Mashpia Decries Abundance of Pamphlets in Shuls on Shabbos

By COLlive reporter

Rabbi Michael Tayeb, the renowned mashpia in the Kfar Chabad village in Israel, is speaking out against the abundance of reading material that is scattered in shuls each Shabbos.

“When you come to shul on Friday after candle lighting, you find an overload of pamphlets on the entrance table and in the shul itself,” Rabbi Tayeb lamented in his recent column “L’Chaim, Chassidim” published in the Kfar Chabad magazine.

“The serious problem is that among them are different and odd pamphlets – not to mention weird – and they serve as reading (learning) material for our very own” during davening and the reading of the Torah, he said.

“There’s isn’t a shortage of what to learn,” stated the Mashpia. “If only we would cover what is expected of us on a daily basis and especially on Shabbos Kodesh” – among them Chitas, Rambam, Shnayim Mikra, Likutei Torah and Torah Ohr.

“The Rebbe said 1,562 maamarim, there’s tens of Likutei Sichos for each week,” he said, noting that this is in addition to the newly published Sichos, Maamarim and Igros Kodesh from Kehot – Vaad Hanochos B’Lahak.

One exception, he says, was offered by the Rebbe during a farbrengen in 5710: A chossid should regularly be learning maamarim and sichos, but when the mind is weary one can read (Chassidishe) stories.

“Let’s leave the pamphlets and go back to the culture of seforim, the holy seforim that were studied by our parents and their parents,” wrote Rabbi Tayeb, who serves as Mashpia at Yeshivas Oholei Tmimim in Kfar Chabad and a guest of many farbrengens.

He suggested: “Perhaps the Gabboim in our shuls, with the consultation of the rov, should start filtering the amount and quality of the pamphlets that enter our territories, each place according to their interests and calculations.

“Instead, they should purchase a few Likutei Sichos from the first volumes, stories of Chassidim, Chassidus Mevueres so the voice of Torah should be heard in our midst.”