Dayan Yitzchak Rudnick was a Lithuanian-born rabbi who served as the rabbi of the Cannon Street shul in London from 1929 until his death in 1975. He was a Talmudic scholar who authored two books containing novellae on Talmudic topics and responses to theoretical halachic questions. Rudnick felt lonely as the Orthodox community showed little interest in his Talmudic insights and did not ask him halachic questions. He published his seforim both to establish an eternal legacy and to fulfill his duty of strengthening Torah practice when opportunities to do so within his community were limited.
Dayan Yitzchak Rudnick was a Lithuanian-born rabbi who served as the rabbi of the Cannon Street shul in London from 1929 until his death in 1975. He was a Talmudic scholar who authored two books containing novellae on Talmudic topics and responses to theoretical halachic questions. Rudnick felt lonely as the Orthodox community showed little interest in his Talmudic insights and did not ask him halachic questions. He published his seforim both to establish an eternal legacy and to fulfill his duty of strengthening Torah practice when opportunities to do so within his community were limited.
Dayan Yitzchak Rudnick was a Lithuanian-born rabbi who served as the rabbi of the Cannon Street shul in London from 1929 until his death in 1975. He was a Talmudic scholar who authored two books containing novellae on Talmudic topics and responses to theoretical halachic questions. Rudnick felt lonely as the Orthodox community showed little interest in his Talmudic insights and did not ask him halachic questions. He published his seforim both to establish an eternal legacy and to fulfill his duty of strengthening Torah practice when opportunities to do so within his community were limited.
Dayan Yitzchak Rudnick was born in Lithuania in 1904 into a distinguished rabbinic family. In his youth, he studied in the famous Slabodka Yeshiva under Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Epstein, but in 1924, in response to the Russian conscription edict, he travelled with around 150 students from Slabodka to Chevron, where they established Yeshivas Chevron. In the wake of the 1929 Arab attacks, in which 24 fellow students were killed, Dayan Rudnick came to London where he married the daughter of Rabbi Pinchas Yaakov Gerber, then the rabbi of the Cannon Street shul. On the death of his father-in-law, Dayan Rudnick took over this position, where he served until his death in 1975. Dayan Rudnick was an expert in Talmudic studies, and it pained him greatly 1 that his community was only interested in homiletic sermons and did not ask him Shailos (halachic questions) which he was more than qualified to answer. He writes 2 that one of the Birkos HaTorah that we recite each day is the bracha of Laasok Bdivrei Torah, which is fulfilled by strengthening Torah practice. Faced with the decline of Orthodoxy in his community, he lamented that he did not have many opportunities to strengthen Torah practice. He explains: I have therefore decided to fulfil my duty to strengthen Torah practice by compiling and printing my Torah thoughts. Whilst Dayan Rudnick could have achieved this objective by submitting articles to Rabbinical journals, there was a further reason why he felt compelled to publish seforim. He writes that we are pained that we did not merit having sons... Therefore, my wife the dear Rabbanit Zlata, daughter of HaRav HaGaon Rabbi Pinchas Yaakov Gerber zl, author of the books Yad Pinchas and Raui LBila, asked that I make an eternal memorial. I have therefore printed and published, with much exertion, this book, so it should be an eternal memorial for us. His first book, which contains a mix of Chiddushei Torah (Torah insights) and Shailos UTeshuvos (Responsa) was called Sefer Sadeh Yitzchak (literally, field of Yitzchak). It was published in London in 5721 (1960) and it was given this title because he felt that his novellae were seeds that were sown with the help of G-d 3 . Eight years later, Dayan Rudnick published Sefer Pri Yitzchak (literally, fruit of Yitzchak) which also contained Chiddushei Torah and Shailos UTeshuvos. It was given this name because this was the fruit of the original field 4 . Shailos UTeshuvos Many of the questions which Dayan Rudnick addresses were theoretical, and he emphasises that his responses are intended to stimulate halachic discussion, and so represent only his
