Rabbis Henkin, Gifter & Kotler, Ezras Torah org - R' Avraham Shmuel Levine #4- RC Dalfin

This is the fourth part in the meaningful interviews series with Rabbi Arammul Lavine Harav Lavine who lives today in Tel Aviv. He was formerly uh the secretary to the Akuronim with Feinstein of Sim Elberg and uh in addition to that he had a connection and he he learned and uh was friendly with Harav Hagen Rabo Henin. This is the fourth part. So please Rabbi Lavine please continue with whatever you would like to say. And first of all, I'd like to just add or maybe correct something that I said in the first interview because to your lis I said that my grandfather sent my father to saying that although I'm not sure you'll be a lump but I know you'll be ash and people could interpret this as lus is more important than being I just like to add if you take a look at the base theor over there that is more important than being alone. Okay, number one. Thank you. Number two, I want to add also to the when I spoke about my grandfather and his sh is I don't know if I mentioned but uh I would like to add well you said your grandfather did not come from home. Right. Right. Right? And in fact he learned in right so he was a literature right but I want to prove how how even a literature right who was who doesn't hold up right is but from the reban as a young boy as a young ber he held tremendously our reb yes and this is the following story so he came to America no no but he he knew My father. My grandfather. Yeah. No, no, I'm going to let me hear. Like I said, my father my grandfather was arrived in three different cities in Russia. Yes. And one of those was Marupo which was under the jurisdiction of Reblik was the chief rabbi and he was in charge of the cities and surrounding around and Maripool was one of them. Huh? Manipul which has been bombed. It's been in the news a lot. Yes. So my grandfather was very friendly with Rev Levy because from time to time he would come to Relev's house to discuss Shilus and all kinds of communal affairs and and uh Reblik would also when he would visit the surrounding areas which he was under his jurisdiction he would also come to my grandfather's house. Sure. Right. Yeah. Okay. So my father told me that once there was a a bris in the sh of my grandfather which happened to be there and the balabris was the my grandfather to be sand. Yeah. He honored him with son and he reject he's the rabbi. Yes. And he reject and we know the great theus of being a santic. Yes. He rejected it. He said, "Reblavic is here. You should honor Reblavic." Wow. That's number one. Number two, my father told me that one time when my grandfather came back from a visit to Relevik's house, he said, "I think we should," my father had a sister Lev and he came back from from house and he said, "I think we should think about for for the rebel. Yes. That shows you that if he said so, that means he probably spoke with him and learning and he saw what kind of what kind of going it was, right? It was that's a beautiful thing. That's that's what but it never ended up happening. Okay. Okay. So now let's go back to Rabbi Henin. Yes. So tell me about in general about Rabbi Henin's, you know, approach. Um I think you I remember you telling me that even when it was blind he was he had a thing about not making kesha. Yeah. Yes. Can you tell tell us about that please? Yes. Yes. I like I said I've learned with maker for three years from 10 to 12 every day. Yes. Gamarra. Yeah. Kamar depended on his he was already if we could if he could learn something deep I would learn. Oh not just right but if I see that it was then we would learn. Uhhuh. The stories of the Yeah. So uh Okay. So one time I I when I came in to to learn with him this was at his house. Yes. Yes. Where he lived in the Lower East Side, right? in one of the in one of the in on the project at Grand Street. Grand Street. I think it was 385 Grand Street. Okay. And uh I walk in and he says, "Listen, I want to write a mimer in aisical journal that was edited by Rabbi Albert. All the rabbis would would write all the send in their right and their things." Yeah. So he says, "I want to write I want to write a something an article. I mean, I'll dictate to you and you you write and give it over to Rabbi. And he starts off like [Music] this. I'm not going to I don't remember exactly the the words. I mean, you can take a look in this. It's over there, but translate it in English. Okay. And he says and he says like this that since the before Mus but you didn't say no you have this he heard I thought you were going to translate he heard that people in in in yeshivas minigra is a a bad custom a bad custom he wrote minigra he wrote that is a bad custom to eat before the blowing of the chauffeur called kas mushv the