The sweet chanting of small children as they recited
"Torah tziva lonu Moishe" pierced the cold winter air.
Thick globs of ice collected on the window in Nechtza's small
house. The tiny kerosene heater that Nechtza had installed
was very ineffective in its battle against the Siberian
frost.
That morning, Mendel woke up very excited. It was his third
birthday, and he was about to begin cheder. Although
he shivered like a floating leaf, an inner warmth enveloped
him.
Nechtza, who was crushed by financial burdens, took a break
from his daily affairs and wrapped his son Mendel in a
tallis. Then, accompanied by the blessings of his
righteous wife, he took him to cheder. The impressions
of the subsequent events, which included licking honey-
covered blocks which contained the letters of the alef-
beis, etched themselves on Mendel's memory forever.
"This child," the melamed once told Nechtza, "has a
tremendous desire to learn."
Nechtza was very moved. At last, he, too, had merited such a
treasure.
The years during which Mendel studied in the local
cheder, acquiring Torah and yiras shomayim,
were the happiest in both his and his father's lives. Neither
of them could foresee the impending upheavals which would
sever young men from their Torah studies, parents from their
children, and children from Hashem.
Thousands of miles from Siberia, Gittel Porush paused from
her daily chores and observed her son, Aharon. His tiny nose
seemed glued to his huge gemora as he swayed back and
forth, a sweet melody on his lips.
The scene unfolded over a hundred years ago, when outstanding
talmidei chachomim studded Yerusholayim's botei
midrash and the sound of Torah study was an integral part
of the city's backdrop. Nonetheless, little Aharon was well
known for his rare diligence.
Aharon's childhood passed quickly, and he soon found himself
in yeshiva. Within a few years, he was considered one of
Yerusholayim's finest products. All of Yerusholayim's
gedolim attended his wedding, and as soon as sheva
brochos week had ended, he returned to his studies. In
time, both budding scholars and seasoned Torah scholars
flocked to hear his shiurim.
*
A battery of decrees befell Russia's Jews without any advance
warning. Within a brief period of time, chadorim were
shut down and Jewish youngsters were forcibly placed in
secular schools.
As alien winds howled, the Soviet authorities announced their
plans to transform Jewish children into soldiers and
intellectuals. In time, the sons of Avrohom, Yitzchok and
Yaakov became the chief opponents of religion and Torah
scholars. They also became teachers who tried to instill
their Jewish students with heresy and scorn for religion, and
to wipe out the yiras Shomayim these children had
imbibed during their early years. Mendel was one of those
thousands of children.
Mendel's mother knew that her children had fallen into the
hands of wicked powers. Fervently, she prayed, "May Moshiach
come soon and redeem my children from the wicked ones. May my
children remain loyal to Hashem and His Torah."
Mendel's teachers changed his name to Theodore. As an
industrious student, he was accepted into the government high
school, the gymnasia.
Despite these alien influences, Mendel secretly and quietly
kept Shabbos as best he could, and maintained his link with
Yiddishkeit. Every evening, before falling asleep, he would
plead with Hashem to help him preserve his Jewish image, and
merit to learn Torah once again.
It is nearly impossible to describe the effort it took to
pray three times a day and uphold one's faith amidst the anti-
religious atmosphere which prevailed in Russia at the time.
But Mendel-Theodore's recollections of the sweet letters he
had licked on his first day in cheder, and of the
large tallis which had covered his small head at that
time, recharged his spiritual batteries. Memories of the
cheder warmed his heart and constituted the life raft
which saved him.
*
In Yerusholayim, the name Reb Aharon had become a concept.
Even the city's laborers knew him, but from a different
vantage point than that of its scholars. Their encounter with
him began when Mayer the carpenter asked R' Aharon to give a
shiur to a number of laymen every morning before
tefilas vosikin. Reb Aharon agreed and with his lucid
and sweet delivery, enabled these simple workers, who
clustered around him, to experience the sweet pleasantness of
Torah study.
*
Theodore was drafted into the army. The high grades he had
received in gymnasia protected him from humiliation and the
degradations he might otherwise have suffered in the army
because he was a Jew. Due to his innate refinement, he also
received certain privileges in spite of his religious
affiliation. Nonetheless, the years of his military stint
were grim and lonely.
Despite these obstacles, he made great effort to keep the
warm memories of his cheder years alive. He also
reviewed many prayers by heart in order not to forget them.
Even though he hadn't studied Torah for many years, a Jewish
flame burned in his heart and he looked forward to the day
when he would be able to fan it.
Years passed. Creases furrowed Mendel-Theodore's brow.
