At the close of the academic year, as the fruits of the immense investment over the long winter and summer months are clearly evident, the “Tomchei Temimim” Yeshiva in Moscow is enveloped in an atmosphere of spiritual satisfaction and elevation. The noise of the bustling city remains outside, and within the Yeshiva study hall, one can feel the joyous sense of concluding a year filled with the toil of Torah and Chassidus. The students, who applied themselves to their studies with daily dedication, are now reaping the rewards of their hard work, giving these days a festive feeling of renewal and a historic leap forward toward the future.

This sense of elevation reached its peak recently with the graduation celebration of the rabbinic ordination (Semicha) studies, held with great splendor for a group of the Shluchim students. Throughout the entire year, the Shluchim dedicated themselves to the Semicha study track, successfully passing a comprehensive series of written and oral exams. The panel of examiners included prominent rabbis and dayanim, among them the Rishon LeZion and Chief Rabbi of Israel, the Gaon Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef, during his visit to Moscow, as well as the Gaon and Chassid Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Raskin, Dayan and Moreh Tzedek of the Lubavitch community in London.

The final exam was administered by the founder of the Yeshiva, the Chief Rabbi of Russia, the Gaon Rabbi Berel Lazar, shlita, who dedicated significant time to test the students despite his busy schedule. The panel of examiners was also joined by the Gaon and Chassid Rabbi Shneur Zalman Yaroslavsky, rabbi of the Chabad community in Elad and member of the Chabad Rabbinical Court, who made a special trip to test the Temimim. Rabbi Yaroslavsky, who brings extensive experience in testing students, expressed his immense admiration for the level of investment and the breadth of the young men’s knowledge, from foundational principles up to practical Halachic rulings.

Special appreciation was expressed to the Yeshiva’s administration, headed by the Shaliach Rabbi Yechezkel Lazar, which invests tremendous resources to enable the young men to study with peace of mind and tranquility, and to Rabbi Dovid Rosenzweig, who heads the Semicha track with profound dedication and effort. The Shluchim students arrived from the “Oholei Torah” Yeshiva in New York, through the initiative and dedicated organization of the Ram and rabbi of the ‘Zil’ neighborhood in southern Moscow, the Shaliach Rabbi Shaul Shimon Deutsch, with the goal of strengthening the local Yeshiva students and providing them with a living example of diligence and perseverance.

Alongside the impressive celebration, the Yeshiva is currently experiencing a fascinating wave of renewal, which takes on double meaning in light of the institution’s solid foundations. This Yeshiva has earned a unique status: it is the only “Tomchei Temimim” Yeshiva in the world whose opening was directly approved by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, rather than through the central administration of Tomchei Temimim, and for the Yeshiva’s opening, the Rebbe granted it a special blessing. It was in the month of Elul, 5748 (1988), approaching the “Year of Building,” when the Rebbe was written to about the initiative to open a Tomchei Temimim Yeshiva in Moscow. To this, his rare and direct holy response was received: “May it be in a good and successful hour in every respect, and since there must be ‘lights within vessels,’ they should clarify well in what manner regarding the details, a specific person – a specific matter – and the like, there needs to be a decision on-site. I will mention it at the Tziyon.” This special blessing has accompanied the Yeshiva ever since, and its power is felt and shines throughout the city of Moscow, and especially upon the hundreds of the Yeshiva’s alumni, who have established Chassidic homes, with many serving as klei kodesh for Russian Jewry around the world.

As a natural response to the community’s expansion, a new framework designed for advanced young men is now opening. While until now the Yeshiva has focused on providing a solution for Baalei Teshuva at the beginning of their journey, the new program, headed by the new Shaliach Rabbi Yisroel Rozen, is designed to give the students comprehensive tools ahead of their integration into major Yeshivas in Israel and around the world, and in preparation for the “Kvutza” year at the Yeshiva in 770 in the USA.

Hovering above all these educational endeavors is the constant guidance of the founder of all the educational institutions, the Chief Rabbi, shlita, and the new framework constitutes another tier in a chain of educational initiatives. These join the “Evening Yeshiva” and the “Sunday Yeshiva” that opened this year, providing an additional study framework for young men thirsting to delve deeper into Torah and the observance of Mitzvot.

All these projects come to fruition thanks to the close collaboration of the dedicated Yeshiva staff, together with the Board of Education headed by Rabbi Mendel Goldberg, and the support of the 770 Foundation and its head, the Chassidic philanthropist and Shaliach, Rabbi Yehuda Davidov. The Semicha celebration, together with the opening of the doors to the new programs, concludes a fruitful academic year and plants in the hearts a strong anticipation for an even brighter future for the voice of Torah in Moscow.

Photography: Levi Nazarov