He Sees Further Than All of Us

Rav Yitzchok Hutner, the author of Pachad Yitzchok, used to say of the Satmar Rav, “He sees further than all of us.” To show this, he told the following story.

Two messengers arrived from Eretz Yisroel at the offices of Agudas Yisroel in America. They reported that missionaries were travelling from town to town trying to turn Jews away from Yiddishkeit, and that the rabbonim in Eretz Yisroel wanted the Agudah rabbonim to sign a letter of protest to the Israeli prime minister. Rav Moshe Feinstein, Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky, Rav Hutner, Rav Kalmanovitsh and others wrote the letter and protested strongly. They decided to ask the Satmar Rav to sign it as well, and two important rabbonim went to his home.

He read the letter and said, “I cannot sign this.” He explained that the prime minister was about to travel to Italy and would surely visit the Vatican. He would take the letter with him, show it to the Pope to win his favor, and say that although American rabbonim protested, the Israeli government paid them no heed, because Israel believes in freedom of religion. “This would cause a great Chillul Hashem,” said the Rebbe, “and I cannot sign a letter that will be used that way.”

The messengers thought he was only making excuses. They did not believe him, and the letter went to the prime minister without his signature. A few weeks later it became public that the prime minister had taken the letter to the Vatican and shown it to the Pope, exactly as the Rebbe had said. Rav Hutner concluded that the Satmar Rav had seen a few months ahead what would be.