V-mail (photocopied mail) of a lengthy letter from R. Yitzchak Ze'ev Soloveitchik, the Brisker Rav, addressed to his friend R. Yechezkel Abramsky, head of the London Beit Din [Jerusalem-London], 18th Tamuz 1944.

The present letter was sent by V-mail (Airgraph) – a process of microfilming developed during World War II, which was used to correspond with the soldiers on the battlefront. The letters were photographed and transported as thumbnail-sized images on negative microfilm. Upon arrival to their destination, the negatives would be printed on photographic paper at approximately a quarter of the original size of the letter, and the reduced letter was delivered to the addressee. The original letter was usually discarded after being photographed in the country of origin, and V-mail letters are the only remaining documentation of letters sent by this method.

The original letter was handwritten by R. Yosef Dov (Berel) Soloveitchik, son of the Brisker Rav, with the full signature of the Brisker Rav: "Yitzchak Ze'ev son of… R. Chaim HaLevi Soloveitchik".

In the present letter, the Brisker Rav expresses his sharp opposition to the attempt to organize an "international gathering of rabbis", and reveals the secret of the real reason for his opposition to his friend: Since the Zionist parties were making religious reforms in all areas, even affecting the Torah and Torah learners, and if an international gathering of rabbis were organized, the Chief Rabbis' party would gain power over everything.

R. Yitzchak Ze'ev Soloveitchik, the Brisker Rav (1886-1959), son of R. Chaim HaLevi of Brisk, and grandson of the Beit HaLevi. Already at a young age, still in his father's lifetime, he was considered one of the prominent Torah leaders of the generation. In 1919 (about the age of 32), he succeeded his forefathers as Rabbi of Brisk, and with his Torah authority, he governed all religious matters in his city and the entire region. He managed to escape the Holocaust together with some of his children who fled from Brisk to Vilna, from which they immigrated to Jerusalem in 1941. His authority was recognized by the entire Torah world in Eretz Israel and abroad. His books: Chidushei Maran Riz HaLevi on the Rambam and the Torah. His oral teachings were published as Chidushei HaGriz. His teachings serve to this day as a cornerstone of in-depth yeshiva learning and form the basis for the thought of large portions of Orthodox Jewry. He was famous for his searing fear of heaven and zeal for pure truth.

The recipient,
R. Yechezkel Abramsky (1886-1976), close disciple of R. Chaim of Brisk and close friend of his son R. Yitzchak Ze'ev. Shortly after his marriage, he traveled to Brisk to study under R. Chaim ca. 1910 (at the advice of his father-in-law R. Yisrael Yehonatan Yerushalimsky, a disciple of R. Chaim during his Volozhin period), where he stayed for some four months, after which point he became devoted to his Torah teachings for the rest of his life. While serving as Rabbi of Smilavichy, he visited his teacher R. Chaim, then staying in Minsk, for long periods, during which time he would clarify Torah topics with him. R. Yechezkel would say of his teacher R. Chaim's method of learning: "R. Chaim goes at once to the heart of the issue". R. Chaim greatly appreciated his disciple's wisdom, and in one letter he calls him a friend (Melech BeYofyo, p. 95). During those periods R. Abramsky became a close friend of his teacher's son, R. Yitzchak Ze'ev (R. Velvele), which led to some fifty years of friendship and a close correspondence. Some of their Torah discussions and correspondence are printed in Chidushei Maran Riz HaLevi. When R. Abramsky was living in Jerusalem (after he immigrated to Israel in 1951), they met often and dealt with Torah issues and public affairs together.

[1] leaf. 14 cm. Good condition. Folding marks.

The contents of this letter are only known from a personal copy made by R. Meshulam David Soloveitchik from the draft written by his father and brother (see Igrot Maran Riz HaLevi, 104, pp. 266-268). The present item is the full letter that reached R. Abramsky.