Wednesday, September 01, 2010

How R. Moshe Feinstein wrote responsa, and what was his window to the world.

Shaul Seidler-Feller conducted an interview with Rabbi Moshe Tendler in which he discusses his illustrious father-in-law Rabbi Moshe Feinstein. The middle paragraph, where R. Feinstein's four-step method of writing responsa is described, is particularly interesting:

My shver was uniquely sensitive to society. Despite what they write in all the books about him, my shver never failed to read the Yiddish newspaper – either the Tog in the early years or the Morgn-Zhurnal later on – cover-to-cover every single day. People publish that he would walk down the street and avert his eyes when he passed by newspaper stands. There are a thousand talmidim of his who will testify, “I bought the paper and handed it to him in the lunchroom in the yeshivah,” but it does not make a difference for some people – they do not want to hear that. Even when he was not well and the doctor insisted that he must lie down to sleep for an hour, he would go home, put on a bathrobe, and smuggle a newspaper into the bedroom so that his wife would not see it. He sat there reading the whole time, rather than sleeping. I used to ask him, “Why do you read this chazeray (junk)?” He would respond to me, “Dos iz mayn vinde” – this is my window [to the world]. He understood society and his piskei Halachah show that. He used to say, “People think that because I’m aware of society, I became a meikel (lenient decisor). What do they want me to do – paskn incorrectly? I’m not a meikel – I paskn the way it has to be. The Halachah takes into account societal factors.” This willingness to be exposed to society made his teshuvos more meaningful and more acceptable.

His success as a posek, I think, also stems from how hard he worked on every teshuvah. He first wrote a given teshuvah on a piece of stationery, then recorded it in a composition notebook, then copied it into a big ledger, and finally reviewed it and sent it in for publication with notes and additions in the margins. His hard work paid off. During the last months of his life, he said to me, “Baruch Hashem, I’ve never had to retract a teshuvah.” He did a better job than most in that respect.

Also, he was a very nice man. There was a lady upstairs where he lived who would often receive letters from Russia, but she did not read Russian. So she would come down and knock on the door while Rav Moshe was writing a teshuvah and asked that he please translate the letter, and he did so. Similarly, one Erev Shabbos, a neighbor criticized him because she saw him being picked up by car and taken to the yeshivah for davening after she had already bentshed licht (lit Shabbat candles). So he wrote in a teshuvah subsequently that even though it was muttar, he promised, beli neder, not to do it again. He was just a very nice person with virtually no hang-ups, no shtik, and was extremely accessible.

Another great paragraph, about authentic Litvak rabbinic culture:
Rav Ya’akov Kamenetzky, zts”l, was also an interesting case. He was a neighbor of mine and, you will pardon the expression, a liberal Jew. He just loved everyone. My shver would come to us in Monsey on Motsa’ei Yom ha-Kippurim and stay until two weeks after Simchas Torah. That was his time to himself, when no phone calls or visitors were allowed in. Only one person was allowed into the house on Chol ha-Mo’ed Sukkos and that was Rav Ya’akov. He would come in and sit with my shver for two hours chatting and laughing the whole time like two little boys – not talking about Torah or politics, but rather reminiscing about the Old Country together. Then, twenty minutes after Rav Ya’akov left, my shver would come to me and say, “M’darf geyn bazuchn Reb Yankev” (We have to visit Rav Ya’akov). We drove over and my shver would come in and wish him a gut yontef and then leave. Why? It was part of rabbinic protocol: you came to me, so I have to go to you in turn. Hitler did not kill all the Jews, but he destroyed our culture. There is no remnant of that old-time European ethos in this generation.
Read the rest in the new Kol Hamevaser.

23 comments:

  1. My question is -
    Who can get to the bottom of it, once and for all:
    Was vol. 8 of Igros Moshe INDEED partially "forged" or fabricated by R. Tendler etc, as many of RMF's talmidim claim (many pesakim there, retract what he wrote in earlier volumes)?

    Also, in the hakdoma of said sefer, they write we'll add more in the subsequent volumes to appear. Why haven't we seen any since (over a decade!)?

    Any and all leads are greatly appreciated.

    ReplyDelete
  2. has there been any academic work on igros moshe?

    the interview was a fascinating read. thanks for linking to it.

    ANON:

    "many pesakim there, retract what he wrote in earlier volumes"

    interesting, because in the interview he says that rav moshe was thankful that he never had to retract a pesak

    ReplyDelete
  3. I know that R' Rakeffet has written a piece on the Igrot Moshe, and there have been other works as well.

