fHE 'EW Is H ELUL 5733 I SEPTEMBER 1973 VOLUME IX, NUMBER 5

SIXTY FIVE CENTS

BSERVER THE GOLDS-RIDDEN JEW

• WHY ARE WE DESTINED TO WANDER?

• THE HOLOCAUST: QUESTIONS WITHOUT

ANSWERS ••• FAITH WITHOUT QUESTIONS

• TWO TALES OF HEROISM

• THE JEW'S LOVE FOR ERETZ YISROEL

Books:

• SACRED LITERATURE IN THE

VERNACULAR

• JEWISH LANDMARKS IN EUROPE

a l.ro:

THE YESHIVOS' DAY IN THE COURT

THE JEWISH

OBSERVER

THE JEWISH OBSERVER is published monthly, except July and August, by the Agudath Israel of Amercia, 5 Beekman St., New York, N. Y. 10038. Second class postage paid at New York, N. Y. Subscription: $6.50 per year; Two years, $11.00; Three years $15.00; outside of the United States $7 .50 per year. Sing1e copy sixty~five cents.

Printed in the U.S.A.

RABBI NISSON WOLPIN Editor

Editorial Board DR. ERNST L. BODENHEIMER Chainnan RABBI NATHAN BULMAN RABBI JOSEPH ELIAS JOSEPH FRJEDENSON RABBI YAAKOV JACOBS RABBI MOSHE SHERER

THE JEWISH OBSERVER does not assume responsibility for the Kashrus of any product or service advertised in its pages.

SEPT. 1973 VoL. IX, No. 5

... @

in this issue ...

THE "VICTORS" AND THE "VANQUISHED," Moshe Sherer......... 3

THE HOLOCAUST; QUESTIONS WITHOUT ANSWERS ... FAITH

WITHOUT QUESTIONS, Y oseif Avraham Wolf, trans-lated and adapted by Nosson Scherman .............................. 8

GoLus: WHY ARE WE DESTINED TO WANDER? from Horav Meir Simcha HaCohain's "Meshech Chochma," translated and adapted by Gershon Dubin ........................... 11

Two BY MosHE PRAGER: EYEBALL TO EYEBALL ........................ 13

THE SONG OF SHLOMO, translated by N. Scherman 15

To BRETZ Y1sROEL-W!TH A LOVE THAT DoEs NoT FADE,

Nissan Wolpin 18

BOOKS IN REVIEW:

RAMBAN, COMMENTARY ON TORAH (GENESIS) ............ 23

THE TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO JEWISH LANDMARKS

OF EUROPE .............................................................. 26

GEMS FROM THE FOUNTAIN ........................ 27

THE INESCAPABLE TRUTH ......................................................... 30

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR .................................................................................... 30

PICTURE CREDITS: cover, sketch by TULLY f'ILMUS; page 7, courtesy of YESHIVA AND MESIVTA OHR YJSROEL (Forest Hills, N. Y.); page 8, from wood-cut hy SIEGMUND FORST; page 13, a drawing by BEN SHAWN,

In the forthcoming issues we shall ;i"'N publish articles regarding three outstanding Torah personalities who passed away during recent months (in order of their passing):

HORAV BINYOMIN ZE'EV JACOBSON i1::ri:i? i'"1'S .,:n who was a creative force in askonus for over half a century;

HORAV ELIYOHU MOSHE SHISGAL i1!).,:l'1 i'"1':i: i:JT an American Rosh Yeshiva of singular achievement in lomdus and tzidkus;

HORAV YOSEIF ELIYOHU HENKIN ;i::ii::i'i i)'1l i:lT the dean of European Rabbis in America, outstanding au­thority in halacha, head of Ezras Torah.

:i":i'iln

Moshe Sherer

The "Victors" and the "Vanquished" Reflections on the Non-Public Schools' Day in the Court

In June 197]. the U.S. Supreme Court voted 8-1 against the constitutionality of Pennsylvania's purchase of services program and Rhode Island's program of supplements to the salaries of non-public school teachers. This vote (Lemon-DiCenso decisions) was a forerunner to a more severe blow dealt to the efforts to obtain government relief for non-public education, including the yeshivas, which was dealt by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 25th of this year. In a landmark decision (Pearl v. Nyquist), the Court struck down four basic types of aid to non-public education:

1) small grants to parents paying tuition at non-public schools; 2) income tax reductions for tuition-paying parents; 3) payments to inner-city non-public schools to help maintain health and safety facilities; 4) payments to non-public schools as reim­bursement for the costs of maintaining certain records mandated by the State and of administering tests to students (lVlandated Services Act).

THE JEWISH OBSERVER presents an analysis of the meaning of this decision, written by RABBI MOSHE SHERER, executive presi­dent of Agudath Israel of America, who for more than a decade has pioneered and spearheaded Jewish efforts to obtain govern­ment aid for yeshivas. A founder of COLPA and the national president of C.R.ED.l.T. (a coalition representing five million non-public school students), Rabbi Sherer has been a key strate­gist on the State and national scenes in this effort.

The condolence calls began on Monday, June 25th. And they didn't stop for many days. From every walk of life and every part of the world, friends and strangers vhoned to console me on the loss

deprived of these dollars.-Over the chilul Hashem of Jewish organizations causing a drainaJ?e of funds from the pockets of yeshiva parents.-Over the spectacle of Jewish "spokesmen" publicly combatting religious education. of the U.S. Supreme Court case on non-public school

aid. But they all 1nissed the point.

If I was mourning that day, it was not only over the loss of a court case. Courts change, Justices are replaced, and decisions can be reversed. Nor did I mourn simply because of the loss of dollars; it was over the Jewish children whom. lve would lose from the Jewish fold because the yeshivas were

And I grieved for those Jews-by-birth who were elated over their "victory" because they lack the capacity to think Jewishly. Their propaganda mills declared in triunzph: "A1nerican lel-vish Con{?ress Hails Supreme Court Decision Voiding New York Law>," "Jewish Groups Hail Ban on School Aid," and so on.

Jewish history will undoubtedly cast a longer look

'The Jewish Observer I Septen1her, 1973 3

on matters, when it passes judgment on the court battle over government funding for yeshivas and the survival of these hard-pressed institutions. It will 1wt be the traditional yeshivas that will ultimately be defeated, because they will continue to hitch the destiny of Jewish children to the star of eternity. Lack of outside funding will be one more difficulty to hurdle, but parents con11nitted to the perpetuation of Yiddishkeit will not flinch in the face of new obstacles. It is those secularist elements who now exult as they drink their heady cup of victorv who are really the vanquished, because the reach-out potential of yeshivas has become diminished, and as a result these elements may have lost the only hope for their own grandchildren to remain Jews-should the current pace of spiritual erosion continur unabated. Instead of ecstatic paeans of joy from the "victors" and condolence calls to the "vanquished" the hour calls for a sober reappraisal-an analysis of the court's decision and its ra1nifications, an examination of the stance of dilferent segnients of the Jewish community, and a few more notes on the prospectus for these segments' continued existence.

The Court Decision

1. What the Court Did Not Do WHILE IT IS TRUE that the Supreme Court put a freeze on any new programs substantially aiding elementary and secondary non-public schools, it is itnportant to bear in mind what it did not do. For example, it did not tamper with such existing forms of help as text­books (Allen decision of 1968), lunches, bus transpor­tation (Everson decision of 1947), health and related services, the varied tax exemptions enjoyed by the religious schools, and deductions for charitable contri­butions (Walz decision of 1970) or the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Also, the government assistance programs enjoyed by the re­ligious-related higher educational institutions, includ­ing numerous yeshivos gedolos and kollelim, remain in effect. And for that we should be grateful.

The Supreme Court did offer us its self-portrait-a clear picture in living color: As Jong as Justices Bren­nan, Blackmun, Douglas, Marshall, Powell and Stewart sit on the Supreme Court, there will always be a majority of six who will thwart any worthwhile new program to effectively help non-public education or non-public school parents. Clearly, the rationale used hy these six justices to invalidate the four programs struck down on June 25th is applicable to any of the other vehicles of meaningful school aid which have been on the drawing board these past years.

4

ourt Decision To Cost Day Schools Millions

~f"\\ \"'Jilk "'I\ 11><· l' .0 !'"'"•· .-ff,,rt, '" .,i,,,,,., '"'" ,,,,1 '""'h·"'"' •!""'"' .,,i,., l"' .u """' ''""" ,,. hldn ""h' ,."'"""1"'"· ·'"" "' -."'"'"'hr.:"" b,., . ., "..--"''"

2, "PRIMARY" NO LONGER MEANS PRIMARY

THE MAIN EYE-OPENER of the current decision (Pearl v. Nyquist), which is devastating in its far-reaching application, is its interpretation of the phrase "primary effect." While all recent Court decisions have agreed that the various legislative proposals to help non-public schools passed the basic "secular purpose'' test of their constitutionality, two other tests have emerged: that the legislation 1) should not have a "primary effect" that helps or hinders religion, and 2) should not en­gender "excessive entanglement" of the government with religious affairs. While in the Lemon-DiCenso decisions of 1971 the Court's main objection was the inability of the laws in question to pass the "excessive entanglement" hurdle, the current decision is based mainly on the "primary effect" test.

Sound logic would seem to dictate that the "primary effect" test should mean that the Court weighs the com­parative effects of the school-aid bill, and determines which is primary: the religious or secular effect. Using this simple yardstick in the manner in which it was always applied, the laws should have been upheld, because their primary thrust is relief for the expenses of parents and schools for secular matters. Instead, the Court now declared that "primary effect" means "the direct and immediate effect of advancing religion" or a "direct and substantial advancement of religion"-re­gardless of whether it is primary or not.

The Jett'isli Observer / Septen1ber, 1973"

This interpretation, because it makes the restrictive word "primary" entirely superfluous, actually flies in the face of the first interpretation of "primary effect" as enunciated in a Supreme Court decision: the Schempp (Lord's Prayer and Bible Reading) decision of 1963. The word "primary," which was again used in the Allen (Textbooks) decision of 1968, was patently selected by the Court in J 963 to declare that not every "direct, immediate or substantial advance­ment of religion" violated the No-Establishment Clause of the Constitution, un1css this aid was "prin1ary." In ignoring the traditional definition of this doctrine and refusing to weigh the secular versus the religious effects of this aid on the scales of justice, the Supreme Court has erected a barrier which no meaningful non-public school aid bill could ever hurdle.

3. "POLITICAL DIVISIVENESS": A TIME BOMB

I.OST IN THE LEGAL VERBIAGE of the decision is a hardly-detected time-bomb which could eventually ex­p1odc with serious consequences: the Court's repetition of what it said in the Lemon-DiCenso cases-that non­public school aid legislation is bad because it creates "po1itical divisiveness." The Court now declared in Pearl v. Nyquist: "While the prospect of such divisive­ness 1nay not alone warrant the invalidation of state laws that otherwise survive the careful scrutiny required by the dec;sions of this Court, it is certainly a 'warning signal' not to be ignored." Although the Court reserved decision as to whether "political divisiveness'' is suf­ficient reason per se to invalidate non-public school aid legislation, it added that the efforts to secure and maintain this assistance have a "grave potential for entanglement in the broader sense of continuing politi­cal strife over aid to religion."

This incredible doctrine could in effect spell the death knell to any legislation on any issue, besides non-public school aid, raised by minority religious groups to protect their religious interests or civil rights. It could deny the rights of any religious group to seek legislation for a "redress of their grievances," and bury any bill that might require a religious faith community to use public media in a natural effort to shape public opinion in order to win support for its position.

Fortunately, until now laws have never been in­vnJidated because they create "political divisiveness"; this issue has only been raised by the Court in the school aid decisions of 197.1 and 1973. That it has no basis in fact is obvious: These school aid bills have not created any religious wars in the states in which they were adopted; the grim spectre of "continuing political strife" raised by the Court is merely a myth.

A public outcry should be raised against the booby­trap embodied in this doctrine, which asserts that even

The Jewish Ohserver I Septen1her, 1973

if a statute is on its face constitutional, it could still be declared unconstitutional when citizens exercise their rights of free speech and petition relating to this law and thus create "divisiveness." As Jews, we have a particular stake in combatting such a pernicious con­cept, because it could be used as a device to disastrously defeat us on many issues of Jewish concern which spawn controversy-incJuding legislation on humane slaughter and shechita protection, fair Sabbath laws, and even aid to Israel. ...e::.11

Since the Court did not need this "political divisive­ness" argument to invalidate the non-public school-aid Jaws, it obviously sought to raise a scarecrow to silence religionists, which, unless it is demolished, will wreak havoc on a broad range of unre]ated issues.

