Leilão Bidspirit | Torah Letter of Rabbi Shabtai

Torah Letter of Rabbi Shabtai Sheftel Weiss of Nagysimonyi - Lengthy letter handwritten, signed and stamped by R. Shabtai Sheftel Weiss, Rabbi of Nagysimonyi (Hungary). ”Thursday, Toldot” [year indistinct]. Addressed to his close disciple R. Feivel Buchinger. Torah letter and homily on Pesach and Seder customs. R. Weiss begins the letter confirming receipt of a letter, but says he is constantly busy, and alludes to the Talmudic teaching on the prime duty of Torah study. R. Shabtai Sheftel continues with a homiletical explanation of the dipping of the Karpas vegetable in vinegar or saltwater, as an allusion to the final redemption, going on to explain the three matzot correspond to the three forefathers, with the middle one corresponding to Isaac, and the Afikoman alludes to his theft of the blessing from Esau. He goes on to explain at length the concept of the sons of Keturah and the exile of Ishmael. He concludes by writing to his disciple: ”…and if I were not so busy I would write you more of the rest of my ideas…”. The letter goes on to discuss various matters, and R. Shabtai Sheftel concludes by signing the letter: ”Seeking your welfare always… Sheftel Weiss”. R. Shabtai Sheftel Weiss (1866-1944, perished in the Holocaust), outstanding Torah scholar and wonder-worker. Leading Hungarian rabbi, disciple of the Shevet Sofer. He served as Rabbi of Nagysimonyi and the region for some fifty years. Most his writings were lost in the Holocaust. His Hilcheta Rabta LeShabta survived and was printed in 1972. His other works were printed more recently. A Yiddish biography by R. Shmuel Shlomo Teller was published in Kiryas Joel, 2014. The contents of the present letter have apparently not been printed, except for one idea which was printed in brief in Hilcheta Rabta LeShabta, p. 193, from another letter of R. Shabtai Sheftel addressed to R. Feivel Buchinger. The recipient of the letter, R. Chizkiah Feivel Buchinger (perished in the Holocaust at a young age), head of the Beit Din of Ipolyság (present-day Šahy, Slovakia). From a young age, R. Feivel, then in Szombathely, became close to R. Shabtai Sheftel, who would visit the city as a substitute dayan, and teacher and student formed an intimate bond in Torah study. His brother, R. Reuven Buchinger, tells in a letter how ”my brother was G-d-fearing and an exceptional Torah scholar, and he had two sons, may G-d avenge their blood. He was a devoted follower of the Rabbi of Simonyi”; ”…While still a young man, my brother would go to the train station every day to visit him. He did not budge from him until he left the city in the afternoon, and wrote down all the teachings he heard from him in his notebook” (Divrei Reuven, memorial volume for R. Reuven Buchinger, p. 225). R. Feivel's notes from the Rabbi of Simonyi have produced many teachings, published as part of Hilcheta Rabta LeShabta (Bnei Brak, 1972). [1] leaf. Official stationery. 29.5 cm. Fair-good condition. Stains, wear and tears. Folding marks. Entire leaf laminated.