By COLlive reporter
For the last few days, Lubavitchers from around the world have been typing in names of people, places and topics in the hopes of finding something of interest.
The searching was being done on the website of the Agudas Chassidei Chabad Library in New York after it has unceremoniously uploaded its entire archive of images online on Tuesday.
The thousands of photos now available for public viewing include photos of the Rebbe, photos submitted to the Rebbe of chassidim and their families, and photos documenting the activities of Shluchim and Chabad institutions, taken over the course of a few decades.
Those searching have found photos of their parents and grandparents and known chassidim – many of which the families themselves did not have in their own possession. It also brought historic events to life or back to people’s memories.
The person responsible for this is Rabbi Sholom Ber Levine, director and curator of the library. He agreed to answer a few of our questions:
Q: What is the source of these photos?
Most of this large amount of photos were sent to the Rebbe by Shluchim, accompanying their report about the activities. After the Rebbe received and saw them, he passed on the photos to the library for safekeeping.
Q: We noticed many family photos as well. Did the Rebbe request for them to be sent?
The Frierdiker Rebbe asked on two separate occasions that chassidim send him their photos – once in 5693 and another time in 5708, after the exit from Russia.
In regards to the Rebbe, many Shluchim sent photos of their activities together with their reports. Even before the publishing of the Sefer Hashluchim, there were references and clear requests from the Rebbe on this.
Q: What made you release it all now and all at once?
The work to organize the library’s archive takes years and isn’t an easy or quick job. It took a lot of time to catalog the photos, scan them and label them. As we advanced, it took time to upload all the photos to the website with an elaborate search engine. On the day we were finished, the photos went live and everyone was able to access them.
Q: The archive created a lot of excitement. How do you explain that?
In this photo archive a lot of history is documented, of Shluchim, activists and chassidim around the world, for dozens of years. Historic events that took place decades ago in a variety of places are receiving new light with the publishing of their documentation.
In addition, almost every member of a Lubavitcher family can find in the archive photos of their father or grandfather. There are also very rare photos there, so the amazing responses are to be expected…
Q: Did the Rebbe ever discuss the photos that chassidim would send?
Yes. There have been many moving stories about personal and family photos that the Rebbe received, mentioned either by Yechidus or on other occasions, and they were publicized more than once. Sometimes, the Rebbe would take the photos with him to the Ohel of the Frierdiker Rebbe – a fact that speaks for itself.
Q: Some have been arguing that personal photos that chassidim sent to the Rebbe should not be publicized, even decades later…
The discussion about this question is certainly needed and expected, and there is room for it. Indeed, the final decision we reached was to omit the personal photos and upload the more general ones that are mainly connected to the public activities of Chabad. It is my hope that we indeed were successful in that decision, and haven’t made mistakes.
I saw pictures of my parents and hometown….
How do you search or find pictures? Can you provide instructions?
And behold, you have found yet another thing to fight about. Chassim, dig in! One thing you have learned from being chassisim of the Rebbe is to make every issue into a fight. The hareni mekabel that tou say every morning means nothing.
Did it ever occur to you there’s something called a Rebbe and something called a Chossid. Like a parent and a child. They are treated very differently. Maybe you didn’t pick up on that or not emotionally get in touch with that notion as you aren’t a Chossid!
Tzum zach! Exactly. Hit the nail on head to identify privacy concerns.
But the privacy folks, you guys are really a bunch of babies. Please get over yourselves for the good of mankind.
You are a 100% correct seeing pictures I never saw before think it’s a beautiful thing
If you give me your name or a little bit of info about yourself I can google it and chances are I can come up with many pictures of you at different events that you didn’t necessarily authorize. Suddenly everyone is concerned about privacy especially of many people who are in oilam hames! I was very excited and glad to see a wink from the past and as Rabbi Levin stated, the really private ones they didn’t publish. Does anyone get offended when JEM posts a picture of them getting dollars, or if they happen to be on a living… Read more »
בס”ד
Privacy?
personally, I’m proud to see my pictures, from a semi public event. The Rebbe sent us, we went at His bidding; there were a few pictures. We sent them to The Rebbe.
our case, this was 37 years ago and the details, like every contact with The Rebbe, are etched in our minds.
l’chaim!
These are beautiful pictures! Including the the lovely photo of Rebbetzen Channah smiling .Thank you for all the hours of work ,and for sharing with us.
Good shabbos.
I agree what happened to privacy my parents are in the olam haemes but me and my siblings are alive and well I am very upset that rabbi levin did not ask permission to put them public.
Who is the young girl next to Rebetzin Chanah
Choose אנשים and then search the name in Hebrew.
I clicked and this Hebrew site comes up.
How can I see the pictures?
#27 I trust Rabbi Levin and Aguch that they made the right decision. What you wrote about the igros, however, is incorrect. The Rebbe gave the letters to Rabbi Simpson to go through and he did not give Rabbi Levin letters of a private nature. Other letters that were somewhat personal, but also relevant to the klal, were put in without names. The letters that have names are not of a private nature. Agav there are alot of mistakes in the tagging of names which in time they will correct.
