Harav Yitzchak Tuvia Weiss, the Gaavad of the Eidah HaChareidis, was niftar Friday night at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Yerushalayim at the age of 96.
Yeshiva World News and Anash.org
Harav Yitzchak Tuvia Weiss, the Gaavad of the Eidah HaChareidis, was niftar Friday night at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Yerushalayim at the age of 96.
Harav Weiss was hospitalized two weeks ago before Shabbos due to a severe infection and after suffering a further deterioration in his condition last Friday night, was sedated and ventilated.
Harav Yitzchak Tuvia Weiss was born in 1926 in the town of Pezinok near Bratislava in Czechoslovakia. His father, Harav Shlomo, was a Magid Shiur and disciple of the Shevet Sofer. Since there were not enough children in the town to maintain a Talmud Torah, Yitzchak attended the state school and studied Torah with a private teacher.
In 1939, he was saved from Nazi Europe in the Kinderstransport organized by Sir Nicholas Winston, traveling to London alone with his family left behind.
As a bochur, he learned in Yeshivas Toras Emes of Harav Moshe Schneider. After his marriage, he learned in the Gateshead Kollel under HaGaon HaRav Eliyahu Dessler. Following Harav Dessler’s move to Eretz Yisrael, Harav Weiss was appointed as the Rosh Kollel in his place.
A number of years later, Harav Weiss returned to London, where he was appointed as the Rosh Mesivta in Yeshivas HaRama headed by Harav Elyakim Schlesinger. At the same time, he began doing shimush in hora’ah (practical halacha) under Harav Shlomo Baumgarten. Later he was appointed by Harav Baumgarten as the Rav of the Etz Chaim shul.
During his years in London, he maintained a chavrusa with the renowned chossid Reb Mendel Futerfas in Tanya. Decades later, he recalled that one of the reasons he had the chavrusa was to hear Reb Mendel’s stories of mesiras nefesh during his years in Soviet prison in Siberia, describing Reb Mendel as “a living Mussar sefer.”
In 1966, he moved to Antwerp, where he lived for 37 years, serving as the Rosh Mesivta at the Etz Chaim yeshiva and later as dayan on the Antwerp Beis Din. He also served as the Rav of the Gerrer Beis Medrash in the city.
Harav Weiss paid a number of visits to the Rebbe, with the last one being on 26 Adar 5752, when he passed by the Rebbe for ‘dollars’. On that occasion, the Rebbe gave him three dollars, one for himself, one for his family, and one for the rabbanus, wishing him “yaarich yomim al mamlachto”.
After the passing of Harav Yisrael Moshe Dushinsky in 2003, Harav Weiss was called to serve as Gaavad (gaon av beis din) of the Eda Charedis in Jerusalem. Initially he lived near the Dushinsky shul in Arzei Habirah but later settled in the Givat Moshe neighborhood. During his tenure at the Eda Charedis he established the Peer Hatorah yeshiva for youths from the community, later changing the name to Chochmas Hatorah. He served as a rosh yeshiva, giving shiur klali and other monthly shiurim. He also established a special tzedaka fund for needy families and would give special support to parents marrying off children including covering the costs of the wedding night.
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