Modern Masters: The Ohalei Yaakov Husiyatin | Rabbi Sam Shor | November 11th 2025

You can sit wherever you're comfortable. So, typically on Thursdays, typically on Thursdays in Arnona, I teach a weekly class called modern masters. Um, we have a nice group that comes on Thursdays. We also have a lot of viewership of this series on YouTube. And by the way, I'll take this moment to remind everyone if you haven't subscribed to our YouTube channel, write down this. Oh, you Israel Shirim is our YouTube channel. U Israel Shurim. There are literally tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of views of Shirim and and um not just full shearim but even small clips from Shirim. If some of those other patients sit don't watch a whole shear, we have our incredible video team that uh that pulls key ideas from all the various sharim and puts out shorts and we have hundreds of thousands of views on that YouTube channel. But um subscribe to it because then you'll get all the updates each week in terms of the new Shereim. >> So what is it? YouTube. Oh, you go to YouTube and then you put in Oh, you Israel Shirim and subscribe and you'll get an email every week with a list of all the new Shirim that go up. Okay, so it's Kadai to subscribe. Um obviously Rafael is not able to be here unfortunately today. So um I you guys are stuck with me for a second time this morning. Um some of you and those of you that are just joining us, this is my second year the of the uh of the morning. So bear with me in terms of the voice. Normally on Thursdays as I mentioned I teach a course called modern masters where we meet 19th 20th and 21st century scholars mostly masters of Jewish thought but sometimes we'll even meet hakic masters as well and we meet them through their writings. We we learn about them a little bit biographically and then also get come to know them so to speak through some of their writings. Obviously, we're not going to in one in one 45minute cheer together, we're not going to know everything there is to know about that particular personality, but we get a taste of of who this personality was and what he represented. So, one of the personalities that that I am personally very connected to, one of what I'll call my personal spiritual heroes is the Admir the Admir of Hiatan, the Rebi of Hiatan. Rabbi Yakob Freeman of Hiatanu Rabak Freeman of Hassatan was aidic rebi who came on Ali in 1938 just out of the Nazis. He comes together with his father-in-law, the previous rebi of Hassiatan, and they settle in downtown Tel Aviv. Um, and he becomes the Reb, I believe, in the early 1940s and after his father-in-law passes away and lives till 1957, uh, at 19 Ballic Street in downtown Tel Aviv. If you go to 19 Bial Street today in downtown Tel Aviv, there's a construction site in the site where their where their used to be. You can actually see the door frame of where the used to be. I think it functioned till about five years ago. Um this reb was succeeded by his only son um Rebeit Freeman and who was the final rebiasan Freeman had no children and the dynasty ceased after he passed away in the 1970s. Um >> where did go after? So they went to other they're all they all go back to to um to uh the rebi of of vision. They're all they're all descended from. So they some became of of some of the other rebas that are descendants of the rebi vision. Kadigma um setor is a big is a big is a big school. U is a big school. Anyways, so this particular reba >> where was >> I was in Poland Glitzy I think but I'll tell you a very interesting story. So how did I become connected to this particular saver? It's very important to understand. So one of my great teachers and mentors is Rabbi Rabbi Dr. Tur Winereb. So Rabbi Winreb in one of his many lectures for us at the OU um mentioned this Rabbi Der Agav and his story. we'll share a little bit of his story before I actually learned some of his Torah. And and afterwards, I I went over to him afterwards and said I said, "You know, this sounds like a fascinating personality." And he says, "Dafka, you this is this you have to get this safer. This is going to become your reba." That's he said rebu told me, "You're going to love this safer." So I said to them, "Okay, so where do I get the safer?" He says, "Well, it's out of print." I said, "It's a rabbi. Like, where am I supposed?" He says, "But there is a rabbi in uh Rabbi Huda Brandis in Mlagog, the the academic college in in Gush in Alfut who wrote a biography about this rabbi and maybe maybe if you contact Rabbi Brandes he'll be able to tell you where to get the safer." So Rabbi Rabbi Winer sent me Rabbi Brandis his phone number. I called Rabbi Brandis on the phone. He was kind enough to send me a copy of his biography about the Reb. And then he said there's actually a shi deep in Kiry Bells in that sells this safer out of his house and his name is Shriber and I'll give you his phone number. Took me months to finally get this person on the phone. And I had to go to his house to be able to pick up the safer and I got there. He said to me, "Most people when they buy the safer, they want to they want a plain paper bag to carry it out with them in the street because because the safer is very controversial inic circles because as we'll learn together this morning, this afternoon almost every Torah the Rebi shares has something positive to say about the enterprise of Sonut of building up the Yeshu here in um and he's able to see the good even in the challenging times. Again he lives from 1938 to 1957. So what's also beautiful about the safer many of the deto it was a glimpse of talking about 19 years of some of the most challenging years in Jewish