The Royalty of Torah

A Conversation With Harav Elya Brudny, Shlita , Rosh Yeshivah, Yeshivas Mir, Brooklyn

By Avraham Y. Heschel

Can the Rosh Yeshivah share a message about Chanukah with us?

I have an insight about Chanukah that is a little bit of a chiddush, but it is inyana d’yoma — the vital inyan of haramas keren haTorah — and making the hanhagah of Klal Yisrael, make all of us, aware, “V’yei’asu kulam agudah echas laasos retzonchah b’levav shalem,” the supremacy of chachmei haTorah, of Gedolei haTorah as our leadership.

The Rambam says that one of the nissim of Chanukah is v’chazrah hamalchus b’Yisrael for nearly 200 years, until the Churban HaBayis.

The Ramban in Parashas Vayechi says that making malchus min hakohanim — the kingdom led by Kohanim — was an aveirah, as Yaakov Avinu gave the meluchah to Yehudah, as the passuk says, “Lo yassur shevet miYehudah.” Although the Chashmona’im were, in the words of the Ramban, chassidei elyon and, if not for them, Torah and mitzvos would have been forgotten from Klal Yisrael, they received a terrible punishment for becoming Kings. The descendants of the Chashmona’im were killed out by Hordus. The last years of Bayis Sheini, they didn’t even have a real malchus; it was an unfit malchus, led by monarchs who were avadim — Hordus, Agripas, Shlomtzion and Heleni.

So why, indeed, are we celebrating that“return” to malchus Yisrael? What did we gain from that malchus?

The answer is that only because of that malchus do we have today the concept of malchus. The Magen Avraham (Orach Chaim Siman 53) in discussing the halachah whether a son succeeds his father in the halachos of minuyim in Klal Yisrael, says in the name of the Rema MiPano that, in regard to any position within the category of kesser Torah, a son is not given preference, but from the days of Hillel Hanasi, they began to be noheg that sons do get preference. In his commentary on that Magen Avraham, the Machatzis Hashekel quotes several more lines from that teaching of Rema MiPano in Asarah Ma’amaros. Min haTorah, a serarah of Torah — like a Rosh Yeshivah, an Av Beis Din — shouldn’t go by inheritance. The Torah is munachas b’keren zavis — whoever wishes to learn Torah can do so. It isn’t something that is inherited. But because the malchus in Bayis Sheini was eino hogenes, there was a takanas Beis Din that from then on, kesser malchus is embodied in kesser Torah. Therefore, today we have a minhag that children take over from their parents the kesser of Torah, because the kesser of Torah today is ourkesser malchus.

Halomed Torah lishmah, nosenes lo malchus umemshalah — learning Torah lishmah gives a person malchus and memshalah. And we have to teach that to our children — respect for “Bi melachim yimlochu — through Me kings will reign” (Mishlei 8:15), which Chazal (Gittin 62a) teach us refers to talmidei chachamim.

But not only for our Roshei Yeshivah, not only for our Rebbe. For my friend’s Rebbe, for my friend’s Rosh Yeshivah. If you are Litvish, the identical stature of malchus should be for others’ Chassidishe Rebbe who embodies kesser Torah and kesser malchus. If you are Chassidish, have derech eretz and respect and kavod for your chaver’s Rosh Yeshivah, who embodies kesser Torah and kesser malchus.

This month was the 60th yahrtzeit of Harav Aharon Kotler, zt”l.

Rav Aharon symbolized the kesser malchus in kesser Torah. He represented the notion of hai malka Rabbanan.

I will share with you an illuminating memory.

Sixty years ago, I was already in my second year by Harav Pam, zt”l. He occasionally gave a shmuess, but otherwise, Rav Pam never spoke about something not relating to the Gemara.

That tekufah of Harav Aharon’s illness — it was Chodesh Cheshvan. Rav Pam kept on alluding to the machalah of Harav Aharon. He told us before the Holocaust, three Gedolim led Klal Yisrael: the Chofetz Chaim, Harav Chaim Ozer, and the Gerrer Rebbe [the Imrei Emes].

At the time, as a bachur, I didn’t realize the message in that historical mention. As I got older, I understood the depth of what Rav Pam was telling us then. Rav Aharon Kotler was leaving the world. Rav Pam didn’t want us to become selective, sectarian followersof Gedolim. No such thing. There were threethat led Klal Yisrael — the Chofetz Chaim, Harav Chaim Ozer, and the Gerrer Rebbe.

The Rosh Yeshivah had a memorable exchange with the Beis Yisrael, zy”a.

This was on Rosh Chodesh Iyar 5728, 55 years ago. It was my first day learning in the Achvah Shul — that’s where the Brisker Yeshivah was. It’s the first day of the zman. On the way, on Rechov Ralbach, I pass the Gerrer Beis Medrash. I see people congregating and I say, “Vos iz dos?”

They said, “People are leaving now to Europe, to America, and they are going to gezeigen zich with the Rebbe.”

“Is it possible to go upstairs to get a brachah?”

He said, “Yes, yes, go up, yes.”

