Not Just Speeches

RABBI DAVID A.
TWERSKY
---------------------------------The David Twersky Spirit through his Classic Speeches ----------------------------------
NOT JUST SPEECHES (Volume III)
Not Just Speeches -- Volume III
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Not Just An Ezer K'Negdo * * *

This book is dedicated to my beloved wife Tzippy. She is an inspiration to the entire community; to all her children; to all her grandchildren; to the entire extended family; but most of all she is an inspiration to her husband. My mother said it best: "You were made for each other"
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Foreword: Opening Books and Closing Books

The ironic thing about "Forewords" is that in reality they are inserted "Backwards" into the volume one is about to publish. I suspect that in 99% of all cases, the material which fills up the volume is created first and the "Foreword" is the last thing written before sending the volume to the publisher. Were it to appear in the book in chronological sequence it would be at the end of the volume (and be called "Afterword") rather than at the beginning. While for the reader the Foreword serves as an introduction to the author's work and provides a sense of anticipation for what comes next, for the author it is a chance to review and reflect what he has put together and provides a sense of nostalgia. It gives him the opportunity to at least think the blessing " for having kept us alive, and kept us in existence, and brought us to this time." In the case of Not Just Speeches: Volume 3, this dichotomy between "opening the book" and "closing the book" takes on a special nuance. I have just passed the half way mark of my year of Aveilut for my mother of Blessed Memory. Mom was my inspiration for bringing me to the altar of authorship offering collections of my past speeches and writings in published form for selected friends and family members "The Binding of David", if you will. For years she encouraged me by saying "David, you should publish your speeches they are really worth preserving". And ultimately, as with so many other things in my life, she personally showed the way and set the example for me to follow by publishing "In My Grandmother's Footsteps", her own beautiful two volume memoir capturing a lifetime of insights and memories. I dedicated Volumes 1 & 2 in her honor on the occasions of her 75th and 80th birthdays as I walked "In My Mother's Footsteps" in publishing 2 volumes of thoughtful legacy and recollections for my own children and grandchildren. Mom remains my inspiration in bringing Volume 3 to a close during my year of Aveilut for her. When Volumes 1 and 2 were completed, publishing consisted of nothing more than creating a hard-copy, holdin-your-hand, volume. Today books come to fruition and exist in "virtual environments" as well the classical physical world of paper, hard-bound publications. I don't know if they have Kindles or I-Pads in Heaven, but I trust that, in lieu of being able to physically present my mother with a hard copy as I did with Volumes 1 and 2, she will at least "virtually" have nachas ruach in Gan Eden from the fact that I am publishing Volume 3 of Not Just Speeches during the year of Aveilut for her as part of my effort L'hitgadel u'l'hitkadesh Shmeih Rabbah, l'iluyi nishmata. The year of Aveilut is a slow process in which one "closes the book" so to speak on one's connection with a departed loved one. Indeed when one loses his "second parent" one has closed forevermore the book of one's childhood and the book of one's childish perception of where one fits within the mysterious "Seder HaDoros", the chain of generations leading from ancient antiquity to the eschatological future. As I remember my mother telling my father on the night after Bubba's passing "Meyer, we are now the 'older generation'". So too, ready-or- not like-it-or-not, my wife and I have become the 'older generation' for our family. For Tzippy and I, Volume 3 "closes the book" on our childhood: It contains eulogies for both our mothers who died within 13 months of each other. It also "closes the book" on our status of "single parenthood" i.e. the unique status of being parents of single children, of having kids uninitiated in the bittersweet blessing of "al ken ya'zov es Aviv v'es Imo": It contains Divrei Torah and Divrei Simcha from the beautiful Chatunah celebrations of "our baby", Mordechai whose wedding through Hashgocha Pratis was ordained to fall exactly within the one month in a 25 month period in which neither Tzippy nor I were observing Aveilut restrictions. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 3
In a sense the publication of Volume 3 opens for us a new book as well at least a new chapter in our lives. Volume 3 contains my announcement to the Samis Foundation of my intention to "terminate my life-time contract" as Rabbinic Trustee of that august organization (a relationship which itself is initiated during the period covered by this volume) and to within the, Please G-d, not-too-distant future retire from Boeing and return to the "Land of my fathers'" and the "Home of my sons". Its publication finds my wife and I firmly entrenched in the fertile valley of Sabbah and Savta-hood -- the birth of several of my bli-ayin-hara ever-growing number of grandchildren are noted by emotion-laden Divrei Torah included in this volume as is the Dvar Torah I gave at the first Ba[x] Mitzvah in the family, celebrated by our oldest granddaughter, Yael. I look back at the essays collected and the Divrei Torah compiled in this volume with emotion and nostalgia. The collection spans the range of life experiences the Baruch Hashem Shenatan and the Baruch Hashem SheLakach (Blessed is G-d Who has given; and Blessed is G-d Who has taken away). I am still in the period of mourning for my mother, but I am consoled by her memory and I am consoled by the fact that I know she would be thrilled to see that I have published "Volume 3 of Not Just Speeches". Finally I am consoled by the fact that I now can give my undivided love and attention to "that other woman in my life". She has always been there for me to share and participate with me in the times of joy and times of sorrow in our lives. Most importantly, she has always been there to proof-read my Divrei Torah and writings and make sure I don't say anything that will get me into too much trouble. She is always there to rescue me from awkward situations as well as awkward sentence structure. She alerts me when I make a typo and she alerts me if I am being a hypo. I may open and close many chapters in my life, but I want Tzippy to be with me on each page of the way. It is to my beloved wife that I dedicate Volume 3 of Not Just Speeches. David Twersky 4 Nisan 5772 March 27, 2012
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NOT JUST SPEECHES

(Volume III)
Table of Contents Baruch Hashem Another Grandchild!

Bris Milah of My Eighth Grandchild (Nachum Yisroel Luchins) December, 2003 Shooting Arrows From A Great Distance (Birth of Alex's Yitzchak Meir) June, 2004 First Shalom Zachor Speech in Seattle in 18+ Years (Eliezer Avraham Weiss) August 2004 The Tenth One Will Be Holy (Bris of Eliezer Avraham Weiss) September, 2004 Eleven Are The Stars In Yosef's Dream (Birth of Yehudah Simcha Luchins) July, 2005 Two For The Price of One (Birth of Miriam Bayle and Yitzchak Meir Twersky) March, 2006 On That Day Will His Name Be One (Bris of Yitzchak Meir ben Moshe Zvi) March, 2006 The Sons Of Korach Did Not Die: (Bris of Avraham Shmuel Luchins) July, 2007 I Have Crossed RiverAnd Become Now Two Camps (Bris of Benjy Weiss) November, 2007 Vayehi Erev Vayehi Boker: A Name For My Mother October 2011
Other Family Matters

Mothers's 80th Birthday Tu B'Shvat And My Family Tree Post-Wedding Reception Of Beryl and Evelyn Rothman Mother-in-law's 90th Birthday Ora's Bat Mitzvah Yael's Bat Mitzvah May 2003 February, 2004 March, 2005 March 2007 July 2010 August 2011
Mordechai Gets Married

Vort of Mordechai and Sari June 2011 Yitzchak Mayer's Siyum August 2011 Moshe's Remarks Upon The Family's Arrival August 2011 Shabbos Before Mordy's Wedding: Ben Zekunim -- Volume 3 August 2011 Zeh HaKatan Gadol Yiheyeh: Shabbos of Mordy's Ufroof August 2011 The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum of its Parts (Shabbos of Sheva Brochos) August 2011 Going For The Triple Crown (Monday Night Sheva Brochos) August 2011 Alex's Words To His Brother On Mordy's Ufruf Shabbos August 2011 Alex's Words at Shabbos Sheva Brochos (Hebrew) August 2011 Eikev - Shabbos Night Seudah- Ufruf by Moshe Luchins August 2011 Monday Night Sheva Brochos by Moshe Luchins August 2011 "Mr. Free-Man" by Moshe Twersky August 2011
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Saying Good-Bye To Loved Ones: Passing Comments

Eulogies for Mother-in-law, Adele Yudin Rabbi Berel Rothman Rabbi Benjamin Yudin Rabbi Yosef Wikler Rabbi David Twersky Moshe Twersky Read by Moshe Luchins Uncle Norman David Hyman Eulogies for Mother, Reva Twersky Rabbi David Twersky Rabbi Moshe Twersky Rabbi Alex Twersky Marya Twersky and Ora's Poem in Memory of "Grandma" JT News Obituary September 2010
March 2010 March 2011 October 2011
Other People's Simchas

Wedding of Mark Kravette and Marlene Kaplan Sheva Brochos of Ora and Leiby Ritholtz Sheva Brochos of Penina Hyman and Aryeh Zussman September, 2003 June, 2004 February 2009
Getting The Last Word In At A Siyum

Mishneh Yomi Siyum on Maseches Berochos BCMH Dinner Honoring Kleteniks Siyum on Seder Kodshim Remarks at Mordy's Siyum on Maseches Nedarim During Nine Days Mordy's Siyum on Kiddushin November 20, 2004 January, 2005 August, 2006 March, 2007
Dedications, Memorials, and Presentations

Dedication of Sefer Torah in Memory of Berel Steinberg December, 2003 Shabbat Across America / Ari Grashin Memorial Shabbas March, 2004 Shloshim Of Mrs. Zelda Tatel November, 2005 Remarks At Seattle Mikveh Building Dedication (Delivered by Tzippy) December, 2005 Dedication of Ari Grashin Memorial Gym October, 2006 Remarks at Shiva Minyan for Mr. Ben Genauer April, 2009 Kollel Dinner 2009 Honoring Rabbi Avraham & Rooksie David June 2009 Kollel Dinner 2010 Honoring Marlene Kaplan and David Cassius June 2010 Remarks at the BCMH 120th Gala in Honor of Eli and Eva March 2011 Presentation of Rabbi William Greenberg Award to Rabbi & Mrs. Moskowitz December 2011
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Speeches at BCMH
Introduction of Rav Aharon Kahn of RIETS at BCMH Hebrew Free Loan Dinner (Held at BCMH) Who Would Rabbi Shapiro Vote For In The 2004 Presidential Election? Torah Dedication in Honor of Mr. Gustav Samter Movie Review on Rav Soloveitchik Film Sermon Excerpts From Fifty Years Ago (Rabbi Gersion Appel) In Memory of Dr. Eric Offenbacher Parshas Zachor and Experiential Memory May, 2003 February, 2004 October, 2004 January 2008 November 2008 January 2009 February 2009 March 2009
Not Just Letters

To the family of Dr. Albert Schild August, 2004 Thinking About Rabbi Rivkin July 2006 A Letter To My Fellow Trustees Upon Their Forthcoming Mission To Israel May, 2008 The Meaning of the Genauer Name An Outsider's Perspective June, 2008 On the Passing of Harry Steinberg November, 2008 Response to David Balint's Community Impact Statement / Kollel May 2007 To the family of Joseph Russak October 2009 Dear Mutele / Mordy's Semicha August 2009
Miscellaneous Musings
Saying Goodbye to the Schillers A Miracle On This Day; At This Time Yom HaAtzmaut Tribute to Rabbi Graudenz, First SHA Principal Mivkeh Association Event Speech (Ghost Written for Tzippy) Thoughts On Rav Hirsch's Chumash Commentary Happy Birthday Yechezkel Schiller Not Just Project Genesis August , 2004 November, 2006 May, 2007 August, 2008 November, 2008 August, 2011 December 2011
If I Were A Rich Man's Rabbi -- Speeches at and for the Samis Foundation
August 2007 Through February 2012
Not Just Pictures
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Baruch Hashem Another Grandchild!
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BRIS MILAH OF MY EIGHTH GRANDCHILD

The Gemara in Sotah Daf Hay Amud Aleph quotes a long list of harsh critiques of a person who has "Gasus Ruach" -- an arrogance of spirit. After spending the better part of an Amud blasting anyone with "Gasus HaRuach" the Gemara quotes a statement from Chiyah Bar Ashi in the name of Rav: Talmid Chochom Tzarich she'yehei bo echad m'shmoneh b'Shminis. A disciple of the Sages should have at least a small amount of Gasus HaRuach: How much is that small amount? "An eighth of an eighth". Many of the commentaries on the Gemarah and various Darshanim all try to give meaning and significance to this very cryptic comment.. The Vilna Gaon, in a classic ingenious insight relates this teaching to the Parshas HaShuva. He says the idea that a Talmud Chochom should have a Shimini she'b'shminis of haughtiness alludes to the 8th pasuk in the 8th portion of the Torah. It is now two months since Simchas Toarh. Vayishlach is the 8th Parshas HaShavua. The 8th pasuk in Vayishlach begins with the words: "Katonti m'kol haChasadim u'mikol haEmes asher Asisa es Avdecha ". "I have been diminished by all the kindness and by all the truth that You have done for Your servant ". The Gaon says that a Talmid Chochom must always have the type of "arrogance" manifested by Yakov Avinu. The greater his successes, the more dramatic his tale of rags to riches, the more he was humbled and the more he felt diminished knowing the great debt of gratitude he owed to HaKadosh Baruch Hu for having bestowed upon him all this great blessing. The Ramba"m in Hilchos Deos 2:3 echoes the Gemara in Sotah that one should avoid arrogance at all costs. Although the Ramba"m had earlier in Hilchos Deos advocated the "Golden Mean" half way between extremes, when it comes to the Midah of modesty the Ramba"m writes: "And there are characteristics where a person is forbidden to take the middle path, rather he should distance himself from one extreme to the other. This is the case in haughtiness of the heart. It does not suffice for a person to be merely modest, rather he should be shfal ruach -- humble of spirit; and his spirit should be exceedingly humble. Therefore the Torah describes Moshe as "exceedingly modest" not just modest. And for that reason our Sages commanded "be very very humble". They further said whomever raises his heart denies the fundamentals of religion as it is written "and your heart will become elevated and you will forget the L-rd your G-d". They further said "One who has haughtiness should be excommunicated -- even a slight degree of haughtiness". There is however, an apparent contradiction in the Ramba"m because in the immediately prior halacha the Ramba"m was discussing how one should correct his character traits if he sees they are veering off the middle road. There he suggests that he correct the deviation by forcing himself for a time to go to the opposite extreme until he counter balances the deviation and then he can return to the middle path. One of the examples given there by the Ramba"m is that if a person becomes haughty of heart, he should conduct himself "b'beezayon harbeh" (in an exceedingly humiliating fashion), he should sit on a lower level than everyone else, he should wear rags and torn clothes that embarrass those who wear them and things of this nature until he uproots the haughtiness from himself and then he will return to the middle read which is the good path. (v'Yachzor l'derech ha-Emtzais she'hi derech Tova). The contradiction is obvious. In Perek 2 Halacha 3, the Ramba"m said that one should not seek the middle road when it comes to arrogance and humility; while in Halacha 2 he seems to advocate that as the ideal even for humility. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 11
For those interested in a fuller treatment of this contradiction in the Ramba"m and several interesting answers, I refer you to the Daf Yomi's Iyun HaDaf website for Sotah 5a. But I would just like to quote one approach there to a resolution of this contradiction based on a distinction the Rambam makes between external actions a person takes based on character traits and the actual character traits themselves. A person can feel one way while he trains himself to act in another way. A careful examination of the words of the Rambam shows that when the Rambam discusses the actual, internal feeling that a person experiences, he calls it a "Midah Beinonis". When he discusses the action that a person performs, he calls it a "Derech Emtzais" and he discusses "walking" (an external action) on that Derech. It is obvious that the Rambam is not prescribing that a person dress in shabby clothes all the time in order to avoid arrogance. Rather the Rambam means that a person should teach himself to feel very humble and lowly in his heart, however his actions should not express that humility, but rather they should express a middle-of-the path approach. When it comes to actions -- under all circumstances the Rambam advises a middle approach. When it comes to how a person is to feel internally, then in the case of humility, he should at all times feel exceedingly humble. Thus when Yakov needed to externally stand up to Lavan or to Eisav, he knew what to do and knew how to act; but internally he always felt Katonti m'Kol HaChassadim. The expression used by Chazal to specify the degree of arrogance a Talmid Chochom should have -- An Eighth of an Eighth has very special resonance for me this morning. We are marking the eighth day of my eighth grandchild. Eight is a very special number in Judaism -- for reasons we do not have time to go into -- and today is a very special occasion for me and my wife and our entire family. I can only say "Katonti m'kol haChassadim". I thank HaKadosh Baruch Hu for all the undeserved kindness He has shown to me and to my entire family to allow us to have the opportunity to celebrate this Simcha today and to celebrate all the family Simchas we have been blessed with, bli Ayin Harah throughout our lives. To Dena and Moshe, I want to say, first of all thank you so much for all the nachas you always give us and especially for today's Simcha which -- together with your third Partner -- you had a very crucial role in making happen. I want to also say to you that there are always nisyonos in raising children. Each family and each child has its own set of nisyonos. I know that in your family, given the brain power and the great Yichus from all sides and the wonderful blessings b'liy ayin harah that your children have been born into it is quite likely that one of your Nisyonos in raising children will be the Nisayon of teaching them humility. Teaching them that if not in outer actions then at least in inner spirit they should have absence of all arrogance and humbleness of spirit. How does one accomplish that, one may ask? Like everything else in life, to be successful in raising children, one needs a lot of S'yata D'ishmaya. But the Roshei Teivos of S'yata D'ishmaya are Samech Daled which b'Gematria equals 64. And of course every Talmid Chochom needs a Shmini She'B'shminis -- an 1/8 th of an 1/8 -- or 1 /64th In other words one healthy dose of S"D -- S'Yata D'Ishmaya. And while S'Yata D'ishmaya is critical for raising children, it doesn't hurt to have good role models either. Baruch Hashem, your children have been blessed with parents who despite being themselves blessed with awesome brainpower and wonderful talents -- do not let these blessings go to their head, nor lift their hearts in an undesirable fashion. Moshe and Dena are models of humility and gentleness which Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 12
belie the prodigious blessings and talents HaKodosh Baruch Hu has bestowed upon them. They know the secret of shmini she'bishminis and always have an inner attitude of Katonti m'kol HaChassadim. May their children all learn from their wonderful example. May the grandparents and the entire Mishpacha continue to shep nachas from this ever expanding family and may we be Zoche to continue to share simchas together with pride in our children and grandchildren and humility in our hearts.
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SHOOTING ARROWS FROM A GREAT DISTANCE

I have often noted that we find a rather unique motif in the Mussaf Shmoneh Esrei of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh that appears neither in the Mussaf of Shabbos by itself nor in the Mussaf of Rosh Chodesh by itself. That is the motif of vidui (confession). In the Ata Yetzarta paragraph of the Mussaf for Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh we find the following words; "But because we sinned before You we and our forefathers our City was destroyed and our Temple was made desolate, our honor was exiled and glory was taken from the House of our life. So we cannot fulfill our responsibilities in Your chosen House, in the great and holy House upon which Your Name was called, because of the hand that was sent against Your Sanctuary." These sentences parallel closely the similar expressions we find in the paragraph recited in the Yom Tov Mussaf beginning with the words "U'mipnei Chataeinu". Now we can readily understand how this motif fits in with Yom Tov when we are missing the opportunity to fulfill the many mitzvos associated with Aliyah L'Regel, Korban Chagigah, etc. The question is, however, why would we mention this exile and loss of the Beis HaMikdash on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh if we don't mention it on a simple Shabbos or a simple Rosh Chodesh? I have not seen this question raised or answered in any classic source, but the thought has come to me that an answer to this question might be found based on the idea we find a number of places in the Gemara that our Prayers are offered in lieu of the sacrifices "U'neshalma parim sefaseinu". On a normal Shabbos or a normal Rosh Chodesh there was one Korban Mussaf in the Beis HaMikdash and we offer today one Korban Mussaf by way of "our lips offering repayment for the bulls". As long as the prayers of our lips are adequate repayment for the sacrifices in the Temple, we are able to fully fulfill our obligation by praying and we do not thereby intensely feel our sense of loss at not having the Temple. When however Shabbos came out on Rosh Chodesh there were two Mussaf offerings brought in the Temple. Nowadays, however, even on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh we only say one Tefillas Mussaf. Consequently even with the substitution of "U'neshalma parim sefaseinu", we are still lacking in our ability to do that which is required of us. Hence, we say "ayn anachnu yecholim l'asos chovoseinu" I mention this idea today, on Rosh Chodesh Tamuz, 5764, (which happens to fall on Shabbos and Sunday) because this Rosh Chodesh more than any Rosh Chodesh, be it a mid-week Rosh Chodesh or a Shabbos Rosh Chodesh I feel very keenly the motif of "Because of our sins we have been exiled from our Land, and we have become distant" Unfortunately, I am today thousands of miles away from my dear son and daughter-in-law who are bringing their son, my grandson, into the Briso shel Avraham Avinu. I offer my Tefillos that they should merit to raise him to Torah, to Chuppah, and to Ma'asim Tovim. But there are times, when prayers by themselves just don't do it. So I today, feel it very appropriate to have mentioned this past Shabbos morning the motif of guilt and angst at having been deprived of the opportunity to be in our City and in our Land and doing that which would be incumbent upon us.
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M'Inyana D'yoma, I would like to mention one other brief thought. Being that the day of the Bris (Sunday) is Rosh Chodesh, the Haftorah that would have been read the previous day (if not for the fact that Sivan is a full month and so Shabbos was also Rosh Chodesh) is the Haftorah of "Machar Chodesh" from Shmuel Aleph, Perek Chaf. In that chapter, there is sign set up between David and Jonathan regarding the shooting of arrows. The distance the arrow would be shot and the place where the shot arrow would land was a code between the Prince and the future King of Israel with secret nuances and hidden meaning. The Talmud in a number of places [Ayen Chagiga 15a; Yevamos 65a; Nedarim 91a; Niddah 43a] uses the metaphor of a shot arrow as referring to the ability to father children. Homiletically I believe it can be said that this is a most appropriate metaphor. When a father has the merit to help bring a child into this world, to provide love and support and direction to this child, he is in a sense shooting an arrow. The archer takes aim and he tries to apply to the bow the right amount of tension. He may offer a prayer for Siyata D'Shmaya. But then he lets go and the arrow travels away from him on its own. At that point, many factors beyond the control of the archer come into play. And so the arrow may land either "mimcha v'heina" or "mimcha v'halah". He may either overshoot his mark or undershoot his mark. Or with great skill or great luck and with much Siyata D'Shmaya he may hit a bull's eye. Parents make supreme efforts to raise children in the best way they know how. They try to point them in the right direction and they try to apply the correct amount of force and tension in the crucial years they still have the arrow in their hands, before they let go. They pray for Siyata D'Shmaya. Eventually they let go and sometimes they undershoot their mark and the arrows land "mimcha v'heina". Other times, they overshoot their mark and the arrows land "mimcha v'halah". My years as an archer holding on to his arrows, are virtually over. I'm really not 100% sure how good my aim has been. I'm still waiting to see how my children turn out when they "grow up". The arrows have certainly not landed mimcha v'heina close to where their father is standing. However, if my arrows have in fact over shot my goals for them, it is perhaps because there were other archers and other fathers who played a role in the flight paths of my own arrows. My children come from a Shalsheles haYuchsin (a genealogical chain) of great Tzadikim and great Admori"m and I have no doubt that the Rebbes from Beis Chernoble and Beis Tolna are looking down from Gan Eden with great satisfaction at the spiritual accomplishments of my children especially my boys in Kollel, living a life al Taharas HaKodesh in Yerushalayim. These great Zeida's who I know have provided the Zechus Avos to help my arrows travel perhaps with more force and intensity than I have myself put into them, are looking down from Gan Eden and saying to themselves "Bull's Eye!" So my dear Alex, I wish you and Chani much Siyata D'Shmaya in shooting your own arrows and in guiding their destiny. May you be zoche to have children who bring you much nachas as you bring nachas to your own parents. And may the Zeidas and Bubbas both in Shamayim and in Brooklyn and in Seattle watch your arrows fly through life and be able to proclaim Bull's Eye!. May we be zoche to see it with our own eyes. Yehi Ratzaon Milfanecha Hashem Elokeinu V'Elokai Avoseinu, She'Taleinu B'Simcha L'Artzeinu v'Sita-einu B'Gevuleinu. (May it be Your will Hashem, our G-d, and the G-od of our forefathers that You bring us up in gladness to our land and plant us within our boundaries") I wrote all of the above last night, before going to bed. This morning I woke up to the greatest Father's Day present imaginable Alex's call informing us that his newly g'maled son was named after my father, Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 15
zichrono l'Bracha. While of course it increased the sense of guilt and angst at being so far away, it conjured up more pleasant emotions as well. I still remember vividly the day just a few weeks shy of 30 years ago when I called my father on the phone and told him that we would be naming my first son, Moshe Zvi Twersky, after his father. This was a phone call that one did not need a "picture phone" to know that there were tears of joy on both ends of the line. This is a gesture that implies great unification of love and bonding between four generations. The same intense emotion and tears were present this morning although the distance between the two ends of the phone call were several thousand miles rather than several city blocks. I declared at the Bris of the Bechor of Alex's twin sister that the event for me was a "Kodesh Moment" a moment separated from all other moments in life by the special emotional charge of having a grandson bearing the name of my father. If it was a "Kodesh Moment" to have a "Yitzchak Mayer" Luchins in the world, I can only say that the emotion of now having a "Yitzchak Mayer Twersky" in the world again is in the category of "Ma'alin b'kodesh" (upwards in sanctity). I recorded some of my recollections of my father during my remarks at the above referenced Bris in Passaic and of course at his funeral and memorial Siyum. Halo hem kesuvim b'sefer "Not Just Speeches Volume II" (page 11) and "Not Just Speeches Volume I" (pages 69-82). As an appendage to my earlier remarks regarding "shooting arrows", I would like to add the following thoughts at this time: My father's life is an example of an arrow shot from my grandfather's quill at a time in history when many harsh winds were blowing. There was virtually no way my grandfather in Tolna as a young man -a sixth generation Rebbe in the Chernoble-Tolne dynasty -- could foresee all the winds of change and the tumultuous events that would impact his ability to raise children and future generations in the ways of his ancestors. He had no way of knowing the great cross-winds that would be acting to negate the spiritual direction he might wish to lead the arrows he was firing. The spiritual, material, and physical hardships entailed in leaving the alte heim and resettling in Philadelphia in the 1920s; traveling the unbeaten path of growing up in the "melting pot" culture of American society and serving in the American army during World War II were powerful forces that pushed many arrows shot by great and holy parentage into all types of directions other than those intended by their parents. My father's life was that of a straight arrow. Not only because of his life-long reputation for honesty and integrity in all aspects of his life, but because of the way he was able to defy the odds and diversions of the prevailing winds and maintain a lifestyle and raise a family that brought nachas to both his parents. The vector force applied to my father's arrow by six generations of zechus avos who preceded him carried him toward a life of Shmiras Mitzvos and Kevias Itim L'Torah on the one hand and communal leadership and universal respect on the other. In his role as President of the Seattle Hebrew Day School and later as President of Congregation Bikur Cholim, as well as other Executive and Board positions in numerous communal organizations he played critical roles in vital institutions during some of their formative years. It goes without saying that the critical role of leadership he played in our family impacted directly on the lives and the life choices of this children and grandchildren. In reviewing many of his middos and many of his accomplishments, I know that I personally have fallen somewhat short of the mark of perhaps his own aspirations that I might someday be more like him. It therefore gives me great consolation to witness the arrival of a new generation of arrows who may travel in the footsteps of their ancestors of which my father is certainly a most worthy link and a most worthy choice for a namesake. Mazal Tov and Bracha.
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FIRST SHALOM ZACHOR SPEECH IN SEATTLE IN 18+ YEARS!

August 2004
It has been over 18 years since I've spoken at a Shalom Zachor in Seattle and I am a little rusty. The last time was at the birth of my son Mordy and I mentioned on that occasion that Mordy was my ben zekunim and I felt like a zaken. If that was how I felt in 1986, what can I say now ten grandchildren later? Those who know me, all know that whenever I speak publicly I like to have my remarks well prepared and fully written out in advance. With a baby boy born Thursday and many things going on in our life, this was not quite feasible for a Friday night Shalam Zachor. But I did come across a very appropriate thought on Parshas Ki Teizei in Twerski on Chumash by my favorite author and psychiatrist, Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski that I would like to share this evening. The Mishnayos [Sanhedrin 71a] in Perek Ben Sorer U'Moreh discuss a long list of conditions and situations in which the laws of Ben Sorer U'Moreh do not apply. First the Mishneh mentions that if the father is in favor of moving ahead with the proceedings but the mother is not or vice versa, we do not move ahead with the proceedings unless both parents are in agreement. Then the Mishneh quotes the opinion of Rabbi Yehudah that "if the mother is not an 'appropriate match' for the father", the child does not become a Ben Sorer U'Moreh. The Gemara analyzes the expression "the mother is not an 'appropriate match' for the father". The first interpretation considered -- but rejected is that the mother was halachically forbidden to marry the husband. Ultimately the Talmud clarifies that Rabbi Yehudah's position is that the mother and the father must be a "perfect match" such they are matching "in voice, in appearance, and in height". The Gemara states that it is in fact this opinion of Rabbi Yehudah which is the basis for the statement that the laws of Ben Sorer U'Moreh never happened and never will happen. The Talmud asks if the application of the laws of Ben Sorer U'Moreh are totally unrealistic and impractical why did the Torah give us these detailed laws in the first place? The Talmud answers "in order that we may expound on them and receive reward" (derosh v'kabel sechar). There are many ways of interpreting this idea which we find elsewhere in the Gemara as well of derosh v'kabel sechar. Rabbi Twerski quotes an approach of the Olelos Ephraim that the meaning is that if we analyze and expound upon the detailed laws of Ben Sorer U'Moreh we will receive the reward of learning how to be good parents and how to properly conduct ourselves in the ever-challenging area of raising children. The Olelos Ephraim says that if the parents did not speak with one voice, the child cannot be held culpable for his misbehavior. Rabbi Twerski elaborates that a cardinal rule of parenting is that the children must receive consistent messages from both parents. It is very understandable that children will grow up dysfunctional if they get mixed messages from their parents. If one parent is a strict disciplinarian and one parent is a 'softy'; if one parent is "religious" and one parent is "irreligious"; if one parent says "yes" and one parent says "no" then we cannot fully blame the child for growing up mixedup and troublesome. Rabbi Twerski goes on to suggest a parallel application of the rule of derosh v'kabel sechar in the next Mishneh which states among other things that if the parents are deaf or mute the son cannot become a ben sorer u'moreh. Here again there is a reward of practical insight into raising children. Parents must be able to listen to their children and hear what they are telling them. Parents must have the ability and Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 17
make the time to speak to their children and convey to them love, values, and the difference between right and wrong. Rabbi Twerski cites practical cases from his practice of drug-addicted teenagers who complained that their parents never had time to speak to or to listen to them. In such a household, it is not right to wholly blame the children for their misbehavior and their "acting out". The laws of ben sorer u'moreh cannot be applied if the parents are 'deaf' or 'mute'. I think these examples of "d'rosh v'kabel sechar" are most appropriate to mention this evening at the Shalom Zachor of my new grandson. I have, Baruch Hashem, had the opportunity to see first-hand over the past two years how my dear daughter and dear son-in-law are raising their daughters Yael and Esti. I am constantly impressed with the patience they have, the approaches they employ and with the successes they are, bli ayin hara, witnessing in the raising of their family. Chaim and Sara may not have identical height, voices, and appearance but they are a wonderful match and a tremendous parental team. I dare say that their insight, their patience and their dedication to their children exceed that of Sara's own parents. I see also, how my dear son-in-law interacts with his Talmidim (v'shinanta l'banecha: elu talmidecha), with youth of the community in Camp Kol Rena, and with other members of the community in a variety of capacities. There is always patience, a willingness to hear the other person out, to understand where they are coming from, and to speak to them each person on his or her own level with dignity, with respect, and in a way that inspires love and admiration rather than rebellion and resentment. Just as we have, bli ayin hara, witnessed your successes Chaim and Sara in your chinuch activities thus far may we continue to witness these successes with your new son and with all who you will come in contact with. Mazal Tov to the entire family.
[I delivered this (8-27-04) -- uncharacteristically -- as Torah She'be-al peh and made it into "Torah Shebictav", m'macharas HaShabbas -- DT]
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The Tenth One Will Be 'Holy'

September 2004
I mentioned at the Bris of my first grandson, Yitzchack Meir Luchins that although the Bris was taking place on Shabbos and it could therefore not be classified as a Kodak moment, it was nevertheless very much, for my wife and I, a Kodesh moment. The Toras Kohanim interprets the charge in Vayikra Kedoshim Teeheyu (become a holy nation) to mean Perushim Teeheyu you should be a separate and set-apart nation. So too a Kodesh moment is one that stands out from all the other mundane moments in life. Kodesh moments are the times in life we clearly feel the Breath of G-d's Holiness upon our frail bodies and feel a special closeness to Him and feel we owe Him a special debt of thanksgiving. I have Baruch Hashem been blessed to see my tenth grandchild. Elsewhere in Vayikra in fact at the very end of the Sefer -- we find the word Kodesh used again in connection with the number 10, by the mitzvah of tithing our cattle: "ha'asiri yi'heye kodesh l'Hashem". The pasuk testifies that the tenth one is special. And indeed although Eliezer Avraham is bli ayin harah my tenth grandchild and my fifth grandson I look forward with G-d's Help -- to a very special relationship with him. I am hoping that Eliezer Avraham will have a relationship with me akin to the relationship I had with my maternal grandfather, Mr. Mitchell Ketzlach, of blessed memory. I've spoken at many family Simchas of the Yichus and Zechus Avos my children have inherited, being descendants of the great Dynasties of Twersky Admori"m. I think it is most appropriate at this Simcha the first grandchild to be born in Seattle to say something about "the other side of the family" and about another Zeida who was for many decades a beloved and distinguished member of this community. I loved my grandfather, Rabbi Moshe Zvi Twersky the Talne Rebbe of Philadelphia and I'm sure he loved me. I love my grandchildren in Israel and in Passaic and I hope they love me. But if truth be told ayno domeh mi sheroeh v'ochel l'mi sheayno ro'oeh v'ochel [Yoma 74b] -- there is no comparison in terms of the relationship possible between seeing a grandchild in person on a weekly or even daily basis and seeing one via pictures or infrequent visits. I vaguely remember that when we would go to Philadelphia once every couple of years, the Tolner Rebbe would pick me up on his lap and kiss me. (It was probably the only time at that age I was ever kissed by a person with a beard). But I vividly remember the tune of "Dovidl my darling, I love you my sweetheart" that my Zeida in Seattle used to sing to me every time he would see me which was quite often. I vividly remember how he used to drive me to school in his late 1940s model Plymouth sing "Dovid Melech Yisrael chai v'kayam". I vividly remember how he taught me the trop for leining when I was 9 years old and how we would be ma'aver the sedra every week for the next 4 years and how he would slip me a dollar every other week on Sunday as a reward for coming over and being ma'aver sedra with him.
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From the time I was a little boy, I dreamed of one day having a grandson with whom I could establish the same relationship that I had with my maternal grandfather. This boyhood dream I had of achieving such a relationship with a grandson of my own was perhaps given a more eloquent and inspirational image for me by a now famous Dvar Torah given at the bris of Rabbi Moshe Twersky. I am not referring to the eloquent speech by Rabbi Yissacher Frand in this room on the occasion of my first-born son's Bris some 30 years ago. I am referring to the Dvar Torah given by the maternal grandfather of Rabbi Moshe Twersky, the eldest grandson of haGaon Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, zt"l. I urge anyone who has never read Rabbi Soloveitchik's presentation "The First Jewish Grandfather" which is the lead chapter in Reflections of the Rav Volume Two to make this a high priority item on your inspirational reading list. The Rav notes that "Grandfathers and grandchildren, though members of different generations, are part of one fraternity the Mesorah community (those who preserve the integrity of the transmitted tradition)". "When it is achieved", the Rav noted, "a Mesorah relationship between grandfather and grandchild contains an emotional intensity and intellectual closeness that in some ways transcends the parent-child relationship. Psychologically, one would not expect a deep identification between two individuals whose great discrepancy of years could easily spawn alienation. Yet grandparents, more so than parents, are sensitive to the transiency of time and to the pressing need to assure the perpetuation of one's lifelong principles. The child is far more than a biological extension; he embodies one's hopes for spiritual continuity. If, as is found frequently, a bond between old and young is achieved amongst Torah Jews, it is due to this singular awareness of a Mesorah community in which past and present generations are contemporaries." The Rav goes on to describe how Yakov was the first of the Patriarchs to "leap over the gulf of generations" and transmit the great Mesorah of Avraham directly to Ephraim and Menashe. He points out that the principle of Bnai Banim harei hem k'banim (Grandchildren have the same status in many areas of halacha as children) is derived from Yakov's declaration that Ephraim and Menashe would be to him like Reuven and Shimon. Ayen sham b'arichus. After every child or grandchild is born, one says Hallelu Es Shem Hashem. Having been blessed with 5 wonderful children and 10 wonderful grandchildren my wife and I now say Hallelu Es Hashem 15 times or to use the Gematria of the number 15: Halelu Kah. We thank Hashem for each of the 15 and especially today, we thank Hashem and His other two Shutfim in this present endeavor, our dear daughter Sara Tova and our dear son-in-law Rabbi Chaim Daniel Weiss, in giving us this very special tenth grandchild. Ha'Asiri Yiheye Kodesh the tenth one is special
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ELEVEN ARE THE STARS IN YOSEF'S DREAM

A little less than a year ago I had the zechus to speak in Seattle at the Bris Milah of my tenth grandchild, Eliezer Avraham Weiss. At that time I dealt with the theme "ha'Asiree yi'heye kodesh" the tenth one is special. In giving that speech I know I went out on a limb somewhat, because some day and bli ayin hara that day is rapidly approaching-- my grandchildren will be able to read for themselves and they might open a copy of their grandfather's collection of Not Just Speeches and see that Saba said "the tenth one was special". One does not have to be a parent 5 times over nor a grandparent 11 times over to know that it is an absolute "No No" in child raising to single out one child or grandchild over the others. Rav teaches [Shabbos 10b]: A man should never single out one child among his children, for on account of the two sela's weight of silk which Yakov gave Yosef in excess of his other sons, his brothers became jealous of him and the matter resulted in our forefathers' descent into Egypt. So lest my grandchildren get the impression that Saba was not aware of the trouble caused by showing favoritism to Yosef, I am very glad that I have the opportunity to set the record straight this morning and to, in fact, use Yosef HaTzadik's dream to illustrate the fact that not just "Ten" is special, but that every number has its own special significance. M'Inyana d'Yoma "Who knows what's special about Eleven? I know what is special about Eleven! Eleven are the stars in Yosef's dream." The idea of stars is appropriate in talking about children and perhaps even more so in talking about grandchildren, not just because the stars in Yosef's dream represented the other sons of Yakov Avinu, but primarily because it was through the imagery of stars that HaKodesh Baruch promised Avraham that he would have many descendants, so many in fact that he would not be able to count them. "VaYotzei oso haChutza vaYomer habet nah haShamayma, u'sfor haKochavim, im tuchal lispor osam. Vayomer lo: koh yiheyeh zarecha." [Bereshis 15:5] And He took him outside, and said 'Gaze now, toward the Heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them!" And he said to him, "So shall your offspring be!" Samson Raphael Hirsch raises an interesting question: Why was it necessary for G-d to take Avraham outside his tent, before showing him how numerous were the stars? Could not Avraham, from inside the tent imagined in his own mind how numerous the stars were? In fact Hirsch says, earlier in Parshas Lech Lecha when HaKadosh Baruch Hu told Avraham that he would make his seed like the dust of the earth, He did not take him outside his tent to visualize how difficult it would be to count the particles of sand. Why by the metaphor of the stars was "VaYotzei oso Hachutza" necessary and by the metaphor of the dust of the earth it was not? Hirsch answers that the blessing of v'samti zaracha k'afar ha'Aretz was a blessing of quantity, of natural growth and prosperity. No visual aids were necessary to appreciate the meaning of a blessing of quantity, nor were they necessary to relate to blessings within the realm of teva, as represented by the dust of the earth. However, he says, the blessing of the stars was not about quantity. It was about quality. G-d was telling Avraham that his every descendant would be qualitatively as worthy and precious as the stars, each of which is individually counted by G-d and each of which is given its own name: Moneh mispar la'Kochavim, v'chulam Sheimos Yikra. He counts the number of the stars, to all of them He assigns names. [Tehillim 147:4] Hirsch goes on to say that unlike the dust of the earth which has been trodden and trampled upon by man and beast and changed and reshaped over the course of millennia, the distant stars remain in the same Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 21
pristine identity as when they were first brought into creation by the Almighty. The metaphor of the stars, thus, is symbolic of the hashgacha pratis, G-d's personal relationship with each individual from among Avraham's holy descendants. Our nation will be like the dust of the earth and they will succeed within the course of human events b'derech hateva, by way of nature. But more than that each one with his own strengths and uniqueness will potentially have a special and unique hashgacha pratis relationship with the Almighty. The idea of moneh mispar la'Kochavim is the idea of quantity similar to the idea of v'samti zaracha k'afar ha'aretz. There is no doubt that quantity is a blessing. Peru U'Revu u'Milu es ha'Aretz "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth" was indeed the first blessing given to mankind in the history of the world. And we are indeed humbled to have been blessed, bli ayin harah, with now eleven grandchildren. But the idea of v'chulam Sheimos Yikra is an idea of quality, of uniqueness, of special personality, special talents, and special potential that requires and demands a unique name, a distinct characterization, and a personalized relationship. Now if truth be told, in regards to the blessing of quantity when it comes to children, grandchildren, and beyond there comes a point when man can become a bit overwhelmed. We say about G-d that He can be moneh mispar la'Kochavim. He never loses count. He is never fazed or overwhelmed by the magnitude of the number. When it comes to man, it is true that Chazal tell us that "yesh lo maneh, rotzeh masayim" if he has 100 he wants 200. However, I don't believe they were talking about children or grandchildren when they said this. When it comes to the blessing of quantity with offspring, there comes a point everyone reaches this point according to their own level and strengths (I believe that Devorah Luchins has reached this point already) where they ask: "What do we need so many babies for?" Even Bubby, bli ayin ha"rah, I know she's not complaining and she counts her blessings. But if you ask her how many great grandchildren she has, she will give you that "Im Tuchal Lispor osam" look. Man, at some point is simply overwhelmed by the blessing of quantity to the extent that magnitude ceases to have meaning. The blessing of quality, however, the blessing of v'chulam Sheimos Yikra which is the blessing of the Stars is one which can always be appreciated. Each star whether the achad asar kochvaya of Yosef's dream or the trillions of stars of the heavens has its own name that shows it has its own identity, uniqueness, and value. It is not just "another star in the universe". It a special star, with special shape, special size, special co-ordinates in the galaxy, and a special connection to the Creator of the World. In human terms, each new grandchild is not just another numbered descendant. Each child has his or her own personality and charm, chochmas and idiosyncrasies, strengths and weaknesses. My wife and I have been blessed with grandchildren who like stars. They now number the stars in Yosef's dream. Like stars my grandchildren are scattered "b'ktze haShamayim"; and like stars each one is a unique personality, with unique charm and uniquely loveable characteristics. May they be zoche in their lives to the hashgacha pratis symbolized by the stars in Hirsch's interpretation of the blessing of the stars "Koh Yiheyeh zarecha". And just as my wife and I pray they may all establish a personal relationship with the Almighty, so too we pray that we will have the opportunity to establish a personal relationship with each of our very special grandchildren be they geographically near or be they b'ktzei haShamayim.
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Two For The Price of One

March 12. 2006
According to the printed text in virtually all standard editions of the Mishneh Torah, the Rambam adds one letter to one of the Brachas we recite before reading the Megilla that seems to totally change the meaning of the Bracha. According to our text in the Rambam the nusach of the second Bracha is: Sheasah nisim lAvoseinu byamim hahem ubazman hazeh (who has made miracles for our fathers in those days AND in this time). I noticed, however that the additional vov appears in parenthesis in the Frenkel Rambam with the note that although it appears in all printed editions and many kisvei yad, the vov does not appear in early manuscripts of the Mishneh Torah. The Aruch HaShulchan in Hilchos Chanukah does argue in favor of the added vov, but he interprets it in a way that is less novel than the simple reading of the bracha with that addition would imply. Be that as it may, the notion that HaKadosh Baruch Hu is Oseh Nissim bazman hazeh strikes a very receptive chord with me this Adar in particular in which we are, BEzras Hashem, Marbim BSimcha. The birth of a new child is always a nes. It is however a miracle like so many other miracles that we take for granted because it is a nes nistar. However to experience the very very special reebui simcha and the timing associated with it that our family has experienced this Adar, during this past week makes us keenly appreciate the Yad Hashem that watches over us at all times in miraculous fashion. Purim too was was a Nes Nistar, as is alluded to by the very name of the heroine of its story. And so in acknowledging the special timing of the births of my two newest grandchildren and the fact that the birth of each allowed their respective fathers to fulfill the first Mitzvah in the Torah I find special meaning in the notion that the Almighty who performed hidden miracles for our fathers in those days, is still performing hidden miracles for my grandchildrens fathers in this time. Many thoughts and emotions come to mind on this occasion. The most obvious thought and emotion is that I am sorry I cannot be there in person with my dear wife to share this special milestone in our familys life. However as Shlomo HaMelech says, lakol Zeman for everything there is a time. There is a time of Al ken yaazov ish es aviv ves imo vdavak bishto (Therefore a man will leave his father and mother and cling to his wife) and there is time of Al ken lo yaazov ish And so even though I am not physically present with dear wife Tzippy to share in person this special occasion, we Baruch Hashem have a one-ness relationship of ishto kgufo -- vhayu lbasar echad and I sincerely share the abundance of happiness that I know she must be experiencing during her two week visit to Jerusalem. May G-d grant me Arichas Yamim that I may yet be able to personally share other Simchas together with my Eishes Chayil and together with our sons and their families al haAdama asher Hashem Elokeinu nosen lanu. Of all the many Pesukim that have come to mind during the past few days of blessing and excitement one stands out above the rest. That is the famous verse from Tehillim [133:1]: Shir HaMaalos lDovid: Hinei ma tov uma naim shevet achim gam yachad. (A Song that is elevating for David: Behold how good and how pleasant is the dwelling of brothers, moreover, in unity.) Certainly according to pshuto shel mikra the verse is literally fulfilled. The fact that Moshe and Alex and their families have lived near each other these past several years and moreover the fact that they share a unity of purpose, idealism, and commitment is spiritually uplifting and emotionally elevating for this David. But this verse has special meaning at a deeper level as well. In Rabbinic thought the word shevet connotes having children, as in the verse in Yeshaya [45:18] Lo tohu ba-ra-ah, lshevet yetzarah. (He did not create it for emptiness, He fashioned it to be inhabited.) In which case the verse Hinei ma tov uma naim shevet achim gam yachad can be translated, al pi derush, to mean How good and how pleasant is it when brothers have children together. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 23
This very rare situation of having two grandchildren born to two sons who live two blocks from each other on two consecutive days raised two possibilities in my mind: Should I compose one Not Just Speech for the occasion or should I compose two Not Just Speeches? Two halachic principles came to mind that on the surface would argue for two separate compositions. One is the Halacha of Ein Mearvin Simcha bSimcha (one should not mix one joy with another) and the other is the Halacha of Ein osin mitzvos chavilos chavilos (one should not perform mitzvos in a wholesale fashion). Upon further analysis, however, I concluded that these principles might not necessarily force a double entry in Part III of Not Just Speeches. It seems to me that the principle of Ein Mearvin Simcha bSimcha applies primarily to scheduling Simchas. We are not supposed to schedule a wedding for Chol HaMoed, for example, because of the principle of Ein Mearvin Simcha bSimcha. In the present case however, the Simchas were pre-scheduled in Shamayim. The Eiruv Simachos was ordained in Heaven and there is absolutely no reason not to combine the Simachos into a single Not Just Speech from the perspective of Ein Mearvin Simcha bSimcha. Considering this question from the perspective of Ein osin mitzvos chavilos chavilos a certain Country Yossi song came to mind from one of the Kivi and Tuki tapes. The song is called Who Did A Mitzvah? Tuki is trying to get credit for doing a mitzvah because he kissed his Bubby and Country Yossi is telling him that kissing his Bubby is a nice thing to do, but its not really a mitzvah. The thought occurred to me that composing Not Just Speeches on happy family occasions might be a nice thing to do, but it may not be in the category of a bona-fide mitzvah that would bring me in conflict with the principle of Ein osin mitzvos chavilos chavilos if I tried to package two Simchas into a single Not Just Speech. But for all this speculation, I was still in doubt about the proper procedure until it struck me that we already have a family precedent that I could rely on. The family precedent involves one of the Baalei Devorim himself my son Alex! He was born not within two days of a cousin, but he was born within two minutes of a sister! When I spoke at Alexs bris, I combined the Simcha of the birth of a son with that of the Simcha of the birth of a daughter and did not receive any complaints from either Dena or Alex that they were being cheated. And so, maaseh Avos Siman lBanim, I will ask mechilla from Miriam Bayla and I will ask mechilla from my newest grandson and will herein present a single Torah thought appropriate for this occasion. I mentioned earlier the Rabbinic interpretation of the verse Lo tohu ba-ra-ah, lshevet yetzarah which Chazal use to advocate having additional children after one has fulfilled the basic mitzvah of Peru URevu. However the Simcha we are celebrating is not about the Rabbinic institution of lshevet yetzarah it is about the fact that within a 36 hour time span Moshe and Alex each fulfilled the basic Biblical mitzvah of Peru URevu. I, therefore, felt it would be appropriate to say a short Devar Torah related to the first Mitzvah of the Torah. The Minchas Chinuch (1:29) asks according to the opinion that Mitzvos Tzereechos Kavanah (one needs to have intent when performing a mitzvah), when should one have intent for fulfilling the mitzvah of Peru URevu? He basically suggests four possible answers. One possibility he suggests is that even according to the opinion that Mitzvos Tzereechos Kavanah, Peru uRevu is an exception and no kavanah is required.
[The reason no Kavanah may be required for the mitzvah of Peru URevu may itself be for one of two possibilities depending on when the mitzvah of Peru URevu is performed. Tosfos seems to say that the mitzvah is performed at the
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time of the completion of the act of bee-ah (sexual intercourse). If that were the case, then no Kavanah would be required for the mitzvah for the same reason the Rambam requires no Kavanah for eating Matzah. This is based on the principle of hamisasek bchalavim varayos chayav sheken neheneh. When one experiences physical pleasure from an action, that preempts the need for mental focus (kavanah). The Minchas Chinuch himself disagrees with Tosfos and holds that the mitzvah of Peru URevu is not completed at the time of bee-ah, which he describes as a hechsher mitzvah -- a preparatory step in the mitzvah performance -- akin to buying an esrog or baking matzah. The real mitzvah is performed by virtue of the fact that one has children. But he raises the possibility that since the mitzvah happens by itself (in the sense that at the time the children are born the father who is commanded in Peru URevu has not done anything), in this case no kavanah is required even according those who normally hold mitzvos tzereechos kavanah.]
The second possibility of the four is that the proper time for kavanah is at the time of bee-ah. This would be the opinion of Tosfos, who as mentioned earlier holds that bee-ah is the maaseh hamitzvah of Peru URevu. A third possibility is that the proper time to have Kavanah in this mitzvah is at the time one gets married, when one gives Kiddushin to his wife. The fourth possibility suggested by the Minchas Chinuch and this is the one that is most relevant to the situation at hand is that the appropriate time for Kavanah regarding the mitzvah of Peru URevu is at the time the second gender child is born to the father. In other words, at the time a person can say he is now the father of at least one son and one daughter he should have Kavanah that I have just been mekayem the mitzvah of Peru URevu. And it is to this end that I would like to help focus my sons level of Kavanah by impressing them with the great milestone in their lives they have reached and the great zechusim they have that they have been able to father a male and female child specifically in Eretz Yisrael. We know the Rambans opinion that all the Mitzvos even the non Land-dependant mitzvos are primarily meant to be fulfilled only in the Land of Israel. We are commanded to keep these mitzvos in Chutz LAretz, he writes, only so that we not forget them and they not be strange to us when we return to Israel. Even without the Rambans chiddush however, the mitzvah of Peru URevu has special status that makes it -- at least homiletically a Land Dependent Mitzvah. In what sense, you will ask, is Peru URevu a mitzvah haTeluya bAretz? One need not go further than the next three words in the Pasuk: Peru URevu umil-oo es haAretz. (Be fruitful and multiply and fill THE LAND). There is no doubt in my mind that especially in our historic times there is a great kiyum of Peru URevu umil-oo es haAretz (with a Hay haYediah) not only on an individual level but at the global level of Kneses Yisrael (the Jewish nation) as well. This goes far beyond Rambans formulation that Tephillin and Mezuzah and Shabbos and other chovos haGuf (mitzvos we fulfill with our bodies) have special character when they are performed in Eretz Yisrael. Contributing to the increase of the population of Eretz Yisrael with children who will grow up in the Land of Israel committed to Torah and committed to the historic destiny of Am Yisrael in Eretz Yisrael may perhaps be one of the greatest historic challenges facing our generation. I grew up under the influence of parents and school and especially my maternal grandfather who were tremendous Zionists. I was born in 1948 and throughout my youth I remember seeing literature and movies and all kinds of artifacts that glorified the Chalutzim and their heroic idealism and self-sacrifice in clearing the land, in reclaiming the Hula Valley, in making the dessert bloom and so forth. Clearly, byodim o blo yodim (wittingly or unwittingly) these individuals were partners with the Shechina in the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 25
Aschalta DGeulah in making the Dry Bones come to life and in restoring physical vitality to the Land that lay desolate for 2,000 years. But we are now in what the media calls the Post Zionist era. Much of yesteryears idealism and selfsacrifice is not to be found among the descendants of the Chalutzim and early pioneers of former generations. We have bEzras HaShem finished the phase of Aschalta DGeulah (Beginning of the Redemption) and are now witnessing a new phase of Hemshech HaGeulah (Continuation of the Redemption Process). Like Aschalta DGeulah the Hemshech HaGeulah is unfolding as a nes nistar. Tracking it day by day or even week to week or month to month, it may not seem that dramatic and certainly not very miraculous. But unmistakably nissam nistarim are occurring and the actors in the Hemshech HaGeulah are partnering with the Shechina to bring about unprecedented events that are restoring the spiritual vitality to the Land and its people and that clearly foreshadow the Achris haYamim. The primary actors in this Hemshech HaGeulah are not youthful Chalutzim from Russia or Poland, they are youthful Charedim often from America and other Anglo-Saxon countries. Idealistic and selfsacrificing Torah scholars and their dedicated wives who could have had a significantly more comfortable life, materially and physically, in the Old Country are building Batim Neemanim bEretz Yisrael through their heroic mesiras nefesh and inspiring Yiras Shamayim. Through their fulfillment of the mitzvah of Peru URevu in ever increasing numbers these Torah Pioneers are -- baby carriage by baby carriage -- changing the face of Israeli society. Ken Yirbu kmosam bYisrael. May we see them fulfill not only the two words of Peru URevu but also the end of the pasuk uMilu es haAretz vKivshua may they fill the Land and capture the imagination and aspiration of all Israeli society by serving as role models for family harmony, for derech eretz, for personal integrity and for personal and communal responsibility. May I continue to see this in my children and grandchildren ad bias goel bimhera byamenu.
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On That Day Will His Name Be One

March 16, 2005
I mentioned at the end of Two for The Price of One that I grew up in a very Zionistic home and school environment. I believe it is not an exaggeration to say that I was past the age of Bar Mitzvah before I learned that Chapter 126 of Tehillim (recited before bentching on Shabbos and Yom Tov) could be sung to anything other than the tune of HaTikvah. But if truth be told, during the first 19 years of my life, which coincided with the first 19 years of Medinas Yisrael, although the Jewish world was ecstatic at Shivas Tzion (the return to Zion), sechok peenu was not maleh (the laughter in our mouths was not completely full). The fact that the Old City had to be abandoned during The War of Independence and the fact that the Kotel and the Har Habayis were not even accessible to the Jewish people caused a sense of unspoken anxiety and unfulfilled jubilation that silently reverberated in our hearts. It is fascinating to note that of the dozens of songs that came out of that era, from the time of the establishment of the State until the Israeli Song Festival on Hay Iyar 1967 there was not a single popular song written in all those years that mentioned that Jerusalem was divided or that there was no Jewish access to the Kotel [ayen http://www.jerusalemofgold.co.il]. While in the depths of our silent Shmoneh Esrei we could verbalize our prayer LYerushalayim ircha bRachamim Tashuv (May You return in compassion to Jerusalem Your city), apparently the pain of not having all Jerusalem was too painful to verbalize at a national level. Naaleh lArtzeinu bRena and Achshav, achshav bEmek Yizrael could easily be verbalized, but vein poked et Har HaBayit could not. And then there was that Nes Nigleh week in June of 1967. There are certain moments that remain etched in a persons memory for the rest of his life. Where were you when you heard that Kennedy got shot? Where were you when you heard that planes crashed into the Twin Towers? So too it is for positive events. I certainly will never forget the moment I head that the Old City had been captured by the Israeli army. It was a magical moment for me and for the Jewish people. In the upcoming days and weeks and months first Jerusalemites, then Israelis and then Jews from all over the world excitedly rushed to get their first look at the Kotel in Jewish hands. It was therefore somewhat surprising although ultimately very insightful to hear my Rebbi at the time, Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, shlita, describe several months later his first Post Six Day War visit to Eretz Yisrael. At a time when many Americans were taking cabs straight from Lod to the Kotel before even stopping at their hotel, Rav Aharon explained that he consciously delayed visiting the Kotel HaMaaravi until several days after he arrived in Eretz Yisrael. I believe upon arrival he spent the first night in one of the cities along the Coast, then a day or so later he went to the New City of Jerusalem. A day later he went to the Old City for the first time, and only several days after arriving did he first visit the Kotel. Rav Aharon explained his rationale based on the Mishnayos at the end of the first Chapter of Tractate Kelim. The Mishneh beginning Eretz Yisrael is holier than the rest of the world specifies a hierarchy of geographical holiness that exists in the world. There are ten levels of holiness beginning with Kedushas Eretz Yisrael at large and culminating in the holiness of the Kodesh Kodshim (Holy of Holies). He went on in his uniquely insightful way to explain that one should not jump ahead of himself in climbing a spiritual ladder. To maximize the growth and feeling of closeness to the Almighty that the Kedusha experience brings, one needs to go through each level of holiness in its proper sequence taking in all of the spirituality and holiness infused in each lower level before ascending upward the ladder of Maalim bkodesh. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 27
He therefore first wanted to digest and incorporate within himself for a time the holiness of Eretz Yisrael before he moved on to the added dimension of holiness inherent in Jerusalem. Likewise he first wanted to spiritually acculturate himself so to speak to the holiness of Jerusalem before it would be appropriate to ascend further to the holiness inherent in the Makom haMikdash (Place of the Temple). Rav Aharons reference to the Mishnayos in Kelim about the levels of Kedusha was very much on my mind last night as I was trying to absorb the emotionally charged moment of hearing the name of my newest grandson. I thought back to a comment I made when speaking on Shabbos Parshas Noach about 5 years ago at the Bris of Yitzchak Meir Luchins. I said that although it was Shabbos and we could not take pictures, having a grandson named for my father was very much a Kodesh moment a moment separate and set-apart from all the moments in life. I recalled in that speech one of the most powerful Kodesh Moments I had experienced in my life to that point the moment in July 1974 when I called my father, alav haShalom, from the hospital to tell hm that we would be naming our first child after his own father, Moshe Tzvi, the Rebbe of Talne, ztl, and I noted the strong father-son bond formed between us by that experience. The birth, Bris, and Pidyon haBen of my first grandson Yitzchak Meir Luchins are certainly moments that will always be etched in my memory. But if truth be told the moment just a couple of years ago granted me by my son Alex and daughter in-law Chani when they gave me a grandson named Yitzchak Meir Twersky was a Kodesh Moment in the category of Maalin bKodesh. There was now someone to carry on not just the first and middle name of my father but the full family name Yitzchak Meir Twersky! And, in all candor even that great moment as indelible as it will always be in my mind has now been surpassed by having a grandson named and I tremble with emotion as I type the words Yitzchak Meir ben Harav Moshe Zvi Twersky. The name is one and the same as that of my father of blessed memory. I thank my children for giving me 3 grandsons named after my father [vGam Esther Meira, zechura lTov ;-] and I thank HaKodosh Baruch Hu for granting me the opportunity to experience in sequence of Maalim bKodesh these great Kodesh Moments in which I have felt the Warmth of His Touch in the life of our family. And although I equated in Two for the Price of One the wonderful recent Simcha of Alex and Moshe who each now having fulfilled the Mitzvah of Peru URevu, since we are now writing in a very emotional and uninhibited fashion, I will go further and add the following perhaps not very politically correct thought after remotely participating in the Bris of my new grandson: For a father the Simcha of having daughters is certainly a wonderful experience that no doubt brings one to the level of Ashira LHashem. But the song for daughters -- before there are sons -- are like the songs of the early days of the Medinah. NaAleh LArtzeinu BReena and Achshav, achshav bemek Yizrael were very lively and happy tunes. But as long as Old Jerusalem was not ours, there was a silent angst in each of our hearts. Perhaps it has to do with the covenantal relationship of Bris Milah that binds a father and son. Perhaps it is related to the mitzvah of Talmud Torah that uniquely defines the father son relationship. Perhaps it is for more universal reasons maybe because it is known that the son will always carry on the family name or some other reason I cannot specifically put my finger on at this moment. For whatever reason, with all due respect to my beloved and wonderful daughters and granddaughters, there is a unique Simcha for a father to have a son. The 19 years we had to wait for the Kotel added to its preciousness in
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our hearts and I am sure that the 8 years you and your Aishes Chayil have waited for Yitzchak Meir will add to the special relationship you will always have with him. Finally, while hearing the naming of Yitzchak Meir ben HaRav Moshe Zvi Twersky in real time by wireless cell phone last night, I could not help but think how much has changed in the 92 years since the naming of the last Yitzchak Meir ben HaRav Moshe Zvi Twersky. I believe I have mentioned on other occasions that my grandfather was out of town when my father had his Bris. Although he was certainly a lot closer to his son than I was last night to my grandson, he could not communicate in time to his wife his preferred choice of names and so the baby was given a name from her side of the family Yitzchak Meir rather than his preferred choice of Dovid, after Reb Dovid of Talne. But we have come a long way in far more important ways than technological breakthroughs. We have certainly witnessed Achris HaYamim breakthroughs in the past dramatic century. My father was born in Czarist Russia. He had youthful memories of his mother placing a hand over his mouth hiding behind a curtain so that he would not cry out during a pogrom that was taking place in the streets outside their dwelling. He crossed an Ocean and continent coming west but his grandsons crossed the continent and Ocean going back in the other direction, only arriving a couple thousand miles South of my fathers point of departure, but exactly at the point of departure of our ancestors a couple of thousand years ago. So much Hashgacha-driven water has passed under the bridge during these 92 years! I once remarked that my father used to tell me that he grew up in a world where there was no State of Israel. I tell my children that I grew up in a world where we did not have the Kotel haMaaravi. My children can tell their children that they grew up in a world where we did not have Techeiles and hopefully their children may similarly shock the next generation by relating that they grew up in a world where there was no Beis HaMikdash! We are, bEzras Hashem, witnessing a historical journey of Maalim bKodesh. We pause along the road to spiritually grow and acclimate ourselves to the potential for achieving holiness and closeness to the Almighty that we are granted in these amazing historical times. May we continue to move along this journey of Geulah and may we merit to see speedily the Great Day when He will be One and His Name will be One.
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The Sons Of Korach Did Not Die: Bris of Avraham Shmuel Luchins
July 11, 2007
Rav Soloveitchik once defined the existential difference between youth and old age in terms of time awareness. The time awareness of youth, he said, is future oriented while the time awareness of the old centers on the past. I thought of this distinction of the Rav this past week when I was contemplating what to say at this mid-week Simcha. Should I look backward and choose to say something based on an idea emerging from the past week's Parsha, Pinchas, or should I look forward and pick an idea based on Mattos-Massai.? The choice was easy for three reasons. First, as bli-ayin-hara a double-digit grandfather I do lay rights of claim to a time awareness that may be somewhat past-oriented. Second, Parshas Pinchas has special meaning for me. It was the "parsha of the week" during the major portion of my "week of Sheva Brochos" 34 years ago, at the time of the Shalom Zachor of my firstborn son, Moshe Zvi 33 years ago, at Moshe Zvi's Bar Mitzvah 20 years ago. It was now the Parsha of the week at the Shalom Zachor of my youngest grandchild, and I"YH it will be his Bar Mitzvah portion as well. Mattos-Massai has no such personal connection for me. Finally, I have roughly 13 years worth of material from my transcriptions of Rabbi Frand's divrei Torah on Parshas Pinchas, but since he usually begins his annual summer recess this time of year, I have virtually nothing from him on Mattos-Massai Pinchas is certainly an appropriate Parsha to associate with generational transitioning and enumeration of descendants. It includes Moshe's request to Hashem to appoint a new manhig for Klal Yisrael and it includes the listing of the various families and names of the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren of those who originally descended to Egypt. There is one pasuk in this section dealing with enumeration of descendants that piques my curiosity. It is a four word pasuk stuck in somehow at the end of the enumeration of population of the Tribe of Reuven. The Torah lists the names of the children of Reuven's grandson, Eliav, and then mentions that two of those sons Datan and Aviram were in fact the same Datan and Aviram who were involved in the Korach rebellion. The Torah then digresses from an otherwise uninterrupted 50 verse narrative that sticks strictly to the names and numbers of the Tribes and Families of Israel to restate the climax of that revolt: "The earth opened its mouth and swallowed Korach and his allies and the 250 men who offered the Ketores were consumed by a Heavenly fire." Then the narrative all in the section allegedly dedicated to enumerating the family of Reuven concludes with a new piece of information about unnamed individuals who were not even from the Tribe of Reuven: "And the sons of Korach did not die" (u'bnei Korach lo meisu). It strikes me as very strange that the Torah mentions this fact and that it specifically mentions it here. What is intriguing about the sons of Korach is that they were spiritually superior to their father. The Midrash in fact states that this spiritual superiority of Korach's children misled him. He saw prophetically that great people were destined to descend from him. He reasoned that he must be right, because if he were wrong in opposing Moshe, he could not possibly merit having such great offspring. His mistake was that he did not consider the possibility that his children might do teshuvah and achieve greatness in their own right. He neglected to consider the possibility that his children would be spiritually superior to him. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 30
It is perhaps no coincidence that it is Chapter 47 -- The Psalm of the sons of Korach that we read 7 times immediately proceeding shofar blowing. We try to psych ourselves up for hearing the Shofar and doing Teshuva by reading the words of those children who were able to break away from the home and environment which under normal circumstances would have led them down a far different spiritual path. We are all familiar with the concept of Yeridas haDoros the diminution of spiritual greatness from one generation to the next. This is a concept that perhaps in Klal Yisrael dates back to Reuven himself. In the era of the Patriarchs there was to some extent spiritual progression from Avraham to Yitzchak and from Yitzchak to Yakov. Yakov is known, after all, as the bechir haAvos the Choicest of the Patriarchs. From Yakov's oldest son Reuven onward, however, things started to go down hill somewhat. There was most likely constant yeridas haDoros from Yakov down through Reuven down to the 49th level of spiritual impurity of his descendants who left Egypt, including his great grandchildren Datan and Aviram. But, at the very end of the enumeration of Reuven's lineage the Torah announces to us that this downward spiral of yeridas haDoros is not irreversible. Bnei Korach lo meisu! In Korach's family we have perhaps for the first time among Bnei Yisrael the phenomenon of offspring who were more righteous than their parents! This has become somewhat of a sensitive issue in our time with so many ba'alei Teshuva and with schools and social environments that have more rigorous spiritual standards and a more pristine hashkafic outlook than those which existed in what my esteemed mechutan has been known to slyly call the "pre-halachic era" in which we members of "the older generation" grew up. There are unfortunately times when there is stress and tension between the generations over this issue. My generation and I have merited to see this phenomenon of children whose righteousness surpasses that of their parents reassert itself in our own time and in our own families. I take note on this occasion welcoming a new member of the next generation into our family of the pride I have in having children who are bigger Talmidei Chachomim and who have a stronger sense of Emunah Peshuta than their father. I take pride in seeing grandchildren who are being given greater opportunities for living lives of Kedusha and Tahara than their parents were given. And I take special pride in having my beloved sonin-law and daughter witness something I have never witnessed in my own life the brit milah of their fourth son! But as I told Dena last evening, I would not be willing to trade my second daughter for any number of additional sons! To return to my point of original departure: When the Rav spoke about the difference between the pastoriented time awareness of the old and the future-oriented time awareness of the young he stressed the fact that unlike the physiological differences between youth and the elderly which are mutually exclusive states of being, past and future time-awareness is not mutually exclusive. Judaism attempts to combine the experience of youth and the experience of age and requires the Jew to be simultaneously and perhaps paradoxically both young and old. The Jew must be deeply rooted in his past and at the same time inspired by a vision of the future.
And so, while I admittedly, am influenced by my vision of Parshiyot Pinchas of yesteryear I also have 20/20 vision when it comes to future readings of this Parsha. In particular I am focused on the reading of this Parsha in the year 2020, 13 years from now. I pray that HaKadosh Baruch Hu keeps me and the other members of my family in good health to celebrate on that occasion the Bar Mitzvah of my dear grandson and the 47th anniversary of marriage to my dear wife by sharing further thoughts on Chapter 47 of Tehillim LaMnatzeach Livnei Korach Mizmor. Yehi Ratzon that prior to that date we will first experience the time when Pinchas zeh Eliyahu will come and return the hearts of all parents to that of their children and the hearts of all the children to that of their parents.
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I Have Crossed The River With My Walking Stick And Become Now Two Camps
July 2007 There is a lengthy discussion in the first chapter of tractate Sotah cataloging the evils of Gasus Ruach arrogance and conceit -- and warning us to always be personally vigilant against this spiritually corrosive character flaw. It is not totally inappropriate to quote this Gemara at the time of the birth of a new son or grandson. After all it is quite natural to feel a deep sense of pride in children and certainly in grandchildren and as their numbers grow, bEzras Hashem, there is a natural tendency for the pride to grow. It is furthermore sometimes not too great a jump between pride and arrogance. One only has to think of the verse in Megillas Esther [5:11] regarding Hamans boasting to Zeresh his wife to recognize that pride in children and certainly inappropriate bragging about them may indeed be characteristics of a person with Gasus Ruach.: Vayesaper lahem Haman es kevod oshro vrov banav v'es kol asher geedlo hamelech v'es asher neeso al hasarim v'avdei hamelech -- He bragged to her regarding the multitude of his sons right along with his bragging concerning his wealth and political promotions The primary reason, however, I am citing the sugyah in Sotah discussing Gasus Ruach is because of an enigmatic statement that appears at the end of that discussion and an ingenious comment of the Vilna Gaon on this Talmudic passage relating it to yesterdays parsha. After more than an amud and a half of unqualified blasting the evils of Gasus Ruach, the Talmud quotes a statement of R Chiya Bar Ashi in the name of Rav that seems to provide a slight loop-hole: A Talmid Chochom should have one-eighth of an eighth of haughtiness. [Talmid Chochom Tzareech sheyehai bo echad mshmoneh bshminis]. The simple interpretation of this statement is that in order that he not be stepped upon and that he command a certain amount of respect for the Torah he represents a Talmid Chochom indeed must not be totally selfeffacing but must manifest a certain minimal amount of arrogance. However, there is much discussion about the ambiguous term -- echad mshmoneh bshminis that the Talmid Chochom is supposed to have 1/64 amount or literally an eighth of an eighth of haughtiness. Many many interpretations are given as to the meaning of this expression. Rash, Tosofos, Meiri, Maharsha are just some of the classic commentries that each have their own unique interpretation of this expression. The Vilna Gaon, k'darko b'kodesh, has an ingenious interpretation. He says that the term one-eighth of an eighth is not a reference to a particular measure. Rather it is hinting at the eighth verse of the eighth parsha of the Torah. The eighth parsha of the Torah is the parsha we read yesterday morning: Parshas Vayishlach. The eighth pasuk of Vayishlach reads: Katonti mkol hachaseedim umkol haEmes asher asisa es avdecha; ki bmakli avarti es haYarden hazeh vata hayeesi lshnei machanos. I am unworthy of all the kindness and all the favors that You have done for Your servant; for I have crossed this Jordan with my staff and now I have become two camps. [Parenthetically there is a certain irony in Yakov speaking here about two camps. The simple interpretation is that it refers back to 3 pesukim earlier when he split his camp into two so that one might escape and be spared if Eisav would attack the other camp. "Vayachatz es ha'am asher itol'shnei machanos". On the other hand, I cannot help but think that there may be allusion also to 7 pesukim earlier when Yakov speaks of two other "camps". "And he called the name of the place Machanayim". Rashi says: Two camps one consisting of the Angels of the Land of Israel who came toward him and one camp consisting of the Angels of Chutz L'Aretz who were escorting him the Land of Israel]. Back to Katonti m'kol haChassadim: Yakov states that he began a journey 34 years prior to this moment including the 14 years he spent in the Yeshivos of Shem vEver and the 20 years he spent in Lavans household. When he began that journey he crossed the Jordan River with nothing much beyond his Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 32
walking stick and now he humbly recognizes G-ds kindness to him by virtue of the fact that he is the Patriarch of a family divided up into two great encampments ata hayeesi lshnei machanos. The Vilna Gaon explains that any pride and self-esteem that a Talmud Chochom may possess as a result of his successes in life and his accomplishments must be modeled after that of the Patriarch Yaakov he should acknowledge them in a spirit of personal unworthiness and gratitude to the Almighty who allowed them to happen. He should further be concerned that all these kindnesses and favors have diminished, so to speak, his credit in the Heavenly ledger and use that attitude as an inspiration for further dedication and further commitment to his Benefactor to pay Him back for all the kindness and favors. I mention this insight of the Gaon on this personally very moving moment, because today for me is in a sense a Tshii shebishminis a ninth of an eighth. This is the ninth time, bEzras Hashem, I have the zechus to participate in a grandsons Brit Milah (either in person or vicariously from a distance in the case of 3 nechadim nechmadim circumcised in Jerusalem). It was some 34 years ago that I crossed the Hudson River with my dear wife Tzipporah to begin family life in Seattle. And now, with the Help of many Kindnesses and Favors from the Almighty along the way hayeenu lshnei machanos: We have become two great camps the camp of my sons in Eretz Yisrael with their dear little angels of Eretz Yisrael and the camps of my daughters in America with our dear angels of Chutz L'Aretz.. We restate this morning with appropriate trepidation and awe the words of Yakov Avinu from yesterdays parsha: Katonti mkol hachassadim umikol haemes. We are unworthy of all the Kindness and all the Favors. We pray to the Almighty that He should continue to bestow kindness on our family and may we continue to see Jewish nachas from all our children and grandchildren in all their various places of their encampment. Sara & Chaim, I give you a Birkas Av that you should have the denominator of the fraction shmini she'bshminis (64) namely Samech Daled which stands for S'yata Dishmaya the Help of Heaven in raising little Binyomin Dov and all your children. May you be zoche l'gadlam L'Torah u'Lmitzvos, u'L'Ma'asim tovim. And may your children always be a source of pride for you but not of arrogance, unless it is the "arrogance" of a Talmid Chochom, one that brings the recognition of "Katonti m'kol haChasadim u'mi'kol haEmes".
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Vayehi Erev Vayehi Boker... "And there was darkness and then there was brightness...."
From: David Twersky Date: Oct 23, 2011 2:57:04 AM
We are very moved and happy to announce the birth of Rivka Twersky, born in Bikur Cholim Hospital (Jerusalem) to Alex and Chani Twersky on Hoshana Rabbah (October 19th) and named on Shabbos Bereshis for my mother, of Blessed Memory who passed away at the close of Rosh Hashanna (September 30th) less than 3 weeks earlier. Rosh Hashanna is the beginning of the period of Judgment and Hoshana Rabbah closes that period. Hashem Meimis u'Mechayeh (the L-rd brings death and He brings life). We are thrilled by the thought that just as Yitzchak Meir (Meyer) and Rivka (Reva) Twersky are now united in the Next World, they now have great-grandchildren carrying on their names and traditions in Beitar, Israel. The mourner in a house of Aveilut is offered the hope that HaShem will provide him comfort with the greeting "HaMakom yenachem eschem, b'toch she'ar Avilei Tzion V'Yerushalyem". (The One Who is everyPLACE shall comfort you in the midst of the other mourners for Zion and Jerusalem.) In this case both "HaMakom" ( the place -- b'Toch Zion V'Yerushalayim) and haShem ( the name -Rivkah Twersky) are a source of great Nechama (comfort) for the family. We thank the "Three Partners" involved in this Nechama. [The Talmud states that there are three partners involved in the creation of a child -- the father, the mother, and the Almighty]. David Twersky
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Other Family Matters
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Mothers's 80th Birthday

