In His Sight

But more than all that, he carried on his shoulders not only the burden of the people, but also a rare historical burden. He straddled both the prewar and postwar years, a bridge between a nearly obliterated past and a remarkable rebirth. He was born in Germany, grew up in Antwerp, landed in France during the war, spent decades in Chicago and Detroit, and finally returned to Antwerp in 1981, where he became rav and av beis din of Shomrei Hadas, one of the leading rabbanim in Europe and founder of the Conference of European Rabbis.

Rav Lieberman connected the rest of us to the Torah giants of prewar Europe. He was tested by Rav Elchanan Wasserman, studied under Rav Mordechai Pogramansky. And as a chassid of the Rebbe Rayatz of Chabad, he witnessed the transformation of Jewish life around the world through the shluchim of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, whose ranks included many of his own children and grandchildren.

During the times I merited to meet with him, I always marveled at his sharp mind, his remarkable breadth of knowledge in all parts of Torah, and his deep wisdom and clear Torah hashkafah in all areas of life. At one point, we sat down for a lengthy interview, where I got a glimpse of his early life and the experiences that molded him.

His parents had come to Cologne, Germany, from Galicia, where many Jews had gathered in those years. His mother, Sarah Hinda, was a granddaughter of the Ari Debei Ila’i and of Rav Naftali of Ropschitz, and his paternal grandfather, Rav Yitzchak Eizik, was a yoshev in Sanz, one of the renowned figures of chassidic Galicia.