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By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon – Cincinnati, Ohio

Dear Rabbi Manis Friedman shey’: You are a man with many Zechusim and talents. You have for decades, even before I was born, inspired and educated hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. Your unapologetic, yet disarming, approach and answers – always with your trademark smile – have opened the minds and hearts of so many of Klal Yisroel and mankind in general.

It is because of the above, that I was very surprised to view your recently published video about “the issue with saying that the Rebbe is Moshiach”. To see and hear the twisted answer and logic from someone of your stature and knowledge was disappointing. While I am familiar with the view that not everything that we know to be true (like the Rebbe being Moshiach) should be shared publicly, especially after Gimmel Tammuz, it was honestly shocking to see you dismiss that belief itself.

If I were to go through all the points made in the video, it would take a full series of articles. I have chosen the three main foundations and from this, I hope the reader will understand the full picture. I will be presenting hard facts, and not personal feelings, so that the reader can make a judgment on their own. While there are so many sources to quote, I will be quoting two (of many) sources for each point.

1) When the Rebbe referred to the Nassi Hador as the Moshiach of the generation, is that referring to the Melech Hamoshiach or a personal Moshiach?

1. At the end of the very first Maamer that the Rebbe said (Basi Legani 5711), the Rebbe says: “May we be privileged to see and meet with the Rebbe here in this world, in a physical body, in this earthy domain — and he will redeem us.” It was so clear to everyone that the Rebbe was saying that he believes that the Frierdike Rebbe will be Melech Hamoshiach, and not some personal savior, that people asked the Rebbe questions. The Rebbe – three days later – publicly announced that he received such questions: “I have been asked: How can I say that we will soon witness the fulfillment of the prophecy that “those who repose in the dust will awaken and sing joyful praises and that my revered father-in-law will be among them, and that he will lead us out of exile? After all, people ask, the sequence of events is that first there will be the coming of Mashiach and the Days of Mashiach, and only after some time will the Resurrection take place? The Rebbe then answers the question.

2. In the famous Sicha of Mishpatim 5752, the Rebbe tells us the following: “Since we find ourselves in the “highest time” of the coming of our righteous Moshiach, “Behold he (the king Moshiach) comes,” we already see (an example) and the beginning of the effect of the king Moshiach on the nations – “and he judges between the nations and reproves many peoples and they shall beat their swords to plowshares…”

In that Sicha (last footnote), the Rebbe tells us who he is referring to as “king Moshiach”: “And specifically to our generation, that the acronym of “MiYaD” alludes to the three periods connected to my sainted father-in-law, the leader of our generation: in the order closest to us, Moshiach (Menachem is his name), Yosef Yitzchak, DovBer (the second name of the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe).

[In all honesty, I did not understand the distinction between the Moshiach of the generation and Melech HaMoshiach in regards to our Rebbe. Being that the Rebbe is the Moshiach of our generation, and our generation is the seventh and final generation before the Geula, it is obvious that our Rebbe is the Melech Hamoshiach. While this does not mean that we have reached the Halachik Category of “Moshiach Vadai”, we do believe that the Rebbe is “Vadai Moshiach”.]

2) The Rebbe made it very clear throughout the years that Chassidim should refrain from spreading certain concepts of Moshiach as it could distance people from Chassidus. Do we know of circumstances where the Rebbe “changed his mind” (as the world has become more receptive) about these activities?

I would like to share two (of many) clear instances of the above:

A) The following was recorded by Rabbi Sholom Ber Volpa of Eretz Yisroel: “I did receive a sharp directive from the Rebbe in 5744 (1984) in connection with the printing of my book Yechi HaMelech. The Rebbe also spoke sharply about this at the farbrengen on Motzaei Shabbos Bereishis 5745. By the way, after the frightening sicha at that farbrengen, when I hung my head as I went by for kos shel bracha, the Rebbe gave me a bottle of mashke for Kiryat Gat in an especially gracious manner, and said to me, “In His angels He finds fault.”

