Lengthy handwritten compilation, some in the penmanship of the renowned rabbi of Chevron, the sacred gaon Rabbi Chaim Chizkiyahu Medini, author of Sdei Chemed . The work discusses a halachic question in the laws of gittin regarding an incident in which it became known only after the get was written that the divorcing husband had another name in addition to what was written on the get . [Karasubozar, known today as Bilohirs’k, Crimean penninsula]. 27 Tevet, 1882.
The Sdei Chemed opens his letter with no less than 6 lines (!) of superlative titles for the addressee. He calls him, inter alia , “Rabbi of the entire Diaspora, grandfather of justice, the glory of our generation” and more. He then writes that he wanted to send him letters several times, but he was unable to because he did not know his address. Now that he has obtained his address, “I must consult with the rabbis of our generation with respect to the appeal of an ex-husband who gave a get here … this is the story, presented to [your] honor, with the details of the case.” Likewise, the Sdei Chemed requests that the addressee send him a response written in Assyrian script or Rash”i script “as do the geonim in Tersan and the great gaon Mohari”tz Elachanan. He asks his forgiveness for this trouble, “if not, the response would be like a sealed book”(!).
The beautiful opening on the first page [approximately 300 words] was definitely handwritten and signed by the Sdei Chemed. After the signature, over seven pages, the body of the kuntress , is apparently written by a scribe, with handwritten glosses by the Sdei Chemed. Letters are written in the margins of the first leaf in Ashkenazic script as marks and for recall; they may be in the hand of Rabbi Yosef Zechariah.
The Oriental chacham and the Lithuanian gaon had a relationship characterized by immense mutual affection and admiration that easily transcended the geographical distance. The Sdei Chemed admired Rabbi Yosef Zechariah, and glorified him in his responsa with extreme titles, as is the case at the beginning of this letter. Rabbi Yosef calls Rabbi Yosef Zechariah’s work Zecher Yehosef an “awesome sefer. ” In one of his responsa, he writes “And I submit my will to the golden words of the true gaon, Rabbi Yosef Zecharia Stern, av beit din of Shavel, and another like him … Avraham Chaim Katz son of the rabbi of Siret …” Rabbi Yosef Zachariah gave an approbation for his sefer Sdei Chemed (Warsaw 1891), and his rulings are quoted there many times.
This responsum was printed in Spinka Chassidut’s Pilpul Orayta anthology (Bnei Brak, 2001), pp. 109-118 (including the last paragraph, not present here). The Sdei Chemed deals with this at length. Refer to: Me’arechet Get, siman 43.
Refer to the Hebrew catalog text for brief biographies of the sacred gaon Rabbi Chaim Chizkiyahu Medini and the addressee, the gaon Rabbi Yosef Zechariah Stern .
[8] written pages, lacking the last leaf, approximately 22 cm.
Moderate-fine condition. Stains. Tears and wear in the margins. The leaves are detached from one another.