Gedolei Yisrael welcome participation as Daf HaYomi B’Halacha marches toward Dirshu world siyum of second machzor of Mishnah Berurah.

By Chaim Gold

“It is not enough for a person to do mitzvos, he must live Torah and mitzvos! How does one live Torah? How does one make shemiras haTorah and shemiras hamitzvos the true chiyus of his life? By learning Mishnah Berurah daily. Daily learning of Halacha elevates a person by teaching him to live every minute of every day with Hashem and His mitzvos. Through a small investment of time he can elevate his life to a different plane!”

Those were the enthusiastic words of HaGaon HaRav Yitzchok Ezrachi, shlita, venerated rosh yeshiva of Mir Yerushalayim when discussing Dirshu’s Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program.

Indeed, that small investment of time each day by tens and perhaps hundreds of thousands of Yidden the world over will soon be culminating in a colossal world siyum. This coming chodesh Adar, Dirshu’s Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program will be celebrating the completion of the second machzor of learning a daf of Mishnah Berurah each day with gala siyumim in locations around the world. The siyumim in Eretz Yisrael and the United States led and graced by senior gedolei Yisrael are sure to be grand demonstrations of kavod haTorah and kavod for the lomdei Torah who have spent the last seven years, day in and day out, learning Mishnah Berurah. This has transformed them into Yidden who live every moment of their lives in accordance with halacha.

Rav Shteinman: Everything Depends On How One Observes Halacha

Not long before his passing, HaGaon HaRav Aharon Leib Shteinman, who was an enthusiastic supporter of Dirshu’s programs, voiced his feelings about the importance of the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program when he said, “The Gemara teaches us, ‘We learned in the beis medrash of Eliyahu that one who learns halacha every day is assured a place in Olam Haba, as it says, ‘Halichos olam Lo [the ways of the world are His]’—do not read the word halichos, but rather halachos.’”

Rav Shteinman asked, “Why didn’t the pasuk just say the word ‘halachos’? Why did it have to say halichos in such a way that a drasha is necessary so that we can learn that it means halachos?” Rav Shteinman answered, “The way a person walks in this world and where he will be in the next world are all dependent on how he observes halacha. When a Yid lives in accordance with halacha and all his halichos, all his comings and goings in this world are in accordance with the Torah, he will merit that he will also walk in Olam Haba. In fact, he is promised that he will merit Olam Haba!”

Rav Moshe Shaul Klein: ‘Truly a Revolution!’

The great senior posek hador, Rav Shmuel Wosner, the Shevet Halevi, similarly valued Dirshu and specifically encouraged its halacha programs. Recently, Rav Dovid Hofstedter visited HaGaon HaRav Moshe Shaul Klein, shlita, rav of the Ohr Hachaim neighborhood of Bnei Brak and posek of the Mayanei Hayeshua Hospital and a talmid muvhak of Rav Wosner. “The revolution accomplished by Dirshu in the world of halacha,” Rav Klein told Rav Dovid, “was completely unfathomable when it was started; however, I remember mori v’rabi Rav Wosner telling me, ‘Rav Dovid Hofstedter is a good socher, he knows where to invest…’ And now, look at what has happened over the past couple of decades! There are thousands of new morei horaah learning in the Kinyan Halacha program with untold numbers of Yidden learning daily Mishnah Berurah in the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha Program throughout the world. Truly a revolution!”

Rav Dovid Cohen: Enabling Lomdim To Reach Goals in Yedias HaTorah

During a visit to the home of HaGaon HaRav Dovid Cohen, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Chevron, Dirshu’s hanhala led by Rav Hofstedter were inspired by his words of praise. Rav Dovid Cohen began by quoting HaGaon HaRav Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz, zt”l, who had said that one of the greatest of Dirshu’s achievements is that it has enabled lomdim to be part of a program with clear goals and a way to reach them. The schedule and testing are tremendous aids for lomdei Torah who wish to accomplish and require an orderly system to enable him to get there.

Rav Asher Weiss: ‘Halacha L’ma’aseh
Is the Most Important Component of Torah!’

Recently, many of our gedolim from across the spectrum of klal Yisrael have been encouraging and urging Yidden to add the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha learning program to their schedule. In a meeting with the senior hanhala of Dirshu, led by Rav Hofstedter, the gaavad of Darchei Horaah, Rav Asher Weiss, praised the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program and exhorted lomdei Torah, even those who already have comprehensive Gemara sedarim, to add the seder of daily halacha to their learning regimen. “It is such a zechus to be part of the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha program! Why? Because at the end of the day the primary mitzvah of limud haTorah is to learn in order to know how to observe halacha l’ma’aseh.”

Rav Shimon Galei: ‘What a Simcha!’

Hashem infuses klal Yisrael with kochos once they invest time and effort into their learning and being tested, but what infuses Rav Hofstedter and the hanhala of Dirshu with the impetus to continue their life-sustaining work? It is those times when they can watch heads bent in concentration at a testing site that infuse them with emotion and with the understanding of just how pivotal their avodas hakodesh is! While at the testing site in the main Belzer Beis Medrash in Yerushalayim, they met with Rav Avrohom Shmuel Tzvi Rokeach, a grandson of the Belzer Rebbe. Upon glancing around the expansive room full of Yidden taking the Dirshu tests, Rav Rokeach became emotional and thanked Rav Hofstedter and Dirshu for their role in enabling lomdei Torah to reach such levels of yedias haTorah.

The well-known tzaddik, Rav Shimon Galei, similarly met the Dirshu delegation with such profound warmth and expressed his joy about the upcoming world siyum. “What a simcha it is to be on the cusp of completing the entire Mishnah Berurah! We must all strengthen ourselves during these days in the learning of Mishnah Berurah. It is a great zechus before Rosh Hashanah, and without a doubt it will bring great nachas to the neshama of the Chofetz Chaim who will be a meilitz yosher for all of us!”

Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch: Now Is the Time!

Perhaps one of the most inspiring visits was the visit to the home of HaGaon HaRav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka. Rav Hofstedter and Rav Hirsch discussed the difficult period of the coronavirus and how it had impacted the yeshivos in particular and limud haTorah in general.

Rav Dovid Hofstedter told Rav Moshe Hillel about the fact that Dirshu had sustained profound losses during corona with the passing of senior gedolim who had so supported and encouraged the organization, among them, HaGaon HaRav Yitzchok Scheiner and Hagaon Harav Meshulem Dovid Soloveichik. Rav Moshe Hillel was mechazek Dirshu and reiterated that a new generation of gedolei roshei yeshiva will come and give chizuk.

Rav Hirsch said, “Now is the time for all of us to be mechazek ourselves and especially the lomdei Dirshu. During the corona period,” Rav Moshe Hillel continued, “some found it difficult to maintain the highest levels of yedias haTorah as before, but now, even though life has not yet returned to normal, it is time to rededicate ourselves! Today too, in the difficult environment, political and otherwise, that the Torah community faces, we can rededicate ourselves to limud haTorah and yedias haTorah at the highest levels!”