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24 Shevat 5762 - February 6, 2002 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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NEWS
Toldos Yeshurun--The Light of Torah in the Darkness
by Binyomin Rabinowitz

A very special, heartwarming Chanukah mesibah took place in the Ezras Torah shul in Sanhedria Murchevet, Yerushalayim. Over two hundred bnei Torah came from all over the country and sat together with men who are just beginning to learn about Judaism -- ke'ish echod beleiv echod.

"My blessing is bestowed upon the avreichim who undertook to increase the light of Torah in alleys that are still dark," HaRav Eliashiv wrote in his words of brochoh for the gathering. Many of those who were "drawn" from the dark alleys to the light attended the Chanukah mesibah. The mesibah proclaimed, by its very existence, that a jug of pure olive oil still remains, and it lights up the hearts of thousands who came from that "Hellenist" country Russia.

For many years, since he came to Eretz Yisroel, HaRav Yitzchok Zilber is a central address for the tremendous ruchniyus activities for Russian Jews in Israel. His house in Sanhedria Murchevet in Yerushalayim bustles with activity day and night -- brisim, chasunos, shiurim, heart-to-heart conversations, far reaching efforts to free agunos, and much more. His ma'asim tovim could fill volumes.

Today, there are thousands of families from Russia who are shomrei Torah umitzvos. At the forefront of all these kiruv activities stands HaRav Yitzchok Zilber.

@SUB TITLE=Founding Toldos Yeshurun

About a year and a half ago, Toldos Yeshurun was founded. A number of avreichim who are close to Rav Zilber founded the organization when Rav Zilber was seriously ill. They took upon themselves to open a mokom Torah for those who don't even know the basics of Judaism and to be mekarev them through the Torah itself. Rav Zilber then had a miraculous recovery.

The organization has grown to include a wide range of activities. The core of its many activities is a group of about 250 young avreichim who learned in yeshivos in Eretz Yisroel and abroad, true bnei Torah who are full of energy and good ideas how about to widen the circle of bnei Torah among those from the former Soviet Union. This group of avreichim is very concerned about the "Russian street," and it is natural that they should be the driving force of the kiruv, as well as rabbonim and communal leaders in Eretz Yisroel and abroad.

A kehilla was established in Beitar Illit, led by Rav Nochum Hoffman, which now has a night kollel. Rav Nochum Farber founded a special program called "Sons and Fathers" in which avreichim invite their parents to learn Torah and halocho with them bechavrusa. Kiryat Sefer also has a kehilloh and a night kollel under the leadership of Rav Eliyohu Litvak; Rav Yehuda Leib Avreich shoulders the main burden of Toldos Yeshurun.

Beit Shemesh has a night kollel and shiurim for beginners and women, under the auspices of Rav Yosef Shupak and Rav Chaim Levin. Neve Yaakov has one under the auspices of Rav Yisroel Man. Rebbetzin Cooperman founded and runs a network of shiurim for women in and around Yerushalayim.

Toldos Yeshurun recently organized a network of shiurim for beginners in various cities where many Russian immigrants live, under Rav Asher Kushner. There are many more such avreichim who devote their whole hearts and means to establishing additional kehillos, such as Rav Don Bordan who began to establish a night kollel in the North, Rav Tzvi Cheifetz in Beer Sheva, Rav Shmuel Koran in Tel Zion, and more. Rav Avraham Cohen is the supervisor of all the branches.

The heads of Toldos Yeshurun repeatedly stress that their goal is not to be an umbrella organization for all the branches, but just the opposite. They want to establish more places of learning -- but each one should be independent and geared to the individual needs of the place. The goal is to increase Torah learning.

There are many bochurim who are on the streets, without any educational framework. As long as they are not learning in yeshiva on a regular basis or are not married, even if they are already frum, they are in danger of being blown like a leaf in stormy winds. Difficult nisyonos abound, and any set framework for them, even if it's only at night, is very beneficial.

Rav Zilber's kiruv method is to sit down with anyone interested in Judaism and actually learn Torah with him, if possible in Russian. The talmidei chachomim who become the "chavrusas" of the beginners invite them to their homes for Shabbos and become their mentors for the whole journey back. Usually, the light of Torah brings them back to its fold.

