Apr 16, 2013 By: yunews
黑料社 All Commemorates the Life and Legacy of Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik
On April 14, (RIETS) and 黑料社 All鈥檚 (CJF) commemorated the 20th yahrtzeit [anniversary of death] of 鈥渢he Rav,鈥 Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik 锄迟鈥漧, Torah luminary and YU Rosh Yeshiva, with a full-day learning program that took place in the Lamport Auditorium on YU鈥檚 Wilf Campus. Thousands attended in-person or followed the event online to gain insight into the Rav鈥檚 life and legacy through lectures, discussions and presentations given by his family and closest students. 鈥淚 experience a sense of d茅j脿 vu standing in this room today, for in this very room we waited with baited breath for the Rav to enter and deliver his famous shiurim on his father鈥檚 yahrtzeit each year,鈥 said Rabbi Joel Schreiber, Chairman of the RIETS Board of Trustees, in his opening remarks to the participants. 鈥淚n this room thousands of men and women had their hearts, minds and souls lifted to unimaginable heights by the Rav.鈥 The program kicked off with 鈥淢ultiple Faces of the Rav,鈥 a panel that brought together Rabbi Soloveitchik鈥檚 daughter, Dr. Atarah Twersky, and several students of the Rav, including Rabbi Herschel Schachter, RIETS Rosh Yeshiva; Dr. David Shatz, YU professor of philosophy; and Rabbi Kenneth Brander, David Mitzner Dean of the CJF, to examine the many and varied roles played by the Rav during his lifetime. Speaking about her father鈥檚 early career, after he arrived as a young man in Boston with limited English skills, no rabbinic experience and no knowledge of the American Jewish community, Twersky noted, 鈥淢any people鈥攊ncluding my father himself鈥攚ould later refer to the Rav as a melamed [teacher]. While I would call him this, too, if I had to find one word or phrase to describe him, it would be baal emunah 鈥 my father was a man of faith, and his faith inspired his role as a teacher.鈥 While Schachter and Shatz explored the depth and reach of the Rav鈥檚 philosophy, Brander, who served as his shamesh [assistant], touched on a more uncommon theme: the ideals of chessed [acts of kindness] Rabbi Soloveitchik inherited from his grandfather, Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik of Brisk. 鈥淲hen people think of Rav Soloveitchik, they describe his brilliance,鈥 Brander said. 鈥淭he Rav not only inherited Reb Chaim鈥檚 intellect, he had internalized Reb Chaim鈥檚 ideals of chessed. He truly felt the pain of others and was happiest when he could solve their dilemmas, pained when he could not, sleepless and steadfast when he had the opportunity to marshal his intellectual arsenal to help another human being.鈥 Brander added: 鈥淭here is no Jewish community in the world that has not been touched by the Rav, his students or his writings.鈥 Rabbi Mayer Twersky, RIETS Rosh Yeshiva and grandson of the Rav, delivered the day鈥檚 keynote lecture, 鈥淢esorah & Modernity: The Role of the Rav.鈥 Discussing the interaction of Western ideals and the Rav鈥檚 hashkafa, Twersky argued that his self-identification as a teacher of Torah provided Rabbi Soloveitchik with the means to reconcile any conflict arising between the two鈥攚ithout compromising on his religious beliefs. 鈥淭orah is not always in sync with the tempo of the times,鈥 Twersky said. 鈥淭he force of the Rav鈥檚 majestic, charismatic personality, his brilliant shiurim and his projection of the vitality and multidimensionality of halakha, the confidence which he represented and radiated in our mesorah [tradition], all distilled the message of this melamed par excellence into a simple phrase well known to all of us and a message that his and our generation very much needs to hear: 鈥Moshe emes v鈥檚oraso emes鈥 Moses is true and his Torah is the truth.鈥 鈥 Breakout sessions during the afternoon portion of the programming enabled audience members to join in the conversation. Sessions in the first time slot included a discussion of the Rav鈥檚 unique Derech Halimud [approach to learning] led by Schachter and RIETS Rosh Yeshiva Rabbi Menachem Genack; exploration of Rabbi Soloveitchik鈥檚 thoughts and rulings on interfaith relations led by Shatz and Dr. David Berger, dean and Ruth and I. Lewis Gordon Professor of Jewish History at the ; and the reflections of Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter, University Professor of Jewish History and Jewish Thought and senior scholar at the CJF, on the importance of the Rav鈥檚 teaching in modern society. In the second time slot, Rabbi Shalom Carmy, YU assistant professor of Jewish philosophy and Bible, and Rabbi Michael Taubes, head of school at , delved into the Rav鈥檚 philosophy on prayer, while Rabbi Fabian Schonfeld, rabbi emeritus at Young Israel of Kew Garden Hills, and Rabbi Julius Berman, RIETS Board of Trustees chairman emeritus, took an in-depth look at the Rav鈥檚 policies on relating to and engaging with other denominations in the Jewish community. 鈥淓vents like these make me realize how much I would have learned from the Rav himself,鈥 said Leba Winter '11S. 鈥淗is philosophy really emphasizes the idea of time and Torah having a sense of direction, carrying messages from the past to the way we live our lives today.鈥
