It was a sight familiar to the Yated Ne'eman staff.
HaRav Chaim Shaul Karelitz zt'l suddenly appears,
asking to speak with the director general and the editors.
News of the surprise visit quickly spreads around the
building. Workers from various departments look at him with
admiration. Newer workers, seeing this sight for the first
time, bump into walls, not believing their eyes.
Meanwhile the Rov, a man of great humility, notices none of
the stares and the great respect accorded him as people step
quickly aside in the hallways. He hurries straight to his
destination, his quick steps belying his 85 years of age. He
flies up the stairs with a sprightly step, carried by the
same inner drive, burning passion and focused determination
for which he was widely known. "I have come," he would
explain apologetically, "just to comment and critique, to
inquire and to clarify."
Sometimes his visits were in order to offer constructive
criticism and his own ideas on articles that had been
published, sometimes he would ask us to print a letter he
had written on current matters of import and sometimes he
would come to inquire about complaints he had heard.
His insistence on emes, his noble midos and
his great concern for kovod habriyos compelled him to
check every complaint personally and not to rely on vague
accusations. All of us felt uneasy that someone on his
spiritual level and at his advanced age (any of us could
have been his grandchildren) troubled himself over us. On
many occasions we would urge him to instead give us a call
and we would come to his home right away to save him the
effort of coming in to our offices--zoken ve'eino lefi
kvodo--but, in his typically humble and simple manner,
would smile bashfully and say, "I had something to say, so I
came."
Sometimes we would watch him and wonder in amazement, "Could
this be the very same HaRav Chaim Shaul who incenses the
ruling forces and who is waging a `world war' over
kodshei Yisroel and to safeguard halacha and matters
of hashkofoh? Could it be this same Yid who always
keeps off to the side, who will not consider using
assistants or messengers and whose actions serve as a living
example of mitzvah bo yoser mibeshlucho?"
* * *
The world is divided into soldiers and generals--some call
them wage-earners and independents.
The soldier or the wage-earner is endowed with a sense of
obedience and discipline. He follows orders and does as he
is told. This is both an asset and a liability. On one hand
his superiors can rely on him to carry out orders
efficiently and faithfully. On the other hand, he lacks
motivation. He shows neither vision nor imagination. He
displays little initiative and does not demand
excellence.
Meanwhile the general--or the boss at work--has the opposite
characteristics. He gives orders, organizes and directs his
battalions (departments, employees, etc.) with highly
charged energy. He does not wait for directives, but
initiates and takes the lead without any prompting.
The same applies to yiras Hashem in matters related
to the proper functioning of Klal Yisroel. The
generals are gedolei Yisroel. We are just foot
soldiers obeying orders. Yet one who always acts like a mere
soldier is liable to lose all of the more elevated qualities
of the general. If he focuses all of his energy on obeying
orders without self-motivation, he might begin to feel
drained and apathetic, and carry out his assigned tasks just
to fulfill the minimum obligation. With such an attitude he
will miss the mark and will eventually undermine his ability
to fulfill his soldierly duties as well.
HaRav Chaim Shaul showed us a new kind of eved
Hashem, who serves as both soldier and general in one.
On one hand he saw himself as a mere delegate, a foot
soldier called to defend the flag. He did not formulate his
own plans but acted simply as an extension of gedolei
Yisroel. Yet he did not allow his obeisance to drain his
energy and his sense of personal obligation, his drive and
his feeling that everything depended on him alone and that
the responsibility rested on his shoulders.
This was the kind of attitude he displayed throughout his
lifetime--and it could be seen even in his last month. When
the need arose to protest, he enlisted and dedicated all of
his strength. While lying on his sickbed he girded his
reserves and engaged his senses only because he saw the task
as part of his role as a trusted servant to the Rosh Yeshiva
shlita. Yet he managed to apply all of his strength
to the task, ketofei'ach al menas lehatfiach, taking
the initiative and functioning like the commander of a
battalion. A general and a soldier in one.
* * *
It should come as no surprise that gedolei Yisroel
shlita placed their trust in him. Maran HaRosh
Yeshiva shlita chose him to engage in various activities
designed to the strengthen the Torah ideal--including as a
member of Yated Ne'eman's Vaada Ruchanit--and even
appointed him av beis din of Shearis Yisroel because
they perceived him as an individual who could fight battles
and effect revolutionary changes while maintaining complete
allegiance and a deep sense of commitment to his charge. A
foot soldier fighting great battles.
He also felt great esteem for and had a close friendship for
many years with amud hahora'a, HaRav Y. S. Eliashiv,
in matters of kashrus and in a number of other areas.
HaRav Eliashiv, in turn, offered extraordinary words of
praise, referring to him as "a man of truth through and
through."
* * *
We will come to feel the loss of HaRav Chaim Shaul deeply,
who cried out in such a powerful voice, who gave all of his
strength, who demanded that we stand fast and never
waver.
We have lost a soldier and a general. We can only lament as
Dovid lamented for Yehonoson: "How the valiant have fallen
in battle."
We have suffered a great loss that cannot be replaced.
