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By Yitzchok Gross

A Story for Mashke

Reb Chaim Moshe Alperovitz is a Mashpia in the branch of Tomchei Temimim in Rishon Letziyon, Eretz Yisrael. He relates the following story.

When he was a bochur in 770, the legendary Shliach to Milan, Reb Gershon Mendel Gorelick ז“ל came to 770 and wanted to farbreng. All the bochurim excitedly gathered around, but there was no mashke. Reb Chaim Moshe ran to his locker where he had his “emergency bottle” for such situations — as Chassidim always make sure to have a special bottle waiting to be opened for the complete hisgalus of the Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach, may it happen speedily! — and brought it to the table.

The elderly shliach and chassid was very happy and asked him for his name. When he said Chaim Moshe, Reb Gershon Mendel told him, “Since you brought mashke to the farbrengen, I would like to pay you back with a story about a different Chaim Moshe, Reb Chaim Moshe Alperovitz ז“ל”, who happens to be the storyteller’s להבלח“ח great-grandfather and namesake.

And so said Reb Gershon Mendel:

“I was a young bochur when we left Russia and arrived in Eretz Yisroel. In those days, Tel Aviv was home to many older Chassidim that learned in the very first location of Tomchei Temimim in the town of Lubavitch with the Rebbe Rashab, and they used to farbreng with each other the way Chassidim do. We were young little bochurim, and we loved to drey zich arum, to hang around, and listen in to their conversations.”

Why Is Reb Chaim Moshe Still a Tomim?

“One time,” said Reb Gershon Mendel, “I heard two elder chassidim, Reb Moshe Gurary and Reb Nochum Goldshmit farbrenging together. One asked the other: ‘I have a question. We both learned in Lubavitch years ago. And now, we are here today, sitting together. But there is a big difference between then and now. When we were bochurim in Lubavitch, we were in full force! Ein od milvado! We were so dedicated and inspired. Nothing existed or mattered but Elokus!

But now, years later, what are we?

Balebatim… balabeselech….

Perhaps Chassidishe Balabatim, with Chassidishe stories and memories, but can you compare?.’”

“’It makes sense, that’s life,’ they concluded,

“but what about Chaim Moshe… Chaim Moshe was a Tomim when he learned in Lubavitch, and he’s still a Tomim the very same way today too. He hasn’t changed an ounce. He has not become a balebos! What is his secret?’”

“The other Chossid answered him that the answer is very simple.”

“’When we were in Lubavitch, we heard and listened only to the Rebbe. But then, we left Lubavitch, we got married and we started hearing other things… Chaim Moshe, on the other hand, was with us in Lubavitch and he heard the Rebbe just like us, but then he became deaf, so he hasn’t heard anything else! No wonder he has stayed a Tomim!’”

[Reb Chaim Moshe was a construction worker and once, during his work, there was some kind of explosion, and he lost his hearing to a certain extent.]

This was the story Reb Gershon Mendel shared at that impromptu farbrengen.

Thirty-One Years!

I was once given an opportunity to speak for a few minutes in front of a very rich and influential individual, who respected me and was very interested in what I had to say. I thought to myself, “what can I say in five minutes that will include the thousands of messages I will ever want to tell this man forever?”

I told the above story.

I don’t know what this story means for you, dear reader, but for me this story is extremely uplifting and encouraging.

We are over thirty years after Gimmel Tammuz and as a community, we face an immutable challenge. We haven’t heard the Rebbe for over three decades.

Many of us struggle with not internally registering with the Rebbe Melech Hamoshiach’s fervor and excitement on Moshiach and Geulah. Many of us feel that we are not seeing the world events eye-to-eye with the Rebbe’s outlook.

Many feel that from year to year after we’ve left Yeshiva or Sem, our connection and alignment with the Chassidishe values and chayus that we once had, are getting weaker and weaker.