history. You're talking about the shawah he literally just escapes just ahead of the Nazi onslaught of Poland. You're you're talking about the early day the battle both you know in war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war war warfare as well as diplomatically for the establishment of the state of Israel and the early days of Medina Israel. We have people still living in 10 villages and while you know it was like today where we all walk around with a traveling office in our pockets. It was a very very different mats and the re this rebi the halakov of hiatan gives us a glimpse and gives us the capacity to see the bigger picture and see each of those challenging steps along the way as leading to something greater and he's a really fascinating and inspirational figure and the s is called ohal yakov and o bam over the past number of years I've shared a lot of his Torah both in my column in Torah tibbitz as well as to the Veririm his yard site was this past Sunday. So I thought it was appropriate that this week we should learn as part of my modern master series that we should learn about this this modern master. Okay. So that's the introduction. We're going to jump right in. This is a p inra. The pik says okay in the ways of those that live in where you once what lived. Okay. You shall not do also the ways of those living inan the other nations living inan you shall not act like them. You shall not walk in their ways. Now many of us are probably familiar with the last part of this. Okay. Do not walk in the ways of the other nations. But the first part of the first two parts of the Why doesn't the person say why? It seems redundant. So theakar in a very very famous comment says we're meant to the PK emphasizes two important things. Number one that we shouldn't be comfortable in mitim. The first thing is that what we shouldn't view we shouldn't view our time in mitim till we come to Israel. And by the way this is talking about not just this talk about for all eternity. We shouldn't view our time in galos as keva as where we're meant to be. That's where we are right now. Ultimately the goal of Jewish life is to be where to be. And it also he says but in terms of coming to we shouldn't feel compelled to come to Israel. We shouldn't come to Israel because we're fleeing the enemies around us. We should come to Israel. Why? Because we want to fulfill the mitzvah of Yeshua. Many of you probably have the good fortune to know to know our our teacher. speaking of another dear mentor of mine that I whom I miss dearly, Rabbi Shalom Gold. So, Rabbi Gold, you know, famously one of the last times I visited with Rabbi Gold, probably the last time I visited with him was in his apartment in um where he had moved not from he had moved from Harnov, he had moved to um Beethoven a year, the last few years of his life. I went one afternoon to spend time with him and is after he stopped giving his weekly shar and um and he reminded me of a discussion he and I had had numerous times that Ramosa Feinstein famously passed that the mitzvah of living in Erit is today is a mitzvah meaning one who comes to live in Aritz fulfills the mitzvah but it's not a mitzvah but you're not obliged to do so right now and Rabbi Gold anyone who ever met Rabbi gold. You can imagine that that that sock for Ramosha Feinstein was devastating to him. He could he couldn't he was perplexed for decades. He said, "I couldn't understand I couldn't understand what Ramosha was saying until finally he said one day I had an aha moment." Ramosha was telling us a Jew should come to live in not because they're they feel forced to. They should come here. Why? Because they really want to. Okay? They want to be mai in the mitzvah. Not they're not coming because it's a cove. They have no choice. It's I'm I'm in danger. I'm I'm fleeing my reality. They should come to live in Israel because we have an opportunity. Okay. So with that as our context that beautiful story from Rabbi Gold and the explaining how he understood and and was satisfied finally after decades with understanding Mosha's famous soak I want to go to this we're not going to learn this whole thing we're jump around in it a little bit this teaching from the Ohio Yakov this is from a moshim in 5699 so we're talking about 87 years ago right And the aalako speaks to this clay. We're going to start about 12 lines down from the top in the middle of the line. And he's and he talk about the the answer of the clay. What is what was so bad that they did in that we're not supposed to do the place where where you found yourself living. that what you shouldn't want to live there as your permanent home. And what about the what was so bad about what they were doing inan what then you shouldn't come toanan because what I'm bringing you there that you're being compelled to come there okay Hashem is saying what what what should be our attitude towards leaving behind gulus and coming to Israel it should be what the place where we want to be not because we're fleeing and not because we don't belong. This is the place we belong. Okay. So now I just want to jump ahead a little bit and let's go to the next paragraph. if we had only contemplated and taken to heart these words and warnings a little bit sooner. He says, "If only the Jewish people had taken this this the this clear warning to heart a little bit sooner, we would have been spared a lot of damage and a lot of pain." There are many excuses that every single individual, he's talking about the Jews in Europe have had. