Monday, January 18, 2010

why Reb Dov never "made it" - עכ"פ לדעתי

(book review - Part II)


The "Chamsas" on the building were painted by the Arab owner

So I'm reading about Reb Dov Cohen in the book we discussed here a little while back, and these thoughts pop into my head. You know me, not much goes on up there, so it takes a while till a coherent thought comes together. Actually the basic premise was mentioned to me by a reader here who discussed the book with me on Google Talk. Now that I read the book I see it too, very clearly, as a matter of fact. Reb Dov seemingly needs to prove to the reader that he too was "somebody," despite never being a Rosh Yeshivah or having a choshu've Rabbinic shtelle. And often times it's even done at the expense of others who did "make it," maybe even putting them down a wee bit, showing how they too were in his pekkel. After all, someone who learned in Chevroner Yeshiveh for 10 years and got semichah from them should've been good to go as a choshu've Rov or Rosh Yeshiveh/R"M in anybody's book. A similar lament can be seen in the עולמו של אבא, where the protagonist admits to a plaguing thought he had for many years, namely being stuck in a backwoods Rumanian shtetl far, far from his native Oberland with a bunch of Amiratzim Chassidim as his constituents, Hashem Yishmor...

There were many others like Reb Dov. As a matter of fact, most of the names he mentions as being the "Gedolei HaLomdim" in Chevron never made it in the Yeshivah world. Some of them went on to be Rabbonim in the Rabbanut system, yes, but most of them are absolute unknowns in the yeshiva lore that we know today. Yitzchok Meir Ben-Menachem? (married RIZM's daughter but then what?) Aron Brisker? Yitzchok Varshever? (he went out and did it on his won, that's R' Yitzchok Hutner, FYI) How is that?! And countless others, which I do not remember off-hand. Wasn't the Olam HaYeshivos different than the Rebbe branzhe, where it all worked on Protektzia? Wasn't it all about accomplishments rather than pedigree and lineage? My friends, I'm afraid not. You might even say that the yeridas hadoros in the yeshiva world might even be due to this very sad development, where yichus and protektzia took over and scholarship and erlichkeit was ignored. I realize that there weren't enough positions for everybody, but there should've been some sort of merit system, not all just sons and sons-in-law, don't you think? In Reb Dov's case there was an extra "problem," a shortcoming, if you will. He was a Mahkaner, an American. (GASP!)


Reb Chatzkel Sarna, zt"l, SIL of RMM Epstein, zt"l

It's tough for some of you to relate to this, especially when Lakewood is what you consider the epicenter of Torah this side of the Mediterranean, but in those days America was treif. And if you came all the way from Seattle and spent ten years(!) in Yeshivah you're still suspect. This despite Reb Dov shtamming from very fine, erliche LITVISHE Yidden only one generation before. Yet, we can learn alot from RDC. That despite being shut out he usually places the blame at the feet of the Zionist establishment, never at the feet of Chevron... When it comes to explaining why he never climbed the ladder in the Rabbanut he'll usually say how he never was a Zionist, always remained a yeshivah man, and they only gave jobs to party members. R' Dov speaks about his accomplishments in Torah and tikkun HaMidos, I should say that the author of the book uses Reb Dov's diaries and writings to highlight his accomplishments, and how at a very advanced age he was still working on tikkun hamidos. There's mention of the fact that he took Reb Dov Kook - who the kallah's family was very close to - as mesader kiddushin, upsetting the yeshivah brass and the talmidim as well. They went as far as telling him that he was "no longer a talmid haYeshivah! Which makes you think:

Did the Chevroner Yeshivah blacklist Reb Dov as revenge for disrespecting them and not taking the Rosh Yeshivah Reb Chatzkel Sarna as Mesader Kidushin? Sounds far fetched, I know. Maybe in the beginning they did, if they were asked about him. Then again, he does show a letter he has, signed by RCS, where Reb Chatzkel writes that he attended the yeshivah for 10 years, and is a quasi hamlotzoh, so take it as you wish. We also don't have to assume that just because he was in Chevron for ten years meint noch gornisht, veDal, but that they won't tell you in the book... But still, he was a mechaber seforim, (wore a high Litvishe yarmulke) so I would think he could give a shiur in some mesivta somewhere in Israel, despite there not being many yeshivos in Israel in the 40's. Instead we read about activities that befit Chabad shluchim, not that it's a bad thing, c"v, but not what a rosh yeshivah type wants in his resume. And we also hear how it was the coolest thing to be seen in public with an Israeli army uniform of any kind, which is why he wore it in public to all functions, even in the presence of Rabbonim, etc. So that's that. All in all the book makes for great reading, great viewing, i.e. great pictures, and some laughs too.

