Chapter 70: Devorah Brings About a Spiritual Revolution in Vitebsk

00:01 The remarkable story of Devorah and Rabbi Nachum. When Tzadok Moshe returned to Vitebsk, he told Rabbi Nachum about Devorah’s extraordinary character and persuaded him to travel to Minsk to meet her. After Rabbi Nachum visited Minsk, the two sides agreed to the match, and some time later they were married. At Tzadok Moshe’s suggestion, Rabbi Nachum placed all his businesses under Devorah’s supervision. Within a few months, Devorah’s considerable talent enabled her to grasp every detail of the businesses’ financial position. As she took full charge, she showed warmth toward the many employees. Indeed, she gave special attention to everyone, rich or poor, learned or unlearned, while showing great esteem for Torah scholars. She had a particular appreciation for her husband, Rabbi Nachum, of whom she spoke with reverence. Through her wisdom and kindness, Devorah earned a good name throughout Vitebsk. Before long, she was involved in all the city’s charitable activities and institutions, including [unclear], helping brides marry, visiting the sick, clothing those in need, helping the poor, and supporting the downtrodden. In these efforts she took a leading role. Their own home, too, was opened wide and became a gathering place for Torah scholars. Over time, Rabbi Nachum himself began to understand Devorah’s full worth, and his regard for her grew greatly. Nevertheless, he did not change his own habits. He continued to keep his distance from people and took even less interest in his businesses than before, since he relied on Devorah completely. On this point, Devorah and her husband disagreed. Devorah very much wanted him to have some knowledge of what was happening in his businesses, and suggested that he look over the accounts from time to time. But Nachum said that if he had not done so in the past, then surely now, when everything was under Devorah’s supervision,

02:45 he had no reason to check the accounts. This led to a debate between them about whether his withdrawal from people and from his businesses was the right course. Devorah demonstrated her learning, listing a number of Tannaim and Amoraim who had nevertheless found time to attend to their businesses. She also cited the account in Taanis, page 9, of Daniel bar Ketina[?], who would walk through his garden every day to see what needed doing there. And she mentioned the account in Nedarim, page 62, of Rav Ashi, who sold a forest to fire worshippers and explained that this did not constitute idolatry, since the wood was destined to be burned in any case. Devorah also named many Tannaim and Amoraim who bought property or inherited it and managed it properly. She concluded by citing the teaching of our Sages: “Torah study that is not accompanied by work will ultimately cease.” Rabbi Nachum was surprised by his wife’s scholarship. Still, he did not abandon his view, and offered reasons to justify his way of life. Citing his teacher, the ascetic from Krakow, he explained that the “work” mentioned in that Mishnah meant the service of the Creator. Devorah did not yield, and continued to bring Torah arguments against her husband’s approach. Rabbi Nachum then discovered, to his astonishment, that Devorah set aside regular times to study the Talmud and was already going through the entire Shas for a second time. Meanwhile, Devorah pointed out to her husband that, by her calculations based on a study of the halachic authorities, it was doubtful whether the charity he had given over the years amounted to a tithe. The amounts distributed had been recorded, but it was not clear whether they came to one tenth of the profits. Rabbi Nachum admitted that he had never paid attention to this point, but wondered whether it was still possible to put matters right. Devorah said that since the ledgers had been kept in good order, they need only make the effort to recalculate all the sums that should have

05:17 been given over the years. She undertook the work herself, and after weeks of sustained effort presented her husband with a calculation of the outstanding amount owed to charity according to halachah. Nachum, of course, gave it immediately. Then, in 5414, war broke out between the Poles and the Russians in the area between Vitebsk and Smolensk. The war lasted thirteen years, during which many Jewish merchants in Vitebsk grew wealthy by supplying materials to the Polish army. In 5427, however, General Sheremetev captured Vitebsk. He immediately arrested most of the city’s merchants and exiled them deep into Russia. The Russians held these captives for three years, after which they were allowed to return home. Yet neither the war nor any other event affected the course of Jewish life in Vitebsk as much as Devorah’s emergence as one of the city’s spiritual leaders. Thanks to Devorah, Vitebsk’s Torah and charitable institutions flourished. As we have mentioned, before Devorah arrived, Vitebsk had few Torah scholars, and its women had limited opportunities for Jewish learning. For Devorah, who came from Minsk, this was a challenge, as we have already related. Rabbi Nachum continued in his own way, paying no attention to what was happening around him. Devorah concluded that she could not change her husband’s nature, so she did everything she thought necessary to achieve her goals herself. Devorah was very busy, not only managing her husband’s businesses and working for the community, but with another pursuit as well. In her husband’s home she found one of the largest libraries of the time: a collection of old books accumulated over generations and passed down from father to son. Eager to broaden her knowledge, Devorah devoted herself to this newly discovered, extraordinary source of learning. She spent many hours with this spiritual treasure, which she valued more highly than her husband’s material treasures and property.

