Rabbi Tzvi Kogan HY"D

Bittersweet conference in NY

It’s bittersweet.  I’m meeting up with my colleagues from around the world, enjoying seeing our son, Mendel, meet his online school friends in person, and “recharging my batteries”.

But there is a cloud looming over what usually would be very festive and celebratory.

You may have heard about the horrific murder of Rabbi Tzvi Kogan HY”D (which stands for Hashem Yikom Damo- May G-d avenge his blood), from Dubai on Sunday.

He was a Chabad rabbi in Dubai, with the mission of ensuring the Jews of United Arab Emirates have kosher food to eat.  He ran a kosher grocery store called “Rimon”.

What is a Shliach

I’ve written before about what a shliach is.  Shliach means messenger, emissary or ambassador, not just rabbi.

Our job as shluchim is to represent the Lubavitcher Rebbe and be his hands and feet in the cities to which we are sent, in the capacity in which we are sent.  

A shliach doesn’t have to be a rabbi per se.  A shliach doesn’t have to give sermons, or have any formal rabbinic or clerical training.  A shliach is a soldier, standing at his post, fulfilling his mission with dignity, regardless of the challenges or danger involved.

Rabbi Kogan wasn’t a pulpit rabbi.  He wasn’t a community leader as you might usually think of a Rabbi.  He was just a humble and friendly guy who ran a grocery store.

Implications of this terror attack

He was stalked and murdered in cold blood by a terror cell.

Some people think that these terrorists are only out to hurt Israel and many of the “pro-Palestine” folks say clearly they are only against Israel, not the Jews.

This outrage flies in the face of that narrative.

These terrorists are cowards.  To “take revenge” for alleged grievances against Israel, they kidnap & murder an unarmed Chabad Rabbi running a kosher grocery store in Dubai.  They know they can’t do real damage to soldiers, and in their eyes, a rabbi is just as good.

Sickening and cowardly.

The rabbi wasn’t representing Israel. He was representing the Lubavitcher Rebbe and Judaism. This was an attack on all Jews. There is no other way to spin it.

Second terror attack on Chabad during week of conference

It makes me wonder if they knew the Shluchim Conference was this week.  It’s not the first time Chabad was attacked the week of the Conference.

Sixteen years ago, almost to the day, Chabad of Mumbai, India, was stormed by terrorists who tortured and killed everyone inside.

I remember the suspense, praying that they would come out alive. But they didn’t.

I don’t know if the terrorists keep track of the Chabad calendar to time their attacks with our convention, but I know that G-d is keeping track.

Why?

How could G-d let this happen, and why the horrible timing? For the second time!?

What we know is that G-d is in full control. And He allowed this to happen.  

Why Rabbi Kogan, and why now, I don’t know, but I do know that there are two kinds of serving G-d (1) refining the world (2) refining ourselves.

When something happens that doesn’t have any purpose in and of itself, the purpose must be for us to find more inner strength.

And I believe that is the only explanation.

Our response

Last year, as the terrorists were still rampaging throughout Southern Israel, on Simchas Torah, we were dancing in Temecula, with the Torah.

One of the members in attendance asked how we could be dancing while the tragedy was still unfolding?!

But this is how we’re “bred”, to be soldiers, and continue marching to G-d’s beat.  We don’t stop based on our emotions.  We don’t change things because it makes sense in our intellect.

Simchas Torah is the day to dance with the Torah.  And that’s what we do.  And that’s what they did in Auschwitz.  

We serve G-d.

In 2008, as the terror attack in Mumbai was unfolding, I remember dancing in 770 (Chabad HQ) in the merit of their release.  Besides for being the Shluchim conference, it was also Rosh Chodesh Kislev, which is a special day on the Chabad calendar (marking the day the Rebbe returned home after suffering a severe heart attack).  Chassidim dance on this day.  And that’s what we were doing.

Terror attack unfolding on your brothers and sisters across the globe?  Continue dancing in their merit.  It didn’t cross anyone’s mind to stop dancing and cry instead for them.

This is just in our DNA.

And this is exactly our response to October 7 last year.

And this is exactly our response to the sickening and cowardly murder of Rabbi Kogan HY”D.

We will redouble our efforts and commitment to light up Dubai, and everywhere in the world, with the light of Yiddishkeit (Judaism) despite and in-spite of these cowardly terrorists.

Am Yisroel Chai- The Jewish people live.

In not so long, these terrorists and their death cult will be defeated and in the dustbin of history, while we will conquer the world with light and goodness and kindness.

I will be going to the Ohel (Rebbe’s gravesite) on Friday morning and will mention you.  If you don’t think I have your Jewish name and your mothers Jewish name (name and fathers name if you are a gentile) please send it to me by Thursday evening.  If you have something or someone specific you’d like to be mentioned, please send it to me by Thursday evening.