Headed by many gedolei Yerushalayim, ziknei
Yerushalayim and rabbonim, thousands accompanied the
mittoh of HaRav Dov Meir (Berel) Kreuzer zt"l,
who passed away following years of suffering he accepted with
love.
Berel Kreuzer was born in the Jerusalem of the previous
generation on 26 Nisan 5682 (1922) to HaRav Hersh, one of the
city's fabulous tzaddikim and his mother Taibel, the
daughter of R' Chaim Yaakov Eisenstein.
HaRav Yosef Chaim Zonenfeld zt"l was present at his
bris and when the father wanted to name the child
after his grandfather, R' Yaakov Zundel, he persuaded him to
name the child after another grandfather, R' Dov Meir. After
the bris he declared, "Der ber vet nach sheinen vei
di zun [Zundel]" ("The bear [dov] will eventually
shine like the sun").
His rebbes said he learned 18 hours a day. His parents would
implore him to retire, but only later would they find him
asleep alongside his gemoro.
His rebbe at Talmud Torah Eitz Chaim, HaRav Avrohom Chaim
Akelman, said the deceased learned maseches Yevamos
with Tosafos 40 times. HaRav Yisroel Yaakov Fisher
said all of his classmates were exceptional masmidim,
but Berel stood out most of all.
After he married Bashe Feiga, the daughter of R' Yonah Zeev
Zwebner, chairman of the Eidoh Chareidis and Agudas Yisroel
of Jerusalem, she made every effort to free him of the
concerns of Olom Hazeh and to focus his energy on
learning.
When the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Mir, HaRav Elozor Yehuda
Finkel zt"l, came to Jerusalem with a vision of
setting up his yeshiva in the city, he searched for ten
outstanding Torah scholars in Jerusalem, and HaRav Berel was
among them.
He formed a very tight bond with the Gavad of
Jerusalem, HaRav Zelig Reuven Bengis.
He served as rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Pressburg for several
years, but based on the advice of his childhood friend, HaRav
Chaim Brim, who had served until then as rosh yeshiva of
Yeshivas Skver, he went to serve as rosh yeshiva of the
yeshiva gedoloh of the Admor of Skver, where he
continued to produce legions of talmidei chachomim for
five decades before returning to Eretz Yisroel.
In recent years he grew very weak, but continued to draw
Jerusalem yeshiva students to him. Every Shabbos students
from Yeshivas Mir and Yeshivas Brisk would dine at his table
and he would sweeten the seudah with his divrei
Torah.
Even when his sight grew dim he continued to give
shiurim at yeshivas and kollelim, quoting the
Rishonim word for word.
Before the levaya set out from his home on Rechov
Slonim in Jerusalem, bitter hespeidim were delivered
by HaRav Yitzchok Tuvio Weiss, Gavad of the Eidoh
Chareidis of Jerusalem, the deceased's talmid HaRav
Shmuel Eliezer Stern, HaRav Dovid Neushtat of Skver, HaRav
Yitzchok Ezrachi, one of the roshei yeshiva of
Yeshivas Mir, the deceased's son, Rav Yosef, and his sons-in-
law, Rav Moshe Gedaliah Wertheimer and Rav Pinchos Mordechai
Kurtz.
The deceased is survived by his sons, Rav Osher of the US,
Rav Yosef, Rav Yaakov, Rav Binyomin, Rav Reuven, his sons-in-
law Rav Moshe Gedaliah Wertheimer, a rom at Yeshivas
Rachmastrivka, and Rav Pinchos Mordechai Kurtz, a rom
at Yeshivas Tchebin and Yeshivas Erloy, and Rav Chaim Kenig,
rosh kollel of Kollel Slonim in Beitar Illit.
