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The years 1917-1921 were years of prosperity and flourishing for the Zionist movement and for the revival of Hebrew culture in Kamyanets Podilskiyy. Until that period, there was almost no record of this city in these territories in the Eparchy and the large-scale activity and achievements in the field of national revitalization on the part of the cities and the nearby towns to a certain extent overshadowed it. As a regional city, various government institutions with their clerks and administrators were mainly concentrated in it, and many of its Jewish residents earned a living as lawyers, mediators, lobbyists, hotel owners, and more. The trade and crafts in the city did not exceed the normal limits of every town, and Jewish industry was almost completely absent. One thing set it apart for the better from the rest of the surrounding cities: it had several government high schools, which, despite the entry difficulties faced by Jews, also attracted many from the nearby towns. On the other hand, Hebrew education was neglected and retarded to a considerable extent and, apart from the “Cheders” and “Yeshivas” of the old-fashioned type, there was not a single modern institution, such as the “Updated Cheders” or the Hebrew schools, which had been established and operated for years now in several nearby cities, such as Zhvanets, Dunayivtsi, Kupyn and more.

With the outbreak of the 1917 revolution, a new wind blew through the Jewish settlement in Kamyanets Podilskiyy. Thanks to the nationalist awakening that began throbbing in the hearts of all the peoples of the country in those days, and especially thanks to the young Jewish students, who thronged then from all of the surroundings to the educational institutions in the city, after they opened

The “Moledet” School Committee *With the permission of “Yad va-Shem,” the memorial authority of the Holocaust and heroism.

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their gates wide for them as well - the Zionist movement began to leave its mark there as well. Zionist groups from various ideologies were founded, among them “Tse'irei Tsiyon,” “Po'alei Tsiyon,” “He-Halutz,” “Tarbut,” and more, and also Hebrew schools and kindergartens, evening Hebrew classes, a library, a choir, a community center, and more were established. The young revival movement made waves in the frozen public life, and many of the old and half-dead community institutions were revived and renewed. Thus, for example, the Hebrew Community Committee was established, which was composed by means of elections of all the Jewish parties in the city, and the institutions managed by it or under its supervision were henceforth placed on democratic foundations.

The Zionist Youth Organization “Ha-Techiya” in 1920

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The music organization “Kadima” in 1919

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“Tushiya” school, fired the Hebrew teacher, and replaced him with a Yiddish teacher. However, 3 months later, after the Soviet government was expelled from the city by the Ukrainian army, the teacher returned to his position and the school - to its Hebrew program. It is worth mentioning that the students opposed the Yiddish program and many of them preferred to leave the school during those three months than to submit to the decree of the Yevsektsiya.

A second important place in the Hebrew revival movement in Kamyanets Podilskiyy was occupied by “Beit Ha'Am” [Community Center] and the evening classes in Hebrew given there. “Beit Ha'Am,” which contained 3 spacious rooms and a large hall in one of the streets populated entirely by Jews, served as a center for all the Zionist youth in the city. It was where the assemblies and the meetings, the celebrations and the lectures, were held and where the various actions on the part of the youth groups were organized to spread the Zionist idea among the masses. Indeed, the highlight of all these activities were the evening Hebrew classes that took place there throughout that period. In this institution, teenagers between the ages of 15-16 from different social levels and positions studied, among them also apprentices and high school students. The curriculum was: Tanakh, Hebrew, Hebrew literature, and the history of the people of Israel. Usually there were 2-3 classes in the institution with 50-60 students. Tuition was minimal and those without means were freed from it. Some of the graduates joined the local “He-Halutz” as members, “Ha-Mitnadvim ba-Am,” headed by Yehoshua Salzman (Malchi, a member of the Kiryat Anavim group), who later immigrated to Israel. “Beit Ha'am” was for a short time the creative home of the revival of the Hebrew language in the city, and within its walls could be heard the sound of the lively and fluent Hebrew speech. Every evening it served as a meeting place for youth activists and in its rooms, bustling with the joy of young life, a new Hebrew generation full of strength and courage was forged for a great future of building a nation and a country.

Next to “Beit Ha'am,” there was also a literature club called “Bamatenu,” whose members included the teachers of the institution and its employees, and among the other activities of the club (lectures, banquets, etc.) it is worth noting the publication of a literary collection, which, due to lack of means, was printed in a limited number of copies by spirograph. The collection included articles on various questions and problems (among them an article on self-defense), poems and stories, critiques and articles from the provincial towns. Among the participants were the writers S. Shafan (deceased) (then a high school student), A. Ashman and the writer of these columns (two of the institution's last teachers at the time).

Alongside “Beit Ha'am” a troupe of theater lovers was also established, which over time was an institution of

The administration of “Kadima”

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its own. The purpose of the band was to present on the Jewish stage, which at the time was mainly a place to present uninspiring and tasteless plays, the modern literary play in Yiddish and Hebrew. The plays took place in the halls of the municipal theater and were very successful. Plays by Asch, Hirschbein, Dymov, Chirikov and more were performed. The band's program also included performances in the provincial towns, but due to the difficulties of transportation and the road disruptions that arose on the occasion of the frequent changes of regime, this section of activity was fulfilled only once in one of the nearby towns (Lyantskorun=Zarechanka).

