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diiscnbedias a m d ^
fprsV^t'to keep, describing Wiesel as a survivor dbes'ah injustice to die totals
Ifyof Tiisi life' a h d accoihjpiishmeri'ts. Elite Wiesel has n o t Merely survived,
h e j h M - M u m p h e d . ' And IF lie' would pause l o n g e n o u g h to 'consider it,"h*e
m i g h t e v e n say he'schappy.
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' At'65/Mffieselniarl^
" ^ d i e i g h l y e a r s since b e i n g awarded theNobel Peace Prize, ^ c a h ' t ' believe
H
T h e baseball commissioner asked Wiesel
t o t h r o w out t h e first ball. "I didn't even
know what it meant. I was trembling all
t h e time because I wouldn't know w h a t t o
do. S o I prayed."
it," h e says, s m i l i n g a n d s h a k i n g h i s h e a d a t
t h e i n c r e d i b l e p a t h h i s life h a s t a k e n .
"Thirty-eight years have passed, a n d the
s c h e d u l e k e e p s g e t t i n g h e a v i e r a n d heavier."
Books a r e everywhere at Wiesel's h o m e
o n t h e 26th floor of a n o n d e s c r i p t U p p e r
East Side M a n h a t t a n a p a r t m e n t building.
A v i s i t o r is first c o n f r o n t e d b y t h o u s a n d s
o f b o o k s in H e b r e w , Y i d d i s h , F r e n c h a n d
English that cover nearly every inch of
s p a c e b e t w e e n tlie f l o o r a n d c e i l i n g o f t h e
L - s h a p e d living r o o m . O n e u p p e r s h e l f in
a c o r n e r is d e v o t e d t o t h e m o r e - t h a n 3 0
titles b e a r i n g W i e s e l ' s n a m e .
Two framed pictures are the lone excep­
tions to t h e o t h e r w i s e b o o k - l i n e d walls.
W h e n W i e s e l sits a t h i s l a r g e d e s k , h e faces
o n t h e far wall a s k e t c h o f j e r u s a l e m . W h e n
h e t u r n s a r o u n d to use the c o m p u t e r , he
looks right into a dark black a n d white p h o ­
t o g r a p h of the h o u s e in Sighet w h e r e h e
g r e w u p . "Since I b e g a n writing, I always face
t h a t h o u s e , " h e said in a television interview.
"I m u s t k n o w w h e r e I c o m e f r o m . "
E
l i e z e r Wiesel was b o r n in t h e pic­
t u r e s q u e town of Sighet, below t h e
Carpathian mountains that were
o n c e h o m e t o t h e B a ' a l S h e m Tov, t h e
fadier of chasidism. Tantalized by chasidic
tales h i s g r a n d f a t h e r t o l d , W i e s e l ' s h a p p i ­
est c h i l d h o o d m e m o r i e s a r e p u n c t u a t e d
with S h a b b a t songs, eating chocolates a n d
studying a page of Talmud u n d e r a tree
while t h e o t h e r youngsters played ball.
" H e was a little sickly a n d c e r t a i n l y w h a t
w e call b o o k i s h , " r e c a l l s P r o f e s s o r D a v i d
W e i s s H a l i v n i , w h o s t u d i e d in
chederviilh
Wiesel in Sighet. Halivni, n o w a professor
of religion at C o l u m b i a University a n d o n e
o f W i e s e l ' s c l o s e s t f r i e n d s , says t h a t e v e n
as a c h i l d , W i e s e l was "artistically m o r e s e n ­
sitive" to t h e mystical t e a c h i n g s of t h e i r
teacher. Halivni believes Wiesel's sense of
h u m o r w a s c o n d i t i o n e d as a c h i l d . " M a y b e
h e h a d a p r e m o n i t i o n , " h e says.
"We w e r e in t h e g h e t t o t o g e t h e r . H e was
o n t h e l a s t t r a n s p o r t , I w a s o n t h e first. I
left o n M o n d a y , h e left T h u r s d a y , " r e c a l l s
H a l i v n i , as if it o c c u r r e d last w e e k . "So w e
c a m e to Auschwitz at different times."
