An Act of Kindness: The Heartwarming Encounter Between Two Giants

Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman zt"l was the Rabbi of Ponevezh in Lithuania and the head of Yeshivat Ponevezh in Bnei Brak. Having lost 9 out of his 10 children, as well as his students and community during the Holocaust in Europe, he never gave up. With divine help, he managed to escape with his son Avraham to Israel, where he founded Yeshivat Ponevezh, named after the Lithuanian town that was decimated in the Holocaust.

This story is shared by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Shushan, preacher for 'Dirshu'. "After the horrific Holocaust, Rabbi Kahaneman opened an institution for orphans who survived, called 'Batei Avot', providing for their every need," explains Rabbi Shushan. "A year and a half later, he established Yeshivat Ponevezh, his great vision. By 1949, five years after opening the yeshiva, 'Batei Avot' housed ninety children and there were 120 students in Yeshivat Ponevezh."

During that time there was a severe economic crisis, and Rabbi Kahaneman struggled to pay suppliers. His only son, Rabbi Avraham Kahaneman, urged him, "Father, we must decide, what do you prefer? The yeshiva or the institution? If you want to keep the yeshiva, you will have to close 'Batei Avot', but you cannot sustain both institutions, and in the end, it will all collapse, Heaven forbid…"

The 'Chofetz Chaim': "Torah without Kindness Will Not Survive"

Rabbi Shushan quotes Rabbi Kahaneman’s response, the survivor of the inferno: "Avraimle, Avraimle, after the horrific Holocaust when all Torah in Poland, Lithuania, Hungary, Galicia, and Romania went up in smoke, it is imperative for me to build another yeshiva, another place of Torah, but what should I do? The honored Chofetz Chaim, who was my teacher and Rabbi, knew my dreams, my vision, and he told me: 'Understand this, Torah without kindness will not endure. You want to open a yeshiva? First, open an institution of kindness.'"

Rabbi from Ponevezh explained to his son that "Without kindness, Torah will not endure. Our sages teach that Torah—its beginning is kindness and its end is kindness. I must continue to establish more yeshivas, but if I close 'Batei Avot', the home providing a warm place for children surviving the war, I will also close the very merit that gives life to Yeshivat Ponevezh. I must continue to support this institution of kindness."

Rabbi Shushan tells a powerful story, illustrating that Torah walks hand in hand with acts of kindness. In his words: "In 1948, three years after the end of the Holocaust, a ten-year-old child, a Holocaust refugee who lost his parents in Auschwitz, arrived at the institution. An elderly aunt managed to keep him and took him to 'Batei Avot' at Yeshivat Ponevezh."

"Mrs. Munk, the house mother, welcomed the child with love and compassion. He was reserved and withdrawn. The house mother provided him, like every new child, with a set of sheets, a pillowcase, a blanket, and a new pair of pajamas. He ate his first dinner quietly and hid slices of bread in his pocket, still living under the terror of the camps, wanting to be sure he would have bread to eat when he woke up," describes Rabbi Shushan of the young orphan, unable to believe that the war was over.

"He went to bed with his clothes on, with his shoes on, without showering. Mrs. Munk saw it all and said nothing," shares Rabbi Shushan. "The next evening, she gently approached him: 'Motti, come take a bath, I prepared new pajamas for you,' but the child refused. He went to bed in muddy clothes and shoes. Completely covered in dirt, and there was no one to speak to…

"Each day it became more unbearable to continue like this. She tried to coax him with warmth: 'I’ll give you chocolate!' but the child stubbornly refused. Rabbi Grandvitz zt"l, was a young rabbi and psychologist treating children at the institution. He tried to caress the child and talk to him, but the child wouldn’t change—unwilling to undress, unwilling to bathe, and slept with his dirty clothes and shoes," continues Rabbi Shushan in his vivid description.

"I Never Lied. I Will Guard Your Clothes"

"Mrs. Munk saw she had no choice and called upon the Rabbi from Ponevezh, who was an 'aba' (father) to the children of the institution. He kissed and hugged them, and every Friday distributed money for them to buy a treat for Shabbat at the nearby kiosk.

The Rabbi from Ponevezh approached the new child: 'Sweet Mottle, why aren’t you bathing?' The child remained silent and did not answer. He told Mrs. Munk, "We cannot leave this as it is, we must go to the Chazon Ish!” A whole delegation arrived at the home of the Chazon Ish, who lived nearby: Mrs. Munk, Rabbi from Ponevezh, Rabbi Grandvitz, and the young child, Motti.

The Rabbi from Ponevezh spoke for them: "Honored Rabbi," he addressed the Chazon Ish, "We have a new child, sweet Motti. Since he arrived four days ago, he refuses to bathe, wear pajamas, or take off his clothes. It’s so hot here…"

The Chazon Ish gently addressed the young child: "Mordechai, why don’t you want to bathe?" Suddenly, the child’s walls of silence collapsed as he erupted with anger: "I don’t want to undress! Every time I undressed, they took my clothes and left me with striped pajamas. In Bergen-Belsen, in Auschwitz, they always stole my clothes. If I don’t have parents to guard my clothes—I won’t undress!"

"All present remained in stunned silence," continues Rabbi Shushan. "It was hard to see the child’s lack of trust, who couldn’t rely on anyone. The Rabbi from Ponevezh, filled with emotion, stepped outside and burst into tears."

The Chazon Ish said to the child: "Don’t worry, Mrs. Munk will guard your clothes." The child replied bitterly: "I don’t believe her." The Chazon Ish continued: "Rabbi Grandvitz will guard your clothes," and the child: "I don’t believe him." The Chazon Ish tried again: "Maybe the Rabbi from Ponevezh will guard your clothes?" and the child: "I don’t believe him."

The Chazon Ish used his last hope: "Motti, you know what? I will guard your clothes….." The child looked suspiciously at the leader of Israel: "Rabbi, you will guard my clothes?"

"Yes," the Chazon Ish replied. "I have never lied. I will guard your clothes." The ten-year-old responded: "If the Rabbi will guard them, I’m willing!"

"Within ten minutes, Mrs. Munk returned to the great leader’s home with the pajamas. The child entered the room, changed into the pajamas, and all four: Mrs. Munk, Rabbi Grandvitz, Rabbi from Ponevezh, and the Chazon Ish waited. In a few minutes, the child came out with the clothes in hand and turned to the Chazon Ish: "Rabbi, guard them for me, here’s the shirt, here are the tzitzit, here are the socks, here’s the tunic, here’s the shirt…"

"Sure, I am guarding them, you can go," affirmed the Chazon Ish, and Motti went with Mrs. Munk to the dorm to shower.

An incredible story about a Holocaust survivor and the profound kindness of Israel's greats. Watch: