Letter signed by R. Yerucham Yehuda Leib Rabbi of Minsk and R. Eliyahu Chaim Meisel Rabbi of Łódź. Av 1894.
At the foot of the letter, an additional letter (3 lines) handwritten and signed by R. Meir Simcha HaKohen Rabbi of Dvinsk. Dvinsk (Daugavpils), Elul 1894.
Letter appealing to philanthropists to support and assist the reestablishment of the Volozhin yeshiva, under the "license of the exalted government". This letter, written several months following the government's authorization to reopen the Beit Midrash doors (under the pretense of a house of prayer), calls for assistance in reestablishing the "holy yeshiva": "And it was with the exalted government's benevolence to open the prestigious house where Torah is fostered, and they shall see fit to reinstate this establishment to its former holiness, so that Torah and prayer may reside there as is fitting for this holy house". The rabbis' signatures are preceded with the following: "…on the explicit condition that it conforms with the government license according to the laws of the Emperor".
The Or Same'ach in his letter also stresses that everything must be done according to the governmental license. "If the matter the rabbis aroused to receives governmental license, it is superfluous to enthuse the hearts of the Jewish people and the leaders of the community to this sublime matter, to implant Torah in the place whose cornerstone was laid by the mighty shepherd (R. Chaim of Volozhin), and blessed be those who support the Tree of Life… Motzaei Shabbat Kodesh, 22nd Elul 1894. Dvinsk. Meir Simcha Kohen".
The Volozhin yeshiva was shut down by the Russian authorities in 1892, in the lifetime of the yeshiva dean, the Netziv of Volozhin. The government edict included an order to expel all Torah learners from the city, apart from ten Torah scholars studying in Kollel Brodsky, who received special permission to remain in Volozhin to study. After several years of intensive lobbying (by the yeshiva trustees in Vilna and Minsk), and with the authorities turning a blind eye, they succeeded in reopening the doors of the Beit Midrash which had been closed with the seals of the Russian government, and to allow the Torah scholars of Kollel Brodsky to study there. The breaking of the wax-seals and opening of the doors took place in Nissan 1894. This was an significant step in the gradual withdrawal of the prohibition of establishing a yeshiva in the city, as is insinuated in the opening lines of this letter, regarding the scheme to slowly and gradually dissolve the prohibition, while creating a veil around this change: "So the redemption of the Jewish people occurs, bit by bit, and not only the redemption of the Jewish people, likewise any significant and holy matter… will increasingly shine, and return to illuminate with the light of Torah and Mitzvot". The yeshiva was eventually reopened in 1899, under the leadership of R. Refael Shapiro, and operated until the Holocaust, led by his son R. Yaakov Shapiro.
This letter was publicized in the American press in those days (in part, without the additional letter of the Or Same'ach), under the title "Good News", announcing the reopening of the yeshiva (see enclosed photocopies of the HaIvri newspaper, New York, November 1894-January 1895. The letter of R. Yerucham of Minsk and R. Eliyahu Chaim Meisel is printed there together with the letter of the emissary R. Yitzchak Persky of Volozhin. See: M. Tzinowitz, Etz Chaim – History of the Volozhin Yeshiva, pp. 353-355).
R. Yerucham Yehuda Leib Perelman (1835-1896), known as "the Gadol of Minsk". Disciple of the renowned Torah scholar, R. Yaakov Meir Padwa. He served as rabbi of Seltz (Sialiec) and Pruzhany, and from 1893 as rabbi of Minsk, until his passing. His comments and novellae on Mishnayot were published in the Vilna 1905 edition of Mishnayot under the title Or Gadol. His responsa were also published under this name in Vilna 1924. He was the only one in his generation who earnt the title of "HaGadol", as noted on his tombstone.
R. Eliyahu Chaim Meisel (1821-1912), was celebrated from his youth for his brilliance, and at the age of eight, he joined the Volozhin yeshiva to study under R. Yitzchak of Volozhin. At the age of 19, he was appointed rabbi of Horodok (Gródek), his native city, and in 1851, of Derechin (Dereczyn). He later served as rabbi of Pruzhany and Łomża, and from 1873, of Łódź, a position he held for 40 years. He was renowned as one of the most prominent Torah leaders of his times in Lithuania and Poland, and was famous for his exceptional acts of kindness in redeeming captives and saving needy families from starvation. His gravesite in Łódź was popular as a prayer-site for requesting salvations for the Jewish people and for individuals, and was perpetually covered with kvittlach.
R. Meir Simcha HaKohen of Dvinsk (1843-1926), a leading Lithuanian Torah scholar and exceptionally righteous man. He was amongst the foremost rabbis of his times and a leader of Eastern-European Jewry prior to the Holocaust. He served as rabbi of Dvinsk (Dinaburg, present day Daugavpils, Latvia) for forty years, alongside R. Yosef Rosen – the Rogatchover (who served as rabbi of the Chassidic community in the city). He authored Or Same'ach on the Rambam and Meshech Chochma on the Torah. Already in his times, his books were received in the study halls and yeshivot as essential, basic books in scholarly Torah study and in-depth understanding of Biblical commentary, and were since reprinted in many editions.
[1] leaf. 37 cm. Good-fair condition. Folding marks. Minor tears and wear to upper margin.