May 2003
When we think of birthday parties, for the most part we think of events held for children of a rather young age. Perhaps birthday parties are most often held and most often appreciated by children in the 7, 8, 9, 10 year-old age range. Indeed for the children, their friends, and their parents 7, 8, 9, and 10 are ages which are milestones and represent dates worthy of noting and worthy of celebrating. As we get older, the tendency is not to have such elaborate birthday parties. Indeed many of us would perhaps like to have our birthdays go by totally unnoticed with the less fanfare the better. But there comes a time when birthdays again are real milestones in ones lifetime and are dates worthy of noting and worthy of celebrating. Certainly turning 80 is a life milestone deserving of note and celebration. But there are several key differences between the birthday party of an 8 year old and the birthday party of an 80 year old. I will not go into the obvious differences of the three Fs Food, Favors, and Fire extinguishers which characterize the varying ambience of the two differing genre of birthday parties. But I would like to mention the three Ss which also distinguish such radically different birthday parties. Span, Spirit, and Speeches; The first difference is the nature of the guest list. The age Span of an 8 year olds birthday party guest list is usually 18 months to 2 years. Invited are all the best friends and closest local relatives of the birthday boy or girl who are within an age range of plus or minus 9 12 months of the Baal HaSimcha. The birthday party guest list of someone such as my mother who has had the zechus to see her 80th birthday included bli ayin hara children; grandchildren; and great-grandchildren friends and family from 3 or 4 generations spanning over 8 decades of life experience. The second difference in the nature of the guest list is that at the birthday party of an 80 year old, many of the most important guests who would certainly be invited, can come only in Spirit. One of the inevitable facts of life of compiling a guest list for an 80th birthday party is that unfortunately many of the dearest friends and closest relatives of the baal or baalat Simcha will not be able to attend, because they have already gone on to the next world. Clearly the people assembled here this morning are some of my mothers dearest friends and closest neighbors and relatives. But certainly there are many others who my mother would have very much liked to have at this event and who would very much like to have been here with her, but who are here only in spirit. Certainly first and foremost in this category is her life long partner, my beloved father for whom we celebrated a 70th birthday party, but who did not live to see his 80th birthday. My mother also had many many dear and close friends who Im sure she would have loved to have celebrated this milestone but whom can be here only in spirit.
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The final difference between an 8 year olds birthday party and an 80 year olds party is the length of the Speeches. The length of the speeches at an 8 year old party are usually something like a 4 6 word sentence such as Here comes the cake or Time to blow out the candles. An 80th birthday is usually deserving of somewhat lengthier remarks. Here, again, however I want to make mention of my father, zichrono lvracha. My father was never one to enjoy sitting through speeches. He had a favorite expression which he used even after hearing a very good speech. It was good, but tsu shveigen kum-sich nit! (It was good, but silence would have been better). I know my mother, on the other hand, really enjoys my speeches and in fact inspired me to collect some 300 pages of speeches I had given over the years and bind them in a single volume which I gave to her for her 75th birthday present. She had been telling me for a while now that when she turned 80 she wanted an update to my original volume and I have been able to accommodate her request with another 150 or so pages of additional speeches given for the most part during the last 5 years. She hasnt asked me for anything yet for her 85th birthday, but just in case, I figured I had to prepare a few typed-up remarks for this mornings festive occasion. Mommy, I havent had the pleasure of sharing a Seder with you for a number of years now and I know how much you enjoy going away for and being with Judy and Marya and Michael and Ora and the Treigers and the Steinbergs for Pessach. But just in case, you miss a little bit, hearing some of my comments at the Seder, I thought Id take this opportunity to share with you a small insight regarding the Haggadah. Indeed on an occasion such as this of commemoration and looking back over a long life, it is most appropriate to mention something from the Haggadah because invariably some of our earliest childhood memories go back to the Sedorim we had at our parents or grandparents homes. I can still vividly remember the Sedorim we had at my grandparents, the Ketzlachs home, on 34th Avenue. I probably was less than 5 years old which would have put my mother in her late twenties! In some ways it seems like yesterday. I can still hear Sam and Dora belting out the chorus of Chad Gadya and Dy-Dy-Einu. Over the many years and the perhaps 100 times that I have sung Dy-Einu over the years since then, the question has often bothered me what do we mean Dy-Enu It would have sufficed? How can we say that if G-d had only taken us out of Egypt and stopped there, it would have been sufficient. Indeed virtually each step in the poem was actually necessary for our survival. It certainly would have not been enough had he only taken us out of Egypt. The Egyptians would have pursued us and killed us. It would not have sufficed had he split the Sea and drowned our enemies in its midst. We would still have died of starvation in the desert and so on and so forth. What then do we mean when we say Dy-enu, it would have sufficed? What we clearly mean is that had G-d only done this act, it would have sufficed for us to be obligated to show our everlasting gratitude and dedication to Him for this one act which was a necessary but certainly not sufficient component of our long-term survival and prosperity. This is why the Dy-enu poem is sandwiched in so to speak by the expression preceding Kamah maalos tovos lMakom Aleynu and by the expression following al achas kamah vkamah tovah kefulah umechupeles lmakom aleynu. How much more so must we express gratitude and appreciation for all the compounded and recompounded acts of kindness He has done for us. Certainly this long list of debts of gratitude comes to mind when thinking of all the many acts of dedication, kindness, generosity, and blind-love a mother shows to her children over the course of a Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 38
lifetime. Indeed in a sense a child only begins to appreciate what a parent is and what a parent does for his or her children, when he or she becomes a parent himself or herself. I know that the list of things my mother has done for her children and her grandchildren age appropriate acts of dedication, kindness, generosity, and blind-love each and every day and week and month and year of the past five and one-half decades is a tremendously long one. If we ever say Dyenu, its enough already. It is not that we are telling you chas vshalom its enough already, we no longer need your love and help and encouragement. It is not that we are saying chas vShalom Dyenu stop acting like youre our mother!. On the contrary, it is Dy-enu in the sense of the Haggadahs poem. Each and every act by itself already suffices to obligate us to tell you in return how much we love you, how much we appreciate everything you have always done for us, and how much you mean to us. I would now like to ask my sister Marya, who no doubt has a unique appreciation of all my mother's children of the special dedication and devotion a mother has for her children -- to come join me in a rendition of a little song we wrote Elu Hotzeanu Min HaRechem, vlo nasan lanu chalav lishtos Dy-enu
David: Marya: David: Marya: David: Marya: David: Marya: David: Marya: David: Marya: If she would have brought us out of the womb and not given us milk to drink, Dy-enu. If she would have given us milk to drink and not answered cries at night, Dy-enu If she would have answered our cries at night but not changed our diapers, Dy-enu. If she would have changed our diapers, but not taught us how to use the toilet, Dy-enu. If she would have taught us how to use the toilet, but not taught us table manners, Dy-enu. If she would have taught table manners, but not provided us with siblings, Dy-enu. If she would have provided us with siblings, but not sent us off to school Dy-enu If she would have sent us off to school but not helped us with our homework, Dy-enu, If she would have helped us with our homework, but not driven us in carpools, Dy-enu. If she would have driven us in carpools, but not been active in all school activities Dy-enu If she would have been active in all school activities but not been President of the PTA, Dy-enu. If she would have been President of the PTA, but not sent me away to Yeshiva College, Dy-enu. If she would have sent us away to Yeshiva College, but not paid for tuition and expenses, Dy-enu. If she would have sent David away to Yeshiva College, but not sent me to University of Washington, Dy-enu. If she would have sent me to University of Washington, but not let me move out into my own apartment, Dy-enu. If she would have let me move out into my own apartment, but not invited me every weekend for Shabbos and home cooked meals, Dy-enu. If she would have invited me every weekend for Shabbos and home cooked meals, but not given me leftovers for the week, Dy-enu. If she would have given me leftovers for the week, but not given me her recipes, Dy-enu. If she would have paid for tuition and expenses, but not welcomed my wife into her home like a daughter, Dy-enu.. If she would have welcomed my wife into her home like a daughter, but not continued to provide so much encouragement, and support throughout our marriage Dy-enu. If she would have continued to provide so much encouragement, and support throughout our marriage, but would have not extended the same to our children and grandchildren Dy-enu. If she would have given me her recipes, but not welcomed my husband into the family, treating him like a son, Dy-enu. If she would have welcomed my husband into the family, treating him like a son, but not been so very caring, generous and supportive of us, Dy-enu. If she would have been so very caring, generous and supportive of us, but not extended the same with my daughter, Dy-enu.
David:
Marya:
Finally, I want to conclude Kamah Malos Tovos lMakom Aleinu How grateful and appreciative we are to G-d for giving us such a wonderful mother and for granting her health and long life. May He continue to bless her with the ability to see nachas from her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren until He brings us back to Eretz Yisroel and He rebuilds for us the Holy Temple, with the coming of Moshiachspeedily in our days.
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Tu B'Shvat And My Family Tree

The Daf Yomi this past week finished tractate Menochos. The last mishneh there notes that despite the great difference in cost between an animal offering, a bird offering, and a flour offering the Torah uses the same expression "Isheh Reach Nichoch" (a fire offering that is pleasant to G-d) in connection with all three. The lesson to be derived, the Mishneh teaches is that Echad HaMarbeh v'echad haMam'it, u'bilvad sheyechaven adam es da'ato L'Shamayim. It matters not whether the quantity is great or the quantity is small, the main thing is that a person should direct his thoughts toward his Father in Heaven. I am not the main speaker this morning and so my quantity will not be great, but my mother has sponsored this breakfast in memory of my grandfather, Mr. Michel Ketzlach, whose Yahrtzeit is this evening and in memory of my father Mr. Meyer Twersky whose Yahrtzeit is later this month. With that in mind, I would like to direct my thoughts for a few moments to my forefathers in Gan Eden and in that way fulfill the Mishneh's dictum of Echad HaMarbeh v'echad HaMam'it with some brief remarks this morning. Of course it is most appropriate to have a speaker from the Jewish National Fund as the guest speaker at a breakfast in memory of my Grandfather, who was known as Mr. JNF of Seattle. I remember once talking with a co-worker at Boeing who was telling me about his "yichus". He was from the south and he told me that his grandfather was a card-carrying member of the K.K.K. (the Ku Klax Klan). I was thinking to myself, that's real goyishe yichus. I have emese Yiddishe Yichus -- my grandfather was a card carrying member of the K.K.L. (Keren Kayemes L'Yisrael). In honor of my grandfather's Yartzeit tonight, in honor of my father's Yahrtzeit later this month, in honor of the New Year for trees -- Tu B'Shvat -- which will be this Shabbos, and in honor of the new JNF representative in Seattle, I want to say a few words about trees. I don't, however, want to steal any thunder from our guest speaker and since I come from a family with long roots in this congregation, I will user Rabbinic license and talk mostly about trees in the homiletic sense -- namely my family tree. Several weeks ago the Daf Yomi studied about Olive Trees. Several Mishnayos in the ninth chapter of Menochos discuss various kinds of olive trees, the various processes for extracting olive oil from the fruit of these trees, and the various levels of quality of Shemen Zayis (olive oil) produced from these trees. There are numerous factors involved in determining which olive oil is Kosher and which is not Kosher for use in the Menorah and for use in the recipes of the various kinds of Mincha offerings in the Beis HaMikdash. Among issues to be considered in determining the quality and fitness of the oil were where the Olive grove was located, what type of methods of irrigation and fertilization were used, what time of year and from where on the tree the olives were picked, how much squeezing or pressing was done to extract the oil from the olive, and how much filtering was done to separate the impurities from the extracted olive oil. The Torah states in Parshas Shoftim [Devorim 20:19]: Ki HaAdam Etz HaSadeh. Our Sages tell us that in certain ways man can be compared to a tree in the field. Thinking about the Mishanyos in Menochos, thinking about the Yahrtzeits of my father and grandfather and thinking about my family tree in a larger sense I would like to explore this metaphor for a few moments. I find myself at a unique stage of life where I can now look back at two generations -- the generation of my grandfather and my father -- and I can look forward at two generations -- the generation of my children and my grandchildren. Baruch Hashem, I come from a wonderful family. I am proud of all my ancestors and I am proud of all my children and grandchildren. But the truth must be told -- each generation is different from one another. The genes may be the same, in many cases the Tzuras Panim or facial appearances may be the same. But each generation has been cultivated in different fields. The Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 40
methods our parents used to irrigate and fertilize and nurture our physical, social, and spiritual development were different. The time and place in history and geography where we grew up were different. The amount of sunlight we were exposed to in terms of societal, financial, and educational opportunities and blessings were different. The pressures and squeezing and pressing we were subjected to during our formative years were different. The amount of filtering from outside environments and exposures that we were raised with were different. Each generation -- based on all of the above -- has its own potential, its own Nisyonos and challenges, its own definition and standards for happiness, success, religiosity, and sense of responsibility. When I look ahead generation-wise to the accomplishments -- both qualitative and quantitative -- in Torah learning of my children I am truly humbled. They certainly surpass those of their father and no doubt those of their grandfather and great-grandfather. Without taking anything away from their great personal effort and talents that have helped them reach the achievements they are reaching, the fact is that they were born into a world of opportunity and circumstance in this area that surpassed the opportunities and circumstances of at least the three preceding generations in this area. When I look back generation wise at the accomplishments of my father and grandfather I am humbled as well, but for different reasons. Both my father and grandfather were born in Russia. My father came to this country as a young child, my grandfather as a more mature young man. My father served in the US Army during WWII. My grandfather used to be a traveling salesman. Neither had the educational opportunities nor the societal infrastructure that would reinforce Torah observance and Jewish commitment to anywhere near the extent that these opportunities and infrastructure existed for their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. And yet, each in their own way, succeeded in remaining committed to Torah observance and Jewish commitment. Each rose to leadership roles in this community and made significant leadership contributions to institutions, organizations, and individuals that continue to influence our community and beyond to this very day. Es Chata-ay ani mazkir hayom. I certainly do not have the same sense of responsibility to community and Kahal that my father and grandfather had. I have certainly not put in anywhere near the hours of service or made anywhere near the contribution that my ancestors have made to communal institutions and organizations. It may be true that the apples do not fall far from the family tree. But it is also true, depending on a variety of circumstances many of which are beyond the control of each generation, that the flavor and appearance and taste of the apples on the various branches of the tree might be quite different from the flavor and appearance and taste of other apples elsewhere on that same tree. I once again want to thank my mother for sponsoring this breakfast. May she be zoche to celebrate these Yahrtzeits in good health with fond memories of past generations and loving nachas of future generations for many years to come. Finally, I give thanks to HaKadosh Baruch Hu that each generation (bli Ayin Harah) on our family tree has been able to achieve the success and accomplishments that we have been zoche to achieve and for His S'Yata D'Ismaya in allowing each link in the family tree to maintain a love for and a connection with Torah commitment and Torah learning and to remain cognizant of the fact that Etz Chaim Hi L'Machzikim Bah: (The Torah is) a Tree of Life to those who hold onto it.
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Post-Wedding Reception Of Beryl and Evelyn Rothman

March 29, 2005
There is a well known teaching in the Pirkei DRabbi Elazar that Chatan Domeh LMelech -- A bridegroom is comparable to a King. In deference to the spirit of Purim that is still present as long as Hamantaschen and Shalach Monos remain to be found in the kitchen, I have always felt that when it comes to brothers-in-law speaking at post-wedding celebrations there is a corollary to the principle of Chatan Domeh LMelech and that is the principle of MChutan Domeh LMelach namely in-laws are comparable to salt. A little bit of salt is a good thing, it can add seasoning and flavor. Too much salt, however, can ruin the recipe and spoil the food. I know that as the youngest member of the distinguished sons-in-law of Bubby Yudin I can always count on my older and more Rabbinically active brothers-in-law to add just the right amount of homiletic salt to any family Simcha. By the time it is my turn to speak we are usually in the realm of Kol HaMoseef Goreah one who adds, detracts. Im Kol Zeh, with your permission, in honor of my newest distinguished brother-in-law and in honor of the Simcha I feel for my dear sister-in-law, Evelyn, I would like to share with you the following brief observation: Several years ago, I peeked ahead on the Daf Yomi calendar and thought to myself March 2005 would be a nice time to take a trip to New York. I knew several colleagues of mine in the Seattle Daf Yomi had either attended the 10th Siyum HaShas or were planning to attend the 11th Siyum HaShas. I knew our Rav and Maggid Shiur in Seattle was planning to attend and I thought that it would be a tremendous chizuk to be present in Madison Square Garden for this momentous occasion. Rabbos Machshavos BLev Ish. As things turned out, things did not turn out exactly as I had planned. However, the truth of the matter is that even though I might have missed the chizuk of being in person at the Siyum HaShas, it gave me great chizuk to be present at Evelyn & Beryls wedding. When people suffer the loss of a first spouse, an Eishes Neurim or a Baal Ne-urayich, it is a great tragedy. The depression and great feelings of angst and hopelessness that descends on the individuals who have suffered such tragedy and on those who love them can leave profound psychological scars. When HaKadosh Baruch Hu, allows such people to find consolation and to be re-strengthened by an appropriate Zivug Sheni, the feeling of celebration and chizuk at witnessing and participating in such an event is particularly exhilarating. Adar is described as Hachodesh asher nehepach lahem myagon lsimcha, umeayvel lyom tov the month in which their emotions of sorrow and mourning became inverted to celebration and holiday. The thought occurred to me that in fact my March 2005 trip to New York did give me chizuk even via a Daf Yomi siyum. For this very week the Daf Yomi made a Siyum on the third perek of Maseches Brochos and began the fourth perek. The third chapter of Brochos is the chapter of Mi shemaiso mutal bFanav and the fourth chapter is Tefillas HaShachar.
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What more appropriate transition can there be from the chapter of One whose deceased is lying before him to the chapter of The Prayer of the dawn of a new day. How appropriate to celebrate this siyum during the month in which emotions of sorrow and mourning become inverted to celebration and holiday and how appropriate to celebrate this siyum during the week of the chassanah of a widow and widower, beginning a new life together. Finally, in the spirit of Purim MShulash, this same idea is repeated a third time in the special Haftorahs of the next two weeks. This week is Parshas Parah the parsha containing the words Zos HaTorah -Adam Ki Yamus BaOhel, symbolic of Perek Mi SheMayso mutal lfanav and symbolic of a widow and widower whose lives were jolted by the tragic loss of a spouse. But immediately on the subsequent Shabbos, it will be Parshas HaChodesh the reading of the new beginning. The month that will be the beginning of months for all the months of the year. I know that shortly after we read Parshas HaChodesh, Beryl and Evelyn will be heading off for Eretz Yisrael. May this symbolize for them and for all of us that we should take the experiences of moving from evel and yagon to Simcha and Yom Tov and build upon them to move to an experience of Kibbutz Galuyos and Geulah may it come for all of us speedily in our time.
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Mother-In-Law's 90th Birthday

March 2007
In honor of Bubby's birthday, I would like to tell over a beautiful insight I once heard from Rav Soloveitchik. Briskers in general and the Rav in particular used to tell their students that they should not ask the "Why question?" but only the "What question?" Usually students knew which kind of questions were "fair game" and which would be ruled "out of bounds". But one day, one of the newcomers to shiur asked the Rav one of those unanswerable "Why questions?" We were learning one of those hard-tounderstand-why halachos. I don't remember the exact question. We were studying the 4th perek of Kiddushin at the time and it had to do with Yuchsin. It was either a question about Mamzer, or Challal, or something of that nature. The student asked: "Rebbi, why does the child have to suffer for the sin of his parents?" The Rav did not instantly dismiss the question as he was sometimes wont to do, but he paused and looked at the student and said, "The Halacha is like an old Jewish mother. She may have wrinkles, she may at times seem antiquated, she may say things that are politically incorrect and embarrass us. But she is honest, she is truthful, she is the only mother we ever had. She has nurtured us and protected us through thick and thin. We love her and despite all her perceived blemishes and wrinkles we would never change her for anyone else's mother in the world." Ad kan Divrei Rabbeinu, zt"l. The thought occurred to me that many times when we learn Torah insights we work with the principle of "Harei zeh bah l'lamed v'nimtza lamed". Sometimes comparison is brought between two areas of halacha and what comes presumably to teach is in fact found also to be the object of another teaching. In other words, if the Rav used an old Jewish Mother as a way of giving us a better understanding of the attributes of Halacha, then perhaps attributes of Halacha can also be used to give us a better understanding of Jewish motherhood. There happen to be 13 such attributes the yud gimel Midos she'Hatorah Nidreshes ba'hen that we recite every morning just before Pesukei D'Zimra. I believe we can borrow from them to gain insight into Jewish motherhood in general and into the "mah matzeenu" the Jewish mother we find before us this evening celebrating her 90th birthday in particular. One of the great challenges of being a Jewish mother is the difficult balancing act she must always face between the services she provides to her immediate family (the perat) and her service to the larger community (the Klal). She must juggle between Klal and Perat and Perat and Klal. She runs back and forth between Klal u'Perat u'Klal. Sometimes she is busy with the needs of the Klal when simultaneously she is needed by her kids, the Perat; and sometimes she is busy with the needs of the perat when simultaneously she is needed by the adult community surrounding her, the Klal. Time does not allow me to fully develop the linkage between Jewish motherhood and the yud gimel Middos She'HaTorah Nidreshes ba'hen. But on the topic of Perat and Klal I would just like to say the following idea. Bubby has devoted her life to raising, nurturing, and establishing a mutual loving relationship with all her children and children-in-law, grandchildren and grandchildren in law and great grandchildren. She has done this at the level of Perat the individual. Whatever was the age appropriate activity whether it be playing "Patchy-hentelech" or reading stories or going to Chagigot Siddur or graduations or buying grandsons Tephillin for Bar Mitzvah or dancing at weddings -- be they in NY, NJ, Seattle, or Israel -- or sending cards and gifts for birthdays and anniversaries Bubby built an amazing Perat Personal relationship with all the members of the family who unanimously respect her and adore her. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 44
But she did more than establish dozens of perat relationships. She in fact built her own Klal. The bliayin hara dozens of members of the extended family of descendants all feel a common bond because of the distinguished matriarch of the family. Many of these descendants each in their own way according to their own talents and personalities have established wonderful names for themselves and have made unique and lasting contributions to Klal Yisrael of their own, and b'Ezras Hashem this will continue on into the future, m'dor dor. But I think it can be said that Kol davar she'haya bi'klal, anyone who has ever been part of this community the Klal of which Bubby is the Matriarch, v'yatza min ha'Klal l'lamed and who has gone out to teach Torah, to spread Yiddishkeit and the love of mitzvos; lo le'lamed al atzmo yatza they are not just reflecting on their own motivation, instincts, and talents; Ela l'lamed al haKlal kulo yatza but their contribution reflects on the entire community of which they are a part. It is a community that gives each other mutual chizuk. It is a community that has set very high standards for its members in terms of community service and in terms of commitment to Torah and mitzvos. And it is a community which ultimately derives all its values, motivations, and instincts from that senior Jewish mother whose birthday we are celebrating this evening. Mazal Tov Bubby, may you always have nachas from the entire Klal of family members each of whom has such a close perat relationship with you.
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Ora's Bat Mitzvah Party -- June 6, 2010

Today's Simcha is very meaningful and very moving for me. I have the opportunity to see a number of very special relatives, aunts and cousins on both my mother's side of the family and my father's side of the family that I have not seen in many years. R. Yehoshua ben Levi states [Talmud Berachos 58b] that if one sees a dear acquaintance he has not seen in 12 months, he should recite the blessing -- Blessed is He who resurrects the dead. We in a sense have a Biblical source for acknowledging the opportunity to see someone we did not expect to see again: I'm thinking of the very dramatic verse in the beginning of Parshas Vayechi. Yakov had been separated from his beloved son Yosef for 22 years, he assumed he was dead and did not even bother praying to see him again, assuming that such a prayer would be in vain. He now not only is reunited with his beloved son, he sees him in all his glory, as viceroy of Egypt, and he sees Yosef's two sons Menashe and Ephraim. We read: " " : I did not even pray to see your face, and behold G-d has now shown me also your offspring." When I think back to my visit to NY and Fairlawn in the summer of 1995 for the wedding of my dear niece Chaviva Yudin, my sister Marya who had been living and working in New York for a number of years by then was close to 40 and had never been married. I can honestly say about my dear brother-inlaw, Michael, regarding that particular point in time " -- " I never expected to see his face. And then, like all other shidduchim, it happened. At Chaviva's wedding I met a longtime friend, an old Yeshiva classmate, Dr. David Hurwitz, who was also a good friend of Michael Freidman in Queens. We began to talk about old times, about family, and to make a long story short before long I had not only one dear brother-in-law in FairlawnI had two dear brothers-in-law here, my wife's brother and my sister's husband. -- Oh how good and pleasant it is to have two brothers(-in-law ) living here together in Fairlawn. And today, Baruch Hashem, I can say that not only has G-d shown me the one whom I had given up hope of ever seeing, he has shown me also his offspring. And I see today, Marya and Michael in all their glory celebrating the Simcha of their beloved daughter Ora's entrance into the age of Jewish adulthood. I came to Fairlawn 15 years ago to participate in the simcha of my niece Chaviva and now I am back to participate in the simcha of another niece who is also very much Chaviva, beloved and dear to me and to all who know her. Ora is named, in part, for my father Mayer both their names connote brightness and illumination. Both have been great sources of light and cheer to members of the immediate family and far beyond. I am so proud of my sister Marya and her husband Michael for choosing to raise Ora in this wonderful community of Fairlawn, under the influence, guidance, and inspiration of one of the most amazing Rabbi-Rebbetzin teams in the entire length and breadth of this country. Thank you Rabbi Yudin and Shevy for all you've done for Marya, Michael, and Ora these many years. I am so glad that Ora has been illuminated by the light of your household and the light of the community you've built. Finally, I am so proud of my niece Ora for her love of Torah and for her enthusiasm for studying Torah and doing mitzvoth.
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Ora, I'd like to leave you with a brief Torah thought on the occasion of your Bat Mitzvah from yesterday's parsha: You know the story of the Parsha the spies were sent into Eretz Canaan to come back with a report on the nature of the Land and the nature of the people therein. Ten spies came back and they reported on the great challenges they would face if they tried to conquer the land. They were psychologically overwhelmed by the difficulties they saw lying ahead of them. Yehoshua and Kalev of course saw the same mighty people and military situation that the other spies saw, but they came back with a confident and optimistic report: We shall surely go up and with G-d's help we will conquer the Land. How can it be that 12 men see the exact same country, the exact same inhabitants and come back with such differing reports? The Torah gives us a hint at the answer, I believe, with the following words about Calev: And my servant Calev, since he had a different Ruach with him. It is interesting that in Parshas Pinchas we find this same quality of "Ruach" mentioned in connection with Calev's partner in the positive report: " And G-d said to Moshe take Yehoshua son of Nun, a man who has Ruach within him." This quality of having Ruach is obviously a very special one, but it is hard to define. It is like chasing, the wind, so to speak, to come up with a good definition of Ruach. But if it is hard to define what exactly Ruach is, it is not that hard to identify a person who has Ruach within themselves. Anyone who knows my niece Ora, knows that she is a -- a young Jewish woman who has a lot of Ruach within here. It is the same Ruach-spirit that allowed Calev and Yehoshua to see the same challenges that frightened all the other spies and not be intimidated by them. It is that wonderful attribute of self confidence and trust in G-d that allows one to meet and overcome whatever challenges life may bring them. People who have such a spirit, are truly a source of light, illumination and inspiration to all who know them and my Bat Mitzvah wish to Ora is that she should always have that wonderful quality of and may her parents , family, and community continue to see much nachas from her.
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Words Of Bracha For Yael's Bat Mitzvah

I'd like to thank Sarah and Chaim for allowing me the opportunity to offer words of Bracha to my eldest grandchild this evening in celebration of her reaching the Age of Mitzvot and I'd like to thank the Almighty for allowing me and my family to be recipients of His many Brachot today and every day. When HaKadosh Baruch Hu blesses the nation of Israel He promises them the threshing will be so plentiful that the farmers will be busy with it until the time of vintage (the harvesting of the grapes) and the time of vintage will take so long that it will last until the time of next year's sowing. Normally if a couple is fortunate one raises children, they make Bar and Bat Mitzvahs for their own children, they marry off their children, they celebrate the birth of grandchildren, and then they have the great Nachas of watching their own grandchildren reach the age of mitzvot. My wife and I have been extra fortunate. Not only have we been blessed with having witnessed the cycle of raising children, making our own Bnei Mitzvah celebrations, marrying off children, seeing grandchildren being born, and now witnessing a grandchild observing mitzvot as a Jewish adult, but, b'Ezras Hashem Yisborach, the harvest of the nachas of a grandchild's Bat Mitzvah has come even before we have finished threshing through the excitement of marrying off our youngest child, b'shaah Tova U'mutzlachat next week in Jersualem and we are looking forward even beyond that Simcha, bli ayin hara, to the birth of an additional grandchildren in Israel in the coming weeks . We express Thanks to the Almighty for all His Kindness to us. We do not take this kindness for granted and are constantly for the Blessings we have been granted. And Yael, I would like to make this my message to you on the occasion of your Bat Mitzvah: Always take note of the many Blessings G-d has given you and continues to give you each day of your life. Never take blessings for granted and never underestimate the debt of gratitude we owe Hashem for all the favors and privileges he has bestowed upon us. And speaking of not taking privileges for granted, I do not take for granted the great privilege that my wife and I have of having the Bat Mitzvah girl, her parents and all her siblings for neighbors. It was not long ago, that when I would step out on my back porch or sit at my kitchen table as I look out the window all I could do was see the grass growing taller and taller. Believe me that experience never once gave me nachas ruach! For the last 6 or 7 years, however when I sit at the kitchen table or go out on the back porch and look directly to the north. I have been watching Sara and Chaim's family grow. I watch the grandchildren grow, and in particular in connection with today's Simcha, I have had great nachas in seeing my oldest grandchild Yael grow up from a sweet fun-loving and polite little girl into a sweet funloving and polite young woman. Yael, I want you to know that I was the oldest grandchild of my maternal grandparents and they always made me feel special because of that. Today we are a bit more sophisticated in our treatment of children and grandchildren and we try not to have favorites, but I want you to know even though I love Esti, and Eli, and Benjy very much as I do my grandchildren in Passaic and in Beitar and in Ramat Eshkol and they are all no doubt very special, you are extra special because you can say something that none of your siblings and none of your cousins can say: You are the one who made Savta and I grandparents! Being the oldest child and certainly the oldest grandchild in a family gives one privileges and it gives one responsibilities. This is true of all blessings. I would like to call your attention to another privilege you will G-d willing soon be experiencing and that is the great you have to accompany your parents, Savta, and myself to Eretz Yisrael this week for Uncle Mordy's wedding. In case you need any reminder or in appreciating just what a great and Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 48
special privilege this is, you need look no farther than the opening of yesterday's Parshat HaShavua. The greatest Jew who ever lived, Moshe Rabbeinu recalls how he begged and pleaded with Hashem " Please oh, please let me cross over and see the Good Land that is just across the Jordan River, the Good Mountain (Rashi says this is Yerushalayim) and the Levanon (Rashi says this is the Beis HaMikdash)." But, as you know Yael, what you G-d willing will be privileged to see next week, the greatest Jew who ever lived was not privileged to see. " ' ' And Hashem got angry with me because of you and He did not listen to me; Hashem said to me, 'It is too much for you! Do not continue to speak to Me further about this matter." [This too is an important lesson to be aware of now that you are a Jewish adult. It is the lesson of the Rebbe whose Chosid came to him and said "( " ' Rabbi, I pray to G-d and He doesnt answer me). And the Rebbe responded to his Chosid " , ( "Don't say He does not answer me, say He answers Me 'No').] But today rather than focusing on the times that G-d answers us "No", I want you to focus on the many times His answer is Yes sometimes for things we pray for and many times for wonderful things we take for granted and don't pray for, even though we should be praying for these things. Yael my Bracha to you on your Bat Mitzvah and on every day of your life is that you should always appreciate the privileges you have in being born into the family and the nation you have been born into, in being able to attend the school you attend, and being born into this exciting and dynamic time in Jewish history. May you appreciate these privileges and understand the responsibilities that come with them. To paraphrase what Hillel told the convert after teaching him the principle of : , , This principle of appreciating blessings and understanding the responsibilities that come with them is one of the key philosophical principles of the entire Torah, the rest is commentary go study it. Mazal Tov and may the whole family and all Klal Yisrael always see much Jewish nachas from you, your siblings, and all your cousins.
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Mordechai Gets Married
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Vort of Mordechai and Sari June 12, 2011

It is perhaps premature to wish a young couple at the formal "vorte" announcing their engagement the full range of Brochos expressed in that beautiful concluding Blessing of the Sheva Brochos: The ten expressions of , , , , , , , , which are to be shared jointly by the Chatan and Kallah during their . But I would like to take this opportunity via the good offices of my eldest son Moshe and the principle of -- to at least offer my good wishes and bracha to the Chosson and Kallah individually making use of a portion of these 10 expressions. To my future daughter-in-law who I know only briefly through seeing her sweet face on a computer screen and hearing her sweet voice via telephone, I offer the inspiring words of the prophet Zechariah which we read in the opening verse of yesterday's Haftorah: . I am thrilled to be getting another daughter-in-law who is a "Daughter of Zion" and I want my future daughter in law to know that with her Chosson Mordechai she truly has what to sing and rejoice about. Rav Baruch Epstein, the author of Torah Temimah, in his sefer on the Siddur "Baruch She'Amar" in a number of places discusses the difference between the terms Simcha and Sasson. He discusses this in the context of the expression from the Rosh Hashanah Amidah; he discusses it in the context of the Hagadah's expression: and he discusses it in the context of the Shabbat Morning where we say . Simcha is the preliminary stage where future joy is anticipated; whereas Sasson is the culmination and the realization of true joy and satisfaction. The joy you experience now at having found each other is the joy of a type of " " the initial sensation of great opportunities and future joy and satisfaction with each other that G-d willing will be in store for you in the not too distant future. But even this preliminary joy is worth singing about. I understand the Lazewnik's are a musical family and indeed Mordechai certainly has a for niggunim and for music. We share in your joy in knowing that your house will truly be one about which it can be said -- the sounds of song and salvation will come forth from the tents of the righteous. Reb Muttele, to your Kallah we mentioned the attributes of Simcha and Rinah from the ten expressions of joy and blessing mentioned in the "Asher Barah" bracha. To you, I would like to mention at this time the attributes of from that beautiful blessing. You have been blessed with two wonderful brothers and two wonderful sisters and their respective spouses to give you love, encouragement, advice, and direction. You might have thought, being the Ben Zekunim in our family and with all your sisters and brothers married already, that your family circle was closed you had all the brothers and sisters you were ever going to get. You may not have realized that one of the Brochos that comes with finding an Ezer k'negdo with whom to share love is ,a whole new set of siblings and parents! I personally can testify that the I gained when I found with your mother has been an unending source of inspiration to me throughout the past 38 years, . From what I've heard and know about Sari's parents and family, I am sure you will be able to say the same. I told Rabbi Lazewnik on the phone Friday morning that I am sure the two families will have much in common in the future. The truth of the matter is that it is my strong suspicion that the families have much in common in the past as well. We certainly share a love of Torah, a love of Eretz Yisrael, and a love of our children. We look forward to our families growing together in the spirit of and look forward to sharing not only Simchas together but sharing Sasson together as well.
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YITZCHAK MAYER'S SIYUM IN ISRAEL

BIRISHUS MY PARENTS, SABA AND SAVTA, THE CHASSON, UNCLE MORDY, AND THE REST OF THE MISHPACHA: BEFORE I MAKE THE SIYUM, I WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS MY HAKAROS HATOV TO HAKODOSH BARUCH HU FOR ENABLING ME TO HAVE ACCOMPLISHED THIS SIYUM. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO THANK MY RABBEIM AND MY COUSIN AHRON ROSEN FOR LEARNING SEDER MOED WITH ME. IN ADDITION, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MY PARENTS FOR ENCOURAGING ME TO LEARN BY SUPPLYING DOLLARS FOR THE CANTEEN IN THE YESHIVA GEDOLAH AND FOR BRINGING ME TO ERETZ YISRAEL FOR MY SIYUM, OK AND THE CHASANAH. I WANT TO TIE MY SIYUM INTO THE UPCOMING SIMCHA AND I WAS WONDERING WHAT CONNECTION DO CHAZAL BRING BETWEEN MORDECHAI AND SARAH. THE MEDRASH IN PARSHAS NOACH SAYS THAT REBBI AKIVA WAS GIVING A SHIUR AND HE SAW HIS TALMIDIM DOZING OFF. HE WANTED TO WAKE THEM UP SO HE ASKED THEM WHY WAS ESTHER, THE NIECE OF MORDECHAI, ZOCHEH TO RULE OVER 127 COUNTRIES? HE ANSWERED BECAUSE SHE WAS A DESCENDENT OF SARA WHO LIVE 127 YEARS. WHY DID REBBI AKIVA TELL THEM THIS MEDRASH TO WAKE THEM UP? WHAT WAS THE MESSAGE HE WAS GIVING THEM? THE CHIDDUSHEI HARIM, RAV YITZCHOK MAYER OF GER, ANSWERS THAT IF EACH COUNTRY WAS GIVEN FOR ONE YEAR OF SARA'S LIFE, THEN EACH CITY WAS FOR A WEEK OF SARA'S TZIDKUS, AND EACH WHOLE VILLAGE WHICH ITSELF WAS WORTH HUGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY WAS A REWARD FOR EACH HOUR OF SARA'S AVODAS HASHEM. IF ESTHER BECAME QUEEN ON 127 COMPLETE COUNTRIES THEN IT IS CLEAR THAT SARA DID NOT EVEN WASTE A MOMENT OF HER TIME. WHEN REBBI AKIVA SAW HIS TALMIDIM DREAMING AWAY THE TIME, HE TAUGHT THEM A LESSON OF HOW VALUABLE EACH MOMENT WAS, WHICH BROUGHT THEM BACK IMMEDIATELY. ONE OF THE THINGS I HAVE TRIED TO LEARN FROM UNCLE MORDY, BESIDES WHAT A GOOD BREAKFAST CEREAL IS, IS THE VALUE OF USING AS MUCH TIME AS POSSIBLE FOR LEARNING AND I ASSUME, BASED ON WHO SHE IS MARRYING, THAT AUNT SARI ALSO USES MUCH OF HER TIME IN AVODAS HASHEM. THE WORD MISHNAH HAS THE SAME LETTERS AS NESHAMAH WHICH HINTS TO THE IDEA THAT ONE SHOULD LEARN MISHNAYOS LILEUY NISHAMAH. WITH THAT IN MIND I WOULD LIKE THIS SIYUM TO BE A ZCHUS FOR OUR BUBBY WHO WAS SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR LIFE AND MAY SHE CONTINUE TO BE A MELITZ YOSHER FOR ALL OF US. IT IS ALSO SPECIAL THAT I AM MAKING THIS SIYUM IN ERETZ YISROEL. THE MEDRASH RABBAH IN PARSHAS TZAV SAYS THAT THE BNEI YISROEL WILL BE TAKEN OUT OF GOLUS BECAUSE OF THE LEARNING OF MISHANYOS. MAY MY BROTHERS AND I BE ZOCHEH TO MAKE MANY SIYUMIM HERE IN YERUSHALAYIM BVIAS HAMASHIACH BMHERAH BIYAMEINU - AMEN. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 54
I WILL NOW READ THE LAST MISHNAH OF CHAGIGAH..
Remarks at Yitzchak Meir Luchins' Siyum Upon the family's arrival from the airport by Moshe Twersky
August 18th, 2011 " " : The Gemara in Meseches B'rachos (58b) says: . , This is brought in the Rambam's Hilchos B'rachos (10:2) and in Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim (225:1). There is much discussion amongst the poskim as to why this is not normally done. The Mishna B'rura there [ ]"writes that if one is communication or even heard from others of the good welfare of the loved one, there is a machlokes among the Achronim if the B'racha should be recited or not, and therefor concludes: . Others explain, that the source of this idea not to make a B'racha when he has heard from the friend, is found in the discussion of the B'racha " " that one recites upon seeing the person for the first time after a year or more, and it is a chidush to apply this concept to the b'racha of recited after a passage of 30 days. The difference between the two b'rachos can be understood based on what the Brisker Rav is known to have explained, that since every person is judged on Rosh Hashanah whether they will live to the end of the year or not, the passage of a full year brings in to doubt the persons continued existence, and for this reason a b'racha is said upon seeing a loved one for the first time in over a year. It would stand to reason based on this, that specifically with regard to the b'racha of would we differentiate between a case that the person was known to have been alive and well and a case where he was not heard from. Alternatively, there are poskim who justify the minhag not to say a b'racha upon seeing a friend after 30 days, because people are usually not excited to the degree that would warrant a b'racha. They add, that even though "were a b'racha for this circumstance exactly, now that we are living in a world of it can be said that , and we are no longer able to appreciate the small "joys of life" as they were in the time that the were the b'racha. Along these lines, there are those who add, that even though it may happen occasionally that a person does feel excited enough to say a b'racha " "when seeing a loved one after 30 days, it would be insulting to recite the b'racha upon seeing some people and not others. The uncomfortable feeling of insulting the "friend" who's encounter is not so exciting, may bring to as well. It has even been suggested, that for this reason, the minhag not to make this b'racha is not something that has just evolved, rather to make the b'racha " "upon seeing a loves one, has been made entirely . This is certainly a chidush, for we know that . * * * On an occasion such as this, that our entire immediate family is together in the same room for the first time since Alex's wedding, nearly 10 years ago, I myself, and I'm sure the rest of us as well, have been anxiously awaiting this moment, and it is a true source of excitement and deep felt satisfaction. While I would feel uncomfortable to act against not to recite a b'racha even on such occasions, "I am right now wearing a new jacket, for which there is a minhag to recite a " ."So it is with great joy that I would like to all of us in what is quite possibly a , by saying:
! ' - ,
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Shabbos Before Mordy's Wedding: Ben Zekunim -- Volume 3

At Mordy's Shalom Zachor, I referenced the fact that he was my Ben Zekunim, and utilized one interpretation of that term (Ayen NJS I). At his Bar Mitzvah Seudah some 13 years later I again referenced the fact that he was a Ben Zekunim and utilized a second interpretation of that term (Ayen NJS II). Today almost another 12 and a half years later -- in comments which will G-d willing be published for the family in the not too distant future in NJS III -- I would again like to reference this unique position that Reb Mutelle has always maintained vis a vis his siblings and cite yet a third nuance of meaning in the term Ben Zekunim. In a typically insightful chiddush I found in Twerski on Chumash in parshas Vayeshev, Rabbi Abraham J Twerski presents a novel idea on the pasuk "( " Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons because he was a child of his old age [Bereshis 37:3]. Our distant cousin notes, that we would have assumed that the reason Yosef was most beloved of all of Yakov's sons is because he was the son of Yakov's favorite wife -- Rachel. This is not what the Torah teaches, rather it states that Yisrael had a particular affection for Yosef because he was a child of his old age. Rashi adds that Yakov transmitted more knowledge to Yosef than to his other sons. Rabbi T-w-e-r-s-k-i notes the irony of the fact that G-d created the world in such a way that people have the greatest wisdom and insight into life in their later years, but they make the biggest decisions of their life -- whom to marry, what career to choose, where to live, etc -- when they are relatively young and foolish. He notes that we also raise our children long before we attain our maximum wisdom. He writes: "Do we make mistakes in raising our children? Of course! How could it be otherwise? We may do so with the best intentions, but we simply do not have access to the wisdom of later years. Many senior citizens look back at their younger years and say that if they had had the wisdom they now have, they would have raised their children differently." It may, therefore, be [Rabbi Twerski goes on to say] that a child born when the parent was older, when he was wiser, and had the advantage of hindsight and learning from the mistakes he may have made in raising his younger children has a superior and more wholesome upbringing than his older siblings. A ben zekunim has the advantage of being raised by experienced parents, in a less stressful and less error-prone environment. Yakov passed on more knowledge to his Ben Zekunim than to his other sons, not as a sign of favoritism but simply because he had more knowledge to pass on by the time his Ben Zekunim was born! I might add that in the event that parents are slow learners, are set in their ways, and refuse to learn from the mistakes they made in raising older siblings, a ben zekunim still has a great advantage in that he can seek the counsel and advice of his older brothers and sisters as to how to deal with problem parents, how to apply parental psychology on father and mother, and how to avoid pressing the hot buttons that got the older siblings into trouble and caused stressful inter-generational confrontations between the parents and the older siblings. If you'll look back in NJS I (page 34-35) at my remarks to Sara at the Shabbos before her wedding, I had to apologize to her for yelling at her during those all-too-brief years of her childhood. I darshened the pasuk of ") " his father yelled at him). When Moshe told me he was planning to stay in Israel and go to the Mir Yeshiva after 3 or 4 years in TOMO rather than come home and get a college degree I re-enacted the pasuk of ." I'm sure that each of the twins remember as Ema and I do occasions of "tough love" where we had to say "No" or lay down the law with rules or policies that did not please them, that caused tears, and that impacted the intergenerational Shalom Bayit in the T-w-e-r-sk-y household. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 57
I must say that my memories of raising my Ben Zekunim differ. I simply do not remember incidents of . Indeed if I were to darshen a pasuk from Tanach in connection with the Shabbos before his marriage, it would not be the verse from Vayeshev of , if anything it would be the Pasuk from Melachim I speaking of Dovid's relationship with his son Adoniyahu: " -- His father never questioned him or scolded him his entire life! "? Now it's possible that that the reason I can't remember such incidents from Mordy's childhood on this Shabbos before his marriage, is that by the time one's Ben Zekunim gets married a parent already begins to have loss of memory; maybe those incidents occurred and I'm just suppressing them.. A second possibility is that Mordechai like his namesake was a Tzaddik and never gave his parents anything to get upset or angry about. But it is also possible, like Rabbi Twerski writes that as a Ben Zekunim Mordy had the advantage of having calmer, wiser, and more experienced parents than his older brothers and siblings had, parents who have already learned the futility of arguing with determined offspring, particularly when their determination stems from motivations and convictions that their parents fundamentally identify with. Whatever the reason, I think that Mordy has reaped the advantage of being a Ben Zekunim from many perspectives. He has had mellower parents who were less strict and less demanding of him, he has had 4 sets of "surrogate parents" to provide additional love, guidance, and direction to him, and he of course has had the great advantage of being the type of Ben Zekunim I mentioned at his Bar Mitzvah, the of which Targum Onkelus speaks. We have the rare opportunity of having a Shabbos meal with all 8 of Mordy's surrogate parents - his brothers and sisters, brothers-in-law, and sisters-in-law. and I want to take this occasion to share a drasha on a very appropriate pasuk: We are told in this very last pasuk of Megilas Esther that Mordechai the Jew, viceroy to King Achashverosh was a great man among the Jews, and found favor with the multitude of his brethren. Now we find a variety of homiletic exposition on the expression , the simple interpretation is just that he found favor with his many brethren. Rashi, however, cites the Gemara in Tractate Megilla that the term "Rov Echav" means but not "kol echav" -- namely some of the leaders of the Sanhedrin parted company with Mordechai, because they felt he was occupying himself too much with court politics and neglecting his Torah study. Ibn Ezra is willing to go along with the idea "l'rov Echav" implies to the exclusion of "l'kol echav" but he says simply that nobody can make everybody happy; however Mordechai had extremely high popularity ratings albeit there are always some people who had complaints. But the interpretation I would like to cite this evening is that of the Degel Machneh Ephraim, R. Moshe Haym Ephraim, a grandson of the Baal Shem Tov in his Drasha for Purim. He writes: , This is perhaps somewhat of a "Chassideshe pshat", but of all my children Mordy is most worthy of having a Chassideshe pshat said about him. According to R. Moshe Haym Ephraim, the Megillah is telling us that Mordechai was popular and appreciated even among the "Rov Echav" -- his senior brethren : Gedolim She'b'echav for they knew and recognized his greatness.
Mordy, I believe I can speak for all your Rov Echav here -- your brothers and brothers-in-law, sisters and sisters-in-law who are your seniors by a good number of years. They all and we all recognize your great stature and even greater potential. May we continue to all have nachas from you and may you and Sari be zoche to build a Bayis Ne'eman b'Yisrael and may the whole family witness the fulfillment of the words of the prophet MalachaI: : '
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Zeh HaKatan Gadol Yiheyeh: Shabbos of Mordy's Ufroof

I mentioned last night three milestones in Mordy's life -- his Bris, his Bar Mitzvah, and now the Shabbos of his Ufroof -- and my varying insights on each of those occasions as to the fact that he was my "Ben Zekunim". I would like to revisit that trilogy of milestones in Mordy's life this afternoon and share with you three different perspectives of another term used in common on each of these occasions. At Mordy's Bris, and indeed the bris of all Jewish male children we invoke the prayer and bracha " this little one will grow to be a big one. Although there are no doubt many nuances to this bracha, the simple meaning refers to physical growth -- the little infant shall grow in size to eventually become a full size adult. When we say at a boy's Bar Mitzvah that "my son is no longer a katan; he is now a gadol" -- it is basically a halachic statement. The Bar Mitzvah bachur is now chayav in mitzvoth, the father is no longer responsible for his ( -- depending on the exact interpretation of the bracha .) When we talk about Gadlus on the occasion of a young man's marriage the term Gadol is not so much a halachic statement as it is a sociological one. It implies financial and social independence in terms of the pasuk in Bereshis: ( as the Talmud says in many places: "Ish prat l'katan) and in terms of the statement of Rav Chiya bar Aba in the name of Rabbi Yochanan in Bava Metziah 12b that . - , - And in this area too I echo my prayer from Mordy's Bris that and I echo the words of Dr. Edith Luchins of Blessed memory, at the wedding of Dena and Moshe when I wished her nachas from all her grandchildren and she asked me why I don't wish her that she should have nachas from all her children. I told her that she already has nachas from her children. She responded yes that's true, but I'm still waiting to see how they'll turn out when they grow up! So even if this area of Gadlus of is still if not yet totally .I would like to mention a couple other areas of Gadlus where I think Mordy has B'Ezras Hashem fully earned this title since his Bar Mitzvah and particularly since his engagement to Sari Lazewnik. In Parshas Devorim Rashi comments on the expression " " In the second Chapter of Sefer Bereshis where the Torah speaks of the River that went out from Eden to water the garden and mentions that it subdivides into four headwaters: Pishon, Gichon, Chidekel, and Peras, Peras is the fourth and presumably least important of the four rivers. All of a sudden in Devorim, Peras is called "Nahor haGadol". " Rashi states: , . , : , Peras gained in importance, earning the title "haNahor haGadol" because it was attached to Eretz Yisrael as the saying goes the servant of the King is a King. Now like Nehar Peras in the verse in Bereshis, Mordy has always been listed last among the list of my children. He has been the "katan" of the family and has milked it for all its worth. Like Nehar Peras, his decision to attach himself to Eretz Yisrael and build a Bayis Ne'eman b'Eretz Yisrael should under normal circumstances earn him the title given to Nehar Peras in Sefer Devorim -- ha Ben HaGadol Mordechai Michel. Unfortunately, to use a colloquialism from Alex (from an earlier lifetime), Mordy has been "busted" by the fact that his two older brothers have already attached themselves to Eretz Yisrael, so in my family he still remains as he always has been "Ha Ben HaKatan". Enter however, the Lazewnik family which Mordy is attaching himself too. In this family, I understand Mordechai will be the oldest of all the children. Truly zeh haKatan in the Twersky family -- Gadol Yiheyeh in the Lazewnik family. My hope and expectation is that by marrying into the Lazewnik family Mordy will not only experience an increase in status in terms of birth order in the family, but to quote again from the Rashi I quoted earlier -- , , the servant of a King is a King, attach oneself to an officer and people will bow down to you, come in contact with one who is anointed and you will become anointed. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 59
Chazal stress the value of choosing a wife who is a Bas Talmid Chochom, and I know Mordy gave serious consideration to this statement as he does to all words of Chazal. Over the years I have had the opportunity to quote many insightful comments and teachings of my revered teacher, Rav Solveitchik, zt"l, some of which I heard directly from him and others I heard in his name indirectly. This afternoon, with some hesitancy, I quote a comment I heard indirectly in his name from an era which is both painful to recall and painful to think about. It was in his last years, when our revered teacher was stricken with the disease which robbed him of his great strength, the power of his awesome intellect. He was in advanced stage of the disease known as Alzheimer's, but his son Chaim allowed one of his dedicated students from throughout the years, Rabbi Abba Bronspeigel, to come in and visit for awhile with his old teacher. Rabbi Bronspeigel relates that during his visit, the Rav's daughter Atara Twersky came in to bring her father a tray with his lunch. After she left the room, Rabbi Soloveitchik turned to his former Talmid and said, "I don't know who this woman is, but I can tell you one thing about her -- she must be a Bas Talmid Chochom, she acts with such kindness and dignity." Frankly, I do not yet know the Lazewnik family very well, but from all I've heard about Sari and the few occasions I have had to talk with her, I say, quoting the Rav -- she must be a Bas Talmid Chochom. This conforms with all that I've heard about my future mechutan and his family and we look forward to sharing many Simchas and happy times together.
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The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum of its Parts (Shabbos of Sheva Brochos)
In our Shabbos Mussaf Tefilla, we say every week ' " May it be the will before you Hashem our G-d and G-d of our fathers that You bring us up in joy to our Land." It is especially sweet and meaningful to be able to say this Shabbos that indeed our prayers have been answered in many ways and on many levels. We are witnessing today fulfillment of we have long been uttering silently, , and we are witnessing fulfillment of we have long been verbalizing . We have come up in joy to Eretz Yisrael to meet our new daughter and her family, we have come to celebrate the wedding of our beloved youngest son, Mordechai, and we have come up to our Land to enjoy a very special Shabbos. Shabbos is a day we celebrate the completion of work: . ...... When the monumental task of creating the world was complete on that mysterious Yom HaShabbat at the dawn of creation, Hashem blessed the day and sanctified it as an expression of satisfaction at the successful completion of a major undertaking on His part. Having married off now, Baruch Hashem, all five children to wonderful zivugim and into wonderful families; being blessed now with 10 children and children-in-law and bli ayin harah grandchildren about each of whom it can be said -- behold they are very good, there is for me a certain poetic beauty to this Shabbos which even more than every Shabbos gives me a and a spiritual lift at being able to express satisfaction at the completion of this major milestone in the world which my wife and I have been zoche to create with G-d's help and with the help of many others over these past few decades. The celebration of such a Shabbos in which we can offer blessings in the context of a "Kodesh moment" such as this is a perfect embodiment of the expression . Apropos to these introductory remarks, I would like to share with you the following thought on the Nussach HaTefillah of the Shabbat Mussaf Amidah: Before mentioning the specific Shabbat Mussaf Korban, we preface mention of the sacrifices with the prayer I alluded to before: ' . We recite a parallel introductory passage before mentioning the specific animals brought in the Beit HaMikdash at the time of the New Moon in the Mussaf for Rosh Chodesh. There we say: " " Now what's interesting is that when Shabbos comes by itself we mention the idea of Simcha and coming to Eretz Yisrael and when Rosh Chodesh comes by itself we mention the parallel ideas of Reena and coming to Zion and Jerusalem; however on neither occasion do we invoke the themes we find in the Mussaf of Shalosh Regalim and the Mussafim of the Yomim Noraim -- namely that of and .There is no hint of the idea that ...on either a regular Shabbos or on a regular Rosh Chocesh. All of a sudden when Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh come together somehow the whole is greater than the sum of its parts!
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Even though neither Shabbos by itself nor Rosh Chodesh by itself is mention of and when we have a combination of the two we do mention both these ideas: " , , Only after we recite this long and detailed confession in the paragraph beginning with the words "Ata Yatzarta", do we pick up the regular Shabbos morning theme and say " ' " ? How do we explain this strange anomaly in our ? In the past I have given a "mathematical" answer to this question based on the Medrash to the pasuk in Hoshea 14:3 which contains the expression . There is a concept mentioned in the Gemara Brochos that was enacted by the Rabbis in place of Korbonos. Tefilas Shachris and Tefilas Mincha correspond to the morning and evening Korban Tamid respectively and Tefilas Mussaf corresponds to the Korban Mussaf. By virtue of the fact that Hashem accepts our Tefilot in lieu of our sacrifices through the mechanism of ( our lips make payment in lieu of our bulls) we are practically speaking "not missing out" by not having the Beit HaMikdash. G-d gives us a "make up" opportunity for offering sacrifices through our verbalization of our prayers with our mouths: Now this works out well for Tefillas Shachris and Tefillas Mincha where we have one Tefillah replacing one Korban. It also works out well on a regular Shabbos when there was one Korban Mussaf and we replace it by one Tefilas Mussaf of Shabbos or on a regular weekday Rosh Chodesh when there was one Korban Mussaf for Rosh Chodesh and we replace it with one Tefilas Mussaf of Rosh Chodesh. However when Rosh Chodesh fell out on Shabbos in the Beis HaMikdash there were two Korbonot Mussaf -- one for Shabbos and one for Rosh Chodesh. On the other hand, in our Tefillot we say only one Amidah. We therefore cannot fully repay our debt through the mechanism of . We therefore take note of this lack and recite in our Amidah the confession I quoted before: ' That's an answer I've said in the past and my sons have all heard this answer. In honor of the occasion, however, I would like to give another answer to this question which I have never shared with anyone until this moment. What I'd like to suggest is that the more Kedusha one possesses or the more Kedusha one is exposed to, the more one recognizes he is lacking Kedusha and the more one is inclined to confess his own responsibility in not possessing that greater amount of Kedusha which he now recognizes he is missing. We basically have in Yahadus 3 fundamental types of Kedusha -- Kedushas Zman, Kedushas Makom, and Kedushas Adam -- the sanctity of time, the sanctity of place, and the sanctity of person. When the Kohen Gadol goes into the Kodesh Kodashim on Yom Kippur we have reached the pinnacle of Kedusha -- the holiest person goes into the holiest place on the holiest day of the year. Now the interesting thing about Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh is that they each typify a different type of Kedusha. Shabbos typifies a Kedushas Zman, but it is a Kedushas Zman which is basically independent of Kedushas Yisrael. We say in Kiddush and the Amidah of Shabbos only Mekadsh HaShabbas not Mekaesh Yisrael v'HaShabbos. The sanctity of Shabbas is universal and so only represents one leg of the Tripod of Kedushas Makom, Kedushas Zman, Kedushas Adam. Kedushas Zman is reflected by Issur Melachah. When a day is called "Mikra Kodesh" it implies that labor is forbidden on that day. Rosh Chodesh is not called MIkra Kodesh and does not have an Issur Melacha. Outside the MIkdash, it basically does not have a Kedushas HaYom at all. But Rosh Chodesh is reflective of Kedushas Yisrael. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 62
That is why we say Mekadesh Yisrael V'Roshei Chodoshim. It is the Kedushas Yisrael which gives Beis Din the considerable power they have to designate Rosh Chodesh. So there you have it. The Shalosh Regalim, Rosh HaShannah, and Yom Kippur each have both elements. They have the Kedushas Hazman of Mikra Kodesh = Issur Melacha and they have the Kedushas Adam of Mekadesh Yisrael. Having both the Time and Person component of Kedusha present -- triggers the search for that third leg of the Kedusha Tripod -- Kedushas Makom. Therefore on each of these occasions we long for Kedushas Makom. We bemoan the fact that we have sinned, have been exiled from our holy place, and so forth. Shabbos by itself has only the element of Kedushas haYom, not the element of Mekadesh Yisrael; Rosh Chodesh by itself has only the element of Mekadesh Yisrael not the element of Kedushas HaYom. When Rosh Chodsh and Shabbos coincide then the whole is indeed greater than the sum of its parts We have both Mekadesh HaShabbos V'Yisrael, v'Roshei Chodoshim. The two dimensions of Kedusha seek out its third component and we invoke the angst of Galut and confess the responsibility we bear for the destruction of our Temple and exile from our land. I mention this idea this morning, because I believe in forming a new Bayis b'Yisrael we have a situation which parallels the coincidence of Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh. Shabbos is represented by the sun [7 times Vayehi Erev Vayehi Boker and we have Shabbos]; Rosh Chodesh is represented by the cycles of the moon. In the transparent interpretation of Yosef's second dream to his brothers the Shemesh and the Yareach represent respectively his father and mother. So in that sense the coincidence of the Shabbos the holiday related to the sun and Rosh Chodesh the holiday related to the moon is an appropriate metaphor for the unification of a husband and wife. But the similarity goes further than that. Just as Shabbos by itself is lacking an element of Kedusha and Rosh Chodesh by itself is lacking an element of Kedusha but when they come together they each achieve a merged and higher level of kedusha, so too it is with Chosson and Kallah. Each by themselves has talents, Kochos, Middos, accomplishments, and great potential for the future but at the same time each is lacking something and each needs to join forces with the other to maximize their actual Kedusha and to sensitize themselves to their joint potential for achieving even greater Kedusha than either of them could ever hope to aspire towards individually. My prayer to the Almighty in behalf of Mordy and Sari and my Bracha to the young couple is that their Bayis N'eman b'yisrael should always be a place of Kedushas Makom; may the children they raise there b'Ezras Hashem always reflect the values of Kedushas Yisrael; and may they experience there many "Kodesh moments" which will bring nachas and illui Neshama to the entire Mishpacha. Finally my prayer to the Almighty in behalf of my wife and myself is that " " " " " . "
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Going For The Triple Crown (Monday Night Sheva Brochos)

Last week's Haftorah opened with the beautiful words: .) : ) :"Jerusalem is personified as a tempest tossed ship that refuses to be consoled from the desolation that she has suffered. The Almighty promises that Jerusalem will be rebuilt and pledges that the floor will be laid with the precious stone known as and the foundation will be set in sapphire stones. I heard from a former Chavrusa, Rabbi Mordechai Feuerstein, that the Rav (Rabbi J.B. Soloveitchik, zt"l) expounded on this verse in the drasha he gave at the Bar Mitzvah of his grandson, Moshe Twersky which was this time of year. At any rate the Rav said that the verse alludes to the building of Bayis Shlishi, the third Beis HaMikdash, and records a Divine Promise that the basic elements of the future foundation of the Third Beis HaMikdash will consist of these two stones -- Nofech and Saphir. He went on to point out that Nofech and Saphir are respectively the fourth and fifth stones mentioned in connection with the Choshen worn by the Kohen Gadol [Shmos 28:18] and cited the Rashi in Parshas Tezaveh whereby the 12 stones of the Choshen represented the 12 tribes in the order of their birth. Thus, he pointed out, the fourth stone (Nophech) was the stone of the tribe of Yehudah and the fifth stone (Saphir) was the stone of the tribe of Yissacher. Yehudah represents Malchus and Yissacher represents Torah. Thus the foundation of the Bayis Shlishi will be laid with the attributes of Kingship and Torah. It occurred to me that Mordechai is also now laying the foundation for the building of a future Bayis. Pirkei Avos speaks of three crowns, two of which are the crowns of Torah and Malchus, the same crowns with which (according to the Rav's drasha) we are told the Bayis Shlishi will be built. Mordechai over these past number of years has been working diligently and quite successfully in acquiring for himself the Crown of Torah. To some extent he was born into the Crown of Malchus, being a descendant of the Royal Chernoble Dynasty. But as I mentioned on Shabbos when you have two of the three elements of a tripod you long for that third element and in marrying Sari, who is a Bas Kohen, Mordy now will have in his future Bayis all three crowns -- the Crown of Torah, the Crown of Malchus, and the Crown of Kehunah. I would just like to conclude by saying that while I have great Nachas in seeing the accomplishments of all my children in general and the Choson in particular, I am most proud of the fact that each of them in their own right have acquired that fourth crown mentioned in the Mishneh in Avot, the crown which Rabbi Shimeon says surpasses the other 3 -- and that is the Crown of a good name. It has been one of the highlights of my trip to meet their friends and neighbors of Moshe, Alex, and Mordy and to hear for myself just what a noble Keser Shem Tov they each possess. I was already aware of the wonderful Shem Tov that my daughters Sarah and Dena each have in their respective communities. It is my sincerest prayer that Mordy and Sari will build a Bayit Ne'eman B'Yisrael that together with many such other Batim Ne'emanim which are Baruch Hashem being build in this time and in this place will speed the building of that National Bayit Ne'eman which we all long for about which it is said: :
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Alex's Words To His Brother On Mordy's Ufruf Shabbos

In the introduction to the Mesillat Yesharim, the Ramchal explains that the goal of his sefer is to define all of the various levels in Avodas Hashem that are outlined in the Braisa of R Pinchas ben Yair. He adds that the source of our obligation to strive and attain these accomplishments, is derived from the Passuk: Vata Yisrael mah Hashem shoel miimach ki im lyirah es Hashem Elokecha Lleches bchol drachav Lahava Oso vlavod es Hashem Elokecha bchol lvavcha uvichol nafshecha. (Eikev). With such an exhausting list that encompasses all the different forms of Avodas Hashem (which indeed requires such a lengthy sefer like that of Messilat Yesharim to properly explain and define each madreiga), it seems quite suprising that Chazal felt a need to add to the list with their drasha on the words: Mah Hashem shoel Miimach, that one must constantly serve Hashem with Brachos and Teffilah, each day one should bless Hashem at least 100 times. What was lacking in all the other forms of Avodas Hashem, that it was necessary to add this? Futhermore, from the fact that Chazal attached their obligation of Meah brachos to this specific passuk and not to pesukim that discuss more directly our obligation to thank and praise Hashem, it seems that Chazal felt that this obligation is not to simply enhance our mitzvah of Teffila, but rather to serve as a cornerstone for our entire Avodas Hashem. This certainly requires explanation. R Pincus offers a unique approach based on a Medrash Tanchuma (Korach 12) that explains the origin of this takana. In the time of David Hamelech, there was a terrible plague that took the life of 100 Jews every day. This prompted David Hamelech to create this new takana of Meah Brachos. What lead David Hamelech to the conclusion that this was the appropriate approach in combating this terrible plague? R Pincus expounds that the primary purpose of our creation is to attain maximum closeness with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. We find in many sources that the receiving of the Torah was an event compared to that of a nissuin and Bris shel Ahava. In a marriage, the primary way of fostering a loving and peaceful relationship is through speech that illustrates the constant conern for the welfare of the spouse. So too, with our relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu, brachos play the crucial role of attaining and maintaining closeness with our Creator, as we constantly recognize our dependency on His generosity with us, and take interest in attempting to offer Hakaras Hatov for everything that He provides us with. When David Hamelech was witnessing such a deadly plague striking his nation, it was clear that Hakadosh Baruch Hu was displaying kivyachol the middah of Charon Af, as a form of punishment for the aveiros of Klal Yisrael. To put an end to His anger, even before rectifying all the potential shortcomings of the Nation, Dovid Hamelech established the obligation of reciting the 100 Brachos each day. When our speech is full of expressions of love and appreciation towards Hakadosh Baruch Hu, it indicates our desire to be close to Him. This would in turn help Hashems anger subside. With this explanation we can begin to understand the connection between the obligation of Meah Brahchos to the Passuk of Mah Hashem Shoel Mimach which as we mentioned, seems to allude that this obligation serves as the cornerstone for our entire Avodas Hashem. The Meah Brachos that we must recite daily, provides the framework for whatever specific form of Avodas Hashem one may work on during his lifetime. Respectful speech helps create the actual relationship between us and Hakadosh Baruch Hu, to which we can then employ the various methods of Avodas Hashem to strengthen this special relationship. With this idea in mind, we will be able to fully appreciate R Pincus awesome insight concerning the Havtacha that Hashem gave to our Avos, namely, that their zerah would merit inheriting the great land of Eretz Yisrael. If one were to ask a Jew to pinpoint what special feature characterizes Bnei Yisrael as Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 65
the Am Segulah, he would surely reply that the Torah and Mitzvos elevate us to become great people, as described in Parshas Veschanan. If one would claim that a homeland is what distinguishes a nation, we would be able to counterclaim that our unique nation has been able to survive many generations on foreign soil. However, if we would cease to study and obey the Torah for even one moment, Chazal warn that we would lose our zechus kiyyum and the world would cease to exist (Nefesh Hachaim Shaar Daled). If this is so, why didnt Hakadosh Baruch Hu mention in his Brachas vhavtachos to the Avos that the most important zechus that their zerah will receive, is the Torah? Before directly answering the above question, R Pincus poses another question relating to the common practice of blessing the Chosson and Kallah that they should be zoche to build a Bayis Neeman BYisrael. Although it is certainly a very nice wish for the newlywed couple to one day have a beautiful home, it would seem that it is more appropriate to focus the blessing on more lofty aspirations, such as raising a beautiful family with health and happiness. One must understand the significance of a bayis in order to understand its importance. A bayis symbolizes a special place that is closed off to the outside world. It must serve as an isolated place that is conducive for fostering close personal relationships where the various members of the household create a strong feeling of unity built on love and trust in one another. Only with the seclusion that a bayis provides can this special relationship actualize its awesome potential of building a wholesome family. The same is true regarding the havtachos to our Avos. Of course the structure of our relationship with Hashem comes only through the Torah and its mitzvos. However, in order to accomplish our ultimate task of creating a close relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu, it is necessary to have a designated location that enables unity to flourish. The promise that their zerah would inherit Eretz Yisrael symbolized that just as they themselves were zoche to such a close relationship with HaKaosh Baruch Hu, so too, their offspring would have this merit through the medium of Eretz Yisrael and the Beis Hamikdash/Mishkan. With this thought in mind, we can better understand the words of the Ramban (hakdama on sefer Shemos), were he posits that with the Hashraas Sechina amongst Bnei Yisrael (in the Mishkan), we returned to the madreiga of the Avos. Having a specific location where His Presence can dwell amongst us, in essence is a kiyum of His havtacha to the Avos. Mordy, in the past few years, we had the tremendous zechus of hosting you and enjoying your presence on various occasions. We all have strong feelings of hacharas hatov for the many times that you greatly enhanced our Oneg Shabbos and Simchas Yom Tov. Through your upbeat zemiros and chiddushei Torah, you infused our house with tosefes Kedusha, up and above the kedushas hazman. However, even more inspiring than your joyous zemiros, we were constantly amazed by your special relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. We witnessed as you progressed with excitement and enthusiasm, forging a very special relationship with the One Above. You constantly focused your thoughts and efforts on enhancing your loyalty and commitment to Him. Now, you have reached the point of building your own bayis. I believe that the same special attributes mentioned above will enable you to create the strongest of relationships with your Ezer KNegdo. It is these same talents and strengths that you have already acquired, which will help you successfully build a true Bayis Neeman Byisorel. We look forward to spending many more joyous occasions together with you and your family. May we soon merit Kibbutz Guliyos: vshavu banim lgvulam, so that our simchos can be be shared together with our much larger and extended family bYerushalyim habinuyah.
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Eikev - Shabbos Night Seudah- Ufruf by Moshe Luchins

As Saba was speaking I recalled a conversation I once had with an older gentleman, Mr. Jacvobovitz, in my youth. Mr. Jacobovitz had learned in Yeshivas Ner Yisroel and he had been taught public speaking by Rav Schwab ZTL who had explained that the rules of leket, shicha and peah apply to public speaking with peah being the idea of leaving something for others to say. Saba just expounded (See Not Just Speeches Volume 3 Page?) the last posuk of Megilas Esther, but he left out the last words Vdover Shalom likol zaro and he spoke peacefully with all of his descendants. As Rabbi Frand so eloquently explains (see - http://www.torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5757/vayikra.html), based on the Ibn Ezra, the greatest praise is that Mordechai was zocheh to have shalom with his family. At this special Shabbos Seudah together we can echo the words of the Megillah about Saba and Safta that they are dover shalom bkol zarachem. Turning to the Simcha at hand, last Shabbos in preparation I decided to look at one of the seforim that Mordy had given us to find a nice vort to say here tonight. I picked up a Beis HaLevi, but immediately thought that was an error since we are in Sefer Devorim1, but bichasdei Hashem the edition Mordy had given us came also with the chidushim of the Brisker Rav. The problem though is that I do not think one usually finds touchy/feely drush in the Brisker Rav so I will ask my own question and use the idea taught by the Brisker Rav to try to answer the question. We all know the well known Gemarah that 40 days before a child is born a bas kol comes and announces that ben ploni will marry bas ploni the question is what is the purpose of this bas kol? What difference does it make if no one hears it? In this weeks Parsha, Moshe is commanded by Hashem to hewn luchos and build an Aron. Rashi comments that we see in the pesukim that Moshe built the Aron and then built the luchos because he realized that Hashem wanted him first to have a place to put the luchos once they were built. The Brisker Rav asks why did Hashem command to make the luchos first if He wanted the Aron to be made first? 2 He is masbir that a machlokes exists whether hazmanah milsa hi - whether preparing something makes it kodeh. For example if I set aside a bag to carry my tefillin is it now kodesh and can it be used for mundane matters? The Brisker Rav notes that if there was no mitzvah of tefillin the whole question would not exist. So to here Hashem stresses the luchos first because we need to know about the luchos before the container can be kodesh. With this we can perhaps answer why the bas kol takes place- in order to imbue the preparatory years with kidusha. This is similar to the Gras explanation to the famous gemarah that a malach teaches a baby Torah before he is born, but the child forgets it all before he is born. Why learn it them? The Gra explains that each person has the ability to learn the Torah that he is taught before he is born hence we say vsen chelKEINU bTorasech to grant us OUR portion in your Torah). We need the bas kol to make it happen, 3and to saturate the process with kidusha.
1 2
The Beis Halevi does not have a printed peirush on Devorim. For an alternative understanding see Ibn Ezra who suggests that the Aron built here was not the Aron of the mishkan, but a container for the luchos. This removes the contradiction between Hashems command and Moshes action. Moshe built a box, prepared the luchos and only later made the Aron for the Mishkan. 3 Rabbi Lezevnik told me he asked Rav Elyashiv SHLITA why the bas kol takes place and he told him so the shidduch will happen.
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Mordy all of the hazmanah/chinuch that your parents, rabeim and siblings have poured into you was to get to this point and perhaps the bas kol is said first to make clear that the preparation for your building a bayis neman biyisrael was a milssah dikidusha. I give you and Sari our bracha that you too should be zocheh like your parents to raise generations imbued in Torah and may you merit to have all of your children together for smachos in Yerushalayim and may you be dover sholem likol zarachem.
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Monday Night Sheva Brochos by Moshe Luchins

Poschim Bkvod Achsanya, and we have many, but first and foremost we give thanks to Hakadosh Baruch Hu for having made this wonderful shidduch and having given us the opportunity to come together on this special trip for this special simcha. To echo in reverse the words of the Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Levin, at Shalosh Sheunos many times in the past years I have wondered out loud to Dena how would Mordy find a Kallah who would appreciate his depth and breadth of Torah learning and Ahavas Yisroel. BH we have seen over the past week that Hashem has found for Mordy a Bas Talmid Chochom whose father has so many of those same traits. Mordy one of the fondest memories I will have of this trip is seeing how excited your shver gets when he hears a good dvar Torah or when a Tzadik comes in the room. They say a girl looks for a boy like her father, and BH the similarities here are strong. Once I have mentioned Rabbi Lezevnik, I will take this opportunity to also thank him and Mrs. Lezevnik for hosting us all this past Shabbos in what was truly a beautiful Shabbos. Continuing with thanking our hosts, while many have chipped in financially for these sheva brochos someone had to do the actual work and on behalf of the rest of us I thank Moshe & Nomi for the tremendous efforts in putting these sheva brochos together and for all of their efforts, despite being in a condition where most would want to rest, to make this a great visit for the American part of the mishpacha. Even though Saba and Savta are also orchim, on behalf of Dena, myself and our children we thank them for hosting this great simcha s well. While Kodak moments may be an anachronism Kodesh moments are forever, and we feel that nay time we spend with Saba and Safta is a Kodesh moment. In this weeks Parsha we have the concept of Ir Miklat the city of refuge for the accidental murderer. Rav Zev Leff (see -http://www.torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5758/shoftim.html) explains that when a person kills accidently he show a lack of concern for human life. He should have checked his axe, he should have secured the area he was working in, he should have checked his ladder. Because he lacks a concern for human life he is sent to an ir mklat which is an ir laviyim. The members of shevet Levi dedicated their lives to Avodas Hashem and Limud HaTorah They appreciate life. At the end of his of Hilchos Shemittah v'Yovel, the Rambam writes that the term Shevet Levi is applicable to anyone who decides to dedicate his life to Torah study and dissemination. This person is not concerned with the material aspect of life. He is devoted to enhancing his spiritual dimension and seeing to it that others are also availed this opportunity . Our Chosson and Kallah appreciate life they have decided to live here in Eretz Yisroel and dedicate their lives to Hashems Torah. (Next part cut & pasted from - http://www.torah.org/learning/ravfrand/5757/shoftim.html) In this week's parsha, we learn of the king's obligation to write for himself a private "royal copy" of the Sefer Torah. The Talmud tells us that even though every Jew has a Mitzvah to write a Sefer Torah, the king has a separate command over and above this to write a royal Sefer Torah, which was to accompany him whereever he went. "And it shall be with him and he should read it all the days of his life in order that he learn to fear HaShem, to observe all the words of this Torah..." [Devorim 17:19]. The Ba'alei Derush say that the pasuk is telling us more than just the fact that the king has to READ the Torah daily. He has to plot his life each and every day, according to what is written in the Torah. They interpret, homiletically, that he has to read in it (v'kara bo) his entire biography (kol yemei chayav), all the events of his life. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 71
When a king has a question as to what to do, he has to be able to look in the Torah and come up with the answer. All Israel are sons of kings [Shabbos 67a]. In this respect, all Jews have to be like princes. Happy is the man who can read his life in the Torah. I once heard a story about Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky, zt"l. When he first came to the United States he was a Rav in Seattle, Washington for a short time and then he became Rav in Toronto, Canada. Someone was once walking with Rav Yaakov in Toronto on the second day of Shavuous, some 40-50 years ago. Having just heard the reading of Megillas Ruth in shul, Rav Yaakov told his companion "I am no better than Elimelech." "Elimelech left Eretz Yisroel because he was worried about his livelihood. He went from a place where there were Jews, to a place where there were no Jews -- the fields of Moab. He was willing to sacrifice the education and environment of his children, just so he could make a better living (escaping the famine in Israel)." At that time, Toronto had not much to speak of in terms of a Torah community. Rav Yaakov rhetorically asked his companion "Why am I in Toronto, despite the fact that my children don't have the best environment? Parnosah! Because I have a job in Toronto and I don't have a job anywhere else. I'm wrong! That is the very reason that Elimelech was punished. One is not supposed to put one's livelihood over the spiritual welfare of his family." He concluded, "I must move to a more Jewish environment." On that very day he decided to move to New York where he eventually became the Rosh Yeshiva of Torah VoDaath. And the rest is history. That is the meaning of being able to look into the Torah and read about the events of one's own life. We must strive to be able to read our own biographies in the Torah. That is what Rav Yaakov was capable of and that is what we have to aspire for. Our Chosson and Kallah are also known for living life this way they live through the lenses of the Torah. These points though while certainly true can be said BH about many young people today. I want to stress a point about Uncle Mordy which I think would be an avlah if it is not pointed out. I remember when choshuva people would call Dena about shidduchim she would stress my brother isnt like every other Yeshiva guy he has a unique quality. Ok now Mordy is nervous about what I am going to say. We had in last weeks Parsha and in yesterdays daf the fact that the Chasidah is not a Kosher bird. The Gemarah, and Rashi in Shmini, notes that it is called Chaisdah because it does chessed for its friends. The Chidushe Harim asks why then isnt kosher? He explains that it only does chessed for its friends it only cares about its own. When many boys grow up out of town and then move on to the big cities they forget about their childhood friends. This of course is not true of Mordy. When he went off to Ner Yisroel and his friend Jayson went to PS Mordy made a chavrusah with him and bchasdei Hashem kept the connection all the way to their chasunahs and beyond. When Isaac graduated and started working Mordy made a night seder on the phone with him. Mordy did not forget where he came from, but rather he uplifted all those from his past into his current life. May Hashem give him and Sari the koach to build lives of Torah here in Eretz Yisroel and give them the ability to be marbitz Torah here.
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"Mr. Free-Man" by Moshe Twersky

