HISTORIC ROSHEI YESHIVA:
1930–1949
HaRav Hagaon R. Binyomin Aranowitz zt”l
1864-1945
Rabbi Binyomin Aronowitz was born in Varzhan, Lithuania. He received his rabbinical training in the yeshivot of Teishe and Volozhin. Rabbi Aronowitz came to America in 1906 and took a pulpit in Lowell, Massachusetts. In 1910, he was appointed a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he taught until his death.
He published his writings in various Torah journals, served as president of the Agudath Harabbonim of America, and was an active member of Va ad Harabbonim and Agudath Yisroel.
HaRav Hagaon R. Yosef Dov Halevi Levine zt”l
1866-194?
Rabbi Levine was born in Ashmana, Vilna. A great Torah scholar and lamdan, he was a student of the Netziv zt”l in the yeshiva of Volozhin.
When he came to America, he served as rabbi in various cities in Connecticut, as well as in Toronto, and Newark.
As a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, he influenced many students. Rabbi Levine compiled a sefer entitled Tad Halevi in which he displays his greatness in both halakhah and aggadah. The first essay in the sefer is his siyum on the entire Talmud which he recited at his wedding when he was 20 years old.
HaRav Hagaon R. Moshe Zevulun Margolies zt”l
1851-1936
Rabbi Margolies was born in Krozh, Kovno. At age 15, he studied with and attended to his uncle, Rabbi Dovid, Av Beit Din in Maurotsh. He received semikhah from Hagaon Baal Oneg Yom Tov Rabbah of Bialystok under whose tutelage he remained for some time. He served as rabbi in Slobodka for 12 years.
In 1889, he was called upon to serve as chief rabbi in Boston. Afterwards, he became rabbi of Congregation Kehillath Ieshurun in New York City, where he remained for 31 years until his death. He was one of the great rabbinical figures and spiritual leaders in America, and a founder of the Agudath HaRabbonim of America.
Rabbi Margolies, along with Rabbi Hillel Klein zt”l, Rabbi Shmuel Tzvi Wien zt”l, and Rabbi Dov Aryeh Hacohen Levintahl zt”l, constituted the first semikhah board established by the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary in 1906. Rabbi Margolies, who became known by his acronym RAMAZ, served as president of the Yeshiva for a short time (in 1906), and over the course of many years contributed significantly to the success and growth of the Yeshiva.
HaRav Hagaon R. Shmuel Aryeh Olishevsky zt”l
1879-1943
Rabbi Olishevsky was born in Pruzhan, Poland. He received semikhahfrom Rabbi Chaim Halevi Brisker zt”l, Rabbi Zalman Sander zt”l, and Rabbi Eliyahu Feinstein zt”l. He taught at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary for many years and enjoyed much influence among its students. Rabbi Olishevsky authored the two-volume work, Divrei Shmuel.
HaRav Hagaon R. Elazar Meir Preil zt”l
1878-1933
Born in Birzh, Kovno, Rabbi Preil studied in Shadova, Telshe, and Slobodka, where he particularly excelled. In 1907, he was sent by the yeshiva in Telshe to London, and then became rabbi of Manchester. In 1911, he came to America and was appointed rabbi in Trenton, New Jersey.
In 1912, he was chosen to be a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, and taught there until 1922. He was appointed rabbi of Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1919 where he served until his death. This gaon, who was known for his righteousness, was very active in the Agudath HaRabbonim of America. He was also instrumental in the establishment of Ezras Torah and other charitable institutions.
In addition to contributing many writings to various Torah journals, Rabbi Preil authored Sefer HaMaor, a two-volume work on halakhah and aggadah.
» Listen to shiurium by Rav Preil
HaRav Hagaon R. Dov Revel zt”l
1886-1940
Born in Pren, Kovno, Rabbi Revel studied at the yeshiva of Telshe under Rabbi Eliezer Gordon zt”l and Rabbi Shimon Shkop zt”l. Afterwards he traveled to America and studied linguistics and the sciences. At age 20, he earned a Ph.D., the first awarded by Dropsie College in Philadelphia.
