In the year 1927, The Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, was informed by the Soviet authorities that he would be released from prison on Rosh Chodesh Tamuz, which was on a Thursday that year. The Rebbe was given permission to visit with his family for six hours, after which a train would take him to the far-off regions of the east to serve a three-year sentence in exile, for the "crime" of disseminating Judaism.
When the Rebbe learned that the train would arrive at its destination on Shabbat, he adamantly refused to this arrangement. "I will absolutely not travel on Shabbat!" he declared.
His jailers then threatened that if he did not go along with their plans, not only would he not be allowed to see his family, but he would have to serve a longer term in prison. The Rebbe replied, "I will remain in jail as long as necessary, but I will not travel on Shabbat!"
According to Jewish law, it is quite possible that the Rebbe would have been permitted to board the train, for reasons of pikuach nefesh which is saving a Jewish life. Nonetheless, he refused to do so, and remained in jail until the third of Tamuz.
The Rebbe knew that the danger to his life increased with every additional minute spent in prison. But his desire to sanctify the Name of G-d was an even stronger consideration.
Had the Rebbe, a public figure, agreed to be freed from prison with full knowledge that it entailed the desecration of Shabbat, it would have caused the exact opposite of a sanctification of G-d's Name. The Rebbe's conscious decision to remain in prison prevented this from happening.
The Previous Rebbe stood firm and immovable, demonstrating an extreme level of self-sacrifice. When it comes to sanctifying the Name of G-d, there is no room for hesitation or doubt.
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