The rumor spread like lightning throughout the Soviet Union: the Rebbe had been released. Groups of Hasidim gathered and celebrated the release of the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Rayetz (Rabbi Yosef-Yitzhak Schneerson). This was ninety-three years ago, on the 12th-13th of Tammuz 1927 (1927). The reign of evil, whose cruelty seemed to have no limits, retreated.
The news sparked great joy throughout the Jewish world, but it was a small point of light in the sea of suffering and trouble. Although the Rebbe was released, hundreds and thousands were not.
Many good people, who gave their lives to preserve the embers of Judaism, continued to disappear and never returned.
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Desperate war
Many nations have tried to impose annihilation decrees on the people of Israel, the purpose of which is to make the Torah forgetful and to separate the Jews from Judaism, but never have such focused efforts been made, and unfortunately with such great success. An entire department, operated by Jews – the infamous 'Yevskatiyeh’ – fought fiercely against everything that smelled of Judaism.
In those days, it seemed that the path of the wicked was successful. They succeeded in closing down the Torah schools and yeshivas, locking down the mikvehs and synagogues, eliminating the practice of slaughtering, confiscating Torah scrolls and sacred objects, and imprisoning rabbis and mohels. Israeli children were forced to study in government schools, subjected to intense brainwashing, the purpose of which was to uproot from their hearts every glimmer of faith.
Only a handful of Hasidim, led by the Rebbe, dared to fight against the tyrannical regime. They established underground Torah studies, built secret mikvahs, organized secret prayer meetings, conducted secret circumcision ceremonies, and secretly supplied kosher meat.
They resembled a man trying to stop a column of tanks with his bare hands. The 'Yevskatiya' used all its power against them. One after another they were arrested, thrown into prison, murdered, tortured, exiled. In a sober assessment of the situation, it was a desperate and seemingly hopeless war.
Wonderful bloom
But in the end, the kingdom of heresy collapsed and collapsed. The Jewish ember that was kept alive with devotion became a great flame. It is enough to see the wonderful flowering of Jewish life and Jewish education throughout the former Soviet Union.
The story of the struggle of Soviet Jewry carries with it an eternal lesson: Patience is needed. Not to grow weary in the face of difficulties. Not to surrender in the face of forces that seem stronger than you. Not to despair in the face of tyranny. Remember that the faithful will ultimately triumph.
When we look at that struggle, all our difficulties are dwarfed. What are all these in the face of the evil rule of the communist boot, in the face of the secret police, in the face of prisons and exile to Siberia. If we have won them, there is no doubt that we will win the struggles ahead of us.
We need to know how to strengthen our faith, to equip ourselves with spiritual strength, to look ahead. Just as Judaism overcame Soviet oppression, so the people of Israel will overcome the spiritual darkness of the 'Following the Messiah' period and will soon attain true and complete redemption.