He was recognized as an extraordinary genius, as well as an innovative thinker. He wrote chiddushei Torah and published some of them in the journal Yagdil Torah, edited by Rabbi Tomashav zt”l from 1916-1920.
In 1915 he was appointed president of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, which had just combined with the Etz Chaim Yeshiva. He put his efforts into expanding the Yeshiva and attracting the gaonim of the generation as its roshei yeshiva. In 1922, he brought the Meitscheter Illui, Rabbi Shlomo Polachek zt”l, to the Yeshiva. After Rabbi Polachek passed away in 1928, Rabbi Revel brought Rabbi Moshe Soloveitchik zt”l to succeed him. He was also successful in bringing Rabbi Shimon Shkop zt”l to give shiurim at the Yeshiva for a year. Rabbi Revel also gave regular shiurim there.
In addition, he was among the leaders of the Agudath Harabbonim of America, and one of the founders of Ezras Torah. He was active in Mizrachi and helped in the arrangement of the encyclopedia Otzer Yisroel.
HaRav Hagaon R. Shimon Yehudah Hacohen Shkop zt”l
1860-1939
Rabbi Shkop was born in Toretz, Minsk. At age 12, he studied in the yeshiva in Mir for two years. He then traveled to Volozhin and studied with the Netziv zt”l. He was part of an extraordinary group of students with whom Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik zt”l interacted.
In 1884, he became a ram at the yeshiva in Telshe, where he taught Torah for 18 years and became well-known for hi s style and distinctive chiddushim. In 1903, he was appointed rabbi ofMeltch, replacing the gaon Rabbi Zalman Sander zt”l (who became rabbi in Krinki). In 1907, he became the rabbi of Breinsk, where he founded a yeshiva known as Yeshivat Rav Shimon Breinsker.
During World War I he remained in Breinsk, which was captured by the Germans, and helped assiduously to look after his townspeople. Since his yeshiva was forced to close during the war, he used his spare time to arrange his chiddushim and shiurim in a sefer. This is the popular Sharei Yosher, which was published in 1928.
In 1920, Rabbi Shkop was urged by the leading rabbis of the time, led by Rabbi Chaim Ozer zt”l of Vilna, to accept the position of rosh yeshiva of Yeshivat Sharei Torah in Grodna. Rabbi Shkop was successful in turning the yeshiva into one of the largest and most popular in Europe.
In 1928, he traveled to America in order to alleviate the difficult financial situation of his yeshiva and was received there with the highest honor. After the passing of the Meitscheter Illui, Rabbi Shlomo Polachek zt"l, he became a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he taught for one year.
Although he wanted to remain, the leading rabbis of Europe, led by the Chofetz Chaim zt”l and Rabbi Chaim Ozer zt”l, felt it imperative for him to return to Grodna and to his yeshiva there. Rabbi Shkop answered their call, albeit with some misgivings. When World War II broke out, he moved with his yeshiva to Vilna, where he died shortly thereafter.
HaRav Hagaon R. Moshe Halevi Soloveitchik zt”l
1879-1941
Rabbi Soloveitchik was born in Volozhin. He studied there with his father, Rabbi Chaim Halevi zt”l, until the yeshiva closed in 1892. He then moved to Brisk where his profundity and sharpness of mind became well known.
At age 23, he married the daughter of Rabbi Eliyahu Feinstein zt”l, renowned rabbi of Pruzhan. He lived with his father-in-law in Pruzhan for several years . At age 31, he became rabbi of Rasin (Kovno district), replacing Rabbi Alexander Moshe Lapidus zt”l. He established a yeshiva there and, in 1913, was appointed rabbi in Choslovitz, Smolensk, where he served for eight years.
