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[Page 58]
Rabbi Meir-Tzvi Putchinski, z.tz.l.
Head of Yeshiva in Kamenetz-Litowsk[1]
by Rabbi Yakov Bobrowski
(Head of Yeshiva “Ḥafetz-Ḥaim” in Baltimore, United States)
Translated by Allen Flusberg
In his youth he [my grandfather] learned Torah from Rabbi Pinḥas Michael, rabbi of the community of the city of Antopali[2] and the author of Divrei Pinḥas, a commentary on the entire Talmud. Studying Torah day and night, he excelled in his studies and became famous as a prodigy throughout the entire area.
When he grew up and was ordained as a rabbi, he was appointed as a yeshiva head in our town. The townspeople related to him with great respect and courtesy, referring to him as “Rabbi Meir Hirsch[3], Head of the Yeshiva”.
The yeshiva was crammed with students, and he taught several generations of them. They had flocked to him from Kamenetz and beyond, some from nearby and some from far away, for him to teach them Torah. Among his students one should mention especially the Prodigy of Tavrik[4] and his brother Rabbi Reuven Burstein[5]. The latter served for many years as the community rabbi of our town Kamenetz; he perished in Auschwitz together with the members of his community.
In those days the study method in most of the yeshivas was based on the technique of pilpul[6]—to derive one thing from another and to make never-ending successive interpretations. My grandfather, Rabbi Meir Hirsch, had a different way of understanding the Talmud and the Poskim[7]. He would explain the statements of the Tanaim and Amoraim [earlier and later rabbis of the Talmud] with sweeping logic, and without extreme pilpul. I heard a great deal about his power of teaching and the simplicity of his explanations from his students in Kamenetz.
Rabbi Avraham Stempanitski told me the following story: “Once your grandfather happened to overhear a dispute in the synagogue between two sharp students. He listened as they used pilpul to argue about the significance of a single, solitary word, to which each of them attached a “deep meaning”. Calling the two students over, he gently explained to them the principles of studying Torah—whose interpretation provides knowledge of the halacha [practical Torah law]—are to understand the principles of the law and the context using logic and reason, and not through just pilpul that does not amount to anything.”
Footnotes
The Yeshiva of Kamenetz-Litowsk[1]
by Yeḥiel Belizowski
Translated by Allen Flusberg
From the mists of the past, memories of my experiences in the Kamenetz-Litowsk Yeshiva come back to me. I can no longer recall what led me to come to this particular town—far from where I was born—to study in a yeshiva that was small compared to many others located throughout Lithuania.
One fine day in the year 1910, I arrived at the Yeshiva of Kamenetz and presented myself to the Heads of the Yeshiva, who welcomed me with open arms. My very first issue was how to obtain “days”. It was customary then that each yeshiva pupil—particularly if he was from a poor family—received his meals at the tables of townspeople, each of whom supplied him with a meal one day a week [a “day”]. Even students from wealthier families, who could afford to support themselves without difficulty, were also eating “days”, apparently adopting this practice to fulfil the statement: “You shall eat your bread in salt and drink water in small measure.”[2]
In those days I was very young and inexperienced, and in addition I was shy; and so it is understandable that obtaining “days” was as hard for me as splitting the Red Sea. I did not have the nerve to knock on a door to imploringly ask the lady of the house if she would kindly and good-naturedly be willing to provide one “day” a week of meals to a yeshiva pupil. Many of the yeshiva students tried hard to set themselves up for “days” as quickly as they could. Since the competition was obviously stiff, each of them hustled to beat the others to secure meals for himself. I was at a loss and desperate, not yet having obtained even a single “day”. But then I got lucky—some enterprising yeshiva student came by and offered to “sell” me seven of his “days”. Energetic and brazen, he had secured a total of fourteen “days” rather than the seven he actually needed, so that he could sell the other seven. I was pleased to have been given this opportunity and gladly went along with the transaction.
I had no idea that the townspeople—and especially the housewives of Kamenetz—were eagerly waiting for students to come by to ask for “days”; they were glad to support Torah students, so that by fulfilling this important mitzva [commandment] they would be sure to earn themselves a share in the Next World.
[Page 60]
Near the yeshiva there was a small candy store. The proprietress was an elderly widow with a refined nature and a good heart. She did her best to create a pleasant, home-like atmosphere in her shop. The yeshiva students, who had been severed from their parents' homes while still in need of parental love and care, found in this shop a place to relax and some solace for their pining souls. And so a student might be quite pleased when he arrived for his “day” meal at a lady's house—but the lady, busy with something else, offered him some money in lieu of a meal. He would spend that money on candy in the widow's shop.
