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My Father-In-Law Was A Nice Guy; But Was He A Success?

by Rabbi Elisha Greenbaum

  

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Rabbi Zalman Itkin (1953-2006)

Open up any Chabad magazine or website and all you see are pictures of Chabad rabbis and shluchim (representatives) embracing politicians and international philanthropists, or standing in front of shiny new buildings with donors' names on the outside and acres of fiber-optic networks and designer furniture on the inside.

Don’t get me wrong, the success the Chabad movement has enjoyed over the last 40 years has been built on the back of the sacrifice and hard work of those same rabbis and shluchim. The proud smiles in those photos paper over the worry and heartache of meeting the mortgage, 24-hour workdays and stressing over the need to balance their public duties with familial responsibilities.

Every one of those shluchim chose to lead the life out of a commitment to the ideology and loyalty to the vision of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, to change the world one person at a time, to change the landscape of Jewish life, one Jew at a time. Had they elected to direct their drive and determination to any other business, I have no doubt that they’d have enjoyed tremendous financial success. The fact that they willingly chose the spiritual struggle of Jewish outreach reflects only to their credit.

But the fact remains, that it is the large-town shluchim, with the multiple institutions operating out of those shiny buildings, that get all the glory.

It is ironic in a way; the philosophy of the Lubavitcher Rebbe accentuated the value on action over theory, performance over principle. To the Rebbe’s mind it was the individual deed of Jews that would realize the redemption, and all the gloss and glamour is just a means to an end.

But we live in a hedonistic world where it’s not what you say, but how loud you say it. Where showmanship rules supreme and the more publicity you pull, the more admiration you attract.

Embarrassing as it is to admit, when I first met my father in law, Rabbi Zalman Itkin -- the Chabad representative in Hamilton, Ontario -- I too was less than impressed. A nice guy sure, well regarded by all, with a good word and a joke at the ready for everyone he met. People liked him. But was he a success?

He’d spent 20 years in Hamilton and never established a Synagogue. He ran a converted two-story house next to campus as a student center for the college kids, but where was his pedestal from which to shine out over the town?

There were reasons for his reticence. When he’d first been sent to Hamilton in 1981, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, his ‘boss,’ gave him parting instructions: “You are going there to add to the town, not to cause machlokes (disharmony).” Hamilton had a successful local rabbi and an infrastructure of achievement. Starting a competing institution would have been counter productive to his mission to add Judaism and Jews.


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Shabbat
(pl: Shabbatot). Hebrew word meaning "rest." It is a Biblical commandment to sanctify and rest on Saturday, the seventh day of the week. This commemorates the fact that after creating the world in six days, G-d rested on the seventh.
Chabad
Chabad, an acronym for Wisdom, Knowledge, and Understanding, is the name of a Chassidic Group founded in the 1770s. Two of the most fundamental teachings of Chabad are the intellectual pursuit of understanding the divine and the willingness to help every Jew who has a spiritual or material need.
Chanukah
An eight day mid-winter holiday marking: 1) The miraculous defeat of the mighty Syrian-Greek armies by the undermanned Maccabis in the year 140 BCE. 2) Upon their victory, the oil in the Menorah, sufficient fuel for one night only, burned for eight days and nights.
Rebbe
A Chassidic master. A saintly person who inspires followers to increase their spiritual awareness.
Lubavitcher
One who follows the teachings of the Chassidic group which was formerly based in the Belarus village of Lubavitch. Today, the movement is based in Brooklyn, New York with branches worldwide. The Lubavitch movement is also widely known as "Chabad."
Shul
(Yiddish) Synagogue.
Menorah
Candelabra. Usually a reference to the nine-branched candelabra kindled on the holiday of Chanukah.
Lubavitcher Rebbe
Rabbi Menachem M. Schneersohn, spiritual leader of the worldwide Chabad movement.
Joseph
Firstborn son of Rachel and Jacob. Because he was Jacob's favorite son, his brothers conspired against him and sold him into slavery He ended up in Egypt where he became viceroy of the land, and eventually brought his entire family to Egypt. Died in 1451 BCE.