Beschreibung:

Seventy telegrams sent to Rabbi Eiliezer Silver, President of the committee for the rescue of European Jewry. USA, [and other locations], 1939-1946. English, German, Yiddish and Hebrew, in Latin letters. The collection presented includes: 40 original telegrams; 30 photocopies (Xerox) of telegrams; as well as a copy of a four-pages letter sent by American Relief for France in New-York to their representative in France, concerning dispatch of aid-parcels by "Agudat Israel", April 1945. Rabbi Eliezer Silver (1882-1968), among the leaders of Orthodox Jewry in the US, native of Lithuania. Immigrated to the US in 1907 where he served as Rabbi in several congregations. Rabbi Silver was appointed as Rabbi of Cincinnati in 1931 and in 1932 – President of the Union of Rabbis of the USA and Canada. In 1939 founded a branch of Agudat Israel in the US and served as its first president. During the holocaust, Silver was one of the initiators of rescue operations for European Jewry and formed the "Vaad Hatzala" for European Yeshivot and served as its president. The committee raised more than 5 million dollars and succeeded in issuing an exemption from immigration quotas allowing rabbis to enter the country. By means of this exemption 2,000 employment contracts were telegraphed to rabbis throughout Europe enabling them to immigrate to the USA. With the increasingly desperate race against time, Rabbi Silver turned to all possible channels, whether legal or not, to save as many lives as possible by bringing Jews to the US, Canada and Eretz Israel. In October 1943, as the scale of Nazi atrocities was becoming clearer, Rabbi Silver helped lead a march, organized by Hillel Kook, of more than 400 rabbis in Washington, up the stairs of the Capitol, to press for more decisive action by the US government to save European Jews. Presented here is an extensive collection of telegrams sent to Rabbi Silver during the years 1939-1946 by organizations, rabbis and people, regarding a variety of subjects: requests for financial aid, requests for obtaining travel-tickets for members of Agudat Israel; invitations to conventions and gatherings of the "Rabbis Union" in Germany, the rabbis center; as well as important telegrams, dealing directly with the situation of Jews in Europe during the last years of the war, and further on, dealing with the situation of Jewish refugees in DPC. In the telegrams are mentioned various relief-organizations which were active in Europe after WW II, among them" Vaad HaHatzala", the Rabbis Union and the Joint; numerous figures of the religious world, who acted intensively for the rescue of "She'erit Hapleita", are mentioned in the telegrams, amongst them: rabbis Ya'akov Karlinsky, Israel Rosenberg, Shoenfeld, Katz. Bloch, Kotler, Kopelovitch, Shenkolevsky and others. From the telegrams: In a telegram of December 1940 Rabbi Eliezer Popko writes: Time is short, they will take three Rabbi's, please wire by wu [!] what to do"; in a telegram of August 1940: "A Serious problem of emergency character has developed in connection with Yeshivas of Lithuania. Leaders of number of Jewish Organizations have evidenced deep concern. We invite you to attend conference of this group… at office Joint Distribution Committee… Please reply to Henty Monsky". In a telegram sent from Munich: Because instructions to Rabbi Baruch not to make new Transfer at present, we are actually in hunger. Stop needs most urgent, stop commission, Agudath Harabonim in Germany did not find time to visit our Yeshivo[t]h, stop anxiously, awaiting your immediate help stop, Vaad Hapoel Yeshivo[t]h Merkas HaTorah Windsheim. In a telegram of September 1945: Have arrived today from "Emek HaBocho "Frankfurt Munich Landsberg Stotillien Feldefing Fulda Geringshof Nad Neuheim and found our Brethren in great disappointment with our failure to bring them hope and encouragement… now stop there are some 3000 Yeraim and Shlaimim yearning for Sforim". In an additional telegram of September 1