The Mirrer Roshei Yeshivah on a Visit to Toldos Yeshurun
The Russian-speaking students of the Toldos Yeshurun yeshiva were happy to see distinguished visitors in their dormitory, many of the Roshei Yeshivah of the Mir Yeshivah
On Sunday, March 2, the yeshiva students of Toldos Yeshurun organized Sheva Brochos for the daughter of Rav Ben Tzion Zilber — the Rabbi of the Toldos Yeshurun organization. That"s the custom in Jewish tradition — for the first seven days, the young couple is invited out…
The Russian-speaking students of the Toldos Yeshurun yeshiva were happy to see distinguished visitors in their dormitory, many of the Roshei Yeshivah of the Mir Yeshivah, Rav Avrohom Shmulevitz (the son of Rav Chaim zt"l), Rav Binyomin Finkel, the son of the Rosh Yeshivah Mir in Brachfeld — Rav Aryeh Leib, Rav Nachman Leibovitz — one of the Roshei Yeshivah of Mir, and others. All of them wanted to tell the boys who only came into the world of Torah a short while ago, about the extraordinary life story of Rav Yitzchok Zilber and his son.
Rav Binyomin Finkel, who has been giving classes to a group of “Russian” students for many years, exclaimed in his speech: “You don"t understand next to whom you are sitting, Rav Ben Tzion Zilber, he is a Lion, a Genius, how lucky is his son-in-law! Now he does not have to go and ask Rabbis anymore, because Rav Ben Tzion knows every place in the Torah!”
Rav Avraham Shmulevitz reminisced about how on Yom Kippur, his father — the Mirrer Rosh Yeshivah — would pray for the Russian Jews, who were still behind the “Iron Curtain” then, that Hashem should bring them back to Eretz Yisroel.
Rav Nachman Leibovitz remembered the story of his first encounter with Rav Yitzchok Zilber:
"This was right before the onset of Shabbos, and we were hurrying to my father-in-law Rav Beinish Finkel for candlelighting, and suddenly we met two Jews in caps. They asked how to get to the Kotel, we started talking and it turned out that they had just arrived to Eretz Yisroel from
Russia a few days ago. I understood from our conversation that they were Talmidei Chachomim. It was astonishing to see that such people could come from
Russia. We bid each other goodbye, and they went to the Kotel, and later I regretted very much that I had not invited them for Shabbos. Maybe they needed our help? I ran after them and found them at the Kotel. That is how the almost forty-year-old friendship between us and the Zilber family began. I invited Rav Ben Tzion, who was a young bochur then, to come to the Mir yeshiva after Shabbos, and he continued to learn there for many years.”
Unfortunately, the meal was not long, the second seder was already beginning, and everyone hurried to their studies. Running out onto the narrow streets of Jerusalem with volumes of the Talmud under their arms, the boys hurriedly made their way to the study halls of the Mir yeshiva, their hearts full of pride from the knowledge how lucky they were — to learn in the most famous, the greatest yeshiva, something every Jewish boy can only dream of…
