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The aforementioned rabbi was from a distinguished lineage of Cohanim and from the seed of the outstanding rabbis of the generations in Israel. He was the son of the genius, Rav Yoel, the presiding judge of Stanislavov.

Rav Yitzhak-Aizik Ha-Cohen already stood out in childhood for the breadth of his intelligence, his understanding, and his acuity. When he was eight, he went with his father to the city of Brody at a time when the leading rabbis of the generation had gathered at market day, so that his father could demonstrate his son's acuity before the great ones. The table before which the geniuses sat to hear the acuity of the boy was high and, since the boy, Yitzhak-Aizik, was very small, the geniuses ordered that a chair be placed for him so that he could stand on it at the time of his sermon. But the boy refused this and replied to them in wisdom: “Cohanim from a high table, indeed that's entitled.”

When he was twelve, his father went to the city of Stanislavov to take up the position of local rabbi. The cart caused him to drown in the river that was before the city and his young son eulogized him and mourned and his first words were: “And the water came and extinguished the flame” [=a quote from the Passover Haggadah]. Afterwards he sermonized for about two hours on the matter, “his loss and the loss of his father.” He continued at length in both law and legend and the people began to cry, and then Ha-Gaon Rav Chaim Ha-Cohen Rapoport, presiding judge of Lvov [=Lviv] and the region, and his son-in-law, Ha-Rav Aharon Ha-Levi Itinga, presiding judge of Raysha [=Rzeszow], put their hands on him to be a presiding judge and teacher in Israel.

At the age of Bar-Mitzvah, Rav Yitzhak-Aizik married the daughter of Ha-Rav Ha-Gaon Zvi-Hirsch Margaliot, presiding judge of the great Mezhyrichi, where he advanced further in his knowledge of Talmud, wisdom of Kabbalah, and Hasidic comportment.

When he was fourteen, the community leaders of Korets took him as their teacher and rabbi. In Korets, they worked at both the revealed and the hidden Torah and taught many students in Torah and for a diploma. The most important rabbis turned to him with their legal questions and he replied to all of them with his great wisdom. Among those who came to study with him in his yeshiva in Korets was also Ha-Rav Efraim-Zalman Margaliot of Brody, who later became famous as an outstanding genius and expert adjudicator and composed his famous work, “Beit Efraim,” and other important compositions.

At the same time, the large “enclave” in Ostroh, where the splendor of famous rabbis had served, was revived. The leaders of the Ostroh community sent a rabbinic certificate to Rav Yitzhak-Aizik, entitled “Presiding Judge and Yeshiva Head” of this enclave.

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However, the rabbi did not want to leave Korets, but in order to fill, in any event, the hereditary place of his forebears, he accepted the position at the aforementioned enclave, in a manner that he would come to them three times a year to preach.

Rav Yitzhak-Aizik Ha-Cohen is considered one of the first students of the Maggid of Mezhyrichi - R. Dov-Ber. It is told that, when he came to the Mezhyrichi for the first time - still being young - the Maggid got up before him, drew him close in affection and great respect.

He was also greatly erudite in the wisdom of Kabbalah. He expounded on all matters of this world and sat and studied in holiness and purity. There was an inscription on one of the walls of his house: “It is permitted to speak to the Rav about matters of the body - if it is urgent, but about matters of the soul - all hours are permitted for this.” And it was that everyone who came to the Rav's house and looked at the wall was as fearful to approach the Rav as approaching an Angel of the God of Hosts, who morning and evening wrapped himself in a shroud and poured out his heart before God.