"We m e t in A u s c h w i t z , " says R a b b i
M e n a s h e Klein. W e a r i n g a black chasidic
r o b e , Izitzit, w h i t e b e a r d a n d s i d e l o c k s , Klein
s t r i k e s o n e as W i e s e l ' s O l d W o r l d a l t e r e g o .
" S o m e h o w we g o t to B u c h e n w a l d a n d were
l i b e r a t e d t h e r e t o g e t h e r , " h e says. "We-went
to France t h e n , a n d Professor Wiesel attend­
e d t h e S o r b o n n e . I, o n d i e o t h e r h a n d , k e p t
d w e l l i n g in o u r T o r a h . "
R a b b i K l e i n , w h o s e s t u d y in B r o o k l y n is
also c r o w d e d with religious b o o k s , explains
that Wiesel t o o k a different p a t h after t h e
war as a result of t h e s h o c k of his e x p e r i ­
ences during the Holocaust.
After t h e war, W i e s e l s t u d i e d in Paris,
w h e r e h e e a r n e d m o n e y directing a choir.
Later h e b e c a m e the Paris c o r r e s p o n d e n t
f o r t h e Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot, e a r n i n g
$30 a m o n t h . His big break came w h e n h e
m o v e d t o N e w York t o w o r k with t h e Yiddish
Forwaid, e a r n i n g $ 1 7 5 a m o n t h as a copy e d i ­
tor, writer a n d translator. "I r e m e m b e r w h e n
h e lived o n 103d Street," says Halivni. " H e h a d
o n l y a small r o o m , n a r r o w , d a r k — y o u c o u l d
see t h e poverty. I r e m e m b e r h i m sitting o n
t h e floor s u r r o u n d e d by r e c o r d s of B a c h . A t
t h a t time h e was practically s t a r v i n g . "
In 1956, Wiesel s t e p p e d off a c u r b in
T i m e s S q u a r e a n d was s t r u c k by a s p e e d i n g
taxi. F o l l o w i n g t h e a c c i d e n t , w h i c h left h i m
hospitalized for seven m o n t h s , Wiesel des­
perately n e e d e d m o n e y a n d tried covering
t h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s f o r Yediot o n c r u t c h e s .
G o l d a Meir, t h e n f o r e i g n m i n i s t e r , t o o k pity
o n t h e y o u n g j o u r n a l i s t a n d would invite
h i m back to h e r hotel suite, w h e r e she
w o u l d p r e p a r e o m e l e t t e s a n d tea a n d brief
h i m o n t h e day's events. In 1967, his books,
w h i c h h a d b e e n c o m m e r c i a l failures, b e g a n
t o sell, a n d W i e s e l w a s a b l e t o l e a v e d a i l y
j o u r n a l i s m to c o n c e n t r a t e o n b o o k writing.
So powerfully e m b e d d e d in t h e p o p u l a r
p s y c h e is W i e s e l ' s a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h t h e
H o l o c a u s t t h a t m a n y w o u l d find it s u r p r i s i n g
t h a t t h e t o p i c r a r e l y c o m e s u p in h i s classes
o r in h i s w r i t i n g s . " W h e n p e o p l e d i d n ' t talk
a b o u t t h e Shoah, I felt I h a d t o . S o m a n y p e o -
p i e a r e d o i n g it n o w , I d o n ' t n e e d t o a n y
m o r e , " h e e x p l a i n s . I n fact, h e always t h i n k s
twice a b o u t r a i s i n g t h e issue. T m afraid of
m a k i n g it i n t o a r o u t i n e . I w a n t it t h a t w h e n ­
ever I m e n t i o n t h e w o r d Shoah, I s h o u l d s t o p
for a s e c o n d a n d my voice s h o u l d t r e m b l e ,
my whole being should tremble before pro­
n o u n c i n g drat word."