The yeshiva students were young, ranging in age from 12 to 14, and so needed guidance from the heads of the yeshiva. There were no class schedules, no set hours. The pupils studied from early morning to late into the night. They ate their meals hastily, so as not to waste time that could have otherwise been applied to studying Torah. Most of the pupils were studious and diligent. Once or twice a week they studied all night, until it was time for morning prayers. Those nights were termed mishmar [night watch]. Obviously not all those who attended mishmar were able to stay awake; many of them fell asleep before midnight, stretched out on study-hall benches.
The two Heads of the Yeshiva, Rabbi Hirsh and Rabbi Moshe, stuck around in school as late as they could—not only to supervise, but also to help the students with advice, with instructions and with explanations of what they were studying.
Rabbi Hirsh and Rabbi Moshe were brothers, but they were very different from each other physically and in other aspects. Rabbi Hirsh was short and thin, alert and agile, sharp-witted and devoted heart and soul to Torah study. In contrast, Rabbi Moshe was portly and clumsy; his speech was calm and patient, and his knowledge of Talmud was unparalleled.
Rabbi Hirsh devoted himself to spiritual matters, which were under his supervision. Rabbi Moshe took care mostly of administrative matters—he was in charge of funding for the school, and it was he who made the final decision on how much financial aid each student received.
These two brothers lived together peacefully and affectionately, with great respect for one another. They would refer to one another in the plural, calling each other “you” instead of the familiar form “thou”[3]. They explained it as their way of showing respect for Torah learning. Both were extremely charitable; they were God-fearing and modest. They loved the Torah and treated all people with respect. They never imposed their authority over the students and were not overly strict; rather they spoke to them gently, in calm voices. In return the pupils treated them with respect and esteem, and studied diligently.
This town also had its share of brave Jewish heroes. Any Gentiles who might have considered rampaging on market days were afraid of these mighty Samsons and did not dare go after the Jews.
I will always remember Kamenetz-Litowsk with a trembling heart and with great nostalgia.
Jewish Kamenetz-Litowsk is gone and no longer exists. May its memory be an everlasting blessing.
Footnotes
The “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva[1]
by Leah Bobrowski-Aloni (Tel Aviv)
Translated by Allen Flusberg
The “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva, also known as the Yeshiva of Kamenetz-Litovsk, was founded in the year 5657 (1897) in Slobodka[2], a suburb of Kovno[3], which was the capital of Lithuania. The yeshiva was founded by Rabbi Hirsch Rabinowitz, and it was named in memory of his father, Rabbi Yitzhak Elchanan, the rabbi of Kovno. Rabbi Moshe Denishevski, the rabbi of Slobodka, also devoted himself to establishing and maintaining the yeshiva.
In the year 5664 (1904), after the yeshiva had been in existence for seven years, Rabbi Boruch Ber was brought in—following the recommendation of Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik of Brisk—to officiate as head of the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva.
With the outbreak of the First World War in the year 5674 (1914), the yeshiva experienced its first tribulation: the directors and members of the yeshiva were forced to leave Slobodka and to move to the city of Minsk (in White Russia[4]).
When the battlefront approached Minsk, the yeshiva moved further east, settling in 1917 in the city of Krementchug[5]. After the World War ended, the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva was forced to leave Krementchug when the Bolsheviks got the upper hand. And because the Lithuanian government also refused entry to the members of the yeshiva, it was only after much effort that they succeeded in reaching Vilna and renewing their study there.
The Jews of Vilna, headed by the great Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzenski, treated Rabbi Boruch Ber and the members of his yeshiva with respect and affection. From the years 5680 to 5686 (1921[sic]-1926) the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva resided in Vilna. However, the desire to escape from the hustle and bustle of the big city motivated the yeshiva management to move from Vilna to a small town, a quiet cul-de-sac. And thus the yeshiva arrived in our town, Kamenetz-Litovsk, in Elul 5666 (1926).
The community of Kamenetz-Litovsk, as well as the residents of Zastavya and the colonies, received the arrivals joyfully and with great respect. That day was like a town holiday, a day when everyone took off from work. Everyone was dressed in holiday clothing.
