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Ram mban (Rabb Moshe ben Nachman bi n n)

4954 45029;1195 1270 The Ramban was born in Geron a, Spain in 1194, 90 years a R b after Rashi had d died. The Rambam died when he was 10 year old. He desc m rs cended from fa family e abbonim and was a relative of Rabbeinu Y w Yonah. He had very importa d of Ra ant Rebb beim who also taught him ka o abbalah accor rding to the me esorah, tradition.
le t wrote a sefer on the Gemara and knew all of Whil a teenager, the Ramban w Shas . The Ramban did not want to make mon from learn n t ney ning Torah, so he o becam a physician He was also the town Ra of Gerona a would late me n. o av and er becom the chief rabbi of the en me r ntire province o Catalonia. H spent his time of He learn ning and teachi Gemara an Kabballah and writing peirushim on th ing nd he Gemara. m re o im ambam wrote. The Ramban defended the In 1238, many Jews wer suspicious of some sefari that the Ra Ramban and explained who should le w earn these sefa arim and who s he rote should not. Th Ramban wr sefarim as well on halacha gemara and Chumash. a, ban ng t h d rol nd The Ramb lived durin a very sad time in Jewish history. The Christians had gotten contr of Spain an they were demanding th Jews conve to Christian hat ert nity. They trie whatever m ed means possible to convince J Jews d C ing Christiani conv verted to Chris stianty and wa anted of the need to become Christian. Duri this time, a Jew Pablo C to convinc other Jews to do the same ce t e. vince King James I of Arag to call the Ramban to th palace for a public debate to prove which gon he e Pablo conv religion was correct. Th Ramban agr w he reed to debate on the condit tion that he co ould say whate ever he needed to. d The debate began in front of a large audience. The Ramban prov that Jews s e a ved should be allow to practic wed ce Judaism an that Pablo Christiani was incorrect. Th debate laste four days. A nd s he ed After the deba the king ca ate, ame to visit the Rambans sh as a sign of respect. e hul f d eople spread ru umors claimin that the Ram ng mban had lost the debate an that all Jews t nd After the debate, evil pe should con nvert. The Ram mban got perm mission from the king to pub t blish the recor of the deba rds ate.The Ramb ban was broug to trial for blasphemy an was kicked out of Spain w ght b nd when he was a already 69 yea old. . ars ban ve is d e ndered around the d The Ramb had to leav the community he led, hi Yeshiva and country. The Ramban wan North of Spain and the South of Franc for three ye S S ce ears. He began writing his c n commentary on the Chumash. In n his sefer on Chumash, th Ramban is always very respectful of R o he r Rashi even wh he has a di hen ifferent opinio on. The Ramb wrote the peirush for his students to le ban p s earn on many levels. ban ed t Jewish commu unity in Israel was very poo and l or The Ramb then move to the Land of Israel. At that time, the J scattered. Yerushalayim had been inv m vaded many tim in 100 yea There wer Crusades, c mes ars. re conquests by nd b ongols and Ma amelukes. The Mamelukes l Jews move back into e let e Saladin, an invasions by Tartars, Mo Yerushala ayim but few came. In 1267, Seven years after the last i c , invasion, the R Ramban came to Israel. He arrived in Yerushalyaim on the 9th of Elul. He wrot to his son "M m te Many are its f forsaken place and great is the es, s on. s ce, r ion fered. Jerusale is the most em desecratio The more sacred the plac the greater the devastati it has suffe desolate place of all. . . . There are te men who me on the Sab p en eet bbaths they hold services at their home. . . .Even in it destruction, it is an excee ts edingly good la and." The Ramb worked to rebuild Yerus ban shalayim. He took a ruined h t home and mad it into a shu It was read for de ul. dy Rosh Hash hanah that yea The Ramba then set up yeshiva. In on year, he sta ar. an ne arted a commu unity in Yerushaly yaim that lasted 700 years un 1948. The Ramban then left the city t return to Ac He finishe his d ntil e n to cco. ed peirush on Chumash and died at the age of 75. n d a

