By the Grace of G-d8th Day of Chanukah, 5726Brooklyn, N.Y.
Mr. . . .
Brooklyn, 4, N.Y.
Greeting and Blessing:
I received your letter with your remarks concerning my general letter of the Days of Selichot, 5725.1
You ask how can I discuss any question regarding a text in the Torah, since the Torah is Divine.2 The answer is simple: the purpose of examining carefully the text of the Torah is not in order to cast any doubt on it, G-d forbid, but on the contrary, to emphasize that inasmuch as every word of the Torah is Divine, the order of the words, even if it seems somewhat irregular to the human mind, must of necessity convey an important message, as I explained in my letter.
With regard to the second remark, in which you question the expression “The G-d of Israel,” it is surprising that you did not notice the quotation marks, indicating that this is a quotation (from our prayers of the Yomim Noraim). There too, these words are quoted from our sacred T’NaCh, where the expression is used many times.3 There is no contradiction here to the idea that G-d is also the G-d of the whole universe, as indeed the prayer goes on to say “His Kingdom rules everything.” What it does mean is that the recognition of G-d as the King of the universe comes through the fact that He is “The G-d of Israel,” for it was the Jewish people who brought to the rest of the world the Ten Commandments and the idea of One G-d (monotheism).
I see that you have apparently not accepted my suggestion that it is a great pity for you to waste your time on looking for questions, instead of using this time to deepen your knowledge of the Torah and mitzvos through study and observance. For no matter how much knowledge of the Torah one acquires, it is still infinitesimal by comparison with the knowledge of the Torah that is yet to be acquired.
May G-d grant that at any rate from now on you will concentrate your time on the study of the Torah with devotion and diligence, the kind of study that leads to action, namely the fulfillment of the Divine commandments in the everyday life. May it be so in a growing measure, in accordance with the message and inspiration of the Chanukah lights which we kindle in growing numbers.
With blessing,
Notes and sources
1) This letter can be accessed here.
2) Below is the part of the abovementioned letter referred to here:
One of the central teachings of Shemittah is conveyed in the order of the verses and words by which the Torah defines the institution of Shemittah, namely: ”When you will come into the land...the earth shall rest a Sabbath unto G-d. Six years shalt thou plant thy field,” etc. (Lev. 25:2-3).
The order in the text seems to be reversed, for the six work years precede the Sabbatical rest year, and not vice versa. Hence, the text should have first mentioned the six years of planting, and then decree the resting.
3) See, e.g. Shemos 24:10, Tehillim 106:48, et al.
Published: The Letter and the Spirit, vol 6 (Nissan Mindel Publications, 2023), pp. 128-129.
Note: Letters printed in "The Letter and the Spirit" are from the Archives of Rabbi Nissan Mindel A"H, the Rebbe's personal secretary entrusted with writing up the Rebbe's orally dictated responses. The “Nissan Mindel Archives” are comprised of secretarial copies, including first drafts, and may have subsequently been published with editorial changes. Therefore the letters as they appear in the book may not be the final signed version.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AyMAwZlcYw98QQfuqayl01DC4PYRu0-I/view?usp=drive_link