Pinkas Kethavim U’keruzim Le’divrei Rivoth U’machloketh al Devar Ha’av Beth Din Hachron Be’vilna 1768-1790.

(VILNA)

St. Petersburg

1900

Mimeographed facsimile of manuscript Pinkas.

One of the most notorious cause-celebres of the 19th century was the thirty-year communal dispute between the Vilna Community and their Rabbi, Samuel ben Avigdor. The contention began as a struggle for power between the Rabbi and the lay-leadership. It divided the community and spread to outlying cities involving Rabbis, from as far afield as Posen and communal tribunals from Brisk, Horodna, Slatzk as well as the civil and ecclesiastical authorities. Eventually, the Gaon of Vilna and the leaders of the Chabad Chasidim were also involved. As a result, there was no official Chief Rabbi in Vilna until after World War I. Israel Klausner, who based his research for his book Vilna Be’tekufath Ha’gaon (Jerusalem, 1942) on this document, could only locate one copy. Earlier studies of this dispute include I. Zinberg in Historische Schriften, Vol. II pp.291-37 and S. Y. Finn in Kirya Ne’emana pp.138-143. Finn had no access entirely to this chronicle and based his research upon oral reports from the of the community. A radical Chasidic interpretation of this controversy has recently been addressed by Y. Mondshein in Kerem Chabad, vol. IV.