The Pinsk-Karlin Rebbe, who is currently in the United States, called to be menachem the family of HaKadosh Altar Shlomo Lederman, h’yd, 19, who was murdered in the Ramot terror attack.

Altar Shlomo, z’l, was married for only six months and was murdered in front of his wife as they waited at the bus stop to travel to his parents in Elad for Shabbos.

The Rebbe asked Altar Shlomo’s father, Rav Chaim Dan, to tell him about his son and Rav Chaim said, among other things, that already since his cheder days, his son summarized everything he learned and organized the summaries into folders.

The father told the Rebbe how much effort his son made to adhere to the Rebbe’s takanos to learn Torah for continuous hours, and wrote down every minute of limmud with a detailed explanation – in accordance with the Rebbe’s instructions. Rav Chaim added that on the Friday that his son was murdered, he told his wife that the upcoming Shabbos is Kabbalas HaTorah and if only he could hear the voices and lightning like was heard in Shamayim at Matan Torah.

The Rebbe responded: “Such a chashuve avreich was among us and we weren’t aware of his great maalos…an avreich who managed to accomplish in less than 20 years what other Jews need 80 years for.”

During the conversation, the Rebbe stopped and said in a voice choked with tears: “It’s pashut that your dear son accepted upon himself to be a kapparah for Klal Yisrael. The entire world was horrified and trembled when they heard about the horrific tragedy. And through his petirah, your son saved Klal Yisrael from tzaros and terrible decrees.”

Regarding Kaddish, the Rebbe said: “Your dear son had the highest neshama who doesn’t need your Kaddish.” He continued by telling about himself that when his son passed away, he received a p’sak that he shouldn’t say Kaddish for him. “You have the obligation not to immerse yourself in tzaros and think about it too much. The world we live in – everything is hidden – and we shouldn’t let ourselves be overwhelmed by thoughts of tzaar.”

In response to the father’s question as to whether he should ask someone else to say Kaddish in his place, the Rebbe answered that in his humble opinion, his son’s neshamah doesn’t need Kaddish…and that he should ask a Rav who will pasken on the matter.

“And you have the duty to be strong in the knowledge that you were zocheh to raise such a lofty neshamah that atoned for Klal Yisrael,” the Rebbe added.

Later the Rebbe said: “It’s written in the sefarim kedoshim that the death of a son in his youth protects the parents after 120. But you, who were zocheh to bring such a neshamah kedoshah into the world, this alone is your kaparah and you don’t need any other kaparah…This is the pain of Klal Yisrael and in any case it is not a private sorrow and therefore you should be mechazeik more and more and not chalilah the other way around.”

The Rebbe then spoke with the young almanah: “In such a situation it is impossible to be menacheim when a woman walks with her husband and he is suddenly snatched away when they have just started a life together – on this we have no words to be menacheim.”

“It is written in the Gemara that a man does not die except for his wife, that is, the woman’s pain cannot be described, it is impossible to explain, and it is impossible to feel the pain, the pain is so difficult that we can’t even be menacheim – that’s why we say ‘HaMakom’ will comfort you because only Hakadosh Baruch Hu can comfort you. There is no doubt that you had the zechus to be married to such an important husband, we alone were unaware how great he was.. but it’s said that the only one who really knows the husband is the Ribbono shel Olam and his wife, and you had the zechus of being with him so you must have seen who he is. Just as your zechus was great, so your pain is greater. So again we have no words to say, only that Hakadosh Baruch Hu should comfort you.”

The Rebbe repeated to Altar Shlomo’s mother what he told the father, and when he said that the niftar went up to Shamayim to be mechapeir on Klal Yisrael, he burst into tears.

“You have the obligation to worry for the other children and be b’simcha and accept the gezeriah. You should see nachas from the children and we should be zochech to the geulah shleimah bimheira biyameinu,” the Rebbe concluded.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)