The Novominsker Rebbe was someone who was known as a gevaldige Baal Acharayus. Rav Zwiebel mentioned that in all the years he dealt with the Novominsker Rebbe in Agudas Yisroel, the Rebbe never said he was too busy to deal with an issue that came up. Even in the last tekufah, when the Rebbe was so weak and ill, he used his last kochos to write a letter of chizuk to Klal Yisroel, that was printed literally hours before his petirah.
The achrayus of the Novominsker Rebbe was not only to Agudas Yisroel, but also to all the many and varied obligations he took upon himself, including Torah Umesorah, T.A.G. (an organization dealing with the nisayon of technology), Project Witness (an organization to help memorialize Churban Europe), the Novominsker Yeshiva, and many others. The guidance of the Novominsker Rebbe helped so many, including Agudas Yisroel, in many crucial and difficult shailos. Some examples of the above include dealing with how Klal Yisroel should live amongst the Umos HaOlam, and how our community should deal with those who are trying to enact laws against our lifestyle (such as laws against shechitah, Milah, our chinuch system, etc.). He also led us in terms of how to live our lives, both personally and as an organization, with emes and ehrlichkeit. He would frequently say that we must live with emes, because it is the emes (asey haemes bishvil shehu emes).
In 5740 (40 years ago), Rav Shneur Kotler zt”l came back from the Knesiah Gedolah of Agudas Yisroel HaOlami (held in Eretz Yisroel), and sat next to the Novominsker Rebbe. Rav Shneur told others that he was so impressed by the Novominsker Rebbe, that he felt that there is great hope for the future, as the Rebbe will help lead Klal Yisroel for many years to come. Boruch Hashem, Rav Shneur’s vision was ful lled. Rav Zwiebel said that just as we have been led by the Novominsker Rebbe, so too Klal Yisroel will continue on, Im Yirtzeh Hashem, led by other Gedolim (yibadlu leorech yomim), to continue on for what has been accomplished until now. Many maspidim mentioned how moser nefesh the Rebbe was for Klal Yisroel and each yachid. By the Rebbe, the needs of others were his own needs. Another thing the Rebbe was known for was being dover emes, both in his heart and in how he spoke. Every word he spoke was “getzeilt”, measured and decided upon with precision. He knew exactly what he wanted to say and said it in a way that would clearly represent his understanding of Daas Torah. As an example of the above, when the Novominsker Rebbe would speak at the Agudah Convention, it was like a State of The Union Address for a President. Just like the President spends much time thinking about how he will speak and what ideas he will present in this seminal speech, so too the Rebbe spent time and effort crystalizing exactly what he wanted to say and discuss in this speech, expressing clearly the Daas Torah of Agudas Yisroel.
Another thing the Rebbe was able to accomplish was to unify all different and varied groups of Klal Yisroel. In addition, the Novominsker Rebbe felt the pain of Chilul Kavod HaTorah and Kavod Shamayim. If this happened, it actually gave him physical pain, as he felt it so deeply. The Novominsker Rebbe not only saw what had to be accomplished, but also was realistic about his idea. Even when he thought an idea had merit, he would also decide if the solution was practical and whether the tzibur was able to live up to this solution. This is keeping with what Chazal have told us that one must not make a takanah (enactment) that the community is not able to live with and uphold. The Rambam writes that the Torah is so makpid that the heart of the Melech, should not be swayed, as Libo leiv haam, his heart is the heart of the nation. We see how a Melech is not just an individual that happens to be in charge of the nation, but is actually someone whose heart is the heart of the nation. The Novominker Rebbe was such a person that really lived a life that was attached to Klal Yisroel. Just like the heart pumps blood to the entire body, so too a king (and by extension a true manhig Yisroel) feels the pain of Klal Yisroel and does his best to help the Klal, as much as he can.
