Letter of Torah thoughts and rabbinical matters, by Rabbi Yosef Zundel Hutner. Deretchin, 1887.
The letter was sent to his brother-in-law the renowned Rabbi Chaim Aryeh Leib Rottenberg-Mishkovsky, Rabbi of Stavisk (1836-1898), a renowned Lithuanian Torah genius and tzaddik. The letter begins with a halachic discussion regarding treifot of the sinews. Further in the letter, Rabbi Hutner discusses a recommendation for attaining a rabbinic position for "My brother, dear as my own self, the great rabbi famous for his sharp mind and his breadth of knowledge, learns Torah in depth and has straight logic and a dear soul Rabbi Avraham Ya'akov".
Rabbi Yoseph Zundel Hutner (1846-1899), a great Lithuanian Torah genius. Was a learning partner of Rabbi Meir Simcha HaCohen for several years. When Rabbi Yoseph Zundel was offered the rabbinate of his native city, Dvinsk, he feared that the rabbinate of such a large city may hinder his studies, so he passed the offer on to his companion, author of Or Same'ach. From 1881, Rabbi Yoseph Zundel served in the rabbinate of Deretchin and from 1897, as Rabbi and Head of Yeshiva in Eišiškės. He wrote Chevel Yoseph [a general name for his renowned books on the four parts of the Shulchan Aruch, Ulam HaMishpat, Chedrei Deah, Ginzei Chaim and Chukei Ha'Azara]. His father-in-law was rabbi Avraham Kretchmer, emissary of the Volozhin Yeshiva, who was also the father-in-law of the recipient of this letter Rabbi Chaim Leib of Stavisk.
The Chafetz Chaim admired him as a holy man and often sent people who turned to him for advice and salvation to Rabbi Yosef Zundel saying, "He is a great tzaddik – go to him and he will pray for you". A famous story is told about the Chafetz Chaim who sent a special emissary to Rabbi Yoseph Zundel for a blessing on behalf of the Chafetz Chaim. The emissary did not understand the meaning of the blessing and therefore he feared delivering Rabbi Yoseph Zundel's blessing who blessed the Chafetz Chaim that he merit going barefoot and carrying stones [e.g. that he should merit being a Cohen Gadol who carries the stones of the choshen and goes barefoot in the Beit HaMikdash]. When the Chafetz Chaim heard the blessing, he responded that even one of the blessings is sufficient, meaning he should merit serving in the Beit HaMikdash as a regular Cohen… The Chafetz Chaim even asked him for an approbation for his book Likutei Halachot.
2 pages, 21 cm. More than 20 lines in his handwriting and with his signature. Fair condition. Wear and tear. Pasted on paper. Stains.