I go up. There is a small line. The Rebbe is standing by an open door. I passed by there, and I was greeted, “Shalom aleichem. Vehr bist du?”

I must have said my name and that I came from America.

“Bist gekimmen? Du lernst in Yerushalayim? [Are you learning in Yerushalayim?] What did you do with your yetzer hara? Hust gebracht, hust gelost? [Did you bring it, did you leave it?]”

More than 40 years later, I was asked to speak Motzoei Shabbos in Yerushalayim for over 1,000 American yeshivaleit,  and the subject was “How do we make sure that our bachurim maximize their tekufah in Eretz Yisrael and not hold onto their American yetzer zachen, American shvachkeiten?

I was in Tifrach by my sister for Shabbos. It is a hot Shabbos day. And then it hits me — this is what the Bais Yisrael told me. Avada, you are going to have a yetzer hara here; a person has a yetzer hara. But which yetzer hara? Did you take with you the yetzer hara of American culture, or did you leave it behind and have only to contend with the Eretz Yisraeldiker yetzer hara?

That is what I based my shmuess on that Motzoei Shabbos.

In the lifetime of Rav Aharon, along with the Litvishe Gedolim in the leadership of Agudas Yisrael were also Chassidishe Rebbes, including the Novominsker Rebbe [Harav Nochum Mordechai], the Bluzhever Rebbe, the Boyaner Rebbe, and the Kopyczynitzer Rebbe.

At the recent Agudah convention, Rabbi Aaron Twerski bemoaned the fact that currently, there is no representation of the Chassidishe kehillos in the Moetzes.

Rabbi Twerski is a tayere Yid whom I personally value.

We happen to have more than one family connection.

Rabbi Twerski, zol zein gezunt, had an older brother, Reb Mottel, z”l, who was my father’s accountant. Reb Mottel told a cousin of his who was a close friend of mine how Harav Shmuel Brudny would go through the tax return with him and ask him, “Dos iz glatt kosher?”

“I never saw such a Yid before. I have to convince him that it is perfectly legal…”

Rabbi Twerski’s twin brother, Harav Michel, the Hornisteipler Rebbe in Milwaukee, is a mechutan of our family. His illustrious eidem HaravLeizer Geldzahler, zt”l, was my first cousin.

Reb Aaron Twerski is an ish yadua u’mefursam. He has all the credentials to say his opinion.

The Eibershter was mezakeh me to be in a position of influence in Agudas Yisrael, and it is from that viewpoint that I would like to reply to what he said.

There is nothing that, at any level of Agudas Yisrael leadership, whether Rabbinic or lay, is wanted more than to have as partners the Chassidishe leadership of Klal Yisrael, and overtures have been made to try to achieve this goal.

The Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah is intended to represent the leadership of Klal Yisrael that is aligned with the Agudah. Just like Roshei Yeshivah represent the Litvishe olam haTorah, the Admorim represent the Chassidishe olam haTorah. That is how the Moetzes of Agudas Yisrael in Eretz Yisrael works, and that’s how it worked in the first generation in America.

However, the reality is that today in America, the Rebbes of the larger Chassidishe kehillos have not joined the Moetzes.

We therefore have to find a different way to create a partnership.

A few years ago, a forum was established in which Rabbanim and Dayanim representing some of the Chassidishe kehillos, along with Litvishe Rabbanim at the helm of the Agudas Yisrael, held several meetings. During COVID, a key member of this forum, Harav Dovid Olewski, zt”l, Rosh Yeshivah of Ger, was niftar, and the meetings did not continue.

Ideas have been floated trying to come up with creative solutions for this issue.

If there is a creative way to establish leadership forums where the two kochos could be united, then members of the Moetzes of Agudah would be glad to be mishtatef.

In an informal way, there already is tremendous collaboration with the Chassidishe velt, particularly regarding the threat to chinuch in New York state. I have been by the Satmar Rebbe Harav Zalman Leib Teitelbaum, shlita, on at least two occasions at meetings in Wiliamsburg, and have worked closely with his son, Harav Yaakov Ber, the Sigeter Rav of Boro Park.

I have also visited the Satmar Rebbe Harav Aharon Teitelbaum, shlita, and the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, shlita, in Monsey about this issue. On the level of askanim, I consider myself very close to Reb Moshe Dovid Neiderman, Reb Yossie Grunwald of Pupa, among others. Anashim achim anachnu.

I grew up in Williamsburg. I never felt like an outsider in the Chassidishe world. When I learned in Lakewood 50 years ago, Litvishe and Chassidishe learned b’chavrusa, and we were and have remained yedidim ne’emanim — closest friends. We never felt any level of estrangement with Chassidim; kulanu b’nei ish echad anachnu [we’re all children of the same father]. One Ribbono Shel Olam, one Torah, and one Yiddishkeit. So it’s all di zelbe zach.

Can the Rosh Yeshivah please give us a brachah?

May we be zocheh to be mamlich each other’s malchus shel Torah, and we should all become an agudah achas b’malchus Shakkai. May it be b’karov, b’karov, b’karov. Like we say in Maoz Tzur — d’chei admon b’tzel tzalmon, hakeim lanu ro’eh shivah.