Lengthy letter covering three leaves of Mercaz Tzeirei Agudat Yisrael official stationery, handwritten and signed by the gaon Rabbi Aharon Fischer, patriarch of the Fischer family of Jerusalem geonim, and stamped with the movement’s official stamp. The letter was sent to the well-known communal worker Rabbi Chaim Yisrael Eis of Switzerland. It contains fascinating historic revelations with respect to the internal disagreements, intense and emotionally laden (and unknown until now), within the political leadership of the Chareidi public. Jerusalem, 1931. Historic letter, especially important for scholars of the Old Yishuv in the Mandate era. Background to the letter: The 1929 riots put the Yishuv leadership in shock. Pinchas Rothenberg was subsequently appointed chairman of the National Assembly, because he had already attempted to find a path to Jewish-Arab coexistence a number of times. As a result, there were disagreements within the Agudat Yisrael leadership as to whether to cooperate with the National Assembly, with R’ Yisrael Chaim Eis’s stance being to contact the Arabs separately. R’ M. Blau compromised between both sides, and did not cooperate with the Jews nor with the Arabs, and even refrained from appearing before the commission that had been established by the authorities about the causes of the riots. However, Agudat Yisrael was not able to come to terms with this passive stance, in which the Jewish Agency alone represented the Yishuv. In addition, in November 1929, Rothenberg offered Agudat Yisrael participation in the meetings with the National Assembly. Agudat Yisrael suggested partial participation as a compromise. Following this “arrangement,” Rabbi M. Blau turned to Agudat Yisrael’s World Executive Committee with a request to hold parallel contact with the Zionist leadership in London to discuss all the policy questions relating to the Land of Israel. Opinions diverged here, too, and there was turbulent correspondence between members from November through January. Rabbi Yisrael Chaim Eis opposed, and R’ Ya’akov Rosenheim was in favor. Towards the end of this period, the National Assembly decided to establish an investigation to decide between the conflicting arguments of the Jews and the Arabs regarding the Western Wall. Here, too, they recommended that Agudat Yisrael appear together with them before the commission. There were also disagreements about this within the Agudah. In Iyar, the country woke up to the cancellation of immigration quotas by the British authorities, in the wake of capitulation to Arab pressure. Zionist institutions raged, and declared a strike on 24 Iyar. With this, too, they turned to Agudat Yisrael for their cooperation with the strike initiative. They initially did not agree, however after negotiation did indeed participate. At this point R’ Eis was boiling with anger, and in his letter to R’ Blau he is furious: “Why should Agudat Yisrael fight for immigration to Israel? In order to add more [secular residents]?” Many members of Agudat Yisrael disagreed with this stance. The constant internal tension caused the extremists and zealots to leave the Agudat Yisrael framework, and establish their own framework: “Tze’irei Agudat Yisrael” under the leadership of R’ Aharon Katzenelbogen and R’ Amram Blau. This group stood for total non-cooperation with Zionist institutions. R’ Aharon Fischer was a member of Tze’irei Agudat Yisrael. In the letter before us, Rabbi Fischer reveals the differences of opinion between the zealots and R’ M. Blau, the divergences and disagreements inside the Jerusalem Agudat Yisrael about the elections of the General Assembly. Not only that, but he also reveals here for the first time Eis’s efforts to sway Blau’s opinion! And about the messages he sent to members of Tze’irei Agudat Yisrael. R’ Aharon severely criticizes R’ Blau’s neutral stance. Moreover, Rabbi Yonantan Binyamin Horowitz’s stance was similar to that of Tze’irei Agudat Yisrael. There is much criticism, both overt and implied, of the activists and communal leaders in the ranks of Agudat Yisrael. Fascinating. Rabbi Aharon Fischer [1896-1942] was born in Hungary to Rabbi Shlomo Fischer, rabbi of the status quo ante of Karlsburg and disciple of the Ktav Sofer and of Rabbi Yitzchak Dov Bamberger. He ascended to Jerusalem in 1919 where he joined the zealot camp. He was a member of Tze’irei Agudat Yisrael. He conducted himself with asceticism and piety, and fought the war for Judaism against the National Assembly. Rumors were spread that he shot the leader of the Arab mob who came to riot against the Jews in 1929, but these rumors are not well founded and apparently not true. He passed away quite young, and left four sons who later illuminated Israel with their Torah: Rabbi Yisrael Ya’akov (rabbi of the Zichron Moshe neighborhood of Jerusalem, and Ra”avad of the Edah Chareidit), R’ Moshe (rabbi of the Knesset neighborhood of Jerusalem), R’ Meir Tzvi (adjudicator in Har Nof, Jerusalem) and R’ Shlomo (rosh yeshivah of Itri). Rabbi Chaim Yisrael Eis [1876-1943] was one of the founders of the Agudat Yisrael movement and one of its prominent activists. He was a central activist involved in rescuing Jews during the Holocaust. He was in constant contact with Agudat Yisrael in Jerusalem. The Mizrachi movement, to which he himself belonged in his youth, was his main target. He mocked them for not teaching their children Torah; that they have a different religion: “the religion of work.” He also very much criticized secular education. In controversies between the zealots of Jerusalem and “Mercaz Agudat Yisrael” of Jerusalem, he generally sided with the zealots. For example, that Dahan’s policy of keeping the Land under Arab governance should continue; that no contact should be made at all with the Zionist movement, even in times of distress. After the 1929 riots, R’ Eis expressed his opinion that Chareidi Jewry should forgo the Balfour Declaration in exchange for an Arab-Jewish agreement that would grant Jews religious freedom. Rabbi Blau cried out and told him that he does not know the Arab nature; they hate the Jews, and cannot be relied upon. He also criticized R’ Eis for slandering Rabbi Chaim Ozer of Vilna for causing Agudat Yisrael to have a moderate stance towards Zionism. [3] stationery leaves: 28 cm. Fine condition. Fold marks. Filing perforations.