The aforementioned holy rabbi died in 1787 and he was only 35 years old. His writings remained in the hands of his brother-in-law, Ha-Rav Mordechai, the presiding judge in Annopol, who served him in Torah and teaching. These letters on mysticism were published in 1795 in Lviv, a book entitled “Brit Kehunat Olam” [=The Covenant of Eternal Priesthood], by his brother, Ha-Rav Meshulam Ha-Cohen, who was the presiding judge in Korets. Ha-Rav Meshulam Ha-Cohen wrote a lengthy introduction to the book. Indeed, Ha-Rav Meshulam indicates that there remain from his brother, the author, many other writings on mysticism and innovations on Gemara, Poskim [=Jewish law adjudicators], and Tosafot [=annotations to the Talmud], and responsa he gave on legal matters. Ha-Rav Efraim Zalman Margaliot of Brody writes about the author: “Indeed these are the words that were spoken from Sinai and uproot mountains, the great genius, the famous one, the Hasid who is in the priesthood, the godly Kabbalist, who was the best of my youth.”

In 1862, the responsa of Ha-Rav Yitzhak-Aizik Ha-Cohen were published under the name, “Zikhron Kehuna” [=Memory of the Priesthood]. At the beginning of the book, the scholar, Yosef Cohen-Tzedek, wrote memories from the history of the author.

Ha-Rav Yitzhak-Aizik left one son and he is the well-known rabbi, R. Yisrael Ha-Cohen, the presiding judge of Evei [=Vievis]. His widow re-married with Ha-Rav Zev Wolf of Zhytomyr.

There was no headstone on Ha-Rav Yitzhak-Aizik of Korets' grave, but only a wall with two windows through which those who came would lay notes of requests and mercy on his grave, as is the custom of Hasidim.

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B. Ha-Rav Asher Zvi

Ha-Rav Asher Zvi was one of the students of The Maggid of Mezhyrichi and served as a Torah teacher and interpreter in Korets. He was born in Ostroh to his father, R. David, who was of great pedigree and the principal manager of the “Hevra Kadisha” [=burial society] there.

In 1760, R. Asher was named among the best managers in Ostroh and in 1780 he was appointed as preacher and Torah teacher in the city of his birth.

Ha-Rav Asher Zvi was one of the important rabbis of his time. His recommendations even appear on compositions of the type of “Mishnat Hachamim” by the genius, Meshullam Feibush, presiding judge of Kremenets, on “Meor Einayim” of Ha-Rav Ha-Tzaddik of Czernowitz [=Chernivtsi], where he was given the title of “The Righteous Rabbi, Man of the Holy God,” and on other books.

Around 1804 Rav Asher-Zvi became the presiding judge in Korets, but there, too, he signed himself as “presiding judge and Torah teacher of the holy community of Ostroh.” On the Midrashic book, “Yalkut Reuveni,” which was published in Ostroh in 1806, can be found “the recommendation of the true rabbi and genius, astute and expert in the revealed and the hidden, a man of God, a saint will say to him, our teacher, the rabbi Asher Zvi, presiding judge and Torah teacher of the holy community of Ostroh - living in the holy community of Korets.”

Ha-Rav Asher Zvi wrote the book, “Ma'ayan Chochmah,” which was published in Korets in 1816. On the front page of the book is written “that they are holy letters, from the holy and on high, pure sayings, from the lips of a pure man, carved in the Five Books of Moses and Psalms and Pirkei-Avot and legends, not from the lips of flesh and blood, but rather with the spirit of God that was upon him and His word will drip on his tongue.”

The recommendations of the famous rabbis appear on this book: R. Avraham-Yehoshua Herschel of Afta, known by his praise as “a famous man of God, astute and expert, a holy candle”, and so the recommendation of “the great, famous, glorious rabbi, Torah teacher, Mordechai, presiding judge of the holy community of Korets,” who marks the author of this book as “the astute rabbi, the famous Hasid, a holy candle.”

The life of Ha-Rav Nehemiah Herschenhorn is an important chapter in the historiography of Korets. An interesting period in the days of the city, which encompassed more than 50 years, is hidden in his personality.

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Already in 1864 he was the rabbi of the Korets community under the auspices of the Russian government. We know this from a letter that appeared in “Ha-Carmel” of that year (No. 34) in which it was written that, in that year, the Jewish community in Korets celebrated the birthday of Tsar Alexander II on April 17. The celebration took place in the large synagogue in the presence of all the dignitaries of the city. The community rabbi, Herschenhorn, spoke and the renowned cantor, R. Alter Spivak, sang the prayer, “He Who Gives Salvation to Kings.”

