כ״ו מרחשון ה׳תשפ״ז | November 6, 2026
When I Made the Mistake of Misrepresenting the Rebbe
When a group of Jewish students barricaded themselves in a shelter and threatened mass suicide, R’ Dovid Eliezrie was called upon to intervene. But a startling phone call from the Rebbe’s mazkirus taught him a lesson he won’t forget.
Rabbi Dovid Eliezrie relates:
In 5742, when the Israeli government evacuated the Jewish settlement of Yamit for “peace” with Egypt, a group of students barricaded themselves in a shelter, threatening mass suicide if anyone broke in.
Knowing some of the students personally, I was asked by the Israeli Consul to fly there and speak with them. I insisted on first consulting the Rebbe, who instructed me to follow the ruling of a rov. Harav Zalman Shimon Dworkin ruled that I should go, as it was pikuach nefesh.
As I prepared to leave, I received a call from the mazkirus. Harav Chodakov was on the line, with the Rebbe listening in.
“What’s going on?” he demanded. “The Israeli press is reporting that the Rebbe is sending a shliach to rescue the students!”
I tried to explain myself, but could sense the Rebbe’s displeasure. In my excitement to save the world, I had dragged the Rebbe into it.
I immediately asked whether I should cancel my trip. Harav Chodakov replied that since the rov had ruled it was pikuach nefesh, I should go, but strictly as a private individual.
The students emerged before I arrived, but the incident taught me a lasting lesson about the critical care not to misrepresent the Rebbe.
(As heard from Rabbi Eliezrie, U’moloh Ho’oretz Farbrengens, p. 7)
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