{"product_id":"the-jewish-underground-of-samarkand-how-faith-defied-soviet-rule-9781942134923","title":"The Jewish Underground of Samarkand: How Faith Defied Soviet Rule","description":"\u003ch2\u003eA Firsthand Account of Jewish Survival Under Soviet Oppression\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA portal into the perseverance of Jewish culture in the face of attempts to destroy it.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRabbi Hillel Zaltzman wrote this memoir to answer his son's question: \u003cem\u003ewhat was it like growing up in Samarkand\u003c\/em\u003e? The result is a detailed historical account of Chassidic Jews who found refuge in Samarkand during World War II and maintained their faith under Soviet rule.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBorn in Kharkov, Ukraine in 1939, Zaltzman's family fled the Nazi invasion to Samarkand (Uzbekistan), where they reconnected with other refugee Chassidic families and prominent rebbes. This community became known as \u003cem\u003eshpitz Chabad\u003c\/em\u003e—the epitome of Chassidic ideals and devotion—until Stalin abruptly shut down its institutions after the war.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eUnderground Jewish Education in Communist Russia\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eZaltzman's father kept him hidden from Soviet schools until a neighbor discovered his existence at age 9. Even after forced enrollment, Hillel continued observing his faith, staying home when necessary. He studied with Chabad rebbes who taught at enormous personal risk—discovery meant harsh labor sentences in Siberia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Soviet regime maintained a special NKVD division dedicated to destroying Jewish schools and yeshivas, using synagogue informers for surveillance. Against this backdrop, Zaltzman records the experiences of those who sacrificed to share Torah learning in secret underground yeshivas, celebrate holidays, make matzah, and obtain prayer books.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Chamah Underground Organization\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAt 16, Zaltzman joined \u003cem\u003eChamah\u003c\/em\u003e, an underground Jewish organization sustaining Jewish life through education. This network established clandestine schools that taught over 1,500 children and provided support to Jews seeking exit visas in the 1960s and 70s.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter years of attempts, Zaltzman immigrated to Israel in 1971, later moving to New York where he became director of \u003cem\u003eChamah\u003c\/em\u003e International. The organization now serves Jews from the Former Soviet Union across Israel, Russia, and the US. Rabbi Zaltzman received recognition in the U.S. Senate in May 2016 during Jewish American Heritage Month.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRabbi Hillel Zaltzman received his childhood Jewish education secretly under Soviet rule from Chassidim including his uncle Reb Boruch Duchman, Reb Berke Chein (who hid in the Zaltzman home for six years), and Reb Mendel Futerdas. Recruited by Reb Moshe Nissilevitch at sixteen, he devoted his life to \u003cem\u003eChamah's\u003c\/em\u003e mission of promoting Torah and Chassidic philosophy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1964, he married Mussia Shoshana Esther Demichovsky. After emigrating in 1971, he established \u003cem\u003eChamah\u003c\/em\u003e branches in Israel and New York, expanding operations to include medical aid and educational programs. He currently serves as president of \u003cem\u003eChamah\u003c\/em\u003e International, headquartered in Manhattan and Brooklyn.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis largely untold story of Chabad activism delivers immediate insight into spiritual resistance against a Communist regime at war with Jewish devotion to God and Torah.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mandel Vilar Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50680460345618,"sku":"9781942134923","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_3438938f-c76a-4069-9236-b8c21e26457c.jpg?v=1734906529","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-jewish-underground-of-samarkand-how-faith-defied-soviet-rule-9781942134923","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}