4. TAX CREDITS-A CASUALTY

ANOTHER CASUAL TY of the Supreme Court decision is the tax credit bill for non-public school parents, as it js presently structured (H.R. 49). This bill, for which the CR.ED.LT. coalition had succeeded to marshall support from a majority of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, is no longer viable as it is currently drafted, in the light of the majority opinion (6-3) on the New York State tax exclusions Jaw.

Although the federal tax credit bill bears no resem­blance to the struck-down New York tax bill, the language used by the Court majority clearly indicates that even if H.R. 49 were to be passed, it would have the same fate in the hands of the "Supreme Court Six." 1t would be harmfully self-deluding to deny this, as disappointing as this conclusion must be to all those who fought for this concept out of conviction that it is constitutional. While hope may be maintained that the legal position espoused by Chief Justice Burger in the dissenting opinion of three Justices will ultimately prevail, this hope cannot alter the facts: Six are more than three, even when the six arc incorrect in their reasoning.

Meanwhile most of the continued research for con­stitutional vehicles to help non-public education will have to concentrate on devising other channels of in­direct aid left open, as even the majority opinion in Pearl v. Nyquist left some doors ajar-especially in the field of tax relief.

The Jewish Decisions

FROM THE VERY BEGINNINGS of their existence as a nation, the Jews made a decision to Jive by: "Na'aselz, v'nishmah" (We will do and we will hearken) .... They knew from their hallowed faith-and the lesson was reinforced from the pattern of their history-that their capacity to survive hinges upon their observance

5

of Torah Law as revealed by the A-mighty at Sinai. And the observance of Judaism, in turn, rests on one single point: the study of Torah. It is as simple as all that.

1. A :FATEFUL EFFORT AND A DECISION TO DESIST

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO Orthodox Jews in this country made a decision: to embark on an effort to obtain federal and state financial aid for yeshivos, the centers for Torah study in America. Motivated by the knowl­edge that yeshivas hold in their hand the very key to Jewish existence. a handful of concerned Jews under the guidance of the Roshei Hayeshiva succeeded in forging a united Orthodox position favoring this strug­gle to obtain the reimbursement funds for expenses incurred by yeshiva parents and schools for their secular services. Some battles were won, others were lost, and despite the recent Supreme Court reversal, the war is still far from over.

Jn the interim, the secular Jewish Establishment, spearheaded by the American Jewish Congress, also made a decision: to put their narrow concern regarding the legalistic doctrines of separation of church and state above the needs of Jewish education. This posture should really not have surprised anyone, since those who head these Jewish organizations have themselves never had the privilege of a genuine Jewish education. Consequently, men and women whose attachment to the broad sweep of Jewish history is via a slender thread of a nebulous "Jewish consciousness" - who have not lived by the enriching disciplines of kashrus and Shabbos, and are unfamiliar with our heritage of laws and customs - these people are simply not equipped to think Jewishly.

They thus view Torah education as an abstract entity, or a sentimental talisman from other days--not the mainstay of Jewish survival. While constitutional guar­antees against an established religion are a very real protection against forced Christianization of Jewish masses, not merely legalistic abstractions.

So their organizations-involved as they are in the "1nission impossible" of creating Jews without J udaisn1 -opted to drag school-aid laws into courts, knowing incontrovertibly that their success means the Joss of millions of dollars in cash for the Jewish educational effort. Even if this inevitability evaded them when they had embarked on their crusade, they surely became aware of it over the years of their struggle. But they are Jewishly desensitized from years of living the life-style of their non-Jewish neighbors, and they have gradually adopted the thinking process of their non­J ewish environment: A moot constitutional question, albeit of Jewish concern, has assumed greater impor­tance than Torah-study.

6

2. THE AJC ACT ON REVOl,VING STAGE

INGRAINED JEWISH rachmonus will evoke a sense of pity for those who comprise the secular Jewish Establish­ment because they are walking off the Jewish cliff with their eyes blindfolded. But this compassion turns cold when confronted with their hypocritical pronounce­ments on the survival prospects of yeshivas.

For over a decade, these groups have developed an amazing scenario, which is but a sophisticated version of the murderer who, as he plunges the stiletto into his victim's heart, soothingly whispers into his ear: "Sorry, but you're really better off now .... " On June 25th, before the ink on the Supreme Court decision was dry, the official American Jewish Congress release pro­claimed: "We hope that officials of religious schools will recognize the benefits of operating free of govern­ment controls. . .. " Of course, this was accompanied by the usual pious AJC call, issued whenever it suc­ceeds in depriving Jewish education of government money, to "the Jewish community, and particularly the Jewish Welfare Funds, to increase their .support of Jewish schools.''

And it is shamelessly repeated, even though this litany has not brought one dollar into the yeshivos' coffers since it was first used as rhetoric to accompany the act of depriving the Torah institutions of millions of dollars. This sham cannot easily be forgiven.

Then again, it is not really for the Orthodox com­munity to forgive the Establishment for its narrow mindedness, for as a result of curtailed government funding of yeshivos, its faculties' salaries must continue to remain below standard, and better teachers either must supp1ement their income from other sources or leave the field. Who is to say "all is forgiven" to this?

More, the yeshiva community has become increas­ingly concerned over reaching-out to Jews alienated from their Torah heritage: An appalling two-thirds of American Jewish children never receive any kind of Jewish education, and (according to American Jewish Committee figures) barely I 0% of those who do. never go beyond Bar/Bas Mitzvah-leaving a shocking 95 % of our children who receive no Jewish education during their crucial teen years. The yeshiva day schools have been expanding their efforts, but who will fund these reach-out programs? While the Torah community will find ways for self-perpetuation, regardless of the hard­ships involved, who will bring Torah to the alienated masses?

So who then is in position to "forgive" the Estab­lishment for perpetuating the kind of ignorance that breeds the 40%-50% intermarriage rate, which is 1naking America a disaster area for Jews? Surely, the Orthodox community cannot forgive those who main­tain this type of tragedy; nor can the victims them­selves . ...

The Jewish Observer / September. 1973

Under the most difficult circum-

stances the Torah community

will take care of its own, but who

will fund programs to expand

the yeshivas' reach?

3. AN INDEPENDENT ORTHODOXY EMERGES DESPITE THIS MAJOR COURT DEFEAT' Orthodox Jewry in the U.S.A. has still gained tremendously from its decision thirteen years ago to fight for government aid, over and above the monetary benefits which were won and will continue intact for the yeshivas. The basic hashkofoh of Agudath Israel, that Orthodoxy must break its shackles of domination by the secular Jewish Establishment, finally broke through. And a number of Orthodox groups, who for years were spinning in the orbit of the non-religious groups, made a major departure from the gravitational pull which tied them to their secular allies, and adopted an independent Orthodox stance.

The widely-publicized independent position adopted by all Orthodox organizations on government aid to yeshivas accomplished this important victory: the monopoly that the secular Jewish groups enjoyed for decades as being the "official spokesmen" for the Jew­ish people was broken. Now, everyone knows that there exists a historic Jewish community which is es­sentially distinctive from all others who bear the name of Jew, a community which practices a life-style uniquely loyal to religious traditions and mores, and which speaks for itself. And Kial Yisroel is in a much better position as a result.

It is now no longer possible for an Orthodox Jewish organization to co-sign a statement asking a court to ban bus transportation for non-public schools, as was the case before the battle was begun. This same organi­zation has already learned its lesson.

Let us, therefore, not denigrate the value of a sincere struggle, even if for the moment its goals are not achieved. A great sage once gave a wise interpretation to a well-known saying in the Talmud ( M egilah 6) : "If someone tells you 'I tried but did not find,' do not believe him." Don't believe him, this sage explained, because even if he did not find what he set out for, the very act of trying, of making a mighty effort, in itself is 1nost rewarding.

The Jewish Observer/ Septe1nber, 1973

In our battle for aid for yeshivos, we are already witnesses to this reward for our effort: an aroused, independent Orthodoxy is emerging in this country, capable of representing its own interests in keeping with Torah precept and tradition.

'.M~V "l'l~tl.l ";:) .,, '11~'N 'fi~!.Vl1 ~bt (n:r n~'l.l) '' i111 '1 1wn~ ~1/J!! ·~

The prophet Micha (7:8) offers a fitting epilogue to this piece: "Do not rejoice against me, my enemy; even though I fall, I shall arise ... "

Those anti-Orthodox who greeted with joy the Supreme Court decision that brought such sevrre losses to yeshivas, react from a lack of knowledge of how to read Jewish history. The Torah lelv possesses an innate resilience, which steins froni fighting a thousand battles for survival, that enables him to distill light out of darkness:

" ... when I sit in darkness, G-d is a light to me."

This knack of finding the light of G-d even when sitting in darkness is the unique quality which has enabled the Torah Jew to grasp victory out of defeat throughout the many periods lVhen hhi sta1nina was put to the test.

The Torah Jew will continue to fight for his sovereif{nty as the bearer of authentic ludnis1n with greater zeal than in the past. Even as he unrelentingly continues his struggle to obtain justice for the yeshivas from the government, he lvill intensify a thousandfold his efforts to obtain solid support from the Federations. And he will pull in his belt tighter and make even greater per.mnal sacrifices for the support and expansion of Torah study in this country.

He will do so because the Torah Jew fully comprehends the stakes for which he is fiJ?hting: the ability to survive as a Jew in a sp;ritually-polluted society. The war for Torah on all fronts will proceed lvith as much fervor as ever, if not 1nore. O

7

THE HOLOCAUST

... questions with­

out answers ...

... faith without

questions ...

8

from an essay in Avrohom

Wolf's "Hatekufa Ubayoseha"

-adapted by Nasson Scherman

THE WOUND OF THE HOLOCAUST-the loss of six million most Jewish Jews-cannot easily heal. But even after some of the pain has been numbed by the passage of time, ,gnawing questions continue to hover over us like a dark shadow. They are most difficult questions, and their presence does not ever seem to 1eave us.

Why did the Holocaust happen? How could a Merci­ful G-d have allowed it to happen? What can justif-" the brutality inflicted upon the six million?

These questions are posed from two different sources. Some use them as a basis for cha11enging the Divine hand in history. Or as a canard against those whose trust is in the Torah and its leadership. Or as a fulcrum for tilting confidence in favor of secular-oriented "ac­tivists" over the leadership typified by the presumed "passivists" of the previous generation.

To questioners such as these we owe no explanations. Their questions are not questions, but answers-justi­fications for all they choose to do and all they elect not: to do. Their decision to abandon their religious heritage is the cause of their questioning. not the result.

Others ask these same questions in fullest sincerity, seeking enlightenment while still maintaining loyalty to their Torah heritage. In truth, one might say to them that the best we can do is to remain silent. Who are we that we may question the Divine plan, that we may seek to probe the Divine intelligence? Since we have no answers, why open up discussion in the first p1ace? Yet we cannot remain silent, for to do so would he to allow foes of Torah to ensnare the uninformed with rhetoric and irresponsible insinuation.

For guidance in formulating any kind of understand­ing we must turn to the best source, the great con­temporary Torah giants and those of the recent past: the self-sacrificing Roshei Hayeshiva and Chassidic Rebbayim, who had deleted "personal comfort" from their vocabularies. Having made note of the irreperable loss of the Holocaust, they went on to build new homes for Torah and raise new legions to carry the banner of Judaism. Their response and comment can provide us with a scenario for our own reaction.

The Reaction of Our Greatest: Triumph-Even In Death

THROUGHOUT OUR HISTORY, Torah leaders have taught us more than the Law; they taught bow to face life­and death, too. The Holocaust period revealed count­less people of whom the heavens could exclaim, "You arc fortunate, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that such grandchildren descended from you." It was almost impossible to escape the destruction, but there were those who could have escaped and refused the oppor­tunity because they felt they had no right to forsake their people in the time of greatest need-men like Reh Menachem Ziemba of Warsaw, Reh Elcbonon Wasser-

The Jewish Observer I Septen1ber, 1973

man of Baranovitch, and Rabbi Yosef Carlebach of Hamburg.