As an institution in itself, there was also “Kadima,” the mem's and women's choir, founded and managed by the brothers Yaakov and Israel Brandman (the latter currently conducts the Ha-Poalim Choir in Tel Aviv), who received their musical education in Petrograd and later dedicated themselves to the development of Jewish music in their city. Apart from the concerts it held itself and the partial performances at all the Zionist celebrations and parties, “Kadima” held a “Kabbalat Shabbat” reception every Friday evening in its clubhouse with a program of Jewish folk music. During the days of the first Soviet regime in the city, the entire choir was recruited to sing at the Bolshevik propaganda meetings and this recruitment freed the members of the choir from forced labor, which was imposed on the residents then.

In 1920, “Ha-Moreh,” a professional association of Hebrew teachers in the city, was also founded. The association was considered a branch of the national union of Hebrew teachers in Russia and a section of the Ukrainian teachers' union in Podolia. At the beginning of its operations, the association mainly aimed to benefit the material situation of the teacher, especially those engaged in private teaching, and for this purpose it opened a cooperative store for its members. The economic situation of the city was very difficult at that time, food supplies were very limited and often at exorbitant prices, and only cooperative institutions received supplies from the central authorities for their members and at discounted prices. The “Ha-Moreh” cooperative, therefore, saved some teacher families from real hunger.

This is how the remarkable and constant activity of the Hebrew revival in Kamyanets Podilskyy branched off in several different directions, which in total constituted a quite important and noticeable achievement in the field of Hebrew education and culture. The sleepy regional city, lagging behind in the Zionist movement's campaign, infected its daughters and sisters in Podolia and at certain points even surpassed them. And all this without instructions and guidance from the outside, without “Shlichim” and leaders from high central places, but rather with the independent forces of the local youth.

Indeed, when the Soviet stranglehold was lifted on the Zionist race within the borders of its country, the soft and refreshing branch of revival was cut off in this city as well, and the institutions of Hebrew culture, which were nurtured by its devoted and loyal sons-builders, were closed and eliminated one by one. A few years after the period in question, 1917-1921, the holy fire of the revival of the Hebrew language and culture still flickered here and there, boys and girls still worked hard to study Hebrew in small groups and in private rooms, but in the end, the whispering ember in the pile of fertility was completely extinguished.

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It has been about fifty years since I finished the Blovstein girls' elementary school in Kamyanets Podilskyy, and I would like to mention in connection with this jubilee some details about the aforementioned school that was unlike the others in our area and where I spent six years of my childhood. It seems to me that these were years of light, joy, and much happiness for all my friends with whom I sat on the study bench, especially for me, being fatherless. In this school, I found a lot of understanding and consideration on the part of my teachers and educators, or rather on the part of my female teachers, who made up the majority of the teaching staff. And when I now bring up my memories of those days, I am filled with feelings of gratitude and appreciation for them, who knew how to set before us as a goal in life not only the acquisition of the knowledge taught in every school, but also showed us a path to lofty ideals.

When I was 7 years old, I was accepted as a student in the preparatory level A. My sister, who is two years older than me, already studied there in the first grade. The curriculum of the school was for six years. The institution could serve as an example and model for excellent education in the academic and social sense, imparting general human values and the values of Judaism and Zionism.

The school was attended by girls from all social levels among the Jewish population in our city. Tuition was graduated: the rich and the wealthy paid three rubles a month, the middle class two rubles, and those of little means one ruble. It is worth noting that never was a student sent home for not paying tuition on time. The dress of the students was uniform. A gray dress and a blue apron, and during celebrations and vacation days - a white apron. The purpose of these modest uniforms, in their singular form, was to make the poor and the rich equal, so as not to cause jealousy between the daughters of the rich and the daughters of the poor.

At school we studied Hebrew according to the Hebrew in Hebrew method, the chronicles of Israel, the main prayers,

The Blovstein School for Girls

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Russian and its literature, German, general geography, arithmetic, and handicrafts (sewing and embroidery).

And may our teacher for Hebrew and the chronicles of Israel, Rabbi Pinchas Hasid (z”l), a man in his middle years, a man of spirit and an enthusiastic Zionist, be fondly remembered. When he was lecturing with great enthusiasm about the Land of Israel, his eyes would overflow with tears and he was very emotional and excited. It goes without saying that we were greatly influenced by his lessons, which instilled in us a love and a yearning for the land of our ancestors.