obl obligatory Right. Right. And he says that the reason that they do and this is a it's a biblical and he says that since the reason that is given for this why they eat is because you're not supposed to fast and the is very long. Therefore, they make it and they eat and and then they hear the So, so but since it's a mitzvah, the rice say you're not supposed to eat before me. So, the rice maybe but not you know to make the whole thing and right so they just they just take a little bit because you're not supposed to stuff yourself and have a full meal. So he says that if you you have to make a dish and you feel you have to eat better it's better that you eat after the that they blow in while you're standing I you're going to say that you're not allowed to speak out after the so he says it's better to speak out after So it's better to to right then than than to do it before mix with Okay. So I wrote that and I sent it to Rabbi Elbert. Two weeks later a letter comes to Rabbi Henin said confidential and it's from Rabbi Gifter in tells and of the the tellib in Cleveland. Yeah. And since I served as the eyes of Reb Hanken since he was semi-blind and I would read everything that would come to him. I would read and I would give it open to him. Right? So I opened up the letter and he says there it was I'm not going to go into I don't remember exact words but what I do remember he says like this you'll translate. Yeah. I I was astonished. how your how your pen um expressed itself. The honorable goan, the genius of Torah, he slanders the yeshivasa. Of course, I'm sure you know that all the and all the yeshivas they eat before kas and did so and he mentioned the whole whole list of of rashas of rashas that do so and uh and I was surprised and I was shocked that you said and I read this to it bothered him extremely it bothered he was emotionally distressed of And he he he it was pave he felt miss p him very much and I think that if I would have kn like an insult to him. Yeah. I think if I would have known how he would have reacted the way you would have not read it to him. Maybe I wouldn't have read because it was too at his age and his condition it was too too stressful. Right. Right. Exactly. But he says to me write it back. I and Gimbo I think Hul were there was a discussion about two tano that they argued about a certain certain issue and at one point the I think in the it says that says I have priority they left me uh my they gave me the authority to to to uh to issue this over you, right? Give it give it back to I wrote back to it was very short, right? And basically he's telling him I that I'm a po and I have a right to make and I know what you do. So and that you you guys are just Russ. Yeah. So he says so he says to me so I wrote it back I wrote him back and I sent him back this letter to Rabbi Gifter. Rabbi Gifter uh two weeks later another confidential letter comes this was no this wasn't so confidential six pages though the first one was a page a page and a half this was six pages and he says he apologized he says I didn't mean two insult to insult you right to I just wanted to take up and you know to defend those who do so right and then he says that I went into pil with Rabbi Stein Rabstein there was a mash I think. Yeah. In tells and we spoke and he says over this. Okay. So so so one second from his six page letter that that they're right. Yeah. Yeah. But but but but yeah okay. Yeah. That Yeah. But but but ever since then I think if you take a look in the story calendars of the story they give out you'll see Mwell who edited the the the calendar he puts in by when he speaks about what you're supposed to do puts in parentheses that Hanken holds you shouldn't eat before okay but the interesting part is this I asked them I myself thought to myself he mentioned here a list of good yeah this one this so I I was wondering why they didn't know this that you're this so I asked him I said you know he mentioned all these at first he thought that I was on their side because I was defending him so he knew so he says what's the customab so I said to him about which Kash would think about even before kiss. was very happy and then he says to me like this you asked me about let me tell you this there was a R here Rabbi Goldberg I think so Rabbi Goldberg here on the east side in the east side of Rabbi Goldberg a rabbi yeah he once came to me and he asked me if that if they you spend a lot of time in the repetition Is it considered a heapsic or not? So I said it's a heapsic. Two weeks later he comes back to me and he says he was in Lakewood for a weekend. He was baron cutler. He discussed this with Cutler. Cutler said it's not a sick. So I told him that Rob Hen says it's a heck. So Ron Cutler says to me if Hen says it's a heck then I