Time to Refill the Tank

It is amazing how time flies. It seems as if we just welcomed the year 5786, and now the year 5787 is knocking on our doors. As we approach the yemei hadin, we must remember that everything that happened over the past year was decreed on Rosh Hashanah. There is a story about someone who caught a cold in the winter and attributed it to the fact that he had gone outside without drying his hair, but his rov corrected him. “You didn’t catch a cold in the winter,” the rov said. “You caught a cold on Rosh Hashanah. That is when it was decreed upon you.”

This past year’s events have shown us very clearly how Hashem decides who will perish by fire and who by water, who will face the sword and who will encounter wild animals. Rav Shimshon Pincus, the master of mesholim, once explained the meaning of Rosh Hashanah with the analogy of a car that runs out of gas. When a fuel tank is empty, the car comes to a stop, and the tank must be refilled to enable it to move again. The same thing, Rav Pincus explained, happens to all of us every year. When we reach Rosh Hashanah, we must remember that we aren’t merely davening for our “cars” to continue running and not to stop. In principle, we have actually stopped; our tanks are empty, and we must daven for Hashem to refill them. We cannot continue existing at all unless Hashem decrees that we will receive a new infusion of life, health, and peace. And that is what we must daven for.

Every person in the world has his own unique set of hardships and challenges. This, too, reminds me of a comment of Rav Shimshon Pincus. Rav Pincus related that he was once davening in Kiviti, his shul in Ofakim, and he began reciting a mi shebeirach for a sick person after Krias HaTorah. Someone approached him to add another name, and then another person came up with a third name, and then someone added a fourth. This continued happening, Rav Pincus related, until he realized that there wasn’t a single person in the shul who didn’t have someone close to them who was in need of healing.

This week, incidentally, marked the one-year anniversary of the dreadful terror attack at the Ramot Junction in which six people were killed and eleven more were injured. This only drives home the point that here in Eretz Yisroel, we survive by miracles. Whenever I read a newspaper report about a terror cell arrested by the Shin Bet, I ponder the fact that we may have been spared from an unimaginable disaster. Today, for instance, newspapers reported that after an investigation by the Shin Bet and police, two Israeli Arabs were indicted for plotting terror attacks against soldiers. Another headline from today states that a few residents of the Galil were found to have sworn allegiance to ISIS and plotted to detonate a bomb on Har Habayis. And in a third news item, the Shin Bet confirmed that Prime Minister Netanyahu’s son was the target of an assassination plot; Yair Netanyahu was rushed to Israel after it was discovered that a group of terrorists working for Iran had been monitoring his movements in Miami and were preparing to assassinate him. As I mentioned last week, the phenomenon of kite terror has reemerged as well, sparking fears that what appears to be an innocent children’s game in Gaza may develop into something much more dangerous. And these are only the things that are known to us. As Rav Ovadiah Yosef once remarked, there is a posuk that states, “Hallelu es Hashem kol goyim—Extol Hashem, all the nations.” Why should we call on the nations of the world to praise Hashem, rather than praising Him ourselves? The answer is that sometimes it is only the other nations who are aware of their own schemes and how Hashem has thwarted them. We, the Jewish people, are sometimes completely oblivious to the miraculous salvations we experience.

Former Hostages Attend Slichos at the Kosel

We cannot help but be awed by the Slichos events taking place throughout the country. Every night brings thousands of mispallelim to the Kosel, perhaps even tens of thousands. This past motzoei Shabbos, there were over 50,000 people at the Kosel. The previous week saw even larger crowds, and the participants included six former hostages who were held in Gaza. The rov of the Kosel, Rav Shmuel Rabinowitz, participated in a special tefillah of thanksgiving together with the former hostages and the large crowd. The erstwhile hostages also recited tefillos for the soldiers of the IDF and the security personnel, for unity in Klal Yisroel and for peace and security in Eretz Yisroel. There was also a remarkable event at the bais medrash of Belz, in which Slichos in nusach Sephard were recited in the presence of the Belzer Rebbe along with the Rishon Letzion, Rav Yitzchok Yosef, and Rav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman.