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn rescued the city from a great disaster already in the first year of his tenure. In that year, two farmers from a nearby village were lost and there was no trace of them. The farmers, residents of that village, came to the police and asked them to help them search for these farmers among the Jews in Korets because, perhaps, they had slaughtered them to consume their blood during Passover.

The police fulfilled that request, searched among the houses of the Jews of Korets, and did not skip over the house of the well-known rich man, R. Moshe-Leib Weinstock.

In his speech at the celebration of Tsar Alexander II's birthday, Ha-Rav Herschenhorn stressed that it was obligatory on the government to completely destroy the medieval story, the blood libel that, although the enlightened and educated among the Christians had stopped believing in it for a long time already, still it remained in force in the dark hearts of many, falsely accusing the Jews from time to time, this story that had no foundation.

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn explored much activity in the lives of the community of the Jews of Korets. The city was sunk in poverty and suffering. He saw his task as helping the hungry depressed to a piece of bread and he succeeded in influencing the few wealthy men in the city to increase their charitable work. In “Ha-Meliz” in 1866 he celebrated the three Korets wealthy men - Yaakov Kovilinski, Zeinweil Weinstock, and Yaakov-Yosef Hornshtein who, through their donations, saved many Korets Jews from starving. About R. Yaakov-Yosef Hornshtein, he wrote: “May He grant and increase men like him who do good, kindness, and charity all the days of their lives. One cannot imagine the righteousness of this philanthropist in Israel. How many souls has this rich man given life to with his money and none who come to his house go away empty-handed.”

About these three rich men he wrote: “The three of them are like the triple thread that will not quickly break. They do righteousness and spread their money among the poor in general, and in particular to the poor of our city who are great in number.”

In “Ha-Tzfira” in 1883 Ha-Rav Herschenhorn announced the charitable deeds of Avraham Bronstein, a native of Korets, who every year did much for the good of Korets, the city of his birth.

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Ha-Rav Herschenhorn saw his principal mission as educating the Jewish children of Korets. He stressed in his articles in the Hebrew press that it was obligatory to teach Torah to the Jewish young men because each one of them was required to serve in the army and to mix with the rest of the nation and if they would not learn Torah and its faith - they would mix with the Russians and be assimilated.

In “Ha-Tzfira” in 1874 he wrote: “It grieves the heart of a man in Israel to see that, in the high schools in our area, there are Russian and Catholic teachers who are educating the Christian pupils based on the Christian religion and the Jewish pupils there are like sheep without a shepherd, having no Jewish teacher from whose mouth they might hear the Torah of the Living God and the foundations of our religion and beliefs.”

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn suggested to take preventative steps by writing a letter to the government that it should make the study of Judaism in high schools an obligatory subject and should employ for that purpose Jewish teachers. However, he did not trust the Russian government to work for Jewish education, so he made a great effort himself and opened his own private school in the Hasidic Korets of those days.

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn informs us about this school in “Ha-Meliz” of 1866 with these words: “At present, there are nine students in the school that I opened, most of them children of the wealthy. In this short period of time, the students have done good work, coming on time every day and learning the Russian language and everything else with enthusiasm.” Nevertheless, he points out that the matter of the school is bad in the eyes of the educated because of much piety and in the eyes of the Hasidim because of much heresy. But he has faith in his path and writes with a heart at peace: “I will guard what comes out of my mouth. I will try with all my might to make the house that I opened a house of Jewish learning to educate the children of Israel based on Torah and ethics and courtesy and I put my faith in God that He will help me to bring what I have conceived to human action.”

Nevertheless, this school did not match the spirit of the Hasidim of Korets and they did everything they could to close it. In less than a year it closed due to a lack of students. Using various means, the Hasidim influenced the parents of the students to remove their children from the school and, in this fashion, it died a painless death.