Mordy's Aufruf Shabbos, Parshas Ekev 5771
Last night, my father spoke about the similarities between Mordy and his namesake, of Megillas Esther, particularly of the appropriateness of the title . I would like to expand upon that theme today. First of all, it is certainly befitting our Chosson as well, the title of [ . The name refers to one who is . But having proper , a defining characteristic of being a good Jew, is something that has many levels of depth to it. It is possible for a Jew to have "book knowledge" of the ,the fundamental principles of the nature of Hashem and His relationship with this world, and thus fulfill to the letter of the law the Mitzva of Emunah, without having a very sophisticated understanding of them. The deeper one delves to the depths of matter, the greater one understands the ,'the greater is the fulfillment of Mitzvas Emunah, and the more one is indeed worthy of the title . Mordy is well deserving of being called . I have for some time now been quite impressed with Mordy's constant pursuit of deeper and deeper understanding of the vast array of Sugyos associated with , and has indeed attained a great level of understanding of them.] On a simpler level as well, I believe is an appropriate title for . Mordy's deep concern with the of and his sincere are truly exceptional. [They are the obvious product of Mordy's above mentioned labor of love; his limud of "]". In this vein, I would like to focus the Gemara in the end of Chullin (139b), which asks the most unusual question, . The question is actually the 4th of a series, in which the gemara asks about Moshe, Esther, Haman, & Mordechai. The Maharsha on the gemara there explains that these four are singled out because each of them in fact had other names, and it can therefore be asked, why where they referred to in Tanach by these names specifically? How does each of these names express the essence of the person who bares them? The answer the Gemara gives as to the "source" of the name is: . , The Maharsha explains this to have a double significance. First of all, he says, Mordechai brought the Jewish people to freedom " "in the days of Achashverosh. Additionally, writes the Maharsha there, the name connotes greatness since it is the first of the ingredients of the . I believe both of these ideas are very appropriate and befitting to our Mordy as well. Mordy can truly be described as " , Mr. Free-Man". As "say, . Only one who thinks through the Sugyos of life and understands them properly, , as the Ramchal writes in the beginning of , only he is truly free to live his life the way he really wants to. He is not subjugated by his Yetzer Hara to be constantly chasing after that which does not give true happiness, and he is as well not just going through life trying to fit into a mold. The second character trait that the Maharsha said is alluded to by the name ,that of ,is as well appropriate. Two of the most deeply embedded memories of my pre-teen and early teenage years, are the moments that Aba came to pull me out of class in 6th grade to tell me that I now have a new baby brother, and the moment I got off the plane coming home for for the first time, Tishrei of 9th grade. Aba was holding 2 & 1/2 year old Mordy in one hand, the other stretched out to hug me. For the first 20 years or Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 73
so of Mordy's life, we very much had Big-brother/Little-brother relationship, primarily revolving around my trips home for . When Mordy came to learn in Eretz Yisrael I got my first opportunity to learn with him .He was a very challenging .But more impressive than the time we spent together learning formally, was the many hours we spent discussing a wide array of " ," and other Sugyos of . I soon came to realize that my "Little brother" had surpassed me in several areas of Avodas Hashem. The Chazon Ish is known to have once quipped, that the advent of the contemporary system of Yeshivos, which has institutionalized , has two effects on ; one that there won't be ,"" and second, that there won't be .To become a true ,one must be free to develop and bring out the individual that Hashem has given him. Despite the fact that while discussing Sugyos Mordy is learning with him, I very often feel that his is akin to that of the , "I believe that Mordy has indeed defied the above mentioned dictum of the Chazon Ish. While at the same time being enrolled at world renown "litvishe" Yeshivos and excelling within them to achieve the respect and admiration of his peers and Rebbe'im, Mordy has managed to develop himself, to "be his own man", and not just to "fit into the mold". He has created his own unique blend of the of Chassidus and on the one hand, and the of the on the other hand. But to a great extant, being a "big" or "small" person is a matter of self-image. It is very common for people who "buck the trend" and "do their own thing" to feel like loners. A person who looks at himself that way is far from greatness. However, someone who feels that he is part of a larger entity, is in a very real sense, a bigger person. And the larger the group he associates with, the more this is so. A person who views himself as a "family man" has one level of breadth added to him, one who views himself as an integral part of the community has yet another dimension to him, and someone who has a self-image of being a part of is an even greater person. Mordy, as you are now about to enter marriage, you are about to become an even bigger and greater person. Our to you Mordy is that you should continue to grow, not only on a personal and family level, but together with your new family, my you continue to become an even greater part of . May the entire family and all of see much from you and Sari.
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Saying Goodbye To Loved Ones / Passing Comments
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Eulogy of Rabbi Berel Rothman for Mother-in-law, Adele Yudin

Shlomo Hamelech asked "Who can find a woman of valor?" Is he asking a question or making a statement? I only had the pleasure of knowing my mother-in-law for 6 years, the twilight years of her 93 years of life. It is hard looking at the end of life to be able to evaluate the greatness of a person. You don't know them when they were able to be a "chayil" -- a warrior facing the challenges of life. We all heard about it. Many of you are so much younger that you weren't there either. But I want to share just briefly a couple of pictures of what Mommy was like. The first frame is total sweetness, total goodness, and therein lay her greatness. Take the picture of her children. Her son, distinguished and prominent Rabbi of Fairlawn for decades; 3 lovely daughters each one a priceless gem married to Rabbis. What a picture for someone to hang up! She had a lot of pictures. They used to be on her piano. You couldn't see them because there we so so many. There is picture though of her with her heart filled with love, taking a stranger into the family after all these years. When we get older we get set in our ways, this was not so with mommy. "You're part of the family. Welcome. I love you like I love my children, like all my daughters and sons in law. There is plenty of room in my heart for everybody." That was mommy. The word family, closeness, was a picture. There are events that each of you in the family can remember and see mommy in the center. Not only the beautiful 90th birthday party that was made for her, but so many events during the course of the years that she generated and everyone else generated. "She looks after the ways of her household, the bread of idleness she does not eat." She was in her late eighties when I met her. There was not a bone of idleness within her. She would go to Sarah and Yosef's home and would want to help. And when she finished making a big pot full of vegetables to make a gigantic vegetable soup, she would say "What else can I do, Sarah? What else?" This is not at sixty or seventy or eighty. This is at ninety or eighty nine! How many women come on Shavuos night to listen to the Rabbis give their shiurim? How many women, past 45 let us say, at ninety go to the shiur? Because who is giving that shiur? My favorite son. My best son. I have to hear that shiur even though it begins after midnight. But she doesn't just sit there and grab a little nachas. She doesn't come just to enjoy the pleasure. She is attentive. If you watch Bubby when Benjy speaks she is listening like when the President of the United States is addressing the country and everyone is glued to their television sets. She is glued in to every word her son says. Being the wonderful son that he is, he often turns and says "Mommy" and it is like he is talking to her. It is a one to one conversation with 400 people listening in on the side. That is how she felt and that is how she acted. Not only do you have to be a wonderful person, but you also have to have the Ribono shel olam's blessing. First the bracha of long years. It is a phenomenal blessing. And her mind was clear. It was top quality. Then you have to have the blessing of children who watch the way their mother acts and have mastered the skill and who are themselves people of chessed and of goodness, of kindness and compassion. Giving , giving, and giving and always have more room in their hearts for new people. She was blessed with wonderful children. Sarah and Yosef provided for her for a number of years before I came on the scene a home away from home. She left her apartment in the morning, took a nice walk, came to the Wikler home, spent the day with children and grandchildren and then went home at night and maintained her independence. She was blessed because her granddaughters left with her one or two each night accompanied her home to
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sleep with Bubby in her apartment. We didn't ever feel that she was alone, neglected. What a family! What a family! And then in the last two years when living in her home away from home was beyond her ability to function effectively she moved into Sarah and Yosef's home. We are talking about being welcomed in your children's home; not Chas v'shalom being viewed as a burden as some parents are viewed unfortunately by their children. Bubby was embraced and provided with a new home at 1539 E 13th Street. What a bracha! What a blessing. And how wonderful these children are and have been to their beloved mother. Eishes Chayil Mi Yimtza. If that is a question Can you find such a woman? We found her. More precious than all the rubies and all the diamonds in the world. She was so very special in a very simple normal way. Not looking for pleasures, not interested in gashmiyus, or honor. She was just interested in being a good person. Her heart was her and she was her heart. She was a gem and she left on all of you unforgettable memories. Probably the greatest memory is for the great grandchildren who gathered on Sarah's couch where Bubby would read a story. They knew she could have been a story teller on radio or television because she made every story come alive for them when they were sitting around her. That picture we older folks have in our memories, the snapshot of that scene will help remind us how to be in our lives and tell us what a wonderful Eishes Chayil Eidel Rivkah bas Aryeh Leb haLevi was and how blessed we were to have known her and to have loved her. But above all to have been the recipient of her love. Bilah haMaves laNetzach u'macha Hashem Elokim Dimah m'al kal panim.
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Rabbi Benjamin Yudin Eulogy for His Mother, Adele Yudin

One week from today is Rosh Hashanah. One week from today we are all going to be in shul. The Gemara asks the question "Rosh HaShanah is a Yom Tom why do we not recite Hallel?" The Gemara answers it is because the Books of Life and Death are open on this day and therefore it is inappropriate to say Hallel. I feel I must begin with a verse from Hallel and I know I speak for myself and my siblings. King David says [Tehillim 116:16]: "I am your servant, the son of your female servant, you have unshackled my bonds". He attributes so much of his success to his mother. It is she to whom he attributes his ability to overcome challenges in life. That is how we viewed my mother and that is what she did for us. My mother was born on the Lower East Side of New York at a time when girls did not go to Yeshiva. Her brothers did go to Torah Vodaath. She picked up her commitment to Judaism from the home, from the environment, and from her grandparents. She was a most devoted daughter. Her mother died at the age of 49. When my mother graduated high school with distinction she wanted to go to college to become a teacher. Her mother, who had already been ill, asked one question. Her mother had already been ill. "If you go to college, who will take care of me?" That was the end of my mother's college career. But although she never went to college, she did become a teacher. She was not a teacher with a blackboard, chalk and eraser, but she was a marvelous teacher nevertheless. King David says [Tehilim 24:3-4] "Who will ascend the mountain of the L-rd and who will rise up to his Holy place? It is the one asher lo noso l'shav nafsho" This is understood by the Chofetz Chaim as one who does not take their soul in vain. Everyone is given a soul, everyone has a mission in life. My mother took the soul she was given in life the soul of a teacher -- and played it to the fullest she was a teacher throughout her life. When we speak to anyone and not just family members we hear of the impression she made on people which reflected her name. Her name was Eidel and eidel she was -- so kind and gentle -- in that regard she was a teacher of how to behave in life. Circumstances were such that my father, z"l, grew up in such a poor home that he was not able to complete high school. As a young man he had to support his family, his father having died young. My mother said to me more than once, "Could you imagine had I gone to college would I have married a man who didn't even have a high school diploma?" She was so grateful that hashgacha pratis led matters in such a way that she was able to build a life together with my father, z"l, that reflected her very special character. She learned so much from her mother. Evelyn reminded me last night that my mother was a good cook. She learned how to make gefilte fish from her mother, but not like most people might watch their mother in the kitchen. She would literally bring the bowl to her mother in bed. Her mother was sick and taught her from her sick bed how to cook. My mother sensed the Hashgacha pratis that affected many aspects of her life. One of her closest childhood friends was Haddie Yudin who she would often visit. It was Haddie's mother who made the shidduch with her older son, Al. They had an excellent marriage. As children we never heard our parents argue. Im sure they disagreed. By definition man and woman are different. But we never heard them argue. My mother was such an ezer k'negdo. All the years my father had his own business, she served as the secretary, minding the business while my father was out, juggling the business and the home and her communal involvement. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 80
She was everyone's surrogate mother. She kept the family together after her mother died. She married off her three brothers. When my Aunt Lillian, z"l, came from England she had no relatives in this country. My mother was her surrogate mother. She was a sister in a genuine sense to all my father's siblings. As my father raised his siblings because his father died young, there was an incredible parallel that my mother did the same for her brothers. All the mother-in-law stereotypes did not at all apply to her. She was beloved to all members of the family. My parents moved from Williamsburg to Crown Heights where my father, z"l, was so active in the Young Israel of Eastern Parkway and my mother served as president of the sisterhood. She volunteered Shabbos afternoon at the chronic disease hospital to feed patients. She volunteered in her free time to read for a blind woman. She showed us that if you have free time it was to be used. It was to be elevated and sanctified. Her name was Eidel and that was what she was literally like her name. She was a most gentle soul. We say every Friday night the verse "Oz v'hadar levusha, v'tischak l'yom acharon" [Mishlei 31:25]. Literally this means strength and dignity are her garments and she laughs at the days to come. Oz v'hadar levusha she was a person who while she lacked a formal Jewish education was one who was a searcher and privileged to study throughout her life. Whenever she could she would go to a class. She would tape my radio programs every Friday morning and listen. But she didn't just listen. Once, years ago, I spoke about the importance of charity on Parshas Re'eh which has the mitzvah of tzedakah within it. When she called me that morning -- as she always did after my radio presentation -- she said "Benjy, I will send you a check every single month." Baruch Hashem, my mother gave Tzedakah, but she listened, was anxious to learn new ideas and took it so seriously that for several years there was a $100 check every month from my mother in the mail. (I must tell you my friends, that so many times over the years I said to myself, "Enough, let somebody else do the weekly Dvar Torah on the radio show. I did it for one reason, that she should be able to hear her son say Divrei Torah because it gave her so much pleasure. ) Oz (Torah) and strength (simple faith -- Emunah peshuta) were her garments. Without going into details, there was an incredible challenging crisis in the family over 30 years ago. My mother turned to her young son the Rabbi and she turned to her son-in-law Rabbi Abraham Kupchik, at that time and she said to us: "You are rabbis what should I do?" It was such a challenging question that we said to her, "Mommy, write to the Lubovitcher Rebbe. He is a wise man. He is a Talmid Chochom. He understands family dynamics." She did. She asked a difficult question and she got a difficult answer. She listened to the Rebbe at personal cost. She had an incredible sense of Emunas Chachom belief in Oz and belief in Torah. Hadar The verse in Eicha (1:6) reads "And there went out from Zion all her splendor" (Vayetzei m'bas Tzion kol Hadara). The Medrash has several understandings of the word Hadar in that verse. According to one interpretation Hadar (splendor) refers to the tinokos shel beis rabban (school children). My mother's strength was in her belief in the living of a Torah life and in the interaction with children. She had such an incredible capacity to relate to children, starting with infants. Many women, especially as they grow older, are almost afraid to hold a newborn. Not mommy. It was known in the family that when any of her children were pregnant they told her not just to share the good news. She got to work and knitted a sweater for each and every grandchild to have them wear when they were brought home from the hospital. Chazal tell us that Shmuel haNavi had a special garment that Chana his mother made for him and that as he got older it grew with him. In a sense I believe the same might be said about the sweater my mother Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 81
made for each of her grandchildren and for the oldest of the great grandchildren. The unique and special privilege she had that all her grandchildren and all her great grandchildren whom she would never count but of whom there were dozens are all following, bli ayin harah, in her way and in her legacy is because that sweater enveloped them with her purity and with her Oz with her strength. Oz represents both Torah and strength. My mother was widowed at the age of sixty. At that point she learned how to drive and drove to Fairlawn, NJ and to the Bronx, from Brooklyn. At sixty she went looking for a job. She walked into an office on Kingston Ave. in Crown Heights where she was living at the time and asked if they had a job. The people of Chamah thought she was looking for someone else. She said, "No. This job is for me." What an incredible shidduch it turned out to be more than 25 years of such loyal service and mutual reciprocity. She assisted them and it gave her a purpose in life. She would get up in the morning, get dressed like a lady, and brought her lady-like nature to Chamah and influenced so many by her qualities. The Rabbis of Chamah who are here reminded me of girls in the office who were not then yet religious and by their association with Mrs. Yudin and seeing her honesty and her dignity (ehrlichkeit and menschlichkeit) literally had their lives changed. Lo Ragal al L'shona. I never heard a word of lashon hara from my mother. I am sure I speak for my sisters as well. As she was getting a little bit older, instead of cutting back on the Torah classes she attended she went out of her way to seek every opportunity to learn. I told her once "Mommy, I am giving a class in Fairlawn on Monday nights." She joined the class from Brooklyn by telephone hookup. My sister Sarah would open the Chumash for her and when she didn't understand something she asked. She didn't just listen. She followed. At every Yahrtzeit for my father where we would make a siyum on Sedarim of Mishnayos, she sat near by me, she took a photostated sheet of mishneh. They were not always such simple topics but she drank in every word. The same is true at the Shavuos Mishmors in Fairlawn where she stayed up until 2:00 am or later to hear and enjoy the intricate Talmudic discussions presented by her son. We are so grateful that her mind to the end was, thank G-d, so alive that she had the ability to make words with Scrabble and often times managed to beat those she was playing with. I want to personally ask forgiveness. I am not going to ask mechilla for being the wild Indian that I was as a child and for her having to come to school on so many occasions and talk to my teachers. I am going to ask mechilla for the one time (literally) that I can recall her yelling at me. I was in the hospital almost 20 years ago with some cardiac issues. On the day that I was released from the hospital, we called ahead and said that I would be home by a certain time. On the way home I stopped to be menachem avel someone in the community. When I came home about 40 minutes later, she was obviously very nervous and concerned. She was not impressed that I had gone to do a mitzvah. It was the only time in all the years I've known her, that I can ever recall that she yelled at me, losing it so to speak as a mother. That is how put together she was towards me and my sisters. My son-in-law Larry pointed out to me what incredible nachas it is for my mother that hundreds of children in Yeshivos all over have substitute teachers today because her grandchildren are principals and teachers. What an incredible feather in her hat! She had a special talent to relate to children. On the verse "And Abraham returned to the youth" [Bereshis 22:19] the Kotzker Rebbe comments that Avraham was restored to his youth. She was known as "patchy-Bubbe" based on the games of clapping hands that she played with her great grandchildren. We could see how her face lit up at those times. These are the memories that we all have to take with us. Literally until recently, she read on the phone to great grandchildren. A very simple arrangement was set up. She had a copy of the book and three year olds in Lakewood and other communities had the same book. She would read it with enthusiasm and they would follow. This was such an exciting part of their days and of hers.
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This last year starting from last summer and especially starting from the end of December was a challenging year health-wise for my mother. Every once in a while she would allow herself a groan. Then, on so many occasions she stopped herself and said "Sha!". She was such a lady until the end that when she knew she was deviating from carrying the very regal character that the gentleness of her soul typified, she stopped herself in her tracks. She had Emunah Peshutah (simple faith). We are told "And Yosef died and all his brothers and all that generation" [Shmos 1:6]. I have to say that it is the end of an era she and the few contemporaries that are left. If her children and grandchildren and great grandchildren are steeped thank G-d in the study of Torah and in the observance of Torah it is because of her and those like her that had this unadulterated pure belief in the Torah in the words "the number of your days I will make full" [Shmos 23:26] to make the most of every day that is coming to you. We reminisce how special my father was. Never once did she complain that she was alone. Because he was so special, I can imagine how hard it was for her. Yet never once was there any indication of selfpity. The way she lived that is the way she merited to be taken from us. Thank G-d she had clarity of mind until literally the very end. Yesterday we were pained that we could not arouse her but she was not in pain. I too want to echo my brother-in-law's words of gratitude to my sister and to my nieces for giving Bubby her dignity and letting her stay in her own apartment until literally she was almost ninety, giving us peace of mind by having a different grandchild go every night to sleep with her. There are no words by which I can thank my sisters all of them Sarah, Evelyn, and Tzippy. Even in the challenging times it brought us closer together. I want to end only because of time by repeating the idea: Oz v'hadar levusha. Oz was her commitment to Torah and Hadar was her commitment to children. Oz was her strength of character. VaTischak L'Yom Acharon she laughs at the days to come until the very end. This can be understood on two levels. It kept her going and it kept us going. Until the last day she had meaning and fulfillment in her life. I know -- I speak to the grandchildren and great grandchildren -- in Eretz Yisrael and everywhere else -- how much she appreciated everybody's visit and calls. I firmly believe that today is not the end. I have said this to other families and I believe it with every fiber of my being. There is a special kaddish that we say today by the grave site and it is also said the only other time at a siyum. When we complete a tractate, we say "Hadrach Alan" we are coming back to you. It is not that we are finished. We come back. That too is what we imply at the gravesite Kaddish as well. We say, "Mommy, your personal mission is finished today. But Hadrach Alan we come back to you. You influenced and you will continue to influence generations to come. You never went to college. But you are a special teacher who taught what it means to be Eidel. One more point of mechilla. My mother was close to her family. She lost her brother Naftali last Nissan. Her mother came from Ropshitz and my uncle Naftali-Natie was named after the Rebbe, Rav Naftali of Ropshitz. We never told my mother of her brother's passing. We didn't want to upset her.
Reb Naftali of Ropshitz understands the expression "Kol Yisrael Areivin zeh b'zeh" not in the classical sense of all Israel is responsible for one another (from the word arev a guarantor) but all Israel sweetens one another (from the word arev sweet). I ask forgiveness from all of us if at any time you didn't have enough visitors, if we weren't there enough for you. But we cannot thank you enough for sweetening our lives and the lives of our families and the lives of so many friends that you were privileged to touch over the years. Tehei Nishmasa tzerura b'zror hachaim.
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Rabbi Yosef Wikler's Eulogy for his Mother-in-law, Adele Yudin

Adele Rivkah bas Reb Aryeh Leb haLevi, I wasn't going to speak today but I saw a Gemara [Moed Katan 24a] this morning that I wanted to share with those present. I think it is appropriate, especially after some of the words we heard from my brother-in-law. They told Shmuel that Rav passed away and he tore 12 garments in mourning. [Commentaries explain that this did not take place in the same day; but he tore them on subsequent days when he put on new garments.] Shmuel said "Someone has passed from this world who I was afraid of" (Rashi explains he feared the penetrating questions of Rav in learning for which Shmuel did not have the answers.) A similar thing happened when R. Yochanan heard that R. Chanina died he tore 13 very valuable garments; he too said someone whom I was afraid of passed from this world. The Gemara explains that the reason these people tore on subsequent occasions as well as at the time of the initial hearing is because every time they were engaged in learning they were reminded of the questions their colleague used to ask them; they could not get it out of their minds and it was like the day of death. Bubby, of Blessed memory, gave us many questions questions we don't have an answer for and questions we are going to have to live with. They are questions of how we conduct ourselves and whether we are living up to the model that she presented. She was a woman who went to work every day as many people do. She simultaneously managed the house and raised 4 children, always available to help her husband; the food was always there; one was always offered something when he walked into her house. After the passing of her husband, my father-in-law, ob"m, she went from house to house every single Shabbos; have candles will travel. She had a travel bag with silver candlesticks that she took from house to house. She learned to drive at 60 and traveled from child to child. Never did she walk into one house and share what went on in another house. Never did she say "Why do you do this thing? In another house it is done differently." Never did she question, why does this have to be done? To be able to withhold within yourself things that concern you, without putting it on the next person this is a question. How can a person do this for so many years 33 years! For 33 years she was a widow without complaining about that that itself is a question. How did she manage that? Benjy alluded to the fact that she never got married again. I am the son-in-law so I had the chutzpah and asked her why. She answered "Why would I have to get married again? I had such a wonderful husband, I don't need anything else." "You open Your hand and satiate every living creature according to their desire." But most people are not happy. In general we say that a person does not pass from this earth achieving even half of his desires in life. But there are other people that G-d makes them satisfied and they say "I have everything". That was my mother-in-law of Blessed memory, someone who didn't complain. She was in the hospital, out of the hospital, operations back and forth, schlepped up and down the stairs, her feet hurt and what would she say? "I have nothing to complain about. Poo poo." These were her words again and again. She knew that she had the pain but she knew that she was satisfied. Twenty seven years in the same job. How many people can say that? Not just a job, but the first job. When my father in law, ob"m passed away, my mother-in-law needed income and she walked into the Jewish Community Council in Crown Heights and asked for a job. She was told "Chamah is looking for somebody." She walked in. That was it. That was her job for as long as she continued to work over 27 years until her late 80s. The people at Chamah said when they came to this country they didn't know the ropes. "We looked to Mrs. Yudin like a mother. She was telling us how you do it in this country." They never forgot her and called all the time to check on how she was doing. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 84
I was going out with my wife when we were dating and we came back late (this is before cell phones). We came into the house. On top of the stairs her mother sat and said "Sarah, why so late? Why didn't you let me know?" She never said anything to me. Not then and not in 37 years of marriage. She never said "Yosef do it this way." This is a track record that I don't know if anybody else could keep. She was always asking "How can I help?" She helped with the vegetables as soon as she finished with the vegetables she was looking for something else to do. Even recently when she was very weak she kept asking what she could do to help. Benjy said they never saw the parents argue. I'm the son-in-law, so I asked her: "Didn't you ever have another opinion? Didn't you disagree on some topics?" She told me, "Yes. We didn't always agree but we never discussed anything in front of the children. It would always be in the bedroom or when the children were not around." Benjy alluded to a problem that went on in the family. That problem went on for 20 years and she lived with the answer that she got from the Rebbe. She didn't question it and she suffered with it. In the end haKodosh Baruch Hu worked it that the problem resolved itself on some level. My mother-in-law never went upstairs to sleep without saying "Thank you Yosef for everything." I protested that I didn't do anything. I asked her what I did. She repeated "Everything Yosef and even more." She took nothing for granted and didn't think that anybody owed her anything. She was appreciative of every single thing that was done. My daughter Chaya Bracha says the last time she spoke with her, the day before she passed away she gave her something to drink and Bubby said "thank you". Those were her last words to Chaya Bracha. It was a strain just to get those two words out, but she knew she had to say thank you and so she made that effort to say it. I just want to end with one more question. I know this is a question she has for all of us here. All the years that I knew the family, the father-in-law even though he wasn't the oldest in the family was the leader in his family. In Bubby's family also even though she wasn't the oldest, she was the leader of the family, everyone looked to her as the matriarch of the family. All of us from this generation of the children got together occasionally and she was the matriarch. She held the family together. If she were able to talk now, she would say "Who is going to be able to hold the family together as one unit?" Everybody has their own family. Everybody has their own life. But she wanted the family to remain close. This is something that she taught me and I try to do it in my family. But the greater family from her children do not have her as a matriarch to hold us all together any more. She would have for us that question: Who is going to hold the family together now? I want to ask mechila from my mother-in-law, ob"m, in the name of myself, my wife who gave so much to her but still feels she wants to ask mechilla, my daughters and my sons. My daughters grew up taking care of Bubby; from their youngest years they slept with her in her house and then took care of her every which way in our house. All my daughters even my grandchildren who used to dance before you, maybe they didn't do it with the proper respect, they all ask mechilla. We ask that you intercede in Heaven for us. Bilah haMaves laNetzach u'macha Hashem Elokim Dimah m'al kal panim.
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David Twersky's Eulogy for Mother-in-law, Adele Yudin

In Jewish Court proceedings, the procedure is usually that each of the witnesses have to testify about what they saw with the exception of blasphemy where the court does not want to have to listen repeatedly to the testimony about blasphemy and after the first witness the other witnesses are allowed to say "we heard the same thing that he heard". In general each witness must come and say the same story. I will draw an allusion however from the fact that the Torah states "Based on the testimony of two or three witnesses a matter will be established." When 2 or 3 witnesses testify to the same thing, we don't really need a fourth witness to say the same thing. Although there are things that I wanted to say and there are things my wife told me to say, they have already been said and there is no need to repeat it. I just want to review in my own style very briefly a few things that have already been mentioned. It was mentioned that in the 33 years that Bubby was a widow she used to take her Shabbos travel kit and go from child to child in the New York metropolitan area to spend Shabbos. That was true the rest of the year every Shabbos and for most of the holidays. But in Chodesh haAviv, for the holiday of Pessach, Bubby used to come to Seattle. It wasn't for all 33 years but for at least 20 or 25 years she used to spend Pessach with us. This was the highlight of the Yom Tov for my children, for my wife, and for me. Although certainly about the wonderful middos, the wonderful attitude, and the wonderful inspiration of this very special woman . But while time does not allow me to eulogize Bubby in the fashion which she so richly deserves, I do want to make 3 brief points and feel that if I do not make these 3 points as part of my eulogy, I will not have fulfilled my obligation to properly express the 3 things that impressed me most about my mother-in-law, Bubby Yudin: : ,our Rabbis tells us, is a contraction of the words the mouth speaks. And of course, as the typical Eishes Chayil that she was whenever she opened her mouth to speak it was always in the category of .___ However, even more impressive than that in my mindwas the fact that in all the years of my marriage and with all the resentment she must have had for someone who would take her baby daughter 3,000 miles away from her she never once criticized me, she never once suggested how I could improve or be a better husband or better son-in-law or better fathereven though I am sure that there is plenty of room for improvement in all of those categories. Matzah in Gematria is 135 which is the equivalent Gematria of 93 . The Ima of my dear wife and her dear siblings lived to be 93 years old. This is not a simple matter, for the aging parent and it is not a simple matter for the adult children. The thought has occurred to me that the prayer we say in Shma Koleinu: while certainly on a simple pshat level is the prayer of the aging person to the Almighty that he or she have quality of life in his or her old age, may at the level of remez be alluding to a secondary message as well. By virtue of the fact that it is not phrased at ( It doesn't beseech "Do not toss us away at the time of OUR old age") the thought occurred to me that the generic " " may allow the interpretation that adult children may be praying to the Almighty to not abandon them when their strength is on the verge of wearing out due to the stress and energy drain caused by having to take care of the needs of aging parents. And in this regard I must state my admiration and inspiration at the very special relationship that Evelyn, Benjy, Sara, and Tzippy all have had with their mother throughout her life, but particularly during these last years as the years began to take their toll upon Bubby. Of course, certainly Sara and her entire Wikler family especially Yosef and her daughters have earned for themselves, G-d Willing, great quantities of Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 86
Arichas Yamim for having Bubby live near them and ultimately with them as she became more and more dependent on her loving dependants. It is a great tribute to my mother-in-law to have raised such devoted and admiring children. Finally .There are many jokes about Marror and Mothers-in-law, but that is certainly not what I have in mind. The Talmud tells us [Pesachim 39a] that Marror was symbolic of the Egyptian experience because it started off soft and pleasant but in the end it was difficult so too Marror is sweet and pleasant at first but at the end the taste turns bitter. My initial experience with Bubby was an experience of softness and pleasantness and it was a experience that has lasted 37 years. Throughout my marriage to her daughter and throughout the time I have know her, seeing Bubby, talking with her, and hearing about her was 100% a pleasant and sweet experience. It has only been the last brief period of her life when Bubby was in pain and suffering that hearing about her and certainly being in her presence to watch her suffer was an experience to be categorized as . It will now be the duty and the of the dozens of descendants who had the privilege to know her to tell over to succeeding generations of male and female descendants of the wondrous deeds and the mighty feats accomplishments of the very special matriarch of our family.
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Moshe Twersky's Eulogy For Bubby Read By Moshe Luchins

It is very difficult for me to put into words, my thoughts, feelings, and memories of Bubby, aleha hashalom. I will explain what I mean with a mashal. The Torah gives us the mitzva of shofar on Rosh Hashana, to be able to express our deep-felt emotions of Teshuva and yearning for closeness to Hakodosh Boruch Hu. Feelings that are so deep and all-encompassing, only the kol hashofar can bring out unbridled and without the constrains and limitations that come with putting the feelings into words. Hashem, out of his infinite kindness to us, gave us this tool to express ourselves, and is in fact shome'a .umazin kol t'kasaynu he hears and understands the thoughts and emotions that are behind the shofar It would be a difficult task to try to be maspid Bubby even if I were able to be present at the levaya itself and standing before you, and let the emotions pour out of me. It is all the more challenging, when trying .to express myself on paper. I will never-the-less try One of the first things that comes to mind when I think of Bubby, is the regal and dignified character she had. I do not mean to say that she was not aloof. Far from that. On the contrary; what she personified .was true tzniyus Real tzniyus is a rare thing to find today, and it is in fact largely not understood what tzniyus really is. In contemporary society, where everything is so superficial, tzniyus has come to bare the connotation of following a dress code and a set of rules. Unfortunately, it is possible to adhere to every rule in the book, and still be very far from being tzanua. Real tzniyus is a midah, a character trait. Not one of hiding one's self or of maintaining a low profile, rather it is a character trait that expresses itself in dignified behavior, reflective of deep self esteem and appreciation for gadlus ha'adam, the greatness of mankind. It is a character trait that lends a sense dignity to mundane housework and taking care of little children, and in .fact to every single aspect of life This I believe was one of the most, if not the most, defining characteristics of Bubby. When you were with her, you felt that you were with someone special, someone geat. Not someone that was great because they ran the world, someone that was great because of the refined and Aidle character they had. You put on your best behavior when you were with Bubby; not because she demanded it of you, .but because she brought it out of you I said that this was one of the first things that fame to mind when thinking about what to say. My wife Nomi as well said right away, that this was a defining characteristic of Bubby. I can not say however, that this was part of my childhood memories. In retrospect, I think that was because I simply didn't appreciate it at the time. I do not mean only when I was too young to make a character analysis, but even after that, I didn't appreciate it because it seemed so normal. That's my Bubby. That's the way she is. My mother was quite similar in that respect, as well as my Aunt Evelyn, Uncle Benjy, and Aunt Sarah. It didn't seem so out of the ordinary. It was not until I was a bit more worldly that I realized how rare and precious this character trait was. I realized that regal and dignified presence that Bubby had, was in fact something very special and unique about her. Bubby had not only internalized and personified tzniyus, she had been mechanech her children by means of example, that they too had grown up to feel that this was normal, and they in turn have continued to be living examples for the next .generation. Even with Bubby's passing, her legacy lives on We will all continue to grow from the great lessons that Bubby has taught us throughout her life, and we will try to continue to give her neshama much Yiddishe Nachas, as it was always her greatest source of delight, while she was with us here. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 88
Eulogy for Norman Ketzlach March 7, 2010 (Niftar 18 Adar 5770)

The Talmud teaches [Bava Basra 110a] that one who seeks a wife (and wishes to know what kind of sons he will have from her) should check out her brothers. Meaning I don't know if this is a genetic insight on the part of the Talmud or some type of mystic Kabbalistic wisdom but the Talmud teaches that somehow there will be an affinity between the personalities and character traits of a person and his maternal uncle. If a man wishes to get a glimpse of what his son from a particular woman might be like, he should check out her brothers. I am not sure how familiar my father was with this Gemara. I suspect that even if he was aware of it, it had very little influence on his decision to marry my mother. However my mother had one brother my Uncle Norman -- and my father had one son myself. I have for many decades now marveled at the wisdom of the Talmud in many many areas of life. But even had I been exposed to no other folio in all of Shas, I would be a confirmed believer in the veracity of the Oral Law based on Bava Basra 110a alone, knowing the affinity that Uncle Norman Ketzlach and I had for each other. It may truly be said: Ani L'Dodi (I was a kindred spirit to my uncle) v'Dodi Li and my Uncle was a kindred spirit to myself. We recognized, I believe, our closeness of outlook, attitudes and personalities in so many areas, and had therefore a mutual admiration and fondness for one another. Although it was only in my youngest years (prior to any childhood recollection) that Uncle Norman and Aunt Esther lived in the same city as I did (Seattle), I do have fond memories of visiting with them and my dear cousins in their homes in Richland, Washington; in Sherman Oaks, California, and in Silver Springs, Maryland. We have fond memories of Norman and his family visiting us in Seattle, both for family vacations, for family Simchas, and for sad occasions as well. In happy times and sad times, in fun times and in serious times I always picture my Uncle Norman as a noble person, a gentle and kind man, soft-spoken, and always trying to share a nice thought a short Dvar Torah, an inspirational story or message that would bring a smile to one's face and a lift to one's spirit. The Talmud also says that . A person's name can also be indicative of his nature. Of course the family name was Ketzlach. Many Cohanim have their lineage reflected in their family name, such as Cohen, Cohanim, or Katz. Katz kaf tzadee -- being the acronym for the phrase Kohen Tzedek, righteous priest. The first part of the name Ketzlach is the acronym Ketz Kohen Tzedek, but it ends with a lach. Lach is the Yiddish word for laughter. One might say that the family coat of arms, so to speak, portrayed a righteous priest with a good sense of humor always with a gentle smile on his face, modest and humble never taking himself too seriously despite his tremendous spiritual stature, his tremendous talents and his tremendous accomplishments. I always thought that my Uncle Norman had somewhat of a tongue-twister of a name. He was called up to the Torah, always as the first-Aliyah: "Ya'amod Menachem Nochum ben Yecheil Michel haKohen." I pity the Gabbai who had trouble pronouncing the Ches sound when my Uncle Norman got his Aliyahs. Both the name Menachem and Nochum come from the root which means to comfort. And as I alluded to before, Uncle Norman, always brought a double dose of comforting, soothing, and wise words to any conversation he participated in. He was the son of Yechiel, Michel. In modern Hebrew YechiHeidad is like "hip hip hooray". It might be said that Yechi-El was a man whose actions Sanctified G-d's Name in this world such that people would proclaim the greatness of G-d: Yechi-El. Such indeed was the nature of my grandfather, Mr. Mitchell Ketzlach, and indeed the apple did not fall far from the tree. Such was the nature of my Uncle Norman Ketzlach as well. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 89
And as I said before, Uncle Norman was a Kohen. He was genetically a descendant of the first Kohen, Aaron the High Priest and spiritually as well he was Aaron's disciple. Hillel teaches in Ethics of the Fathers, "Be a disciple of Aaron: A Lover of Peace, and a Pursuer of Peace, one who loves mankind and brings them closer to Torah." My Uncle Norman had these instincts in his genes, in his blood, and in his heart. He was a lover of Peace, a Pursuer of Peace. He loved mankind and he always attempted by ways of sweetness and pleasantness and by example to draw people closer to the peaceful ways of Torah. He especially loved his family his loyal wife Esther a wife of some 63 years. He loved and got much nachas from his children and grandchildren. He loved his sisters and nieces and nephews as well, and again through his sweetness and pleasantness and by example attempted to draw them all near to the peaceful ways of Torah. And I should add that this love he had for all his family was very much reciprocated. Uncle Norman was not just an when it came to Shul politics or sibling rivalry or other types of family dispute. He devoted his professional life to nuclear safety. He was a nationally and internationally recognized expert in the field of taking the most potentially dangerous and deadly force known to mankind nuclear energy and applying "ways of peace" to it. Assuring safeguards and protective measures would be in place so that even the deadliest of forces could be used positively by those who like himself, loved peace and pursued peace. My Uncle Norman lived to a ripe old age. His last years and certainly his last months were not as vigorous and mitzvah-filled, and as pleasant as his earlier days and years, but clearly it must be admitted that he was blessed with Arichas Yomim (long life). When we consider the alternative this is something we all hope for. If there is one aspect of the many praiseworthy qualities Uncle Norman demonstrated during his lifetime that was worth my coming all the way from Seattle to Los Angeles to mention as part of my inadequate eulogy this afternoon for him, it was that my Uncle Norman had tremendous Kibud Av V'em, honor for his parents about which the Torah says the reward is long life, so that the days of your life may be lengthened. From the day he left Seattle, as long as his parents were living, whether he was in Richland, Washington or Washington, DC, or Los Angeles, or Israel, or at some international conference on nuclear energy. Where ever he was no matter how busy he was, twice a week like clockwork -- he would sit down and write longhand a newsy multi-page letter about his activities and those of his family. I personally witnessed (on the receiving end of that correspondence) how much nachas and pride this loyalty and devotion brought my grandparents in Seattle. They were the envy of many other parents and grandparents. They were indeed proud to have had such a son and I am indeed proud to have had such an uncle. Yehi Zichro Baruch. May his memory be blessed. May his dedicated wife, my dear Aunt Esther find comfort in the many years of pleasant memories and life they shared together. May Kalman, Karen, and Marcia and their respective families take nichum in the fact that they too are the children of a man who caused people to say "Yechi-El" G-d is great to be served by such noble priests as Menachem Nachum ben Yechiel Michel haKohen Ketzlach and may he be a Melitz Yosher in behalf of the family. As he wished us so many times, so too we wish him: ' May G-d Turn His Countenance Upon Him, and grant him everlasting peace in Gan Eden.
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In Memory of Rafael David Hyman March 27, 2011

I was speaking on the phone to Rafael David Hyman Erev Rosh Hashannah this past September and at the end of the conversation he asked if I was using a speaker phone. When I assured him that I was not, he told me that he did not want to alarm me with the request and that it did not necessarily mean that the request needed to be implemented in a short time frame, but he asked if I would be willing to deliver a eulogy for him at the proper time. The truth of the matter is that I consider myself totally unworthy to properly eulogize Rephael Dovid Faivel. I do not come up to his ankles, in , , I am nowhere near his equal in faith, in optimistic confidence, and in spirituality. When I come down with a 24 hour flu virus, I'm sure I'm going to die. When Rafael David received the diagnosis of lung cancer which was spreading, he was sure he was going to beat it. When I feel the discomfort of illness or pain my focus quickly narrows to myself and my personal needs and my countenance readily betrays the darkness of my spirit. Rafael David has been struggling ups and downs throughout his long illness, but amazingly he managed to constantly seek out and find the silver linings in those dark cloud, to maintain and even enhance his natural proclivity to demonstrate concern for others and greet them with a smile and kind word. He viewed the experience as a challenge and as an opportunity for himself, his family, and his friends to grow spirituality from it. Like everything else in his life, he made much of that opportunity. The Gemara in Sanhedin [99a] states: Rabbi Chiya bar Aba says in the name of Rabbi Yochanan that the prophecies of future reward promised by all our prophets are only referring to the reward awaiting those who were Baalei Teshuva; however those completely righteous their entire life have a reward awaiting them in the future that only G-d Alone has seen. Rabbi Abahu takes issue with this position that assumes Baalei Teshuva will receive a smaller reward than those were totally righteous their entire life. He states "In the place where Baalei Teshuva stand (in the world to come) even the totally righteous do not stand there." At first blush Rabbi Yochanan's position makes more sense than that of Rabbi Abahu. Does it not seem logical that someone who lived a righteous lifestyle for 100% of his adult life should receive a greater reward in the next world than someone whose period of righteous living only covered a fraction of his stay on earth? And yet, although we do not typically pasken between two opposing opinions concerning rewards in the next world, Rabbi Abahu's statement is widely quoted and widely assumed to be normative Jewish belief. In order to understand the basis of Rabbi Abahu's position, I believe it is necessary to consider another Talmudic passage [Yoma 86b] which states a person who repents out of love for G-d has his prior willful transgressions turned into positive merits. This is an almost mystical idea, that one who sincerely changes his lifestyle and decides to cling to the Almighty out of love after having lived a life oblivious to Torah will now not only not have his previous "sins" counted against him they will be considered to his credit. The cheeseburgers will be like Matzo on Pessach; the Saturday afternoon football games will be like Shabbos afternoon Torah shiurim; the lustful passion for passion's sake will be considered like passionate dedication to the Almighty and His Torah. In this way even the one who was a his entire life cannot hope to match the merits of a Baal Teshuvah One who has observed a Torah life style his entire life tends to coast spiritually. He takes the level of his relationship with G-d for granted, and is not driven to make up for lost time and undo past wrongs in the same sense that a Baal Teshuva is. Someone who repents out of Ahava, love of G-d, suffers remorse for the portion of his life that has been wasted, and for past behavior. This guilt conscience and sense of revulsion sensed by the Baal Teshuva regarding his earlier life style is an emotion which the Tzadik Gamur does not posses and it is an emotion which serves as powerful motivation to constantly push the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 91
Baal Teshuva to ever higher rungs of spirituality. In this sense the willful sins of the past are recast as spiritual merits which raise the Baal Teshuva to greater spiritual heights than achievable even by a . As it is common to take religion and relationship with G-d for granted for those who have always been fortunate enough to be raised in a religious environment, it is even more common to take our health and longevity for granted if we have always been blessed with good health. Inevitably the appreciation of life and living each new day is not the same for someone who does not consider the alternatives to being healthy, vibrant, and energetic as it is for someone who has been diagnosed with a fatal disease and a poor prognosis. I don't think there are necessarily a lot of Tzadikim Gemurim in our community, but we do have bli ayin hara many Baalei Teshuva individuals who tasted the temptations of a lifestyle without Torah for many years or many decades of their early life and then consciously came to the conclusion that there may be something better in life than cheeseburgers, Saturday afternoon sporting events, and the pursuit of physical pleasures. Even within the special spiritual plateau of Baalei Teshuva that Rabbi Abahu singles out, in my mind, Rafael David Hyman has always occupied a special place among people who made such a 180 degree turn in their lives. He and tibadel lchayim his Eishes Chayil Ruth, succeeded quickly in becoming such respected and beloved members, indeed pillars, of our community. The journey of a Baal Teshuva is not an easy one. The spiritual journey Lech Lecha M'Artzecha U'memoladetecha, u'm'Beis avicha of abandoning the place, the values, and the social connections of one's youth often scars one's personality and strains one's family relationships. Rafael David Hyman truly stood out as a role model for both Baalei Teshuva and for those who might consider themselves to be "frum from birth". He was a role model in being non-judgmental. He was a role model in making efforts to acquire knowledge, in striving for growth, and in seeking the Truth. He was a role model for community involvement and communal leadership. He was a role model for family values and for building a . And if Rafael David was an inspiration and a source of admiration to us all in the years of his health and his vigor, how much more was he such in these last years of his medical challenges. I am in awe of his courage, his determination, his ability to be optimistic to grow spiritually, and to help and want to help others grow spiritually with him from his challenges. Raphael Dovid does not need my words of eulogy to memorialize him. His inspirational online Journal speaks for itself. Perhaps that too was part of his "estate planning". In lieu of reading a mussar sefer, in lieu of focusing on our own aches and pains, trials and tribulations let us pledge to read and re-read his inspiring words and be inspired by the memory of this most memorable individual.
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Eulogy For Mother -- 4 Tishrei 5772 / October 2 2011

Thirty one years ago, Bein Keseh l'Asar (between Rosh HaShannah and Yom Kippur), my grandmother Sima Esther Ketzlach died at age 88. My grandmother was the matriarch of the Steinberg family a pillar of Seattle's Orthodox Jewish community. This was a role she inherited from her mother, Chaya Tziviya Steinberg of blessed memory and it is a legacy and title she passed on to my mother who another cousin accurately described as "The glue who holds our family together." My mother followed in the footsteps of her grandmother and mother in life and she has followed in the footsteps of her mother in death as well, expiring peacefully in the Kline Galland Home at age 88, Bein Keseh l'Asar. I began my eulogy of "Baba" in 1980 with the following words: "The 10 days between Rosh Hashonnah and Yom Kippur are a time for return to G-d. From the earliest days of our history, it has been a time for the Jew to come closer to his Creator. Unfortunately for many of us, the return to G-d during this time is a very temporary experience; the Teshuva mood captures us for an hour, a day, perhaps 10 days at best; and then we slip back to our mundane existence. My grandmother, Sima Esther Ketzlach, may she rest in peace, has returned to her Creator for the final time, this week. The Eternal return to G-d. As we all brace ourselves for the approach of the holy Day of Atonement; my grandmother has achieved the universal atonement brought about by death." The same may be said about her daughter. A friend of mine commented to me yesterday: "Well David, this has been expected for a long time, it has probably not come as a shock." I responded that I have been expecting the Moshiach for a long time, but when he will actually arrive I will be ecstatic. Likewise I have been expecting this day for a long time, but its arrival leaves me devastated. Despite the trying circumstances I will try to convey as best as I can some of the "Rabbos Machshovas b'lev ish" -- some of the many thoughts that come into a son's mind at a time such as this. Solomon tells us A generation comes and a generation goes and the world exists forever. [Koheles 1:4]. The Talmud notes that each generation has its own sets of challenges and its own set of standards. Each generation has unique values and attitudes and that each generation is given leaders and challenges appropriate to their time and their era. )( , )( ]:, ] " My mothers generation was a generation faced with many challenges and difficulties spiritual as well as material that were totally unknown to my generation. She was born in 1923 in Seattle, as a first generation American to parents whose families presumably were living in Eastern Europe (Russia in the case of my grandparents the Ketzlachs and the Steinbergs) for hundreds of years, scores of generations. The move to America was no doubt traumatic and spiritually challenging for my grandparents generation. They came with little in the way of financial resources; they did not know the language or the customs of the new country. While Jewish observance was the unquestioned norm in the small villages most of my grandparents generation came from, many immigrants abandoned willingly or reluctantly -- centuries of tradition soon after arriving on these shores due to a variety of financial, social, and psychological pressures. But if the melting pot of America was a challenge to the immigrant generation who yet had the groundings of a strong Jewish upbringing in their youth in the old country it was even more challenging for that the first generation of Americans of which my mother was a part. This, now departing, generation of the children of immigrants born in the 1920s in this country grew up in the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 93
Great Depression. But it was not only a time of financial depression it was a time -- from the perspective of my generation and certainly the generation of my children and grandchildren -- of great spiritual depression as well. Think of all the Jewish institutions and literature and media and infrastructure that we now have locally, nationally, and globally to give us spiritual strength and Jewish pride that were non-existent and not even dreamed of back then. My mothers generation did not have any of that growing up and perhaps not surprisingly demographically and statistically this population cohort of first generation American Jews experienced a Yiddishkeit collapse as dramatic as anything that happened on Wall Street in 1929 in terms of observance of Kashrus, Shabbos, Yom Tov, Synagogue attendance, in fact of any parochial vestige of life in the old country. For a tragically high percentage of my mothers generation, the millennia-old chain of of generation-to-generation transmission of Jewish history, Jewish religion, and Jewish tradition from parents to children was broken. What this generation saw in their childhood homes was no longer seen by their children in the homes they would create in this country. Baruch Hashem for my sake, for my sisters sakes, for my nieces sake, for my children sakes and for my grandchildrens sake my mother together with her life partner my father of blessed memory -- did not let the 4 millennia unbroken chain of Jewish tradition and Jewish observance end with their parents generation. My parents were children of immigrants who not only wanted better for their children than they had financially and socially they wanted better Jewish education and a better Jewish communal infrastructure for their children as well. They worked individually and as a husband and wife unit to build and create that infrastructure, to support the pillars of a Jewish world in this new country so that their children and other peoples children would have it better and easier Jewishly and spiritually in America than they had it when they were growing up. The pillars of the Jewish world are of course Torah, Avodah, and Gemillas Chassadim. Educational Institutions, Synagogues, and Social Welfare institutions. My mother contributed to building and maintaining each of these pillars throughout the prime of her life and beyond. Torah: My parents were among pioneer founders of the movement to take my mothers alma mater -the Seattle Talmud Torah to the next level. They were following in the footsteps of other Jewish pioneers before them blazing a new trail of Jewish educational experience for youth in the wilderness of mid-20th century Jewish America where no such trail existed before them. By the time I graduated 9th grade of the Seattle Hebrew Day School in 1963 my parents had worked their way to the top. Not financially, not climbing to the top of the social ladder, but to the top of the ladder of commitment to Jewish Day School education in Seattle. My father was president of the Day School that year and my mother was president of the PTA. In her last years in Kline Galland Mom used to repeat a number of things over and over. One of the things she was fond of saying was that she was proud that all her children and all her grandchildren graduated from the Seattle Hebrew Academy. We stopped reminding her that her youngest granddaughter is now a student not at SHA but at a very wonderful Jewish Day School in New Jersey founded by my brother-in-law Rabbi Benjamin Yudin, but that is really beside the point. As a payback for all those years of investment of working on Car Raffles and Bazaars and Journals, and this rummage sale and that Bartons candy sale, this Board Meeting or that Board Meeting my parents were to have children who had a better Jewish education than they had and grandchildren who had better Jewish education than their children and great grandchildren who are receiving yet an even better Jewish education than their grandchildren. Rabbi Berrel Wein once said that the litmus test of whether a Jewish person can say they have faithfully Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 94
transmitted the ( Tradition) from one generation to the next is if he or she can answer affirmatively the question would my grandparents be able to recognize my grandchildren as Jews? My mother could certainly pass that test. As I mentioned before, My mother had a very close affinity with her maternal grandmother, Mrs. Chaya Tzivia Steinberg and indeed entitled her 2 volume memoir which she wrote after my fathers passing In the Footsteps of My Grandmother. It is clear from where she got her inspiration and commitment to pass on to the next generation a love of Torah, a love of Avodah, and a love of Gemillas Chassadim. My mother was blessed with bli ayin harah 6 grandchildren and 20 grandchildren who would be recognized as Jews instantaneously by Chaya Tzivia Steinberg (or any of their other great-grandparents) because my mother indeed walked in her footsteps and inspired her children and grandchildren to do likewise. Avodah. My mother was not from the generation of women who prayed daily, but she had a fierce loyalty to Congregation Bikur Cholim, an institution more than any other -- that she identified herself with for close to 9 decades. She was very active in the Sisterhood in her prime and in the Sisterhoods prime (and it is perhaps not coincidental that those primes very much overlap). She was very proud that my father, and her uncle Rueben and her cousin Sheldon as well as her 3rd Generation Steinberg cousin Louis Treiger all served with distinction as presidents of the shul. As long as she could, she faithfully attended every Shabbos and Yom Tov morning service, walking up the steep hills from her beloved home on Morgan Place, sometimes even in icy weather. Even in Kline Galland her favorite part of the week was coming to shul and even if she slept at the end through most of the davening it gave her a great spiritual and emotional lift to know that she was again able to go to shul every week, after not having been able to do so for a number of years. Gemillas Chassadim My mother was a professional Gomel Chessed meaning she worked professionally as a Social Worker. Indeed she was the founding social worker of the University of Washington's Department of Family Medicine. She loved her profession and she was loved by her coworkers and by her clients. My mother was very active for many years in the Ladies Hebrew Free Load society. I remember many meetings at our home at 3217 (Lev Tov) E. Spring St. and the great compassion and empathy that she brought to the organization dedicated to this tremendous mitzvah. My mother loved family. She of course loved very much her children and her grandchildren and was always forgiving and forgetting (even in her younger years) of any shortcomings on their part. But frankly all mothers love children and grandchildren. When I say my mother loved family I mean she loved extended family uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews, cousins and cousins cousins and inlaws of cousins cousins and she loved inviting them over and entertaining for them. Mishpacha was a holy word to her. This too,, she picked up from her grandmother. One owes so much to ones mother that it is literally impossible to ever do her justice in a final eulogy. This is especially true if we are talking about a eulogy delivered at the time of a funeral, a short time after her passing, and perhaps a long time after she was in her prime and made the formative impression on her children that molded them into who they are today. This is perhaps even more the case if ones mother was blessed with Arichat Yamim (long life) and merited to reach the stage in life of becoming an old Jewish mother. My mother was blessed with that Arichat Yamim and did merit reaching that stage in life. Before mentioning some attributes of an old Jewish mother, I would like to say the following: My mother told me many times when I was younger that she would be very happy for me to follow in the footsteps of her brother Norman and attend the University of Washington. But to her credit she Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 95
ultimately took pride in my decision to follow in her footsteps and take my level of Talmud Torah to the next level by going out of town to attend Yeshiva University. She and my father supported that decision emotionally and financially and my mother especially enjoyed (certainly in her later years) being able to introduce me as my son the Rabbi. The Talmud teaches that one needs to give more honor to ones Torah teacher than to ones parents because the parents only brought him into this world and the Torah teacher brings him into the superior Next World. However the commentaries say that where parents pay for the Yeshiva tuition of the child they are entitled to honor for being responsible for both bringing the child into this world as well as the next. In this sense, my parents certainly deserve every bit as much honor and reverence as I have for my very esteemed teachers from my Yeshiva days. On that note, I would like to close with a relevant story from those marvelous days when I was privileged to be a student in the classroom of my very esteemed teacher Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, ztl. One of the students asked the Rav one of those difficult Why? questions about Halacha which are usually not dealt with as part of the traditional Yeshiva curriculum. I believe it was a question relating somehow to why is such and such a person not allowed to get married to someone he loves, just because his parent or grandparent had an improper relationship? The Rav paused and gave my classmate the following answer: Halacha is like an Old Jewish Mother. She may tell us things that we dont like to hear, she may say things that are not politically correct and seem to be out of touch with current thinking. But she is honest, truthful, and forthright in what she tells us. We love her. We owe our very existence to her. She is the only mother weve ever had and never in a million years would we be willing to trade her for anyone elses mother. This simile between halacha and an Old Jewish mother has been helpful to me over the years, both in dealing with difficult issues in halacha and in dealing with difficult issues with an aging mother. I am very grateful that my mother through the decisions she made, the actions she took throughout her life, and the role-model she has been for all of us has allowed me and my sisters, my children and grandchildren, in the spirit of to follow in the footsteps of our parents and grandparents and our parents grandparents before them so that even though , one generation is passing on - it is in the case of my mother a generation which has been able to remain a link in the chain of tradition of one generation to the next passes on the praises of the ways of G-d.
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Grandma by Moshe Twesky

It is difficult for me to put down on paper, memories and feelings of Grandma. She was someone I was so close to throughout my childhood, and truly a major part of my early development; nurturing me with love and affection, as only a grandmother does. I will try however, to expand upon some of the points Aba mentioned in his eulogy, from the vantage point of retrospect, from a grandson who has spent his years of young adulthood living far away from Grandma, enjoying only occasional visits and phone calls. Growing up, I had the attitude that all the love and care I got from Grandma was just like every grandmother loves and cares for her grandchildren. I now realize how Grandma was really a unique and special person. In truth, every person is unique in their own special way, but what makes a person truly special is when they develop their unique qualities and character strengths to positively influence every part of their lives. "tell us that every person's soul is a . Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe Ztzl in his classic work, , explains this to mean, that each person's soul in it's deepest level is rooted in one of the attributes of Hashem. Each person's job, during their duration in this world, is to properly personify and express this Godly quality he or she has been given. Some have the task of standing up for the truth, some the task of being kind and caring, etc. The focal point of the Selichos we recite from the Motzay Shabbos before Rosh Hashana through Yom Kippur, is the recitation of the thirteen attributes of mercy. Each one of these thirteen is a topic of discussion for itself, but what I believe is appropriate to discuss now is the difference between the attributes of and ,Merciful and Gracious. The Ramchal explains in Mesilas Yesharim, that is not a contradiction to ,truthful justice, it works within the letter of the law and is a system of judgment that looks favorably at what has actually been done. , on the other hand, does not work within at all, it is the graciousness of Hashem giving out free gifts. As we said on the first night of Selichos: . , , ', From long ago you prepared a way to escape from tight situations, by being graciously granted free gifts from your guarded storehouse [of kindness]...So we turn to you to be treated with grace, for free. At first glance, it seems contradictory to the entire Day of Judgment to ask Hashem to grace us with free gifts of kindness, and in fact, we do not recite Selichos on Rosh Hashana for that very reason, because we are to the best of our ability trying to earn our good judgment. However, there is one point our Rosh Hashana tefilah that we allude to this alternate method of being inscribed in the book of life. After each time we blow the Shofar during the chazan's repetition of Musaf, we say: , , . , , . '; " Today the world was created. Today all creatures will stand in judgment, whether like sons or like servants. If like sons, have mercy on us like a father has mercy on his children, and if like servants, our eyes are cast upon you until you reveal our verdict. There are two ways in which Hashem gives life and all good things. Some people are issued a verdict based on a judgment of their actions, while others are treated like family, and given a gift of life, such as a father would give his child. How tight-nit or loosely defined this family will be, is based on the extent that Hashem exercises this attribute of ,graciousness. Will it only be the immediate family or will it even include the cousin's cousins and their in-laws. We therefor daven to Hashem [before and after Rosh Hashana] that he should treat us with ,and do what we can to in fact portray ourselves
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as " ," part of The Family. Additionally, a very effective tool to evoke this divine attribute of ,is to practice it oneself; Hashem treats us , measure for measure. To me personally, Grandma has always been a personification of this attribute of .First of all, she was always looking for opportunities to shower us with Grandmotherly love. But aside from that, I saw in her a love and desire to to be giving to family and community; always pushing the definition of family and community to their limits. How she enjoyed hosting family get-togethers for the extended family was known to all. But I believe this character trait expressed itself in many other ways. Grandma always took pride in the accomplishments of members of the community as if they were her own. She didn't just look at as someone else's accomplishment, it was something for her to be proud of, to praise and to boast of, because he was a member of our shul, because he lived in Seattle, or because he went to her Alma Matter. In a similar vein, my childhood memories are dotted with episodes of different Jewish members of the U.W. Medical School staff, or visiting Israeli Doctors, being invited to Grandma & Grandpa's house. It was always with a sense of comradeship, giving them the heimish'e feeling that you can be be comfortable in our home because you're one of us. I believe it was this same character trait of graciousness, developed in yet another venue, that made Grandma so positive all the time. She was constantly showering people with compliments and focusing on the good in everything, even in situations when most people would focus on the bad. She created a warm atmosphere wherever she was. Grandma continues to be for me, and for so many others who knew her, a role model and a personification of graciousness. May we all merit to emulate her, and thus receive a great dose of graciousness from the , The Almighty who is Merciful and Gracious.
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A Grandsons Memories by Alex Twersky

Having moved from Seattle to Israel over 15 years ago, with only a few short visits home, I must admit that it is a challenge for me to jog my memory for specific stories of my Grandma that stand out in my mind. It is with mixed emotions that I make this confession. On one hand, it was always difficult feeling separated from Grandma, especially during the last few years when the phone conversations were a bit one-sided. But on the other hand, I am able to see the blessing in disguise, knowing that my memories from these past 15 years would not compare to those of the first 15 plus years of my life. I always felt growing up, that Grandma and I had a very special relationship. I am sure that with every grandchild who is privileged to have such a terrific grandmother (who spoils them with love, presents and great food), it is very easy to fall in love with their grandma. But in my case, it was more than that. Our personalities really clicked. I recall going over to her house down the hill, as a young child, and sitting with Grandma and schmoozing about I dont know what (I am sure at the time, I knew about what). Looking backwards, I think what left the strongest impression on me (from those conversations), is not from the content of the discussions, but rather from the special bond that came from them. I recall my grandmother as a lady that was very determined. She had her feelings and beliefs about how things should be and would know how to meet her goals. On many occasions, I remember being shocked upon witnessing how she single-handedly put together family parties in the most lavish way for over 40 people and at the same time keep her cool and enjoy her company the entire time. Today I realize that such a feat only comes from great organization and planning, a lot of hard work and a heart of gold. It was always clear that Grandma lived for those get-togethers, her faced glowed, literally, when we were all together in her dining room. Similarly, I remember fondly, the Sunday morning Men Club breakfasts and the Sephardic bazaars where we always had a great time together loading up on Sephardic delicacies. From this too, I gained much more than just delicious food and exciting entertainment that came along with those experiences. I gained nachas from my grandmother. I remember feeling chashuv coming in with her, knowing that as soon as we entered, we would receive a grand welcome greeting from all her friends and fellow members of the community who looked up to her with great respect. Her upbeat, cheerful and warm personality blended beautifully with her natural desire to constantly help and show concern for others. Grandma had a special way of making deep impressions on people. A little more than a year ago, I needed to visit a doctor in Yerushalayim. When I told him my name, he immediately surprised me by asking Are you related to Reva Twersky? After responding that I am indeed her grandson, he excitedly related to me how he had stayed at my grandmothers house more than 45 years ago when he was visiting the University of Washington for post-doctoral classes. He explained that although he initially meet her in a professional setting (through her social work job), when she saw the opportunity of helping another Jew who needed a place to stay, she immediately opened up her home for him and provided him with his needs. Although more than 40 years went by since his trip to Seattle, his memories from receiving such special hospitality stuck with him and he still remains grateful. Grandma used to always take pride in the Seattle Jewish community. I believe that she called it the Jerusalem of America. I detect that behind these feelings of proudness, were even stronger feelings of accomplishment, knowing that she played a large role in helping shape the beautiful reputation that the community made for itself. As I continue writing, more ideas and memories keep on popping into my mind.remembering our trips to Vancouver, Disney Land and other places and of course our shopping sprees in her famous Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 99
Nordstroms.her wealthy cleaning lady (I think Gladus) that would drive up in her Caddilac and although she must have been in her 60s, she seemed to have no greater joy than cleaning Grandmas house. I never was fazed by that. It fit perfectly with my image of having a truly royal Grandma. To close, I thought that it would be appropriate to share a small thought that relates to Aseres Yemei Teshuva that can hopefully provide us with some additional nechama. The Chassam Sofer writes in one of his Shabbos Shuva drashas that when Chazal tell us that during these days, the Sifrei Chaim and Sifrei Maysim are opened, the words are to be understood literally. In addition to having a sefer opened for judging the living, a second sefer is opened for judging those who already passed on. He explains that while the living are able to be judged according to their own actions and merits, the maysim are able to be judged based on the effects that they left on this world. Each year, they receive the dividends on their investments. I can imagine that during these past few years, due to her aging, my grandmother was pained greatly by not having the opportunity to continue the acts of chessed that she used to accomplish. However, this year, as we approach the special Day of Atonment, Grandma will finally be able to see how wealthy she is in merits from the precious legacy that she passed on to her entire family and community. May she be a meilitz yosher on behalf of all of us to help our prayers be answered, that we should always continue to follow in her footsteps in pursuing life with true Torah values and goals.
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Maryas Speech at Moms Funeral

I was planning to speak at length about my wonderful, warm, caring, hospitable, special Mom whom I loved dearly, but I am finding it hard to express my feelings, at this time. What I would like to say is that my mom always made us feel loved and special. By us, I mean her family: her children, her daughter-in-law, son-in-law, her grandchildren and great grandchildren, her nieces and nephews and their children and all her many cousins (1st, 2nd and 3rd). She loved all her family and we all loved her. We will all miss my Mom. Id like to share with you at this time a speech written by my daughter, Ora, which I think best illustrates these feelings of love.
Oras Speech at Grandmas Funeral (Read by her mother, Marya Twersky)

I am really sorry that I wasnt able to be here today. Thank you, Mommy, for reading my speech for me. Id like to share with you a poem that I wrote about my grandmother when I was in 4th grade. My Grandma By Ora Friedman Sweet Kind Caring Loving That is what she is. Happy Helpful Fun Loves me That is what she is. As sweet as a piece of cake. As happy as a cheery clown. As fun as eating a piece of cake. That is what I remember about her now. I loved my grandma so much. I always loved spending time with her, seeing her, talking to her, singing to her, and playing cards with her. My grandmother always used to count the days until wed be in Seattle, and I would do the same. I remember when we came to see her. She always used to greet me with a big, warm hug and sweet kisses. She always had a big smile on her face, seeing me and I had a big smile on my face, seeing her. She would always say how I was the light of her life and the apple of her eye. I also really enjoyed talking to her on the phone and writing her letters. She would keep an Ora drawer full of my letters and I kept a Grandma drawer filled with her letters. I would sing to her over the phone, and Grandma would really enjoy it. Every week before Shabbos, we would call Grandma and I would sing her Shabbat Shalom. I got to talk to her before Rosh Hashana. I sang to her. She also told me that she was so lucky to have me as her granddaughter, and I told her that I was so lucky to have her as my grandma. I love my grandma so much! She was a really special person, and a true Aishes Chayil. I feel tremendously blessed that I had her as my grandmother. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 101
Reva Ketzlach Twersky May 8, 1923September 30, 2011 JT News Obituary
Reva Ketzlach Twersky, 88, a Seattle native, passed away peacefully at the close of the Jewish New Year, in the Kline Galland Home. She is survived by son Rabbi David Twersky of Seattle and daughters Judy Twersky of Forest Hills, N.Y. and Marya Twersky of Fair Lawn, N.J. She had six grandchildren and 20 great grandchildren all of whom she was very proud. She was preceded in death by more than 20 years by the love of her life, Meyer Twersky, a communal leader and son of the Talner Rebbe of Philadelphia. Mrs. Twersky was a life-long member, regular worshipper and active Sisterhood worker at Congregation Bikur Cholim Machzikay Hadath. She was a dedicated parent, volunteer, and PTA president at the Seattle Hebrew Day School (Academy) and was active in the (Womens) Hebrew Free Loan Society, Mizrachi Women (AMIT), and the Washington State Jewish Historical Society. Reva was a proud alumnus of the Seattle Talmud Torah, Garfield High School (where she was honored by the Garfield Golden Grads for lifetime achievement), and the University of Washington (from which she earned her MSW and was a founding social worker at the UW School of Family Medicine at University Hospital.) She loved family and was considered to be the matriarch of the Steinberg-Ketzlach-Treiger-Elyn families who were and are pioneers and leaders within Seattles Jewish community. She authored a twovolume memoir entitled In the Footsteps of My Grandmother, referring to her grandmother and rolemodel, Chaya Tsivya (Anna) Steinberg (in whose home Reva was born), who died in 1944. The family suggests that donations be made to Congregation BCMH, the Seattle Hebrew Academy, or the Northwest Yeshiva High School.
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Other People's Simchas
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Wedding of Mark Kravette and Marlene Kaplan

September 7, 2003 I want to thank Mark and Marlene for asking me to speak at their wedding. I have spoken at many life cycle events in my life ranging from Sholom Zachors / Brisim & Pidyon HaBens to Bar Mitavahs to Sheva Brochos to milestone birthday parties to Funerals, Shiva Minayanim, Sholoshim ceremonies, and Tombstone unveilings. But this is the first time I am actually speaking at someone's wedding so I thank you for giving me this opportunity. Speaking of firsts, Marlene and Mark's wedding invitation marked another first for me. We always speak of the goal of a Jewish marriage being the establishment of a "faithful house in Israel" which will be characterized by Tzedakah and Chessed. The classic Bayis Ne'eman b'Yisrael is one in which a husband and wife ask not only what they can do for each other, but they rather ask what together they can do to sanctify the name of G-d and to make the community in which they live and the world in general a better place to be. Typical of this very special couple is the fact that they are the first couple I've ever seen that used the instrument of their wedding invitation to make an appeal for donations to a Torah institution -- namely the Seattle Kollel -- in lieu of wedding presents. What a beautiful way to get the establishment of a Bayis Ne'eman off on the right foot. But as I said Mark and Marlene are a very special couple. And then again when a podiatrist marries a lawyer, you might expect them to get the marriage off on the right foot with some kind of an appeal. Marlene mentioned when she asked me to say a Dvar Torah that she felt it was significant that she and Mark were getting married in the month of Elul which our Sages note can be read as an acronym for the expression Ani L'dodi V'Dodi Li -- (I am to my Beloved and my Beloved is to Me). I would like to comment on that significance. But first I would like to quote a Gemara that appears on the opening folio of Tractate Sotah. The Gemara states that when Reish Lakish would teach tractate Sotah he would introduce his discussion with the teaching that "Ayn mezavgin lo l'adam isha elah lifi ma'sav" When matches are made for man (in heaven) he is only paired with a woman he deserves based on his actions". (Rashi states by way of example:: a modest woman will go to a righteous man and an immodest woman will go to a wicked man). The Gemara goes on to question Reish Lakish's statement from another famous teaching -- that of Rav Yehudah in the name of Rav who taught that forty days before the formation of an embryo a heavenly voice goes out and declares that the daughter of so and so will be married to so and so. The thrust of the question -- Rashi explains -- is how can we say that a man merits a wife according to his actions -- whether he will be righteous or wicked -- if the decision has already been made before he was even born. Before a person is born it is not known what kind of wife he will deserve. It is not preordained whether a person will be righteous or wicked. So how can Heaven preordain his wife if she is given him based on his actions? The Gemara answers -- Lo Kashya ha b'zug rishon, ha b'zug sheni. There is no contradiction. The one statement refers to a first marriage, the other statement refers to a second marriage. In other words, the first marriage is pre-ordained not based on what a person deserves by his actions. It is just decreed in heaven based on some Heavenly calculation, much along the lines of the Gemara in Niddah which states that it is decreed whether a person will be strong or weak, wise or foolish, rich or poor. Reish Lakish, however was referring to a second marriage -- that match is arranged based on giving each party what they deserve as a result of their actions at the time the match takes place. Now I know there may be some people in the audience who are currently married to their first spouse and hearing me quote this Gemara may be thinking to themselves "perhaps I really deserve better than I've got. Maybe I should try for a Zivug Sheni." I must caution you that I have been quoting primarily Rashi's interpretation. There are a variety of interpretations to this Gemara. . So don't make any final decisions about these matters without consulting your local halachic authority.
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But for purposes of Drush, I think it safe to say, that for Mark and Marlene this is truly a shidduch where Heaven has given the parties each other based on their actions and based on what they deserve. Mark and Marlene in recent years first independently and now in partnership have strengthened their connection to the Torah community in Seward Park; have grown in their awareness of and respect for halachic standards and practices; and have demonstrated a sincerity, an inquisitiveness, and a desire to learn and to grow that are the hallmarks of mature Baaley Teshuvah. But while Mark and Marlene might look up to many of the Rabbis and Torah teachers in this community as their role models or mentors when it comes to Mitzvos bein Adam L'Makom (the commands between man and G-d), I am sure that I am not alone in saying that many of us look up to them as incredible role models and mentors when it comes to Ahavas Chessed to generosity of their time and their resources in all aspects of Mitzvos bein Adam L'Chaveiro (the commands to help out one's fellow man) -- on both a communal and an individual level. It is at this point that I would like to return to the verse of Ani L'Dodi v'Dodi Li. Our Sages say not only that the first letters of the words in this verse allude to the month of Elul, but they also point out that the last letters in each word of this verse (the four yuds) sum to the number 40 which represents the 40 days between Rosh Chodesh Elul and Yom Kippur. These forty days are a period of closeness and intimacy where a Jew can call out to G-d and expect that He will answer. There are many Medrashim that metaphorically speak of the Giving of the Torah on Shavuos as a wedding between G-d and the Jewish people. HaKadosh Baruch Hu was the Chattan and Am Yisrael were the Kallah. However, I believe it could be argued, that if Matan Torah on Shavuos was like a wedding between G-d and the Jewish people it was like Zivug Rishon -- the 'first match'. It was like Zivug Rishon because in a way it was preordained Arbaim Yom Kodem Yetziras Havelad. The Medrash Tanchuma cites on the verse vaYehi Erev vaYehi Boker yom haShishi. That from the Sixth Day of Creation it was already preordained that for the world to continue in existence, Israel must accept the Torah on the Sixth Day of Sivan. Indeed the Zivug Rishon was almost like a shot-gun wedding "Kafa aleihem har k'gigis" (The mountain was suspended over them with a threat -- accept the Torah now or you will all be buried right here). In this Zivug Rishon, unfortunately the honeymoon was a very short one. The sad tale of the Golden Calf jeopardized the entire relationship. But HaKadosh Baruch Hu gave us a second chance. There was a Zivug Sheni, a second marriage whose courtship flourished during the period of Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li and which was characterized by Teshuva and Ma'sim Tovim such that the relationship would be established according to the actions of man. The consummation of this courtship took place on Yom Kippur which was the date when Moshe descended with the Second and Final Set of Luchos and which marked the permanent relationship between Yisrael, v'Oraysa, v'Kudsha Berich hu -- Israel ,the Torah and the Holy One Blessed be He. It is the re-enactment of this period of courtship and consummation that Jews practice in the 40 days between Rosh Chodesh Elul and Yom Kippur in each and every year. It is my bracha to and prayer for the Chosson and Kallah that they find much happiness together; that they continue to deserve and be worthy of each other; that they continue to grow and be inspired by the Kollel and by the Rabbis and Torah Teachers of this community and that they continue to inspire us with the tremendous manifestations of Ahavas Chessed and communal concern for which they are both our role models. It is my bracha to and prayer for all of us gathered that we should seize the opportunity of the days of Ani L'Dodi V'Doi Li to re-establish a Zivug Sheni with HaKodesh Baruch Hu -- may it be like the Zivug of the Chosson and Kallah one which we are deserving of and one which will be permanent and everlasting. Mazal Tov.
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Sheva Brochos of Ora and Leiby Ritholtz

