HaRav Yitzchok (Itzele) of Volozhin, zt"l
In honor of his yahrtzeit, 26 Iyar (5611)

The great yeshiva of R' Chaim of Volozhin was handed after his passing into the trustworthy hands of his son, R' Itzele, who stood at its helm until his last day.

From Our Archives

Opinion and Comment Call for Awakening in a Time of New Decrees from HaRav Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz Zichron Meir Bnei Brak This letter was issued by HaRav Lefkowitz to provide encouragement and guidance in these difficult times. BS'D, 11 Iyar 5763 First of all we must reflect. As the Tribes of Israel did when it says: "And they turned, trembling, to each other saying, `What is this Elokim has done to us?'" (Bereishis 42:28). Undoubtedly Hashem's actions toward us have a purpose based on the will of the Creator.

Opinion and Comment Kabolas HaTorah Only Through Ahavas Torah by HaRav Yitzchok Yeruchom Bordiansky Part I "They stood at the foot of the mountain" (Shemos 19:17). "R' Avdimi bar Chama bar Chasa said: `This teaches us that HaKodosh Boruch Hu held the mountain over them like a barrel and said to them: "It is for your advantage to accept the Torah, but if you will not, you will be buried there" (Shabbos 88a). Rashi (ibid., s.v. tachtis and gigis) explains that "at the foot of the mountain" in the above posuk actually means being underneath the mountain and that the mountain hanging above bnei Yisroel was like a closed barrel in which beer is placed.

Opinion and Comment Shavuos Insights by HaRav Moshe Feinstein zt"l The Giving of the Torah Specifically in the Desert By that which it states "Moshe received the Torah from Sinai" (Ovos 1:1), we are taught a very fundamental point. The mishna teaches us that we received the Torah before we began leading an ordinary life. When we were in the desert as ochlei hamonn, we lived a divine existence, with no effort in arranging for our food, shelter, or livelihood. Many of the mitzvos did not yet apply. Still, then and there we were given all the commandments that would govern our lives once we would enter Eretz Yisroel and become a Kingdom, when we would have to lead even our mundane lives in a Torah fashion.

Opinion and Comment "Hashem's Torah is Perfect, It Restores the Soul; the Testimony of Hashem is Faithful, it Makes Wise the Simple... Sweeter Than Honey . . . " by R' Yissochor Rubin All From One Shepherd "Hashem's Torah is perfect." (Tehillim 19) Six verses are said in this psalm in praise of the Torah, each of them containing five words. This alludes to the Five Books of Torah and the Six Orders of Mishna, all of them given from one Shepherd to Moshe Rabbenu at Har Sinai: the written as well as the oral codes.

Opinion and Comment Naaseh Venishma -- They Said, Together by Mordecai Plaut Our fathers actually said Naaseh Venishma in the days before Shavuos, but that response of theirs to Hashem was a vital part of the entire process of accepting the Torah.