After the war Zaidy was living in Germany and the Germans gave them a place to live. They had kicked out the Germans living there and given it to Jewish survivors. He was living with all different types of Jews and only one other Lubavitcher Aharon Elyah (? Author of Gershuni?). Aharon Elyah was well versed in chakirah philosophy. The Chassidim where in Poking so for Yomim Tovim they would travel to Poking. It would take 3 trains to get there so they would get out at 2 stations.
The antisemitism was very bad. The Jews and non Jews would sit separately. To identify if the person was a Jew they would say to the person "Amecha?" If the person would respond Amecha they would know he's Jewish. That was the code.
It was a Yud Beis Tammuz and Zaidy and Aharon Elyah traveled to poking. At the secon station they got out and it was just a beautiful day. They went outside where there was a large and beautiful 'kikar' with trees grass etc.
They where looking to find some Jews and saw 4 people talking. They walked over and said "Amecha?" And they responded Amecha. So they joined them.
The first guy was saying the great miracles HaShem had done for them during the holocaust that saved his family. One night he was walking by the fence surrounding the camp when a polish fellow threw a note over the fence and walked away. He opens the note and there's the address of this guy and says that if you can escape and come to this address I'll protect you till the end of the war.
He starts walking around the perimeter camp trying to find a place to escape. And finds a hole in the fence. He gets out goes to the address and shows the guy the note. The polish guy welcomes him in and says he'll of course help him and even his family if he can get them out.
So he would sneak into the camp and get his family members out one by one until he had gotten his whole family out and they hid in this polish guys house till after the war. So he was saying how amazing the miracles HaShem did for them.
The second guy responds "so you're telling me that your family must have been greater tzaddikim then my father!? You see my father would sit and wear talis and Tefilin all day and completely removed himself from the world. The breadwinner was my mother. When the Germans came they ripped the Tefilin off my father's head and arm. Searched and took anything valuable in the house. Like the silver candlesticks and the like. Put them in a bag and tied them up with the Tefilin straps. Then killed my entire family. I'm the only one that survived. Since then I stopped believing.
The third guy then says you shouldn't say that. He said it in clear yiddish which is quite surprising based on the story he told. "By me my parents where completely assimilated. So much so that I didn't even know I was Jewish. When the Germans came they found out we're Jewish and came to take us away. As they where taking us my father says you should know we're actually Jewish.
"I came to the camp and now that I found out I was Jewish I wanted to know what it means. So I started asking and learning whatever I could from the Jews. I then made a promise to HaShem that if I make it out of the camps I'll buy a pair of Tefilin put them on every day and do everything I can to do what HaShem wants me to do.
"I found out that this holocaust isn't the first time this happened to us but that thousands of years ago it happened. If this happened so long ago and we're still here then how can you stop believing? I started believing!"
The fourth guy a young man responds, by asking questions the third guy about HaShem and faith. Aharon Elyah then turns to me and says this guy is good, he's asking deep questions, the others won't be able to answer I must mix in. And Aharon Elyah starts answering. The guy asks, Aharon Elyah answers or asks something back and the 2 are going back and forth one on one. Then the train blows its horn. It's about to leave so the conversation stops and they all get on the train separately. Again they ask a passenger "Amecha?" Someone responds "Amecha" and they sit down.
A little later this fourth guy comes through the train from behind them. Passes them by goes to the end of the train and turns around and sees them. He comes over and says "I was looking for you!"
They squeeze and make room for him and says; "you think I don't believe? Actually I'm a great believer. I'm now 22 years old and was taken to the camps at 14. I don't read any "empty" books. I just want to find out one thing is there a G-d? I read every book on the subject and I've come to the conclusion, you don't need faith to believe in G-d. It is was makes sense. Because all the books against belief don't answer any questions they just make them bigger!"
"But" he says, "I don't believe in the Torah being divine. But if I don't believe the Torah is from HaShem why do I get punished if I don't do them"? And he starts crying! Remember he was a 22 year old kid!
"So I told him a story of the Tzemach Tzedek. Someone once came to the Tzemach Tzedek saying he has doubts in his faith. So the Tzemach Tzedek asked him "nu, so what's wrong?" So he says "but I'm a Jew!" And starts crying. So the Tzemach Tzedek said "so then you believe!"
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