Zalman Sorotzkin, also known as the Lutzker Rav ( he, זלמן סורוצקין; 1881–1966), was an Orthodox

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 ...

who served as the rabbi of

Lutsk Lutsk ( uk, Луцьк, translit=Lutsk}, ; pl, Łuck ; yi, לוצק, Lutzk) is a city on the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Volyn Oblast (province) and the administrative center of the surrounding Luts ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. By the end of his life he was noted for his leadership of

Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (, "Council of great Torah ages) is the supreme rabbinical policy-making council of the Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaTorah movements in Israel; and of Agudath Israel of America in the United States. Members are usually pres ...

(Council of Torah Sages, Agudath Israel) The main street in Jerusalem's

Kiryat Itri Kiryat Itri ( he, קריית איתרי) is a Haredi neighborhood in Jerusalem. It is located on the northern edge of the mountain plateau on which central Jerusalem lies. The neighborhood was established in the late 1960s by Rabbi Mordechai Elef ...

neighborhood, ''Rechov Sorotzkin'', is named after him.

Biography

Sorotzkin was born in Žagarinė (or Zakhrina), in 1881. Initially, he studied with his father, Rabbi Ben-Zion Sorotzkin, who was the town's rabbi. He then studied in the

yeshivas 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 stu ...

Volozhin Valozhyn, Vałožyn or Volozhin ( be, Вало́жын, , russian: Воло́жин, lt, Valažinas, pl, Wołożyn, yi, וואָלאָזשין ''Volozhin''; also written as Wolozin and Wolozhin) is a town in the Minsk Region of Belarus. The pop ...

, Slabodka, and Telz. He was a son-in-law of the Telzer

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 ...

and

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 ...

, Rabbi

Eliezer Gordon Eliezer Gordon ( he, אליעזר גוֹרְדוֹן; 1841–1910) also known as Reb Laizer Telzer (), served as the rabbi and ''rosh yeshiva'' of Telz, Lithuania. Early years Eliezer Gordon was born in 1841 in the village of Chernyany (or ...

; Sorotzkin's wife's name was Miriam. When Gordon died in 1910, Sorotzkin was offered the position as rabbi and rosh yeshiva in Telz. He did not accept the position and was shortly thereafter appointed Rabbi of

Voranava Voranava or Voronovo ( be, Воранава, russian: Вороново, pl, Woronów, Werenowo, lt, Varanavas) is a town in Belarus, in Grodno Region. It is the administrative center of the Voranava district. It is located about from Lida and ...

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 ...

(near

Vilna 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 u ...

). This enabled him to establish a close relationship with Rabbi

Chaim Ozer Grodzenski Chaim Ozer Grodzinski ( he, חיים עוזר גראדזענסקי; August 24, 1863 – August 9, 1940) was a ''Av beis din'' (rabbinical chief justice), ''posek'' (halakhic authority), and Talmudic scholar in Vilnius, Lithuania in the late 19th a ...

. In Voranava, Rabbi Sorotzkin established a ''yeshiva ketana''. After two years in Voranava, Rabbi Sorotzkin moved to

Dziatłava Dziatlava or Dyatlovo ( be, Дзятлава, lt, Zietela, pl, Zdzięcioł, russian: italic=yes, Дзенціолъ until the 1870s, thereafter ''Дятлово'', yi, זשעטל, Zhetl) is a town in Belarus in the Grodno Region, about 165&nbs ...

(known as Zittel or Zhetel: זשעטל in

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 ...

), where he served as rabbi for eighteen years. As Zhetel was the birthplace of the

Chofetz Chaim The ''Sefer'' ''Chafetz Chaim'' (or ''Chofetz Chaim'' or ''Hafetz Hayim'') ( he, חָפֵץ חַיִּים, trans. "Desirer of Life") is a book by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, who is also called "the Chofetz Chaim" after it. The book deals with ...

, the Chofetz Chaim would affectionately refer to Rabbi Sorotzkin as "my" rav. In 1914, owing to the German invasion, Rabbi Sorotzkin moved to

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

and became a close friend of the

Chazon Ish Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz (7 November 1878 – 24 October 1953), also known as the Chazon Ish () after his magnum opus, was a Belarusian-born Orthodox rabbi who later became one of the leaders of Haredi Judaism in Israel, where he spent his f ...

, who rented a room from Rabbi Sorotzkin. Upon the end of the war, Rabbi Sorotzkin returned to Zhetel. In 1930, he was appointed rabbi in Lutsk, where he remained until World War II. During the early days of the war, when many yeshivas had to relocate, Sorotzkin served as the head of the Vaad Hayeshivos, at the behest of

. Sorotzkin managed to flee the war and escape to

Mandate Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 i ...

. When the

(Council of Torah Sages) of the Agudath Israel was founded in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, Sorotzkin was appointed vice chairman "(and after the death of

Isser Zalman Meltzer Isser Zalman Meltzer ( he, איסר זלמן מלצר) (February 6, 1870 – November 17, 1953),Isser Zalman Meltzer "Even HaEzel" (1870 - 1953) was a famous Lithuanian Jewish and Belarusian Orthodox rabbi, rosh yeshiva and posek. He is also kno ...

served as its chairman ... until his death)." In 1953, the

Chinuch Atzmai Jewish education ( he, חינוך, ''Chinuch'') is the transmission of the tenets, principles, and religious laws of Judaism. Known as the "people of the book", Jews value education, and the value of education is strongly embedded in Jewish cu ...

was formed and Sorotzkin was chosen to head it.

Death and legacy

Sorotzkin died in Israel on June 27, 1966 (after sunset,The Tel Aviv reporting date was June 27, and the article said "last night" and June 27 was the 9th of Tamuz 9

Tammuz Dumuzid or Tammuz ( sux, , ''Dumuzid''; akk, Duʾūzu, Dûzu; he, תַּמּוּז, Tammûz),; ar, تمّوز ' known to the Sumerians as Dumuzid the Shepherd ( sux, , ''Dumuzid sipad''), is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with shep ...

5726). He is 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 ...

. Sorotzkin authored the works, ''Oznaim LaTorah'', a commentary on the Torah, Sheailos Utshuvos ''Moznaim LaMishpat'' (1955) and ''HaDeah ve-ha-Dibur'' (1937) which is a collection of derashot. His commentary Ha-Shir ve-ha-Shevach on the Passover Haggadah (1971) was published posthumously. He was survived by five sons: Rabbis Elchonon Sorotzkin, author of ''Leman Achai VeRai'' and leader of the Chinuch Atzmai;

Baruch Sorotzkin Rephoel Baruch Sorotzkin (February 5, 1917 - February 10, 1979) was the Rosh Yeshiva of the Telz Yeshiva in Cleveland and among American Jewry's foremost religious leaders. He was born on February 5, 1917 (13th of Shevat, 5677) in Zhetl, in the ...

, rosh yeshiva of the Telz yeshiva in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

; Eliezer Sorotzkin, founder of Kiryat Telz-Stone in Israel; Yisrael Sorotzkin, rosh yeshiva in Lomza and Av Beit Din in

Petah Tikva Petah Tikva ( he, פֶּתַח תִּקְוָה, , ), also known as ''Em HaMoshavot'' (), is a city in the Central District (Israel), Central District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1878, mainly by Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jews of ...

; and Benzion Sorotzkin, leader of Chinuch Atzmai.

Biography

Death and legacy

References

External links