Big Itch, Big Soul
- Boruch Meir "Meyer" Greenbaum
- Jul 30
- 4 min read
Remembering Rabbi YD Groner and the Rebbe’s Call to Sacrifice
This evening, an old recording popped up on an Australian chat group.
A voice from the past.
A voice that once shook walls and hearts.
A voice that, if you grew up in Melbourne, was the voice.
Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner, affectionately known as “Big Itch,” gave this fiery speech at a Seudas Hodaya in Sydney, Rosh Chodesh Kislev 5747 (1986). You’ll hear him say:
“What? We came here to tell miracles of the Rebbe? RUBBISH!”
And just like that, he cuts through the fluff and calls the room to attention. He didn’t come to impress. He came to awaken.
I grew up with Big Itch.
Not in his house, but in his shadow.
When we came back from Yeshiva overseas, first stop was always my grandparents’ home.
Second stop: Rabbi Groner’s house.
He always knew where we were, what we were doing.
Not with surveillance, but with soul-veillance.
He kept an eye on all of us because he believed in all of us.
He saw us. And that seeing carried weight.
He built Melbourne’s Jewish community, not through subtlety, but through sheer will, force of vision, and unwavering commitment.
If you were talking while he spoke, you’d hear:
“Ladies! I’m speaking.”
If the waiters were serving during his remarks:
“Out. I’ll tell you when to come back.”
He didn’t just deliver messages. He delivered missions.
This wasn’t about charisma. It was about mesirus nefesh. Real sacrifice.
He and his wife and family left behind everything familiar. They didn’t come to Australia with comfort in mind.
They came because the Rebbe asked.
And they weren’t alone.
When Rabbi Groner thundered, “Which Jewish leader thinks about the entire Jewish people?”,
the answer wasn’t subtle. It was lived:
The Lubavitcher Rebbe.
The Rebbe didn’t just dream of a global Jewish revival, he deployed it.
He sent young couples into spiritual deserts.
No salaries. No safety nets. No backup plans.
Just purpose.
Just faith.
Just the belief that if you wake up asking how you can be better and do better, you’re ready.
There’s a story, true.
Someone once asked the Rebbe:
“Who are your Chassidim?”
The Rebbe answered:
“Anyone who wakes up in the morning asking, ‘How can I do better? How can I be better?’ that’s a Chossid.”
That’s not a status.
That’s a mindset.
That’s a daily mission.
Rabbi Groner’s Speech
“Show me another Jewish leader who could uproot American boys from their chocolate and baseball and send them to Providence (Rhode Island) with no toilet, no bed, only mission.”
-Rabbi YD Groner OB"M
And now I ask. What is strength?
Strength isn’t loudness.
It’s not charisma.
It’s not comfort.
Strength is the refusal to betray your soul just to fit in.
It’s standing when the world wants you silent.
It’s rising when fear says sit down.
The Rebbe gave us a model of strength that didn’t come from dominance. It came from divine clarity.
Rabbi Groner embodied that strength. Fully, fiercely, and unapologetically.
So what about today?
On the same chat where we remembered Rabbi Groner, we also shared stories of shocking and growing antisemitism in Australia.
Public buildings defaced.
Jewish philanthropies targeted.
Museums, concert halls, schools and synagogues under attack.
Not because of wrongdoing.
But because they were built or donated by Jews.
And here’s what we must understand:
It’s not rational. It’s spiritual.
Antisemitism doesn’t follow logic.
We’ve been hated for being rich and for being poor.
For being too religious and too secular.
For integrating and for isolating.
This isn’t about what Jews do.
It’s about what Jews are.
A conscience. A reminder. A people that doesn’t disappear.
And that unsettles the world.
That’s why hiding doesn’t help.
Shrinking doesn’t save us.
Only standing tall does.
Would Melbourne, or the world, look different today if more voices like Rabbi Groner’s were still leading?
Maybe we don’t need another Big Itch.
But we definitely need to stop playing small.
Listen to the audio.
Let it sting.
Let it stir.
Then ask:
What am I doing with my voice?
“What’s your strongest memory of Rabbi Groner?”
Boruch Meir “Meyer” Greenbaum
Business of Soul | BMG Advisors | Platform Partners(
This post is the intellectual property of the author. All rights reserved.)
Glossary:
Rebbe – The spiritual leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Chossid (Chassid) – A devoted follower of a Rebbe; one who seeks to live with purpose, humility, and service.
Shliach / Shluchim – Emissary(ies) sent by the Rebbe to strengthen Jewish life and practice around the world.
Mesirus Nefesh – Self-sacrifice; the willingness to give up personal comfort, even one’s life, for a higher cause.
Yiddishkeit – Jewishness; living a life infused with Jewish tradition, values, and mitzvot.
Seudas Hodaya – A celebratory meal of thanksgiving, often held after a miraculous event.
OB"M – "Of Blessed Memory"; an honorific used for someone who has passed away.
Rosh Chodesh Kislev – The first day of the Hebrew month of Kislev, significant in Chabad for the Rebbe’s recovery in 1977.
Ne’ilah / Selichos – Powerful Jewish prayers recited on Yom Kippur and before the High Holidays.
“Chocolatnik” – A slang term referring to soft, American-born Jews perceived as too comfortable or spoiled.
Soul-veillance – A coined term used here to describe spiritual mentorship or watchfulness motivated by love, not control.