“The task of a rabbi is to provide perspective and vision, to be the great communicator, to take his congregants and connect them to Sinai and that they feel proud to be Jews.” – Rabbi Berel Wein
This week, 22 Av, marked the first yahrzeit of my rebbi, Rabbi Berel Wein zt”l. To say that he made a significant impression upon me and my outlook on life is an understatement. His messages and lessons continue to resonate within me. I hear his voice in my ears constantly, and I find myself quoting him numerous times daily.
If I had to sum up his message in one word, I would say that he imparted to his students a sense of perspective. He taught us how to view life and its vicissitudes through the prism of Torah. He would remind us that the messages of the Torah and the prophets are contemporary and that they are speaking to us in our time.
He would relate that a Jew has to be sophisticated. Other than a yeshivah bachur’s mode of dress, nothing in life is black and white. Therefore, one must be able to think for himself and understand the “fifth section of the Shulchan Aruch.” (There are only four sections of the Shulchan Aruch. This witty quip about the fifth section refers to one’s own intuition and understanding.) He would lament those who “just don’t get it,” referring to those satisfied with a superficial view of the world.
He constantly related stories about his rebbeim and his encounters with g’dolei Yisrael. In fact, his final book, published posthumously, contained his personal recollections of his rebbeim and other great Torah leaders.
One of the stories he was fond of relating was from when he was a student and his rebbi, Rav Mendel Kaplan, walked into the classroom on the first day of the school year. The unbridgeable spiritual divide between rebbi and students was immediately apparent. The European Rav Mendel barely spoke English and was completely unfamiliar with the mentality of American kids. But the next day, Rav Mendel walked into shiur carrying a Chicago Tribune tucked under his arm. He announced to the class with his deep European accent, “Boys, today you are going to teach me English, and I am going to teach you how to read the newspaper like a musar sefer.” Rabbi Wein shared that, in that moment, Rav Mendel “had them” and became a rebbi for life. Each day, the class read the articles and taught Rav Mendel what the words meant, and then Rav Mendel would share the Torah perspective of how to view the news stories they read.
Rabbi Wein related that, on one occasion, he and his wife went to purchase a toy for a grandchild celebrating his birthday. They spent a considerable amount of time picking out a toy they felt was educational, economical, and age-appropriate. When they presented the gift to the child, however, they were surprised that he barely gave the toy half a glance. The grandchild then spent the next hour playing with the box.
Rabbi Wein would ruefully share that that’s our story as well. So often, we are too busy playing with the box. We get distracted by externalities and trappings and never give proper attention to what’s truly important.
I want to share two of the many pieces of advice Rabbi Wein shared with me.
A shul rabbi must constantly contend with challenges, often internally. When I asked Rabbi Wein his advice on how I should deal with such situations, he invariably suggested that, as much as possible, I not reply.
He was emphatic that I had to realize that it was not personal. When I countered that it sure felt personal, he quipped that it was not about me. There’s always a personal agenda or motive behind every negative encounter.
I was amazed by what he told me, because it was clear to me that he was speaking from personal experience. When Rabbi Wein first founded Yeshiva Shaarei Torah in Monsey, there was an individual in the Monsey community who was very bothered by the new yeshivah. He sent letters to much of the Jewish community in Monsey maligning Rabbi Wein and the new yeshivah. Rabbi Wein had opened the yeshivah with the advice and blessing of Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky. But all that didn’t matter to this individual, who felt he was acting as the agent of G-d. I cannot imagine how painful that ordeal was for Rabbi Wein.
Yet Rabbi Wein never responded in any way. When I referenced that painful story to Rabbi Wein, he noted that when it happened, he recognized that it wasn’t about him. As shaming and egregious as it was, Rabbi Wein understood that it was more about the perpetrator’s ego and desire to feel religiously motivated, and he (Rabbi Wein) was merely the recipient of the man’s misguided zealotry.
On another occasion, Rabbi Wein suggested that I create a website to have a central place for my writings and lectures. He cited the pasuk in Koheles (11:1), “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it.” In other words, I should seek to spread my teachings and writings to as wide an audience as possible because one can never know how far-reaching they will be and who may be influenced by them down the line.
In that advice, too, I felt that he was speaking from personal experience. Over his illustrious life teaching Torah, Rabbi Wein used every means possible to teach Torah and to inspire others. His Jewish history lectures were the first cassette tape series, from which hundreds more followed. He was an author of many books and s’farim and was a weekly columnist on the parshah and all topics in various newspapers. He produced videos on the lives of Rashi, Rambam, and the Abarbanel to reach and inspire people who have little connection to or appreciation for their heritage. He produced Jewish history videos, created a Jewish History crash course (though he cautioned that crash courses often crash…), and created a Jewish history curriculum for schools. He published cartoon books of his Rashi and Rambam videos and of stories of chasidic leaders. This was before the proliferation of Jewish cartoon books that are available today. He was among the first to create a website and produce MP3s, and was always up to date with technological production.
He left behind thousands of hours of recorded lectures, both video and audio, dozens of books, and a plethora of multimedia resources. He truly cast his bread upon the waters, and tens of thousands throughout the world continue to benefit from them.
Rabbi Wein was a master orator. He knew how to utilize a story and humor, often self-deprecating, to enhance his point. Listening to him speak for an hour often felt like it was just a few minutes. He was unabashed about saying what he felt was the truth. He urged us to accept life on life’s terms and to deal with the reality that is. In other words, stop trying to be smarter than G-d. There is a reason and a rhyme for all that occurs, and our responsibility and mission is to fulfill our role as best as we can.
He taught us to always have a sense of mission and responsibility to the Jewish people, to the Torah, and to our families. He had an incredible sense of balance and would caution against extremism. He would often quote the pasuk, “Its (the Torah’s) ways are ways of pleasantness, and all its pathways are peaceful.” That verse must always be the barometer against which we measure our actions.
May his memory be for a blessing.
Rabbi Dani Staum is a popular speaker, columnist, and author. He is a rebbi in Heichal HaTorah in Teaneck, New Jersey, principal of Mesivta Orchos Yosher in Spring Valley, New York, and a member of the administration of Camp Dora Golding. His writings can be found at strivinghigher.com. Looking for an inspirational speaker or scholar-in-residence? Contact Rabbi Staum at 845-641-5094 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