It is with a feeling of great pleasure and nostalgia that I wish Mazal Tov to my good friends Michael and Esther Friend on the marriage of their first child, Orah. It seems like only yesterday that I remember the announcement from the BCMH pulpit wishing Mazal Tov to Jack and Ruth Genauer on the forthcoming marriage of their daughter Esther and the wish that she should find much happiness and make a lot of new Friends in her forthcoming marriage. I've known the father of the Kallah since we were classmates in Rabbi Parnes' shiur in YU, almost 38 years ago. I won't embarrass the mother of the Kallah by saying how long I've known her. Suffice it to say that I am in possession of some old home movies from one of my very early birthday parties where the 2 uncles of the Kallah were present as well as the grandmother of the Kallah, wearing maternity clothing. Over the years I have had the opportunity to speak at a number of Sheva Brochos of Seattle youth who recently got married and were about to begin a new life and to form their own link on the holy shalsheles haDoros, the chain of generations of Klal Yisrael spanning from Biblical times onward toward the Messianic future. Each such event is filled with its own blend of pleasure and nostalgia. But this particular couple is one of a very select subset of these new marriages that I feel deserves special mention. Of all the Sheva Brochos I have spoken at over the years this is the sixth time I have been invited to give Torah Brochos to a young Seattle Chosson or Kallah about to begin their married life in Eretz Yisrael, in Yerushalyim with the Choson learning in Kollel. I think this is a great tribute to the young men and women involved and I dare say that it is a tribute to the communal infrastructure that has been put in place here that makes it possible to raise children in Seattle who might choose such a spiritually ambitious path for their lives. For sure it is a great tribute to the members of the older generations who have helped put such an infrastructure in place and the Kallah's parents as well as her extended family certainly have played and continue to play a major role in this connection. Public speakers like myself like to look for Remazim in numbers. The number six of course represents Sishsa Sidrei Mishneh the six order of the Oral Law. What more appropriate number can there be to capture the ideals and goals embodied by such a noble plan of action to start off one's married life than the number 6 that represents the corpus of orally transmitted Torah knowledge from one generation to the next. What beautiful symbolism there is in setting the foundation of a Bayis Ne'eman b'Yisrael by immersing oneself in the study of the Torah and in a Torah life style symbolized by the Mesiras Nefesh so typical of the many young Kollel families that have placed spiritual priorities above materialistic goals. So Leiby and Orah are the sixth of the Six orders of Mishneh represented by the six Seattle-rooted couples that have chosen the path of Ki Mi'Tzion Tezeh Torah beginning their married life as a Kollel couple in Yerushalayim. The sixth Order of Mishneh is of course Seder Taharos the order of purity. I must admit, that when I spoke at the Sheva Brochos of the fourth such couple, I did not try to find any homiletic interpretation between the marriage of the couple and Seder Nezikin. But under the circumstances, I cannot resist noting how appropriate it is to have the beginning of one's marriage symbolized by Seder Taharos. Taharas HaMishpacha is of course the foundation of the spiritual component that sanctifies a Jewish marriage and the Tahara inherent in the lifestyle of a young Kollel couple living in Ir HaKodesh is a very special zechus for both the young couple themselves, for the previous generations that merited Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 108
raising such children, and most importantly for the future generations who will be brought into a world and environment where Torah values and Torah commitment reign supreme. In the final brocha of Sheva Brochos we link our prayers for the joy of the Choson and Kallah with our prayers for the speedy rebuilding of Jerusalem. We say in Tehillim [122:3] that "The Rebuilt Jerusalem will be like a city joined together" Yerushalayim haBenuayah k'ir she'chubrah lah yachdav. The linkage between marriage and the rebuilt Jerusalem and the reference to the rebuilt Jerusalem as a city joined together, of course brings to mind the verse in Bereshis where the concept of marriage is first mentioned: "Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother and cling to his wife v'hayu l'basar echad and they will become one flesh. This idea of v'hayu l'basar echad relates not only to their being united in their children, but that the two must form a single unit. Rabbi Abraham Twerski writes in Twerski On Chumash (Parshas Behaloscha): When husband and wife each have their own agenda, each seeking to achieve his or her own goals, the marriage is not a unit. Such relationships are vulnerable to fracture when stressed. In chemistry, there is a difference between a "mixture" and a "compound". Salt that had been dissolved in water is a mixture. The water can be separated off by evaporation, and the salt then emerges in its original form. Neither element undergoes an essential change in a mixture. In a compound say of hydrogen and oxygen -- the two elements combine in specific proportions, they form water, a new substance which although comprised of the two, is an entity in its own right. As separate elements, oxygen and hydrogen have their own natures, which are very different. When they unite, they are divested of their individual natures. The new compound, water, has only one nature. When man and woman join in a way that they are a single unit, the marriage becomes a compound instead of a mixture. It is then much more stable and durable. So Leiby and Ora, I am not telling you specifically to make a lot of new friends in your new home together, although I'm sure you will. But my Bracha to you is that you should go start your married life in Yerushalaym in a home that is filled with Ahavah, Achvah, Shalom and Reus. You should be zoche to grow together as a compound rather than a mixture. Your life together should be symbolized by water and ayn mayim ela Torah. Finally you should be zoche to raise a new generation in the Ir she'Chubrah lah yachdav. And may you be joined there by your parents and the rest of Klal Yisrael with the coming of the Moshiach b'Mherah b'Yamenu.
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Sheva Brohocs of Penina Hyman and Aryeh Zussman Sheva Brochos

February 5, 2009 In searching for an appropriate thought to say at a Sheva Brochos, I turned to my two favorite sources for profound Torah thoughts on the Parshas HaShavua my distant cousin, Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, and our close friend Rabbi Yissacher Frand. When I found the same thought of the Avnei Nezer (Rabbi Avrohom Borenstein, founder of the Socochov dynasty of Chassidism) quoted by both Rabbi Twerski on this week's Parsha, Parshas B'Shalach, and by Rabbi Frand on next week's parsha, Parshas Yisro I knew that it was Basherete that I should quote it at this event commemorating this most Basherte Simcha. The Torah tells us right after Sheni in Parshas B'Shalach: "14:9) "[ ) And Egypt pursued them and overtook them. The verbs used for pursued and overtook are conjugated in the plural, as we would expect. However in the very next verse, the Torah tells us " ( " And the children of Israel raised their eyes and behold Egypt was journeying after them). Here the Torah unexpectedly uses the singular form of the verb meaning journeying after them. Rashi explains based on the Mechilta that the point of the use of the singular verb is to teach us that the Egyptians pursued us unified in their goal. They pursued us With one heart as one individual. We have an almost identical homiletic exegesis (or as we say in mama lashon -- drush ) in Parshas Yisro by . There (Shmos 19: 1-2) the Torah teaches: They journeyed from Rephidim, and arrived in the wilderness, and encamped in the wilderness. Three times in a row the Torah uses the plural form of the verbs: . All of a sudden it says in the singular: and Israel camped (in the singular) opposite the mountain. Here again, Rashi citing the Mechilta teaches: they were unified, as one person with one heart. The Avnei Nezer cites these two Rashis and points out a subtle difference between them: In Parshas B'Shalach regarding the pursuing Egyptians Rashi says they came however in Yisro regarding the encampment by Mt. Sinai Rashi reverses the sequence and says . Why the change of order? Why is Rashi not consistent in explaining the idea of unity? Avnei Nezer gives a beautiful answer. The Mishneh tells us "Any love dependent on a tangible matter is destined to become nullified; any love independent of tangible matters is destined to last." [Avos 5:16] People can love based on a specific reason or agenda. One can fall in love with a person based on their money or beauty, but when the ulterior motive for establishing the relationship disappears, the love will disappear. If, on the other hand, the love and unity is not based on any specific trait or reason but is based on the people themselves that is love of a different magnitude. There can be unity among people for different reasons. Sometimes there is unity among people because they have the same agenda. The thing that binds us together is common purpose. Basically we hate each other, but if we have a common purpose we can put aside our differences and unite to achieve that common agenda. This is an application of the expression "politics makes strange bedfellows." Fundamentally these groups have totally opposite philosophies of life, but on one issue there can be unity and common purpose. For example, Orthodox Jewry has many differences with the Catholic Church but when it comes to the question of government aid for parochial schools we do share a common agenda. On this issue we are on the same side and we can work together in unison. The Egyptians formed this latter kind of coalition amongst one another. They all had one goal to recapture the escaping Jews, their former slaves. This is articulated in the expression "b'lev echad" (with Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 110
one heart). They had a common desire which created a unity that made them be "k'ish echad" (like one man). This is a very tenuous type of unity. This is contrasted with Israel's encampment opposite the mountain that Rashi describes beautifully as "k'ish ecahd, b'lev echad". There the unity was created because of commonality of the people themselves. Everyone felt they were brothers with each other. This was real unity not merely superficial joining to achieve a common agenda. This sense of identity of "k'ish echad" led of course to identity of purpose as well "b'lev ecahd". When a group of two or more individuals achieves a unity that transcends the practical coalitions of mutual interests and mutual needs, a unity of b'lev echad and moves into a deeper relationship where each component of that united entity is pained by the pain of the other part of the entity and likewise each component takes joy and pleasure in the joy and pleasure of the other component of that unified entity, then we are talking of the more noble unity an , ' a unity of . I think it is fair to say that all of us gathered here this evening experience the feeling of . when it comes to describing our relationship with the Hyman family. When they are in pain and suffering, we acutely feel that pain and suffering ourselves, and conversely when they experience joy and pleasure then we share in that joy and pleasure ourselves. It is for this reason that we are most grateful to the Almighty for giving us the privilege to share with David and Ruth the very special simcha they have been experiencing this past week and it is our hope and prayer that we shall yet be able to share future simchas together for many years to come. I would just like to conclude with a word directed to the Choson and Kallah, to Aryeh and Penina. And for that matter, Torah is compared to light and there is an idea that the same light that is beneficial to one person may be beneficial to a hundred people. And the same applies to a Dvar Torah. I understand that Avigail and Gavriel were disappointed that at the time of their Sheva Brochos some 3 years ago I was not up that night to speaking. So this thought is dedicated to both the newlyweds as well as to the young marrieds, as well as even perhaps to the old marrieds in the audience. It goes with out saying that a Choson and Kallah have a tremendous feeling of love for one another. We gloriously sing in the Sheva Brochos of the various manifestations of that love , However, after all is said and done, if truth be told, 99 times out of 100 the unity of a young Chosson and Kallah is the unity of They certainly feel a closeness and a conviction that they each can and will fulfill the needs and aspirations of each other, but ultimately this is an emotion that begins and sometimes even ends in the heart b'lev echad. It takes the life experience that only marriage can bring filled with high points as well as low points, satisfaction and joy as well disappointment and frustration shared over many years during good times and bad times to achieve the unity of two people who are dedicated to each other as well as being dedicated to common goals. Such experiences and such unity can bring a couple to the level that the Jewish people as a whole reached at Mt. Sinai the level of . May it be G-d's will that your marriage will constantly develop the unity between you, as you spend the first years of hopefully a long and happy marriage And may both young couples bring continued nachas to your parents from afar, even as you move away from them in fulfillment of the verse

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Getting The Last Word In At A Siyum
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Mishneh Yomi Siyum on Maseches Berochos

November 20, 2004
Tonight's Seudah Shlishis is in honor of the recent completion of by the Daf Yomi group as well as the recent completion of by the Mishneh Yomi group. Dr. Shlomo Goldberg -- who I can only characterize as a "Yomi Activtivist" has been a driving force in getting many people to participate in both the Daf Yomi and the Mishneh Yomi. He particularly wanted to give to people who have recently started learning Mishneh Yomi and is the prime organizer and sponsor of today's marking the conclusion of the first tractate of the new Mishneh Yomi cycle which began shortly after . I want to thank Dr. Goldberg for giving me the honor of saying a few words this evening. The Gemara in Yoma [35b 2/8/99] states that there are three people in the history of mankind that are going to make it very difficult for the rest of us in the world to come. We are all familiar with the famous Gemara in Shabbas [31a 12/30/97] that one of the first questions asked in the Judgment we will all be facing after 120 years is " -- "? have you set aside fixed for learning Torah? The Gemara in Yoma states that three people will be used by Heaven as the "gold standard" to dismiss frivolous excuses. . If someone tries to say he was too poor to learn Torah, the Heavenly Court will tell him you weren't as poor as Hillel who learned Torah regularly; if someone tries to say he was too rich and distracted by his business investments, the Heavenly Court will tell him you weren't as rich as R. Eliezer ben Charsom who learned Torah regularly; and if someone tries to say he was too distracted by women to learn Torah, the Heavenly Court will tell him you weren't more distracted than Yosef haTzadik who learned Torah regularly. Seattle Magazine recently ranked Dr. Shlomo Goldberg as one of the 100 best doctors in Seattle. I congratulate my cousin on this honor and its a good thing that he does such a good job in keeping people alive in this world because I think that like Hillel and R. Eliezer and Yosef HaTzadik he is going to be making it much more difficult for us in the world to come. I think if Ravina & Rav Ashi would come out with a 21st Century "Yearbook to the Talmud" they would update their list of and say that Dr. Goldberg , When professionals will come to the next world and tell the Heavenly Court they had no time to be because they were busy with their profession, the "Gold Standard" will be "Gold-berg". If this busy and successful oncologist who never learned in Kollel and does not come from an intensive Yeshiva background can find time to not only be but to also to organize and promote and sometimes even teach Daf Yomi and Mishneh Yomi and Halacha Yomi and Shnayim Mikra v'Echad Targum, and Torah Tapes here and Torah Tapes, and then what will the rest of us be able to say?
Frankly, there is only one other person I have ever met in my life who was a busy professional and yet dedicated to personal Mishneh study and the promoting of Mishneh study as much as Dr. Goldberg. I met that person exactly 36 years ago this month. It was Shabbas Chanukah in Kerem B'Yavneh. This banker from the Mizrachi Bank in Jerusalem came to KBY for Shabbos to be with his daughter and son-in-law who learned in Kollel in KBY. That banker's name was Pinchas Kehati. Pinchas Kehati set about translating and circulating "Mishneh pamphlets" a chapter or two at a time which eventually became the 12 or 13 volume Kehati Mishnayos which are now available in English translation and which you can get e-mailed to you from the Seattle Kollel two mishnehs daily per the Mishneh Yomi regimen Shlomo has been me and I say this ( in a very positive fashion) to start learning Mishneh Yomi. I find it both educational and rewarding. There are dozens of people who are now studying Mishneh Yomi locally. I encourage anyone who is interested to hop aboard our Mishneh Yomi Express to contact Dr. Goldberg or a member of the Seattle Kollel. It will be rewarding for you in this world and in the next world.
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BCMH DINNER: SIYUM ON SEDER KODSHIM

January 2005
The Daf Yomi has been studying Seder Kodshim since June 11, 2003. Covering 11 tractates in 18 months, Daf Yomi Siyumim are not exactly uncommon events. But a Siyum on all Seder Kodshim is certainly a major accomplishment. I have been granted the privilege of making this Siyum and of using the opportunity to say a few words about the evening's honorees without whose initiative and dedication all of our learning accomplishments and all of our siyumim would have never taken place. There is a tradition at Siyumim to connect the start and end of a Tractate to sort of sum up the entire Masechta by linking the beginning and the end. I would like tonight to tie in the personalities we are honoring with both the beginning and end of Seder Kodshim with the first Mishneh in Zevachim and the last Mishneh in Middos. The first Mishneh in Zevachim teaches the importance of offering a sacrifice "L'Shem" the proper Korban. Each sacrifice has its own unique name Olah, Chatas, Asham, etc. and must be so identified by the Kohen if it is to be properly credited to its owner. Homiletically speaking, we might say this is an application of the Talmudic principle "Shma Garim" a person's name is crucial to defining his identity. Utilizing this principle I note the following: Our Rabbi's name is Moshe and his Rebbetzin is Rivka. There is an amazing connection between the Biblical personalities of Moshe Rabbeinu and Rivkah Imeinu that is unique and noteworthy. These are two of only three individuals in all Tanach where Scripture tells us that they put veils over their faces. By Rivkah we are told: "VaTikach haTzaif vaTiskas" and by Moshe we are told: "VaYiten al panav masveh". Time does not allow me to fully develop the idea and connection of the veils of Rivka Imeinu and Moshe Rabbeinu. Suffice it to say, that these interpositions represented modesty and humility upon the part of those who wore them. They clearly were outstanding individuals whose natural radiance and brilliance would make them stand out and even intimidate those who beheld the full glory and intensity of their persona. Suffice it also to point out that these veils indicate that those who did behold them did not have a full grasp of their greatness or their special qualities. The hiding of the face is reminiscent of the Divine words "You will be able to see My Back, but My Face you will not see." I cannot help but think about the idea of Shma Garim when I consider the name Moshe and Rivka and think about our Rav and Rebbetzin. These are individuals whose intellect and understanding in both Torah and matters of the world are so overwhelming that if released upon us in their raw and unmasked power, we would be both blinded and intimidated. But fortunately for us, part of their greatness is their ability to veil the brilliance, as it were, to make the message of Torah meaningful, exciting, and inspirational for everyone at their own level of understanding and comprehension. But for all the exposure we have had over these past 10 years to the preaching and teaching and counseling and guidance and chessed and hachnosas orchim of this dynamic duo, I often feel that the true greatness of their contribution to the shul and to the community is metaphorically obscured by a veil.
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There are so many behind the scenes endeavors both of them are involved with be it on a personal level, be it on a communal level which owing to the discreetness required of these matters and owing to their natural modesty remain largely hidden from the view of the rest of us. Suffice it to say that as great as the contribution of both the Rabbi and Rebbetzin are in the area of direct teaching of Torah each in their own way their contributions to the communal infrastructure and to the personal needs of individual members of the community are equally impressive. Let me jump now to the end of Seder Kodshim. Maseches Middos is a fascinating description of the architecture, layout, and measurements of the Beis HaMikdash. The end of the final Mishneh discusses the famous Lishkas HaGazis, the Seat of the Sanhedrin. The specific role of the Sanhedrin discussed in this Mishneh is their investigation of the credentials of Kohanim and Leviim who wanted to serve in the Temple. It was the job of the Sanhedrin to closely examine these qualifications and to validate or invalidate each candidate. When an applicant would successfully pass their rigorous investigation they would proclaim "Baruch HaMakom Baruch Hu: Thank G-d a worthy spiritual leader has been found to stand and serve before the Almighty." This is a most appropriate Mishneh for me to be reading this evening. Mipnei chataeinu because of our sins we have been exiled from our Land, our Holy Temple is no more, and the Sanhedrin no longer meets. But even exiled in the lands of our enemies, the Almighty has not forsaken us. We still have "Mikdashei Me'at" known as synagogues; we still have spiritual leaders known as Rabbonim; and we still have credential review boards known as Rabbinical Search Committees. Eleven years ago, Louis Treiger and I had the privilege of serving as "Roshei Sanhedrin" of the BCMH Rabbinical Search Committee. Baruch HaMakom Baruch Hu, our success in that endeavor has become so self-evident in the past 10 and a half years that we often forget the despair many of us had at the time, comparing our list of needs and wants with the availability of qualified candidates who were willing to consider coming this far into Galus to serve as spiritual leaders in the Mikdash Me'at known as BCMH. Baruch Shenasan Torah L'Amo Yisrael. Blessed is He who has blessed our community with the incomparable gift of Torah both in terms of Torah knowledge and Torah values in the personages of Rabbi Moshe and Rivka alias Rivy Kletenik. I want to thank Rabbi Kletenik for teaching us approximately 400 blatt and Rabbi David for teaching us approximately 160 blatt of Seder Kodshim these past 18 months and thank them both for allowing me to make this siyum by reading the last lines of Masechta Middos.
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Remarks at Mordy's Siyum on Maseches Nedarim During Nine Days

August 2006 This morning my dear son Mordy asked me if I would like to say a few words at the Siyum this evening. I was hesitant to say yes because committing to say a Torah Machshava at a siyum might have the din of taking a neder to do a Dvar Mitzvah and then if I couldnt think of anything to say, I would have to be Mattir Neder. Now Im sure that would not have been a problem because after having studied Maseches Nedarim for the last several months, Reb Mottele probably is close to the level of a Yachid Mumche who could be Matir Neder by himself. Now even assuming this to be the case, we might have a problem being that Mordy is my son. I know that a close relative cannot serve on a Beis Din to be Matir Neder for a family member and I assume that the same might be true for a Yachid Mumche. But even without using Mordy as my Yachid Mumche, Im sure that with all the scholarly friends Mordy has invited who are themselves Gamir vSavir in Hilchos Nedarim, we would have no problem getting a Beis Din of Gimmel Hedyotos (Plus) to take care of any indiscreet utterances I might have made about saying a Torah Machshava at tonights siyum. At any rate we do not have to resort to Plan B of Hataras Nedarim because I do have two short Machshavas I would like to share with the invited guests: The first is a lesson in family relationships. The Torah in Parshas Matos which we read just a week and a half ago teaches that the head of a household has certain very limited authority if he is not happy with certain of the commitments that specific family members take upon themselves. Basically he has authority over the verbal commitments his young daughter makes (bnureha beis Aviha). If he objects to some verbal commitment she has taken upon herself when he first hears about it, he can veto it by being Meifir the Neder. Likewise he can nullify the verbal commitment of his wife the day he hears it, if the commitment affects their relationship or is a matter of inui-nefesh (self-denial) for the wife. Beyond that, all family members are on their own. Daughters over the age of 12.5 and sons over the age of Bar Mitzvah (Actually earlier in some cases [Muflah samuch lish]) make their own decisions and have to live by them and accept the consequences one way or another. That basically is the philosophy I adopted in raising my children. A. The Torah didnt give me the authority to veto any plans or commitments beyond the limited circumstances I mentioned above and B. It doesnt pay to argue with kids who have minds of their own and may or may not listen to the parents contrary advice regardless of how many of the kids ideas the parents try to be mefir (nullify). Mordy, like his brothers before him, has chosen for himself a path of Torah. If he wanted to chose the path of Torah UMaddah or Torah VAvodah I wouldnt complain; but likewise if wants to chose the path of Torah Torah Torah I also have neither the license nor the inclination to interfere. But he should know, that he will have to live by those commitments and accept the consequences. I wish him much success and much hatzalacha in his learning endeavors and Im sure he will continue to bring me and my dear wife much nachas as he goes mchayil el chayil. There is one other brief thought actually more of a story -- I would like to share that is especially relevant to making a siyum on Maseches Nedarim during the Nine Days. I heard this story recently in a lecture by Rabbi Dovid Miller that I downloaded from www.yutorah.org. The lecture was given this past Yom Yerushalayim and it describes Rabbi Miller's recollections of the Six Day War in 1967. David Miler was a student at that time a couple of years older than myself -- at Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 117
Yeshiva College who was among a number of American college students who volunteered to help Israel in non-military capacities when the country mobilized for war prior to the Six Day War. Among many other interesting stories, Rabbi Miller relates the fact that on the third day of the war, shortly after the Old City of Jerusalem including the Kosel HaMa'aravi was liberated and now accessible to Jews for the first day in 19 years and under Jewish sovereignty for the first time in 1900 years, Rav Shlomo Goren then the Chief Chaplain of the Israeli Defense Forces received special permission to bring a non-military person to the Kotel. The person he brought to the Kotel in a military Jeep was known as the "Nazir of Yerushalayim." He had been a Talmid-Chaver of Rav Avraham Yitzchak haKohen Kook, z"tl, and he happened to be Rav Goren's father-in-law. The Nazir was a very special personality about whom many stories are told. He was actually a Nazir who had extremely long hair and was waiting for the Beis HaMikdash to be rebuilt so he could take a haircut, drink wine, and be relieved of the other nazirite restrictions. He was known to have a "Ta'anis Dibur" every year from Rosh Chodesh Elul until after Yom Kippur when he only opened his mouth to daven, recite brochos, or speak words of Torah.. Prior to 1948 the Nazir used to go to daven at the Kotel at least once every week. When the Old City of Jerusalem fell into Jordanian hands in 1948 and was made off limits to Jews, the Nazir wanted to make sure that he would not become "used to" this intolerable situation. He therefore took a vow (neder) that he would not leave his house until he could go to the Kotel again to daven. For 19 years he was virtually a self-imposed prisoner, never leaving his house until that day in June 1967 when his son-in-law, the Rav HaRashi of Tzaha"l came in a military jeep to bring him to the just then liberated Western Wall. This powerful story gives us great personal mussar of the type of loss we should feel especially during this time of year for the Beis HaMikdash and for all the collateral results of the Churban which we are still suffering from to this day. In the zechus of our mourning for the Churban and for the Beis HaMikdash may we soon see the Geulah and be able to fulfill the verse Nedari LHashem Ashalem Bchatzros Beis Elokeinu.
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Mordys Siyum On Kiddushin

March 29, 2007
The nature of a siyum and the essence of the Hadran that is recited when we mark a siyum is that we have completed one milestone of learning achievement and are about to embark on our next set of goals for learning achievement. The siyum my dear son Mordy is making this evening is a unique multifaceted siyum. On one level he is making a Siyum on Maseches Kiddushin which he has been learning for the past 6 months. Mordy mentioned that this is the first Masechta he has completed learning every single Rashi and Tosfos in the Masechta. This is quite an accomplishment and we are very proud of him. On another level Mordy in a sense -- is making a Siyum this week on his childhood. He will be turning 21 this Sunday, bEzras Hashem, and although halachically he has been an adult for some 8 years already, both legally and psychologically age 21 is the most universally recognized at least in this country age for adulthood, for maturity, and for personal responsibility. I dont believe that there is a secular equivalent of the Bracha Baruch Sheptarani monsho shel zu, but since we are speaking of Brochos that we traditionally recite without Shem UMalchus I am seriously considering making the Bracha Barcuh Shechiyanu vKiyamanu vHeegeeyanu lzman hazeh this Sunday on the occasion of Mordys 21st birthday. April Fools! But, if I dont recite the Shehechiyanu on Sunday without Shem UMalchus, then at least I will have this occasion in mind Monday night, bEzras Hasehm, when I hope to make that bracha with shem umalchus!. Finally, this siyum on maseches Kiddushin, the masechta of Al ken yaazov ish es aviv ves imo marks in a sense Mordys siyum as a toshav Seattle. Although in a sense, Mordy has not been living in Seattle for the last third of his life I told Mordy yesterday a joke my father used to tell that I think accurately reflects Mordys impending move from Baltimore to Jerusalem. My father used to tell the story of the immigrant Jew who came to America and wanted to change his name so it wouldnt be so obvious that he was Jewish. He went to Court and told the judge People alvays recognize that I am Jewish because I have a Jewish sounding name. I vant to change my name from Goldberg to MacMillan. The judge granted his request, but six month later the same Jew came back to Court and again requested a name change. This time he wanted to change his name from MacMillan to OLeary. The judge asked him why he was changing his name again. He said, Vell, you see your honor, whenever I introduce myself to people and say my name is MacMillan they always ask me Vat vas your name before it vas MacMillan? And I have to tell them it vas Goldberg. Now ven they ask me Vat vas your name before it vas OLeary? I can tell them it vas MacMillan. For the last seven years Mordy has been somewhat self-conscience when he met a new Rebbi or distinguished Yeshiva-man and he asked Mordy Where are you from? Mordy had to admit that he was from Seattle, not necessarily the most Kedusha saturated place in the world. Now, however, when he goes to the Mir in Yerushalyaim and meets someone new who says Shalom Mar Tversky, meaifo ata? Mordy can say honestly, Ani mYeshivat Ner Yisrael bBaltimore. Seriously, we are very proud of Mordy and we are going to miss him. Psychologically hitting the age of 21 is a milestone of Al ken yaazov ish es Aviv vEs imo and Jerusalem is much farther away from Seattle than is Baltimore, but we wish him success and we hope he will continue to grow mChayil el Chayil and that bsha-ah tova he will be able to meet and support on his own an Eishes Chayil and all the Tosfos that Maseches Kiddushin might bring them!
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I just want to close by saying perhaps a Chassidishe comment on the topic of growth spiritual and otherwise that we see from the names of the Perakim of Maseches Kiddushin. The first perek is called HaIsha Niknis (the woman is acquired). As the Gemara and commentaries point out the words Haisha Niknis indicate the rather passive role the woman plays in the maaseh Kiddushin. The first perek of the masechta represents the first portion of a persons learning career when he is a passive student listening and receiving passively all that his teachers and Rebbeim provide him with. So too it is in matters of Gashmiyus a child is always taking and receiving. The second perek is called HaIsh Mekadesh (the man sanctifies). Here we have the next phase where the person involved is active rather than passive. He takes the initiative. In both matters of Ruchniyus and Gashmiyus he begins to do for himself and become more self-sufficient. The third perek is HaOmer LChaveiro (one who says to his fellow man). Here we have one who not only is acting on his own, but who involves others in his activities. In matters of Ruchniyus he not only learns by himself but he is on the level where he can teach others. In matters of Gashmiyus he is not only self-sufficient but he can support a wife and family. Finally we have the fourth perek Asara Yuchsin alu miBavel lEretz Yisrael speaking of Aliya and the return from galus to Artzeinu haKedosha. Mordy at one level has gone through Maseches Kiddushin. Symbolically, his years as a child in general and his years in Ner Yisrael in particular were characterized by great spiritual development moving from passivity to self-sufficiency and creativity ultimately bringing him to this point where he is ready to move up from Bavel to Eretz Yisrael. We now say Hadran Alach Maseches Kiddushin vda-tach alan. We hope and pray that Mordy will return to Maseches Kiddushin and go through it yet again over and over -- in ever deeper and more complete levels of understanding and accomplishment. Mazal Tov!
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Dedications and Memorials
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DEDICATION OF SEFER TORAH IN MEMORY OF BEREL STEINBERG 12/21/2003 Chanukah is today perhaps the most widely observed and the least clearly understood Jewish holiday on the Jewish calendar. There are in my opinion 3 reasons for its wide observance: 1. It is one of the least demanding of the Jewish holidays in terms of restrictions, costs, or inconvenience. There is no fasting, there are no prohibitions of labor, there is no changing of dishes, no moving out of one's home, no spending long hours in the synagogue. 2. It has the fortune -- or misfortune -- of roughly coinciding with the major holiday of the majority religion in the Western world. 3. It is a holiday that in a number of ways -- militarily and politically -- resonates with the strengths and triumphs of the modern state of Israel. The 3 main reasons, I believe Chanukah is not well understood are the following: 1. It is a post-Biblical holiday. Unlike even Purim, there is no mention of it in the Bible. 2. There is no substantive mention of Chanukah again unlike even Purim in the Mishneh and indeed we find veiled and not-so-veiled criticism of the Maccabees and certainly their successors in respected Rabbinic writing. 3. Finally the whole nature of the historical / cultural struggle which is fundamental to understanding the significance of the Chanukah story is not widely known or appreciated because in many orthodox circles the study of Jewish history in general is de-emphasized if not frowned upon, while in many non-orthodox circles the zealous struggle of the Chashmonaim to fight against assimilation and Greek culture is a politically incorrect philosophy which they would much rather not explore or publicize.
So what are we left with? A symbol. Namely the lighting of wicks which everybody does and which at least at some level captures the spirit and the message of the holiday for all. There is a well-known expression Meat min haor docheh harbeh min haChoshech (A little bit of light pushes away a great deal of darkness). These small Chanukah lights thus metaphorically captures the image of Rabim bYad MeAtim of the many being given over into the hands of the few which is perhaps the key theme of Chanukah both in terms of the military victory of the Macabees over the Syrians as well as in terms of the spiritual victory of Torah over Hellenistic culture. I mention this idea of an appropriate symbol capturing the essence of a much larger perhaps somewhat forgotten event and era because I think it is most appropriate to have the Capital Hill Minyan honor the memory of Berel Steinberg, zecher Tzadik LBracha, with the rededication of a Sefer Torah. As the years go by and as the minyan here grows there may come a time when many if not most of the congregation will not remember Berel Steinberg the prince of an individual that he was, the role model for so many of exemplary middos and dedication to community, and the pillar of this minyan for so many years. But if coming generations will not have an accurate picture of the details of the man, they will now at least have an appropriate symbol that captures who he was and what he represented. Here we have a Sefer Torah that was well up in years, and yet has now been rededicated to the service of this Minyan. The melodious trop that present and future baalei Kriah will read from this Torah will inspire present and future worshippers of this minyan. The words of this Torah will teach and enlighten; The stories told and the laws inscribed on its parchment will enthrall and instruct. What beautiful symbolism we have here to capture the essence of the memory of Berel Steinberg who as a senior citizen dedicated himself as a Chazan, a Baal Koreh, a teacher and a role model to the Capital Hill Minyan as an institution and to each of the members young and old -- he came in contact with individually. May this Sefer Torah be used in the Kehillah for many years to come, and may it always serve to remind us of and to glorify the memory of Dov Ber ben Avraham Yitzcahk Steinberg, may the memory of the Righteous be a blessing to us all.
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SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA / ARI GRASHIN MEMORIAL SHABBAS

Last month I spoke at the annual dinner of the Hebrew Free Loan society because Debbie Grashin was the chairman, she asked me to speak and I could not refuse her. Tonight I am speaking because David Grashin who is one of the main organizers of this evening's event asked me to speak and I could not refuse him. I am just hoping that Zach Grashin will not be in charge of any NCSY dinners during the next few months, because I am running out of material and my admiration for the entire Grashin family is such that I would not be able to refuse Zach either. When I spoke at the Hebrew Free Loan dinner last month I pointed out the appropriateness of having the annual dinner of that organization on the week of Parshas Mishpatim in which we find the prohibition of charging our fellow Jews interest. There is likewise a most appropriate connection between the "Shabbos across America" weekend and the current week's Torah Portion, Parshas Ki Tisa. Tomorrow we read the famous passage which begins with the words "Just observe My Sabbaths for it is a sign between Me and you and for your generations, to know that I am Hashem who sanctifies you" and which ends with the words from the Saturday morning Kiddush: "The Children of Israel shall observe the Sabbath to make the Sabbath an eternal covenant for their generations. Between Me and the Children of Israel it is a sign forever that in six days Hashem made Heavens and Earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed. So what better occasion is there to have a public demonstration of community wide and indeed Nation wide Shabbos observance than the week of Parshas Ki Tisa.? The last words of the passage I just quoted are "Bayom HaShvii Shavas, Vayinafash". I translated -- based on the Stone Chumash "On the seventh day He rested and was refreshed". But any translation, especially of Divinely Revealed words of Torah, does not fully convey the original meaning. The verse spells out two aspects of G-d's "activity" on the seventh day -- which we are supposed to mimic in our observance of Shabbos. First there is the technical aspect of "Shavas" -- He rested, He abstained from creative work. Then there is a somewhat harder to define "activity" -- VaYinafash:: The Stone Chmash translates it as He Was refreshed. But it is not just being refreshed in the sense of physical relaxation. The word VaYinafash comes from the Hebrew root word Nefesh, meaning soul. His Soul or spirit, as it were, was "recharged" so to speak. I am reminded of an outreach Shabbaton that Congregation BCMH, held several years ago for students and staff of a Jewish Sunday School from Olympia. We had one of the teachers spend Shabbos in our home along with a couple of his sons. After Shabbos, the father told me, "Well, we did some preparation before we came to Seattle for this Shabbaton. I told my boys that I would not be able to smoke this Saturday and that we could not turn on or off the lights and we would not be able to listen to the football game on the radio. I even told them we would be expected not to tear any toilet paper. For all this we were prepared. But what really blew us away was all the food your wife served. Do you guys really eat this much every Saturday? The gentleman knew and taught his class about the aspect of Shavas -- of technical abstaining from certain forms of creative labor on Shabbas. But he was unprepared for the VaYinafash. The aspect of Shabbos that recharges our spirits and literally enhances our souls. And if truth be told, there is a lot more to "VaYinafash" than just good food and tasty delicacies. Our Rabbis tell us that the experience of Shabbos observance gives us 1/60th the flavor of the Garden of Eden and the World To Come. As good as my wife's Chulent and other Shabbos recipes are -- I would be quite disappointed to find out that Gan Eden was only 60 times better than what my wife can prepare in a crock pot. The truth of the matter is that the soul enhancing Shabbos experience of VaYinafash involves the intellect and the spirit far more than the taste buds and the stomach. It is the contemplation of who we are and why we are here that can only effectively happen in the atmosphere of Shabbos. It is the mood of all my work is done -today is set aside for spiritual growth and G-dly service. It is an experience and spiritual growth that is hard to describe, but one which is well known to those fortunate enough to be Sabbath observers -- not just in the sense of technical abstinence from labor (the aspect of Shavas); but even more so, Sabbath observers in the soul
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enhancing sense of VaYinafash. May all those here this evening -- both those who are tasting Shabbos for the first time, or as part of an infrequent experience, as well as those who regularly experience the "Shavas" aspect of Shabbos -- may we all hopefully also experience some of the VaYinafash aspect of Shabbos and make this into a soul-expanding and elevating experience. Before concluding, I just want to say a few more words about the second aspect of this Friday evening program and the second aspect of this Shabbos. In addition to being Shabbos Across America Shabbos, this is also the Ari Grashin memorial Shabbos. And in addition to being Parshas Ki Tisa, this also happens to be Parshas Parah. Tomorrow morning we will read from the second Torah scroll removed from the Ark a portion of the book of Bamidbar about the laws the Red Heifer (Parah Adumah) which begins with the words "Zos Chukkas HaTorah". This is the "Chok" of the Torah. Whereas Shabbos observance is a Torah law that has logic and intellectual appeal there are other Torah laws that are not only non-intuitive, they may actually defy logic and reason. We observe them not because they make sense to us, but because they are G-d's commands. These laws are known as Chukim and the law of the Red Heifer that we read tomorrow is the classic Torah Chok. Rav Soloveitchik, zt"l taught that when it comes to Chukim we are forbidden to ask the "Why question". The "Why Question" has no answer. But we are allowed, and indeed we are challenged to ask the "What Question". Time does not allow me this evening to fully develop the Rav's philosophical distinction between the "Why Question" and the "What Question", but briefly we are not privileged to understand why G-d commands a Chok and consequently we are forbidden to ask why G-d commands us to act a certain way. However, it is permitted and we owe it to ourselves to ask another question: What does the mitzvah mean to me? How am I to understand -- not the reason for the mitzvah -- but its essence as an integral part of my service of G-d? . What can we learn from it? What lesson might it teach? Parshas Parah begins with the words Zos Chukkas HaTorah. (This is the decree of the Torah) and continues on a few verses later with the words "Zos HaTorah Adam Ki Yamus Ba'Ohel. This is the Torah -- when a man dies in the tent". The Rav suggested that to a large extent the very logic -defying incomprehensibility of Parah Adumah is related to the logic-defying incomprehensibility of the phenomenon it comes to address, namely the phenomenon of Tumas Mes and of death itself. Death too is a Chok. It is something we don't understand. The death of a young person in particular is counterintuitive and defies logic. And as is the case with ritual chukim, when it comes to the passing of a person we loved, we cannot ask the "Why questions", but we can and should ask the "What questions". What did this person accomplish in his life? What meaning can I take for my life from what he did accomplish? What can we do, to make sure this person's memory will live on and what can we do to ensure that he will continue to earn merit in the world-to-come for what he continues to accomplish with the legacy he left behind in this world? And so to the many friends and admirers of Ari Grashin, alav haShalom, who are gathered here to honor the memory and the legacy of this outstanding young man who left such an impact on our entire community and beyond I urge you this Shabbas Parah to ask not the Questions of Why concerning Ari, but to ask and to ponder the more meaningful questions of What. What can we learn from Ari? What would Ari do and what would Ari expect of us?
If we dedicate ourselves this evening to asking these questions and pondering their answers, then I'm sure we will not only spend a restful Sabbath of Shavas but it will also be a soul elevating and spiritually recharging experience of VaYinafash. Shabbat Shalom.
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Shloshim Of Mrs. Zelda Tatel

The first thing one notices when one enters Chaim Tatel's house are the many pictures of Yerushalayim immediately opposite his front door. Especially dramatic is the picture of Bayis Shlishi standing in all its glory at the center of the Temple Mount. A number of us came during the week of Shiva into that house with the image of Bayis Shlishi implanted on our minds and we left with assignments to study various tractates of Seder Zeraim, having to do with Priestly Gifts. One does not have to have a PhD. in Subliminal Messaging to know that when the time comes bimHera b'Yameinu for we Israelites to distribute our Matnos Kehuna we will all be thinking to ourselves "Chaim Tatel / Chaim Tatel / Chaim Tatel." The assignment I accepted as part of this siyum, was maseches Challah which certainly is one of the Matnos Kehuna and the maseches Ma'aser Sheni, which is one of the Mitzvos HaTeluyos B'Aretz that one does not give to the Kohen, the Levi or even the poor, but gets to keep himself. However, although one does get to keep the "Second Tithe", there are some strings attached. Ideally one is supposed to personally transport his Ma'aser Sheni to Jerusalem and eat it there. However, the Torah recognizes that the ideal situation may not always be possible: ... ' If the road is too long, if the burden is too heavy if you find yourself too great a distance away from the place where the L-rd Your G-d has chosen to make His Name and Presence felt, then the Torah provides a "Plan B" an alternate means of bringing this tithe. ' then one may engage in a form of redemption -- and substitute silver for the fruit. The Talmud qualifies the simple reading of the verse and tells us that not all silver is acceptable, not even all coins are acceptable for this redemption. Faceless coins are unacceptable for . They must specifically be coins minted with a form upon them. The three year cycle of agricultural tithing concludes with a ritual known as . This is a recital specified in the Mishneh [Maaser Sheni 5:10] beginning with a solemn attestation that one has fulfilled all requirements relating to distribution and handling of the various agricultural gifts. It ends with the following prayer: " Look down upon us from your Holy Palace in Heaven" which the Mishneh interprets as if saying: " : . We have done that which you decreed upon us. You too, please do that which you have promised: and bless your nation Israel. The Mishneh adds with sons and daughters. I would like to draw a homiletic insight from the Mitzvah of Maa'ser Sheni in general and from the prayer of in particular on this day marking the end of Shloshim -- when we pay our last respects to a departed person -- and ponder the great and final gap that separates Heaven from Earth. In one's sojourn here on earth, man finds himself occupied with all types of physical pursuits. He seeks the basic physical and social necessities of life food, shelter, and companionship. He also has drives and aspirations that push him beyond his basic needs seeking out wealth, pleasure, and honor. But the Torah demands more than just a physical existence. Hashem has placed a neshama within our bodies and charged her with pointing man in the direction away from physicality, toward spirituality. The neshama is given the task to encourage man to take at least a part let us call it homiletically a "ma'aser sheni" -- of his time, efforts, and talents and to bring them to -- ' to the place of G-d's choosing. Many times we travel through life and due to circumstances that may or may not be within our control we find that the road is too long and the burden too heavy. We are not able to make it ourselves to the place where the L-rd our G-d has chosen to make His Name and Presence felt. This is true in a sense with virtually every person in virtually every generation. He or she travels along the journey of life and comes to the end of the road without having necessarily accomplished all the spiritual goals that ideally the pristine neshama within the person would have liked to accomplish. This was particularly true in our parents' generation first or second generation Jewish immigrants to this country. They came to an America that did not have the institutions of chinuch and kiruv or the type of role
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models that we and certainly our children have come to take for granted. They had to deal with a society based on a 6-day workweek, a society that promoted spiritual meltdown and non-denominational assimilation. In short a society that made the road to the place of G-d's choosing and the burden of carrying the full load of mitzvah observance extremely difficult, if not impossible. And it is here that the Torah provides for a "Plan B" an alternate means by which a person may be credited with achieving spiritual goals. The "B" in "Plan B" stands for "Brah" and this introduces a topic that is very pertinent to the entire ritual of Aveilus practices during the 12 months of mourning for a parent, namely the concept of "Brah Mezakeh Aba". Meaning that a child can bring merit to a parent even after the latter's departure from this world by virtue of his or her good deeds and mitzvos. This is the basic idea of saying Kaddish, of learning Mishneh, of giving charity and of doing good deeds "l'zecher nishmas" a parent. Homiletically I would interpret the Mishneh that the departed soul who is now in Heaven is pleading with G-d. "I might not have accomplished as much as I should have accomplished in this world but, Look down from Your Palace in Heaven and bless your people who have come here to this next world." "By virtue of what merit should I bless them?" the Almighty inquires. And the response is . by virtue of the righteous acts of their sons and daughters, utilizing the principle of "Brah Mezakeh Aba". Of course this "Pidyon"--substitution, crediting the spiritual merit of the children to the ledger of the parent is premised on the idea that a child's spiritual development is not a "faceless coin", but is something that is very much -- forms which have the image and inspiration of the parents implanted within them. The parents due to the limitations of their environment and the world they were born into may not have been able to make the complete spiritual journey by themselves, but accompanied by the merit of their children who bear the parental image within their personalities they will ultimately make it to ' The Medrash in Shir HaShirim Rabba on the verse ( open your heart to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfection) states that -- if Man will only open up before G-d a willingness to engage in spirituality like the eye of a needle, the Almighty will open up for him opportunities to achieve spiritual accomplishment like the broad entrance to the Temple complex. Mrs. Zelda Tatel perhaps was not raised in a time and society and circumstance that allowed her to personally travel the total distance to . ' However she certainly made an effort to connect with the Jewish community and to the Torah community in this city. She attached herself to and worked hard on behalf of the Sisterhood and youth of Congregation Bikur Cholim, and the PTA and students of the Seattle Hebrew Day School. Based on her dedication and in these communal endeavors she no doubt implanted a formidable of communal connection and Torah commitment on her children. Based on the promise of she certainly has a right to argue in her charming and feisty manner before G-d -- we have done that which you asked of us, . And indeed, even in her lifetime she merited to see that in her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren that spiritually was He allowed her to witness and have wonderful Yiddishe nachas from generations that are both literally and figuratively in the journey toward the Bayis Shlishi in . ' Just as she was zoche to receive nachas from such wonderful offspring, during her lifetime, through the vehicle of "brah mezakeh aba v'ima" may her neshama continue to receive this nachas in Olam Habah.
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REMARKS AT SEATTLE MIKVAH BUILDING DEDICATION

December 18, 2005 Delivered by Tzippy Twersky I welcome you all this morning to this long awaited very public celebration marking the successful culmination of our community's effort to enhance and beautify the performance of a very private mitzvah. The truth of the matter is that this is not the first dedication in recent years of a community Tahara facility on BCMH property. It was not too long ago that the state of the art Tahara facility named after the late Mel Wolfe, zichrono l'bracha, was built and dedicated in a program that was many ways similar to the event we are participating in this morning. However while in some ways similar, the adjacent Tahara facilities in a very crucial way represent opposite ends of the life-cycle spectrum. There are today and there certainly were in the past many Jewish congregations and communities that show great respect for the dead. In such communities synagogue attendance peaks at the moment of Yizkor. The "Cemetery Committee" is the most active and prestigious committee of the Board of Directors. The Chevra Kadisha is very active and the local post-mortem Tahara facilities serve a constant stream of traffic. Death is a fact of life and by all means it is both halachically and morally imperative to insure that the various mitzvos associated with death and the departed be observed in a dignified and respectful fashion. However, ultimately communities that are preoccupied with death themselves die and wither away. It is therefore a celebration of an entirely different magnitude that we commemorate this morning the inauguration of a Tahara facility dedicated to living and to life. A community that rallies around the project of building or renovating a Mikveh is a community that is filled with vitality, with optimism, and with hope for the future. The new Seattle Mikvah building is being dedicated in memory of Mrs Rivkah Gamel, aleha haShalom and will be known as "Beis Rivkah". In thinking of this name and in thinking of the beautiful new facility that you will all have the opportunity to tour a short while from now, the Biblical verse that comes to mind is the pasuk in Parshas Chayei Sarah when we are first introduced to Rivka Imeinu: The Torah tells us that "HaNa'arah tovas mareh meod" (The young girl was very beautiful to look upon.) Now in line with the well known words of King Solomon that "Sheker hachain v'hevel haYofi" (Charm is deceitful and beauty is vanity), we might find such praise of the future Matriarch of Israel to be rather out-of-place. However, as we all know, both the Torah and Chazal -- in a number of places -- goes out of their way to use terms such as Tovas Mareh, Yefas Toar, Yefas Mar-eh to describe the physical beauty of numerous Biblical heroines including our Matriarchs Sarah, Rivka, and Rachel. Further, it might be noted, our Sages state that ten measures of beauty descended to the world. Jerusalem took 90% of that beauty and the rest of the world divided up the remaining 10% [Kidushin 49b]. Here again, the Gemara emphasizes that Jerusalem is the most beautiful city in the world. Why is it important that Jerusalem be a beautiful city? Would it be any less meaningful or holy for the Jewish people if it were not the most beautiful city in the world? How are we to understand such apparent emphasis on physical beauty? Rabbi Yissocher Frand quotes Rav Mottel Katz, in the latter's sefer Be'er Mechokek who explains the very important concept of Biblical beauty: Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 129
He writes that we as human beings are very influenced by our physical surroundings. Physical beauty can put a person in the frame of mind that he can become more receptive to the spirituality that exists. The Talmud says in Tractate Brachos [57b]: "Three things broaden a person's mind a beautiful house, beautiful possessions, and a beautiful wife". What does this Gemara mean? It means that when a person lives under nice conditions and is not bogged down by physical distractions he has the ability to be more receptive to matters of holiness. Putting a person in a beautiful home with beautiful furniture, beautiful surroundings, and a beautiful wife gives the person the freedom and peace of mind to devote himself to the higher tasks of life. The beautiful home, car, and wife are not ends in and of themselves. But they allow the person to rise above the impediments of physical distractions that sometimes get in the way of spiritual growth. When a person enters Jerusalem and looks out upon the beautiful Judean Hills, his soul becomes more receptive to be influenced by the inherent sanctity of the place than he would be if Jerusalem had been an equally sanctified but less attractive city. Such, with G-d's Help, is the function of the beauty of our own Beis Rivkah the newly remodeled Seattle Mikveh. While there were generations of our grandmothers and great-grandmothers who wholeheartedly dedicated themselves to the important mitzvah of Taharas HaMishpacha under the most austere of settings and in the most self-sacrificing of ways, our generation perhaps needs the extra chizuk provided by physical beauty to put ourselves in the frame of mind that we can become more receptive to the great spirituality that exists within the Mikveh experience. May the newly rededicated Mikveh building be a source of inspiration, chizuk, and zechus to all those who participated financially, organizationally, and technically in its construction and may it be a source of inspiration, chizuk, and zechus to all who will, G-d Willing, use it for many years in the future to foster both the physical and spiritual growth of the Seattle Torah community.
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Dedication of Ari Grashin Memorial Gym

October 11, 2006
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"A person should strengthen himself like a lion" [The opening words of the Shulchan Aruch]
There is no small irony in the fact that I was asked to speak at the dedication of the Ari Grashin $. Ari was a kid who participated in and followed sports with an intensity that is legendary. The stories of his athletic accomplishments and his affinity for local sports teams and sports personalities could fill volumes. I, on the other hand, have never stepped into Qwest Field. I've never entered Key Arena. In fact the only thing that separates me from the Triple Crown of Local Professional Sports Apathy is a Bar Mitzvah namely that of my cousin Mordechai Treiger's whose Bar Mitzvah reception was held in Safeco Field. My personal athletic talents are likewise diametrically opposed to those of Ari. About the only shot I ever made when I used to play in the Gym at the Seattle Hebrew Day School on 25th and Columbia was an occasional underhanded free throw. In fact my only distinguished performance in that gym occurred at another Bar Mitzvah -- my own the reception of which took place there 45 years ago this month! The fact that I am here "starring" so to speak in this historic dedication event may somehow be related to a third Bar Mitzvah that took place 8 years ago this month but whatever factor brought me here, I am deeply moved to have been given this opportunity. It is only one more example of Ari's incredible power both in life and in death to raise people beyond their normal level of self-expectation and to allow them to achieve in areas they would have never dreamed possible. I would like to share an idea Rav Soloveitchik, zt"l, expressed many times that. I believe is most apropos to this event. The Rav used to emphasize the difference between two related words: Koach and Gevurah. There are two blessings we say every morning, which on the surface appear to be virtually identical but in reality refer to distinct concepts: One blessing reads "ozer Yisrael b'Gevurah" in standard translation "who girds Israel with might", the other one reads "haNosen La'yaef Koach" meaning "who gives strength to the weary." The Rav explained the difference between and . is a quality G-d bestows upon man at birth. It primarily denotes physical strength. As such, is not an exclusively human category. It relates to man's capabilities as a natural being and is applicable to man and beast alike. , on the other hand, is an exclusive grant of G-d to man which demonstrates the latter's unique position in creation.man's charismatic endowment and his chosen ness. Man, as a brute was furnished with . Man as a personality -- distinct from the beast and fowl -- possesses the quality of . This he shares with no one, in the context of Biblical narrative refers to combat, and signifies successful action taken by one of the combatants. , however, is not triumph resulting from superior manpower or materials. On the contrary, at times the combatant who is defeated on the field of battle is the one who emerges as the . the victor in a higher historical sense, not the apparent winner. is sometimes inversely related to , to the degree of might man has at his disposal. The greater the force one wields, the less one needs to display. Conversely, the weaker one is, the tougher the odds, the more exalted is the action of the ,which disregards practical reasoning and resorts to the heroic even if non-rational and impractical -- action.
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The Rav cites many Biblical examples of acts of and illustrates how many times it is demonstrated not so much by advance and conquest, but rather by retreat and apparent "defeat". This equation of with retreat is epitomized by the well known teaching in Pirkei Avos: -- ? Who is the strong person? The one who conquers his evil inclination There are many gymnasiums across the world. 99.9 % of them are associated with the idea of brute force, athletic skills that reflect inborn talent and capabilities. It would not be inappropriate to name a gym after a person who represented the idea of ,a person blessed with natural physical gifts and noted for their athletic accomplishments. Indeed Ari Grahsin, had such . When Ari was healthy he was a commanding force on this gym floor. He was a sharp shooter, a quick passer, a talented re-bounder and a skilled dribbler. For this reason alone, the naming of the SHA Gym after Ari Grashin would be a fitting tribute to a young man who had exceptional . But it is far more appropriate for the Seattle Hebrew Academy to have a gym named not only after a representative of the attribute of , but even more significantly named for an individual who represented the heroic dimension of .as well!. As I said before, represents charisma , charm, and leadership skills that stem not from strength but from the depths of a unique human personality. The team leader does not have to score the most points or pull down the most rebounds. He has to inspire, be a role model and have charm. Ari Grashin certainly possessed all these attributes as was well known by his family, classmates, and friends. But if Ari demonstrated when he was healthy when he was charging forward, piling up victory after victory he certainly demonstrated it perhaps even to a degree that surprised his family classmates and friends -- during the period of his illness when his were waning. To paraphrase the Rav, Ari's was inversely related to his the more the faded, the greater the that was manifest. The acceptance of defeat, the attitude that "It's OK" to be defeated in battle when defeat is apparently decreed from on High this attitude is the hallmark of a and it became Ari's hallmark as well. There is another difference between and . We may admire .But it cannot inspire. Interacting with a person who has will not make someone else into a person of . We not only admire , it inspires us as well. The attribute of is contagious. It is so contagious that when someone sees throughout a close knit group of people, it is sometimes hard to know where it originated who was the inspirer and who were the inspirees. Frankly, I sometimes wonder where the amazing that emerged from the Grashin family during the time of Ari's illness originated. Did it start with Ari who inspired his parents and brothers or did it start with David and Debby who inspired Ari and their other sons. Where ever it originated, it is clear that the tremendous that emerged from that household during those difficult months inspired this whole community and far beyond. It was literally -- it girded us indeed all of Israel with It is for the sake of preserving these moments of inspiration as part of our permanent communal legacy that this gymrenaming event is taking place. Nothing in this world is coincidental. Ari's yahrtzeit falls during the holiday of Succot. On Succot we retreat from our well built homes, representing the idea of strength and into the little booths that represent the vulnerable though heroic existence of We retreat into Succot annually to recall year after year the special heroic existence of people who relied not on their own but who confidently placed their faith and trust in the Almighty. The idea of naming something after a departed person certainly invokes the idea of that future generations should know about the special person whose name is now being projected Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 132
forward. Hopefully the memory of that person will be preserved into the future and hopefully something about him will rub off on the newly named entity and on those who come in contact with it. The gymnasium in Garfield High school where I was a student more than 40 years ago had a massive showcase housing all the City Championships, trophies, and State Crowns won by the various Garfield athletic teams over the years. I'm not sure if SHA will ever need to build such a showcase for this gym. But one thing I can tell you, Garfield's sports trophies were all won by the attribute of .The Ari Grashin Memorial gym does not need any State Crowns to sing its praises. The name of Ari Grashin from this day forward graces this gym with the Keser Shem Tov, the Crown of a Good Name which surpasses, according to Pirkei Avos, all other crowns. It is a crown Ari the Lion -- won with his attribute of and it is a crown that is well deserved. May future students, faculty, parents, and friends of SHA always be inspired by his memory . in order that future generations know that this young man whose soul was returned to His Maker on Succos was a "Lion" representing the attributes of both and , a true lad of valor worthy of being a role model for young and old alike.
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In Memory of Ben Genauer, ztl

Last night Rabbi Maimon spoke and I dont believe there is anyone who can top Rabbi Maimon in terms of bragging rights for saying how long they knew and were close to Ben Genaeur. But if I cant match Rabbi Maimon in terms of how long I knew and was close to Ben, I would like to offer my own claim to fame in terms of how long Ben knew my family and was close to them. When my son Moshe got engaged in Jerusalem to an Israeli girl more than 10 years ago, most of the people at the lChaim held to announce the engagement were either from the Kallahs side and were talking about the Kallah and her family or they knew Moshe from the relatively short time he had been studying in Yeshiva in Eretz Yisrael. Ben asked to speak and began with the following words:: I know the Chosson very well. I know the Chossons father and mother very well. I know both sets of the Chossons grandparents very well. I knew the Chossons great grandparents very well and I knew the Chossons great great grandparents very well! Ben went on to speak about each generation of the Mishpacha he knew and since that time established a connection with yet another generation. He honored my sons by being at the Brisim of my 3 grandsons and the Pidyon HaBen of Alexs son Yitzchak Meir, named after my father who was so close with Ben. This incredible record of 6 generations of familial connection was not just a question of casual knowledge and acquaintance. Ben had a profound impact and influence on generation after generation with in my family. He and his wife, Jean, were the Shadchanim for my parents. My father was a frequent guest at their home as a solider as was the case with many many soldiers and other strangers in town distinguished as well as plain and simple individuals over so many years. Ben was my fathers Rebbi muvhak. He attended Bens Talmud shiur weekly for many decades in all of Ben and Jeans local residences. If there is one person responsible for my going away to study in Yeshiva and the same can be said for many others in our city, both those who have left and came back and those who have left and gone elsewhere it was Ben Genauer. This was true both directly and indirectly. It was true directly for the spiritual encouragement and one on one or one on many Talmud learning he did with us and it was true indirectly for the Torah personalities he brought to Seattle to be our teachers and the institutions he founded and supported to nurture our Torah development. My parents would have been more than happy to send me to the University of Washington. It was good enough for my Uncle Norman (Ketzlach) and it was good enough for me. But it was Bens influence more than anyone elses -both direct and indirect -- that caused me to seek my higher education elsewhere. Ben sent his children to Yeshiva University and thats where I wanted to go as well. Given my debt of gratitude to Ben for influencing me to go to YU, I feel it is very appropriate for me to learn this evening a few Mishnayos from the first chapter of Maseches Pesachim. Aside from being a very appropriate time of year to be learning about Bedikas Chometz, these pages of Mishneh and Gemara were the first Talmud I learned at Yeshiva in September 1966, when I began there as a freshman. Incidentally I was in the same shiur as Michael Friend who did not realize at the time that he would become Ben Geanauers nephew and become part of the wonderful Genauer family. Before I learn the Mishnayos however, I want to share with you an article I wrote for the BCMH Tribune in 1995, shortly before Ben left Seattle to take up residence in Israel.
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IN TRIBUTE TO TORAH AND LEADERSHIPS MAN OF THE CENTURY IN SEATTLE -- BEN GENAUER
BCMH Synagogue Tribune May 1995
On a recent Sunday morning the Congregation had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Ben Genauer reminisce about 75 years of experience with Seattle's Orthodox Jewish community. We heard about the heroes and the characters that made the Jewish community what it was back when and who helped shape the community to be the way it is right now. One hero we heard from -- but very little about -- was Ben, himself. On the occasion of Ben's leaving Seattle, to take up residence in Eretz Yisroel, after more that 80 years in this community, I would like to take the liberty of sharing some personal reminisces of Mr. Ben Genauer. The Talmud speaks of a very selec group of individuals throughout our long history about whom it can be said "Torah u'Gedulah b'Makom echad" [Torah Leadership and Communal Leadership reside within the same person]. If in the long and glorious history of Seattle's Jewish community, it can be said about one individual that Torah u'Gedulah b'Makom echad, that individual would have to be Ben Genauer. It takes a rare blend of talents and dedication to be a Torah scholar and a Torah teacher, one who inspires students with his diligence in learning and with a life-style which so clearly manifests what he has learned. It takes another rare blend of talents to succeed in communal leadership -- to gain respect of the masses, to implement one's personal vision for a community, to build consensus and to inspire others to participate with their resources and efforts in communal endeavors. While, no doubt, there is some overlap in the talents and drives it takes to achieve greatness in each of these areas, there is also no doubt that it sometimes seems that the skills, personality make-up, and certainly the time-commitment needed to excel in one area are mutually exclusive with those needed in the other area. The uniqueness of Ben Genauer's role in our community (for well over the better part of the 20th century!) was that he exemplified both roles -- Torah leadership & Communal leadership -- simultaneously. Ben has been for as long as I can remember a Torah teacher for young and old alike in our community. My father, z"1, was a faithful student at his weekly Gemara shiur for many decades. Many are the young men who received a "Talmudic supplement" to their other Judaic studies by one-on-one or one-onmany classes with Ben. Countless of our youth were inspired to leave Seattle for Yeshivas of higher learning by these contacts with Ben and by their exposure to the type of programs and institutions and personalities that Ben brought to our city. Whether it was by promising to take any boy who counted Sefiras HaOmer each night to a Seattle Rainiers baseball game after Shavuos, whether it be by the learning programs and minyanim he hosted in his own home, whether it would be his enthusiastic questioning "what are you learning these days?", whether it be by the special trips he would make to New York to personally interview and pick the teachers and spiritual influences for our community, or whether it be so many countless other example setting practices, Ben has left a lasting spiritual impact that has spanned the generations of our city. Besides his Torah leadership, Ben was a "Parnas" in the finest sense of the world -- a communal leader and supporter of any cause associated with Torah institutions. In sports they speak of a "Triple Crown"; Pirkei Avot (l'havdil) also speaks of a "Triple Crown". In leadership of the Seattle Torah community there is a Triple Crown, as well -- Ben wears it. He is the only man to have been President of BCMH, the Seattle Hebrew Academy (Day School/Talmud Torah); and the Northwest Yeshiva High School (YOH). Not only was he a leader of the latter two premier educational institutions of our city, it can be said that he was THE lay leader responsible for their creation. For many years Ben was President of the local Yeshivas Chaim Ozer. Endeavors and activities which today's generation of BCMH has never heard of or only read about in historical accounts, were inspired and led by this "Man of the Century". In short, any institution or committee in our city, serving the Torah and Chessed needs of our people, found Ben at the helm of their organizational and financial leadership. I can not begin to elaborate on the personal Chessed of Ben and his wife Jean, aleha haShalom, in terms of their Hachnasas Orchim which is legendary world-wide. Not only was their house always open to out-of-town guests, but like Avraham of old, Ben would be 'outside the tent' anxiously waiting to bring strangers into his home. I can not begin to elaborate on the inspiration Ben has provided to his own descendants and the larger Genauer family. Their ongoing world-wide contributions to all the values and goals that have been so dear to Ben throughout his life, speak for themselves. I can not begin to elaborate on the personal impact Ben has played on my life and the life of my parents. Suffice it to say, we would not be who we are without his direct and indirect influence on us. Ben has labored long and hard to build a strong Torah-oriented family and a Torah-oriented community in Seattle. Baruch Hashem, he has seen the fruits of that labor. May he now continue to see and hear of the continued fruits of that labor for many years while he tastes and enjoys the Fruits of Eretz Yisroel. We'll miss you, Ben.
Indeed, well miss you Ben. It is often customary to learn Mishnayos in a mourners house that begin with the letters of the name of the deceased. Although I am not following this practice this evening, the first Mishneh I will study begins with the word Or (Light) which indeed is appropriate for Ben Genauer. He was a light to his family, a light to his community, and a light to the Jewish people. He represented Torah zu Orah (this is light). May his memory be blessed. Or larabah asar.
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Kollel Dinner 2009

Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen to the 18th Anniversary Gala Dinner of the Seattle Kollel. We thank you all for coming to pay tribute to the work of the families of the Seattle Kollel and in particular to our honorees, Rabbi Avrohom and Rooksie David. I would like to take note and acknowledge the presence of the community Rabbonim in the audience: This is the fourth time I've had the zechus over the years to be invited to be MC at a Kollel Dinner. Those of you who remember those previous dinners know that despite common MC practice, I don't usually do much in the way of joke telling or stand up humor on these occasions. Tonight will be no exception, but I do want to preface my opening remarks with a rather humorous story that occurred to me about 25 years ago when Boeing sent me to a Computer Show in Las Vegas. It was the first time I had ever been in Las Vegas and shortly after I checked into my hotel room I picked up the phone book and decided I'd check if there were any local orthodox synagogues. I found one listed, called the number, and asked the person who answered the phone if they had daily minyanim. The person responded Shachris is 10 to 7 and Mincha is 25 to 1. Naively, I asked why Mincha was so early. I'll never forget his answer: Those are not the times we daven here, you asked if we have minyanim, and I quoted you the betting odds that we'll get a minyan. Shachris is almost an even bet at 10 to 7 and Mincha is a long shot at 25 to 1. Now in general Im not a betting man, but if someone would have asked me just 3 weeks ago, when Rabbi David called to ask me to MC the Kollel Dinner, what the odds were against me quoting in my opening remarks this evening a Talmudic passage involving pigs I would say they were far greater than 25 to 1. If someone would have asked me what the odds were against me citing before dinner was served this evening a Gemara involving specifically a disease that began among swine and the likelihood of its spread to human beings, I would have said that they were astronomical But we are living through strange times: ? : . . . , I cite this Gemara for two reasons. First of all, more than any other event on the communal calendar, the Kollel Dinner is the event dedicated to paying tribute to Torah and Torah teachers. There is no institution in this community as dedicated to enabling the entire age, gender, and background spectrum of potential Torah students to investigate and explore the depths and the beauty of our Torah at their convenience, at their pace, and at their level as the Seattle Kollel. I thought it therefore most appropriate to call to your attention this evening the phenomenon that there is no substantive matter in the world that it is not hinted at in our Torah. As Ben Bag Bag teaches in Pirkei Avot [5:22] Investigate it through and through and you will find everything therein. There is a second reason I chose to begin my remarks this evening by mentioning the unlikely subject of Swine Flu at the Kollel Dinner. We have over the past few weeks been dramatically alerted to the idea of pandemic. We have been shocked to learn how quickly and how extensively and how dramatically a few germs beginning with some lowly farm animals can jump species and jump continents and grab the !attention, if not the awe and fear of the entire world Our Sages tell us: The Divine measure of the positive, far exceeds the Divine measure of retribution. If germs spread, if swine flu is contagious, then how Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 136
much more so is it true that positive influences, proper role models, enthusiasm for Torah study and Torah observance is contagious. There is no phenomenon that better illustrates the power of a few highly motivated Yeshiva graduates and their wives to ignite a contagious spread of thirst for Torah knowledge and Torah observance and a Torah lifestyle than the success of the Seattle Kollel in our city over the past 18 year. Individual lives have been changed, couples have been changed, families have been changed, and the community has been changed. Change does not come easy, change does not come without controversy and disruption. But in spiritual matters change is mandated. As Hillel teaches [Avos 1:13]: One who does not increase his Torah learning and his Torah observance decreases it. The same can be said of a community. For 18 years the dedicated Kollel Rabbis and their families first and foremost among them our honorees this evening charter members of the original Seattle Kollel have been encouraging and inspiring us one step at a time to increase our Torah learning and our Torah observance. We salute them all tonight for their efforts and successes and we hope to give them encouragement to keep up the good work and to take the Kollel and this community . This eighteenth anniversary banquet is certainly a special day for the Kollel family and the Seattle community on an institutional level, but today also happens to be a special day for the Kollel family on a personal level as well. This morning was the bris of the son of Rabbi Shragi and Rivka Gestetner, one of our Kollel families. Rivkas father, Rabbi Avrahom Bartfeld came for the Simcha and is in the audience this evening. He is the former Chief Rabbi of Mexico and is currently the Rav of Bais Dov Yosef Congregation in Toronto. Id like to wish Rabbi Bartfeld a mazal tov and invite him to say a few words of bracha. You have heard and you will be hearing this evening about the many wonderful activities of the Seattle Kollel. But as the Talmud says one cannot compare hearing with seeing. To remedy this situation I ask you to all look up at the screen and watch a short video highlight some of the many programs and accomplishments of the Seattle Kollel. Well, I've already broken one taboo this evening by mentioning pigs at the Kollel Dinner and now I'm going to break another one by mentioning something perhaps even more treife than pigs -- a Television Sit Com. But -- et chatai ani mazkir hayom -- many of us who grew up in the pre-Halachic era used to watch Television Sit Coms and there was a favorite when I was growing up where the main characters were a couple (one of whom grew up in a Spanish speaking country) and their landlords who lived in the apartment below them. There was great bonding between these two couples and it was a delight to watch them. The next item on the agenda this evening is a presentation from a landlord to a couple (one of whom grew up in a Spanish speaking country) who lives below her. It is a pleasure to call on a great friend of the Kollel and a great friend of the Twerskys, Marlene Kaplan, who will make a brief presentation entitled "I LOVE Rivka and Shragi". Traditionally when a dinner committee looks for someone to say a few nice words about an honoree at a dinner such as this they try to find someone who very much admires the honoree and has a lot in common with them. I was actually thinking that I might be asked to speak about Rooksie. I certainly admire her very much and I believe we have a lot in common. Rooksie was born on November 9th and I was born on November 9th. Rooksies name is David and my name is David. Rooksie is married to someone responsible for allowing dozens if not hundreds of members of our community to immerse themselves in the waters of Torah and I am married to someone responsible for allowing dozens if not hundreds of members of our community to immerse themselves in the waters prescribed by Torah. But Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 137
alas, the dinner committee was looking for a lass not for a lad to have this honor. And indeed they have found another person in the audience who has much more in common with our honoree than I do She is another dynamic woman, a leader in the community, admired and appreciated by many for her ability to accomplish as much as she does for others while raising bli ayin hara a large and growing family of her own. I call on the mother of the Tribe of Levy, Mrs. Miriam Levy to say a few words about Rebbetzin Rooksie David. When I, as MC, introduced Rabbi Maimon at the first Kollel Dinner in January 1992, I quoted about him the verse in Koheles In the morning sow your seed and in the evening do not be idle, for you cannot know which will succeed: this or that; or whether both are equally good. I remarked then: No words can express the debt of gratitude this community owes Rabbi Solomon Maimon ...in the morning of his service to our community he sowed his seed and created the Seattle Hebrew Academy and in the evening he has not been idle. He has twisted arms, he has cajoled, he has argued, he has confronted skeptics... and he has prevailed -- he has planted and nurtured and seen the first fruit of a Seattle Kollel. What I find utterly amazing is that some 16 years later, last June at the Torah Day School Dinner honoring Rabbi Maimon, his son my classmate and friend -- Rav Avraham Maimon, quoted exactly the same Pasuk, with the same reference regarding Rabbi Maimons role in the creation of TDS. Well into his senior years, Rabbi Maimon is still sowing his seeds and still reaping the harvest of his amazing visionary career of dedication and inspiration. We look forward to have him as a source of inspiration and wisdom in our community for many years to come. I now call on Rabbi Solomon Maimon, the spiritual Godfather of the Seattle Kollel to say a few words. As a conscientious MC, I wanted to have some good background information on our guest speaker to be able to properly introduce him. In the olden days youd go to the dinner chairman or to the speaker himself and try to get a resume you can read from. Being a child of the Google generation, however, I utilized the high tech approach. I did a computer search on his name and found amazingly that like Rooksie and myself, he and I have something in common. Just as a Google search on Rabbi David Twersky returns hundreds of hits that are not me, so too a Google search on Rabbi Nate Segal returns hundreds of hits that is not he. But I remembered the teaching found in Pirkei Internet -- Scroll down, scroll, down for everything is there: Ultimately after a bit of scrolling I did indeed hit the jackpot. Not only did I find a You Tube video of a recent after dinner speech Rabbi Chaim Nosson Nate Segal gave at a recent community Kollel event in another city, but I actually found a You Tube video of the MC at that dinner introducing Rabbi Segal. Inasmuch, however, as I could tell from watching the video of Rabbi Segal, that he is indeed an engaging speaker and inasmuch as the hour is late I dont want to take away from his allotted time, and I am therefore going to keep my introduction short. Rabbi Segal is the Director of community development for Torah Umesorah National Society for Hebrew Day Schools. He is involved in more than 150 projects nation-wide, including activities in Seattle, Portland, Victoria and Eugene. He is a nationally known speaker and communal leader. He is a former student of Yeshiva Rabbeinu Chaim Berlin in Brooklyn, and is the founding rabbi of the New Springville Jewish Center in Staten Island, N.Y., where he has served for more than 24 years. Without further ado, I call on Rabbi Segal to address us.
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Seattle Kollel Dinner May 16, 2010

Good evening ladies and gentlemen I would like to welcome you all to the annual dinner of the Seattle Community Kollel commemorating 19 years of Torah teaching and Kiruv/Outreach in our community and beyond by the dedicated Rabbis and wives of the Seattle Kollel and their family members. There are many conservative (with a small "C") Jewish institutions back east that have instituted a new practice at their annual fund raising dinners. Having had a few bad experiences with Guests of Honor who get up and make speeches that embarrass the institution, the Roshei Yeshiva and Rabbinical Heads of these institutions developed a plan whereby the Guests of Honor would record their acceptance remarks ahead of time on a video camera and the video would be shown at the dinner in lieu of a live acceptance speech. Rabbi Frand told me that this practice came in handy at a Ner Israel dinner several years ago when the school was honoring Jerome Schottenstein, benefactor of the Art Scroll English Talmud at one of their dinners. On the video, Mr. Schottenstein said that he looks forward to the day when every student of Ner Israel has a Schottenstein Gemara on their shtender. Since having to use an English Gemara when one is already an advanced Talmud student is seen as somewhat of a sign of defective scholarship, those comments were bleeped out of the video when it was played at the dinner. So while the Rabbis have figured out how to tame Guests of Honor who may turn out to be somewhat of a loose cannon, it is not so easy to pull the same schtick with a Master of Ceremonies. Last year as master of ceremonies at the beautiful Kollel dinner honoring Rabbi & Rooksie David I wanted to see how far I could push the envelope and get away with mentioning things that were totally inappropriate at a Kollel Dinner. I prominently talked in my remarks that evening about pigs, the I Love Lucy show, and how much I had in common with the wife of the Rosh Kollel, thinking that I would certainly never be asked to be an MC at a Kollel Dinner again. Apparently I was wrong, so my mission this evening is to try to mention quantitatively and qualitatively even more outrageous icons of the non-Kollel world to see how much I can really get away with before they look for another Master of Ceremonies or they ask me to video tape my introductions in advance. My mission tonight is to sneak into my remarks the following references which are totally inappropriate and in poor taste at a Kollel banquet: The Miss America Beauty Pageant; Muhammed Ali; Marian Davis Barbeque Sauce, and Rabbi Avi Weiss, not necessarily in that order. The Gemara in Gittin 62a tells us that in the ideal Jewish society Rabbis are like Kings, ? Who are our Kings? The Rabbis. This annual Kollel dinner coincides symbolically and significantly with the climax of the seven week period of preparation leading up to our commemoration of the Kabbalas HaTorah, the receiving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai which we will celebrate later this week. Today begins the 3 day period known as the Shloshes Yemei Hagbalah which immediately precedes the holiday of the Festival of Weeks. In Kabbalah, each week and each day within the period of Sefirat HaOmer corresponds with one of seven Divine Attributes, known as Sefirot. Week One and Day One of each week correspond with the attribute of Chessed Kindness Week Two and Day Two of each week correspond with the attribute of Gevurah Restraint Week Three and Day Three of each week correspond with the attribute of Tiferes Harmony And so too with Nezach, Hod, and Yesod the fourth, fifth, and sixth attributes of the Sefiros which represent, respectively, Eternity, Beauty, and Foundation. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 139
The seventh and final attribute which corresponds with the seventh week and the seventh day of each week is Malchus, Royalty. Today, the 47th day of the Omer is the fifth day of the seventh week. Hence in Kabbalistic jargon, it represents Hod She'Bmalchus Beauty within Royalty. If you ask the average Joe six-pack in America where do we find Hod She'B'Malchus beauty within Royalty, he will tell you it is when they crown Miss America. [Strike One] Not so, for the wonderful friends and supporters of the Seattle Kollel assembled here this evening. We know that Hod She'Balchus is the annual beautiful dinner paying tribute to our honorees and paying tribute to the Monarchs of the Jewish community, the Rabbis of the Kollel. ? Who are our Kings? The Rabbis. What an appropriate day to hold such a dinner, the 47th Day of the Omer, the day representing Hod She'Bmalchus Beauty within Royalty. Enjoy your dinners. One of the great benefits of a community Kollel is that it affords the adult population of a community the opportunity and environment to study Torah on a regular basis. For many this means having the opportunity to learn Torah on a serious level for the first time in their lives, for others it means the opportunity and environment to build on prior Torah study accomplishments. One of the values of applying oneself to Torah study as an adult is not only the idea of learning new things, but often we are able to correct erroneous misunderstandings that may have become implanted in our brains from Girsa D'Yankisa the learning we did as children. The Gemara in Bava Basra 21a discusses the importance of having primary school teachers who are meticulous in teaching their young pupils how to read properly and characterizes erroneous lessons learned as a child as a "pseida d'lo hadar" a loss that cannot easily be reversed! The classic example given is of the teacher of young Yoav Ben Tzeruyah, the boy who was destined to grow up to become the general of King David. Yoav was taught to read the verse commanding the eradication of Amalek as Timche es Zachar Amalek you shall eradicate the males of Amalek rather than Timche es Zecher Amalek you shall eradicate the memory of Amalek. He consequently made a significant tactical error in waging war against this arch enemy of the Jewish nation. I must admit, hopefully it will not have as catastrophic ramifications as the story in Bava Basra, but I too have a taynah, a complaint, against one of my early childhood teachers for teaching me incorrectly how to read a very basic Pasuk, in fact it is the first verse of the first Hebrew book many Jewish children ever receive. I don't know about your Girsa D'Yankesa but when I first learned to say Modeh Ani (I don't know if it was in Sunday School or Kindergarten or wherever) we were taught to chant: Modeh Ani Lefanecha Melech Chai V'Kayam She'Hechzarta Bi Nishmasi, B'Chemlah Rabbah Emunasecha. I don't think we were taught the exact meaning of each word, but the way we were chanting the Hebrew was "I express thanks before Thee, the Everlasting King, who has returned my soul Semi-colon; B'Chemla Rabbah Emunasecha With great compassion is your faithfulness. It wasn't until I was in my late teens that I heard a recording from Rav Michel Twerski of Milwaukee with a beautiful new niggun for Modeh Ani, which correctly parses the verse as She'hechazarta bi Nishmasi B'Chemlah You have returned my soul with compassion; semi-colon; Rabbah Emunasecha. Great is your faithfulness. Unlike Yoav ben Tzeruyah, however, I am going to make positive use this evening of my erroneous Girsa D'Yankusa, the erroneous punctuation of this verse that I learned as a child to express a heartfelt sentiment about this evening's Guest of Honor. Rabbi Avi Weiss recently got into a lot of trouble and had to ultimately back down when he announced that he was starting to give the title Rabba to female students of his who completed Yoreh Deah studies Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 140
and other "pre-Rabbinic" training. Now I haven't formally checked this out with Rabbi Kletenik and the RCA yet, but it seems to me that the sensitivity around the title Rabbah is primarily because it was being used as a noun the female equivalent of the title Rabbi. The title I wish to use to describe our Guest of Honor tonight includes the term Rabbah, but it uses it as an adjective: Marlene Kaplan in my mind is Ms. Chemlah Rabbah one of the women of great compassion of this community, a quality which has endeared her to so many and with which she found great affinity for the work and the dedication of the Kollel Rabbis and their wives. It now gives me great pleasure to call on ____________ who will make the presentation to Ms. Chemlah Rabbah , our guest of Honor this evening Marlene Kaplan. One of the thirteen modes of exegesis mentioned in the famous Braisssa beginning with the words R. YIshmael Omer and perhaps one of the most famous modes of Talmudic derivation is the methodology of Gezeirah Shava. Halachic derivations may be inferred when two relatively uncommon words are used in different places and different contexts. The Gezera Shava --- the equivalent word usage in two places teaches that certain laws explicitly written in one context also applies to the second context where those laws are only alluded to by use of the common word. Gezerah Shava is sort of a code system built into the written Torah and exactly how to decipher that code is part of the Oral Law. Now in halachic matters we are taught that "Ayn Adam Doresh Gezerah Shava l'Atzmo" a person is not permitted to make his own inference from use of common words in varying contexts. Advancing a Gezerah Shava to suggest a new teaching is strictly forbidden and would obviously lead to halachic anarchy were Torah students to try to use their own ingenuity to teach Gezera Shavas they did not have as an oral tradition going back to Sinai. That is not to say however, that there is any law prohibiting a Master of Ceremonies for example from trying to get a point across about a dinner honoree by using the principles of Gezeirah Shava to link the honoree's name with that of another well known person. Now given the fact that the program indicates we are about to present an award to Dr. David Cassius and the fact that I am talking about name Gezeirah Shavahs, to the names of Honorees, most people in the audience are probably thinking that I am going to zero in on the name David and make a connection either between myself and the honoree or between the Rosh Kollel, Rabbi David and the honoree Dr. David Cassius or perhaps between Dovid Melech Yisrael and the hornoree. But those who are close to my age, who followed boxing in their teenage years, and who heard me say that I was going to mention Mohammed Ali tonight, know that this is not where I am headed. Besides, a David-David gezeirah shava is kind of cheap since one doesn't normally make Gezeira Shavas between common words. Now those of you who are the age of Dr. Cassius or the age of our Kollel Rabbis are probably wondering what Mohammed Ali has to do with David Cassius. But those of you who remember yet the 1960 Olympics know that before Mohammed Ali became a Muslim Baal Teshuva he had what he later called a "slave name" and that was Cassius Clay. The ironic thing about the name Cassius Clay is that in our High Holiday liturgy, referring to the fact that man is like Clay emphasizes man's humility and nothingness. "Adam Yesodo m'afar v'sofo l'afar Mashul c'cheres hanishbar" (Man is founded from dust and he will return to dust he is compared to a broken clay vessel.). But this boxer named Cassius Clay was anything but humble. He made his calling card the constant proclamation "I am the Greatest". So the Gezerah Shava works like this The name represents the inverse of the personality: Cassius the boxer had a name CLAY proclaiming his humility while he himself was in fact boastful and conceited. With Dr. Cassius the same is true, he has a name proclaiming belovedness and greatness David Melech Yisrael Chai v'Kayam and yet the essence of his personality is humility and modesty. It gives me great pleasure to call on ______________ to make the presentation to Dr. David Cassius. Now I expect that some in the audience are waiting for me to say something about Marion Davis Barbecue Sauce. Of course I was only joking when I included the Kollel's main sponsor in my list of items which I said would be in poor taste. The truth of the matter is that Marion Davis Barbecue Sauce Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 141
is never in poor taste. It tastes great with chicken, hot-dogs, chulent and a lot of other unmentionable delicacies which you learn about on the products web site www.the sauce goy. Biz
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Remarks at the Gala Celebrating BCMHs 120th Anniversary

