Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah Set to Open New Building in Memory of Hidden Tzaddik and Former Executive Director Gershon Burd zt”l

Jerusalem, Israel (1/10/20) — Six years after the tragic death of its executive director Gershon Burd zt”l, Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah is proud to announce the brand-new Gershon Burd Building will open in his honor in the heart of Jerusalem’s Old City next month. Located at the former site of Rabbi Meir Schuster’s Heritage House, the Gershon Burd Building will be the first portal to the Jewish Quarter that will be seen by millions of visitors to the Holy City every year.

Already the subject of a book and planned documentary, the story of Gershon Burd went viral back in 2013 after revelations of his hidden acts of chesed surfaced in the days and weeks following his sudden passing on his 40th birthday.

“Gershon set a tremendously high bar for us,” said Rabbi Nissim Tagger, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah. “His whole life was dedicated to supporting Torah and this yeshiva. May Hashem bless his neshama and all the Torah that will be produced in the new building in his merit.”

The building was purchased for Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah by an anonymous donor whose intention is that Gershon’s children, some of whom have very little memory of their father, will grow up fulfilled by the knowledge that his name will be seen by the millions of people who pass through the Jewish Quarter each year.

Among the many hidden acts of chesed which surfaced only after his death, Gershon secretly paid for “free” helium balloons for children in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City, and he created elaborate ruses to cover needy students’ yeshiva tuition and to save families and marriages by secretly paying their counseling and therapy expenses.

The Gershon Burd Building will house the new Rabbi Motty Berger Beis Medrash, the Harary & Levy Learning Centre and a new lower level classroom in honor of Rabbi Avraham Meir Levy zt”l. It will open officially on February 10th in conjunction with Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah’s Gala 30th Anniversary Dinner at Jerusalem’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Click for more details.

Here’s an article I wrote for Mishpacha a while ago with what I hope to be some words of wisdom for others trying to walk a similar tight-rope:

Opening the Drawers

With brachos from Yerushalayim to accomplish all of your personal missions in this world!

Batya

Here is a talk I gave to a few beginner seminary girls. I call it “Why me G-d?” Please share with friends and family. Thanks!!!

Rosh Hashanah is so close!  I always worry that I didn’t do the work I needed to do. Life is just soo busy!  But I remember one thing my late husband Gershon zt”l used to say to keep in mind for Rosh Hashanah.  Rosh Hashanah is about crowning Hashem King. But what does that mean?  Do I envision some great leader on a throne with a crown on his head and me bowing in servitude towards him?  Is this really the work that’s going to give me a better din on Rosh Hashanah?  Seems so childish.  Here I remember Gershon zt”l relaying the story of Akeidat Yitzhak as Rabbi Shimon Green used to tell it.

Sacrificing one’s son is an almost insurmountable test for anyone – let’s face it.  But do we really understand what it meant for Avraham?  Avraham was the pillar of chesed.  The one who knew he was chosen to bring the world back to truth, acts of loving kindness, and justice.  Who expected that his son Yitzchak would be the head of the great Jewish people through which all of mankind would achieve perfection.  He was famous throughout the world.  He was Mr. Kiruv himself!  Everything he did brought people closer.  He stood for G-d and goodness.

What would be of his reputation?What would be of his role in the world?  His whole life was devoted to showing people the goodness of G-d so that they would also serve G-d.Now, he was not only sacrificing Yitzchak, but everything he had stood for amongst the masses.  The next day the world would think he was a mad man and that his G-d a tyrant, chas v’shalom.  It would turn everyone away.

And still, he did it – at the expense of his kiruv and life efforts – because G-d said so.

So we blow the shofar, the ram’s horn, on Rosh Hashanah, who was sacrificed in Yitzchak’s place.

This is what it means to crown Hashem King. We all follow Hashem in some ways.  Some mitzvot are easy – how hard is it to smile at an old lady or take her hand to cross the street?  But what about the mitzvot that are hard for us?  What about the mitzvot that run counter to our beings or offend us in some ways?  What about the mitzvot that just get in the way of our parnassa or what we want?  We all have places that are our own potential akeidat Yitzhak.  And it is davka in those places, that we are asked to truly crown Hashem King.

Here we need help, and pray “Hashem, please let Your will be my will”.

This Rosh Hashanah, pick one mitzva that is hard for you and do it anyway, just because G-d said so.  There you will be crowning Hashem King where he was not King over you before.  There you will G-d-willing earn a better din.

And if you need a little more zchuyot for this year (who doesn’t) and haven’t already done so, this is your last chance to send your prayer request for Tikun Haklali prayers at Rebbe Nachman’s kever in Uman on Erev Rosh Hashanah.