There were others who had not choice, but who died gloriously and inspired hundreds to face the end with Jewish pride and repentance. One was Reb Avrohom Grodjensky, Mashgiach of Slabodka. Toward the end he and Reb Elchanan Wasser1nan, together with their students, lvere in the sa1ne ghetto. The execution date had arrived and they spent their last hours together. Rav Grodjensky asked Rabbi Wasserman to deliver a talmudic discourse on "Kiddush Hashen1," the co1n1nandn1ent to sanctify the Name in death. Rabbi Wasserman was surprised at first, but he acceded to the request. When he was finished, Rabbi Grodjensky delivered his last "mussar" (ethics) dfa'course, and the group surrendered their souls froni a spiritual su111mit far above Nazi ability to profane.

Reb Elchanon Wasserman's last moments have been recorded by an eye witness, Rabbi Ephraim Oschry of New York:

"In the heavens they seem to consider us great tzaddikim," he told his students. "It seems that we have been chosen to atone for our brethren. If so, we must revent, sincerely and fully. We 1nust realize that our sacrifice will be a n?ore perfect one if we hallow ourselves.-ln that way 1ve will save the lives of our brothers in A1ner­ica . ... "

He continued until the end. He belonged fully to bis students-and to his brothers in America and everywhere else. He could not even spare a moment for a last farewell to his beloved son, Naftali.

The Chassidic Grand Rabbi, Reb Klonymos Kalmish Shapiro of Pia'cbena was one of the powerful spiritual forces of the Warsaw Ghetto. He exemplified the type of courage that is so often overlooked by those who are fond of de­scribing Jewish reaction to Hitler in terms of sheep being led to the slaughter.

There is a courage that is different from that exemplified by militants and freedom fighters. And it is deeper, too. It is the kind that was displayed by people like Reb Klonymos Kalmish who would not allow the Hun to dehumanize and de-Judaize them. He trained his disciples in the ways of spiritual strength that would sustain them to the death. He wrote a sefer made up of the Torah discourses he delivered during the ghetto years, and buried it just before the extermination; it was found and published several years ago under the apt title "Holy Fire." During Purim 1941, he told his disciples that the "Zahar" likens Purim to Yom Kippur because, just as a Jew

The JeH'ish Observer I Septen1ber, 1973

must fast on Yom Kippur whether he likes it or not, so n1ust he rejoice on Puriln even if there is nothing to be happy about!

In a similar vein, the 11rand rabbi, Reb Shlomo of Slonim looked for a way to dance on a Purim ivhen he li'OS a _vrisoner in a concentration can1p. He challenged his Nazi guards to a dancing con­test. They showed their prowess. Then the rabbi danced as though he lVere in another world_, singing the Purim son11: "Shekol kovecho lo yevoshu . . . those who place their hopes in You will never be shamed and humiliated."

Perhaps the most amazing incident of all in­volves Rabbi Aharon Rokeach ?"~T, late Grand Rabbi of Belz. When he was told that the last known survivor of his immediate fa1nily his old­est son Reh Moshe, had been thro"wn int~ a burn­ing synagogue and gone to a fiery death, the Belzer Rebbe exclaimed, "The Creator in His 1nercy has allowed n1e to share in the sacrifices of my people!"

Conventional wisdom sees the Nazi era as a horrible aberration of history-a nation gone heserk without rhyme or reason. Our giants of the spirit did not see it that way at all. They remained strong until the end no matter what the horrors and provocations. Their loyalty to G-d did not waver, because they saw His Hand everywhere, whether or not they understood the reason it smote. They saw no accident; only Divine judgment-so they accepted.

Ten Years Before

TEN YEARS BEFORE WORLD WAR II-in 1929-someone commented to the Chafetz Chaim on the tragedy of World War I, when 12 million people had lost their lives. Hitler was still four years away from power, genocide was a term that could be found only in dust­covered unabridged dictionaries. And the Chofetz Chain1 said,

"Twelve million? That is child's play! The real thing win begin in ten years."

"What can we do in ten years?" asked his guest. "Eretz Yisroel-there, it will be safe." The Chofetz Chaim explained with a parable. Two

villages shared in the cost of a fire engine. It was stationed in one of them, but if a fire broke out in the other village, the fire engine would come speeding to the rescue. Once a fire broke out and the apparatus was called. The answer was, "We can't come now. Our village is burning. As soon as the fire is put out

RABBI WOLF is menahel of the Bais Yaakov Teachers Sendnary of Bnei Brak, in Eretz Yisroel, His "Hatekufa Ubayoseha," fron1 lv/dch this piece is taken, is a collection of essays on Torah philosophy. RABBI SCHERMAN is editor of Olomeinu, Torah Un1esorah's 1naga.zine for children, and serves as principal of the Yeshiva Karlin~Stolin in Brooklyn. He is a frequent contributor to these pages.

9

here, we will come to help you." In the same way, in ten years the fires will be burning everywhere. G-d will see to it that it is safe in Eretz Yisroel-because that is His village.

Military historians are indeed at a loss to explain why Rommel, most brilliant of military leaders, con­queror of Egypt and Libya, did not swoop down on Eretz Yisroel as it lay helpless before him. The Chofetz Chaim foretold why: "G-d will see to it that it is safe in Eretz Yisroel-because that is His village."

The Chafetz Chaim's questioner was astounded, "That means that our generation will see a miracle! Why are we worthy of it?"

"Hashem will be testing us," was the answer. No--our greatest saw no accidents in history. His­

tory is G-d's tool, not His master.

In the Aftermath IN THE AFTERMATH, TOO, the faces of Torah leaders were fixed toward the future. The Holocaust was not a starting point for recrimination and hopelessness. Of major importance was to rebuild the world of Torah rather than to philosophize on the theology of destruc­tion. Of course there were looks backward, as well, but only to identify the seeds of destruction so that they would not again take root. Lesser men could consecrate themselves to deciphering the reason why; the truly great ones echoed the Chazon Ish:

Upon being questioned on the reasons for the Holocaust, he responded, "Can someone blithely dismiss a difficult Tosefos if he can barely trans­late a Mishnah? The layman might be infuriated when he sees a tailor cutting good material; he is simply too ignorant to understand that the tailor is making a new garment. It is true that we arc too small and puny to understand the ways of G-d, but we must recognize that even history's most incomprehensible and barbaric eras are but a part of the Divine plan. Could we but see the complete design, we would understand each of its parts."

The worst of the Nazi fury was visited upon Polish Jewry; over 95% was wiped out. Yet soon after V-E Day in 1945 its greatest surviving lead­er, the Gerer Rebbe 1?"lT-old, sick, alive only through miracles-wrote to his followers in America and Europe:

Nation of G-d, be strong despite the suffering and be confident that He will be good to us. ln the worst of days, look ahead to better times that once were and that will be again. We must hope that good times will come from now on.

The main thing is to know that, just as the curses of the 1'orah come to pass, so, too, its blessings and consolations will be fulfilled-as Rabbi Akiva remarked when he saw the ruins of

10

the Bais Hamikdosh. G-d is testing us by conceal­ing his Divine Presence from us-He will reward us for withstanding this difficult test. Have faith in G-d and strengthen your Torah study and prayer. Then G-d will surely give you strength.

The Gerer Rebbe did not offer philosophical spec­ulation. He ordered a positive way of life just as a rabbi will decide a question of concrete Halachic ap­plication. His letters made no attempt to answer the question: "Why did it happen?" Instead he was con­cerned with: "What are we to do now?"

The "Why" of the Holocaust BUT THE "WHY?" REMAINS a haunting question. The Talmud says that a wise man is superior to a prophet and, indeed, some of our wise men in the pre-war period saw thunder-clouds forming in the Jewish sky. And their origin was Berlin-not Hitler's Berlin, but Mendelsohn's Berlin.

The Maggid of Kelm said, "Because of the sin of Geiger's Reform Code of Jewish Law, another law will emerge from Germany. lt will say that every Jew, without exception, must die. May G-d protect us!''

Reb Chaim Ozer Grodzensky of Vilna wrote, "Faith in G-d has weakened in our time. Reform began in Western Europe and its influence has spread eastward. Our nation has suffered increas­ing persecutions, but instead of learning our les­son and returning to Torah, the irreligious are growing in numbers and audacity. As they refuse to repent, our suffering increases. And people wonder why this is our lot!"

Twenty years before the war, the Rabbi of Dvinsk, Reb Meir Simcha Hacohen, wrote a most illuminating commentary on the lengthy catalog of Divine punishment in Vayikra, Chapter 26. His prescience is awe-inspiring as he draws a pattern of Jewish history. His presentation de­deserves detailed study.* Among other things, he says, "Modern man thinks that Berlin is J erusa­lem, but the fierce storms of destruction will emanate from Berlin and leave but a scant rem­nant. The survivors will disperse to other coun­tries and Torah will strike new roots and young scholars will produce undreamed of accomplish­ments."

Others, such as the Grand Rabbi, Reb Dovid Moshe of Chortkov and n"1?n~;i1? the Satmar Rav, look beyond Berlin. They see Jewish secular-na­tionalism and Zionism. In seeking to be "like all the nations," these ideologies have corrupted the ideal that must set the Jewish nation apart. We are not like the nations. We were different at our

"' A translation of the full piece appears elsewhere in this if;:sue.

The Jewish Observer / Septnnber, 1973

conception and we are required to remain differ­ent lest we forfeit our right to exist. It might be comforting to our latent chauvinistic instincts to hear the State of Israel described as the world's third military superpower, but we dare not delude ourselves into believing that we were granted nationhood by G-d and "chosen" to demonstrate superiority in the military and political arenas.

no one can pretend that we know all the reasons or have anything even approaching a total understanding of what and why. In conclusion, the words of Maimoni­des should be always kept uppermost in our minds. They are quoted by Tosefos Yorn Tov at the end of Tractate Brachos:

"Entirely Beyond Human Comprehension"

But these are only attempts to find a glimmer of uuderstanding in the events of Churban Europe. Each of these Torah luminaries gained an insight and shared it with us; would that we could learn from them. But

The time for Divine retribution comes: G-d devises ways to provoke men to violate the Torah so that the ensuing punishment is understood to be deserved. This is so deep and complex a concept that it is entirely beyond human comprehension. The scriptures bear witness that the Divine mind is as far above ours as heaven from earth. All His ways are just and His justice is completely proper. D

GOLDS:

Why Are We Destined to Wander? From (Yeshech Chochma)) by Horav Meir Simcha of Dvinsk

Translated and adapted by Gershon Dubin

T HE HISTORY of the Jewish people through this current f!Olus is truly awesome. It is a two millennia chronicle of almost unrelieved suffering from hostility, oppression, ostracism and eventual exile from lands where on1y years before

Jews had found refuge. Who, at the time of the destruction of the Bais Hamikdosh and the dispersion of the Jewish People, would have imagined the People to survive over such a long painful period, through so storm-tossed a destiny, still loyal to its Divine mission, with its integrity of purpose still intact? lndeed, the mere survival of the Jewish People through 2,000 years of cruelty and oppression can of itself provide the clearest evidence of the centrality of hashgacha (Divine direction) in the course of history.

Once one accepts Divine guidance of history, however, one can ask, as have so many Jews through the years: Why have we been made to endure such unparal­lelled suffering? ls there any purpose in these seemingly endless wanderings? A key to this puzzle may lie in the pattern this suffering has followed: Jews arrive in a new land. They and their children gradually prosper and become important citizens of their adopted country. They organize into communities to huild and niaintain their own institutions. With the passage of time, they become more deeply involved in the culture of their surroundings. Acclim,ation leads to assin1ilation, as the .Tew abandons his divine mission and his hope for spiritual salvation in favor of the seductive Rlitter of the non-Jewish world. After a time, the host country turns against its Jewish citizenry, and several hundred years after its founding, this Jewish community is completely destroyed by the unleashed wrath of its erstwhile hosts. The survivors, impoverished and broken in spirit, escape to a more hospitable country to rebuild in an atmosphere of relative peace-until' they are again subjected to harsh treatment.

HORAV MEIR SIMCHA 7"10 was an outstanding Torah scholar and European con1n1una[ leader during the first quarter of this century. His "Ohr Someach" on Ra1nban1 and "Meshech Chochma" on Torah are key works in their field.

GERSHON DUBIN is a full~tiine ta/mid in the Bais Han1edrosh of y,,shivas Nacha!as Leviin1 of Brooklyn.

The Jewish Observer / Septen1ber, 1973 11

12

The Drive for Change

THE PURPOSE of this cycle in the ultimate realization of Israel's destiny can best be understood by delving into the causes for each stage in the process. A universal characteristic of every generation is the desire to change and

hopefully to improve upon the accomplishments of its predecessors. In the realm of worldly achievement, this can be of greatest value. After all, secular knowledge is the product of human intellect. As such, its theories and conclusions are subject to constant revision with the discovery of the heretofore unknown and its correla­tion with the already proven. This process of adaptation and revision absorbs the energetic compulsion for change of each succeeding generation. The thirst for newness can always be well met.

