IN-DEPTH FEATURES
Chapters in the Memoirs of Rabbi Shlomo Lorincz, Shlita

An Introduction

This article is the first in a series of chapters of the memoirs of one who, for many decades, was an esteemed representative of Gedolei Hador in the battle for all that chareidi Judaisim stood for. He stood firm throughout the stormy political times, on the frontlines of those battles, and engaged in lobbying and intercession in the more peaceful times.

At the very height of the difficult issues which Torah-true Judaism experienced in the early years of the State of Israel, like the draft for women, the draft for yeshiva students, autopsies and others, throughout all those years, he did not budge from the tents of our leaders and followed their guidance with total submission. They showed him the path to follow and in their Divinely blessed wisdom of daas Torah, formulated the policies to steer him correctly in his efforts of askonus for the benefit of the chareidi public.

Throughout all these years, Rabbi Shlomo Lorincz recorded and documented for his own purposes all of his activities and experiences in the halls of the Gedolei Yisroel. Many worthy people pleaded with him to transcribe the events in his public life for the public benefit, for posterity's sake, while the information was still fresh and available. Of special importance are the words of the gedolim and their directives, for this also constitutes Torah lessons to be learned for future generations.

Rabbi Lorincz was born in Budapest and moved to Eretz Yisroel in 1939. He was a member of Knesset from Agudas Yisroel from 1951 starting in the 2nd Knesset in 1951, through the 10th Knesset that ended in 1984, having served as chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee for more than a decade. He subsequently became chairman of the Advisory Committee of the Bank of Israel.

Upon bowing out of his long public service over a decade ago, Rabbi Lorincz devoted himself mainly to Torah study, firmly waving aside all such requests. But lately he, himself, has recognized the need for such records as well, having also heard such express wishes from the mouths of the Gedolim in person, whose wishes he has always fulfilled. They pointed out the importance of the matter and asked him to write out his memories of the sessions in the homes of the Gedolim of the past generation.

Mussaf Shabbos Kodesh of the Hebrew edition, and now the English edition are honored to be the platform for these reminiscences which will be published over the coming months, though not necessarily every week. Our first installment is part of the introduction to the period of Maran the Chazon Ish ztzvk'l.

The Man and His Vision — A Wasteland Transformed into a Kingdom of Torah

A One-Man Revolution

CHAPTER ONE

Our generation was not privileged to know Rabbenu Maran the Chazon Ish ztvk'l firsthand in his everyday life. But we are able to appreciate his greatness in Torah. His works are a basic text for any aspiring Torah scholar. But one who was not acquainted with the period in which he lived and was active, cannot hope to ever fully appreciate his accomplishments in molding the face of the entire generation.

The purpose of this series of articles is to describe the state of the New Yishuv (as distinct from the Old Yishuv which referred mainly to Yerushalayim) as it was in the days of the Chazon Ish's immigration in 5693 (1933), and the tremendous revolution that he brought about.

It was a one-man revolution, effected without force, without soldiers, without funding and without a hierarchy of workers, by a man who all his life was physically weak and whose only weaponry was his spiritual might and daring. These he employed in going forth in an uncompromising battle against the established norms and conventions that reigned supreme even in the religious and chareidi circles — and succeeded in producing an entire generation of Bnei Torah, yereim ushleimim.

"I Found Here a Desert and Wished to Plant Torah in It"

Readers who were not yet here, or even born, in 5693, the year of the Chazon Ish's aliya, or even six years later, the year when I made my aliya, will not be able to grasp today, even after reading these words, that a mere forty-fifty years ago this country was a spiritual wasteland, chaos, not only in the sense of "The pit was empty; it had no water," but that "it did contain snakes and scorpions," as Chazal note.

In the situation that was prevalent, it was impossible to avail oneself of the vast possibilities now available in the spiritual sense, as the Chazon Ish then foresaw in his vision. At that period, it was almost unanimously agreed that the golden period of Jewry would never return. What occupied the majority of the residents of Eretz Yisroel and enthused everyone was the Zionist dream, the pioneering spirit, reclaiming the swamplands and the hope of creating a sovereign independent State that would "be like all the nations."

The concept of a ben Torah was completely foreign to this public; and one who sent his children to yeshiva high schools which incorporated secular studies was considered very orthodox. Small wonder that amongst the residents of the new settlement there did not even exist one yeshiva al taharas hakodesh, as we will soon show.