Speaking of the Kosel, I reported to you in the past that four stones had been removed from the Kosel to be put on display in various places in the country, including the president’s residence, the Israel Museum, and then, not long ago, the airport. The appearance of a Kosel stone at the airport turned out to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back, drawing protests from many quarters, and the government announced that the stones would be returned to their place. This week, the final stone, which had been on display at the Kirya army base in Tel Aviv, was brought back to the Kosel plaza and returned to the Western Wall Heritage Fund. The stone, whose weight was estimated at about five tons, was brought to Tel Aviv many years ago. Over the past year, the chief rabbis of Israel and the rov of the Kosel issued calls for the Kosel stones to be returned to their rightful place. The subject was referred to the Knesset, and the decision was made to defer to the decision of the chief rabbis, who quickly issued an unequivocal psak requiring the stones’ return.

After the stone was removed from the Kirya, the commander of the base, Major General Ariel Barbi, asked the Antiquities Authority to replace it with a different stone that would continue to symbolize the same historic and spiritual connection. One week after the Kosel stone was returned, it was replaced with a rare stone dating back to the period of the Chashmonaim, which was previously part of the fortifications surrounding Har Habayis. The new stone was placed on display with a sign identifying its origin in Yerushalayim.

Fears of Escalation in Yehuda and Shomron

One of the hottest issues today is the ongoing conflicts between Jewish settlers in Yehuda and Shomron and the Palestinians who live in nearby villages. Tensions have been rising there for a long time, and the friction between the Jews and Palestinians has reached dangerous levels. I mentioned previously that even President Trump has been disturbed by the rising tensions and that Ambassador Mike Huckabee, who is fairly sympathetic to settlers, recently issued a very sharp condemnation of their activities. There were several incidents this Shabbos in which each side claims that it was in the right: The Palestinians insist that they are innocent and peace-loving and that the settlers attacked them, whereas the Jewish settlers claimed that they were defending themselves and, on certain occasions, retrieving livestock that was stolen from them.

On Shabbos, masked settlers entered a building where Palestinians were present, and a violent struggle erupted. IDF and Border Guard forces were rushed to the village of Qusra following a report that Israeli settlers had entered the village and entered into a violent struggle that including rock throwing in the direction of Palestinians and other civilians. When the Israeli forces arrived, dozens of “rioters” had taken over a Palestinian home while the residents were present. There were also reports of Palestinians who had sustained injuries, including a Palestinian woman whose injuries were not urgent and who was evacuated by the Red Crescent for medical treatment. The Israeli forces removed the rioters from the home and separated the Israelis and Palestinians in an effort to protect the residents of the home. On Shabbos, Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir held a number of meetings to discuss the incident. According to IDF sources, the chief of staff praised the soldiers for their quick response and instructed them to continue operating in the area to prevent additional conflicts. The army reported, “The IDF and Border Guard forces are on alert for further developments, while concentrating efforts in the area of these villages and on the prevention of further conflicts. Economic sanctions have proven effective in the past, and the security forces therefore confiscated three cars suspected of having served the rioters.” It is noteworthy that the army refers to Israeli settlers as “rioters.”

A massive furor erupted against the settlers, with one media outlet reporting that “based on the footage, the Jewish rioters adopted some of the raiding tactics of Hamas, arriving with masks and riding open Toyota pickup trucks into the villages of Qusra and Jalud.” Those were the pickup trucks that were reportedly confiscated.

After Shabbos, Netanyahu responded to the incidents with a public statement: “I forcefully condemn the criminal acts of violence that were committed in the villages of Qusra and Jalud by a handful of rioters who broke the law and caused tremendous harm to the community of law-abiding settlers, as well as disturbing the IDF in carrying out its duties and harming Israel’s international standing. Our security forces acted quickly, confiscating three cars and putting an end to the incident within a short time. The IDF, the Shin Bet, and the police are conducting a rapid investigation in the area, and I expect law enforcement personnel to arrest the rioters and bring them to justice very soon.”