By contrast, Torah is G-dly wisdom, and does not have any such allowances for adaptation and revision. Yet before Israel was driven into golus, it too enjoyed opportunities for meeting this inherent drive for change in a constructive manner. The thirteen rules of exegesis were open for each beis din (religious court) to interpret the Torah in accord with its understanding. The choice to circumvent the law in cases of special need ( hora' as sha' a) was a viable power in the hands of our wise men. In addition, the guidance of prophecy and, later, of ruach hakodesh prevailed in each generation in accordance with its need~-pinpointing new areas of special concern and concentrated effort.

While the Torah itself remained immutable, its application to the exigencies of the times remained for each generation to determine for itself. There was thus a constant process of renewal and an ever-pervading air of fresh accomplishment.

Once the Jews were driven into golus, however, the situation changed radically. The Age of Prophecy had ended with the destruction of the First Bais Hamikdosh, and the ruach hakodesh that prevailed during the Second Bais Hamikdosh was never since equalled. The concentration of scholars devoted to Torah study, which had characterized both Commonwealths, also remained un­matched. With the dispersion of the Jews in golus, the standard of Torah scholar­ship fell greatly. The result, as the Rambam explains in the introduction to his Yad Hachazakah, was that beis din no longer possesses the authority to institute new laws or to re-examine certain old ones. Since this avenue of expression for the need to innovate has been closed, new ones are always sought.

Thus the Cycle

THE CYCLE of Jewish settlement in the go/us can now be understood. When Jews enter a strange country, they are relatively ignorant of Torah as a result of the distraction from the insecurities that plagued them in their

old country and in their migrations to the new. They then experience a re­awakening of the Divine spirit within them which impels them to return to Torah. Their Torah scholarship improves gradually until it peaks at an unusually high level-a level that nonetheless falls short of the attainments of earlier scholars. At this point the new generation does not conceive of any opportunities for progress. How can they possibly add to the accomplishment of earlier generations? So the neod for change expresses itself in criticism of the status quo. This in turn leads to eventual denial of the worth and substance of their ancestral heritage. The Jew of this final generation abandons his religion and national identity in favor of the mores of his adopted country. He thinks of Berlin as his Jerusalem and learns to behave in a manner typical of the lower elements of the host society. A storm of destruction follows which uproots him and deposits him in a distant land, where the language and customs are unknown to him, his ears still echoing with the perjorative: Jew! Who made you into a personage? This brings him to the realization that his adopted culture and language in truth were foreign to him,

The ]elt'ish Ohserver / September, 1973

and that in essence he is a Jew. His intrinsic "culture" is the Torah, his language is Lashon Hakodesh, and his sources of comfort are the prophecies of the Nevi'ei Hash em. Any attractions other than these are to be regarded at most as temporary coverings to be shed when they present any conflict to the way of life ordained by the Torah .... This has been the pattern of Jewish existence over the centuries.

And this is the meaning of G-d's words of comfort:

"I have not degraded them"-referring to the low level of achievement in Torah and Jewish consciousness ...

[Nor] have I rejected them"-referring to the expulsions and forced wander­ings from land to land ...

"to annihilate them"-to the degree that they should completely abandon Torah and reject their heritage ...

"for I am the Hashem, their G-d"-my bond with them is never annulled.

The degradation and rejection are not wanton, nor are they ever con­sumated. They are carefully modulated measures of maintaining the Jews' awareness of their special relationship with "/, Hashem their G-d." Not despite wanderings and sufferings, but because of them, does the Jewish People remain alive. D

Two by Moshe Prager

I. Eyeball to Eyeball

The Jewish Observer / Sr>pten1ber, 1973

It was not long after Germany's lightning conquest of Poland. A group of Nazi officers, drunk with triumph went carousing through the Jewish streets of Warsaw looking for amusement. It didn't take them long to find it. It was one of the Intermediate Days of Succos and Jews still prayed openly in their synagogues proudly dressed in their holiday garb. As the officers careened down Tvarda Street, they ca1ne upon a group of Gerer Cbassidim just ]caving their house of prayer. The Nazis pounced on them gleefully.

"Hey, Moses, let me have your pretty beard." One of them grabbed at the beard of an old man and cut it off with his bayonet. One after another, the officer pulled at the beards of the frightened old men and they stood there unresisting and humiliated, grateful that their lives were spared.

Then came a shout, HShoot me! Ki11 n1e! I won't let you cut my beard!" The shout of defiance came from a heretofore quiet, meek young man named Yaakov "Yanchie" Geffen. To back up his words he held tightly onto his beard with both hands and stood his ground as if daring the Germans to cross him.

F'rom a chapter in MOSHE PRAGER'S ,,,Yl:J.l N?tv :"t?N,, ("Those Who Did Not Surrender"). MR. PRAGER, a noted journalist and historian, is editor of the Hebrew langua~e Beth Jacob Monthly journal. Translated by NOSSON SCHERMAN.

13

"Damn Jew! I'll kill you on the spot!" "Please, Yanchie, don't be stubborn. We musn't

get them angry" --one of the old men pleaded with Yanchie privately, but to no avail. Meanwhile the Germans were increasing in their anger-especially since they were totally unprepared for such a show of defiance.

"Blasted Jews! Let him go to hlazes!" The officer with the knife lost his composure and

began pleading with Yanchie. "Just a few hairs. Let me just have the long ones."

"Yanchie have pity on your own 1ife. You're too young to die!"

"Yanchie, stop it! They'll kill us all if you don't give in!"

"Let me have just the tip of your beard and then I'll let you go!''

Finally Y ancbic gave in and still holding his hands

first move was to get them all together again. Y anchie would not permit them to continue their scattered existence like frightened rats. They must all stay together in one hiding place and carry on their life of prayer and study without fear of the Germans. The location Yanchie chose was the top floor of an abandoned Talmud Torah building.

Once, after midnight, the entire group was im­mersed in Torah study when they heard the raucous voices of a German patrol coming down the street.

The soldiers stopped at the Talmud Torah and began pounding on the door, demanding admittance. The young Chassidim inside listened in terror and their hearts stopped. Had the Germans discovered their whereabouts? Had their lamps been seen through a crack in the covered window? Were the Nazis planning to search the building on a hunch? Some of them immediately thought of escape.-They could

When Jewish purity of faith was locked in confrontation with Nazi brutality,

what were its prospects for survival?

tightly wrapped around his beard, he exposed a few hairs to the Nazi barber.

Infuriated, the Nazis chased away the Chassidim. "Get out of here, you lousy Jews. No wonder the Fuehrer hates you so!"

Later on Yanchie was asked why he risked his life over something so trivia1. His answer was simple, '"I did it to show them that the whole world doesn't belong to them."

Y aakov Geffen, the quiet one, became a fierce and courageous Jeader during the most trying times. He left Warsaw to travel secretly to the ghettoes where the Nazi boot stamped hardest. After Mattisyohu Gelman left Cracow never to be heard from again, conditions in the ghetto became steadily worse. Cracow was the headquarters of the Nazi military governor of Poland and it was there that the harshest regime existed for Jews during the early part of the occupation. Jewish life was an unending chain of fear, terror, and persecution. The Chassidic group that Matti Gelman had put together-the Mattisovtzies -began to feel that in unity was danger. They decided to split up into small groups to ease concealment and avoid the chance that all would be caught at the same time. It was then that Yanchie Geffen arrived on the scene. His presence electrified the Gerer group and gave them new courage. His

14

silently climb up to the roof and hide there.-Perhaps they should separate and hide in the many rooms and closets of the deserted building. But standing over them was Y anchie Geffen, calm and serene as though the angel of death were not shouting obscenities and in the process of breaking down the door of their refuge. Yanchie motioned to the Gemoras and cast his fearless look on each of the young men. His bearing calmed them and gradually each one returned to the now-silent study-or, at least, maintained his selfcontrol. They heard the crash of the broken door falling inward. The Nazis swarmed into the building cursing, laughing, shouting.

"There're here! They're here!" It was one of the Klein brothers, dashing in from the corridor, terror­stricken. With an angry movement of his hand, Yanchie silenced him and directed him to be seated.

Time dragged on like an eternity. Finally the Germans were heard again, this time laughing and exulting as they left the building. Then it was quiet again. As the Chassidic group learned later, the Nazis had discovered that the basement of the building had been used to conceal the valuables of a wealthy Jewish refugee. They came to loot and departed happy.

Then Y anchie turned to the Klein boy whose hysteria had nearly given them all away. He was furious, but not because Klein had endangered every­one. What he had to say was meant for alJ; it was the raison d'etre of the Mattisovtzies and their unique form of resistance.

The Jewish Observer / Septen1ber, 1973

"You Jost control of yourself! You made no astounding discovery-didn't we all know who they were? Didn't we all hear them coming?

"And anyway-so what! What difference does it make if they come or not. That's what they want, isn't it? Isn't that why they make all that noise and commotion-so we should lose our heads and panic? They want to break us and make us give up.-Let them do theirs. We'll do ours. We'll never give in! We'll never retreat! The Scriptures say, 'Fortunate is the man who trusts in G-d.' "

That was the key to the way of life of the Mattisovtzies. They knew full well that the ultimate Nazi goal was to dehumanize their victims through terror and a blitzkrieg against the psyche. Fear and confusion were the Nazis' most formidable allies. The Chassidic underground refused to be intimidated. By retaining their sense of purpose and self-respect they remained unconquered to the death.

In the slave labor camp of Plashuv, a Jewish prisoner was awakened one night by a conversation between two Kapos. The Kapos were concentration camp police chosen from among the inmates themselves to carry out the orders of the Nazis. Their survival lay in proving their loyalty to the Germans by their compassionless cruelty to their own brethren. That there was always a supply of such people is a sad commentary on the human condition. That night in Plashuv, the bone-weary Moshe Brachtfeld was sleeping on the wooden shelf that served as his bed when he awoke and listened to the conversation of the two Kapos who were on guard duty.

One of them was crying and .his comrade was astounded. After all, no cruelty was a novelty to a Kapo and sentiment had Jong since ceased being a part of their makeup.

"Why the tears? What happened?" "Don't ask. Something happened today that

depressed me terribly." "What's wrong with you? I escourted my own

father to his death. You watched your mother being shot. What could possibly bring us to tears?"

The weeping Kapo answered. "Today it was a different kind of thing. I was taking an old Chassid to be killed and suddenly he stopped and looked at me and said, 'Yes, we deserve this horrible judgment. We are indeed guilty. If one Jew is capable of leading another Jew to the slaughter, then there is so1nething wrong with the entire nation and we deserve even this punisbment.'-Whenever I ·think of that old man's words, my insides twist."

"And that's enough to make you despondent! Listen to what I saw with my own eyes a short

The Jewish Observer/ Septen1her, 1973

while ago. You remember those young Gerer Cbassidim? Well, when Commandant Goethe ordered them taken out to be killed, one of them asked for permission to say a few words of farewell to his friends. I was standing right there and I heard every word. His name was Yisroel Eisenberg and he was the leader of the group. He didn't say much, just that they were all about to die to sanctify the Name of G-d and they must all be happy. He grabbed them by their hands and said, 'The main thing is to be happy.' Then they all took hold of one another and started singing and dancing. They pulled their payos out from under their caps and kept on singing and dancing as if they were going to a ball. Such young people-about to die and celebrating! r thought I would go mad. They kept on dancing until the bullets ended everything. Even the Gestapo officers knew they were in the presence of holiness. One of them said 'They aren't human; they are angels.' "

The two Kapos fell silent for a few moments. Then both burst into sobs. O

II. The Song of Sl1lomo

S hlomo Zelichovsky was a young man who never sought followers, but had them just the same. In his quiet way he was the model of a Gerer Chassid. Shlomo was never without a smile-a real one- no matter what problems he might face. And his every free moment was spent studying Torah. His voice was of rare beauty and power, and he was a favorite of Reb Yossele Chantziner, the main chazzan of the Gerer Rebbe and composer of Gerer music. This music made the heart long for the Divine .Presence, and could set the feet tapping in a happy march of joy for being G-d's chosen soldiers on earth. Shlomo Zelichovsky, just by being himself, created a circle of admiring young Chassidim who saw hi111 as an example and a goal because of l1is dedication to Torah, the joy of his Jewishness, and the beautiful melodies that always accompanied him. When be stood before the amud to lead the congregation in prayer, the song, the words, and his soul seemed to melt into one rapturous whole.

