By: Rav Yitzchok Fingerer

Even the most stalwart and devout outdoorsman has misgivings about venturing outside in such frigid temperature. People have changed itineraries and routines to avoid the bitter cold in the Northeast. The weather forecast this winter seems dreary and bleak.

The Elya Rabbah and Pri Megadim cite a tradition that when the third day of Shevat coincides with Friday (meaning that Rosh Chodesh Shevat falls out on Wednesday) the winter will be nasty with abundant snow in the forecast. This year, Rosh Chodesh Shevat will fall out on a Wednesday. We’re not certain which particular region this prognostication applies to but it seem quite applicable this year for New York city and environs. The meforshim say that this meteorological phenomenon is alluded to in the word Vayigash, the mirror image of which is an acronym for sheleg gadol yihiye v’kor (denoting the fact that there will be the weather will cold and snowy). However, the famed Rav Levi Yitzchok M’Berditchev, the great advocate of Klal Yisroel, puts a positive spin on the matter and says instead that it stands for sova gadol yihie v’zol (implying that such a winter will be blessed with an abundance of prosperity).

By all accounts, this past week and Shabbos was severely cold. Baruch Hashem, shul attendance throughout Brooklyn wasn’t affected by the weather conditions. We Yidden are akin to the perennial mailman. The unofficial motto of postal workers is “Neither snow nor rain nor heat will prevent these couriers from swift completion of their jobs.” In the most adverse conditions, frum people go to shul and attend shiurim. In the blizzard several years ago, one news commentator mentioned that while swaths of streets were entirely deserted, one can see committed Jews making the arduous trek to shul. A Kiddush Hashem indeed. Our devotion is unparalleled.

What about those that didn’t have the good fortune to grow up religious? How about those who were raised secular? There are countless unaffiliated Jews, our brothers and sisters, living in our very own neighborhood, Flatbush. Baruch Hashem BJX reaches out to many and brings them closer to Hashem and Mitzvos. What about them? Would they venture out in the freezing cold temperature?

I am ashamed to confess. I, an eternal optimist, was doubtful and skeptical. The cold weather would certainly frighten them away.

I was floored and flabbergasted. They came! In near single digit temperature. Whether it was to the evening classes on Thursday night or for davening on Shabbos. The davening on Friday night was as usual electric but this past Shabbos, it was especially sublime. The dancing after Lecha Dodi wouldn’t stop. Everyone felt elevated and uplifted from the holiness of the tefillos and the Ahavas Yisroel. When you’re warm on the inside, the cold on the outside is almost negligible.

On Shabbos morning, four college students received their Aliyos L’Torah for the first time at BJX. We’ve done this so many times but each time the sheer beauty of introducing an unaffiliated student to the holy letters of the Torah is indescribable. Our visiting students from UCLA, accustomed to warm weather, braved the cold to experience davening and Torah reading. One student said, “I felt so much warmth and love here. The cold didn’t matter.”

It was amazing to witness Yidden who had every excuse and rationale not to show up, come and feel so inspired. However, more than they were inspired, they inspired me and the entire Kehilla. There are so many cynics that say “Kiruv in Flatbush? Impossible!” Well, I would have thought that if under normal circumstances Kiruv is so difficult, kal v’chomer, a fortiori, it is impossible in such bad weather. Yet, these valiant, heliege Yidden, Baruch Hashem, proved us wrong.

In the darkness of the winter, there is a glimmer of hope and light. We have an abundance of spiritual opportunities to warm the hearts and souls of our brothers and sisters. May we emulate Rav Levi Yitzchok M’Berditchev to advocate for and show love to our fellow Jews. In that zechus, may this winter be prosperous both physically and spiritually.