[Page 62]
They marched out, young and old, with the young people's orchestra leading the way. When this procession reached the outskirts of town, a chair of honor, upholstered in velvet, was brought out, and Rabbi Boruch Ber was asked to sit on it. The chair was raised high in the air, and Rabbi Boruch Ber was carried aloft in the procession with singing, dancing and orchestral music, all the way to the yeshiva building.
That evening a holiday meal was arranged in several homes along Brisk Street in honor of the yeshiva students. Chaya-Golda the cook had her hands full, although she was also helped by other women of the town. The people of Kamenetz welcomed the members of the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva and did all they could to make their settling-in pleasant and to provide everything they needed.
The people of Kamenetz had a great affection for Rabbi Boruch Ber, whose saintliness illuminated the community and its residents, and whose reputation made our town famous throughout the entire Jewish world.
The years in which the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva resided in Kamenetz turned out to be its most productive period. And the number of yeshiva students steadily increased until the temporary quarters of the yeshiva were too small to accommodate all who came to study Torah there.
When the lack of space in the yeshiva building was brought to the attention of Mr. Gershon Galin, a native of Kamenetz who was now living in the United States, he took upon himself the task of erecting a new, spacious building in our town to house the
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“Knesset Beit Yitzhak” Yeshiva. Mr. Galin visited Kamenetz for this purpose. He purchased a parcel of land and contributed the first sums to the building fund.
[Page 63]
On the 12th of Elul 5692 (1932)[7], the building foundation was laid in a great celebration. All the townspeople were there, and many residents of Zastavya and the colonies contributed significant sums that were beyond their means.
On the eighth day of Hanukkah 5697 (1937) [sic][8] the dedication of the yeshiva was joyously celebrated. Rabbis and leaders from the entire region participated, as well as the entire community of the town, who were so proud of their new yeshiva building.
This was the final “Simchat Torah”[9] for the Kamenetz Yeshiva…On the outbreak of the Second World War the yeshiva students were forced to disperse to many different lands. Among these students, some reached Israel and others the United States.
The magnificent yeshiva building that had been erected with so much toil was taken over by the Russians, and to our great sorrow it was converted into a movie theatre.
Footnotes
[Page 64]
Rabbi Baruch Dov Leibowitz,
Head of the Yeshiva of Kamenetz-Litovsk[1]
by Rabbi Yitzhak Edelstein[2]
Translated by Allen Flusberg
The area where the prodigious Rabbi Baruch Dov[2], of blessed memory, grew up was the city of Slotzk[3], where he was born in the year 5626[4]. In the city of his birth Baruch Dov experienced an atmosphere filled with the light of the Torah and a tradition of prodigiousness. In Slotzk the officiating rabbis were Torah prodigies. Young Baruch Dov studied in cheder[5] until he was accepted as a student by R.[6] Yisrael Yonah's, who had also been the teacher of the great Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik[7] when the latter was a child. While he was still studying with R. Yisrael Yonah's, Baruch Dov was already displaying erudition and a keen sharpness in his own original innovative interpretations. In these innovations, which he also put into writing, he was like a fountainhead. At the age of fourteen he gave a lecture on halacha[8] in the Slotzk synagogue. Elderly men, some in their eighties, stood in awe before the young boy with the penetrating gaze who astonished them with his sharp pilpul[9] and his remarkable proficiency.
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[Page 65]
The young Baruch Dov reached Volozhin[10] when he was 16 years old. He stood before the genius Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik and lectured before him on his innovative, exceedingly subtle Torah interpretations. In the first period of Baruch Dov's studies in Volozhin his yeshiva peers would taunt him for his pilpulism. As time passed Baruch Dov acclimated to the Volozhin Yeshiva and became close friends with the other students, all gifted, with great capabilities—the cream of the Torah youth. He grew close to his teacher, the great Rabbi Chaim, who viewed him as his spiritual heir and as the one student who was most capable of absorbing his teaching and his spiritual virtues. Baruch Dov was very attached to his teacher. When the great Rabbi Chaim would go out for a walk, Rabbi Baruch Dov would accompany him to hear the novel interpretations that he spoke of as he walked. As time passed Rabbi Baruch Dov grew even closer to Rabbi Chaim and was strongly influenced by his spirituality.
