Community Magazine February 2019

What then would be the point of learning the Mishnah Berurah when its laws are not written in accordance with the Sephardic halachic rulings?” The hacham answered, “When one learns the Mishnah Berurah, one can truly understand the underlying premise of the halachah . I always tell my students that although we Sepharadim do not rule like the Mishnah Berurah , they should first learn the Mishnah Berurah and then learn the final conclusion of the Sephardic poskim [ halachic authorities]. After all, the Mishnah Berurah teaches you how to understand the halachah , and not just what the halacha is. The Mishnah Berurah is unique in that it is totally comprehensive. After learning it, you understand the sources for the halachah , what the foundational arguments are. Certainly, we all have to consult the works written by our Sephardic rabbis to know how we should conduct ourselves in a practical sense, but the study of the laws of Shabbat is a completely different experience for any person who learns the Mishnah Berurah . “Therefore,” Rav Cohen concluded, “it is a wonderful thing that Dirshu has instituted the learning of Daf HaYomi B’Halacha daily learning of Mishnah Berurah .” Whenoneof the scholarspresent beganstudying thefinal chapter of that volume of Mishnah Berurah , Hacham Shalom immediately engaged him in a complex discussion about the Mishnah Berurah ’s opinion on the subject. This meeting was not Hacham Shalom’s first exposure to Dirshu. In fact, the hacham was instrumental in helping establish over 50 Daf HaYomi B’Halacha shiurim in France. Those shiurim were established in the aftermath of his visit to France three years ago for the siyum on the first cycle of Daf HaYomi B’Halacha, where he delivered the keynote address at the massive celebration held in one of the largest auditoriums in downtown Paris. Following the siyum , Hacham Shalom met with maggidei shiur (lecturers) and offered advice on what to emphasize in their shiurim . He also encouraged Dirshu to open additional shiurim in Daf HaYomi B’Halacha, and pledged to make himself available for guidance. Indeed, not only in France, but also throughout Eretz Yisrael , Hacham Shalom has encouraged the learning of Mishnah Berurah in Sephardic yeshivot . “It’s a Beginning!” One of Hacham Shalom’s students, Rabbi Michael Elbaz, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Shevut Yehuda, was asked to deliver a short speech before the actual siyum was made. Rabbi Elbaz spoke about the transformative impact the Dirshu Daf HaYomi B’Halacha has had on his students. “Over the last three years, my students have learned and been tested on the first three volumes of Mishnah Berurah ,” he proudly related. “The climax, of course, is the current siyum on the third volume that covers the difficult, complex laws of Shabbat that are relevant every week. One cannot properly observe Shabbat, the Mishnah Berurah says in the introduction, if one does not study the halachot .” Rabbi Elbaz then added, “We are celebrating what is called a siyum , a ‘completion’ of the laws of Shabbat, but the truth is, this is not a completion. It is a beginning! Hacham Shalom has taught us and repeated many times, that learning something is just the beginning. Once one studies it, he must review and review it again. This constant review makes a person realize how the first time he SHEVAT - ADAR I 5779 FEBRUARY 2019 39