The Chanukah issue of the COLlive Magazine, published this past month, once again included the “8 Nights, 8 Lights” feature. This time it profiled 8 maggidei shiurim dedicated to teaching Torah, Halacha and Chassidus in Crown Heights. The project was done in conjunction with the Irgun Torah organization.
Chanukah #7:
Rabbi Shmully Rosenstein
Two years ago, the daf yomi cycle was re-starting and Rabbi Yossi Garelik wanted a daily shiur in Gemara at Anshei Lubavitch – Geshem Shul. At first, people took turns teaching it, and eventually, I began teaching it each day after Maariv.
I love learning and teaching Gemara. Each masechta brings you into a different world. When you learn Shabbos, you live Shabbos. We finished learning Psachim, a few days before Pesach, and it was a different Pesach. On Sukkos, we knew all the halachos and Gemaras. With every meschta that you learn, you get into it and you really focus on what you are living at that time.
When we complete a mesechta, we have a beautiful siyum at the house of someone that learned it. Many people from the shul come, even those that didn’t learn, and that has inspired several people to join for the next mesechta.
Whether it’s Chassidus or Gemara, learning Torah helps your life materially and spiritually (b’gashimius and b’ruchnius). When you learn b’rabbim (in public), your kids see it and there’s a difference in the home and in the family. It brings brochos to everyone.
