Rabbi Miller both loved and shunned the limelight. He loved the limelight when it illuminated the message which he brought to his audience. Yet he shunned the limelight when it shone on him as a person. We must not forget this when recording a few remarks about him as a person, and we have to keep in mind: Will they bring a message to the reader? Will they inspire?

We hope that the following will inspire our readers with the memory of one of the great teachers of our generation.

Part I

A Major Achievement

It has been said that the little Kehilloh of Gateshead was a Teivoh built during the Mabul which engulfed the Jewish world in the thirties. It is wondrous how many living beings managed to come inside this Teivoh and keep alive in a spiritual sense. Just as Noach had to provide sustenance to all living beings, so too did R. Miller provide spiritual sustenance to the bnos Yisroel in his part of the Teivoh. Just as Noach exerted himself to his utmost -- until he coughed blood [as Rashi explains] -- so too did R. Miller stretch himself to his utmost, physical frailty notwithstanding.

Despite R. Miller's multifaceted activities in harbotzas Torah the focus of his activities was undoubtedly the Seminary. From the perspective of an avreich it is hard to describe the inner workings of his teachings there. One achievement, however, towers so much above the rest that it is visible to the entire Klal Yisroel:

Some years ago, a member of a heimishe shul in England had married off two of his daughters to husbands who stayed in learning after their chasunoh. When he told his neighbor in shul that his third daughter had become engaged, the neighbor exclaimed: "Mistome noch a kollel yungerman. Nu, abi gezunt! (Probably another kollel avreich. Well, at least let them be healthy.) Anyone who understands the subtle nature of Yiddish understatement knows that the neighbor was far from being impressed!

At that time, this man was the first baal habayis in his shul to take a son-in-law who learned in kollel. He was not disappointed and some of his sons-in-law have become world famous talmidei chachomim. In recent years, however, almost every member of that shul has married his daughters to sons-in-law who commenced their married life with full-time learning. (Heard from HaRav Matisyohu Salomon)

R. Miller had a big role in this change. ...

One of the areas in which gedolei Yisroel are most often approached for guidance and advice is in matters pertaining to chinuch and to talmud Torah. While each questioner comes with his own set of circumstances and receives an answer that fits his particular situation, a majority of the questions touch on common issues which affect almost everybody. Many of these questions also arrive on Yated's editorial desk, accompanied by requests to answer or deal with them in the pages of the paper. We asked Rav Tzvi Yabrov to prepare a number of such questions and to seek reliable answers to them. Rav Yabrov was fortunate to spend some time with HaRav Chaim Kanievsky, who gave verbal replies to the queries. Rav Yabrov later submitted his written version of these replies to HaRav Kanievsky, who gave his consent for publication. Here are the questions which Rav Yabrov submitted, together with HaRav Kanievsky's replies. Part I Attending Weddings Q. When one of the bochurim in a yeshiva is getting married, is every bochur who learns there obligated to attend the wedding? Does one have to go to every wedding? And if so, how long does one have to stay? What about a good friend, who will be offended if his friends do not participate in his simchoh? A. What do you mean "obligated to attend"? Some people are careful not to give invitations to a bris miloh [because receiving an invitation to a seudas mitzvoh obliges the recipient to attend, which is not always possible] but to a wedding? . . . There is no law that one has to attend and no obligation. The only question is, whether or not the chosson will be offended, in which case it is perhaps a matter of chesed. I didn't go to all the weddings while in yeshiva, except for those of good friends: first so as not to offend them and second, because if I had gone to their simchas, they would not have come to mine. There is a gemora in Bovo Basro (91) that says, "Rabba bar Rav Huna said in the name of Rav, `Boaz made a hundred and twenty feasts (for sixty sons and daughters) and he did not invite Mono'ach to any of them. He said, "He is a barren mule, how can he repay me? (i.e. he has no children to whose simchas he can invite me)."' " The gemora ends by telling us, "They all (all Boaz's children) died in his (their father's) lifetime." I was once asked by an elderly man, while I was learning in the yeshiva in Petach Tikvah, what Boaz meant by "how can he repay me?" Was Boaz in need of food, of a piece of cake, that made it difficult for him to invite Mono'ach if he would not be invited in return? I replied that the meaning was clear. Take the Chazon Ish for example.