Hashem should bless you that your prayers will be answered and that all of Am Yisroel merit a good, sweet year of health, fulfillment, and success in ruchniut and gashmiut.

It’s almost Rosh Hashanah – Yom HaDin, da dum.There’s shopping, and cooking and outfits to pick.There are meals to plan and shuls to pick.  There are relatives to remember.

And then there’s…. our future to consider.  Who we are. What we want.Now is the time to put forth that last stretch effort of tzedaka, teshuva and prayer.  Here we can help put you over the top b’ezrat Hashem.

We are sending a few of our Jerusalem learners to Rebbe Nachman’s tomb in Uman, Ukraine to say the special Tikun HaKlali prayer (10 specific psalms said in a certain order) specifically for each prayer request on Erev Rosh Hashanah.

Rebbe Nachman was known to have said that he will help whoever comes to his tomb and says the tikun, and that on Erev Rosh Hashanah he has the ability to do extra tikkunim unavailable during the rest of the year. What once was a strictly Breslev tradition has spread to much of the Jewish world because of the great inspiration experienced there.

So take this opportunity to add to your zchuyot before the din!

Pray for me in Uman! (Under “Prayer Option” at the bottom of the page, choose “($36) Uman – Erev Rosh Hashanah Tikun Haklali”)

You and all of Am Yisroel should be signed and sealed for a sweet, fulfilling, peaceful, healthy and plentiful new year!

Batya

Each year on Rosh Hashanah, “all inhabitants of the world pass before G‑d like a flock of sheep,” and it is decreed in the heavenly court “who shall live, and who shall die … who shall be impoverished, and who shall be enriched; who shall fall and who shall rise.”

Since this is something serious, G-d gave us the entire month of Elul to reflect on the year gone by and prepare.  We are supposed to see where we went wrong and try to transform, to spend more time learning Torah, praying and giving charity.  To make it easier to judge us favorably, G-d illuminates His Thirteen Attributes of Mercy for us this month.

We pride ourselves on the fact that our 40-days project supports Torah scholars in Eretz Yisroel, increases prayer – at the holiest place on earth – and contributes tzedakka to the poor of Jerusalem.  It is the perfect blend of all 3 mitzvot we should be focusing on in Elul.  We also hope that it will truly help you in your goals to come close to the Almighty and to your life’s greatest potential.  Hashem wants you to succeed – and so do we!

If you haven’t already done so, this is your last chance to get your prayers to the Kotel for 40 days from Rosh Chodesh Elul through Yom Kippur.

May you be blessed with a sweet and happy New Year and may the world merit to see the destruction of evil and the prevalence of peace and morality once and for all,

Batya Burd

Having run this project for over a decade now, I often get told personal stories of people doing 40-days themselves (and am frequently answering halachic questions on the particulars of doing the 40-days).

The other day a friend told me a beautiful story.  She has never been married and has been dating for over 20 years.  Her sister was also unmarried and dating for what seemed to be an eternity. Thinking only of her sister, my friend decided to do the 40-days for her.  Now, if you have ever done the 40-days, you know that it is a massive commitment and overhaul of your life. If it is not your first priority, you will more than likely miss a day and have to start all over again.  You also must plan 5-6 Shabbosim near the Old City and cannot be away from Jerusalem for more than a day the entire time.  You also cannot miss sundown and should keep a chart to be sure.

In short, this is no easy or simple task!

Day in and day out, she did this.  Climbing and descending those Kotel stairs.  “Hashem, please bring my sister her husband!”  After 40 days, she waited and watched together with her sister.  Nothing happened.

She continued to feel the pain of her sister’s loneliness.

She resolved to do the 40-day prayer segula again.  5-6 Shabbosim near the Old City.  No leaving Jerusalem for over a month.  Never missing sundown at the Kotel for 40 days. All over again. “Please Hashem let my sister marry her soul-mate!”   Baruch Hashem she was successful – all 40 were done in a row!  When she was finished, again she watched and waited.  Still nothing.

She remained steadfast and determined. If 80 days wasn’t enough, she thought, I’ll do 120.  If 120 isn’t enough – I’ll do 160.

She booked another 40 days out of her life to be close to the Kotel and faithfully checked off her chart as she poured out her heart at the Kotel daily for her sister to get married.  On day 40 at the Kotel, while she was davening, she actually experienced a beautiful presence come over her and felt that her prayers had been accepted.

Low and behold, she was right.  Shortly after, her sister became engaged and married a wonderful man.

Kol hakavod is all I can say!  Always accept your judgement as being for the best, but never take no for answer when it comes to hishtadlut in prayer!

