Summer 2013

Mazel tov to Evyatar Katz on his siyum of Shas Mishnayot.

Mazel tov to Rabbi Lebowitz, Yaki Lebowitz, and Ruby Marriot on their siyum of Mishnayot Seder Moed.

While it is difficult to come to terms with the reality that our summer at NCSY Kollel is coming to end, I’m excited and invigorated by the prospect of Kollel being just the beginning of our shared experiences.  At the start of the summer, our chabura consisted of five NCSYers, ranging from not only all across America, but also across international borders. We were coming from different places, backgrounds, and understandings. We came as individuals that each had their own accompanying story – a story that was packed with ups and downs. To be honest, at first, I wasn’t exactly sure how the five individuals would come together.

When I had the opportunity to get to know each of the NCSYers better, I concluded that there wouldn’t be a problem whatsoever. The leadership of Yitzchak Kaminetsky, the contagious smile of Dani Gruen, the fun loving personality of Zev Markowitz, the sweet and calm nature of Aaron Toledano, and the sincerity and genuineness of Jacob Rifkin, affirmed to me that we would be a group that would come together quite quickly. With God’s help and the wonderful personalities of all of our chabura members, the development of our chabura into a collective group became second nature.

We’d often start off our chaburas hearing a story from our favorite Maggid – Yitzchak – before transitioning into the sugyot of Mitzvot Haben Al Ha’av. We spent most of our time learning about Brit Millah. We’d ask questions like: why does the Rambam believe that only the father can make the bracha of “L’hachniso b’brito shel avraham avinu.” We’d answer that it is reflective of the opinion of the Rambam in general of how strongly he believes in the elevated nature of the father’s obligation. We looked back into the chumash to see the difference in the way the Torah presents the Bris millah of Avraham and Yishamael (Bereishis 17) versus the way it teaches us about the Bris Millah of Avraham and Yitzchak (Bereishis 21).

The passion and sharpness exhibited by all of our members was truly fantastic to observe. On Thursday nights we’d get together over some cake and would do a review of what we learned during the week. Watching the guys remember the nuances and details of what they had learned weeks earlier was quite astounding, and for them was quite an impressive feat.

The chabura trip combined with chabura wars turned into one of the highlight days of the summer. We started out our day waking up at 6:40 and bussing over to the Churva shul in the old city to make the Rosh Chodesh davening. Aftering listening to R’ Taragin give an insightful dvar Torah on Parshat Shoftim, we got some breakfast, and headed to the Machaneh Yehudah shuk for a scavenger hunt. It really turned into an amazing experience – whether it was playing duck duck goose in the middle of the shuk, or dancing like we were at a wedding with hundreds walking by – the smiles and laughs were many. We then stopped off at Gamezone for a half-hour for some chilled out video games before heading to Burgers Bar for lunch. Then the chabura wars began. It’s during these chabura wars that I truly learned about the strength and might of our guys. Whether it was seeing Aaron sprinting to the chadar ochel to then eat two apples including the core valiantly and efficiently, or witnessing Yitzchak pushing himself past his normal limits – running like I’ve never seen someone run before, or watching Zev swim faster than Phelps (no joke), observing Jacob plow through two bananas without hands (just his mouth – sorry for the mothers at home – but don’t worry because I already told him he can’t try this at home), or being floored by the tenacity of Dani Gruen when he drank a ice-cold slushy in record time.

It hit me that these guys weren’t pushing themselves past the limit for themselves. They were doing this for the chabura. They were doing this because they didn’t want to let any of the chabura members; people who they developed true friendships with, down.

All I could say is that it’s been a true privilege to be part of the summer of all of these amazing guys. My hopes and wishes are that the connections that we’ve all built this summer will last for the rest of our lives. I’ve learned so much from each member, and I have such a high level of gratitude to each member.

Shmuel Leman

Mayer Simchha is spending his sixth summer on NCSY Kollel. He attended the Kollel as an NCSYer after 10th and 11th grade. He has worked in the kollel in multiple capacities including sports staff, Junior Madrich, and Madrich. This summer, in addition to his madrich responisbilities, he is also assisting Rabbi Lebowitz with special programming.

Mayer Simcha has the great privilege to be learning and spending time with an all-star lineup which includes Yoni Friedman (West Hempstead, NY), Aaron Kingsbury (Thornhill, ON), Ilan Steinmetz (Teaneck, NJ) Judah Wagner (Woodmere, NY) and Yosef Wildes (New York, NY) each day.