Outrage Over Smashed Terrorist Memorial

The tensions in Yehuda and Shomron did not begin just now; they have been steadily mounting and gathering steam for a while. There is no question that this is a situation that could lead to life-threatening danger. An escalation in the area could easily lead to Palestinian attacks on Jewish communities, even the same kind of violence that we witnessed on Simchas Torah in the Gaza envelope. Security forces have sounded a warning about this danger time after time. Last week, MK Tzvi Sukkot (a member of Betzalel Smotrich’s party) took a step that caused passions to flare even more: He destroyed a monument in the village of Madama, near Shechem, while under guard from IDF and Border Guard soldiers. Sukkot entered the village along with three other Israelis for the express purpose of destroying the monument, which was erected in memory of a senior terrorist who was eliminated in Shechem in 2004. It sits beside a monument to the terrorist who carried out the suicide bombing at the Eshel Hashomron Hotel in 2002, along with other terrorists.

Sukkot issued a statement claiming that he took the initiative to remove the monument after the army ignored his demands to destroy it. IDF officers reported that Sukkot’s arrival at the village was approved and coordinated in advance, but no one approved the destruction of the monument. The soldiers who guarded the area reported to their commanders as soon as they realized what he was doing, and Sukkot was stopped immediately and removed from the village in a matter of minutes. An IDF spokesman reported, “The participants in this act behaved in a deceptive and manipulative manner, without authority and in complete violation of the arrangement that was approved, and they began to destroy one of the monuments in the village of Madama. When the soldiers realized what was taking place, they contacted their commanders, who instructed them to halt the activity and leave the village.”

This incident ignited a wave of outrage. Almost all the party leaders on the left and in the center released statements condemning Tzvi Sukkot. The right-wing politicians, for their party, weren’t sure how to respond; most of them agreed that Sukkot had done what needed to be done, and the only question was whether he was the right person to do it or the job should have been left to the army. Of course, the chareidi parties remained silent, sensing that such actions have the potential to lead to bloodshed.

The bottom line is that the situation in Yehuda and Shomron at this time is extremely volatile.

The Specter of Lost Votes

Of course, we must deal with the subject of the upcoming election as well. The center-left and the center-right are both facing the same problem: the fragments of political parties that might lead to a loss of votes. From the chareidi standpoint, this would be a very good thing if it happened to the left, such as if Benny Gantz chooses to stay in the race until the end and causes the left-wing bloc to lose mandates. (According to polls it is clear that Gantz will not cross the electoral threshold; therefore, every vote he receives will be lost.) The parties of Yoaz Hendel (the Reservists) and Yaron Zelicha (which has something to do with the economy) may likewise cause the left to squander mandates, as was the case in the previous election when Meretz ran alone, after the Labor party refused to merge with them, and did not cross the electoral threshold, leading the right-wing bloc to win by a margin of a few mandates. This time, Meretz and Labor are running on a joint list as the Democrats party, headed by Yair Golan.

These scenarios, which would spell trouble for the left, would be excellent; the problem is that there are also too many parties on the right. Some of those right-wing parties are dangerous to the chareidim, such as the union of Erdan and Edelstein, who associate themselves with the right but are strongly in favor of drafting yeshiva bochurim and are staunchly opposed to Netanyahu. There are also some right-wing parties that are likely to squander mandates rather than enter the Knesset, such as Avi Maoz’s Noam party, Moshe Feiglin’s party, and even Smotrich’s party, which is wavering around the threshold.

The worst development of all, as far as the right is concerned, is the recent debut of Ofer Winter on the political playing field. Winter was a highly regarded officer in the IDF whose career advancement was blocked by the deep state and who is very popular on the right. Until recently, he spoke strongly in favor of lomdei Torah and criticized the army for doing nothing to promote a draft for chareidim amid circumstances that would enable them to remain chareidi in the army. Winter has recently changed his tune somewhat and has begun talking more about drafting chareidim who are not learning and less about halting the efforts to draft lomdei Torah. For Netanyahu and his allies, Winter poses a problem simply because if he stays in the race until the end, he is likely to push Smotrich below the threshold. After all, both parties are competing for the same pool of voters. As of now, it seems that Winter will succeed in crossing the threshold but will still cause a loss of votes—namely, the votes that would have been collected by Smotrich.

