South Africa’s Shluchim Kinus Held in Kwazula Natal Province

Rabbi Yossi Chaikin – The Oxford Synagogue Centre

The security guard at the exit of King Shaka International Airport smiled as I walked past. “Are you and your colleagues taking over Kwazulu Natal?” she joked. She was entitled to be startled. During the preceding hours, dozens of the Rebbe’s shluchim had disembarked from inbound Cape Town and Johannesburg flights, converging on the Chabad House in the seaside town of Umhlanga Rocks just North of Durban.

The occasion was the annual National Kinus Hashluchim, a gathering of the Rebbe’s emissaries from across the country who had come together to strengthen and inspire each other and most importantly, bond as a group.

She was wrong because the takeover had actually started some four decades earlier, when Chabad rabbis began visiting that province, then known as Natal, for various programmes, shiurim and events. It did not take long for Chabad of the North Coast to be founded–a beacon shining forth with the Rebbe’s teachings like the iconic lighthouse which was situated meters away from the original Chabad House.

In 1994, Rabbi Shlomo and Devorah Wainer arrived in Umhlanga as the Rebbe’s Shluchim. Shlomo is the archetype of a Chabad Shliach. He is absolutely and totally dedicated to the Rebbe and his vision, overflowing with love for his fellow Jews and passionate about sharing his fervour for Torah and Mitzvot with the Jews of his province. For three decades the Wainers have persevered on this mission—lone soldiers in a province that spans some 95,000 square kilometres (36,000 square miles)—aiming to reach and influence every Jew from North to South and from West to East.

The choice of the venue for this year’s Kinus was to highlight and acknowledge Shlomo and Devorah’s achievements and the conference began with a gala event paying tribute to the couple and their children. In his address, Rabbi Mendel Lipskar, Head Shaliach for Southern Africa, recognised their accomplishments and presented each member of the family with a gift. What a powerful start to an unforgettable congress of Shluchim.

What followed was a feast of learning and bonding. There was Sicha at Sunrise—when the early birds converged on the pier to delve into the Rebbe’s teachings—and a fascinating halachik discussion about smart watches and Shabbat. There were lively debates about dos and don’ts in the work of Shluchim. A panel presentation about how to maximise relationships with baalei batim… the modern version of “how to win friends influence people.” And a most informative seminar about the use of artificial intelligence to assist in our work.

The Kinus was graced with the participation of Chief Rabbi Warren Goldstein, who addressed the Shluchim over lunch. It was dedicated in memory of Rabbi Koppel Bacher, a founding pillar of Chabad in South Africa, whose first yartzeit had been observed a few weeks earlier. At last year’s Kinus, the Shluchim heard the sad news of the passing of Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky as we sat down to farbreng on our final night. This year’s Kinus occurred on his first yartzeit and the shluchim farbrengen, one of the absolute highlights of the conference, was dedicated le’iluy Reb Moshe’s neshoma.

It was time to say goodbye. As I crossed through the metal detector on my way into King Shaka’s domestic departure terminal, the officer on duty pointed at the black hat I had just placed alongside my laptop in the grey bin. “Are you and your brothers all going home now?”
Touché. We may have arrived as colleagues, but we were leaving as brothers.