The Chabura has been analyzing and studying different mitzvot that fall under the general category of בין אדם לחבירו, interpersonal relationships. Some of the mitzvot they have thus far discussed are כיבוד אב ואם (to honor one’s parents) and ביקור חולים (to visit the sick). One of the goals of the chabura is to understand and analyze the texts and sources on a conceptual level and to translate the newly learned lessons into actions. We stress the importance of learning and acting, as Pirkei Avos teaches ללמוד על מנת לעשות, “to learn in order to do.”

Another goal of the chabura that Mayer Simcha continues to stress is the relevance of the Mishnayot and Gemarot they learn. He shows the NCSYers how texts dating back hundreds of years have practical applications in the 21st century. He wants them to come away with a sense of accomplishment in their learning and the realization that Torah is fun, exciting, and for everyone.

Rabbi Moshe Benovitz – “Freedom! The Case for Boundaries and Limitations in our Religious Life” from our leil iyun.

Shabbos in the Old City of Yerushalayim is always guaranteed to be exciting and beautiful. Add a third ingredient to the mix – Shabbos in Yerushaliam on NCSY Kollel – and the excitement and beauty is taken to a whole new level. From start to finish there were so many amazing opportunities and experiences to take part in.

After a short drasha from Rabbi Tani Cohen about the connection between Shabbos and Yerushalayim, the entire Kollel danced down from Yeshivat HaKotel to the Kotel for davening. Our high energy Kabbalat Shabbat was filled with song and dance. The energy continued during the meal with zemirot and eventually made its way back to the Kotel for a beautiful post-meal kumzits. While the specialness of the memorable Tisha BaAv Kumzits was a result of the many different, and different types of, Jews who joined us in our singing, the specialness of this Friday night Kumzits was a result of just the opposite. By this point in the night the Kotel was completely empty. This created an intimate, and therefore special, opportunity for the Kollel to come together and sing to Hashem.

The night continued with even more exciting options. For those who chose to continue singing, Rabbi Kamentsky lead an amazing tisch back in Yeshivat Hakotel. Those looking to visit some usually unvisited sites in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City joined Rav Gordon for his famous “Magical Mystery Tour.” And those looking to take part in the unique experience of a Chassidishe Tisch, trekked with madrich Zev Kahane to Meah She’arim and visited the tisches of Slonim, Tolne, and Stachin.

After Shacharis we all found a spot in the Old City with our madrichim where we learned together as a chabura. In the afternoon we came together to hear some inspirational words from one of Aish HaTorah’s most thrilling and captivating speakers, Rabbi Gav Friedman. Rabbi Gordon and Rabbi Horn led  walking tours of the Old City. Visiting historical shuls and houses where Jews have been living and learning for thousands of years gave us the opportunity to connect with Eretz Yisrael in a very real way.

The beautiful song and divrei Torah which with we greeted shabbat, continued throughout the day, and increased during seudah shlishit as the special day began to depart. We were privileged to hear from Rabbi Avi Schneider to close out the incredible Shabbos.

Shabbos in Yerushalayim with NCSY Kollel certainly was exciting and beautiful.

Rabbi Ari Cutler – “The ‘I’ of the Storm: Balancing Self Esteem and Self-Centeredness”

Below are the links to recordings from our incredible leil iyun that took place last night. (More links will be added later.)

“The ‘I’ of the Storm: Balancing Self Esteem and Self-Centeredness”
– Rav Ari Cutler

“The Mighty Mouth: How our Speech Defines Us”
– Rav Yisroel Kaminetsky

“The Plain Truth: Honesty and Dishonesty in Every Day Life”
– Rav Tanchum Cohen

“Freedom! The Case for Boundaries and Limitations in our Religious Life”
– Rav Moshe Benovitz

“Autonomy and Allegiance: The Parameters of Daas Torah”
– Rav Zvi Sobolofsky

“Music from the Depths of the Soul”
– Rav Yisroel Kaminetsky and Shlomo Katz

Sichat Mussar from Madrich Kivi Naiman

Rav Zvi Sobolofsy – Autonomy and Allegiance: The Parameters of Daas Torah from our leil iyun

Rabbi Tani Cohen – The Plain Truth: Honesty and Dishonesty in Every Day Life from our Leil Iyun