Bidspirit auction | “And Moshe Was Shepherding…” —

“And Moshe Was Shepherding…” — A Moving Early Letter by Maran Rabbi Baruch Dov Povarsky - A lengthy and early autograph letter written entirely in the hand of Maran Rabbi Baruch Dov Povarsky, Rosh Yeshivah of Ponevezh and member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah, during his stay in the United States. New York, 1958. The letter is addressed to his friend, Dayan Rabbi Yitzchak Epstein. Despite Rabbi Povarsky’s relatively young age at the time, the letter reflects remarkable maturity, responsibility, and concern characteristic of a future leader of Torah Jewry. Between the lines, he describes his meetings with some of the foremost roshei yeshivah in America, including Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner and his “friend” Rabbi Shneur Kotler. The entire letter revolves around a single yeshivah student — “Avraham’le” — who, without a suitable framework, risked being left behind. Rabbi Povarsky, with extraordinary devotion, spares no effort in seeking an appropriate yeshivah for him. Displaying the determination and holy persistence for which he would later become renowned, he refuses to abandon the matter: Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner agrees to arrange immigration papers under the auspices of Yeshivas Rabbeinu Chaim Berlin, yet is unwilling to assume responsibility for the student. Rabbi Shneur Kotler, on the other hand, is prepared to accept him into Lakewood but is unable to secure the necessary immigration documents. What does Rabbi Berel do? Characteristically, he untangles the entire dilemma as though resolving a complex Talmudic discussion. Rabbi Hutner will arrange the paperwork through his yeshivah, while Rabbi Shneur will formally notify Rabbi Hutner that the student has been accepted to Lakewood — thereby resolving the problem. Rabbi Povarsky even devises a contingency plan should the arrangement fail. And all this — for a single student. Already at the age of twenty-three, while many of his contemporaries were only beginning their years in kollel, Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman appointed him to serve as a maggid shiur at the Ponevezh Yeshivah, alongside Rabbi Gershon Edelstein. Now, in 1958, at only twenty-eight years of age and already an established rosh yeshivah, he spends his vacation traveling between New York and Lakewood, between Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner’s summer residence by the sea and the Lakewood Yeshivah in New Jersey — all to ensure that Avraham’le would find the yeshivah best suited to his needs. It is no wonder that he would one day come to stand at the helm of the foremost yeshivah in Eretz Yisrael — the Ponevezh Yeshivah. The present letter brings to mind the famous words of the Midrash: “When Moshe Rabbeinu was shepherding the flock of Yisro in the wilderness, a kid ran away from him. He ran after it... The kid stopped to drink water. When Moshe reached it, he said: ‘I did not realize that you were running because you were thirsty. You must be tired.’ He placed it upon his shoulders and carried it. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘You have compassion in tending the flock of flesh and blood; by your life, you shall shepherd My flock, Israel.’” (Shemos Rabbah) This remarkable letter offers a rare glimpse into the formative years of one of the great Torah leaders of our generation, already displaying the boundless dedication to every individual student that would characterize his lifelong leadership. [1] Airmail letter, 31 cm, written on both sides, entirely in the autograph handwriting and signature of Rabbi Baruch Dov Povarsky. Very fine condition.