Yechezkel Feivel ben Ze'ev Wolf (; 1755–1833) was the

Maggid A maggid ( he, מַגִּיד), also spelled as magid, is a traditional Jewish religious itinerant preacher, skilled as a narrator of Torah and religious stories. A chaplain of the more scholarly sort is called a '' darshan'' (). The title of '' ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

in the early 19th century and the author of several books, including ''Toldos Adam'', a hagiography of Rabbi Zalman of Vilna, the famed brother of

Chaim of Volozhin Chaim of Volozhin (also known as Chaim ben Yitzchok of Volozhin or Chaim Ickovits; January 21, 1749 – June 14, 1821)Jewish Encyclopedia Bibliography: Fuenn, Keneset Yisrael, pp. 347–349; idem, Kiryah Ne'emanah, pp. 156–158; Le ...

and student of the

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 ...

Biography

Ezekiel Feivel was born in Polangen in 1755. Early in life he filled the position of rabbi in his native town, and later at Deretschin. He then traveled as a ''

maggid A maggid ( he, מַגִּיד), also spelled as magid, is a traditional Jewish religious itinerant preacher, skilled as a narrator of Torah and religious stories. A chaplain of the more scholarly sort is called a '' darshan'' (). The title of '' ...

'' through Germany and Hungary, and, after residing for some time at Breslau, returned to Polangen and devoted himself to literary work. In 1811 he was appointed rabbi to the community of Vilna, which position he filled until his death.

Reception and Analysis of ''Toldos Adam''

Feivel's ''magnum opus'', the biography ''Toldos Adam'', achieved singular success in the rabbinic world. It is one of the few biographies which is cited in halachic works, including those of such leading scholars as Rabbi

Akiva Eiger Rabbi Akiva Eiger (, also spelled Eger; , yi, עקיבא אייגער), or Akiva Güns (17611837) was an outstanding Talmudic scholar, influential halakhic decisor and foremost leader of European Jewry during the early 19th century. He was also ...

, Rabbi Ephraim Zalman Margolioth, and Rabbi

Joseph Saul Nathansohn Joseph Saul Nathansohn (1808–1875) ( he, יוסף שאול בן אריה הלוי) was a Polish rabbi and posek, and a leading rabbinical authority of his day. Biography Rabbi Nathansohn was born at Berezhany (Berzan), Galicia (today's western U ...

. However, Feivel was criticized by various rabbinic authorities, including Rabbi

Zvi Hirsch Chajes Zvi Hirsch Chajes ( he, צבי הירש חיות - November 20, 1805 - October 12, 1855; also Chayes or Hayot or Chiyos) was one of the foremost Galician talmudic scholars. He is best known for his work ''Mevo Hatalmud'' (Introduction to the Tal ...

and Rabbi

Chaim Elazar Spira Chaim Elazar Spira (December 17, 1868 – May 13, 1937) was a rebbe of the Hasidic Munkacs dynasty. Family background Spira was born in Strzyżów, Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary, now part of Poland, where his grandfather ...

, for plagiarization and falsifying sources. It has been demonstrated that large parts of ''Toldos Adam'' were lifted verbatim from the works of leading

Maskilim The ''Haskalah'', often termed Jewish Enlightenment ( he, השכלה; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Western Euro ...

such as

Moses Mendelssohn Moses Mendelssohn (6 September 1729 – 4 January 1786) was a German-Jewish philosopher and theologian. His writings and ideas on Jews and the Jewish religion and identity were a central element in the development of the ''Haskalah'', or 'Je ...

and

Naphtali Hirz Wessely Naphtali Hirz (Hartwig) Wessely ( yi, נפתלי הירץ וויזעל, translit=Naftali Hirtz Vizel; 9 December 1725 – 28 February 1805) was an 18th-century German-Jewish Hebraist and educationist. Family history One of Wessely's ancestors, J ...

, though not attributed to them.

Works

* * * ''Bi'ure MaRIF'', glosses on the ''

Midrash Rabba Midrash Rabba or Midrash Rabbah can refer to part of or the collective whole of specific aggadic midrashim on the books of the Torah and the Five Megillot, generally having the term "Rabbah" (), meaning "great," as part of their name. These midras ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yechezkel Feivel of Vilna People from Valozhyn 19th-century Lithuanian rabbis Rabbis from Vilnius 1755 births 1833 deaths