The teacher of mathematics and the German language was Sophia Levovna Blovstein, the daughter of the founder of the school, Rabbi Leib Blovstein. She was also the director of the institution. This Sophia Levovna was an ideal personality and a gentle soul. The language of instruction was Russian, as required by the authorities. The teacher was called, as was customary in Russian at that time, by the girl's name and her father's name such as: Sophia Levovna, Anna Isakovna, etc. The students were called by their family names only. In addition to the aforementioned directorate, there was a supervisory committee for the institution who mainly took care of its material condition. The members of the committee were: the lawyer D. S. Schleifer (Chairman), Ms. Schleifer, Ms. Wahrhaftig, and Ms. Goldentrester. In addition to its concern for the existence of the school, the committee also gave its opinion on its general direction.

The government inspector in charge of elementary schools would often visit the school. The visits of this gentile inspector would always strike fear into both the teaching staff and the female students because we would study neither according to the official program of our superiors nor according to the textbooks recommended in the official program. Our teachers tried to expand our knowledge and to impart it according to more sophisticated textbooks, even if not recognized by the authority. We had, therefore, to be on guard and during the aforementioned inspector's visits to take the official textbooks he wanted out of the drawers of our school desks.

Despite the great efforts of the students at this school of ours, not everyone completed their studies there.

The “Kadima” Committee

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In 1908, two of our great national poets, Shimen Frug and Leib Yaffe, visited our city. The purpose of their coming to Kamyanets Podilskyy was to arouse the nationalist feeling and to strengthen Zionist awareness among the Jews of our city and the surrounding area. On the occasion of this event, the local Zionist Organization organized a mixed choir of boys, “Talmud Torah” students, and girls, students of our school.

The choir was conducted by Mr. Menashe Brandman, the regular conductor of the choir and the orchestra of the opera in the municipal theater. The theater excelled in its beautiful interior arrangement, which created an intimate atmosphere for its visitors. The reception at which the two aforementioned guest poets appeared took place in this theater. The guests read from their works and the choir sang from their songs and from the songs of Zion from the days of the first and second Aliyah.

“Kamyanets Podilskyy, a magnificent community, a large and important city in Israel, its people God-fearing and thoughtful of His name, pursuers of charity, philanthropic, influential people and officers, charitable and important, benevolent, giving to the poor, they do God's charity” - such is the description of the character of this holy community sixty-eighty years ago in the words of my grandfather, R. Gedalyahu the Ritual Slaughterer, z”l, in the introduction to his book “A Committee of Sages” (Warsaw 1899), and it was like that even in the period after that.

A magnificent community, in which the life of Torah and Hasidism and the traditional Jewish way of life of holy communities in Israel since time immemorial abounded. A large and important city in Israel.

There is little historical material about the life of the community in the distant past. From the period of two hundred years ago, the matter of the debate with the Frankists that took place in Kamyanets in 1757 by their count before Bishop Dembowski and a burning of the books of the Talmud after it on November 13, 1757 is known. Of the rabbis participating in the debate, the name of the rabbi from Kamyanets is not mentioned (although in Eisenstein's “Otsar Yisrael” R. Yosef from Kamyanets is mentioned, but this is probably a mistake and should be understood as from Kremenets). About seventy years later, R. Yitzchak Meisels, the father of the Rav R. Dov Ber Meisels who was famous as a supporter of the Polish uprising, was a rabbi in Krakow and finally in Warsaw.

Among the rabbis who headed the community from about seventy-ninety years ago, I remember the names of the Rav R. Zalman Lerner z”l, who was called by the people of our city by the name R. Zalminyu, and they used to mention him

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with awe and admiration as one who would be called holy; and the Rav R. Dov-Brish Eliash z”l (the grandfather of Dr. Mordechai Eliash z”l, the first Israeli ambassador in London, and his brother (may he live long!), Mr. Alexander Eliash, one of the dignitaries of Jerusalem), who was known as a prodigy and exceptional in Torah. In the book of my grandfather z”l mentioned above, an agreement from him was printed from the 19th day of Menachem-Av the year of /tamlo”kh betsyo”n/^[b] (Tarna”d=1893-94) was printed and this is his title at the top of the agreement “the famous and genius Rabbi for praise and glory, sharp and knowledgeable, who smells and judges and arrives at practical Halachic rulings, living up to his principles, may his name be honored, the rabbi, Dov Ber (may his light shine), presiding judge of here Kamyanets Podilskyy.”

For a while the famous tzaddik and genius, the Rav R. Avraham David Wahrman zatsa”l, author of “Da'at Kedoshim” and “Birkat David,” who was known as the rabbi of Buchach in Galicia, a student of R. Levi Yitzchak of Berdychiv and R. Moshe Leib of Sasiv of blessed memory, sat on the chair of the rabbinate in Kamyanets. It is true that he did not continue in this rabbinic office and returned to Buchach. And as I heard from my father z”l, the reason for his preferring Buchach - was the abundance of men and women scholars there, with which Kamyanets could not compete. But there were excellent scholars in Kamyanets who were well-versed in all aspects of Torah, whether from among “holy vessels” or from among those for whom Torah was not their expertise; some of them “wealthy and charitable” and some poor and destitute - their common ground that Torah and its study was their spiritual life all the days of their lives. There were even “Jews all year round” who set times for Torah study in a group and in public, some for the Gemara, the Mishnayot, or for “Ein Ya'akov,” and some for the Parasha of the Week or for studying the “Or Hayyim” on the Torah. And there were those who kept “the law of Israel” daily, and the words of the Torah and the sayings of the Sages were spoken fluently by them.

