On 5 Menachem Av, HaRav Shmuel Halevi Wosner, HaRav Michel
Yehuda Lefkowitz and HaRav Chaim Kanievsky joined many other
gedolei Yisroel, hundreds of bnei Torah and
residents of the Bnei Brak Zichron Meir neighborhood to
accompany one of its most venerable residents, HaRav Shmuel
Halevi Lieberman, zt"l, on his last earthly journey.
HaRav Lieberman was a talmid muvhak of HaRav Elchonon
Wassermann and HaRav Boruch Ber Leibowitz, and had studied
for many years in the Yarchei Kallah Beis Medrash in Bnei
Brak.
The niftar, son of Reb Avrohom Lieberman, came from
an illustrious family that left Galicia in the height of the
First World War. From the day he was born, his parents put
aside money, penny by penny, so that they would be able buy
him a Shas for his bar mitzvah, a very costly item
during that period.
As a child, he displayed rare talents and outstanding
character traits. When he was a youth, he yearned to study
Torah al taharas Hakodesh, and traveled to
Baranowitz, becoming very close with HaRav Elchonon
Wassermann and HaRav Boruch Ber Leibowitz.
After moving to Eretz Yisrael, he began to study in the
Lomze yeshiva in Petach Tikvah, and he married one of the
daughters of the Guggenheim family. After the petiroh
of his father, he had to work to support his family.
However, Torah study remained his main occupation. His day,
replete with Torah and mitzvos, would begin at three in the
morning, with many hours of uninterrupted study.
For the past forty years he lived in the building next to
the Yarchei Kallah kollel in the yeshiva square in
Bnei Brak. He was one of the kollel's mainstays,
studying there for hours on end. For scores of years he
participated in the famous Daf Yomi shiur delivered
there by HaRav Moshe Mordechai Shulsinger.
He was known by all as a very special person, who loved
peace, pursued peace, was humble and genial to all and
helped many others in a dedicated, unassuming manner.
During his final months he suffered from a serious
debilitating illness. However, he continued to pray and to
study with superhuman strength in the Yarchei Kallah
shul, concealing his suffering and maintaining a
happy disposition.
He was devastated two weeks ago when his son-in-law, the
avreich, HaRav Pinchas Farber was niftar,
leaving behind a large family.
Last week his situation grew worse and on Wednesday night, 5
Av he was niftar.
In the late morning, his bier was brought into the Yarchei
Kallah beis medrash. After the recitation of
Tehillim, HaRav Shmuel Halevi Wosner, rav and av
beis din of Zichron Meir, delivered a hesped in
which he cited the trait of "holech tomim ufo'el
tzedek"(honesty and integrity) in which the
niftar excelled. He cited the fact that the niftar
made the Yarchei Kallah shul and beis
medrash his home, noting that one can recognize
tzaddikim by their places of dwelling.
"I knew him for fifty years," HaRav Wosner said, "and he was
remarkable in his humility and simplicity, traits which
enabled him to reach the position in which he served the
great Torah sages of our times."
HaRav Zalman Drori, who parted from him in the name of the
members of the shul, noted his outstanding honesty
and the cordial manner in which he greeted every visitor to
the beis medrash.
HaRav Eliezer Turk spoke about the friendship between the
niftar and his father, HaRav Moshe Turk. He noted the
fact that Rav Shmuel was niftar on the
yahrtzeit of HaRav Chaim Ozer, zt"l. When Reb
Shmuel was young, HaRav Chaim told him, "Come to me with
whatever you need." He then cried out, "The walls of Yarchei
Kallah must weep, because your glory, splendor and radiance
have departed."
The niftar's son, HaRav Eliezer Lieberman, parted
from him with emotion, saying: "I never heard him say
anything derogatory about anyone, even when someone
mistreated him. He always thought only about others. I
remember that when he would return from abroad with a
valise, filled with items he had bought there cheaply, he
would distribute everything and not leave us a thing. He was
satisfied with the bare essentials in all that pertained to
material needs. He once told me: `Imagine how we would feel
if Rav Elchonon came in now, and saw that we had such
luxuries.' He was a very charitable person.
"One very hot day when I was a child I accompanied him to
Yerushalayim in order to collect money for the wedding of an
orphan. When I asked him if we could take a bus instead of
walking, he said that we should not use the money. After a
few minutes, we saw the chosson hailing a taxi, I
said, `We're collecting for him, and he stops a cab?' He
replied in a happy tone, which reflected his joy at doing a
mitzvah: `The effort is worth it, and I am happy that I am a
giver and not a recipient.' "
He then spoke at length about the niftar's trait of
hakoras hatov, and about his longing to dwell in the
House of Hashem under all circumstances and at all times.
The final hesped was delivered by HaRav Moshe
Mordechai Shulsinger, who cried out with tears, "Veneir
Elokim terem yichbeh, uShmuel shocheiv beheichal Hashem,
asher shom Aron hoElokim," saying that although our
physical powers wane, the spiritual powers of Torah and
prayer are constantly renewed, and even increase.
"We are too small to eulogize so great and holy a man whose
daily life was permeated with reflection about the greatest
of two generations of Torah, yir'oh, Yiddishkeit and
chessed, one for whom the images of his sacred
teachers, HaRav Elchonon and HaRav Boruch Ber were ever-
present."
He had heard HaRav Boruch Ber say that it is forbidden to
say that Torah is the oxygen of life, because then one is
implying that life and Torah are separate entities and that
the Torah breathes air into life. It is forbidden to say
that, for Torah is life, and there is nothing else beside
it.
From Rav Elchonon he always heard: "Sof dovor hakol
nishmo es hoElokim yerei ki zeh kol ho'odom." This means
that a person is measured only by the degree of his yiras
Shomayim. If his yiras Shomayim is great, then he
is a great man. If his yiras Shomayim is minimal, he
is a small man, and if he has no yiras Shomayim, he
can't be called, "a person lacking yiras Shomayim."
He is not a person at all.
"These two sacred principals were the guidelines of the
entire avodas Hashem of the niftar. His
interpersonal relations were outstanding. He never became
angry, was never offended by anyone, and greeted everyone
warmly. He was totally dedicated to Torah study, studying
all day with chavrusas, by himself and in
shiurim."
From the beis medrash of Yarchei Kallah, the
levaya proceeded toward the Chazon Ish Kollel, where
he had prayed on Shabbosim for scores of years. HaRav Moshe
Aharon Rosental delivered a hesped, stressing the
niftar's greatness in Torah, yir'oh, avodas
Hashem and chessed.
He was buried in the Shomrei Shabbos Halperin cemetery at
the outskirts of Zichron Meir. After the closing of the
grave, his nephew, HaRav Avrohom Kuperman, parted from
him.
He is survived by his wife, his sons, a son-in-law,
grandchildren and great-grandchildren, all of whom are
following in the path he charted for them.