Some of us may blame this on deep and serious issues; on big problems like timtum halev, timtum hamoach…. who knows what.

— My beloved Mashpia, Reb Moshe Orenshtein ז“ל would relate by farbrengens, that often Bochurim come over to him complaining that they have timtum halev. He told us that he usually joyfully replies that he is so happy to hear that.

Answering the bewildered look on the bochur’s face, he would patiently explain the reason for his happiness. “Let me tell you what is timtum halev, and then you will realize the reason for my excitement.

“Timtum halev is an ‘illness’ that can chas v’Shalom happen to someone that has properly learned through the Tanya a few times, to someone who is studying properly the material that the yeshiva is learning for seder Chassidus both l’iyun and l’girsa. It can happen to someone who has learned a number of hemsheichim and reviewed them properly until he properly understands them. Then, a while before the minyan begins davaning, he sits and meditates on the Chassidus that he knows and then begins davaning.

“But, alas, he has a ‘small’ issue, he has timtum halev, he doesn’t feel a tangible ahava v’yira, love and fear to Hashem in his heart! How I wish that all the bochurim in Yeshiva would be struggling with your timtum halev… —

Many think and feel that our enthusiasm and dedication of our yeshiva years are a thing of the past. We are too far gone to even dream of excitement for Yud Alef Nissan and Yud Shvat like in the good old days. “I’m in a different place now…”

Are we really so sophisticated?

But really, its that simple: time goes by, and we are hearing other messages besides for the Rebbe’s!

What those smart Chasidim in Tel Aviv were saying is that we are not so sophisticated as we like to think… We are simple human beings that think and feel based on the information that we are fed. If we are in the wrong place spiritually, it very often just means that we’re just not feeding ourselves with the right information, that’s all.

If we had only constantly heard the Rebbe’s words, and with that gained the true outlook on life and the true reality of the world, of course our lives would be different!

But we do hear other things aside from the Rebbe, and therefore gradually, without realizing, our minds and hearts change course.

We Don’t Need to be deaf

And here’s the good news: Those elder Chassidim in Tel Aviv had to rely on their memory from tens of years back to “hear the Rebbe” or read the written and printed sichos and ma’amarim.

We, by contrast, merited that Melech Hamoshiach had rachmanus and has given us 42 years–full (!) of audio and video of sichos and maamorim where he is talking to us!

We can actually see his face and hear his holy voice!

From 5738 and 5739 and some of 5740 we even have full “shabosdik” style farbrengens in audio, from that week’s parsha!

Most importantly, we can hear the besuros and nevuos from 5750 through 5752 directly in the Rebbe’s holy voice, again and again, until we merit to the nevuah unfold entirely before our eyes.

If hearing other ideas have such an effect, the opposite direction must be much stronger! We just need to hear the Rebbe more and more, and of course we will be right back on track.

Boruch Hashem, we in Dor Hashvi’i don’t need to be deaf to not listen to the world, to keep focused on the truth and be prepared for the complete hisgalus. We can hear and see the Rebbe 24/6! Just press play!

So, for me the message of this special story is: Hear the Melech HaMoshiach! Hear him, and hear him some more!

We are desperately waiting for Moshiach to come and teach us Toroso Shel Moshiach, why don’t we start with the 42 years of Toroso Shel Moshiach that are already at our fingertips. Just dial 718-735-7333-P-1199. (EY: 089493770+1+2. In Europe: +442089053770+1+9). Or on the internet websites, RebbeDrive.org (downloadable audio and video but not as good quality for some of the material), jem.tv (they also have an app. Sometimes it works better/worse than the website depending on the strength of the internet. Note most videos of raw footage — without subtitles etc. — are free and you don’t need membership, which is quite cheap anyway), mafteiach.app which gives a wealth of information alongside the sichos, and the ashreinu.app which has beautiful playlists arranged according to topics are just some of the resources.

Friends! Don’t think twice! Just press play! You won’t regret it!

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