From about sixty years ago until the year 1920, the Rav R. Israel Gutman z”l, a descendant of the Besht and of R. Pinchas of Korets z”l, sat on the rabbinical chair in Kamyanets Podilskyy. He was one of the followers of Husyatyn and he himself was “half a rabbi” in his manners and behavior. He had refined intellectual facial features, clever and shrewd and involved with mankind. He went to the United States and died there.

Kept in my memory is the name of someone special in our city, whom everyone called R. Hershli Hasid and he was like his name, righteous and a Hasid in all his ways and in all his actions. And I heard from my father z”l that, in addition to his Hasidism and his righteousness, R. Hershli was a great scholar and had a wonderful knowledge of the Bavli and the Yerushalmi, the books of the Sifra and the Tosefta, and the first and last adjudicators. And his wisdom was great and his deeds were great.

Among the great scholars in our city was my grandfather, R. Gedalyahu z”l mentioned above. He was the grandson of the famous saintly Rav, R. Gedaliah of Linits zatsa”l, author of “Tesu'ot Hen” about the Torah and one of the students of the Besht and of the Maggid of Mezhyrichi zatsa”l and, as my grandfather z”l writes about him, he was “the 52nd generation of scholars and heavenly saints, from whom the teaching did not stop generation after generation.” My grandfather published his book, “Va'ad Hachamim,” at the end of his life when he was blind, in which there is “Kuntres Derekh Tshuva” about an exchange of questions and answers with the geniuses of his generation.

Members of his family continued after him in the work of the ritual slaughterer in Kamyanets: my father, my teacher z”l R. Yehoshua

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Eliyahu - he was also known as great in the Torah and Hasidism and had high charitable values - the husband of R. Gedaliah's granddaughter, Rivka, she was my mother (may she rest in peace); so after R. Gedaliah, his son-in-law, R. Avraham Rechter z”l, continued, the husband of his daughter, Miriam - from his second wife - who perished brutally by the hands of the Nazi oppressors in Kamyanets and with her daughter, Haya (Haika), and her husband and their sons - may God avenge their blood.

The life of the community was imprinted with the stamp of Torah and tradition, and public life was centered in synagogues and the various Beit Midrash. But there was one street that was unique in that it was named after the synagogues that were located there, the “Shul Gasse.” On this street was the Great Synagogue, the main synagogue in the city. This is where the Eruv wire hung and this is where the rabbi used to give his sermon on Shabbat HaGadol and Shabbat Shuvah. Near it, on the downhill slope of the street, to the left of the Turkish minaret, was the Smotrych Beit Midrash. To the right of the Turkish minaret stood, one behind the other on a slope: the Tailors' Synagogue, the most magnificent of the synagogues in the city, which excelled especially in the beauty of its Ark; below it - the Cobblers' Synagogue; and below it - the “Kov'ei Itim la-Torah” Beit Midrash.

There was a large concentration of Beit Midrash buildings and enclaves on Dolgaya Street (Yatke Gasse) - the street of the butcher shops that was near Shul Gasse. Here were: the Sadigura enclave; the enclave of R. Gedaliah Heller (Zinkaver

A destroyed synagogue from the time of the Holocaust

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enclave) the enclave of R. Yitzchak the Blacksmith; the enclave of R. Moshe Yonah Rubinstein (Boyaner enclave); the Stambolski Synagogue; the Beit Midrash of the Rabbi R. Naftali Rabinovitch (R. Naftalzis Shulechel); the Axelrod Synagogue; “Nos'ei ha-Mitah”; the Ashkenazi Synagogue; the Blacksmiths' Synagogue; on the other side of this street were: the Husyatyn Hasidim Synagogue; the Chortkiv Hasidim; the Weislovich Synagogue; and the Mermelstein Synagogue; to the list of synagogues that were in the city center should be added the Rabinowitz Synagogue and the Sheindelis Synagogue.

Apart from this, there were large and small synagogues in the other parts of the city: in “Plan Hadash”; (the new city) in the Polish suburb, in Karvasari, in Zinkovitz, and in Podzamcze and others.

The prayer rite in all the churches was the Hasidic Sephardic form, except for the Ashkenazi Synagogue. On the Shabbats of Arba Parshiyot and of Shabbat HaGadol, they used to say the “Yotsrot” and they also said “Krovetz for Purim.” They would even say the “Yotsrot” during the prayers of the three pilgrimage festivals and most of the piyyutim during the Days of Awe (including the piyyutim that are in the “Kedusha” and also the piyyutim that are between Malkhuyot, Zikhronot, and Shofarot).

On the three pilgrimage festivals they would “say” the three Megillot of the Song of Songs, Ruth, and Kohelet, not from the parchment and without a blessing.