The few who were still loyal to the Torah and Torah values did not in their rosiest dreams conjure up the picture of challenging the public leadership and undermine the Zionist philosophy or even the Mizrachi ideology which was permeated with concessions and compromises and permeated with a sense of inferiority. The scheme of implanting in this public the seeds that would produce a chareidi community as we know it today was inconceivable and unrealistic, no less than that of planting a lush garden in the midst of a parched desert.

In this very period, our land was privileged with the appearance of Maran the Chazon Ish zy'o.

After having been unknown all his life, for close to fifty years, he suddenly emerged here in full glory and stature, thanks to Maran HaRav Chaim Ozer, who referred to him in a letter, "The lion has come up from Bovel."

Maran came here, determined to change everything from the foundation up, to restore the crown to its designated place, without compromising one iota of the holy Torah, not even on the lettercrown of the miniscule yud. He immediately set about strengthening the pure Torah hashkofo and bolstering the observance of all the mitzvos with precision in every particular, including and specializing in those commandments involving the Land itself.

Maran decided to make his residence in a new settlement — Bnei Brak — and to launch his work from there, even though it was then only a small village. His reason was, as I heard it from HaRav Shmuel Wosner shlita, "Yerusholayim is a city full of tzaddikim and gedolei Torah. But in this new settlement I have found a wasteland. . . . I wanted to plant in it Torah seedlings. That is why I came to Bnei Brak. And if I do not succeed, I can go to Gehinnom together with its residents."

Those who heard him express his wish, regarded it as a dream- vision. They must have asked, if not in so many words, with what power did this weakly, emaciated man hope to ever contend with the vast secular majority which controlled the keys to the government.

Renewed Chareidi Independence Anchored by Yeshivos and Bnei Torah

Maran declared his aim to reestablish the independence of the chareidi public under the aegis of Torah leadership alone. Without compromise, without concessions, deriving its main power from a public of bnei Torah and from yeshivos. Let me cite an example for this:

In 5700 (1940), on one of the occasions that I came to visit him, I entered one of the shuls in Bnei Brak for minchah. A large group of residents had gathered there and, as a resident of Tel Aviv, I was greatly impressed at its size, not being accustomed to such numbers in davening.

When I went in to Maran, I expressed my happy surprise and said to him that I had discovered a new world here in Bnei Brak. Here, unlike other places like Tel Aviv and other settlements, there was a sizable group of G-d-fearing people. Maran amended my words and said to me, a smile playing on his lips, "You mean that there are a lot of davenners here, and it is our job to turn them into genuine fearers of Hashem, real chareidim."

He meant to say that there were, indeed, more people, in numbers, attending prayers than in other places but they were not yet satisfactory chareidim by his standards, only `worshippers.'

The Times

In order to understand what was bothering him, allow me to describe briefly the low spiritual level of the people of the New Yishuv in those times. This can be readily understood from a billboard poster publicized then by Maran against the breach caused by milking cows on Shabbos in Bnei Brak, something which can hardly be fathomed by today's religious standards. This is what he writes, among other things:

"My heart seething within me, I decided to pour out my feelings for some relief. Our city is held on high as a symbol of glory and splendor amidst the New Yishuv. They call it another Jerusalem. Our city raises high the banner of the fortress of Jewry. We fight for our very souls to preserve the holy Shabbos. . . . And here, suddenly, we seem so ineffectual and stand helplessly by in face of the milking that takes place on Shabbos and do nothing about it!

"And who are these violators of Shabbos? Not strangers. Not the irreligious. They are our very brethren within our very midst, people who don tefillin on their heads and have tzitziyos on their garments and mezuzos upon their doorposts. They chant Shabbos zemiros with holy fervor, mouthing the words, `Kol shomer Shabbos kados . . . — Whoever guards Shabbos properly from desecration . . . Let Moshe rejoice in the gift . . . ' These selfsame so- called chareidim who claim to be G-d- fearing, are actually desecrating the Shabbos through their milking, an act that is forbidden from the Torah, which we were commanded to refrain from by the words, `You shall not do any work, and on the seventh day shall you rest'" (Kovetz Igros Chazon Ish, Part I, p. 94).

