טבת: חג הספרים ומורשת המייסד

5 Tevet — Didan Notzach (5747/1987)

On 5 Tevet 5747 (1987), a United States federal court issued a historic ruling: the library of the Lubavitcher Rebbes belongs not to a private individual but to the Chassidic community. This case was not merely a legal dispute over books — it became a battle for the very essence of Chassidism. Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka spoke the pivotal words: "The library belongs to the Chassidim because my father belonged to the Chassidim." This phrase expressed the deepest principle of Chassidic leadership: a Rebbe does not own — he belongs to his people. The court victory — "Didan Notzach" ("Our side has won") — became a celebration for all of world Jewry. Every year on 5 Tevet, Chassidim mark this day as the triumph of the very essence of Torah and Chassidism over materialism and private gain.

24 Tevet — Yahrzeit of the Alter Rebbe (5573/1812)

24 Tevet is the day of passing of the founder of the Chabad movement, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, known as the Alter Rebbe. He passed away in the village of Pena while fleeing the advancing army of Napoleon. The Alter Rebbe firmly opposed Napoleon, even though many Jews supported the French emperor who promised equality. The Alter Rebbe understood with prophetic clarity that French emancipation would bring spiritual catastrophe — Jews would receive civil rights but lose their souls through assimilation. Better physical suffering under the Tsar than spiritual destruction under the rule of "enlightenment." The Alter Rebbe's legacy — the book of Tanya and an entire system of intellectual comprehension of the Divine — continues to transform the lives of millions of Jews around the world.