A Chassidic Dance on the Deck

By Rabbi Asher Zeilingold, Clear Vision

For over a decade, Chabad had built an impressive network of Jewish educational institutions in Morocco and Tunisia. However, when the French – who had maintained a strong presence in many North African countries – were ousted, the situation for the Jewish communities in those regions deteriorated.

Many Jews immigrated to the newly established State of Israel, while a sizable number relocated to France. The Rebbe urged the Chabad yeshiva in Brunoy, France, to actively recruit these immigrants and encourage them to enroll in the school.

The yeshiva wrote to the Rebbe asking that he send young students to assist the young North African students to acclimate. A few months later, in the winter of 1962, I was called into the office of Rabbi Elya Simpson, a member of the school’s presidium. He said that, together with five others, I had been chosen to travel to the French yeshiva. We would be the second such group, dubbed by the Rebbe “Student Shluchim,” to go to a far-off yeshiva.

It was a bold idea, since we didn’t know French and only a few among us knew Hebrew. Still, it seemed the Rebbe wanted the trip to be more than just for the North African students. As Rabbi Simpson explained, it was to “increase the vibrancy and enthusiasm of the students and communities there and intensify the fulfillment of the Chasidic way of life.”

A week before we left, on February 4th, we had an audience with the Rebbe. A week later, early on a Friday morning, we all arrived with our luggage at 770, from where we would take a bus to the New York Harbor and begin our journey to France aboard the RMS Queen Mary.

Our friends and family came to wish us success in our new mission. As we were about to leave, the Rebbe – who on Fridays usually came to 770 only in the afternoon – also arrived. Standing near the entrance of 770, the rebbe joined the crowd in singing and clapping “ki besimchah taitzeiyu.”

The Rebbe saw us onto the bus, and stayed back as our immediate family and close friends joined us on the ride to the harbor. At the dock, they were allowed on board as well. To the astonishment of the hundreds of people on board, we all danced on deck. Moved by our enthusiasm, some of the onlookers joined in.

When we arrived in France, we informed the Rebbe that we had arrived safely, but sending other telegrams or making phone calls was prohibitively expensive. I assumed that my parents would understand that if they did not hear from us.

However, the Rebbe felt differently, and he told his secretary to call each family and inform them that we had arrived safely.

An excerpt from Clear Vision: Living by the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s Guidance, available at ClearVisionBook.com.