The Amud HaYomi has taken Klal Yisrael by storm. Tens of thousands of Yidden across six continents are poised to complete Masechta Brachos on Monday 10 Adar I/February 19. From taking note of the august group of senior Gedolei Yisrael who will be attending, one can begin to understand how important they deem this new “Yomi” to be for Klal Yisrael.

Leading Gedolei Yisrael such as HaGaon HaRav Dovid Cohen, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Chevron; HaGaon HaRav Yechiel Mechel Steinmetz, shlita, senior Skverer Dayan;  HaGaon HaRav Avrohom Salim, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Meor Torah; HaGaon HaRav Yaakov Meir Stern, shlita, Rav of Zichron Meir and Kiryat Vizhnitz, Bnei Brak; HaGaon Harav Aharon Schiff, shlita, Rav of Antwerp; HaGaon HaRav Chaim Peretz Berman, shlita, a Rosh Yeshiva at the Ponovezh Yeshiva and son-in-law, of HaGaon HaRav Berel Povarsky, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Ponovezh; HaGaon HaRav Messoud Ben Shimon, shlita, Sephardic Rav of Bnei Brak and Rosh Yeshivas Ohr Elitzur; and HaGaon HaRav Binyomin Finkel, shlita, Mashgiach of Mir.

These are a sampling of the many Gedolim who will grace the siyum at the Sofiensäle Convention Hall, the same hall in which the Knessiah Gedolah was held in pre-war Europe.

Large delegations of lomdei Dirshu will be coming from Eretz Yisrael, the United States, Canada and all over Europe to participate in the historic event and to simultaneously daven for Klal Yisrael in the eis tzarah in which it finds itself. 

Indeed, the ultimate antidote to the terribly difficult times facing Klal Yisrael with enemies raising their heads all over the world, is limud haTorah. Learning Torah and the toiling in Torah of tens of thousands of lomdim the world over, has the power to neutralize the gezeira, as Chazal teach us, “Torah, protects and saves.”

There will also be deeply inspiring visits and tefillos at the kevarim of the Chasam Sofer and Ksav Sofer in nearby Pressburg, and in the beis hachaim in Vienna to luminaries such as the Chortkover Rebbe, zt”l, HaGaon HaRav Yosef Engel, zt”l, and others.

There will also be a special maamad of tefilla at the kever of Rav Yeshaya of Kerister in Kerister, Hungary. 

As Rav Dovid Cohen, who will be giving a keynote address at the siyum in Vienna, said, “The daily learning of Daf HaYomi established by Rav Meir Shapiro is extremely necessary for Klal Yisrael because the fact is that every person needs a mechayev and a framework that obligates him and empowers him to learn, with a plan, in an orderly manner. Otherwise, the daily obligations get in the way and rob him of his time for learning. In Rav Meir Shapiro’s generation, people had more time for learning. They would spend hours in the shteibel every day and the Daf HaYomi was therefore an ideal limud.

“Today,” Rav Cohen continued, “people are much busier with the overwhelming obligations of everyday life and need a limud with more geshmak to engage them. Even bnei Torah need a certain geshmak to enable them to sustain their goals in bekius. The Amud HaYomi which gives a person more time to cultivate a real geshmak in learning addresses all these needs. That is why I have encouraged this program.”