Dedication of my sefer on Parnossa and Luck

 Dedication

This volume is dedicated to Rabbi Ronnie Greenwald. He was active in many areas, despite being a successful businessman he devoted his life to the well-being of other Jews. While he ran Camp Sternberg and other business activities, he served as the go to person for anything requiring wise negotiating skills, love of fellow man and patience. He was involved at the highest levels of secular politics as well as with Torah leaders, despite this he was a gentle highly approachable person who was available to all those in need. He was intimately involved in freeing not only Nathan Sharansky from Russia and but others such as Lori Berenson who he visited while she was jailed for life in Peru for alleged terrorist activities. 

He traveled the world to provide people in impossible difficulties with real help. He was often called on to negotiate in difficult divorce cases.  He was a pioneer in dealing with youth who were on the fringes of society. He even founded a school which dealt directly with young ladies with difficult backgrounds. In short he was a true Torah Jew who was a servant of G-d. He remained a humble and pleasant and easily accessible person despite his many accomplishments. 

I met him many times when he came to family simchas in Israel from his home in Monsey. I also corresponded with him by email regarding the issue of divorce.  He told me he had had a discussion with Rav Dovid Cohen about the lack of awareness in the Orthodox community about child abuse as indicated by its absence in the Rabbinic responsa literature. Rav Cohen assured him that there must be significant discussions of this important topic but after much effort was able to find only two from 100 years ago. 

I also mentioned Rav Dessler’s view that there needed to be universal single minded devotion to only Torah study even if it causes harm to the majority, He agreed that  was the dominant view as expressed by the Chazon Ish and Rav Aharon Kotler, but noted this seems to have come about as a reaction to  the devastation to not only the nature of Orthodoxy but also the lack of competent leaders by WWII. He added that now after several generation of Torah only that perhaps the emergency situation no longer existed and it might be possible to return to the norm of Torah Study and working.

His wisdom and devotion is sorely missed