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 Rav Moshe Feinste M ein 7th of Adar. 5655 13 Adar 574 (1895-19 46 986)

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M rn 55 n Reb Moshe was bor on the 7th of Adar. 565 (1895) in Uzda, a suburb of Minsk, to R f Rabbi David Feinstein and d Rebbet tzen Foyga G Gittel. Becau he w a s b use born on the birthda of Moshe Rabbeinu, his parents nam him Mo ay med oshe. Reb Moshe was uni M ique from a ve young age. When was only ery 10 years old, he knew 410 blatt (820 pages) of Gemorah a Rashi; by heart. His m w ( and y main teacher was his father who was a Rav, but whe he became older he lea r, R en e arned under Rabbi lsser Z Zolman Meltz in zer d the Yeshi of Slutzk. In 1921, he became Rav of Luban and he remaine there for 15 years. Russia iva . ed was contr rolled by the Communists and they mad life very ha for Rabba C a de ard anim . Finally, in 1936, he e came to America wher he was gre A re eeted by many people excit that he wa in America In 1937, he y ted as a. e became th Rosh Yesh he hiva of Yesh hivas Tifereth Yerushalay on the L h yim Lower East S Side of New York. aDor Posek Ha Reb Moshe was recognize as the Gad Hador. H was asked thousands of questions i R w ed dol He f in halacha by people fro all over th world. Du b om he uring his life etime, he pub blished seve large volum en mes o f t h e I g r o s M o s h e with his answers to the question s. He also pu a ese ublished 13 volumes of Dibros Moshe, his com M mmentaries on the Talmu Reb Mosh felt a trem o ud. he mendous resp ponsibility fo or klal yisra Every day men, wome and childr would co ael y, en ren ome to him fo help, advic comfort, a or ce, and Brachos. Reb Moshe always made time for all of them, and made everyo feel impo R t one ortant. When he n got older, he decided not to go to Eretz Yisrae for a visit b el because he co ould not mak enough tim to ke me help all th people wh came to se him. he ho ee Reb Moshe wa niftar on Toanis Esthe in 1986 (5 R as T er 5746) at the age of 91. T There were ov ver one hundr and fifty thousand peop at the leva in New Y red t ple aya York. He was buried in Y Yerushalayim on Shushan Purim. 300,0 people ca P 000 ame to the le evaya in Eretz Yisrael. It w the largest levaya in z was Yerushala ayim since the second Bai Hamikdash is h. In Russia a The Communists tried to pe T ersecute the Rabbis in Russ and made teaching Tor a crime. T R sia rah They charged high taxes to Rabbis and wo h R ould throw th in jail by tricking them Reb Moshe refused to re hem m. e esign his job be ecause he did not want to create a chillul Hashem and because ther were no ot d re ther Rabbis le eft. His family was forced to live with his in-laws and two other p y h people in a roo attached t a shul. When om to the govern nment took ov the shul, a shoemaker built a room o ver b over the stove in his kitche where the e en Feinstein family could live. Reb Mo oshe learned through it all and kept his f t focus. When he had no notebooks he wrote hi chiddushim on any pape he could fin His family still has his notes that he s, is m er nd. y wrote on ledger sheets in between columns of nu l umbers. As a Rebbe mportant Adv vice: Reb Mos would oft say that th she ten here are two t things that sta in the way of and y Im someone becoming a Talmid Choch b T hom. Either he doesnt app e preciate how g great is the To orah, or he is depressed over not doin as well as he wanted. Someone who studies with hasmada sho d ng S o ould never be depressed Chazal prom that if so d! mise omeone learns Torah they will be succe essful. As long as a Talmid tries g d his best an keeps tryin Hashem will help him! nd ng, w Reb Moshe wa always con R as nsiderate of ho he answer his talmid ow red dims question so their fee ns elings would not be hurt. He would always answer a qu t w s uestion in a w ay that made the student fe important feel t. Once, a st tudent was ve poor. He didnt want to come to yes hiva because his parents c ery d o couldnt pay tu uition

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