Scathing Letter from the Brisk Dayan, Rabbi Moshe Gottman, Regarding the Controversy at Yeshivat Torat Chaim

Scathing Letter from the Brisk Dayan, Rabbi Moshe Gottman, Regarding the Controversy at Yeshivat Torat Chaim

"And I was pained that he has entangled himself in a divisive dispute"

A long and sharp polemical letter, spanning two large pages (approximately 600 words), entirely in the handwriting and signature of the Brisk Dayan, Rabbi Moshe Gottman, addressing slanderous accusations against the renowned Yeshivat Torat Chaim in Jerusalem, which was home to some of the greatest Torah scholars of Jerusalem. [Brisk], Elul, 1901.

The letter is addressed to Rabbi Baruch Shmuel HaKohen, who, as implied in the letter, had sent slanderous letters not only to Rabbi Moshe Gottman but also to Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik, the Av Beit Din of Brisk, making accusations and complaints against Yeshivat Torat Chaim.

With brilliant rhetorical skill, Rabbi Moshe Gottman rebukes the recipient while still maintaining great respect, referring to him throughout as "my dear friend." At the same time, he delivers a scathing critique regarding the defamatory speech he has spread against this revered yeshiva.

A striking example appears at the beginning of the second page:

"As for what my dear friend believes, that he can intimidate us by threatening to publish improper words against this holy yeshiva or against the esteemed Gaon Rabbi M. Shlit"a, I hereby inform my dear friend that in these days, the sacred Yeshivat Torat Chaim is no longer like a small orphan who trembles before slanderers and accusers…"

The letter repeatedly references "Our Master, the Gaon, the Righteous One, the Av Beit Din of our Holy Community"—Rabbi Chaim of Brisk—as well as the Maharil Diskin and other prominent rabbis.

Physical Details:

[2] large pages, 28 cm.

Entirely handwritten and signed by Rabbi Moshe Gottman.

Condition: Moderate to good. Some age stains, fold marks, and minor tears at the edges of the folds, with damage to a single word.

About Rabbi Moshe Gottman (1866–1933):

Rabbi Moshe Gottman served as a dayan in Brisk, and was known as a confidant and right-hand man of Rabbi Chaim of Brisk. In 1896, Rabbi Chaim brought him from Orla to serve as a dayan in Brisk, and to lead the financial administration of Yeshivat Torat Chaim in Jerusalem, whose funding was managed from Brisk. The yeshiva operated with approximately twenty emissaries collecting donations across Russia and Poland (Brisk D’Lita, p. 316).

About Yeshivat Torat Chaim:

Founded in 1886 by Rabbi Yitzchak Vinograd, Yeshivat Torat Chaim faced severe financial hardships by 1911. Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik, Av Beit Din of Brisk, took it under his patronage and worked extensively to stabilize its financial situation. The yeshiva produced some of the greatest Torah leaders, including Rabbi Tzvi Pesach Frank, Rabbi Aryeh Levin, Rabbi Asher Ze’ev Werner, Rabbi Avraham Chaim Naeh, Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Charlap, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, and many other luminaries of Jerusalem.