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Rav Moshe Feinstein’s Yechidus with the Rebbe

Rav Moshe Feinstein (L) with Rabbi Avram Levine.

Recently the Jewish community commemorated the 25th yahrtzeit of Rav Moshe Feinstein, one of—if not the— most prominent poskim of halacha in the 20th century. He died on the day before Purim in 1986 and was buried on Har Hamenuchot in Jerusalem. His funeral was attended by an estimated 300,000 mourners, the largest in Israel in more than a millennium. Many of his students went on to become well-known rabbis in their own right. The following was shared by his grandson, Rabbi Mordechaim Tendler of Spring Valley:

by Rabbi Mordechaim Tendler – The Jewish Voice and Opinion

Most people who knew my grandfather, Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt”l, never saw him learn from regular seforim. He was always writing. All his learning took place in the past, before anyone who knew him in New York came on the scene.

So, it was an enigma: When did he learn? On Shabbos, he did his Daf Yomi for the entire week. He learned the parsha with Onkelos and Rashi, and Midrash Rabba for that parsha.

Every morning, he learned two perokim from Tanach, just the words. He had, in fact, an encyclopedic knowledge of Tanach.

He did no other learning, certainly not Kabbalah, the mystical, esoteric teachings.

I once asked him if he had ever learned Kabbalah, and he gave me a cryptic response: “Those who talk about Kabbalah don’t know it, and those that know it, don’t talk about it.”

He never answered the question directly, but an incident that took place in 1975 can give us a clue.

He had been asked by Avram Levine, who was then serving as secretary for my grandfather’s organization, Agudas Rabbanim, to be mesader kedushin at his wedding. Avram Levine, who subsequently moved to Israel, where he writes for the Jewish Press, is a Lubavitcher chassid, and the wedding was to take place at Lubavitch headquarters in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

Arrangements were made so that, after the chupah, my grandfather, for the first time, would meet with the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, zt”l, who, as per Chabad custom, would not be personally present at the wedding.

After the chupah, my grandfather and the Rebbe spent one hour alone together. Afterwards, my grandfather told me that the first few minutes were spent on pleasantries, each asking about each other’s health and families.

Then they discussed questions relating to Klal Yisrael, Including recent political decisions and other matters of concern.

Finally, the Rebbe told my grandfather he had a question relevant to Torah. He told my grandfather that, for 50 years, he had been perplexed by a major enigma in the Zohar, the foundational work of Kabbalah. His question dealt with the Kabbalistic concept of the Yanuka, a wonder child who possesses supernatural wisdom.

My grandfather did not pause for a second before giving the Rebbe an extraordinarily brilliant explanation to the question that had been posed. The Rebbe was reportedly ecstatic with the response. Their meeting ended, and my grandfather left.

Later, after he told me what had happened during their meeting, I asked my grandfather if he had learned this explanation at an earlier time, but my grandfather refused to discuss the matter further.

When I discussed this incident with my uncles, my grandfather’s sons, we concluded that it would have been impossible for my grandfather to have responded to the Rebbe’s question so quickly and with such confidence unless it was already clear in his mind from earlier study. This means he must have studied Kabbalah extensively in his earlier years.

My grandfather, of course, spent just as much time answering questions from Jews who did not have the stature of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. On one occasion, he heard from a young man who lived in the Midwest who had, nebach, just lost his father. To complicate matters, the funeral was one week before the young man was scheduled to be married. The Shabbos of his aufruf fell in middle of shiva.

Because his family was close with Rav Moshe, they placed a long-distance call to New York to discuss some specific shailos regarding the groom’s circumstance. The young man was very appreciative of Rav Moshe’s assistance and his warm words of chizuk.

A few minutes after they had hung up, the phone rang in the young man’s home. A long-distance operator asked the surprised young man if he would accept a long-distance call from Moses Feinstein.

Rav Moshe explained his reason for calling. “After we hung up,” he said, “I realized that this Shabbos is also your kallah’s Shabbos Kallah. The custom is that the choson sends the kallah special flowers for this special Shabbos. If your kallah would not get the flowers, and all her friends who come for the Shabbos Kallah would see that she does not have them, she would feel bad. I wanted to tell you that you must make sure to send the flowers, despite your situation.”

Rav Moshe then went on to say that the halachos of aveilus (laws of mourning) are d’rabbanan (rabbinic), but making someone feel bad is an issur d’Oriesah (forbidden in the Torah).

