The name of the recipient of this letter was not made known.

B”H, 23 Teves, 5711,
Brooklyn

Greetings and blessings,

In response to your letter of Thursday, Parshas Vayechi, where you inform me that you underwent several operations.

In general, it is a pity that you take an interest and contemplate medical texts regarding what appears to you to be your ailment. According to my opinion, you should not do anything other than act according to the Torah’s command, i.e., to actually carry out the doctors’ instructions and for you to focus your mind and your heart — i.e., your thoughts regarding your condition — on the firm trust in G‑d that He is the Healer of all the sick and that He works wonders. You should not involve yourself in matters concerning medical knowledge because this is not relevant to you, and in particular, it disturbs your peace of mind and arouses despair. There is a well-known adage from several of the Chabad Rebbeim that was repeated several times:1 Tracht gut, vet zain gut;“Think positively, and the outcome will be good.”

With regard to your recovery: a) Surely you are following the instructions of the doctors; b) Divert your attention from deep contemplation about your health; c) have strong trust in G‑d, for there is nothing that can stop Him, and who can tell Him what to do?2 ; d) you should develop an even stronger bond with the Tree of Life, the teachings of Chassidus, “the words of the living G‑d.”3 [In practice,] with regard to yourself, you should establish a fixed time for the study of Chassidus and increase your study of it to the greatest degree possible in addition to this fixed time. With regard to your shul,you should endeavor that the shul be a chassidishe shul by establishing classes in Chassidus and by [holding] chassidishe farbrengens frequently in which you are one of the principal participants.

And with regard to your wider circle, the Jewish people: for the entire Jewish people are interrelated, one with the other.4 If so, what one is lacking can be compensated by receiving it from another person. A parallel to this can be seen in the human body. If, due to a particular reason, one organ is weakened, it can derive vitality and strength to overcome its weakness from the vitality of the other limbs. [Therefore] you should also print, at your expense, a book — not [merely] a pamphlet of the maamarim of my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, הכ"מ. In this manner, you will draw spiritual vitality down to the hearts of many Jews and they will grant you physical vitality. You should not be afraid of [the extent of] the expenses connected with printing such a book, because G‑d will grant you long life and will grant you the potential to cover the expenses of such a printing.

May G‑d lengthen your days in goodness. May you increase strength and power in the study of the Torah and the careful observance of mitzvos,and may you convey good tidings with regard to all the matters mentioned above.

With blessing,

Menachem Schneerson

Enclosed is a receipt from lishkas chasha’im,5 founded by my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe,הכ"מ, to help the needy in a discreet manner, which is one of the highest levels of tzedakah.6