The thirty-ninth "cheder" in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Tuesday, 28 Teves 5703.
Shiurim: Chumash, Va'eira, third portion, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, for the 28th day of the month, from chapter 135 through chapter 139 inclusive.
Tanya: On this day one concludes chapter 14, from the words "u'vazeh yuvan" until the end of the chapter, with the words "tehi tzaddik".
The daily teaching is very brief, so we will provide some background. In its original form, the saying appears in journal notes that the Rebbe recorded of things he heard from his father-in-law, the Rebbe Rayatz, in the month of Sivan 5691. And what is the background? It is told that in the time of the third Rebbe, the Rebbe Tzemach-Tzedek, there were many troubles, informings, and harassments on the part of the "Maskilim." The "Maskilim" sought to completely uproot the approach of simple faith in the Torah of Israel and the pure education by which Jewish children are raised toward Torah and authentic Judaism, claiming that the children were not learning "core studies" and the like. It greatly disturbed them that the leadership and influence of the Rebbe Tzemach-Tzedek were great and strong over all the dispersions of Israel and over all circles, and therefore they acted with much force against him.
There is a most fascinating account there. There is a kuntres called "The Tzemach Tzedek and the Haskalah Movement," and in it several dozen pages describe in great detail the entire course of events and its unfolding — how the "Maskilim" secretly sent spies to penetrate right into the stronghold of the Rebbe's own chassidic study halls and to monitor their learning. Interestingly, it appears there that one of the Maskilim who was sent was present at a farbrengen of the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek and heard two maamarim of Chassidus, and he was so stunned by the depth of what was said that when he returned to his fellow Maskilim he declared that our Haskalah, compared to his intellect, is like utter foolishness. He was greatly impressed by the depth of the matters, but this disturbed them very much and led to harsh informing.
The Russian government, which was influenced by informers and by the involvement of the maskilim with the ministers of the crown and the like, actually attempted to interfere in the education of Jewish children and in the subjects being studied. The Tzemach Tzedek stood firm with great mesirus nefesh throughout that entire period, and in the end, baruch Hashem, the decree was annulled.
From this entire story — one of the special, powerful, and difficult stories from the period of the Tzemach Tzedek's leadership — the Rebbe brings, over the course of his Hayom Yom calendar, three sayings scattered in different places: the present teaching on 28 Tevet, which is the first in the calendar; and later, several months afterward, in the saying of 8 Elul; as well as in the saying of 23 Marcheshvan. On these three days the Rebbe brings various aspects connected to the event of the Tzemach Tzedek's battle against the Haskalah movement. In the saying of 8 Elul, which we shall study be'ezras Hashem, it is explained by what merit he ultimately succeeded; and in the saying of 23 Cheshvan it is related how many times he was arrested — for in the course of these matters he traveled to Petersburg, and there were deliberations and debates, and he was arrested several times by the government.
In any event, the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek wrote a work, and the present teaching revolves around it. Let us read its wording: "In the sefer of inquiry (Derech Emunah) of the Tzemach Tzedek, the one grasped." There is a sefer of the Tzemach Tzedek to which the Rebbe gave the name "Sefer HaChakirah" (the Book of Inquiry), except that the printer of the first edition gave it a different name — "Derech Emunah." In practice, both names remained: both "Derech Emunah," given by the publisher, and "Sefer HaChakirah," as the Rebbe called it.
Regarding this sefer, the Rebbe writes, "Many glosses are missing" — meaning that the sefer is not entirely complete, and many glosses are lacking in it. And what is the content of this sefer, and why did the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek compose it? It appears here: "The Rav the Tzemach Tzedek composed it in connection with his journeys to Petersburg." In the wake of his journey to Petersburg, the Tzemach Tzedek had to engage in many debates and discussions surrounding faith in Hashem and so forth, and to answer several questions on these matters, and therefore he composed an entire sefer that includes a treatment of the whole subject.