H a l i v n i leaves p u b l i c s p e a k i n g a b o u t t h e
H o l o c a u s t to Wiesel. "But w h e n h e c o m e s
t o s e e m e , " h e says, " h e l i s t e n s a n d I s h o u t . "
W h i l e t h e H o l o c a u s t rarely figures p r o m i ­
n e n t l y in W i e s e l ' s p u b l i c life a n y m o r e , h i s
sensitivity as a s u r v i v o r gives h i m a n a p p r e ­
c i a t i o n for e v e r y m o m e n t , a n d for life's
fragility. H e a n d h i s wife, M a r i o n , still travel
o n s e p a r a t e flights. ' J u s t in c a s e , " h e says like
a q u i c k prayer, eyes f l a s h i n g t o w a r d H e a v e n .
I t also drives h i m t o w o r k h a r d .
' T h e r e a r e p e o p l e w h o want to d o m o r e
t h a n t h e y c a n . W i e s e l is o n e o f t h e m , " says
R a b b i K l e i n , w h o , like W i e s e l , g o e s t o s l e e p
late a n d wakes u p early to study a n d write.
"For Wiesel, t h e N o b e l P r i z e is n o m o r e t h a n
a l a d d e r , a s t e p , t o w a r d fulfilling t h e g o a l f o r
w h i c h h e r e m a i n e d alive: to d o for t h e
Jewish p e o p l e . " Like Wiesel a n d Halivni,
K l e i n is c o n s u m e d b y his s t u d y a n d w r i t i n g ,
having a u t h o r e d over 6,000
teshuvot—
detailed responses to halachic questions.
"A p e r s o n c a n n o t live w i t h t h e f e e l i n g
t h a t t h e y h a v e a c h i e v e d t h e h i g h e s t , " says
Halivni, w h o claims that the N o b e l Prize has
b e e n a m i x e d blessing for Wiesel. " T h e
N o b e l Prize did n o t b e c o m e a n e n d , r a t h e r
a n e w b e g i n n i n g . H e realizes t h a t t h e N o b e l
P r i z e was given to h i m as 'Mr. Jew,' a n d
d i e r e f o r e h e o w e s it t o t h e j e w i s h p e o p l e . I n
a s e n s e it e n t a i l s a g r e a t e r r e s p o n s i b i l i t y . I t
h a s i m p o s e d a b u r d e n o n h i m ; t h e possi­
bility o f e x t e n d i n g h e l p , b e c a u s e o f h i s c o n ­
n e c t i o n s , is m u c h b i g g e r . T h e r e is n o t h i n g
m o r e f r i g h t e n i n g f o r a sensitive p e r s o n t h a n
having power."
W h i l e N e w York is f a r f r o m S i g h e t , E l i e
W i e s e l is n e v e r f a r f r o m t h e f o r c e s t h a t
m o l d e d his childhood: chasidism a n d the
H o l o c a u s t . A n d t h e s t r u g g l e of t h e s e two
f o r c e s t o c o e x i s t i n o n e s o u l is w h a t s h a p e s
Elie Wiesel today, p r o v i d i n g t h e creative
tension for his o n g o i n g a c h i e v e m e n t s .
D e e p w i t h i n h i m lies a y o u n g yeshivah buch-
Elie Wiesel and his
wife, Marion, kiss upon
hearing the news of
Elie's receipt of the
Nobel Peace Prize.
fl-from S i g h e t ; d e e p w i t h i n h e b e l i e v e s h e
survived t h e Nazi h o n o r s for a p u r p o s e ,
a s y e t u n f u l f i l l e d . E v e n s o , E l i e W i e s e l is
w h e r e h e w a n t s t o b e a n d is p r o b a b l y a s
c o n t e n t as h e c a n e v e r b e — u n l e s s t h e
Messiah arrives s o o n to r e d e e m t h e j e w i s h
p e o p l e , a n d of course, t h e world.
