Bidspirit auction | “He Who Keeps the Fig

“He Who Keeps the Fig Tree Shall Eat Its Fruit” – Interesting Letter from R. Chaim Berlin to the Rabbis of Jerusalem - Early Letter by the Renowned Gaon Rabbi Chaim Berlin, Chief Rabbi of Moscow, Later Rosh Yeshiva of Volozhin and Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. Addressed to the leaders of the Ashkenazic community in Jerusalem, headed by the eminent rabbis R. Moshe Nechemiah [Kohenio] and R. Moshe Eliezer Dan [Ralbag]. Moscow, “May His Help be Sent Speedily” [1876]. An early letter from Rabbi Chaim Berlin in his youth, written during his tenure as Chief Rabbi of Moscow. (Subsequently, he would serve as Rosh Yeshiva of Volozhin, then as rabbi of Kobrin, and only at the end of his life would he ascend to Eretz Israel.) In this letter, R. Chaim Berlin appeals vigorously for the collection of funds for the poor of Jerusalem, extending his efforts even to the towns surrounding Moscow—long before he could have imagined that the Volozhin Yeshiva would ever be closed, and that he himself would later be called to serve as rabbi of Jerusalem. Alongside the signature of R. Chaim Berlin appears an additional autograph: “Mordechai …”. The Gaon Rabbi Chaim Berlin (1832–1913) was one of the foremost Torah leaders of his generation, a towering figure of both Lithuanian and Jerusalem Jewry. The eldest son of the Netziv of Volozhin, he served as Chief Rabbi of Moscow, later as Rosh Yeshiva of the famed Volozhin Yeshiva—known as the “Mother of Yeshivot”—as well as rabbi and rosh yeshiva in Kobrin. In 1906 he was called to Jerusalem, and after the passing of Rabbi Shmuel Salant he was recognized, by virtue of his authority and greatness in Torah, as the rabbi of the Ashkenazic community in Jerusalem, though he declined to accept the position formally. [1] Paper leaf, 12×14 cm. Condition: Good. Stains. Fold marks. Small holes at margins.