Everything1 that occurs is engineered in detail by Divine Providence,2 especially something that occurs in the country in which a Jew finds himself. This certainly applies to the present case, the United States, in which the Rebbe whose hillula we have just marked3 spent the last ten years of his life in This World — and ten years is a significant period.4

The connection between a Jew and the country in which he lives is highlighted by the ruling of the Torah, which is called a Torah of Truth610 and a Torah of Life,89 that “the law of the land is binding”5 (in matters that do not conflict with the Torah and its commandments).

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The currency of this country is distinctive: its coins are engraved with the words, “In G‑d we trust.”

Now, money is something that “stands [a man] on his feet,”6 and it also plays an important role in the life of a Jew. For a start, it enables him to give tzedakah; the more he has, the more can he give — and tzedakah is equated to all the commandments.7 Money is also needed for the fulfillment of other mitzvos, for there is a principle that one should see to it that all the mitzvos should not be acquired “free,”8 but as the result of one’s own exertion.9 This ideal is also highlighted in a teaching of the Sages: “If someone tells you [...], ‘I have exerted myself and I have found [success in my Torah study],’ believe him.”10

Money, then, is central to life in general and to Jewish life. And engraved on the coins of this country is a message of faith in G‑d — and not merely faith, but a trusting faith.11 “In G‑d we trust” means that one regards G‑d as his trustee: one hands everything over into His Hands and relies on Him in all one’s affairs.

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[Everyone who is about to return to his home country12 ] will now be given a dollar bill to be contributed as tzedakah, thus making his journey a shlichus mitzvah, a mission for the sake of fulfilling a commandment.13 Every dollar bill bears the words, “In G‑d we trust.” This phrase means that one is bound with a faith so complete that one relies utterly on G‑d, entrusting to Him whatever one has — one’s soul and body, one’s money and property, and one’s daily conduct.