Two Letters from Rabbi Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar – Trnava,...
Two Letters from Rabbi Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar – Trnava, 1930 / Nitra, 1937
Two letters of guidance for studying Torah and strengthening in fear of G-d, by R. Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar, Rabbi of Trnava and Nitra:
· Letter handwritten and signed by R. Ungar, with blessings and guidance. [Trnava, ca. 1930].
Sent to one of the Trnava yeshiva students who was to travel with his family on vacation in Elul, writing to him with encouragement and guidance:
"Greetings and blessing to my beloved student. I received your message; and if you believe it is necessary to breathe fresh air in order to strengthen your body to serve G-d and study diligently, go to your dear parents' home for a few weeks. And I would be delighted if you would return to Trnava for the upcoming holy days… And even in the spas, study Torah regularly, especially books of ethics and fear of G-d, since the holy days are coming soon, and we must search and delve after every defect and pray with more concentration and intensity than all the rest of the year. Also study the timely issues in Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim: the laws of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. Also study Gemara regularly. Peace and blessing to you, my beloved, and also to my dear friend your father… Your faithful teacher, Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar".
[1] leaf. 21.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Creases and folding marks. Open tear and filing holes (not affecting text).
· Letter on postcard, typewritten with handwritten signature "Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar", with three additional handwritten lines after the signature. Nitra, 1937.
Sent to one of his students in the Nitra yeshiva who immigrated to Eretz Israel and settled in the Chafetz Chaim kibbutz, writing to him with encouragement and guidance:
"…Do valiant deeds with the strength of the Torah with wisdom, for the air of Eretz Israel makes one wise. And this is the wisdom of those living in the Land: trying to comprehend how a person's domain on the ground and G-d's domain in the study hall are one and the same, indivisible and inseparable". He writes to his student regarding his involvement in public affairs: "And now, my beloved, that you have merited to bring merit to others along with you and accept communal responsibility, be careful not to cool off the extreme heat that you heated up in the Beit Midrash with the candle of the mitzvot and the light of the Torah – and 'cooling off' [poshrin] means nothing but compromise [pesharot]… And this is an important principle in all communal work, and especially in Eretz Israel, where there are now, due to our many sins, so many confused opinions… And there is no end to the reward of one standing at the breach with wisdom, knowledge and intelligence. I would greatly desire to know even the most minute details of what you are doing there all day, and especially of your service, my beloved…".
On the verso of the postcard is a short letter of greetings, handwritten and signed by the son of the Rabbi of Nitra, "Chaim Yedidyah HaLevi".
[1] postcard. 14.5 cm. Good condition. Filing holes, slightly affecting printed text.
R. Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar (1886-1945), Rabbi of Trnava and Nitra and Chief Rabbi of Slovakia. Righteous Torah scholar who taught thousands of disciples for 40 years, and had fatherly dedication in teaching his students Torah and fear of G-d. In 1918 he was appointed Rabbi of Trnava, establishing an important yeshiva. When the small Trnava community could no longer support the many students flocking to his yeshiva, he relocated in 1931 to serve as Rabbi of Nitra, whose community accepted the responsibility to provide for the yeshiva. During the Holocaust, the Nitra yeshiva was the last one in occupied Europe to close its doors. After the yeshiva was abandoned, he escaped to the forests and mountains where he perished in 1945. During the Holocaust he acted with dedication to rescue and smuggle Jews out of the camps, along with his son-in-law R. Michael Dov Weissmandl, a dean of the Nitra yeshiva and founder of the Nitra yeshiva in the United States.
His daughter Rebbetzin Chayah Nechamah married Rebbe Yekutiel Yehudah Halberstam of Klausenburg after the Holocaust, and she is the forebear of the current Sanz-Klausenburg rebbes and rabbis. His son R. Chaim Yedidyah HaLevi Ungar (disciple of R. Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky) perished in Auschwitz. His son R. Shalom Moshe HaLevi Ungar survived the Holocaust and established the Nitra yeshiva in the United States along with his brother-in-law R. Weissmandl.
