Sacred Autographed Letter by the
Imrei Emes of Gur
“Everyone will know that faith and Judaism are not hefker!”
Long letter by the Admor Rabbi Avraham Mordechai Alter of Gur, author of Imrei Emes, complete with his sacred autograph. The body of the letter was handwritten by his brother-in-law Rabbi Tzvi Chanoch Levin, Av Beis Din of Bendin and son-in-law of the Sfas Emes of Gur.
In this letter, the Imrei Emes expresses his grave distress upon
“the breaches [manifested] by some of our nation’s contemporary youth…deriving from the liberal movements” which “seek to shed the yoke of Torah and Judaism…and now their hand is raised against the holy city of Jerusalem.”
The letter teaches of the covert efforts made by Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik to aid the campaign against the progressives , as the Imrei Emes expresses,
“Therefore, how delighted we were to learn the secret from the faithful confidant of the Gaon of Brisk” that efforts are being taken “for the sake of Hashem and his Holy Torah, and to save tens of thousands of our Jewish brethren and their Judaism…and that those who fear Hashem are battling mightily to [preserve] our holy Torah.”
He adds,
“If only we also knew what we could do to assist them in their righteous activities.” The Imrei Emes proposes to unite all Kollel members in Jerusalem and encourage them to join forces in order “to use their combined power to impact our brothers, Bnei Yisrael, and Judaism in all lands.”
Reading between the lines, it is clear that the Imrei Emes aspired to found a public organization that would unite Orthodox Jewry and serve as a spiritual bastion against the liberal movements sweeping through Europe, the Mediterranean, and Eretz Yisrael. This vision was indeed realized with the founding of Agudas Yisrael (Rosh Gulas Ariel Vol. 2 pps. 59-64).
The Admor Rabbi Avraham Mordechai Alter of Gur (1866-1948), renowned as the Imrei Emes, was the third Admor of the Gur dynasty and a spiritual leader of thousands. Throughout his 43-year reign as Admor, Gur grew to become one of the largest Chassidic sects in the world. The Imrei Emes was one of the founders of Agudas Yisrael and world-acclaimed leader of Torah Jewry during the catastrophic era of both World Wars. A tzaddik and genius who mastered both the Revealed and Hidden Torah and influenced thousands, he left an indelible impact on the Torah world.
Gur, Thursday, [Parshas] Vayeitze [9 Kislev, 5669], 1909. Folded leaf with 2 handwritten sides.
Page Size: 21×13 cm. Reinforced on fold of first page.
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Valuable Collection of Letters
The Battle by Gedolei Yisrael
to Preserve traditional Judaism in Eretz Yisrael.
When the winds of the Enlightenment began blowing throughout Europe, one of the first objectives of the liberal movements to advance their agenda was to dismantle the institution of the traditional Rabbinate, by replacing the Rabbinate with “enlightened” Rabbis who would support their progressive ways and institutions.
During the era these letters were written, Eretz Yisrael was under the control of the Ottoman Empire whose axis was in Constantinople.
Ottoman authorities traditionally bequeathed the Chief Rabbi of Constantinople, known as Chacham Bashi, a wide scope of authorities and privileges that powerfully influenced and impacted Jewish communities throughout the vast Empire. In particular, the Chacham Bashi was able to facilitate the needs of the Jewish community in Eretz Yisrael and represent them to the authorities. Also included in the Chacham Bashi’s powers was the appointment of new Rabbis in the Holy Land.
In 1909, progressive Jews exerted their influence in the Ottoman court to depose the Chacham Bashi, Rabbi Moshe Halevi, and campaigned strongly to appoint Chaim Nahum in his stead. Nahum, a graduate of the Alliance school and of Parisian Universities,
Gedolei Yisrael of the era regarded his appointment as a severe blow to tradition, as well as a grave threat to the spiritual future of Eretz Yisrael. They put up a fierce battle to oppose the new Chacham Bashi and to preserve the religious character of the Holy Land and of Jerusalem in particular.
Rabbi Yitzchak Eisik Halevi (1848-1914), author of Doros Rishonim, spearheaded this spiritual battle, and the letters in this collection are all addressed to him.
The present collection constitutes an eye-opening historical documentary of the times, with letters spanning Gedolei Yisrael from Chassidic, Sephardic and Lithuanian (Misnagdim) sects, among them Rabbi Chaim Halevi Soloveitchik, the Avnei Nezer, Imrei Emes, Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, and others. Each letter reveals the individual Rabbi’s unique perspective and pure Torah outlook on the concept of Rabbanus along with his personal battle to preserve spiritual sanctity during this turning-point in Jewish history.
For further information regarding the battle waged by Gedolei Yisrael, see Rabbi David Kamenetzky’s work Rabban shel Yisrael (Jerusalem, 2021 Ch. 14).