Once the Novominsker Rebbe was asked to help a certain person. The next day he called another manhig to ask him if he could also assist in the cause. When this manhig’s Rebbitzen told the Rebbe that her husband was not available, he started crying, saying how important it was that this person receive the chizuk he needed. While we may not be able to properly appreciate the complete gadlus of the Rebbe, we must still do our best to express our thanks to him for all he did for us, both collectively and individually. Chazal tell us that there are three kesarim, (crowns): Torah, Kehunah and Malchus. The Rebbe had the Keser Torah, as he was a Marbitz Torah for sixty years. This included teaching Torah as a Rebbe and Rosh Yeshiva in Breuer’s Yeshiva, Beis Medrash LaTorah (otherwise known as the Skokie Yeshiva), and the Novominsker Yeshiva. He had the Keser Kehunah, as he was an Admor, a Chassidishe Rebbe, who led a chashuve kehillah. The Keser Malchus of the Rebbe has already been described based upon the Rambam, as libo leiv kol Yisroel. He led Klal Yisroel as a melech, with the true feeling and appreciation of Klal Yisroel.
A melech lives for his nation, and for the Rebbe, he likewise didn’t live for himself, but for Klal Yisroel. Maspidim also mentioned that this was one of the reasons that the Novominsker Rebbe was so accepted by many people (even those who one would think are removed from his approach). One of the reasons for this is that people appreciated that he was truly dedicated to Klal Yisroel lishmah, and not just someone who was doing things for himself or for his personal agendas. One example of this was the way the Rebbe started and ran his Yeshiva. It was truly special that the Rebbe started a Yeshiva, and took complete acharyus on the existence of the Yeshiva.
He also spent many hours learning and giving shiurim in the Yeshiva. However, with all the above, he still hired others to make sure the Yeshiva was run properly, without having the kavod of him or his children being the Rosh Yeshiva or Menahel. He opened the Yeshiva to help Klal Yisroel and fulfill a need in the community, not to get kavod or for his own desires or personal interests. Meforshim say that Pirkei Avos was the bechinah of derech eretz kadmah laTorah. Similarly, the Avos HaKedoshim (who are of course related to Pirkei Avos, as implied by using the same lashon) also are the foundation of Torah and mitzvos.
We can say that the Rebbe also represented the inyan of Derech eretz kadmah laTorah. He had the great bekius and iyun of learning so many parts of Torah (and giving so many shiurim, shmuessen and writing seven important seforim). It must be emphasized that he also had the foundation of Pirkei Avos and the inyan of the Avos HaKedoshim. He had a special and phenomenal understanding of the Parshios dealing with the Avos HaKedoshim and the inyanim of Matan Torah and the foundations of Klal Yisroel. Also, he would often emphasize to his talmidim how they should not only fulfill mitzvos as halachos, but rather realize that they are doing them as Bnai Avrohom, Yitzchok VeYaakov, whose neshamos were there at Matan Torah. Maspidim said that perhaps this gadlus was one of the reasons the Rebbe’s Daas Torah was accepted by so many. It also helped him to understand the answers to so many questions (such as the questions asked about chinuch). Many of these questions were extensions of the basic understanding the Rebbe had of the yesodos, of the Avos HaKedoshim.
His personal gadlus helped him to give so much to the tzibur, and through giving to the tzibur he was able to elevate himself. Kibud Av Vaem was another great maalah that the Rebbe represented in his life. When his father was still alive, he would closely watch his father’s words and actions at the Seder, instead of trying to tell others about his own chiddushim and peshatim. In the hakdamah of the Adas Yaakov, the Rebbe talks about how he was greatly inspired from the mesirus nefesh and hasmadah that his father (the previous Novominsker Rebbe zt”l) had for Torah. The Rebbe’s mesorah was ki tov sachrah mikol sechorah, the Torah is greater than all other professions. We know that the Torah tells us that Aharon HaKohen told Moshe Rabbeinu the statement of “Hayitav beainai Hashem?”. We see that Moshe Rabbeinu immediately understood that one must live with the mantra of living to do what Hashem wants. The Rebbe zt”l lived with this understanding as well. He despised kavod and didn’t even like to be in the limelight. Why then did he wind up being in such public positions, which go together with kavod? The answer is that the Rebbe lived his life with doing what Hashem wanted and would bring more kavod shamayim. If he felt something was the right thing to do and was what Hashem wanted, he did this, even if it was not what he himself would have wanted.
Rabbi Boylan - Flatbush Jewish Journal
