Agudas Yisroel of America is holding its seventh Yarchei
Kallah at the Renaissance Hotel in Jerusalem this week.
On Monday night the Admor of Novominsk, Rosh of Agudas
Yisroel of America, delivered the opening shiur of the
five-day event.
Then the over-200 participants heard divrei chizuk
from HaRav Yissochor Meir the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas
HaNegev in Netivot, and the Admor of Tolno, who offered warm
words of praise for the Yarchei Kallah participants and noted
the importance of the project.
At the end of the second day of learning, a keynote address
was given by HaRav Aharon Leib Shteinman shlita and
the Admor of Tzanz is scheduled to speak Wednesday night.
HaRav Shteinman said, "The world was created for the Torah
which is called reishis, and also for Yisroel who are
also called reishis. At the beginning there was a time
of tohu vovohu. There were billions of people.
Everything was destroyed in the Flood, for the world cannot
persist without Torah. After the Flood there was again the
situation of Sdom and Amorah. Again the world could not
continue with bad people like those and therefore Sdom and
Amorah were destroyed. And so it went until the Torah was
given. Torah was given for eternity. How can one live for
eternity? To achieve that we were given the mitzvos and
learning Torah as great as all others. Even one who cannot
learn Torah all day because of his need for parnossoh
and the like, if he learns as much as he can, his reward is
vast."
HaRav Shteinman said that one should stop doing
melochos a half-hour before sunset on erev Shabbos,
because a person cannot rely on his body and must institute
separations. He also mentioned that Torah was given on the
relatively lowly Mount Sinai to teach us that one should
conduct oneself with modesty. In closing he praised the merit
of those who come to Eretz Yisroel to learn Torah and blessed
them to be able to learn more Torah and to be blessed in
ruchniyus and gashmiyus.
The long list of speakers and teachers during the course of
the week includes HaRav Dovid Cohen, rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas
Chevron, HaRav Boruch Dov Povarsky, one of the roshei yeshiva
of Yeshivas Ponovezh, HaRav Boruch Mordechai Ezrachi, rosh
yeshiva of Yeshivas Ateres Yisroel, HaRav Michel Zilber, rosh
yeshiva of Yeshivas Zeviehl Yerushalayim, HaRav Osher Weiss,
av beis din of Kiryat Tchechnov and rosh yeshiva of
Yeshivas Chug Chasam Sofer, HaRav Yitzchok Zilberstein, rosh
kollel of Kollel Beis Dovid in Holon and rov of Bnei Brak's
Ramat Elchanan neighborhood, and HaRav Nosson Tzvi Finkel,
rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Mir Jerusalem.
"Once again we are grateful and filled with hakoras
hatov toward the gedolei Torah vehalochoh who
consented to make us wiser with their words," said Rabbi
Avrohom Nisan Perl, director of the Torah Learning Projects
Committee of Agudas Yisroel of America, "and we anticipate a
week rich in ruchniyus in the very best place for
Torah study."
A special program was also prepared for the wives of the
Yarchei Kallah participants, including an excursion to Kever
Rochel on Monday.
In accordance with Maran HaRav Eliashiv's instructions not to
rely on the kashrus of the Religious Council of
Jerusalem, Agudah Executive Vice President Rabbi Shmuel Bloom
announced that special efforts had been made to place the
event under the kashrus supervision of Kahal Adas Yeshurun-
Breuer's of Washington Heights at considerable expense.
