Neil Satovsky (left) and Gary Schiffman learn with Rabbi Greenfield in the Yeshiva Gedolah study hall.
said feel it unnecessary for their friend,
Larry, because "he's done so well with his
life."
Rabbi Greenfield said many of the
yeshiva's adult students get that sort of
reaction from their friends. What separates
these men from their friends is a system
of values that they never had before.
Neil Satovsky, 46, went through his 30s
looking for spiritual explanations. He
sought those meanings through hours of
adult education courses. In the fall of 1988
he met Rabbi Greenfield, and that is when
more of those answers became evident.
"There seems to be a need for guys my
age to find out more about life, to learn that
there is more to all of this than working
and making money," he said. "Yeshiva
Gedolah offers an environment that is dif-
ferent for most of us. It's an environment
that lends itself almost exchisively to
learning"
Learning generally begins with Ethics of
Our Fathers or Pirkei Avot. From there, the
adult students want to learn everything
from the aleph bait to an examination of
the week's Torah portion.
It's more than just the learning; it's the
style of the learning that impresSes many
of the businessmen. Here, they are in an
environment where they are taught to
question even the most simple point.
"This learning teaches you a discipline,"
Mr. Satovsky said. "If you can discipline
yourself to study Torah each day, where
you are learning ethics and moral values,
you can develop a discipline in the business
world as well. People who study the Talmud
learn how to think, how to argue."
Mr. Satovsky was raised in a Conser-
vative family, and to this day he believes
in Conservative ideology. He said he isn't
learning to become Orthodox. But he add-
ed that the more he learns, the more he can
see a conflict between following the Torah's
mitzvot and not following them.
"All of this can get you on a guilt trip
really fast," he said. "I'm learning at a slow
pace and I don't know where I'll end up
with this, but I do know that the name of
the game is to learn and to never stop
learning!'
Rabbi Greenfield said he wants the busi-
nessmen to learn that their success
in business and in their
family lives should be con-
nected to the Torah. It has
nothing to do with becom-
ing Orthodox, but it has
everything to do with get-
ting a feel of what the
Torah really is, he said.
"We want people to know
that the learning of Torah
isn't something that
isolates the yeshiva from
the rest of the community,"
Rabbi Greenfield said. "It
should be, instead, some-
thing that builds a bridge?'
Rabbi and student:
Rabbi Greenfield and Larry Garon.
24
FRIDAY, MAY 17, 1991
Troy businessman Ron Klein, 33, was in-
troduced to the yeshiva through a friend.
He said he was impressed the yeshiva was
going the extra mile to offer itself to the
general community.
A Conservative Jew, Mr. Klein said he
particularly enjoys the learning as an in-
tellectual challenge.
"A lot of us have really lost touch to a cer-
tain extent about what we're all about;' Mr.
Klein said. "There's been something miss-
ing especially when it comes to the basic
concepts of Judaism. A lot of people are em-
barrassed. They don't have a clue.
"When I learn at the yeshiva, I walk
away in amazement," Mr. Klein added.
"The writings that were important thou-
sand of years ago are still appropriate now?'
Mr. Klein also said that the yeshiva has