However, seven years later, in 5751, when the Rebbe spoke about learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula, Rabbi Yehuda Yaroslavsky ordered me to ask the Rebbe again whether the time had come to print the book. I then received permission from the Rebbe to print the book once it was edited by yedidim mevinim (discerning friends). One of those people was Rabbi Menachem Mendel Wechter. I have his letter of approval from back then, where he writes about the Rebbe’s answer to me: “What is to be understood from this is that regarding the book in general, there is nothing to be concerned about, unlike the directive of 5744.”The Rebbe himself told me to get approbations from specific rabbis. I received approbations from the battei din in Eretz Yisroel and New York. The letter from the beis din in Eretz Yisroel was handwritten by its secretary, Rabbi Yehuda Yaroslavsky, and signed by all rabbanei Anash.

B) In the words of my dear uncle, Rabbi Sholom B. Avtzon: “In 5746 (1986) my brother Reb Yonah a”h asked permission to publish a Sefer with excerpts from various sichos of the Rebbe on the topic.At that time (on the 1st of Adar Sheini) the Rebbe replied, “Not to” and he explained “It is clear that 1. Publishing these sichos would shortly arouse a battle in the belief of Moshiach’s arrival or strengthen the opposition by those who are already battling. And the outcome is understood.2. Anash and those Jews who are close to them have no need for such a Sefer because they enjoy/will study the sicha in the transcripts more than in the Sefer. The Sefer won’t add anything in spreading of the Torah and mitzvos and similar,[rather] it will harm the success of mivtzoyim and similar activities.”

Receiving this answer my brother put the manuscripts of the book on the shelf and obviously didn’t publish it. But then after the Rebbe’s sicha on chof-ches Nissan, he thought perhaps the time came to publish it, so he asked the Rebbe’s secretary, Rabbi Groner to ask again. However, Rabbi Groner said, Yonah after you received the answer where the Rebbe clearly said No, you don’t ask again. But my brother thought that now there was a stronger emphasis on living with a Moshiach mentality so he gave the papers to Rabbi Krinsky to ask the Rebbe when he took him to the Ohel that day. Then not only did the Rebbe reply that it should be published but he added that it should be done speedily. Just now my brother added additional points from the Sichos that were said in the interim.

3) Did the Rebbe encourage the belief of  Chassidim that the Rebbe is Melech Hamoshiach?

A) In the Sicha of 5751, the Rebbe said (and is misrepresented in the video):And there (at the beginning of the discussion): “the School of Rabbi Shilah said, Shiloh is his name, as it is written, “until Shiloh comes”; the School of Rabbi Yannai said, Yinun is his name (similar to Yannai, [thus] each one explained the name of Moshiach after his name[]), as it is written, “May his name endure forever, as long as the sun, may his name be perpetuated (Yinun)”; the School of Rabbi Chaninah said, Chaninah is his name, as it is written, “I will show you no favor;”] others say Menachem ben Chizkiyahu[] is his name, as it is written, “for far from me is a comforter to revive my spirit.” And we (Chassidim) follow their example (in regard to our Rebbeim, our leaders, in particular My sainted father-in-law, leader of our generation): Yosef is his name, as it is written[18] “The L-rd will continue [Yosif] to apply His hand a second time, etc., and He shall gather the lost of Israel, etc.” Yitzchak is his name, as it is written,[19] “Then our mouths will be filled with laughter [s’chok]”.

B) For over a year, the Rebbe publicly encouraged the singing of “Yechi” – which makes very clear that the Chassidim believe that the Rebbe is Melech Hamoshiach – and it was publicized throughout the world. In addition, the Rebbe gave permission to Kehos to officially publish the Sefer Besuras HaGeula – and make it available to the whole world – with the title Melech Hamoshiach attached to his holy name!

Davening for the safety and security of Klal Yisroel and for the Hisgalus of Melech Hamoshiach and having the ultimate Didan Natach!

Rabbi Gershon Avtzon
Cincinnati, Ohio

Please feel free to share your thoughts, on the above in the comments section or by sending me a personal email: [email protected]

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