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42 Comments

  • Bill

    If anyone ever doubted the greatness of R’ Moshe Feinstein Z”TL, this should clear up any misconceptions.

    Perhaps the greatest lamdan of his generation took the time to ensure that a kallah would not feel bad! Incredible!

  • Moshe from Switzerland

    There were many other connections between the Rebbe and Rav Moshe.

    They held each other very much in mutual respect.

  • Mistake

    There is a picture of the Rebbe and Reb Moishe at a wedding in the early 50’s.

    Therefore, their meeting in 1975 could not have been their first time.

  • Old TYime chosid

    I Remember On one spicific Thursday At Krias H’atora in 770 at the Rebbe’s Minyan The Rebbe Said To make a Mi-Shberach for Reb Mishe Who was not well at that Spicific Time;;;;;;;;; Nobody Knew His Mothers Name Accept;;;;;;;; the The Rebbe

  • a yid

    im sure reb Moshe spent more time learning then thst mentioned he might of just not seen him. I mean was he with him every second of the day?

  • Mendy Hecht

    I heard the following story when I was a bochur in Morristown from a Lubavitcher computer programmer who lived in Lakewood.

    The Lubavitcher was driving past BMG when a group of bochurim rushed out and flagged him down, saying, “The Rosh Yeshivah needs a ride!”

    The Lubavitcher asked, “Would the Rosh Yeshivah mind riding in a ‘Chabadmobile’?”

    The bochurim were taken aback, but soon the Lubavitcher found himself driving the Rosh Yeshivah.

    He took the opportunity to respectfully complain about some of the anti-Chabad things he’d seen and heard in Lakewood. The Rosh Yeshivah responded by referring to a certain letter in Igros Moshe from Reb Moshe to the Rebbe in which the salutation occupies about half the page and is filled with praises of the Rebbe. The Rosh Yeshivah then said, “Any of my bochurim who have a problem with the Rebbe can look at that letter–and you can tell them that I said so.”

  • Dovber Green

    I heard that Reb Moshe’s Sofer was a lubavither! Rabbi Zirkind and Rabbi Clapman (i was told R Clapman was very close with Reb Moshe and would visit him at his home on many occasions).

  • artscroll???

    i too was very upset to see that in the new artscroll biography of reb moshe there is no mention of the rebbe, shocking! however reb moshe did not write that book but he did write many seforim and he was a giant of a man!!!

  • :-)

    To number one, there was no doubt–thank you very much.

    To number three, it could be they did not speak them.

    To number four, you are correct, and that it Artscroll’s problem, not Chav V’Shalom the Finestein family’s.

    To Crownheights.info, Yasher Koach for publishing something as such. As a person who spent their entire childhood and adolecents in Lubavitcher school–starting with Morah Faige at age 4 (or so) through Zal, Shlichus, Smicha, Post-smicha shlichus etc, never one was any other holy people mentioned.

    I’m not trying to start a debate, but the reality is, we should open up a bit (not to those that don’t deserve).

    We should veer away from our academic island. I know the stusim out there, but that doesn’t negate my point.

    Please don’l lamely say that “we have better.”

    Don’t be so insecure. Learning Torah from other’s, who were true Talmidai Chachamim, don’t take away from your Lubavitchim, or connecting to the Rebbe.

    Think about it…and avoid using the cliches you heard all your life.

  • Moishe

    I heard that the Rebbe, ZT“L, once commented that Reb Moshe, Z”L, “has broad shoulders,” that he carried the burden of addressing the most difficult questions that no one else thought they could answer well. I still remember that when somebody slammed Reb Moshe’s fingers in a car door, he purposely held back from making a scream so as not to upset that person. Speaking of Lakewood- I had a car service in Crown Heights for a few years in the late 80’s. I drove Mrs. Hadakov to Lakewood, around 71 miles, even though her family advised her against going because she was not well and weak. She insisted on going to menachem availa Mrs. Shneur Kotler. After waiting a while I heard a commotion and turned to see ladies literally pulling them apart while they were trying to break away, while screaming, “I love you, I love you!” In my almost 49 years I’ve never seen anything like that, ever. It turns out they were from the same town in Europe & were extremely close. Oh that everyone would elevate the ikkur, the essential, achdus & ahavas Yisroel, loving each other like we’re a part of one whole & never let differences interfere, but to always work to return to the state of love & respect, concerning every Jew we encounter, and to also show kindness & respect to non-Jews, to be the first to greet them as was Rabbi Eliezer, or whomever it was in the Gemorah. I used take someone to weddings to collect for a Lubavitch organization. I may have been upset by a young man who started to try to in some way say something not nice about Lubavitch. The incident stands out not because of this son of a Rosh Yeshiva’s rather unbecoming behavior. It was remarkable in that the rest of the table demanded that he be seated, insisting that what he was saying was very, very wrong & that he had to stop. This created a hugely good feeling in me to see the concern of these good people & their firmness in demanding that this young man stop his boorish treatment of another Jew.