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. As the Nazis just just come to power. Okay. There this one said I I didn't come to Israel. Why? Because because my was better. This one says, "No, my my family's not going to all make. I don't want to leave behind my family. this one because of their role in the community as a community leader. And then there are those that say it's all these factors. Now listen to the Reby's words, the the the spiritual that he has here. But many of them they did not come. They refused to come to make aliyah. Why? Because they really love the gulas. >> They really love the gulas. Even in the in in our most recent days when it's become so clear how dangerous the danger is coming. They didn't they didn't budge until when? Till the water came up to literally to almost to their almost drowning. And then there were those that came to us with with complaints against us when we came to He's talking about his father-in-law. He says there were people that were mad at him, meaning the oh yakov that he and they accused him of of of convincing the the his father-in-law, the previous rabbi to make aliyah to Israel. He says these people who were against us, what were why were they against us? because they love the gullus just a little bit too much says the rebi. So first of all, you see this the courage of this rebi that he's able to stand up to his uh to the other gdole and say what okay let's be honest we all belong here and that we didn't see the writing on the wall but more than that it shouldn't have taken the writing on the wall for us to be here we should be here why because we belong here this is where we belong and it might be very nice that we have positions of of of influence in the gola and it might be very nice that we have family might be very nice that we have great partners in the gola but ultimately But we belong here. Okay. So now the Rebi continues in order to to ease their conscious, right? To to to make themselves feel a little better. They they often will site two sources for why they're not they don't come to Eric Israel. So the first is that there's a famous comment in by one of theos and we're going to talk about this in a moment. Okay, it's a famous comment in in the so there's a day in the says what today we don't come to there's no mitzah to come to live in why because of the and the various punishments that will befall us if we're not careful with those mitz so instead of instead of this this this tophist this purported tophist saying what we have an opportunity to go and be mimosa bars. Okay, he's using it as an excuse. So he says that's one excuse that people will quote this this in the toas and we're going to come we're going to come back don't worry the reb is going to refute that toos in a moment. We're going to come back and see his lumbus in refuting in refuting his scholarship in refuting that toos in a moment. But then he continues the other reason. The other reason is what that many of the people that were involved in building up the new Yeshu here were what weren't from and therefore we have teners against them because they're not from. And now listen what the Rebi says. said both of these excuses what are not correct and they're not acceptable at all. Okay, regarding that first, he's going to quote the an early who says this note, this quote of that appears in Tos is not really the words of one of the tophist. This is really just a notation of a mistaken student of the Tossifist who snuck his own common into the into the toot. Okay says the okay that we or not we don't rely we we don't rely on this this quote from the to says the says about that I don't understand his rationale and we certainly don't rely on his words and what about the second complaint complaint the complaint of what that the people who are building up the yeshu here aren't also from we have we all know this okay the Jew always desire to dwell in Israel even if he's dwelling what amongst non-Jews now listen the rabbi says Are you going to tell me if tells it's better to live in even if you're living surrounded by no mean by non-Jews they're better than what than living with Jews even the Jews are not the Jews like that live the Torah the way we do how could you say such a thing says the rebi so this is this is our first introduction the strong muser of of the yakov and this the passion he has for building both building up the yeshiv as well as how we view our fellow Jews. Those Jews who may not observe to mitas in the same way that that we that we do but that are committed to building the yeshua and how we have to how we have to see the good amongst them. Okay. So now turn your page staying in. Okay. When you come into the land that of Israel, you shall plant all kinds of fruit trees and you have to wait to to eat of their fruits until the fourth year. The first three years you you don't eat for first three years you can't eat of their peros. Okay. So the says from this is text you turn your sheet over. Okay. The says about this that there are three mitzvah that are being introduced in this. Number one, the first is what? Coming to the land of Israel is a mitzvah. Living in Israel is a mitzvah. Okay. Okay. As based on the gar which we just mentioned, the Reb just mentioned the last piece. What the what that everyone should come to live in. And what's bet? What's the second? Okay. The second is to what? Plant all kinds of trees to make the place what? A beautiful place. And what's the third one? And the third mitz is what the one of the So from this says we learn three different mitzvah. Okay. All of us know it's >> but that's only it's only okay so it's very interesting it's very interesting here I believe it's only okay it's one of the really I think we're nos but uh there's three separate mitzvah that