Netanyahu planned to solve this problem by pressuring Smotrich and Ben-Gvir to run together again, thus paving the way for both Winter and Smotrich to cross the threshold. However, Ben-Gvir wasn’t interested in that arrangement. For one thing, Smotrich has behaved toward Ben-Gvir with contempt throughout the current government’s term and has even dealt harshly with him in his capacity as minister of finance. In addition, Ben-Gvir believes that a joint run with Smotrich will harm him, and that he will receive more mandates if he runs independently. In fact, let me share a little secret with you: Ben-Gvir recently advised Netanyahu to place Smotrich in one of his reserved spots on the Likud party’s list, and Netanyahu demurred, claiming that the polls had shown that Smotrich’s presence in the Likud would not only fail to boost the party’s performance but would actually cause them to lose votes.

Without the option of brokering a union between Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, Netanyahu is left with only one recourse: pressuring Smotrich to run together with Feiglin, in the hope that they will cross the threshold together. Rumor has it that the talks between the two are about to conclude. If they unite, it is also very likely that Avi Maoz will join them. Maoz, who represents the students of Rav Tzvi Tau, is indisputably worth three quarters of a mandate in votes.

As of now, the pressure is mounting for these arrangements to be finalized, since the final lists of candidates are due to be submitted to the Central Elections Committee in ten days.

The Attorney General’s Outrageous Ruling

No overview of this week’s news would be complete without a discussion of the storm of outrage that erupted when Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara announced that it is unlawful to hold the annual government memorial rally on Rav Ovadiah Yosef’s yahrtzeit this year. There is a law requiring the commemoration of Rav Ovadiah’s legacy (akin to similar laws concerning other rabbinic and political figures), and one of the provisions of that law is that the government will sponsor a memorial event every year. This event falls under the aegis of the Ministry of Religious Services. This week, the attorney general decided that the ministry should postpone the event until after the election; she explained that even if none of the political figures from the Shas party appear at the event, it would still have a politicized character. “This event deals with the personality and achievements of the rov, and due to his close connection to the Shas party, the propaganda aspect of the event cannot be neutralized,” she wrote.

Yehuda Avidan, the director-general of the Ministry of Religious Services, wrote a letter in response to the attorney general that demolished her argument. Expressing vehement opposition to her position, Avidan argued that her ruling violates the law that requires a commemoration of Rav Ovadiah’s legacy and that the attorney general does not have the power to override a law passed by the Knesset. And he added a point that strongly supported the impression of hypocrisy and discrimination: “We request an urgent response about how the legal advisors intend to deal with the state memorial ceremony for Yitzchok Rabin.” Avidan thus drew a link between the two cases and argued that former Prime Minister Yitzchok Rabin was a political figure who identified with one of the parties contending in the current election. “His party is currently running as the Democrats party,” Avidan wrote, adding that in his view, any activities commemorating Rabin would essentially advance the party’s political cause.

The attorney general appears to have ignited a powder keg with her decision. The Shas party’s first response was outrage: “The brazen and infuriating demand of the dismissed attorney general to cancel the rally of tefillah and commemoration for Maran Rav Ovadiah Yosef on the grounds that it constitutes election propaganda is a severe affront to Maran’s memory and to the huge community in the State of Israel that follows his legacy. It is also a blatant violation of the law, which was unanimously approved in the Knesset and requires the rally to take place. We will not allow the attorney general who serves the left to harm Maran’s memory; we will act with all the legal tools at our disposal to overturn this decision.” One after another, the representatives of the Shas party fiercely condemned Baharav-Miara. On motzoei Shabbos, the Kol Barama radio station featured a special program protesting against her as well.

An even sharper response came from Rav Yitzchok Yosef in his weekly lecture on motzoei Shabbos. “There were almost a million people at Maran’s funeral, the entirety of Am Yisroel,” he said. “The time has come for the rov’s yahrtzeit, when we must hold a memorial service as he deserves and as is fitting for his honor, but this wicked woman, the attorney general, suddenly released a legal opinion. What is her name again? Miara, the crazy woman, produced a professional opinion that prohibits holding a rally in memory of Maran…. Rabin was a political figure and was assassinated on a date just before the election date, but no one prohibited that rally, because it belongs to the left. Let them hold their rally; why not? But when it comes to Maran, the greatest in his generation, who was a man of Torah and not a political figure, she issues an opinion that it is prohibited to hold a rally before the election. No one should listen to her; who is she, anyway? Hakadosh Boruch Hu will destroy her; He will give her the blow that she deserves. She is starting up with Maran? This will not pass in silence.”

