Gerer Chassidim in the US Gather in Support of ‘Ichud,’ Affirm ‘Eternal Bond’ Amid Simcha in the Court

Emotionally-charged moments of connection – Joy transcends time and space – Unprecedented support for the Empire of Torah and Chassidus in the Holy Land

In an evening filled with fiery elevation, emotionally-charged with feelings of connection and pining to their spiritual center—the Gerer Rebbe and the court of Ger—thousands of chassidim gathered Sunday evening in Boro Park for an evening of support for the ‘Ichud,’ as the week-long celebration of a simcha in the Rebbe’s court came to a rousing conclusion.

Ichud Mosdos Gur is the umbrella organization that encompasses a world of Torah and chassidus, dozens of yeshivos, schools, and chessed organizations of every kind throughout Eretz Yisroel—serving the chassidus which numbers more than ten thousand, ka”h.

The American community has always seen in this central organization their connection to all that they hold near and dear, a vehicle by which to do their part to assist the Gerer Rebbe shlit”a in his holy work of building Torah and chassidus in Eretz Yisroel—a feeling that brought out the heightened pride and emotion at the dinner Sunday evening.

The event coincided with the last sheva brachos for a grandchild of the Rebbe, and participants would be privileged to receive wine sent by the Rebbe shlit”a directly from the chasuna—bridging continents with connection and brachos.

The legendary Mendy Hershkowitz Orchestra, along with Lev Voices, provided the musical backdrop for the evening—giving voice to the feelings of togetherness, of pining, and of the essence of every Gerer chossid; to continue building the golden chain of the chassidus that has experienced such a remarkable rebirth since the near annihilation of its existence in prewar Poland, where it was spread across hundreds of shtetlach.

Special guests from Eretz Yisroel included Rav Yitzchok Meir Tauman, one of the closest confidantes of the Gerer Rebbe, and a respected mashpiah within the chassidus. In a fiery addres, he recalled the rebirth of Ger after the Holocaust by the Beis Yisroel of Ger who restored the unique derech of Ger, of Torah, in kedusha and tahara—and the way the chassidus has continued to thrive in the most miraculous way atop these very foundations. He also provided glimpses into some of the remarkable growth of the institutions around the holy land.

A special address was also given by the Rosh Yeshiva of the Gerer yeshivos in America, Rav Yisroel Moshe Olewski, a son of the unforgettable Rosh Yeshiva and mashpia, Rav Dovid Olewski, zt”l, who was one of the leaders of the Gerer chassidus in America. Having resided in Eretz Yisroel many years, until his arrival to take the place of his father, Rav Yisroel Moshe had a unique vantage point to the massive scope of the Ichud and its activities.

A special video presentation of the “days of joy” in the holy court was shown on massive screens, virtually transporting the audience, which drank one every moment of the holy sites of the rebbes simcha, into the wee hours of the night.

In addition, a presentation was shown of the recent journey that the Rebbe took to the United States last summer. The ripple effects of this historic journey, when the rebbe took the unprecedented step of holding the wedding of a grandchild in New York, are still felt very strongly among the American chassidim almost six months later. The sites and sounds of this historic visit reawakened the chizuk and the inspiration with even greater strength.

Among the prominent Rabbonim—from Eretz Yisroel as well as from America—gracing the large dais were: Rav Avrohom Binyomin Zilberberg, Rosh Yeshiva of Sifsei Tzaddik in Chatzor; Rav Yaakov Abramowitz; Rosh Kollel in America, Rav Meir Widislavsky; Komarna Rebbe; Rav Dovid Kompinsky; Rav Yehuda Aryeh Segal; Rav Yisroel Rubinfeld; Rav Yehoshua Lefkowitz; Rav Yosef Aurbach; Rav Krakower, and Rav Menachem Pesach, a mechutan of the Rebbe shlit”a.

a delegation from the Belzer building committee which facilitated the event; a delegation from Ichud Mosdos Gur, which included Reb Dovid Kuperberg from Antwerp, reb Yitzchok Meir Lev, Reb Shmiel Weinreich, and Reb Avrohom Shafranowitz.

The event was cooordinated by Green Events and Yanky Kohn Productions, and Mr. Klein from Tiferes Rivka Halls—facilitating a celebration of everlasting connection, a kesher shel kayama, opening their hearts and wallets to a cause that is so dear to them.