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Two Letters from Rabbi Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar – Trnava, 1930 / Nitra, 1937
Two letters of guidance for studying Torah and strengthening in fear of G-d, by R. Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar, Rabbi of Trnava and Nitra:
· Letter handwritten and signed by R. Ungar, with blessings and guidance. [Trnava, ca. 1930].
Sent to one of the Trnava yeshiva students who was to travel with his family on vacation in Elul, writing to him with encouragement and guidance:
"Greetings and blessing to my beloved student. I received your message; and if you believe it is necessary to breathe fresh air in order to strengthen your body to serve G-d and study diligently, go to your dear parents' home for a few weeks. And I would be delighted if you would return to Trnava for the upcoming holy days… And even in the spas, study Torah regularly, especially books of ethics and fear of G-d, since the holy days are coming soon, and we must search and delve after every defect and pray with more concentration and intensity than all the rest of the year. Also study the timely issues in Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim: the laws of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. Also study Gemara regularly. Peace and blessing to you, my beloved, and also to my dear friend your father… Your faithful teacher, Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar".
[1] leaf. 21.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Creases and folding marks. Open tear and filing holes (not affecting text).
· Letter on postcard, typewritten with handwritten signature "Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar", with three additional handwritten lines after the signature. Nitra, 1937.
Sent to one of his students in the Nitra yeshiva who immigrated to Eretz Israel and settled in the Chafetz Chaim kibbutz, writing to him with encouragement and guidance:
"…Do valiant deeds with the strength of the Torah with wisdom, for the air of Eretz Israel makes one wise. And this is the wisdom of those living in the Land: trying to comprehend how a person's domain on the ground and G-d's domain in the study hall are one and the same, indivisible and inseparable". He writes to his student regarding his involvement in public affairs: "And now, my beloved, that you have merited to bring merit to others along with you and accept communal responsibility, be careful not to cool off the extreme heat that you heated up in the Beit Midrash with the candle of the mitzvot and the light of the Torah – and 'cooling off' [poshrin] means nothing but compromise [pesharot]… And this is an important principle in all communal work, and especially in Eretz Israel, where there are now, due to our many sins, so many confused opinions… And there is no end to the reward of one standing at the breach with wisdom, knowledge and intelligence. I would greatly desire to know even the most minute details of what you are doing there all day, and especially of your service, my beloved…".
On the verso of the postcard is a short letter of greetings, handwritten and signed by the son of the Rabbi of Nitra, "Chaim Yedidyah HaLevi".
[1] postcard. 14.5 cm. Good condition. Filing holes, slightly affecting printed text.
R. Shmuel David HaLevi Ungar (1886-1945), Rabbi of Trnava and Nitra and Chief Rabbi of Slovakia. Righteous Torah scholar who taught thousands of disciples for 40 years, and had fatherly dedication in teaching his students Torah and fear of G-d. In 1918 he was appointed Rabbi of Trnava, establishing an important yeshiva. When the small Trnava community could no longer support the many students flocking to his yeshiva, he relocated in 1931 to serve as Rabbi of Nitra, whose community accepted the responsibility to provide for the yeshiva. During the Holocaust, the Nitra yeshiva was the last one in occupied Europe to close its doors. After the yeshiva was abandoned, he escaped to the forests and mountains where he perished in 1945. During the Holocaust he acted with dedication to rescue and smuggle Jews out of the camps, along with his son-in-law R. Michael Dov Weissmandl, a dean of the Nitra yeshiva and founder of the Nitra yeshiva in the United States.
His daughter Rebbetzin Chayah Nechamah married Rebbe Yekutiel Yehudah Halberstam of Klausenburg after the Holocaust, and she is the forebear of the current Sanz-Klausenburg rebbes and rabbis. His son R. Chaim Yedidyah HaLevi Ungar (disciple of R. Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky) perished in Auschwitz. His son R. Shalom Moshe HaLevi Ungar survived the Holocaust and established the Nitra yeshiva in the United States along with his brother-in-law R. Weissmandl.