also bleeded what Hanken says. So he says to me like he knows he was great in pilp but in he would he would side with my opinion and he added if would know that I to to eat before he would agree he would agree and they wouldn't need to they wouldn't and the the they would stop that. They would stop that. Yeah. That's that's a very interesting story. That's what So Ezra T was started in the early 1900s, right? As a story started the same year that was born 1902. Yeah. And it was founded by the at that time. Yes. Yes. And they and originally it was founded only for sat and learned the whole day didn't have a income. So they so they raised money and they said so they established as a story. Now as a story is like a baby of Abnus. So whatever wherever Abdulus Abundan went as a story went along with him. So for instance as a when moved to the United States and was on East Broadway at first not in East Broadway on Broadway before it came to East Broadway it was on Broadway and so St had a room there too. When it came to East Broadway side they had a room it was as a story was upstairs and was downstairs. So it was like a subordinate organization of aud did did it a branch did did its um policy as far as funding others besides uh terror scholars uh did change in Yes. Yes. In what way? Yes. In what way? Everybody that came anybody that came and asked for anyone that came even if he wasn't Right. Right. As long as he had a he had a a probation, a letter of recommendation. Yes. In other words, a regular person in in the front community. Yes. When he's for let's say Yeah. would come to him would come to and with and then there would be a meeting between the board how much they give him if they give him bl how much they give him and then I would have to implement the decision of I made the checks. Uhhuh. And and who was on the board? Well, Rabbi, when I was I don't remember before that, but when I was there, the president was Rabbi with the Rif who was the of the Yes. And he was from Camden, New Jersey. Camden, New Jersey. He was the rabbit. He was a real literature. Yeah. Right. And then his son-in-law took over, Rabbi Ginger. Rabbi Gettinger. And I think they one of them in North Carolina today still officially runs it. I don't know. I spoke to them could be. Yeah. Then they had Rabbi Margolan was the man. There were two men there. Rabbi Marggoan and Rabbi Mozinski. He was in the Vatican. In the Vatican Razinski. Yeah. And Rafen was well he was the he was the you know so he was the fi he was the final say. Is that right? The final say. Yes. Right. Yes. So, so was it his decision to open it up to other people? Could be. I think someh when I came it was it was already open to other I don't know what happened before. Now, let me ask you um did you obser were also that benefited from this organization? Definitely. This wasn't just for Yes, definitely. I'd like to tell everybody everybody also. Yes. Yes. So, you have I'm not going to say names. Yeah. But big names. And And what was the average uh Nina? What was the average amount that they gave? $1,000? $5,000? No, those No, I think $100. $100 in those days. That was You see, let me tell you something interesting. A lot of most of the bakos the requests from Israel came from Scala and for to for a because you saw there's this yeah for an apartment for apartments and that was so at that was the main request. So one time the board decided why do we have to always give them$undred $100 and let's establish as a story there. Oh and that's the the way as the story. Oh yes that's that's the neighborhood Ezra. Yes. Yes. And then they would give out deer for almost half price rice. I didn't know that. Yes. And the first vineyard that was erected was the first building under the name of Yeah. Yeah. Uhhuh. That was the I was part of the those one more question about um how many children did he have? Three. I know for sure. I think four. Were were any of them, you know, even close to his personality and knowledge? Well, they didn't pursue Torah life like like they were I think Margaret he had a son who was a professor. Yes. Yes. Where here in Jerusalem? I don't know. He here his his grandchild in Yeah. is was used to he's the one that you could say succeeded his right his but his father was the professor I think so I'm not sure but it was when he made aliyah that's when I took over started learning uh when when Yehuda Yehud Yehuda used to learn I understand and then he made aliyah and he needed somebody to be with and I okay and we were very very close mhm even here while in the country in the while you came when you came here. No, I said my wife Henin Hanken was You were very very close. Very close. Very warm relationship. When did his wife pass away? Many years before. Before my before I came. Okay.