are introduced in this okay could be you're right but it could that this not there's three mitzvah that are introduced okay yeah okay to That being said, let's take a look at the the the and we're going to start right in the beginning. Okay. It's it's consistent with the rabban to to dwell and the or quotes our gumar that we learned in the last piece. Okay. Why does he add in that last piece that everyone should go to live to live to live there? Okay. or we make that a person shouldn't make the mistake of think what that it's only a to live here in when it's easy when we have a free country here and it's very easy to be here okay so that's why he adds our to say no everybody should go under all circumstances the Jew really belongs here it's for all eternity Okay. The the is teaching us what that there's a we learn from our for all eternity that what a Jew belongs here in okay healing the second is what to plant all kinds of trees and he quotes and this is not just a pedagogical you know device that that we're not we're adding to you know nice superlatives to the concept of coming to Israel. It's not just come to Israel, plant trees, keep oral. No, he says that it it teaches us what that there that this is a okay. It's a mitzvah. We also see this in the even completely full of trees already. He says what? Even if you find the land already full of trees, you still have to plant trees when you come to Israel. I just want to skip ahead to to he talks about that what is the goal of planting those trees. It's not just only to make the place nice. He says that it's what it's part of a so it's part of be coming to cling to the idea of feeling close to the there's a famous story of Rkook. Cook was invited I think in 1921 to a tree planting ceremony on Tubishvat in a Yeshua called Magdi. Okay. And they they wanted a photo opportunity of the of the chief rabbi coming to plant, you know, plant a little a little sapling. And so they Rafuk said a few words of Torah and then he gets up and he sees the sapling there and he gets down wearing his long black coats, his frock and he gets down in the dirt. He's on his hands and knees. He starts pushing the soil around. And some of the farmers nearby, you know, they're like cringing. They're like, "Neb, this this this rabbi, he doesn't understand, you know, there's a hoe and there's a rake. He could use those tools." And so someone gently, politely go tries to go over to him and say, "Rabbi, you know, you could use the you can use the rake. You can use the the hoe." And Ravuk puts his arm around him and says, "My dear friend, no, you don't understand. After 2,000 years, we finally have the opportunity to be mai in the mitzvah of planting trees in our sadosha. I don't want to have any kind of heid hefts. I don't want an intermediary between me and that mitzvah. I want to fulfill that mitzvah of planting that tree in the soil with my own my very own hands. So what happens though if you're our natier is like Ruff Cook and we're not really bucky and planting trees like what happens someone's just not it's not it's not what we're meant to be doing. So if you take a look at the at the at the left hand column, we're going to pick up the Rebi talks about this. Even you when you come to the first thing you're supposed to do is plant. What about those who just simply are not cut out to be what? Farmers. Okay. Okay. So what are we supposed to do? There's a mitzvah to be of what? Of planting in are. So what if we're really not cut out to be farmers? So what are we supposed to do? So what does he say? They can fulfill the mitzvah of planting in a different way. They can plant all. What's coal? There are many ways of planting allude tora. Oh, there's another kind of planting. There's physically planting trees and there's what? Planting other kinds of roots. Okay. What? Okay. What are the other kinds of roots of planting? Teaching people Torah. Okay. That's also planting roots. The Torah is also called what? A tree of fruits. Because from the Torah we have what? The mazone of the nephesh. The the food of the soul, the sustance of the soul. Okay. And pl lifting up planting sadikim. Okay. Teaching others to be righteous to learn the ways of the Torah. That's also called what? planting. Okay. And therefore one who can't physically plant in the ordinary way. And and therefore those who are invol inspiring our fellow Jew to build their lives here according to the Torah to bring people closer to Yiddish and to Torah and that's also fulfillment of the mitzvah of of of nia planting trees. Okay. So let's let's let's skip ahead to the next piece. Turn your page over. Okay. So this is towards the endo. Okay, there's a famous oneliner that we're gonna that there's going to be a jumping off point for the and the tells it be when you come into the land uh that Hashem has given to you as an inheritance and you shall dwell therein and you shall build your life there. Okay, this is the he says anytime the word appears it's what it's an illusion to something that we should be happy about. What do we learn from this? There's no sim there's no joy like what the joy we feel when we are merit to what to dwell to fulfill a mitzvah of Yeshu Israel. Okay. So there this might be one of my favorite teachings from the or from the Yakov. Let's let's see what he does with with with our or he says He says now at right now in our days, okay, this is 1951 he's writing this. In our days, we've been gifted what the gift of the state of Israel. We merit to have the state of Israel and we've already started to experience what some of the in gathering of the of the exiles mean. And therefore, it would seem what it's