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Yosef Shalom Elyashiv ( he, יוסף שלום אלישיב; 10 April 1910 – 18 July 2012) was a
Haredi
Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...
Rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
and ''
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 ...
'' (arbiter of
Jewish law
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws which is derived from the Torah, written and Oral Tora ...
) who lived in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. Until his death at the age of 102, Rav Elyashiv was the paramount leader of both Israel and the
Diaspora
A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...
Lithuanian-Haredi community, and many
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
regarded him as the ''
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 ...
ha-dor'', the contemporary leading authority on
halakha
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...
, or Jewish law.
He spent most of his days engaged in
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
ical study, and delivered lectures in
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
and
Shulkhan Arukh
The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
at a local
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
in the
Meah Shearim
Mea Shearim ( he, מאה שערים, lit., "hundred gates"; contextually, "a hundred fold") is one of the oldest Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem outside of the Old City. It is populated by Haredi Jews, and was built by members of the Old Yish ...
area in Jerusalem where he lived. He received supplicants from all over the world, and answered the most complex
Halakhic
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...
inquiries.
Biography
Rav Elyashiv was the son of
Rav
''Rav'' (or ''Rab,'' Modern Hebrew: ) is the Hebrew generic term for a person who teaches Torah; a Jewish spiritual guide; or a rabbi. For example, Pirkei Avot (1:6) states that:
The term ''rav'' is also Hebrew for ''rabbi''. (For a more nuan ...
Avraham Elyashiv (Erener) of
Gomel
Gomel (russian: Гомель, ) or Homiel ( be, Гомель, ) is the administrative centre of Gomel Region and the second-largest city in Belarus with 526,872 inhabitants (2015 census).
Etymology
There are at least six narratives of the ori ...
,
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
, and Chaya Musha, daughter of the
kabbalist Rav
_(died_1925)_of_Šiauliai.html" ;"title="7_Adar.html" ;"title="Tevet">2_Tevet_5602.html" ;"title="Tevet.html" ;"title="2 Tevet">2 Tevet 5602">Tevet.html" ;"title="2 Tevet">2 Tevet 56 ...
(died 1925) of Šiauliai">Šiauliai, Lithuania.
Born in 1910 at Šiauliai, Yosef Shalom Elyashiv arrived with his parents in Mandatory Palestine in 1922, aged 12. He was an only child, born to his parents after 17 years of marriage.
At the suggestion of the Chief Rabbi of Palestine, Abraham Isaac Kook, Rav Abraham Isaac Kook, Yosef Shalom married Sheina Chaya (died 19 June 1994), a daughter of Rav
Aryeh Levin
Aryeh Levin ( he, אריה לוין; March 22, 1885 - March 28, 1969) was an Orthodox rabbi dubbed the "Father of Prisoners" for his visits to members of the Jewish underground imprisoned in the Central Prison of Jerusalem in the Russian Compo ...
.
Kook also conducted the wedding.
The couple had five sons and seven daughters. Six of their daughters married significant Rabbinic figures. During Elyashiv's lifetime, six of his children died. Two died in their youth: a son who died of illness as a child, and a daughter killed by Jordanian shelling in 1948. Four other children died over the course of his lifetime. At the time of his death, he had approximately 1,400 descendants, including two sixth-generation descendants.
He had seen the beginning of a sixth generation in 2009, when a grandson was born to one of his great-grandchildren.
Death
In February 2012, the 101-year-old Rav was admitted into the cardiac intensive care unit of the
Jesselson Heart Center at the
Shaare Zedek Medical Center
The Shaare Zedek Medical Center ( he, מרכז רפואי שערי צדק, ''Merkaz Refu'i Sha'arei Tzedek'') (lit. "Gates of Justice") is a large teaching hospital in Jerusalem established in 1902, It affiliated with Hebrew University of Jerusal ...
under the supervision of cardiology branch head Dan Tzivoni and his personal physician. He was admitted due to an acute condition of
edema of the lungs and congestion in the heart. He died on 18 July 2012, aged 102,
and was buried on
Har HaMenuchot
Har HaMenuchot ( he, הר המנוחות, Ashkenazi pronunciation, Har HaMenuchos, lit. "Mount of Those who are Resting", also known as Givat Shaul Cemetery) is the largest cemetery in Jerusalem. The hilltop burial ground lies at the western ed ...
after a late-night funeral procession that attracted an estimated 250,000 people.
Spiritual and political leader
In contrast to his later positions vis a vis the State of Israel, Rav Elyashiv began his Rabbinic career as a judge in the government's religious court system, and was a protégé of Israel's
Ashkenazi
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
chief rabbi,
Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog
Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog ( he, יצחק אייזיק הלוי הרצוג; 3 December 1888 – 25 July 1959), also known as Isaac Herzog or Hertzog, was the first Chief Rabbi of Ireland, his term lasted from 1921 to 1936. From 1936 until his deat ...
. In the early 1970s, he left the state court system.
In 1989, upon the establishment of the religious political party
Degel HaTorah
Degel HaTorah ( he, דגל התורה, , Banner of the Torah) is an Ashkenazi Haredi political party in Israel. For much of its existence, it has been allied with Agudat Yisrael, under the name United Torah Judaism.
History
Degel HaTorah was ...