Rav Yitzchok’s comments triggered demands for a criminal investigation. There is no doubt that petitions to the Supreme Court will come next. Meanwhile, the Shas party is undoubtedly pleased with the fact that the attorney general has aided their cause. She has woken up many of the Sephardim who were uncertain about whom to vote for and reminded them where their allegiances truly lie.

Who Believed that Yehuda Katz Would Be Found?

I wrote about this topic briefly last week, but I will discuss it at greater length now. Yehuda (Yekusiel Yehuda Nachman) Katz was finally given a Jewish burial last Friday on Har Hazeisim. Katz was killed during the First Lebanon War, after a group of IDF soldiers were ambushed during the Battle of Sultan Yacoub. Twenty soldiers lost their lives in that incident, and three were declared missing: Yehuda Katz, Zechariah Baumel, and Tzvi Feldman. Twenty-two years ago, Rav Yisroel Weiss, the IDF chief rabbi at the time, received the agreement of the chief rabbis to declare all three men fallen soldiers whose burial places were unknown and to require the families to sit shiva. Yehuda Katz’s parents, the late Sarah and Yosef, refused to accept that determination, and their daughter, Perachia Katz Heyman, led a fierce battle for her brother. Finally, last week, Perachia sat shiva along with her siblings on Rechov Midbar Sinai in Yerushalayim, based on a ruling from Rav Asher Weiss, who visited the family during the shiva. Zechariah Baumel’s remains were located and brought to Israel in 2019, and Tzvi Feldman’s remains were recovered in 2025. One week ago, the body of Yehuda Katz, the last of the three missing soldiers, was recovered as well. Even after so many years, the Jewish people do not give up on finding their lost children.

Perachia works for the Central Elections Committee, which operates in the Knesset building. This has given me many opportunities to meet her. The first time she saw me, she reminded me that she and her parents came to the office of the minister of the interior many years ago for a meeting, and I encountered her then as well. She recently told me that she had bought several graves on Har Hazeisim, and she asked me to help her receive a discount from the chevra kaddisha in Yerushalayim. I discovered that she had bought several plots, including one for her brother. I contacted former Minister of Religious Services Michoel Malchieli and his aide, Akiva Chofi, as well as Tzuriel Krispel, who solicited the involvement of Moshe Shimon and Uri Miller as well. Krispel, who serves as chairman of the Cemeteries Council in Yerushalayim, still remembers the senior Katzes from his time as mayor of Elad. At that time, they bought an apartment for Yehuda in the city.

No one actually commented about this aloud, but I am sure that everyone shared the same thought: Why was Perachia buying a grave for her long-missing brother? Did she really believe that his body would be found after 44 years had passed?

Well, one month later, Yehuda Katz’s remains were indeed retrieved. Yehuda was buried on Friday two weeks ago in the grave purchased for him by his sister. She asked for the funeral to entail none of the standard military honors, such as uniformed casket bearers and wreath-laying, and for her brother to receive a standard levayah instead. The funeral procession began at Yeshivas Kerem B’Yavneh, where Yehuda had been a talmid, and proceeded to Har Hazeisim; he was not buried in a military plot.

For me, this did not mark the end of the story. My next endeavor, which I began in recent days, was to determine whether Perachia would be reimbursed for purchasing a grave for her brother, a soldier who was killed in action. The army might insist that it provides free graves only in military plots, but I hope that I will succeed in ensuring that Perachia recoups the money she spent on the kever.

