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250th Anniversary: Standing Up for Torah | Rabbi Moshe Taub
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At this time, our country is
celebrating and commemorating
the 250th anniversary
of this great country,
with all of its challenges.
The amazing ability that it
gives us to grow spiritually
to grow in Torah and holiness.
We have so much gratitude.
I recently published a book
on the history of the Yidden of New York,
of the Americas, of the New World,
and there are so many stories
that I wish to share.
Most of us think that Torah began
with R’ Moshe and R’ Aharon
and R’ Ruderman,
and in many ways it did.
But there were Torah giants
here even before them,
planting the seeds,
so that R’ Moshe and R’ Aharon could build
what they built in this country.
But I chose to focus on one individual.
In 1654 was when
the first group of Yidden arrived
in what we know today as New York,
what used to be called New Amsterdam.
The director general at the time
was a man you may have heard of
by the name of Peter Stuyvesant,
a rabid, rabid anti-Semite.
He, in fact, jailed the group of Jews,
over 20 of them,
right when they got off the ship.
One of those Jews,
who arrived that early in 1654,
was a man from Vilna
by the name of Asher Levy.
We know this, because
he wrote letters back to the Dutch
complaining about
the mistreatment of Jews.
For instance,
Peter Stuyvesant told him:
You could slaughter animals.
I will give you permission
for kosher slaughter.
However, you also have to slaughter swine,
pig.
When he decided that the Lower East Side,
what we know today as the
Lower East Side, needed protection,
he created what's called
a Vahlshtraht, a Wall Street.
But the Jews were not allowed
to protect it physically,
to be one of the Legionnaires,
rather they had to pay the tax to build it.
So Asher Levy said: This is not fair.
And he wrote back to the Dutch company
that was running this colony
and said: What type of colony do you want?
Do you want a colony
where Jews are mistreated,
where we can't practice our own religion,
where I can't slaughter a cow
unless I slaughter for a Christian a pig?
And they famously wrote back
that in this colony,
whatever will be with New York,
it will be a place that all men
will be treated equally under the law.
Jew or Christian.
Nationality, religion or creed.
And this was kept.
He had to bite his lip,
but Peter Stuyvesant had to keep it.
And then when the British
came in, they kept it.
And today, in the Lower East Side
of New York, there's a park,
the Asser Levy Park.
There's a public school,
the Asher Levy Public School.
Few people know who he was,
but now you do.
It took one Jew from Vilna, a frum Yid,
who decided it was time to speak out
for the protection of Yidden,
who needed a Minyan,
who needed a cemetery,
who needed kosher meat on Yom Tov,
who planted the seed for Lakewood
and all the Yeshivos and all
the Daf Hayomis and all the shuls
and all the acts of kindness
and all the visiting of the sick.
It started with one Yid who said,
I need to stand up
for Torah and what's right
for our current state in exile.
What we could do,
each and every individual,
we may not see the fruit in our day,
but maybe in 250 years from now,
in 400 years from now,
someone will be recording
a story about us.
But we hope that's not necessary.
That with our individual
labor, diligence and work,
we will bring our righteous Mashiach,
that should come speedily in our days,
Amen.