Rabbi Avraham Weinberg of Slonim, autographed, personal Arizal Siddur
A siddur containing the Kabbalistic intentions (kavvanot) of the Ari, which was used by Rabbi Avraham of Slonin, author of
Birkat Avraham.
Seder Tefilot Kol HaShana – with the kavvanot of the Ari and the customs of the Baal Shem Tov, compiled by his disciple the kabbalist Rabbi Shabbetai of Rashkov.
On the title page is the handwritten signature of the Rebbe: Avraham Weinberg. And on the page before the title page:
Avraham ben HaRav Noach Weinberg of the holy city of Tiberias.
Underneath the signature of ‘Birkat Avraham’ is written by his father-in-law, the pious
Rabbi Moshe Kopelovitch: ‘This siddur I received as a gift, from my esteemed father-in-law mentioned above.’
Rabbi Moshe Kopelovitch was the grandson of the Rebbe of Slonim, and his son Rabbi Pinchas Shimon
Kopelovitch was the son-in-law of the ‘Birkat Avraham’.
Rabbi Avraham of Slonin, author of Birkat Avraham (1889-1981), son of Rabbi Noah, son of Rabbi Michel Aaron, son of the Rebbe of the ‘Yesod HaAvodah’. He was born and raised in Tiberias, which was then a major center of the Slonim Chassidic dynasty. He traveled to Slonim to his uncle, the Rebbe of Slonim, and learned from him Torah and Kedusha. After the Holocaust, the Chassidim urged him to lead the community, but he refused. However, in 1954, after the passing of Rabbi Mordechai Chaim of Slonim, he agreed to accept the leadership of the community. According to his will, his son-in-law, the Rebbe Netivot Shalom’, was appointed as his successor. (Encyclopedia of Chassidism, pp. 22-23)
Prayer was a great foundation in the service of the ‘Birkat Avraham’. His prayer was fervent, and he often spoke to the Chassidim about the virtue of prayer, with humility and lowliness. In his will, he even requested that they be careful, for the sake of his soul, to avoid talking during prayer.
On the margins of the siddur are glosses, corrections, and textual variants in handwriting.
The sidder is missing 2 pages
Lemberg 1866 [54] 57-130: [4], 104, 114, [1], 11 leaves. Includes the booklet ‘Minhat Yitzhak’ – a list of errors and corrections by Rabbi Yitzhak Segol of Berzhan – this booklet is missing in some copies. This siddur includes both parts, but is missing the title page for the first part (the second title page is at the beginning of Vol. 1) and a leaf from the approbations.
Condition used, wine stains on the Passover Haggadah, holes in some of the pages, extensive usage signs to the margins on the first and last pages with old reinforcements. Original worn binding, preserved in a new elegant leather box.