We read these words, written by the reporter, Mr. Chaim Ben-Zion Temkin, in “Ha-Tzfira” in 1875 about the closing of the school: “I have come to arouse mourning over the destruction of the school of the wise man of God, Ha-Rav Herschenhorn, whose soul was satisfied with effort and work until he brought to fruition his good idea concerning improving the children of our city. And after effort and loss of time, he got a license from the government to establish this school, and quickly opened his house wide and announced in all

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the houses of worship: whoever wishes to educate his children for a life of happiness, let him bring them to Herschenhorn's school.

How happy he was to see that more than 25 wealthy people of the leaders of our city gave their children over to him. He did not spare his energy or his fortune and administered science and learning calmly, to teach them a foreign language and the language of the country and thought that there would be much respect for this house.

But his hope was dashed. The days of his school were few and bad and he did not see good out of his effort because his house was destroyed and there remained only mere words of flattery and hypocrisy, who have ears but do not hear the command of the new time that calls for wisdom and education. They slander, saying death is in this house to kill the spirit of Judaism.”

Nevertheless, Ha-Rav Herschenhorn did not despair and he advocated further to improve Jewish education in Korets and, first and foremost, for the local “Talmud-Torah,” which is a community educational institution and over whose improvements the heads of the community and its funders must be concerned.

In “Ha-Tzfira” in 1883, he cautions again that there is no longer a proper “Talmud-Torah” in Korets and no vocational school and, for this reason, the children of the poor are idle all day, without any education and work, and they do whatever their hearts desire, without a teacher or a director. And who is wise and has eyes in his head and cannot see what will come of this in the end.

In “Ha-Meliz” in 1883, he worries again about the situation of the children of the poor in need of proper education. “I will not speak,” he writes, “about the children of the rich, for whom proper education in a school is not the central thing for them and everyone has the ability to educate his children in his household as he sees fit. But what will the children of the poor do as there is no “Talmud-Torah” and no educational institution for them, and like a flock without a shepherd, mischievous, wild, naked, barefoot, and hungry youths move about all day in the outskirts of the town and do whatever they feel like doing and have no teacher or director. Are we not going to be held accountable for the desecration of respect for our faith and our people?”

He turns to the leaders of Korets and, in particular, to Zev-Wolf Weinstock with these words: “May you have the righteousness to call for a stop and to seriously consider how to fix the distortion, to find a way out with money, and to established a proper “Talmud-Torah” according to the needs of the place and time for the many poor who are with us.”

The public appeal of Ha-Rav Herschenhorn did what it needed to do and the leaders of the city rose up on behalf of the “Talmud-Torah.” We find information about the condition of the “Talmud-Torah” in Korets in 1903 in the lists of Mr. Yitzhak Nisenboim who published them in the daily newspaper, “Ha-Tzofeh.” He writes that already then the “Talmud-Torah” was a proper educational institution in a

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two-story house. The rooms were large, high, lovely, and clean, and about 80 students studied there Hebrew, Tanakh, Jewish history, Hebrew grammar, and also the language of the country. On the lower floor were a dining hall for the students, a prayer room, and a library. There was a large garden in the courtyard where the students worked with their hands, tilling the soil and planting vegetables, and also a seesaw for physical exercise.

This miracle, Mr. Nisenboim stressed, was due to the fact that Korets had an official rabbi, Ha-Rav Herschenhorn, who served there for more than forty years and whose heart was full of desire and will to educate the children of Israel and, without tumult and noise, without demands and enthusiasm, continued on his long and obstacle-ridden road over dozens of years to improve and enhance the house that was advancing the children of the poor in Torah and education until he was able to build this big and beautiful house.

Rav Herschenhorn also had a hand in building the Jewish hospital in Korets. With regards to this, he writes these particulars in “Ha-Meliz” of 1875 (Issue 51): “It's been about 10 years since they began to build a hospital for the poor - a house with walls built up to the attic, but until now the building has not been finished. And look, now this matter comes to completion through the work of R. Leibush Bar-Pesach Vatenmakher, who has lived here for more than 40 years, and he has directed all his fortune, his homes, and his rooms for the good of the city, and is directing four of the wealthy men: Aharon Lifschitz, Aharon Kristinfolier, Pinchas Weinstock, and at the head, the elderly Pesach Weinstock, who will be trustees over his estate and a great good for the community of Korets will be able to stem from this.”

