Yechiel Michel HaLevi Epstein

Rabbi Yechiel Michel HaLevi Epstein (20 Shevat 5589 - 22 Adar II 5668; 1829-1908) was a Rav, posek, and author of the Aruch HaShulchan on all four sections of the Shulchan Aruch. He is also known as the "Aruch HaShulchan" after his sefer.

Life History

Rabbi Epstein was born in Bobruisk, Belarus, to Rashka and Rav Aharon Yitzchak HaLevi, who was a talmid chacham and merchant. His family, the Epstein family, is descended from the Sephardic Benveniste family and from Rabbi Aharon HaLevi (the Ra'ah), who is credited with authoring the Sefer HaChinuch.

Rabbi Epstein married the daughter of Rav Yaakov Berlin (father of the Netziv of Volozhin) and initially aspired to engage in commerce rather than rabbanus. However, after the trustee who held his dowry money went bankrupt and due to his lack of success in business, Rabbi Epstein accepted a rabbinic position.

In 5625 (1865), at age 27, he was appointed as Av Beis Din in the Chassidic town of Novozybkov in Ukraine. Although he came from a family of misnagdim, Rabbi Epstein was sympathetic to Chassidus. After his appointment as rav of the city, Rabbi Epstein traveled to the Tzemach Tzedek for a period and learned from him the ways of pesak halacha.

In 5643 (1883), at age 45, he moved to Novardok where he served as the city's rav for 34 years. Rabbi Epstein was the father of Rabbi Baruch HaLevi Epstein, grandfather of Rabbi Meir Bar-Ilan, and brother-in-law and father-in-law of the Netziv, Rosh Yeshiva of Volozhin (Rabbi Epstein's daughter was the Netziv's second wife).

Rabbi Epstein was known as the "Greatest of Ordainers" due to the large number of rabbanim he ordained, particularly those who became renowned Torah scholars. Among the famous rabbanim he ordained were Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer, Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook, Rabbi Yechezkel Abramsky, Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin, and Rabbi Yosef Eliyahu Henkin.

Rabbi Yechiel Michel authored the sefer "Aruch HaShulchan" on all four sections of the Shulchan Aruch.

The purpose of the "Aruch HaShulchan" is similar to that of the foundational work of the Shulchan Aruch - the "Beis Yosef" - to rule and arrange the halacha practiced throughout galus from the Mishna and Talmud up to the discussions of the later poskim. Thus, the sefer's name hints at its goal to be like an updated "Shulchan Aruch."

In the introduction to the sefer, Rabbi Epstein writes: "In it will be explained all the dinim and halachos written in the Shulchan Aruch... with all the dinim scattered throughout the seforim of the Acharonim. And every din I have explained in its place with its reason with Hashem's help, based on the premises and proofs from the great poskim"... In addition to halachos, the sefer also includes many of the minhagim of Lithuanian communities during Rabbi Epstein's time.

Since the "Aruch HaShulchan" was written following the order of the Shulchan Aruch, it deals only with mitzvos that are applicable today, and lacks broad topics of dinim dependent on Eretz Yisrael and the Beis HaMikdash, such as Zeraim, Kodshim, Tumah and Tahara, Nezirus, Arachin and Charamim, Sanhedrin, Mamrim, Melachim, Shekalim, and Kiddush HaChodesh. These topics were included in Rabbi Epstein's next sefer - "Aruch HaShulchan HeAsid" which was only printed after his passing.

In the "Aruch HaShulchan," Rabbi Epstein frequently cites the words of the Alter Rebbe in Shulchan Aruch HaRav, referring to him as "HaGR"Z" (HaGaon Rabbi Zalman).

He passed away in Novardok on 22 Adar II 5668 (1908).

His Connection with the Rebbe Tzemach Tzedek

Rabbi Yechiel Michel stayed in Lubavitch for a certain period and left after a short time. Some say it was due to a specific incident that damaged his honor or disrespected him. He was friendly with the great Chabad rabbis of his generation.

His grandson, the researcher Meir Bar-Ilan, writes in his book "From Volozhin to Jerusalem" that there exists an approbation from the Tzemach Tzedek for his grandfather's book "Aruch HaShulchan". However, no other source is known where this approbation is mentioned.

The Rebbe referenced his books in several places and referred to him as "one of the leaders of the Ashkenazim".

His Visit with the Tzemach Tzedek

Rabbi Yechiel Michel's son, R' Baruch Epstein, a banker and Torah scholar, writes in his book 'Mekor Baruch' that his father stayed in the presence of the Tzemach Tzedek for over a month, and every day he would enter once or twice, and each time would stay in his presence for several hours. The Tzemach Tzedek even urged him to stay another week.

R' Yehoshua Mondshine claimed that this doesn't fit with reality at all - since according to R' Baruch, the visit was after 1860 and onwards, while the Tzemach Tzedek passed away in Nissan 1866, after being ill for more than six consecutive years, since Kislev 1860. In 1861 or 1862, his wife, the Rebbetzin, passed away, "and from then on he was closed off and secluded and did not want people to travel to him... and very few were allowed into his room for yechidus... and even the Chassidus he would say in these years was difficult to hear and understand due to his weakness." Additionally, many details in R' Baruch's description do not match reality.

According to Mondshine, the agenda of 'Mekor Baruch' is clear: his father's halachic rulings were not at all accepted among Chassidim, and by fabricating the story about the tremendous closeness from the Tzemach Tzedek, and that from him he received the methods of ruling which he never deviated from all his days, and also received from him details and principles in studying Kabbalah(!) - 'Mekor Baruch' thought that through this his father's image would change in the public eye.

In a response article by R' Itamar Henkin HY"D, he argued for the authenticity of the meeting story between the author of "Mekor Baruch"'s father and the Rebbe Tzemach Tzedek, and that despite the problems in the author's works, they cannot be categorically invalidated, but rather one must separate the wheat from the chaff. As evidence for his approach regarding the author's reliability, the researcher argues that there is an inconsistency between absolute unreliability, as claimed in Rabbi Mondshine's article, and the fact that it appears our Rebbeim saw the author's other work, the commentary "Torah Temimah", as a book worthy of study. Nevertheless, even Rabbi Henkin admits that some of "Mekor Baruch"'s words praising opposition to Chassidus, which he wrote in the name of the Tzemach Tzedek, are a product of "Mekor Baruch"'s imagination, and these things were never said by the Tzemach Tzedek.

For Further Reading

• Rabbi Itam Henkin, Taaroch Lefanai Shulchan.