Sunday afternoon, Rabbi Boruch Dov Povarsky formally opened
the annual Yarchei Kalloh week at the Normandie Hotel,
Bournemouth, which was packed to capacity, kein yirbu.
Some 400 participants joined in a week of intensive yeshiva-
style learning under the leadership of the Ponovezh Rosh
Hayeshiva, together with an outstanding team of maggidei
shiur including Rabbi Gavriel Knopfler rosh yeshivas
Shaarei Torah in Manchester, Rabbi Boruch Pines and Rabbi
Aryeh Dunner both of Bnei Brak, Rabbi Yaakov Meir Rosenbaum
rosh yeshivas Gur in London, and Rabbi Dovid Heller of
America.
Speaking at the Pesichoh, Rabbi Povarsky expressed
deep regret for the loss of HaRav Shloime Berman who was one
of the pioneers of Yarchei Kalloh and attended the European
Yarchei Kalloh in Lugano for the first five years.
Rav Povarsky continued with divrei his'orerus. The
Yarchei Kalloh he said was an embodiment of Dovid Hamelech's
principle, "Ivdu es Hashem besimchoh" (Tehillim
100:2). Dovid Hamelech himself, the gemora tells us,
was the greatest masmid in Klal Yisroel to the
extent that despite all his appointments as King and no
matter what his intention at the start of the day, he always
landed up in the beis hamedrash. The way to achieve
simchah is with yir'as horomemus, that is the
key.
The Torah tells us that the tochochoh is visited upon
Klal Yisroel (R"l) when we perform our avodoh
without simchah despite all the abundance. The
first Beis Hamikdosh was destroyed because they
forsook the Torah and transgressed the three cardinal
aveiros. Yet we are informed that they learned
intensively. The answer to this conundrum is that they failed
to recite bircas haTorah before their learning and so
the Torah did not shield them from transgression as it would
have, had they approached it in the correct manner.
Yarchei Kalloh should be considered as one of the great
yeshivos in the world, one that personifies, "Ivdu es
Hashem besimchoh" as befits the legacy of the Ponevezher
Rov who was, par excellence, the exemplar of this very
principle.
Mr. Eli Rosengarten, President of the European Yarchei Kalloh
Committee, started proceedings by thanking all the
maggidei shiur (whom he named individually), for their
selflessness and commitment to attend this 33rd European
Yarchei Kalloh. He explained the meaning of the Chazal,
Bikeish Yaalov legallos es hakeitz venistemoh mimenu.
Yaakov, he said, had never intended to mention a specific
year for the coming of Moshiach. Rather, each of the
shevotim were to play to their strengths and together
they would form an alliance where all of them would
contribute each in his own way to promote the unity of the
whole — unity in diversity.
Dayan Grynhaus, the next speaker, promised to paint a picture
of what goes on in heaven when the participants of Yarchei
Kalloh gather for the occasion. The Dayan spoke about the
Oleinu tefilloh and its unique position in the
seder of davening. We are told that when
Oleinu is said, the Pamalyo shell Maaloh
gathers to listen. He reasoned that if they do this for a
mere declaration of our commitment to Hashem and His Torah,
how much more keenly would they gather for an actual
demonstration of our eager joy to hear the words of Hashem to
His chosen people.
He explained that the practice of deciding and clarifying the
halochoh collectively dates from the Amoroim rather than the
Tanoim. This gathering of Yarchei Kalloh is a continuation of
that tradition to assemble under the tutelage of renowned
talmidei chachomim to further enhance and promote
knowledge of Torah in all its clarity.
Rabbi Dovid Heller described the destruction of European
Jewry and its consequences. Very little remained of the
infrastructure of our people. The position resembled the
state of Jewry following the loss of the 24,000 talmidim
of Rabbi Akiva. From that destruction there remained five
talmidim who together rebuilt Torah in Klal Yisroel as
we have it today. In similar manner the Ponevezher Rov and a
few of his contemporaries did likewise (amid considerable
scorn) and rebuilt the learning ethos with yeshivos, kollelim
and seminaries of which this Yarchei Kalloh is an
outgrowth.
Rabbi Yaakov Meir Rosenbaum, rosh yeshivas Gur, spoke about
the chashivus of Torah and ahavas Hashem.
Drawing on the Maharal, he explained why Yaakov chose the
moment he met up with Yosef after all those years to say
Krias Shema. That surge of love he felt for Yosef, he
diverted in an expression of his love of Hashem. People who
give up their cozy existence and duties at home to spend some
time at the feet of talmidei chachomim are
praiseworthy and demonstrate their love of Hashem in an
exemplary manner. We are the people of hischadshus,
and refreshing ourselves with an infusion of Torah is a
natural characteristic of the Yiddishe people. Yehuda was
sent ahead to establish a mokom Torah and then —
and only then — does the Torah declare: Vayechi
Yaakov.
The Pesichoh was just the beginning of a program which
offered twelve shiurim a day (including concurrent
shiurim), besides three hours of seder limud
with chavrusas. The focal point of study was the
masechta dekalloh, the first perek of
Pesochim. The halochoh shiurim discussed the
dinim of payos harosh, chukas hagoy and lo
silbash. Rabbi Povarsky also devoted one of the daily
mussar shmuessen to a Hesped of Rabbi Shlomo Berman.
Several of the ladies' shiurim were delivered by Rabbi
Pesach Eliyohu Falk, who also gave a halochoh shiur to
men on Shabbos.
On motzei Shabbos at the end of his neiloh droshoh,
following the ancient tradition of the Geonim, the Rosh
Hayeshiva announced that next year's masechta dekalloh
will be the first perek of Kiddushin and the
halochoh shiurim will be on the subjects of tevillas
keilim and bishul akum.
A Summary of the Hesped for HaRav Shloime (Shloimke)
Berman
Quoting the gemora which tells us that the niftar
himself attends a hesped given in his honor, Rav
Povarsky suggested that a hesped provided a second
chance to give kovod directly to the niftar as
he would deserve. Rav Povarsky drew a parallel with the
Mabul which was delayed on account of the tzidkus
of Mesushelach from which we see the enormous effect that
tzaddikim have on the world.
Pirkei Ovos begins by telling us about the
transmission of the Torah. Rav Povarsky clarified its
purpose, which is not to narrate history but rather as a
statement that the method of transmission from rebbe to pupil
is the only legitimate manner in which Torah can be passed
down through the generations. Reb Shloime was, he said,
surely one of the great personalities in hasboro of
the Talmud and among the yechidim who are chosen to be
the shlichim of Hashem as bearers of the transmission
process.
Quoting the gemora which states that a person's true
value can be gleaned from the words spoken about him after
his petiroh, Rav Povarsky lamented our inability to
express, and do justice, to the brilliance, illumination and
erudition of the niftar, Reb Shloimke Berman. Not only
did he excel as a teacher but to the end of his active life
he was a pupil as well, willing to learn from every
source.
For a man of this quality by rights we should tear keriah
twice. As the halocho states in connection with a
sefer Torah that gets burned, there is one keriah
for the words that are destroyed and another for the
gevil (parchment). Reb Shloimke suffered greatly from
a debilitating illness and was unable to function for over
twenty years and for this we should have torn keriah
long ago. Now alas we must do so again following his
petiroh and the loss to Klal Yisroel of such an
outstanding personality and a giant in Torah, yir'oh
and middos.