He wasn't a Mattisovtzy, he did it on his own. When the war broke out, Shlomo and bis family went to the town of Zdanska-Volia to join his father-in-law. There he was part of an unconquered Chassidic group much like the Mattisovtzies of other ghettoes. And there he emerged as one of the war's greatest heroes, his bravery to be spread by the underground newspaper of the Warsaw Ghetto and memorialized

15

Did you know Shlomo Zelichovsky? Once you meet him and hear his voice, you will not ever forget him.

in a Hebrew poem by the non-religious poet, Yitzchok Katzenelson. He defeated the Gestapo and, by his example, he wrote a new definition of vengeance.

It happened in 1943. The Nazis had a favorite method of mass mental torture. They would use Jewish holidays as an excuse to punish the entire Jewish community for some sin committed during its history. On Purim that year they assembled every Jew in town to witness a public hanging of ten Jews to avenge the death of the ten sons of Haman. Two days before Shavuos that year, ten more Jews were arrested. The official charge was sabotage and smuggling of food, but the ghetto knew it was to be a macabre spectacle "in honor" of Shavuos. This time, instead of gathering around a mountain to receive the Ten Commandments, the ghetto of Zdanska-Volia would gather around a gallows to witness the hanging of ten of their brothers. The ten criminals were picked at random and Shlorno Zelichovsky was one of them.

Meanwhile the official order went out: All Jews were to gather on Shabbos, the first day of Shavuos, in the Stanshitz marketplace. No reason was given, but the Jews knew. Once again they would be forced to stand and watch, horrified, humiliated, powerless, while their Nazi overlords reveled in the entertainment of the day. The soldiers of the army and the sadists of the Gestapo would turn out en masse for the spectacle. The officers would bring their wives and mistresses to watch the fun. That is exactly how it happened, but Shlomo Zelichovsky and bis nine condemned comrades turned the tables; they were the victors and the Germans were the humiliated ones.

While foey languished in prison waiting to go on as stars of the Gestapo's passion play, Shlorno would not allow his fellow prisoners to give in to despair. He raised their spirits to a summit as they joined him in preparing to sanctify the Name before every living soul in Zdanska-Volia. He proposed that they declare the day before their execution as their Yorn Kippur, that they fast and pray the Yorn Kippur service. He himself would lead the prayers, as he had done so often in the past with his sweet voice, unsurpassed fervor and the beautiful nusach (liturgical melodies) of Reb Y ossele, the Gerer chazzan. They all agreed, and that day became Yorn Kippur. The prayers of the day penetrated even the hearts of the Jewish ghetto police, those unfortunate men whose

16

temporary survival was bought at the price of extinguishing the spark of brotherly love, and turning their once warm hearts into icy rocks. Reb Shlorno led, the other condemned men sang and prayed with him. And even the ghetto police cried like children.

They began Ne'ilah, the prayer that closes the Yorn Kippur service with a final passionate appeal for Divine mercy. Shlorno stopped in the middle; the last part of Ne'ilah woufd be said on the way to the gallows.

The next day, the ten prisoners-hands tied behind their backs-were marched to the gallows. The Germans were there. The Jews were there. All were waiting to see ten cowering, broken men, fearful of their fate. The Germans waited with gleeful anticipation; the Jews with heartbroken trepidation.

The ten men came, heads high, all of them singing the concluding and most moving part of Ne'ilah, led by Shlorno's sweet and powerful voice: . . . C'pi?~ 01:JTN.

"/ remember, Oh L-rd, and I tremble, when I see every city built up on its hilltop, and the city of the L-rd degraded down to the lowest depths. And despite all this, we belong to the Merciful G-d and our eyes look to the Merciful G-d."

They reached the gallows. The anguished people of the ghetto looked at them. They stood there, the ten of them ... an even line-backs straight-heads erect ... their eyes looking to heaven. And the Jews of the ghetto straightened up too, transfused with inspiration and courage. "Despite all this, we belong to the Merciful G-d and our eyes look to the Merciful G-d."

There were ten gallows, each one with a bench beneath it. The condemned men would he placed on the benches, the nooses would be put around their necks1 and the benches removed. But the Germans \Vere in no rush. They wanted to prolong the fun. Dra}v out the niinutes, let the cowards beg for mercy, let the cowering spectators stand by and stew in their helplessness. Shlorno Zelichovsky stood there and demanded of his guards,

"Well, aren't you ready?" With that he stepped up onto the bench and the

Stanshitz marketplace was filled with a familiar voice chanting for the last time,

"Shma Yisroel-Hear, Oh Israel, Hashem our G-d, Hashem is One."

Silently every Jew in Zdanska-Volia called out

The Jewish Observer / Septen1ber, 1973

with the inner voice that carries to the heavenly throne, "Hashem our G-d, Hashem is One."

Then one of the ten shouted, "Fellow Jews, avenge our blood!"

The Gestapo had been robbed of the delicious pleasure of prolonging the agony. Shlomo and his comrades had defeated them. They continued with the closing words of Ne'ilah.

"Shma Yisroel ... Blessed is the name of his glorious kingdom forever and ever. Hashem is G-d."

The benches were kicked away and their tips were stilled, but their fellow Jews still heard the words and the handful who survived the war remember them still.

Mendel Yuskowitz was about sixteen when he witnessed the execution. At the time he thought that the cry, "Fellow Jews, avenge our blood" was somehow ludicrous. "How could we take revenge? We whose lives hung on n hair, starving, weakened, frightened-what could we do?" Then he realized that they could indeed realize revenge-the very act of singing Ne'ilah and saying Shma was revenge. The Nazis chose Shavuos as an execution day for a reason: they wanted to execute the Jewish soul, to eradicate their faith in Torah and in its Giver. Sh!omo had publicly proved that the Nazi murderers had no power over the Jewish soul; our faith in G-d was beyond their power to uproot. What greater revenge could there be than to prove that the Jewish spirit was impervious to all the blitzkriegs Germany could unleash against it!

The very next day Mendel participated in his own little act of revenge. He took part in a secret minyan in the ghetto to recite the festival prayers of Shavuos. The Torah reading was read from a torn, slashed scroll, one that had been bayoneted by an enraged Gestapo officer \vhen he discovered it at an earlier secret 1ninyan.

Until the end of the war, Mendel carried within him the memory of Sblomo Zelichovsky and that memory kept his faith strong no matter how great the suffering or apparent hopelessness.

A few months after the Shavuos execution, the Jews of Zdanska-Volia were herded to the town's Jewish cemetery. It was 25 Elul 5703, a hot, stuffy September. For three days they were kept there without food or water. The thirst was unbearable. People fainted. They licked the gravestones to cool their parched tongues. Some bit their skin to drink tbeir own blood. Mendel felt as hopeless as the rest when he made a discovery. There on the cemetery field, he found a pair of tefillin. Suddenly he felt strong again and he donned the tefillin. Hurriedly he prayed

The Jewish Observer I Septen1her, 1973

so that he could pass the tefillin to a neighbor. Every Jew who wore those tefillin felt new strength surge up within him as he wrapped them on his arm, fixed them on his head, and renewed his bond with G-d. "Fellow Jews, avenge our deaths."

Another time, Mendel was among hundreds of Zdanska-Volia Jews who were being shipped to the Lodz gheto for their "final solution." They were crowded into a cattle car for a four-hour train ride. Fumes from the locomotive went into the cars and the trip was made twice as long as necessary so that as many as possible could die on the way. The people could not move, they could barely breathe. Many called out "Down with Hitler. Long live Stalin." They were hoping to provoke the guards into shooting into the crowd thus ending the agony. It did not help. The train lurched on.

The Mendel remembered Shlomo Zelichovsky. He called out, "Fellow Jews, we are going to the gas chambers. Let us pray together our last Maariv."

They prayed, and in praying avenged their hrothers. D

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Translated and Annotated by RABBI ABRAHAM ROSENFELD

Selichot means literally "Forgiveness," and is thus applied to prayers for forgiveness. It is used to de­scribe penitential prayers which are not generally an integral part of the service but are recited on certain solemn days of the Jewish calendar. The Selicot in this volume are those recited on the days preceding Rosh Hashanah, on the days be­tween Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and on certain Fast Days.

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17

Nirson Wolpin

To Eretz Yisroel-With a Love That Does Not Fade

EVERY MAN THINKS HIS LOVE is unique, the object of his love incomparable. Parallels and analogies only re­duce its dimensions. A Jew's love for Eretz Yisroel is different. It is not an experience that is new with him. In fact, one can only begin to understand it by tracing its roots to its beginnings, over a hundred generations ago.

And greater insight is gained by viewing it in the context of attachments of other national groups to their own homelands. For them the Jew's bond to his Land emerges as being beyond comparison: Rare is any other transplanted group that has maintained a bond with its erstwhile homeland for more than a generation or two. Generally, after such time, strangeness no longer applies to the host country but to the country of origin. and the children of aliens become native sons in their foster country.

Jews have had much less success in adapting to nc\v settings. At most they become comfortable guests in any host country-their hold seldom tightening beyond the grip of Jacob's words upon entering Egypt: "We have co1ne to sojourn in the land"-not to settle here. At worst, they are unwelcome strangers, only worthy of oppression. Thus, most often by choice, sometimes by virtue of circumstance, wherever Jews have dwelt, they have remained children of another !and.

Tracing the itinerary of wanderings of any Jewish family from Jerusalem 3833 to Chicago 5733 can mean following a trail through Rome, Babylon, the Meghreb, Castillian Spain, the Provence in France, Germany,

18

Poland, Russia, back to Germany, and now America. At any time, memories may have reached back to one stopping place before, but a sense of belonging was associated with but one particular land-a land never viewed, but often spoken of, and always yearned for: Eretz Yisroel. Thus the Jew exiled from Spain did not miss the Iberian flatlands as intensely as the plains of Judea. Herded into the Pale of Russia, he did not dream of the waves of the Black Sea of his childhood, but of those that lap the shores of Tiberias. And so it has persisted for 1900 years.

This love, then, is both unique and shared-unique to the Jewish People, who share it with their progeni­tors and their heirs.

A Primeval Y earnin)i ' YEARNING OF THIS SORT does not lend itself to ra­tional explanations. It must be metaphysical in nature, and indeed its roots reach back to the prehistory of the Jewish People. Its parallels are not in the nationalistic ties to homeland experienced by other peoples, but in the acts of patriarchs that seared characteristic speci­fics into the national Jewish soul.

Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin pointed out that the Ten Tests to which Abraham was subjected were not de­signed to prove Abraham's commitment to G-d, as much as they were exercises of elevation~ designed to 1nold his neshama in most specific ways.

A prize example is the celebrated Jewish readiness to relinquish life for the sake of Heaven-al kiddush

The Je-.vish Observer I Seplenther, 1973

Hashem--0ften viewed as a decision painfully arrived at individually by every Jew so challenged throughout history. But the descision is not reached at the moment of challenge. It was made for him millennia ago. In other words, when a Jew is forced to choose between his life and his faith, and he chooses temporal death for the sake of convictions, he does not weigh alternate values and then decide. Instead he refers to the spiritual genetic code programmed into every Jew's neshan1a, which was entered into the national spiritual treasury at the time of the akeida-and Isaac's willing submission to G-d's command that he be offered as a sacrifice. This "test" was an elevation experience that impressed a trait pecu1iar to the Jew on his national neshan1a. Since then, kiddush Hashem has been a natural, auto­matic response.

The same must be said regarding Abraham's re­sponse to G-d's command: "Go ye from your land, from your birthplace, from your father's house to the land that I will show you .... And Abraham went" ~to an unknown spot bordering the Mediterranean Sea, leaving behind an empire where he had made souls, amassed a fortune, and had established himself as Father of his Country, Aram ... all for the promise of a land. This trek across Asia Minor left its imprint on Abraham and his children. The Land reached at great personal sacrifice was presented as a spiritual entity; it became an integral part of the Jewish soul; and the bond between the Jew and the Land assumed a dominant place in the Jewish psyche. This Jove that points to sources primeval draws its strength and its unique character from its ancient weJJsprings.