In 1918, his father, Reb Chaim, passed away in Brisk. However, the war that was still raging did not allow him to respond positively to the requests ofthe community leaders that he take his father's place. Instead, his younger brother, Rabbi Yitzchok Zev zt”l, succeeded Rav Chaim. When Rav Moshe later arrived in Brisk in 1921, he did not wish to force his brother out of the position he had already assumed and, instead, accepted the offer of Mizrachi in Warsaw to become rosh yeshiva of Beit Midrash L'Rabbonim (the Tachkemoni Yeshiva). He taught there from 1922-29.
In 1929, Rabbi Soloveitchik was summoned by Rabbi Bernard Revel and the leaders of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary to come to America and become a rosh yeshiva in their Yeshiva. He accepted the position and gave shiurim there for 12 years, teaching hundreds of students. When he passed away, his son and student, Rabbi Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik zt”l, succeeded him as rosh yeshiva.
His writings were published in the sefer Kovetz Chiddushei Torah, a compilation of his writings in various Torah journals.
HaRav Hagaon R. Yehuda Weil zt”l
186?-1944
Rabbi Weil was among the outstanding students of the Chofetz Chaim zt”l in the yeshiva of Radin. He was humble and unpretentious, and few details about his life are available.
A great scholar and a tzaddik, Rabbi Weil was known as "the Chofetz Chaim of America." He was the mashgiach of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary while the Yeshiva was under the leadership of Rabbi Bernard Revel zt”l and for several years after his passing. In that capacity he served as mentor in the Yeshiva's Beit Midrash and administered personal oral examinations to entering students.
His love for his students knew no bounds; he understood them and constantly strengthened their commitments to Torah.
HaRav Hagaon R. Avraham Aharon Yudelowitz zt”l
1850-1930
Rabbi Yudelowitz was born in Novorodock, Minsk. He came from a long line of great scholars, and his genius became well known while he was still in his youth. At age 11, he went to learn with his uncle in Kobrin and at 17 he went to the yeshiva in Volozhin. After his marriage, he learned with great intensity in Volfe for three years. In 1870, he published his first sefer, Olim Lemivchan, in Vilna.
Rabbi Yudelowitz served as a rabbi in the cities of Salib, Kozniza, Constantine, Torov, and Kapoli. In 1896, when he published his sefer Beis Av on Orach Chaim, his reputation spread widely in the rabbinate. In 1898, he became rabbi in Manchester, England. He remained there six years until he took a pulpit at Congregation Sharei Tefilah, Boston.
He was not there long before he was appointed a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he remained for a short time. He became a rabbi in Bayonne, New Jersey, where he served for three years and then returned to New York to become spiritual leader of Congregation Adath Yeshurun-Anshei Lovetz. He remained there until his death. During those years, he authored seven volumes of his sefer Teshuvot Beit Avon the four divisions of the Shulchan Aruch. In addition, he wrote a five-volume work called Drash Av, as well as other works of drush.
HaRav Hagaon R. Avraham Yitzchik Zalmanowitz zt”l
1887-1946
Rabbi Zalmanowitz was born in Tomaszow, Poland. In his youth, he studied with the author of Avnei Nezer and Eglai Tal, Rabbi Avraham from Sochaczaw, where he became known as an illui. At 17, he received semikhah from Rabbi Eliyahu Chaim Meisels zt”l, rabbi of Lodz. Besides his greatness in Torah, he was known for his piety and was among the distinguished chassidim of the Rebbe of Gur.
He came to the United States in 1921 and was appointed a rosh yeshiva at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary in 1927. He taught hundreds of students during his 20 years there. He also served as rabbi at Kehillat Beit Aharon and Beit Haknesset Anshei Emet in Williamsburg, New York.
He was active in the Agudath HaRabbonim, as well as other organizations of Torah and chesed. He was instrumental in the successful efforts to save the Gerrer Rebbe zt”l and part of his family from the hands of the Nazis. Rabbi Zalmanowitz passed away on Erev Yom Kippur.