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NEWS
Postscript On HaRav Yitzchok Isaac Halevi, zt'l, Author Of
Doros Horishonim
by Moshe Musman
The third section of the recent series contained an extensive
discussion of Rav Halevi's multi-volume Doros Horishonim
and of his activities in the founding of Agudas Yisroel.
This may have given the mistaken impression that once he
embarked on the composition of his major work, this became
his exclusive occupation.
In fact, during the Hamburg years, he produced another major
work: his commentary on maseches Chullin which
developed from the shiur that he delivered each
Shabbos. Covering virtually the entire maseches, this
work also includes discussions on some of the fundamental
topics that are touched upon in Chullin and which
appear in many other places in Shas. He also continued
to hold Torah discussions with other gedolei Torah at
every opportunity, as he had done while living in Vilna.
He was prolific in all areas of Torah throughout his life,
and he left much important written material that he himself
did not arrange for publication but which is nevertheless of
great significance. Besides a second edition of Botim
Levadim which his family plans to issue due to the great
interest in the sefer, a further volume of his
chiddushim is in preparation. This will draw upon his
other writings, notably the commentary to Chullin, his
extensive glosses to Shas mishnayos, to sifrei
hoRashbo and to other major works, to several works of
Jewish thought, to his own Doros Horishonim and
several teshuvos that he wrote.
Rabbi Chanoch Oppenheim of Ramot, Jerusalem, advises us that
a biography in English was published in 1969 and translated
into Hebrew in 1972. Its author is Rabbi Osher Reichel, a
close talmid of Rabbi Shraga Feivel Mendelovitz, and
one of the leading rabbonim on Manhattan's West Side until
his retirement some years ago. [Editor's Note: This work
was cited in the bibliography of our article.]
One of the unique features of Rabbi Reichel's work is the
inclusion of photocopies of a number of original letters
written by HaRav Y. I. HaLevy, which serve as prime material
for the work. Some of these letters are to the gedolei
Yisroel of the time, including R' Chaim Soloveitchik, R'
Chaim Berlin, and R' Eliezer Gordon.
Although the English and Hebrew editions are out of print,
one of the author's sons still has some. Any readers
interested in obtaining a copy should contact Rabbi Hillel
Reichel in Kiryat Ungvar, 92/1, Ramot, Jerusalem, 586-
9481.
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