From the Ethereal to the Practical THESE SPECIFIC CHARACTERISTICS OF ,JEWISHNESS are not exclusive to the realm of metaphysics, but have expression in the most practical aspect of Judaism­the halacha. By virtue of the Divine election that singles out the Jewish People to seek sanctity through Torah and n1itzvos, every Jew may be assumed to have a predilection toward fulfilling G-d's commands. So much so, that should a Jew exhibit reluctance to perform an act which is incumbent upon him-such as serving a

The Jewish Observer / Septen1ber, 1973

get (bill of divorcement) to a woman whom he is re­quired to divorce-he can be subjected to physical pres­sures until he relents, even though halacha requires that the act be performed as a matter of personal choice. The Rambam explains that in spite of the element of force, this requirement of volition is really honored. Inherently, every Jew yearns to fulfill all mitzvos. Only a shallow attraction toward self-service and pleasure-seeking dellects him from his inborn pur­suit of mitzvah performance, and this can be "neutral­ized" by creating conditions that make it physically uncomfortable for him to evade response to a higher calling, leaving him to respond to his natural instinctive drive: performing G-d's will.

The Jew's special relationship with Eretz Yisroel also has its ramifications in halacha. According to many authorities, a Jew is simply not permitted to sell any land in Eretz Yisroel to a non-Jew. The Chazon Ish elaborates on this in his master work on Jewish juris­prudence-his commentary on Shulchan A ruch Cho­shen Mishpat: "G-d's gift (of the Land) to Abraham was an eternal one, and Eretz Yisroel is thus Jewry's eternal possession. Even after the Jews were exiled and aliens seized the Land by military force . . . the Land remained ours, because He vowed to return us to it. True enough, every individual may have forfeited his personal hold on his own ancestral lands-those which were portioned to the original settlers of the Land. Nonetheless, each individual as part of the nation as a whole has a share somewhere in Eretz Yisroel-a share that will become determined le'asid lava-in the ultimate future."

A relationship established in the metaphysical realm must obtain in the practical realm of halacha.

A Feature of the Spiritual Anatomy ONE MIGHT SA y THAT A JEW'S Jove for his Land is not only a matter of heart or of ego, bu! that it is a dominant feature of the anatomy of the Jewish soul. This "anatomy" is not simply a metaphor. The Talmud relates the Torah's 365 negative commands to !he cor­responding number of vessels in the human body; and so does it tie in the 248 positive commands with the

19

like number of human limbs. The implication is that human fulfillment on the spiritual level must involve expression and restraint along lines corresponding to the physical makeup of the human body. The human anatomy then can be viewed as a physical representa­tion of one's spiritual make-up in its potential, and, when fully developed through Torah guidelines, as Man in his ideal state. And just as man's physical fmm has 365 vessels and 248 limbs so does his soul.

So great a number of mitzvos depend upon residing in Eretz Yisroel, so many involve active development of the soil and reaping its produce, that one can only view the soul and the Land as inextricably intertwined -neither fulfilled without the other: ... The first fruit is consecrated as bikurim-to be brought with great festivity to the Bais Hamikdash in Jerusalem .... Teru­'mah, the tithes, and other gifts of the harvest nurture and reinforce our homage to those who dedicate their lives to Divine service . ... The corner of every field, forgotten sheaves, and single strands of grapes are all left for the poor ... the Sabbatical Shmittah and the Y ovel Jubilee-All remind us that "the earth is the L-rd's."

Thus the Jewish craving for returning to Eretz Yis­roel is based on the metaphysical drive to experience those mitzvos impossible to perform outside of the Land. But it is also a search for the added dimension of kedusha one can realize even in those mitzvos not de­pendent on the Land. Tefillin, Torah study, Shabbos­all are enhanced by being performed in the setting of the Holy Land, for all mitzvos are intertwined (much as the well-being of any part of the human anatomy is effected by the sturdiness of the entire body, which in turn depends on the health of each individual limb).

The centrality of the Bais Hamikdosh to national life, the common denominators of sacrifice and close­ness to G-d realized through daily communal offerings and individual korbonos ... the pilgrimage festivals

when one "sees His face"-these can only be experi­enced in the Holy Land.

And as the Chasam Sofer declared: Even if, as some maintain, mitzvos of the Land do not obtain under cur­rent circumstances, "nonetheless, the sanctity of 'the House of G-d and this is the Gate of Heaven' was never invalidated, nor will it ever so come to pass" ( Chamm Sofer, Y ora De' ah 233).

No wonder the Jew feels incomplete when estranged from his land-as if limbs of bis spirit are threatened with atrophy from disuse. And no wonder the yearning to return grows, rather than diminishes, with the length of the exile. More than a place to live, beyond offering completion to a soul suffering denial, the Land-home of the future third Bais Hamikdash-represents ful­fillment of Messianic yearnings to Jews in exile.

The Supreme Awareness THE JEW'S LOVE FOR HIS LAND is also a feature of his love for his G-d.

"The royal palace" is the appellation applied to Eretz Yisroel in Midrashic literature. The usual refer­ence is to the exacting demands made on the inhabit­ants of Israel, admonishing them not to permit their behavior to sink to the level of other nations. There arc liberties that one might allow himself in his own home or even in a public place that are intolerable in a royal palace. Such are the demands of living in Eretz Yisroel.

And then the corollary. In the palace there is a pervading awareness of the royal presence even \Vhen the royal personage is not viewed directly. The trap­pings, the furnishings, the guarded atmosphere of the palace, all contribute to this awareness-a sensitivity that cannot be equalled in the marketplace. Eretz Yisroel is the "Land that G-d inquires after con­stantly." Awareness of this Divine surveillance has an almost tangible impact npon the dwellers of the palace.

The Chazon !sh on Love of Zion How can one best depict love of Zion? I recall a

Lithuanian village with several hundred families that eked out a living with difficulty. Three rubels covered the week's needs for each Jewish family. They lived an inipoverished life, and served Hashe1n.

Occasionally a meshulach would visit on behalf of some yeshiva-firing the hearts, speaking, preachinJ?, visiting the houses of the villagers. If he was effective, he would raise some eight rubles. A more successful 1ncshulach, representing a larger institution of wider fame, might raise as much as fifteen rubels . ... And then a meshulach would appear on behalf of the impoverished in Eretz Yisroel: Some decades before, Reb Chaim of Volozhin had established the "Fund of Rabbi Meir Ba'al Haness" which provides sus-

20

tenance for thousands of settlers in Eretz Yisroel. When the meshulach would arrive, he had no need to fire the hearts, to inspire contributions. His work had already been done for him. He had but to visit the homes to collect his money-to gather and to count. The total he would amass from this one village every year was over 300 rubles!

1·ranslating this into today's tern1s would 1nean that-taking into account all towns and villages, forgotten corners and hidden crannies of Europe­millions of Israeli pounds were culled from the poorest of the poor every year/ They established the yishuv, and they built it ... (from "LETTERS OF THE

CHAZON ISH" ).

The Je1vish Observer / Septe1nber, 1973

So much so, that the Talmud and the Midrash describe the extraordinary interaction between the man attuned to kedusha and the Land of kedusha in most extra­ordinary terms: "Fortunate are those who dwell in Eretz Yisroel, for they have neither sin nor iniquity ... " ( Yalkut Shimoni)--especially in comparison to those deprived of this superior awareness of kedusha for dwelling in the gala: "Whoever dwells in Eretz Yisroel is as though he has a G-d and whoever dwells out of the Land is as though he has no G-d" (Kesubos 1 lOa), for he is estranged from the all-encompassing awareness of his Creator that the Land offers. Thus the yearning beyond emotions, the supra-rational drive to imbibe more deeply from the sanctity of the Holy Land; for the Land of Israel is not a point on the globe but a level of kedusha for which every Jew innately craves.

The Historical Imprint THE JEWISH CRAVING FOR THE LAND is also a search for the myriad facets of kedusha revealed, which were invested and implanted in the Land through any num­ber of individual gestures of dedication, communal acts of Divine servitude, the pronouncements of all the prophets, recorded and unknown, and revelations of kedusha by G-d Himself-from the time of the Patri­archs, through the Biblical Monarchies, the Talmudic era, and beyond. The connoisseur of kedusha can find all these in the Land, and relish in their rediscovery .... This figured prominently in Yehuda Halevi's Jove songs to Eretz Yisroel, much as it drove the Ramban and his disciples to rededicate every one of the Holy Land's stones ignored or desecrated for generations: "The greater the kedusha," the Ramban bemoaned-know­ing well how to guage the comparisons of kedusha's greatness, "the greater is the destruction!" And so he set out to rebuild.

It was this sensitivity to kedusha in its multi-faceted expressions that guided the Ari Zal in his tour of the Holy Land, touching gravestones with his walking stick. recognizing the remains buried there by the nature and degree of the kedusha associated with those interred ....

It was this thirst that impelled the followers of the Baal Shem Tov to aliya and that inspired the disciples of the Vilna Gaon to settle the Land .... That made Eretz Yisroel figure so prominently in the kavanos as well as the spoken prayers of our oppressed people. No wonder every modern effort toward organized a/iya -from Reh Shmuel Mohliver's Chovevei Zion through Theodore Herzl's secular Zionism - found an cager response from Jewry.-If a Jew was to finally put 'an end to a particularly bitter sojourn in the go/a, was there any other place, anywhere on this earth. that he could calJ "ho1ne"?

Even the most avowed secularist found his heart quicken to the call of Zion. His loyalty may have been

The Jewish Obsen'er / Septen1ber, 1973

clothed in whatever philosophical trappings that were then in vogue-"a national homeland" ... "a worker's paradise" ... "dignity through labor" ... "a utopia of equality" ... -but beneath the veneer of godless com-mitments pulsed a soul-bond with the Land that could never respond to Birobidjan or Uganda-only to the Land of Israel.

Politics of the Spirit, or the Spirituality of Politics?

ONE WOULD NOT SERVE VINT AGE WINES in earthen ves­sels. Neither would one willingly present a throbbing spiritual reality in political terms or as a purely emo­tional entity. Thus those truly impelled by a love for the Land cannot accept the wines of Chibas Ha'aretz in the clay flasks of "secular nationalism"-or for that matter any other such reductions of the spiritual to the mundane.

Moreover, a violation of Torah in the Holy Land, or the pursuit of policies that violate the spirituality of Eretz Y isroel-policies running counter to the sanctity of the Land, or counter to the sanctity of the People who dwell in the Land-such provoke outcries of pro­test that can simply never be muted. These are outcries that do not express physical pain or emotional anguish, but outcries from a soul in agony.

Generally, there are any number of circumstances that can provoke people to extremely powerful re­sponses-a son on behalf of his father's honor, a mother in protection of her offspring's safety-but these pale when compared to the outcry of the soul in torment. Whether in response to threat of violation or deprivation, the demands for spiritual fulfillment are the most potent and unrelenting in the human experi­ence-precisely because they articulate a need that is more than human.

A spiritual thirst can not be stilled by waters from springs of a physical nature. The Jewish yearning for his Land involves geography--but much more. Political autonomy can provide an element of fulfillment to the J cw-but if it is viewed as the totality of fulfillment it is a factor of further alienation.

Even at the Western Wall, the tears of joy and gratitude mingle with tears of hope and supplication when one says: "May our eyes witness Your return to Zion with Mercy." O

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The Je1rish Observer I Septen1ber, 1973

BOOKS RAMBAN, COMMENTARY ON THE TORAH (GENESIS),

translated and annotated by Rabbi Dr. Charles B. Chavez.

(New York, 1971; Shilo Publishing House, $12.00)

OUR GOLUS HISTORY is marked by the successive rise and decline of community after community. If we seek to evaluate the emergence of a new Jewish center of settlement, and its progress toward maturity, there are many indicators we can use-and by no means the least important is the emergence of Torah literature in the vernacular.

When translations of Torah classics or new presenta­tions of Torah thought and scholarship become avail­able, in response to popular demand, this marks an important milestone in the history of a new community. It indicates that the initial "culture shock" suffered by in11nigrants to a new land, with a new civilization, has begun to wear off.

Time and time again, we see at the beginning of a new J cwish community how an abyss appears between the old generation, which clings to the heritage which it has brought with it, and the young generation, which is drawn into a headlong rush toward the lures of its new surroundings. It takes some time-and, unfortu­nately, all too many victims-till it is discovered that "the new wells are broken and do not hold water" and that it is better to return to "the wellspring of living water," the Torah. At that point, Torah literature in the vernacular has a crucial role to play, in bringing about a new familiarity with, and understanding of the teachings of Torah.

