BDE: Harav Elyakim Schlesinger zt”l, a Link to the Pre-War Torah World

With profound sorrow, we report the petirah of Harav Elyakim Schlesinger zt”l, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Harama in London, who was niftar on Wednesday at the remarkable age of 104. His passing represents the loss of one of the last remaining links to the pre-war Torah world and brings to a close a life that spanned more than a century of unwavering dedication to Torah, mesorah, and Klal Yisroel.

Born in Vienna on 22 Cheshvan 5682 (November 23, 1921) to his father, Rav Dovid Schlesinger zt”l, and his mother, Baila, daughter of Rav Yaakov Rosenheim, founder and president of the World Agudas Yisrael, Rav Schlesinger came of age during one of the most tumultuous eras in Jewish history. His family’s prescient decision to leave Europe in 1931, when he was just ten years old, brought them to Eretz Yisroel, where they settled in Tel Aviv.

There, the young Elyakim absorbed the authentic Torah derech of pre-war Yerushalayim. His primary rebbi was the legendary Rav Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky zt”l, under whose guidance he developed the crystal-clear understanding of Torah and profound yiras Shamayim that would characterize his entire life. He continued his learning at Yeshivas Kaminetz in Yerushalayim and Yeshivas Lomza in Petach Tikvah, where he became known for his exceptional clarity in learning and fierce adherence to mesorah.

Rav Schlesinger married Dina Yehudis, daughter of Rav Moshe Blau zt”l, a revered leader of Agudah in Eretz Yisroel. Following his father-in-law’s petirah, he was appointed Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Pnei Moshe in Yerushalayim, established in Rav Blau’s memory. Even as a young Rosh Yeshiva, his sense of achrayus extended far beyond his immediate surroundings.

In a decision that would shape the trajectory of his life, Rav Schlesinger undertook a mission at the behest of the Brisker Rov: to return to Europe and help rebuild Torah life on the ravaged continent. This was no small undertaking; returning to Europe in the 1950s meant confronting the ashes of destruction and attempting to nurture Torah growth in a spiritually depleted landscape.

He first served as Rosh Yeshiva in Kapellen, Belgium, for two years, strengthening a fragile post-war kehilla. In 1961, he moved to London, where he founded Yeshivas Harama. The yeshiva’s name reflected his deep reverence for the Chasam Sofer and his descendants; named after the yeshiva of the Kesav Sofer and later also honoring the Daas Sofer, who had been among Rav Schlesinger’s own rebbeim. Under his leadership, Yeshivas Harama became a bastion of serious Torah learning in England.

What distinguished Rav Schlesinger was not merely his longevity, but the extraordinary caliber of Torah giants with whom he maintained close relationships. He was inextricably close with the Brisker Rov, the Chazon Ish, Rav Yosef Zvi Dushinsky, Rav Zelig Reuven Bengis, and many others; luminaries whose influence shaped the contours of post-war Torah Jewry.

His sefer Hador Vehatekufah stands as an invaluable testament to that vanished world. In it, Rav Schlesinger recorded his personal recollections and insights into these gedolei Yisroel, offering a rare firsthand window into their Torah leadership, their hashkafos, and their approach to the monumental challenges facing Klal Yisroel, including their response to the buildup that led to the establishment of the State of Israel and its aftermath.

Beyond the walls of his yeshiva, Rav Schlesinger was deeply involved in matters affecting the entire Torah community. For decades, he devoted himself to the avodas hakodesh of protecting kevorim across Europe, serving as chairman of the committee dedicated to safeguarding Jewish cemeteries from desecration.

In 2019, despite his advanced age, he led the charge against governmental attempts to interfere with Jewish education in Britain. He personally met with the British Minister of Education and senior officials at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster. His principled stance was uncompromising: he called the proposed interference “a decree of annihilation” and ruled that Torah education must be preserved at all costs. His courage and clarity earned him recognition as a fearless voice of daas Torah, someone who could be counted upon to speak truth regardless of external pressure.

Rav Schlesinger’s written Torah legacy is vast and profound. His multi-volume work Beis Av spans Shas, halacha, machshavah, and drush, reflecting both breadth of knowledge and depth of understanding. He authored additional seforim, including a Haggadah shel Pesach, all characterized by his unique clarity of expression and penetrating insight. These works will continue to illuminate the path for future generations of lomdei Torah.

Remarkably, he remained lucid and actively involved in Torah and communal matters until his final days, teaching and guiding until the age of 104.

For over seven decades, he taught Torah to thousands and raised generations of talmidim in London and beyond. He was not only a transmitter of Torah knowledge but a living embodiment of the derech he received from the gedolim of previous generations; one of clarity in learning, uncompromising commitment to mesorah, and absolute dedication to the needs of Klal Yisroel.

Klal Yisroel has lost a towering figure, one of the ziknei roshei hayeshivos of our generation. We are left bereft, but also enriched; by his Torah, by his example, and by the living mesorah he leaves behind in his talmidim and in his seforim.

Yehi zichro baruch.