Three Innovations, Three Accusations

The Alter Rebbe relates that he was informed of his release from prison as he was reciting the verse in Psalms, “He redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that came upon me, because of the many who were with me.”

The Talmud explains that the redemption described by this verse is elicited through three merits: Torah study, acts of goodness and kindness, and prayer. Indeed, all three were factors in the Alter Rebbe’s arrest and liberation.

He was accused of denigrating the importance of Torah study. In truth, Chasidic teaching explains the value of Torah study in a way that far surpasses anything ever taught before. He was accused of funding the Turkish empire against the Czar. The truth was, he was sending charity funds to the Jewish settlement in Israel. Finally, he was accused of creating a new religious sect to a false deity. And everyone knows that it is the Chasidim who are generally the most devout in their service of G-d, and especially through prayer.