The building was erected in 1883. This was a building made of wood with seven rooms and it cost about 1,500 rubles. It was equipped as it should be, but it suffered from a lack of physicians. In Korets there were, generally always, three physicians, but in that year, only one physician remained because one died and the second went into the army.

After the huge fire that visited Korets in 1881, Ha-Rav Herschenhorn worked very hard to restore the large Beit-Midrash that had burned up. With regards to this, he wrote these following words in “Ha-Meliz” of that year (Issue 18): “As is known, at the time of the great fire in Korets (1881), the synagogue and all the Batei-Midrash [=houses of learning] in the city burned and were destroyed (only on the other side of the river, three remained). The leaders of the city decided that all the residents of the city had to carry the expenses of building the synagogue.

Within one year, they built a lofty stone building, the likes of which had never existed in our city.

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The dedication of the building took place at Shavuot (1882). The building walls are higher than 10 cubits and there is a sheet metal roof over them, but the building is still not finished inside and there is no one to stand before the ark because there is no cantor in our city.”

And Ha-Rav Herschenhorn turns to the Jews of Korets with an emotional cry: “Strengthen your resolve and give it much honor in order that it might rise and be a place of Torah study for all our community.” By his words, they amassed in Korets the sum of 3,774 rubles for the building of the synagogue.

Much important cultural activity is tied to the name of Ha-Rav Herschenhorn - the establishment of the “Tarbut” library of which he was its patron and trustee. Over time, this library became sort of a spiritual center for the Jews of the city.

And tied to his name, too, was the establishment of the “National Credit Bank,” which was both a financial and a Zionist-national institution.

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn was a devoted Zionist throughout his entire life. He participated in the Zionist meeting in Minsk and became friends with Moshe-Leib Lilienblum. He soaked up the national fragrance already during the years of his study in the rabbinical seminary in Zhytomyr.

In Korets, he was among the organizers of the Zionist club and, together with Yehoshua Zaltzman, established lessons in Hebrew, which made an important contribution in deepening the Zionist idea among the Jews of Korets. He took an honored and important task upon himself - to lecture on the Sabbath on Zionist and literary topics. Both simple people and artisans streamed to these lectures.

When R. Nechemiah saw that these lectures were making waves in the broader community, he brought an overhead projector, through which he showed pictures of the giants of Zionism, of the holy places in Israel, and of the life of the Jews in agricultural settlements and villages. Rav Herschenhorn has an honored place in the design of a Zionist portrait of the Jews of Korets.

Ha-Rav Herschenhorn died on February 6, 1923. He reached a grand old age - more than the age of “being bent” - 90 years old. He was gathered unto his people in the soil of Korets, the soil on which his feet walked for more than 50 years.

Original footnote:

1. MTAH”M - under the auspices of the government. Return

The extraction of the “prodigy” is from Rabbi Leib Sarah's, that same miraculous saint, a contemporary of the Besht [=Israel Ba'al Shem Tov], whom Hasidism crowned with a halo of astounding legends and saw in him one of the hidden righteous.

In order to preserve the holy and pure extraction throughout the generations, the family of the “prodigy” called itself Schorin, from the name Sarah's (Sorah's).

“The Genius from Poltava” The brilliant rabbi, yeshiva teacher in Zhvil [=Novohrad Volynskyy] and in Korets Rabbi Yoel Sarin zatsa”l

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after he had brought the goat out, thunder hit the animal pen and it burned up entirely. The grandmother suspected him of having dealings with the powers of the heavens.

From childhood, the “prodigy” tended toward seclusion. He was always deep in thought and his spirit hovered in the upper worlds. While he was still young, the same spirit of study and research began to surge in him. Questions of divinity and the secret of creation began to engage his young and astute mind and he began to investigate what was beyond his comprehension.