Rabbi Baruch Dov was appointed Yeshiva Head of “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” in Slobodka[11] in in the year 5664[12]. After that appointment his work and activity teaching Torah spread far and wide. During the First World War (1914), the “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” yeshiva was exiled to Minsk. When the war front approached Minsk, the yeshiva moved to Krementchuk[13]. During the hardships of the war his students found a safe haven with Rabbi Baruch Dov, who cared for them like a father. It is said that during the three days of battles between the Bolsheviks and the militia gangs, Rabbi Baruch Dov was sitting and teaching his Talmud classes in a cellar. Deep underground, in the shadow of death, he was able to clarify various issues in the Talmud that had now become clear to him. Then, after much difficult wandering along back roads, Rabbi Baruch Dov reached Poland together with his yeshiva, settling in Vilna.
For five years Vilna served as a way station for the Yeshiva “Knesset Beit Yitzhak”. Rabbi Baruch Dov, with his passionate will and enthusiasm to disseminate Torah teaching, came to the conclusion that he should move his yeshiva to a small, quiet town, where the atmosphere would be conducive to the dissemination of Torah and piety. Following the advice of the saintly prodigy, the author of “Chafetz Chaim”[14], may the memory of the righteous be a blessing, Rabbi Baruch Dov chose the town of Kamenetz, which was near Brest-Litovsk.
In the year 5686[15] Rabbi Baruch Dov moved his yeshiva to Kamenetz. Starting then the town of Kamenetz was transformed into a “kingdom of Torah” as the yeshiva entered its age of glory. Great Torah scholars, the best of the yeshiva world, began to flock to the yeshiva, knocking on its doors and longing to be accepted within. The image of the yeshiva “Knesset Beit Yitzhak” in Kamenetz is described as follows by one of its best students, Mr. Shmuel Warshad (who perished in the period of the Holocaust): “Even while you are standing outside you hear the sound of Torah study breaching the high walls of the yeshiva building, echoing far, far away…and when you enter the yeshiva you see before you a large choir of more than three hundred tempestuous souls that have crystalized into a single unit, from whom there sounds a marvelous medley of tunes. You have before you a miniature gathering of the exiles: the yeshiva is packed with youth from all of the Jewish Diaspora. The boys sitting here are from Poland, America, Germany, England, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, Hungary, as well as from the Land of Israel. What a feeling of seriousness and deep responsibility has seized each and every one of them. And the atmosphere is that of the fervor of Torah learning: blazing eyes, brows furrowed in deep thought, open books, and the lively give-and-take discussions of Talmudic subjects.”
[Page 66]
The yeshiva hall was never empty, not for a moment. After the sedarim[16] and between them, in the early morning hours, late into evening, and during the daytime, the young men are to be found in the yeshiva, learning and studying. In its regal tranquility, nighttime in the town of Kamenetz creates a special atmosphere that is particularly conducive to contemplating and analyzing all that has been learned during the day. Late into the night, when all the townspeople are fast asleep, the voices of the yeshiva students pour out into space, the sing-song of gemara study ringing out into the infinite vastness. There are those among the townsmen who come to the yeshiva specifically at night; they sit glued to their seats for hours at a time to absorb those eternal musical notes that are so full of longing. And even when the students go out to walk and get some fresh air together, they continue discussing words of Torah, using sophistry to triumph over one another in analysis of halacha.
Rabbi Baruch Dov presided over all the members of the yeshiva. He guided their path, his pure and fatherly spirit hovering over them and enveloping them. Rabbi Baruch Dov's house, a simple and humble place, was situated at the edge of the little town of Kamenetz, on Litwak Street. The members of the yeshiva were drawn to this house as if by magic cords. Rabbi Baruch Dov was vigilant about each yeshiva member, whether young or old, and was ready to serve them at any time. All day and even well into the night, his home bustled with words of Torah. Tirelessly, nonstop, Rabbi Baruch Dov provided his students with water drawn from his pure wellspring of Torah.
It was the desire of this great saintly prodigy to continue to live in Kamenetz in tranquility, but he encountered the fury of a serious economic crisis. In spite of his age and the precarious state of his health, he took the staff of wandering in his hand and traveled to America, to ask for help and to find a reliable source there that could keep the yeshiva going. Wherever he went in America he was received royally. The lectures he gave in the synagogues made a completely unforgettable impression. The administration of the Rabbi Yitzhak Elchanan Yeshiva[17] in New York sought to keep him there, offering him a position as head of the yeshiva. Rabbi Baruch Dov, however, replied as follows: “My students in Kamenetz hunger for bread, and you would like to take me away from them?” The members of the Rabbinical Agudah of America[18] also pleaded with him to stay there and officiate as their leader and president, but he didn't accept this offer either. He was attached to his yeshiva in Kamenetz with every fiber of his being.
