Rav Meisel pulled out promissory notes from his pockets for loans he had signed and said, “This is my sefer”
Pesach Sheini, the 14th of Iyar last week, marked 113 years since the passing of Rav Eliyahu Chaim Meisel z”l — scarcely known today, in part because he wrote no seforim, yet he was one of Poland’s most renowned rabbanim before World War I.
Rav Meisel’s leadership was in great demand; the great cities of Poland vied for him to be their rav. In addition to his tremendous Torah scholarship, Rav Meisel’s hallmark traits were his concern for Klal Yisrael, his drive to build needed institutions, and his care for every individual Jew. He was a litvishe gadol who was beloved by chassidim.
His brilliance was phenomenal. At the age of eight, he became the youngest boy to be accepted to Volozhin — younger even than the Beis HaLevi, who was accepted at age ten, and the Netziv, admitted at age 11. At 13, Rav Meisel was given semichah to pasken halachic sh’eilos.
Rav Meisel was born in Horodok, near Vilna, in 1821. His father, Reb Moshe Meisel, was a wealthy businessman. His love for Klal Yisrael was already apparent as a youngster. Polish merchants would visit his father to discuss business matters. One of these merchants once engaged Eliyahu Chaim in conversation.
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