South Florida Rabbis Join 6,500 Colleagues For Conference In New York

While the yearly conference has a celebratory feel, welcoming rabbinic leaders from Alaska to Zambia, the past year was a difficult one for the Jewish people, seeing tragedy in Israel and other parts of the world.

Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries, known as shluchim, are husband-and-wife teams who dedicate their lives to strengthening Jewish life in communities worldwide, often in remote locations without established Jewish Infrastructure. They aim to reach both affiliated and unaffiliated Jews, welcoming Jews from all walks of life. From the city streets of Los Angeles to the islands of Thailand, Chabad serves not only as a spiritual home, but a focal point of Jewish life.

The conference, also known as the Kinus Hashluchim, united rabbis and lay leaders from all 50 U.S. states and more than 100 countries and territories around the world for four days of workshops, networking and spiritual uplift. The conference concluded with a gala banquet.

The first day included a series of workshops on contemporary issues that ran over the course of the weekend. Topics covered included: disaster relief, combating hate, education, counseling and dealing with grief and much more. Conference participants who serve students on college campuses (where Chabad has become the heart of Jewish life) took part in a separate track discussing issues specifically relevant to campus communities.

A visit to the Ohel, in Queens, New York (the resting place of the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory), marked the pinnacle of the conference. The emissaries came to pray for their families, communities and humanity at large, carrying with them countless prayer requests from people around the world.

With the onset of Shabbat on Friday evening, the emissaries spent the Jewish day of rest in prayer.

The annual “class picture” was taken Sunday morning under the iconic gables of 770 Eastern Parkway, the headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

The capstone of the conference was the gala banquet. It was held at the New Jersey Convention and Expo Center in Edison, New Jersey. It was a powerful moment of remembrance and resilience. Speakers honored Rabbi Zvi Kogan, the U.A.E.-based Chabad emissary murdered by terrorists in Dubai, with emotional tributes that emphasized the importance of continuing their global mission. The conference was linked by video with the home of Kogan’s parents in Jerusalem, where his family sat shiva. All 6,500 participants gathered and shared the traditional text of comfort with the family.

Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, chairman of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch—Chabad’s educational arm—greeted the audience, sharing words of consolation with Kogan’s family and the emissaries, his “extended family,” and sent prayers for Israeli soldiers defending the Holy Land, as well as the hostages held in Gaza.

A special video tribute was made for Rabbi Moshe Kotlarksy, the energetic Vice Chairman of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch, who passed away after a lengthy illness on June 4th.

Among the most inspiring presentations of the evening was that of Rabbi Yehoshua Soudakoff, Director of Chabad for the Deaf Community in Israel, who spoke of his path to finding his Jewish self as a Deaf Jew.

“The voice you hear is not mine, but the words definitely are,” he said through an interpreter. “It is hard for a deaf person to find a place within the community. Torah and Mitzvah while deaf is difficult. That is why I established Chabad for the Deaf Community. There are Deaf Jews and Jews with various disabilities throughout the world. Let us continue our holy work to reach out to every single one of them and inspire them, just as I was once inspired,” he said to resounding applause.

The 6,500 assembled rabbis united in their determination to continue their mission of Jewish outreach and community building, regardless of the challenges they face.

Photo attribution (Shmulie Grossbaum / Chabad.org) Group (Photos)