Letter of Good Year Wishes from Rebbe Yisrael Yitzchak Kalisch - Skiernivitz, 1936

Letter of Good Year Wishes from Rebbe Yisrael Yitzchak Kalisch - Skiernivitz, 1936
Lengthy letter handwritten and signed by the Rebbe of Skiernivitz, R. Yisrael Yitzchak Kalisch. Skiernivitz (Skierniewice), Elul 1936. Addressed to R. Avraham Abba Frankel of Shedlitz (Siedlce) and his son R. Kalman Eliezer in Tel Aviv. The Rebbe extends his blessings for "a good and sweet life". The letter begins with the Rebbe's acknowledgement for the Etrog they sent him from Eretz Israel - "…and as I shake it, may G-d pour an abundance of blessing… and may He rebuild our Temple speedily in our times and avenge before our eyes the vengeance of His servants' spilt blood, may He accept our prayers with mercy and good will, and renew upon us and all of ours a good and sweet year…". Further in the letter, the Rebbe writes that he is enclosing a Kvittel "and please mention me for a good year at holy sites". Rebbe Yisrael Yitzchak Kalisch (perished in the Holocaust, Cheshvan 1941), "one of the great and famous rebbes in Poland in the last generation" (Eleh Ezkera, VI, p. 315). Son and successor of Rebbe Shimon of Skiernivitz (1857-1926). Rebbe Yitzchak'l was the most distinguished of Rebbe Shimon of Skiernivitz's sons. In his father's lifetime, he attended him closely, never departing from Torah study. After the passing of his father and his brother Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Skiernivitz, he began leading the Skiernivitz Chassidic court. Skiernivitz was at the time one of the largest Polish Chassidic dynasties. Many cities and towns boasted communities of Skiernivitz Chassidim. In the interwar period, Polish Jewry suffered severe financial difficulties and persecution by the antisemitic government. The home of Rebbe Yisrael Yitzchak became a focal point, drawing prominent Jewish merchants in quest of advice and salvation, and though he was an unworldly man who had spent his entire life in the confines of the Beit Midrash, they benefitted from his wise counsel to navigate the crises of that time. The modest personality of R. Yitzchak'l was imbued with pure fear of G-d. Vurka Chassidim saw in him the successor of his grandfather, the "Silent Rebbe" - R. Menachem Mendel of Vurka, who was known for his concealed ways. R. Yisrael Yitzchak would disguise his outbursts of emotion and enthusiasm, obscuring them in his burning heart. In this letter, the Rebbe expresses to his close friends a bit of the emotions aroused with the approach of the High Holidays and Sukkot. His words regarding the Kavanot during the shaking of the Lulav and Etrog, allow us a glimpse of the emotions of holiness and hope for salvation which surged within him. Recipients of the letter: The renowned Chassid R. Avraham Abba Frankel of Shedlitz (1872-1961), a disciple of the Avnei Nezer. In 1924, he immigrated to Tel Aviv together with his son R. Kalman Eliezer Frankel (1895-1982), author of BeOhalei Tzadikim (Tel Aviv, 1967), biography of the Rebbes of the Vurka and Skiernivitz dynasties. [1] leaf. 19.5 cm. Written on both sides, approx. 27 autograph lines and signature. Good-fair condition. Wear and folding marks.