Once he had returned from America, a new era in the life of the yeshiva began. The yeshiva grew in size and quality, all under the influence of Rabbi Baruch Dov, who continued giving his profound classes before hundreds of students, old and new. He found philanthropists who contributed to putting up a new building, and during Hanukkah of the year 5697[19] the new building was dedicated in splendor with the participation of dozens of renowned rabbis from Lithuania and Poland.
[Page 67]
In Elul of the year 5699[20] the Second World War broke out. The Germans invaded Poland; the danger approached Kamenetz, causing fear and panic throughout the town. Even in this time of distress, Rabbi Baruch Dov did not lose his equilibrium, his mental stability, his staunch faith in God. That evening the members of the yeshiva came into Rabbi Baruch Dov's house to recite Tehillim[21]. There was a sense of relief when the prayers ended.
In the month of Heshvan of the year 5700[22], the Soviet Union proclaimed that Vilna was being handed over to Lithuania. Rabbi Baruch Dov decided to move the yeshiva to Vilna. Just before he left his house he kissed the walls that had absorbed his spiritual life; within them he had disseminated Torah for so many years. In the middle of the night a caravan of horse-drawn wagons left Kamenetz, headed for Vilna. Rabbi Baruch Dov sat in one of the wagons, curled up in a coat, surrounded by yeshiva students. He lived to deliver a number of discourses in the yeshiva transplanted to Vilna. Ten days before he passed away, he gave his last lecture with fervor and alertness, with as much energy as he had displayed in his early years. No one could tell that his days were numbered. But very quickly he fell ill, and on the fifth of Kislev of the year 5700[23], he expired, his pure spirit leaving his body. All of the House of Israel mourned this great, irreparable loss.
Rabbi Baruch Dov's wife, Fayge, used to grumble about her husband's behavior. She would complain to him that he was ignoring his health, not watching out for himself with respect to how he ate. It would happen quite often that when Rabbi Baruch Dov would find out that a yeshiva student was ill, he would not leave him to fend for himself. He would take him to his own home, where he would feed him the breakfast, lunch and supper that his wife had prepared for him. When her son Leib, of blessed memory, traveled to Radin[24] to study in the Chafetz Chaim Yeshiva, the Rabbi's wife, Fayge, decided to accompany her son so that she could pour her heart out to the Chafetz Chaim[25] himself. Certainly the Chafetz Chaim would decide who was right. When she arrived in Radin she went straight to the Chafetz Chaim. He was then busy, in the middle of a discussion with his yeshiva students. When he noticed that a woman had entered the house, he inquired who she was, and the moment he heard that she was Rabbi Baruch Dov's wife he stood upright in a gesture of respect, stating emphatically: “A colleague's wife is equivalent to the colleague himself.”[26] When the students saw their rabbi standing upright, they too stood up to show their respect. Taken by surprise by the honor they were bestowing on her, the woman completely forgot all the complaints against her husband as she suddenly experienced the great importance of her Rabbi Baruch Dov. “Now I see that it is worthwhile to tolerate everything from him,” she murmured, as if to herself.
Our teacher, the prodigious Rabbi Baruch Dov, was one of those people who possess a sacred spirit that arises from within their souls, purifying and refining the air around them—so that whoever comes near senses that he is standing in a place of holiness. He made a powerful, deep impression on everyone, for everything he said and everything he did was natural, upright and honest. The name “Rabbi Boruch Ber” encapsulated a treasure of desirable virtues, those of a person who had risen up the ladder of Torah and piety. He was a great genius who was affable, virtuous, truly humble and honest, devoid of any taint. This is how this great nurturing prodigy lived and how he departed from this world, as a man who was always soaring upward to the sacred and exalted, a mighty giant whose thoughts always dwelled in the wellsprings of eternity, and whose entire life consisted of a medley of Torah, prayer and lovingkindness.
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Translation of Hebrew: Talmud Torah and Yeshiva Ohel Moshe, founded by Meir Kohn in the year 5684[27], and named after: R. Yoel Moshe, son of R. Avraham Abba of blessed memory, who passed away on the first day of Shavuot 5680[28]; and his wife, the lady Kayla daughter of R. Moshe of blessed memory, who passed away on 12 Heshvan 5677[29]. |
Footnotes
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