They would “say” the Haftarah on Shabbats and holidays, the whole congregation together with the Maftir and the Maftir would say only the blessings in chanting.

In the last years before the First World War, the traditional way of life was already loosening up and there were many breaches in the wall of religious life in the city. The “Cheders” became far fewer and the young men of the enclaves almost disappeared (apart from the Yeshiva students about whom more will be said further on). Many of the wealthy and affluent sent their sons and daughters to public schools, and the sons who strayed from traditional Jewish life would be brought to prayer on the holidays, and especially during the Days of Awe. And there were the young men with the shiny buttons looking in the prayer book like a rooster at “human beings” and all the words of the prayer like a sealed book in front of them. However, the life of the community as a whole was imprinted with the stamp of tradition, which was reflected in the essence of life in all its corners.

Kamyanets was mostly a city of Hasidim. I don't recall the names of any significant “Mitnagdim” except for the name of one “Litvak” from among the wealthy of the city, R. Shaul Pines (may he rest in peace). The rest were more non-Hasidim than “Mitnagdim” and the Hasidim called them “Ba'alei Batim” (bourgeoisie).

In general, the Hasidim were divided into two camps: the Hasidim of the House of Ruzhin - in Boyan, Sadigura, Chortkiv, and Husyatyn - and the Hasidim of Zinkov, Medzhybizh and Kopychyntsi. The Hasidic leaders of the House of Ruzhin had their courts across the border in Austrian Galicia and their followers would travel to them. Whereas the Hasidic leaders of Zinkov and Medzhybizh would come to visit their followers. In Kamyanets itself, there was R. Naftaltsi whom we mentioned above, but he had almost no followers from the townspeople. Apart from the rabbis whom we mentioned, Hasidic leader from the Chornobyl dynasties would come to the city. From time to time there were also “grandsons” who did not have an audience of Hasidic followers and did not behave as Hasidic leaders, but Hasidim helped them thanks to their ancestors.

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The Rebbes would set up “Shulchanot” in one of the synagogues on Friday nights or at the third meal and, in addition to their followers, rabbis and ritual slaughterers and other important people from the city would come.

On weekdays, many people, men and women, came to the Rebbe's lodgings to be counted and to be personally blessed by submitting notes and “ransoms.” In particular, a crowd gathered at the doors of the Rebbe of Kopychyntsi in Galicia, the Grand Rebbe Heschel zatsa”l - the son-in-law of the Hasidic leader of Husyatyn - who was famous as a “miracle worker.” The Rebbe of I?cani, R. Menachem-Nachum Friedman, the son-in-law of the Hasidic leader of Chortkiv zatsa”l, also visited Kamyanets, received with great respect by all the followers of the House of Ruzhin and the important members of the community.

A special event was the visit of the Hasidic leader of Sadigura, R. Avraham Yaakov Friedman zatsa”l, to Zhvanets near Kamyanets in the year 1912. Since the imprisonment of the one from Ruzhin and his escape to Sadigura, his descendants were not allowed to come to Russia and the visit to Zhvanets was a new development and was limited to this town only. Because of this, many of the Hasidim in Kamyanets went to Zhvanets, some for Shabbat and some on weekdays. This Hasidic leader from Sadigura immigrated to Israel during the occupation of Vienna by the Nazis, settled in Tel Aviv, and died here some years ago.

Of the Hasidic leaders from the House of Beit Zinkov, the brothers R. Pinchasele and R. Moishele zatsa”l used to visit Kamyanets. The Hasidic leader, R. Israelnyu of Medzhybizh, the son-in-law of the Rav R. Avrohom Yaakov of Sadigura zatsa”l, also visited our city.

Of the Hasidic way of life in our city, I especially remember the style and practices of the Boyan Hasidim and similarly the Hasidim of the other Ruzhin houses. These, as mentioned, would travel to the Rebbe and this trip involved quite a few difficulties. It was not easy to get a passport to go abroad and they would try to get a “tsetil” - a temporary license - which allowed leaving Russia and returning, and entering Austria. And in those days, there were ultra-Orthodox Jews who were strict with themselves to not be photographed, although according to the law there is no prohibition except for an obvious human form. But when the thing was needed for a trip to the Rebbe, they had to give up the strictness.

At that time there was still no rail transport in Kamyanets and they had be carried by cart to Larga and from there to continue by train, but of course it wasn't “express.” At last, after tiring wanderings, they reached the desired district - and it was all worth it.

They would travel at regular times, mostly on holidays. On the return, the Hasidim would bring with them, apart from the teaching that they had heard from the Rebbe, also new tunes composed by the court cantor, R. Pinchas (Pinye) Spector (may he rest in peace), one of the students of the famous Nissi Belzer. He was a gifted composer and his works gained a reputation in the Hasidic world. In particular, his “Yedid Nefesh” was published and disseminated. The tunes were of two types: compositions for Shabbat songs, prayers, piyyutim; and “Freilichs” for singing and dancing. His works were sung in chorus during the “Shulchan” and then afterwards, the “Freilich” tunes, as mentioned. And the tunes were “tradeable” and spread among all the Hasidic circles, and it was part of the forms of sacred worship that led to the hours of exaltation and elevation of the soul.