16 comments:

Twistelton-Twistelton said...

I forgot about this book עולמו של אבאis it still in print? I used to read it during davening in my schul. Full of anti chassidim cracks, which I enjoyed. Full of obscure Chassidissh Rebbes etc, which I also enjoyed.

Hirshel Tzig - הירשל ציג said...

I think it was reprinted recently and is available.

yECHIEL said...

Hershel,
Do me a favour and rewrite this post.
It's a jumble of many things and full of attacks but you don't realize that you haven't told us anything about the book!
You started out well with a synopsis of the first part of the book.R'Dovs mother takes him to Eretz Yisroel enrolls him in a religous high school.Then you stopped, skipped the whole story how R'Dov came to go to Chevron, and started bashing a bunch of people.
Hello!, you missed out the review part! The bASHING IS SUPPOSED TO COME AT THE END

Hirshel Tzig - הירשל ציג said...

Yechiel

1) I'm glad you read it

2) I must've gotten a little ahead of myself. Since I finished the book already, I must've been thinking that all of you did too. Thanks for bringing it to my (divided?) attention.

Since I cannot rewrite due to constraints of time I'll do the review next time. How's that?

yechiel said...

Ok
Looking forward.
Btw, some pointers ,if you want the book review to be interesting or at least readable.
Try and give us a somewhat readable and understandable synopsis of the story (which actually sounds quite interesting)pointing out, if you want, what you find interesting or unusual, keeping criticism terse, so we don't get sidetracked from the actual subject at hand, the book review.Once you've done that, you can, if you want, criticize the book, author, whatever in a way that we, the readers, understand what your point is.
Sorry for the langeh megillah, but trying to give you a perspective of a blog reader.

snagville said...

As you have been wont to do in the past I think you are making a mountain out of hill which may or may not be from a mole (a reach followed by an exaggeration). Are you only two choices merit and/or protektzia? How about the way the world works that as a matter of circumstances some people get the break they need and some do not (decided upstairs). #2) How about other skills? There are some people that may be geonim who perhaps lacked people, teaching, or organizational skills and therefore "settled" for just sitting and learning knowing they don't have the skills to be a RY.

dovy said...

snagville,
i think you know that hirshel is 100% correct about protectzia and yichus. just look who is RY in LKWD. and look at how far eliyahu levin shlita, undisputed biggest lamdan and masmid in LKWD, has gone in the system (not very).

Anonymous said...

no flow, incoherent, the writer is not sure what point he is trying to make. Looks desperate for reasons to hate... could have found much better rayos..

Anonymous said...

I would be curios as well to hear more about the book I learn with a grandson in law of Rav Dov Cohen.

thanks

schneur said...

Tzig wearing a "high Litvishe" yarmulka had nothing to do with being a rav or rosh yshiva all Litvishe Yidden (Misnagdim and anshe Chabad)dressed that way including the Razah and R. M.L.Ginzberg the Chadban of the Maharash.There are pictures that prove all of this.(I suspect the rashab did too as i read that the rayaatz changed the yarmulka into a small one)
As with all customs the most conservative members of society tend to retain them longer ,(for example Chabad in White Russia retianed the kasket long after the Orthodox youth in Lita discarded it) thus in the USA after WW2 the high yatmulka was retained by bedavka rabbonim in general , but I remeber Yidden in NH wearing it who believe me could hardly read Shiddur as we say in Lita.Derech agav Zalman Shazar also wore one he may have been a Chabad person , but was no rosh yeshiva ...
So wearing that type of yarmulka made a person a rav like wearing a shtreimel made a Marmorasher dorf's Yid a rebbe.

LkwdGuy said...

Being a big lamdan and masmid is nice but has little to do with the required skill set to be a rosh yeshiva in today's day and age. As R. Meir Stern once told me , "75% of my job is playing psychologist".

Anonymous said...

A true masmid will try to avoid achieving a position that will preoccupy him with things other than learning, i.e. rosh yeshiva, mashgiach.
So, while the Hashgocho Elyoinoh decides a person's fate, his hishtadlus is usually driven by the individual's hashkofoh and goals.

Anonymous said...

why don't you write about more, on why the rashag never "made it"...

Hirshel Tzig - הירשל ציג said...

anonymous

it's been a long time since a comment as stupid and irrelevant made it here. Congrats!

Anonymous said...

anon 1148 got your goat,
kishintukkes

An Ailemesher said...

Anon 11:48 didn't know the Rasha"g and therefore does not know what he's talking about. No one who knew him would make such a dumb comment.