Rabbi Israel Elijah Joshua Trunk of

Kutno Kutno is a city located in central Poland with 42,704 inhabitants (2021) and an area of . Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship since 1999, previously it was part of Płock Voivodeship (1975–1998) and it is now the capital of Kutno County. Dur ...

(1821-1893) was an important Polish

posek In Jewish law, a ''Posek'' ( he, פוסק , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the position of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities a ...

of the late 19th century. He is sometimes referred to by the title of his collection of responsa, the Yeshuot Malko.

Biography

He was born in 1821, and named after three great rabbis: the

Baal Shem Tov Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 22 May 1760), known as the Baal Shem Tov ( he, בעל שם טוב, ) or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystic and healer who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which ...

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( he , ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman'') known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון ''Der Vilner Gaon'', pl, Gaon z Wilna, lt, Vilniaus Gaonas) or Elijah of ...

, and Pnei Yehoshua. Nevertheless, he would sign his name "Israel Joshua", because the letters of "Elijah" also appear in the other two names (ישראל יהושע). He was initially taught by his father, but orphaned at age 11. At age 14 he married Friva, the orphan daughter of R' Haim ben Rabbi Yehudah of

Rawicz Rawicz (; german: Rawitsch) is a town in west-central Poland with 21,398 inhabitants as of 2004. It is situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship (since 1999); previously it was in Leszno Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Rawicz C ...

. For the next six years, he learned Torah while supported by his mother-in-law. He received

semicha Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 C ...

from R' Shraga Feivel Danzinger. Starting in 1840, he served as the rabbi of Szreńsk,

Gąbin Gąbin is a small town in Płock County, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,065 inhabitants as of December 2021. The Warsaw radio mast, which stood near Gąbin, was the tallest structure in the world until its collapse in 1991. History Gąb ...

Warka Warka ( yi, ווארקע) is a town in east-central Poland, located on the left bank of the Pilica river ( south of Warsaw), with 11,035 inhabitants (2004). It has been situated in Grójec County, in the Masovian Voivodeship, since 1999; p ...

, and

Pułtusk Pułtusk (pronounced ) is a town in northeast Poland, by the river Narew. Located north of Warsaw in the Masovian Voivodeship, it had a population of about 19,000 . Known for its historic architecture and Europe's longest paved marketplace ( in ...

in succession. In 1861 he became the rabbi of

, where he served until his death.

Teachings and attitudes

He was known for his love for the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Isra ...

. He praised the book ''Derishat Tzion'' by R'

Zvi Hirsch Kalischer Zvi (Zwi) Hirsch Kalischer (24 March 1795 – 16 October 1874) was an Orthodox German rabbi who expressed views, from a religious perspective, in favour of the Jewish re-settlement of the Land of Israel, which predate Theodor Herzl and the Zionist ...

upon its publication, and in 1886 visited the Land of Israel with the goal of encouraging the

Old Yishuv The Old Yishuv ( he, היישוב הישן, ''haYishuv haYashan'') were the Jewish communities of the southern Syrian provinces in the Ottoman period, up to the onset of Zionist aliyah and the consolidation of the New Yishuv by the end of World ...

to begin agricultural settlement. In the

shmita The sabbath year (shmita; he, שמיטה, literally "release"), also called the sabbatical year or ''shǝvi'it'' (, literally "seventh"), or "Sabbath of The Land", is the seventh year of the seven-year agricultural cycle mandated by the Torah ...

controversy of 1889, he was one of the first rabbis to formally approve the ''heter mechira''. He opposed the Radzyner rebbe's suggestion that cuttlefish are the source of

techelet ''Tekhelet'' ( he, תְּכֵלֶת ''təḵēleṯ''; alternate spellings include ''tekheleth'', ''t'chelet'', ''techelet'' and ''techeiles'') is a "blue-violet", "blue", or "turquoise" dye highly prized by ancient Mediterranean civilizations. I ...

for

tzitzit ''Tzitzit'' ( he, ''ṣīṣīṯ'', ; plural ''ṣīṣiyyōṯ'', Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazi: '; and Samaritan Hebrew, Samaritan: ') are specially knotted ritual Fringe (trim), fringes, or tassels, worn in antiquity by Israelites and toda ...

.בענין הטלת ציציות תכלת
/ref> He authored a number of works: * Responsa ''Yeshuot Malko'' * ''Yeshuot Yisrael'', on

Hoshen Mishpat Choshen Mishpat is the Hebrew for "Breastplate of Judgement". The term is associated with one of the four sections of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim. This section treats aspects of Jewish law pertinent to ...

* ''Yavin Daat - Hasdei Avot'', on

Yoreh Deah Yoreh De'ah ( he, יורה דעה) is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim around 1300. This section treats all aspects of Jewish law not pertinent to the Hebrew calendar, finance, torts, marriage, ...

* ''Ginzei Avot'' - a collection of responsa and other manuscripts, published 2006

Bibliography

R' Yisrael Yehoshua Tronk meKotna (part 1)

R' Yisrael Yehoshua Tronk meKotna (part 2)

רבי ישראל יהושע טרונק מקוטנא: 110 שנים לפטירתו

Israel Joshua Trunk

References

{{reflist 1821 births 1893 deaths 19th-century Polish rabbis Polish Orthodox rabbis Forerunners of Zionism People from Kutno