In the early 90’s, following college graduation, I was soul searching–looking for direction in the next chapter of my life,
It was in those years that I was blessed to learn from Rav David Weiss Halivni, both as a regular at the Finkelstein Minyan, later as member of Kehilat Orach Eliezer and also as a rabbinical student at his rabbinical school, the Metivta.
While I did learn about his passion for Talmud and scholarship, for me, the countless life lessons that I learned from this gadol, a man whom I had the privilege to watch with a front row seat, were most powerful.
Rav Halivni as a pluralist-In the 90’s, a major topic in our community was pluralism and squaring the challenge of being a person of faith while being open to the views of others. When I asked Rav Halivni how he navigated that challenge, he answered with enormous humility. I remember him telling me, “I will believe with everything I have that I am right. But, at the same time, I am human, and the possibility that I am wrong demands that I am open to the paths of others.” It is this message of passion and humility that is a strong foundation for openness.
Rav Halivni as a model of empathy-I remember once talking to him about all of the suffering he endured as a child. I pointed out how that suffering must be so huge compared to more “small-scale” suffering that happens as part of the rhythm of much human life. He didn’t see it that way. He was the first to teach me that there is no quantifying suffering. No one person’s suffering or tragedy is more intense than others. From this Holocaust survivor who had seen unspeakable horrors, I learned that when someone’s world shatters, it shatters, and broken hearts are all equally painful.
Rav Halivni as a friend - Rabbi Halivni led the minyan in Rabbi Finkelstein’s home, teaching and davening. But the biggest lesson I learned from him was watching him and Rabbi Finkelstein engage with one another. They were long-time friends, always sharing a greeting, a smile, an embrace and a word of Torah. Rav Halivni also took care of R. Finkelstein with enormous respect, making sure he had his siddur, his talit. Maybe the most indelible picture in my mind of the two of them from those years was on Simchat Torah. When everyone was dancing during hakafot, Rav Halivni, would go up to R. Finkelstein and sing ברוך אלהינו שבראנו לכבודו and hold hands and dance with him, his face glowing with a smile from ear to ear. Watching these two friends together in shared camaraderie and passion for Torah was a yearly lesson learned.
Rav Halivni as a davener - At the minyan, Rav Halivni had a favorite אל אדון tune. To this day, I call it the Rav Halivni tune. He loved it so! I remember that his soul would soar when he reached the line שבח נותנים לו that he could not resist singing it just a bit louder so the heavens would hear the praise he gave to God. He had an ability to lose himself in tefila–something I will always take with me.
Rav Halivni on intellectual integrity - Over the past week, I had the privilege of reading posts by so many scholars about Rav Halivni. I am not one of those scholars, yet his shita, both in looking at the Talmud and also the text of the Torah as learned through his books (which I admittedly did not often fully understand) allowed me to see that one can live with intellectual integrity and also keep a pureness of faith. The foundation of this kind of life of heartfelt passion combined intellect is אמונה צרופה ויושר דעת, the tagline that he used for his yeshiva.
Rav Halivni on “shortcuts” to faith - I remember distinctly taking a walk once with Rav Halivni in NYC on a Shabbat morning. It was right after I had learned about the “Torah Codes,” an approach to seeing hidden secrets in the Torah, popularized in the 90’s by Aish HaTorah. I wanted to know what this scholarly giant thought of these less sophisticated, but somehow somewhat compelling ways of seeing Torah. While most in my world trashed the codes and were at best skeptical, Rav Halivni in his pure and humble way, did not. He told me that while he was not, and never would be, interested in that type of lens on the Torah, he showed respect for those who do. He told me that they could be right and they could be wrong, but he could never base faith on something like that. He was able to show respect for an approach that is totally not “him,” while teaching me that something as complex as faith cannot fit into such a neat, simple box.
So while I have a semikha klaff signed by Rav Halivni attesting to my learning (photo of the ceremony above), it is not simply the halakha from Rav Halivni that I am honored to have learned. Rav Halvni was a walking Torah of life whose lessons deeply impacted me and countless other students.
Rav Halivni always stayed true to his mind, his heart and his soul. He did not go by the fads of the day or public pressures. Whether it was as an institutional leader, a scholar or as a survivor of the Shoah, he shared his precious stories, his insights and his true self on his terms, in his own powerful and humble way.
His openness and revolutionary ideas were principles that flourished as they were grounded and planted in soil of purity, honesty, brilliance, wisdom, genuineness, unyielding faith and genuineness.
The world was beyond blessed with his presence.
יהי זכרו ברוך
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