Handwritten Halachic Responsa by Hagaon Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski Regarding Vitamins and Insulin Manufactured from Non-Kosher Ingredients
Handwritten, autographed halachic responsa by Hagaon Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, Av Beis Din of Vilna, regarding insulin for diabetes patients and vitamins manufactured using non-kosher ingredients and byproducts of non-kosher animals.
At the time, researchers in the University of Toronto discovered that insulin is beneficial for the treatment of diabetes patients, and the widespread use of this hormone stirred a debate regarding its kashrus.
The question reached Hagaon Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, who was the leading halachic authority of the era. At the start of his responsa, he lists the ingredients and describes the manufacturing process of insulin, subsequently ruling that insulin, along with other vitamins and medicines manufactured using a similar process, is permissible for use for medicinal purposes since the “taste is marred through the chemical processes, and it is ground as finely as dust.”
Hagaon Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, Av Beis Din of Vilna (1863-1940) was the leading posek and spiritual guide of his generation who fielded halachic and communal queries across the Jewish world.
Vilna, 1927. Handwritten, signed responsa on Hagaon Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski’s personal stationery. Page size: 26×21 cm. The letter was sent to Harav Tzvi Hakohein Klein, dayan of Berlin. Signs of folds and light stains.
The body of this responsa appears in Shu”t Achiezer Vol. 4 Ch. 33 (Bnei Brak, 1992), although the final two paragraphs and conclusion were omitted.
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Any inquiries about this lot?