, its spiritual leader Rav
Elazar Shach
Elazar Menachem Man Shach ( he, אלעזר מנחם מן שך, Elazar Shach; January 1, 1899 O.S. – November 2, 2001) was a prominent ultra-Orthodox rabbi, heading the non-Hasidic ''Litvak'' Orthodox from the early 1970s until his death. He ...
asked Rav Elyashiv to join in the public leadership, and he acceded to his request. He came to the major public gatherings of Degel HaTorah, currently part of the umbrella
United Torah Judaism
United Torah Judaism ( he, יהדות התורה, ''Yahadut HaTora''), often referred to by its electoral symbol Gimel (), is a Haredi, religious conservative political alliance in Israel. The alliance, consisting of Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaT ...
list in the Israeli
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
(parliament), and shared in the task of rendering decisions.
[''House of Nobility, Humble Abode: Rav Elyashiv and His Torah Dynasty '' by Nosson Weiss. ''Mishpacha'' Magazine Issue 159 May 23, 2007] While Rav Elyashiv held no official title, neither as head of a congregation,
yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...
, or particular community,
after the death of Rav Shach he took his position and held great influence over the policies of the party, which abided by all his rulings and instructions. Most
rosh yeshiva
Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primar ...
s ("yeshiva deans") associated with the
Agudath Israel of America
Agudath Israel of America ( he, אגודת ישראל באמריקה) (also called Agudah) is an American organization that represents Haredi Orthodox Jews. It is loosely affiliated with the international World Agudath Israel. Agudah seeks to ...
movement frequently sought out his opinions and followed his advice and guidelines concerning a wide array of policy and communal issues affecting the welfare of
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...
. ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' referred to Rav Elyashiv as the predecessor of
Rav Aharon Leib Shteinman as Gadol Hador ("leader of the generation").
Yossi Elituv, editor of the influential ultra-Orthodox paper ''Mishpacha'', remarked:
"Rav Elyashiv will be remembered as the ultimate assiduous yeshiva scholar of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He was not seen as a political leader or as the head of group or party. He was a man who made Torah study his entire life, and this will remain an inspiration."
In 2010, Rav Elyashiv published a letter criticizing the Shas Party for joining the World Zionist Organization (WZO). He wrote that the Party "is turning its back on the basics of Charedi Jewry of the past hundred years. In the words of Gedolei Yisroel: 'Zu Neveilah she’ein kamosa'." He compared this move to the decision of the Mizrachi movement to join the WZO
ver one hundred years agowhich was the deciding factor in their separation from "authentic Torah Judaism."
Published works
The Halakhic rulings and sermonic insights of Rav Elyashiv have been recorded in several books. The 6 volume ''Kovetz Teshuvos Elyashiv''
[Volume 4 was published posthumously] contains
responsa
''Responsa'' (plural of Latin , 'answer') comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them. In the modern era, the term is used to describe decisions and rulings made by scholars i ...
resulting from questions asked of him over many years. Many of his ethical and sermonic comments on the Torah, most dating from the 1950s, were collected and published as ''Divrei
Aggadah
Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, ...
.''
A
Haggadah
The Haggadah ( he, הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each J ...
for
Pesach
Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the The Exodus, Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or ...
including his comments and Halachic rulings was recently printed. Another work that includes his Halakhic rulings is titled "Yashiv Moshe".
His Talmudic insights were printed in the 18 volume series of ''Haoros'' and more recently ''Shiurei Maran Hagrish Elyashiv'' on Tractate Berachot and the following books: ''"Pniney Tefila''"' "''Pniney Chanuka''" and "''Pniney Nisuin''". These works were not written by Rav Elyashiv, but compiled by his relatives and students; the "''Pniney''" series was published by Rabbi
Bentzion Kook.
See also
*
Nachum Eisenstein
References
Further reading
* Schapiro, Moshe
"Halachic Ruling Redefines Role of Kiruv Work in Eretz Yisroel".''Dei'ah veDibur'', April 21, 1999.
* Eliashiv, Yosef Shalom
''Dei'ah veDibur'', June 2, 2002.
* Avraham(Rami) Reiner
"R’ Yosef Shalom Elyashiv as a halachic decisor" Modern Judaism 33
External links
Picture of Rav Elyashiv deep in conversation with Grand Rav Mayer Alter HaLevi Horowitz, the Bostoner Rebbe Shlita*
HGmr, R0600&English=True Lectures by Rav Eliashiv on various topics(in
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
and
Yiddish
Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
)
List of Rav Elyashiv's printed works"Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, a giant among the ultra-Orthodox"Haaretz
''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...
, 19 July 2012
"Times of Israel" obituaryRav Elyashiv’s Rulings By Rav Yair HoffmanMore of Rav Elyashiv’s Rulings By Rav Yair Hoffman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elyashiv, Yosef Sholom
1910 births
2012 deaths
People from Šiauliai
People from Shavelsky Uyezd
Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian emigrants to Mandatory Palestine
Ashkenazi Jews in Mandatory Palestine
Israeli Orthodox Jews
Haredi rabbis in Israel
20th-century rabbis in Jerusalem
21st-century rabbis in Jerusalem
Israeli centenarians
Rabbis in Jerusalem
Exponents of Jewish law
Authors of books on Jewish law
Burials at Har HaMenuchot
Men centenarians