An Unlikely Study Partner: A Teen's Weekly Lesson With Rabbi Kanievsky

In the book 'Bedidi Havei Uvda', Rabbi Shmuel David HaKohen Friedman of New York shares a moving story he heard directly from Rabbi Menachem Arevah of Israel. The remarkable account reveals the power of sincere spiritual searching and the extraordinary care that great Torah leaders show for every Jewish soul.

A Career Officer Searching for Torah

Rabbi Menachem Arevah described his journey:

“I am a baal teshuva. I served in the Air Force as a career officer and eventually reached the rank of lieutenant colonel. In the late 1970s I began to feel a strong pull toward Judaism. I longed to live a true Torah life, but my surroundings and responsibilities made it difficult to change direction. I prayed for the right opportunity, and it soon arrived.”

Senior IDF officers were entitled to a long paid sabbatical to pursue academic studies. When his turn came, Rabbi Arevah made an unusual request.

“I told my commander that instead of studying at a university, I wanted to spend my sabbatical learning Torah in a yeshiva.”

His commander agreed in principle, but approval from the Ministry of Defense was required. There he met resistance.

“They did not recognize a yeshiva as an academic institution, so they refused to pay my salary.”
At that time his longing for Torah only grew stronger.

“There were not yet organized programs for people becoming observant, and I had no one to guide me. I searched on my own until I found a Haredi family in Bnei Brak who invited me for Shabbat. There I experienced the beauty of a Torah home.”

He asked his hosts who the leading Torah authority in Bnei Brak was, and they directed him to Rabbi Elazar Menachem Shach.

Rabbi Arevah went to Rabbi Shach and explained his situation.

“I told him that I wanted to exchange my university sabbatical for Torah learning in a yeshiva, but the Ministry of Defense refused. I asked him what I should do.”

Rabbi Shach listened carefully. While Rabbi Arevah was still present, Rabbi Shach asked his assistant to summon Knesset member Rabbi Shlomo Lorincz. When Rabbi Lorincz arrived, Rabbi Shach instructed him to include a clause in coalition negotiations requiring that Torah study in a yeshiva be recognized for IDF officers in place of university studies.

The clause was accepted, and Rabbi Arevah was able to learn in yeshiva for two and a half years.

A Struggling Fourteen Year Old

Rabbi Arevah first learned in the yeshiva Torah VeEmunah in Jerusalem and later moved to Bnei Brak, where he studied in Yeshivat Netivot Olam. He enrolled his fourteen year old son Zohar in Talmud Torah.

Soon afterward Zohar came home upset.

“Dad, I do not understand anything they are learning,” he said, holding a Gemara. “I cannot read the text without vowels and punctuation.”

Rabbi Arevah gave his son simple advice.

“Whenever I have a problem, I go to the greatest person I can find. You should do the same. Here in our city, the greatest scholar you can approach is Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky.”

Learning With Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky

That Friday afternoon the boy went to Rabbi Kanievsky’s home and asked:

“Will the rabbi learn with me and help me understand the Gemara we are studying in tractate Bava Metzia?”

Rabbi Kanievsky initially replied that many people came to him and he had little time. After a moment he said:

“Sit down, my son, and we will learn together.”

For a full hour they studied Bava Metzia together, a great Torah scholar sitting with a beginner who struggled to understand even the basics.

When they finished, the boy asked shyly:

“May I come again next week?”

Rabbi Kanievsky answered simply:

“Yes. Come next week and we will learn together.”

That weekly study session continued for two and a half years. Every Friday afternoon the boy came with his Gemara, and Rabbi Kanievsky learned with him patiently.

Even after Zohar advanced to a major yeshiva, the connection continued. He would still come on Fridays, and Rabbi Kanievsky would test him on what he had learned during the week.

Guidance for the Future

After several years Rabbi Kanievsky told him:

“Tell your father to find you a match and help you get married.”

Zohar soon married. When he later returned for guidance, Rabbi Kanievsky suggested that he write a work on the Mishnah Berurah, identifying the sources behind its rulings.

Zohar felt the project was beyond him and did not begin it.

A year after his marriage, still without children, he again came to Rabbi Kanievsky and shared his concern.

Rabbi Kanievsky responded:

“But I told you to prepare a book on the Mishnah Berurah.”

Zohar again said it was too difficult, but Rabbi Kanievsky encouraged him firmly:
“Work on the book and you will be helped.”

Blessings Through Torah

Zohar began working on the project.

“When he worked on the first part of the book, his first son was born,” Rabbi Arevah later said. “With each additional volume another son was born.”

Rabbi Arevah proudly showed the fourth volume written by his son Rabbi Meir Arevah. By that time, he explained, his son had four children.

The Value of Every Jewish Soul

Rabbi Friedman concluded that the story demonstrates how precious every Jewish soul was to Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky.

Here was a fourteen year old boy from a newly observant family who barely knew how to learn Gemara. Yet one of the greatest Torah scholars of the generation devoted hours to teaching him week after week until he grew into a Torah scholar.

Rabbi Friedman emphasized an important lesson for educators and parents.

Many precious souls are lost when people fail to recognize their value. This story teaches the importance of welcoming anyone who sincerely wants to learn Torah and draw closer to Hashem.
Every Jewish soul deserves patience, compassion, and encouragement.