Maran publicized this public outcry in 5696 (1936), that is, three years after his immigration, at a time when Bnei Brak was already designated as the `Jerusalem of the New Yishuv.' From here we can begin to understand what he meant when he said, "In the New Yishuv I found a desert."

Can the young folk who know the Bnei Brak of today imagine a reality such as that?

In all of Bnei Brak, there was only one cheder and one yeshiva, Yeshivas Beis Yosef, headed by the Steipler ztvk'l, the brother-in-law of the Chazon Ish. In the whole New Yishuv there was only one yeshiva, the Lomza Yeshiva in Petach Tikva. Yeshivas Heichal Hatalmud in Tel Aviv was actually a kollel. And even this single yeshiva received most of its students from abroad, mainly from Lithuania, young men who had escaped the military draft there. Throughout the entire Yishuv, there were not enough students to fill the benches of one single yeshiva!

Parallel to this situation was the condition of the rabbinate in the New Yishuv. It was, in general, in a sorry state. The only official rabbis serving were those who agreed to be Mizrachi party card-carrying members.

Reinstating the Mitzvos Applying to the Land

In those days, keeping the mitzvos applying to the Land of Israel, such as trumos, maasros and especially shevi'is — which today are seen as such a part and parcel of the entire code of commandments — were hardly practiced or accepted, even at an elementary level. Jews who emigrated from abroad were not at all accustomed to keeping them, and often found it very difficult to begin doing so, for these mitzvos were foreign to them.

The argument against keeping the Sabbatical year was especially strong. How was it conceivable to invite starvation? After all, the Torah admitted, "And if you shall say, `What shall we eat?' . . . " The only solution was the Mizrachi loophole of hetter mechira, the so-called sale of the land.

Maran the Chazon Ish was vehemently opposed to it. He was fully convinced that the Torah was given in order to be kept; it was viable, a Torah of life. And he introduced the observance of shmitta in actual practice in Kibbutz Chofetz Chaim. He not only taught the laws applicable to shevi'is — which had almost altogether fallen into disuse — but also arranged for monetary support to sustain the kibbutz and see it through this telling test. He sent letters to Maran HaRav Chaim Ozer ztvk'l and together they supported those who observed the Sabbatical year.

What prodigious energies he invested in the renewal of shmitta observance! While everyone argued that it was a question of self-preservation and that it was inconceivable to let the land lie fallow for an entire year, Maran toiled with all his might to carry it through. He invested tremendous work in spreading the idea and indefatigable effort in practical application, guidance, support — and he succeeded!

Maran was not fazed by financial difficulties. Subsidizing the income of the farmers who were not working and buying produce that did not have any question of having been shevi'is-grown was a huge expenditure. But even if this seemed to be a tremendously difficult undertaking, in Maran's eyes it was not impossible and he, himself, undertook to raise the money for the expenses and for whatever outlay was necessary.

Today, when there are, thank G-d, thousands of shomrei shevi'is farmers, and every devout Jew, without exception, is stringent about keeping the laws of shvi'is and trumos umaasros, it is hard to believe how these mitzvos were so terribly neglected and forgotten. Those who look back today and hear of the situation as it existed in those times, find it difficult to believe that it was so. As for us, who lived during that period — we find it hard to believe that Maran the Chazon Ish succeeded in making that revolution and creating the situation that exists today.

"He is Capable of Uprooting a Sturdy Tree"

Rabbenu's courage and daring were supernatural, especially when he confronted that discouraging pronouncement of "Oh, that's impossible!" "We don't have the strength for that" or "But we're only a small minority."

He saw things quite differently and took the promise of the Torah completely literally: "For this commandment which I command you etc. . . . It is not in Heaven, for this thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart to do it." And as Chazal interpreted it, "For if it were in Heaven, you would have to go up after it and learn it." He was not fazed when people repeatedly told him, "Rabbenu, in order to get that, one would have to climb to the heavens . . . "

It is difficult to tell of and describe the Chazon Ish to someone who never saw Maran or was in his proximity. The powers he possessed are a marvel.

Maran was physically weak by nature. His entire body was sapped of its strength through what he invested in his Torah study of dozens of years, day and night. He fully exemplified one who "verily sacrifices himself for Torah."

When one conversed with him, one saw an emaciated weakling who seemed on the verge of physical collapse. He was so debilitated that he was barely able to sit on a chair, and would receive most people lying in bed.

