Letter of Torah Thoughts by Rabbi Moshe Freund-Grieshaber

Letter of Torah Thoughts by Rabbi Moshe Freund-Grieshaber
Letter handwritten and signed by R. Moshe Freund-Grieshaber. [Gyönk, 1868]. Addressed to his friend R. Eliyahu Menachem Goitein Rabbi of Hőgyész. Lengthy letter, mostly consisting of Torah thoughts. He mentions in passing a thought he heard from his teacher the Chatam Sofer, who remarked that pilpul is considered the crown of the Torah. At the end of the letter, he writes in a somewhat enigmatic way, about buying copies of "the renowned book which is a great necessity for upholding Torah observance". He writes that he agreed together with R. Avraham Pollak to purchase ten copies of the book, and is willing to absorb the cost if he does not succeed in selling them. It is unclear which book he is referring to. This letter was published in Zichron Avot, 1971 (section 81), together with a letter which R. Eliyahu Menachem had sent earlier to R. Moshe Freund. That letter also mentions the book only in elusive terms, yet it appears that R. Azriel Hildesheimer, close friend of R. Eliyahu Menachem, was also involved in this matter. R. Moshe Freund-Grieshaber (also known as R. Moshe Paks, 1797-1873), leading disciple of the Chatam Sofer. Son of R. Yitzchak Itzek Grieshaber-Freund Rabbi of Paks. After his marriage in 1815 to the daughter of a wealthy man from Gyönk, he settled there, delving in Torah and worship of G-d without needing to serve as rabbi. Several of the Chatam Sofer's responsa are addressed to him (see: Kinstlicher, HaChatam Sofer VeTalmidav, pp. 358-360). The recipient of the letter, R. Eliyahu Menachem Goitein (1838-1902), was the son of R. Tzvi Hirsch Goitein and grandson of R. Baruch Bendit Goitein author of Kesef Nivchar. He was a disciple of the Ketav Sofer. Like his father and grandfather, he served as rabbi of Hőgyész. See previous item. [1] double leaf. 21 cm. Fair-poor condition. Thin paper, dark ink showing through to verso, tears from ink erosion, affecting text.