Posted on 08/30/24
Baltimore, MD - Aug. 30, 2024:
Lichvod HaRav Pinchas Gross, Shlita and Kehilas Kodesh Derech Chaim,
Every time I pass your beautiful new shul on Pimlico Rd., I am overcome with a mix of joy and sadness. Joyful that your flourishing Kehila will have the Mikdash me’at it truly deserves, and sadness over our shul’s loss.
It’s hard to believe that it has been almost a decade since we began sharing our space together. During that time, you have infused our shul with an immense amount of kedusha. I recall, years ago, when you requested to use the chapel in the evenings for Night Seder. The admiration that we experienced knowing that so many people, after a busy day at work, would come to learn for hours, was palpable. Even after you moved your Beis Medrash down the block, the Kol Torah on Shabbos afternoons directly impacted our community’s limmud Torah.
The energy of your tefilos has served as an inspiration to us as well. Most especially during the Yomim Noraim when your tent walls could not contain the thundering ‘Y’hei shmei rabbahs,’ I heard from so many how moved they were by your davening. You would always thank me for plugging in to my home, but it was you who provided us with the true energy.
In addition to the kedusha, and perhaps even more impactful, was the co-existence of two very different kehilos. Yes, there were bumps – that was to be expected. What was remarkable was the fact that we were able to ultimately work things out together. The ‘Good Shabbos’ in the hallways that blossomed into friendships, and the ability to respect one another is a unique expression of genuine achdus (as the Netziv famously describes achdus between different types of Jews). Where else can you find two kehillos of this nature coming together under one roof?
The Ran in Derashos (8) justifies the universal minhag of davening at kivrei Tzadikim despite it appearing to be a form of being doreish el hameisim. He explains that we are not davening to the deceased but rather, after a lifetime of Torah and Mitzvos, the Tzadik’s physical body is infused with kedusha, to the extent that after the neshama leaves, it retains kedusha, thus making their grave a unique conduit to Hashem.
Though you will no longer be learning Torah and davening in our shul, the kedusha remains. We will forever be inspired by the Kol Torah and Kol Tefillah that you infused into our shul.
I am hopeful that as we pass each other by, we can continue to wish each other a ‘Good Shabbos,’ and continue to model achdus to the broader community.
With a bracha for your continued growth l’hagdil Torah ul’hadirah,
Yisrael Motzen and the Ner Tamid Congregation