Yet there are pitfalls in this development too. Most obviously, there is the danger that, in the search for more lasting values than the environment offers, the treasures of Torah will be mined by people who are not qualified, who do not truly understand them, or­even worse-who inisuse them to buttress their own preconceived ideas of what Judaism should be. Less obvious, but just as real, is the danger that people might be satisfied with what they can glean from ver­nacular Torah literature, rather than being inspired by it to go back to the source.

This inevitably produces a shallow and uniformed Jewishness and-since translations and adaptations can never fully capture the spirit and essence of the original --can easily Jead to misinterpretations and misunder­standings. This happened to Hellenistic Jewry in the times of Philo of Alexandria. Thus, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, himself a pioneer in the use of the vernacular, warns that:

Thr Jewish Observer / Septen1her, 1973

"If we want to come to know Judaism ... we must read it in Hebrew, i.e. in the spirit of this language ... with wide-awake eye and ear, and with a mind aroused to do its own share; we must read it ... to reconstrue the speaker's thoughts­else we will miss their meaning" (Nineteen Letters of Ben Uziel, Letter 2).

He himself, therefore, devoted special attention to the linguistic details as he prepared his translations and commentaries. But, ultimately, the only protection against the dangers described lies in going back to the sources in their original fonn.

These thoughts cross the mind of the reviewer as he peruses Rabbi Chavel's translation of the Ramban's commentary to Bereshith. Let it be said at the very outset that this is a masterful piece of work. Rabbi Chavel has previously established himself as an author­ity on the writings of the Ramban, of Rabbeinu Bachya and of the Sefer Hachinuch, of all of which he has published corrected editions, with annotations that are of the greatest help to the student of these classic works. He was therefore excellently prepared for the task of translating the Ramban's Torah co1nmentary, and at the same time brought to it a facility of language and clarity of expression without which any translating of this difficult work would have had to remain useless and unintelligible.

Moreover, Rabbi Chavel has succeeded in being faithful to every nuance of the Ramban's meaning. Where his translation seems to differ in any detail from the text in our chumashim, reference to his critical edition of the Ramban's commentary shows that his words are based on a clearer and therefore superior version in a Ramban manuscript. One example may suffice. On page 78, the words, "are merely a matter of consensus and not of nature" reflect a manuscript version, brought in Chavel's Perush Haramban (vol. l, p. 39), rather than the text found in the printed editions; it should be added, however, that in the Perush Haramban Rabbi Chavel indicates this fact, while he does not do so in the English translation­this is a pity, for it might confuse some student who is trying to use the translation as an aid in understand­ing the Hebrew text in the standard chumashim.

It is this function of the English edition of the Ram­ban that is in fact most valuable. While it is possible to read the English text by itself, this must by necessity be of somewhat limited value-and perhaps even some­what dangerous. Here applies what I stressed before. In order really to understand the Ramban, insofar as the reader is at all equipped to do so, he must work at it-otherwise shallow and even misleading ideas can be garnered by the reader, even as he fancies himself an authority on the Ramban.

(please turn to page 25)

23

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The Jewish Observer I SepteTnber, 1973

A good example can be found at the beginning of Vayerah, where the Ramban sharply criticizes the Rambam, declaring that his "words contradict Scrip­ture. It is forbidden to listen to them, all the more to believe in them" (p. 228). Rabbi Chavel's footnotes help only somewhat to clarify the controversy-how­ever, in the much more elaborate footnotes to his Hebrew edition of the Ramban he draws the student's attention to the defense of the Rambam's position by Abarbanel and Ritbah, and explains what they say. Jn the English work, all this is omitted, though in the preface Chavel refers in general to the Ritbah and other defenders of the Rambam. Obviously, it would be most difficult to go into fine detail in translations of a commentary; but that is the very reason why trans­lations should best be used as aids and stepping-stones to the understanding of the original, rather than as self-contained works.

This observation is meant as a caution against ex­cessive reliance on translations-but it in no way diminishes the value and excellence of Rabbi Chavel's achievement. It is to be hoped that the remaining volumes will appear in short order. D

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BOOKS {continued)

THE TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO JEWISH LANDMARKS OF

EUROPE, by Bernard Postal and Samuel H. Abram­son (New York, 1971, Fleet Press, $3.95 paperback, $10.00 hardcover.)

This comprehensive volume will contribute greatly to a Jewish traveler's journeys through Europe-but it will also be of great interest to a reader comfortably ensconced in his armchair at home. After giving a brief introduction to the history of Jews in every country (listed alphabetically), the authors list the local points of interest within the country. A country may have only a quarter page (as for Andorra) or as many as 54 (for France), and the information given may range from the address of the kosher restaurant or K ehillah office to the ruins of an old synagogue or a historical burial ground.

Whether the reader's interests are contemporary and practical, or historical and sentimental, he is likely to find himself frustrated by the authors' lack of perspec­tive and consistency. They list the communal offices in many cities, and a goodly number of organizations that are part of the "establishment" (e.g. the Association for Jewish Youth in London, of which most English Jews have little or no knowledge), but are satisfied with one sentence for the most flourishing institutions in Europe-or ignore them altogether.

The Stamford Hill district in London boasts large Yeshivas, a girls' seminary, the famous Adas Israel Synagogue, and many other religious institutions, but

26

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is disposed of with two sentences (incorrectly placing the district into the East End!). The Manchester Mac­cabi House is listed, but not Lubavitcher House in London, the Manchester Reform Temple, but not the Manchester Yeshiva-nor for that matter the Yeshivas in Sunderland, Montreux, Foublaines, or Strasbourg, or the girls' seminaries in Lucerne and Aix !es Baines, or the Day School in Zurich and any of the day schools in England, except the Jewish Free School. Even though these institutions are at the very heart of Jewish survival in Europe, it could perhaps be argued that they are of minimal interest to the casual tourist (even though every single European ORT trade school is listed)-but what about Mikvaoth? The ruins of some n1ediaeval ritualaria are listed~ but not a single one presently in operation.

Instead, next to matters of real interest, whether from past or present, there are entries that are only of the most peripheral concern to Jews-certainly to those who arc likely to use this book out of a genuine interest in Jewish concerns. Max Jacob, Bernard Berenson, Marcel Proust, Sarah Bernhardt, Felix Mendelsohn­Martoldy, and innumerable other apostates, renegades, and half- and quarter-Jews are carefully listed-so much so that in reading the section on, say, Paris, one is overwhehned with a sense of Jewish decay and disintegration, never suspecting that there is in Paris even now a strong and living traditional com1nunity.

There is, of course, a full description of the stained­glass windows which Marc Chagall created for the famous Metz Cathedral, with the authors noting that the artist "has never accepted money for work for the Church" (p. 66). Travelers are directed to the chapel of the St. Sigismund Cathedral in Prague where a

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fragment of the Temple Menorah is supposedly kept; and, like many others, the Church of Notre Dame in Assy has almost half a page-thanks to a sculpture by Jaques Lipschitz and a mural by Chagall. Less grating on our sentiments but even more boring are such items as the lengthy description of a villa in Beaulieu which is included merely because it happened to be presented to the French government by a Baroness Rothschild.

And yet-all the authors' shortcomings cannot rob this book of its value and interest, regrettable though its deficiencies are. The authors may have failed to provide an accurate picture of contemporary Jewish life in Europe, they may have shown very poor judg­ment as to what is or is not of authentic Jewish his­torical interest; but from page after page there resound the echoes of our national experience.

The reader is reminded that the Moabite Stele, in the Paris Louvre, commemorates a war with Achab, about 2500 years ago. He is directed to the priceless relies and manuscripts of the British Museum. The tombstone of Rabbeinu Gershom in Mainz, the Worms grave of Rabbi Meir of Rotenburg, and the ancient synagogue in Carpentras are just some of the many historical sights and sites that bring to mind the van­ished glory of European Jewry (interestingly enough, however, the ancient community of Fuerth is not men­tioned at all).

Of particular interest are the many stories of Jewish loyalty and heroism of which reminders can be found in Europe. There is the sixteenth century "Jew's Tower" in Segovia, so called after a Jew who was imprisoned there because he refused to accept baptism, and died in his jail. In connection with the Great Synagogue in Sofia, mention is made that the late Chief Rabbi Asher Hananel (died in 1962) was arrested in 1961 for refusing to close the synagogue; he has not been re­placed. But there is also a laconic entry that during the French Revolution the Jews of Bidache converted their synagogue into a Temple of Reason.

There are innumerable reminders of Christian Jew­hatred and persecution. As late as 1957 an Italian parish priest set up a new ritual murder shrine; and on Majorca, every Easter, the worshippers carry a pair of ancient silver Torah orna1nents in procession­memento to some unspeakable pogrom. Yet we are

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The Jewish Observer/ Septen1her, 1973

also told that the head of the tiny Jewish congregation in lnnsbrnck is a former Polish prince who converted to Judaism.

The authors point out that many famous Jewish historical sites were destroyed during World War II. At the same time, however, this war put many new places on the Jewish historical map-heartrending re­minders of the "Final Solution." There are the de­scriptions of Mauthausen and Auschwitz concentration camps, for example, and of innumerable n1artyrs' mon­u1nents co1nmemorating Nazi atrocities and Jewish suf­fering. The resulting mood of desolation pervades the entire volume. It is a harrowing reminder, Jest we forget, and at the same time a chalienge to the "remnant of Israel" to persevere in its historic task. D A !so received-

GEMS FROM THE FOUNTAIN, by Nachama Rabinowitz (Jerusalem, 1971; Feldheim Publishers, $6.00)

Brief comments on the weekly Sidrah; originally written as weekly circulars of the Federation of Syna­gogue Women's Guilds of South Africa, to bring some basic thoughts on the Sidrah, in simple, popular form, to a wider public. While some oversimplifications have inevitably crept in, this volume has a definite value as an introduction to basic Jewish ideas. D

THE INESCAPABLE TRUTH, by Rabbi Eli J. Gottlieb (New York, 1971; Feldheim Publishers, $7.95)

Offered as "a sound approach to genuine religion," this volume has set itself a twofold purpose: to provide for Orthodox Jews a reinforcement of their belief by a statement of a solid intellectual foundation for their

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convictions, and to challenge and convince people who have been skeptics, particularly about Orthodox Juda­ism.

tions can be taken (e.g. his speaking of "positive doubt" where he really means "reasonable assumption,'' p. 10) and some are quite simplistic (e.g. concerning the role of the State of Israel, p. 308). But he has succeeded in providing stimulating and thought-provoking answers to many of the challenges encountered by Torah Juda­~- D

The author treats many questions that are often asked (certainty of religious faith, truth of Torah, free will and divine omniscience, immortality, 1neaning of Auschwitz, etc.). To some of his formulations excep-

28

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Soaring costs are an unfortunate con1mon feature of the daily lives of The Jewish Observer readers. We too, have been victimized by the inflationary spiral. 1'"'or ten years we have kept this unpleasant fact of life away fron1 the pages of our magazine and we have maintained a steady subscription rate that in no way reflected increasing production cost. Unfortunately, we arc no longer capable of <loin!! so. 'fhc follo\\·ing is our nff\\.T schedule of suh~cription rates:

One year (that is, 10 issues, regardless of irregularities in publishing frequency I - - - - $ 6.50

Two years 120 issues) - - - - 11.00 (you save $2) Three years 130 issues) - - - - 15.00 (you save $4.50)

For overseas subscriptions, add $1.00 per year.

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If n1ailing before Rosh Hashanah, 5734 (Sept. 27), you may strike out ainounts printed and enter o]d subscription rates.

THE JEWISH OBSERVER/ 5 Beekman Street/ New York, N. Y. 10038 0 NEW SUBSCRIPTION or RENEWAL: 1 year of J.O. - $6.50; For 2 years of J.O.: $13 value w Subtract $2 ~ Send $11 only! For 3 years of J.O.: $19.50 value ·Subtract $'1.50 -·-· Send $15 only! D GIFT: $6.50 - 1 year; $11, 2 years; $15, 3 years of J.0.

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Last October, we announced the largest,single,outside, private

capital investment in the history of Israel.

Who cares? !(!~Oxford Fi~~~ce c~res . . we cleared the way for Oxford to.offer land 21~c~:'~~\ acquisition fina:inng fo.r ~ re~l es.tate de'::lopment 1n !srael. ~· ·· ,Q~~( Our recent ma1or part1npat1on in The First International

,1[211/\ Bank of Israel (FIBI), provided a knowledge of Israeli 1~~~~, )i1' 1

regulations .on real estate and f~reigi: exchange, and gav~ \v(1~?-~1: Oxford confidence that land registration and transfer of title <,~~> could he legally and properly handled.