    ReplyDelete
  4. RE the 1st comment, here's what a brief Google search brought up:
    http://www.torah.org/linkedlists/torah-forum/fu/0133.html

    And RMF's wikipedia page says thus (without citation):
    "..an eighth volume, edited posthumously by his granddaughter's husband Shabbetai Rappoport, and published by Rappoport, and Feinstein's grandson, Rabbi Mordecai Tendler, is not universally accepted as authoritative.."

    SLIGHTLY unrelated, but an interesting link the above search brought up (therein, RMF's angle of balancing between pesakim etc):
    http://text.rcarabbis.org/have-halakha-handbooks-changed-pesikat-halakha/

    ReplyDelete
  5. -- I might just add, that the torah.org link brought in my comment of a minute ago - makes a disclaimer, that it's only the author's way of seeing it.

    I simply don't have the time to check through the entire Google search.. - Any other points brought up re volume 8, Anyone?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Actually, that article isn't quite correct- volume 7 is dated to a year after he passed away, but maybe he edited it. I've heard that people have problems with parts of that volume (and maybe even parts of 6?) as well.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am former student of both R' Tendler's from YU - so have this in mind as you read my comments.

    #1 - I have always been shocked at the eagerness of people to presume that somehow R'Tendler (either Rav Moshe Dovid or Rav Mordecai) fabricated or changed Teshuvos. This is simply a personal reaction, as I know them well. I have eaten in their homes. They have raised their families (especially Rav Mordecai) based upon the adherence to Rav Moshe Feinstein's teachings. In Rav Mordecai's house, every meal on Shabbos must have at least one Dvar Torah from Rav Moshe. Almost every shiur I ever heard from Rav Mordecai was somehow integrated with something from Rav Moshe. I have never met people more dedicated to promulgating the Torah of someone. In light of this, I find it incredulous that people are so quick to presume that they have somehow falsified things - but this is simply a personal reaction.

    #2 - In all the years, I have never seen one proof of a falsified Teshuva. There has been criticism of the publication of "Chelek Ches" (the 8th volume, published posthumously). In this volume, the editors added words in Italics and Bold (clearly distinguished from the original text) in cases they felt that Rav Moshe's Teshuva needed to be clarified (as a result of it being written when he was already not well). While this may have been confusing to some, and debatable if it should have been done, it clearly was not designed to "falsify" or "change" anything. With all the Teshuvos that Rav Moshe wrote to people, I would think that if there was indeed a falsification in the Igros, the original Teshuvos would have been made public by now.

    #3 - The 8th volume received the Haskam from both Rav Dovid and Rav Reuvein, in addition to Rav Moshe Tendler. Why is it that only Rav Tendler is criticized and not the Feinstein's?

    #4 - I do not know what Rav Rakefet published about the Igros, but I do know that in public Shiurim he has accused Rav Moshe Tendler of writing Teshuvos in the name of Rav Moshe. He basis this on the fact that a certain line in the Igros was also said by Rav Moshe Tendler, based upon the recollection of a student. It is suprising that this is used as a basis to disregard the later volumes of the Igros. Why is no one able to show even one Teshuva that was falsified by comparing the otiginal to the new?

    All of this said - if my Rabbeim ever hear of these comments, I hope they will be strengthened to know that many of their Talmidim respect and treasure them deeply. May they and their families, all of us and all of Klal Yisorel have a Ksiva Vchasima Tova.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I am former student of both R' Tendler's from YU - so have this in mind as you read my comments.

    #1 - I have always been schocked at the eagerness of people to presume that somehow R'Tendler (either Rav Moshe Dovid or Rav Mordecai) fabricated or changed Teshuvos. This is simply a personal reaction, as I know them well. I have eaten in their homes. They have raised their families (especially Rav Mordecai) based upon the adherance to Rav Moshe Feinstein's teachings. In Rav Mordecai's house, every meal on Shabbos must have at least one Dvar Torah from Rav Moshe. Almost every shiur I ever heard from Rav Mordecai was somehow integrated with something from Rav Moshe. I have never met people more dedicated to promulgating the Torah of someone. In light of this, I find it incredulous that people are so quick to presume that they have somehow falsified things - but this is simply a personal reaction.

    #2 - In all the years, I have never seen one proof of a falsified Teshuva. There has been criticism of the publication of "Chelek Ches" (the 8th volume, published posthumously). In this volume, the editors added words in Italics and Bold (clearly distinguished from the orinial text) in cases they felt that Rav Moshe's Teshuva needed to be clarified (as a result of it being written when he was already not well). While this may have been confusing to some, and debatable if it should have been done, it clearly was not designed to "falsify" or "change" anything. With all the Teshuvos that Rav Moshe wrote to people, I would think that if there was indeed a falsification in the Igros, the original Teshuvos would have been made public by now.

    #3 - The 8th volume received the Haskam from both Rav Dovid and Rav Reuvein, in addition to Rav Moshe Tendler. Why is it that only Rav Tendler is criticized and not the Feinstein's?

