Stories Of Greatness

The story of Operation Brothers is about the rescue of thousands of Jews who were whisked out of enemy lands and brought to the Holy Land. It was one of the finest rescue operations in Israel’s history. It dates back to 1977, with the election of Prime Minister Menachem Begin.

In every generation, the Jewish people are blessed by the Almighty with a leader to whom, regardless of the domain - be it communal or individual life - nothing is done without his advice or consent. R’ Yitzchok Elchanan Spektor zt”l was known as “Rabban shel kol Yisroel” (Teacher of all Israel), and although he led various communities during his almost 80 years of life, his greatest renown arose from the city of Kovno, Lithuania, where he served as Rav for more than 30 years. It was there that he established his reputation as the “Posek Hador” and maintained a large correspondence with rabbis, Roshei Yeshivah, laymen, communities, philanthropists, and representatives in many parts of the world, who sought his advice and instruction on all conceivable subjects relating to Klal Yisroel. His sound reasoning and love of peace established him as truly one of the great leaders of world Jewry. The Netziv, R’ Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin zt”l of Volozhin, once said that R’ Yitzchok Elchanan merited all this because of his exceptional diligence in Torah study. “He is the greatest masmid of our generation,” said the Netziv. who was also known for his exceptional diligence.

A young lady, fresh out of seminary, was traveling to Eretz Yisrael to visit friends and relatives in Jerusalem. She needed a break after the past few hectic and unsettling weeks. After her year in Israel, she had gone “into shidduchim” with a positive outlook and a quiet confidence that Hashem would find her just the right Torah-minded boy, with marriage, a family, and a fulfilling life all ahead of her in the near future. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be working out this way. None of the proposals that her parents were receiving came even remotely close to what she was looking for, and those boys she had gone out with fell far short of her expectations. At first, she took it all in stride, but soon her resolve began to crumble. Her parents were positively in panic mode! They needed a shidduch for their daughter and they needed it fast!

It was the chasunah of a relative – a happy time, a special time, and Reb Anshel was filled with gratitude to be there. A retired businessman with a large and ever-growing family immersed in lives of avodas Hashem, Reb Anshel is known and respected in the Toronto community and beyond. As a guest myself, I was also participating in the beautiful simchah. During the chasan’s tish, waiting for the badeken ceremony to begin, I noticed Reb Anshel coming out of the crowd toward me.

The story of Eliezer Nanas is a remarkable one. While living in Moscow under the yoke of Communism, he tried to keep as many mitzvos as possible. He even sent his children to a school that taught Judaism to youngsters, and for this “crime” he was sent to Siberia for ten years, a death sentence for most people. When after a long and arduous journey Nanas arrived at the work camp, he was thrown into a little hut where there was nothing but a bed, surrounded by vast, empty vistas and unending snow. The food that he received was hardly enough to keep body and soul together, and in the extreme cold of Siberia, caloric intake made all the difference between staying healthy and alive or succumbing.

Rivka Toledano, a religious emergency room nurse, has seen a lot in her time, but on one occasion, she recalls a miraculous occurrence that she personally witnessed while working in a Canadian hospital. It was a cold December night, in the middle of a snowstorm, which means the ER can get pretty crazy. Chanukah was starting that very night, and Rivka was looking forward to completing her shift and going home to light the menorah with her family.