1927-1940: ‘Marching Over Our Bodies’
The Great Terror’s Jewish chapter
The widespread arrests of Soviet rabbis began in 1930, many of them accused of maintaining relationships with Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak, who was then living abroad. Stalin’s Great Terror began in earnest in 1937, a giant machine set on finding enemies in all corners of Soviet society.
This societal disfigurement included the physical destruction of the previously powerful Yevsektziya. Stalin sought to sow terror in the hearts of all Soviet citizens and he targeted former competitors, perceived opponents and even his own loyalists. Lubavitcher Chassidim, members of what could only be deemed an opposition movement, came under attack as well. On one single night in February 1938, Rabbi Elchonon Dov (Chonya) Marozov, a Chassid who had formerly been Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak’s secretary, and at least nine other Chassidim were simultaneously arrested in Leningrad. All of them were brutally interrogated and charged under Articles 58-10 and 58-11 of the criminal code, indicating that they were part of an underground anti-Soviet organization. The group was tried and convicted, then shot and buried in mass graves on the outskirts of the city.
They were not the only Lubavitcher Chassidim who lost their lives. Despite this, there were always more Chassidim who took their places and continued the work, risking their lives to maintain their own observance, and to assist their brethren.
The Great Terror
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Learn the life story of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe’s father, through images and short facts.
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A telling interaction between Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson and Peretz Markish during the height of Stalinist terror
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Transmitted stories and wisdom from generations of Rebbes and Chassidim
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A century of struggle to make and consume ‘the symbol of Passover’
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In good times and bad, Jews have visited the resting place of Chabad’s founder in Haditch, Ukraine
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Tomchei Temimim branch returns to Malakhovka, a suburb of Moscow
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Encountering Jewish life at the resting place of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev, defender of his people
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The Jewish refugees slept in the train stations, exposed to the elements, awaiting deportation to Siberia. It was strictly forbidden for any Russian citizen to communicate with these “foreign spies” . . .
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"Very well," sneered the commandant. "Don't sign. You will be in this prison for eight more years. And we'll see how your G‑d will help you…"
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“Chazan, why are you here?” asked an officer whom he encountered. “Are you not supposed to be eating now?”
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A child’s memories of life in Soviet Russia
They commanded Father to dress and come with them. Father came to my small bed, bent down, and gave me a kiss, long and painful. Tears—big ones, hot ones, blazing ones—rolled off his cheek and onto my forehead.
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Late at night, under Soviet rule
It was necessary to get people that could be relied upon to keep a secret. Within half an hour, the room held nine men. Only one was missing, a tenth man for the minyan. What did the rabbi do?
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Video | 5:43
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe’s father, dedicated himself to the impossible task of providing true leadership to Soviet Jewry stuck in the USSR. He may have ended up paying for his efforts with his life, but his legacy has far outlived that of his oppressors.
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Velvel Averbuch, now 84, was 14 when Soviet policemen discovered a secret Chasidic gathering he participated in with classmates of an underground Jewish school. Today, he lives in Brooklyn, N.Y.
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