Very Rare Handwritten Letter by Rabbi Avigdor Miller – Orthodox Musser Icon For Sale

Very Rare Original Letter in the Handwriting of Rabbi Avigdor Miller

One of America’s Most Influential Orthodox Rabbis

An exceptional and highly collectible original letter written in the hand of Rabbi Avigdor Miller (1908–2001), one of the most recognizable and influential Orthodox rabbinic personalities in postwar America.

Rabbi Miller was renowned for his lectures, writings, and distinctive worldview, inspiring generations through his practical wisdom, sharp thinking, and memorable public talks. His books and recorded lectures continue to be studied widely across the Orthodox Jewish world.

Material fully written in Rabbi Miller’s own hand is uncommon and increasingly sought after, offering a personal connection to one of the best-known rabbinic voices of modern American Orthodoxy.

Details:

Writer: Rabbi Avigdor Miller

Type: Original handwritten letter

Format: Autograph manuscript letter

Condition: Well preserved; see photos for details

A desirable item for collectors of rabbinic autographs, Orthodox Jewish history, and 20th-century Judaica.

Rabbi Avigdor HaKohen Miller (August 28, 1908 – April 20,2001) was an American Haredi rabbi, author, and lecturer. Heserved simultaneously as a communal rabbi, mashgiach ruchani (spiritual supervisor) of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin,and as a teacher in Beis Yaakov. After his sonopened Yeshiva Beis Yisrael in 1986, Miller served as its rosh yeshiva (dean). RabbiMiller was an American-born, European trained rabbi immersed in the demandingLithuanian academic and mussar traditions. He spoke perfect English and had aunique oratory presence. As one of the earlier prominent rabbis to use themedium of tape to distribute Torah lectures to the public, he reached a broadaudience.[3] Earlylife AvigdorMiller was born Victor Miller in Baltimore, Maryland. He was a kohen,his father's name was Yisroel. Although he attended public school, only Yiddish was spoken at home. After school, he attended anafternoon Talmud Torah. When hefinished his regular classes at the Talmud Torah, the school arranged for himto learn privately with Avrohom Eliyahu Axelrod, a Lubavitcher Hasid. The Talmud Torah was unable to pay Axelrod,but he continued to teach Miller anyway. Miller would never forget that Axelrodtaught him without being paid, and spoke about him with appreciation.[4] Atage 14, Miller went to New York City to attend Yeshivas Rabbenu YitzchokElchonon, at the time the only American high school offering high-level Jewishlearning.[5] After this,he enrolled in YeshivaCollege. He graduated from both Yeshiva College and Rabbi IsaacElchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS), attaining a B.A. and rabbinical ordination, respectively.[6] Whilea student at Yeshiva College, Miller joined a chavurah (study group) together with a few otheryoung men to study Mussar from the sefer Mesillas Yesharim. The organizer of the chavurah,which met in Miller's dormitory room, was Yaakov Yosef Herman, abuilder of Orthodox Judaism inNew York City of the early 20th century. Some of the men in this group, whichincluded Nosson Meir Wachtfogel, Yehuda Davis,and Mordechai Gifter, would goon to become notable Haredi rabbis intheir own right.[5] Hermanencouraged Miller to travel to Europe to learn Torah in the yeshivas there. Miller met Isaac Sher, the son-in-law of Nosson Tzvi Finkel,who was in New York collecting funds for the Slabodkayeshiva at the time. Sher did not raise much money, since thiswas during the Great Depression. But Sherwould later declare this to be his most successful trip to America, since hewas able to recruit and bring such a bright student to Slabodka.[5] In1932, at the age of 24, Miller arrived in Europe to study at the Slabodkayeshiva in Slabodke, Lithuania, where he was greetedpersonally by Avraham Grodzinski,the mashgiach ruchani (spiritualsupervisor). While there, he studied under Sher. As a student in Slabodka,Miller was so diligent in his studies that he wore out his shirtsleeves overthe lectern he was using.[5] He wascompelled to wear a coat during the summer, in order to conceal the multitudeof overlapping patches that were his trousers. Rabbi Shulman of Slabodka, ason-in-law of Sher, introduced Miller to Ettel Lessin, daughter of Yaakov MosheHaCohen Lessin of Slabodka (later mashgiach in RIETS). Theywere married in 1935.[5] Rabbiniccareer In1938, due to the rise of Nazism and the tensions leading upto World War II, Millersought to return to the United States with his wife and two sons. TheAmerican consul in Kovno at the time was a public high-school classmate andacquaintance of Miller's from Baltimore. He arranged passage for Miller's wifeand children, who were not United States citizens.[citation needed] Uponreturning to the U.S., Miller became rabbi of Congregation AgudathShalom in Chelsea, Massachusetts.[7] Initially,the community was taken aback by Miller's audacious pedagogy, and the sheervolume of his Torah presentations, attempting in vain to restrain hisunconventional approach. Within a few years, however, the community had changedtheir minds, desiring for Miller to stay longer. Miller received specialdispensation to refrain from sending his young sons to public school. Instead,he had them tutored privately in secular subjects, and taught them Jewishstudies himself. His sons still needed to appear at the public school twice ayear for testing. This arrangement seemed to Miller to not be ideal; so, hebegan to look for a community with a stronger Jewish presence.[5] In1944, Yitzchak Hutner, rosh yeshiva (dean) of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin,hired Miller to become its mashgiach ruchani, in whichposition he served until 1964. In 1945, he assumed the pulpit of the Young Israel of Rugby in East Flatbush, Brooklyn.