Document Signed by the Ra'ava"d Rabbi Mordechai Weiss, Uncle of the 'Imrei Yosef' of Spinka

Document Signed by the Ra'ava"d Rabbi Mordechai Weiss, Uncle of the 'Imrei Yosef' of Spinka

Document signed (twice) by the gaon Rabbi Mordechai Weiss of Munkacs, Ra'ava"d of the Chassidic community in Tiberias, uncle of the author of Imrei Yosef of Spinka. Safed, 1887.

In this document, Rabbi Weiss affirms that he received a sum of money from "[my] beloved friend" Rabbi Moshe Chara"g (one of the notables of the Safed community and representative of Kaiser Franz Josef, who also represented Austro-Hungarian passport holders in the Land of Israel. He was later appointed by Kaiserin Victoria to represent British passport holders as well.) Rabbi Weiss received the funds to distribute among the poor of Tiberias. The letter contains important details about the source of the donation, who the emissary was for its transfer, who the recipients were and other historic details. The letter also demonstrates Rabbi Weiss' incredible precision with the charity funds, with apparently the emissary who transferred the funds also signing on the letter as well as the recipient of the donation. Rabbi Weiss's signature is at the top of the document, and in the margins are two lines in his script, with his signature once again.

The gaon Rabbi Mordechai Weiss of Munkacs [d. 1895] was Ra'ava"d of the Chassidic community of Tiberias and one of those appointed to oversee Kollel Österreich-Galicia. He was a brother of Rabbi Shmuel Tzvi Weiss, Av Beit Din of Munkacs, father of the Admo"r, the author of Imrei Yosef of Spinka, and Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac Weiss, Av Beit Din of Svalyava. He ascended with his father to the Land of Israel in 1852 and studied Torah with the gaon Rabbi Shmuel Heller. Rabbi Weiss is also the one who signed on the receipt  given to the Admo"r Rabbi Yechezkel Shraga of Shinova for his donation to the Sanz Chassidim in Tiberias.

[1] leaf paper, 13x10 cm. Double leaf.

Very fine condition: Fold marks.