"We came to Eretz Yisroel during these difficult
times for one purpose: to give chizuk and to receive
chizuk. Now is the time to show that only the Torah
has the power to give chizuk." This is how Rabbis
Shmuel Blum and Shlomo Gertzulin -- deputy Vice Presidents
of Agudas Yisroel of America -- summed up the purpose of the
Yarchei Kallah held in Yerushalayim last week under the
auspices of their organization and attended by 180
members.
The participants, senior Agudas Yisroel members whose visit
was not accompanied by much publicity, came from most
centers of Orthodox Jewry: Brooklyn, Monsey, Denver,
Lakewood, Los Angeles, Dallas, Baltimore, Edison, Toronto,
Chicago, and even some from Antwerp. Under the simple
heading, "Yarchei Kallah, Yerushalayim, 5761" the delegates
left their businesses and chutz lo'oretz activities
to devote themselves to gemora, halocho and
mussar for three days.
The first yarchei kallahs date back to the times of
Chazal. The concept was revived on a large scale by the
Ponevezher Rov zt"l. Each year sees another increase
in the number of yarchei kallahs organized around the
world. A few weeks ago, at the Agudas Yisroel Convention, a
resolution was adopted to hold this yarchei kallah.
The resolution came in the wake of a letter sent by HaRav
Eliashiv to the Convention, in which he mentioned the
difficult times residents of Eretz Yisroel were
experiencing as well as the anti-religious maneuvers of the
government, and he called for our brethren overseas to be
"united" (agudim) with Israeli troubles.
In addition to the gedolim who graced the yarchei
kallah with their presence -- HaRav Aharon Leib
Steinman, HaRav Shmuel Auerbach, and the Novominsker,
Belzer, and Klausenberger Rebbes -- many important roshei
yeshivosand roshei kollelim gave
shiurim.
Rabbis Blum and Gertzulin stressed to me that the group did
not come to engage in politics, but simply to get away from
their offices and businesses for a week to hear
shiurim in Eretz Yisroel from a distinguished
list of rabbonim. I asked him if he thought that future
yarchei kallah would also be held in Eretz
Yisroel.
"I hope so. People are very satisfied, the learning is
accompanied by a lot of geshmack, and hopefully
things will remain calm in this country. Americans deal a
lot with Eretz Yisroel-related matters. By our coming
here and learning, we also intend to convey a message with
regard to the issue of drafting yeshiva bochurim,
which worries us a lot, namely that Torah magno
umatzlo, and that Torah learning, more than anything
else, is of vital importance.
"Secular Israelis say that we have to do our bit by serving
in the army. We have come here to make the point that
nothing is more important than Torah. Our survival in
Eretz Yisroel, especially during these difficult
times, is due totally to those in full-time learning. We
must stress and clarify this point also to the nonobservant
public."
Last Tuesday, as part of the yarchei kallah program,
a special dinner was held for Keren Hashevi'is. The
opening speaker was HaRav Shmuel Auerbach rosh
yeshiva of Maalos Hatorah. He said that Hashem should
give strength to the farmers, the giborei koach who
were keeping shmittah and to the activists in whose
merit there are Jews keeping shmittah today who did
not do so in the past. This was no small matter, and they
deserve our full admiration.
Rav Shmuel Mordechai Mintz, one of the heads of Keren
Hashevi'is, read out a letter sent to the Keren several days
earlier by a farmer from Gush Katif who was not doing any
work in his fields this year. His wife was injured in a
shooting incident, and he pointed out in his letter that, as
an avreich, he was being supported by the grant from
the Keren paid out to farmers who keep shmittah, in
addition to National Insurance and Child Benefit payments.
He explained that his situation was precarious because of
his wife's injury, and he asked for help.
Rav Mintz thanked the UTJ representatives for assisting
shmittah-observant farmers, and making sure that
Keren Hashevi'is had constant access to the Ministry
of Agriculture.
The Novominsker Rebbe said that all those responsible for
ensuring that shmittah was kept properly, such as Rav
Efrati, Rav Mintz and Rav Mendelssohn, had the merit of
reminding the Jewish people of the sanctity of Eretz
Yisroel and how Hashem wants us to relate to it.
Rav Yosef Efrati, head of the Beis Hamedrash Lahalacha
Behityashvut, brought a message of greetings from HaRav
Eliashiv in which he praised those who observe
shevi'is and the supporters of Keren Hashevi'is who
help them.