1 Introduction to Sefer Sadeh Yitzchak 2 Ibid. See also introduction to Sefer Pri Yitzchak 3 Introduction to Sefer Sadeh Yitzchak 4 Introduction to Sefer Pri Yitzchak own intellectual opinion, rather than a practical ruling. In fact, in his approbation to Sefer Pri Yitzchak, Rabbi Moshe Feinstein reiterates this message, noting that this sefer is intended to stimulate halachic discussion and demonstrate how to plumb the depths of halacha. However, where any of these questions arise in practice, a Moreh Horaah (halachic decisor) should revisit all the key sources. In light of this, one may have expected these responsa to have little practical application. However, the questions which Dayan Rudnick chooses to address are both broad in their subject, and remain profoundly relevant today, such as: Does Judaism permit active euthanasia? 5 Can a Jew become a boxer? 6 Is it permitted to watch a church service on television? 7 Is it permitted for a Jew to frequent a betting shop and if they do, are they forbidden to testify in a Jewish court? 8 Is the testing of medicines on animals permitted? 9 Is it permitted for Jews to watch a bullfight? 10 Can a Jew model clothes? 11 . Given his expertise in Talmudic studies, it is unsurprising that each answer quotes a wide range of rabbinic texts, and incorporates a great number of halachic insights. However, I also feel that there is a sense of melancholy as most of these questions are entirely fictitious. Chiddushei Torah In addition to Shailos UTeshuvos, Dayan Rudnick penned many Chiddushei Torah. Here is one beautiful example: The fifth bracha of the Amidah, known as Hashiveinu, opens with Bring us back, Our Father, to Your Torah, and bring us near, Our King, to Your service. Why, asks Dayan Rudnick 12 , do we refer to G-d as our Father when speaking about Torah, but in reference to ritual service, we address Him as our King? He explains that children inherit the possessions of their parents. Since the Torah is an inheritance to the Jewish nation, we refer to G-d as our Father when speaking about Torah. However, the Temple service provided atonement not only for the Jewish nation, but also for all other nations. Therefore, the phrase bring us near, Our King, to Your service, which does not refer to the Jewish nation alone, but includes all the other nations in the world, is used 13 . Conclusion
5 Ibid. No. 6 6 Ibid. No. 9 7 Sefer Pri Yitzchak No. 4 8 Ibid. No. 8 9 Ibid. No. 18 10 Ibid. 11 Ibid. No. 24 12 Sefer Sadeh Yitzchak No. 35 13 In light of this, Dayan Rudnick explains that since non-Jews were also stakeholders in the Temple, we publicise the miracle of Chanukah to both Jews and non-Jews. One of the reasons Dayan Rudnick wrote his books was to establish an eternal memorial for both himself and his wife. It is therefore an honour to have the opportunity to fulfil his wish by sharing some of his Torah. However, it remains very sad that many of us have not heard of Dayan Rudnick. He was a man who knew much Torah, yet was able to share very little of it with his community; he was a man of great faith, yet he was also a lonely man of faith. All too often, we dont appreciate our leaders until they move on or pass on. Anglo-Jewry is a small community, but it has been the home of many great people. Sometimes we think that Rabbis are too busy to answer questions, but most often, they cant wait for someone to ask them a challenging Torah question. Dayan Rudnicks personal tragedy was his religious loneliness. Our challenge is to avoid perpetuating this experience by thinking about our Judaism, by asking our Rabbis questions, and by appreciating their Torah knowledge in light of the answers they provide.
Front page of Sefer Sadeh Yitzchak Rabbi Johnny Solomon has worked in a range of capacities in the Anglo-Jewish education community, most recently as Head of Jewish Studies at Hasmonean Girls School. He now lives in Israel where he is a Jewish education consultant. This article is part of a larger project studying the responsa of UK Rabbis. To find out more, visit https://ukresponsa.com