  • BS--D

    Hine Ma Tov u Ma Naim Sheves Ochim Gom Yochod

    VeAhavta LeReacha Kamocha

    Harbeh Drochim LaMakom

    Be mekayem these three things, and one day we will see that a Lubavitcher and a Yeshivesh person, or a Lubavitcher and a Satmar Chossid is not a rare occurance, let it be like Shabbos. Blissfull and special, but something that constantly happens :)

  • TO #11

    This point was made in the N’shei Chabad Newsletter a number of years ago. If we want the Rebbe to be appreciated, we have to be open minded regarding other forms of Yiddishkeit as well.

  • To #11 & 15

    The relationship of a chosid with his Rebbe is like the relationship of a wife to her husband.

    in kabbalistic terms: a chosid or a wife is a mekabel while the rebbe or the husband is the mashpia. In halachic terms: Ishto k’gufo – the wife or chosid is like a guf and the husband or Rebbe is the neshama of that guf.

    As such, when you suggest “We should veer away from our academic island” to be mekabel from others, is equal to suggesting to a wife to “veer away” from her husband and try other men. That is called “z’nus”!

    If a guf wants to get chayus from another neshama – that is missa, death of the guf, because its ONLY chayus comes from his particular neshama.

    When you write, “Please don’l lamely say that “we have better.”” Indeed, it isn’t that we have “better” but we have all that we need or ever want, like a loyal wife who views her husband as the only person in the world with everything she wants or needs. Like a functioning guf which is botel to the rotzon of its individual neshama.

    Clearly, “As a person who spent their entire childhood and adolecents in Lubavitcher school–starting with Morah Faige at age 4 (or so) through Zal, Shlichus, Smicha, Post-smicha shlichus etc” throught all those years you missed out on a basic education of the relationship between a chosid and his Rebbe.

    Having said this, and if you are honest you will agree with it, I assure you that it is never too late to be botel to the Rebbe – our neshama.

  • Mistake

    To #11

    It’s quite doubtful that they had never met or communicated before 1975. Perhaps this was their first known private meeting i.e. yechidus or whatnot, but it’s quite a stretch to say it was the first time they’d met or communicated.

  • Berel Horadoker

    Why should the Rebbe be in the book about R’ Moshe? It seems that at most the there are two known encounters they had at weddings.

  • Moshe Osher

    I am surprised that someone would think Art Scroll would have made a mistake by not adding Lubavitch to Rabbi Feinsteins book. Show me in any book of Art Scroll that came out in the last 20 years the word Lubavitch, and you can earn yourself a reward.

  • to #16

    And according to your de’ah i am chayav misa if I read a halachc sefer form Rav Vosner. Perhaps I should not learn the pri megadim, or for that mattter the gemara or the chumash since they were not printed by Kehos!!
    Give me a break!!!!

  • Yerachmiel Bruchya halevi

    to #8

    WOW! I’m impressed.

    It is actually two stories that got intertwined here.

    It was the previous Moshgiach of BMG (haRav Vochtfogel, ZL) who needed the ride and who told me that if any teacher gave my children tzures on being Chabnikim, that HE would deal with it. Let it be left that he twice dealt with it quickly and beautifully

    The second incident was with the Posek of BMG (haRav Fourcheimer). He told me that if anyone had a not nice thing to say about the Rebbe I should send them to him to ask his opinon. He then showed me the Igros Moshe where he praises the Rebbe.

  • :-)

    I am number 11

    To number 16, you are an absolute moron. Number 18, your an ignominious for agreeing.

    “Having said this, and if you are honest you will agree with it, I assure you that it is never too late to be botel to the Rebbe – our neshama.”

    Agree with you? You are a complete shoit’e. Your analogy goes against yiddishkyt, and all the Rebbe’s teachings. Learning from other talmidai chachumim and tzdikim will severe your relationship to the Rebbe? You are so lame. Where did you get your education?