They would sit together even on weekdays, especially on the days of a public celebration of a saintly rabbi. They would sit with a glass of schnapps and have “Eier Kichlich” for dessert, toasting “Le-Chaim” and talking about the saintly ones and their words. On Shabbat, after the prayer, they would go to the “Kiddush” in one of the group's houses and while enjoying the physical delights of Shabbat, they would sing the songs of Pinye and others.

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Pleasantness and festivity were part of the group's parties on the long winter Friday nights. Pure white snow, and intense and pinching cold from the outside, and the radiant whiteness of Shabbat, and a hearty warmth, mixed and pleasant inside, in the room and in the soul. Sitting together sweetens the secret of conversation about righteous people, their ways and their sayings. Shabbat songs, “Kol Mekadesh,” tunes of devotion and longing, an atmosphere of sanctity and spiritual elevation, hours of satisfaction “like the world to come.”

Among the followers of Boyan, I especially remember R. Alter Rubinstein z”l. One of the well-known rich people in the city, the son-in-law of R. Gur-Aryeh Hornstein z”l from Radomyshl, a famous and known Hasidic family with Torah and greatness in one place. A type of “silk and velvet.” Smart and shrewd. Pleasant ways and pleasant speech. As is the way of the Hasidim, he would wear a silk kapoteh and a velvet cap on Shabbat and holidays. And so, elegant in his Hasidic clothing, he would carry with him on Sukkot the etrog and the lulav from his home in the new city to the Boyan enclave on Poshtova Street. Wealthy and generous, abounding in charity and kindness, and his home was wide open. And the Hasidim who came to his house would multiply happiness and celebrations of the memory of a saintly rabbi, especially on Simchat Torah and Purim. It goes without saying that these “guest visits” “turned the house upside down” with its luxurious rooms and furniture, expensive curtains and tapestries - but what does it have to do with? … Usually, in those hours of high spirits, all the partitions were removed and the wealthy were not distinguished from the poor. Each man with his arm on his friend's shoulder fit together in the dance and, in the enthusiasm of the dance, you even saw one of the Hasidim, R. Shalom Nissenholtz (may he rest in peace), embracing R. Alter Rubinstein and lovingly calling out, "Hoy Altronyu…”

R. Shalom Nissenholtz (may he rest in peace) was unique. They said about him that in the winter days, he went on foot to Sadigura. Then he continued to travel to Boyan and his righteous faith was unmatched. At bad times, when he was “drunk,” he would sing Cossack songs in their language. Once when he was tipsy and they saw him walking home in the wrong direction, they asked him: Where are you going, R. Shalom? - “Priyamo du Boyano” (straight to Boyan). was his answer.

And here's a typical saying of his:

- When the righteous Messiah comes soon in our day, we will go out to face him with song and tunes, with a drum and dance, celebrating and rejoicing in the redemption of Israel and - we will continue to travel to our holy rabbi (may he live a good long life) …

Similarly, I heard from Mr. Yosef Cohen about another of the same group: at one of the parties during the difficult years of the First World War, the Boyan Hasidim sat and discussed the issue of redemption and the expectation of the coming of the Messiah who would redeem Israel from the terrible troubles. One of the participants answered, he was R. Avraham the Scribe z”l, and said in these words: I - I don't know. I do not know Messiah. But I know the Rebbe and I want to see him… so much!

The young man of the enclaves almost disappeared before the First World War, as mentioned above, and the students of the “Cheders” dwindled. At the same time, a Yeshiva began to be founded in Proskorov (= Khmelnytskyi) under the leadership of the Rav R. Shmuel Zosia Bloch z”l from the country of Lithuania - and it didn't take hold there, but its seeds continued to grow in Kamyanets. The ultra-Orthodox of the city woke up to strengthen the Torah and its study and in the year 1907-1908

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the “Tiferet Yeshiva” was founded. The founders and heads of it were the brothers, R. Shmuel and R. Avraham Breitman z”l (later the last rabbi of Kamyanets) and the head of the Yeshiva was the Rav R. Shmuel Zosia Bloch, mentioned above. The two Breitman brothers, Chortkiv Hasidim, were wealthy and privileged and impressive looking. R. Shmuel had a firm and energetic character and conducted his presidency in the management of the yeshiva with strength and vigor - and with success. Not many of the townspeople sent their sons to the Yeshiva, but not many days had passed and its name became famous and students flocked to it from cities and towns near and far.

After the Rav R. Shmuel Zosia Bloch was elected rabbi of Orynyn near Kamyanets, my teacher and rabbi, the Rav R. Yechiel Michal Tribuch Margalit z”l, who after his immigration to Israel served as the rabbi in Neve Sha'anan and a member of the rabbinate of Haifa, was invited to serve as head of the Yeshiva.

