Guest Blogger: Rabbi Doniel Kramer
In the summer of
1976, right after Rav Dr. Lamm was selected as YU's new President and
Rosh Hayeshiva, he had to immediately take responsibility for all of
YU's schools and affiliates.
Some years
beforehand, YU had established the West Coast Teaches College in Los
Angeles, which was headed by Rav Dr. Leon Stitskin from his YU New York
office. Since JTS and HUC had West Coast hubs, Rav
Dr. Belkin thought it important that YU be there for the Orthodox
community. This College basically was a good training ground for day
school and afternoon school educators, but it really did not impact the
broader Orthodox community.
As I
had just received my Ph.D. from YU's Bernard Revel Graduate School in
Modern Jewish History and Education, Dr. Lamm and Rabbi Stitskin
asked me to move to L.A. and become the full-time Director of this
College while Rav Dr. Lamm could ponder its future.
In the Fall of
1976, Rabbi Marvin Hier of Vancouver presented a grandiose plan to YU
and Dr. Lamm for a new Yeshiva University of Los Angeles, which would be
a new affiliate of YU, with the stipulation
that it would begin as a new school with no connection to the West
Coast Teachers College.
By the Winter of
1976-7, YU had formalized this new arrangement with Rabbi Hier. Rav Dr.
Lamm was to make his first trip to L.A. as YU'S President to present it
to the local rabbonim and Orthodox communal
leadership. Rav Lamm's brother, Rabbi Maurice Lamm, was the rav of Beth
Jacob Congregation of Beverly Hills, perhaps the largest Orthodox shul
in the L.A. region.
[During this
year, the Bais Medresh Gevoha of Lakewood, NJ, under the leadership of
Rav Schneur Kotlar, opened a new Kollel, its first outpost in L.A..]
Rav and Mrs,
Maurice Lamm hosted a breakfast so that his brother could meet
significant Orthodox rabbonim in L.A. and share with them YU's projected
new program. During
this breakfast, the doorbell rang, and in walked Rav Schneur Kotler.
The breakfast attendees were given no clue that Rav Kotler would be coming.
Rav Kotlar was
seated right next to Rav Lamm, and I had the good fortune of being
seated right across the table from them so that I could hear parts of
their conversation.
The two roshei
yeshiva warmly greeted each other as though they were old friends, and
each shared with the other the plans of development in L.A. for their
respective yeshivot. They also discussed some
of the philosophical perspectives of their yeshivot, and then they
talked about philosophical differences and
disagreements throughout modern
Jewish times. They shared how some of these differences were managed
respectfully within Klal Yisrael while other differences produced
explosive results. They concluded that the "pulmus hamussar" was
probably the only recent machlokes in Orthodoxy conducted
with some degree of respect. Rav Lamm posited
that it was hard to imagine mussar advocates NOT arguing
respectfully, and Rav Kotler smilingly agreed. The roshei yeshiva then
gave each other a brachah that each of their institutions' new programs
and endeavors
should have HaShem's blessings for success. Then Rav Kotler left, and Rav Lamm went on to describe the new plans for YU of L.A.
Unfortunately,
cordial relationships between leaders of different hashkafot within
Orthodoxy are not often portrayed or witnessed. Those attending this
Lamm breakfast were truly privileged in this regard.
******************************************************************
While
sharing this story, I will also share one depicting a very cordial relationship between Rav Dr. Lamm and chassidus.
For
many years, until his death, I had the zechut of sitting opposite R.
Benzion Shenker, the famed Modzitzer Chassidic composer, singer and
chazzan, during shaloshudis in the Modzitzer Shteible on Coney Island
Ave. in Flatbush, and I was privileged to get to
know R. BZ Shenker very well.
One time, he shared the following story with me.
BZ Shenker and N. Lamm were talmidim in Yeshiva Torah Vodaas at the same
time, and they got to know each other there. Additionally, Rav Lamm's
grandfather, Rav Yehoshua Baumol, was the local rav and posek in the
neighborhood where BZ Shenker was raised, and
he sometimes would be sent by his mother or grandmother to Rav Baumol's
house to ask a kashrus "shay'lo." He further cemented his friendship
with N. Lamm, who was often at his grandfather's house.
When Norman Lamm transferred from Yeshiva Torah Vodaas to Yeshiva
University, he already had a reputation for being a talmid chochom and a
secular scholar. BZ Shenker was privileged to help produce and sing on
the first long-playing 33 1/3 RPM record featuring
Modzitzer Chassidic musical compositions. In those [ancient] days,
these records were packaged in cardboard jackets on which was printed
informational notes about the songs, singers, groups, etc. BZ Shenker
wanted the notes on this inaugural record to be written
by someone who was both an English and Torah scholar--so he asked his
friend, N. Lamm, if he would do so.
And so--the explanatory notes on the first record of Modzitzer Chassidic
music were written by a young YU-RIETS musmach, Rav N. Lamm!
CHAVAL AL DE'AVDIN VE'LO MISH'TAK'CHIN!
YEHI ZICHRAM BARUCH!
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