    It is people like you that set Lubavitch back. We shouldnt merely learn all (good) sfurim out there, so that others will learn the Rebbe’s, we should do it because we are Jews. And we learn Torah.

    You analogy is immature and franky stupid…learning non-lubavitch sfurim is like cheating on a spouse….I pray that you hide in CH so you don’t embarrass us (Lubavitchers).

    It’s obvious number 16 that you never learn a Sicha. If you can’t figure out my insult, it more evident that you haven’t.

    You conbdicendiung ending, “it’s never too late,” merely depicts your anti-Jewish close mindedness (and I don’t mean close-mindedness equals frum. I clearly mean that you are a non-thinking person).

    “get chayus from another neshama” It’s horrible the way you destroy chasidus. You are saying we should not learn from others–at all. That is not what chasidus wants. You have no idea how the recognized, admired, and encouraged people to write Torah who were not Lubavitch. Read a Sicha, with the footnotes. You think we are limited to only learning from those that published prior to the Ba’al Shem Tov–because God-forbit anyone past that area may not have liked us?

    I bet you never opened a Mishna Brura in your life, let alone own one. You thinking, that’s right–I’m a chodis, and I would never own one. Of course, remain an am ha’aretz. Yes, we follow the alter rebbe, but that doesn’t mean not to learn ( I guess you don’t get much learning done with that approach). Just to crush your thunder, in many many letters of the Rebbe, the Rebbe quotes from the Mishna Brura……….pause for ignorant reader to be shocked, than claim it’s not true in order for him to regain sense of self, as appose for him to actually research the truth.

    “we have all that we need or ever want, like a loyal wife who views her husband as the only person in the world with everything she wants or needs”
    Our Torah, Our Rebbe and all our holy writings proclaim strongly against your distorted kabalistic view. We should not learn from others because we have enough? Please, who’s giving you this trash. The system of yiddishkyt is not designed as bigoted as you hoped.

    BE A MAN AND RESPONSE. IF YOU DO NOT THAN I MUST ASSUME THAT YOU HAVE CAME TO YOUR SENSES, OR ARE ASHAMED TO ADMIT DEFEAT. YOU HAVE SAID NOTHING TRUE TO TORAHS HASHEM……….. idiot.

  • To #23

    I am #16 and I don’t respond to name calling. I had hoped it isn’t too late – but maybe for you it is. I pray for your lost soul.

  • #16 and #23

    Number 16 wrote words of logic, respectful and with sources from halacha and kabbalah. #23 wrote words of emotions and childish name calling (basicly claiming to be right and if you disagree you are an idiot).

    Chazal ask when a person should learn chochmas chitzonim (n0nTorah wisdom), some say only after he learned ALL of Torah, others say never. The Torah of others is true Torah, just as there is true chochma outside of Torah (chochma ba’goyim – ta’amin), but should not be pursued.

    Realize that many gedolim of yesteryear fought chassidus, put chassidim in cherem, hated everything we stand for and hardly considered us Jewish (for minyan, shchita etc)…doesn’t that make their Torah impure and unreliable??? Can we consider them really “gedolim”???? And if they are gedolim, why not agree with ALL their shitos???

    #16, you missed an important part of your chinuch!

  • to #11 and #25

    What makes #11’s comment particurlary heinous is that it is dress under the cloak of pseudo-chassidus. He uses chassidic terminology to bolster an ideological battle.

    To #25, you are using baal habatish wisdom here. Who says you are right. I though that you are entitle to critize others when your knowledge is at the same level than theirs.
    And in reference to disagreements between gedoli, if you have studied halacha in depth, you will see major macholekes from the esarliest rishonim and throughout the geneartions. This does not make them wrong. You will noy become a misnaged if you learn the perush on the Shulchan Aruch by the Vilna Gaon. And if you decide not to learn it , it is only your lost.

  • #26

    I read that certain chabad chassidim danced when they heard that the Vilna Goan died. I also was told by older chassidim that they acted “disrespectful” on his grave. In fact. one chosid was beaten to death as a result. Further, this caused a movement to be michazek the cherem on chassidim by the leading gedolom of that time. These are YOUR gedolim, not ours!! If you want to drink from their well, that’s your business, but don’t encourage others.

    A chosid that had no chabad rov in his town asked the rebbe what to do with shaylos and was told to ask the misnagid rov his shaylos…and do the opposite. DO YOU GET IT!!!

