In four months, the Dirshu Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program and all of Klal Yisrael mark the siyum on the Machzor Rishon, the first seven-year cycle of Dirshu’s popular Daf HaYomi B’Halacha daily Mishnah Berurah program.
Dirshu’s Nasi, Rav Dovid Hofstedter, visited the homes of a number of senior Gedolei Yisrael to discuss the coming event.
When Rav Shteinman of Daf HaYomi B’Halacha learned of Dirshu’s great success and the fact that they are mere months away from the siyum on the entire Mishnah Berurah, Rav Shteinman said that being able to enrich Klal Yisrael in such a way requires tremendous siyatta diShmaya.
Rav Shteinman once told Dirshu leadership that, “When Rav Meir Shapiro established the concept of learning Daf Yomi, many skeptics said, ‘How will everyone be able to learn the difficult masechtos such as seder Kodshim that cover areas of Torah that are not relevant in our times? Today everyone knows how mistaken those skeptics turned out to be! Today we realize that because of Daf Yomi, all Jews have the opportunity to become Shas Yidden. …”
Rav Meshulem Dovid Soloveichik, Rosh Yeshiva of Brisk and son of the Brisker Rov, Rav Yitzchok Zev Soloveichik, zt”l, said, “What is there for me to add about the importance of learning daily halacha? Chazal teach us, ‘He who learns halacha every day is assured that he is a ben Olam Habah. In the Gemara we find tannaim worried over whether they would get into Olam Habah. Avrohom Avinu wondered if he would have Olam Habah. Moshe Rabbeinu assured Yehoshua that he would have Olam Habah. Here, however, Chazal PROMISE that if one learns halacha daily one WILL have Olam Habah.”
Vizhnitzer Rebbe of Bnei Brak, Rav Yisrael Hager, met with the Dirshu delegation and highlighted the importance of learning halacha daily. “This program gives every person the framework and ability to make a halacha seder each day and thereby merit Olam Habah. It is a tremendous zechus,” exclaimed the Rebbe.
Rav Yitzchok Scheiner, Rosh Yeshiva of Kamenitz, and Rav Dovid Hofstedter of Dirshu also met. Rav Hofstedter pointed to how, with the investment of approximately one half to one hour each day, by learning Daf HaYomi B’Halacha, a person can save himself from transgressing thousands of issurim, and thus the program prevented hundreds of thousands of transgressions of issurei d’Oraisah and d’Rabanan, saving thousands of people from issurei kareis, from malkos and so many other punishments….” Rav Scheiner responded, “There is no Mishnah Berurah better than the Dirshu Mishnah Berurah, and there is no better way to increase one’s desire to learn than by learning and joining. There is no learner of Daf HaYomi B’Halacha who can say, ‘I didn’t need to do this! Mishnah Berurah is something that virtually everyone needs to learn and wants to learn. There is no sefer as pleasant as the Mishnah Berurah.’”
Rav Dovid Soloveichik succinctly encapsulated the pivotal importance of joining the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha now. “What do we say every day in the tefillah of Ahava Rabbah? First we beg Hashem to enable us to understand and elucidate Torah. Then we ask Him to enable us to listen, learn, teach, safeguard… and [lastly] perform the mitzvah.
“First a person must learn the Torah and try to understand it and its underlying foundations. In that way he will be able to progress into learning practical halacha, and actually rendering Halachic rulings.”