C
l a d in a w e l l - t a i l o r e d g r a y s u i t a n d
h u g g i n g a velvet b l u e T o r a h scroll,
E l i e W i e s e l d a n c e s in a t i g h t c i r c l e
with his friends a n d sings songs of praise
to t h e G o d h e h a s so often c h a l l e n g e d .
W i e s e l is g l o w i n g ; g o n e is t h e t r a d e m a r k
s o m b e r l o o k t h a t is n a t u r a l l y c h i s e l e d in
h i s s u l l e n , h a n d s o m e f a c e . I t is S i m c h a t
T o r a h for t h e J e w i s h p e o p l e . Yet for W i e s e l
it is m o r e ; it is also h i s b i r t h d a y .
"We n e v e r c e l e b r a t e d b i r t h d a y s at
h o m e , " W i e s e l says o f h i s c h i l d h o o d . H e still
rarely celebrates t h e occasion b e c a u s e "to
m e e v e r y m i n u t e is a victory." B o t h H a l i v n i
a n d Klein speak to Wiesel every year t h e
e v e n i n g o f S i m c h a t T o r a h . "All w e d o for h i s
b i r t h d a y is wish t h a t w e will see t h e r e d e m p ­
t i o n o f t h e J e w s , " says K l e i n . " T h a t is o u r
g o a l , t o live t o s e e d i e mashiach."
I n g e n e r a l , H a l i v n i a n d W i e s e l d o n ' t cel­
ebrate any of t h e
Jewish
holidays
together because
"it's t o o m u c h of
an association, too
m u c h of a bur­
d e n , " says
the
C o l u m b i a profes­
sor. T h e y
both
miss dearly w h a t
Halivni
calls
"heavenly Sighet."
Even so, Halivni
j o i n e d his boy­
h o o d friend at the
Fifth
Avenue
Synagogue
to
dance together on
Wiesel's
60th
birthday.
Wiesel threw out the
first ball at the 1986
World Series. This
impressed his son,
Shlomo Elisha, more
than his father's Nobel
Peace Prize.
36
MOMENT
Wiesel credits
h i s san ity t o his family a n d f r i e n d s . "I r e a d ,
I listen t o m u s i c , I s p e a k with f r i e n d s . My life
is full. T h e m a i n t i l i n g is n o t t o waste t i m e . "
B u t tiien h e a d d s , " S o m e t i m e s I t h i n k d i a l I
t o o a m i n s a n e . I was always in t h e m i n o r i t y ,
• F E B R U A R Y 199
like t h e m a d m a n . W h e n I b e g a n to talk
a b o u t t r y i n g t o l e a c h t h e Shoah, h o w m a n y
o t h e r s w e r e t h e r e ? W h e n I b e g a n for Russian
Jewry, h o w m a n y o t h e r s were t h e r e t h e n ? "
" W h a t k e e p s Wiesel s a n e ? " Klein p o n ­
d e r s . "We s i n g t o g e t h e r , e a t together, daven
t o g e t h e r , walk t o g e t h e r . H e conies h e r e
b e f o r e e v e r y holiday. Mostly w e m e e t , wc
talk." Klein says t h a t W i e s e l , w h o s u n g in a
c h o i r a s a c h i l d , still l o v e s t o s i n g c h a s i d i c
melodies. "He would begin singing Friday
n i g h t a t 5 : 3 0 P.M. a n d w o u l d n ' t s t o p u n t i l
after 2 A.M."
W i e s e l says t h a t h i s d a i l y s t u d y o f J e w i s h
t e x t s is e s s e n t i a l for h i m . "I love t o study. It
gives y o u a g o o d s e n s e o f p r o p o r t i o n . A f t e r
all, w h a t R a m b a n i s a y s m a y b e is m o r e
i m p o r t a n t t h a n t h e article I write for t h e
New York Times."
Halivni a n d Wiesel express their friend­
s h i p by always s p e a k i n g H e b r e w t o e a c h
o t h e r . Halivni is o n e o f d i e few w h o c a n r e a l ­
ly m a k e W i e s e l l a u g h . " T h e l i g h t e s t
m o m e n t s we h a v e is w h e n w e b r i n g u p c h a r ­
a c t e r s f r o m S i g h e t , " h e says.