Memories of a Torah Giant

Wednesday marks the yahrtzeit of the Ponovezher Rov, Rav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, who passed away on the 20th of Elul 5729/1969. Anyone who knew the Ponovezher Rov can attest that he was a veritable malach on earth. Unfortunately, I never had the privilege of meeting him; however, my father-in-law, Rav Tzvi Tausky, arrived in the Ponovezh yeshiva at the age of 14, and the rov became a surrogate father of sorts to him. My father-in-law wasn’t an orphan, but he was alone in Eretz Yisroel nonetheless. He survived the Holocaust along with his two sisters and their parents; the family escaped together on the famous train that caried the Satmar Rebbe as well. After the war, they returned to Hungary, and while his parents continued to Vienna, they sent their only son to Eretz Yisroel to learn in Ponovezh. This was not easy for his parents, but it set their son on a path that led him to raise a magnificent family of bnei Torah. In any event, since he was not accompanied by his parents, young Tzvi Tausky was about as lonesome as the orphaned talmidim in the yeshiva, and the Ponovezher Rov decided to care for him. My youngest son is named Yosef Shlomo, after the Ponovezher Rov, for the simple reason that I knew that it would bring joy to my father-in-law.

Last Shabbos, I read many personal accounts concerning the Ponovezher Rov, including stories told by Rav Dov Landau, Rav Meir Tzvi Bergman, and Rav Berel Povarsky. Rav Povarsky said, “The Ponovezher Rov was far removed from even the slightest trace of honor or pride. He had no interest in such things and did not consider himself above others in any way. He used to befriend young talmidim and even children who had survived the Holocaust; he cared for them and related to them with love and compassion, without the slightest trace of condescension. And he related similarly to the simplest members of society whenever the opportunity arose. Yet in contrast to his own unassuming nature, he received tremendous admiration and respect from all of Jewish society.

Rav Dov Landau, in a journal of sorts that detailed his early years, wrote the following: “How did I come to Ponovezh? I spent Shavuos in Bnei Brak with relatives, and I went to the yeshiva to learn during the night. The bais medrash, which was filled with lomdei Torah throughout the night of Shavuos, made a powerful impression on me, kindling a desire to learn in yeshiva. Some time later, I encountered the Ponovezher Rov at the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv and told him that I wanted to join the yeshiva. He remembered me and accepted me on the spot. Thus, I was accepted to Ponovezh in the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv.” One can imagine Rav Landau as a young bochur conversing with the gadol hador at the busy bus station. Rav Landau’s account continues, “The Ponovezher Rov had tremendous love for other people and especially for his talmidim, as Chazal teach us to ‘love others and draw them close to the Torah.’ He remembered everyone he met. When I arrived in the yeshiva, there was no shtender for me, and he hired a carpenter to produce a shtender for me and one for another bochur.” This, too, is an incredible sight to imagine: the Ponovezher Rov standing in the bais medrash of Ponovezh, noticing a lone bochur who is holding a Gemara in his hands for lack of a shtender, and personally hiring a carpenter to produce a shtender for him.

“The rov was a very great man,” Rav Landau added. “He was taught a great deal by the Chofetz Chaim, and the Chofetz Chaim admired him highly. I personally saw the Chazon Ish honoring him on Simchas Torah in an exceptional way. He was suffused with love for the Torah, which was evident whenever he discussed divrei Torah. I remember one shiur in which he delved into a question raised by the Gemara—how it is possible for pigul to occur in an olah offering of a bird—with tremendous feeling and excitement. He stressed the beauty of the question as if he was repeating a kashya on the Gemara that he had learned from the Maicheter Iluy. He was capable of becoming deeply excited by a scintillating question raised by the Ohr Someiach. This left a powerful impression on me as well.”

It seems to me that Rav Landau’s description speaks volumes about himself as well—the fact that the Ponovezher Rov’s love for Torah was the phenomenon that was etched into his memory from his days as a bochur, and that the ultimate example of excitement in his mind, to which he compared the Ponovezher Rov’s excitement over a sugya in the Gemara, was the experience of encountering a brilliant question raised by a later gadol.

Rav Yechezkel Abramsky Settles a Dispute

Four days after the yahrtzeit of the Ponovezher Rov, we will mark the 50th yahrtzeit of Rav Yechezkel Abramsky, who passed away on the 24th of Elul 5736/in September 1976. I plan to write a full article about Rav Abramsky for next week, but for now, I will share a single incredible story with you.