His spiritual energy, however, was limitless. Nothing stood in his way. Nothing was impossible to him. He was ready to take on any enemy, to defy any entrenched ideology or established convention which he felt questionable. He declared war upon all the `holy cows,' upon everything declared sacred by the New Yishuv, and this at a time when no one dared utter a peep against the Establishment. In this manner, Maran operated on two planes — the practical, pragmatic one, and the spiritual, ideological one.

I once heard a definition stated by Maran R' Yosef Zev of Brisk zy'o: "The weak Chazon Ish has the strength to fight. And he is also capable of uprooting a solid oak, roots and all, when he sees the need to do so. As for me, I don't possess powers like that. That's why I try to uproot the poisoned seed which is liable to produce sour fruit, before it gets to that stage."

Those who were in Rabbenu's proximity understood very elementarily that this was derived from his power of emunah, just like Avrohom Ovinu. When Avrohom arrived at the recognition that there was a Creator to this world, he acquired the stamina to stand up to the entire world and even to smash his father's idols. This was the Chazon Ish's power as well, which he absorbed from studying Torah and only Torah throughout his life.

This, in fact, was the answer he once gave a prominent rabbi who asked him how he was able to judge and make halachic decisions if he was so removed from what was going on in the world around him. "I rule simply by looking into the Shulchon Oruch. The street really has no impact on me at all. What is written in the Shulchon Oruch is what Hashem commanded us to obey. And whatever He commanded us to do — can be done in practice." He vehemently refuted arguments raised before him that certain things were beyond the capacity of the general public.

Who is Stronger?

Maran was able to fight forces many, many times stronger than he was because he had a different concept of `weak' and `strong' than the accepted ones. Suffice it to mention here the major battle against women's conscription and their national Sherut Leumi service. Weak physically, he nevertheless was convinced that he and his few adherents were mightier than the overwhelming majority.

When Ben Gurion visited him and presented his threat of implementing the women's draft through military and police force, his reply was swiftly and fiercely forthcoming: "We are stronger than you. Including your police force and army combined!"

And he added his explanation, "The might of the police lies in the fact that they can take a gun and shoot. This only works so long as we fear you. But when you come to coerce us and enforce the law, we will bare our chests and tell the police, `Go ahead and shoot!' Who, then, will be the stronger? The one who wants to shoot or the one who is prepared to absorb the bullet?"

Ben Gurion understood the message.

Richer Than Rothschild

Upon one occasion, I heard him say, "I am richer than Rothschild." And he added in a light tone, "Rothschild has only one wallet and that is his own. I hold the pursestrings of all the Jews."

Indeed, he was never fazed when people would tell him that it was impossible to establish a cheder, for example, or a yeshiva, due to lack of funds. He always had money at his disposal, without anyone knowing how it came into his possession. We are talking about a man who had only one hat and one suit to his name! And it is said that these were the selfsame ones with which he had walked down the aisle to his chuppa. Yet he felt richer than Rothschild!

One More Yeshiva and One More Cheder

This was how things proceeded when he saw the need to establish a cheder or yeshiva in settlements here and there. I, myself, served as his messenger to found one of these chadorim. It took place before the establishment of the State. Maran summoned me and said that there was a need to create a cheder in Rechovot.

I was most surprised. Rechovot in those days was even weaker, spiritually speaking, than most places. I couldn't understand how he would be able to deal with this spiritual aspect. Whoever would send their children to a cheder? But I certainly did not dare to voice such questions. If Maran understood that it was possible, then it had to be done, I said to myself. But I couldn't help asking him about the financial side of the project. Who would fund it? It would cost so much!

Maran told me to go to R' Karelenstein in Tel Aviv and tell him that I had come in his name to inform him that there was a need to establish a cheder in Rechovot. He would know what to do, Maran assured me.

I didn't know what he had in mind. Even more, I was surprised when I arrived at R' Karelenstein's home, which was cramped and looked poverty-stricken. The chairs were rickety and I almost thought I had come to the wrong place. Still, I stated that I had come upon the request of Maran and that he had asked me to tell him that there was need to establish a cheder in Rechovot.

R' Karelenstein nodded and said, "If Maran said so, then that is fine."

He opened up a drawer, took out a sum of money and said to me, "I estimate that this will suffice. But if you need more, come again. If the Chazon Ish says that there must be a talmud Torah in Rechovot, then there shall be one. I will give however much it takes."