The program included: beginning Gemara, study of Gemara and Tosafot and commentators in detail, and finally also adjudicators, without the purpose of getting a teaching permit for the students.

R. Moshe Hirsch Baynvelman z”l, who endeared himself to the students with the purity of his heart and his cleanliness, inside as out, and his dedication of heart and soul to his educational role, taught Gemara for Beginners.

The class of advanced students, who reached Gemara and Tosafot and even to self-study, heard the lesson of the supervisor, R. David Stern z”l, who was brought to the Yeshiva from Poland. He was an energetic and affectionate man. At the same time, strict and pleasant. He used a firm hand to discipline the students, and on the other hand, he was nice and would indulge in a cordial and pleasant conversation. He would even spice up his conversation with parables and pictures that draw the heart.

The Yeshiva supervisor, R. David Stern

Although they were not intended for instruction nor for the work of the ritual slaughterer, indeed while they were studying the tractate Hulin, the students went to the municipal slaughterhouse to familiarize themselves tangibly with the laws of slaughter and non-kosher food, the lung examination, and other details regarding the internal organs. Those who studied “Yoreh De'ah” with “Pri Megadim” deepened their studies in Tur and in Beit Yosef, “Drisha u-Ferisha,” and even in the Acharonim.

A special one in the group of graduates was

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R. Shlomo Feingold z”l, who was called “Shlomo Ga'on” because of his sharpness and his depth, his clear logic and common sense.

The place of study for all the members of the Yeshiva was in the “Kov'ei Itim La-Torah” Beit Midrash. They studied persistently and diligently until late at night. And there were those who managed to get up and study early in the morning until prayer time. And on the weekly Friday nights, there was a “Mishmar” to study until the morning light. When it was a Mishmar night at “Kov'ei Itim,” they would go in at the end to drink a glass of hot milk for the price of half a kopeck from the wife of R. Raphael the Scribe in the courtyard at the corner of Shul Gasse and Yatke Gasse streets; and on Mishmar nights in the Boyan enclave, the wife of the furrier, R. Nachum Helak (may he rest in peace), one of the residents of the same courtyard, would prepare kahwa for the members of the Yeshiva. She would even serve them a delicious “malai,” but it was taken out of the oven.

Some of the members of the Yeshiva outside the city ate “days” with hosts; and there were some whose parents took care of the needs of their lodgings.

At fixed times and vacations, they would hold parties for the students. For the Tu BiShvat party, some of the dignitaries of the city were invited, the “fifteen fruits” were distributed, and speeches and sermons were given on matters of the day. In particular, the joy increased at the Purim parties at R. Shmuel Breitman's house.

The Yeshiva was called “Tiferet Yisrael,” named after the saint R. Yisrael Merizhin zatsa”l, and was a Hasidic yeshiva in essence and point of view. The members of the Yeshiva also organized an association called “Oreach Le-Tzadik,” which pooled financial means to travel to the rabbis. And when the Rebbe of Sadigura happened to be in Zhvanets, as mentioned above, many of the Yeshiva's students went to be there.

Generally, the Yeshiva continued to progress and develop and there was every chance for a good future. The First World War came and shook it to the core. The students scattered and dwindled and the Yeshiva barely continued its existence until it was finally closed.

There was no religious Zionist organization in Kamyanets and there was even opposition to Zionism in the Hasidic community. But Zion and Jerusalem lived in everyone's heart. And the yearning for redemption from time immemorial did its part. Even in the years before the First World War, the buds of religious Zionism sprouted among the young members of the Yeshiva. And with the great Zionist awakening at the beginning of the revolution in Russia, these buds grew and sprouted, even bore fruit.

There was then a time of unrest and a great awakening in the Jewish public all over Russia, which also did not skip over our city. Even the religious young people in Kamyanets came in contact with the religious organizations that were formed in the big central cities at the time: “Netzah Yisrael” in Petrograd, “Masoret ve-Herut” in Moscow, and “Ahdut Yisrael” in Kyiv. The last was the closest and was headed by the Rav R. Shlomo Aharonson z”l, the Rav R. Levi Grossman z”l, (may he live long!) the Rav R. Shlomo Yosef Zevin, the Rav Yaakov Berman, and more. Rabbi Berman's name was famous in Ukraine at that time, not only as a speaker and a religious leader, but as one of the excellent and successful orators in the debates between all the Zionist streams and the “Bund.” He was invited to visit Kamyanets at that time and the tickets for his lecture were already sold, but due to the road disruptions in those days, the visit did not

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take place. In the meantime, a civil war became stronger and the confusion and commotion increased all over the country. A regime goes, a regime government comes, and the first to suffer disaster in all this anarchy were the Jews in all their settlements.

