Fundamentals

As our student-aged population reenters the world of education, we explore the deeper layer of chinuch: the core of Yiddishkeit, the essence of who we are.

A conversation with renowned educational speaker and Tell Me the Truth author Rabbi Chaim Veshnefsky

Elisheva Braun

“Many years ago, when I was running a kiruv organization in Manalapan, New Jersey,” says Rabbi Veshnefsky, “we had a fundraising dinner, and the honorees brought in a check from one of their vendors. They asked me if I was happy with the amount of the check. I glanced at the check—it was for $500. They could see on my face that I was a little disappointed. Then they said, ‘Rabbi, look at the check again.’ I did—and it was for $50,000!”

This is the story Rabbi Veshnefsky uses to open his sefer and as an introduction to many of his presentations.

“We know so much of the beauty of Yiddishkeit, yet so many of us only think we have $500, when in reality, we have so much more. There are a lot more zeros in the check than we realize.”

This—the depth and richness of Yiddishkeit—is the foundation of his curriculum, Yesodei Hadas.

Planting seeds in Manalapan

Rabbi Veshnefsky joined a SEED program in Philadelphia as a young adult.

He recounts, “R’ Avi Schulman once said that when a person joins a SEED program, they find out what they’re good at. Philadelphia has a tremendous number of unaffiliated Jews. I got deeply involved in kiruv work and found that I was quite good at it. I noticed that I was making a positive impact.”

Later, he attended a training course called Me’or in Deal, New Jersey, run by Avraham Yeshaya Milkovsky, for people going into kiruv. The course was extensive, exploring all aspects of kiruv including fundraising, counseling, promoting events, running programs, and addressing hashkafah issues.

“At the end of the program, R’ Michoel Gross announced that when he walked into a store to get his computer fixed, the owner asked if someone could come in from Lakewood to give classes every week in Manalapan, New Jersey. ‘Who can do it?’ he asked. I was the only one who raised my hand.”

The classes evolved into the Jewish Learning Center of Monmouth County, then graduated to building a shul and expanding kiruv efforts to serve the entire Manalapan community. After over twenty years in Manalapan, the rav was asked by a yeshivah in central Jersey to come in and talk to the bachurim to address their hashkafah questions that the rebbe’im didn’t feel equipped to answer. “I came in, and I spoke once a week for seven weeks. The classes were about an hour and a half, but I stayed as long as they needed me to answer questions.”

Getting to the heart of it

By the time he finished the lecture series, the bachurim in the yeshivah experienced a paradigm shift.

“The rosh yeshivah brought me to a window and showed me a certain bachur. He said, ‘This bachur wasn’t into learning, and he completely turned around.’ He got involved in learning because of our discussions, and he’s a very fine yungerman today.

“After that, I started getting a lot of calls to speak in yeshivos. I called my rosh yeshivah, Rav Reuven Feinstein. ‘It’s very difficult to be a kiruv rav and at the same time be speaking in schools all the time. What should I do?’ I asked. Rav Reuven told me that all my years in kiruv were preparation for this work, and that speaking with frum teenagers should take priority over other everything else.”

What did Rav Reuven mean?

“In kiruv, you can’t snowball questions. You can’t pull rank; there is no rank. You can’t say, ‘This rosh yeshivah said…’ You can’t take anything for granted; you have to give answers that are really satisfying. When you’re talking about emunah and hashkafah issues, you need to approach it from a logical perspective. My approach is to absolutely deal with the question in a way that by the time I’m done, the questioner wonders what they were thinking when they asked it.

“After seeing what was happening on the ground, I realized how crucial this work is.”

He founded his organization, Yesodei Hadas.

In over 20 years of kiruv, Rabbi Veshnefsky was involved with about 10,000 people. In the decade since he started speaking with frum teenagers, he has reached close to 30,000 worldwide. He has spoken in over 100 locations worldwide, including England, Holland, Eretz Yisrael, and all over the US. The impact has been profound.

“I lecture worldwide in yeshivos, shuls, seminaries, and high schools, addressing topics that people find unclear or are hesitant to ask about. I also produce audio shiurim and published a sefer based on my work.”

Tell me the Truth covers most basic questions on Yiddishkeit in a straightforward, easy-to-read way. It’s all built on Torah mekoros with modern-day meshalim to concretize the ideas for today’s generation.

In his work, Rabbi Veshnefsky draws on nearly a hundred marei mekomos, including Gemara, midrashim, Rebbeinu Saadya Gaon, the Rambam, the Ramban, Chovos Halevavos, Seforno, Alshich Hakadosh, Malbim, Ksav Sofer, Chasam Sofer, Rav Shach’s sefer Avi Ezri, and more. His presentations are warmly endorsed by leading rabbanim and roshei yeshivah, including Rav Reuven Feinstein, Rav Yeruchem Olshin, Rav Shmuel Kamenetzkyshtil”a and Rav Shraga Hager, the Kossover Rebbe zt’’l.

Filling in the blanks

“Recently, I’ve been training mechanchim and mechanchos to address the questions their students may have. By empowering mechanchim, we can foster an atmosphere where everyone will get satisfying answers to their questions,” Rabbi Veshnefsky explains.

“Many, many teenagers have questions and are afraid to ask them. So many teens don’t realize how rock-solid and incredibly deep Yiddishkeit is. Speaking from extensive experience with thousands of teenagers across various communities, I know this to be true.”

From people of all ages and all backgrounds, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, highlighting the profound impact of Yesodei Hadas.

