Bidspirit auction | A Letter of Recommendation from

A Letter of Recommendation from the Maharsham Testifying to a Young Ben Torah's Hasmadah Beautiful letter in which the gaon Rabbi Shalom Mordechai HaKohen Schwadron , the renowned Maharsham of Brezan , testifies to the diligence and outstanding Torah scholarship of the young bochur Yonah Zev of Lemberg, writing of him: ”...Most of his learning is fluent on his lips...” It was common practice among the leading poskim to write such letters on behalf of promising talmidim. These were not formal semichah, nor did they grant authority to issue halachic rulings, but rather served as a public testimony to a young scholar's diligence, accomplishments, and growth in Torah. The source for this practice is already found in the Gemara (Bava Metzia 85a), where Rebbi conferred the title ”Rabbi” upon the son of Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon in order to inspire and encourage him in his Torah learning, and indeed, he later became a great talmid chacham. The extraordinary gaon Rabbi Shalom Mordechai HaKohen Schwadron , the renowned Maharsham (1835–1911), was among the foremost poskim of his generation. A devoted chassid of the Ruzhin dynasty with all his heart and soul, he was renowned throughout the Torah world as one to whom every difficult halachic question was brought for resolution. He served as Rav of Yazlovets, Buczacz, and Brezan, with which his name became forever associated. He was regarded as the leading authority for granting semichah in his generation, and many rabbanim received their semichah from him. Among his foremost talmidim was the gaon Rabbi Meir Arik, author of Minchas Pitim. He corresponded in Torah with the greatest gedolim of his generation, including the Sho'el U'Meishiv and Mahari”a HaLevi , who held him in the highest esteem. Many of the leading rabbanim of the generation refrained from ruling on difficult halachic matters without first hearing his opinion. As Rabbi Chaim Berlin wrote: ”I do not wish to decide such weighty matters unless the prohibition is likewise confirmed by other rabbanim, such as the gaon Rabbi Shalom Mordechai HaKohen of Brezan and others” ( Nishmas Chaim, siman 19). Among his classic works are Shu”t Maharsham (9 volumes), Daas Torah, Mishpat Shalom , and Pesil Techeiles.