These meditations of childhood caused indirect injury to his body and he remained crippled his whole life: once the “prodigy” returned from “Cheder” and, being deep in his thoughts, his foot tripped and he fell into a clay pit. At that same moment, a bloc of dirt was torn off from its place and covered the youth up to his neck. One of the cart drivers who was called to the place rescued the “prodigy” from the landslide, but his leg was crushed. The doctors did not succeed in curing the leg completely and he dragged it for his whole life. What was amazing in this was that this defect added adornment to the “prodigy” in his old age.

While he was still a youth, the “prodigy” was sent to a place of Torah - the yeshiva of Volozhin [=Valozhyn]. He amazed the head of the yeshiva with his brilliance and his astuteness and he was named “the prodigy of Poltava.”

After he was certified as a teacher, he married, returned to Ukraine, and settled in Novohrad Volynskyy (Zhvil).

He established a small “yeshiva” in a remote street in Zhvil, Karsana Street, and began to spread his ideas. But the “prodigy” dreamt of a large yeshiva that would be built for the groups and factions of Torah scholars who would flow to it. Matters developed and the “prodigy” saw the fulfillment of his desire. When he was in Kiev [=Kyiv], he entered the synagogue of Brodsky and sermonized on the lesson of the week. The rich man was impressed by the sermon of the young “prodigy.” He approached him and asked how he could be of help to him. The “prodigy” responded, if I have found favor with you, I would ask one thing of you: with your money, build a large “yeshiva” in Zhvil for the many young men of Israel who are thirsty for Torah. Brodsky immediately sent his engineer and he built a large and beautiful building in “Karetzer Gasse.”

However, the “prodigy” did not stay in Zhvil for long. On the night of the slaughter that the rioters perpetrated on the Jews of Zhvil at the end of the first World War, the “prodigy” took a Torah scroll from the ark and fled to Korets with 60 of his students. The “prodigy” walked all night with the Torah scroll in his hand, dragging his sick leg, and reached the city at dawn.

We lived then in a large and spacious house on Komisaria Street and the “prodigy” and his students were housed in one of the halls. They lived in our house for half a year.

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During those days a typhus epidemic broke out in the city and many of the students became ill. The “prodigy” took pity on the students, like a father with his children, didn't let himself sleep and tried to ease their suffering as much as he could. Under his influence, Dr. Zeitlin was willing to take care of the students for free, without money. Dr. Zeitlin became the doctor of the “yeshiva” and would lecture the boys occasionally on matters of sanitation (hygiene).

For a while, the “yeshiva” moved from our house to Hornshtein's synagogue. The “prodigy”'s wife, Chaya, died there. This heavy tragedy that came upon him influenced the entire direction of his life. He mourned his wife all his days and did not re-marry.

The reputation of the “prodigy” spread throughout the country and also the wide world and young men began to come to Korets from faraway places. When the “prodigy” saw that his place was too small, he turned to Rav Hornshtein, the government rabbi, and asked him to house the “yeshiva” in the “Talmud Torah” building. Rav Hornshtein acquiesced to the “prodigy,” but with the stipulated conditions that some of the outstanding young men from the “yeshiva” would teach Tanakh in a free and modern manner and also secular studies at the “Talmud Torah. The “prodigy” accepted the condition and sent his son, Yossel, who was an outstanding grammarian, to teach grammar and also sent his students, Yehoshua Pritzker, Hirschel Biloradker, Shlomo Goroshker, Itzik Serniker, and Shlomo Hulevker - to teach both religious and secular studies.

I was at that time a student at the “Talmud Torah” and I remember an incident in which the “prodigy” was revealed to be a generous man, anxious for the peace of Israel, and worried about its unity. The “prodigy”'s son-in-law, Baruch-Mordechai, gave the lesson in Tanakh at the “Talmud Torah.” Once Baruch-Mordechai was sick and we were excused from studying. By chance, the “prodigy” came to the “Talmud Torah” that day on one of his regular visits. He asked us where we were in Tanakh. We told him: “I Kings, chapter 12.” The “prodigy” got up to the lectern and began to teach us about that chapter and when he got to the words of Rehoboam, son of Shlomo: “My father chastised you with whips and I will chasten you with scorpions” - he broke out in bitter tears because the arrogant words of Rehoboam had led to the division of the nation and afterwards to its destruction.

