Zelig Reuven Bengis
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Rabbi Zelig Reuven Bengis (1864, Shnippishok, Russia - 1953, Jerusalem, E. Israel) was the Russian-born Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem for the Edah HaChareidis. He wrote a seven-volume commentary on the Talmud, called "Leflagos Reuven".
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[edit] Youth
He was the son of Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Bengis, the rov of the Russian town of Shnippishok. Rabbi Zelig Reuven was soon known as "the Shnippishoker illuy" (prodigy). When he was 17 years old, he went to learn in the Volozhin yeshiva under the Netziv, who called him 'the living Shas'. While learning at Volozhin, his reputation quickly grew and he was known as an extremely sharp student and a diligent learner.
After having learnt in Volozhin for several years, he married the daughter of Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Broide, who was the rov of a town called Shverkina-Zhager. After his marriage, he spent eight years living with his parents-in-law, learning all day. After these eight years, he was appointed rov of Bodki, Lithuania.
[edit] Rov in Lithuania
After having spent time as rov of Bodki, he became the rov of Kalvarie, also in Lithuania. During his time as rov of Kalvarie, World War I broke out. During the war, the Russian government forced Jews to move further eastward. Rabbi Bengis settled in Smolensk, a Russian town where many non-religious Jews lived. In Smolensk, Rabbi Bengis involved himself in teaching these non-religious Jews about Judaism. In this, he received strong encouragement from the Chofetz Chaim.
After the war, Rabbi Bengis returned to Kalvarie. His reputation grew, and he was known as an expert in all areas of Judaism - he knew countless Jewish works, including the entire Tanach, both the Yerushalmi and Bavli Gemoro, the Rambam, Shulchan Oruch, backward and forward. He received halachic questions from all over the world. Some of his halachic rulings were published in the periodical HaTevunah, but they were never published in bookform.
[edit] Rov in the Holy Land
In 1932, after the passing of Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, Rabbi Bengis was asked to become rosh av beis din (ravad) - 2nd Chief Rabbi - of the Edah HaChareidis in Jerusalem. At that point, however, he declined the offer, since his rival there would be Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook - a fellow student of the Netziv from Volozhin.
However, the leadership of the Edah repeated their offer in 1937. Since Rav Kook had died, Rabbi Bengis immediately accepted the offer, and moved from Lithuania to Eretz Yisroel - the Holy Land - shortly before World War II broke out.
In 1947, he and Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky, the Chief Rabbi - govad - of the Edah, appeared before a United Nations commission which was to decide the future of the British Mandate of Palestine. They spoke against the establishment of a Jewish state there, requesting the UN to recognize Jerusalem as a holy city which should not be part of any state, but should be ruled by the UN itself as an international city. He also requested the commission to allow the immigration of homeless Jews who had survived the war in Europe.
When Rabbi Dushinsky died in 1948, Rabbi Bengis succeeded him as govad of the Edah. Simultaneously, he also fulfilled the position of rosh yeshiva at Yeshivas Ohel Moshe, also in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Bengis died on the 7th of Sivan, 5713 (1953). He was almost 90 years old, and had fulfilled rabbinical roles in Lithuania and Jerusalem for over 60 years.
