We are in the fiftieth lesson of the chain of lineage, the account of the Rebbe's life, in the tenth part. We have reached the year 5702. We already learned that the Rebbe Rayatz founded in 5701 an organization called "Machaneh Yisrael." Here it is related that in 5702 the Rebbe Rayatz appointed the son-in-law, that is, the Rebbe, to be chairman of this organization. Let us read the wording: In 5702 he is appointed by his honorable holiness the Rebbe his father-in-law, that is, the Rebbe was appointed by the Rayatz, as chairman of the executive committee of "Machaneh Yisrael." So the Rebbe was the chairman of this organization.
That same year, the Rebbe Rayatz founded two more organizations, which exist to this day: an additional organization called "Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch," and a third organization, "Kehot Publication Society." Over these three organizations the Rebbe Rayatz appointed the Rebbe to be chairman of the executive committee that runs all of this. We already spoke about this briefly in the history of the previous Rebbe.
But what was the role of "Machaneh Yisrael," of "Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch," and of "Kehot Publication Society"? "Machaneh Yisrael" had various departments whose heading was spreading Yiddishkeit among adults. This included a society for studying Mishnayos, studying Mishnayos by heart, all six orders of the Mishnah, reciting orders of the Mishnah in the street; a society for reciting Tehillim, groups for reciting Tehillim, and also reciting Tehillim at the tomb of King David, for the Rebbe Rayatz founded the matter of reciting Tehillim; and spreading the famous call of the Rebbe Rayatz: "L'alter l'teshuvah, l'alter l'geulah" — immediately to repentance, immediately to redemption. The purpose of "Machaneh Yisrael" was to spread this in every form and in every way: to hold Shabbos gatherings, to encourage parents to send their children to kosher educational institutions, and many branches were founded in many places. This, in general, was the matter of "Machaneh Yisrael."
At the beginning of the establishment of the organization there was something interesting regarding the members of Machaneh Yisrael, it was something secret. The members did not even know one member from another. When you were accepted to be a member of Machaneh Yisrael you received a confirmation, a special letter. And there was also no need to pay a committee fee or a membership fee. The fee that one had to pay was to occupy oneself with the spiritual work that Machaneh Yisrael demands.
The Merkaz L'Inyonei Chinuch, as its name indicates, so it is. Its activity was to establish schools, and to organize study in the non-Jewish public schools, which had many Jewish students. To organize religion classes, which were later called by their famous acronym Shalah"h, which are religion study classes in public schools. That is to say, the Merkaz L'Inyonei Chinuch dealt primarily with youth. Another main activity of it was to publish a monthly for children, in English and Yiddish, and later also in Lashon HaKodesh. We are familiar with talks for youth, textbooks for children, such as for example a series of books called Sifreinu, to teach children of all ages, to give them tools for how to study, to read, how to learn about the history of the Jewish people and the like, and to disseminate Jewish literature in general in schools. Many details accumulate around the heading "Merkaz L'Inyonei Chinuch."
And the third matter, the publishing house Kehot. Naturally, the publication of nigleh works, chassidus works, and works authored by each of our Rebbeim, the Nesi'im of Chabad. In a moment we will reach the next passage. Today there is already a connection between the two organizations together, but at first the Kehot publishing house did not engage in editing matters of Chabad or nigleh or chassidus, but rather in publishing books. It was not an organization for editing books, but for printing and publishing books. Kehot is called by the name "Karnei Hod Torah," and it comes to allude to the year of birth of the Alter Rebbe, who was born in the year 5505. These are the three organizations over which the Rebbe Rayatz appointed the Rebbe to be the chairman.
Let us also look at the following year, 5703. What was he appointed to in 5703? He was appointed as editor-in-chief of the Otzar HaChassidim Lubavitch library. This is yet another field. Today, on almost every book we see written at the top "Otzar HaChassidim Lubavitch" library, and there is the emblem of Kehot Otzar HaTorah. What is the Otzar HaChassidim Lubavitch library? First of all, it is an organization that also deals with editing books, not only printing them, but editing books, and especially books composed by our Rebbeim or their students. Books of Chassidus or books of nigleh, such as those of his lineage, and the like, of our Rebbeim—this is called the Otzar HaChassidim Lubavitch library. In 5703, the Rebbe Rayatz appointed the Rebbe to be its editor-in-chief.
And from the time the Rebbe was appointed to be the chief editor, he published books. For example, the Responsa of the Tzemach Tzedek was published, and he brought it to light and enhanced it with an index and source references and the like. Pamphlets were published, all kinds of pamphlets, works of the previous Rebbe, discourses of the previous Rebbe, or for example the book of the biography of the Rebbe Maharash which the Rebbe published, various pamphlets or booklets, such as for example in 5703 a pocket calendar was published, and in 5704 the daily anthology (Yalkut Yomi) was published. All kinds of booklets that the Rebbe edited, because as mentioned this is a library, organization and editing. The Rebbe published all kinds of books, pamphlets and booklets, with the addition of his emendations and notes. He proofread, commented, noted source references in the margins of the page. There is an enormous treasure of tremendous genius in the small words that are found in the margins of the page. This was the appointment that the Rebbe was appointed to.
The additional matter: he printed the collection "HaYom Yom" that was arranged by him. This is the collection "HaYom Yom," which we are already at the opening of the book. Further on there are all the details, which we will study, with God's help, at length. The Rebbe printed it in 5703 according to an instruction of the previous Rebbe. All the history surrounding the idea to publish the book, and why the Rebbe was needed and what is special about it, we will study further on, in the introduction to HaYom Yom.
The next matter, with which we will conclude today, is 5704 (תש"ד). In 5704 he begins to publish in Kovetz Lubavitch his responsa and elucidations. What is Kovetz Lubavitch? We learned in the history of the previous Rebbe that in Poland there was a booklet called "HaTamim," of which eight issues were published in total, I believe. Its purpose was communication among all the chassidim, Anash and the temimim. They brought all sorts of things from history, what is happening, news among the chassidim, interviews and talks of the Rebbe, and the like. But "HaTamim" was discontinued during the war.
Afterwards, in the United States, something similar was established, "Kovetz Lubavitch," whose purpose was also to create a connection between anash and the temimim from all the yeshivos. Not many booklets were published; in total, over the years, fifteen such booklets were issued. It was published in two periods: what was in the beginning in the years 5704-5705, and then there was a break, and it seems to me that in 5716 there was another continuation of a bit more, and afterwards it stopped.
The Rebbe was in charge of "Kovetz Lubavitch," which contained various sections. For example, there was a section called "MiBeis Rabbeinu," to which one could send any question to the editorial staff, and they would review it, answer it, and explain it. Truly wonderful material accumulated. Today it has all been printed as a separate booklet as well, called "Teshuvos U'Biurim," and it is also found within the Igros Kodesh, volumes 1 and 2, dispersed according to the dates. There are truly astounding and wonderful things there, through which even then people began to merit that a bit of his greatness became recognizable, as he brings here briefly—to respond to questions in matters of halacha and pardes, Kabbalah and Chassidus. Many astounding areas—everything appeared there in this collection called "Kovetz Lubavitch."