37 Comments

1. 

   Debbie Harris on February 26, 2008 at 2:15 pm

   He was my great-grandfather (my mother’s grandfather). We always hear stories from my mother. All birthday cards and greetings from him (and his wife) to my mother were in hebrew, in beautiful handwriting, and decorated with birds, flowers etc.
   We are also very proud of his personal friendship with Rav Avraham Yitschak HaCohen Kook( I think they grew up together), the first chief Rabbi of Israel. My mother has a handwritten letter from Rav Kook to my great-grandfather, blessing him on the marriage of my grandfather to my grandmother in 1929.

2. 

   debra louison-lavoy on November 13, 2008 at 3:24 pm

   Debbie – My sister claims that this was my mother’s grandfather as well. Are we cousins? Naomi Shuchatowitz, daughter of Frances (for whom my daughter is named) and David Shuchatowitz
   deb at louisonlavoy dot com

3. 

   Baruch A on November 13, 2008 at 4:26 pm

   Deb:
   Do you have a picture of the Rav?
   Thank you,

4. 

   HaRav on December 26, 2008 at 3:51 pm

   Rav Moshe Feinstein once commented that I would take three trains to the Bronx just to learn with Rav Shuchatowitz

5. 

   asher on July 21, 2010 at 12:47 pm

   Baruch, do you have a copy of his will where it states not visiting with being mikvah’d other than what is engraved on the matzeivoh? Starnge for a litvisher gadol to ask for Mikvah, unless many gedolim in lita went to mikvah but did not make a big deal about it and… also as you mentioned he was a kabbalist (can you confirm the story that Rav Moshe z”l use to travel twice a week to learn kabalh with him). Was he from slonim (ish slonima) was Slonim chassidish back there?

6. 

   beis harav on July 25, 2010 at 5:29 am

   http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=22906&st=&pgnum=36&hilite=

7. 

   Debbie Harris on February 15, 2011 at 5:05 am

   To beis harav,

   i read the link with the obituary (hebrewbooks site)that you sent. i couldn’t find where the obituary was take from. do you know? i realize according to the contents that it was printed in eretz yisrael.
   thank you. dharris@barak.net.il

8. 

   admin on February 15, 2011 at 4:22 pm

   
   Photo Credit: Debbie Harris

9. 

   YD Miller on February 15, 2011 at 6:37 pm

   Debbie,

   מקור הכתבה על הרב שוחטביץ שהעתיק ‘בית הרב’ הוא בירחון ‘תבונה’ חוברות ז’ תשרי תש”ז
   נדפס באר”י ע”י ר’ ישראל זיסל דבורץ

   http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=22906&st=&pgnum=1&hilite=

10. 

    asher on February 15, 2011 at 9:38 pm

    Admin, thanx for the pic.

11. 

    Debbie Harris on February 16, 2011 at 12:29 pm

    Dear YD Miller

    תודה רבה על המידע. האם ידוע לך אם “בית הרב” זה בית הרב קוק או משהו אחר. האם ידוע לך למי משוייך הירחון תבונה? אודה לך על המידע, כי זה מאד מרגש אותי למצוא דברים שלא ידעתי על סבא-רבה שלי

12. 

    Ben Bee Zee on February 16, 2011 at 6:08 pm

    According to what’s written in Hatvina he was a Chossid, so this makes his request to immerse in Mikva before coming to his grave not “so” obvious, do you have any idea if that’s correct? If so to which Chasidus did he belong to?

13. 

    Debbie Harris on February 17, 2011 at 12:40 am

    no חסידות as far as i know. the whole family were litvaks.

14. 

    curios on February 17, 2011 at 9:00 am

    נראה מהתבונה שהיה חסיד במקורו. יתכן שאח”כ הסתפח למתנגדים. בפרט שסלונים היא בליטא.

15. 