There is a tremendous thirst out there. Women are also asking for shiurim. It often happens that baalei teshuva get married when they are at the beginning of their journey and they subsequently need guidance on all aspects of Torah life.

Many Russian baalei teshuva are not young boys. They are in their thirties, in the middle of life, with a family and home and sometimes their own children. It takes mesiras nefesh to learn, to acquire basic, fundamental knowledge and compensate for years of ignorance. After a full day of tiring work, the chavrusas come out and spend another hour learning Torah.

In Sanhedria Murchevet, where the Chanukah party took place, is Rav Yitzchok Zilber's home. He gives shiurim and shmuessen there and devotes his precious time to counselling and guiding baalei teshuva and avreichim. The secret of the organization's success is in a large part him. A kollel is now learning in the shul under the auspices of his son Rav Ben Tzion Zilber. In the past year, twenty men from that kollel went on to learn in yeshivos and kollelim full time!

Thanks to one of the avreichim, Rav Michoel Guchberg, five of them went to learn in Yeshivas HaRan, one of the largest Torah institutions in Yerushalayim, where he now gives them a regular shiur.

The Chanukah Party

To return to the impressive Chanukah party: Rav Zilber opened his speech with a comparison between what is being done today versus thirty years ago. Then, there were almost no programs for Russian immigrants, whereas today there are many Russian bnei Torah. We must thank and praise HaKodosh Boruch Hu for this. He elaborated on the miracle of Chanukah and spoke (in Russian) about his personal "nes Chanukah," when the cursed Communists tried to argue him out of his belief in Hashem and keeping Torah and mitzvos.

A Personal Chanukah Miracle

On the first night of Chanukah in 5720 (1960), which was on erev Shabbos, reporters came to Reb Yitzchok's house to prepare an article about the family whose father is a math teacher and mother is a physics teacher. How could it be that these parents believe in the Creator of the world, and even more, actually keep mitzvos?

The journalists not only came to the house, but even published a huge article under the title, "Who Are They?" The article described how "the mathematics teacher Yitzchok Zilber is a believer and brings up his son and daughter the same way."

Among other things, the article said that because the family needs "holy clothing material" the daughter is very neglected and has nothing to wear. (They were referring to shatnez.) The article was instigated by the government and the administration of the schools in which Rav Zilber and his wife a'h taught.

They were summoned to a special meeting -- each one in his respective school -- to undergo interrogation, which meant an attempt to put them on the "right path." Rav Zilber related that the meeting took place two weeks later, on 9 Teves. He barely had time to daven and eat a quick Shabbos seuda before he hurried to school, where over thirty people were waiting for him.

Over and over, he was asked if he believes in Hashem, and his answer was sharp and clear: Yes. They tried to convince him that it is not fitting that a man of his stature, with whom his colleagues want a pleasant relationship, should be a believing man. Afterwards a woman got up and said, "Youth is the most important time of a person's development, but Yitzchok Zilber's children don't have a childhood. They have to say something before and after they eat; they don't have friends. As a mother I think that for the children's sake, we must take them out of the house. In the end, even Zilber and his wife will thank us for it."

At the end of the interrogation, which lasted about eight hours, they took a vote and unanimously decided to fire him and take his children out of his home. A similar interrogation took place in the school in which Mrs. Zilber taught and she was also fired.

Somehow, she managed to nullify the decree about the children, but Rav Zilber and his wife remained unemployed. Being unemployed in Russia meant very difficult times ahead. If this was not enough, Reb Yitzchok and his wife were summoned by the KGB to their office.

Reb Yitzchok could not decide if he should go or not. "Everyone knew when they went into the KGB, but no one knew if he would come out," Rav Zilber related. At one point, he consulted a lawyer who told him that according to the law, he was not required to answer the summons if he was not in the city. Reb Yitzchok borrowed some money and fled to Moscow until the storm blew over.

Brochos and Speeches

Rav Efrati then read the letter of brocho from HaRav Eliashiv and spoke. HaRav Shmuel Auerbach gave the main speech.