The “prodigy” did not give classes at the “yeshiva.” He would appear from time to time and test the students. The actual head of the yeshiva was his son-in-law, Baruch-Mordechai, a native of Rovno [=Rivne], who had already known the “prodigy” in Zhvil. The “prodigy” thought a lot of Baruch-Mordechai and gave him his daughter, Rivka, as a wife. After her death, he gave him his daughter, Freydel, who was a modern and educated young woman.

The “prodigy” did not hold himself up high nor did he treat his students badly. There was no

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atmosphere in the “yeshiva” of “watch your mouth.” He did not check the political or ideological tzitzit [=ritual fringes] of the young men. There were members of various parties at the “yeshiva” and even some socialists, both secret and open. The “prodigy” saw the phenomenon of the parties as something with which he had to make his peace. He had a saying: The Second Temple was destroyed by the parties - the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Sicarii - and the Third Temple will be built by parties. Only one thing interested the “prodigy”: that the young men would know the page of Gemara with all the commentaries well because all who concern themselves with Torah is forgiven his sins.

And so, the boys of the “yeshiva” were not compelled to hide with the “Moreh Nevuchim” [=Guide to the Perplexed] in the attic. And when a “yeshiva” boy was caught with a heretical book like “Hattot Ne'urim” [=Youthful Sins] of Lilienblum, he was not looking at ostracism and expulsion. From this perspective, the “yeshiva” had the character of an academy. The winds of the future blew through it, even the son, Yossel, was a modern “yeshiva” boy, expert in grammar and in secular studies.

The “prodigy” limited his sleep. He studied at night and engaged in creativity. He maintained the opinion of Rav Shimon Ben Lakish: “the moon was only created for study.” And thus, he had only four cubits of Halacha [=Jewish law]. He also wrote various books. He had compositions about the Rambam [=Maimonides] and innovations of Torah, written in the style of the Mishna. From time to time, the spirit of song would descend on him and he composed rhymes. As far as I know, these compositions remained handwritten only and were never published.

Because the “prodigy” didn't sleep much, he was among the “greeters of the Ashmoret” [=morning watch] and appeared at the “yeshiva” to greet the Shma of Shacharit, one who could tell the difference between light blue and white or between light blue and green, that is to say, sometime before sunrise. He would remain wrapped in his tallit for a few hours, deep in contemplation, cut off from the material world, until they were forced to stop his thoughts in order to eat.

Although the “prodigy” was a weak Jew, I don't remember that he was ever confined to bed. And so we were dumbstruck when we learned of his illness - throat cancer. The doctors advised him to go to Berlin, to consult with famous professors. He went there with his son, Yossel. They operated on him, but without success. The “prodigy” felt that he was being called to the heavenly yeshiva and so, he asked his son to bring him back to Korets in order to die in his beloved city among the community of his students.

But he didn't get to have that. He died upon arriving in Warsaw and he was 61. He was buried in the Warsaw cemetery, on Gensha Street. The great of Torah in Poland participated in his funeral. A delegation of the students of the “yeshiva” also accompanied him on his final journey.

My grandfather, Rav Michal'eh zatsa”l, was born in 1843 to his father, the Tzaddik, Rabbi Yosef of Berezne, son of the Tzaddik, Rabbi Yitzhak of Berezne, who was the son-in-law of the Tzaddik, Rabbi Aharon of Chernobyl, and great-grandson and grandson of the Maggid of Stepan and of the line of the genius, the “Turei Zahav” Ha-Levi [=Rabbi David Ha-Levi].

Ha-Rav Michal'eh, aside from the fact that he was a giant in Torah and wisdom and delivered words of the revealed and the hidden Torah

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on Shabbat and on festivals when his table was arranged with his Hasidim - he was gifted with a powerful and pleasant voice. He would pass in front of the Ark on Shabbat and with the pleasantness of his singing, he drew hundreds of Korets residents to him, who then made his great synagogue their normal place of worship - “Brezner Enclave.” On “The Days of Awe” and on holidays, many of his Hasidim and admirers from Rovno [=Rivne] and Dubno thronged to him, he having visited these cities more than once by invitation from those who had heard his lessons.