Don’t go judging people so fast please
And think you know everything that is going on…
When the Rebbe asks to send a picture, you send
It doesn’t mean that the whole world now gets to see it
and
it doesn’t mean that those people are on Facebook…
And it’s either way definitely not for you to decide
zei gezunt
Just a point:
All those complaining- the Rebbe’s instructions to print Igros with names etc – l’ Toivos harabim
Many with personal information.
Good Shabbos
A further point: There are a few pictures of the Rashab that are NOT public due to privacy issues. I am sure they are inthe library too, but not exposed to the public. Did it ever dawn on the librarian that similar privacy issue may apply to many other photos submitted only to Rebbe but not for the general public? THINK ABOUT IT!
SOme pictures of women might be considered slightly below today’s standards and availability of tznius, which was not always possible, such as hair fully covered or length of clothing. Even men sometimes needed to shave beards in Communist countries and posed for photos without head covering. It invades privacy to publicize pictures of a grandfather or grandmother of a chassidic family in a manner that they would not be comfortable that strangers should view. Be sensitive!
If the rebbe wanted it in the library, why shouldn’t it be included with everything else in the library that the rebbe wanted available for anyone that needs to research?
1: if they were so private you should have not sent them to a public figure like the Rebbe.
2: I Doubt you, the people complaining, are actually the same people who sent in pictures to begin with.
3: I Would not be surprised if i found out some of you are VERY active on facebook, instagram etc, and have the nerve complaining about the privacy of pictures that are over 50 years old!
I don’t understand how a picture for 50 years ago was considered “private“? The sacrifice some of these pictures very inspiring. It’s almost Misnagdish and very small minds to get “offended” by some of these pictures.
Big Yashar Koach to HaRav Levin for thousands of hours of hard work to release these photos .
i saw pictures of family members and myself as a very young child that I had never seen before!
This is a beautiful project
So special we got to see my brothers in England from 30 years ago such a nice memory plus my children get to see alts chassidim
How can he say that privat pictures were not included.?
My mother’s passport picture is there ,
She is not a shliach and many other pictures of my family,
Just wonder
I disagree. The Rebbe many times spoke about how the FR told him certain things in private, but knowing that the Rebbe would have to share with others, the FR was essentially giving consent to having the information publicized just by telling the Rebbe. There’s room to say similarly with this- since the Rebbe gave the photos to the library of aguch, which belongs to the chassidim, the photos already belong to the chassidim. What then would be the issue with publicizing them? Once people send them to the Rebbe they become the Rebbe’s to do with as he wants.… Read more »
These pictures were sent to the Rebbe for the Rebbe who gave anyone permission to publish them, 2nd he claim that private pictures were not uploaded that is far from the truth I have found many private family pictures on the site. For those who still have the hergesh to send everything in to the Rebbe’s library it now becomes a question to continue or not
All fields
The thing is…
that only YOU can decide for YOURSELF what YOU feel comfortable with
People thought they are sending the pictures to the Rebbe
Not that they would be posted for all to see
Today our youth need inspiration and more glimpses of the past. There are many photos that families, including mine, were so excited to see. They themselves did not know these photos existed and now they have something they can treasure as many of these photos have pictures of family members who are no longer physically with us. I for one would want to see the ‘private photos’ from my family. Is there a way for families to have access to photos of family members that were not published yet?
I only wish MY family were included in some photos, but I hail from a different branch of Chassidus (I’m the rebel!!!)
Maybe the heirs just want to be acknowledged. It would be interesting for me to know who the people are in the photos & their connection to the Rebbe & the Rebbe Rayatz. It’s history!
However the whole victory of hey teves was at the Rebbe belongs to Chassidim, and if we can find a way to connect us with our Rebbe, thats why its there!
Personal pictures that my father sent the Rebbe were included. I don’t think that was right. It does not respect the Rebbe nor his chassidim.
You need to enter a search term (in Hebrew) in the search box and hope for the best…
I searched through many of the photos and have not seen anything that would have been considered an invasion of privacy- granted I did not see all the pictures.
What is the invasion of privacy showcasing shluchim family pictures, it’s like an updated shluchim book
I was very excited to see pics of my grandmother and great grandparents and I think the benefits outweigh the issues . Please let’s not make issues out of nothing
library@Chaya Vaisfiche.org
How many people have access to the stuff which is NOT made public?…
They were sent to the Rebbe. Those he thought to make public or incorporate into books, were done before “gimmel tammuz”.
Is nothing sacred anymore?
How can we see these photos? Clicking in the sies in the above story doesn’t show them.
not OK
To have a Privte picture posted to be deleted who to contact?
” Indeed, the final decision we reached was to omit the personal photos and upload the more general ones that are mainly connected to the public activities of Chabad. It is my hope that we indeed were successful in that decision, and haven’t made mistakes.”
this just is not true. hundreds of personal family pictures are now available for all to see.
also, highly disrespectful to the rebbe.
such a thing would never happen before 5754…..