From London’s Pulpit to Russia’s Tables

In honor of the 7th Yahrzeit of Rabbi Sholom Hakohen Gutnick on the 25th of Iyar, we present here a fascinating episode that involved his father, Rabbi Mordechai Zev Hakohen Gutnick.

In honor of the 7th Yahrzeit of Rabbi Sholom Hakohen Gutnick on the 25th of Iyar, we present here a fascinating episode of his father, Rabbi Mordechai Zev Hakohen Gutnick. Special thanks goes to Rabbi Meir Hakohen Gutnick for sharing these invaluable documents with us.

By Mendel Wolf

After leaving Russia, Rabbi Mordechai Zev Hakohen Gutnick, a great Talmid Chacham and devout Chassid, moved to Eretz Yisroel. He worked in the Tel Aviv Rabbinate, but after some time, he sought a position that would enable him to have a more direct impact on the community. At the behest of the Frierdiker Rebbe, he moved to London where he would serve as the Rav in Old Castle Street Synagogue, and on the Beis Din of London.

From the outset, it was clear that Rabbi Gutnick didn’t only move to London to serve as a pulpit rabbi. He was there to build connections and cultivate relationships with the local Jews. “Now is a time to do,” the Frierdiker Rebbe once wrote to him. “This was my intent in having him move to London, was so that, with Hashem’s help, he’d be in a position to accomplish things on behalf of our brethren stuck in Russia.”

The situation at the time in Russia was perilous. The country was ravaged by famine, and the population was destitute. Various political organizations hounded all forms of religion, and Judaism in particular. Rabbi Gutnick himself was forced to leave Russia after being notified that he was to be arrested for teaching Torah to children and fixing a Mikvah.

Several months before Pesach 5689 (1929), the Frierdiker Rebbe launched a massive campaign to enable the Jews in Russia to have Matzah for Pesach. Efforts spanned continents, but the result enabled 28 train cars of Matzah and 5,689 packages of flour usable for the baking of Matzah to make it into the Soviet Union.

Together with Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski and Rabbi Meir Hildesheimer, the Frierdiker Rebbe formed a committee to oversee the campaign to get Matzah to the Jews in Russia. In an appeal from the committee to the Jews outside of Russia, the impossibility to get hold of Matzah was detailed in five parts:

1. The wheat is all held by the government, and any large quantity of flour must be received directly from the government. Due to the anti-religious doctrine of the government, it will be impossible to arrange.

2. Every city will have to arrange a kosher way to grind the wheat, which isn’t feasible in many cities.

3. Wheat is a great economic resource of Russia, as it is used for export. As such, the wheat in Russia is kept to a minimum, and any large quantities kept for religious reasons would be frowned upon by the government.

 4. There is a terrible famine in Russia. All food supplies are rationed, and people must wait in line for many hours to get ahold of any food. Flour is a commodity and almost impossible to find.

In addition to all the above, the people are penniless and regardless, would be unable to purchase the necessary wheat. Thus, all Matzah must come from outside Russia.

Multiple proclamations were written, calling on the Jews outside of Russia to do all they could financially to help the Jewish population stuck in Russia. The effort was spearheaded by the Frierdiker Rebbe in Riga, together with the Chofetz Chaim and Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski. Rabbi Meir Hildesheimer of Germany and Mordechai Dubin, a member of the Latvian parliament and an influential leader of the Jewish community in Riga, were also at the forefront of this campaign.

As the Lubavitcher emissary in London, Rabbi Gutnick was requested to appeal to the Chief Rabbi of England, Rabbi Dr. Yosef Tzvi Hertz to take part in this operation and other fundraising efforts. He was also asked to do whatever possible to fundraise for these efforts and raise awareness throughout England and beyond.

Many of the details of his involvement have been preserved in his correspondence, particularly with the Rebbe and his son-in-law Rabbi Shmaryahu Gourarie (Rashag). Although most of Rabbi Gutnick’s letters are not extant, here are the details that can be pieced together through the letters and documents that were recently shared by members of the Gutnick family.

In January 1929, Edmund Rothschild, the son of Lord Lionel de Rothschild, celebrated his Bar Mitzvah. Even before the celebration occurred, newspapers throughout Europe and beyond wrote about the upcoming event. Rabbi Gutnick was instructed to have Rabbi Hertz make an appeal for the Jews of Russia at the Bar Mitzvah. In addition to the obvious benefit a collection, or better yet, an establishment of a fund on behalf of Russian Jewry would yield, it would also set a precedent among the upper echelons of Jewish society in England, urging them to do the same.

