ncsy
Kollel
Pictures and Words

We will try to describe this week on NCSY Kollel with the help of some particular pictures. If generally a picture is worth a thousand words, there may be some extra special images that are worth significantly more. And what of pictures that celebrate and glorify the holiest of words? What are they worth? Let’s see.

It was an extraordinary week on NCSY Kollel. Every day brought a new highlight and thrill. But there are moments and uniquely NCSY Kollel moments. It’s likely that anyone reading this message will also receive an array of updates from camps and other NCSY Summer Programs. Sometimes it can be a challenge to identify the specific program from the montage of smiling faces and summer fun that fill the screen. Were it not for identifying some familiar faces in the crowd or reading the logo on a polo shirt we might reach the end without being certain which camp we just saw. The moments we will describe now were not merely exhilarating and uplifting. They were the types of experiences that, for the most part, only happen here.

So hopefully you have followed on social media as we travelled north, rafted the Jordan, toured Tzefat, rapelled down waterfalls, and explored the Golan. Enjoy the pictures from Aquakef and the water sports on the Kinneret. Please keep up to date on the spectacular sports leagues and try to stay current on 30 games a day in basketball and hockey, including an epic matchup of undefeated teams this week that went down to the final second. See how we maximize each day and cater to each interest with the wildly popular mini-tiyul schedule. But allow us to share here “highlights” of a somewhat different degree.

Our annual Leil Iyun was a world-class Torah event. It attracted a significant audience of Israeli olim and families visiting from North America, and has also garnered great attention on YUTorah and our own media platforms. While this clearly indicates the quality and attractiveness of the evening, our primary audience was of course the NCSYers for whom the shiurim were intended. Our entire staff devotes time, headspace, and energy to crafting special classes that will speak to the most pressing issues of the day for Jewish teens. This year’s theme was Faith. Under the truly expert leadership of Rabbi Josh Grajower teens were riveted by sessions that spoke to them and their beliefs. An NCSYer commented that he attended three of the shiurim: one was deemed the “best,” the second “awesome.” When asked which was the most valuable, he responded that it was the third. He explained that he wasn’t completely sure he followed every word of the highest level discussions, in the third room he felt like the presenter was speaking directly to him and had a window into his own experiences and questions. It’s expected, even on NCSY Kollel, that learning time is accompanied by attendance and participation challenges. As a program, we had far more discussions placating NCSYers and their desire to attend 4 or 5 shiurim (in the three slots) than we did cajoling NCSYers to attend more than 1 or 2. It was that kind of night. Not only was the objective level of discourse remarkably impressive (and easily discernible from the recordings), but the evening was marked by resonance and relevance too. Not all parts of the program were frontal or lectures. And even those that were more traditional were designed to draw in and generate a participatory thoughtful response from your sons. This was not a showcase for our Roshei Yeshiva or internationally renowned speakers; it was a platform for the religious maturation of 300 high school young men and their teachers. The flyer for the event is a sight. Pictures of our speakers are certainly a keepsake. But the real highlights are the crowd shots of hundreds of teens engaged, empowered, and enlightened by the wisdom of old.

 

This leads directly to Thursday. Late night “mishmar” is always a hallmark of the NCSY Kollel week. Of course, the amazing trip Tuesday and the learning Wednesday propelled us into Thursday night with focus and energy. And there was no letdown. The Beis Medrash was teeming with happy and enthralled NCSYers until late in the night. And here is a picture (11 PM Thursday Night!) that’s worth thousands of words:


But a closer look reveals that the scene is even more powerful than we might have thought. A massive component to the Torah engagement we are describing is the introduction of the NCSYers to their place in our mesorah and tradition. It’s a feeling of being part of something bigger and deeper, of being a link in an illustrious chain. This is achieved daily when NCSYer’s learn in the same room as their madrichim who together are learning with their own Rabbeim, who in more than a few instances are also the teachers of NCSYers’ parents…And so it goes. Then there are the moments that simply overwhelm with the power they represent. The picture above is exquisite and striking with the proper lens and context. Here’s a closer view:


In the foreground sits Rav Yisroel Kaminetsky, long time Menahel of DRS and even longer time Educational Director of NCSY Kollel. He is leading a group of DRS students in a late night chabura, introducing them to the sweetness of Torah like thousands before them. One of those thousands (from both DRS and NCSY Kollel) is Rav Josh Grajower. He sits in the background of the photo. He is the new Head of School at Yeshivas Ohr Hatorah in Florida. He is learning with his students and introducing them to the same wonders. This is unplanned- and more planned than anything else we do. And so it goes.

How many words are in these scenes? Infinite? Among the countless narratives being written in these moments there are more than a few questions too. Such as: Which 10th grader will be sitting in his madrich’s chair in a few short years? Which madrich with take his place next to Rabbi Grajower in a few years’ time? Which conversation with a Rosh Yeshiva will connect an NCSYer to Jewish History?

One final shot to take us into Shabbos and a time of consolation and hope: On his first full day here, the camera found Rav Rosensweig in a quiet moment in the front of a near empty room.


This is the source. We are indescribably honored to have Rav Rosensweig make his summer home in Beit Meir, in your son’s Beis Medrash. We are proud to welcome Rav Yonasan Sacks, and we eagerly anticipate dancing Rav Schachter home next week. And they, along with all of our teachers, represent something vast and beautiful and deep that has sustained our people for thousands of years. Our job is to bring them into the lives of Gen Z (and millennials, and Gen Y and everyone else that’s out there or who will find their way to Beit Meir). This was a very good week.

We are preparing for our second Shabbos together, our second weekend in Beit Meir. It should be special for an incredible group.

Wishing you the blessing of a Shabbos that comforts and a Shabbos with vision. To see the words being written at NCSY Kollel and beyond.

In appreciation,
Moshe Benovitz

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