For the first time, hundreds of newly discovered pages of letters from the Rebbeim, Lubavitch history, letters of Chassidim, stories, memories, historical documents, photographs, and much more are being published in a new two-volume sefer, Ginazya.

Ginazya, authored by Yisroel and Shlomo Barda, is a compilation of over fifty issues of the Ginazya journal released over the past two years. The journal, which aims to publish historical Lubavitch-related documents accompanied by historical context and illuminating notes, is now being brought together into a two-volume set, with all documents organized by topics and sections.

Chabad literature is a vast world: thousands of titles, dozens of genres, and hundreds of years of Torah and Chassidus. At its core are the works of the Rebbeim, both in Nigleh and Chassidus, seforim authored by their Chassidim, memorial books, biographies, and collections of stories. Alongside all of these, in recent years an additional genre has been emerging—the historical genre—which seeks to illuminate the history of Chabad Chassidus through primary sources, documents, letters, and contemporary records.

Although historical knowledge does not occupy the central focus of a Chassid’s work – learning Chassidus, davening, and avodas Hashem – it nonetheless holds great value. It’s not just about remembering the past, but about understanding the path, the context, and the reality in which Chabad Chassidus grew and developed.

Already in the days of the publication of Beis Rebbe, documents and records were included, but they mainly served a biographical purpose, describing the lives of the Alter Rebbe, the Mitteler Rebbe, and the Tzemach Tzedek. Over the years, collections of documents were published as standalone works, but most focused primarily on the letters of our Rebbeim. Only in recent generations has there developed a broader approach of publishing historical documents as part of comprehensive research, in books and dedicated journals such as Migdal Oz, Hamashpia, Kerem Chabad, and Oholei Lubavitch, as well as in weekly publications, commemorative booklets, and seforim.

The book opens with a section devoted to our Rebbeim, including letters from the Mitteler Rebbe, letters from the Frierdiker Rebbe, and excerpts of yechiduyos from the Rebbe Rashab and the Frierdiker Rebbe.

The second section, “The History of Our Rebbeim,” includes, among other items, an annotated edition of the communal register of the Chevra Kadisha of the community of Liozna, dozens of documents from the life of the Frierdiker Rebbe, a letter of blessing from the Rebbe of Chernobyl, the appointment document to the rabbinate of Moscow, documents from the period of imprisonment and departure from Russia, visits to towns in Polish Lithuania, and records of the activities of the Rebbe’s secretariat.

The third section is devoted to the early Chassidim and includes documents by R. Tzadok of Kopust, R. Yechezkel Sirkin, the Rov of Kopust, records concerning the Lavut family, shechitah in Nikolaiev, letters from R. Yehudah Leib Schneersohn, and a broad collection from the activities of R. Shmuel Mordechai Treinin.

Two additional sections deal with regional Chabad history: Chabad in the Soviet Union, with rare documentation of the activities of the Frierdiker Rebbe, Tomchei Temimim, and the spiritual struggle under the Soviet regime; and Chabad in Poland and Lithuania, including the rabbinate in Polish Lithuania, the study of Chassidus in the towns, and the activities of Chabad rabbonim on behalf of the Vaad Hayeshivos in Vilna.

Four further sections are devoted to letters of Chassidim: the correspondence of R. Elle Chaim Althoyz of Riga, the letters of R. Hillel Zlatopolsky from Paris, the important archive of R. Shoiel Ber Zisslin, and a wide-ranging collection of additional Chassidic letters.

A unique section is devoted to the ledger titled “List of Overseas Gabbaim of Colel Chabad,” which serves as a first-rate genealogical source.

This is followed by a section of notes and stories, including accounts by R. Bereh Volf Kozhevnikov, lists of students in Tomchei Temimim, newly published excerpts from the notebooks of the shadar R. Yechiel Halperin, notes from Rebbetzin Nechama Dina, and others.

The book concludes with a section of memoirs, including vivid recollections of Chassidim and their descendants, foremost among them the important memoir of R. Yitzchak Aharon Goldin and the memories of Yeshaya Gartner from the period of the Rebbe’s stay in Nice.

Each document is accompanied by a short introduction placing it in context, illuminating footnotes, translations from Yiddish and other languages, and high-quality reproductions of the original documents.

The book is intended for students of Chabad history, lovers of Chassidic stories, and those interested in genealogy, shedding new light on forgotten chapters in the history of Chabad Chassidus.

Ginzaya: A Periodical for Publishing Archival Documents and Historical Records from the Annals of Chabad Chassidus

Editors: Yisroel Barda, Shlomo Barda
Published by Machon Merchav
Volume I: 532 pages; Volume II: 492 pages

To purchase in the United States and worldwide:
Volume I:
https://www.amazon.com/Ginzaya-Periodical-Publication-Documents-Movement/dp/B0GD81LMCJ?ref_=ast_author_dp&th=1&psc=1
Volume II:
https://www.amazon.com/Ginzaya-II-Periodical-Publication-Documents/dp/B0GDGJ16HN?ref_=ast_author_dp&th=1&psc=1

To purchase in Eretz Yisroel:
Volume I:
https://bookpod.co.il/product/%d7%92%d7%a0%d7%96%d7%99%d7%90-%d7%9b%d7%a8%d7%9a-%d7%90/
Volume II:
https://bookpod.co.il/product/%d7%92%d7%a0%d7%96%d7%99%d7%90-%d7%9b%d7%a8%d7%9a-%d7%91/