion of those who determine such matters in our land. Those who support them have increased, and lately it seems their side is prevailing and growing stronger.

In other words, apparently the entire matter is not practical at all; rather, due to the situation and relationships between and within parties, it is unclear in what style or manner they will cancel the matter. But as mentioned, this only concerns the external form of cancellation and not the essence itself.

I do not intend to publicize these things since: a) It is not my business to fight with the government of Israel on such matters even if there were good chances for results; b) Naturally and given the current political situation in Eretz Yisrael, I do not see any chance that the settlement plan for Chevron will be realized—at least in the near future—and may I be proven wrong.

The pain of heart and deep sorrow over this is understood; I am certain this is also the sorrow of most of our people wherever they are. But unfortunately this does not determine many important matters. To such an extent that unnecessary things have been done which affect the honor of Am Yisrael even more etc.

For example regarding Chevron itself: Until now I have not received any explanation—even a partial one—about what necessity there was to decide publicly at a government meeting and publish it etc., when it was discussed about Chevron that after some time apartments would be built near Chevron; in other words, a declaration in the name of all those dwelling in Zion that in Chevron itself a Jew is forbidden to live! The reason is clear—it belongs to those currently living there—and in Tanach language: "Ratzachta vegam yarashta" ("You murdered and also inherited"), for through literal murder Jews were expelled from the city of our forefathers.

The consolation in this decision—as I was told about this great victory—is that they finally decided to settle Jews outside Chevron. From the outset they knew even for this they would need approval from several powers—mainly Washington and the State Department—whose custom is that all concessions by Israel are immediately accepted with no room for reversal or regret, whereas Israel's demands are discussed at length etc.

They could have done this quietly—as was done in Jerusalem—and not established or publicized the prohibition regarding Chevron on behalf of all ministers! I asked this question several weeks ago and as above have yet to receive any explanation. There is no need to elaborate further on this painful matter.

As mentioned above, this letter is for you and for those whom you see fit should know its content—but not for publication in newspapers—as my intention here is not to wage war against the government.

I take this opportunity—and pleasant surprise at receiving your letter after such a long break since your visit here—to fulfill an enjoyable duty: expressing my thanks for defending me from the editorial published in Haaretz. Especially since my personal honor is not so affected—I am used to such responses against me even more sharply since my youth when I lived in the United States as eldest son of the chief rabbi of my district city. Since I had acquaintances among students etc., it’s understood that during debates etc., they also attacked me; moreover, since I had knowledge even in areas studied by those students—some communists etc.—this was natural.

What concerns me personally is spreading Judaism—first and foremost Mivtza Tefillin—which I merited having my words of inspiration accepted among various circles. Since I was attacked in a newspaper etc., some conclude from this that one should not put on tefillin—since after all, someone who initiated this campaign has had such things written about him by such-and-such newspaper yet still stands encouraging others to put on tefillin.

The hope is that these attacks will cause no harm since there’s no logical or real connection between these two matters—even if every word of criticism were true one hundred percent—what relevance does it have to fulfilling the mitzvah of tefillin written in our Torah—the Torah of life and truth—in four places in Torah Shebichtav (the Written Torah) and many places in Torah Shebe'al Peh (the Oral Torah) etc.? However unfortunately we live in a generation of upheaval where matters are often decided not according to logic or precise reasoning. Certainly for someone like yourself there’s no need to elaborate further.

Summary

The Rebbe writes candidly about political realities preventing Jewish settlement in Chevron but urges continued commitment to mitzvos like tefillin regardless of public criticism or setbacks. Personal attacks must never deter us from fulfilling G‑d's commandments or spreading Judaism.