A Unique Letter from the Kaf HaChaim to a Rav in Munkatch
Written in Ashkenazi Script!!
A halachic ruling on matters of cleanliness sent by the Gaon of Iraqi Jewry, the renowned kabbalist and halachic authority Rabbi Yaakov Chaim Sofer, author of ‘Kaf HaChaim’.
This letter was sent to Munkatch to his friend Rabbi Yechiel Michel Gold, author of ‘Maasaf L’chol HaMachanot’, who discusses this matter in his sefer (Part 1, Chapter 3, Section 10, paragraphs 23-24), and mentions there what the Kaf HaChaim ruled in his sefer.
The Kaf HaChaim, knowing that the recipient was not familiar with Sephardi script and would find it difficult to read, sent the letter written in Ashkenazi script!
The letter’s provenance is from the archive of the aforementioned recipient from Munkatch, and it is absolutely clear that this is the original letter sent by the Kaf HaChaim.
While we haven’t found another source to prove that this letter is indeed in the Ashkenazi handwriting(!) of the Kaf HaChaim, it is clearly evident in this letter that the writer is not accustomed to Ashkenazi script and made a special effort to write in this style.
It is reasonable to assume that if the Kaf HaChaim had wanted someone else to write the letter for him in Ashkenazi script, he would have approached an expert scribe. We have indeed seen another letter from the Kaf HaChaim written in a different Ashkenazi script (from 1932), but there it is evident that the writer is accustomed to Ashkenazi writing, unlike here where it is clearly visible that the writing is by someone unaccustomed to this script.
From the fact that the letter is written in simple, non-expert handwriting, and from the fact that the letter includes original deletions and corrections, one can carefully surmise that the letter is indeed in the rare Ashkenazi holy handwriting of the Kaf HaChaim.
Letters from the Kaf HaChaim are extremely rare!
To the best of our knowledge, this letter is completely unknown and has never been published!
The Kaf HaChaim (passed away 1939) was an extraordinary Gaon and one of the Torah giants of Iraq. He was born in Baghdad and in his youth received semicha from the Ben Ish Chai. In 1904, he immigrated to the Holy Land and settled in Jerusalem, where he joined the kabbalistic yeshiva ‘Beis E-l’ and quickly became one of the leading sages of Eretz Yisrael. He became world-renowned for his magnificent work ‘Kaf HaChaim’ on Orach Chaim and part of Yoreh Deah, which he worked on for decades, and which became one of the fundamental halachic works of recent generations.
He authored several other sefarim, some of which are mentioned in this letter: ‘Kol Yaakov’ on the laws of Sta"m (Jerusalem 1910), ‘Chaim Ad HaOlam’ – drashos for siyumei masechtos (Jerusalem 1921).
A friendship existed between the Kaf HaChaim and Rabbi Yechiel Michel Segal Gold, a chassid of the Minchas Elazar of Munkatch, despite the enormous distance between Jerusalem and Munkatch.
The Kaf HaChaim gave his approbation to his sefer ‘Mikraei Kodesh’ (Munkatch 1933), while Rabbi Yechiel Michel mentions the Kaf HaChaim’s rulings hundreds of times (!) in his wonderful sefer ‘Maasaf L’chol HaMachanot’.
Both Rabbanim authored similar sefarim, massive works on the Shulchan Aruch: ‘Kaf HaChaim’ according to Sephardic custom, and ‘Maasaf L’chol HaMachanos’ according to Ashkenazic custom (while frequently mentioning Sephardic customs as mentioned above).
Jerusalem [c. 1920s]. Ashkenazi script with deletions and additions. Size: 13.4 x 20.8 cm. Condition: Good-fair, fold marks with minor tears.
Provenance: Archive of the recipient Rabbi Yechiel Michel Segal Gold of Munkatch Hy"d.