    #4 - I do not know what Rav Rakefet published about the Igros, but I do know that in public Shiurim he has accused Rav Moshe Tendler of "writing" Teshuvos in the name of Rav Moshe. He basis this on the fact that a certain line in the Igros was also said by Rav Moshe Tendler, based upon the recollection of a student. To me, this is hardly the stuff facts are based upon, and it is suprising that this is used as a basis to diregard the later volumes of the Igros. Why is no one able to show even one Teshuva that was falsified by comparing the otiginal to the new?

    All of this said - if my Rabbeim ever hear of these comments, I hope they will be strenghtened to know that many of their Talmidim respect and treasure them deeply. May they and all of Klal Yisorel have a ksiva Vchasima Tova.

    ReplyDelete
  9. See:

    http://eruvonline.blogspot.com/2005/10/rav-moshe-ztl-and-walking-stick.html

    ReplyDelete
  10. “People think that because I’m aware of society, I became a meikel (lenient decisor). What do they want me to do – paskn incorrectly? I’m not a meikel – I paskn the way it has to be. The Halachah takes into account societal factors.”

    The last sentence rings untrue to me. The first part of the quotation translates easily back into the original Yiddish. But the final sentence doesn't seem that something a rav and posek would say. It reminds me of one of those Talmud manuscripts where a marginal gloss is interpolated into the text.

    ReplyDelete
  11. why are you not permitting my comment?

    ReplyDelete
  12. why are you not permitting my comment? Do you have a problem with honest debate?

    ReplyDelete
  13. >why are you not permitting my comment? Do you have a problem with honest debate?

    Yes. I am part of a massive conspiracy to muzzle you.

    Or, there is some kind of problem with blogger and for some reason your comment (which you submitted three times) didn't show up.

    If it still doesn't show up, I will post your comment myself (and correct a mistake that had you saying the opposite of what you meant to say).

    ReplyDelete
  14. If you can see this being teitsched from the into yiddish - “People think that because I’m aware of society" - then you should be able to see the last line coming from the Yiddish, too. Besides, R. Tendler was probably paraphrasing.

    DF

    ReplyDelete
  15. "Anonymous said...

    “People think that because I’m aware of society, I became a meikel (lenient decisor). What do they want me to do – paskn incorrectly? I’m not a meikel – I paskn the way it has to be. The Halachah takes into account societal factors.”

    The last sentence rings untrue to me. The first part of the quotation translates easily back into the original Yiddish. But the final sentence doesn't seem that something a rav and posek would say. It reminds me of one of those Talmud manuscripts where a marginal gloss is interpolated into the text. "


    Maybe because you've never been around a great rav or posek in a personal setting and don't really know what they're all about?

    I could be wrong, but I'm wondering.

    ReplyDelete
  16. How do you say "window" in yiddish? Remember, RMF was not an english speaker...

    ReplyDelete
  17. >How do you say "window" in yiddish? Remember, RMF was not an english speaker...

    Is that really relevant? Rabbi Tendler is not claiming to quote a beraisa. It's not assumed to be a verbatim quote. Also, although RMF "was not an English speaker," he lived in the United States for 50 years.

    (For those who don't know what Anon is getting at, a window is "fenster" in Yiddish, thus RMF, it seems, should have said "fenster" and not "vinde" - but my point is that I don't think Tendler is claiming to give his exact words. Furthermore, who knows? RMF could very well have said "vinde" especially to his American son-in-law.)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous didn't respond to my link that showed conclusively that teshuvos were edited for political reasons in Vol 8.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Fotheringay-Phipps5:36 PM, September 07, 2010

    There are any number of proofs that tshuvos were forged/edited, and anyone who never saw one never looked around.

    Also, I heard about this from close members of the Feinstein family.

    That said, it should also be noted that in some instances where text was changed in reprints of older editions, the new text is what's more accurate.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I have to say that in the volume of his English translation of Rav Moshe's teshuvot on medical ethics, Rabbi Moshe Tendler often interpolated his own comments and explanations into the translation without any indication that he was doing so. They should have been in brackets. I taught one very important teshuvah in a course of mine, and studied it very carefuly, marking all of R. Tendler's additions.

    LAWRENCE KAPLAN

    ReplyDelete
  21. Snag - I did. For some reason, my comment is not being accepted here. Visit
    http://eruvonline.blogspot.com/2005/10/rav-moshe-ztl-and-walking-stick.html and see the 3rd comment.

    ReplyDelete
  22. "How do you say "window" in yiddish? Remember, RMF was not an english speaker"

    - the official word is fenster, but i recall my grandparents, also native yiddish speakers, referring to the vindeh.

    ReplyDelete

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