Rabbi Miller passed away 16 years ago. Although I only attended one of the famous Thursday night classes one time, I listened to dozens of his tapes and felt that I owed him the respect of attending his funeral.
He was a remarkable man for his time (he was born in 1908). Not too many young men were raised frum in America, and of those who were, not many remained religious. He was one of the few. He was also one of the few to make the trip to the famous yeshiva in Slabodka in Europe to learn Torah. His brother Yeshaya followed his older brother there and became a rav in Boston.
What stands out about him to me are:
his discipline - every moment was accounted for
his focus on Shaar Ha'Bechina of Chovos Ha'Levavos
his hasmada
his focus on bitachon and gratitude
his humor and simcha
his talk about love for Hashem
his outreach, i.e. teaching Torah to people on all levels
his principles like only speaking Yiddish in the home
his being an American gadol
his emphasis on "asei lecha rav" and living in a makom Torah
his having a program for every goal with exercises, breaking it down into steps, leading his kehilla step by step
the supremacy of Torah learning
his half hour walk every day
his being a non-conformist
his outspokenness
His teachings are widely spread today by his books, MP3 lectures, and emails.
yehi zichro boruch
...and his courageous stance on making the agenda of the sheva Mitzvos bnei Noach the first consideration in voting, saying that there is a mitzva on a Jew to davka vote for the candidate whose policy position is closest to sheva mitzvos over the one who will promise money to yeshivos but support an anti-7 Mitzvos agenda (in general, R over D).
ReplyDeleteRabbi Oliver, great comment. I once attended Rabbi Miller's 'shiur' as a 'bal teshuva.' How can I reach you? Todah 718 774 9303 bvhoffinger@gmail.com
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