Sarah Schenirer Z”L – 90 Years Since her Passing
On the 27th of Adar 5695 (March 1st, 1945), exactly ninety years ago, the pure heart of Sarah Schenirer z”l, who is credited with founding Bais Yaakov – a network of schools for girls throughout the world, which brought about a Jewish revolution unparalleled in the entire course of Jewish history – passed on.
Sarah Schenirer – a humble and pure-hearted woman who was pained by the religious decline of the generation in Poland in particular, and throughout Europe in general, built Bais Yaakov with her own hands, with the assistance and blessing of the great and righteous men of the generation who harnessed the Agudath Israel movement for the benefit of this great initiative, the one that saved countless Jewish girls from the jaws of heresy and destruction.
Ninety years have passed since her untimely passing. It is time to recall memories of her work and tell the younger generation so that they may learn the power of a pure and modest Jewish woman who had nothing but pure faith and pure fear of G-d, and who, with humility and modesty, brought upon a revolution whose results are unparalleled to this day.
The Bais Yaakov newspaper (issue 125) contains an article written by Rabbi Moshe Blatt of Krakow, published during Sarah Schenirer’s shiva (7 day mourning period).
This article is based primarily on pages of a diary that Sarah Schenirer wrote and printed under the name “Bleter Fun Mein Leben” (Pages from My Life). Below we will present excerpts from these pages, which were written in Yiddish, and we will translate most of them.
A proclamation from the great and righteous men of the generation, on behalf of Bais Yaakov, when it was still in its infancy, 5690 (1929-1930)
“Chusadkeh”…
“My father z”l, put all his strength into educating his children, to raise them ‘Yiddish un frum’ (Jewish and pious). He was a warm Belzer chassid, and indeed a member of the household of the old Belzer Rebbe…”
“For eight years, I went to the public school, where Christian girls also studied. I was six years old when they called me ‘Chusadkeh’ (chassidic girl) at school. I also remember that I excelled in my studies and knew how to answer questions that my classmates did not know (…)”
“Chassidisteh”…
“[Even when I had to help with the housework] Shabbat was completely different, when I spent time with the ‘Tze’ena U’Re’ena’ (book for women with Torah stories). Every Shabbat I studied the entire weekly Torah portion, the haftarah (additional segment from the Prophets), and the ‘Nachalat Tzvi’ book. Without all of this, I had no Shabbat.”
“On Shabbat, my sisters’ friends gathered at our house and spent their time having fun and dancing, and I sat aside and studied the Torah portion. They used to say back then, a thief could empty the entire house and I wouldn’t even feel his presence. I found all my happiness in the holy books.”
“Even then, it pained me to see my Jewish friends and sisters behaving, in terms of Yiddishkeit (Judaism), in a rather weak and lax manner. They were not interested in things that were holy, and when I commented on them, they responded with mockery: ‘Chassidisteh’ (such a chassidic girl).”
“Once I sewed a dress for a friend of my sister’s, and then she asked me for another one and another, until I became a seamstress… even though I didn’t study this profession. The customers were satisfied with my work. They said I put my soul into my work…”
“For me it was a very big lesson. When I would watch while sewing and measuring clothes how meticulous people are about every little detail in their clothes, I would think ‘what does their soul look like… what does her clothes look like’…”
“I would sit up every night and work until late at night, and after work I would be busy with my own things… I remember that my father once bought a ‘Chok Le’Yisrael’ (a Torah related book) with a Yiddish translation, and I would study the Chumash (Pentateuch), Prophets, Mishnah, and Gemara every day, and I got a lot of pleasure from it…”
“Beyond that, I occasionally took advanced courses in general studies (…)”
