The rabbanim and leadership of Yeshivas Ponevezh have issued a stirring letter urging talmidim to intensify their Torah learning on behalf of Ponevezh masmid Rav Chaim Berman, who remains in extremely critical condition at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer.

Rav Berman, regarded as one of the central pillars of the yeshiva for decades, is currently hospitalized while sedated and on a ventilator. In response to his condition, the yeshiva’s roshei yeshiva and rabbanim are calling on students to undertake a special commitment in his merit: adding at least fifteen minutes of learning to each seder.

The letter describes Rav Berman as a singular figure in the Torah world, praising a level of diligence and consistency that the authors say has been unmatched for generations. The rabbanim urge every bochur to strengthen his commitment to Torah study as a source of merit for Rav Berman’s complete recovery.

The letter bears the signatures of Rav Chaim Peretz Berman, Rav Dovid Levy, and yeshiva nosi Rav Eliezer Kahaneman.

Rav Chaim’s condition is reported to be extremely serious. He remains hospitalized at Tel Hashomer, where he is receiving intensive medical care.

The letter states in part:

“Since our master, the true gaon, the righteous foundation of the world, the holy figure Rav Chaim Berman, shlit”a, became ill recently, a great glory has been removed from the house of our lives. He is a living Sefer Torah, an eternal light in our holy yeshiva for more than seventy years, from his youth until this very day.

“And with Hashem’s help, there are medical avenues that can assist in extending his years and enabling him to continue learning Torah and serving Hashem. Our responsibility is to aid him through prayer and the accumulation of merits.

“And since the greatest influence visible to every member of the yeshiva is his extraordinary diligence and exceptional devotion to maintaining the sedarim without interruption, day and night, every learning session and every fixed shiur, and he is unique in this generation in this regard for seventy years, without equal, and perhaps even among previous generations, and now the yeshiva lacks the tremendous merit of having such a righteous person in our midst, whose presence strengthened us constantly, it is incumbent upon each of us to increase our efforts in this area. This will be a tremendous merit for him, that we strengthen ourselves in his avodah so that the continual service not cease, and that the yeshiva continue to be a place of Torah labor and faithful observance of its schedules.

“We ask every member of the yeshiva to accept upon himself to strengthen his observance of time and diligence. Each person should undertake, at the very least, to begin learning fifteen minutes earlier each day during one of the sedarim than he has done until now. In addition, every individual should consider other ways in which he can grow stronger.

“And through this may the verse be fulfilled: ‘He has redeemed my soul in peace, for many were with me.’”

All are asked to daven for Rav Chaim ben Reisha Reizel.

{Matzav.com}