I was at the Congregations 75th anniversary banquet in1966 and I remember that on that occasion several telegrams were read from former members who were not able to be in Seattle for the event. I dont believe telegrams exist anymore but I did receive an e-mail recently from Barry Ernstoff which he asked me to read tonight in conjunction with my presentation to Eli and Eva. Now the difference between telegrams and e-mails is that with telegrams you used to pay by the word and so people usually kept them short; with e-mail talk is cheap. I have been instructed by the powers that be, that the time given me on the program this evening will not be extended by the time it takes to read Barrys e-mail. Fortunately, what Barry writes about Eli and Eva is exactly what I was going to say about them myself so I have no problem yielding a minute or two from my time on the podium to the honorable counsel who will represent me in the following remarks: Judy and I are sorry that we don't have the pleasure of being there with you tonight celebrating the 120th anniversary of the shul. Judy's family has been associated with Bikur Cholim for about 100 of those 120 years, and while we have the z'chut to be living in Jerusalem for the past 25 years, we still feel that connection. That connection to the shul is felt in particular along with a connection to two of your honorees this evening, Eli and Eva Genauer. We have been proud to consider them our friends for over 35 years. And for all this time I have looked in awe at the hesed that they do. Their home is always open for hachnasat orchim, their hearts are always open to all who are in need. I have the pleasure of sitting on the board of trustees of the Samis Foundation with Eli and continue to enjoy his wit and his dedication to any task he takes on. Eva brings to her works of hesed all of the skills she has shown as a businesswoman. The late Sam Genauer, Eli's uncle, once told me stories of Judy's grandfather, Y'shiya Berliner, and his business partnership with Eli's grandfather, Moshe Genauer in the early 20th century. I have been blessed by my own partnership with Eli now into the 21st century. We wish both of them continuing nachat from their wonderful children, all of whom we have had the pleasure to host in our Jerusalem home over the years, and their beautiful grandchildren, and look forward to many years of our continuing friendship. They may be the honorees this evening, but it is the rest of us who know them who feel honored. Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi says in Kuzari about the Jewish people: . Israel amongst the nations is like the heart amongst the organs of the body. I believe this simile is most appropriate to mention tonight for I believe it can be stated that . Historically speaking, like Israel among the nations and like the heart within the body, Bikur Cholim and its membership have been a source directly or indirectly -- of inspiration, vitality, support, and leadership to virtually all Jewish organizations and institutions that have come into existence in our community over the past 120 years. This is true whether they are institutions of Torah, Avodah, Gemilut Chassadim, Chinuch or support for Eretz and later Medinat Yisrael.
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My task here tonight is not to be a Shul historian but to segue to my pleasant task at hand, I would like to remark that for the better part of these past 120 years, certainly for my entire lifetime and beyond as an active observer of the Bikur Cholim scene I think I can confidently and accurately state that . , , If there is one family that is to be singled out in our congregation one generation after the other as being the heart and soul of everything positive that this congregation stands for and represents in our community it has been the Genauer family. Eli and Eva represent the very best of this very special family. Eva of course has her own Yichus. Those who had the privilege to know the very special qualities of Dr. Eric and Mrs. Gertrude Offenbacher, obm and who remember their inspirational service and dedication to our community will understand the enthusiasm our Rabbis had when anticipating the quality of a Jewish home which reflects the blending of the choicest mixtures of fine grape vines. Such is the nature of the home of Eli and Eva which represents the finest blend of these two inspirational spiritual dynasties. If our Congregation has been successful over these past 120 years and if we can be optimistic looking forward to the future it is because families like the Offenbachers and the Genauers, leveraging the power of the shul and the power of the community, and the power of a committed Torah life-style were able to impress upon their children, their greater families, and the community as a whole the concept of How fortunate are we, how goodly is our lot, and how beautiful is our Torah inheritance. The centrality of the heart to the healthy and vibrant functioning of the body and metaphorically to ones drives, emotions, and inspiration is an idea with deep roots in both halachic and aggadic sources. The simile I mentioned of Eli and Eva being to our shul like the heart amongst the limbs of the body is precise on many levels. There are many qualities about the heart we think about and there are many we take for granted in terms of its role in sustaining the body. Unfortunately I do not have time to fully develop this evening the full range of similarities between ' Ill leave that as a homework assignment for the sociologists and the cardiologists in the audience. But I would like to mention one over-riding quality of the heart that we often overlook that I think captures a key dimension of the personalities of our honorees. And that is that with G-ds help, a healthy heart works so quietly and so reliably and so efficiently that we often take its work and the essential nature of its contribution to our overall health for granted. Whether it be matters of Bikur Cholim, of Chessed, of Tzedaka, of teaching Torah, of leading services, of organizing programs each in their own way Eli and Eva work so efficiently and so quietly and so humbly that it becomes all too easy to take their great value and their great contributions to the welfare of our synagogue and our community for granted. I am delighted the Congregation has chosen to honor them tonight and to publicly recognize the role they and their families have played in making and preserving BCMH as a vibrant home of Torah, Avodah, and Gemillas Chassadim biz hundred un tzfansik and then some!
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PRESENTATION OF RABBI DR WILLIAM GREENBERG DAY SCHOOL EXCELLENCE TEACHING AWARD The primary mission of Samis is to promote quality and affordable Jewish Day School education in the state of Washington. We have long felt that to promote the quality component of this mission Samis should find ways to enhance the prestige of the Day School teaching profession by singling out for recognition exemplary role models who have dedicated their lives and talents to teaching our children and to positively impacting our institutions. We have long had a name in mind for this recognition of lifelong commitment to pedagogic excellence, to Talmud Torah, and dedication to community through service to communal educational institutions. That name is the Rabbi Dr. William Greenberg Award for Day School Teaching Excellence -- an award named in memory of the man Sam Israel chose to be the charter lifetime Rabbinic Trustee of the Samis Foundation. Rabbi Greenberg taught the knowledge and love of Torah in our community for many decades. His pedagogic talents, dedication, personality, and years of service to our community epitomize the qualities we are looking to recognize in role-models of teaching dedication and excellence in Samis-supported institutions. It is the hope of our Foundation that by publicly singling out such teaching professionals from time to time, acknowledging and rewarding especially deserving individuals who have served our community for many years, we will be able to raise the prestige of the unsung heroes of Jewish continuity and renaissance in our era -- quality Day School educators and hopefully inspire young talented and charismatic disciples of such individuals to consider the profession of Day School education for themselves as well. It is further our hope that the "buzz" created by the existence of such an award will help retain and recruit inspiring for our community and our schools in the years to come.
We are tonight announcing the inaugural presentation of this award to Rabbi Morton and Leya Moskowitz. We complement SHA for seeing fit to honor these beloved teachers and role-models for our youth and we thank SHA for allowing us to leverage this opportunity to honor them as well. We are also delighted to have Mrs. Rosa Greenberg together with 3 of the Greenberg children -- Sarah, Deena, and Aryeh -- here this evening to witness the presentation of this award in memory of their husband and father. Now when Sam Israel was in his prime, King of the Ranch in Eastern Washington, if someone were to ask him: [ ? What shall be done with teachers your Foundation wishes to honor?] No doubt he would tell us in his inimitable fashion: "Dress them in my riding shirt and jeans, put my cowboy hat on their head, and lead them upon my horse down Main Street in Soap Lake saying Thus shall be done for the teachers Sam Israel wishes to honor." The trustees now serving on this Foundation are perhaps not as colorful and imaginative as its founding "Uncle", so we're going to let Rabbi and Mrs. Moskowitz keep on their own clothing, they don't have to ride on anybody's horse, and we're not going to parade them through the streets of Soap Lake. The foundation is not making any promises tonight about the amount, frequency, or even the exact criteria of these awards in the future, but to launch the inaugural Rabbi Dr William Greenberg Award for Day School Teaching Excellence I am delighted to announce that the Mosokowitzs will each be receiving checks for $10,000 as part of this award recognition as we symbolically proclaim here tonight: It is now my pleasure to call upon Mr. Eddie Hasson, President of the Samis Foundation and Mrs. Connie Kanter, Trustee of the Samis Foundation, to present the award. I would also like to call up this evenings Award recipients, Rabbi Morton and Leya Moskowitz.
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Speeches at BCMH
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INTRODUCTION OF RAV AHARON KAHN OF RIETS (BCMH)

May 2003 Rashi in this week's parsha quotes the Gemara in Succah that one's neighbors affect one's spiritual development -- for better or for worse -- Korach's family camped on the South side of the Mishkan and they had a negative influence on the tribe of Reuven who also camped South of the Mishkan. Moshe and Aharon and his sons camped on the eastern side of the Mishkan and they were a positive influence on the tribes of Yehuda, Yissachar, and Zevulun who also camped East of the Mishkan. I certainly count as one of the greatest privileges of my life the three years I had the zechus to sit in the classroom of Rav Yosef Dof Soloveitchik, zt"l between September 1970 and June 1973. There were many dimensions to this great privilege. Certainly the Rav had a great impact on me intellectually and spiritually as he did on everyone who ever knew him. However, if truth be told, the Rav was such a giant, such an over-powering intellect and personality, that very few if any of his many Talmidim could more than superficially grasp the full depth of his teachings -- let alone aspire to be like him. Certainly someone like myself, who came from Seattle and who 4 years earlier had come out of Public High School was not in a position to directly approach or appreciate the Rav. The Rav was the Mishkan and I felt very much in the situation of haZar haKareiv Yumas (the foreigner who approaches too close shall die). But fortunately for the likes of myself there were people in the shiur the likes of our scholar in residence this weekend veterans of the shiur and veterans of many years of intense Torah study who were able to approach the Mishkan and share the aroma of the fragrance of the Rav's Torah with the broader circle of Rav Soloveichik's disciples. Looking back on those years and the "neighbors" that I had in that classroom, I sometimes wonder which was the greater privilege -- to be a student in the class of a giant I could never hope to emulate or to be a fellow classmate with future Roshei Yeshiva, Rabbanim, Talmidei Chachamim, and leaders of Klal Yisrael who were -- at least back then -- if not "peers" then at least within the realm of role models I could one day aspire to be like. Rav Aharon Kahn, was certainly one of those role models -- recognized even back then as one of the Rav's inner circle of disciples who was respected and admired by both the newcomers to the shiur as well as those who had been there many years. Rav Kahn spent close to 20 years in the Rav's shiur, during 10 of which he was the Rav's teaching assistant whose job it was to review and interpret once a week for the likes of myself what the Rav had said the previous week -- in about one-fifth the time it took for Rav Soloveitchik to develop the lessons the first time through. Rav Kahn has an impressive resume of Rabbinic and educational positions. Today he is a Rosh Yeshiva at Yeshiva University. He also gives shiurim at the Sephardic Kollel and Congregation Beth Torah in Brooklyn and is the Rav of Kehillas Bais Haknesses in Brooklyn. He has published and lectured widely and it gives me great pleasure to call on Rav Kahan to address the congregation this morning.
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HEBREW FREE LOAN DINNER

February 15, 2004
I want to thank Debbie Grashin for inviting me to say a few words at the Hebrew Free Loan Dinner this year. I admire Debbie very much and I think she knows that I find it virtually impossible to say no to any favor she asks of me, so I really appreciate the fact that the nature of the favors she asks are virtually always of the nature that I don't mind saying yes. She told me when she called back in the end of December that the Hebrew Free Loan Dinner was going to be held on President's Day Weekend this year. I was trying to think of what the connection between the Hebrew Free Loan Society and Presidents Day was. The only connection I could come up with was that I know personally, after being bombarded with all the campaigning and mudslinging and hollow promises that one hears from all the people running for President in an election year such as this, I very quickly lose interest in the whole process. Since Hebrew Free Loan societies are about doing away with interest, perhaps this is an appropriate connection. Now since tomorrow is President's Day and since I was asked to give an after Dinner speech here and since after Dinner speakers are supposed to tell cute stories, I do have a cute story regarding President's Day. Most of us in this room are old enough to remember that President's Day is actually a rather recent concoction of the US Congress to maximize the number of 3 day weekends on the calendar of the American worker. When we were growing up -- even when some of our children were growing up -there were two Holidays on the calendar in February celebrating great American Presidents and they could fall on any day during the week. February 12th was Lincoln's Birthday and February 22 was Washington's Birthday. When my son Moshe who is now 29 was in Kindergarten at the Seattle Hebrew Academy February 12th happened to fall out on the 15th day of Shevat on the Hebrew Calendar. When I saw Moshe that evening, I asked him -- as I always did -- what he had learned in school that day. He told me he learned that it was Abraham Lincoln's birthday and it was also Tu B'Shvat. I asked him, "Moshe, did you learn anything about President Lincoln?" He thought for a moment and responded, "Yes. We learned that he was born on Tu B'Shvat." Clearly some times the confluence of two dates is significant and other times the confluence of two dates is just coincidental. The holding of the Hebrew Free Loan Society dinner on President's Day week-end is no doubt coincidental. The holding of the Hebrew Free Loan society dinner on the week of Parshas Mishpatim, on the other hand, is most significant. For it is in this week's Parsha [Shmos 22:24] that we find the verse "Im kesef talveh es ami, es ha'Ani eemach, lo tiheyeh lo k'noshe; lo t'simun alav neshech" (When you lend money to My people, to the poor person who is with you, do not act toward him as a creditor; do not place interest upon him).
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Here we have the source for the Biblical command that has become a hallmark of Jewish society -- to lend out our money to our needy brethren interest free. Now at a primary level, this command has nothing to do with Hebrew Free Loan societies. It is one of the "Bein Adam L'Chaveiro" commands involving kindness between fellow Jews that directs us to set aside as part of our charitable giving funds for lending personal interest free loans to our brethren in need. There are many practices and institutions that exist in Judaism today, that we take for granted, which are likewise not necessarily the primary intent of related Biblical commands. To give a couple of other examples, the Baruch Hashem now ubiquitous phenomenon of Jewish Educational institutions -- be they Day Schools or Academys or Cheders or Yeshivas or Beis Yakovs -- was not the Torah's primary intent in the Biblical command of "V'Shinantam Levanecha v'Dibarta Bam". At a primary level, teaching Torah to the next generation was a mitzvah incumbent on a father vis a vis his own children. Similarly the institution of selling Chametz through our congregational Rabbi was neither Biblically nor even historically the envisioned way of fulfilling the command of ridding our homes of leaven and leavening agents during Pessach. In many many areas, what was once primarily a personal command and obligation, evolved for a variety of reasons into communal institutions and communal organizations. This evolution, of course, has both its advantages and disadvantages. Just as optimally a father should still make every effort to personally teach his own children Torah wherever possible, anyone who has the opportunity and the resources to personally lend money interest free to a friend or relative or neighbor or acquaintance is duty bound to do so and fulfills thereby the great mitzvah of Gemillas Chessed (acts of kindness) and more specifically of "Im Kesef Talveh" (when you lend money). Just as a father should not consider the existence of available Chinuch institutions a license to abandon his personal educational responsibilities vis a vis his children, so too we should not consider the existence of organizations such as the Hebrew Free Loan and other community-based charity organizations as excuses to avoid our personal responsibility toward Gemillas Chessed in all of its various available manifestations. And yet, clearly the various types of organizations and institutions that have evolved in the Jewish people over the last centuries did not do so in a vacuum. There is a clear need and benefit for having educational institutions. There is a clear need and benefit for having communal sale of private chometz possessions. And there is a clear need and benefit for having Hebrew Free Loan societies. Already in the times of the Mishneh and the Talmud we find that the mitzvah of giving "Tzedakah" had taken on a "communal" dimension with the institutions of the public "tamchui" that distributed food on a daily basis and the kupah which distributed funds on a weekly basis to those in need. The institutionalization of Gemillas Chessed has in many cases improved the dignity and the efficiency of the process of obtaining interest Free Loans. It has also in many cases expanded the opportunities for people to get involved in the Mitzvah of helping provide for Free Loans. It is this Mitzvah that this organization specializes in and those people who are involved in supporting it and who serve as the officers of the organization deserve a great deal of credit and appreciation. The fifth chapeter of tractate Bava Metziah,, Eizehu Neshech, deals with the prohibition of charging interest on a Torah level and the Rabbinic extensions to that prohibition. The last Mishneh in the chapter teaches that the Bibilical prohibition is not only directed at the person who charges interest. There are actually 6 people in violation of Biblical prohibitions with each interest-bearing loan. Besides the lender, the borrower, the person who provides security for such a loan, the two witnesses to the loan and even the scribe who records the loan all are involved in one or more prohibitions associated with interest bearing loans.
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On the words "Oseh Chesed La'Alaphim" (He does kindness for thousands of generations) that we find in yesterday's Parsha, Parshas Yisro, as well as on the words "Notzer Chesed L'Alafim" (He preserves kindness for thousands of generations) in Parshas Ki Tisa, Rashi brings the Tosefta in tractate Sotah that "Nimtzais meedah Tovah Merubeh al Midas Puranus achas al chamesh meios " (we find the measure of good that G-d rewards is greater than the measure of punishment He metes out by a ratio of one to five hundred). Since it says that G-d will punish sins for up to four generations and He will reward good deeds for at least two thousand generations -- we see that the Meedah Tovah (good measure) surpasses the Midas Puranus (the measure of punishment) by a factor of 500. I would like to suggest that just as the measure of reward surpasses the measure of punishment by a factor of at least 500 to 1, so too when it comes to the area of loans between Jews we should see a similar phenomenon. If 6 people can be spiritually corrupted and religiously tainted by participation -- directly or indirectly -- in each and every interest-bearing loan, we should expect to have 3000 people or more spiritually rewarded and religiously elevated by participation in each and every interest free loan. Certainly the supporters and particularly the officers of the Hebrew Free Loan society in Seattle and similar Gemillas Chessed organizations throughout the Jewish world from time immemorial may count themselves among those who are spiritually rewarded and religiously elevated by participating in the enabling of free loans to our fellow Jews in need. May the be zoche to be successful in their efforts and may Hakadosh Baruch Hu reward them for their participation in the fulfillment of this mitzvah.
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Who Would Rabbi Shapiro Vote For In The 2004 Presidential Election?
October, 2004 It is almost exactly 4 years ago that I spoke around this time of year from the pulpit of our congregation. Rabbi Kletenik was on Sabbatical in Israel with his family and he asked me and Rabbi Elisha Paul to each give a Shabbos morning sermon once a month so that the kehilla would at least not get too spoiled by the shorter service while he was on Sabbatical. On that occasion which was also in close proximity to a U.S. presidential election, I mentioned a remark made by one of my teachers in the Semicha program at Yeshiva University some 30 years earlier. Rabbi Walter Wurtzburger, zl, warned his students about the perils of invoking the concept of Daas Torah when it comes to endorsing candidates for political office. He put it as follows: Gentlemen, take any parsha between the end of the Democratic and Republican conventions and the election. I could give you an erudite and eloquent Sermon based on the Parsha of the week that would convince you that Daas Torah requires you to vote for George McGovern. I could give you a second equally erudite and eloquent Sermon based on the Parsha of the week that would convince you that Daas Torah requires you to vote for Richard Nixon. And I could give you a third erudite and eloquent Sermon based on the Parsha of the week that would convince you that Daas Torah requires you to not vote at all when confronted with a choice between George McGovern and Richard Nixon. That wise, if somewhat cynical advice, notwithstanding there certainly is precedent for better or for worse in invoking the name, opinion, or memory of leading Torah personalities what it comes to endorsing candidates for various political office. As a matter of fact, the record will show that I am not the first person to address a BCMH Mens Club breakfast and invoke the revered name of Rabbi Baruch Shapiro, ztl, in advocating that our members vote for a particular candidate in his quest for political office. Those of you who have been around for as long as I have, remember that memorable October Sunday morning some 15 or 20 years ago when a black candidate running for a State Office in Olympia spoke to this august body and asked them for their vote. On what basis did he find affinity with the members of Bikur Cholim Machzikay Hadath? His mother had been Rabbi Shapiros cleaning lady in the Central neighborhood thirty years earlier and she used to press the saintly Ravs pants. Apparently the voters were not impressed with the gentlemans qualifications. He did not win the election. But this story took place many years ago, at a time when it was much less controversial bringing a politician into shul to try to solicit Jewish votes particularly if that politician happened to be a Democrat. Today politics has become so polarized and the community so divided that anything that hints at Rabbinic or institutional endorsement of one candidate or party over another is radioactive. I have found that people in this shul are super-sensitive to any kind of sign or nuance given by anyone in the administration of the shul that might even remotely be construed in such a way as to contradict their personal political comfort zone.
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A case in point is the very controversial "Cover Up" issue recently tackled by the shul Religious Committee. This was an issue people felt strongly about and which had the potential of alienating some very distinguished members of our congregation if it was not handled with appropriate tact and diplomacy. I am referring to the question of which Paroches to put up on the Aron Kodesh during the critical weeks before the election. Of course during Selichos and Aseres Yemei Teshuvah there was no problem we had the white Paroches of the Yomim Noraim. During Succos we had the blue Paroches used on the Shalosh Regalim. But which Paroches would go up after Succos in the run-up to the Presidential Election? This was a hotly debated issue. The Republicans on the committee were of course all lobbying for putting up the red Paroches with the Pasuk from Parshas Shmos VHaSneh Aynenu Ukal. On the other hand, the Democrats on the Committee were insisting that that expression which could be erroneously translated as Bush Will Not Be Defeated was too inflammatory, you should excuse the pun. They insisted that if the Republicans tried to go with the pasuk from Shmos, they would fly in from the Young Israel of Brookline a special election 2004 blue Parochoes with the phrase from Amos val arbah lo aShivenu which erroneously translated means Four More Years No Way! There was a compromise proposal made that inasmuch as everyone in the shul could agree to oppose one presidential candidate, we could have a custom-made red, white and blue Paroches with a phrase from the Pasuk in Parshas Emor UlNeder lo Yeiratzeh. In the end, the Religious Committee decided to be politically correct and not offend anyone. So we just put up a tasteful, non-political Paroches that bears the simple message "Shut up during davening or you'll drop dead." So much, for digressing about, the "Cover Up" issue that came before the Religious Committee.. The question you have all come to hear me address, however, is: Who would Rabbi Baruch Shapiro, ztl, vote for in the 2004 presidential election if he were alive today? The answer should be well known to people who have faithfully attended the Rav Shapiro Memorial breakfast over all these many years. It must have been a dozen or so years ago, and if my memory serves me correctly the guest speaker that year was Mr. Jack Steinberg, of blessed memory who happened to be Rav Shapiros attorney. Mr. Steinberg related that, as a young lawyer, he was helping Rav Shapiro apply for American citizenship. Rav Shapiro expressed an interest in becoming an American citizen and Jack helped him fill out the paperwork. He had taken all the tests regarding American history and the laws of citizenship and had passed successfully. Mr. Steinberg accompanied him for the filing of the final paperwork and helped translate for him the legalese in the government form into Rav Shapiros native Yiddish. But when he came to the line, I solemnly swear that if called upon to serve in the armed forces of the United States of America to defend this country I will do so he refused to sign his name.
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Rav Shapiro said that the statement was not true and he refused to sign. Jack assured him that it was just a formality, that he was beyond the age where men were being drafted and that at any rate they would not draft someone who could not speak English into the Army. It didnt matter. Rav Shapiro refused to sign his name on an oath that was not true and he passed up American citizenship. I am not sure exactly what his legal status was the rest of his life in America, but according to his lawyer because of his integrity he never became an American citizen! That being the case, the technical answer to the question Who would Rabbi Shapiro vote for in the 2004 U.S. Presidential Elections if he were alive today? is of course no one. He was never a US citizen and thus would be ineligible to vote. But that really begs the question. What I believe can be asked and what I dare say might be speculated is what would be Rabbi Shapiros comments on the 2004 U.S. Presidential Election if he were alive today. I think that perhaps Rabbi Shapiros reaction to the 2004 U.S. Presidential Election can best be predicted in light of a story I once heard regarding the late Satmar Rebbe. Now in different periods of the twentieth century Satmar was sometimes located in Hungary and sometimes located in Rumania depending on the shifting borders. I believe this story took place while Satmar was in Rumania which had for a period free elections. Politicians knew then, as they know today in Brooklyn and other Chassidic strongholds, that if they can get the endorsement of the Rebbe, they will automatically have the vote of all his Chassidim. For this reason, the politicians of various parties came to the Satmar court seeking the Rebbes support. One day either the King or Prime Minister or someone from the upper echelons of the ruling party came to visit the Rebbe. This government official came with all the trappings of royalty, with a large delegation, an impressive chariot, etc. etc. The Chassidim had never seen such wealth and pomp and ceremony and the Rebbe sensed that they were getting overly excited about a Melech Evyon an earthly King and decided that it would be necessary to put all these outer trappings of royalty into the right perspective for his Chassidim. After the distinguished guest, finished delivering his campaign speech in Roumanian, the Rebbe turned to his Gabbai and said in a loud voice so all the Chassidim could hear Vos zogt dem Arel? (What did this uncircumcised one have to say?) My sense is that Rav Shapiro would have a similar attitude to the 2004 elections. He would perhaps remind his faithful disciples that the word Bush means embarrassment and the name Keri is synonymous with ritual impurity. I think he would remind his Kehilla of the words we say at the siyum of a Talmudic tractate: Modim anachnu lfanecha shesamta chelkeinu myoshvei beis hamedrash vlo samta chelkeinu myoshvei Karonos . A Karon is a wagon and the yoshvei Karonos can be interpreted to mean those who are riding on the campaign bandwagons of political candidates. For us he would tell his congregation the Torah is our life and the length of our days; not politics and not political parties. Anu ratzim, vhem ratzim. (We are running and they are running.) We run to life of the World to Come, while they run to the well of destruction). I think he would tell his Kehilla not to be overly impressed with the power or the reliability of politicians. He would quote them the timeless wisdom of the Mishneh from the second Perek of Avos: Hevy zehirin bRashus Beware of rulers, for they befriend someone only for their own benefit; they act friendly when it benefits them, but they do not stand by someone in his time of need.
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Ultimately he would remind his members that it is not the voters who elect a president. It is not the electoral college and it is not even the Supreme Court of the United States. It is the One who is mamlich melachim vlo haMelucha who puts people into office to carry out His will (He crowns the kings, but the Kingship remains His). I believe the Rav of Congregation Machzikay Hadas would quote to those who listened to him the verse from Mishlei 21:1 Palgei mayim lev melech byad Hashem; al asher Yachpotz yatenu (Like streams of water is the heart of a king in the hand of Hashem, wherever He wishes, so He directs it.) This is a very powerful statement. Kings and Presidents do not have the same Bechirah Chofshis that you and I have. They serve as the tools of Hashem for executing His Divine Providence in executing the Master Plan of history in which of course the Jewish people play a most prominent role. Finally, I believe Rav Shapiro would urge his members Al tivtechu bnedivim (Dont put your faith in nobles). Tov lachasos bHashem, mbetoach bnedivim (It is better to take refuge in Hashem than to rely on nobles). So now I have disappointed twice everyone who has come here this morning to decide for whom to vote for President based on Rabbi Shapiros endorsement. First Ive disappointed you by telling you that Rabbi Shapiro himself wouldnt be voting for President because he couldnt. Then Ive disappointed you by telling you that Rabbi Shapiro perhaps wouldnt have voted for President even if he could. Finally, I would like to disappoint everyone one last time by telling you that even if Rabbi Shapiro could have voted for President in 2004 if he were alive today, and even if Rabbi Shapiro would have voted for President in 2004 if he were alive today, and even if he would have told his members who to vote for that endorsement would not have any halachic significance for anyone in this room today. That is because of a Torah law we find in Parshas Shoftim. If there is a matter of judgment that will be hidden from you a matter of dispute in your city then you shall come to the Kohanim, the Levites, and the judges who will be in those days; you shall inquire and they will tell you the word of judgment. Rashi quotes on the words Asher Yiheye bayamim hahem the Gemara in Rosh HaShana that one only has the judges and halachic authorities that exist in his days and those are the people he must listen to. So assuming there are people in this audience who feel that the decision for whom to vote in the upcoming Presidential election is in fact a halachic matter and they have come to hear Rav Shapiro, ztls halachic position on this issue, I must disappoint them and tell them: It doesnt matter. You must consult your local orthodox Rabbi of today.
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Torah Dedication In Honor of Gustav Samter

BCMH Congregation January 20, 2008
Rava states: kama tipshaee shear inshi, dkaymee mkamei Sefer Torah vlo kaymee mkamee gavra rabba (How foolish are the masses they rise and show respect for a Sefer Torah, but they do not rise and show respect for a great person). [Makkos 22b]. This afternoon, we in Congregation Bikur Cholim Machzikay HaDath are participating in a dual show of respect. We have gathered here today to show respect and honor to a new Sefer Torah and we have gathered as well to show respect to a gavra rabba a Gavriel Rabba, to be more precise, a great person, named Gavriel, in whose honor this new Sefer Torah is being dedicated. The Yalkut Shimoni on yesterday's Parsha on the words "V'hamayim lahem chomah" speaks about the Angel Gavriel. The Medrash states: "When Israel descended into the sea, the Angel Gavriel descended with them, He decreed that the waters in front of them should split apart in the merit of the two sets of Tzizis the Jews would eventually wear on the corners of their garment in front of them and he decreed that the waters behind them should return to their normal state and drown the Egyptians in the merit of the two sets of Tzisis that Israel would in the future wear on back of their garments. The Sefer HaDrash V'aiyun, quoting the Chasam Sofer says this Medrash teaches us that the two sets of tzizis in front of our Tallis serve a different function than do the two sets in back of our Tallis. The Torah states clearly that Tzisis are meant to be a reminder to do the mitzvos: Uu'reesem oso u'zechartem es kol mitzos Hashem va'aseesem osom And you will see it and you will remember all the mitzvos of Hashem and do them. The Chasam Sofer explains, based on the above quoted Medrash, that the Tzisis in front of the Tallis which we see are a reminder to ourselves to perform the mitzvos of Hashem while the Tzisis in back of the Tallis which other people see serve as a reminder for others who see us that they also perform the mitzvos of Hashem. The imagery of the Tallis is closely coupled with that of a Shliach Tzibbur as we see in the famous Gemara in Rosh Hashana [17b] "melamed shenisatef haKadosh Baruch Hu K'Shliach Tzibur v'her-a l'Moshe seder Tefillah" (Hashem wrapped himself in a Tallis as if he were the Shliach Tzibbur and showed Moshe the order of prayer.) Mr.Gavriel Samter has been a faithful Shliach Tzibbur a designated leader of the Congregation when it comes to prayer and when it comes to Torah reading for many many years. Even though he officially retired from these roles a few years back, I think for many people to this day -- when they hear the name Gavriel Samter they picture an individual wrapped in a Tallis serving as Shliach Tzibur, be it at the amud or at the bimah. Mr. Samter has always been very conscious of the Tzisis he wears in front of his garment. They have always reminded him to perform the mitzvos of Hashem with precision and with love, with dedication and mesiras nefesh. At the same time, Mr. Samter has been a role model for others. His actions and his demeanor as a role model and teacher have served symbolically like the Tzisis on the back of his Tallis as a reminder to others how Jews are supposed to act with honesty, with refinement, with dignity and with an attitude of Hevi m'talmidav shel Aharon HaKohen ohev es haBriyos u'm'karvan l'Torah: Be like the disciples of Aaron the Priest loving his fellow men and bringing them closer to Torah. This Hachnasat Sefer Torah is being held at a very auspicious time of year. Tomorrow evening will be Tu BShvat the New Year for Trees. What more appropriate time could there be to bring into our congregational family a new Torah about which we are taught: Etz Chaim Hi LMachazikim Bah It is a Tree of Life to those who hold onto it? And I think I am not barking up the wrong tree to go one step further and say what more appropriate time could there be to pay tribute and honor to a Gavra Rabbah Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 156
such as Gavriel Samter who in the spirit of Ki HaAdam Etz HaSadeh [Devorim 20:19] (for man is like a tree of the field) is himself deeply rooted in a Torah way of life and who has provided leadership and guidance that have impacted virtually all branches of our Synagogues service and services. It now gives me great pleasure to present some of the fruit of Mr. Samter's pedagogic efforts, his granddaughter: Malka Adatto, followed by his daughter Mrs. Aviva Yablok, and then followed by his son, Michael Samter. * * * When Louis Treiger and I as co-chair of the shuls last Rabbinic Search Committee were putting together our wish list for our ideal Rabbinic candidate we had a little argument. I wrote up a draft wish list in which I said we would like an individual who in addition to everything else we were asking for -- had skills as a Baal Koreh. Louis said, that we were asking for too much already and we didnt need a Rabbi who was a Baal Koreh. Instead he insisted that we ask for a Rabbi who had a graduate secular degree. I said we were asking for too much already and that we didnt need a Rabbi who had an advanced secular degree. In the end we compromised and asked for both and in Rabbi Kletenik we got both along with virtually everything else we asked for. Now I am not sure how often the congregation has had to rely on Rabbi Kleteniks ability to factor polynomial equations or to solve complex mathematical problems beyond "how many people are we short for a minyan?". But it is no secret that we have certainly come to rely on his skills as a Baal Koreh. Indeed Mr. Samter spoiled us as a congregation with his yekke like perfection of Torah reading from the earliest days of this Congregation's move to Seward Park. We are indeed fortunate to have acquired the Torah reading services of perhaps the only person in the shul who could match Mr. Samter's perfection. I now call on the Morah d'Asra of our congregation, Rabbi Moshe Kletenik, to address us in honor of this special occasion. * * * I just want to close with a little story: Some 25 years ago I used to maver Sedra with my eldest son Moshe who was probably in 3rd or 4th grade at the time. Although it was a number of years before his Bar Mitzvah, I thought it was not too early to expose Moshe to the Taamei HaMikra and to get him used to the vocabulary of Chumash. I mentioned to him at one point: Moshe, do you know that Mr. Samter reads the whole parsha from the Torah every week in shul every single pasuk and he does not need to see the vowels or the notes on the words and he never makes any mistakes? Moshe thought about that for a few moments then he asked me, Aba, does Mr. Samter translate the pesukim too? I said no, he just reads them. So then whats the big deal? Moshe wanted to know! Well as we all know, Mr. Samters contributions to the shul and to the Kehilla at large over these last many decades have been a big deal. They have been a big deal institutionally for Bikur CholimMachzikay HaDath and perhaps even more significantly they have been a big deal individually for the dozens of youth from our congregation and beyond whom he has taught, influenced, and molded over more than 2 complete generations! In behalf of everyone here, I want to wish Mr. Samter that he may he have Arichas Yamim, health, and continued nachas from his wonderful family and may he receive chizuk in the knowledge even l'achar meah v'Esrim "Mr. Samter's Torah" will continue to be a source of teaching and inspiration to future generations in Congregation Bikur Cholim Machzikay HaDath.
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Movie Review on Rav Soloveitchik Film

November 29, 2008
Over the years, I have been asked to teach or speak in this congregation in situations when we were totally without a Rabbi and in situations when we had a Rabbi who was on vacation, sabbatical or out-oftown. The Talmud contrasts the plight of a starving person who has no idea where his next meal is coming from with that of a starving person who has ( bread in his basket). I always feel that for a congregation the situation of having a Rabbi on vacation or sabbatical is like the starving person with .We need a Rabbi and we miss the Rabbi, but thank G-d, we know where to find him. We know he'll be back eventually and I want to take this occasion to wish our Rabbi a peaceful, productive, and well-deserved, Sabbatical. Fifteen years ago when we were last totally without a Rabbi, as co-chair of our shul's Rabbinic Search committee, I spoke with a nationally known rabbinic personality who was given as a reference by several of our candidates. At one point in my conversation he emphasized to me the importance of matching up a Rabbi's unique talents with the specific needs of each congregation. "For example", he said, "some communities have no need for a full-service Rabbi; their prime requirement is that the Rabbi be able to give good book and movie reviews for the shul sisterhood." It just so happened that not long before this conversation I had been the guest speaker at a Sisterhood meeting where I indeed gave a book review. I assured this Yeshiva administrator that Seattle already had a local Rabbi who gave good book reviews for the Sisterhood and that BCMH was looking for something a great deal more than that in a Rabbi. But, with layoffs now looming at Boeing and with low-profile minyanim who take pride in not needing full service Rabbis popping up all over the place, the thought occurred to me that perhaps the time has come for me to polish up my rabbinic resume. While I have given several book reviews over the years, up to now I have never given a rabbinic movie review. Now I would not be so brazen as to abuse the opportunity Rabbi Kletenik has offered me by cheapening this pulpit with a movie review were it not for the fact that the Rabbi himself shared with us one Shabbat morning some 4 years ago his impressions of a certain Mel Gibson film about a figure whose initials were J.C. It is based on that Rabbinic precedent, that I am taking the license to share with you this morning some impressions on the recently shown Ethan Eisenberg film about the Life and Legacy of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik who was in some circles known by the initials, l'Havdil, J.B. Let me begin with a story: In 1954, upon the occasion of the 750th anniversary of the death of Maimonides, Hebrew University published a collection of scholarly papers about the Rambam by individuals considered to be leading authorities on this great Torah giant. One of the scholars solicited was Rav Soloveitchik. The Rav later, only somewhat tongue-in-cheek, commented upon this request. "When I received the letter informing me that Hebrew U was collecting papers marking the 750th anniversary of the death of Maimonides I was shocked and distressed. Until that moment, no one had ever told me that the Rambam was dead. For me, the Rav continued, he has always been a dynamic force in my life and a living reality. This was the first time I had ever heard anyone state that he was no longer alive." I recalled this comment of the Rav, while watching the movie documentary about his life and legacy. It was a beautifully done and moving film. But it did leave somewhat of a bittersweet taste in my mouth to see my beloved teacher being treated as a historical figure. For me Rav Soloveitchik is not a figure of the past. For me he is still very much here. I read his essays, I review his notes, I listen to his recorded lectures. I think about him daily, the Torah he taught me, and the inspiration he gave me.
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There is a fundamental difference between a teacher who is dead and a teacher who is alive. It really has nothing to do with his pulse or heartbeat. I would like to elaborate on this idea by citing a teaching I once heard from the Rav: At the beginning of Parshat Zot Habracha we read the famous verse: " Torah was commanded to us by Moses, an inheritance for the Congregation of Jacob. The Talmud in a number of places makes a play on words and teaches "" The Torah should not metaphorically be compared to a morasha an inheritance, rather it should be compared to a m'eorasa a betrothed, a bride. Rav Soloveitchik elaborated. What, he asked, is the difference between morasha and me'orasa? Morasha is an heirloom, something I have inherited from a deceased ancestor. An inheritance is meaningful to me for nostalgic reasons. It has sentimental value stemming not so much out of its own intrinsic worth, rather out of its importance to someone else a father, grandfather, or great grandfather. We may remain ignorant of the reason why this object was important to our ancestors and yet for purely sentimental reasons, we will have a certain degree of attachment to it. A bride, on the other hand, me'orasa, has personal value. Her significance stems not out of an importance to someone else, rather out of a direct relationship with the one to whom she is betrothed. The bond of a man with his betrothed goes above and beyond the bond of family tradition and parental attachment. "Therefore a man will leave his mother and father and cling to his wife." The attachment is personally significant, not hidden away in mysteries of the past. This message of making Torah into a vibrant and personally meaningful Me'orasah with whom one achieves a passionate and intimate relationship rather than merely a nostalgic and sentimental Morasha with which one pays tribute to the values of long deceased ancestors was the key philosophy which Rabbi Soloveitchik brought to his classroom and to all his pedagogic efforts. This was the distinction between the relationship that professors have with Maimonides academic interest in Judaic scholars of antiquity who are dead -- and the relationship that Roshei Yeshiva such as Rav Soloveitchik have with the Rambam an intimate and passionate relationship that goes to the core of their essence -- with teachers who remain eternally alive. We find clearly this distinction between a Morasha and a Me'orasah relationship to Torah in the Parshat HaShavua. Eisav had a Morasha relationship to the Torah of Yitzchak his father. It is ironic, but the Talmud singles out Eisav as a paradigm of fulfillment of the mitzvah of Kibud Av. Eisav loved his father and showed him much respect. He tried to please him by demonstrating to his father his dedication and faithfulness to that which his father valued. "How does one tithe salt and straw?" he would ask his father. If was important and meaningful to Yitzchak, then for that reason Eisav would make it important for himself as well. He valued Torah not on a personal level, but on a Morasha level I will value Torah (at least outwardly) because it was important to my ancestors. Yakov the , had a different relationship with Torah. It was a Me'orasah relationship based on intimate knowledge -- hours and years of proximity with Torah -- such that he developed a personal, passionate bond with it. The film on the Rav captured very well his pioneering efforts to found the first Jewish Day School outside New York City. The Rav was convinced that the Talmud Torah / Afternoon school approach of transmitting Jewish Heritage to the next generation was at best a "Morasha" attempt to pass on religion rooted in nostalgia and sentimentality to a new generation that was finding vibrancy and excitement in life in areas far removed from those things which moved and stirred the hearts of their immigrant parents and ancestors.
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While Cheder education may have worked for Yakov Avinu and while it may have worked in Europe, the Rav understood that Jewish children in New England in the 1930s were not going to be able to make Torah their own "betrothed" in a Cheder type educational institution. And so although the Rav did not use this terminology the "modern orthodox day school" was born in Boston in the 1930s a new kind of educational institution that would allow a new generation of American Jewish students to find and establish a me'orasah relationship with Torah based on teachers, curriculum, and programs that were exciting and meaningful to them. And while on the topic of Maimonides Day School in Boston and the establishment of a Me'orasa relationship with Torah, I would like to say a few words about the controversial issue of Day School coeducation and the Rav's position on that question. The Rav was certainly a pioneer when it came to women's Torah education and Maimonides school in Boston was a revolutionary implementation of this activist educational philosophy. I think it would be wrong, however to categorize the Rav as absolutely pro co-education. It is very true that for the Rav it was important that girls receive a first rate Torah education. He was convinced (probably correctly so) that when he founded Maimonides in New England in the 1930s the only way girls would be able to receive a Torah education on par with that being offered the boys would be for the classes to be mixed gender. I think it is wrong, however, to automatically assume he would be in favor of co-educational classes today. Part of Rav Soloveitchik's greatness was that he was to use a contemporary term a "maverick". He had profound insight into both society and halacha and was able to recognize when societal changes required adjustment into the practical conclusions to be drawn from applying halachic principles and Torah logic. It was not that "halacha changed" as some like to characterize it. Rather it was the fact that the application of eternal halachic principles to changing societal conditions led to new conclusions. Just as "societal changes" from early twentieth century Poland to mid twentieth century America caused the Rav to break with some policies and traditions which the "right wing" was not prepared to abandon, I feel it is equally plausible, if not likely, that the changes from mid-twentieth century to early twenty-first century America would cause the Rav to break with some policies and traditions that some in "modern orthodoxy" have now come to take as "inalienable interpretations of Torah m'Sinai." I know for a fact that Rav Soloveitchik opposed Dr. Samuel Belkin's plan in the late 1950s to move Stern College campus "uptown" to Washington Heights to co-locate with Yeshiva College. Dr. Yitzchak Twersky, the Rav's son-in-law, personally told me in the early 1980s that the Rav felt the time had then come to separate the classes in Maimonides but that by then it was beyond his ability to effect such a change. I also am aware that the Rav's other son-in-law, Rav Aharon Lichtenstein advises modern orthodox communities who ask his opinion that they should have separate gender Day School classes where financially feasible. Given today the opportunity for "separate but equal" Torah classes and given especially the atmosphere of today's sexually permissive society, I think it is a misrepresentation of the Rav's position to claim he gave a blanket endorsement of Day School co-education. The Rav wanted to create classrooms that would promote a me'orasah relationship between the students and Torah, not between the students themselves. I'd just like to close with a very poignant story illustrating how the Rav personified this teaching of "" in his own life. The film did a very good job of portraying the very special relationship between Rabbi Soloveitchik and his Rebbetzin, a relationship well known to all those who knew them.
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The movie mentioned that Mrs. Soloveitchik died of cancer in March, 1967. Rabbi Soloveitchik mentioned in a Yahrtzeit lecture several years later that although when his wife was first diagnosed he was cautiously hopeful for her recovery, it was the previous Kol Nidre that he knew for certain that his prayers on her behalf were not to be answered. He relates how, as he did every year, he held one of the Sifrei Torah taken out of the ark during the recitation of Kol Nidre. Following Kol Nidre he gave the Torah scroll to the Shamash in the synagogue who replaced it in the ark. Somehow the Shamash did not correctly place the scroll in its proper position and during the course of Ma'ariv it fell over on its side in the Aron. The Rav took this as a Heavenly omen that his wife would die during that year. "The Torah represented my betrothed. The Torah I held in my arms slipped from its place and fell on its side. I knew at that moment that my beloved wife would slip away from me that year. And so it was." Good Shabbos to you all.
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Sermon Excerpts From Fifty Years Ago

January 3, 2009 Parshas Vayigash
Rabbi Israel Miller, ob"m, had been a pulpit Rabbi in the Bronx for many years and in fact had been given a lifetime contract from his synagogue. In the 1960s he gave up his pulpit and came to YU as a senior administrator. He quipped that when a shul gives their rabbi a lifetime contract it is basically a one sided agreement. The Rabbi always has the right to leave the shul, but the shul's only option is to shorten their rabbi's life. Well BCMH has never been inclined to offer any of our Spiritual Leaders lifetime contracts, but somehow this must be a segulah for Arichas Yamim. Bli ayin hara, until this past month none of the individuals who had held this position during my 60-year lifetime ever died! Looking around this room I realize that few individuals present even know that Rabbi Gersion Appel was once the Rabbi of this Congregation, even fewer ever met him and fewer still ever heard him give a sermon. Indeed I myself was just 10 years old when Rabbi Appel left Seattle in 1958 after having been here 10 years, to seek better educational opportunities for his children. Shabbat is certainly not a time for eulogies and even if it were, the recollections of a ten year old could hardly do justice to the contributions and accomplishments of a man such as Rabbi Appel. I did a bit of research on Rabbi Appel and passed on the information for inclusion in the next Tribune . What I would like to share with you this morning, less as a proper tribute to Rabbi Appel, than as an exercise in historical retrospection, are two brief excerpts from memorable sermons that Rabbi Appel delivered during the latter part of his tenure in Bikur Cholim. Now the fact that anyone remembers a Rabbi's sermon 50 years after it was delivered is itself a tribute to the Rabbi and his sermons, even if as is sometimes the case history may have given the Rabbi cause to rethink at least some of those remarks. If truth be told I cannot be 100% certain if I personally remember Rabbi Appel delivering these soundbites or I only remember my father telling me about them at the time or in later years. At any rate they provide an interesting insight into the time and into the history of this Congregation and a glimpse at the young Rabbi who served as its spiritual leader .. Today's generation takes for granted a pride in Orthodoxy, in faithfulness to Halacha, in demonstrative public display of symbols of identification with Torah observance and Judaism. We live in a time where Shomer Shabbos individuals are members of the U.S. Senate and run for the top political offices of this country. We live in a time where the outgoing Attorney General of the United States and the Chief of Staff of the President-elect proudly identify themselves as members of Orthodox synagogues. Things were not always this way. Rabbi Appel was Rabbi of Bikur Cholim at a time when Orthodoxy in America was on the ropes. Conservative Judaism was the wave of the future, Orthodox congregations were abandoning their mechitzas, and considered by many including many Orthodox people themselves -- to be a dying branch of Judaism, catering to a small remnant of Yiddish-speaking European immigrants and holocaust survivors who never really Americanized. Most attendees in both the Orthodox and Conservative synagogues drove to shul, certainly on the holidays and perhaps the same could even be said about Shabbos. Both Orthodox and Conservative Jews agreed that Conservative shuls were more "American" and Orthodox shuls were more "European". Where they differed was on the following point: Orthodox Jews used to say the difference between an Orthodox and a Conservative shul is the fact that the Orthodox shul still had a mechitza. The Conservative Jews used to say the difference between them was the fact that the Orthodox shul still had a spittoon. And indeed Bikur Cholim in the 1950s did have spittoons. Herzl Congregation which was located 4 blocks from Bikur Cholim in the "old neighborhood" was the original pulpit of Rabbi Baruch Shapiro who was forced to leave that congregation and form Machzikay Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 162
Hadath when Herzl membership voted to "bring the women downstairs" and ultimately joined the Conservative movement. Rabbi Shapiro was a Yiddish speaking Rabbi and his congregation did consist primarily of European immigrants. Rabbi Appel was raised in a Yiddish speaking home and gave the Shabbos Teshuva and Shabbos HaGadol Drashas in Yiddish and there certainly were many European immigrants in Bikur Cholim. But Rabbi Appel was a YU musmach with a Harvard graduate degree. He was a man of eloquence and dignity and spoke with a pride and confidence about Torah and Orthodoxy in a scholarly fashion and in a way that resonated with many, but not all, Bikur Cholim members. There had been attempts to introduce mixed seating in Bikur Cholim. Indeed less than a decade later, a Bikur Cholim breakaway faction would form Congregation Emanuel in the North End that in fact introduced "family pews" as they were called. Rabbi Appel stood up for Orthodoxy and what Halacha stood for. He told the Congregation that the "three branches of Judaism were like clocks on the wall". Orthodoxy, he said, is a clock that is precise. It is an accurate timepiece that one can set his watch by and rely on for truth and accuracy. Reform Judaism is a clock that has stopped running. Neither the minute hand, nor the hour hand, nor the second hand moves. Anyone who looks at it sees the clock is not running and no one will be misled by it. Conservative Judaism, however, he said is like a clock that is erratic. The hands on the clock move and one who looks at it superficially will think the clock is functioning correctly and may be relied upon. However the clock is unreliable. One who sets his time by it will be going down the wrong path. A clock that "works" but tells the wrong time is a far more dangerous timepiece than a clock that ceases to function altogether. That was the first sermon excerpt I wish to share with you this morning. It is memorable perhaps because it gives us a glimpse into some of the issues of the day and it is indicative of Rabbi Appel's willingness to tell it like it is from the pulpit, letting the chips fall where they may. The second sermon excerpt I am going to mention shares these two characteristics but it is a bit more sensitive for a variety of reasons and I therefore want to preface it with a thought from Rav Soloveitchik relating to the Parshat HaShavua. A volume has been published containing five addresses Rav Soloveitchik gave between 1962 and 1967 to the annual conventions of the Mizrachi Religious Zionist Movement. The first and perhaps most famous of these is entitled "And Joseph Dreamt A Dream". In this lecture the Rav brilliantly analyzes the disputes and tension that existed within Jacob's family between his ten eldest sons and the young Joseph. The volume is available in our Shul library and I can't pretend to do it justice in a few sentences this morning. However the Rav's thesis is that Yosef sensed a coming change in society that would necessitate changes in certain attitudes and practices that the family had come to take for granted in their Canaanite homeland. Yosef dreamed of sheaves of a new agricultural economy, while the brothers assumed the status quo of being shepherds in a pastoral society. The brothers were alarmed at Yosef's vision that tampered with the holiness and purity of their society and seemed to introduce alien values and alien concepts. It was a machlokes l'shem shamayim an argument for the sake of heaven, and ultimately the Shechinah, the Divine Presence as manifested in the historical unfolding of events ruled in Yosef's favor. Yosef's bold dream had prepared the way for the change that was coming and ultimately his foresight was crucial in allowing the rest of the family to survive in a changed world and a changed society. The Rav then ties this dispute l'shem shamayim, between Yosef and his brothers with the dispute he (Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik) had with members of his own family and with large portions of the Rabbinic establishment of his day when he decided to break with family tradition and identify himself
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with the Religious Zionist movement and all that they represented. Again it is a magnificent drasha that I highly recommend for anyone who has never had the pleasure of reading it. I cite this drasha because the second memorable sermon excerpt I quote from Rabbi Appel is an instance where he like Yosef's brothers -- took a strong position l'shem shamayim against a societal change that he perceived to be a threat to our community, but the unfolding of subsequent historical events may lead one to argue that in the long run "Divine Providence" ruled against the position he was advocating. In the mid 1950s, the era we are talking about, rov minyan and rov binyan of Klal Yisrael in Seattle the overwhelming majority of Seattle's Jewish population lived in the 98122 zip code. Except those were the days before zip codes, so they lived in the "22" mailing zone. Between Madison and Jackson Streets, between 17th Avenue and Lake Washington one would find Bikur Cholim, Sephardic Bikur Cholim, Ezra Bessaroth, Herzl, Temple De Hirsch, the Talmud Torah, the Seattle Hebrew Day School, all the cities Kosher Bakeries and Butcher Shops, probably 65% of the Seattle Jewish community and probably 95% of the Shomer Shabbos Jews in Seattle. The Kline Galland Home was in Seward Park, and there were a few Bikur Cholim families here as well. But when a certain prominent Shomer Shabbos member of Bikur Cholim sold his house in Madrona and moved with his family to Seward Park, Rabbi Appel feared the start of a pattern that would lead to potential disintegration of the old Jewish neighborhood and ultimately the synagogue. He gave a fiery sermon citing the verse in the Tochacha in Parshat Bechukotai: " ," blasting those who flee when no one is pursuing them. Rabbi Appel did not remain in Seattle long enough to see the realization of his fear. But less than a decade later everyone was fleeing 98122 for 98118, and by then one could almost say we were being pursued. Rabbi Appel's position was a sound and logical one; it reflected conventional wisdom and the traditional conservative bias as was the case with Jacob's 10 eldest sons of attempting to preserve the status quo and fearing the consequence of change and unforeseen outcomes. The question of the scope of " " is a sensitive one and to some extent is one of the points of contention between Modern Orthodoxy and the more Chareidi schools of thought. These are hard issues to judge. Certainly there is a Torah requirement to heed the "Shofet" the rabbinic teachers of our time. Indeed there are harsh penalties up to and including the death sentence for a Zaken Mamre, a rebellious Torah sage, when it comes to taking issue on halachic matters with the recognized consensus of official rabbinic position in one's time. On matters of ritual law or Halachic interpretation we would never say "Divine Providence" has over-ruled majority Rabbinic opinion. Indeed we see from the famous case in Bava Metzia involving the dispute between R. Eliezer and the Sages over the halachic status of the "Oven of Achnai" that : Heaven cannot overrule halachic decisions of an earthly Beis Din. But what are the parameters of Rabbinic authority when it comes to addressing matters of social change and current political issues? One should not necessarily assume in these areas a Jewish counter-part to the Catholic dogma of Papal infallibility. One always puts himself at risk spiritually and religiously by taking issue with majority Rabbinic opinion. That is not to say, however, that history (or as the Rav put it in his lecture "Divine Providence") may not eventually rule against the conventional wisdom of rabbinic opinion in such matters. This idea of Yosef's minority opinion emerging triumphant over the majority opinion of his older brothers and the ramification thereof of the hindsight of historical development calling into question rabbinic positions of earlier generations is certainly a controversial one. My purpose this morning is not to stir up old controversies and certainly not to generate any new ones. It is not my intent to secondguess outspoken opinions that were expressed from this pulpit over 50 years ago. And it is certainly not Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 164
my intent to give anyone license or encouragement for disregarding rabbinic guidance provided by the teachers and leaders of our own generation. I did feel however that on this morning when we read how the brothers and Yosef were able to utilize historical retrospection to reflect on some painful and passionate issues that separated them years and decades earlier and finally overcome the emotions of that earlier era, it was not inappropriate to use the passing of Rabbi Appel, of Blessed Memory, to share with a new generation some insights and perhaps some battles of a previous time in the hope that a better understanding of where we've been and where we are now, will give us all clearer guidance in terms of where we are headed in the future. If any one has any practical questions regarding the matter of when it may or may not be appropriate to take issue with Rabbinic sermons, please consult your local Orthodox Rabbi.
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Dedicated To The Memory of Dr. Eric Offenbacher

February 2009
Certain practices and behaviors are themselves neutral but depending on exactly how they are used may become either offensive or praise-worthy. For example, using someone else's words in your speeches is sometimes called plagiarism. This charge was leveled in the past against both the new president and vice-president of the United States for speeches made during their presidential campaigns. On the other hand Pirkei Avot teaches : if when quoting someone else's words one attributes them to the original author he brings redemption to the world. I would like to begin my sermon this morning for Parshas BShalach, the Parsha marking the climax of the redemption from the Egyptian exile, by plagiarizing remarks made from this very pulpit not long ago, but I hope that by giving proper credit to their author I will do my small part in helping bring redemption upon us. Aaron Leibert beautifully began his Bar Mitzvah drasha three weeks ago by announcing "I would like to dedicate my remarks this morning to the memory of Dr. Eric Offenbacher." I would like to echo those sentiments. I do not intend to deliver a eulogy for Dr. Offenbacher this morning. First of all Shabbos is not the time for eulogies and second if I were to deliver a proper eulogy for him, everyone would get home late which would not be an appropriate memorial for a meticulously punctual individual. Shabbos is a time for learning and for growth. It is in that context that I feel it worthwhile and appropriate to reflect this morning for a few minutes on the man and on the community with which he identified. My first real exposure to the Breuer's Kehilla was during the formative years I spent living in Washington Heights while attending Yeshiva College and the RIETS Semicha Program. Rabbi Dr. Bernard Revel first President of Yeshiva College was instrumental in securing a visa to the United States in 1939 for Rabbi Dr. Jospeh Breuer, grandson of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch and son and successor of Rav Shlomo Breuer who married Hirsch's youngest daughter and who was himself head of the Yeshiva in Frankfurt. One of Rabbi Breuer's first stops in America was to the office of the president of Yeshiva College to personally thank Rabbi Revel for helping secure his entry into the United States. At that meeting Rabbi Revel suggested that the philosophy of Yeshiva College based on Torah U'Maddah -- had much in common with the philosophy of Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch based on Torah Im Derech Eretz and offered Rabbi Dr. Breuer a position on the faculty. For a variety of reasons Rav Breuer turned down Rabbi Revel's offer and went on to form his own Kehilla including Congregation Kahal Adath Jeshurun (KAJ) and Yeshivath Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch in Washington Heights, all closely modeled after the Orthodox Jewish community of Frankfort. Torah Im Derech Eretz which was Hirsch's response to modernity in Germany and the American-based Torah U'Maddah philosophy introduced by Dr. Revel were both derivatives of the classic Zevulun model of seeking a profession while supporting Torah as opposed to the Eastern-European Yeshiva tradition in Poland and Lithuania which stuck to the classic Yissacher-model of Torah only as opposed to Torah Im or Torah U' (Torah with or Torah and). Although they shared a subway stop and they shared a Torah hyphen motto, there were and are differences between YU and the KAJ-Breuer's community. This morning's drasha is not the time to dwell on them. Suffice it to say that these neighboring cutting-edge Orthodox institutions each in their own way support Torah, Avodah, and Gemilat Chassadim, the 3 pillars on which the world stands as enumerated by Shimon haTzadik in the second Mishneh of Pirkei Avot. From my perspective as a young YU student 40 years ago and this is a perspective that has been reinforced over the years, particularly in the years I got to know Dr. Offenbacher the uniqueness of the Breuers community was the exemplary manner in which they supported the pillars of Avodah and Gemilat Chassadim. Divine Service and human services were Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 166
indeed the Twin Towers of upper Manhattan that arose from the community Rav Breuer established there and those twin towers are standing there to this very day. The hallmarks of KAJ were its elegant services, marked by a magnificent choir, disciplined uniform, and strict decorum as well as its network of human services catering in exquisite detail to personal sensitivity and high standards of ritual observance in all matters affecting Jewish life. It was the fortuitous event of one of Seattle's finest sons, a student of Yeshiva College, marrying one of the outstanding daughters of one of the finest couples of the Breuer community that ultimately brought Dr. Eric and Gertrude Offenbacher in their senior years to this city and introduced Seattle to the best that the proud Frankfort am Main Washington Heights Torah Im Derech Eretz tradition of German Jewry had to offer. The term Derech Eretz in the expression Torah Im Derech Eretz can be interpreted in a number of ways. It can mean manners, it can mean earning a livelihood or it can mean becoming involved with society, culture, and the ways of the world: Hirsch advocated all these attributes and those who faithfully followed his teachings, as did Dr. Eric Offenbacher, adopted them all as well. While it is certainly a true statement that the Offenbachers came to Bikur Cholim from the KAJ community, I believe it is not an understatement to remark likewise that the Offenbachers brought Bikur Cholim to Seattle from the KAJ community. By that I mean that for nearly a century this congregation bore the name of one of the finest manifestations of the Biblical mitzvah of the mitzvah of visiting the sick and for decades before the arrival of this very special couple, the common perception among most lay members of the congregation was that like selling chametz and supervising butcher shops, visiting the sick was strictly a job for the Rabbi, and inevitably the lay members would complain that the rabbi wasn't doing his job well enough! The Offenbachers changed that perception and both energized and revolutionized the institution of Bikur Cholim in this city, both as a commandment and as a congregation. Now by saying the Breuer Kehilla excelled in supporting the pillars of Avodah and Gemillas Chassadim I am not implying that they neglected the pillar of Torah. On the contrary the Breuer Kehilla has created a symphony of Torah based institutions that would make Mozart himself proud. Moreover, Shivim Panim L'Torah There are many ways to teach Torah. One can teach Torah in a classroom or from behind a Shtender and one can teach Torah by example, by leading the way. Dr. Eric and Gertrude Offenbacher were Torah teachers for some 30 years in this community without ever having stood in front of a classroom and without ever having prepared a single lecture. They taught Torah im Derech Eretz by example and by inspiration. They took leadership roles in organizing and personally participating in all aspects of the community involving Kevod haChayim and Kevod haMeisim, honor of the living and honor of the dead. They each both served and inspired our community to their very last days. I referenced earlier the classic Yissacher and Zevulun partnership and mentioned that the Torah Im Derech Eretz philosophy so beautifully embodied by the life and personality of Dr. Offenbacher was representative of the Zevulun side of that partnership. For the sake of balance, I therefore wish to end my remarks quoting two brief Torah thoughts from sources having the name Yissachar. The first comes from the son of Eric Offenbacher's boyhood friend in Frankfurt Am Main, David Frand, namely Seattle's own Rabbi Yissachar Frand. Rabbi Frand recently offered this insight into Yakov's blessing to Shevet Yissacher: The verse states: " He saw that serenity was good and that the land was pleasant. As a result he put down his shoulder to accept the yoke, to become an indentured servant." This verse literally makes no sense at all. If a person sees that relaxation is good, then he should not want to bend his shoulders to accept a Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 167
yoke or burden. The verse seems to be telling us just the opposite: Precisely because he saw relaxation was good, he therefore put down his shoulder to accept a yoke. What does the verse mean? Rabbi Frand explained that there are two types of relaxation. There is the type of relaxation a person gets on vacation. He goes to Palm Springs where it is warm and sunny. He has no responsibilities. He sits there in a hammock drinking a cold glass of lemonade spacing out and swaying back and forth in the gentle breeze. One might think. This is real menucha. There is nothing greater than this! This indeed makes for a great vacation. But as incomprehensible as this may seem, one gets tired of this after a while. After swaying on the hammock for a bit one begins to feel very empty. This is because a person has a soul, neshama / nefesh, within himself and that soul has to be sustained. The only thing that sustains the soul is a spiritual component. When a person uses his talents to accomplish spiritual goals there is tremendous menucha associated with that known as menuchas hanefesh, spiritual serenity. This is not the type of serenity one gets on vacation but the type of serenity a person feels when he recognizes he is using the talents the Almighty gave him to do something worthwhile and to make a difference in this world that will please His Creator. One of the great myths of life is retirement. People say they can't wait to retire. But we hear thousands of stories of people who retire and then "now what"? There is only so much newspaper one can read in the morning and so much golf that one can play without getting bored. People make a mistake, thinking the ideal state is to be able to do nothing. Doing nothing is terrible! It is debilitating and depressing. If a person wants to find true menuchas hanefesh in retirement, one needs to then more than ever "bend his shoulder and accept the yoke" so to speak by taking this opportunity to use his talents and ambitions to serve the Almighty in ways and with an intensity that he may never have had a chance to accomplish during his working career. When I heard this thought of Rabbi Frand, delivered this year on Parshas Vayechi the very week of Dr. Offenbacher's passing, I could not help but think he must have had his father's boyhood friend in mind. Dr. Offenbacher had 65 or 70 years of life behind him when he moved to Seattle. Most people who retire at that age are burned out already. They are looking for the nearest hammock and glass of lemonade. But Dr Offenbacher was always full of energy and ideas and forward-looking projects and activities, both personal and communal. His example should both instruct and inspire us to appreciate the meaning of serenity and relaxation that comes through lowering one's shoulder and the accepting the yoke of communal responsibility -- Finally I would like to cite a teaching from a Chassidic source, R. Zevi Elimelech of Dinov in his Benei Yisaschar that in a sense will bring us back to our original point of departure. The Torah portions we have been reading for the last several weeks center around , the Egyptian exile and the redemption from there. Exile has been a central motif of Jewish existence for much of our history. There is much in Jewish writing about the exile experience. Certainly exile is seen as punishment and a means of somehow purging the Jewish people of various shortcomings. There are, however, both rational and mystic explanations that attempt to put a more positive spin on the experience of being banished from one's homeland and dispersed among foreign cultures. Hirsch has a particularly positive view of the Galus experience and sees it primarily as an opportunity for the Jewish people to fulfill their mission as G-d's people by acting as a Holy Nation, Sanctifying His Name, and spreading His Word and His Teaching throughout the nations. R. Zevi Elimelech, in Benei Yisaschar suggests that the Divine intent of exile may actually work in the opposite direction as well. He speaks of "holy sparks" which have been swallowed up by the nations and contaminated by them. Through the enslavement of Israel by the nations, the Jewish people are able to extract these "holy sparks" returning them to their Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 168
sacred source, thereby paving the wave for their complete redemption. " and afterwards they will leave with great spoils" may refer to spiritual attainments brought about by recapture of these swallowed up sparks of holiness. I have no doubt that Dr. Eric Offenbacher in the finest Hirschian tradition conducted himself throughout his life in ways of pleasantness and refinement that were a true Kiddush Hashem and thereby brought to the nations of the world who had the benefit of knowing him a glimpse of what it means to be a Holy People, a people who wear the Crown of Torah Im Derech Eretz and the Crown of a Good Name. But I believe we can likewise find in Dr. Offenbacher, and in other German Jews of his community, examples of the idea expressed by the other view of Galus as well. Working with the Benei Yisaschar's approach that there is positive spiritual value to be gained from the Galus experience through recapture of the "nitzozos kedoshos" that have been contaminated by the nations, I would like to suggest that one of the positive attributes German Jewry gained from exposure to German society one of the "holy sparks" they may have been able to retrieve via the inevitable acculturation that took place over the decades and centuries in -- is the value of discipline and the unquestioning acceptance of authority. These practices and behaviors like the practice of quoting someone else's words in your speech are themselves neither positive nor negative. In the wrong context these holy sparks become attached to the "foreign shells" the Kelipot and become corrupted. Blind discipline and unquestioning acceptance of authority may cause catastrophic results. The Nuremberg Trials of Nazi war criminals are forever infamously linked with the expression "I was just following orders". But in the right context there can be tremendous value to discipline and acceptance of authority. In the context of the Army of G-d strict discipline and "following commands" are appropriate behavior and praiseworthy practices. Indeed they will pave the way to our future redemption! Self-discipline and acceptance of authority is characteristic of German Jewry in general, and it was certainly a hallmark of Dr Offenbacher's behavior in particular. He was a disciplined soldier in Hashem's Army, present for every roll call Shachris, Mincha, and Ma'ariv; Mussaf, Selichos, Neilah. Whenever there was Tefilah B'Tzibur Dr. Offenbacher reported punctually for duty front and center. He knew how to read an org chart and obediently deferred to the knowledge and authority of the Rav of the Kehilla in all halachic matters. He knew the rules, he abided by the values and disciplines he was taught from his youth, and he was a faithful soldier in the Almighty's brigade. Rigidly following the wrong orders can be a disastrous manifestation of the sitra achra; rigidly following Divine orders is a holy and praiseworthy hallmark of the Breuer community so beautifully portrayed to us by Dr. Eric Offenbacher.
Some 45 years ago a young Jack Kennedy electrified his European audience in front of the symbol of the Cold War the Berlin Wall -- by proclaiming solidarity with the German people -- with the words Ich bein ein Berliner. Cynics have noted that his words would not have had the same drama or impact had the battlefront between East and West been located in Hamburg, Germany instead of Berlin. Ich bein ein Hamburger would more likely have been met with giggles. The same might be said about Frankfort, but with his characteristic German preciseness Dr. Offenbacher always emphasized that he was from Frankfort am Main, Frankfort along the Main River. Therefore, in tribute to this wonderful representative of the finest aspects of German Jewry, I do not have any hesitation whatsoever in proudly proclaiming in his memory "Ich bein ein Frankfurt am Mainer" -- I consider myself fortunate and proud to have known this proud member of a proud community.
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Parshas Zachor and Experiential Memory