    YD Miller on February 17, 2011 at 2:17 pm

    כבוד גב’ הריס,

    כנראה שלא הבנתי השאלה, ירחון ה’תבונה’ אינו משויך למישהו, ברשת יש אתר בשם ‘היברו-בוקס’ שעוסקת בהעלאת ספרי קודש וירחונים על האינטרנט לצפי’ והורדה בחנם, וכל הרוצה ליטול את השם יבא ויטול.

16. 

    Moshe Escott on February 17, 2011 at 2:29 pm

    Debbie,

    One can be a good chassid and a good Litvak at the same time without it being a תרתי דסתרי.

    That is if one is a Slonimer chassid! (or a Karliner or a Kobriner, etc.)

    As curios correctly states, the article in HaTevuna does definitely say that Rav Shuchatowitz was a chassid when he grew up in Slonim. Whether he maintained hanhagos of chassidus when he was in the USA is another issue that would have to be verified.

    Also as to what type of chassidus – it’s not clearly stated in the article although it wouldn’t be a stretch to guess that he was a Slonimer as he did grow up in Slonim.

    Slonimer chassidim were/are known for combining an appreciation of Litvishe brand of Torah learning with a Chassidishe brand of spirituality.

    An interesting article dealing with this can be seen at http://depts.drew.edu/rel/nadler%20on%20slonim.pdf

    Also see
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slonim_(Hasidic_dynasty)
    and
    http://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%97%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%93%D7%95%D7%AA_%D7%A1%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%A0%D7%99%D7%9D

17. 

    debbie harris on February 17, 2011 at 3:04 pm

    למה בפרט שסלונים היא בליטא? דווקא בגלל עובדה זו, הוא היה “מתנגד” כל חייו, על פי עדות אמי (שהוא היה סבה), שאפילו גרה איתו באותו בית כעשר שנים – מלידתה ועד פטירתו. כל המשפחה היו ליטבקים מובהקים, ללא מקורות חסידיים. אמנם, יתכן והיתה לו נשמה חסידית, כמו ליטאים רבים אחרים, שמנהגיהם כנוסח אשכנז, אך עם נטיות חסידיות של עבודת ה’ בשמחה – אך זה רק ניחוש
    , ., מר מילר – רציתי להבין מי אחראי לדברי ההספד, ולדעתי חוברת תבונה שיצאה בשנת תש”ז, אכן משויכת לפלג כלשהו. גם מישהו מ”בית הרב” העיר כאן הערה ורציתי לדעת מהו בית הרב. תודה

18. 

    curios on February 18, 2011 at 4:29 am

    חוברת התבונה יצאה ע”י הרב ישראל זיסל כלב דבורץ. הוא היה חניך ישיבת סלבודקה, ורב בעיירה ליטאית קטנה. אח”כ עלה לארץ והיה המזכיר של ישיבת חברון.

    בחוברות נכתבו, לבד מהמאמרים, גם “אבדות” של רבנים שונים שהלכו לבית עולמם.

19. 

    Debbie Harris on February 18, 2011 at 9:37 am

    moshe –

    all i’m saying is that from personal knowledge he wasn’t a chassid. anyone can either agree or disagree with me, but i guess my family knows their roots best… as i said, he may have had a chassidish neshama.

    לסקרן – תודה.

20. 

    Asher on April 10, 2011 at 2:58 am

    He had a son Naftali Schuchatowitz.
    Today I came upon a plaque in the Shomrei Emunim Shul (as I was in BP for shabbos). The plaque read –
    Naftali baharav Ahrohom Yitzchock
    Schuchatowitz
    Gabai and Rebbi of the Chevra
    Chofeitz Chaim
    Of Shomrei Emunah
    30 Sivan 5728

21. 

    YD Miller on June 15, 2011 at 5:07 pm

    Yes farshlufen,

    From the Obituary in Tevunah (linked above) you can see he had 4 sons, one of them Reb Ahron of New Haven CT.

    הניח אחריו בנים יקרים הולכים בדרכי אביהם, ה״ה:
    הר׳׳ר דוד
    הר״ר נפתלי
    והרב ר׳ אהרן רב בניו הייון
    (בנו הצעיר, הרב ר׳ מרדכי ז״ל, רב
    בלאנג איילנד, נקטף בדמי ימיו בי׳ג שבט העבר)

    http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=22906&st=&pgnum=36&hilite=

22. 

    curios on June 15, 2011 at 5:11 pm

    Seems so.

