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Gifted Upbringing
Both the rabbi and his wife were
Israeli natives who grew up in
Booklyn.
According to his Chabad-Lubavitch
obituary co-written by Motti Seligson,
a former student at the Lubavitch
Cheder in Oak Park, Gavi also was a
mohel and officiated at weddings.
When he was 9; Gavi's family moved
from Kiryat Malachi to the Crown
Heights section of Brooklyn. He loved
to learn. That love culminated in two
victories in a competition of memo-
rizing the Mishnah, a compendium
of rabbinical laws and enactments
redacted in the second century. Gavi
studied at yeshivot in New York and
Argentina. As a rabbinical student, he
served communities in Thailand and
China.
Rivki was born in Afula, one of four
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1449140
A6
December 4 • 2008
of
daughters of a Chabad emissary, Rabbi
Shimon Rosenberg. I was touched
by how Rivki's mother, Yehduit
Rosenberg, described Nariman House
to Israel-based Ynet news: "a warm
corner of the Land of Israel!'
The Chabad Way
Chabad-Lubavitch, a branch of
Chasidism, is part of the Orthodox
movement. The 250-year-old Chabad-
Lubavitch philosophy is rooted in the
shtetls of White Russia. It provides
nuggets of Jewish life and learning for
Jews looking for a spiritual boost with
no strings attached. Emissaries follow
teachings that express piety, self-sac-
rifice, leadership, optimism and a pro-
found love for every Jew.
As I pondered how some 172 people
from 13 countries could be murdered
and more than 200 injured strictly
out of hate, I considered that human
beings won't always grasp the mystery
of life.
The best way to remember the
Holtzbergs, Chabad rabbis say, is
through mitzvot that kindle a fire for
Judaism and its values — from light-
ing Shabbat candles to charitable giv-
ing to acts of loving kindness.
Rabbi Alter Goldstein, of the Chabad
House at the University of Michigan in
Ann Arbor, expanded on that.
"Don't stop with a prayer," he said.
"Take it one step further and remem-
ber that a small act of light in one part
of the world can dispel darkness wher-
ever it may be."
If we Jews run scared, the terror-
ists win. So the stakes are daunting.
History teaches that we must muster
the strength to press on, no matter
how jagged the course. Gavi and Rivki
Holtzberg understood this lesson and
demonstrated its power.
The lesson remains our most potent
weapon against the evil doers who
would rather kill Jews and Westerners
than buy into freedom and liberty. E
Related coverage: A13
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meal they served. The rabbi also was a
shochet who slaughtered 100 chickens
a week to serve 400 meals. His wife
cleaned the chickens and also helped
bake hundreds of loaves of Shabbat
challah. Meals were free and were
topped off by Rabbi Holtzberg's inspir-
ing words.
Benjamin Holtzman, who lived in
Mumbai last year for six months while
a volunteer for American Jewish World
Service, wrote a telling account about
the Holtzbergs for the New York-based
Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA).
Holtzman tells how "Gavi would get
visibly excited to have so many guests
for Shabbat; you could tell it really
made his week!'
"He was always so eager to create
a communal feeling that he insisted
everyone go around the table and say
a few words to the group, giving guests
four options: delivering a dvar Torah,
relating an inspirational story, declar-
ing to take on a mitzvah or leading a
song;' Holtzman wrote.
Holtzman tells how "Rivki was a cer-
tified sweetheart who relished Friday-
night dinners. "I think she needed
her weekly female bonding time
Holtzman wrote. "She'd talk to the girls
about the challenges of keeping kosher
in India and the exciting new finds at
the market!'
Holtzman marveled at how their
spirits soared in a city that seemed
"to suck the life out of you." He added:
"Living as Westerners in modest
conditions in the thick of Mumbai,
with the restrictions of kashrut and
Shabbat, is certainly no small feat."
In the attack's
wake, should Chabad
rethink the safety of
its emissaries?
How can we best
remember the good-
ness of Gavi and
Rivki Holtzberg?