March 2009
I had the privilege in April 1972 to personally attend a lecture Rabbi Soloveitchik, zt"l, gave to a group of High School and College students. The Rav, who at the time was almost 70, speaking to a room full of hundreds of young men and women in their teens or early twenties, analyzed the difference between youth and old age. He explained that youth and old age are not merely successive physiological periods in a person's life, they also describe two existential moods. The different existential moods, he went on to say, are determined by different time awarenesses. The time awareness of youth is future oriented, while that of the old centers on the past. Existentially to be young means to be committed to the future, while to be old means to contemplate what once was but is no longer. You have already heard 3 of the 4 monthly sermons I committed to deliver during Rabbi Kletenik's sabbatical. In these sermons I have thrice reminisced about what once was but is no longer. I reminisced about Rabbi Soloveitchik himself, about Rabbi Appel, and about Dr Offenbacher, . One does not have to be a rocket scientist to figure out where I find myself on the youth to old age continuum existentially speaking. As one congregant told me, "David I really enjoy your sermons. It feels just like I'm watching the History channel." And if on a regular Shabbos morning you caught this old darshan reminiscing about the past, I think no one will be surprised if, on Shabbos Parshas Zachor the Sabbath when we read the section of the Torah portion commanding us to remember, I will again this morning reminisce about the past. However, unlike my previous drashas, this morning's sermon will not be focused on individual personalities, anecdotes, or issues involving historical recollection at a "micro level", rather I would like to share with you this morning on Shabbos Zachor some thoughts about remembering the past at a "macro level". Rav Solveitchik in the lecture I referenced earlier distinguishes between two types of historical memory. There is what he called "intellectual memory" and what he called "experiential memory". Intellectual memory mechanically recalls and assembles factual data. Archeologists, anthropologists, and historians all specialize in reconstructing with techniques that draw upon and cultivate man's intellectual memory. This is not the type of memory Torah has in mind when it exhorts us ZachorRemember. Indeed Torah frequently commands us to remember. This imperative to recollect the past is by no means limited to the mitzvah of Remembering Amalek. There are no less than 6 seminal events in our history that the Torah commands us to remember constantly. If anyone cares to turn to page 176 in the Art Scroll Siddur, at the very end of the daily Shachris service, they will see the verses commanding these remembrances and note that some authorities recommend that each of these sets of verses be recited on a daily basis. When the Torah commands us to remember constantly the Sabbath, the Exodus, the receiving of the Torah at Sinai, the punishment of Miriam, and the sin of the Golden Calf, in addition to the attack of Amalek the Torah is not merely content with intellectual awareness on our part of events which transpired in antiquity. The Torah requires "experiential memory". Quoting the Rav in his remarks that evening which have been published in Shiurei HaRav in an article entitled "The Unique Experience of Judaism".: Judaism insisted that Jews recall not only the factual events of the past, but that in addition the experiences of the past retain their vigor, undiminished despite the passage of time. Whatever was horrible and frightening should be remembered as horrible and frightening, no matter how much time has elapsed since the event transpired. The memory of what once was therapeutic and
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redemptive should forever possess those qualities. In short, when remembering the past, the Jew relives the event as if it were a present reality. Many halakhot are clearly related to experiential memory. Our commitment to Eretz Yisrael one of the strangest phenomena in human psychology is intelligible only in terms of experiential memory. We have been exiled from the land of Israel for 1900 years and suddenly we discovered that it is our home. What is responsible is not the memory of events, which occurred there, or people who lived there 3,000 years ago. For the non-Jew, these are merely archeological facts. For the Jew, they are experiential facts. Biblical stories are in our present. In cheder we cried when we learned of the sale of Yosef, and we rejoiced in his ascendancy to power. There was a freshness, a vigor, a nearness which we felt in that drama. The ninth of Av was not a story out of antiquity, we witnessed the tragedy. In our childish eyes we saw the flames enveloping the Holy of Holies. There was participation and involvement as if we had been transferred back in time to the year 70 CE." Mechanically reciting page 176 in the Art Scroll Siddur on a daily basis without giving significant thought and empathy to the events described therein would no more be a proper fulfillment of the mitvah of the "Six remembrances" than is mechanically lighting a Yahrtzeit candle without thinking seriously about one's departed parent a proper observance of the anniversary of the death of one's father or mother. Now with regard to the other 5 Remembrances -- with a little effort one should be able to achieve the appropriate level of experiential memory and take the proper lessons to heart by recalling those 5 seminal events. However when it comes to the mitzvah of remembering what Amalek did to us we face a particularly difficult challenge. Who is Amalek? Where is Amalek? What exactly are we to remember and how exactly are we to wipe out his memory if we don't know who or where he is. How indeed are we ever going to succeed in wiping out his memory if we are commanded to constantly remember what he did to us? These are fascinating questions that are dealt with by classic Torah commentaries. It is beyond the scope of my drasha this morning to deal with them at length. What I would like to share with you today is a personal thought that attempts to answer the question "What do I take away from the story of Amalek attacking the Jews? How can I experientially identify with what transpired in the events at the end of Parshas B'Shalach as again summarized at the end of Parshas Ki Seitzei? I do not claim that my approach is necessarily the simple interpretation of this mitzvah or of the verses we read this morning; however I hope that what I am going to suggest is not Purim Torah either. I descend from a long line of homiletic tradition that was not embarrassed to offer interpretations that fall into the genre of "Chassidishe Torah". "Chassidishe Torah" refers to homiletic insight into Torah in which the lessons taught are definitely true, only their derivation from the sources used to prove them may be tenuous. I have always been struck by an irony that exists within Parshas B'Shalach. That Torah portion begins telling us that G-d did not lead the people by way of the land of the Philistines, although it was the shortest and most direct route to their destination for G-d said, "Perhaps the people will reconsider when they see a war and they will return to Egypt." The highlight of the Parsha is of course G-d single handedly doing battle with the Egyptians and destroying them without Israel having to lift a finger ' . All of a sudden at the end of the Parsha, Amalek ambushes Israel from behind. Amalek cuts down our weaklings trailing behind us when we were faint and exhausted. What is going on here? What happened to the that was so protective of Israel and so concerned that they not become involved in or even witness war? Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 171
Now it is clearly beyond my pay grade to try to second-guess the or to offer definitive suggestions as to how to resolve this question. Logically however I think there are 3 possible approaches, which may not be mutually exclusive. The first is the approach of the Medrash, one example of which is the Medrash Tanchuma cited by Rashi in Parshas B'Shlach when commenting on the juxtaposition of the verse "And Amalek came and battled Israel" with the previous verse in which the Children of Israel asked "Is Hashem in our midst or not?" A second such Medrash is the Mechilta which plays on the name Rephidim where Israel was attacked and attributes Amalek's attack to the fact that " , the Jews loosened their grip on Torah". According to this approach, the attack of Amalek somehow resulted from the spiritual shortcomings of the Jewish people. Frankly I do not find this approach totally satisfying. Chazal tell us that Bnei Yisrael were on the 49th level of impurity when they left Egypt. As the Angels protested at Yam Suf "These are idolaters and these are idolaters!" and yet despite all this Israel had been worthy all along of Divine intervention and protection. I'm sure there are valid homiletic lessons to be derived from these Medrashim, but they don't really answer the question I am posing. Another approach would be along the lines taken by the Orach Chaim HaKodosh on the verse in Parshas Vayeshev where Reuven "rescues" Yosef from his brothers' plans to murder him. The Orach Chaim questions what kind of rescue operation this was if Yosef was thrown into a pit of poisonous snakes and scorpions, as the Talmud tells us: . He answers that due to the inviolate principal of Bechira Chofshis (freedom of choice), the would have allowed the brothers to murder Yosef. Man has free choice in this world to carry out his evil desires even if they impact negatively on other innocent parties, however snakes and scorpions do not have Bechira Chofshis and consequently the would miraculously protect Yosef from harm in the pit. According to this approach, ( Everything is in the hands of Heaven except the fear of Heaven) takes on new meaning! Indeed the Torah tells us that Amalek was they did not fear Heaven, thus they were given the ability to attack Israel even though this was not the Desire of the Almighty. This approach also is less than convincing. First of all the Orach Chaims underlying principle that Bechira Chofshis trumps is by no means universally accepted. Beyond that, clearly G-d's protection of the Jews did seem to preempt the freedom of choice of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, although that too is a discussion beyond the scope of our remarks this morning. The only other approach that comes to mind is that somehow the consciously allowed this unprovoked and irrational attack on Israel by Amalek to take place in order to purposely set up the Eternal war from generation to generation between Amalek, the ultimate forces of evil in the world, and His Chosen People, the Nation of Israel. This attack and the call to always remember it charged the Jewish people with the eternal task of standing up to and eradicating the forces of evil in the world. This is an interesting theory, but I readily admit I found no source to support such a speculative suggestion. Where does all this leave us in terms of experiential memory? What is it that we are supposed to take away from the experience of remembering that which Amalek did to us? What I take away, b'geder Chassidishe Torah, from this episode is that one should never be overly confident, one should never assume that he has figured out what the has in store for him, for the Jewish people, or for the world in general. One can be riding high one moment and face a stunning setback the next. I think this is a particularly important lesson for people of my generation and those younger than me, particularly in times such as ours. We have, Baruch Hashem, lived our lives and grown up after the great depression, after the Holocaust, after the post-WWII dislocations and immigrations, after the discovery of penicillin and polio vaccines. We have witnessed the birth of the State of Israel and have seen it Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 172
prosper militarily, financially, and politically. We have grown up financially confident and secure, we have seen Jewish and particularly Torah institutions develop and prosper. We have been living our lives, so to speak, in an era of and the Children of Israel go forth with a Mighty Hand. But we are called to remember that which Amalek did to us at a time when we are also going forth with a Mighty Hand. We are vulnerable even when we least expect it. We dare not take anything for granted. We may receive a harsh wake-up call at any moment totally undermining our security and selfconfidence. I think this fits in well with the idea of reading Parshas Zachor the Shabbos before Purim. There is an irony in this as well. Adar is the month of great joy and celebration. Why commemorate the sneak attack by Amalek, certainly not our finest hour, in this month of triumph? Of course Chazal attribute it to the fact that Haman was a descendant of Agag, King of Amalek, but thematically it fits in well with the idea I have developed as well. The Jews in Shushan were secure and confident. They were invited to banquets of the King and given the royal treatment. One of their own was chosen Queen of the Empire. And yet out of the blue, disaster struck. The couriers went forth hurriedly by order of the king, and the edict was distributed in Shushan the capital. The king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was bewildered. Rav Soloveitchik wrote in another context, "The Megillah is the book of the vulnerability of man in general, and specifically of the Jew." The idea of vulnerability and insecurity should by no means lead to or be confused with psychological despair and hopelessness. Recognition of our vulnerability and insecurity can be a spiritually positive phenomenon. Ideally it should lead to our recognition of our total dependence on the Almighty. Ideally it should enhance the kavanah of our prayers, it should inspire us to reevaluate our values, to do Teshuva and become ever more desirous of having a close and intimate relationship with the Almighty. The idea of Hester Panim, which is so dominant in the story of the Megillah and which no doubt played a significant role in the initially successful attack of Amalek against Bnei Yisrael, does not indicate lack of G-d, chas v'shalom. On the contrary in both the events of the Megillah, and ultimately in our Eternal battle with Amalek in which the Almighty promises Hester Panim is a temporary condition. It connotes the temporary hiding rather than the absence of G-d's benevolent Face. It is in the month of Adar that G-d's came out of hiding, so to speak. Hester Panim, insecurity, and vulnerability gave way to Divine Protection, light and gladness, joy, and honor. So may it be in our own time. I would like to conclude by coming full circle and returning to the Rav's insights on time awareness as it applies to youth and old age. Organically, the Rav said, youth and old age are mutually exclusive. Youth is primarily the time of tissue buildup, and old age is the time of tissue destruction. However, as existential moods they can be experienced simultaneously and as "I awarenesses" they may exist contemporaneously in the same individual. Judaism, he said, attempts to combine the experience of youth and age and requires of the Jew that he be simultaneously, and perhaps paradoxically, both young and old. The time awareness of Judaism is both recollection and anticipation. Just as we must have experiential memory of past events so too must we possess experiential anticipation of events that have not yet happened. Experiential anticipation means that the Jew anticipates an event not just because it is bound to occur that would only be intellectual anticipation. It means that the Jew becomes excited and rejoices and sings and dances as if an event which will first transpire on some unknown date in the future had already actually taken place. The future is experienced as reality and is integrated into the
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frame of reference of reality even before it occurs. The mother who learns of her child's unexpected homecoming experiences the joy of his return even before he opens the door. On this note, I will say that while I have enjoyed sharing with you over these past few months my experiential memories of personalities and events who are no longer here, I now look forward with eager anticipation to a not distant future event which gives me cause for excitement and rejoice, namely the return of our wise and beloved Rabbi from his four month Sabbatical to full time service from this pulpit and for this community. Good Shabbos.
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Not Just Letters
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Passing of Albert Schild

August 29, 2004
Dear Members of the Schild, Zweig, Karlinsky Families and to all other family members: I was greatly saddened to receive the news today in Seattle of the passing of the beloved father of my dear mechutenet, Chana Zweig. I have only the fondest memories of Dr. Albert Schild, zt"l. He was an inspiration to me and to all who knew him not only for his skills and talents but much more so for his convictions and his middos. His flawless Torah reading and perfect Shofar Kolos were only the external manifestations of a Penimiyus that was marked by exceptional personal control and characterized by unswerving dedication to Avodas HaKahal and Avodas HaShem. He represented for me the epitome of Torah Im Derech Eretz. As is well known, many parents are very active in doing extensive background checks of the potential shidduch partners of their sons and daughters. Es chata-ai ani mazkir hayom, this has not been my practice. I, Baruch Hashem, am very pleased with all of my daughters-in-law and sons-in-law without having been personally involved in the "selection process". However, I must tell you that from the moment I heard that the future wife of my bechor, Moshe Zvi was the granddaughter of Dr. Albert Schild, I was ecstatic about the shidduch. First of all, I knew that I would never have any guilt feelings by not having made a better background check. For:

[Kiddushin 76a]
I had first hand knowledge that my future daughter-in-law descended from one of the elite leaders of Communal and Divine Service in Klal Yisrael. Beyond that, the Hashgocha of my son, named after my beloved Zeida, choosing without foreknowledge the granddaughter of my Zeida's most trusted and most respected and most worthy member and kehilla leader was so clear that I could only say "Me'Hashem Yatza Hadavar". It was a real privilege and honor to have Dr. and Mrs. Schild in our presence during the memorable Shabbosim we spent in Jerusalem before and after Moshe and Tzippy's Chassunah hayeenu k'cholmim. Finally, I must tell you that the tears I shed for your dear husband, father, father-in-law, and grandfather are not only for the loss of a dearly beloved and dearly respected individual. As long as Dr. Schild was still alive, in my mind the Tolner Shteeble was still in existence. My "adult" memories of 4900 for the most part span the era of 1966-1973. This included the period of my Zeida's failing health, his passing, and the years beyond. In a very vivid sense, Dr. Schild represented "4900" for me. It was his leadership, his standards, his vision and of course his personal service that in many ways captured the image of that special place in that long ago era for me. Now that he is gone "4900" is gone as well. May his memory be a comfort to all who mourn him. My wife Tzipporah and I express our deepest condolences on your great loss: HaMakam Yanachem Eschem b'Toch she'ar avilei Tziyon v'Yerushalayim. Sincerely,
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Thoughts About Rabbi Sholom Rivkin

Dear Yissacher, [Rabbi Frand was asked by Mrs. Paula Rivkin in July of 2006 if he would be prepared to speak at her husband's funeral when the time came. The Rabbi had Parkinson's disease and the expectation was that he would not have much longer to live. Rabbi Frand asked me for my recollections of Rabbi Rivkin who was our "Shul Rabbi" when we were growing up. These are included below. As it turned out Mrs. Rivkin predeceased her husband. Rabbi Rivkin died the same weekend as my mother, at the start of Tishrei 5772 (October 2011).] In thinking about Rabbi Rivkin -- which I often do -- many attributes come to mind: His gentleness, his humility and unassuming manner, his genuine love for people and for Yiddishkeit. The combination of these traits are uncommon in a regular "baale-boss". They are certainly rare, if not unique, in a Rabbinical leader, a "Spiritual Commander in chief". It takes a very special personality to pull off the combination of meekness and humility with spiritual leadership and inspiration. The Chofetz Chaim (as emerges from his writings and the stories we have heard about him) was such a personality. Rabbi Sholom Baer Rivkin was also such a personality. Rav Soloveitchik, zt"l, in his eulogy for his Mechutan the Talner Rebbe of Boston [Shiurei HaRav; KTAV, pages 74-81], spoke of the two role models of spiritual leadership in Yahadus -- the KingTeacher and the Priest-Teacher. Moshe Rabbeinu was the prototype of the King-Teacher (who teaches by intellect) and Aharon was the prototype of the Priest-Teacher (who teaches by personal piety and example). Rav Soloveitchik spoke of these two role models being the antithesis of each other and k'darko b'kodesh eloquently outlined the characteristics of each. He spoke of himself coming from the Misnagdic-Lithuanian tradition of the King-Teacher and his Mechutan coming from the ChassidicChernobler tradition of the Priest Teacher. Rabbi Rivkin (in particular and, perhaps the Chabad role models he patterned himself after, in general) combined these two traditions -- a combination of Moach and Lev -- Intellect and Heart. Thus whether a person was impressed by great Torah knowledge and encyclopedic command of Achronim and Responsa literature or whether a person was attracted to warmth and sincerity, to soul-tosoul communication, one would be drawn towards Rabbi Rivkin. After you went to Ner Israel following ninth grade there was one year where Rabbi Paltiel gave an "after school Gemara class" for myself and a few others. Moey Radinsky was in that class as were a few students from the grade below (who were still in the Day School while Moey and myself were in Garfield). The following year Moey left for New York and the kids in the grade below went to Ner Israel (following in your footsteps, of sorts). I must say that to the best of my knowledge and recollection, neither my father nor I initiated the arrangements for my ability to continue learning Gemara. Rabbi Rivkin was concerned that there be a class for me and at his own initiative offered to learn privately with me (with no suggestion of monetary remuneration) one on one. This was my bridge between SHA and YU. (My Freshman Rebbi at YU wrote on my first report card that he would have to recommend "Public school" to all incoming Yeshiva students). Knowing the great time-pressure the Rabbi of a major Kehilla found himself under, it was indeed Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 179
flattering and very motivating to have the opportunity to meet and learn privately with him in his office in Bikur Cholim twice a week for those two years. In addition to being introduced to a quantum leap in the depth which Gemara could be studied, even more perhaps than I learned from studying with him the first Perek of Kiddushin, I learned from the interruptions to our study. The various phone calls he took and how he addressed with patience, good humor, scholarship, wisdom, and humility each of the many people who sought his advice and counsel was most instructive and inspiring. In addition to being consulted by his own membership, his counsel was sought by the entire range of his Rabbinical colleagues in Seattle from Rabbi Maimon to Rabbi Raphel Levine as well as by Rabbonim in other cities! I often felt that Rabbi Rivkins scholarship and nobility were perhaps wasted on a small city such as Seattle and was happy for him when he had the opportunity to move to Far Rockaway and take a bigger Kehilla in a Jewish metropolis. And yet, I heard later that he had aggravation in Far Rockaway from some of the members of the shul there who perhaps were expecting a more showy Rabbi with big city polish and sophistication. Rabbi Rivkin taught through Kol Demama Dakka rather than through fire and brimstone. Sheker haPolish vHevel haSophistication, Rabbi Rivkin both practiced and inspired Yiras Hashem. This is to be very much praised. One final quality that I remember about Rabbi Rivkin: He did not necessarily engage in false flattery (chanifa), but he had an uncanny ability to zero in on the truly praiseworthy characteristics of any individual and complement him or her for that quality, reinforcing their good behavior and qualities as a way to inspire them towards making other improvements in their spiritual lifestyle and observance. [By the way, in case you have never heard the story: Before Rabbi Rivkin took his first position, after leaving Mesivta Torah VaDaas, in St. Louis, he went to the Lubovitcher Rebbe for a Bracha. The Rebbes Bracha was that some day he would be the Rav HaRoshi in St. Louis. As you know he went from St. Louis to Seattle to Far Rockaway and back to St. Louis as the Rav HaRoshi, approximately 30 years later].
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A Letter To My Fellow Trustees Upon Their Forthcoming Mission To Israel

Iyar 5768 May 2008 Having been born in November 1948, the milestone anniversaries of Medinat Yisrael have always had special resonance for me. I still remember celebrating the 10th anniversary Yom HaAtzmaut as a fourth grader in the Seattle Hebrew Day School. We had special blue and white Kipas with the number 10 and various symbols of the Jewish state painted on the sections of the skullcap. We watched JNF-provided black and white movies of the pioneering efforts to bring water to the Negev and saw film-clips of the Israeli military victory in the recently completed Sinai campaign. In 1961 my male classmates and I sat on the dais at the local Israel Bond Dinner, which jointly celebrated the Bar Mitzvah year of the State of Israel with that of local Bar Mitzvah boys. In 1968 I celebrated my twentieth birthday in Yeshivat Kerem BYavneh near Ashdod during the same year that Medinat Yisrael was celebrating its 20th anniversary. And so it has gone throughout the decades. Ethics of the Fathers [5:25] states "( " Literally, one who reaches the age of sixty reaches seniority). In Hebrew the word besides connoting chronological age also has the nuance of ( this one has achieved wisdom). Perhaps it might be said that when one reaches his sixtieth birthday he has hopefully achieved a certain degree of wisdom and understanding through the various life experiences he has undergone and through the various historical events he has witnessed. My attitude toward and relationship with Medinat Yisrael has not been constant over the sixty years of my life. We are living through a very dynamic time in Jewish history. There were times in my life when I felt more confident that I understood the role of Medinat Yisrael in the Divine Plan. There were times when I felt less confident about the matter. There are many segments of the Jewish community that are quite confident that they understand the role of Medinat Yisrael in the Divine Plan (included in this population are many with diametrically opposed understandings). Many segments of the Jewish community are quite confused about the matter. Certainly there are those who have firm convictions about the role of Medinat Yisrael outside of any concept of a Divine Plan. I think it is fair to say, that whatever one's religious or theological inclination, Medinat Yisrael is a factor in our life that cannot be ignored. One way or another we must come to terms with it in relationship to the basic questions that confront any thinking Jew: How is it that after 2,000 years in exile a dispersed and persecuted people have managed against all rational odds to "return home" and set up a vibrant society full of strengths and contradictions that has captured the fascination and interest (if not the love and affection) of the entire world? What do we make of the apparent fulfillment in our lifetime of millennia old Biblical prophesies regarding the ingathering of the exiles and the agricultural rejuvenation of the Land of Israel, about which the Talmud states: "There is no surer sign of pending Messianic redemption" [Sanhedrin 98a]? How do we explain Israel's miraculous military victories? How do we explain their military setbacks and the seemingly unending string of tragedies that plague their heroic population? How do we explain the intensity of the hostility and hatred that confronts the Jewish state not only from their immediate adversaries in the region but from virtually every corner of the globe? How do we explain the intensity of the hostility and hatred that exists within our own country and within our own people of one Jew for another and one group of Jews for another group of Jews? Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 181
What is the relationship between the G-d of Israel, the people of Israel, the Land of Israel, and the Torah of Israel? What is the relationship of all of the above to the modern State of Israel? The level of wisdom we have achieved at our level of provides us only with tentative thoughts about all these matters. It does not enable us to give firm or definitive answers to any of these most intriguing and perplexing questions. But sixty years of growth, of maturity, of ups and downs, of angst and anticipation in coexistence with the State of Israel have certainly convinced us that these are questions worth pondering. These are questions that may be pondered from afar and they are questions that may be pondered from up close. I envy in many ways you, my fellow Samis Trustees, who will have the opportunity in the upcoming days to ponder some of these issues among others up close and first hand during your forthcoming trip to Israel. My "Israeli 60th birthday wish" to you is that you all be granted the blessing that "the atmosphere of the Land (of Israel) makes one wise" [Bava Basra 158b]. May you not only merit to collectively make wise decisions in behalf of the Samis Foundation, but may each of you gain intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually from your stay in the Holy Land. You may leave as confused as ever about some of the perplexing questions and dilemmas raised by the modern State of Israel, but hopefully your confusion will be at a far deeper level of understanding than when you arrived. With Blessings of Zion and Jerusalem in My Heart,
Rabbi David Twersky
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The Meaning of the Genauer Name An Outsider's Perspective

June 22, 2008 Dear Eli, I was very touched by your moving words describing your father in your e-mail announcing his passing, and in all the beautiful hespedim delivered last week at the levaya, and in the stories I heard about your father during my Shiva visit. I would particularly appreciate a copy of Rami's remarks at the levaya not only to share with my children as a remembrance of your father but to keep as a challenge to myself as to how I would like to be remembered as a grandfather for my own grandchildren. The thought has often occurred to me over the years how uniquely fortunate Ezra, Ahuva, and Rami were to have the zechus to grow up through childhood into adulthood in the proximity of four living grandparents (each of whom is or was remarkable in their own right)! Their wonderful traits and personalities truly mirror the greatness they have witnessed from previous generations and shine on into the future as a Ner Tamid reflecting past glory. (With the possible exception of the children of Benjy and Aviva Yablok -- who moved away from Seattle actually while the children were somewhat younger -- I can think of no other set of siblings I know that have been so lucky. In both cases it can be said v'hachut hameshulash lo bimerah yinatek.) Marty at the levaya gave a moving "insider's perspective" of what the family and name "Genauer" represented for him growing up. Allow me to share an "outsider's perspective" of what that family and name meant to me growing up.... maybe perhaps not 100% as I saw it back then, but certainly the way I analyze today it in historical retrospective. Part of a child's maturing process is of course to begin to identify with and emulate older role models. When a child is a younger sibling perhaps he first seeks to identify with and emulate older siblings. First-born children (like myself) most naturally identify and emulate their parents (and gender bonding being what it is, for me that was primarily my father). When children get a bit older and sophisticated enough to realize that no two people in the world are the same and that there are variations of personalities, interests, temperaments, etc. they are ready to explore other adult role models for purposes of identification and emulation. Quite often the most readily available alternate adult role models are the friends of the children's parents. During the formative years of my early childhood, I think it was safe to say that my father's closest friend was Sol Klein. Sol was my father's closest friend in many ways, not the least of which was the proximity of our houses on 33rd St. in the Madrona neighborhood. Indeed Sol had a special influence on me and we had a special connection that carried on to Sol's relationship with my first born Moshe for whom Sol bought a Bar Mitzvah gift when Moshe was 10 in 1984, knowing that he would not live to see Moshe's Bar Mitzvah. But if from many perspectives Sol Klein was my father's "closest friend" I sensed that in matters of spirituality, religious dedication, and sense of duty in putting a stamp of Torah living on their families and on their community there is no question that his closest friends were the Genauers. My father viewed Ben, he should live and be well, (who together with Jean, ob"m, were my parents' shadchanim) not so much as a social peer but as a Rebbi (and indeed he learned dozens of masechtos over the years at Ben's weekly Talmud shiur). Mendel and Kuppel were his social peers with whom he could exchange army stories and play cards, but at the same time with whom he could be inspired and Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 183
religiously strengthened by the standards they set and lives they led -- for themselves and for their families. I believe that the "Genauer twins" and my father shared a great common denominator in that they both grew up in America in largely non-observant Jewish communities in the houses of extremely pious and special parents whom they deeply admired and revered but whom they recognized were somewhat out of step in behaviors and practices with the world around them. They then went "overseas" into the US Army in a time of war for multiple years and were placed in situations where living the life they had known in their parents' home was for a variety of reasons virtually impossible. Many many individuals from that era who were placed in those circumstances "never returned home" -- some never returned home physically and many others who were fortunate enough to return home physically, never returned home spiritually. The "Genauer twins" and my father were three individuals who together with the encouragement and cooperation of their wives who also grew up in the homes of pious and righteous families (for without such cooperation and encouragement man's spiritual accomplishments in life are greatly diminished) made the decision -- first individually as family units -- and then collectively as part of a tight knit social group -- to try to recapture for their children and their community and for the future generations -- that would, with G-d's help, emerge from their households -- the spiritual warmth and strength of their own upbringing. It is really hard to describe to the modern generation what it meant in this city 50 years ago to have a Succah in one's yard or even be Shomer Shabbos and Shomer Yom Tov (especially if one had a business) or to keep Kosher -- both inside the home and to the extent possible -- outside the home as well. The Genauer family was the "Gold Standard" of Torah observance in the Orthodox community -be it Ashkenazic or Sephardic. Their public display of Torah standards strengthened the conviction of those like my parents who were aware of the treasure and heritage they were preserving and ultimately it inspired others who never heard of such standards not to "keep up with the Jones' " but to "keep up with the Genauer's" in terms of religious pride and religious practice. I must state that there were other frum individuals in Seattle in the fifties besides the Genauer brothers and their families. But in terms of spiritual-kiruv (and I don't know if the term had even been coined back then) in terms of utilizing the techniques of ohev shalom v'rodef shalom to establish relationships such that people would want to become frum to become like them -- these brothers and their families had no peers. And so by virtue of the fact that a child seeks self awareness and self-identify through the adult friends and companions of his parents, in many ways Mendel and Kuppel were the "Twin Towers of religious influence" in terms of my early attempts to seek spiritual self-awareness and identification through the peers of my own parents. It was always a memorable experience and a special treat for me to go with my father on a Sunday morning before a Yom Tov or before some other fortuitous event and pick out a new suit or raincoat at the Genauer's warehouse downtown. I was always happy to walk out with the first suit or raincoat I tried on. But Kuppel would always say "Maybe try on another. Maybe you'll like this one better. Maybe this one will fit better. Maybe your mother will think this one is more stylish". Like in all the stories told at the Levaya.... always trying to please, always thinking about what would make someone else happy, always with a friendly smile and always able to project an image that would inspire others to say "I would like to have his attitude in life".
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I believe it is special Hashgacha that your father -- was taken from us virtually the same week that his grandson Ezra and family were scheduled to return to Seattle. Literally Dor holech v'dor bah [Koheles 1:4]. A generation has left and a generation has come. We appreciate so much the service and communal leadership and role modeling -- b'Derech Avoseichem -- of you, Eli, and your sister Esther and cousins Moshe and Melech -- the third generation of Genauers we are fortunate to still have in this city and we welcome with historic significance the return of Ezra and his family to join with Etzion and his family and with Daphne and Ariella and their families to carry out the rich and holy tradition of this special family in the spirit of v'dor revi'i yashuvu heyna [Bereshis 15:16] the fourth generation will return here to build their own Torah families and to further build our own Torah community. May the zechuyot of the Avos protect the banim (and banot) and may the zechuyot of the banim and banot and nechadim and nechadot be mezakeh the Avos. Please share these sentiments with your dear mother, with Marty and Esther, with your cousins, and children. May the family be comforted together with the mourners of Tzion and Yerushalayim. Sincerely,
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On the Passing of Harry Steinberg

May 20, 2008
Dear Mara and other Family Members, My sister Marya informed me this morning of the sad news of the passing of your remarkable father, of blessed memory. I have had the privilege to know him only in his "old age" (and then on too few occasions), but whenever I spoke with him I was reminded of words I heard from Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik [later published in Shiurei Harav; KTAV; p 126] regarding time awareness in Judaism: Judaism apprehended youth and old age not only as successive physiological periods in a person's life; Judaism understood them in spiritual terms as well. As such, they describe two existential moods, two "I awarenesses": the one of a youth, the other of an old man. Organically, youth and old age are, or course, mutually exclusive. Youth is primarily the time of tissue buildup and old age, the time of tissue destruction. However as existential moods they can be experienced simultaneously, and as "I awarenesses" they may exist contemporaneously in the same individual. These different existential awarenesses are determined by different time awarenesses. While grammar uses three tenses (past, present, future), existentially, the present lies in the past or in the future and cannot be isolated as a separate experience. What we call the present is only a vantage point from which we look forward or backward. Time is experienced by us in retrospection as a memory or recollection, and in expectation and anticipation as a vision of events which will transpire some time hence. The time awareness of youth is future oriented while the time awareness of the old centers on the past. Existentially to be young means to be committed to the future, while to be old means to contemplate what once was but is no longer. The young man is essentially a searcher, a questioner, and a believer, while the old man is primarily a reviewer, a mediator, and a skeptic. Judaism attempts to combine the experience of youth and age and requires of the Jew that he be simultaneously and perhaps paradoxically, both young and old. Like a tree whose roots absorb their nourishment from the soil and whose foliage is caressed by sunlight flowing from a distant and unknown future the Jew must be deeply rooted in his past and inspired by a vision of the future.... Harry Steinberg was blessed with a youthful outlook all his life. His ongoing dedication to and enthusiasm with ideas and plans about what can and must yet be done at such an advanced stage in life always amazed and inspired me. It was a privilege to know him. It was a privilege to be related to him and it was a very special privilege to have him participate in the brisim of my two youngest grandsons in Passaic. May the family be comforted together with all the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem by the knowledge of the special person your father was and by the long and productive life he led. Sincerely, David Twersky (Seattle)
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DAVID BALINTS COMMUNITY IMPACT STATEMENT/KOLLEL: A RESPONSE BY DAVID TWERSKY

May 2007
In the aftermath of receiving and reading David Balint's very hostile analysis of the impact of the Seattle Kollel on the local observant community, its institutions, and traditions I feel that I -- as a long time member of this community, and a long time supporter of its institutions and traditions -- must take this opportunity to communicate the strong disagreement I have with many of the major premises of his "legal brief." I think it is ludicrous to expect any institution -- community based or otherwise -- to be bound today by alleged promises or PR releases that were made 15 years ago during the efforts to found a new institution in this city. Times change. Peoples needs change. Community needs change. Some things work and some things don't work and need to be fixed. The Seattle Hebrew Academy (Day School) -- in less than 15 years time -- totally put out of business the predecessor institution -- the Seattle Talmud Torah (afternoon school) even though it made promises and guarantees when it was founded that it would not do so. The Northwest Yeshiva High School -- in less than 15 years times -- morphed into a far different institution than the "institution sold to the community" when Rabbi Daniel Rosenthal founded Yeshivat Or HaZafon. I am not at all impressed by the communal democracy inherent in Board-based institutions with their tightly controlled "nominating committee processes" nor with the supposedly superior wisdom that emerges from their claimed attempts to reach broad-based consensus by catering to all constituencies. I resent the term "Communal Oversight" being used as a euphemism for a minority of secular-minded professionals exercising veto power over aspirations to raise communal standards of religiosity by more spiritually oriented individuals. It is not my desire or intent to engage in a point by point rebuttal of David's long and often vitriolic "Community Impact Statement'. Some of his points may be valid and I certainly admire the passion he brings to attempting to defend his vision of an idyllic observant community. David is a good defense lawyer and sometimes "the best defense is a good offense". In this case, however, I feel his "good offense" was a little bit too "offensive". In particular I am offended by his total intolerance for accepting anything other than a secular -- cold dollars and sense -- approach for weighing pros and cons of going forward or not going forward with certain spiritually-based communal endeavors. David bemoans the alleged ambivalence toward the State of Israel "the further right one goes within the Jewish World". If the State of Israel had hired the same type of "outside experts and consultants" he recommends to determine the feasibility of starting a Jewish country in Palestine 59 years ago there certainly would not be a State of Israel today. I am reminded of Moshe Dayans comment when he was asked shortly after the Six Day War how Israel could consider holding onto Judea and Samaria -- would they not be overwhelmed in two generations due to the Arab population already there by the "demographic problem"? The non-religious Dayan responded "G-d promised Abraham that he would give him the Land of Canaan. At the time the land was inhabited by 10 large and powerful nations. Abraham was 99 years old and childless. He did not question G-d about the 'demographic problem'. He trusted Him." There is a place for feasibility studies and impact statements. But there is also a place for faith and determination to persevere for a worthy goal against all odds. I admire the very people and the very tactics that so upset David Balint precisely because of their courage and determination to persevere Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 187
against overwhelming odds and criticism and lack of appreciation for the sake of spiritual goals -- both personal and communal. There is a place for watered down consensus decisions and catering to the politically correct leastcommon denominator of a communitys spiritual needs and there is a place for institutions that push the envelope in terms of promoting spiritual growth and development in achieving goals that are not met by existing institutions and that will never be met by those institutions, worthy as they may be. The Seattle Kollel is now and always has been an institution that has promoted and indeed pushed the envelope for spiritual growth of the members of this city. Certain individuals who are content to coast along with the status quo of their spiritual complacency find the Kollels growth and success uncomfortable and difficult to accept. They seek to put the brakes on the Kollels success to raise religious standards in our community by implementing all kinds of oversight committees and bylaws requiring diversity and communal input from individuals and institutions who have been begrudging at best in their acceptance of a community Kollel in our city from day one. Everyone has their own mental boundary line demarking their delineation between open-minded religion and close-minded religion. I do not define whether a person is in one camp or another by whether one does or does not say Hallel on Yom HaAtzmaut or whether he does or does not choose to teach his daughter Talmud, or even by whether he does or does not aspire to have his children educated in Ivy League colleges. Our Sages contrast the personality of Noach with that of Avraham. Noach is called a Tzadik in pelz (pious person in a fur coat). He is content and complacent when his own religious needs are met. As long as he is kept warm by his fur coat, he couldnt care less that his neighbors are freezing. Avraham is the pious person who when he sees his neighbors are spiritually freezing he lights a fire to warm everyone up. The Tzadik in pelz practices a close minded religion. The Avraham Avinu Tzadik practices an open minded religion. My feeling about the charges that the Kollels presence in Seattle is transforming the city from an oasis of open minded Judaism to an enclave of close minded narrowness is vnahapoch- hu just the opposite is true! The Kollel is not staffed by individuals who have no concern for Klal Yisrael (the Jewish people), who put their spiritual needs and comforts ahead of those of the masses. On the contrary had they had such attitudes they would have remained in Lakewood, Monsey, and Brooklyn. These Rabbis and their wives as well as many of their besmirched allies and supporters -- are in my mind spiritual heroes and role models for their self-sacrifice -- for themselves and their families -- to help spread Torah knowledge and Torah values to the uninitiated in our community who are thirsting for that inspiration. Their actions in my mind are a Kiddush Hashem (sanctification of G-ds Name) and I feel that those who attack them with charges that they are rocking the status quo and undermining the traditions of our community are the real practitioners of close-minded religion. ' "
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October 19, 2009 Dear Bobbee, Karen, Ellen, and Larry: I am taking this opportunity to express my condolences to each of you individually on the rencent passing of your father of blessed memory. Your father always delighted in a "good vorte" from the weekly Torah portion and I would like to share one with you from Parshas Bereishis, the weekly Sedra when your distinguished dad returned his soul to his Maker.
The Bloods Of Hevel Were Crying Out From The Ground After Cain killed Hevel, G-d inquired of him: "What have you done? The sound of your brother's bloods (demei achicah) cry out to Me from the ground." [Bereshis 4:10] Rashi comments on the plural form of the word dam (blood) used in this verse. The Almighty was alluding to the fact that Cain not only killed his brother but he also killed all the potential descendants that might have come from him. Every person on this planet descends from Adam. The Rabbis tells us that man was created as an individual to teach that one who preserves a single life is as if he preserved the entire world. When Cain killed Hevel it wasn't only a matter of killing a single individual. The "loss of life" he caused when projected into the future amounted to the loss of billions of individuals! When we look at a person we cannot just look at him "as he is there". We must look at the vast future potential every person has. This perhaps can help explain the following Talmudic passage [Berachos 28b]: When R. Yochanan ben Zakkai was on his death bed, his students came in to visit him. When he saw them he began to cry. The disciples asked him, "Candle of Israel, the right hand pillar, the mighty hammer, why are you crying?" He responded, "If I were being taken before an earthly king who is here today and tomorrow in the grave, whose anger is not a permanent anger and who if he imprisons me it will not be a permanent imprisonment, and I might be able to appease him with words or bribe him with money would I not any how cry in fear? Now that I am being taken before the King of Kings, the Holy One Blessed is He who is eternal. If He is angry with me it will be an eternal anger and if He imprisons me it will be an eternal imprisonment. If He kills me it will be an eternal death. I cannot appease Him or bribe Him. Not only that, but I have two paths before me one leading to Gan Eden and one leading to Gehinnom and I don't know on which path they are taking me. Should I not cry?" The Baalei Mussar ask two questions on this Gemara. First did R. Yochanan ben Zakkai, the great Candle of Israel and the right hand pillar, did he have any doubt about whether he was headed for Gan Eden or Gehinnom? More to the point, he was sitting on his death bed and apparently not showing any emotion. It is only "when he saw his students approaching" that he began to cry. Rav Elya Lopian explains that if Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai only had to worry about himself, he would have been confident that he was destined for the World to Come and for residence in Gan Eden. But when he saw his students he thought to himself did I do justice with each of my students? He asked himself "Did I treat each student properly? Did I give enough attention to each student? Was I perhaps too harsh with one student and too lenient with another?" He said to himself, if I wasn't good enough with even one of my disciples, it will affect not only him but his children and his grandchildren and his great grandchildren until the end of all time. When he saw all his students come visit him, he realized "the voice of the bloods of your brother are crying out to Me". One lapse regarding a single individual can have a negative impact on all future generations! We hear all too often from people who are not religious today because 50, 60, or 70 years ago they had teachers who "turned them off". There were plenty of teachers in Europe and America at the beginning of the last century who used to beat their students. It was not just the students who were lost to Judaism, but all future generations were in many cases lost as well. R. Yochanan, upon seeing his disciples, realized that his Heavenly Judgment was not something that was unilateral, depending solely on his relationship with the Almighty. It would be determined by the affect he did or didn't have on all his students. This caused him to cry and be sincerely afraid. He was no longer so sure of where he was headed after his passing. One does not have to be a Rebbi or have students to draw personal lessons from this Talmudic passage. In the course of our lives we deal with our children, our neighbors, our co-workers, we deal with individuals. When we affect them, it affects not only them, but their children and their children's children for all generations. This is
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something a person must ponder throughout his life. Have I done justice and am I doing justice to the people with whom I interact during the course of my daily activities?
[This is from this past week's Rav Frand on Project Genesis Dvar Torah which I have had the privilege of transcribing for www.torah.org for more than 13 years now].
When I read this Dvar Torah at my Friday night Shabbos table this week, I could not but help think of your father's passing and of the tremendous impact he has had and continues to have -- on so many people in so many places through his children, his grandchildren, and his great-grandchildren, through his many "disciples", and through the many many individuals who were inspired and impacted by the institutions he (and they) helped create and sustain. I certainly consider myself to be one of his many disciples. He influenced me through his influence on my parents who were his close friends and admirers as well as directly when I served on the Bikur Cholim Board of Directors during his terms as president of the congregation. Indeed, for my entire life Joseph Russak was a key leader in this community, with or without office or title. He had a deep sense of pride in Judaism in general and in Torah and Orthodoxy in particular, that was both bold and infectious and which certainly has transferred down through the generations to you and your descendants. May each of you and your children, and children's children always continue in the way of your parents and may that which can be said about your father and his children continue to be said about the future generations in the family as well: Rabbi Elazar said on behalf of Rabbi Chanina: Torah scholars increase peace in the world, as it is said: And all your children will be students of Hashem and your children will have abundant peace do not read ( your children), but ( your builders [of communities]) [Berachos 64a]
David Twersky
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MORDY'S SEMICHA
29 Av 5769 August 19, 2009 Dear Reb Mottele Just as one thanks G-d for good tidings, so one must thank Him for bad tidings as well. Although it was (some hopefully minor) health problems that delayed your return to Yeshiva last spring, we thank Heaven for the unexpected opportunity this situation presented to your parents. For us last Nissan was not only the time to make the very special and infrequently recited Blessing of the Sun (Birkat HaChama), for us it was also an opportunity to make a very special and infrequently recited Blessing of the Son (Birkat HaBen) thanking Heaven for the opportunity to have you in our home for a period longer than just the blink of an eye. The problems you were having with your vveshet allowed me to be koneh the opportunity of learning Hilchos Shechitah with you. During these five months Ima had the opportunity to put some meat on your bones which was greatly depleted during your two years in the land flowing with Milk and Honey while together we studied Hilchos Basar bChalav. Although you kept sending us mixed signals about how long you were planning to stay in Seattle, the Taaroves of messages kept us guessing and suspense is the Salt of Life. As you know I have always been very much more concerned than my sons were themselves that they (given their proclivity for Torah study and Torah teaching, Baruch Hashem) acquire a formal Semicha as a means of certifying their accomplishments and gaining the appropriate respect and recognition necessary to succeed in the Chinuch profession (both in terms of their future students and their employers). The matter of who may give and who may receive Semicha and what a Semicha testifies to in recent times has become a somewhat sensitive and controversial issue for a variety of reasons. Certainly, Semicha is not a license (like perhaps some secular graduate degrees are) that you have finished learning. On the contrary Semicha is a certification that you have reached a certain level of maturity in your learning and that you may now continue learning on your own to go from sugya to sugya and from strength to strength. I feel confident that you are deserving of such certification and that you will use it in that vein. For your own sake, you may now very well wish to solicit and acquire Semicha from other individuals and/or institutions that you have been associated with. I encourage you to do so. This will no doubt extend the range of recognition and validation of your Rabbinic authority. From my perspective, however, the opportunity and accomplishments of the past 5 months more than justify your being able to address yourself as Dear Rabbi Twersky in all present or future correspondences and it justifies others being able to address you in that fashion as well. Most important of all, it is my sincerest hope and expectation that the local institutions of Chinuch (SHA, TDS, NWYHS, MMSC, Seattle Kollel) will also not be unimpressed by the granting of Semicha to you from the Rabbi of the Samis Foundation and that -- in conjunction with your own talents and abilities -- this will be your ticket to some day return to Seattle and give your father the nachas of knowing that he fulfilled with you both the dictum of A father must teach his son Torah and A father must prepare his son for a profession. May that time come speedily in our day. Love, Aba Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 191
" ) ) . . , '. , , , ", , , , , " . ) ( ." " ' ' ' " - "
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Miscellaneous Musings
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Not Just Casper: Saying Goodbye to the Schillers

August 2004
In one of the very first sociological observations recorded in the Torah we find in Parshas Bereshis G-d observing: "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a help-mate for him". (Lo Tov Heyos Ha'Adam l'vado e'eseh lo ezer k'negdo.) [Bereshis 2:18]. From that early moment in history onward, the Torah always views an ideal marriage as one in which each partner is able to serve as a help-mate for his or her spouse; each using his or her own gifts, talents, and attributes to help complement specifically those areas of need where their spouse is not as gifted or talented. If as the saying goes "opposites attract" it is precisely for this metaphysical reason -- so that people with opposite attributes and talents can help others in need who may be lacking in those attributes and talents. My husband David and I have been given an opportunity to serve as ozrim k'negdam (plural of ezer k'negdo) help-mates for each other in a very unique way this evening at the separate "Seuodot Preidah" for Susan and Harvey Schiller in honor of their forthcoming departure from Seattle and move to Baltimore. I have been asked to speak and prepare a Dvar Torah for the program being held here for Susan at Esther Friend's home. David was asked to prepare desert for the Seudah Shlishis being hosted for Harvey by Stuart Kaufman several blocks north of here. I made David an offer he could not refuse. I promised to prepare the desert for him, if he would prepare a Dvar Torah for me. We each knew we were asked to do something which might be a bit beyond our prime areas of skills and talent and we each knew that our spouses could help us out and we each knew that we could depend on the fact that our spouses would help us out in this area. The truth of the matter is that we each had a little help even in the area of our own expertise: I turned to my trusty cookbooks for help in making the dessert and David turned to his trusty "Rabbi Frand archives" in preparing this Dvar Torah:
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Reading One's Own Biography in the Torah

We learn in this week's portion of the king's obligation to write for himself a private "royal copy" of the Sefer Torah. The Talmud tells us that even though every Jew has a Mitzvah to write a Sefer Torah, the king has a separate command over and above this to write a royal Sefer Torah which was to accompany him where ever he went. "And it shall be with him and he should read it all the days of his life in order that he learn to fear HaShem, to observe all the words of this Torah..." [Devorim 17:19]. The Ba'alei Derush say that the verse is telling us more than just the fact that the king has to READ the Torah daily. He has to plot his life each and every day, according to what is written in the Torah. They interpret, homiletically, that he has to read in it (v'kara bo) his entire biography (kol yemei chayav), all the events of his life. When a king has a question as to what to do, he has to be able to look in the Torah and come up with the answer. All Israel are sons of kings [Shabbos 67a]. In this respect, all Jews have to be like princes. Happy is the man who can read his life in the Torah. I once heard a story about Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky, zt"l. When he first came to the United States he was a Rav in Seattle, Washington for a short time and then he became Rav in Toronto, Canada. Someone was once walking with Rav Yaakov in Toronto the second day of Shavuous, some 40-50 years ago. Having just heard the reading of Megillas Ruth in shul, Rav Yaakov told his companion "I am no better than Elimelech." "Elimelech left Eretz Yisroel because he was worried about his livelihood. He went from a place where there were Jews, to a place where there were no Jews -- the fields of Moab. He was willing to sacrifice the education and environment of his children, just so he could make a better living (escaping the famine in Israel)." At that time, Toronto had not much to speak of in terms of a Torah community. Rav Yaakov rhetorically asked his companion "Why am I in Toronto, despite the fact that my children don't have the best environment? Parnosah! Because I have a job in Toronto and I don't have a job anywhere else. I'm wrong! That is the very reason that Elimelech was punished. One is not supposed to put one's livelihood over the spiritual welfare of his family." He concluded, "I must move to a more Jewish environment." On that very day he decided to move to New York where he eventually became the Rosh Yeshiva of Torah VoDaath and the rest is history. That is the meaning of being able to look into the Torah and read about the events of one's own life. We must strive to be able to read our own biographies in the Torah. That is what R. Yaakov was capable of and that is what we have to aspire for. * * * *
It is inspiring to hear of Rabbinic legends who are prepared to pick themselves and their families up and move wherever is necessary for the sake of their spiritual welfare. It is even more inspiring to know such people personally. My good friend Harvey and Susan Schiller, of course, may be inspired directly from Rabbinic legends whom they host in their own home. I am quite content to get my spiritual Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 197
inspiration from Susan and Harvey themselves. They are following the advice of Pirkei Avos and the example of Rav Yakov Kaminetsky by being "goleh l'makom Torah". They are exiling themselves to a place of more Torah learning opportunities. We wish them both much success and satisfaction during their extended stay in Baltimore. I began my presentation this evening by quoting the verse lo tov heyos haAdam l'vado. Rav Soloveitchik discusses in his famous essay "The Lonely Man of Faith", whether or not the verse is to be translated "It is not good for man to be alone" or "It is not good for man to be lonely" and he elaborates on the differences between being alone and being lonely. I know that with the departure of my dear friend Susan, I will Baruch Hashem, not be left alone. But I will confess that I do anticipate a certain sense of loneliness without her cheerful companionship that I have come to appreciate and treasure in the few short years we have gotten to know each other. I look forward to keeping in touch, and look forward to the time when the exile will be over v'Shavu banim l'Gvulam. Shabbat Shalom
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A Miracle On This Day; At This Time

Many people erroneously think that the "threshold" an event must cross before it can be defined as miraculous is one that defies the laws of nature. If that is the definition, our generation indeed may not expect too see too many miracles happening. I am afraid we are unworthy of witnessing events such as the splitting of the Red Sea, or even of having a day's supply of oil last for eight days, or perhaps even of seeing the cost of oil drop below $50 a gallon! A true believer sees virtually everything that happens including those things we tend to call "nature" as being at least "hidden miracles". They may happen so frequently and with such regularity that we take them for granted. This does not diminish their status as being directed from Above or minimize the role of Divine Providence in terms of ultimate responsibility for all that happens in this world. One lacking a highly developed sense of spirituality may miss these everyday miracles that certainly abound in our midst. And yet there are some events that occur in our daily lives that so defy the odds against their ever happening that anyone who sees in them anything else but the Hand of G-d must be considered nothing less than severely spiritually challenged. One such event happened to my mother and I last summer. My parents moved from "the old Jewish neighborhood" Madronna -- to the Seward Park neighborhood in 1969. Doing the "Seward Park Loop" has always been a favorite pastime of ours. My mother had been doing it with my father for many years. After he passed away she did it with friends or by herself. I too over the years have done it many times by myself, with my wife, or with my children. My mother is now 83 years old. She is no longer able to "do the loop." After a couple of falls more than a year ago she has "graduated" from a cane to a walker which is now her constant companion, both in and out of the house. Nevertheless, she still enjoys the outdoors and especially in good weather likes to walk with a companion and enjoy the beautiful Seattle scenery. One beautiful Sunday morning last July 9th, I asked my mother if she would like to go for a little walk by Lake Washington. She was very excited at the prospect and we drove to Seward Park and parked by the loop. We began to walk. My mother enjoyed the walk and we kept walking and walking. Given the heat of the day, my mother's frailty, and the fact that she just had a big breakfast we walked farther that we probably should have. When I realized how far we had gone, I urged my mother to turn around. On the walk back I noticed she was slowing down considerably. Still quite a ways to the car, her steps were becoming smaller and smaller. Her breathing was becoming harder and harder. We were not even close to a bench to sit down. Unfortunately I had forgotten to take my cell phone with me. I knew we had a problem and I was afraid it might be a serious one. I did not know what I was going to do. I prayed to the Almighty that this pleasant Sunday morning walk would not end in tragedy. I kept looking for a familiar face out "doing the loop" that Sunday morning. All of a sudden I could not believe my eyes! Approaching us from the distance along with his walking partner for that morning was someone neither my mother nor I had ever seen doing the loop in more that 35 years of our mutual "Seward Park Looping history." It was none other than my mother's primary physician from the Minor and James clinic, Dr. Paul Sytman. Thank G-d, my mother made it home okay that day by way of a side trip to the Swedish Hospital emergency room. The experience gave us all a scare, but more than that it gave all of us my mother, myself, and Dr. Sytman the unmistakable feeling that we had all participated in an event that clearly had the Fingerprints of Divine Providence. On Chanukah we add to our prayers the words "who has done miracles for our fathers in those days at this time". Last July 9th I amended my normal prayers with an additional expression of thanksgiving for the One "who has done miracles for our mother on this day at this time."
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SHA Yom HaAtzmaut Memorial Tribute to Rabbi Samuel Graudenz

May 2007
Since the early 1960s there has never been a student who has gone through an entire elementary and middle school career at the Seattle Hebrew Academy who has not known at least 2, perhaps 3 or even 4 Headmasters (or principals as we used to call them). This was not so for the students who attended the Seattle Hebrew Day School during the time between 1948 and 1963. For us there was only one school principal. That was Rabbi Samuel Graudenz. He was also the first grade Hebrew teacher of every student who entered the school during those 15 years. He had many other jobs as well. He was the choir director and athletic director. He used to play ping pong and baseball with the students. For most of his tenure he was both the English and Hebrew principal and other than a single hard-working secretary there was no other administrative support for a school population of between 150-200 in the later years! Rabbi Soloveitchik, zt"l, in reminiscing about the early years of the Maimonides School in Boston used to say: "When a new idea is thrust upon the world, it generally passes through three stages. First it is scorned, then it is fought, and finally it is accepted as self-evident. The scorn has long since been overcome.. The struggle for survival has been gloriously won, and the concept of the Hebrew Day School as a vital force on the American Jewish scene has become dramatically self-evident." Rabbi Graudenz was the first principal of the Seattle Hebrew Day School. He knew the scorn and cynicism of the nay-sayers "religious" and "non-religious" -- who felt that in America Jewish children belonged in the Public School system. He struggled to make the "Day School experiment" a viable institution in terms of enrollment, in terms of academic standards, and in terms of extra-curricular activities and school spirit. If today SHA and their alumni are a self-evident vital force in the strength and growth of our general and Jewish community, it is because of the pioneering efforts of educational heroes such as Rabbi Graudenz. Rabbi Graudenz indeed was blessed with success in his critical battles for survival long before he came to Seattle. He was a member of the Mirer Yeshiva which miraculously escaped the fate of European Jewry during World War II through the historic kindness and sacrifice of the legendary Japanese Console-General of Kaunus, Lithuania -- Chiune Sugihara. Rabbi Graudenz, a life long Zionist, at the time was a secretary to a future leader of the Mizrachi (Religious Zionist) movement Zerach Warhaftig and was part of a small delegation of Jewish leaders that met with Sugihara and successfully pleaded with the diplomat to obtain over 6,000 life-saving visas that enabled the Mirer Yeshiva and numerous other Jews to escape from Lithuania to spend the war years in Japan and Shangahai, beyond the grasp of the murderous Nazis. Rabbi Graudenz would occasionally share with the students some memories from the troubled times he experienced during the war years. However in general he was a most jovial and cheerful individual. It is most appropriate that his memory be honored at SHA on Yom HaAtzmaut inasmuch as Rabbi Graudenz had a great love for Israel. During his years here the goal of the school was to teach Limudei Kodesh "Ivrit b'Ivrit". There were campaigns to sell JNF Trees every year around the time of Tu B'Shvat. The school had local competition and sent representatives to the regional and national finals of the Chidon HaTanach. There were special movies about the pioneering efforts in Israel, Israeli flags were ubiquitous in the school and every student by the end of first grade knew by heart the Hatikva and what it represented. In many ways the pioneering Day School movement of that era mirrored the pioneering spirit of the Chalutzim and the early pioneering leaders of modern day Israel. The Hashgocha Divine Providence Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 200
has Baruch Hashem blessed both institutions with successes and accomplishments that are literally beyond the wildest dreams of their early founding fathers. No doubt challenges remain. It is not the responsibility of any one generation "to complete the work" [Avos 2:16], but the accomplishment of each generation owes a great debt to the generations that preceded it. Faculty, students, and staff of today's SHA owe a great debt of gratitude for the school they have to a man, none of them have ever seen. It is the man whose memory we honor today Rabbi Samuel Graudenz, of Blessed Memory, the first and longest surviving principal of the Seattle Hebrew Academy ("Day School"). * * *
Rabbi Graudenz was the first and founding Principal of the Seattle Hebrew Day School. To this day no individual has come close to matching the 16 consecutive years he spent in that position. He held that position at a time when the entire administrative staff of the school consisted of himself, one full time secretary (Sarah Friedman, ob"m) and (over the years) various live-in janitors. There was no "head of the Judaic department" and "head of the secular department". There was no "office or administrative support staff". For most of his tenure there was just Rabbi Graudenz and his secretary. This was in a time before word processors (let alone computers) or copy machines (other than the old fashion mimeograph or stencil-based "ditto" machines). On top of that Rabbi Graudenz was the first grade Hebrew teacher (taking up fully half the school day). He thus personally knew the strengths, weaknesses, and personalities of each student in the school. Rabbi Graudenz was artistic, musical, and learned. He loved both sports and Torah. His students both in the first grade and beyond had a great love and respect for the man. To make matters more interesting he was simultaneously the Principal of the "Talmud Torah" afternoon school (until the program which served Public School students finally disbanded in the early 1960s) that was housed in the same building and had some of the same faculty. Rabbi Graudenz personally conducted and trained the Seattle Hebrew Day School choir and spent countless hours preparing annual or semi-annual musical "Cantatas" for the parent body and larger community. He organized and enthusiastically participated in school-wide athletic competitions Table Tennis and Badminton tournaments, Lag B'Omer picnics, and student-faculty baseball games. On the side, he had 5-10 young boys he privately taught trop and individually trained for Bar Mitzvah each year. On Shabbosim he played a leading role in the Ashkenazic services held in Seward Park (in the years before Bikur Cholim left their 17th and Yesler location to move to that neighborhood.) Under his leadership besides the sports tournaments and Cantatas mentioned above -- the school had annual (or semiannual) student produced "newspapers", and the upper grades participated in the National Chidon HaTanach (Bible Contest). There was also an active "School Patrol" that helped children cross the busy Cherry street intersection before and after the school day. Rabbi Graudenz came to Seattle in 1947 when the concept of Jewish Day School education was a controversial if not radical idea. By the time he left in 1963 the Seattle Hebrew Day School had an outstanding reputation and attracted students far beyond the pioneering families and communities who founded the school a mere 16 years earlier. SHA owes its founding principal a great dept of gratitude. May his memory be blessed.
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Mivkeh Association Event Speech

August 2008 Ghost Written For Tzippy
Bayla Treiger told me the theme of this morning's program was Women's Health and she asked if I would present a Dvar Torah that was somehow related to this issue. It is in this context that I would like to cite a famous Gemara: R. Chanina bar Pappa taught: The angel appointed to oversee conception takes the drop of semen from which a child will be conceived and sets it before the Almighty and says before Him: Master of the Universe! What is the destiny of this drop? Will the person from it be mighty or weak ( or ?)Intelligent or foolish ( or ?)Wealthy or poor ( or ?)But the angel does not ask whether the child will be wicked or righteous ( or .)This accords with R. Chanina's teaching elsewhere -- Everything is in the hands of Heaven, except for the fear of Heaven (.) This brief passage [from Tractate Niddah 16b] contains a wealth of Jewish philosophy and hashkafa about which classic Torah teachers throughout the generations have written much. For the purpose of our discussion this morning, however, I would like to focus on one aspect of this teaching. Ultimately a person's health whether man or woman is dependant on "and to some extent our health, like our genetic code in general, is determined by Him from the moment we are conceived. Our predisposition for certain illnesses, for certain medical conditions and diseases everything that comes under the category of "mighty or weak ( or ")is set in motion, according to R. Chanina, long before we are born. It may be asked, if everything about a person's health profile is predetermined from the moment of conception where is there a role for good health hygiene? What difference does it make if I smoke or don't smoke, exercise or don't exercise, eat high cholesterol food or low fat dishes, floss or don't floss, wear seatbelts or don't wear seatbelts, etc., etc., etc? The answer is in a broad understanding of the end of R. Chnina's principle: Everything is in the hands of Heaven, except for the fear of Heaven ( (. fear of Heaven means observing the laws of the Torah that was given from Heaven. Included in the laws of Torah are religious requirements for us to preserve our health and take care of our bodies. Two expressions found in last week's parsha (Parshas V'Eschanan) are taken by the Talmud and Halachic codifiers as Biblical mandates for individuals to take precautions to guard their health and physical welfare: [ Devorim 4:9] (literally Only beware for yourself and greatly beware for your soul); [ Devorim 4:15] (literally You shall greatly beware for your souls). This requirement -- for a person to take care of his health -- is reflected in the overarching principle we find that preserving life over-rides virtually all Torah commandments. This teaching is derived from a verse in Parshat Achrei Mot [Vayikra 18:5] .' (you shall observe My decrees and My laws, which man shall carry out and by which he shall live I am Hashem.) The Talmud infers that we are to live by keeping the Torah laws, not die from keeping them. Therefore preservation of life takes precedence over virtually any Torah law, with a few notable exceptions. The bottom line is that the predetermination in Heaven of many aspects of our physical makeup, strengths and vulnerabilities in no way excuses us from taking whatever precautions we can to avoid unhealthy practices and doing our part in preserving our health and physical welfare. As far as our health goes we are in partnership with the Almighty. This applies to all aspects of health and it certainly applies to reproductive health and the ability to conceive and bear children. The (Jerusalem) Talmud comments on the enigmatic verse in Parshas Bereshit "Let Us Make Man in our image in our likeness". Who is G-d speaking to when he says "Let us make man in our image in our likeness?" Rabbi Simlai offers a novel
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interpretation. G-d is referring to Adam and Eve themselves. Originally G-d formed Adam from the dust and He formed Eve from Adam. However, from now on, He tells them, it will be "in our image in our likeness meaning with the contributions of all of us G-d, man and woman will children be created. It is impossible for a man to procreate without a woman and it is impossible for a woman to procreate without a man and it is impossible for both of them to procreate without the assistance of the Divine Presence.
And so it is with all aspects of our health we need to do our own part and we need the assistance of Divine Presence. May we act responsibly and do our own part in leading healthy lives and may we be granted Divine assistance in achieving all our desired health goals. I have always found it a bit ironic (and perhaps this is to some degree a function of reading Hirsch in translation rather than the original German) that Hirsh on the one hand writes very tentatively and modestly. He humbly suggests ideas rather than insisting on the dogmatic acceptance of his interpretation. He loves to introduce interpretations with a double negative "Perhaps it would not be unreasonable to suggest"; "One may not be totally inaccurate to conclude", etc., etc. And yet on the other hand the revolutionary nature of his commentary in comparison to virtually all contemporary and earlier efforts to offer -oriented exposition of Chumash is bold and daring beyond belief. I believe it should be noted that given the oriented nature of our understanding of Torah, it must give one pause to consider the fact that so many things that Hirsch writes, so many of the insights he gives, do not appear in any of the earlier sources. He certainly makes use of classic to buttress his arguments and to support his various theses, but there is a novelty to both his approach and sometimes his conclusions that without appreciation of the idea of " " one might have a difficult time accepting. I will conclude with one other quip of Rav Soloveitchik that I think is quite apropos to Hirsch. On occasion the Rav would say a brilliant to explain a difficult "or piece of and someone (typically one of the "old timers in shiur") would say "But, Rebbe, where is your for this "?. The Rav would look at the student with a twinkle in his eye and say "My is a clear and logical mind."
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Thoughts On Rav Hirsch's Chumash Commentary

November 2008 There is a Talmudic idea that comes to mind in connection with the Chumash commentary of Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch and that is the idea of " ] " ] This is a concept whereby a great Torah personality is given license, so to speak, to break with tradition, to escape the mold that has been cast by generation upon generation of precedent and predecessors and to strike out in new directions and with novel approaches. To be sure, the rabbinic approach is to not invoke this license and to travel the well trodden path of one's teachers and earlier generations be it in matters of , in , in or in matters of conduct of the .Indeed we find great Torah personalities both in Talmudic times as well as recent times (and in all times in between) -- who distinguished themselves and took great pride in not innovating and not deviating from the teachings and approaches of their own Torah teachers even to the slightest degree, even after the lifetime of their teachers. To some extent the integrity of our is based on such faithful dedication to the idea of just becoming another cloned link onto the . And yet throughout the generations, has also been blessed with bold and innovative personalities who have utilized their G-d granted creativity, brilliance, and insight to blaze new trails and dig new tributaries in the flowing river of Torah tradition. Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch was such a personality and his Torah commentary was not just another instance of a genre of Torah literature that utilized the modes of exegesis ( ,) vocabulary, methodologies, and techniques of 1500+ years of Torah scholarship and exposition that had developed from the times of the Medrash up until his own time. Hirsch's use of linguistics, etymology, sociological and psychological insight to uncover Torah's wisdom and to clarify understanding of the personalities and the narration of the Biblical story and Torah teaching is both revolutionary in its creativity and at times mind-boggling in its brilliance. The commentaries of the classic Chumash Meforshim Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Ramban, Rashbam, Sforno, Kli Yakar are each unique and distinct from one another. But Hirsch is in a league by himself. I'm not, talking about minor leagues versus major leagues, but simply about the "rules of play". Hirsch is bothered by problems that were never raised by his predecessors and provides brilliant answers that whether true or not were never suggested and would never have been suggested by Meforshim playing by the standard ground-rules of as they "played the game." Rav Soloveitchik used to sometimes tell his students (when he would develop a novel interpretation to a piece of Gemara that answered major difficulties raised by the classic commentaries and find the students not as enthused as he was with the interpretation) "If you don't itch, my scratching won't be able to relieve you." I believe it can be said that many of the things that "itched" Rav Hirsch particularly in terms of linguistics (but certainly in many other disciplines as well) simply did not "itch" the classic Torah commentaries who preceded him. Nevertheless, through his creative "scratching" of these personal "itches" he was time and again able to brilliantly uncover novel ideas in the ' that resonate profoundly with the modern Torah student.
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Happy Birthday, Yechezkel

One of my all-time favorite rabbinic heroes from throughout Jewish history is Rabbi Akiva. The beautiful story of how this humble gentlemen, inspired by his noble wife, sits in the classroom with students many years younger than him, to make up for "lost time" and to concentrate on his spiritual development through Torah study and through gaining Torah knowledge is, in my opinion, one of the most inspirational stories in all of Talmud. I have often thought about the strength of character it took to go through the ego-crushing experience of placing oneself in such a situation and the fortitude required to persist for so many years at what must have certainly been a frustrating and embarrassing challenge for this special person, whose spiritual greatness emerged only relatively late in life. It is tempting to dismiss the great sacrifice and great dedication to spiritual self-improvement late in life by heroes from our past, by thinking "such people; such dedication; such Kiddush Hashem happened long, long, ago in a galaxy far away". When we see such sacrifice and dedication amongst our peers it gives us pause. We are both inspired and challenged! We in Seattle and Baltimore have witnessed a 21st century re-enactment of the story of Rachel and Rabbi Akiva. It is the story of Yehudis and Yechezkel Schiller. I feel both inspired and challenged by the effort Harvey-Yechezkel made to compensate for opportunities denied and lessons not learned by following in the footsteps of Akiva ben Yosef, swallowing his pride, and putting all his focus in becoming well-versed in the pathways of Torah and the " ." I admire his for giving him the encouragement and incentive to do so. May the two of you share many happy years of spiritual growth and happiness of together and may you continue to be inspired and inspire us by emulating the example of the one who taught: ! Happy Birthday, Yechezkel
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Not Just Project Genesis

December 2011 Ninety-nine times out of 100 if I write up a thought on the parsha it is from Rabbi Frand's "Commuter Chavrusa" tapes/CDs. This one is my own: We find in Parshas Veyeitzei the well known story of Lavan promising to give Yaakov his daughter Rachel in marriage after Yaakov completes 7 years of work for him. When the time is up, Lavan substitutes Leah for Rachel and Yaakov is unaware of the deception until " ." After complaining to his father-in-law, and being told that "the younger daughter is not given away in marriage before the elder daughter" in that place, Lavan and Yaakov agree to an arrangement whereby Yaakov will complete the week of wedding festivities with Leah, then marry Rachel in exchange for 7 more years of service to Lavan. After the Torah tells us all this and tells us that Bilhah and Zilpah were sent along as part of the family, initially as maidservants to Rachel and Leah, the Torah tells us that " ." ArtScroll translates this as "Leah was unloved..." but in fact the literal interpretation is that she was hated. The simple reading of this narrative is that as a result of Lavan's trickery the family situation with Yaakov and his wives was very stressed; as time passed on it was clear that Leah was resented by Yaakov and as compensation, so to speak, Hashem allowed her to become pregnant and give birth to a son -- Reuven. Besides the problematic issue of Yaakov "hating his wife", there seems to be another problem in that this reading of the sequence of events will contradict the Gemara [Yevamos 76a] brought down by Rashi [Bereshis 49:3] which interprets the expression used later in Yaakov's blessing to Reuven to mean that . Now if Reuven was conceived from Yaakov's that presumably means that he was conceived the first night of Yaakov's marriage to Leah ... when he still thought that she was Rachel! Why then does the Torah seem to say that the reason Leah became pregnant was because she was "hated"? The thought occurred to me that this may be an example of -- " G-d knew that Leah was going to become "hated" and so he therefore allowed her to become pregnant even before Yaakov found out anything which would have caused him to hate her. I mentioned this question and answer to Rabbi Kletenik and he suggested a more "lomdishe" resolution to the problem. It is known -- by both Doctors and by Chazal -- that it is possible that conception will not take place immediately at the time of intercourse, but that the semen remains viable for some period of time (72 hours according to Chazal) after having had relations. Certainly then it is possible that "the next morning" when Yaakov found out that Leah had been involved in the trickery and especially before he negotiated the deal with Lavan to marry Rachel anyhow, (at which time he would have been furious with her) ... at that time she may not yet have become pregnant from his " ." At that point, G-d saw that she was "hated" and he allowed her to become pregnant. This scenario... which deviates somewhat from the p'shuto shel mikra... even though it does resolve the conflict with the Gemara in Yevamos... also makes it easier to understand the fact that Leah is called "hated".
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The prohibition of hating another Jew is expressed by the words " ," I think it can be argued that "hatred in the heart" is a more deep felt and long developed emotion than that felt by someone who merely in the passion of the moment feels someone else who wronged him is a hateful person. Just as when it comes to Torah the emphasis is " " or " " to indicate a deeper contemplation and longer develped relationship to Torah than merely a quick and superficial " "acceptance of it, so too I believe the Torah is not asking us to never feel even momentary hatred towards one who did us wrong ( ,) but only warning us against harboring a long standing deep seated hatred towards someone. Now we can understand the verse better. Yakov felt a momentary hatred of Leah that morning after having just heard that his 7 years of labor for Rachel had gone "down the drain". He may have momentarily expressed that anger and resentment toward her -- and been justified for doing so. At that moment "Hashem saw that Leah was 'hated'" and He caused the from the previous night's to be and that's when she became pregnant!
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If I Were A Rich Man's Rabbi -Speeches for the Samis Foundation
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SAMIS QUARTERLY BOARD MEETING AUGUST 2007

When Eddie Hasson informed me that one of my official duties as Samis Rabbinic Trustee was to give a Dvar Torah at the quarterly foundation meetings, the thought occurred to me that Samis trustees will be hearing speeches from their Rabbi twice as often as Jews in Eastern Europe typically heard from their Rabbis. In Eastern Europe in the 18th, 19th and early 20th century, unlike the situation in the Western World today, Torah scholars who served as communal Rabbonim were not expected to give a sermon or drasha to their congregations on a weekly basis. The norm was that the Rabbi spoke twice a year once on Shabbat Shuva, the Sabbath between Rosh HaShannah and Yom Kippur and once on Shabbat HaGadol, the Sabbath before Passover. However, there was a separate institution known as the Maggid, itinerant preachers who went around from town to town and would variously teach, entertain, reproach, and inspire the Jews of the various locations they visited with words of Torah and mussar on Shabbat afternoon. Indeed some of the early founders of the Chernobler Dynasty from which I descend were known as Maggidim and at least during part of their careers served just such a function. The Maggidim did not in general possess the same level of Torah scholarship as the local community Rabbanim but they typically had enough of a repertoire of material and enough cleverness to make their drasha seem timely on any given Shabbat of the year. Usually the Maggidim would somehow base their presentation on the Parshat HaShavua, the weekly Torah portion, or develop a theme based on some upcoming Jewish holiday or a special season of the year. My father, however, used to tell the story about a certain hapless Maggid who only had one Drasha that he used wherever he went. It was based on Parshas Korach. To appropriately segue into the Drasha he used to travel around with a Gabbai, an assistant, who had a dog with a loud bark. He arranged with the Gabbai that whenever the Maggid would visit a town the Gabbai would wait outside the synagogue and when the Maggid would approach the bimah to speak, the Gabbai would quickly send the dog inside to start barking. The Maggid then would act upset and start shouting: Get that dog out of here! May he sink into the ground like Korach and his followers! He would then regain his composure and continue Speaking of Parshas Korach and launch into his canned sermon. I mention this story for two reasons. First because Barry Ernstoff has informed me that part of my responsibility in carrying out the legacy of Rabbi Greenberg as Samis Rabbinical Trustee is to tell a joke at every Samis Board meeting. Second is because I do in fact want to begin my remarks this evening with the words Speaking of Parshas Korach Aside from my Bar Mitzvah Drasha in October 1961 and my address as Salutatorian of the 9th grade graduating class of the Seattle Hebrew Day School in June 1963, the very first public dvar Torah I gave in Seattle was on Parshas Korach in June 1971. I was a Semicha student at Rabbeinu Yitzchak Elchanan Theological Seminary. Congregation BCMH was yet meeting in the Yavneh building before their new sanctuary in Seward Park was built. The congregation had been without a Rabbi for almost a year. The shul was having difficulty finding a suitable successor to Rabbi Rivkin who left for Far Rockaway, NY the previous summer. Peete Seegars folksong Where have all the flowers gone? had been made very popular at the time by the Kingston Trio, by Peter Paul and Mary, and by Joan Baez who had all recorded it. I entitled my drasha that Shabbat morning: Where Have All The Rabbis Gone? and as a first year Semicha student with career decisions ahead of him tried to gently explain to the congregation why the Biblical paradigms of Rabbis serving their congregations out of purely altruistic motives as represented by Moses and Samuel in the mornings Torah Portion and Haftorah were no longer realistic. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 210
I would like to share with you 4 brief paragraphs from that presentation.
People complain that it is hard finding a Rabbi to suit Seattles needs. They cant understand what happened to all the bright young Rabbis with college degrees that have emerged from the various Yeshivos during the past 15 or 20 years. And this is not only a problem with respect to congregational rabbis alone. Finding qualified personnel on the teaching and administrative level for Day Schools and Yeshivos can be equally difficult. This is true throughout the country, not just in Seattle. Where then, one may ask, have all the Rabbis gone? The answer is quite simple. Ill speak from my own observations at Yeshiva University, although Im sure this is true elsewhere as well. When students at YU make career decisions and Im speaking now about the top students those with talents, commitment, and the greatest capacity for making strong positive contributions to the Jewish community as spiritual leaders, when these students are confronted with career decisions, it is only natural that they examine the various options open to them. It is taken for granted that the anguish, ingratitude, and plain chutzpah that a Rabbi or teacher must face and put up with is far greater than that of a chemist or a mathematician. So for all this suffering and added burden, the Rabbi should at least be able to expect commensurate monetary reward. But the sad truth of the matter is that in todays society, a higher premium is put on technology than on Torah. The Orthodox Jewish scientist can live in a suburb and drive a Cadillac while the Rabbi or teacher must hold side jobs and struggle to make ends meet. It is scandalous that at Yeshiva University right now, the Puerto Ricans who sweep the floors and wash the windows are drawing the same salary as the Roshei Yeshiva who say shiurim. Next year if their union leaders get their way, the window washers will be making more than the Roshei Yeshiva. Im not blaming YUs administration they have a fair policy that they dont pay anyone a penny more than they have to. The fault lies with the American Jewish community that values scholarship so little and allows Talmidei Chachomim to be considered so lightly. This then is what confronts the potential rabbis and teachers of the future as they make their career decisions. One almost has to have the idealism of a Moshe Rabbeinu or of a Shmuel HaNavi to decide in favor of service to the Jewish community when the seductive salaries of far easier professions are so much greater.
I have printed out the entire text of that drasha which I will be distributing for anyone interested in seeing the larger context of my remarks that morning. I share these remarks with you for two reasons. First, I believe the thought I presented in 1971 has great relevance to Samis mission of making strategic contributions to improve the quality of Jewish Day School education. While there have perhaps been significant improvements in the financial attractiveness of a career in the pulpit rabbinate over the past 36 years, choosing a career in Chinuch -- Jewish Education -- particularly being a classroom teacher, remains unfortunately a decision requiring much self-sacrifice and idealism. I believe that the single most effective long-range strategic improvement we could and should implement in striving for excellence in Day School education in the State of Washington and beyond is improving the image and the financial benefits of a career in Jewish education. I know that Samis has taken several positive steps already in this direction and I hope that this board will remain focused on this issue and open to considering other positive steps that may be taken to further advance this goal. There is a second reason I am sharing my 1971 Parshas Korach drasha with you this evening. The case might be in the coming weeks, months, or years as some of my fellow Samis Trustees hear me very often banging the drum of Supply Side economics as it applies to improving the financial lot of those who supply Torah knowledge and Torah values to the youth of our community that they may tend to dismiss my ideas or suggestions by the charge Rabbi Twersky is lobbying for his own children. It is true that among my children and children-in-law there is a statistically significant correlation between career choices and the field of Torah study and Jewish education. I therefore felt it necessary to bring documentary proof that my advocacy for supply side pedagogic economics pre-dates my childrens career choices. It predates the birth of my children and it predates even my own marriage and personal career decision. If anything, I suspect it is the case that I argue for enhanced respect and remuneration for Torah teachers not because my children are Torah teachers but on the contrary, I have merited to raise children who are Torah teachers because I have long been an advocate of enhanced respect and remuneration for individuals who make such career decisions. May we all be able to work together to improve the lot of
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Jewish educators and thereby increase the quality of our schools and the quality of the Jewish love and commitment of those who study in these institutions. If anyone cannot wait until the next Samis Quarterly meeting to hear additional Torah thoughts from their Rabbinic Trustee, I invite them to check out the link at the upper right hand corner of the following page which will take them to a web site that has over 150 additional public or semi-public presentations I have made since June 1971.
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SAMIS QUARTERLY MEETING: December 2007