W h a t k i n d of c h a r a c t e r s ? T h e r e w a s t h e
shadchan ( m a t c h m a k e r ) , Z i e g e n f e l d , w h o
always w a l k e d w i t h a n u m b r e l l a . A n d t h e n
t h e r e was t h e tall shochet ( r i t u a l s l a u g h t e r e r )
a n d his s h o r t wife. A n d m a n y o t h e r s .
"Hardly a conversation passes w h e n we
d o n ' t talk a b o u t S i g h e t , " H a l i v n i says.
"When describing these things, recapturing
t h e comical aspects of Sighet, t h e n I see h i m
having a hearty laugh."
Is Wiesel h a p p y ? T o his friends, t h e ques­
t i o n s e e m s i r r e l e v a n t . "We n e v e r t h i n k in
d i o s e t e r m s , " says H a l i v n i . H e e x p l a i n s t h a t
c h a s i d i c s p i r i t u a l i t y gives W i e s e l f r e e d o m —
a s e c o n d l i b e r a t i o n — a n d t h a t Wiesel " n e e d s
t h e j o y o f chasidul b e c a u s e h e c a n n o t always
live in t h e s h a d o w of t h e H o l o c a u s t . " W i e s e l ,
h e s i t a n t t o allow a n affirmative answer, gives
a t r a d i t i o n a l r e s p o n s e . "We d o n ' t s p e a k
a b o u t h a p p i n e s s in o u r faith, we s p e a k
a b o u t simchah vesasson (joy a n d g l a d n e s s ) .
W h a t d o w e ask for? Shalom, yes. W e m a i n l y
a s k for yirat shamayim ( f e a r of h e a v e n ) , f o r
s t u d y , f o r chaim shel Torah (life o f T o r a h ) .
W h a t is T o r a h ? M e a n i n g . My life h a s b e e n
the pursuit of m e a n i n g , n o t joy."
For Wiesel, without a Jewish context,
t h e r e is n o e n j o y m e n t . W h e n a s k e d a b o u t
simchah vesasson i n h i s o w n life, h e p a u s e s
briefly, a n d t h e n h i s w o r d s flow in h i s soft
F r e n c h a c c e n t . " N i n e t e e n forty-eight, w h e n
Israel was b o r n . I r e m e m b e r that S h a b b a t
i n P a r i s . I felt j o y t h a t c a m e f r o m h i s t o r y .
T h e n t h e ' 6 7 war. ShichrurYervshalayim
(the
liberation of J e r u s a l e m ) , s o m e t h i n g that
r e m a i n s with m e . A n d S i m c h a t T o r a h in
Moscow with y o u n g p e o p l e . "
Yet n o w " t h e r e is s o m e t h i n g m i s s i n g ,
a n d w h e n s o m e t h i n g is m i s s i n g , h a p p i n e s s
can't be present because happiness means
n o t h i n g is m i s s i n g . W h a t is m i s s i n g ? " T h e
professor pauses a n d t h e n answers t h e ques­
t i o n . "Certainty. T h e h a u n t i n g i d e a t h a t t h e
c e n t u r y is e n d i n g , y o u h a v e t h e f e e l i n g t h a t
it is t r y i n g t o p u r g e itself o f its d e m o n s , o f
its n i g h t m a r e s w i t h t h e p u r s u i t o f v i o l e n c e ,
of b l o o d s h e d , o f h a t r e d .
"In t h i s g e n e r a t i o n , t h e p u r s u i t o f p l e a ­
s u r e is a t t h e e x p e n s e o f h a p p i n e s s .
P l e a s u r e is i n s t a n t p l e a s u r e . E v e r y t h i n g
w e a r e o b t a i n i n g is i n s t a n t . I n s t a n t m e a n ­
i n g , i n s t a n t love, i n s t a n t p h i l o s o p h y , i n s t a n t
t r u t h . A n d h i s t o r y is j u s t i f y i n g t h a t .
