At the beginning of the Second World War, several gedolim were niftar. When they went to tell the Chazon Ish, he cried and was very distressed. But when they told him that HaRav Boruch Ber zt"l passed away, he closed his door and cried for hours. His crying could be heard far away.

From Our Archives

IN-DEPTH FEATURES Kelm And Mir - A Single Approach to Torah Excellence and Mussar Training, as Demonstrated by the Gaon and Tzaddik HaRav Shmuel Halevi Shechter, zt'l by Rabbi Dov Eliach Part Three Handling the American Depression YN: What kind of problems were brought to him? Rav Shechter: I'll give you an example that actually happened. When we students from abroad came to yeshiva, aged seventeen or eighteen, after learning in American yeshivos, our level was such that only with difficulty could we get through a piece of gemora together with Rashi and easy Tosafos, no more than that. By contrast, the level of the scholarship in the yeshiva was at a peak. We Americans therefore had to hire tutors from among the older bochurim to be our first chavrusas of the day I learned with Reb Yonah Minsker [zt'l, Hy'd, who was mentioned earlier], for two or three years - I can't remember how long. For the second seder I also took a chavrusa in exchange for payment. My father zt'l would send me fifty American dollars a month, out of which I paid Reb Yonah fifteen dollars and the other chavrusa ten dollars. The remaining twenty-five dollars was enough for me to live in Mir like a king. Over there it was considered a vast sum.

Opinion and Comment Poisoned by Shibud Malchuyos by HaRav Shlomo Wolbe, zt"l The non-Jewish way of thinking and way of life, which center around the aspiration for a life of comfort and luxury, have filtered into our midst. Every fad Parisian tailors invent is leaped at in Eretz Yisroel as well. And when New York Bohemians grow their hair long the trend is imitated here, too. All this is part of the secret of shibud malchuyos, our state of bondage to foreign rule. We consider ourselves independent but in reality Klal Yisroel is in a state of total concealment. Today shibud goluyos is on the rise. It used to be more palpable in gashmiyus, whereas now it is felt more in ruchniyus. This bondage has penetrated our circles. We all sense it. And even those who conquer their yetzer and do not pursue it, still see beauty in it. We like their songs and their cheap secular newspapers are not muktzeh to us, even though everybody knows and feels how much damage can result from every glance at the lengthy descriptions of base crimes and heretical views. How much have we already been poisoned by spiritual shibud malchuyos?