Let me preface that story with the following: Two weeks ago, Dr. Alexander Duparc passed away in Yerushalayim. Dr. Duparc learned in Yeshivas Bais Hakerem and was a talmid of Rav Yisroel Kleiner, who was the rosh yeshiva and a sort of rov of the community. He was also one of the most prominent talmidim of Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, the son of the Brisker Rov, and a close talmid of Rav Moshe Shmuel Shapiro as well. When the Steipler spoke about doctors who benefited from siyata d’shmaya, he often commented about Dr. Duparc’s success. The doctor enjoyed great success ever since he first recognized his Creator.

Dr. Duparc served as a physician for everyone who refused to join a state-sponsored health fund (namely, the Mea Shearim community and many talmidim of Brisk). His home in Bayit Vegan at Rechov Mintzberg 9 became a highly recognized location. On a personal note, I was one of the many people who sought his medical services, both because he was an excellent diagnostician and brilliant doctor and because I was a talmid in Yeshivas Bais Hakerem.

A few days ago, I visited the home of Rav Dovid Fein in Bayit Vegan to hear his stories about his good friend, Dr. Duparc. Rav Dovid Fein is a legendary figure in his own right who was extremely close to Rav Kleiner and was recruited to open Talmud Torah Hakerem, one of the most successful Talmudei Torah in Yerushalayim, on his behalf. And here is the story that he told me: “I once accompanied my father, Rav Yitzchok Tzvi Fein, to Dr. Duparc’s clinic on erev Shavuos, and the doctor told us that he needed to rush to the emergency room in Hadassah Hospital, despite the distress we would experience at spending Yom Tov there. He gave me specific instructions about what to tell the doctors, and he sent us on our way. On Yom Tov afternoon, we were surprised to discover that Duparc had walked all the way from Bayit Vegan to Hadassah, which is at least an hour’s walk away, and climbed all the stairs to see us and to ensure that my father was being properly treated. When he arrived, his face was red from the exertion; he was even wearing his hat. My father lived for another seven years, thanks to Hashem’s kindness and Dr. Duparc’s help,” Rav Dovid added. “He was a tzaddik who even bought immunizations for children in the cheder with his own money, since the school wasn’t recognized by the state and wasn’t entitled to government funding. Bayit Vegan without Dr. Duparc is a completely different place!”

Dr. Duparc was a brilliant and compassionate doctor who was forced to manage without much of the equipment that is standard in ordinary medical clinics. He drew blood under primitive conditions and sterilized the needles in his own oven, and his fingers were often better diagnostic tools than any technological device. He was able to make accurate diagnoses without the benefit of medical tests. And in addition to his brilliance and medical knowledge, he was suffused with yiras Shomayim and benefited from incredible siyata d’shmaya throughout his life. He was also an outstanding husband and father, who trained all of his children to lead lives dedicated to Torah and chessed.

Since Rav Dovid Fein is one of Bayit Vegan’s longstanding residents, I asked him if he had ever visited Rav Yechezkel Abramsky. Rav Abramsky arrived in Eretz Yisroel in 1951 after completing his tenure as av bais din of London. He settled in Bayit Vegan, where he served as the mara d’asra for about 25 years. I knew in advance that Rav Fein would confirm that he was closely acquainted with Rav Abramsky; after all, he is a veritable walking encyclopedia about the gedolim of Yerushalayim in general and of Bayit Vegan in particular.

Sure enough, Rav Fein shared the following story: “When I opened Talmud Torah Hakerem, Rav Yitzchok Yaakov Leuchter [a talmid of the Brisker Rov and founder of the Leuchter Talmud Torah in Bayit Vegan] feared that the competition would harm his own school. ‘All the best and frummest families will go to you, and who will come to me?’ he asked. We decided to approach Rav Abramsky and ask his opinion. He listened to us, and then he turned to Rav Leuchter and asked, ‘At what age do the boys enter your school?’

“‘At the age of six,’ he replied.

“‘And what about yours?’ he asked, turning to me.

“‘We begin at the age of three,’ I said.”

“‘In that case,’ Rav Abramsky declared, ‘for the next three years, there will be no competition between you. Let us meet again in three years, and we will consider the matter at that time.’

“Three years later, of course, everything had worked out on its own,” Rav Fein concluded.