Rav Efrati went on to make the point that we find only two
times in Chazal that a group or individual is called
giborei koach. The first time is when the Jewish
people said na'ase before nishma, and the
second time with reference to shomrei shmittah who
abandon their fields. In both instances, the decision to
fulfill Hashem's Will is undertaken in complete faith,
without knowing what will happen. Everyone knows, he said,
how many nisyonos are involved in observing
shmittah properly.
"Some people in chutz lo'oretz," he went on, "ask why
they should support shmittah observers, since they
themselves are not bound to keep this mitzva. We must repeat
the fundamentals which Chazal have taught us. For us
Eretz Yisroel is the country in which mitzvos
hateluyos bo'oretz are observed. The best way of
strengthening the residents of Eretz Yisroel is by
participating in the observance of shmittah, since
the punishment for the lack of such observance is exile.
Strengthening shmittah observers is not a charitable
cause, it is a partnership with the residents of Eretz
Yisroel.
"Before I finish, I cannot help but draw your attention to
the importance our rabbonim, both past and present, attached
to the observance of shmittah, in contrast to all
those who claimed that it was permissible to annul it. There
was a delegation of important rabbonim who came to HaRav
Eliashiv to ask whether it was permitted to overlook
vegetables which were sefichim in places where there
was a non-mehadrin hechsher. The rov told them,
`Would it occur to you to overlook the fact that meat that
had not been salted was being served in a hotel under your
hashgocho? Well, the latter is prohibited
derabonon whereas the issur of sefichin
is prohibited mide'oraiso according to some of the
poskim.'
"Helping shmittah observers is the best way of
helping Judaism as a whole, and strengthening the residents
of Eretz Yisroel."
After this, Rabbi Blum presented an envelope with a banker
check made out for a very large sum: the first installment
of American Jewry's donation to Keren Hashevi'is. After
this, Rav Yosef Lieberman and Rav Menachem Mendel
Mendelssohn, rov of Kommemiyus, spoke about different
aspects of shmittah.
I asked Rabbi Gertzulin why it is that Americans donate so
generously to Keren Hashevi'is?
"People give tzedoko for various things, but when it
comes to shmittah many donors get especially excited,
and give ten times as much as to other causes! It is a rare
mitzva for us, and a special feeling to be able to
contribute to it. People feel a sense of fellowship with
Jews in Eretz Yisroel, they consider it to be similar
to the "Yisochor-Zevulun" relationship."
How do American Jews look at current events in Eretz
Yisroel?
"People are very concerned for a number of reasons, but
mainly because a lot of people living here do not understand
that we are being sent a message from Above. We pray and
hope that the nonobservant will begin to understand this.
Boruch Hashem, there are a lot of baalei
teshuva, dozens of new schools are opening all the time
under the auspices of Shuvu, Keren Nesivos Moshe and Lev
L'Achim. If everybody would be truly observant, we would not
be in as bad a situation as we are now in Eretz
Yisroel."
Are there Jews in America who are afraid to come to Eretz
Yisroel?
"Of course. Everybody hears about the tragic events and
feels the atmosphere here, and it is only natural that many
people will be afraid. In practice, however, all the yeshiva
boys and seminary girls came back here after yom tov.
In fact, they were encouraged to go back to show that Torah
offers a protection."
On Wednesday important shiurim and droshos
were given by the Belzer Rebbe, Rav Nosson Zvi Finkel, Rav
Shlomo Wolbe and the Klausenberger Rebbe. The evening's
special guest speaker was HaRav Aharon Yehuda Leib Steinman
who came especially to Yerushalayim for the event.
In his introductory speech, Rabbi Blum said that Rav
Steinman had advised that anyone wanting to do something for
Eretz Yisroel should sit and learn. People had taken
his advice and come to Yerushalayim to learn. He expresses
his intense gratitude to the Rosh Yeshiva, who had also
advised the guests about sedorim and what material to
learn.
The Novominsker Rebbe, head of American Agudas Yisroel spoke
about how fortunate the yarchei kallah participants
had been to fulfill the command to let "your eyes see your
teachers" and to have heard shiurim and
droshos from gedolei Yisroel.
It is with a heavy heart that all the lawyers and
businessmen-cum-avreichim who attended this special
yarchei kallah, the first of its kind in Eretz
Yisroel, packed their bags. These Aguda activists who,
despite their many private and public activities, spend
their lives being kovea itim latorah, had a rare
chance to spend a few days in a pure atmosphere of full-time
Torah. We may assume that similar repeat events will not be
long in coming.