Rav Michal'eh was accustomed to pass in front of the Ark on “The Days of Awe” and to pray “Shacharit” and “Musaf,” but when he got old, his son, Ha-Rav Leizer'el, may God avenge his blood, prayed “Shacharit” in the manner of his father, received from his righteous ancestors.

My grandfather acquired a large house with many spacious rooms. The house was open for the welfare of passersby from among the learned and good persons who lodged with him. The house was in a large fruit garden and in the spring and summer, residents of the city came to enjoy the pleasant air and the various fruits.

My grandfather died on the 7th of Tishrei (1916). He was 73 when he died. On “Rosh ha-Shanah” of that year, he still passed, in his usual manner, in front of the Ark for “Musaf” prayers.

Rav Michal'eh left behind three sons and three daughters. The oldest son, my father, ADMOR Rabbi Baruch'le, was a rabbi in Dubno for almost 50 years and died there on the 5^th of Nisan (1936). His second son, Rav Yossel'eh, was ADMOR in Kishinev [=Chişinǎu] for almost 40 years and was tragically killed, together with his family, in 1941. His third son, Rav Leizer'el, who filled his father's place as ADMOR in Korets, was killed in Korets, along with another 1,500 Jews at the time of the great slaughter that happened on the eve of Shavuot in 1942. His daughter, the Rabbanit Itta, along with her husband, Ha-Rav Shalom of Polonne, was killed in the Holocaust. His daughter, the Rabbanit Yocheved, with her husband, the rabbi of the city of Krutyye [=Kruti], were also tragically killed during the years of the Holocaust. His third daughter, the Rabbanit Chana'le, and her husband, Ha-Rav Pinchas'le, who were for some years in Korets and then moved to Lutsk - they, too, died in the Holocaust together with their entire family.

Of the popular figures of the rabbis of Volhynia and of the scholars who knew how to lead their congregations in pleasant ways. A native of the town of Zshetel in Lithuania and a student of the yeshivas in Volozhin [=Valozhyn] and Radin [=Radun].

The desire of the supporters of the public in our places was always to get and situate

So Korets, too, was honored in 1900 to bring in Ha-Rav Lidski as Mara d'Atra [=teacher of the place], who had been until then the rabbinic authority in Yezna [=Jieznas] - to which he came in 1890 when he was a young rabbi of 25.

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His greatness in Torah and reverence for God did not prevent him from being aware of everything that was happening in the Jewish street and to be familiar with the grating problems of our world. He did not limit himself to the four cubits of Halacha [=Jewish law] and did much work for the needs of the public. He did not only worry about matters of the “Talmud-Torah” and the “yeshiva” in the place, but also for the charity fund and so on.

As one of the students of the Chofetz Chaim [=Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan] zatsa”l, he saw an obligation to have fixed times for Torah study and, in keeping with the decision of the great congress in its day, he also conducted the study of the Daf Yomi [=Talmud page of the day] in his city.

Ha-Rav Lidski was among the organizers of the community committee in Korets in 1928 and since then was chosen as city rabbi.

The rebuilt Land of Israel was very close to his heart and, in his sermons on “Shabbat Shuva” and “Shabbat Ha-Gadol,” he touched on the importance of settling the Land of Israel and urged contributions to funds.

After the slaughter in Hebron in 1929, a protest meeting was organized in the great synagogue in Korets and Ha-Rav Lidski spoke at it. All the stores in the city were locked. In his speech, he expressed his emotional protest over the events in Israel. His words shook the members of the public who were present.

He participated in all rabbinic conferences and worked a lot all throughout Volhynia towards strengthening the religion, maintaining family purity, and so on.

He worked on behalf of his community and stood on high alert until the end of his life. He died on October 26, 1931 after a short illness at the age of 68.

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