The Matersdorfer Rav, zt”l
By Menachem Cohen
I had heard of the Matersdorfer Rav, zt”l, but I didn’t know much about him. When the Rav was niftar last week, my chavrusa and I asked our Rosh HaYeshiva, Harav Aharon Walkin, shlita, after shiur to tell us more about him. We knew they had shared a close kesher. What the Rosh HaYeshiva shared moved us deeply, and I felt it would be a to’eles harabim to pass it on to your readers. I even revisited the recordings to ensure I captured every word accurately.
The Rosh HaYeshiva’s Words
The Rosh HaYeshiva began:
“The Matersdorfer Rav… royalty! Chazal state, Man malchei? Rabbanan! Who are the princes of royalty? The Talmidei Chachamim. This was the Matersdorfer Rav—a prince!”
He continued:
“The Mishnah in Avos (6:1) teaches: ‘Whoever learns Torah lishmah will merit humility and yiras shamayim, and he will also be a tzaddik, a chasid, a yosher, and a ne’eman. Such a person is imbued with malchus—royalty. The Matersdorfer Rav exemplified this. Everything he did was leshem Shamayim. He was a tzaddik, a chasid, a yosher, and he carried himself with a regal dignity that stemmed from his Torah and humility.”
The Rosh HaYeshiva explained further:
“What is the malchus the Mishnah refers to? The Imrei Emes, quoting the Sfas Emes, explains that this is not worldly monarchy, for a talmid chacham has no need for such things. Rather, it refers to a spiritual attribute of malchus, resulting from being completely kashur and daveik to the Melech Malchei HaMelachim, HaKadosh Baruch Hu.
“This resolves the apparent contradiction between malchus and humility. Does not a king demand honor and act with strictness? How can he simultaneously embody humility and forgo personal insult? The answer lies in the distinction between earthly malchus and the malchus of Torah and mitzvos—the keser Torah. The royalty of Torah is the product of profound humility.”
A Living Embodiment of Keser Torah
“The Matersdorfer Rav embodied this keser Torah. His royalty arose from his humility and yiras shamayim.
“A Rav and talmid chacham must carry themselves with dignity. Rav Shmuel Rozovsky, zt”l, the late Ponovezher Rosh HaYeshiva, would often quote the pasuk, Uv’heichalo kulo omer kavod—homiletically explaining that all who dwell in Hashem’s tent, the bnei Torah, must radiate honor and dignity.
“The Matersdorfer Rav radiated dignity, reflecting his lineage as a descendant of the holy Chasam Sofer and his illustrious family of rabbanim who shaped Klal Yisrael’s history.
“I once heard a beautiful explanation from a maggid in Yerushalayim. Why are great talmidei chachamim compared to kings? Just as a king draws admiration and respect, so too does a talmid chacham. His noble conduct inspires others, as the Mishnah in Avos (2:11) says about Rav Yehoshua ben Chananya: Ashrei yoladeto.”
The Rav’s Profound Middos
“Every encounter I had with the Rav left me elevated, moved by his warmth, kindness, and sterling middos bein adam l’chaveiro.
“Once, I visited him unexpectedly and without an appointment. Someone answered the door and asked if I had scheduled a meeting. Hearing this, the Rav himself came to the door and invited me in. When I apologized for arriving unannounced, he stopped me, saying, ‘You didn’t do anything wrong. You knocked and waited. That’s not barging in.’
“On another occasion, I was accompanying a bochur from an out-of-town yeshiva on an errand. We met with several roshei yeshiva, and each asked where the bochur learned. Most simply acknowledged his answer, but when the Matersdorfer Rav asked and heard the name of the yeshiva, he responded with genuine enthusiasm, praising the yeshiva and its staff by name. Afterward, the bochur turned to me and said, ‘Wow—he’s a real gadol, a true tzaddik!’”
True Gadlus
“Harav Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg, zt”l, once remarked to me: What is a gadol? When Moshe Rabbeinu prayed to Hashem in Parashas Va’eschanan, ‘You have begun to show Your servant gadlecha, Your greatness,’ Rashi explains, zu midas tuvcha—Your attribute of goodness. True greatness is tuvcha, kindness and goodness.
“The Matersdorfer Rav was truly a gadol—kulo tov u’meitiv.
“I once honored the Rav at my son’s bris with the krias shem. To express my gratitude, I gifted him a beautifully inscribed set of Midrash Rabbah. At first, the Rav humbly refused, saying, ‘If anything, I should be giving you a gift for inviting me and honoring me at the bris. I don’t deserve this.’ I persisted, and he finally agreed, reasoning that since he gave a shiur in Midrash Rabbah, the gift would not be for his personal benefit but for the sake of the tzibbur and limud haTorah.”
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