T He Orthodox Jewish Archives, Which Was Struck by a Damaging Fire Last
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Jewish history may be lying around in your basement. Don't let it be lost to the world. he Orthodox Jewish Archives, which was struck by a damaging fire last year, has completed renovation of its physical facilities, and has embarked on a worldwide search Tto rebuild and expand its holdings. The destruction of archival material in the blaze was, fortunately, not as extensive as originally thought. Through advanced restoration techniques, many items written off as hopelessly damaged were able to be saved. But the effort cannot stop with salvage and recovery. It is time for a greater undertaking. Thousands of documents and photos are languishing in trunks, attics and forgotten drawers in private homes and basements. Now is the time to retrieve this precious material before it becomes dust instead of history. Your help-the public's help-is needed in this effort. Do you have any relevant old photos, documents, or records? THE CATEGORIES OF ITEMS REQUESTED: • Documentation of Orthodox ,Jewish rescue \Vork dur • Documents and photos pertaining to Orthodox act.iv~ ing the Holocaust. ism in the social servicP and civic action fields. • Photos depicting life in the shtetl, the Orthodox com· • Photos of Gedolei Yisroel past and present munities of the cities, the yeshiva ·world, and Chassidk • Sets of Orthodox journals and periodicals. ('enters of Europe before the Holocaust. • Documents and photos relating to the religious Yishuv • Docume.nts. records, letters, journals and newspapers in Eretz Yisroel. its institutions and struggles for that portray Torah life in Europe as it v.:as, and cast Je\1.i'ish life. light on the issues and problems facing Jews at the Ume. • Document!-> and photos pertaining to world~wide Agudath Israel history, all Knessios Gedolos, and the • Documents, records, cor1'ebl>Ondence, newsclippings, development oftheAmericanAgudah movement-since journals, memorabilia, and phot.os depicting Orthodox 1922. life in the U.S. from colonial times to the present. rlf.1tou are hesitant to part 1rith cherisheditemB, arrange~ • Documents and photos pertaining to the development molls can bP made t.o reproducr certain kinds of documents ofyeshivos tlu·oughout the ('Ountry. and photos, learin,q the original in lJOUt possession.) The previous Archives facility, gutted by a fire from within, was modeled according to accepted archival procedures. The new Orthodox Jewish Archives, now rebuilt, has been safeguarded with maximum state-of-the-art protection above and beyond standard archival design. AS A COMMUNITY, WE MUST PRESERVE THIS LEGACY THAT WILL OTHERWISE BE LOST TO FUTURE GENERATIONS. If you have any items in the above categories in your possession, or know where they can be obtained, please writ;; or phone: ORTHODOX JEWISH ARCHIVES Agudath Israel of America 84 William Street, New York, N.Y. 10038, 212-797-9000 REACH OUT AND TEACH SOMEONE 4 Starting at the Point He's Coming From, Rabbi Yaacov Haber 7 Taking a Leap From Teshuva to Kiruv, Abby Mendelson THE JEWISH OBSERVER (ISSN) 0021·6615 is published monthly except July and August, by the Agudath Israel of America, 84 William 14 Street, New York, NV 10038. Second class postage paid in New York, N.V. and at additional mailing Kollel BaMidbar, Rabbi Shlomo Goldberg office. Subscription $22.00 per year; two years, $36.00; three years, $48.00. Outside of the United States (US funds drawn on a US bank only) $10 sur· 18 charge per year. Single copy $3.00; foreign $4.00. To the Rabbi's Wife, a poem by Bracha Druss Goetz Send address changes to The Jewish Observer, 84 William St., N.V., N.V. 10038. Tel. (212) 797-9000. Printed in the U.S.A. 19 RABBI NISSON WOLPIN, E.OITOR Cholent, Anna Gotlieb EOITORIAL BOARD OR. ERNST BODENHEIMER Chairman 20 Eretz Yisroel, Zionism, and Medinas Yisroel in RABBI JOSEPH ELIAS JOSEPH FRIEDENSON the Philosophy of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, RABBI NOSSON SCHERMAN Rabbi Eliyahu Meir Klugman MANAGEMENT BOARD NAFTOLI HIRSCH 28 ISAAC KIRZNER RABBI SHLOMO LESIN Books in Review NACHUM STEIN For the Younger Set RABBI VOSEF C. GOLDING For the Older Reader BJJs/ness Manager Historical Novels Published by Mystery. Detective and Contemporary Fiction Agudath Israel of America RABBI MOSHE SHERER PRESIDE.NT 32 Second Looks on the Jewish Scene THE JEWISH OBSERVER does not assume responsibility for the Kashrus of any product, "A Time to Build": Build What? publication, or service advertised in its pages. Levi Reisman and Nissan Wolpin © Copyright 1990 37 Letters to the Editor FEB. 1990 44 VOLUME