Unity: What it Achieves and the Obligations it
Confers
The theme of this year's American Aguda Convention was
Bishtei Einayim: An Eye to the Past, a Vision for the
Future. The title was taken from Rabbi Moshe Sherer,
z'l's, book of essays. Once again, thousands of Jews
converged for an extended weekend of discussion and
inspiration.
The Convention's central event, the Keynote Session, is held
on motzei Shabbos, when the foremost leaders of
American Torah Jewry address the audience. As in previous
years, this session was attended by thousands of additional
visitors, filling every available corner of the halls and
anticipating the main address, delivered by HaRav Elya Svei,
rosh yeshiva of Philadelphia and member of the Moetzes
Gedolei HaTorah.
In his introductory remarks, Rabbi Chaskel Besser, member of
the Presidium of Agudas Yisroel of America, mentioned
the observation made by the late Ponovezher Rav zt'l,
that what makes Agudas Yisroel of America unique is
the uniting of all Torah Jewry's various factions to work for
the common good. Rabbi Besser also noted the merits of the
men who laid the foundations for what was to come: Rabbis
Elimelech Tress and Moshe Sherer zt'l.
In his address, Convention chairman R' Ellis Safdeye pointed
out that despite the differences in customs of the Ashkenazi
and Sephardi communities, the Chumash and the daf
gemora unite everyone, as does Agudas Yisroel of America,
bringing each group and community together within one
framework, for the purpose of successful Torah achievement.
"Just as an orchestra is made up of various players and
instruments, Torah Jewry is composed of different types,
which together form the community, while Agudas
Yisroel of America acts as the `conductor' of this
orchestra and its wonderful symphony, giving it the strength
to withstand the vicious onslaught of those who do battle
against the Torah."
Convention chairman Rabbi Reuven Dov Dessler began with a
message of thanks to the heads of the offices of the American
Aguda, for organizing the Convention, at which words of
encouragement that act as a beacon for our further progress
are delivered. Rabbi Dessler devoted his address to the need
to assist the spiritual endeavors underway in the former
Soviet Union, which have already saved many Jews, and
resulted in a large number of bnei Torah from Russia
in Eretz Yisroel and the United States. He read out a moving
letter written by a Russian born bochur who
participated in a summer camp and related how he had merited
making a trip to Eretz Yisroel. After visiting the graves of
the tzaddikim and other holy sites, he headed for
Yeshivas Mir in Yerushalayim, where he was surprised to find -
- even though it was bein hazmanim -- a packed beis
hamedrash, from which the vibrant sounds of Torah study
emanated.
"I met a bochur there, who had been a counselor at the
previous year's summer camp. I asked him why he hadn't
travelled home for the recess and he replied that he didn't
want to miss out on a single moment of Torah learning in the
atmosphere of Eretz Yisroel. I aspire to become a ben
Torah of this caliber . . ." This is how the
bochur, who had only drawn close to Torah one year
earlier, ended his letter.
Rabbi Dessler mentioned the activities of the Vaad Lehatzolas
Nidchei Yisroel, which is led by Rabbi Mordechai Neustadt, in
Tibilisi, Baku and Kuba; the yeshiva in Moscow run by Rabbi
Wolf Rosengarten; the activities of chassidei Karlin,
led by Rav Shlomo Dishon in the cities of the Ukraine; the
recent work in Kaliningrad organized by R' Abba Dunner of
London and numerous other initiatives. Rabbi Dessler noted
that a significant proportion of the projects on behalf of
Russian Jewry began at Aguda Conventions, and added that the
community has an obligation to assist all such activity.
Guidance and Warning
The gathering listened in great eagerness to the address of
HaRav Elya Svei, who began by recalling the great loss
suffered by Torah Jewry with the petirah of Rabbi
Moshe Sherer, who connected our generation with the previous
one by virtue of his having received the Torah traditions of
the gedolim who founded Agudas Yisroel from the great
roshei hayeshivos, ztvk'l.
HaRav Svei mentioned the previous generation's grave fears
regarding the spiritual dangers of America. He recalled how,
when he himself, as a young boy, had been about to depart for
America with his family, his mother was approached by
Slobodke residents who asked her in amazement how it was
possible to take a young boy from Slobodke to America.
He also mentioned how HaRav Nosson Meir Wachtfogel
zt'l, requested that his rebbe in Kelm, HaRav
Eliyohu Lopian ztvk'l, provide him with spiritual
guidance that would equip him for life in America. HaRav
Lopian replied, "One can withstand the trials of America and
survive there with two pieces of Ramban," referring to the
Ramban's comments at the end of parshas Bo (Shemos
13:16), where he elaborates upon Hashem's miracles and
His direct Providence over Klal Yisroel, and his
comments in parshas Kedoshim (Vayikro 19:2), where he
discusses the obligation to `sanctify yourself [even] with
respect to what is permitted.' If a person clings to these
fundamentals, he is afforded immunity against the waves of
atheism and materialism that abound in America.
HaRav Svei mentioned the comments of HaRav Shimon Shkop
zt'l, in his introduction to his work Sha'arei
Yosher, where he discusses Chazal's interpretation of the
posuk, ` "You shall be holy," Perhaps [just] like Me?