With this, the Zionist activity continued and in many places “He-Halutz” associations were organized, including in Kamyanets. A training farm was established where the “He-Halutz” members trained themselves for agriculture. Even the writer of this list was for some time among those being trained at this farm, but the problem of kosher food prevented continuing. Then consideration was given to the foundation of a special group of religious pioneers. Despite the difficulties of connections with outside the country, we exchanged letters with the “Mizrachi” Center in Poland headed by the Rav Yitzhak Nissenboim z”l in Warsaw, but without practical results.

In the meantime, in the summer of 1918, Professor Israel Friedlander z”l visited our city having been sent by the “Joint” in the United States. The writer of these columns met with the guest at the house of the Kleiderman family who hosted him in connection with the group of religious pioneers and, at the end of the conversation, Prof. Friedlander took with him a letter from the “He-Halutz Ha-Mizrachi” in Kamyanets to deliver to the “Ha-Mizrachi” federation in America. After that same day, Professor Friedlander was murdered by Ukrainian murderers on his tour of Yarmolyntsi in the surrounding area - may God avenge his blood.

Some time later, some young men from the aforementioned group crossed the border into eastern Galicia and their goal - to immigrate to Israel. Here they were in contact with the “Mizrachi” centers in Poland and Galicia in their efforts to reach the desired district. In the meantime, disturbances broke out in Jaffa - in the year 1920 - and immigration to Israel stopped until it resumed in the winter of 1921. Finally, after a year of hardships and wanderings, they reached Tel Aviv on January 31, 1921.

This was on the “honeymoon” of the revolution in the summer of 1917, on the day of Lag Ba-Omer 1917. At that time, the Russian army was facing a general offensive at the front and the main headquarters under the command of General Brusilov was then located in Kamyanets. On that same splendid day of spring, a Zionist procession, also splendid, went out through the main streets of the city. The girls of Israel marched in white clothes, the school students marched with the radiance of youth on their faces and songs of Zion in their mouths, thousands marched, carrying Zionist banners and above them fluttering blue and white Zionist flags. Among the Gentiles who witnessed the procession were those who said to each other: “Kanitz Sveta!” “Židy edut du Palestini”… (The end of the world! The Jews are going to Palestine).

When the procession passed by the Chief of Staff's residence, General Brusilov came out to greet it. A military band played “Ha-Tikva” and the head of the army of Great Russia stood still and saluted in honor of the Zionist national anthem and flag…

Everyone who remembered the time of Tsar Nikolai and the expulsion of the Jews by Chief of Staff Nikolai Nikolayevich - which was almost over, stood open-mouthed and dumbfounded at this miracle. We were like dreamers: the beginning of “the end of days” … “and a wolf lives with a lamb”…

The honeymoons did not last and very quickly the dreams and aspirations, human and Jewish, evaporated.

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The October Revolution came and with it the civil war. Chaos in all the cities of the country and the communities of Israel were drenched in a flood of blood. Not even Kamyanets was spared the evil and during Shavuot 1918, Petliura's people ravaged the Jews of the place and about eighty people of Israel were murdered there in a day. Riots in and around Kamyanets and in all the cities of Ukraine. Petliura's people from here, the Denikin camps from here, and the rest of the rebellious gangs took out their anger at the Jews. Sword and killing and loss.

The wolves did not change their nature.

And once again the sun shone and from San Remo came a bright and refreshing message: the British mandate over the Land of Israel for the fulfillment of the Balfour Declaration was approved, for the establishment of the Jewish National Home in the Land of Israel. The Poles then ruled the city and there was a period of relative peace. Upon hearing the good news, the Rav R. Israel Gutman z”l then commanded people to gather in the synagogues and the various Beit Midrash, to light candles, as on the days of public celebrations in memory of saintly rabbis, and to recite “Hallel” without a blessing.

And still in front of my eyes is the image of my teacher and rabbi, the Hasid R. Moshe Hirsch z”l, as he stands with awe and mercy and trembling with holiness, and lights the candles for the time of saying “Hallel” in the Husyatyn enclave, and his face glows with the glow of a sense of redemption…

And once again, a regime goes and a regime comes - and the people of Petliura return to the city, and in the midst of Yom Kippur in the year 1919, the entire community of Israel, men and women and children, from the synagogues and the various Beit Midrash led by the Rav Gutman and the Torah scroll with him, came out to Governor's Square (Guvernatorskaya Ploshad) - to welcome Petliura's troops in their entry from Podzamcze; and the women of Israel spread flowers on the path of the murderers…

Indeed, this time the wolves did not devour… and the crowd quietly returned to the end of the fast day. But the whole depth of the abyss of humiliation and the horrors of destruction of diaspora life horrified the hearts in preparation for the horrors to come - and a short time later they did indeed come…

Original footnotes:

1. Most of the things on this list are specific to the fields of Torah life and Hasidism in Kamyanets Podilskyy, as they are preserved in my memory and according to rumor. Return
2. After R. Zalman, R. Isaiah Dayan z”l held the high office, who was not given the title of rabbi, as was the custom in much of the Diaspora, that the successor of a great and holy rabbi was not called by the same title - the comment of Mr. Yosef Cohen of Kfar Hasidim. Return

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