In 1997, the diaries of Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe, were opened and read. In the diaries was a story about his grandfather, the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Shalom Dov-Ber Schneerson. In the winter of 1902-1903, Rabbi Dov-Ber, who lived in Russia, was suffering from “malaise.” Today, we would probably call this depression.
Rabbi Dov-Ber had many reasons to feel depressed. Chassidus, which had been spreading in Jewish Russia and Poland, was simultaneously being challenged on many fronts. The first front was in the fight against the Misnagdim, the more traditional observant Jews who, starting with the Vilna Gaon, did not agree with the Chassidic approach to Judaism. The stance of the Vilna Gaon was well known, and as a giant of traditional Judaism his opinion carried tremendous weight. Chassidus was also being challenged by the Haskalah, the anti-religious Jewish Enlightenment movement spreading in Germany. Secular Zionism, which replaced religion with nationalism, was also challenging Chassidus as a new way that Jews identified themselves. In addition, there were pogroms in Russia, and Jews reported each other to the Czarist police. Even the son of Rabbi Dov-Ber had been imprisoned. Finally, Rabbi Dov-Ber had opened a yeshiva and it was not doing well.
All of these issues weighed heavily on Rabbi Dov Ber. According to the diary of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Rabbi Dov-Ber told his wife that he felt unable to tend to his Chassidim properly and he felt unaccomplished. It is unclear how Rabbi Dov-Ber knew about Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis who lived in secular Vienna. But, as the Talmud says, when one needs a doctor one does not go to the most religious person but to the most highly skilled. Apparently, Rabbi Dov-Ber had learned of Freud’s reputation for helping people. It was not known for many years which doctor Rabbi Dov-Ber went to see. But, in a farbrengen in the 1960s Rabbi Menachem Mendel mentioned that it was Freud, and it was later noted in his diaries that were opened in 1997.
Rabbi Dov-Ber went to see Freud with his son, Yosef Yitzchak, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, the father-in-law of the most recent Lubavitcher Rebbe, whose 30th yahrzeit we recently celebrated. At the time, 1902-1903, Rabbi Dov-Ber was in his early 40s and his son was 22. That year was the 20th anniversary of the death of Rabbi Dov-Ber’s father. This probably was what triggered his “malaise.” Rabbi Dov-Ber got married at a very young age and took over the mantle of Lubavitch at a very young age. The constant pressures of being a leader were a huge responsibility.
Rabbi Dov-Ber was a humble man. It did not bother him to go see the “professor” in Vienna, despite the fact that Freud was an avowed atheist. But Rabbi Dov-Ber did consider his trip as a trip into exile, away from his Chassidim and the world he knew. He spent three months in Vienna, from January to March 1903, visiting Freud many times so that the psychoanalyst could better understand him. Freud came from a Chassidic family on his father’s side, and his mother and wife also had rabbinic lineage. Freud had studied Judaism in grammar school, and consequently probably spoke to the Rebbe in Yiddish, a language he publicly denied knowing.
Freud suggested to the Rebbe that he stay in Vienna for a while and go on walks in order to separate himself from the pressures back in Russia. He advised the Rebbe that when he returned to Russia he should isolate himself and teach in order to stimulate his intellect and grow closer to his students so that their support might help alleviate his stress. Freud made other suggestions, and the diaries opened in 1997 quote some of the conversations between Freud and Rabbi Dov-Ber verbatim. It is assumed that Rabbi Menachem-Mendel got this information from his father-in-law, the son of Rabbi Dov-Ber who accompanied him on the trip.
Some people in the Orthodox community look askance at psychotherapy. There are many misconceptions. People wonder if therapy will make them less religious or change their sexual orientation. Therapy does neither. A therapist never makes life decisions for his patient. The goal of therapy is to help people with psychological impediments that are negatively affecting their ability to function at work or in their personal lives. Therapy helps people build their self-esteem and helps rid them of phobias, anxiety and irrational guilt, and helps people learn about their emotions. People learn about themselves in therapy and with the new information and are able to make better decisions in their lives.
Rabbi Dov-Ber Schneerson was humble enough to realize that he could benefit from this process and that there was nothing to fear. Couldn’t many of us benefit from the therapeutic process as well?
Jonathan Bellin, LCSW received his BA from Yeshiva University in 1989 and his MSW from Yeshiva University in 1993. With 25 years of experience, he has a tele-therapy practice where he sees patients 18 and older. He treats ADHD, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, PTSD, trauma and relationship issues. Jonathan studied psychotherapy at Harvard, The New York Freudian Society, The William Alanson White Institute, and worked at FEGS and JBFCS. He can be reached at [email protected].