' T h e G a o n o f V i l n a said t h a t t h e h a r d e s t
mitzvah
t o a c c o m p l i s h is
'vesamachta
bechagecha' ( r e j o i c e in y o u r h o l i d a y s ) . ' D o
n o t s t e a l ' , ' d o n o t k i l l ' , e v e r y t h i n g e l s e is
easy. Vesamachta bechagecha!'To
make sure
t h a t y o u r e j o i c e , " W i e s e l says e n e r g e t i c a l l y .
Wiesel's voice t h e n b e c o m e s barely audi­
ble, h i s d o w n w a r d g a z e is s t e a d y . H i s c o n ­
sciousness seems to have b e e n transport­
e d t o a n o t h e r time. " A n o t h e r k i n d o f j o y ,
even d e e p e r dian that, a n d m o r e personal,
was t h e b i r t h o f m y s o n . . . e v e n m o r e , t h e brit
of m y s o n . T o m e in m y life, it h a s t h e
i m p o r t a n c e o f t h e b i r t h o f Israel, t h e r e u n i ­
fication o f J e r u s a l e m . I felt it i n m y b o d y , i n
every cell o f m y body...."
T h e p h o n e breaks his trance, a n d
Wiesel walks over to his executive-size
m a h o g a n y d e s k t o a n s w e r it. O n it sit t w o
p h o t o g r a p h s : O n e o f h i m w i t h h i s wife a n d
their son Shlomo-Elisha, a n d o n e a closeu p o f t h e i r s o n , b o t h t a k e n a t least 10 y e a r s
a g o . W i e s e l n a m e d h i s s o n a f t e r h i s father,
w h o w a s in t h e c a m p s with, h i m a n d d i e d
only weeks before Wiesel's liberation.
"My f a t h e r h a d n o official p o s i t i o n i n t h e
c o m m u n i t y , h e was a k i n d of intercessor
in t h e c o m m u n i t y , h e was a g r o c e r y s t o r e
o w n e r , " says W i e s e l i n a t o n e of g r e a t
respect. "Somehow, I d o n ' t know how, h e
always d e f e n d e d t h e J e w s w i t h t h e a u t h o r i ­
ties. T h e r e f o r e , w h e n s o m e t h i n g w o u l d h a p ­
pen, they would c o m e to my father." At
times h i s f a d i e r was s o b u s y w i t h J e w i s h c o m ­
m u n a l business t h a t t h e y o u n g Wiesel w o u l d
only see h i m at h o m e o n d i e Sabbath.
W i e s e l h i m s e l f h a s n o official p o s i t i o n
in t h e j e w i s h c o m m u n i t y , y e t h e h a s s e r v e d
as a n i n t e r c e s s o r w i d i h e a d s o f s t a t e , i n c l u d ­
ing President Reagan prior to his trip to
B i t b u r g a n d P r e s i d e n t C l i n t o n , t o ask h i m t o
d o m o r e to h e l p the Bosnians. Wiesel
receives a t r e m e n d o u s a m o u n t of requests
f o r h i s assistance w i t h o n e issue o r a n o t h e r .
A n d a l t h o u g h h e is o f t e n flying a r o u n d t h e
w o r l d , h e always m a k e s s u r e t o r e t u r n t o N e w
York t o s p e n d tlie S a b b a t h w i t h h i s family.
Friends f r o m cheder
days in Sighet, Wiesel
and David Weiss Halivni
share a pleasurable
moment in Wiesel's
study in Manhattan.
Sent on two different
transports to
Auschwitz, they were
reunited after the war.
