Kabbalist Yeshiva "Sha'ar HaShamayim" - Collection of Letters and Historic Documents

Kabbalist Yeshiva "Sha'ar HaShamayim" - Collection of Letters and Historic Documents

Seven letters and stencil print documents, most on the kabbalist yeshiva Sha'ar HaShamayim's official stationery, headed by the gaon Rabbi Chaim Yehudah Leib Auerbach (father of adjudicator of his generation, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach), mid-1930s.

The documents attest to a period [1935-1936] in which the yeshiva was in financial crisis. One of the documents describes the situation in the yeshiva: 'The Torah institutions of Jerusalem have fallen beneath a yoke of debts and creditors are prevailing now. The administrators are unable to extricate the yeshiva from these straits by themselves.' There is a detailed list of the institution's debts to the rabbis and various elements, and details of 'the institution's assets' in the form of areas purchased for or sanctified to the yeshiva in various places in Jerusalem [a courtyard in the old city of Jerusalem bought with the institution's monies by Rabbi Elyashar, and more]. There is an interesting document sent to the Jerusalem district governor in 1935 in which it was decided to raise the number of administrators of the yeshiva for five years, with the addition of Rabbi Ze'ev Shachor, Rabbi Michael Shraga Harris, Rabbi Shlomo Travis and more rabbis. It says in this document that after the end of those five years, the administration of the institution will return to the founder Rabbi Chaim Yehudah Leib Auerbach, and after his passing, it will be run by his son, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach.

There is also a letter handwritten and signed by Rabbi Shimon Tzvi Horowitz who was one of the yeshiva's founders at the very beginning, in which he describes the difficulties he endured founding the yeshiva: 'Given that my soul is bound up with the Sha'ar HaShamayim yeshiva which I founded some thirty years ago, and how much trouble and hardship I suffered until, with Hash-m's help, I was able to establish it correctly, and how many world-class geniuses learned there, as everyone knows ...' In this letter, the gaon relates internal power struggles within the yeshiva which arose among various elements [Mr. Treiwich] who attempted to take over the yeshiva. Additional documents.

[7] leaves. Various sizes and conditions. Overall fine condition.