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Delta Truck cares. We helped this Pennsylvania truck body manu­facturer form a partnership with an Israeli hardware firm. Our association

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mend a compatible partner to Delta.

Mrs. David Levin cares. We sent her son, hospitalized in Jerusalem, the money he urgently needed for medical care. Mrs. Levin, although not a customer of ours, deposited the money with First Pennsylvania Bank, and her son received it the next day through the FIBI branch in Jerusalem.

If you do business in Israel, or plan to, no financial institution can do more to help you than First Pennsylvania Corporation. Contact Mr. Elly Streit, First Pennsylvania Corporation, 1500 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19102. (215) 786-7031. In Israel, contact The First International Bank of Israel, 39 Rothschild Blvd., Tel Aviv. Telex FIRBK 033834. Cable FIRSTBANK.

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HE LP! HELP! Anyone who has visited Eretz Yisroe!, and has witnessed the shameful tragedy of our Sefardi brethren drifting away from Yid­dishlceit, gets a sharp pain in his heart just to thinlc of it. We have all heard about this -dare we iust sigh and turn our heads?

! !:!:KM ii i11 :"':! MIFAL TORAH - VODAATH OF JERUSA­LEM, founded by my father Reb Binyomin Wilhelm 7"T, is doing remarkable work to save our precious Sefardi children and their parents. MIFAL's dedicated workers and teachers are pashuf saving lives. But the accomplishments are still comparatively a drop in the bucket. HELP US! before it is :i7'7n too late. Send your generous contribution to my attention: Mifal Torah Vodaath, c/o Mrs. Leah Herskowih:, 143 Taylor St., Brooklyn, N. Y. 11211. - Every penny of your money goes directly to save these boys and girls, giving them a new T orah~true life. In the Zechus of our Mesiras Nefesh and sincere prayers, may Hashem answer us soon, and may we together be Zocheh to witness the rebuilding of Zion in this coming

year. 1l'i'1~ n'tV~ !1N'::I::!·

30

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Letters to the Editor

(:om1nents on Reaching Out to the Non .. 01Jservant

To the Editor: Regarding Hagaon Horav Moshe

Feinstein's ca11 to action reported in The Jewish Observer (Tammuz 5733) it is surely very much in place, but I would suggest that it be addressed to another audience. As many bnei Torah and bnos Torah as may today be found in our batei midrashim, kollelim, and seminaries, there are ten times more who have graduated from these institutions, who are similarly trained, oriented, and inspired, but whose energies are permitted to atrophy-all dressed up with nowhere to go.

Jn no way do I denigrate the pro­portionate involvement of those on active duty. However, it would be sad to neglect the vast legions of available reserve forces.

In Born Park and Washington Heights, in Flatbush, Forest Hills, and Far Rockaway, in other areas of New York City, as well as in the environs of other yeshiva centers in America, are men and women who

but recently were "yeshiva stu­dents," who benefitted from day school educations, bais hamedrash or seminary education, and who shared a kollel experience-proud results of personal devotion and joint communal dedication-an ar­senal of talent, of power, and of spirit-why should the Time for Action not be theirs? And for them, in contrast to yeshiva students, not only is there no wrestling with the soul regarding bitul Torah - for them, such a program is their salva­rtion too.

Perhaps we can solve one prob­lem through solving another.

ELKANAH SCHWARTZ

Brooklyn, New York

A New Awakening

To the Editor: The four articles on reaching out

to the non-observant are honest, in­novative and original. In many respects, this represents a new di-

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rection-especially the statement of Horav Moshe Feinstein N"0'?1V.

I was particularly impressed with the articles of Rabbi Kaplan, Rabbi Belsky and the memorandum of Rabbi Wasserman and Dr. Frysh­man. It is almost unprecedented in the annals of American Jewry to speak of the achievements of an­other organization. This is a reflec­tion of honesty and courage.

The issue also reflects an en­couraging new a\vakening in yeshiva ranks. There is a recognition that a Jewish world exists outside walled neighborhoods-that these outside communities arc in a state of crisis -but much more so, that we are beginning to realize that we have the wherewithal, the personnel, the tools and the program with which to deal effectively with this crisis.

I hope that we will all have the zechus to turn our good ideas into fruitful deeds.

RABBI PINCHAS STOLPER

National Conference of Synagogue Youth, National Director New York City

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@ E Most Inspiring

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To the Editor: I found Elkanah Schwartz's

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My gratitude to Elkanah Schwartz for sharing his private thoughts with me, and to you for printing them. . . . [The piece] literally brought tears to my eyes.

A BIBLIOPHILE

(Name Withheld By Request) Brooklyn, New York

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"FOR INSENSITIVITY TO ORTHODOX JEWISH COMMUNITY"

The New York City Board of Elec~ tions was ca!Jed upon to resign due to its "insensitivity to the needs of the ()r~ thodox Jewish citizens of this City and for violating its mandate to increas~

voter registration." This demand was made by the Commission on Legislation and Civic Action of Agud<lth Israel of America, a major national Orthodox Jewish movement. This same Commis­sion had censured the Board of Elections for "disenfranchising Orthodox Jews" by designating two of the three registration days in October on days when religious law prohibits Jewish people from writing and transacting legal business. "fhese two days are October 13, a Saturday, and October 10, the eve of the Succos holi­d:iy, which begins at s11ndown.

Tn separate telegrams to Governor Rockefeller, Mayor Lindsay. City Coun­cil President Sanford Garelik. Majority Leader 'fhomas J. Cuite, and Congress­man Hugh J. Carey (who represents the Boro Park district in Congress), Agu­dath Israel requested that the necessary steps he initiated to bring about the resignation of the Board of Elections for "blatantly demonstrating its lack of con­cern and insensitivity to the needs of a n1ajor segment of our City's voters."

Rabbi Menachcm Shayovich, chair­n1an of the Commission on Legislntion and Civic Action of Agudath Israel, ex­pressed "shock and dismay at the com­plete disregard of the requests made to the Board of Elections by Agndath Israel and other groups to change the dates, to days when they would not conflict with the religious observance of the Orthodox Jews. "The goal of the Board of Elec­tions should be to expand the opportuni­ties for citizen participation in elections rather than add measures of restriction and automatic exclusion," J1e declared.

0

MOVINC? Be sure to notify us in advanc:e so that your c:opies will c:ontinue to reac:h you.

The Je1vish Ohsen'er /September, 1973

"LAWS OF SHMITA OBSERVANCE" PUBLISHED BY AGUDATH ISRAEL

Observant Jews who travel to Israel, or who purchase Israeli-grown products in the U.S.A., will now find it easier to observe the Jaws of s/11nita, the sabbali­cal year when the land lies fallow. 'These religious regulations have now been pub­lished for the first time in an English­Janguage brochure of 32 pages by Agu­dath Israel of America as a public service.

The current year 5733 is the year of s/unita, when all farming activity ceases in those religious settlen1ents which do not want to avail themselves of a special legal arrangement of the Chief Rab­binate. In such settlements as the Agu­dath Israel-sponsored Kommen1iut in the Negev, all agricultural work came to a halt during the current year. Large num­bers of observant Orthodox Jews throughout the world will not eat any produce grown in Israel during the cur­rent year from farms which do not ob­serve the shn1ita laws, nor partake of any food which includes ingredients from such produce.

Since these laws governing the obser­vance of shn1fra are complicated, Agu­dath Israel of America published a special guide on this subject which is invaluable for Orthodox Jews who will visit Israel during the coming months, or who want to use Isreli products im­ported to this country. The brochure is available free of charge to anyone who sends 25¢ to cover postage and handling to Agudath Israel of America, 5 Beek­n1an Street, New York City 10038. D

RABBI JOZEF KATZ 83 Division Avenue

INTERNATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF

ORTHODOX LEADERSHIP AT AGUDATH ISRAEL CONVENTION

An international assembly of the world leaders of Orthodox Jewry will be held in conjunction with the 5lst National Convention of Agudath Israel of America, it was announced by a spokesman for the movement. Over three thousand Orthodox activists rirc expected to participate in the various sessions of the three-day conclave, which will be held over Thanksgiving weekend, No­vember 22-25. in Atlantic City.

In view of the global nature of the issues with which American Orthodox Jewry must come to grips, distinguished rabbinic and lay leaders from far-flung corners of the world have been invited to participate in the ventilation of the problems affecting their respective re­gions. Responses have already been received from Israel. England, BeJgillm, Mexico, Argentina and Canada.

The foremost Torah scholars in the United States will address the conven­tion, which ,vill also han1n1er out action programs for Agudath Israel of America on the many don1estic fronts which are on the agenda of Torah Jewry. In this fashion, the international sessions will concern themselves with the Agudist programs for the Holy Land, and Europe and South America, while the local scene deliberations 'viii tackl2 broad issues involving. among others, youth education, expansion of Torah schools, and the battle to halt the erosion of Torah values in Jewish life. D

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34

KOLLEL OPENED IN BUENOS AIRES

The first Kollel in Latin America opened ]ast June in Buenos Aires, as part of an expanded Torah education complex established by Agudath Israel of Argentina, with the cooperation of the American Agudath Israel organiza­tion. Included in this new Jewish educa­tion project, which is an extension of the Torah educational institutions spon­sored by Agudath Israel in Argentina, is the opening of the first dormitory to house yeshiva students from Latin Ameri­can countries who seek to develop their knowledge of Torah to a high degree.

The new Kolle{ and the entire Torah studies expansion program is an out­growth of the first Pan-American con­ference of the Agudath Israel move1nent which took place in Buenos Aires in 1970. The plan to open new horizons of higher Torah education through the establishment of a Kolle! for advanced Torah research was first presented by Rabbi Moshe Sherer, executive president of Agudath Israel of America, who was the main guest of the entire conclave.

Encouraged by the financial support which Agudath Israel of Ainerica sub­sequently helped marshal for this pur­pose, the new Kol/el opened its doors last June in a large building contributed by a Brazilian Jewish philanthropist, Mr. Elias Guerstenstein. With the help of the An1erican Agudath Israel organi­zation. the new Kolle! was able to obtain

as its Rosh Yeshiva (dean) an out­standing young Torah scholar, Rabbi Shmuel Aryeh Levine. Rabbi Levine, born in Buenos Aires and a graduate of the Jocal Haichal Hatorah, was per­suaded to return to head this ambitious 1'orah project after he spent seventeen years studying at the famed Ponovezh Yeshiva in Bnai Brak, Israel.

The Agudath Israel-sponsored educa­tional complex in Buenos Aires, of which the Kolle[ and the yeshiva dormi­tory are the latest additions, is known as Haichal Hatorah, and its components are the Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim-Chazon Ish for boys, as well as a Beth Jacob school for girls from elementary through sen1inary grades. Dr. Raphael Kugielsky is the chairman of Agudath Israel of Argentina, which expects to attract stu­dents for the Kollel and Yeshiva from other Latin American countries. The president of Haichal Hatorah is Israel Gutwirth, a prominent Buenos Aires in­dustrialist, who had been a student of the Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin before the war.

Rabbi Sherer hailed the opening of the new Kollel as "an historic advance in the effort to spiritually save Latin American Jewry, by providing it with its home-bred Torah scholars, who in turn would furnish this long neglected continent with the type of intensive Jew­ish education it needs for survival."

0

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Feel free to call us for any information regarding burial minhogim

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Day and Night phone 384-6784

The Jewish Observer / Septe1nber, 1973

1362 49th STREET • BROOKLYN, N. Y.

Dear Bais Yaakov High School Graduate:

We are writing to introduce you to Bais Yaakov of Brooklyn Seminary program, which offers:

• Day Seminary, which meets Mondays through Thursdays from 8:00 to 11:00 A.M.

• Evening Seminary which meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:00 to 10:00 P.M.

We also have a one-evening General Session from 6:00 to 10:00 P.M.

Our faculty membership includes:

RABBI ABRAHAM BLUMENKRANTZ RABBI NACHMAN BULMAN

RABBI ZVULIN LIEBB DR. CHAIM NUSSBAUM

RABBI SHLOME ROTENBERG DR. ALFRED SCHNELL

RABBI SHRAGE SILVERSTEIN RABBI ARON ZUCKERMAN

Whether you know which program suits you, or you are undecided, we'll be happy to talk to you and advise you. Just call GEdney 5-7776 and we'll arrange a convenient appointment. We look forward to hearing from you.

The Jewish Observer/ September, 1973

Sincerely yours,

RABBI YEHOSHUA BALKANY Dean

ij<-

i I i I

' ' r~

35

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