Testimony - Va'ad Tzipiyah L'yeshuah

The Va'ad Tzipiyah L'yeshuah (of Lakewood, NJ) merited the rare opportunity to hear from one of the greatest Ba'alei Avodah of our generation, the acclaimed author of בלבבי משכן אבנה, Hagaon Hatzaddik Rav Itamar Shwartz, Shlita. Fortunately and unfortunately, his profound thoughts are at a level far above my limited grasp, therefore I didn't feel capable of transcribing this va'ad in my usual manner - basically delivering the speakers' thoughts in my own words. Truthfully, the Rav eloquently expressed himself in rich Lashon Hakodesh, and one who hears the va'ad [recordings are available via email, and it is also on Kol Halashon] feels as if a well-written sefer is speaking to him - with expression and feeling - therefore I decided to transcribe the va'ad almost exactly in the way it was said.

[Interestingly, Rav Yissocher Weisberg zt"l, whose Torah forms Shabbos Illuminated, unwittingly inspired me to learn בלבבי משכן אבנה about 20 years ago. Rav Yissocher had a shelf in the Beis Midrash in which he kept his private seforim, and since my admiration for him knew no bounds, I took note of all the seforim in his collection, and their value rose in my eyes. He had various classical lomdishe seforim, along with seforim on Chumash and avodas Hashem. One of them was שערים בתפילה, which gave me a life-long cheishek for that special sefer, and another was בלבבי משכן אבנה.

Those who have learned this special sefer (at least the first volume) know that it is truly a life-changer, and I speculate that it played a role in molding Rav Yissocher into the giant Oved Hashem which he was. When I learned it, I was awed by the powerful, unique method of Avodas Hashem which it taught, building a Mishkan for Hashem within one's heart as its name signifies. Following in Rav Yissocher's footsteps, I would certainly recommend that anyone who is able to should learn and internalize this special sefer; it can transform your life!]

from Issue Year 2-Issue 15 of the Shabbos Illuminated weekly parsha sheet

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