Rabbi Gutnick did not hesitate. He immediately requested an appointment with Rabbi Hertz and drafted a letter explaining the urgency and necessity of such an appeal. The newspapers report that Rabbi Hertz indeed spoke at the Bar Mitzvah, and it seems that Rabbi Hertz did, in fact, accede to Rabbi Gutnick’s request.

It is clear that Rabbi Hertz threw himself into the efforts on behalf of Russian Jewry. In one letter, we learn that Rabbi Hertz wrote several calls to action on behalf of the Matzah collection that were printed and distributed throughout England. The Frierdiker Rebbe requested that he go even further and reach out to the Jews in the British Colonies, especially South Africa.

We also learn of a collection Rabbi Hertz arranged on his own initiative. In a reply to Rabbi Gutnick, the Frierdiker Rebbe mentions his gratitude to Rabbi Hertz for suggesting a collection for the Matzah Committee in Belgium. In answer to Rabbi Gutnick’s query as to whether he should travel there for this purpose, the Rebbe thanks him for his willingness to travel, but instructs him to await the results of Rashag’s trip in France before he does so. He adds his hope that Rabbi Hertz will do all he can to influence the community in Belgium to assist in the crucial work at hand.

Toward the beginning of the initiative, Rabbi Gutnick asked whether he should send money, or perhaps whether it would be better to send Matzah either to Riga or directly to Russia. The answer came from Rashag, who noted that sending Matzah directly to Russia would be impossible, as the government there will seize any shipment that comes from England. Additionally, there would be cash needed to get the Matzah into Russia, thus the best thing would be to send money to Vilna, where the best exchange can be made. Until sent, the money should be held by Rabbi Hertz, he instructs.

Another key figure in this operation was Rabbi Shmuel Yitzchak Hillman, who served as a dayan of the London Beis Din. Through Rabbi Gutnick’s efforts, he worked with Rabbi Hertz, fundraising from various organizations in England. He was also involved in compiling lists of requests that were received for Matzah, as well as accounting.

One such organization features prominently throughout the correspondence. The London-based Federation of Ukrainian Jews sent aid to their brothers still in Ukraine, and had in the past been involved in sending Matzah there. According to Rabbi Hillman’s suggestion, a letter had been sent from Riga asking them to participate in the joint operation to get Matzah into Russia. Rabbi Gutnick was asked to intercede on their behalf, through a certain Mr. Shalit who was a member of the federation.

A confidential memo sent to Rabbi Gutnick reveals that the Federation said that they will send money directly to Russia. This is unreasonable for two reasons: Firstly, even if they manage to get the money to the right people, it will be impossible to get a hold of the quantity of wheat flour necessary to supply all the Jews with Matzah. Secondly, If they send the money to Vilna, the exchange rate to rubles will be twice as high than if they send it directly to Russia. At the end of the memo Rabbi Gutnick is asked to intercede on behalf of the Matzah Committee without relaying who he’s representing.

Rabbi Gutnick’s efforts succeeded, and, in addition to sending Matzah directly to Ukraine, the Federation sent money to the Matzah Committee in Riga. In a letter thanking them, they are also asked to send a list of the cities that received the Matzah that was sent, to ensure that no city receives a double portion, enabling the largest possible number of Jews to have access to Matzah. It seems that no response was received, because the Frierdiker Rebbe later asked Rabbi Hillman and Rabbi Gutnick to get hold of this list.

The Frierdiker Rebbe wrote to Mr. Lipman (Leon) Shalit for his help in procuring Matzah for the Jews in Russia, and expressed his hope that he would continue to assist in the efforts to help the Jews in Russia. (It seems that Leon is the above-mentioned Mr. Shalit, and that the treasurer mentioned in the  Chronicle would be his father, Mr. Mordechai Shalit.)

“The heart does not believe that all the train cars sent from here (Riga) and from Berlin successfully arrived before Pesach. Despite the fact that they were sent with enough time, the Yevsektsiya did all they could to stall the train cars on the way…” wrote Rashag to Rabbi Gutnick, about a month after Pesach. He continues with a full report on the success of the initiative. (More information about this operation can be found here: chabad.org/4353455/).

Rabbi Gutnick continued working with Rabbi Hertz to help ease the plight of their fellow Jews stuck in Russia, until his untimely passing on Yud Tes Kislev 5693 (1932), at the young age of 35.