  • yesef

    It is my understanding the the Rebbe was asked about the Tifferes Yisroe< the well known perush to the Mishna. The author of this persuh (a non chassid) had written an article supporting the scientific age of the universe. I am told that the Rebbe responded that he himself learned it.

  • Avi

    I once participated i chinese auction where a weeh in the Mir Yeshiva in Yerushalayim was one of the prices. I asked my mashpia (who is a groisse Rov) and he told me: You are not going to become a misnaged, so I do not see what is the problem

  • To Avi @29

    To paraphrase an old saying, After eating the kasha from Mir Yirushulayim do you think you will be able to understand better a ma’amor chassidus?

    Maybe your mashpiah is right, that a week in the Mir won’t make you a misnaget, but the question is, will it make you a chosid?!

    Besides, does your mashpiah know exactly what goes on in the Mir? Was he ever there himself or heard from eidim? Before paskening, you need to know the mitzius!!

  • avi to #30

    Since I did not win the auction I dont know what would have happened, but I would probably would have had a productive time learning some nigleh. Could I understand better I maaamer chassidus after this? Possibly not. Would it have been made me a better chasid? Probably yes, as I would have been learning full time the Aibeshter’s chochma. If you dont realize that nigleh and chassidus are just one and the same Torah you have not internalized what chassidus is all about.
    I would have gone there to learn w/ geshmak so what “goes on on the Mir” would not have made any difference.

  • Avi at 30

    A week in the Mir won’t make you a misnaged – but it may make you a meshumad. Learning geshmak for a week isn’t worth the price of forgetting who the Boreh is. Many bochurim in Mir are self made men who worship their own creator.

  • To #11& 28

    There are numerous igros from the Rebbe questioning chassidim, “Why should you graze in foreign fields?” Because we are merely like cows, our grass is green enough to satisfy our rushniyus needs.

    If the Rebbe himself “grazed” in other fields – he knows what he is doing, (and we don’t). Cows like us shouldn’t be wondering about actions of humans or angels.

  • to #32 and 33

    to 32; whic Boreh are you referring to? Hashem or the Rebbe?

    to #33:you can not extrapolate form answers given to others. I have a relative who the rebbe adivised to send his daughters to lubavith and the sons to litvack. go figure.

  • To #34

    You ask which Boeh – seems you assume they not the same!! Aztmus is atzmus, whether melubash in a guf or not, it is still atzmus.

  • Once Upon a Time...happily ever after

    Does ANYONE really believe that Reb Moshe knew something that the Rebbe did not know??? In other words, if thethe Rebbe “needed” Reb Moshe to answer his question??

    That story is insulting to any chosid!!

  • to 36

    What’s wrong w/ asking a shaila?
    Sholomo Hamelech asked a halachic shaila to the chachamim (maseches Shabbos (30b). There is also a letter form the Arizal adressed to Yosef Karo z’l regarding a shaila about partnerships.

    By equating the Rebbe to Hashem you will keep turning people off from Chabad

  • #38 You stayed past the experation date

    Sounds to me like you already visited the Mir and stayed past the best before date.

  • to 38

    Are we supposed to live with the worry that things we believe may turn off people from chabad???

    People were turned off from chabad when the rebbe said about the freirdiker rebbe that he was atzmus melubash in a guf – but did that stop him from saying it?!

    People were turned off when they read the chazal about Moshe rabbeinu that shchina midaberes mitoch grono – but did that stop chazal from saying it?!

    As long as we say the emes, it doesn’t matter what people will think – “ma yomru hagoyim”. Speak the truth even if others can’t handel the truth.

  • 29 Avi

    Your mashpia told you a week in the Mir won’t make you a misnaged. How about two weeks? A month? A year? A lifetime?

    Look, if being in Mir is a good thing – why set a limit, and if its a bad thing – even a second is too long.

    True, if you spend a week in the zoo’s monkey house – you won’t become a monkey, but you may start acting like one. A human needs to be around humans, not monkeys. A chosid needs to be among chassidim, not misnagdim.

    Ask your mashpia if you can spend an hour in a church – after all, being in a church for an hour won’t make you a goy!

  • Former Mir student

    #32 and #41 I see you are both stupid anti-semites who hate other jews. You bring disgrace to klal yisroel and should be in cherem. How dare you write against the Mir????? My only limud zchus for you is that you are both shotim mi’d’ortasa and not responsible for your stupidity. I wish you both a refuah shlemah and hope you receive proper medical attention for your issues.