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By Beis Moshiach Magazine

Yossi: I told you several months ago how our minyan was disturbed by the wailing of fire engine sirens as they rushed to put out a fire. Then I told you about some famous, massive fires and the terrible destruction they caused to property and even to life.

What I did not yet tell you was about other very significant fires. No, these fires did not garner world attention. They did not take many lives and did not destroy property with much monetary value. They did not destroy entire cities. However, their impact was far greater than all that.

I’m referring to fires that took place in the town of Lubavitch and sent the writings of the Rebbeim up in smoke. Yes, in Chabad history there were some famous fires. As usual, we will start from the beginning.

The first fire occurred in the time of the Alter Rebbe in 5570. It destroyed large sections of the Alter Rebbe’s handwritten work including part of his Shulchan Aruch. That is why today, we only have relatively small parts of the Shulchan Aruch. Unfortunately, entire sections such as Even HaEzer and most of Yoreh Deah and Choshen Mishpat are gone. What we have is most of Orach Chaim. How sad! Other sefarim that the Alter Rebbe wrote were also destroyed such as Sifran shel Tzaddikim.

Another fire, this one intentional, happened in 5572 when the Alter Rebbe left Liadi when he fled Napoleon. It is told that the Alter Rebbe took all his belongings with him and afterward, when the group he was traveling with had already traveled quite a distance from Liadi, he returned with a speedy wagon and set the house on fire. He did not want Napoleon to have access to anything that had belonged to him.

The biggest fire that occurred in Lubavitch was in the time of the Tzemach Tzedek on 3 Tammuz 5611. At that time, the houses were made of wood and pipes for water were not at all developed. The fire burned the Tzemach Tzedek’s house and the houses of his sons. The Rebbe Rayatz says that following the fire, the Tzemach Tzedek with his entire household moved to live in houses of the owner of the town.

The worst part was that in this fire hundreds of thousands of pages of Nigleh and Chassidus that had been written by the Tzemach Tzedek were destroyed. They had been in boxes. The Rebbe says that most of the writings which were burned were in Nigleh of Torah although there were also many writings in Chassidus.

The Rebbe MH”M says that after the fire, the Tzemach Tzedek called some Chassidim to his room and pleaded with them to return any writings they had stolen. They said they had not stolen any writings and the Tzemach Tzedek expressed his sorrow that they hadn’t done so, for now he would be unable to use them.

Another fire in Lubavitch was in 5668. It began in the small zal of the yeshiva and the talmidim who were present extinguished it before it spread and caused damage. Following this fire, the Rebbe Rashab switched to saying Chassidus in the large zal. In 5677 a fire broke out again and this time it damaged the homes of the bachurim.

After World War I, following which the Rebbe Rashab left Lubavitch, a fire broke out in 5681 and destroyed the entire court of the Rebbeim.

Various fires broke out in 770, Beis Rabeinu sheb’Bavel. For example, Rebbetzin Chana, the Rebbe’s mother, passed away on Shabbos, 6 Tishrei 5725. When she died, the seat she used in 770 went up in flames, which was remarkable.

In 5729, a road accident occurred which burned the car that some bachurim had been in on their way back from a wedding. In an open miracle they emerged from the burning vehicle relatively unharmed. That Shabbos, the Rebbe explained the “fiery serpents” in the desert and he said that although we don’t know why the accident occurred, following it there needed to be a renewed chayus in Torah study.

In the winter of 5743, two fires occurred in 770, one was under the farbrengen bima and the other was in the offices of Vaad L’Hafotzas Sichos. There was no logical reason for these fires.

At the farbrengen on Shabbos parshas Shemos 5743, the Rebbe referred to these fires and connected them to delays in certain matters connected with strengthening Torah and mitzvos in Crown Heights.

The Rebbe said that because of these fires, he sold 770 to someone who was not Lubavitch. Of course, this has a spiritual explanation which we cannot understand.

In many letters, the Rebbe explains that fires have a spiritual significance and after a fire the attribute of mercy is aroused. “After a fire, one becomes rich,” materially and spiritually. As it says regarding the Beis Ha Mikdash, that it was burned by fire and will, in the future, be built with fire.

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