"Founder of the Home of the Sacred Yeshivah" Letter from the Gaon Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman for the Donor of the ...

"Founder of the Home of the Sacred Yeshivah" Letter from the Gaon Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman for the Donor of the Building for the Ponovezh Yeshivah

Important historic letter loaded with blessings, discussing improvements to the yeshivah building in the town of Ponovezh, handwritten and signed by the reviver of the Torah world, the gaon Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, rosh yeshivah of Ponovezh. The letter is addressed to "the founder of the home of the sacred yeshivah of Ponovezh, " the benefactress Mrs. Pesha Faggen of Philadelphia. Marienbad [Poland], 20 Elul 1937. Yiddish.

Out of respect and propriety, the letter is addressed to the benefactress along with her husband [R' Nathan], but the donor was in fact the wife, who was renowned in her generation for her charitable activities and her donations to the Torah world [similar to the benefactress "Tamar'l of Polania"]. Mrs. Pesha donated funds for the Ponovezh Yeshivah building, and until WWII, it was known as "Yeshivat Pesha" [refer to the attached photocopy from the journal HaPardes], and as the Ponovezher Rav writes in this letter, "The home of Yeshivat Pesha bat R' Yisrael"!

The letter was sent during the course of the Knessiah HaGedolah which took place in Marienbad in Elul, 1937. The Ponovezher Rav was one of the participants. The letter deals with the renovations to the yeshivah's new building, and bringing running water into the building. It is interesting to read a term here unusual in rabbinic parlance, tiereste friend [most dear friend (in the feminine)], which is used by the Ponovezher Rav when addressing the benefactress. Usage of this term stems from the Rav's deep appreciation for her part in founding the yeshivah. The Ponovezher Rav also signs off with the words [forever your friend].

Due to the date of the letter being close to Rosh HaShanah, and out of respect for the beloved addressees, the Ponovezher Rav grants abundant blessings to the benefactress and her family [Yiddish]: "May your efforts always meet blessed success ... with kindness and Heavenly merits, health and happy life together with your esteemed husband. May you live long, and may the merit of the sacred Torah stand by you for many long and happy years."

Refer to the Hebrew catalog text for a brief biography of the gaon Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman and the benefactress Pesha (Jennie) and her husband R' Nathan Faggen.

[1] leaf paper, 22x29 cm. Official stationery with a trilingual logo.

Fine condition. Fold marks. Tiny tears in the margins of the folds, without blemish or lack.