The same applied to the question of using electricity generated through the desecration of the Shabbos. Maran considered this halachically forbidden, besides being a chillul Hashem. He grappled with this issue singlehandedly, with superhuman strength, and even provided funding for the expenses involved in carrying out his solution to the problem. He personally helped the mayor of Bnei Brak, R' Yitzchok Gerstenkorn z'l, to build a reservoir to provide pumped water for the residents without violating the Shabbos.

His successful handling of difficult and complex projects, his belief that everything was within the realm of the possible, nothing was impossible but depended only on a person's will, breathed a fresh, firm resolve in the people in his proximity. Regarding everything that he understood to be necessary, he would say, "We will do it." It was moving and uplifting to see the extent of strength embodied in this weak little man whose every breath came with extensive exertion.

Through the Strength of Avrohom Ovinu

An appreciation and evaluation of his special power was grasped and understood only much later. In my opinion, he shared something of the power of Avrohom Ovinu. Yeshayohu Hanovi says, "Look at Avrohom your forefather, for I called him one." What does that `one' signify?

Chazal defined the name of Avrohom the Hebrew as meaning, "The entire world was on one side, ever-Ivri, and he was on the opposite side." This power that dared take on the entire world singlehandedly stood by him and helped him win.

Maran the Chazon Ish exemplified this oneness. He was one and alone against all accepted norms and conventions. He was anti- establishment. He stood up to confront all the idols of the new settlement, he braved the myth of Zionism and pioneering, and took on the Mizrachi with its scraping sycophancy towards the secularists.

In Hilchos Avodas Kochovim, Chapter One, the Rambam writes about Avrohom Ovinu: "After he was weaned, as a very young child, he began questioning with his mind. He began thinking by day and by night and pondered over the continuous, nonending cycle, and asked: Can this world rotate constantly and not have someone turning it? Until he conceived the truth . . . and He knew that there existed a G-d greater than the world. When he recognized and knew this, he began answering the questions of the people of Ur Casdim and debating with them. He challenged their ways and smashed their idols and began publicizing to the people that they must not worship anything but the Creator, and only pay obeisance to Him, bring sacrifices and ablutions only to Him. He tried to make all the people acknowledge Hashem. When he began to overpower them with his arguments and proofs, the king sought to kill him. But a miracle happened and he had to leave for Choron.

"There he began to preach in public to all the people and to tell them that there was only one G-d in the whole world and to Him alone was it fit to pay homage. He traveled thus until he reached Canaan, still calling out in the name of Hashem, as it is written, `And he called there in the name of Hashem the G-d of the world,' until thousands and ten thousands of people gathered around him. These became Avrohom's household. He planted in their hearts this great principle (Halocho 1-3).

The Rambam's approach in Mishne Torah is to bring only halochos. However, here he found fit to elaborate with the words of the aggada and describe the fallacy of the generation and the power of Avrohom to singlehandedly challenge the entire world.

The Rambam possibly intends to teach us a halocho here, as well, that at any given time in history, a Jew may find himself in the situation of Avrohom Ovinu, pitted alone against the misguided majority of his generation. Then he will have to summon up that special strength which Avrohom bequeathed to his heirs. He will have to understand that despite the fact that he is alone, he is obligated to go forth and fight the establishment and its misconceptions. He must believe that Hashem will give him the power to uphold the truth as his banner.

This was the kind of soldier Rabbenu the Chazon Ish was. When he came and found the new settlement, the Yishuv HeChodosh, it represented an idolatry of a different form: the belief that "The House of Israel is like all the nations."

The ruling body here sought to create a new nation and forget about the past, just as in the days of Enosh, when there were only a few isolated people who knew the right way.

But the Chazon Ish girded himself with courage and fulfilled the ruling which the Rambam describes: "Until he reached the land of Canaan and he preached, as it says, `and he called there in the name of Hashem the G-d of the world.' And then there did gather to him thousands and tens of thousands, and they became the men of Avrom's household. And he planted in their hearts this major principle."

Boruch Hashem, the Chazon Ish was privileged that after his death, his followers continue in his path, just as Yitzchok, Yaakov and the Tribes followed in Avrohom's path.

End of Part I

All material on this site is copyrighted and its use is restricted.
Click here for conditions of use.