We certainly won’t!

Pray for me for the 40 days from Rosh Chodesh Elul through Yom Kippur!  (It just might change your year!) 

With blessings and love from Jerusalem,

Batya Burd and Your Western Wall Prayers Family

We hope you are having a wonderful summer and getting some time to enjoy the little things.

Having just gone through the incredibly cathartic experience of Tisha B’Av, we hope you are de-processing, defusing and getting ready for the next step…

The year is coming to an end.

Was it what you wanted?Did you come closer to your goals? Fall a little?

If so, it’s not too late to climb back up.

The regrets of the past are yours to erase, the future is yours to create.

Now is the time to take stock and strategize for how you will get the best out of your upcoming year.

What do you want?

How will you get there?

Over here we are incredibly excited for this magical 40-days from Rosh Chodesh Elul through Yom Kippur – when we more tangibly feel the closeness, love and acceptance of our Creator and father.

You can bet that we will be at the Kotel in droves, morning to night, giving tzedaka and praying our hearts out that Am Yisroel, and hopefully you, be granted a beautiful year of plenty and simcha.

We hope you will be with us, with your dreams for yourself and loved ones…

Reserve your prayer agent now!

With love and blessings from Jerusalem,

Batya Burd and Your Western Wall Prayers Family

Pray for me for the 40 days from Rosh Chodesh Elul to Yom Kippur!

Shalom,

We wanted to let you know that once again, some volunteers will be davening at the kevarim of the Shlah, Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai) and Amuka (famous for marriage prayers) high up in the hills of Safed, on Erev Rosh Chodesh Sivan, June 6th.

As you may already know, Erev Rosh Chodesh Sivan is a powerful time to pray to bear good children who are successful in their Torah education and in life, but you can pray for anything and pass this gift onto your friends as well. But, because of the volume involved, we can receive up to 2 requests. Just click here to submit.

Also, something very exciting – Judaica Press has published a book about “The Secret Life of Gershon Burd”, and it is available in your local book store as of June 7. I pray it will inspire many to up their avodas Hashem. My late husband did not come from a long rabbinical dynasty, he was a regular nice guy who played high school football – but he had a dream – to do the right thing and come closer to G-d….

We will be accepting requests for your prayer gift until Friday, June 3rd.

With blessings for happiness, health, and abundance in ruchniyut and gashmiyut,

Batya

We hope you had a meaningful Pesach! Right now, we are counting the Omer.  Why?  Because we are building up, one brick at a time, to be fitting vessels to receive the true light of Torah on Shavuot. Pesach cleansed us of our arrogance, which prevents us from building good middot, and now, we can use that cleansed person to actually develop the good middot that we need so that Torah will stick to us in the right way.

What do I mean?

A person who is haughty, but learns Torah, may filter that Torah through their arrogant lenses (I’m better and more learned than others so I can look down at them).

A person who is angry, but learns Torah, may filter that Torah through his anger (I have the right to get mad at others because they are doing aveirot and deserve it).

Only a person who has worked on his middot and developed lofty character traits can truly use the Torah in the way that G-d intended – in a way that reflects the harmony and perfection of Hashem.That is what this time is for – to make sure that we are people that use and see the Torah in a way that reflects G-d-liness.

Of course, learning in itself helps a person develop their middot and connect to the Divine Will. We also know that the greatest mitzva is to learn Torah.  The point here is that middot work and Torah-learning go hand-in-hand.  A person can’t escape working on their middot by learning Torah.  Without the first, a person cannot reach perfection.

One such example is Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai.  The Rebbe had reached some of the highest levels of perfection while learning secluded for 12 years in a cave with his son and Eliyahu Hanavi. But still, the Rebbe continued to learn for another 12 years until his lofty spiritual soul could co-exist harmoniously in a world of people who were not as spiritually attuned as he.

Rebbe Shimon’s yarhzeit is on the 33rd day of Lag B’Omer (in just 10 days!).

We will be sending some brave shlichim to Mt. Meron that night to contend with the tens of thousands of other Jews vying for a place at the kever.  Tzaddikim have long been known to send shlichim to pray on their behalf at the kever of Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai when they needed healing or other help.  How much more so is the power of prayer at the kever greater on the day of his yarzheit – the day when the Jewish world over celebrates the spiritual light he brought into the world through lighting bonfires.

Be there with us!* A donation of $18 is requested for a personally composed prayer along with a perek of Tehillim.* A donation of $36 is requested for a personally composed prayer as well as the special prayer at the kever of Rebbe Shimon .

With love and blessings from Jerusalem,

Batya