' T h e n e e d t o h e l p J e w s , I t h i n k I a m fol­
lowing in my father's footsteps a n d I think
h e w o u l d h a v e w a n t e d it t h a t w a y , " s a y s
W i e s e l . W i e s e l says t h a t h e h a s o n l y r e c e n t ­
ly r e a l i z e d t h e s i m i l a r i t i e s b e t w e e n h i m s e l f
a n d h i s f a t h e r , a n d e x p l a i n s t h a t it t o o k a
l o n g t i m e to c o m e to this c o n c l u s i o n
•
continued
on page
78
F E B R U A R Y 1994
• MOMENT
37
GLOSSARY
Is Wiesel Happy?
continued fmm page
37
"because of kibbud av (respect for o n e ' s
father), I d i d n ' t d a r e c o m p a r e myself
with h i m . H e saved J e w i s h lives; I
d i d n ' t . I try to t e a c h , b u t h e saved
Jewish lives. H e was arrested, h e was tor­
tured. I was not. So how can I c o m p a r e
myself to him?"
In h o n o r of his father, Wiesel donat­
e d t h e initial s e e d m o n e y Tor B e t
S h l o m o , a $5 million complex outside
of J e r u s a l e m that includes a yeshivah,
kollel, T a l m u d T o r a h , mikveji, m a t z a h
factory, shut, b o m b shelter a n d even
a swimming pool.
While Wiesel is reconciled with the
m e m o r y of his r a t h e r , h e is still
w r e s t l i n g with b e i n g a f a t h e r . " T h e
hardest is to be a g o o d father, always,"
confesses Wiesel. Halivni says that it is
n o t easy b e i n g the son of a great m a n .
Shlomo-Elisha, who is now a senior at
Yale, h a s b e e n h e a r d to say, half-jokingly: "It's h a r d growing u p in a house
where your d a d is the arbiter of moral­
ity in d i e twentieth century."
Wiesel believes that "the father-son
relationship is a test, both for die father
a n d for t h e son. W h e n t h e son leaves
h o m e , it is h a r d e r for the father t h a n
for t h e s o n , " h e says, h o p i n g n o t to
betray the privacy of his family life a n d
yet trying to convey die love a n d under­
s t a n d i n g h e has for his son. "The son
has to free himself o n t h e o n e h a n d ,
a n d at die same time b e loyal," h e says,
speaking p e r h a p s a b o u t both his rela­
tionship with his father a n d his s o n ' s
with him. T h e hardest things are t h e
most rewarding," he adds.
"It was hardeV t h a n studying a suggiya (tractate of G e m a r a ) , " says Wiesel
of his maj o r l e a g u e baseball d e b u t in
1986, w h e n his son was 14 years old.
O n e place whe re the worlds of father
a n d son, of Sighet a n d New York, met
was the unlikely a r e n a of Shea Stadium
at t h e o p e n i n g of the second g a m e of
the World Series between the New York
Mets a n d the Boston Red Sox. T h e
baseball c o m m i s s i o n e r asked Wiesel
to throw out the first ball.
"1 d i d n ' t even know what it meant,"
Wiesel told Sports Illustrated. "I h a d a
feeling h e was talking mysticism to me."
Wiesel declined to throw out tile first
ball at t h e first g a m e , b e c a u s e of t h e
S a b b a t h , a n d t h e n tried to get o u t of
the honor the second game because
of the festival of Sukkot.
"But t h e n the commissioner w e n t —
I m u s t say this to his c r e d i t — h e went
a n d c h e c k e d with r a b b i s a n d f o u n d
t h a t after s u n d o w n , it is p e r m i t t e d to
t h r o w a ball. So w h e n h e c a m e b a c k
for t h e third time, I t o o k c o u n s e l with
my son. A n d w h e n h e h e a r d that, h e
was m o r e i m p r e s s e d with t h a t t h a n
with my g e t t i n g t h e N o b e l Prize. So
of course, I a c c e p t e d . A n d I was trem­
b ling all t h e time b e c a u s e I w o u l d n ' t
know what to d o . So I p r a y e d a n d my
prayers w e r e h e a r d a n d a p p a r e n t l y I
did the right thing." T h e caption
u n d e r his p h o t o in Spoils Illustrated
reads: "For a m a n of p e a c e , h e threw
a nasty palmball."
