The Heroic Struggle: The Arrest and Liberation of Rabbi Yosef Y. Schneersohn of Lubavitch in Soviet Russia

Rating:
Summary: The light in Soviet prison
Review: By resisting the Stalin regime and creating the organizations and the atmosphere that survived those dark days, the Rebbe inspired and enabled the rebirth Yiddishkeit in all the lands of the former Soviet Union.

It is possible that without the underground movement inspired by the Rebbe instead of refusniks and the massive exodus of the 80s and 90s, Russian Jewry might have dissolved in a haze of assimilation.

In The Heroic Struggle we have Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak's own account of his ordeal. As riveting as a contemporary thriller He writes: "... sensitive and talented authors would find much material for lengthy works on the nature of human feeling and conduct by merely depicting ... the ... two hours from my arrival in the prison ... " Actually the Rebbe hasn't left much for other authors. His narrative is vividly detailed, insightful and sensitive. From the remarkably detailed description of his cell to the penetrating analyses of his captors, interrogators and fellow prisoners, the Rebbe involves the reader in his experience.

Rating:
Summary: A harrowing testimony of an enduring human spirit
Review: Edited and translated by Rabbi Alter B. Metzer from the memoirs of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn (the foremost Jewish religious leader of Stalinist Russia circa 1927), The Heroic Struggle is the true and riveting story of Rabbi Schneersohn's arrest and brutal mistreatment for his conspiring with other members of the Jewish community to create an underground network that would allow Judaism to survive despite Communist persecution of religion, religious beliefs, religious ceremonies, and religious symbols. A harrowing testimony of an enduring human spirit, and culminating in Schneersohn's miraculous release after his death sentence was commuted to exile, The Heroic Struggle is a superb contribution to 20th Century Jewish History reading lists and reference collections as being a profoundly inspirational testimony about the power of fighting for one's roots and beliefs.