Auction 54 - Judaica - Books, Manuscripts, Rabbinical Letters, Ceremonial Art

Handwritten Glosses by the Steipler on his Well-known Letter about the "Holiness of the Home"

Opening: $400
Sold for: $6,875
Including buyer's premium
Two typewritten leaves with letters regarding the holy conduct of a Jewish home - "Letter from the Chazon Ish" and "Letter by Y.Y. Kanievsky". With glosses and revisions in the handwriting of R. Ya'akov Yisrael Kanievsky, the Steipler. [c. 1960s].
These letters have been printed in 1968 by R. Shmuel Huminer in the booklet Igeret Kodesh. The letter by R. Yisrael Kanievsky was printed anonymously, hinting that it was written by "one of the leaders of our generation".
After this booklet aroused a public polemic from a Chassidic circle which were offended by the content, the Steipler wrote a letter to R. Shmuel Huminer with the request to bury the booklet (in geniza) or censor it, because people were affronted by its content. This letter appeared in the Kedem catalog of Auction 44, Lot 424: "…We have now found out that there are Chassidim who conduct themselves in holiness for many generations that are very offended by this pamphlet. They say that it will G-d forbid, affect the peace in their homes…if you do not plan to bury it, in any case tear out the leaf with the introduction and at the top of page 7, erase the words 'letter by one of the leaders of our generation', so that it will not be at all apparent that it was written by another person, but it will seem as if the publisher wrote this letter…".
[2] leaves. 27.5 cm. Good condition.
Books with Handwritten Glosses
Books with Handwritten Glosses