To the Sons and Daughters of Our People Israel, Everywhere

Throughout the years of his leadership, the Rebbe would issue a message to the public, in connection with the major festivals on the Jewish calendar-the High Holidays and Passover. In some years, the Rebbe issued messages prior to other Jewish festivals as well.

Although distinctly Torah communications, much in line with the insights and original scholarship that filled the Rebbe's talks and writings, these letters were composed as personal and timely messages for the specific people, places, and times spelled out in the letter's salutation: "To the Sons and Daughters of Our People Israel, Everywhere."

Known in Hebrew as michtavim klaliim ("public, or circular letters"), they set the tone for the upcoming holidays, with the Rebbe shedding light on particular spiritual meanings, demands, and opportunities of the season, urging us to contemplate the messages highlighted in the letter as we prepare to reexperience that special time.

Marked by an effusiveness not found in his other works, here the Rebbe addresses foundational themes in Jewish thought about our purpose and responsibilities as Jews, and articulates them in layman's terms, underscoring the relevance of these ideas today.

The Rebbe penned the letters in Yiddish, which in turn, were translated into English and Hebrew, all to be reviewed by the Rebbe before their release. This two-volume set contains the English translations of these letters, as reviewed by the Rebbe.

Volume 1: Elul-Adar.
Volume 2: Nissan-Menachem Av. Includes letters addressed to Jewish women, and letters to Jewish youth.