Congress Marks the 82nd Birthday of the Lubavitcher Rebbe

Congress has again marked the birthday of Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebee, by proclaiming tomorrow as ‘Education Day U.S.A. “The rabbi will be 82 tomorrow, the tenth day of Nisan, on the Hebrew calendar.

“Education represents the very essence of the Rebbe’s life,” Rabbi Avraham Shemtov, executive director of American Friends of Lubavitch, told a luncheon meeting in honor of Schneerson on Capitol Hill today. Shemtov noted that the Rebbe was “devoted” not only to Jewish education but to education for everyone.

A resolution adopted by both Houses of Congress praised Schneerson for his contribution to education in the United States.

Shemtov, who is the Lubavitch movement’s representative in Washington, noted that Lubavitchers are not concerned with Jewish issues alone. “Anything that concerns humanity is our business, ” he said. He added that solutions to all today’s problems can be found in “our traditions, the Torah and the Talmud.”

Marshall Breger, President Reagan’s special assistant for liaison to the Jewish community, noted that wherever the Lubavitch movement is represented, the spiritual level of that Jewish community is raised

Rabbis from various Lubavitch centers from across the country were on hand here today to greet Senators and Representatives from their areas. The host for the luncheon was Sen. Rudy Boschwitz (R. Minn.).

Other Senators who made brief remarks in praise of the Lubavitcher Rebbe were: Frank Lautenberg (D. N.J.), Alfonse D’Amato (R.N.Y.); Paul Sarbanes (D. Md.); Chic Hecht (R. Nev.); Patrick Leahy (D. Vermont); Max Mack Mattingly (R. Ga.); Quentin Burdick (D. N.D.); Joseph Biden (D. Del.); Charles Grassly (R. lowa); and Sen. Jesse Helms (R. N.C.). Members of the House were also present. They all spoke under a banner which said “Congress salutes vision and leadership” and a large picture of the Rebbe.