Rabbi Pesach Krohn, who arrived in Eretz Yisroel only an hour before the mesibah, spoke as well. He said, "The nes Chanukah was that Hashem left one jar of pure olive oil, and from that one jar came a lot of light. In our generation Hashem left a jar of pure oil in Russia, Rav Yitzchok Zilber, president of Toldos Yeshurun, which is also a nes Chanukah, because from this pure pach came so much light for Russian Jewry."

Rabbi Krohn's son, Reb Avrohom, an avreich in Yeshivas Mir, is one of the only ones involved in Toldos Yeshurun who does not speak Russian, and he devotes time and energy to be mekarev Russian immigrants.

HaRav Polichuk of Yeshivas HaRan and HaRav Misbin, head of the Russian bnei Torah community in Ofakim, also participated in the gathering.

The Chanukah mesibah was an expression of hallel vehodo'oh to Hashem for the tremendous success of Toldos Yeshurun as well as a chizuk for the future, with the hope that the light of Torah will spread and shine in more and more Jewish homes.

HaRav Shmuel Auerbach: "These Precious Avreichim are the Answer to the Hellenists of our Generation."

HaRav Shmuel Auerbach gave the keynote address at the event. He elaborated on the depth of the miracles of Chanukah and the essence of the Greek war of secular wisdom against the Torah. In his speech he said:

When they came to invite me to this mesibah, I felt a great happiness, true simchas Chanukah, that we are zoche to see these avreichim with such a heoras ponim. Their whole business is Torah; they are expert talmidei chachomim who are rooted in Torah, full of luster and producing light. They told me that if I come, it would be a chizuk, so I felt an obligation to come. This gathering is definitely in an appropriate time and is a special time of happiness.

What a tremendous zchus it is that we are gathered here specifically on Chanukah. The Greeks wanted to distance us from Torah; choshech al penei tehom refers to the Grecian Empire, who darkened the eyes of bnei Yisroel. Here in front of us are precious avreichim who are doing the exact opposite of what the Greeks intended. And it is all on the koach of Rav Yitzchok. Although he says he doesn't do anything, it's those who say they do something who really don't do anything and those who say they don't do anything are the ones who are really doing. HaKadosh Boruch Hu should grant him strength to continue.

These precious avreichim are lighting up the eyes of Yisroel. A little bit of light banishes the darkness; even a little Torah learning banishes the darkness. This is especially so when there is a special framework in which they guard their purity, the pure Torah in the manner we received it, and the jar of oil in its purity; where they sit in the beis medrash all day and only the Torah is what guides them.

The essence of Chanukah lies in the great nisoyon of the Greeks, who tried to attract everyone to the wisdom of humanism and science and to nullify the wisdom of Klal Yisroel, the Torah. Because the Greeks were jealous of the divine wisdom and the Torah bothered them, they tried to darken the world. This is really the great nisoyon of the "yafyefuso" of Yovon, because wisdom is very enticing as a person is drawn to any wisdom.

We already saw that specifically when they fight with the wisdom of Yovon, secular wisdom, then Klal Yisroel is zoche to exalted matters and achievement in Torah. Behold the evil power of secular wisdom and the Hellenists remain in full force in all generations. We vividly saw it in the period of the Haskalah, when many were drawn after new revelations in the secular world and there were tremendous temptations, masqueraded as livelihood and wisdom, and attempts to `come close' in ways other than the Torah. It was davka in those times, when nisyonos were so difficult and the yereim ledvar Hashem distanced themselves from it with all their might. They knew well that the Enlightenment is dangerous and one must stay away from it with all his strength. It was then that Klal Yisroel received the chiddushim of Rabbi Akiva Eiger and the Ketzos.

The same thing continues until today -- Hellenists try to entice in all kinds of ways and to darken the eyes of Yisroel; they are jealous of Torah scholars and try to diminish Torah learning and its influence in all possible ways. This is a continuation of those Yevonim and we must strengthen ourselves against them.

Boruch Hashem we were zoche to see these precious avreichim who are the answer to the modern day Yevonim. The avreichim guard their taharoh and give others a taste of the sweetness of Torah as well, through which they push away the darkness. How we hope to not hear more pain and tzoros in spiritual and physical matters, because today one needs much rachamim. We must strengthen ourselves and know that our only anchor is the Torah, Torah in taharoh, and the more we strengthen ourselves in Torah, in this zechus we will merit the geula bemiheiro beyomeinu.

 

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