. . .' Its meaning is that the level of a person's
kedusha depends upon the amount he devoted himself to
the benefit of the community, rather than to his own personal
benefit and pleasure. In this way, he cleaves to the traits
of HaKodosh Boruch Hu. HaRav Svei went on to point out
several matters that currently require attention.
"In the medrash, on the parsha (Bereishis
34:1), `And Dinah, Leah's daughter went out,' we find
that Chazal attribute the episode to Yaakov's having told
Lavan (Bereishis 30:33) [when discussing the terms of
his payment and assuring him of his honesty], `And my
righteousness will answer for me in the future' -- the
posuk says, `Don't boast about the future,' and you
said, `And my righteousness will answer for me in the future'
. . . in the future your daughter will go out and be
violated, as it says, `And Dinah, Leah's daughter went
out.'
"This is astounding! Yaakov Ovinu a'h, certainly knew
that he was in the right and that Lavan was plotting against
him without a cause. There was nothing that was not already
known concerning Yaakov's righteousness in Lavan's household,
nor anything boastful in mentioning it. What then was his
crime in saying, `And my righteousness will answer for me in
the future'?
"Chazal are teaching us however, that a person must always
have the feeling that he is engaged in a battle -- the battle
against the yetzer hora. When someone is in the middle
of a struggle, he is not relaxed and sure of himself just
because he was victorious in earlier engagements, for he
knows that the battle is still raging and he has no
assurances about what will happen in the future."
"`Don't boast about the future'! We must not feel calm and
relaxed, as though our spiritual future is assured and self
evident. Chazal teach us the extent to which a person must
pay attention [to his deeds] and carefully reckon his every
step. He must not feel as though his future is assured on the
merits of what has been hitherto. No man can say, `Everything
is going to be fine with me," and be sure that he and his
household are upon the correct path, and that what lies in
their future is a forgone conclusion. This chas
vesholom encroaches upon the warning not to `boast about
the future'!
The safeguarding of religion and of education in particular
require renewed strengthening and attention every single day,
for we have no assurance from one day to the next -- `You
can't know what each day will bring, as the wisest of men
says in the continuation of the posuk. We have to
realize that although the Torah world is boruch Hashem
blossoming, and there is cause for feeling satisfaction, we
must still not ignore the fact that we are engaged in a
battle that becomes harder and more threatening each day.
Nobody can remain calm and be sure of the spiritual future of
the members of his household.
"Chazal illuminate another aspect of the parsha
dealing with `And Dinah, Leah's daughter went out', which is
brought by Rashi: `[Was she] the daughter of Leah and not the
daughter of Yaakov? Nonetheless, she is called the daughter
of Leah on account of her going out, for Leah also had this
characteristic, as the posuk (Bereishis 30:16), says
`And Leah went out to meet him.' This requires explanation.
Leah's going out was of an elevated nature, for it resulted
in the birth of [another of] the holy shevotim. Chazal
tell us [on that posuk], ` . . . on that night,' this
teaches us that HaKodosh Boruch Hu assisted in the
matter,' and as a result Yissochor was born. Leah's going out
was therefore completely holy, for it led to a lofty outcome
and merited HaKodosh Boruch Hu's assistance. Why then,
do Chazal connect it with Dinah's going out?
"What Chazal mean is that while Leah's going out certainly
was a holy deed, it nevertheless involved an act of going
out. Whereas in Leah's case it was done in the correct way
and in conditions of kedusha, Dinah's going out was
not fitting and it resulted in what subsequently took place.
The tendency towards going out had been implanted in Dinah
and once a tendency has gained a foothold, it is liable to
lead to undesirable consequences. This teaches us that we
must the utmost care to ensure that every single excursion is
undertaken in the correct way and is made in accordance with
the Torah's dictates.
"In connection with this, I want to bring up a subject that
has been spoken about in the past. In our times, due to the
difficulties of making a living as well as for various other
reasons, talented young women pursue training in various
types of office work and seek employment in offices and in
other surroundings, where the atmosphere is such that it
harms the trait of modesty. And even in places which appear
to be in order, we cannot ignore the fact of some kind of
`going out' is involved, concerning the dangers of which
Chazal have warned us.
"One of the greatest problems recently is the problem of
`feminism,' a rebellious spirit seeking `equal rights for
women,' which has caught on at the lower echelons of the
groups that call themselves `modern orthodox.' They are
looking for new roles for women, to perform mitzvos which
apply to men -- things which our fathers never dreamed of.
The truth is that the entire program of feminism is to break
down the barriers between men's and women's respective roles
and `religious feminism' is no different. They make out as
though their intention is to advance and progress spiritually
-- to learn a daf of gemora or to do mitzvos
which are not incumbent upon women -- but the truth is that
it is rooted in the wish to break down barriers.
"We should be aware that in making any change, even the very
slightest, from our tradition, what results is not Torah.
