On Thanksgiving, while most Americans were thinking about eating turkey, Agra D’Pirka’s legal holiday program had a top lineup of rabbanim talking turkey! Agra D’Pirka is a morning learning program that under normal times is held in communities throughout the U.S. It continues to draw approximately 400 balebatim daily—even during COVID—by telephone conference and Zoom; starting December 10, snowbirds can attend live, socially distant Agra D’Pirka shiurim in W. Palm Beach.
Thanks to Torah Anytime and CHAZAQ, Agra D’Pirka’s inspirational special legal holiday shiurim have also continued—via livestream. Thanksgiving weekend shiurim that took place in Knesses Bais Avigdor in Flatbush included Rav Lipa Geldwerth, shlit”a, mara d’asra, Kol Torah, who spoke about “Yemei Hallel V’Hoda’ah”; Rav Moshe Tuvia Lieff, shlit”a, mara d’asra, Agudas Yisroel Bais Binyomin, who covered “Chanukah in Today’s Times”; and, Rav Aharon Kahn, shlit”a, mara d’asra, Knesses Bais Avigdor, who addressed “Rav Dovid Feinstein, Posek Hador: An Appreciation.”
Rav Geldwerth noted, “The Rambam designates the mitzvah of Ner Chanukah “מצות נר חנוכה מצוה חביבה היא עד מאוד”—“mitzvah chaviva hi ad meod, a “most beloved mitzvah.” What is the singularity of this mitzvah to label it in this manner?
“It is further interesting that when discussing the נס חנוכה, the miracle, Tosafos in Shabbos (44a) and Sukkah (46a), as well as the Rosh in Pesachim (7b), refer to its uniqueness with the same term: חביבות הנס, “chavivus haneis, love for the neis.” Also, hidur (embellishment) of a mitzvah has definite limits. Ner Chanukah is exceptional in that it entails mehadrin min hamehadrin, multiple hidurim. Why?
“The key to all this may lie in the very nature of the neis. The Pnei Yehoshua (Shabbos 21b) explains that though the neis was halachically not necessary since the precept that tumah is deflected in the face of the needs of the tzibbur (“tumah dichuya bitzibbur”) applies, Hakadosh Boruch Hu saw fit to provide a miracle nonetheless. This was performed to demonstrate that we were once again beloved—chiba rishona—in the eyes of Hashem.
“Thus, the entire neis is one of chavivus, which is demonstrated when one goes beyond the requisite need. Therefore, we too go beyond the normal parameters to display both the miracle and our own reciprocated chiba to Hashem. … Agra D’Pirka, similarly, is an endeavor that goes beyond. It is beyond what has been provided before, and is a manifestation of chibas HaTorah, and it is a zechus to be part of it.”
Rav Lieff, who refers to Agra D’Pirka as the “bar bei rav d’chad yoma of our dor,” discussed Parshas Miketz where Yosef comes to Pharaoh, who holds he is a god, and says, “livado,”—I am nothing. “He jeopardizes everything because he is nothing, and that is Chanukah. According to the Targum, this is the opposite of Malchus Yavon, which was a hedonistic society that created its own gods. How did they become an eved avoda zara? They weren’t happy with the rules; they wanted zenus and Hashem said no, so they created another god—that was Yavon. In a hedonistic society it is all about me, all about what I want. We are the antithesis of this. They don’t see God in anything; we see God in everything. We are closer to being malachim than to being people, and it starts with Yosef. The Megaleh Amukos notes the gematria of Melech Yavon is Yosef. There is no commonality; this is the antithesis.”
Rav Kahn provided a glimpse into Rav Dovid Feinstein’s, zt”l, special middos. “When the Rosh Yeshiva had someone in front of him, that is what mattered—that was the toeles that he was focused on. … The toeles was every Yid, every talmid, every child is important; everyone who meets me is important. That is a critical nikuda.
“There was a certain tznius—a self-effacement—that the Rosh Yeshiva had, a certain desire not to be in the limelight…. He was an unbelievable anav; I think his anava allowed him to be so beloved. I don’t know of anyone who was such a masmid that was so accessible.
“He was a masmid atzum whose brain is racing to pasken a shaila in seconds. … He was oblivious to the world when he was learning, but the minute he became conscious of your presence, all of a sudden that became his agenda. That is far beyond anava; that’s sacrifice, because a person only has so much time in the day.”
On Friday, Rav Noach Isaac Oelbaum, shlit”a, mara d’asra, K’Hal Nachlas Yitzchok, presented “The Essence of Chanukah B’Halacha V’Agada.” The rav, who feels that “Agra D’Pirka has proven to be a life-changing program,” discussed the psak in the Shulchan Aruch based on the Trumas Hadeshen regarding lighting the menorah on Erev Shabbos. If the ner Chanukah extinguishes—even before you are mekabel Shabbos—you don’t have to relight it if you prepared everything properly with enough oil to burn 30 minutes after tzeis hakochavim. Because you did a ma’ase hadlaka, you are yotzei.
“The Shulchan Aruch says a very big chidush. If there is still time to relight it before Kabbalas Shabbos, you don’t have a chiyuv to relight because you did a ma’ase hadlaka. … Not everyone agrees with this psak, however. The Taz says you have to relight it since it was lit before the zman. The Bach and the Maharshal also say there is a chiuv to relight it. How do we pasken? The Mishnah Berurah says we have a chiyuv to be machmir like those who pasken like the Bach and the Maharshal.”
Rav Kahn notes, “R’Ezra Klein is one of those great dreamers who dream but do not sleep, as the Ponevezher Rav would say. Agra D’Pirka keeps growing and the dream keeps growing. At first, our shul, then another community, and suddenly a dozen and, eventually, with Hashem’s help, Agra D’Pirka will be the venue for balebatim throughout the country and beyond to learn Torah a great part of the day. First-rate magidei shiur, excellent limudim and even something to eat—can there be a better combination? Eventually, we will number in the thousands; Agra D’Pirka will change the face of America.”
To listen to Agra D’Pirka shiurim, Monday and Tuesday at 12 p.m., and on legal holidays, call: 646-558-6338 – ID: 49099323#.
