By the Grace of G-d 25th of Teves, 5729 Brooklyn, N. Y.

Greeting and Blessing:

Thank you very much for your letter of December 30th.

I have now also received your Fields Within Fields... Within Fields.¹ No doubt you must have already received many commendations for the effective way of presenting the ideas in general, so that I can be brief on this point.

On the other hand, you will recall that during our meeting and discussion, I suggested that it is necessary to prepare the people to be receptive to the ideas, and to be willing to become actually involved in solving their problems. Unless this precondition is satisfied, the best ideas, and the best presentation, may still remain unproductive, for it is in human nature to compare the distant good with the immediate effort and sacrifices necessary to attain that good.

Far be it from me to wish to discourage you in your work to make available all possible good to various parts of the world where it is needed most. I have made the above comments only because you had asked me to comment on some of the material, and I must further qualify it by saying that I have made it only after a superficial perusal, not having yet had the opportunity to read it more thoroughly,

I feel impelled to reiterate what I have emphasized on earlier occasions, namely the principle enunciated by our Sages of blessed memory, "The poor of thy town have priority." This means that a Jew, in dispensing good, must set up a scale of priorities and, clearly, his first duty is towards his Jewish people, all the more so since in this way, the good will indirectly accrue also to humanity at large.

With all good wishes, and

With blessing, 

M. Schneerson