appropriate for us to rejoice. Okay. as accordance with the our so now the Reb is going to ask but is it can we really be happy when we look at the spiritual state here in Israel in 1951 okay I he don't want to pass judgment on anyone Okay. We our way is what? We're required to judge others favorably. He says he says there are three reasons for the worrisome, the troublesome, okay situation, spiritual situation. And listen to his three reasons. First answer is what? poor education, right? They didn't have a proper education 1951, right? What what what was the living people were still in tent cities like they were they were not in a good situation? People a portion of our people are living in squalor. They're not so they're they can't appreciate their their reality and what the gifts we've been given. And the third reason He says what the third reason why that we people have questions of amuna or or lost faith is what the shawah and the experience of the shawa and we haven't seen we haven't seen a a uh an avengance of of of of the blood that was spilled. By the way, the event the vengeance of blood spilled doesn't mean that we only the trial the Nuremberg trials and and vening being vengeful on the uh on the murderers themselves. The what's the greatest vengeance is what the restoration of Jewish life. Okay. He says that hasn't happened yet. Okay. So, we're just going to skip down to line 18 towards the end of the line that all three of those reasons might be might be accurate, but the even so the spiritual situation is worrisome. But there's no room to what? To give up and despair, God forbid. The Torah has already promised us that in the end days when Msiah comes the Jewish people will indeed return says now listen this is the most exciting part of this piece. Okay, listen to the Reby's words. This this movement towards America. This is the Reby's words, not Sam Shore's words. This is the Reb's words. Okay, this is not going to come from America Anglia and not from England and from no not none the other lands. It's only going to come from that's why teach us in the that we began with a Jew always should live where in even in a city that's mostly populated by non-Jews. Okay. And then you shouldn't live in even in a city that's mostly populated by Jews. and we won't name the neighborhoods that we're all familiar with. Okay, we know the rest of that, right? The reason that for all this and that we have to understand where is that movement towards towards the Jewish people during cha where's it going to come from and listen to his words listen to what he says. He says from this very place, this center of Jewish life, his words, the rabby's words, this center of Jewish life that we're building now here in Isel, that is going to be the place that the inspiration and the transformation of the Jewish people is going to come forth. The the Yeshua that we've been longing for from Zion shall go forth the Torah. all good things that Hashem will bring for the Jewish people in the future, they will come forth from only one place from I want to close with one last Torah that's not on your sheets. Okay. Um there is a we spoke about Kaneka this morning so it's appropriate to close with this Torah. This is from Khan of 1954. Okay. Sorry 1951. Okay. Not the same year have a custom to wish one another he says. Okay. Okay. And he by the way there there's a in his brings it there's a actually to say to say on based on this idea. Okay. We see a source of this in some of the of the okay says they quote that it's like that's the now listen what he says here but now in 1951 in Tel Aviv when we wish one another there's a dual kavana that we have need to have says the rebi and now there's a parenthetic note okay his son put a parenthetic note in in in the words he says he says the Jews that came from to visit him now the states been established and well established. They came to speak to this this rabbi to say, "So what does the rabbi think about this state? What are your thoughts about the Medina?" So how did he answer them? He answered the does not to see the fulfillment of of Medina Israel. Even though there are those that say Rafuk is the first one that co the coin the phrase Medina Israel that the modern Yeshua should be called the state of Israel. Rafuk of course died in 1935. He never was never to see the establishment of the state of Israel that we call today the gula. But when they asked this Reb, the Rebatan, okay, what are his thoughts about this fledgling new state? He answered, it's the then now back to his his words. If it's true that we've already merited to see the beginning of the through Hashem's help, That's what only the fact we physically have a state. We we returned here physically. We need what the gamar of that return. And what's the gamar of that return? Not just that we're going to be here physically, but that we're going to see the Israel come back not only to physically, but come back to that will come speedily in our days. That is a spiritual redemption. And that's the coming of Mashiach. My friends, what we learn from this beautiful the few beautiful pieces of Torah that we learned today from the Hiatan, we learn a little get a glimpse into Jewish history through some of these pieces of what was going on during the this kufa. We get a glimpse into the the beautiful the beautiful thought of this great sadic. this great title, the capacity to look around and not see what's broken, only what's broken, but say what's broken is an opportunity for us to to to build and accomplish and become whom we're meant to be. And the place that we're meant to do that is only here in our senu haktoa. Have a great week.