Becoming a Shochet in the USSR

Rabbi Yitzchak Kogan serves as rabbi of the Bronnaya Synagogue in Moscow. He is a former Refusenik and leading figure in the Soviet Jewish underground. Under the intrusively watchful eye of the Soviet authorities, it was most difficult to obtain Kosher meat. Without any alternative, he decided to become a qualified Kosher slaughterer himself. But it was the Rebbe’s encouragement and blessings from afar that kept his spirit alive. (1980s)