The late Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, of blessed memory, once visited Yeshiva University (it was the only appearance I ever saw him at without a guitar) and offered the following critique of Yeshiva curriculum: The problem with Yeshivas he suggested is that they spend all their time teaching what to do if you find a kosher spoon that has fallen into a treife (non-kosher) pot; but one leaves Yeshiva after many years of study and has no idea what to do if he finds a Yidele (a little Jew) who has fallen into a treife pot." Rav Sholomos critique was based on the accurate assessment that traditional training for Rabbinic ordination, to a large extent, is focused almost exclusively on a specific subset of ritual law, leaving young rabbis unprepared to handle the many real-life situations and challenges that present themselves in a modern Jewish community. The topic I would like to briefly discuss this evening is one that frankly does not come up in the standard course of rabbinic study but is very much a real-life situation facing Jewish communities across the country as well as our own. I am indebted to Rob Torren for suggesting this topic to me several months ago. The topic is the application of the halachic principles of hasagat gevul to Jewish education. The prohibition of Hasagat gevul in its most literal application refers to encroaching upon someone's territory by moving the boundary marker between property lines. In the Talmud and later Rabbinic literature the term is used broadly for anyone who encroaches on the livelihood of someone else by starting a competing business and stealing someone else's customers. The question at hand therefore is one that is very relevant to the Samis Foundation and its mission and one that relates I'm sure -- to past, present and future discussion of this distinguished body. Namely what does Jewish law and tradition say about starting up competing Torah educational institutions when similar institutions or programs already exist? I want to be honest and state at the outset that when I first learned many years ago -- the principles I will be sharing with you, I was as troubled by them as Im sure some of you will be. If truth be told, there are areas of Halacha that are not intuitive and that may seem to trouble our emotional or intellectual sensitivities. Whenever I am confronted by such Torah laws be they of a theoretical or practical nature -- I recall the wise words of my revered teacher, Rav Soloveitchik when he was once asked by one of his students about just such a Torah law: The Rav responded as follows: "Halacha is like an old Jewish mother. She may have wrinkles, she may at times seem antiquated, she may say things that are politically incorrect and embarrass us. But she is honest, she is truthful, she is the only mother we ever had. She has nurtured us and protected us through thick and thin. We love her and despite all her perceived blemishes and wrinkles we would never change her for anyone else's mother in the world." We do not have time this evening to do an exhaustive study of the attitude in Rabbinic literature throughout the ages to the fascinating topic of pedagogic and scholarly competition. We will however site two classic sources that are the point of departure for all subsequent discussion. The first source is the Gemara in Bava Basra 21b and the second is the definitive rulings of Ramba"m and the Rav Yosef Karo on this matter. Rav Huna said that if a resident of an alley sets up a hand mill and another resident of the alley wants to set up one next to him, the first has the right to stop him, because he can say to him, "You are interfering with my livelihood." This is the principle I referenced earlier broadly known as "hasagat gevul", Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 213
basically infringement on one's business territory. However Rav Yosef goes onto say that even Rav Huna who has a strict opinion in terms of the application of the prohibition of "hasagat gevul" would admit that when it comes to teaching Torah, such restrictions are not imposed and the Gemara introduces a term there that is picked up by all the Responsa literature that analyzes these situations over the many centuries: Kin'at Sofrim Tarbeh Chochmah rivalry among Torah scholars is conducive to improved levels of learning (or literally jealousy among scribes will increase knowledge). This Halacha is explicitly codified by Rambam in Mishneh Torah :[Talmud Torah 2:7] and by the Shulchan Aruch [Yoreh Deah 245:22], Rav Yosef Karo in the Shulchan Aruch quotes the Rambam almost verbatim: A member of a neighborhood who wishes to become a teacher even a member of the same courtyard, the neighbors cannot protest (about the increased noise of the children). Likewise if there is one teacher already and a second teacher comes along and opens another school for teaching children next to him either for other children or so that students of the first teacher come to him, the first teacher may not protest as it is written: "Hashem desired for the sake of [Israel's] righteousness that the Torah be made great and glorious." [Isaiah 42:21] The Talmudic expression Kin'as Sofrim Tarbeh Chochmah and the parallel citing of the verse from Isaiah Hashem chafetz l'maan tzidko yagdil Torah v'Y'adeer. reflect a clear Talmudic and Rabbinic a priori preference for a laissez faire attitude when it comes to proliferation of Torah programs and learning alternatives even at the expense of efficiency and normal business etiquette.. I am not sure whether the attitude is based on insight into human psychology or is more mystical in nature, but the bottom line is that the overwhelming weight of rabbinic opinion feels that the net effect for the Jewish people of more Torah classrooms and more Torah teaching competition will be positive and one may not interfere with efforts to promote such additional competing learning alternatives. As I stated before I was more than a little bit troubled by this concept when I was first introduced to it many years ago. I remember that occasion very well. Es Chatai ani mazkir hayom: Approximately 30 years ago, I was a member of the Board of Directors of the Seattle Hebrew Academy and heard to my dismay that the Rabbis of the Chabad community had started a Cheder in the north end and were successfully soliciting children that would have otherwise attended my alma mater and the school I intended to send my children to. I wrote a blistering essay "What Price U'Faratza?" arguing against the new "breakaway" institution and mailed it out at my own expense to dozens of members of the community along with a letter to the Lubovitcher Rebbe, ob"m, petitioning him to cease and desist from undermining the long-standing Jewish educational infrastructure of our community. There are people in this room who received and signed my petition and complimented me for having written it. Shortly after having sent out this mailing I was "invited" to Rabbi Levitin's home in the north end where I met with him and his father, a loyal Chossid of the Rebbe from Crown Heights who happened to live on the same block where my wife grew up and where her parents were still living. Among other choice words they had to share with me, was the above cited passage from the Shulchan Aruch and the Ramba"m basically giving halachic carte blanche to anyone wishing to start a competing Torah educational institution in town. As I said before, in the heat of the moment and in my youthful passion, I found this halacha very troubling. Thirty years later, I must admit, in the words of an old Hebrew proverb "Mah she'hasechel lo oseh, ha'zman oseh". What logic cannot accomplish time can accomplish. Today I recognize that the Lubovitcher Rebbe was right and I was wrong. His Cheder did not undermine the Seattle Hebrew Academy. Thirty years later Rabbi Levitin can look back with pride and satisfaction at the education his Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 214
children received at his local school of choice and I can look back with pride and satisfaction at the education my children received in my local school of choice. Thirty year later I recognize that not only was the Lubovitcher Rebbe right, but Rav Huna and the Ramba"m were also right! Increased Torah study competition does increase knowledge. Proliferation of schools and Torah learning philosophies can in the long run promote the goal of Yagdil Torah V'Ya-adir (magnifying and glorifying the role of Torah in a community). Today's consumer demands and expects a proliferation of choices when it come to orange juice when the ramifications are no more profound than with or without pulp, with or without calcium, reconstituted or non-reconstituted. They demand and expect a proliferation of choices when it comes to Coca-Cola when the ramifications are no more profound than with or without sugar, with or without caffeine, and with or without Cherry flavoring. I need not tell anyone how many options are available when one walks into a Starbucks store for a cup of coffee! If regarding such mundane commodities as OJ, Cola and Coffee we demand choices and variety, is it any wonder, then, that in matters that define our spiritual essence for ourselves and for our future generations we should not settle for one-size-fits all products? I personally have come full-circle on the issue of Day School competition. I can't expect that I will be able to convince everyone here of the wisdom of traditional rabbinic opinion on this matter. For those who still find themselves intellectually and emotionally where I was 30 years ago, I respect your position and I merely suggest that you remain open to the possibility that "what sechel cannot presently accomplish, time will accomplish."
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SAMIS QUARTERLY MEETING: MARCH 2008

The Talmud [Sanhedrin 36a] states that when the Jewish Court was about to decide a capital case -- the deliberations were conducted by allowing the most junior member of the court to speak first. The Gemara explains that had the Chief Justice or the more senior members of the court weighed in with their opinions first the junior members of the court would be intimidated by the age and experience of the court elders and would hesitate to offer their personal opinions if they contradicted an already stated position of one of the court elders. Therefore to fully solicit and hear out the full range of opinion on crucial capital matters the methodology of was employed. It is in this vein that I (now as a sophomore if no longer the freshman member of the foundation) welcome the opportunity to speak first at this special session set aside to discuss and evaluate new initiatives and priorities for Samis funding. We are grappling with the age-old question: How best to distribute limited charitable resources to maximize the good accomplished? Maimonides [Mishneh Commentary to Avot 3:15 (19)] discusses a related issue. The question is if Reuven has $100 dollars to distribute as charity, what is preferable? Should he give the $100 to one person and really make a difference in his life or should he give $10 to ten people or $1 to 100 people. Maimonides writes that the preferred method is to make smaller distributions to more people. The reasoning behind his ruling is instructive. In terms of the funds distributed, there may in fact not be a mathematical or net societal difference regardless of how the funds are allocated. However in terms of the impact on the benefactor there is a big difference between reaching into his wallet or checkbook and making a donation once (albeit a large one) and reaching into that wallet or checkbook many times (albeit for making smaller donations). Repetitious acts of charity have the ability to habituate a person to generosity and to overcome a natural human inclination to try to hold on to what he sees as his own hard earned money. In short we have no effective way of measuring the relative impact on society of various methods of distribution of limited charitable resources, but in terms of the impact on the soul of the giver, Rambam weighs in, in favor of many smaller donations rather than fewer larger donations having the same net value. Having said this, one should not jump to the conclusion that I am about to endorse a multiplicity of new Samis initiatives and suggest a plethora of worthy charitable destinations that are deserving of our foundation's funding. The genius of Responsa literature has always been not so much its ability to quote traditional sources and blindly apply them as Rabbinic precedent to new issues at hand. That is certainly part of it. But even more characteristic of this genre is the ability to take classic sources and explain -by introducing logical distinctions -- why they should not apply to what at first glance might appear to be similar scenarios. I certainly lay no claim to being qualified to author ingenious Rabbinic responsa, but, in addressing the issue at hand, in my humble opinion, the above-cited recommendation of Maimonides is not relevant to the decisions the Samis foundation will be discussing this morning. On the contrary, I think that perhaps in terms of Foundation beneficence, we should be coming to the opposite conclusion. A foundation such as ours does not have to worry about breaking down the Yetzer Hara (evil inclination) of not wanting to part with ones' money. Thank G-d, it is fairly easy to spend someone elses' money and certainly there is not a strong Yetzer Hara to not allocate someone elses' charitable funds. So the question facing us of "bigger donations to fewer recipients" versus "smaller donations to more recipients" is really not bound in any way by Maimonides logic or recommendation. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 216
In my humble -- -- opinion, for the Samis foundation "bigger donations to support fewer causes" should trump "smaller donations to fund more causes". I think the key to a successful foundation is focus. There are a lot of very worthy and pressing needs in the Jewish community and beyond. Very strong cases can undoubtedly be made for funding this cause and that program, this institution and that initiative. Each of us no doubt has our own pet projects and favorite charities and personal visions for which we are tempted to use our influence in this body to advocate. This, in my opinion, is the "Yetzer Hara" we need to overcome. The Samis foundation has historically articulated quality, affordable Jewish day school education as its highest priority. When a foundation has a prime philanthropic mission such as we do, particularly a mission such as "quality, affordable day school education" where progress towards achieving that mission requires much wisdom, much money, and much patience then it must loyally dedicate itself to that mission. It dare not let itself become bored with writing 6 or 7 figure checks to particular institutions and then become distracted by new horizons to conquer and new worthy causes to fund that are not related to its prime mission. I am fully aware that Day School education is not the sole philanthropic mission of the Samis Foundation. But, as I said before, historically it has been their highest priority and its prime focus. It is my hope that it remains so. There is, however, much to accomplish in terms of achieving "quality, affordable Day School education" that goes beyond writing checks for operational expenses to specific institutions. I think there is great potential in expanding Day School enrollment, affordability, and quality by funding activities, programs, short and long term initiatives that go far beyond what Samis has supported in the past while yet directly supporting this prime mission of the Foundation and its namesake. I dont believe that the long-term goal of quality, affordable Day School education can be achieved solely by directing our largesse at individual competing academic institutions. Certainly basic operational funding is critical to the Day Schools and to Samis mission and certainly Day School related initiatives should be undertaken in consultation with the lay and professional leadership of these institutions. However to the extent that funds become available to us, I would enthusiastically support exploring other avenues of funding, encouragement, and incentive that are directed not only to the competing institutions themselves but also to the various stake-holders that are part of the macro equation of Day School Education in general, independently of their affiliation with specific schools. These stake-holders include past, present, and future Day School faculty and Day school students, as well as present and future Day school parents, and Day School leadership. There are a number of items on this mornings agenda that fall into this category. The agenda list by no means exhausts the possibilities that might or should be contemplated. It would be my hope that any endorsement of items of this nature that we agree upon will be viewed not only as accepting specific one-shot proposals, but will be viewed as setting precedent for expanding our collective vision of what it takes to address the underlying cost and quality issues associated with the challenge of Day School education. May we collectively be granted the wisdom to make wise decisions for the merit of the memory of Sam Israel, for our own merit, and for the merit of the future of the Jewish people.
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Samis Quarterly Meeting Dvar Torah: May 2008

During the late summer of 1978 just before Israel and Egypt began negotiating the "Camp David Accords" the prime minister of Israel appeared on NBC's popular news program Meet The Press. Menachem Begin at the time was trying to present to the American media the reasonableness of Israel's negotiating position. One of the panelists that Sunday morning was a black journalist from the Chicago Tribune. I don't remember his name, but he had a reputation for being very harsh against Israel in his editorial comments and some might say he even had the reputation for being somewhat of an antiSemite.
He prefaced his question by citing a long flowery quotation from one of Begin's early speeches to the Cherut party loyalists regarding the Eternal G-d given right of the Jewish people to exercise exclusive and complete sovereignty over every inch of the Land of Israel on both sides of the Jordan River. The Israeli Prime minister let him go on citing that speech for several paragraphs and then, before he got to his question which obviously was going to be something like "Mr. Begin, if you do not retract these comments, how can you portray yourself as having a reasonable negotiating stance when these words reveal that deep down you are nothing but a fanatical uncompromising racist " Begin interrupted the journalist and said, "Excuse me, Mr. So-and-so, I just have to comment that my words coming out of your mouth have a beautiful ring to them." I was reminded of this very sharp and humorous retort by the late Israeli Prime Minister when Rob Torren asked me to prepare a Dvar Torah for this special "Away From Home" quarterly meeting of the Samis foundation to be read by one of my fellow trustees. I have been regretting for some time now that -- for a number of reasons -- I am unable to participate personally in this special meeting. I now add to all the other regrets that I have that I am unable to be there to hear my beautiful words coming out of someone else's mouth. Seriously, I sincerely
appreciate the opportunity given me to convey albeit remotely -- a Dvar Torah at the start of this meeting and feel that it is indeed particularly important that of all our Quarterly meetings this one focusing on the Foundation's role in and relationship with the State of Israel -commence with a Dvar Torah. Most, but certainly not all, positive commandments be they Biblical or Rabbinic in nature begin with a blessing "Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d King of the universe Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us .blank blank blank." Where the blank blank blank may be "to blow the Shofar", "to sit in the Succah", "to read the Megillah", "to wash our hands", "to eat the matzah", "to count the Omer" etc., etc., etc. Basically, this Birkat HaMitzvah (blessing over the commandment) sets the tone and puts the action about to be performed into a religious context. Things such as sitting in a booth covered by bamboo poles, blowing a ram's horn, washing one's hands, or eating unleavened bread might be done as secular even mundane activities. Reciting a Birkat HaMitzvah before performing such activities removes all doubt and makes it clear to the one who does the act as well as to others that the action about to be undertaken is holy. Paradoxically, one of the most frequently performed and basic commandments that of reciting Kriat Shma twice daily is not preceded by a Birkat Hamitzvah. I believe one of the reasons that might be suggested for omitting such a declaration prior to this most basic pledge of allegiance to our monotheistic belief system is precisely the fact Kriat Shma needs no context setting proclamation. By the very essence of the words contained therein, the recital of these Biblical verses and passages dealing with the fundamentals of faith cannot be mistaken for anything else but a religious ritual. Similarly, I would like to hope and suggest that the established practice of beginning every Foundation meeting with a Dvar Torah is an appropriate context-setting device that reminds us that our deliberations and decisions at these meetings have a special character to them. We are not engaged merely in business planning, return on investment strategies, or in merely defining the rules and regulations for the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 218
distribution of assets under our control. Words of spiritual arousal and inspiration based on Torah thought at the start of each meeting ideally raises the atmosphere and nature of our deliberations and decisions to a spiritual plateau. Hopefully they infuse our discussions with a dimension of holiness and reverence for the great spiritual accomplishments we may be privileged to achieve via the work of this foundation. Carrying this idea one step further one might argue that the Samis charter and historical policies for granting in Chutz L'Aretz in the State of Washington and elsewhere in the Diaspora -- do not need a "Dvar Torah" (a "Birkat HaMitzvah" if you will) to set the context for their spiritual character. Supporting Jewish Day Schools, Jewish Camping, and other programs, personnel, and institutions that preserve Jewish identity, pride, and continuity among the youth of our community are activities that, like Kriat Shma, are holy and sacred by definition. They need no preamble to focus anyone on the sanctity and spiritual nature of these endeavors. When it comes to meetings focusing on such matters, an opening Dvar Torah is merely icing on the cake. When it comes to "Israel Grants" on the other hand, an opening Dvar Torah takes on a far more crucial role. It may very well be asked: "Mah inyan Latrun etzel Har Sinai?" What connection is there between an observation center monitoring bird migratory patterns and the Jewish religion? What uniquely Jewish aspect or sense of holiness is there in supporting programs and activities that might be found on the social welfare or ecological agenda of virtually any country on the face of the earth regardless of religion or ethnic background of the society? Indeed, unfortunately, far too many people do not see a spiritual message or any type of Divine connection to the State of Israel and the process of building its infrastructure or supporting its people and institutions. For them the State of Israel is just a "medina like any other medina", albeit the only one where a majority of the population are of Jewish descent. We find this idea and attitude not only by the secularists on the left; we find it to varying extents amongst many Torah observant Jews on the right as well. For some on the left there is no Torah and for some on the right anything that does not correspond 100% to their pre-conceived notion of Divine Redemption is a corruption of Torah. When confronting such a situation, it is absolutely essential to place all deliberations and all decisions regarding "Israel Grants" in the context of a Dvar Torah. We need to emphatically state and restate our firm belief that Medinat Yisrael (the State of Israel) is Reshit Tzmichat Geulateinu the Divinely directed "first sprouting of our Biblically promised redemption". In such a context draining swamps, clearing the soil of rocks, planting trees, and certainly anything that encourages aliya and supports the social and welfare needs of Jews already living in Israel is both a mitzvah and a holy partnership with the Almighty. All such activities ultimately contribute to the dramatic unfolding of the promised ingathering of the exiles and the return to Zion and to Torah which we have begun to witness in our lifetime and which in their ultimate unfolding will characterize the final Messianic redemption of our people. May the Samis Foundation merit to play a role in this partnership with the Almighty and may each of the Foundation's trustees merit to realize the sacred nature of the task in which they are occupied. I hope your stay in the Holy Land has inspired you all. May the upcoming opportunity to spend the holiest day of the week in the holiest city in the world serve as "icing on the cake" of a spiritually meaningful and illuminating visit.
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Samis Quarterly Speech August 2008

About the same time and at about the same age that Sam Israel migrated from Rhodes to Seattle, my great Aunt Chonka migrated from Tolne (not far from Chernoble in the Ukraine) to New York City. Aunt Chonka never struck it rich financially like Sam Israel, but she was quite a character in her own right. After being here several years, learning English, and mastering the basic material necessary to apply for American citizenship she had her Court Hearing with a Federal Judge in Manhattan. The Judge asked her to state her name, her age, and her country of origin. She did that all very well. Then he asked her when her birthday was. Now Aunt Chonka had always celebrated her birthday on the 28th day of Elul, 2 days before Rosh HaShannah. That's when she was born, that's when she celebrated it in Tolna, and that's when she celebrated it in New York. But she knew the judge would not understand if she told him that her birthday was the 28th day of Elul so she responded: "Well, your honor, sometimes my birthday comes out in August and sometimes it comes out in September." You see everything depends on one's point of reference. For most people, the secular world and the secular calendar is their point of reference. Everything is judged or evaluated in terms of that secular point of view. It is the first of September that is fixed and Rosh Hashanna either comes out early or late. My Aunt Chonka had a Jewish frame of reference and everything was evaluated in relationship to that vantage point. For her the first day of Tishrei was fixed. She would not think or say "Rosh Hashana comes out late this year." She would think and say "September comes out early this year." I mention this humorous family anecdote because I feel that viewing matters from differing perspectives is a good illustration of a phenomenon that impacts much of the communication and miscommunication between the Jewish world and the outside world, and much of the communication and miscommunication within the Jewish world itself. It is indeed a phenomenon that is not irrelevant in analyzing communication and miscommunication between foundations and beneficiary institutions and between their respective personnel. In some situations the varying perspectives, backgrounds, assumptions, and biases are indeed so radically different from one another that disagreements inevitably deteriorate into unbridgeable us versus them confrontations, or as they say in the world of transactional analysis: "I'm Okay; you're not okay." It behooves us, however, whenever possible, to try to appreciate the perspective of our ideological opponents to minimize confrontation and ultimately come to an I'm Okay, You're Okay recognition of our differences. Rabbi J. B. Soloveitchik, ob"m, in the Summer 1965 issue of Tradition magazine published "The Lonely Man of Faith" in which he classically describes the social and psychological plight of the Man of Faith in a practical and technological world. In a brilliant analysis of the varying descriptions of the creation of man as recorded in the first two chapters of Genesis, the Rav defines a personality he calls Adam I and a personality he calls Adam II and states that the history of man is basically a struggle of these two Adams. Adam I is technological man whom the Rav calls "man of dignity". Adam I is engaged in creative work, trying to emulate his Maker and create a majestic world. The one in modern society who most characteristically represents Adam I is the mathematical scientist. Adam I consciously or subconsciously carries out G-d's mandate to fill the earth and subdue it, but he does not necessarily think about G-d in so doing. In a timely example from that era, the Rav declared the atheistic Russian cosmonaut who while circling the earth radioed back to his superiors that he could find no G-d or Angels in heaven was a typical example of Adam I.
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Adam II is the "man of faith". While Adam I is practical minded, Adam II is faith-minded. He does not ask "how" or "what", but "why" and "who". Why was the world created? Who is it to whom I cling in passionate all-consuming love, and of Whom I feel in mortal fear? Who is He whose life-giving and life-warming breath I constantly feel and Who at the same time, remains distant and remote? Adam II does not create a conceptual mathematical world. He sees the world with the natural spontaneity of a child, who seeks the unusual and wonderful in every ordinary thing and event. Though he is often regarded as irrelevant in the modern world, Adam II the man of faith keeps his rendezvous with eternity and persists tenaciously in bringing the message of faith to the majestic world of Adam I. Rav Soloveitchik points out that in our contemporary world Technological-Practical Man feels triumphant while the Man of Faith feels lonely and besieged. I cannot even begin to scratch the surface of the ideas contained in this brilliant essay of more than110 pages, but I think it is important to point out that the Rav emphatically states that while he described the two Adams typologically, as though they were irreconcilable, separate persons with disparate temperaments and orientations, actually, there is only one Adam with oscillating tendencies. The man of faith, in actuality, moves regularly between the faith-community and the work-community. He never remains totally immersed in the immediate awareness of being in G-d's presence. There is a continuous alteration between the cosmic and the covenantal, both areas being willed and sanctioned by G-d, who wants man to live creatively in this world even as he devoutly participates in the faith-community. I would like to briefly throw out the kernel of an idea which deserves much further elaboration: I've been on the Samis Board for a little over 1 year now, and I've been an observer of the Day School movement locally and beyond for quite a bit longer. I notice that there is often a divergence in perspective between what I will call the 3 Fs and the 3 Rs: The 3 Fs are Foundations, Federations, and Funders. The 3 Rs are Rabbis, Rebbeim, and Rebbitzens. The "Funding Community", if you will, and the "Religious Community" if you will although I am not speaking now of "religious" in terms of Halachic observance but in terms of membership in the idealistic "Faith community" which no doubt has representation from all denominations and indeed from all religions. The divergence in perspective between the 3Fs and the 3Rs parallels the divergence in perspective between Adam I and Adam II. The 3 Fs are practical minded. They are scientific and mathematical in their analysis of Day School Funding and Operations. They focus their interest on the "How" and "What" questions. The 3 Rs are Faith Minded, they ask the more existential Why questions. They see the creation and building of Day Schools with the natural spontaneity of a child who wants something now and is not necessarily prepared to focus on the How and What that will make it possible. Sam Israel in his wisdom chose many wise and talented individuals doctors, lawyers, MBAs, CPAs, real estate people, etc. to lead the Foundation that bears his name. These professions, by their very nature, are populated by people from the world of the 3Fs -- who oscillate toward the direction of Adam I practical man. But, again in his wisdom, Sam also insisted that this body contain a representative from the world of the 3Rs a Lonely Man of Faith a Rabbinic trustee who hopefully would oscillate somewhat towards the direction of Adam II, to prompt the Foundation to ask not only the How and What questions but also the Who and Why questions as well. I confess that I often feel unworthy of that assignment. I, too, by training, profession and to a large extent personality sense a pull in the direction of Adam I: How and What, Dollars and Cents, Here and Now. But at least, given the years I have spent in Yeshiva, given the role models under whom I have studied, and given the pedagogic heroes I have witnessed in this community and in this profession over the years, I can appreciate and in some ways identify with the typology of Adam II as well. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 221
If nothing else, I hope to at least from time to time attempt to convey that sense of appreciation and identification to my fellow trustees in the hope that that we as a Foundation not view Adam I and Adam II with an "us" verses "them" mentality. I will be more than satisfied if my contribution to Samis consists of helping the Adams who belong to the world of the 3 Fs look at the Adams who belong to the world of the 3 Rs and say to them: "We're Okay; You're Okay." We respectfully understand where you are coming from and we will try to respectfully explain to you where we are coming from.
(http://www.traditiononline.org/news/article.cfm?id=105067)
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The Lighter Side of Day School Visitations (At Samis "Israel Trip Reunion")
September 208
We find in more than a dozen places in Talmud and Medrash a charming Rabbinic practice of approaching young school children at random and asking them to quote the Scriptural verse they have most recently studied (p'sok li pesukecha). This device is employed by both Jewish and non-Jewish personalities, by both heroes and enemies of the Jewish people. The verses cited by young Torah students provide insight and guidance to the inquirer. They are taken as a form of Heavenly omen for making appropriate decisions be they military matters, matters of career choice, or politics. Whether or not each such exchange mentioned in Rabbinic writing historically took place is a matter that may be debated. What's clear is that the frequent citing of such methodology and the supposed peace of mind granted to great men by detecting definitive advice from such conversations testifies to the great value the Rabbis place on the Torah study of young children in particular. It is with this information as background, I cite the following recent incident which also has great charm and lessons within it regardless of whether it actually happened or not. * * *
Just a couple of weeks ago Republican presidential nominee, John McCain, was facing a tremendous dilemma as to whom to pick as his running mate for the November election. He called on his trusted friend and consultant, Joseph Lieberman and asked for his advice. Senator Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew well versed in the Talmudic concept of (p'sok li pesukecha), told Senator McCain about the idea and mentioned that he had close connections with the Yeshiva Day School in Washington. He suggested that the two of them go to the Day School in the Nation's capital and see what insight their students could provide. Lieberman took McCain by the hand and led him straight to the fifth grade classroom, knowing full well that the class was studying Parshas Miketz. He was hoping that McCain would find a student who would quote to him: "Then Pharaoh said to Joseph: 'Since G-d has informed you of all this, there can be no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace and by your command shall all my people be sustained; only by the throne shall I outrank you.'" [Genesis 41:40] Unfortunately for Lieberman, McCain being the maverick that he is, headed for a different classroom across the hall. He walked into the fourth grade where they were studying Parshas Va'yera and heard: "The L-rd said to Abraham: 'Whatever Sarah tells you, heed her voice.'" [Genesis 21:12] The rest is history.
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Samis Quarterly Meeting: December, 2008

I know that Samis trustees like the idea of leveraging. Whether it is in the Assets Committee where we leverage investment opportunities or in the Grants committee where we leverage contributions, ever since I've joined this Foundation I keep hearing about leveraging. Well today, I'm going to implement an exercise in leveraging myself. First of all, I'm going to leverage the recent buzz in the community about my teacher, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, in the wake of the screening of the documentary film Lonely Man of Faith, about his life and legacy, to talk about the film and about my revered teacher. Second, I'm going to leverage the fact that I've already spoken on this topic at BCMH on a recent Shabbos morning and for that I'm going to apologize to Rob Torren and Eli Genauer who will be hearing some of the thoughts I'm sharing this afternoon for the second time. In 1954, upon the occasion of the 750th anniversary of the death of Maimonides, Hebrew University published a collection of scholarly papers about the Rambam by individuals considered to be leading authorities on this great Sephardic Torah giant. One of the scholars they solicited to submit such a paper was Rav Soloveitchik. The Rav later, only somewhat tongue-in-cheek, commented about this request. "When I received the letter informing me that Hebrew U was collecting papers to mark the 750th anniversary of the death of the Rambam I was shocked and greatly distressed. Until that moment, no one had ever told me that the Rambam was dead. For me he has always been a dynamic force in my life and a living reality. This was the first time I had ever heard anyone state that he was no longer alive." I recalled this comment of the Rav, while watching the movie documentary about his life and legacy. It was a beautifully done and moving film. But it did leave somewhat of a bittersweet taste in my mouth to see my beloved teacher being treated as a historical figure. For me Rav Soloveitchik is not a figure of the past. For me he is still very much here. I read his works, I review the notes of his classes, I listen to his recorded lectures. I think about him daily, the Torah he taught me, and the inspiration he gave me. There is a fundamental difference between a teacher who is dead and a teacher who is alive. It really has nothing to do with his or her pulse or heartbeat. I would like to elaborate on this idea by citing a teaching I once heard from the Rav. I believe the teaching will both shed light on the unique relationship that Rav Soloveitchik had with his many students and will also be insightful in terms of Samis' philanthropic mission regarding Jewish education. We read each Simchat Torah at the beginning of Parshat Zot Habracha the famous verse: " Torah was commanded to us by Moses, an inheritance for the Congregation of Jacob" [Devorim 33:4]. The Talmud in a number of places makes a play on words with this verse and teaches "" The Torah should not metaphorically be compared to a morasha an inheritance, rather it should be compared to a m'eorasa a betrothed, a bride. Rav Soloveitchik elaborated on this teaching. What, he asked, is the difference between morasha and me'orasa? Morasha, he explained, is an heirloom, something I have inherited from a deceased ancestor. An inheritance is meaningful to me for nostalgic reasons. It has sentimental value whose importance stems not so much out of its own intrinsic worth, rather out of its importance to someone else a father, grandfather, or great grandfather. We may remain ignorant of the reason why this object was important to our ancestors and yet for purely sentimental reasons, we will have a certain degree of attachment to it. A bride, on the other hand, me'orasa, has personal value. Her importance stems not out of an importance to someone else, rather out of a direct importance to the one to whom she is betrothed. The bond of a man with his betrothed goes above and beyond the bond to family tradition and parental Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 224
attachment. "Therefore a man will leave his mother and father and cling to his wife." We cannot be ignorant of the reasons why our betrothed is important to us. The attachment is personally significant, not hidden away in mysteries of the past. This message of making Torah into a vibrant and personally meaningful Me'orasah with whom one achieves a passionate and intimate relationship rather than merely a nostalgic and sentimental Morasha with which one pays tribute to the values of long deceased ancestors was the key philosophy which Rabbi Soloveitchik brought to his classroom and to all his pedagogic endeavors. This was the distinction between the relationship that professors have with Maimonides academic interest in Judaic scholars of antiquity and the relationship that Roshei Yeshiva such as Rav Soloveitchik have with the Rambam an intimate and passionate relationship that goes to the core of their essence. This too is what motivated Rav Soloveitchik's pioneering efforts to found the first Jewish Day School in New England, a chapter in his life that was portrayed very effectively by the film. The Rav was convinced that the Talmud Torah / Afternoon school approach of transmitting Jewish Heritage to the next generation was at best a "Morasha" attempt to pass on meaning of religion rooted in nostalgia and sentimentality to a new generation that was finding meaning and passion in life in areas far removed from those which moved and stirred the hearts of their immigrant ancestors. It is no coincidence that it was a member of one of the Rav's first classes in Yeshiva Colllege, our own Rabbi Solomon Maimon, who was instrumental in bringing the concept of Jewish Day School education to Seattle, in the late 1940s, meeting with some of the very same skepticism, cynicism, and outright hostility that his mentor had to deal with in Boston more than a decade earlier. In her memoir of the Soloveitchik family, one of the Rav's sisters, Mrs. Shulamith Meiselman, quotes her brother's reflections in later years regarding his struggles and efforts to bring Day School education to New England in the 1930s: "When a new idea is thrust upon the world, it generally passes through 3 stages. First it is scorned, then it is fought, and finally it is accepted as self-evident... The scorn has long since been overcome... The struggle for survival has been gloriously won and the concept of the Hebrew Day School as a vital force on the American Jewish scene has become dramatically selfevident". Now while the value of Day School education today may indeed have become self-evident, the success of Day Schools in instilling a passionate "Me'orosa" type attachment between their students and the Torah is neither something that we can take for granted nor even something that is perhaps yet the "norm". In order to ignite the passion for Torah that Rav Soloveitchik was able to ignite in his students one does not need necessarily a genius on the par of Rav Soloveitchik. One needs trained, talented, and motivated teachers who themselves have a "Me'orasa relationship" with Torah. Such teachers are not a dime a dozen, but they are worth their weight in gold. To the extent that we have found such teachers locally, we should treasure them and treat them royally. To the extent that we are still lacking such personnel, we should do what we can in terms of training, motivation, and demonstration of appreciation to create such teachers or to encourage them to relocate to the schools in our community. I'd just like to close with a very poignant story illustrating how the Rav personified this teaching of "" in his own life. The film did a very good job of portraying the very special relationship between Rabbi Soloveitchik and his wife, Rebbetzin Tanya Soloveitchik, a relationship that was well known to those who knew them. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 225
The movie mentioned that Mrs. Soloveitchik died of cancer in March 1967. Rabbi Soloveitchik mentioned in a Yahrtzeit lecture several years later that although when his wife was first diagnosed he was cautiously hopeful for her recovery, it was the previous Kol Nidre that he knew for certain that his prayers on her behalf were not to be answered. He relates how, as he did every year, he held one of the Sifrei Torah taken out of the ark during the recitation of Kol Nidre. Following Kol Nidre he gave the Torah scroll to the Shamash in the synagogue who replaced it in the ark. Somehow the Shamash did not correctly place the scroll in proper position and during the course of the service it fell over on its side. The Rav took this as a Heavenly omen that his wife would die during that year. "The Torah represented my betrothed. The Torah I held in my arms slipped from its place and fell on its side. I knew at that moment that my beloved wife would slip away from me that year. And so it was."
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SAMIS QUARTERLY MEETING: MARCH 2009

It has been said that if you give a speech quoting the words of another person that is plagiarism, but if you give a speech quoting the words of two or more people that is research. My Dvar Torah this evening will be mostly based on the words of others, but since I will mention their names and there is going to be more than one person whose words are quoted, hopefully no one will charge me with plagiarizing. I begin my Dvar Torah by citing a very contemporary and relevant source: Chapter 11. But I am not referring to the very unpleasant Chapter 11 associated with financial loss. I am referring to a Chapter 11 associated with a prophet, namely the Prophet Isaiah. In verse 9 of the eleventh chapter of the book that bears his name, Isaiah describes the serene atmosphere of the post-messianic world and attributes it to the fact " ' for the land shall (then) be full of knowledge of the L-rd as water covers the sea bed." I've always pictured this ideal post messianic society as one in which words of Torah flow like a fountain from all sources in society. Hollywood magazines, Sports publications, and women's journals will all feature articles presenting a Torah perspective on movies, sports, and fashion. In the business world the Wall Street Journal, and Money magazine will fill each issue with articles of Divrei Torah and Talmudic insight. Well we have certainly not reached that point yet. On the contrary, -- just the opposite is the case. Not only are the money analysts and financial publications not speaking about the weekly Torah portion, but the Rabbis and the Torah publications are all speaking about financial matters. However, at least they are doing so from a Torah perspective and such perspective gives us important context, insight, and practical lessons that hopefully will make us wiser and spiritually stronger. I would like to take the few minutes allotted to me this evening to share with you or at least point out to you some recently published thoughts relating to the financial crises sweeping the world by leading Rabbinic figures Three of the Orthodox world's most eloquent and prolific rabbinic authors are Rabbi Emanuel Feldman, Rabbi Abraham J Twerski, and Rabbi Berel Wein. It is their writings I wish to call to your attention. Rabbi Feldman was rabbi in Atlanta Georgia for forty years. He has authored 9 books and is the former editor of Tradition magazine. He currently is a contributing editor to Jewish Action and in the Spring 2009 issue of that magazine writes a clever column called "How to Handle the Financial Crisis: A Trans-Century Phone Call". I'm not going to read this column to you for 3 reasons. First it would take too long. Second I'm afraid that some may not appreciate Rabbi Feldman's style and find it even offensive. He makes use here of a Rabbinic genre that frankly, most American Jews are not used to hearing and that is the mussar approach. People who have spent some time in Yeshivot, especially in a certain subset of Yeshivot "specializing in mussar" will be more familiar with this style. It is the opposite of telling a person what he wants to hear and the antithesis of a "feel good" sermon that most synagogue attending American Jews are used to hearing Saturday mornings. The Hebrew word mussar basically means to chastise and mussar does just that. It zeroes in on our character flaws and foibles and tries to contrast the error of our ways with the correct path of the ideal Torah life style. I would not want to give anyone the impression that I am worthy to give mussar or that the contents of articles such as this apply to them anymore than it does to me, so that is the second reason I'm not going to read this article. The third reason is because I'm going to let you read it yourself, if you so choose, after this meeting. I want to thank the office of the OU for making available complimentary copies of this issue to Samis Trustees. In addition to Rabbi Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 227
Feldman's article on the last page the issue contains much other worthwhile reading material including an article by Rabbi Asher Meir, an economist and research director of the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem. His 4 page article (33-37) entitled "The Economic Crisis and the Crisis of Character, also falls broadly into the genre of mussar writing. My distant cousin, Rabbi Abraham J Twerski, noted psychiatrist and Rabbi, has published dozens and dozens of books on a wide variety of topics relating somehow to addiction, spirituality, self-esteem, Torah literature, or Torah-living. His books have been translated into Hebrew, French, Spanish, and Russian. I'd like to call your attention to his most recent volume (February 2009): The Sun Will Shine Again. Everyone is bemoaning the fact that good safe investments are so hard to find these days. This is one investment that I guarantee you cannot go wrong with. For less than $10 from Art Scroll or from Amazon you will acquire a gold mine of wisdom. Rabbi Twerski for the most part does not give mussar. His style in this book is to give soothing, solid, and spiritual advice on Coping, Persevering, and Winning in Troubled Economic Times. In lieu of a full-fledged book review, I will just read you a couple of paragraphs from the back cover. , last but certainly not least, somewhere between Jewish Action's mussar writing which may makes us squirm and Rabbi Twerski's pastoral counseling which is intended to sooth and relieve our stress we have an in between category of rabbinic writing, which is probably more typical of your average Saturday morning Rabbinic sermon. This is an article published within this past month in the Jerusalem Post, internet edition, by my very most favorite contemporary Rabbinic writer, Rabbi Berel Wein. Rabbi Wein has had almost as many jobs as Rabbi Twerski has written books. He's been a lawyer, a pulpit Rabbi, Head of the OU Kashrus Department, a Rosh Yeshiva, a tour guide, author, lecturer, publisher, and movie producer. And with this article, entitled MONEY, I will conclude, having used up my allotted time and having contributed my two-bits worth of Rabbinic insight to this quarterly meeting. This Shabat is parshat shekalim. Shekalim deals with money, with coins and with the obligation to donate a half-shekel annually for the upkeep and maintenance of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Talmud teaches us that Moshe our teacher was shown on Sinai a coin made of fire. I always felt that the symbolism in these words of the rabbis lies in the fact that fire destroys and heals, burns and warms. Fire when it is controlled is the basic ingredient for the furtherance of comfort in human life and civilization. However when it is left unchecked and uncontrolled, as recent events in Australia and California currently proved, it is a destroyer of human life and property in a most vicious fashion. So, too, does money have this quality. Used wisely it is the basis for good in this world. However, when it is viewed as an end in itself and not as the means to better ends, it is a very destructive force. It becomes an all encompassing and consuming passion that eventually justifies all sorts of immoral behavior, stealing, cheating and even killing. Money, like fire, is an essential ingredient for human life and prosperity. But again, like fire, it requires control, focus and a deep appreciation of the destructive forces that lurk within if it is not properly harnessed and checked. The coin of fire that Moshe observed on Sinai represented this clear warning and lesson and that is why even today when the commandment of donating the half-shekel to the Temple is still not pertinent, the moral lesson behind this commandment certainly speaks to us and our current financial woes.
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The ways of the Lord are inscrutable but somehow they are altogether just. I have no answer as to why so many wonderful Jews who were the mainstays of Jewish charity throughout the world should suddenly face varying degrees of financial reversal and ruin. There is no logical answer that I am aware of why the equity markets of the world should lose half of their value in such a short period of time. There is also no logical answer as to how Madoff could have swindled fifty billion dollars out of smart, astute, successful people and under the alleged scrutiny of regulatory agencies that supposedly checked him out and found nothing amiss. Again we are witness as to how Heaven disposes no matter whatever man proposes. Money has now taken on a more subdued role in our lives. It is no longer an end in itself the accumulation of wealth for the sake of wealth itself; it is reduced now to be a necessary commodity to enable us to have food, shelter, medical care and other true necessities of life. The coin of fire has returned to haunt us and even to taunt us. What we felt was secure in our future is now exposed as being unstable and impossible to rely upon. Apparently the coin of fire should be held gingerly, with protective gloves and with holy purpose. And even then there are no guarantees. The rabbis of the Talmud also taught us that when there is general misfortune, the "angel of destruction" no longer differentiates between the righteous and the evil. This truism is certainly present in the present debacle. Righteous people who devoted their financial resources to help people in need, Torah institutions and the Jewish people generally have nevertheless suffered horrendous losses. Their ability to support others has been crippled. This is part of the great unknown that is being played out before our very eyes. The fire of the coin rages in all of its intensity and fire consumes everything in its path, good, bad or indifferent. Nevertheless, parshat shekalim is always bound together to the month of Adar. The Mishna teaches us that on the first of Adar the proclamation to pay the half-shekel was publicized. The month of Adar as we know from the story of Purim which highlights this month, is a month of unforeseen and unexpected reversals of fortune and circumstance. Even though it is highly unlikely that a dramatic turn for the better is in the near future we should recall that in life everything is possible, even if it is unlikely. But perhaps it will take us some time to internalize the message of the coin of fire so there will not be any sudden dramatic improvements forthcoming. In any event we should realize that the eternal message of parshat shekalim of the coin of fire remains valid and relevant to us in good and better times as well.
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SAMIS QUARTERLY MEETING: AUGUST 2009 My neighbor for the last 30+ years is a prominent member of the local Sephardic community. Dr. Rene Levy, however, does not trace his ancestry back to Rhodes or Turkey, as do most Sephardim in Seattle, but to the proud Jewish community of Morocco. Before moving to Seattle Rene lived for a few years in the early 1960s in San Francisco where he was a member in a Nussach Sefard congregation where my cousin Rabbi Norman Twersky, of Blessed Memory, happened to be the Rabbi. Although Nussach Sefard is not quite the same as classic Sephardic liturgy, apparently it was a minyan that was both comfortable and convenient for Rene. He once told me of an interesting experience he had when his father from Morocco came on his first visit to the United States. Dr. Levy took him to Kabbalat Shabbat services Friday evening and after the services introduced him to Rabbi Twersky. Rene's father immediately took Rabbi Twersky's hand, brought it to his lips and kissed him. Renee gently told his father in French, "Dad, the custom here is not to kiss the Rabbi's hand." Whereupon Rene's surprised father shot back at him, "What's the matter isn't he a real rabbi?" I am now beginning my third year as Samis Rabbi. The thought occurred to me that in 8 previous Divrei Torah I have given at quarterly Foundation meetings I have never once spoken about the weekly Torah portion. I know that typically whenever a Rabbi is asked to speak be it a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, a eulogy, a wedding, a Brit Milah, a Pidyon haBen, a Board meeting, a house warming, or whatever inevitably he speaks about the Parasha the weekly Torah portion. Frankly, I was concerned that if I let another Foundation meeting go by without mentioning the weekly Parasha in my Dvar Torah, some of my fellow Trustees would start murmuring, "What's the matter isn't he a real rabbi?" And so, for a change this evening, I would like to share with you a thought from the weekly Torah portion. As is always the case, the weekly Torah portion has material which is timely, appropriate and meaningful to study and discuss. This Shabbat we will read the Parasha of Shoftim which is the Torah portion dealing with leadership in the Jewish community. I would like to share with you a passage from the Torah portion and then quote a brief excerpt from the book of Samuel which challenges the classic understanding of this Biblical passage and then share with you some attempts by classical Torah commentaries to resolve the apparent contradictions. We read in the parasha: "When you come into the Land which the L-rd your G-d will give you and you will possess it and dwell therein, and you will say 'I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are about me' You shall surely set over yourselves a king, whom the L-rd your G-d shall choose: one from among your brothers shall you appoint as a king over yourselves; you may not set a stranger over yourself who is not your brother. The Torah then goes on to mention various laws and restrictions that apply specifically to a Jewish monarch. He is not allowed to have too many wives, he is not allowed to accumulate too much personal wealth, he is not allowed to accumulate too many horses, and so forth. This section is interpreted by virtually all classic Torah commentators to be an obligatory Mitzvah, one of the 613 commandments and one of the 248 positive mitzvot namely to appoint a Jewish Monarch to be the leader of the nation. The appointment of a King is not a personal obligation like the mitzvah to wear Tephillin or to put a mezuzah on one's house, but it is a national mitzvah. As Maimonides describes it, quoting the Sifrei: "The nation of Israel was commanded to do three mitzvoth when they entered the land of Israel: Appoint for themselves a king, build a Temple, and eradicate the descendents of Amalek". The popular impression one gets from reading classic Jewish literature is that monarchy is an essential component of the ideal Jewish society. Indeed, typically, we envision the era of the reign of David and Solomon to be the high-watermarks of Jewish history and we yearn for the restoration of the Davidic monarchy and the arrival of the Messianic King of Davidic lineage. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 230
In light of all this it is highly surprising to find that the prophet Samuel is disappointed, if not agree, when the Jewish people ask him to appoint a monarch. Even more surprising is G-d's apparent acquiescence to Samuel's reaction: When Samuel became old, he appointed his sons judges over Israel.But his sons did not follow his ways. They were swayed by profit; they took bribes, and they perverted justice. All the elders of Israel then gathered together and came to Samuel to Ramah. They said to him, "Behold! You are old, and your sons did not follow your ways. So now appoint for us a king to judge us, like all the nations. It was wrong in Samuel's eyes that they said, "Give us a king to judge us" and Samuel prayed to Hashem. Hashem said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for it is not you whom they have rejected, but it is Me whom they have rejected from reigning over them. Like all their deeds that they have done from the day I brought them up from Egypt until this day they forsook Me and worshiped the gods of others. So are they doing to you as well. [Samuel I 8:4-8] All the commentaries grapple with the apparent contradiction between the implication in Parshat Shoftim that appointing a King is a mitzvah and the reaction of Samuel and the Almighty to a request on the part of the people to fulfill that mitzvah in the book of Samuel. Many varied interpretations are offered all basically assuming as we said originally -- that Monarchy is indeed the ideal form of Jewish government and explaining why somehow the motivation or the timing or the nature of the monarchy they were seeking in the days of Samuel was imperfect and consequently worthy of condemnation. There is, however, one Sephardic commentary, Don Yitzchak Abarbanel, who gives a bombshell of an answer to this problem that seeks to totally challenge our understanding of the verses in Parshat Shoftim. Don Yitzchak Abarbanel in addition to being a Torah scholar was a respected financial adviser to a number of the powerful ruling governments in the Europe of his time. He originally advised the king of Portugal. He later was a powerful financial player and advisor to Ferdinand and Isabella in the period immediately before the Jewish expulsion from Spain in 1492. Abarbanel was indeed granted a waiver from having to leave the country that summer with the rest of the Jewish population. He refused, however, the waiver and elected to go into exile with his brethren. He wound up in Italy and again became a leading figure in both the Jewish and governmental circles in that country. During the course of his travels and his career Abarbanel had the opportunity to observe first hand various forms of government, both inherited monarchies such as existed in Spain and Portugal as well as democratically elected governmental councils such as existed in Venice and Florence. Abarbanel writes in his commentary to this week's Parasha that it is by no means a slam dunk (he doesnt use that exact expression) that Monarchies are the ideal form of government. There are many advantages to having democratically elected councils providing consensus leadership with term limits. He further remarks that even if monarchies are appropriate for other nations, the Jewish nation is not in need of monarchies, and the Jewish nation has suffered greatly from having corrupt and evil (Jewish) monarchs. He cites as proof that it is not an obligatory mitzvah to appoint a king that for hundreds of years from the time the Jews entered the Land of Israel in the days of Joshua until the end of the days of Samuel, no one suggested that a monarchy be established and when the thought was first broached in Samuel I Chapter 8 the idea was considered an insult to Samuel and to G-d. Abarbanel interprets the verses in Shoftim to be more of a prophecy than a commandment and compares the passage to others in Deuteronomy (such as the law of Yefat Toar the beautiful woman captured in Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 231
battle) where G-d foretells some inappropriate behavior on the part of the nation and then legislates how to deal with such situations. Time restrictions do not allow me to go into deeper analysis and elaboration of this classic dispute between Abarbanel and virtually all other classic Torah commentaries. Suffice it to say that Abarbanel's political science theories do have special resonance for modern Jews influenced by the ideas of Jeffersonian democracy. On the other hand the relative pros and cons of a more authoritarian system of Jewish leadership and control versus trying to build and accomplish by way of consensus and majority opinion is a controversy that hangs fire to this very day in a variety of governments, institutions, and organizations both in the Jewish world and beyond. The truth of the matter is that this is a question that is by no means academic to institutions of academia in general and to Jewish Day Schools and other educational institutions in particular. Many great Jewish educational institutions both in this city and elsewhere have been started not by communal consensus or by democratic deliberation but by the sheer force of a single individual. Perhaps not in this city, but certainly in other larger cities to this day there are distinguished institutions that are run more or less on the model of a monarchy. Nepotism rules and there is only one vote that matters in policy decisions for such institutions. Like with anything else, it behooves us to understand that there are different strokes for different folks and that both models have advocates among classic Jewish thinkers. Elu V'Elu Divrei Elokim Chayim both this approach and the other have roots in the words of the Living G-d.
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Samis -- December 2009 Quarterly Meeting

The story is told of a young Rabbi in his first rabbinic position. His inaugural sermon was about the importance of Sabbath observance. After services the president of the congregation came over and said, "You know, Rabbi, that was a poor choice for your first sermon. Most of our members are not Sabbath observant. You made a lot of people uncomfortable, some were probably very offended." The second week the Rabbi spoke about the importance of observing the laws of Kashrut. Again the president of the shul chastised him. "Rabbi, what's the matter with you? Don't you know that some of our wealthiest members don't keep kosher! What are you trying to do antagonize our main supporters?" The third week the topic of the Rabbi's sermon was "Business Ethics". Once again, the President was full of criticism: "Rabbi, you had everyone in the audience squirming. We are all businessmen here. No one can live up to those standards of honesty and have a successful business!" Finally the Rabbi got frustrated and told the President: "Listen, you didn't like it when I talked about observing Shabbat, you didn't like it when I talked about keeping Kosher, you didn't like it when I talked about being honest in business what do you expect a Rabbi to talk about?" "Talk about Judaism", the president, suggested! Now I am well aware that the Trustees of the Samis foundation are a very pluralistic group and that it is probably safer to talk about "Judaism" in the abstract than to give a Dvar Torah that gets into the details and nuances of specific mitzvah observance. That fact not withstanding I have chosen to devote my Dvar Torah this evening to a topic related to specific mitzvah observance. The mitzvoth I am going to discuss are not found in the Ten Commandments they are not even found in the list of 613 Biblical Commandments. Nevertheless, ironically, these rituals are widely observed by a broad cross-section of our people even by many who make no pretense of strict Torah observance. I would like to share with you this evening an analysis I once heard in the name of my revered teacher comparing and contrasting the mitzvah of lighting Shabbat candles with that of lighting Chanukah candles. Rabbi Soloveitchik pointed out that we find two instances within our halachik framework requiring us to light candles in fulfillment of a specific Rabbinic command: The lighting of candles on the eve of the Sabbath and Festivals and the lighting of candles on each of the nights of Chanukah. These commandments have several features in common. In terms of the mechanics of the act of lighting, the text of the blessing, and the language used by our Sages to describe their importance... they are almost identical. And yet, while on the surface, the act of lighting Shabbat candles and the act of lighting Chanukah candles appear very similar, a clear analysis of the Halachot of the two will indicate they invoke two totally different motifs. They reflect two totally different aspects of our relationship with the Almighty. The Mitzvah of lighting Shabbat candles is given to enhance the mood of the Sabbath, Oneg Shabbat. The candles are to serve a very utilitarian purpose -- they are required to brighten up the room, enhance the illumination and warm up the atmosphere of our Shabbat Table. In short, the Rav said, they are an Or HaMeir -- a light whose purpose is to illuminate. Chanukah lights, on the other hand, are to serve no utilitarian function. On the contrary, one is not allowed to make use of the light from a Chanukah menorah. These candles are holy and we have no permission to make use of them -- only to look at them! In a word, they are not Or HaMeir (Light whose purpose is to illuminate) but an Or HaNireh Merachok (Light whose purpose is to be seen... from a distance). There is, Rav Soloveitchik explains, a parallel in nature to this dichotomy between Shabbat and Chanukah candles -- that of the sun and the stars. The sun clearly provides Or HaMeir -- a utilitarian light which warms by its rays and illuminates our path wherever we go, through its brightness. Stars, on Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 233
the other hand, twinkle at us in the darkness of the night. They provide neither warmth nor significant illumination. They are seen from a distance but do not function in a readily useable fashion -- Stars are Or HaNireh Merachok, while the sun is an Or HaMeir. The dichotomy between Shabbat Candles and the sun on the one hand and Chanukah candles and the stars on the other carries forward, the Rav went onto say, to two different ways G-d manifests Himself to man during various periods of history. Two great prophets in Israel beheld visions of the Heavenly Court and their reactions to what they saw are recorded for posterity in the Kedusha prayer recited during the Cantor's repetition of the Amidah. Isaiah (Chapter 6) beheld the Divine Presence and his reaction was Kadosh Kadosh Kadosh, Maleh Kol HaAretz Kvodo -- the Holy Holy Holy One whose Presence fills the entire world, whose Presence provides rays of warmth and illumination that are openly felt and appreciated throughout the world. Ezekiel (Chapter 3) experiences Divine Revelation and records: "Then a wind lifted me and I heard behind me the sound of a great noise (saying) Baruch Kavod Hashem Mimkomo Blessed be the Glory of G-d from His Place. " Ezekiel saw not the Immanent G-d who fills the earth with His Glory); but the One who appears Mimkomo -- from His Distant Place to which he has retracted or withdrawn. The word Makom, as a Name of G-d always reflects trouble or tragedy -- always reflects the apparent distance of G-d from man. It is this name we invoke in our blessing to mourners: HaMakom Y-Nachem. Similarly we say HaMakom Y-Rachem; HaMakom Y-Rapeh... may the G-d who now appears so distant in His remote place ... may He comfort, may He have compassion, may He heal, etc. The name Makom, reflects not the G-d who shines forth like the Sun in broad daylight and whose Glory fills the world. It reflects, rather, the G-d who twinkles at us, as it were, from a distance, reminding us from afar that He is still present, still watching over us from a far removed distance, hidden as it were, behind many layers of darkness. Isaiah was privileged to know G-d during the period of the First Temple, an era when the Jewish people enjoyed the benefit of G-d's Illuminating Light, a period when He was an Or HaMeir. Ezekiel was led into Exile with his people. He prophesized after the Temple's Destruction and perceived a totally different Vision of the Almighty. He found himself being carried away against his will by a powerful wind, and only from behind him could he hear in the distance the loud noise of the Angels proclaiming their praises of a G-d who was hiding His Face. Ezekiel perceived G-d as a twinkling illumination from the distance -- an Or HaNireh Merachok. The dichotomy between the Shabbat candles and those of Chanukah now becomes clear... Shabbat is a day which gives us a foretaste of the World to Come. The songs and Liturgy of Shabbat are replete with optimistic allusions to the Messianic Era and the period of the World-to-Come where G-ds Presence will be felt keenly throughout the world. It was only natural, therefore, that our Sages instituted on Shabbat the Mitzvah of lighting candles which would be a utilitarian light which can be used and appreciated by all from up close. Chanukah, on the other hand, came at a period of history -- and perhaps not coincidentally a time of year -- when Jews who were faithful to G-d and His Torah were submerged in an atmosphere of gloom and darkness. They were dark days in terms of the external military and political situation and they were dark days in terms of the internal spiritual situation. Even the dramatic conquest by the Maccabees of the Temple Mount in 165 BCE, so gloriously portrayed in our liturgy, was by no means a final or decisive victory. From the time of the recapture of the Temple Mount and the accompanying miracle with the oil, 25 years would pass, 25 years filled with war and bloodshed, with the death of Judah Maccabee and 3 of his brothers at the hands of the enemy, before true Independence would be regained by Judea. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 234
The Chanukah Miracle itself, then, happened not at a time when G-d was manifesting Himself as the G-d whose Glory fills the world. It happened at a time when G-d was yet manifesting His Providence from His Distant Place... reminding us that He didnt leave us entirely, as desperate and as hopeless as the situation might at times appear... He only retracted, as it were, from the Imminent manifestation viewed by Isaiah to the more distant manifestation viewed by Ezekiel. Our Sages instituted that Shabbat Candles be lit every week to give us a constant reminder of the power of G-d to serve as an Illuminator Who brightens our path and Who can be seen and sensed in all the good that occurs to us throughout our life on a national and a personal level. But once a year, during the dark days of the winter solstice, our Sages said it is also necessary for us to strive to appreciate G-d in His remoteness as well. Even, Heaven forbid, in times of trouble, despair and tragedy whether national or personal -- when G-d seems to have made Himself remote, even then we must perform a Mitzvah which will remind us that in such troubled times also the Almighty is still out there -- In His Distant Place -- watching over us and twinkling star-like upon us from a distance, as a reminder that we are not completely abandoned. This Mitzvah is the lighting we perform during the 8 days of Chanukah of candles which are to be viewed from a distance. I just want to conclude with the following observation. I notice next week's annual dinner of the Chabad Cheder is using the theme "Lamp Lighters" and I believe this metaphor is appropriate for all of our Day Schools and for the Day School movement in general. In light of this metaphor and in light of Rabbi Soloveitchik's analysis of the mitzvoth of Lighting Shabbat and Chanukah candles, I would like to suggest the following idea. Like the sun and Shabbat candles, for the most part the Lamp Lighting that goes on through the various Day Schools is a light that provides warmth and illumination. Fueled by their exposure to Torah knowledge and values within the confines of these institutions, Day School graduates radiate the warmth of our tradition and portend a bright and illuminating future for the Jewish people and the continuity of our heritage. On the other hand, those with inside knowledge of Day Schools and their challenges know that everything is not always bright and shiny. There are constant deficits and challenges; there are problems of administrative turnover and student dropouts; there are staffing problems, parental dissatisfaction, and both inner and intra-institution politics. When confronting this "dark side" of the Day School picture, our challenge is to not give up hope or lose faith in the enterprise, but rather to keep focused on the fact that sometimes we need to sense the presence of the Almighty from an Or HaNireh mei'rachok a light that can only be perceived from the distance against the back ground of a dark sky. It is precisely when we become aware of these problems and challenges that instead of losing faith or giving up hope on the Day School enterprise or specific Day School institutions, we should instead marvel at the stars and heroes of the Jewish people, be they lay people or professional staff who have dedicated their lives to guaranteeing the success of the Day School movement in general and specific Day School institutions in particular, despite their challenges, problems, and frustrations. We should all be proud to be members of the Samis Foundation that has made a core part of its mission its solidarity with these twinkling stars of the Day School movement May we merit to see their light shine ever brighter and brighter.
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SAMIS RETREAT January 2010 Fresh from our recent meeting with the Nesiyah staff and participants I have been exposed as we all have -- to a mega-dose of the virtues of religious pluralism, of I'm Okay Your Okay theology, and of figure-it out for yourself religion. In deference to the "Nesiyah experience" and in deference to "political correctness", I am going to do something this afternoon that I have never done in any Dvar Torah I have given to the Samis Foundation during my 3+ years as Samis Rabbi and most likely something I have never done in any Dvar Torah I have ever given in my life. I am going to begin by quoting a Reform Rabbi. And I am not going to quote just any Reform Rabbi , I am going to quote Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, founder of Hebrew Union College and the Reform Movement in the United States, the Rabbi who presided over the conference of Reform Rabbis that adopted the Pittsburgh Platform in 1885 that set the tone and ideology for the Reform movement in this country for the better part of the next century. In the "Nesiyah spirit", I am not going to quote Rabbi Wise's words or positions as straw men arguments to mock or attack. On the contrary, -- I am going to quote words of his with which I can fully identify and appreciate. Indeed I think that these words are something that many Orthodox rabbis can identify with and appreciate. Before quoting these words which I think Orthodox Rabbis can feel and affinity with, I must note that there is one particular mitzvah that Rabbi Wise was perhaps more "orthodox" in his fulfillment of than all but the most orthodox Rabbis of today that is the very first mitzvah of the Torah, the mitzvah of Pru U'Rvu of being fruitful and multiplying. Rabbi Weiss fathered no less than 14 children, 10 from his first wife and 4 from a second wife. But let me get back to quoting the words of Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise. I quote from the Rabbi's personal diary, recording his early experiences in the Albany, NY rabbinate [circa 1846]: During the services on Sabbath morning the parnass sent the sexton to me with the message exofficio, "The parnass serves notice on you not to preach today." I understood the declaration of war and the arbitrary assumption of power, and retorted briefly, "I shall preach to-day". I stepped to the pulpit at the regular time as the choir finished its hymn. The parnass now arose in front of me, and said threateningly, "I tell you, you shall not preach to-day". I paid no attention to him, and began to speak in a loud voice, which thoroughly drowned the voice of the parnass so that the people did not know why he was standing in front of me. He repeated his threat. I paid no attention to it, and continued to speak quietly. The parnass and a few of his adherents left the synagogue but their action caused no disturbance. The gage of battle had thus been publicly thrown, and both sides took it up. Incidentally Wikpedia tells you the rest of the story: In 1850, (the Jewish Encyclopedia supplies the detail that this even took place on Rosh Hashanna) a fistfight between Wise and the synagogue's president caused a split in the Albany community, and the consequent formation of a new congregation, the Anshe Emeth, by the friends and supporters of Wise. Wise remained with this congregation until April, 1854, when he became rabbi of the Bene Yeshurun congregation of the Lodge Street Synagogue of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he officiated for the remaining forty-six years of his life. And so my dear friends, this diary entry of a leading Reform Rabbi, indicates that despite all that may divide us, in fact there are a couple of basic phenomenon that Reform and Orthodox Rabbis have in common. First, they have in common Presidents, officers, and members who think they know more than their Rabbi and are not afraid to tell them so. Second, perhaps a more enviable common characteristic, they have in common a trait enunciated by a poignant passage in the Talmud [Pessachim 112a].
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For those interested in seeing the passage in its larger context, I call your attention to the excerpt provided from the book "Swimming In The Sea of Talmud" by Rabbi Michael Katz and Gershon Schwartz. They do a nice job of expanding on this brief passage and applying it to a contemporary situation. Rabbi Akiva tells his disciple R. Shimeon Bar Yochai "Yoser m'mah sh'ha'egel rotzeh linok, parah rotzeh l'hanik" -- more than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to nurse", Meaning that great Torah teachers always are more interested in speaking and teaching Torah than their students or flocks or shul presidents are interested in listening. I certainly don't consider myself a great Torah teacher and no doubt proof of the matter is that I do not have a strong desire to get up and speak or sermonize on a frequent basis. Nevertheless Rob has asked me to say a Dvar Torah at today's luncheon and so I will try to comply. I would like to share with you a brief Talmudic passage from Tractate Berachos [35b] that cites a dispute between two Rabbinic sages that echoes down through the ages and has ramifications to religious philosophy and Torah pedagogy to this very day. As with the first Talmudic passage I wanted to quote, I put in a few key words in the Google search engine to see if I could come up with an English translation and discussion of the passage that I could print out and share with you. Sure enough I found a book that cited this passage and discusses it at length. The book is called Holy men and hunger artists: fasting and asceticism in rabbinic culture. By Rabbi Dr. Eliezer Diamond. And if I get some "Neisyah I'm Okay You're Okay points" for quoting a noted Reform Rabbi in this Dvar Torah, I think I should likewise get some points for mentioning Rabbi Diamond's book, because Rabbi Diamond is an Associate Professor of Talmud and Rabbinics at the Jewish Theological Seminary. What's noteworthy about Rabbi Diamond in my mind is the following. When I was growing up there was no such thing as the Samis Foundation and there was no such thing as Nesiyah Experiences. I had to learn about I'm okay, you're okay -- religious tolerance the old-fashioned way -- from role-models: Either positive role-models who I could identify with or not so positive roll-models who taught me to eschew behavior such as their own. These comments are "off the record", but Eliezer Diamond was one of my roll-models in this regard, and he was a roll-model of the second category. There was in YU at my time a small group of students (maybe Eli remembers them) I believe they called themselves "The Concerned Student Coalition" who saw their purpose in life to go around and catch various administrators or professors of the institution saying or doing things which were not quite Orthodox enough in their eyes. It was like a theological McCarthyism. They would put posters up all over campus and put out the buzz to anyone who would listen that such and such a professor or school administrator was an Apkirus, he had no portion in the world to come, etc., etc. One such member of this Concerned Student Coalition was a very bright and very intense young classmate of mine, named Eliezer Diamond. I lost track of what happened to him and to the other members of this Coalition until one day many years later I find that after getting Semicha from YU, he left Orthodoxy, went to JTS for a doctorate in Talmud and was now a Conservative Rabbi. This really blew my mind and I could not understand what happened. Shortly after this time, I heard a tape from Rabbi Frand, who related an incident that happened in the early years of Ner Israel. The Yeshiva had received a shipment of books from the Estate of one of its donors, consisting of Judaica volumes from his personal library. One of the students who saw this carton of books noticed in the collection a set of Heinrich Graetz's History of the Jews. The student saw Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 237
the set and said "Apikorsus!" (Heresy) and threw the books in the incinerator. Rabbi Frand relates that when Rabbi Ruderman, of Blessed memory, heard what happened he expelled the boy from the Yeshiva for taking such zealotry upon himself without consulting with anyone regarding what was the property of the Yeshiva. Rabbi Ruderman further noted "You watch, this boy will yet become a conservative Rabbi". And that's exactly what happened. And so the lesson I learned from that story of Rabbi Frand and the lesson I learned from Eliezer Diamond is that there is not necessarily a correlation between orthodoxy and intolerance, or between piety and fanaticism. Rather tolerance or intolerance is more of a personality trait and one who is intolerant of people to the "Left of him" ideologically one day can turn around and become equally intolerant of people to the right of him the next day and vice versa. At any rate, Rabbi Diamond is certainly a Talmudic scholar and he does cite the passage I wish to share with you, if you are inclined to study it "inside". At any rate, The Sages wrestle with an apparent contradiction between two Biblical sources and resolve the conflict between them in ways which yield to use a Neiyah term philosophic diversity. One source is from the Book of Joshua 1:8 "This Book of the Torah shall not depart from your mouth; rather you should contemplate it day and night in order that you observe to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way successful, and then you will act wisely." The second source is from the Book of Deuteronomy [11:14] which reads: "And I will give rain to your land in its proper time, the early and late rains, and you will then gather in your grain, your wine, and your oil." The Tanna Rabbi Yishmael argues: I might have thought that the verse from Joshua "This Book of the Torah shall not depart from your mouth, contemplate it day and night" should be taken literally, that one should spend his entire time day and night doing nothing but studying Torah. Therefore we have the other verse which teaches us "You must gather in your grain". Taken together the philosophy of life the Torah teaches is meaning a person has to find time in his life both for learning Torah and for earning a living, in Biblical times that meant primarily farming. The great Tanna Rabbi Shimeon Bar Yochai rhetorically asks his colleague Rabbi Yishmael: Is it possible that the Torah expects a person to busy himself during the plowing season with plowing and during the sowing season with sowing and during the harvest season with harvesting and during the threshing season with threshing and during the winnowing season with winnowing? What will become of the Torah? (Who will ever have time to learn?) Rather, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai says the Torah is speaking of two historical scenarios. The ideal scenario is envisioned in Isaiah Chapter 61:5 "Foreigners will stand and tend your flocks and the sons of the stranger will be your plowmen and your vineyard workers". When Israel fulfills the Will of the Almighty then their manual labor will be done for them by others as spelled out in this verse from Isaiah and the verse in Joshua regarding the Torah not departing from our mouth day or night may then be taken literally. When Israel does not fulfill the Will of the Almighty they have to do their own harvesting as mentioned in Deuteronomy () and not only do they have to do work for themselves they have to do work for others as well as it is written elsewhere in Deuteronomy (in the Tochacha) "And you will serve your enemies". After quoting this dispute between these sages of the period of the Mishneh, the Gemara quotes several contemporary Rabbinic figures who comment on this earlier dispute. Abaye stated: Many have attempted the approach of Rabbi Yishmael (namely ) Torah U'Maddah (as they called it in my Alma Mater) and they were successful; those who tried the approach of Rabbi Shimeon Bar Yochai were not successful.
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Rava similarly told his students: Do not show up to my classroom during the season of Nissan or Tishrei for these are the planting and harvesting times and you need to be out in the fields so that you will have sustenance for your families the rest of the year. Finally Rabbi Yehudah b'Rabi Ilai observed: Come and notice that the earlier generations are not like the later generations. The earlier generations made Torah their main preoccupation and their livelihoods their secondary activity and they were successful at both; the later generations have made their livelihoods their primary preoccupation and the Torah their secondary activity and they have been successful in neither. The Gemara does not state it here but elsewhere it deals with an issue left hanging in Tractate Brachos and that is the following: If in fact the majority opinion and historical consensus is that one may and should involve himself in activities of earning a livelihood such as "and you shall gather in your grain" how is one to in fact interpret the verse in Joshua "This Book of the Torah shall not depart from you mouth, contemplate it day and night". The answer is that one can fulfill this verse in a maximalist fashion or in a minimalist fashion. The maximalist approach is that advanced by R. Shimon Bar Yochai, but the Talmud states (elsewhere) -- as long as one at least recites the chapters of Kriat Shma in the morning and the evening, one can in a minimalist fashion be said to be fulfilling the dictum of not letting the words of Torah depart from his mouth day or night. The Samis Foundation to the everlasting Zechut of Mr. Sam Israel -- has taken upon itself as one of its primary missions the holy task of assuring that the Words of Torah not depart from the mouths of the Jewish people by virtue of supporting Day School education and educating the Tinokot shel beit Rabban (the children of the house of the Rabbis) with the teachings and values of G-d's Torah and the Jewish way of life. The spiritual needs and wants of the Jewish people, however, are varied some need and want to attach themselves to the words of Torah in a more maximalist fashion tavo aleihem beracha (let a blessing be upon them) and some need and want to attach themselves to the words of Torah in a more minimalist fashion gam zu l'tova (this too is for the good). When it comes to distribution of charity, unlike Rabbinic sermons, it is certainly the case that the calves wish to suckle more than the cow has milk to give, but my hope for this retreat and for this foundation is that we will be blessed with the wisdom and resources to continue to grant funds in ways that will maximize the attachment to Torah in the optimally achievable fashion for each of our various diverse constituencies.
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SAMIS FOUNDATION QUARTERLY MEETING MARCH 10, 2010

Maimonides in Chapter 1 and 2 of , his collection within Mishneh Torah of laws relating to moral dispositions and ethical conduct, extols the virtue of the "Golden mean" the intermediate position between two extremes. He goes on to say, using his medical knowledge as an analogy, that if a person finds himself deviating in the direction of one extreme, he should recalibrate his behavior (so to speak) by temporarily veering off in the opposite direction so that eventually he will come back to the appropriate "middle of the road position". I'm going to be taking Rambam's advice this evening and since I opened my remarks during my last Dvar Torah to this group during our January retreat with a quote from Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise who was arguably far to the left theologically of any Trustee of this foundation, I am going to veer off tonight in the opposite direction and begin with a quote from a source that may be theologically to the right of any Trustee in this foundation, namely from the primary source book of Jewish mysticism the Zohar. The Zohar has been a somewhat controversial book over the ages. To the best of my knowledge it is not part of the Judaic curricula in any of our local Day Schools and it is not something I usually quote in my public Divrei Torah. One reason I normally hesitate to quote from this mystical work is that there is a strong Rabbinic tradition to not teach Kabbalah, of which the Zohar is the classic source book, to anyone under the age of 40. Fortunately, I do not have to worry about that within the confines of this forum, but enough said for now about the issue of aging among Samis Trustees. Contrary to the popular conception that the Neshama, the Jewish soul departs from the body at the time of death and only at the time of death, the Zohar actually enumerates a fascinating if somewhat spooky 7 phase process in which the Neshama slowly and gradually departs from its place of residence within the human body making its way back to the Heavenly spheres. There is a partial, fragmentary departure of the soul from the body 30 days before a person's passing. There is a further departure in the last hours before a person expires. There is the moment of a person's passing when his spirit totally leaves his body. However that departed spirit maintains some mystical connection to the body metaphysically hovers over it somehow with decreasing levels of connection over the span of the Aveilut (mourning) period. There is one level of connection during the first 3 days of mourning. The mystical sources say that during this 3 day period, the soul somehow countenances the idea that it may still be reunited yet with the body. After 3 days when the body begins to decompose, the neshama abandons that hope. But still during the period from day 3 to day 7 it wanders back and forth between the grave and the last home of the deceased in a state of mourning for its lost body. After 7 days the Neshama no longer returns to the home of the deceased, but during the 30 days following burial the soul somehow ascends to heaven and re-descends back to the gravesite. After 30 days this happens with decreasing frequency but it still occasionally happens up until the last day of the 12 month period following the burial, at that point the body is totally decomposed and the neshama ascends for the final time never to be connected again with that body or any of its earthly concerns. There are Halachic principles that in some ways mirror these mystical ideas. The intensity of mourning and the appropriateness for various kinds of grieving vary depending on these exact phases enumerated by the Zohar. Three days are assigned for crying, seven days for eulogizing, there is a thirty day period following death when the mourner is forbidden to launder their clothing or cut their hair. Beyond that in general we are not supposed to mourn. The one exception is for one's parents or for an outstanding leader of the community where mourning and eulogy is appropriate for up to 12 months. Beyond 12 months under no circumstances is additional mourning allowed for anyone.
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Why am I telling you all this? What does this have to do with Day Schools and the Samis Foundation?
Next week marks the first anniversary of the death of Mr. Ben Genauer. I was privileged to share with those present at his son Melech's home, one night during the week of Shiva I know some of you were there that evening some reflections on this special individual. But with his first Yahrtzeit approaching, mindful of the Zohar's statute of limitations on eulogies I felt I would be remiss if I did not take this final opportunity this evening to share with all the members of this particular Foundation, a few further thoughts about Ben and the role he played in the history of the Day School movement in this city.
Without a doubt Sam Israel and the Samis foundation is the name associated in our time by all of us here and by everyone affiliated with Day School education in the State of Washington when it comes to identifying an individual responsible for the continued survival and success stories of Jewish Day Schools in this part of the country. But, if truth be told, albeit by a will he set up in his lifetime, Sam Israel's major connection with the Day School movement came posthumously. It is primarily in the years since his passing that the legacy of Sam Israel has come to be associated with Day Schools and with the Day School movement.
Ben Genauer's legacy was of a different nature. Day School Education in Seattle is also indebted to Ben Genauer's will, but not to his Estate. Ben Genauer had a dream and he had the will and the determination to make that dream into a reality. His dream was to create in our city a new type of educational institution that today we take for granted. We sit here in the year 2010 with the knowledge of 60 years of Day School successes and the recognition by statistical survey after statistical survey of the critical role Jewish Day Schools play in Jewish continuity and survival.
In the late 1940s when Rabbi Solomon P Wohlgelernter of Bikur Cholim and Yibadel L'Chaim Rabbi Solomon Maimon of Sephardic Bikur Holim teamed up with Ben Genauer to suggest and ultimately implement their plans for starting the Seattle Hebrew Day School it was an idea like all new ideas that was met with both criticism and hostility from others in the community. It was un-American, it would stunt the educational and social growth of the children. It would handicap them for life. It would jeopardize their futures.
The Rabbis of the two Bikur Cholims, may have provided the Solomonic wisdom and inspiration to get the idea rolling, but it was Mr. Ben Genauer who utilized his organizational skills, his business acumen, his connections, and the force of his personality, the respect he commanded in the community and his strong will to make the idea a reality. Year after year it was Ben Genauer who single-handedly and single-mindedly went back East to interview and hand-pick appropriate teachers and educators to bring out to teach the young students of the fledgling Seattle Hebrew Day School. Ben Genauer was the founding President of the Seattle Hebrew Day School, when Al Maimon started in the first class in 1947. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 241
Ben's brother Mendel was the president of the school when I started there in 1953. And Ben's son Elazar was president of the school when my eldest son Moshe started there in 1977. There were people in town who considered the Seattle Hebrew Day School to be a spinoff of the Genauer family business.
By the time he handed over the torch of SHA leadership to his son Elazar, Ben was already busy as the founding President of Yeshivat Or HaZafon, which later became the Northwest Yeshiva High School. Here too, there was a Rabbinic partner in this case Rabbi Daniel Rosenthal. But as with the creation of the Seattle Hebrew Day School, Ben was THE lay leader responsible for its creation and its nurture and structure during the school's genesis and during its formative years. Few if any of us will have the mazal to leave a financial legacy for Jewish education akin to that provided by the will of Sam Israel. In that sense, while Sam may be a hero of Day School education, he cannot really be a role model for too many others. Ben Genauer is both a hero and a role model. He had foresight, he had determination. He was not afraid to try something new just because it was a revolutionary idea even though it may have been unpopular and even radical at the time. He as a lay person -- dedicated his time, his money, his reputation, and all of his vitality to the cause of teaching Torah to Jews (young and old) and to both creating and nurturing institutions that have had (together with successor institutions of that genre) a lasting and ongoing impact on the lives of their alumni and on the nature of the community that houses and supports them.
The filing deadline for the IRS is next month. According to the Zohar, the filing deadline for memorial tributes to Ben Genauer is this coming week, so I wanted to make sure I met the filing deadline. Thanks for listening and may we all continue to be inspired and motivated by the legacy he has left us as a lay leader of the Day School movement.
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Samis Quarterly Meeting June 2, 2010

