Reply To: Women- a golus and Geula paradigm

For example, in 1964, Dov Zlotnick ran a gemara shiur for the men in the neighbourhood. He told the Rebbe about his shiur shiur. The Rebbe asked what the women do. He said they prepare the seudas shlishis. The Rebbe said it’s not good enough. So from then on, he taught his wife the material and she taught it to the women.

This isn’t to say the women told the men to make their own meal. They still prepared the seuda AND got to have their own shiur as well.

Another example: as quoted elsewhere, the gemara says that a kosher wife does the will of her husband. The Rebbe pointed out that that’s fine and good when he husband wants good things. But what if the husbands desires aren’t in line with Torah? In that case, the gemara means osa – the woman has the power to create the desire of the husband. In a feminine nurturing encouraging way, they can change the husband to want what Hashem wants.

One more for now: a chosson and kalla came to the Rebbe wondering if they should do the minhag of the chosson stepping on the kallas foot at the entrance to the yichud room to symbolise vhu yimshol bach.

The Rebbe told them he shouldn’t because if he acts like a proper husband, she will happily allow him to head the home, and if he doesn’t, stepping on her foot is not going to help…