The Secret Maskil Who Finally Agreed to Speak

When Reb Chaim Yonah was a bochur in Tomchei Temimim, he was known as ‘a cut above the rest’; a ba’al madreiga, an oved and maskil of a lofty caliber. He was very much cherished by the Rebbe Rashab, who gave him rare ‘kiruvim’. At one point he began concealing his greatness by conducting himself in an unusual manner.

He passed away young after a difficult illness.

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Reb Shlomo Chaim Kesselman would occasionally speak about Reb Chaim Yonah. He related that as an older bochur he would sometimes farbreng for the younger bochurim. In preparation, he would stand and think for six hours straight. You could see how his entire being was involved in preparing for that farbrengen.

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Reb Nochum Goldshmid related:

There were always rumors going round that Chaim Yonah was a great ‘maskil’ of Chassidus. But there was no way to verify this, as he never spoke with anyone about ‘haskalah’ in Chassidus. I too would try and speak to him about Chassidus but could not get anywhere.

One day, I was walking down the street, and I saw Chaim Yona carrying two large suitcases. I seized the opportunity, and I went over and said, “Let’s make a deal. I will take those cases to wherever you need, but as payment, I want to talk with you in Chassidus for one full hour.” Not having a choice, Reb Chaim Yonah agreed.

For one hour, Chaim Yonah spoke about the deepest concept in Chassidus. After sixty minutes, and not a minute more, Chaim Yonah stopped and said, “That’s it. An hour has passed. I did not promise more than that.”