Wiesel a n d his son relate to very dif­
ferent worlds. Elie Wiesel is n o t of this
generation, a n d seldom takes notice of
o r p l e a s u r e from c o n t e m p o r a r y cul­
t u r e . H e wasn't sure w h o M a d o n n a is,
a n d h a s n o p a t i e n c e to s t a n d in line
for movie tickets. "I d o n ' t like to watch
television," h e says, but dien adds that
h e always watches the news a n d some­
times "Nighdine."
W h e n h e is relaxed, a m o n g friends
o r t e a c h i n g , Wiesel often displays an
i r o n i c s e n s e of h u m o r . " W h e n D a n
R a t h e r speaks, m o r e p e o p l e listen to
h i m t h a n w h e n M o s e s s p o k e . " His
l a u g h is s h o r t b u t s i n c e r e ; h e smiles
freely w h e n h e h e a r s t h e songs of his
y o u t h , w h e n h e a r i n g of a simchah in
s o m e o n e ' s life o r simply w h e n
schmoozing widi his wife.
H e looks slim a n d fit, a n d b e c o m e s
e n e r g i z e d w h e n h e walks i n t o his
classroom at Boston University or
g r e e t s a visitor a t his d o o r . D o e s h e
exercise? "Never in my life," h e says.
Having t h e benefit of low blood pres­
s u r e a n d low c h o l e s t e r o l , h e allows
himself t h e i n d u l g e n c e of milk choco­
late, a childhood habit.
T h e s e glimpses of Elie Wiesel, t h e
y o u n g Jew a n d d i e yeshivah bucher, only
last a m o m e n t Even the baseball story
Wiesel weaves back to t h e p r e s e n t . "I
was s u r p r i s e d b e c a u s e I t h o u g h t of
sports as nice, of a feeling of tolerance
a n d respect. W h e n they introduced m e ,
first they a n n o u n c e d , ' H e lives in New
York,' a n d they c h e e r e d . " ( H e c h e e r s
"Yaaal", lifting his arms in die air.) "And
then diey said, ' H e teaches in Boston.'
A n d everyone went, 'Boooo!'
' T h a t ' s n o t so nice."
And dien h e smiles. ®
a i i y a h : literally, going u p ; immigra­
tion to Israel
c h a s i d u t : goodness, righteousness;
practices a n d teachings of a Jewish
mystical movement that began in
Poland a r o u n d 1750
c h a c h a m : a wise a n d learned person
c h a z a n : cantor
c h e d e r : literally, room; a small
school for children's Jewish education
h a l a c h a h : literally, the path; Jewish
religious law
h a r o s e t : fruit, n u t a n d wine mixture
eaten at the Passover seder as a
r e m i n d e r of die m o r t a r used in Egypt
h a v u r a h : literally, fellowship; an
informal, usually self-led, prayer
group
k a v a n a h : d e e p intent o r focus on
prayer or mitzvol
K i d d u s h : prayer a n d sanctification of
wine o n holy days
k o l l e l : a community building
m a c h e r : (Yiddish) literally, a doer; a
big shot, usually referring to ajewish
c o m m u n i t y leader
m a s h i a c h : messiah
m i k v e h : Jewish ritual bath
n a r r i s h k e i t : (Yiddish) foolishness
s i d d u r : prayer book
S h o a h : die Holocaust
s i m c h a h : joy, a joyous occasion
t a l l i t : ritually prescribed, fringed
prayer shawl
t e f i l l i n : phylacteries; leather straps
used to bind two small black boxes
containing die words of the Shema to
arm and head
t i k u n o l a m : perfecting the world as
G o d ' s partners t h r o u g h good d e e d s
t r e i f : non-kosher
t z e d a k a h : righteousness;
to m e a n chanty
often used
t z i t z i t : die ritually prescribed fringes
at the corners of a tallit o r a four-cor­
nered garment
y e s h i v a h : a rabbinical college or
seminary o r a site of Jewish learning
y e s h i v a h b u c h e r : yeshivah s t u d e n t