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P.O. Box 2485, Dearborn 48124 VISA & MASTERCARD ACCEPTED CAN. aII (519) 948.1991 Eye Examinations Ultimate Eyewear Custom Contact Lenses Dr. M. Gottesman • Dr. M. Weishaus Optometrists Applegate Square Northwestern Hwy. (between 12 & 13 Mile Road) 36 Call 358-2920 FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1990 Crown Heights Excursion Detroit area group travels to New York to visit the Lubavitcher Rebbe and spend a Sabbath with his followers. ANNE R. LEHMANN Special to The Jewish News F or most people the first Friday in November was rather unremark- able despite the unseasonably warm temperatures. For 38 Michiganders including my- self, it marked the begin- ning of a weekend that would, if nothing more, provide us with striking memories of a unique world. Together we headed to the nerve center of the Lubavitch movement in Crown Heights, 770 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, N.Y., for a Pegishah (encounter) weekend. The trip, arranged by Rab- bi Elimelech Silberberg of Bais Chabad of West Bloom- field, would introduce us to the Chasidic world, some for the first time. During the en- suing two-and-a-half days we would reside with Lubavit- cher families, dine with friends acquired during the trip, hear lectures by a varie- ty of Jewish notables, be entertained and, of course, meet with Rabbi Menachem Shneerson, referred to as "the Rebbe." The excitement bred a camaraderie and people talk- ed freely as they headed east aboard a Continental flight. The group was a composite of single and married people, some with young children, from West Bloomfield, Ann Arbor, Flint and Southfield. Some came as spectators, others as participants — but all would leave knowing what it was like to spend a Shomer Shabbat (observant Sabbath) Saturday in a Chasidic community. A bus awaited us at the air- port. For some it would be a first visit to New York, for others like myself a native New Yorker, it was more like a homecoming. As we boarded, Rabbi Silberberg pointed out a large curtain suspended from the luggage racks above the seats. This, he explained, was the mechitzah (separation) used to divide men and women during morning prayer aboard the bus into work. For Lubavitchers, spiritual details are address- ed even in the mundane world of buses. We arrived on Kingston Avenue, the main commercial thoroughfare in Crown Michael Lehmann of West Bloomfield is given a customary dollar bill by the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Heights and the street was bustling with pre-Shabbat ac- tivity. It was a visual study in contrasts: Chasidic men, clad in black, carried lavish bou- quets of brightly colored flowers; mothers and children scurried in and out of stores for last minute items. We were assigned to stay with a couple who, with their five children, lived in a three- story brownstone on Carrol Street. When we arrived we were greeted by the delicious aromas of a Shabbat meal in preparation. The older children volunteered informa- tion easily and later that evening told us that "if Mashiach (Messiah) had already arrived, there would be legs on our house; we would be floating on a cloud or we would be soaring on the wings of an eagle headed for Jerusalem." Beautiful images to most, but for them, this was something that would most certainly happen someday. We prepared hurriedly for the Shabbat, and with 15 minutes left until candlelighting, a siren sound- ed. "One of the advantages of living in this neighborhood," our host joked. Amazingly, nine people managed to shower before the second sounding of the siren which meant Shabbat had just begun. Only in Crown Heights, I thought to myself, is it conceivable that nine people could shower in less than 15 minutes. After the men returned from services, we had a Shab- bat meal. At the table sat two newly-emigrated Russian Jews, yeshiva students. One of the young men joked easi- ly with the small children un- til we began singing zemirot, songs honoring the Shabbat. He closed his eyes and sang movingly in a tune none of us Americans had heard before. Though he was sitting in Brooklyn, his demeanor sug- gested that he had been transported to another place and time by the sump- tuousness of the meal, the pleasure of the company and the spiritual feeling that he, like many of his friends, associated with Shabbat. The children were silent, recogniz- ing that they had witnessed something very special. It was an exceptionally moving moment for us all. Walking home after an evening lecture, we were struck by the festive mood and relaxed pace of people strolling the streets. Couples chatted quietly; two men argued animatedly — it was hard to believe that people would venture out after dark in a neighborhood known for its high crime rate. These peo- ple walk fearlessly, confident in the safety of their spiritual haven. Following lunch the next day, we were escorted to 770 for a fahrbrengen (Chasidic gathering). Clearly once a home for the wealthy, the building's sturdy and solid