Although he was still alone, he didn't feel forlorn, since
Hashem was his constant companion. The years dulled his
childhood memories, yet their warmth still soothed his
turbulent heart.
*
The lot of the other Jews in the Soviet Union was no better
than his. Like many of his fellow Jews, he had remained
staunch in his way even when he had aged.
He was released fom the army unexpectedly. They didn't want
him anymore. He was still in his prime, but for them, it
wasn't enough.
After his release, he had very little to do with his life.
Inadvertently, an old dream surged with a great impact --
that of settling in Eretz Yisroel! There, Jews study Torah in
peace and serenity. He had to reach it!
Receiving an aliya permit from the Soviet government was a
near impossibility. The gates of the Soviet Union were
tightly shut and very few merited exiting it. The government
used every imaginable stratagem in order to prevent aliya.
Yet Mendel-Theodore was stubborn, and decided not to relent
until he had reached Eretz Hakodesh. Suddenly, a name flashed
across his mind. Vladimir!
Vladimir was a non-Jew whom Mendel-Theodore had once rescued
from a pair of knife-wielding drunkards. After that incident,
Vladimir had pledged, in the name of Mother Russia, to be
beholden to Theodore forevermore.
Before his release from the army, Mendel heard that Vladimir
had been promoted to a high-ranking military position.
Somehow, Mendel located him and asked him to secure an exit
permit to Eretz Yisroel. Although it seemed astonishing for
Vladimir to agree to such a request, Mendel knew that the
hearts of princes and ministers are in Hashem's hands.
Weeks passed during which Mendel waited for the permit to
arrive, but he didn't despair. One fine day, his dreams
materialized and the mailman delivered the coveted
certificate. Shortly afterwards, Mendel made aliya.
*
Mendel wept with emotion upon reaching the shores of Eretz
Yisroel. Seeing the lone immigrant, the Jewish Agency's
representative sent him to Yerusholayim. What, at his age,
could he contribute to a kibbutz?
Within a few days, some kindly volunteer from a
chessed organization found Mendel a room in Meah
Shearim. Quite rapidly, Mendel became an integral party of
the neighborhood, especially of its daybreak
minyan.
One day, Mendel approached the members of Rav Aharon Porush's
shiur and pleaded to participate in their lesson.
Although they didn't know anything about him, they invited
him to join and even showed him what page they were
studying.
They were certain that he didn't understand what was going
on. However, the glow on his face indicated that he enjoyed
it, nonetheless.
Quite rapidly, Mendel became the shiur's masmid, never
missing a day. One time, Rav Aharon awoke to see Yerusholayim
covered with a deep snow. Although he was certain that no one
would attend on such a day, he nonetheless set out to the
beis midrash, figuring that after davening at
daybreak, he would remain there for the rest of the day.
Plodding through the snow, Rav Aharon barely made it to the
beis midrash. When he opened the heavy door, he was
startled to see Mendel there, his face glowing. After
davening, Rav Aharon sat down to deliver his daily
shiur to the sole student. As he opened his
gemora, he reflected, "Poor Mendel, he probably
doesn't understand a word."
And suddenly, Mendel cried out, "You're right, Rebbe. I don't
understand the shiur."
Rav Aharon looked up in surprise, wondering how Mendel had
read his innermost thoughts.
"But let me tell you something," Mendel confided. "I studied
in a gymnaisa in Russia. Russian law states that before
receiving their diplomas, students must declaim the names of
Russia's heads of state and military leaders. By displaying
such knowledge, the student proves that the government, which
has certified his diploma, is important to them."
Taking a deep breath, Mendel continued, "To my regret, I
didn't merit to study much Torah and I had to spend most of
my life among non-Jews. However, I know that at the end of
one's days, one must appear before the Heavenly Court and
present an accounting to Hashem of his deeds on earth. Surely
when my time comes, I will be asked to cite the names of the
important princes and leaders of the Jewish people -- the
Sages of the Talmud."
Thereupon, he rose and began enumerating the names of all the
Sages he had encountered from the day he had begun attending
the shiur: Rovo, Abaye, R' Poppo and his sons, R'
Yehuda, R' Shimon, Ravina, Reish Lokish, R' Zeira and many,
many dozens more.
Tears welled up in Rav Aharon's eyes as he listened to
Mendel's recitation. Mendel's Jewish soul had revealed itself
in all its glory.
"I am certain," Rav Aharon reflected at that moment, "that
Reb Mendel has a large portion in Olom Habo. The Russians
tried to sever him from Torah and to obliterate his Jewish
image. Yet he is certain that just as there are earthly
kings, so is there a King in heaven before Whom he must give
an accounting. Reb Mendel is doing his maximum, and he will
surely be maximally rewarded for his efforts."