King Solomon in the book of Proverbs [Mishlei 12:25] advises troubled individuals: when man's heart is troubled he should " ."What does mean? Rav Ami and Rav Assi, two Bablyonian Amoraim, discuss the interpretation of this word [Sotah 42b]. One says it means he should remove it from his mind. According to this opinion the word is related to the term " " and the advice of the verse becomes "forget about it; move on; think about something else." The other opinion is that means ( -- from the word -- conversation) tell others about it, get it off your chest -- share your concerns with your friends and peers. The varying opinions on what a person should do when troubled are thus diametrically opposed and represent two differing philosophies of life and of coping with concern - the philosophy of suppression and the philosophy of getting it out of your system. Other than my quarterly Divrei Torah I do not often express my opinions at either Grants Committee or quarterly Board Meetings. Part of this, no doubt, is my personality and part of it, frankly, is cognizance of the limitations Sam explicitly put in his will regarding the Rabbinic Trustee's role in his foundation, limitations which at least until now are part of our bylaws. In general when an issue or policy gets raised or decided here that troubles me, I am quite willing and able to go with the remove it from your mind and move on -- approach. However there is always the exception to the rule and this evening in this Dvar Torah, I am going to make an exception to the rule and will be invoking the alternate interpretation of .I am going to share with you my concerns about a matter that has been discussed in a recent Grants Committee meeting, a matter about which I will be taking issue with other opinions expressed there and perhaps even with the consensus if not the unanimous opinion of my fellow Trustees. After careful re-reading of the words of Sam's will I am convinced that my expression of Rabbinic opinion on this matter is not only not in violation of Sam's wishes but is actually a fulfillment of his intended role for the Rabbinic trustee. Let me begin by recalling an interesting sequence of events that transpired during sequential Grants Committee meetings over the past couple of months. At the March 25th meeting, the Grants Committee deliberated on a request for a $100,000 grant for the Jewish Family Services endowment fund. It was the unanimous opinion of those present at that meeting that this grant was outside of our mission. End of discussion. Lucy Pruzan who was not at the meeting and who was a strong advocate for this proposal asked that it be reconsidered at the next meeting. At the April 22nd meeting the request was brought up again, Lucy made a passionate plea for reconsideration which seemed to influence most of the Trustees present and it is being brought to this meeting as a recommendation from the Grants Committee. One of the trustee's then asked "So what happened to our unanimous decision at the last meeting that this was not part of our mission"? Another trustee, I believe it was Dr. Sytman, responded simply "I believe Sam would find favor with this proposal." A third trustee tellingly remarked, "I may still not believe that this proposal is part of our mission, but the truth of the matter is that when one of our fellow trustees presents a proposal about which they are so passionate, it is very hard to say no to them." I am telling you all this by way of introduction, not because I want to take issue with the resolution that will be discussed later at this meeting to give a six figure Samis grant to the JFS Endowment Fund. I tend to agree with Alex & Lucy that Sam would probably have been in favor of supporting battered women and abused children. I mention this scenario, because if Lucy was entitled to her moment of passion and allowed the opportunity to reverse a consensus of the Grants Committee about an issue which she felt very strongly, then it is my hope that I, too, will be afforded the same opportunity to Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 243
express a passionate opinion in which I may be at odds with a consensus that seemed to be emerge from another recent Grants Committee meeting. I am not speaking about a 6 figure Samis expenditure over 5 years to support battered women and abused children, I am speaking about a policy which, if not tightly restricted, could easily become a 6 figure Samis expenditure in far less than 5 years to support business class airfare, first class accommodations, and "working" vacations by well-to-do Samis Trustees and their spouses to various hotels and resorts hosting educational and camping conferences throughout the country as well as onsite visits in the notto-distant future to potential Israeli grant-recipient institutions. To paraphrase Dr Sytman, "I believe Sam would not find favor with this proposal." I have made the preceding introductory remarks in lieu of my opening joke. Allow me now to get on with my Dvar Torah. The Torah records at the end of the book of Bamidbar a request by the Tribes of Gad and Reuben to forgo their inheritance in the as yet unconquered Land of Israel in exchange for taking up residence in Transjordan which was already conquered. After a lengthy give and take Moses makes a deal with them that if they cross the Jordan and lead the battle for conquering the Land of Canaan for the Jewish people, then after the conquest is complete they can return to their families in Transjordan. In instructing them to carefully fulfill their side of the agreement Moses issued the charge: ' and you shall remain clean (guiltless) before G-d and Israel. This expression ' and a companion expression found in the book of Proverbs [3:4] ""( " And you shall find favor and clear understanding in the Eyes of Gd and man") are used by the Talmud and later Jewish codifiers over and over as an ethical imperative for conducting oneself in a manner that is beyond reproach both from the perspective of the ethical demands of Torah as well as from the criticism and cynicism of our fellow-man. The Talmud teaches that the Garmu family was entrusted with baking the special Show Bread that was part of the Temple service. They therefore never allowed their children to be found with bread made from clean sifted flour lest anyone think that their family was taking personal benefit from the communal job they had been entrusted with. Likewise the Avtinas family was entrusted with making the Incense fragrance in the Temple. They insisted that no woman in their household ever go out wearing perfume and they made marriages to girls outside their family contingent upon the bride accepting this restriction lest someone suspect they had mixed their sacred task with the personal needs of the family and allowed themselves private benefit from the Temple's incense. A person going into the Temple's treasury on official business was not allowed to wear clothing with pockets or cuffs or any lining where Temple funds might be hidden. He was indeed required to engage in conversation with the Temple watchmen on his way out to ensure that he did not hide any coins in his mouth while handling Temple funds. All these practices and many others are based on this principle of , ' ensuring that one's financial conduct in communal matters is beyond reproach both before the Eyes of Heaven and the eyes of Israel. Rabbinic insistence on transparency and unimpeachable integrity is most pronounced when it comes to the role of those entrusted with distributing charity funds. The Talmud put in place numerous checks, balances, and safeguards to ensure that no one would ever get even the impression that funds which were designated for charitable distribution to the poor would somehow wind up bringing financial benefit or perks to those entrusted with said distribution. We could go on and on citing folio after folio in the Talmud and chapter and paragraph in the Codes of Jewish Law making clear the extent to which the idea of "you shall remain clean before G-d and before Israel" is emphasized but I will not further belabor the point.
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I am well aware that Samis trustees are not compensated for their services, that they are highly talented professionals whose time is worth money and who all devote significant amounts of time to this Foundation. But that fact not withstanding I think we all feel as we should -- that it is a tremendous honor and privilege to serve here as Trustees and we are motivated to devote our time to this group and its mission for rewards that are far less materialistic than Trustee perks in the area of travel arrangements and exotic "working" vacations. I fully appreciate the idea that Trustees need to be educated and that there may be some value to have more than just professional staff attend conferences and fact-finding missions. I feel strongly however that this desire and benefit needs to be carefully balanced against the appearance if not the reality of abuse of office. The possibility if not the likelihood of murmuring in the community that indeed Samis Trustees are misappropriating precious and limited resources to finance enjoyable trips for themselves and their spouses while beneficiary agencies and parents suffer financial deprivation would tarnish the sterling reputation of the Samis Foundation and would tarnish the ethical reputation of each and every one of us. I have therefore documented a number of proposed safeguards, which I'm not intending we should discuss this evening, that seek to implement balance and ensure irreproachable ethical behavior in this area. I know that many of you are disappointed that tonight's Dvar Torah did not contain any of my usual humor, so I have at least formulated these proposals in the format of a David Letterman Top Ten list. I can assure you however, that except perhaps for the very top entries on the Top Ten List, I am not trying to be too facetious here. I will e-mail you each a copy of the list along with my Dvar Torah as food for thought and future consideration. The items in the list are not mutually exclusive nor are they the only ways of achieving the desired result. David Letter-of-The-Law Man's Top Ten Ways To Safeguard Samis Trustees From Violating The Norm of "You Shall Be Clean Before G-d and Before Israel" while going on Samis subsidized Travel. 10. Formally assign (perhaps on a rotating basis) a maximum of 2 to 4 trustees to each of 4 subgroupings of Granting activity (Orthodox Day Schools; Non-Orthodox Day Schools; Camping; and Israel programs) based on their expressed interest and expertise such that each trustee is assigned to at most one group. Limit Samis-subsidized travel by trustees to trips related to their specific sub-grouping of interest and expertise 9. Limit the number of trustees attending any one "fact finding" event at Samis expense to at most 2. If more than 2 trustees express interest in participating at Samis expense in any such event the 2 foundation-subsidized attendees will be determined by a lottery from among those interested. 8. Require Trustees receiving Samis-subsidized travel/accommodations to make a contribution (over and above previously committed donations) to one of the Samis beneficiary programs or institutions (of their choice) to offset the full cost of the Samis subsidy for their travel and accommodations. 7. Optionally, subsidize travel expenses of spouses travelling with Trustees at a rate of 50 cents on the dollar for offsetting contributions made by those spouses (over and above previously committed donations) to one of the Samis beneficiary programs or institutions. 6. Set a maximum budget for all Trustee subsidized travel per year, to not exceed the sum of the annually granted Samis budget for travel subsidies to teachers to attend appropriate educational
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conferences for Day School educators plus the annual Samis budgets for other perks, Chanukah gifts, or incentive awards granted to teachers. 5. Appoint a blue ribbon commission to recommend appropriate Samis budgetary allotments for costs and expenses associated with Trustee Travel. The commission shall consist of Day School Teachers at Samis Beneficiary Schools who have recently been laid off or had their hours cut back, Parents who have recently had their requests for tuition assistance denied or reduced, and parents who cannot afford to send their children to summer overnight camps, all because of budgetary constraints. 4. Require Trustees wishing to have their travel, lodging, and food expenses covered while attending conferences and "fact finding missions" at Samis's expense to submit financial statements to Linda Sullivan justifying their need for Samis subsidies according to the same standards and requirements applied to Day School parents applying for tuition subsidies. 3. Provide a full accounting at each quarterly meeting of all Trustee expenses during the previous quarter underwritten by Samis, including names of benefiting Trustees and the nature of the expenses. 2. Publish this same full accounting annually in the JT News in a full page ad documenting the faithful custodianship of the Samis Foundation Legacy by Samis Trustees. 1. Appoint the Samis Rabbinical Trustee as the ultimate overseer for approval of all Trustee expenses for travel, food, and lodging in accordance with the principle of "And you will be held guiltless in the Eyes of G-d and in the eyes of (Sam) Israel."
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Samis Quarterly Meeting: September 2010

It has come to my attention that your humble Rabbinic Trustee may have ruffled a few feathers with his overly passionate Dvar Torah here last June. The feedback I got was that the Dvar Torah was too light on humor and too heavy on implicit insults of my fellow trustees. With the season of Teshuva Repentance upon us, I am attempting to mend my ways and put safeguards in place to guarantee that the mistakes of the past will not be repeated. To that end Ive come up with a Top 5 List of safeguards to ensure that my fellow trustees will never again have to sit through such a heavy and in-your-face Dvar Torah from this Rabbinic Trustee: Safeguard #5: Never again give a Dvar Torah that has a Top 10 list of tongue-in-cheek items within it. (A Top 5 list should be more than adequate to get my point across). Safeguard #4 Never again use the word perk in a Dvar Torah as a noun and preferably when using it as a verb make sure that one or more of the following words are also used in the same sentence: Starbucks, Tullys, or SBC. Safeguard #3 Personally attend, at the first available opportunity, an appropriate seminar on Guarding ones tongue with sessions on how to speak diplomatically, respectfully and non-judgmentally particularly when talking about people higher than yourself in the organizations chain of command. I was hoping that the Foundation might subsidize my travelling to Hawaii this coming December where just such a conference is being put on by General Stanley A McCrystal, former top commander of US forces in Afghanistan. Safeguard #2 Before delivering another Letter of the Law Dvar Torah that may be offensive to anyone in attendance, publish the Dvar Torah in Rolling Stone magazine, so that any Trustee who wants to can read it in advance and arrive late at the quarterly meeting if they so choose. Safeguard #1 Invoke Article II Paragraph 2 of the Foundations bylaws by resigning my position and per the special p-e-r-k granted to the Rabbinic Trustee name as my successor a replacement Rabbi with a reputation for presentations which have more humor and are less judgmental than the Dvar Torah I delivered at our June meeting. To this end I have contacted a person who I believe is well-known to all of you. Like myself, although he is not a pulpit Rabbi by profession, he did attend an Orthodox Yeshiva many years ago and received rabbinic ordination. I am referring to Jackie Mason. We are still negotiating with Jackie over travel arrangements. He asked for first class travel for himself and an entourage of 5 support staff, and wants to be put up in the penthouse of the Fairmont Olympic Hotel for 3 nights surrounding each Quarterly meeting. I told him that based on Samis precedent the best we could offer is Business class travel for himself alone and a one night stay in the guest room of Jack Greenberg's house. He said he'd have to get back with me so in the meantime you are going to have to put up with this Rabbi. Ill try my best to be less offensive than last time. beginning with my next paragraph. The issue I would like to discuss this evening is at least tangentially related to the hornet's nest I opened last June and that is the topic of adult Jewish education in general and taking advantage of relevant educational opportunities for Samis Trustees in particular. To the extent that anyone felt I minimized the importance or value of such activity, I would like to take this opportunity to correct that misimpression. The truth of the matter is that the concept of continuing adult education is axiomatic to Judaism, more so I believe than to any other religion. We are not a religion that believes that study and analysis of our Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 247
sacred books and holy texts should be limited to school children, members of the clergy, or some scholarly subset of intellectually elite members of our community. We have struggled over the years in this foundation and elsewhere with the problem of "Day School Dropouts". The problem of those who drop out without ever dropping in; of those who drop out after a year or two; of those who drop out before middle school; and of those who don't go on from middle school to get a Jewish High School education. Given all these problems and challenges it is easy to proclaim victory if and when we have a large graduating class from the Northwest Yeshiva High School, particularly if a significant portion of the class has plans to continue their Jewish studies at least for a year or two in Israel or on a Jewish campus program in America. That indeed is the focus of the mission statement of this foundation and that should be our primary concern and the primary target of our efforts. But, that having been said, K-12 Jewish education is certainly NOT the end all or be all of traditional Jewish expectation when it comes to defining the ideal relationship between the People of the Book and the classic Books of our People. Maimonides writes [Laws Concerning the Study of Torah -- Chapter 1]: Every Israelite is under an obligation to study Torah, whether he is poor or rich, in sound health or ailing, in the vigor of youth or very old and feeble. Even a man so poor that he is maintained by charity or goes begging from door to door, as also a man with a wife and children to support, is under the obligation to set aside a definite period during the day and at night for the study of the Torah, as it said, "But you shall mediate therein day and night". Among the great sages of Israel, some were hewers of wood, some drawers of water, while others were blind. Nevertheless, they devoted themselves by day and by night to the study of the Torah. Until what period in life ought one to study Torah? Until the day of one's death, as it is said, "And lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life." [Chapter 3] Of all precepts, none is equal in importance to the study of the Torah, Nay, study of the Torah is equal to them all, for study leads to practice. Hence study always takes precedence of practice. Possibly you may say: When I shall have accumulated money, I shall resume my studies; when I have provided for my needs and have leisure from my affairs, I shall resume my studies. Should such a thought enter your mind, you will never win the crown of the Torah. Rather make the study of the Torah your fixed occupation and let your secular affairs engage you causally, and do not say "When I shall have leisure, I shall study; perhaps you may never have leisure." The concept of ongoing, lifetime, Torah Study in Judaism is more than just a curriculum or a means to gain information or knowledge about ones religion. It is more than just another mitzvah. It is a discipline which elevates a person spiritually and establishes a personal relationship between man and the Giver of Torah. My revered teacher, ob"m,Rabbi Soloveitchik used to speak of setting aside regular time on a daily basis to study Torah as a "rendezvous with the Shecinha a "date" with the Almighty. He used to explain that the two daily religious rituals incumbent upon every Jew Prayer and Torah study complement one another in terms of establishing a relationship between man and his Maker. In prayer, man speaks to G-d and in Torah study G-d speaks to man. Torah study is both eternal and contemporary. On the one hand Torah does not age. Of the various books I had in college and graduate schools virtually none of the secular texts are today worth the paper they were printed on. Computer books become obsolete after 5 years or less, books relating to medicine, science, social studies, economics whatever are rarely worth much 10 years after they are printed. Not so the Siddur they gave me in first grade of the Seattle Hebrew Day School or the Chumash they gave me in grade 2 or the Navi they gave me in grade 3 or the Mishneh they gave me in grade 4 or the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 248
Gemara they gave me in grade 5. These classic books in the 1950s were the exact same texts my father used in Philadelphia in the beginning of the 20th century and the same texts my grandfather used in Russia at the end of the l9 century. They are the same texts my grandchildren use in SHA today at the beginning of the 21st century. And yet the genius of Torah and the genius of the Jewish people is that while Torah is timeless and never becomes obsolete, in each and every generation Torah is transmitted from parent to child and from teacher to disciple taking advantage of all the latest tools and latest technologies of the era. The modes of acquisition of Torah are always contemporary and relevant taking full advantage of whatever technologies or pedagogic breakthroughs a particular era has to offer. Bchol dor vdor (in each and every generation) the experience of learning Torah is both intellectually exciting and spiritually uplifting. I would like to conclude my remarks this evening, the same way I began them: With a Top 5 List, one which briefly highlights some of the dynamic changes in modes of Torah transmission that have taken place just in our own lifetimes. Each of these developments makes it easier and more meaningful for each of us regardless of our age and regardless of our prior Jewish education to follow the charge of Maimonides and set aside fixed times on a regular basis for making Torah study a meaningful part of our lives. 1. The proliferation of English language translations of the basic books of a Torah library and the availability of high quality new and original Torah literature in the vernacular. Not since Maimonides wrote his Mishneh Commentary in Arabic over 800 years ago do we find a parallel to the kind of scholarly Torah literature in the vernacular that has developed in this country in the last 30-50 years! From the perspective of an inquisitive Jewish adult (even one lacking the equivalent of a basic Day School education) for one who wishes to pursue sophisticated Torah study from the original sources in a language he or she understands the opportunities have never been greater! 2. The proliferation of Torah Tapes / CDs/ MP3s /podcasts and the accompanying technology to access high quality Torah lectures and classes while driving, jogging, washing the dishes, or resting on ones hammock is again unprecedented and provides us a mind boggling variation of Torah teachers and Torah topics to bring into our lives wherever we live and whatever we do. 3. Torah Search Engines: Before there was Yahoo and before there was Google beginning in the 1960s a major computer science project partially funded with grants from the US Government was taking place in Bar Ilan University that did pioneering research in the field of computer search engines. The Bar Ilan Responsa Project of 40 years ago and subsequent technology breakthroughs have made it possible today -- from ones laptop -- to access and instantaneously query on hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of pages of Jewish resource material that was totally inaccessible to all but those with the greatest libraries and the greatest minds just a few short decades ago. 4. The Internet. While no doubt having spiritual risks and banned in some Orthodox circles, for the 99% of the Jewish world that uses it, the internet has also tremendous potential for accessing Torah related sites, downloading materials, lectures, videos and even the potential to join world-wide audiences in real-time participation in events promoting dissemination of Torah knowledge and Torah values. 5. Going under names such as The Virtual Beis Medrash, Partners in Torah, TorahTutors.org, etc. there are a variety of programs now available that facilitate one-on-one virtual pairings of study partners from across town or across the globe in ways that revolutionize the classic chavrusa style learning methodology that has long been the hallmark of Torah study in the Yeshiva world. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 249
But frankly, for all the whiz bang technology and pedagogic breakthroughs that are available out there to facilitate ones growth in Torah knowledge, for those Trustees who are fortunate enough to have this old fashioned opportunity I submit that there is no better way of establishing a rendezvous with the Shechinah (to use my Rebbes terminology) than to make a regular date with your child or grandchild in person or by Skype or by phone -- to study (verse by verse; line by line) Siddur, Chumash, Navi, Mishneh, Gemarah or any one of the many enriching Torah volumes that are so readily available in English translation today. The experience will bind you closer to your child or grandchild and it will bind both of you closer to your Maker. May we all have a New Year in which we merit to have G-d listen to our prayers and a coming year in which we all merit to listen to the words of G-d by studying His Torah.
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Samis Quarterly Meeting December 2010

There is a common denominator that links virtually all students whether they be K-12 in Day Schools, or K-12 in non Day Schools or students in college and beyond and that is the desire to know ahead of time "What questions are going to be on the final exam?" Every once in a while, one comes across a teacher or a course in which the teacher announces ahead of time "These questions are going to be on the final exam". This kind of teacher takes some of the pressure and stress off of preparing for the final but there is certainly no guarantee that every student will be able to pass such a final. It just so happens that the Talmud [Shabbat 31a] reveals to us the questions on the "final exam" that is given to man when he approaches Judgment in the world to come, although advanced knowledge of these questions are certainly no guarantee that one will have all the right answers when the proper time comes. The Gemara states: , : : , ? , , , Rava states: At the time man is brought for Judgment in the next world they ask him: Did you conduct your business dealings with integrity? Did you fix times for learning Torah? Did you engage in procreation? Did you hope for salvation? Did you engage in the dialectics of wisdom? Did you infer one thing from another? When I came across this Gemara recently, it occurred to me that the topics of my recent Divrei Torah at the last two Samis quarterly meetings roughly correspond to the areas of life touched upon by Rava's first two questions and that Rava's third question is highly relevant to another timely issue currently being confronted by our Foundation. So while my Divrei Torah may not match the Star Wars Trilogy or Toy Story 1, 2, & 3 in terms of popularity or mass media fascination, at least I can claim there is a method to my madness in selection of topics and if we don't have all the answers to Rava's questions at least we can console ourselves with the idea expressed in the Mishneh in Avot that the formulation and analysis of a wise question is itself half of an answer. I'd like to discuss this evening some of the issues raised by question #3: ? literally "Did you engage in procreation?" as it relates to the trends we have been analyzing regarding declining Day School enrollment. The question ? certainly implies that it is appropriate and praiseworthy to bring children into this world. Indeed this follows from one of the first charges G-d gave Adam and Eve of being fruitful and multiplying and filling the earth. The Rabbis interpret this not only as a Divine Blessing, but as a Divine imperative as well. Indeed it is counted by the Sefer HaChinuch as the first of the 613 mitzvot. While it is true that the basic mitzvah of Pru U'Rvu may be fulfilled with 2 children, a son and a daughter, in the face of a variety of historical, sociological, and spiritual factors there has always been and it is certainly the case today in the post Holocaust era and especially in the State of Israel a religious and national priority to having more than the minimum number of children. Indeed this is the thrust of the challenge: . This means more than just did you perform the mitzvah? It means did you dedicate and preoccupy yourself with the goal of growing the Jewish people? Now lest anyone take offense or note a sense of irony at the fact that I am discussing the question of Pru U'Rvu and the idea of growing the Jewish people before a Foundation set up by a gentlemen who never married and as far as we know never had any children, let me hasten to add that our Sages at least homiletically expand the definition of growing and raising the Jewish people to individuals who are responsible for providing the basic material needs and Torah instruction to children who are not his biological descendants: ; [ [ and likewise ] ] In that sense, certainly Sam Israel by virtue of the legacy he left and the good work the foundation that bears his name carries out will have credit in the next world for "growing the Jewish people" and to the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 251
extent that we as trustees of his legacy can figure out "how to increase Day School enrollment" we too will be able to answer the question "Asakta b'Piryah v'Rivya" in the affirmative, beyond the matter of how many children we were responsible for biologically bringing into this world. But that is the $64,000 question -- how do we increase Day School enrollment? I would like to throw out a couple of "out of the box" suggestions that I think are at least worthy of consideration. I'm not attempting to set any agenda items for the Foundation. I'm not attempting to tell anyone that my suggestions are the only way to increase enrollment. The issue is an important one and I think it deserves some brainstorming and some out of the box thinking by all of us. In the spirit of Pirya V'Rivya all I am attempting to do this evening is plant a few seeds which will hopefully stimulate further discussions and perhaps actions at a later date. The first idea is directly related to the concept of Pru U'Rvu -- procreation. Blu Greenberg, the first cousin of one of our esteemed fellow trustees, quoted the following quip in a book she wrote some 30 years ago. "What is the most effective method of birth control practiced in the Orthodox community? The answer: Day School Tuition". A lot has happened in the Jewish community since 1981 when On Women and Judaism was first published. For one thing Day School Tuition has skyrocketed even further, for another this is now a problem that no longer confronts only the Orthodox community, and for still another this is no longer a laughing matter. I doubt that the following idea is politically correct, but my gut tells me that were it the policy of Foundations such as ours who are interested in Day School growth -- to focus not just on bringing more families into Day Schools, but to also focus on increasing the size of families who appreciate Day Schools, we could reverse the downward trend of Day School enrollment. What do I mean by this? If instead of allowing tuition discounts for third or fourth children enrolled in Day Schools or instead of allowing "the scholarship process" to run its course and basically waive collections for children once the tuition bill exceeds a certain percentage of the parental income, what if Foundations or Day Schools would give cash bonuses --- tuition rebates to families who help Day Schools grow? Some time ago I suggested (with an "Uncle Sam Wants Your First Born" poster) an out of the box idea whereby the Foundation or the schools would provide free tuition for the first child in a family (of nonDay School parents) as a means to attract new families to the concept of Jewish Day School education). The idea I am throwing out this evening, jumps out of the box in the other direction. The first child would pay full tuition, the second child would pay two-thirds tuition, the third child would pay half tuition, the fourth child would be free, and for every child after that the parents would receive the equivalent of a 50% tuition rebate off the bill of each of their first 3 children! You want inverse birth control? You want growth in your Jewish Day Schools and growth in your Jewish community forget the planet, forget political correctness, print up new posters that say "Sam Israel Takes The Fifth, and sixth, and seventh children and pays you for them" I know that there are those who will question the fiscal soundness of such a radical idea and to them I will respond by paraphrasing another quip from Blu Greenberg's volume: Namely: "Where there is a Foundational Will there is a fiscal way". If foundations are truly interested in making a statement about the importance of Day School growth they need to experiment with some "out of the box ideas". See what works and see what doesn't. There certainly may need to be some tweaking of the exact formula at which child within a family to begin the tuition discounts and the tuition rebates and this may vary by school or by community. But if there was a kernel of truth to Blu's first quip about tuition being an effective form of birth control and I for one think there is -- I believe there is a strong likelihood that tuition rebates could be an effective form of promoting larger size families, ultimately larger day school enrollment, and ultimately a larger and more vibrant Jewish community. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 252
My second idea focuses back on the concept of bringing non Day School families into the system. I know there are a lot of ideas floating around out there that try to address the challenge of appealing to non-affiliated Jews who are not interested in and indeed may have a knee-jerk aversion to parochial Jewish Day School education. Most of the attempts in this area involve variations of the old marketing "bait and switch technique". We'll get them into the school because it has a good math and science department, or a good basketball team, or a good after-school drama program and once they're here we'll sneak in a little Judaism as well. I'm not going to argue that such techniques should be dismissed totally out of hand. The Talmud, after all, endorses the idea of initially engaging in Torah not for the proper reason, with the confidence than ultimately appropriate motivation will come. However my inclination and my preference is to go about the process of Day School recruitment in a more "up front" manner. The appropriate way to bring non Day School families into the Day School system, in my opinion, is through spiritually meaningful kiruv / outreach activities directed at these families or future families, to educate young parents or soon-to-be parents about the beauty of Judaism, the importance of Jewish continuity, and the importance of Jewish identity and community. In the spirit of Piryah v'Rivya first plant the seeds. Have passionate spokespeople for Jewish education and Jewish tradition establish a personal relationship with these unaffiliated or spiritually unattached families or future families one on one, couple by couple, family by family. Just as with the biological act of procreation the passionate connection comes first, the children will come later. Speaking of planting seeds here is my "out of the box idea": Offer seed money to each of our Day Schools to hire a "kiruv professional couple husband and wife" who have as their part-time job with the school the responsibility to work outside the classroom, outside the campus perimeter, with "not yet committed families" who have (or may soon have) young children who are potential Day School students. Let these Kiruv professionals invite such families to their homes for Shabbat meals, let them invite themselves to the office or homes of such families to give Torah classes or engage them in discussions relating to Jewish identity, Jewish values, and Jewish continuity. Ideally this couple or at least "half" the Kiruv couple should already be a Judaic curriculum staff member of the Day School and thus be closely associated with its educational program and school philosophy and identity. In some cases this "Kiruv" activity is already taking place today on a strictly "volunteer basis" by the Day School faculty members and/or their spouses. We should encourage the practice to become expanded, to become institutionalized and to become one which is contractually documented and compensated. There you have my contribution to the beginning of what should become a data bank of thoughts, ideas, and fantasies to which each of us should contribute as our part of our grappling with the problem of declining Day School enrollment and part of our affirmative answer to the question: Asakta B'Pirya V'Rivya have you occupied yourselves with the activity of increasing the Jewish people?
I would just like to conclude by saying that despite the negative impact it will no doubt have on K-12 Day School enrollment in the State of Washington, it is my sincerest hope that prior to our next meeting, the Messiah will have come, we will all be living in the Land of Israel, and we will have witnessed by then the resurrection of the dead. Under those circumstances I will certainly be more than willing to relinquish my position of Samis Rabbinic Trustee back to Rabbi William Greenberg. If we are not fortunate enough to merit that scenario within the next 3 months, then it is my intention to continue on with the list of the Talmud's "Final Exam curriculum review" and discuss as part of my next Dvar Torah: Question #4: -- ? Did you anticipate redemption?
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SAMIS Quarterly Meeting March 2011

Last December, I took the unprecedented step of announcing the topic of my next Dvar Torah 3 months ahead of time. Rabbis know that most of the time their listeners will not remember the topic of a sermon already given 5 minutes after the sermon concluded. Certainly I do not expect any of you to remember an announced topic from 3 months ago. Rob has mentioned several times that historically the Foundation had targeted a 10-12% goal for funding projects in Israel, but in reality we were significantly under-running that target in terms of our actual allocations. The thought occurred to me that if the Foundation has set a target of devoting 10% of its resources to projects in the Land of Israel, then it behooves me as Samis Rabbi to target at least 10% of my Divrei Torah to the subject of Eretz Yisrael as well. I believe that, like the Foundation as a whole, I have been under-running that target and it was to make partial amends in that direction that I announced last December that my topic this evening would be the fourth of the six questions enumerated in Tractate Shabbat that every Jew is asked when he comes before the Heavenly Court. The Fourth Question on that Final Exam (following Were you ethical in your business dealings? Did you set aside fixed times for studying Torah? and Did you occupy yourself with procreation? is -- ?Literally, did you anticipate salvation? This question may be understood on two levels. Theologically a Jew is expected to anticipate on a personal level. No matter how bad things are looking and how many trials and tribulations a person is experiencing, we are challenged to have faith in the Almighty and to have confidence in His ability to redeem us from whatever personal difficulties we face. However, while it is certainly true that there is a religious expectation that a Jew will maintain an optimistic attitude of anticipating salvation with G-ds Help from any setback he may suffer on a personal level, classically this question has been understood as a challenge relating to ones expectation of salvation or deliverance on a communal, historical level, that transcends individuals and transcends individual generations. There is no doubt that Maimonides had this question in mind when he formulated as the 12th of his 13 Principles of Faith belief in the coming of Messiah. Specifically the idea of and even though he will tarry in coming, with all this -- I will wait for him is exactly what is alluded to in the question -- ? Did you wait for him? Did you eagerly anticipate the coming of Messianic deliverance or did you give up hope and dismiss the possibility of the arrival, of ultimate, communal deliverance and fulfillment of Biblical messianic prophecies? If truth be told, this idea both in terms of Jewish history and in terms of its relevance to contemporary Jewish events is a controversial one. The belief in the ultimate coming of a Messiah certainly is not controversial. It remains an uncontested pillar of our faith and part of a normative Torah belief system. What is somewhat controversial is the eagerness with which to approach this sensitive topic, the eagerness with which we should be prepared to identify someone as Moshiach or as a potential Moshiach or even the readiness with which we should be prepared to identify unfolding historical events as even -- the first budding of our national deliverance. There is a very interesting dichotomy in this area between Sephardim and Chassidim on the one hand and classical Ashkenazim and mitnagdim on the other which I believe is appropriate to point out to this group which has such strong Sephardic roots and components. The Kaddish and Kedusha which are such focal parts of our communal prayer service have in the Sephardic and Chassidic liturgy explicit references to Messianic Salvation that are absent from the corresponding prayers in Nussach Ashkenaz. In Kaddish in Sephardic Bikur Holim or Ezra Bessaroth or in the Shabbat Nussach Sefard minyan at BCMH you will hear the words: ( ' may Your Deliverance blossom forth and may the Messianic End draw near). You will not hear those words recited in a Kaddish at BCMH. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 254
Likewise the dramatic words -- behold I have redeemed you at the end as at the beginning which are a climax of the Kedusha in Nussach Sfard are not to be found in Nussach Ashkenaz. Lest one think this is an insignificant difference that one should not make a big deal about, allow me to cite a responsa from no less an authority than HaChacham Rav Ovadya Yosef who mentions the case of an Ashkenazic father who was upset that his son became a Chassid and was now praying Nussach Sefard rather than the familys accustomed Nussach Ashkenaz. The father told his son that it was his preference that the son NOT recite the mourners Kaddish following his passing because he would rather have no Kaddish recited for himself than have a Kaddish recited with the words ' Rav Ovadya rules very interestingly that in such a case the son should disregard the wishes of his father. Among other reasons he states, that In the World of Truth your father now knows that ' is the correct text and that what he requested of you when he was still in this world was foolish. The dichotomy of attitudes we find in the Jewish people for centuries already regarding active anticipation and even preoccupation with Messianic deliverance plays itself out in our time with attitudes towards the Jewish state and other unfolding historical developments. I believe there is a direct correlation between the politics and the attitudes of Shas, the Sephardic party whose founders take for granted the nussach haTefilah of ' and those of the Ashkenazic Lithuanian charedi parties who take a much more cautious attitude towards the State as they do towards heralding the Messianic era. Likewise within the Ashkenazic world it is no coincidence that a group like Chabad with its We Want Moshiach Now attitudes has a much different attitude towards territorial compromise than do equally pious Charedi communities who daven classic Nussach Ashkenaz. Regardless of ones religious predisposition or ones willingness to read Messianic developments into the Zionist movement and the modern day State of Israel, I think it is undeniable that we have witnessed and are witnessing in our lifetime the ingathering of the exiles to the Jewish homeland from the 4 corners of the earth, the desert coming to life agriculturally after thousands of years of barrenness and neglect, the dramatic victories of Jewish armies, the financial successes of technologies and enterprises powered by Jewish brains on Jewish soil, to say nothing of the unprecedented shift of the epicenter of the world of Torah study from the Golah (Diaspora) back to Zion: A fulfillment of the prophecy - out of Zion will emerge Torah knowledge and Torah authority. To be sure there are still numerous problems, challenges, and disappointments. However, clearly we have seen and we are seeing fulfillment of Biblical prophecies that leave us in the words of the Psalmist like dreamers ( ' ) One does not have to be a Sefardi Tahor who has been saying ' since the days of the Rambam and before to sense that we are blessed to be living in historic times from a Jewish perspective, times which certainly allow us -- unless we are totally callous spiritually and totally blind to the momentous historical developments of our time to readily anticipate further manifestation of salvation and deliverance such that we may answer positively the question of ? I like to conclude my Divrei Torah which often start out with broad ideas and generalizations about certain topics or issues which have tachlit practical relevance to the Samis Foundation. I throw out my Tachlit ideas as personal thoughts which I run up the flagpole to see who salutes. No one should feel intimidated by my musings. If they make sense to you great, if not feel free to respectfully disagree or ignore that which I am about to say.
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It seems to me that given the Sephardi roots of this foundation, given the strong activist Zionist inclinations of the overwhelming number of trustees sitting around this table, and given the incentive of knowing that Did you anticipate redemption? is one of the questions on the Final Exam that it would behoove us a Foundation distributing philanthropy earmarked for spending in Israel to see to it that the projects we support are indeed those that further the redemption of the Jewish people and further the coming of the Messianic era. There is no doubt in my mind that many of the categories of support suggested in Sams will and supported historically by this foundation do fall within this arena. Certainly it applies to Immigrant Absorption, certainly it applies to support for widows and orphans. Certainly it applies to University Scholarships for Poor, Gifted students. The case can even be made that uncovering the scope and dimension of the historical connection of our people to the Land of Israel via support of archaeological projects could fall into this category of redemption of the Land and redemption of the nation. All of these were ideas that emerge from Sams will and they are all ideas that go hand in hand with the concept of anticipating salvation and the re-JEW-venation of the Land of Israel. But everyone is entitled to a few ideas in his life that looking back in hindsight and looking down from the next world he might be having second thoughts about. I would under normal circumstances not be so brash as to say about Sam Israels concern for Wildlife that which HaChacham Ovadia said about the Ashkenazic father who asked that his son not say Kaddish for him: In the World of Truth he now knows what is correct and that what he requested of you when he was still in this world was foolish. Normally I would not say that but would insist Mitzvah lKayem Divrei HaMet -- we should support Sams directives for supporting wildlife in the Holy Land. However there is a mitigating factor here and that is the somewhat mystical concept of Melitz Yosher. This concept, which is alluded to in our Liturgy and which Rav Ovadiah makes reference to in other Responsa, is that certain souls have the power when they go up to Heaven to intercede, as it were, with Divine Plans and thereby actually control events as they play out in this world. My observation is that the Samis Latrun project has been plagued from the outset with false starts and road blocks and delays and unforeseen developments that constantly frustrate our ability to carry out our initiative and aspirations. It seems as if Heaven itself is trying to negate our efforts to build this institute and engaging us in a chess game in which we are constantly on the defensive. I hesitate to put words into the mouth of our Father in Heaven, but given the concept of melitz yosher, I cannot help but wonder if perhaps our beloved Uncle in Heaven has been interceding and convincing the Almighty to frustrate our attempts to go ahead with this project. Perhaps he is trying to tell us something: Believe HaChacham Ovadia: What I requested of you when I was still in that world was foolish. Take my money and invest it in Israel in ways that I enumerated which will hasten the redemption of our people. The idea to spend my money on projects such as the one in Latrun was one for the birds.
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Samis Quarterly Meeting May 2011

Rabbis typically have 3 options in choosing timely topics for Divrei Torah: They can pick a topic based on the weekly Torah portion, they can pick a topic based on the calendar, or they can pick a topic out of the clear blue sky and attempt to craft it into a timely message. I'm going for the "Triple Crown" this evening, because my topic is (a) related to the weekly Torah portion; it is (b) related to the calendar; and (c) it is a topic out of the clear blue sky. I am devoting my Dvar Torah this evening to the significance of the color known in the Bible as Techeiles a color that our Sages compare to that of a clear blue sky. This is a color that both historically and in our own time evokes special meaning, emotions, and significance for the Jewish people. My topic is relevant to the weekly Torah portion, because this coming Shabbat [Parshat Bamidbar --The Book of Numbers Chapter 2] we will read about the the flags or banners under which the various Tribes traveled during their sojourns in the Wilderness. According to the Medrash, each tribe had a banner consisting of a characteristic emblem upon a colored background matching the color of the stone which represented that Tribe in the Breast Plate worn by the High Priest. The flag of the Tribe of Judah, for example, whose stone in the was a bluish rock called consisted of the picture of a Lion on a skyblue background. It is not at all coincidental that the flag of has that same sky-blue shade on it the component of the famous Israeli colors "( " which are the modern Hebrew words for blue and white respectively.) It is certainly not an inappropriate time of year, finding ourselves in the month of Iyar roughly half way between and -- to take a few minutes to discuss the origin and symbolism of those blue lines on the modern counterpart of that being the flag of Medinat Yisrael. Like much else associated with the State of Israel there is misinformation and historical distortion that our enemies try to disseminate regarding the Israeli flag: In over 40 years of giving Torah classes and Divrei Torah I have never had occasion to quote from the following person or publication, but this evening I am going to wrinkle my nose and quote Yasir Arafat from an interview published in September 1988 in Playboy Magazine. "Do you know what the meaning of the Israeli flag is? It is white with two blue lines. The two lines represent two rivers, and in between is Israel. The rivers are the Nile and the Euphrates." This allegation has been repeatedly made in recent years by Iran, Hamas, and other enemies of the Jewish state, namely that the blue lines on the Israeli flag symbolize Israel's expansionist and imperialistic goals. The truth of the matter is that the blue lines on the Israeli flag do carry biblical allusions but not to Genesis Chapter 15 which reads: "On that day Hashem made a covenant with Abram saying, To your descendants have I given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates River." Rather those blue lines allude to Numbers Chapter 15: "Speak to the children of Israel and say to them that they shall make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout their generations. And they shall place upon the fringes of each corner a thread of Techeiles. It shall constitute fringes ( )for you, that you may see it and remember all the commandments of Hashem and perform them; and not wander off following (the desires of) your heart and your eyes after which you stray" In the Talmud [Menachos 43b], the Rabbis explain how the Techeiles thread will help the one who gazes upon it to remember and focus upon his duty to G-d: "Techeiles is similar to the color of the sea, the sea is similar to the color of the sky, and the sky is similar to the color of G-d's Throne of Glory." Now we have two verses from the Bible -- Genesis 15 and Numbers 15 -- that ostensibly may be used to explain the blue lines on the Israeli flag. Arafat in the context of a Playboy interview in 1988 claims the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 257
symbolism is Genesis 15 the two rivers. Twersky here this evening in the context of Ten people sitting and engaging in words of Torah (about which Pirkei Avot writes The Divine Presence is amongst them) claims the symbolism is Numbers 15 the threads of Techeiles on the Tzizit. Who is right? Who do you believe?... There is an old Talmudic rule regarding resolution of such conflicts: -- " When you have two reputable sources that contradict one another you need to find a third reputable source to tip the balance between them. Where does one go today to find reputable information to resolve conflicting claims? Obviously one checks out Wikpedia. Wikpedia's fascinating article on the "Flag of Israel" documents its history. Although the flag was formally adopted as the official flag of the State of Israel in October 1948, its history goes back more than 50 years earlier. Theodore Herzl had proposed a design for the flag of the Zionist movement that had no Jewish symbolism whatsoever. He wanted the flag to have 7 golden stars symbolizing the 7 hour working quota of the enlightened state-to-be which would have advanced socialist legislations. David Wolffsohn, a businessman prominent in the early Zionist movement was aware that the nascent Zionist movement had no official flag and that the design proposed by Herzl was gaining no significant support. He wrote in his diary in 1897: "At the behest of our leader Herzl, I came to Basel to make preparations for the Zionist Congress. Among many other problems that occupied me then was one that contained something of the essence of the Jewish problem. What flag would we hang in the Congress Hall? Then an idea struck me. We have a flag and it is blue and white. The talith (prayer shawl) with which we wrap ourselves when we pray: that is our symbol. Let us take this Talith from its bag and unroll it before the eyes of Israel and the eyes of all nations. So I ordered a blue and white flag with the Shield of David painted upon it. That is how the national flag that blew over Congress Hall came into being." Now what is interesting is that while the , the blue thread, is in many ways the essence of the mitzvah of Tzitzit (the fringes to be worn at the corners of our Talit) for it is that color which reminds us of the sea and ultimately of the sky and ultimately of the Divine Throne -- some 1500 years ago Jews stopped wearing the blue thread on the corners of the Tallit and the secret of its source and manufacture were lost to the Jewish people. The Talmud identified Techeiles as being produced from the secretions of a sea creature called the chilazon. And though the Talmud did specify certain traits and identifying characteristics belonging to this sea creature, the description was never specific enough for later generations of Jews to unequivocally identify it. I have here a fascinating publication which discusses the various reasons for the demise of techeiles in the Jewish world and explores the dramatic discoveries and circumstances which have very recently led to the reintroduction of this long lost mitzvah in certain avant garde orthodox circles. This 12 page publication is available through www.tekhelet.com and I specifically call to your attention the 3 page lead article by Rabbi Berel Wein on this subject. Rabbi Wein writes, among other things "Though techeiles itself disappeared from Jewish life as part of the damage of exile, the subject of techeiles continued to be discussed in the great halachic works of all ages. Just as the Jews did not forget Zion and Jerusalem, their subconscious memory of past glory and spiritual greatness kept techeiles alive, in their memory if not in actual practice." In March I spoke about the concept of anticipating redemption and mentioned the dramatic historical events we have witnessed in recent times that allow us to discern a trend which hopefully is building towards a momentous climax. I feel that the re-creation of Techeiles dye and the reintroduction of the "thread of blue wool" onto Talleisim in our time is certainly part of this unfolding process of redemption/Geulah. I have made the following observation: My grandparents told my parents that they remembered a time when there was no significant Jewish presence in the Land of Israel. My parents could not remember such a time, but they told me that they remembered a time when there was no Medinat Yisrael. I cannot remember such a time, but I told my children that I remembered a time when Jews were not allowed to visit the Old City of Jerusalem or the Kotel Ma'aravi. My children cannot Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 258
remember such a time, but they now tell their children that they remember a time when Jews did not have Techeiles. My grandchildren are growing up in a world in which Techeiles has been rediscovered but hopefully they will be able to someday tell their amazed children, that they remember yet growing up in a time before there was a Beit HaMikdash. I would like to conclude with a profound thought from my esteemed teacher, Rabbi J.B. Soloveitchik, ob"m, on the deeper symbolism of the two colors contained in our ideal tzitzit. According to the Ravs explanation, blue and white represent two facets of man's life experience. I am quoting from Chapter II of Man of Faith in the Modern World: Symbolically the color white denotes clarity, distinctness, rationality, that which is self-evident. In modern Hebrew the expression ( lit. the subject is white) means "the subject is crystal clear" or "it is proven". Techeilet, in contrast, is the "likeness of the seas and the heavens" and focuses our thoughts on the grand mysteries of human experience which elude our precise understanding. The seas and heavens are boundless and beyond human reach. They encompass the abstract and the transcendent, ultimate values and ends, man's metaphysical quest and his efforts to rise above the selfevident and the temporal. It is this area which remains a perennial enigma, resisting rationalization and quantification. While the color white bespeaks the clearly perceptible, techeilet refers to a realm which is only vaguely grasped. All aspects of man's experience partake of blue and white. In the scientific inquiry, the physical sciences, i.e. physics, chemistry, biology, etc., lend themselves to mathematical precision; the universe is not erratic or capricious. It is when the focus of inquiry changes to man's psyche and abstract verities that inexactitude and uncertainty intrude. The social sciences, i.e. psychology, sociology, etc, therefore are hampered by the indistinctness of their subject matter. The same dichotomy between being on terra firma and on shifting sands is also experienced in our personal lives. We have all had periods, even of an extended nature, which are rational, planned, and predictable, when we feel that we have a hold on events. At other times, however, mystery and puzzlement intervene, dislocating the pattern of our lives and frustrating all our planning. No one can say, "The world and I have always gotten together reasonably, happily, and successfully, with ambitions always realized. I have never been defeated." Stark and harsh reality often imposes the bizarre and the irrational, leaving us stupefied, shocked and bereft. Inexplicable events render us humbled. This is the techeilet of human experience. [This next paragraph delivered some 40 years ago by the Rav has particular relevance in our time] If Jewish history operated solely with lavan (white), we would not be fighting for Israel today. From the standpoint of reason and logistics, our efforts against imponderable odds are insane. Building a homeland in a hotbed of hatred, surrounded by wealthy Arabs in enormous numbers whose opposition to Jewish strivings is seething and unabated, lacks all rational justification. Yet we struggle because the land was promised to us four thousand years ago. Gentiles, and even some assimilated Jews, view our dilemma from the vantage point of reasoned feasibility and they cannot understand our obsession. Senator Humphrey who was sympathetic to Israel once said to Menachem Begin, "Please speak the language we understand, and not in riddles, symbols, or mysticism. Speak of politics and economics." We are astounded that Gentiles do not understand us; we want them to have a techeilet approach, as we do, and to see Israel as interwoven with our religious consciousness. But only the Jew has his techeilet perception. End quote of a brief excerpt from Rabbi Soloveitchik's thoughts. I just want to end by saying that I believe the Rav's development of the idea of the dichotomy between the Lavan and Techeilet experience in Jewish life is an important one to keep in mind as we carry on the legacy of Sam Israel's will and the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 259
work of the Samis Foundation. Naturally we like to evaluate the impact of our efforts in terms of data and metrics, graphs and spreadsheets, trends and projections. But all this belongs to the realm of the "lavan" experience the world of clarity, reason, and logic. We dare not forget however, the symbolism of the blue threads and blue stripes of life the techeiles of human experience the setbacks and disappointments, the missed targets and unrealized accomplishments. This too is part of human life in general and part of the Jewish experience in particular. Let us take note of flat day school enrollment, of insurmountable budgetary challenges, of escalating tuition costs, of less-than-hoped for satisfaction ratings from the Day School customer base. Let us take note of all the frustrations and elusive solutions that we are all too familiar with. But rather than feeling blue when we take note of these facts, let us see "blue" let us look at the color of Techeiles: ' Let us remember the challenges that the Torah places upon us to educate our children and teach them the ways of Torah as the prime method of ensuring Jewish continuity and the survival of the Jewish heritage. Rather than feeling blue and throwing up our hands in despair, let us be awed and inspired by the mysterious and majestic color of Techeiles. Let it remind us that the Jewish people have long faced problems and challenges as vast as the sea, whose solutions were as elusive as the heavens. We have always taken the attitude of We can do, we must do, and our efforts will be blessed and be rewarded by the One Who Sits on the Throne of Glory whose color matches the heavens and matches the seas and matches the blue thread of Techeiles on our Tzitzit and the blues stripes on the Flag of Medinat Yisrael.
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SAMIS Meeting September 2011

I have noticed that over the past year or so, the "minutes" distributed for the quarterly meetings, have begun to record not only the fact that a Dvar Torah was given at the start of the meeting, but they also record a title or synopsis of the subject matter discussed in the previous meeting's Dvar Torah. I thank Peggy for upgrading the significance of my presentations by capturing their essence for posterity. Peggy, I'm going to save you the trouble of coming up with a title for tonight's presentation. This Dvar Torah can be labeled "Rabbi Twersky's Swan Song." "Swan song" is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that the Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) is completely silent during its lifetime until the moment just before death, when it sings one beautiful song. The belief, now known to be incorrect, had become proverbial in Ancient Greece by the 3rd century BC, and was reiterated many times in later Western poetry and art. There are several reasons why it is appropriate to make this a classic "Greek Swan song" whether or not in reality my death or retirement from the position of Samis Rabbi is imminent. The Talmud records [Shabbas 153a] Rabbi Eliezer taught: Repent one day before you die. His students asked him "Does a person then know which day he will die? He responded, "All the more so, a person should repent today lest he die tomorrow, thus all his days will be spent in repentance." This is a timely thought for the month of Elul, a time historically for Jews to contemplate, to reflect on the fact that we do not live forever and to prepare for repentance prior to the Days of Judgment. I have long felt a special obligation to consider the possibility of "lest I die tomorrow" given the trust Rabbi Greenberg, ob"m, placed in me and given the conversation we had many years ago when he explained to me the unique authority and responsibility bestowed upon the Samis Rabbi to name his own lifetime successor to this very significant position of influence and leadership in the realm of Jewish Education and charity distribution for worthy causes in the State of Israel. I remember that Rabbi Greenberg died rather suddenly without much warning and the fact that he thought about and designated a successor many years before it became relevant rather than waiting until he expected death to occur on an imminent basis was typical of the very wise person that he was. Moreover, I have just returned from a two week visit to Israel during a summer that marks a major milestone in the life of my family. For the first time, I now have "Rov Minyan and Rov Binyan" of my family living in Israel. I now have the majority of my 5 children and by the end of this month, Please G-d, I will have the majority of 21 grandchildren living in the Land of our Forefathers as well. There is a long standing principal in Jewish law that -- one follows the majority. And so it would definitely be my preference to sing my Samis Swan Song not shortly before my death, but rather prior to announcing my retirement from the position in anticipation of following in the footsteps of many distinguished former members of our community, not the least significant of whom is sitting in our presence this evening.
Finally, the pieces of the puzzle seem to be falling neatly in place now that Congregation Ezra Bessaroth, Rabbi Greenberg's former Kehilla and Sam Israel's former Kehilla has elected as Rabbi an individual to whom I would feel very comfortable handing over the position of honor and responsibility that Rabbi Greenberg bestowed upon me with his passing. I have greatly admired and been impressed by Rabbi Meyer's talents, contributions, and dedication to the field of Jewish education, both locally and internationally. At the proper time, and I imagine it may come sooner rather than later -- one way or another -- I feel this Foundation would certainly be in good hands in terms of Rabbinic leadership with Rabbi Ron Meyer serving as its third Rabbinic Trustee. I
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have made known those intentions to Rabbi Meyer and I take this opportunity to formally make those intentions known to the leadership of the Foundation.
However, having said all this, the reason my "Drasha" this evening can be summarized by the title "Rabbi Twersky's Swan song" has nothing to do with Greek mythology ,nothing to do with my potential Aliyah (to Israel or to the World-To-Come), and nothing to do with the new Rabbi of Congregation Ezra Bessaroth. It has everything to do with a 3 minute excerpt I am going to play on my IPad from one of the favorite albums of my childhood -- Danny Kaye's recording of songs from the movie Hans Christian Anderson. It just so happens that I played this song for Rabbi Skaist about 3 years ago when Torah Day School was still taking its lumps and facing a lot of criticism within this Foundation and elsewhere within the community for their rather presumptuous attempts to over-ride the will of "Rov Minyan and Rov Binyan" of the "communal establishment" by starting a new school on short notice with very little planning, very limited resources and virtually no assurance of success. I was tempted to play this song again publicly when Rabbi Skaist and Ezra Genauer and Rena Berger made their presentation on behalf of TDS before many of us here last spring. It was however the middle of Sefirat HaOmer a time when it is customary not to listen to music, so I've been waiting for another opportunity which I am going to seize this evening to play it. I will have more comments about the lyrics following conclusion of this excerpt. Now as I've mentioned on other occasions TDS is not the first educational institution in the history of this city to start up without the consent and applause of the movers and shakers of the community. They are not the first "ugly duckling" to be told by the "other ducks" to "pphtt get out of town!" This is a natural phenomenon and it began locally with the start of the Seattle Hebrew Day School which was founded against the will of much of the "establishment" which was raised and bred on the philosophy of "Talmud Torah" education. It certainly was a fact of life for Rabbi Daniel Rosenthal when he attempted to expand SHA and incorporate a Yeshiva High School program which later became NWYHS. Chabad, JDS, and the Seattle Community School were each told over the years by people who thought they knew better (myself included in some cases) "pphtt get out of town". The lyrics of the song I just played focus in on the self-esteem of the ugly duckling who turns into a swan. At first, when all the other ducks were making fun of him he had very low self esteem, but as he turned into a beautiful swan his self esteem was enhanced until at the end of the song he realized that he wasn't such an ugly duckling after all. In terms of the personalities of those who historically start new educational institutions without the consent of the established communal leadership, I don' t believe there has ever been any problem with poor self esteem. If anything, such individuals are blessed with an over abundance of self esteem such that they tend to tell the other ducks who have vested interest in the status quo to "PPht -- take it and shove it". But what interests me is not so much the change in self-esteem of the outcast duckling turned swan as the reaction of the "other ducks" who had belittled this little ugly duckling when they realize that he turns into a beautiful swan and is not such an ugly duckling after all. What is our reaction as individuals when we are confronted with a situation which turns out other than we predicted? What happens when history proves retrospectively that someone did not have as much foresight, as much Faith in G-d, or as much confidence in the Jewish people as others did have and as others were vindicated for having? There are 3 ways to deal with this phenomenon psychologically speaking. My father used to have an expression "A Nahrishkeit az iz galunkt iz oich a nahrishkeit". A childish or foolish thing that succeeds was still a childish or foolish thing to have undertaken. For example if he told me not to jump down from the 5th step or I'd get hurt and then I jumped down from that high step Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 262
and didn't get hurt and would say "See, Daddy, you were wrong, I didn't get hurt!" He would say "A Nahrishkeit az iz galunkt iz oich a nahrishkeit". You're lucky but you are still a foolish child for having done that. This is a reasonable approach and a good psychological defense mechanism. I wasn't wrong. I was right all along, I'm happy you didn't kill yourself, but I'm still convinced that you very well might have. Had I not warned you to be careful, you may have tried to jump from a higher step and in fact gotten badly hurt. The second approach is to again maintain "I was right all along" and to stubbornly protest that this duck that I labeled an ugly duckling remains an ugly duckling even if objective evidence indicates that he is now a beautiful swan. One can say the "jury is still out", or invent all kinds of new categories for determining beauty, or simply ignore the facts all out of an inability to take the third, more lonely and difficult approach which is to admit that "I was wrong" about this duck. I flat out made a mistake and did not recognize his potential for beauty which is now clear for everyone to behold. A trend has developed over the last few months for Trustees to recommend books they read and found worthwhile. Victor has pushed strongly for the Day School leaders to read Howard Schultz's book regarding the development of an enthusiastic customer base. Eli Genauer has recommended we read a certain book about Foundational giving. As Samis Rabbi my primary recommendation is that people spend their time reading the "Good Book" -- the Torah which has all wisdom contained therein. But I'm not opposed to recommending the reading of an occasional book review on or excerpt from books written by heroes of business entrepreneurship. Such an excerpt appeared earlier this summer in the Wall Street Journal. They published an excerpt from "I'm Feeling Lucky" by Douglas Edwards the original "brand manager" of the fledgling Google corporation.. Sergy Brin one of the founders of Google told Edwards that he wanted to "play" with the company's signature home page graphic. Edwards writes: "One of the convictions that I brought with me to Google was that you need to present your company's graphic signature in a consistent manner, to pound it into the public consciousness with a thousand tiny taps, each one exactly the same as the one before. When Sergey told me that he wanted to play with Google's signature home-page graphic in 1999, I put my foot down. This was not only the most prominent placement of our logo; it was the only placement of our logo. We weren't advertising on TV or on billboards or in print. The logo floating in all that white space was it.He goes on to describe the sequence of events which lead -- over his strong protests -- to the launch of the Google "Doodle" and then he concludes several paragraphs later: "It was so blindingly obvious that I was right, yet I was so clearly wrong. Google did that to you -- it made you challenge all your assumptions and experiencebased ideas until you began to wonder if up was really up or if it might not actually be a different kind of down". I don't want anyone to walk away from here thinking that the appropriate one sentence synopsis of tonight's Dvar Torah is "The TDS founders were right and the Samis Trustees were wrong and we should all apologize for calling them ugly ducklings!" That is not my intent and it is not my opinion." I've thrown TDS out as an example, if you feel the shoe fits, then wear it, if not feel free to mimic that journalist at President Bush's Press Conference in Iraq a few years ago and throw the shoe back at me! The one sentence synopsis of tonight's Dvar Torah that I would like to leave you with is a paraphrase of the Vidui-Confession we recite this time of year during Selichot prayers: " " We should not be brazen and stiff-necked people to say before you that we are totally righteous and are always right. Or to paraphrase the former Google Brand manager, It is healthy to periodically challenge one's assumptions and experience-based ideas. It just may be the case that what you thought was so blindingly obvious may be so clearly wrong. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 263
If we are going to put ourselves in the proper frame of mind for the Teshuva-Repentance -- which as I mentioned at the outset is appropriate every day of our life but is especially critical at this time of year -then we need to admit honestly and sincerely -- at least to ourselves if we are not strong enough to admit it to others -- that things do not always turn out the way we were sure they were going to turn out. Sometimes good things happen, not because of our efforts but despite our efforts to prevent them from happening and sometimes bad things might happen precisely because of an unforeseen and unintended consequence of our mistaken efforts. Such recognition and such an admission on the part of each of us will go a long way to improve our relationships with our spouses, our children, our friends, and family, and last but certainly not least with our Judge and Creator. Such recognition might even be appropriate at times in connection with some of our actions and decisions as Samis Trustees. May we all be inscribed in the Book of Life for a year in which we are achieve the blessings of being Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise.
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SAMIS December 2011 Quarterly Meeting

As I believe you all know, since our last quarterly meeting, I have lost my mother and am now in the midst of my "sh'nat Aveilut" my year of mourning for her. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to discuss some thoughts and concepts related to this period of life that I now find myself in with the hope that there will be some relevance to each of you individually as well as some relevance to our foundational mission that we carry out collectively. Before I begin, I wish to acknowledge the presence of many of you at my mother's funeral, yours visits during Shiva, your kind notes and e-mails, and your donations to various worthy causes in my mother's memory. My purpose here this evening is not to give another eulogy for her, but suffice it to say that my mother in her lifetime dedicated many long hours over many years working in many ways to promote the goal of quality and affordable Day School education in Seattle the very same goal that we devote so much of our own efforts towards here in the Samis Foundation. She was very proud that all her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were or are currently being Day School educated and she was also very proud to have her son be named by Rabbi Greenberg whom she admired greatly to carry on his work and her work to further promote these goals as part of the Samis Foundation. The classic mourning period in Judaism is 30 days. This is the length of time one mourns for a sibling, a spouse, or a child. Beyond day 30 for all such relatives there are no mourning requirements and no mourning practices. This is the length of time the Torah records that the Jewish people mourned for our first High Priest Aharon haKohen. The Torah also mentions at the end of Deuteronomy in connection with the mourning period for our great leader Moses: "The Children of Israel bewailed Moses in the plains of Moab for thirty days; then the days of tearful mourning for Moses ended." With a parent the period of "Aveilut" is 12 times as long as it is for any other relative. On the surface, this halacha is somewhat difficult to understand. From a psychological and emotional point of view it may take one far longer to "get over" the loss of a child or spouse ( may the All Merciful save us from such losses) than it does to come to grips with the loss of a parent, especially one who has lived to a ripe old age. What then is the reason for and the nature of this period of "Yud Beit Chodesh" (12 months) in which a child continues to be categorized as an "Avel" (a mourner)? I would like to suggest that the primary thrust of this extended period of "Aveilut" in Jewish practice and tradition is not so much a period in which a child is supposed to mourn a parent in the sense of maintaining a feeling of depression or even sadness over the loss he or she has suffered by the death of a parent. It is true that the mourner for a parent has some restrictions regarding listening to music and taking part in social gatherings for the year, but -- contrary to popular opinion -- there is also an upbeat and even optimistic theme that permeates the "post-Shloshim" period of one's year of "Aveilut". This optimistic theme is based on the Talmudic concept that an Aramaic expression which translated into gender neutral terminology means children may bring merit to their parents. It is a basic tenet of Jewish theology that man is judged for his actions upon his or her death and faces reward or punishment in the next world based on what he or she accomplished while in this world. The Talmudic concept of teaches the I believe optimistic message that a child has the capability to favorably influence the Heavenly Judgment regarding the "accomplishments" of his or her parents by engaging particularly in the 12 month period after a parent's death when Divine Judgment is being carried out in acts and practices which accumulate "points in Heaven" and help tip the judgment so to speak, in behalf of the deceased. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 265
It is in this context that one should view the Rabbinic advice and widespread custom to give charity in memory of the deceased, to learn Torah so that the "soul of the departed will be elevated", and in general to engage in acts of kindness and righteousness that will bring credit in Heaven to the souls of our departed loved ones by virtue of the fact that they have motivated these positive activities on our part. The paradigm for all of these customs and practices is really an institution which is widely misunderstood that is the recital of Kaddish by the mourner during the year of Aveilut and also on the anniversary of one's parent's death the "Yahrtzeit", as we Ashkenazim call it. People associate Kaddish with death and with mourning. They view its recital as some kind of memorial prayer or commemorative chant associated with a deceased loved one. It is ironic that specifically those prayers which in prior generations the Rabbis legislated be recited in the vernacular so that everyone would understand what they are saying are today's least well understood part of the prayer book because Aramaic which was yesteryear's vernacular today comes across as a language that is for the most part foreign even for the vast majority of graduates from K-12 "quality and affordable" Day School institutions, the literate elite of modern Jewish society. It is not surprising therefore that there is great confusion and misunderstanding about the nature of Kaddish recital and what it is supposed to accomplish. There is no mention of death or mourning anywhere in Kaddish. Kaddish (as its name implies) is a prayer for "Kiddush Hashem" the sanctification and glorification of G-d's Holy Name in this world: "May His Great Name grow exalted and sanctified in the world that He created as He willed" But it is more than just a prayer in the form of a monologue between the mourner and G-d. Kaddish is an activist prayer in which the one reciting Kaddish invites the listeners to join with himto respond Amen and to themselves proclaim "May His Great Name be blessed forever and ever." This responsive chanting is basically a supplemental opportunity for the one trying to accumulate merit for his parents to bring about public sanctification of G-d's name through his initiative. The primary prayer scenario mentioned by the Rabbis is to have the mourner lead the congregation in the main body of prayer the and the which also are structured in the format of responsive invitations by a prayer leader and responses by the congregation which Sanctify G-d's Name in the presence of a Minyan a Jewish prayer quorum. The Rabbis sought to give the one whose parent was facing Judgment in the next world as many opportunities as possible to tip the balance of Judgment in favor of their deceased parent through the concept of during the course of the year of mourning -- which corresponds with the year of Heavenly Judgment. But while Kaddish, Kedusha, and Borchu are significant symbolic methods for implementing Kiddush HaShem, Judaism never contented itself with "Lip Service" alone as a vehicle for establishing Sanctification of the Name of G-d in this world. The Talmud in the last chapter of Tractate Yoma (dealing with the laws of Yom Kippur and Teshuva) gives examples of Kiddush Hashem, Sanctification of G-d's Name: It was taught: "And you shall love the L-rd your G-d" this means that the Name of Heaven shall be made beloved to people through your actions. When a person who learns Torah and associates with Torah scholars is pleasant and gentle to everyone in his business dealings what will the people say about him (the Talmud asks)? Happy is his father who taught his son Torah. Happy is his teacher who taught him Torah. Woe to others who were not so fortunate to study Torah. So and so who learned Torah, see how pleasant his ways are, see how refined are his actions, about him Scripture says: "G-d said to me, 'You are my servant, Israel, in whom I take glory." In other words Kiddush Hashem is brought about
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when individuals who are identified with G-d and His Torah are singled out for praise and for being role models for others. It is in this context that I would like to express my appreciation to this Foundation, to Rob and to Amy and to all my fellow Trustees for affording me the opportunity "to lead the congregation so to speak" during my 'year of Aveilut' through participation last Sunday evening in what I feel was a great public Kiddush Hashem when the Samis Foundation inaugurated the Rabbi William Greenberg Award for Excellence in Day School Education with the presentations made to Rabbi Morton and Leya Moskowitz at the SHA Gala. This Award is one which brings honor and elevation to the name of the Samis Foundation and its founder as it brings honor and elevation to the name of Rabbi Greenberg and to the present and future recipients of this award. That which brings honor to Torah teachers by definition is a Kiddush HaShem it is a phenomenon which make people think and say "Happy is his father who taught him Torah, happy is his teacher who taught him Torah. I know there were probably a few people who were surprised to see me at the Gala because, as I mentioned before, it is usually traditional to forgo (during the year of mourning for a parent) participation in Social Gatherings (what the halacha calls ) and there were no doubt some who thought I may be "bending the rules" somewhat by making an appearance at the Gala, which among other things was certainly a Social Gathering. In light of my previous remarks, however, it is clear that -- on the contrary -- not only was I not bending the rules of appropriate behavior during the year of aveilut for a parent, I feel I was actually seizing the opportunity to recite a form of "Kaddish D'Rabbanan" a special derivative form of the mourner's Kaddish which singles out a prayer and supplication before our Father in Heaven for peace, grace, kindness, mercy, long life, ample nourishment and salvation specifically for the Rabbis, their disciples, and all those who engage in the study of Torah. The additional paragraph of "Kaddish D'Rabbanan" begins with the words " " I can think of no better synopsis of the impact of this award than these very same words. " " for the memory of Sam Israel; " " and for "his Rabbi" Rabbi William Greenberg. " -- " and for the disciples and colleagues of Rabbi Greenberg namely, Rabbi Morton and Leya Moskowitz; " " and in turn for all the disciples and admirers of the Moskowtizs; and for all who occupy themselves with the profession of teaching Torah in Day Schools in this place where we want to motivate and retain our current faculties and also inspirational Torah teachers in any other place -- we want them to hear that their profession is appropriately honored and rewarded in Seattle in the hope that someday they may consider moving here to teach in our schools. The presentation of a periodic award to uniquely qualified and dedicated Torah teachers is one small part of our mission to create quality Day School education. I know that there has been some hesitation over the years and even recently about getting involved in singling out individuals for recognition. I know that such matters inevitably run the risk of creating controversy and potential resentment. As I've said in the past, I think going ahead with this project was worth the risk. It was a Kiddush Hashem and it is my hope and prayer that only good will come from it: " " May we be granted Peace from Heaven and good life upon each of us individually and upon the entire Sam Israel Foundation collectively. V'Imru Amen!
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Two Heads Are Better Than One But

Samis Meeting: February 29, 2012
I've had the pleasure recently of visiting 5 of our 6 beneficiary Day Schools with various combinations of my fellow Trustees. I found these sessions to be very enjoyable and enlightening. They contained both "Wow" and "Aha!" moments. In general the facilities both in terms of the campuses and the classrooms are WOW! I saw school Administrators, lay leadership, teachers, and staff who were Wow! They know their stuff and they bring an impressive level of enthusiasm and professionalism to the challenges that face them. The technology already in use in many classrooms even before our Samis newTechnology Initiative gets off the ground -- was a WOW for me! We saw a number of classrooms in various Day Schools that are closer to scenes from Star Wars than they are to the classrooms I remember in my day. Wow! Finally, on a personal note, I had a pair of "Wow moments" to have the privilege of sitting in on both my son-in-law's Girls' Talmud class at the Northwest Yeshiva High School and my daughter's Tefilla class at SHA. The poor Hebrew teacher in Shalom Aleichem's stories used to tell his wife: "Goldie, If I were the Czar I'd be richer than the Czar!" "How's that my Melamed?" "I would do a little teaching on the side!" Chaim and Sara may never get to be richer than the Czar as Day School teachers but seeing their dedication to teaching the love and contents of Torah to the next generation makes me feel (to borrow an expression from another Shalom Aleichem character) like a Rich man" to have such offspring. But I do not want to dwell on the "Wow" moments this evening. I would rather devote the bulk of my comments to a couple of the "Aha" moments that struck me during these visits. The "Wows" hit you instantly and blow you away. The "Ahas!" are a bit more subtle but they stay with you longer. It was an "Aha moment" for me to see that virtually the entire secular curriculum of the Chabad Girls High School is delivered without in-classroom faculty via internet based classes primarily geared for "Home Schooling arrangements". Unlike most home-schooled students however these girls take their classes "on campus" and work out the lessons in the company of their fellow classmates. They get an accredited High School diploma based on these courses, in addition to the diploma they get from the Cheder for Jewish studies. And it was in connection with those Jewish studies that I had my real "Aha moment" at the Cheder. I sat in on one of the Girls High School "Limudei Kodesh classes. Rabbi Kavka sat in front of a classroom of young women who were studying the Sichot of the Lubovitcher Rebbe from the original Yiddish text! Until that moment, I could never really appreciate the reason why the "mothers of TDS" would not consider sending their daughters to Chabad for High School. After seeing pictures of the Rebbe in each classroom and watching these girls translating the Rebbe's talks on the Parsha from Yiddish to English, I said to myself "Aha! I can now see where these mothers are coming from. This is not to say I have any prejudice against Chabad, against the Rebbe ob"m, or his Sichot, or against the Yiddish language. It just is a reflection of the diversity of our community that even within the Orthodox community the educational needs, spiritual expectations, and pedagogic philosophies of the various components of our population are so disparate. And speaking of disparate needs and approaches to Jewish education, I would like to call to your attention a major pedagogic and theological controversy that impacts how Torah is taught at the K-12 level and beyond. This is a debate that to some extent spans centuries and continents and appreciating the passion of the respective positions to this controversy helps us understand the I cant send my kid to your Day School attitude that we are so familiar with. One side of this controversy is eloquently expressed by the only other individual in the world besides myself who graduated from 9th Grade SHA, from local public High School, and then went on to YU for a BA and Semicha. In the Winter 2012 issue of Conversations Rabbi Mark Angel republishes an essay of Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 268
his with the provocative title: Reflections on Torah Education and Mis-Education. For those of you unfamiliar with Rabbi Angel's outspoken views on the matter allow me to quote his final paragraph:
"The points made in this essay should seem fairly clear and obvious to all those interested in proper Torah education. Yet, the fact is that much mis-education is found in our homes, synagogues, and schools. A simplistic, literalist approach to the words of Hazal continues to be influential and very widespread. This is not only intellectually and pedagogically unsound: it is a degradation of Torah and Hazal, as pointed out by the Rambam. We all need to raise our voices for the sake of Torah, truth, and the religious wellbeing of our future generations."
In general certain portions of Orthodox Jewry today have a strong affinity for the more mystical and nonrational aspects of Torah and Jewish tradition. This is certainly true of the Chassidic world and, with all due respect to both Maimonides and Rabbi Angel and perhaps they would not disagree with me on this point -- I think the same can be said for large components of the Sephardic world: They are very comfortable with the non-rational or super-natural aspects of our religion. Superimpose on this an overriding hesitancy by most Orthodox teachers to appear to disagree or contradict deeply ingrained traditions and teachings as they have come down to us in our classic sources and you have a picture of the atmosphere that Rabbi Angel rallies against in promoting a strictly rational approach to the study of Torah and Medrash. There are admittedly portions of the Talmud and Medrash that fall into the category of the non-rational and miraculous. There are philosophical disputes in the world of Day School education today that really go back hundreds of years to much earlier authorities regarding the pedagogic and theological trade-off of teaching at face value certain portions of classic Torah literature that appear to be far-fetched to the "modern mind". Rabbi Angel forcefully argues one side of this controversy. I'd like to give you an example of a Talmudic text which I believes helps crystallize the issue involved in this debate: The Talmud (Menachot 37a) discusses the appropriate position on the scalp where the Head Phylacteries should be worn. Although the Bible states that head Tephillin are to be placed "" which literally means "between the eyes", the Oral Tradition teaches that this refers to a place on the head called " "which is the place where an infant's skull is soft. At that point the Talmud's discussion takes an unusual turn: Plimo (one of the students) inquires of Rebbi: ? In the case of someone with two heads, on which of them does he don Tephillin? The Talmud relates Rebbis response: Rebbe obviously felt that Plimo was being disruptive with this hypothetical question that had no practical value and told him to either get out of the class or accept excommunication. The Gemara continues: .? Meanwhile, a certain man came and said to Rebbi: My wife just gave birth to a two headed first-born child. How much money must I give the Kohen for his redemption? The Gemara then analyzes whether the father must pay the normal 5 Shekel redemption fee to the Kohen or 10 Shekel and concludes that the appropriate payment is 5 Shekel per skull so that in this case the Kohen must be given 10 Shekels. Tosfos there mention a Medrash which cites the case of a two headed son who came before Solomon and claimed a double portion of his father's estate. The other brothers argued that their two headed brother was only entitled to a single portion of the estate and the wise Solomon was called upon to render judgment in the matter. I in fact first came across this Medrash not from studying Tosfos, but the case was homiletically cited by Rabbi Soloveitchik, in his famous Drasha "Kol Dodi Dofek". Now frankly, having had a very similar educational background to Rabbi Angel, my inclination had always been to doubt the plausibility of these passages in the Gemara and Medrash. Given the dichotomy I mentioned above between various pedagogic approaches to Aggadah and Medrash I would not have been shocked if they would have seriously discussed such a two headed individual in the Chabad Cheder or even in the Torah Day School because "If it says so black on white in the Talmud and Medrash it must be that such a thing exists!" My Aha moment, however, that the halachic questions mentioned in the Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 269
Gemara and Medrash relating to two headed individuals could very well have been based on actual occurrences came not in one of our "Day Schools on the right" but it came in that bastion of Maimonidean rationalism and Modern Orthodoxy -- the Northwest Yeshiva High School. That "Aha moment" came not in one of the Talmud classes -- It came in Mrs. Lewis College Prep Biology class. I would frankly be afraid to relate this here, thinking no one would believe me, were it not for the fact that Ive brought with me an expert medical witness who can testify to the veracity of what I am about to tell you. Mrs. Lewis was giving a lesson on cell division and showed the class a video which I later found on You Tube called Conjoined. It is one of several documentaries about Abby and Brittany Hensel two-headed twins, currently 19 years old, who share one pair of arms and one pair of legs. They each have a mind and personality of their own, but they have much in common and do EVERYTHING together - a task requiring challenging coordination: Despite the difficulties, they manage to drive a car (they each received their own driver's license), they type on a single keyboard each one using a different hand, they play the piano, they ride a bicycle, they carry on conversations and can even sing duets with one another. So indeed the "Aha" moment that I had at of all places Northwest Yeshiva High School was that one should not be so hasty to dismiss as impossible Medrashim and portions of the Talmud that seem to us to be far-fetched. There were other "Aha" moments I had during the various school visits but time does not allow me to dwell on them this evening. I would like to conclude by briefly elaborating on Rav Soloveitchik's reference to the two headed child in his Kol Dodi Dofek presentation. The Rav was quoting an itinerant preacher from the previous century who said that in Solomon's court when this two headed individual appeared claiming a double inheritance portion the Wise King ruled as follows: Pour boiling water over one of the heads and see what happens. If the second head screams out in pain that proves they are one person and are entitled to only a single portion of the inheritance. If the second head remains unmoved by the agony of the head being doused with boiling water then they are two individuals entitled to a double portion of the inheritance. The preacher used this example to discuss the unity of the Jewish people: As long as Jews in one part of the world react in pain and anguish to the suffering of Jews in a far away corner of the globe then we are one nation. If, however, one Jewish community can hear about the plight of another and not be moved to empathy and action in their behalf then we have lost our status as a single unified nation. I think the phenomenon of the Hensel twins and the homiletic lesson mentioned by the Rav is relevant to Samis Day School philanthropy: We have somewhat of a six headed child on our hands. Each has a mind and personality of his own. We on the Foundation have the challenge of trying to raise a six headed child while maximizing the quality and affordability of day school education for the K-12 population of our city. In certain areas we have helped our children coordinate and make forward progress. But it is an ongoing battle and the long-term viability of such a creature is by no means certain. Two heads may be better than one, and with the diversity inherent in our community perhaps it is inevitable that the Day School Enterprise we give birth to will be somewhat of a multi-headed monster. Our goal should be to maximize the coordination between the component parts of this creature to whatever extent possible and to create an environment whereby all schools are appreciated for the unique piece they provide to the Jewish educational mosaic of our community. Likewise if one or more schools at some point find themselves in such hot water that they cannot continue to exist, our goal should be to see to it that the other schools will not gloat about the demise of their competition, but will feel the pain of the parents and students who sought that diversity and will appreciate the fact that it is in their own interest and in the interest of the larger good of the Kehilla to perhaps make adjustments to their own programs to try to accommodate such diversity within their own institutions. Not Just Speeches -- Volume III Page 270
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RABBI DAVID A.

NOT JUST SPEECHES (Volume III)

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just An Ezer K'Negdo * * *

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Foreword: Opening Books and Closing Books

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Table of Contents Baruch Hashem Another Grandchild!

Other Family Matters

Mordechai Gets Married

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Saying Good-Bye To Loved Ones: Passing Comments

March 2010 March 2011 October 2011

Other People's Simchas

Getting The Last Word In At A Siyum

Dedications, Memorials, and Presentations

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Letters

Not Just Pictures

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Baruch Hashem Another Grandchild!

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

BRIS MILAH OF MY EIGHTH GRANDCHILD

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

SHOOTING ARROWS FROM A GREAT DISTANCE

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

FIRST SHALOM ZACHOR SPEECH IN SEATTLE IN 18+ YEARS!

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

The Tenth One Will Be 'Holy'

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

ELEVEN ARE THE STARS IN YOSEF'S DREAM

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Two For The Price of One

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

On That Day Will His Name Be One

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Other Family Matters

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Mothers's 80th Birthday

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Tu B'Shvat And My Family Tree

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Post-Wedding Reception Of Beryl and Evelyn Rothman

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Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Mother-In-Law's 90th Birthday

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Ora's Bat Mitzvah Party -- June 6, 2010

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Not Just Speeches -- Volume III

Words Of Bracha For Yael's Bat Mitzvah