One bachur shared that he was so fired up by my presentations and my sefer that his davening, his learning, and his overall Yiddishkeit have been transformed. “I recently celebrated a siyum on Bava Kamma,” he told me. “A few short months ago, I couldn’t have imagined achieving that.”

Rabbi Veshnefsky has heard this and similar feedback from hundreds of people.

Burning questions

Rabbi Veshnefsky is keen to clarify, “We’re not there to be meorer questions; we don’t think it’s the smart thing to do. We’re there to build on and improve what’s already there.”

Sometimes, people bring their teenagers to him when they’re struggling with frustrations or questions.

Rabbi Veshnefsky often asks, “Are you the only one with these questions, or are your friends asking the same things?” This often leads to the teen bringing his friends or even his entire grade to the rav. Together, the rav and the students discuss all their concerns until all their questions are addressed.

“I’m not afraid of any topic,” Rabbi Veshnefsky says. “I almost never hear a question I haven’t encountered before. In the rare cases where I don’t have an immediate answer, I follow up, but I’m confident that answers exist for every question. I’ve had situations where people put me on speakerphone in front of a class, letting students ask their questions live. I remember a time when a student called me from a kiruv camp because the kids had questions she couldn’t answer. I ended up having a three-hour conversation with the whole group. I always ask, ‘Do you have any more questions? Are you satisfied with the answers?’”

All they need is clarity

Shlomo*, an 11th-grade bachur, was teetering because of a close friend who was off the derech. A mentor brought Shlomo to speak with Rabbi Veshnefsky.

“I spent seven hours with him, addressing all his concerns. By the time we finished, Shlomo got his non-frum friend to sit down and talk to me for two hours. It was mamash v’nahapoch hu. Shlomo went from being influenced by his friend to convincing his friend to do teshuvah.”

It seems too easy to be true. Can improving troubled behavior be as simple as answering questions?

“If someone’s a truth-seeker, it’s always possible to help. It’s only once they’re to’em ta’am chet that it becomes very challenging. Chet changes everything because the guilt is incredibly strong, and it becomes an emotional issue, not a rational one. I’m here to vaccinate people with the truth, with an appreciation for how beautiful and rock-solid Yiddishkeit is, before they get to that place. There’s a mishnah in Pirkei Avos that says a tree with strong roots won’t topple in strong winds. Without a strong root system, a person is at risk.”Top of Form

FAQs

The second half of Tell Me the Truth is the practical application, tackling some of the most difficult hashkafah questions. Rabbi Veshnefsky chose the topics based on the questions that he encountered most often over the years.

The topics include:

• Fun versus pleasure
• Tzaddik v’ra lo
• Men’s and women’s roles
• Tznius isn’t about clothes
• Yemos haMashiach

“As we delve into the heart of Yiddishkeit and uncover what makes us special, we can fully embrace our unique identity and realize our true potential,” he says.

My message is…

Never be afraid to ask questions. There are answers out there. If the person you ask doesn’t have them, keep asking—try someone else.”

 

I would love to…train parents to feel comfortable addressing their children’s questions. There’s nothing to be afraid of. We have all the answers. In the worst-case scenario, they can always call me.

I’m accessible. I have people reaching out from all over the world. Please contact me if you need me. I’m happy to help.

 

Instant or eternal?

Pleasure versus restriction is a big topic for many.

In the sefer and in many classes, we explore this in depth.

In the beginning of Mesillas Yesharim, it says the purpose of life is “L’hisaneg el Hashem,” to have pleasure through closeness to Hashem.

The highest pleasure a person can experience is spiritual.

There are different levels of pleasure, corresponding to the nefesh (physical), the ruach (emotional), and the neshamah (spiritual).

Physical pleasure, like eating, is the first level. Overeating leads to burnout and sickness, but you need food to function. Finding a balanced approach is key—you don’t need to overindulge to be satisfied.

Emotional pleasure is less fleeting. Sharing a bowl of ice cream with your best friend transforms the experience into something more meaningful and memorable. It’s a higher form of pleasure than just the physical act of eating.

Spiritual pleasure goes even deeper. Tzaddikim focus on spiritual fulfillment, needing less physical and emotional gratification. They find so much joy and fulfillment in ruchniyus pursuits.

The Orchos Tzaddikim uses the metaphor of a horse and rider. While the horse is crucial for transportation, an untamed horse can be dangerous. The rider, representing the neshamah, must control the horse, which symbolizes the body. The neshamah should guide the body, ensuring that it serves its spiritual needs. In contrast, Western thinking often reverses this, suggesting that the soul exists to satisfy the body’s desires.

 

Archaeological evidence

In Yesodei Hadas, Rabbi Veshnefsky presents evidence in a wide variety of topics—including archaeology, psychology, science, and fulfilled prophecies—that prove the Torah to be undeniably true. A sampling of archaeological discoveries:

• A weight marked “D’bar Katres,” a Bayis Sheini-era family of kohanim gedolim referenced in the Gemara, was excavated in the Old City. [insert pic]
• Ancient tefillin from the Chashmona’i era show the continuity of Yiddishkeit.
• A 2,200-year-old inscription of Shir Mizmor L’Asaf shows that the Torah is unchanged, word for word, over the centuries.
• Jews who came to the Har Habayis had to immerse in a mikveh. Dozens of ancient mikvaos have been discovered right outside the walls of the Har Habayis. [insert pic]

 

Rabbi Veshnefsky can be contacted through the Voice.

*Name has been changed