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A chronicle of faith, hope, survival, and blessings against all odds: letters of hope and faith from Rav Zalman Sorotzkin s children
Photos: Family archives
The central train station in Vilna was eerily quiet on that chilly day toward the end of 1940, in the early days of World War II. The city, along with the rest of eastern Poland, was occupied by Soviet forces, and for the time being, the 55,000 Jews living in the city, in addition to another 15,000 Jewish refugees from German-occupied Poland, were safe. In a few months, Germany would attack Soviet forces in Eastern Europe and occupy Vilna, creating a ghetto and sealing the fate of its Jews. But, then, there was still a possibility of escape.
A Place of Tears
Forty years ago I learned the secret of the tears at Kever Rashbi. Now, as we cry together, I feel compelled to share it
Kever Rashbi is and has always been a place of tears. Tears of anticipation of parents bringing their three-year-old sons for an upsheren, tears of joy celebrating the light of Torah brought down to this temporal world by the storied Tanna. Now, it’s the site of oceans of tears, of loss, of pain, of absolute shock all mingled together in that hallowed place where centuries of tears have been shed.
While all this is well known to all of us, there is something about this “place of tears” that is not as well known, which I feel compelled to share. First, a little background is in order.
Rav Dovid Kamenetsky brings Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzenski to life. “Everything we have today, the entire yeshivah world, is from Rav Chaim Ozer”
Photos: Eli Cobin, Personal Archives
Walking into Rav Dovid Kamenetsky’s Har Nof apartment, I’m immediately struck by the resemblance to his father, Rav Shmuel, whose picture adorns the living room wall along with a photo of his grandfather, Rav Yaakov. My conversation with this modest talmid chacham, who is also a self-made scholarly historian, shows me just how much his life’s work has been influenced by his illustrious father and grandfather.
The atmosphere that permeated the Kamenetsky home, relates Reb Dovid, instilled a deep connection to Jewish history along with a sense of pride in the rich legacy of the Litvish mesorah.