Roshei yeshivos and heads of central kollelim from all Torah-true circles and communities throughout Israel, alongside leaders of Torah-true cities, shepherds of the world of Torah and Chassidus, gathered together this past Sunday evening in response to the cry and outcry of the leaders of the generation, headed by HaRav Dov Lando shlita, in reply to the dire situation of the Torah world contending with the flood of harsh decrees plummeting down upon us from all sides by the sinners of our people and enemies of religion. These figures sought to rally an emergency protest gathering, expressing a huge outcry to shake up the entire country, to rouse up the entire diaspora in fire for the sake of the continued existence of Torah in Eretz Yisroel.

HaRav Dov Lando shlita

Many people are asking why Hashem is doing this to us? Why is the Torah world being so terribly persecuted by evil gangs whose actions garner so much vehement applause from the knights of democracy, who used to spout: "Each unto his own beliefs"?

An enlightening story is quoted in a weekly sheet "A Candle for the Shabbos Table" from the book Ish Eshkolos (a biography of HaRav Yisroel Zev Gustman):

Towards the end of the thirties of the previous century, the condition of European Jews was at a drastic low. Horrible, threatening decrees were being issued and the prognosis for the future was of things even worse to come.

Part III

This final part is a further discussion of studying Mishnayos to benefit deceased relatives.

True Merits For The Deceased

In a passage in Igeres Hateshuvah (Drush Shlishi, Yom Vav, Siman 79) Rabbenu Yonah discusses the great merits accredited to parents when their children learn Torah and keep the mitzvos.

"A woman should be careful to pray every evening, morning and noon. At the end of her prayers, her principle supplication to Hashem should be that her sons and daughters fear Him and that her sons be successful in their Torah studies, for a woman earns her principal merits in the world to come when her children serve Hashem, fulfill His will and fear Him. After she has reached her own world, having left behind children who carry the fear of Hashem in their hearts and who involve themselves with Torah and mitzvos, it is considered as though she were still alive and fulfilling all the mitzvos herself. She thus merits the highest levels in the World to Come."

The Chofetz Chaim zt'l, in Ahavas Chesed (chap.15 footnote) writes in very strong terms against people who erect tombstones of expensive marble engraved with gold lettering and other artwork, or plant trees or create some other type of picturesque scenery, because they wish to create an everlasting memorial to their parents. They spend vast sums of money, believing that they are bringing great pleasure to the souls of their deceased loved ones in this way.

Concerning this practice, the Chofetz Chaim comments: "How greatly mistaken these people are in this belief of theirs. The truth is that after its departure from this world and its arrival in the world of Truth, the soul of the deceased recognizes that Torah and mitzvos are the only things that are ultimately desired. It sees that they are considered there to be the finest "merchandise" that is valued in all the worlds... The soul then regrets having squandered away its days in this world in pursuing vain pleasures and imaginary honor, for which it must now give account.

"This being so, imagine what kind of pleasure the parent's soul gets to see his sons, to whom he devoted all his labors and upon whom he relied in his lifetime to save him from the Divine judgment through their correct and upright behavior, as they instead go and add further worthless pleasures over and above those which he collected in his lifetime.