Baal Tshuva Rabbi Berel Levy

Rabbi Yitzchok Hanoka who is married to Berel Levy�s granddaughter was visiting his parents in Boston for Shovues. So I asked Yitzchok what he knows about R. Levy and what he knows about his connection to the Malach. Evidently he knew little beyond the article that was written by his father in law R. Don Yoel Levy. Then on Friday an interesting information surfaced from the "Transcriber" (see Apart from the Melochim but never removed).

The "Transcriber" contributes this taped talk by the Malach�s son R. Refoel Zalman. We publish it here as is and in all probability this is the first time this information sees the light of day. Some of the words are missing as in the original tape recording.

Rabbi Refoel Zalman's Feter Berel [R. B. Levy�s grandfather] and Nephew Berel [R. B. Levy nephew of the Malach]

I remember once there was a boy who went to yeshiva and then there was a rumor that he [some man named Hershel] spoiled the yeshiva, that he got mitzhametz. So he became a Hebrew teacher. So, I don't know if it was Chanukah, it was some kind of a Yom Tov it came Shabbos morning. Shabbos always in the morning, about 4:00 we would get up and go in shul, because in the house there was no light. So it burned down all the lights, but there is light in shul. So I met Hershel, his name was Hershel. So I was talking to him. My Feter Berel [Berel Levy�s grandfather] was sitting there, maraving the sedra, whatever. Because he couldn't learn, my Feter Berel was not a lamden. But, you know, he would say Tehillim, marave the sedra and I think that he used to learn Shulchon Oruch every day, too, and that's all. So he sees me and he pulls me over. He said, "Tur mit em nit raiden. Tur nish mit em raiden. Er iz gevoren a Hebrew teacher. Gae ahaim und gae shlofen." This was my Feter Berel. "Nish raiden, gae shloft."

You don't see, nowadays, his type. Such an oxshen, such an oxshen, you couldn't move him! Especially when it came to the shtible, aiin klainikyte. Everything had to be like our forefathers did. Any improvement. For instance, they wanted to make better benches, because the benches were just? . So they made a motion. No! "Because oib mir darfen hobben good benches, zay would have und oib zay halten nisht azoy mir darft nisht."

What happen to his children? None of them, none of them. I'll tell you something: Once I asked my father, because Berel [R. Berel Levy], he was born here in America and when he became a Baal Tshuva he must have been about? . How did he become, Berel? It happened that my father had a friend, Weiler [this is collaborated in the Don Yoel's article]. Weiler had a son who was a teacher in a Talmud Torah. Berel's parents lived also in the Bronx not far from my father, but they never had to do, anything with my father. So the teacher tells his father Mr. Weiler, so he said to him, "Der Rebben's nephew [R. B. Levy], he has an inclination more to Hebrew than to his English." So he said that it would be more appropriate that they should take him out and send him to Yeshiva D'Bronx.

So Weiler once came to my father and told him what his son said in the conversation. So my father was tsukrigged with the Yeshiva D'Bronx said to Weiler that maybe he can influence him he should come to my father and send him to Torah V'Das. It was very easy, because Weiler was going from the same station, since they lived? from my father it was about 10 blocks, but from Weiler it was close. In other words, if you have to take the subway, you have to take the Jill[?] Avenue to both of them. So he could go with Weiler and come back with Weiler, because he was too young, yet.

So the following z'man, before Succos, he started going into Torah V'Das. My father spoke to Mendelovitch and told him he should take him in and, of course, he took him in. So this Berel, he started to become? he went there up to about Chanukah. So it came about Chanunkah, about five or six or eight weeks he would come Friday. He would come home, because in Yeshiva Torah V'Das they would learn half a day, only until 1:00. Then he would come home and stay home.

One Friday he comes home, he takes a bath and all dressed up and he goes. He's goes away, he told his mother, he's going back to yeshiva. So, his mother starts hollering, what are you meshugga? She says, do you have a place where to sleep? He will find it. What's the matter? He says, "I cannot eat in your house, because you cook on Shabbos." So she got excited, you know. After all, he is her child. She forgot that she is not supposed to. So she got excited, she said, "Okay, let's see. Let's go to your uncle and if he will tell you to go, I will let you go. Because I know," she says, "that he will tell you to be home." She forgot that she will get h---.

So she comes with him to my father, Friday. So my father gave her, he gave her. He said, "You goyka ira!" You know what goyka means? You goya. "Berel's in tsoras because l'kovod Shabbos!" My father couldn't imagine. He said, "Berel," zogt er, "zol hobben Shabbos by mir. Okay, let him stay here. And ich tur by dir du tur nish tuen a melocho oiched." L'kovod Shabbos!

To make a long story short, what could she do? She wanted him to poskin the shila. She had to throw out all of her dishes.

The reason I tell you all of this is because I want you to know his background, Berel's background. And he was getting frummer every week. I would come to New York, so my father would tell me about Berel. Because Berel was born the week when we arrived here. My father was to the bris, yet, about three days? we came Friday and in the week was the bris. So I know how old is Berel, I remember when he was born and I know the story.

So, I once asked my father, how come? After all, his upbringing: he didn't have an upbringing. His origin: he is not a kosher child, anyway. So how come it should be? So, you know what my father said? My father says, he said, it's not surprising to him. He said, the meserios nefesh from his Feter Berel. So, of all the family, he finally won. My father told me this way.

So my father says to mir, "Kenst zennen from the Gemorrah. The Gemorrah says that you shouldn't marriv an ooilay an av lay. Even if a child is not frum, you dare not distinguish him from the other children if you aing given the yerusha. Why? Because the Gemorrah says you don't know what in the future generations will come out. Therefore, he, himself, okay, it's all right. But you see it comes out a generation or two later. This is what happened, he said, with Berelen. He's Feter Berel's an ainikel. It came from Feter Berel. This is what my father told me about Berel. He never saw his grandfather. His grandfather died before my mother even. So he died about five, six years before we left for America.