The truth is that the book, as we have it before us, contains not only what was said at that conference in Petersburg. The conference took place in the year 5603, and the Rebbe kept adding to the book over time — greatly expanding it with additional subjects, details, and chapters — until it became far larger than it was originally. And although chassidim are accustomed and educated to relate to Godliness with simple faith, whereas the book contains all sorts of explanations and proofs regarding Divine providence and the renewal of the world by the Creator and so on — as the Rebbe writes in the preface to the book, "it was a necessity and a directive of the hour": there was an essential need to provide logical explanations, because those maskilim, with their false views, wanted to grasp everything through intellect and comprehension.
And what is the connection to 28 Tevet? We will speak about this, especially in light of what we mentioned — that the Rebbe scattered the topics related to this event across several places in Hayom Yom. Why specifically did he place it on 28 Tevet? There is no clear explanation for this, but by way of possibility it seems one can find the connection to 28 Tevet in two things. First, we are in parashas Va'era, the third day. When one looks in the Chumash, on the third day of parashas Va'era, there is the verse "And I will multiply My signs and My wonders... and the Egyptians shall know that I am Hashem" — that the Holy One, blessed be He, performs acts that even the gentiles, even the Egyptians, will recognize the presence of the Creator. And this is essentially the content of the matter here: the book was intended so that even those who do not believe, the maskilim who wish to uproot every matter of faith in Hashem, shall know that I am Hashem. This is one connection.
Another interesting connection is linked to the date of 28 Tevet. There is a book called "Megillat Taanit," and although its name is "Megillat Taanit" (Scroll of Fasting), it is not a scroll of fast days, but rather of dates of days on which joyous events occurred, and it is therefore forbidden to fast on them. It contains markings of dates throughout the year with the historical events that took place on them. And when one looks at this day, 28 Tevet — what happened on it?
In Megillat Taanit it is related that during the time when the Tzedukim — those who do not believe in the Oral Torah and do not have simple faith in G-dliness — infiltrated the composition of the Sanhedrin and sat within it, and not even a single worthy Jewish Torah scholar sat there, until it became a Sanhedrin of Tzedukim. The only one who sat there was Shimon ben Shetach, the single Tanna among them. People would come to ask questions in the way one comes to the Sanhedrin, and the Tzedukim did not know how to bring proofs from the Torah for their words, for they did not believe in the Oral Torah — and when the proof is built upon the Oral Torah, they were unable to bring evidence.
It is related there that Shimon ben Shetach made a stipulation and declared: Whoever can bring a proof from the Torah is entitled to sit in the Sanhedrin, and whoever cannot has no place sitting here. Once, a question arose there, and no one knew the answer, and they all fell silent. One of the elders of the Tzedukim came and began to argue that he would be able to resolve it, and he said to Shimon ben Shetach: Give me a day, I will go home and tomorrow I will bring the answer. King Yannai was also sitting there. They gave him time, and he left; he sat by himself and found no source at all, and since he saw that he had no source, he was ashamed to return to the Sanhedrin, and the seat remained empty.
Shimon ben Shetach said: There can be no situation in which the Sanhedrin has fewer than seventy-one members, and since one member had not arrived — I will bring another in his place. He took one of the G-d-fearing Jewish students and installed him in his place. And so, each day he would pose a question, and would ease out another one who went home and did not return, and he would install a Jewish student in his place — until he succeeded in removing all of them, and a Sanhedrin of G-d-fearing sages was formed. And on that very day when the Sanhedrin of the Sadducees was removed and in their stead came the Sanhedrin of the Jews — it was 28 Tevet, and it became a festive day for the Jewish people, which is why it is forbidden to fast on it.
This is essentially the content of the teaching for 28 Tevet: that the Tzemach Tzedek composed his work in order to respond to the Sadducees of his time — the Maskilim — and to answer all their questions and prove to them how they were mistaken. This is perhaps the connection between the saying and specifically this date of 28 Tevet.