Chazal's statement, that woman was created from a part of man
which is covered, and that Hashem commanded her every limb to
act modestly, is well known. This means that a woman's
principle characteristic and her purpose, is modesty. It
transpires therefore, that their intention is to damage what
the Torah regards as the very essence of womanhood. Since the
conduct of Torah observant Jews has far reaching effects upon
the entire world, we must first examine ourselves to see
whether we are living in accordance with a clear and full
awareness of the woman's role in a Jewish home. Were that to
be the case, the matter would not even have been any breaches
in the matter among those who are further away."
HaRav Svei also called for great care to be taken in
protecting children from the malaises of our generation,
watching out for any and every negative influence. "A
person's greatest treasures are his children, to whom he
wants to pass on the very best. Let us not harm this
treasure. There are homes where newspapers can be found that
are forbidden to be kept in a Jewish home. Special
consideration has to be given to these publications' effect
upon the children. And even if they are not in one's own
home, children can see them in their friends' houses. What
tremendous damage they can cause! They introduce the child
into a completely different world of values, which can lead
him on a downward path cholila.
"Chazal tell us that Avrohom Ovinu, `did not sit at a meeting
of scoffers -- this refers to the Philistines.' Although
Chazal are referring to the scoffing of the Philistines in
Shimshon's time, Avrohom divined the first feeble roots of
this conduct among the Philistines who were his
contemporaries and he was careful to avoid coming into any
contact with their evil influence. We, on the other hand, do
the opposite, introducing the opportunity for scoffing into
our homes. Leaving aside books which contain heresy and filth
-- just looking at `innocent' books can also confuse our
childrens' minds. Between their lines, these books are
suffused with a gentile outlook upon the world and this
penetrates deeply, resulting afterwards in confusion and
mixed-upness. One can never know how an adult's world outlook
is affected by what was implanted in his mind as a child
having been part Torah and part a gentile outlook.
"Our concern is not only for those who will go downwards as a
result of such influences. Even those who will be saved and
will grow up to live a Torah life are also harmed by these
influences. The Beis Halevi's words are well known;
the parchment upon which the Oral Torah is written is the
Jewish brain. It is there that Torah Sheba'al Peh is
recorded. Who would want a sefer Torah to be written
on a piece of ugly and unseemly parchment? In the same way,
woe to us if the medium which is to carry words of Torah
Sheba'al Peh has had bad things engraved upon it,
damaging the minds of the talmidei chachomim and
educators of the future. This is an awesome danger. We are
liable to destroy our childrens' potential merely because of
lack of supervision and the failure to take notice of what
they see and what they are reading. This is one of the great
problems in America -- children see what they ought not to
see.
Continuing, HaRav Svei mentioned the obligation to support
the spiritual endeavors among the Jews of the former Soviet
Union. Now, when the yoke of heretical Communism has been
lifted, everything possible has to be done to bring them to
Torah life. "We still merited seeing what joy HaRav Yaakov
Kamenetsky zt'l, experienced when he saw the first
bnei Torah who had developed in the merit of this
work. He was deeply moved by the sight of a ben Torah
from Russia. In their own times, our masters the Chofetz
Chaim and HaRav Chaim Ozer called for devotion to the cause
of saving these Jews. Today the enforced Communist ideology
does not exist and much can be achieved. Who knows the great
value of a single ben Torah from Russia; there is a
special obligation to assist this work."
The Mantle of Leadership Passes On
Returning to the void left in Agudas Yisroel of America by
the petirah of HaRav Moshe Sherer zt'l, HaRav
Svei said, "On many occasions in the past months, I would
think of various topics that came up, `I have to speak to Reb
Moshe about this,' but he isn't here with us. Reb Moshe felt
with his whole heart that every problem, whether of the
community or of an individual, was his own problem. He had a
keen eye that was able to examine matters thoroughly, to
understand in depth and to formulate a solution. Now we have
lost all this."
He mentioned that, "All his life, Reb Moshe Sherer
zt'l, toiled to implant the correct Torah perspective
in its purity, to confront those who uproot Torah, who wish
to control Am Yisroel, wholly devoting himself to
seeing that gedolei Torah led Klal Yisroel, and
uniting the community for the sake of meeting the important
challenges that face Torah observant Jews in our day."
He pointed to Rabbi Sherer's final mission, when he led a
delegation of communal representatives of American Jewry to
Israel last year to raise the alarm concerning the threat
posed by Reform and Conservative Jews. Leading the
delegation, Rabbi Sherer expressed the Torah true outlook,
however, while in the middle of the campaign, he fell ill
with the sickness from which he never recovered. The problem
still exists and is gravely threatening, especially at the
present time.
In the final portion of his address, HaRav Svei announced the
appointment of the Admor of Novominsk as the new head of
Agudas Yisroel of America. His account of the choice of the
Rebbe and the Rebbe's consent to assume the responsibility,
as well as the address delivered by the Novominsker Rebbe
himself, were all reported fully in last week's Convention
article.
Other speakers at the motzei Shabbos session were vice
presidents of Agudas Yisroel of America, Rabbis Shmuel Bloom
and Shlomo Gertzulin. The evening was chaired by HaRav Efraim
Wachsman, rosh yeshiva of Adas Yereim in Monsey and
the final speaker was HaRav Aharon Dovid Dunner, dayan
in London's Orthodox Union.