07:51 One of the particular tasks Devorah took upon herself was to raise the spiritual standing of Vitebsk’s Jewish women. After organizing women’s groups to arrange care for orphans and help the poor and the sick, Devorah wanted to bring the women closer to the sources of Judaism. So whenever she met with women about charitable matters, she would speak to those present, drawing on teachings and stories of our Sages. She made a special effort to ensure that the women understood her words and took them to heart. To that end, she used widely available books in Yiddish, including the Yiddish translation of the Chumash, known as the Taytsh Chumash, which was already in print. Mainly, though, Devorah drew on her own knowledge and worked to share it with the women in a way they could understand. Before long, a large group of women in Vitebsk had set regular times for suitable Torah study. But Devorah was not satisfied with this. She had a long-term plan: to turn Vitebsk, which had fallen behind, into a city of Torah and Torah scholars. At the time, Vitebsk had a small, little-known yeshivah. Most of its students were local, and only a few came from the surrounding area. The way Vitebsk treated yeshivah students differed greatly from the way they were treated in Devorah’s hometown of Minsk. There, as in other cities, the practice known as “eating days” was common: households supported yeshivah students by providing meals for one or more of them. In Devorah’s father’s home, and later in her own home in Minsk, they always hosted several yeshivah students for meals, on weekdays as well as on Shabbos and Yom Tov. From early childhood, Devorah had devoted herself to preparing meals for these students. She always treated the young Torah scholars who came to her home with reverence and sought to win their hearts. She took particular pleasure in hearing words of Torah from them. But here in Vitebsk, this practice was unknown.

10:28 At all. It had only a very small number of yeshiva students, and the local people had very little interest in it. So Devorah began introducing this beautiful Jewish custom in Vitebsk as well. Since there were not many young men studying Torah, she decided to turn Vitebsk into a city of Torah learners. When she spoke about it with her husband, Reb Nachum, she persuaded him to send five or six young men, at his expense, to study in the renowned yeshivos of the time in Krakow and Prague. Devorah thought that when they returned, filled with Torah knowledge, they would be the pioneers in raising a generation of Torah scholars in Vitebsk. The next step was for Reb Nachum to send a special emissary to Minsk, Slutsk, Brisk, and Vilna to select ten outstanding young married Torah scholars and persuade them to come to Vitebsk with their families. There, all their needs and their families’ needs would be provided for, while they would be charged with spreading Torah study among the city’s Jews. The emissary Reb Nachum chose for the task was the gaon Rabbi Moshe, son of Rabbi Yekusiel Zalman of Krakow, Reb Nachum’s teacher. Reb Nachum stipulated that the fact that he himself was supporting the scholars’ families at his own expense must remain a secret. Another condition agreed upon in advance was that each scholar would live in a different neighborhood of the city and hold Torah classes there for the public. They also agreed that if any Jews wished to donate to these scholars, the donations would be directed to charitable causes. The scholars would be supported solely by Reb Nachum. After eight or nine months, Rabbi Moshe completed his mission. Over time, other young married Torah scholars joined the original ten, among them one named Ephraim Simcha. Before long, the sound of Torah study began to resound through Vitebsk. Torah classes were established throughout the city, where Jews young and old sat and studied diligently. Within ten years of Devorah’s arrival, Vitebsk had changed markedly. Even Rabbi

12:57 Nachum himself changed. Thanks to his wife’s influence, he began to engage more with people. He would discuss Torah with the scholars among his students who came to his home. From time to time, he also took an interest in how his businesses were doing; meanwhile, they continued to grow and expand. Devorah, for her part, was very successful in her work among the women she taught. These were happy years for Reb Nachum and Devorah, but their happiness was incomplete, for they had not yet been blessed with children. Both longed for a child with all their hearts. Reb Nachum was particularly concerned, as he was approaching old age. One day, a distinguished guest came to their home: the tzaddik and kabbalist Rabbi Moshe Gershon, who had been a student of Rabbi Eliyahu, the Baal Shem of Worms, and had also studied for many years in the yeshiva of Rabbi Pinchas, the miracle worker of Fulda. Rabbi Moshe Gershon gained Reb Nachum’s trust, and they spoke at length about Torah. Nachum shared what was in his heart, including the problem that caused him great distress: they still had no children. Rabbi Moshe Gershon explained to Reb Nachum that a person cannot expect all his wishes and aspirations in life to be fulfilled. In particular, it is difficult to expect to be blessed with all three blessings: children, happiness, and long life. He told him, “Since Hakadosh Boruch Hu has blessed you with happiness and long life, you cannot expect children as well. If you specifically want children, you must give up one of the two blessings you have received.” Reb Nachum was deeply moved by these words. He withdrew to reflect and reach a decision. After several days of thought... Let me start that again. After days of deep thought, Reb Nachum decided that he must give up one of the two blessings. Bear in mind that Reb Nachum was then over sixty years old, and he wanted to be blessed with a child. Reb Nachum informed the kabbalist of his decision. The kabbalist blessed him and left

15:56 Vitebsk. Before a year had passed, Devorah felt that she was pregnant. But she did not hurry to tell her husband, for at first she feared that what had happened to the child from her previous marriage, who had not lived long, might happen to this baby too. After three months, however, she joyfully shared her secret with her husband.