A Shapeless Mass to Fashion

Rav Avrohom Meir Ziswein was a chassid of Rav Tzvi Elimelech Spira of Bluzhov. When the Bluzhover moved to Pest, Rav Avrohom Meir heard of a special bochur who outshone all his peers in the yeshiva in Weitzin. This young man's true Yiras Shomayim (fear of Heaven), fine character and fiery avodah drew Rav Avrohom Meir to bring him under the guidance of the Bluzhover, who was to become his Rebbe. The young man was Rav Aharon Roth.

Rav Avrohom Meir once recalled his first impression of the budding tzaddik. "Believe me, when I first met Rav Ahrele in Weitzin, I was sure that he would soon lead a thousand chassidim, and that one day I would have to wait in line at his door to speak with him. But it was not to be. He had no wish to become a famous Rebbe. He hated the Rabbonus and the limelight, shied away from renown and pushed away the crowds. Instead he wanted to kindle a flame in the hearts of Yidden, to ignite the spark of the pintele yid and fill them with fear of Heaven, true and pure emunah, and a passion to serve Hashem.

"His main work was to gather coarse, simple Yidden with broken hearts and to lift them until they became precious vessels serving Hashem with no ulterior motives. He did not want sheine yidden (accomplished Jews), scholars and men of fine character who had already reached a level of devotion and did not need him to raise them. For such chassidim he had no desire at all.

"Once one of the fine Yidden of Yerushalayim came to Rav Ahrele in my presence and said, 'Rav Ahrele, begin your tefillos on Shabbos just one hour earlier, at seven thirty in the morning, and I will bring you two hundred accomplished yungeleit to daven with you.'

"'I cannot possibly do that,' Rav Ahrele explained. 'We finish our tisch late, after chatzos, and on Shabbos we must wake later than during the week so that we are rested for our avodah. Then there are the hachanos (spiritual preparations) and the mikveh. It all takes time, and I cannot begin an hour earlier.'

"When the man had gone, Rav Ahrele turned to us and said, 'I did not tell him the whole truth. All my reasons are true, but the real emes is that I do not want to begin an hour earlier precisely because it would attract them. I start an hour later so that those two hundred yungeleit will not come. I do not look for finished, accomplished sheine yidden, especially those who find it hard to listen to what I say. They cannot humble themselves, and I have nothing to do with such Yidden. I search for a golem, a shapeless mass that I can fashion with my own hands into a vessel for serving Hashem. These I can turn into shining yungeleit who accept my words with truth and humility.' That was the way of the Shomer Emunim."