By the Grace of G-d 7th of Tammuz, 5746 Brooklyn, N.Y.

Greeting and Blessing:

To begin with a blessing - in connection with the good news in your letter of July 9 about the engagement of your son . . . to be married in a happy and auspicious hour - I extend to you and to all the family a hearty Mazal Tov. May he together with his chosen partner in life set up a truly Jewish home, a Binyan adei-ad, that will be a source of true pride and true Yiddish Nachas to both families in the midst of all our people.

I was pleased to note your reference to our meeting, which will surely be to our mutual benefit. And although in actual duration it was brief, there are, of course, no temporal limitations in the realm of the spirit, namely, that of Torah and Yiddish-keit. Indeed, as experience shows, even the briefest encounter may lead to extraordinary developments.

The present days are particularly auspicious, as we are coming from the third month, which is linked with a series of "triads”: Mattan Torah - the Torah consisting of T’NaCh, given to our people comprising Kohanim, Leviim, and Yisreelim, etc., as explained in depth in ChaBaD. Hence, also, when two Jews meet, especially in a holy place of Torah and Tefilah, HaShem is with them, making it a "threefold bond that is unbreakable."

With all good wishes, and with esteem and blessing

M. Schneerson

P.S. With regard to an opportunity to discuss at length some critical issues - I would have welcomed it indeed. Regrettably, however, this is a pleasure I have to defer, and not of choice, as you may have heard from mutual friends.

On the other hand, on the basis of what I have heard about your "credentials", you are surely "encountering" HaShem on a daily basis, while His Torah, Torah Or, provides instruction and guidance, as clear as daylight, to each and every Jew who seeks it. Moreover, when HaShem confers a special responsibility on a Jew for the benefit of the many, it is certain that that person receives special guidance from the Giver of the Torah.

If I may be permitted a play on words, I would invoke the opening statement of Pirkei Ovos: משה קבל קבל תורה מסיני. Indeed, it goes further than that, for I assume that you were named after your grandfather named Moshe, who in turn was named after his grandfather, and so on right up to Moshe Rabbeinu. Certain it is that the issues you will encounter in your highly responsible public role are clearly illuminated in Torah Or. In it, I confidently hope, you will find the right answers and solutions.