Halachic Letter from Rabbi Meir Simcha HaCohen, Author of ‘Ohr Sameach, ‘ to the Author of ‘Nezer HaKodesh’.
Halachic letter written by the brilliant Rabbi Meir Simcha HaCohen, author of Ohr Sameach, addressed to Rabbi Moshe Razin, author of Nezer HaKodesh, who was also the mesader kiddushin and chavruta of the Chazon Ish.
The letter discusses the matter of the validity of a mikveh ( through the connection of small holes to the shefoferet hanod (a halachic conduit) and the issue of performing two forbidden activities on two different Sabbaths under a single act of forgetfulness.
"Motzaei Shabbat, 25th of Shevat… Peace to the esteemed and wise Rabbi Moshe Razin… Today your letter arrived, and I opened it this evening. You awakened me to briefly review the matter… I had no opportunity to examine it fully due to my many obligations… At this moment, I do not have the strength to render a decision, but if G-d wills it, I will take time at my next opportunity to review it carefully…"
This letter was later printed in Shu"t Ohr Sameach (section 20 in the Likutim).
The wonderful Gaon Rabbi Meir Simcha HaCohen of Dvinsk (1843–1926) was one of the greatest Torah sages of Lithuania, known for his tremendous genius and his influence on the Jewish communities of his time. In 1888, he was appointed as the Av Beit Din of Dvinsk, where he served alongside his close friend, the renowned Rabbi Yosef Rozin, the Rogatchover Gaon, who was the rabbi for the city’s Hasidic community.
Rabbi Meir Simcha is best known for his two major works: Ohr Sameach, a commentary on Maimonides’ Mishneh Torah, and Meshech Chochmah, his commentary on the Torah.
The Imrei Emes, Rabbi Avraham Mordechai Alter of Ger, greatly praised Meshech Chochmah, and it is known that this sefer was a constant presence on his study table (according to Rabbi Eliezer Zemba, as cited by his uncle Rabbi Menachem Zemba Hy”d. Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, the Av Beit Din of Vilna, made it a practice to study Meshech Chochmah every Friday evening and was deeply moved by its hidden wisdom (as recounted by Rabbi Chaim Kreiswirth in Meshech Chochmah, p. 64).
Rabbi Meir Simcha was also recognized as a righteous and miraculous figure. One famous story recounts how, early in his tenure in Dvinsk, the Dvina River near the city overflowed, threatening to flood Dvinsk. The entire city was in panic, and even the local priest admitted he could do nothing to stop the flood. The townspeople turned to Rabbi Meir Simcha during prayer, telling him of the imminent danger. Rabbi Meir Simcha went to the riverbank and, invoking the power of the holy Torah, decreed that the river must recede. Miraculously, the river began to retreat, and this event, which was reported in the newspapers, led to a great sanctification of G-d’s name.
The esteemed Rabbi Moshe Razin was born in 1871 and was one of the greatest Torah scholars in the United States. He served as the president of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the United States and Canada and authored the renowned series Nezer HaKodesh on Seder Kodashim. At the age of 20, he received rabbinic ordination from the elderly sage Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor, the rabbi of Kovno. He served as the rabbi and head of the rabbinical court in the city of Chavaidán, and was considered one of the Torah giants of Lithuania. In Chavaidán, he studied together with Rabbi Avraham Yeshayahu Karelitz, the author of the Chazon Ish, and also officiated at his wedding.
In 1928, Rabbi Razin emigrated to the United States, where he served as the rabbi of several congregations. According to the Mesoret Moshe (Part 2, page 775), Rabbi Moshe Feinstein regarded Rabbi Moshe Razin as the greatest Torah scholar in America. He passed away in 1958 and authored many seforim during his lifetime.
The letter is entirely in Rabbi Meir Simcha’s own handwriting, with his signature at the bottom!
Postcard. Very good condition.