[5] In1975, with neighborhood demographics changing, Miller established the BaisYisroel of Rugby Torah Center on Ocean Parkway in Midwood, Brooklyn.[citation needed] In 1986, when his son opened Yeshiva Beis Yisrael,Miller served as its rosh yeshiva.[citation needed] Deathand burial Millerwas taken to Maimonides Medical Center shortlyafter Passover, 2001.[8][citation needed] Ata memorial service the following Sunday, Miller was eulogized by YosefRosenblum, the rosh yeshiva of Beth Hamedrash Shaarei Yosher; Shmuel Berenbaum, rosh yeshiva of Mir yeshiva; Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg, roshyeshiva of Torah Ore, who was in America on avisit from Jerusalem; and Miller's son-in-law, ShmuelBrog.[citation needed] Miller's body was transported to Israel, where afuneral was held at the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.[citation needed] Afterhis death, a synagogue, Nitei Avigdor (Hebrew: נטעי founded in Miller's name in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.[citation needed] Legacyand views Millerauthored several books about Jewish history, Jewish thought and other subjects. Over a spanof 50 years, more than 2,500 lectures by Miller in English were publishedas cassette tapes, as well asseveral in Yiddish. He gave most of his lectures in his Midwood synagogue.While also covering Torah-oriented concepts that might have been heard in moretypical Orthodox lectures, Miller regularly delivered his own unique take onpolitical and societal themes. Millerbelieved it is not appropriate to make fun of people due to their race. Hestated "to make leitzanus of [make fun of] peoplebecause they’re black or brown doesn’t make sense at all. Being black or brownis no sin. You can’t make leitzanus [fun] about that."[9] Millerbelieved that all Americans, including African Americans, have a right toequality. He stressed that it needs to be done peacefully and through legalmeans.[10] Hecriticized the Emancipation Proclamation,saying that it would have been better for African-Americans to have endured another 50 to 100 yearsof slavery in order to "civilize" them.[11][12] Millerwas a supporter of police brutality against criminals. Before the 1976elections he said, "We need more police brutality. And although innocentpeople might suffer sometimes, it pays."[13] Afterthe Kent State shootings,where 3 Jewish and 1 non-Jewish student[14] wereshot by the Ohio National Guard atan anti-Vietnam War protest, Miller stated he sent a letter ofcongratulations to the government, saying In America, these liberal bums were ruining the campuses.They were bums and they deserved to be shot; no question about it! I sent aletter to the government congratulating them.[15] Millerwas outspoken in his belief that the Holocaust was a divine response to Jewish culturalassimilation in Europe. He wrote: Hitler was not only sent by Heaven, but was sent as a kindness fromHeaven... Because assimilation and intermarriage are worse than death ... andthe German Jews and others ignored the Torah-teachers and refused to desistfrom their mad race into assimilation, the Nazis were sent to prevent them andrescue them before they were swallowed up by the nations.[16][17] Millerwas a staunch opponent of Zionism, in both its religious and secularforms, and was known to help the Satmar Hasidim translatetheir anti-Zionist adsin The New York Times.[citation needed] Millerwas known to lambaste other Orthodox Jewish organizations, such as the Orthodox Union, for allowing the teaching of the scientifictheory of evolution.[18] Hereferred to the killer of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay manto be elected to public office in California, as a "decent gentile".[11] References 1. ^ "GedolimPortraits". yonasan.weebly.com. Retrieved 2022-08-02. 2. ^ Levine, Yitzchok. "Correspondence from a Gadol-in-the-Making" (PDF). TheJewish Observer. No. January/February 2006. p. 48. 3. ^ Hamburger, Yaakov(2016). Rav Avigdor Miller: His Life and HisRevolution (2nd ed.). Brooklyn, NY: The Judaica Press.p. 19. ISBN 978-1-60763-227-6. 4. ^ YitzchokLevine (Jul 21, 2004). "Rav Avigdor Miller: His Early Years". 5. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g Samsonowitz,M. "The Rov Who Turned Baalebatim Into Bnei Yeshiva". chareidi.org.Dei'ah VeDibur. Retrieved September 15, 2019. 6. ^ Alter, Yehuda (April 28,2022) "Living Legacy: Rav Avigdor Hakohen Miller, zt'l", boropark24.com. RetrievedJune 12, 2022. 7. ^ Levine, Yitzchok. "The Walnut Street Shul" (PDF). HamodiaMagazine. No. 8/20/2004. pp. 10–11. 8. ^ 27 Nisan 5761 9. ^ "Rav Avigdor Miller on Minority Jokes – Toras Avigdor". torasavigdor.org.Retrieved 2022-08-02. 10. ^ "Rav Avigdor Miller on Equality for the African American Community –Toras Avigdor". torasavigdor.org. Retrieved 2022-08-02. 11. ^ Jump up to:a b Shanes, Joshua (12October 2020). "The Evangelicalization of Orthodoxy". TabletMagazine. Retrieved 20 April 2022. 12. ^ Miller, Avigdor. Questionsand Answers - Rabbi Avigdor Miller - Volume 2. p. 12. 13. ^ "Tape125". Avigdor Miller Tapes. Brooklyn, New York. 1976. Toras Avigdor. 14. ^ Dubelko, Skylar (30 April2020). "Horrors of Kent State University massacre recalled by those whowere on campus". Cleveland Jewish News. Retrieved 20April 2022. 15. ^ ""Rav Avigdor Miller: The Liberals and the Leftists are RuiningAmerica"". The Lakewood Scoop. 24 June 2020.Retrieved 20 April 2022. 16. ^ Awake My Glory (Brooklyn,1980), p. 146. 17. ^ Vincent, Leah (30 March 2014). "A Visit to Germany Reawakens Fears of an Ultra-OrthodoxChildhood". The Forward. Retrieved 23 May 2022. 18. ^ Rav Avigdor Miller on the Jewish Action Ruining the Jewish People, torasavigdor.org.Retrieved April 20, 2022.