Letter from the Rabbis of Jerusalem – Jerusalem 1880s – Concerning Vocational Training for Youth

Letter from the Rabbis of Jerusalem – Jerusalem 1880s – Concerning Vocational Training for Youth
Letter from Jerusalemite Rabbis, deans of the Etz Chaim yeshiva, to R. Simcha Bunim Sofer Rabbi of Pressburg. Jerusalem, [ca. 1880s].
Sharp polemic letter [apparently not sent]. At the foot of the letter, the signatures were torn off, yet traces remain of the handwritten signature of the dean of the Etz Chaim yeshiva: "Moshe Nechemia Kahanov".
Contents of the letter: Sharp criticism against members of Kollel Ungarin who attacked the Etz Chaim yeshiva, following the projected establishment of an institution for vocational training for young graduates of the Talmud Torah who were not successful in their Torah studies. This program was about to be launched by the deans of the Etz Chaim Talmud Torah and yeshiva, at the initiative and with the financial support of Sir Moses Montefiore. In this letter, the yeshiva deans describe the new institution, in the following words: "We, with the backing of the leading rabbis of our city, wished to fulfill the desire of the pious Sir Moses Montefiore…and we will choose two truly G-d fearing teachers, to teach the boys who did not see success up until now in their Torah learning, they at least should finally acquire some vocation, and be taught Arabic…". They describe the scandal members of Kollel Ungarin provoked in the town, as they declared all out war against the Etz Chaim Talmud Torah, announcing that whoever would send their sons to learn in the Talmud Torah or yeshiva would be barred from the Kollel and would cease to receive financial support from the Kollel. The rabbis write that they consequently cancelled their plans for establishing this institution and are prepared to return the funding to Montefiore, yet certain members of Kollel Ungarin are perpetuating the dispute, enflaming the town - "instructing to assault whoever lends a hand to this endeavor".
The sharp expressions used in the letter expose the anger and jealousy towards the wealthy members of Kollel Ungarin, who managed an autonomous dominion in Jerusalem, complying only to the rabbis of Hungary, and insubordinate to the rabbis of Jerusalem (who were mostly natives of Lithuania and Poland) – "…We are compelled to sadden him and let him know of certain abominations perpetrated by members of Kollel Ungarin who sit over 'Sir HaBasar' (i.e. live off the fat of the land), and all they want is to see Jerusalem in turmoil… since who if not for him has the authority to chastise them, and prevent them from desecrating G-d's Name and besmirching the reputation of Jerusalem in public…".
[1] leaf, 26.5 cm. Fair condition, tears and wear. Large tear to the bottom right-hand corner, to delete the names of the signatories of this sharp letter, with remnants of the handwritten signature of the yeshiva dean, R. Moshe Nechemia Kahanov.
R. Moshe Nechemia Kahanov (1817-1887) was a leading Torah scholar of Lithuania and Jerusalem. He served as rabbi and yeshiva dean of Chaslovitz (Khislavichi) and immigrated to Jerusalem in 1863 where he served as dean of the Etz Chaim yeshiva and head of R. Shmuel Salant's Beit Din. He educated many disciples and composed 11 books, the most prominent of them being Netivot HaShalom, Shaalu Shlom Yerushalayim and Shnat HaSheva.