XXlll I NO. Index to Articles and Authors, Volume XXII REACH OUT AND TEACH SOMEONE Yaacov Haber Starting at the Point He's Coming From IDENTIFYING OUR TOOLS Chastened, I decided to study with me to the Agudah Convention. Bava Kamma with my neighbors. It would be a wonderful opportunity and the class was eminently suc and a great honor, he said, but he started my kiruv work in Jerus cessful! Beyond doubt, Torah is not already has tickets to the Buffalo alem some years ago by organ only our goal, it is the major force Bills football game. I izing a regular class with some in our arsenal. To understand our prospective of my non-religious neighbors in and developing baal teshuva, we Romema. It was my first opportunity must view him in the context of to learn with secular Jews. and I had WSTINSHUL American traditions and perspec no idea what topics I should teach. tives. Several years ago I read that Luckily, I knew someone who was sk your average baal te accordi ng to a survey done in an expert on secularism (from both shuva, and I have many Detroit-the average non:frum Jew sides)-Uri Zahar, the well known times. 'What is the difficulty w!ll never walk into an Orthodox baal teshuva and former television A of becoming ]rum?" You would shul, because when he does, he is star, so I sought his advice. 'Well," expect to hear about the problems overcome with a feeling of total he said, "what are you learning now of keeping Shabbos, keeping inadequacy. It's not a philosophical in yeshiva?" Kosher, or the sudden limitations reason, nor is it a religious reason, "Bava Kamma," I replied. on one's social relationships. These just a feeling of discomfort. 'Well, teach them that." (Bava are responses you seldom hear. Americans are brought up, for Kamma deals with legalistic deci Instead they tell you that the most better or for worse, to look at a place sions about what happens when my difficult thing is to fit in socially of worship, whether Jewish or ox tramples your plants. and so on.) with thejrum community. gentile, as exactly that-a place of "Bava Kamma?' I asked incredu The major barriers between a worship. a place with decorum, a lously. ''You don't understand the baal teshuva and someone who is place where upon entering, people secular mind." fortunate enough to be brought up display a tremendous amount of He said something that still preys in Torah are not so much of a respect. They know it's that way in on my mind all my waking hours: religious nature as cultural. Your a Reform synagogue; evel)'one ''Yaacov, you don't believe in the average baal teshuva was brought stands at the same time and power of Torah." up in America as an American, with wouldn't dare stand when evel)'one vel)' American values. Some of the was sitting, wouldn't dare sit when Rabbi Haber, a nalive of Buffalo, New York, who studied in Yeshiva. Torah Ore in Jerusalem for values are good, some of them are evel)'one was standing. They know ten years, is the founder of the Torah Center of bad, but they are all American. The it's that way in a gentile place of Buffalo. an outreach effort, which he has headed worship. And they figure how much for the past ten years, during which several other week I asked a friend-a hundred people have been brought to Torah successful businessman who more so is it going to be that way observance. The above essay is based on a appears on TV advertisements for in an Orthodox shul. presentation at a symposium in the recent 67th National Convention of Agudath Israel of his business with his yarmulka in And then there are those who do America. full display-if he would like to come prepare-perhaps too well. 4 The Jewish Observer, February 1990 could do together anymore. He wasn't willing to go out Friday nights and he wore a yarmulka full time. He gave up so much for Yiddishkeit he overhauled his body and spirit-and was just reduced to a knitted yarmulka! I explained to him that in thefrum world everybody covers their head, the issue is with what. I explained that some very accurate judgments can be made about people based on how they cover their head. You can The tell if someone is a Chassid, and you • can even tell what kind. You can tell ma1or their political affiliations. There is so much you can tell by the pinch barriers in a hat. Nevertheless, you are totally unaware of that. and none of it betweena applies to you. You come from a baal teshuva culture where nobody covers their and head. it's simply out of style in the someone who isfortunate enough United States of America to wear anything on your head. For you, it to be brought up in Torah are not was total mesiras nefesh to put anything up there at all.