Letter of Rabbinic Ordination from R. Elazar Moshe Horowitz Rabbi of Pinsk - Monastyrshchina, 1855

Lengthy letter handwritten by R. Elazar Moshe HaLevi Horowitz Rabbi of Pinsk, with his full signature. Monastyrshchina, [1855]. Letter of rabbinic ordination for R. Meshulam Zalman Neumark, rabbi of the Chabad town Horki, with R. Moshe Elazar's views regarding the dispute surrounding the appointment of the aforementioned rabbi. Background of the letter: In Horki (Mogilev region, Belarus. Near Shklow and Lubavitch, most its residents were Chabad chassidim), R. Meshulam Zalman Neumark, son-in-law of the previous rabbi - R. Yehoshua Eliyahu, served as rabbi between ca. 1855-1862. Some of the Horki community leaders were opposed to him serving as rabbi on his own, and wished to appoint an additional, adjunct posek by the name of R. Dov Ber. R. Meshulam refused, and the matter extended for many years in disputes and arbitrations, until in Elul 1855, a special Beit Din convened in Lubavitch (in the court of the Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek) to settle this matter. See Kedem Auction 63 (item 131) - a ruling from this Beit Din, with the signatures of the three sons of the Tzemach Tzedek endorsing the ruling. (Another letter, dated 1860, regarding R. Meshulam Zalman and the Horki rabbinate, from the three sons of the Tzemach Tzedek, was published in Igrot Kodesh of the Tzemach Tzedek, 2013 edition, p. 203). The present letter was addressed to the community leaders, at the beginning of this affair, and its contents disclose that they had sent the young rabbi to be tested by R. Elazar Moshe, a foremost rabbi in the region. R. Elazar Moshe writes about him: "When this man presented before me your letter requesting I assess him, to testify if he is worthy of issuing halachic rulings, though I have no past experience in testifying about a person I have no prior knowledge of, and indeed, it is appropriate to refrain from issuing a faithful testimony on all details connected to this great topic… but for the sake of the prayers of the public which do not go unanswered, I was required to discuss with him some halachic topics in depth, and some practical halachic questions, and I found him to be of wise heart and pure intellect in line with the truth of Torah…". He further writes, that he saw a responsum of R. Neumark on the halachic topic of Terefot, including some objections leveled against it, yet declares that the words of the opponent "are insubstantial and do not deserve to be refuted". Further in the letter, R. Elazar Moshe cites the responsum of his ancestor R. Shaul son of R. Heschel Rabbi of Kraków (printed at the end of Responsa of the Rema), which states: "that the son-in-law of the first rabbi has precedence over anyone else", adding "…in this matter, it appears that there is hope that the honor of the latter will be greater etc. - therefore accept him for the sake of Heaven, and may G-d set peace among you, and may you all concur with the truth and the just…". He concludes the letter with his full signature: "So says Elazar Moshe son of R. Tzvi Hirsh". R. Elazar Moshe HaLevi Horowitz (1818-1890), a leading Torah scholar of Lithuania in his generation. Grandson of R. Aryeh Leibush Horowitz Rabbi of Stanislav, descendant of R. Itzikel Horowitz Rabbi of Hamburg and R. Shaul Rabbi of Amsterdam. A close disciple of R. Aryeh Leib Shapiro Rabbi of Kovno. He was renowned for his profound and original study method, and already in his youth, he earnt the reputation of one of the leading rabbis and scholars in his generation. Issues of Agunot and other weighty questions were addressed to him from throughout the country, and he would respond swiftly with unprecedented sources from the Talmud and teachings of the Rishonim. His rabbinical career began in his hometown Monastyrshchina (Smolensk region, Western Russia), and in 1860, he was appointed rabbi of Pinsk. His novellae on the Talmud were published in the Vilna edition of the Talmud, and in his books Ohel Moshe (Part I, Warsaw, 1889; Part II, Jerusalem, 1970). The Chazon Ish reputedly held R. Elazar Moshe in the highest regard. He was once informed of the saying of R. Chaim Brisk regarding the leading Torah scholars of his generation, which affirmed that there were three Torah giants in that generation who would have been considered foremost Torah scholars even if they had lived in the times of the Rema: R. Yisrael of Salant, R. Yehoshua Leib Diskin, and his father the Beit HaLevi; with R. Chaim adding "and if you want, also R. Elazar Moshe of Pinsk…". To which the Chazon Ish retorted: "And I want…" (Maaseh Ish, part IV, p. 91). According to a different source, the Chazon Ish then declared that in his opinion, R. Elazar Moshe Horowitz was the greatest of all, even attesting that R. Elazar Moshe's assumptions were close to Divine Inspiration (see: Uvdot VeHanhagot L'Beit Brisk, part IV, p. 91). Maaseh Ish, biography of the Chazon Ish (part I, p. 20) relates that the Chazon Ish told his nephews of the holiness of R. Elazar Moshe of Pinsk, recounting that local peasants would ensure the rabbi would walk through their fields and tread on their land, as it was common knowledge that any ground he stepped on would be blessed. [1] leaf. 22 cm. 21 autograph lines and signature. Good-fair condition, stains and wear to the folds.