23. 

    YD Miller on June 16, 2011 at 4:14 pm

    On The above link you can also see the tumbstone of the wife of Reb Aaron Shuchatowitz, she was the daughter of Rabbi Yitschok Baritz of Congregation Adas Yisroel in Boston.

24. 

    Farshlufen on June 16, 2011 at 4:43 pm

    YD, Rav Baritz was also in NY.

25. 

    Cheskel on June 17, 2011 at 2:22 am

    Where is Rav Y Z Barits buried ?

26. 

    Debbie Harris on June 20, 2011 at 6:11 am

    my grandfather was naftali shuchatowitz. yes, he is the son of rabbi avraham yitzchak shuchatowitz. his brother was rabbi aharon shuchatowitz, who was the rabbi in new haven. Asher, could you send me a photo of the plaque? Thank you. PS one of rabbi aharon shuchatowitz’s grandaughters is rebetzin Lander, the wife of Rabbi Daniel Lander

27. 

    Moshe Shuchatowitz on July 13, 2011 at 10:57 am

    My gradfather was Rabbi Mordecai son of Rabbi Avraham YItchak Shuchatowitz. From what I heard from my father, who was from the last to speak with RAYS on the day he died ,also from reading the Tzava that my father had acopy of and Mostly from HARAV HAGON REb Moshe Fienstien that I the zcut to have some time with I have the very clear imression almost certinly that Zadi Avram Yitchack wasa real “Litvack” his higher practises that seem chasidish were most probobly the result of his Kabalah learning, wich i know of since Reb Moshe told me about his weekly meetings with Zadie In Zadie’s house.
    Reb Moshe Described Zadie as”the greatest jew living in amerca at that time.
    If any body has any more infomation about zadie i would apreciate if it would be shared with me
    Maybe we should make afamily gathering of all desedents

28. 

    Debbie Harris on August 3, 2011 at 5:53 pm

    moshe – are you bluma and yossi’s son?

29. 

    Farshlufen on August 16, 2012 at 2:56 pm

    On Rabbi Aaron Shuchatowitz and his Congregation:
    http://www.beki.org/history.html

30. 

    Mo Kennedy on June 11, 2013 at 8:11 am

    To All the Einiklach

    in this weeks derr blatt is writen that he was close to the malach who lived in bronx by the way on the matzevah it says his mother was a sharshevski who were slonimer chasidim the gabbai of the slonimer rebbes in slonim was called sharshevski

    has any body got more details

31. 

    David Winter on October 2, 2014 at 3:52 pm

    Debbie,
    My name is David Winter, great grandson of RAYS. I am the son of Rita ne Shuchatowitz, daughter of David Shuchatowitz. I recently visited RAYS’s shul (now a church) in the bronx. I would love to share pix if you’d like. I was wondering if there was any way to get a copy of the letter from Rav Kook? Feel free to contact me directly dwinter451@gmail.com

32. 

    יודל on September 7, 2015 at 2:32 pm

    היום היארצייט

33. 

    asher lowy on September 7, 2015 at 9:23 pm

    Thanx Yidl!

34. 

    יודל on September 22, 2016 at 3:23 pm

    ביום ב הבעל”ט יהיה היארצייט אל תשכח ללכת למקוה לפני זה אפילו שאתה הנכד שלו משום כמדומה אין עוד כזה בקשה בכל מדינת אמריקא שמישהו מבקש ליכתוב על המצבה כזה בקשה

35. 

    Kapooreh Hindel on September 26, 2016 at 1:00 am

    היום היארצייט

36. 

    יודל on September 2, 2018 at 10:56 am

    מחר הירצייט אולי אפשר לעשות מנין זה לעבער דע זה זכות גדול

37. 

    avrohom on February 23, 2019 at 9:00 pm

    does anyone know if he left any kesavim on kabbala