Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld

Rabbi Yosef Chaim ben Avraham Shlomo Sonnenfeld was born in the town of Verbó in Slovakia. Yahrzeit - 19 Adar Resting place - Jerusalem He was born to Avraham Shlomo Sonnenfeld, and at the age of 4 he lost his father, and when his mother remarried, he moved to the town of Szenice, where he finished elementary school at the age of 8. Refusing to enter a secular gymnasium as his stepfather demanded, he ran away from home back to Verbó and enrolled in the yeshiva of Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Manheimer. At the age of 16 he graduated from this yeshiva with distinction, wrote his first "Chiddushei Torah," and went to study in Pressburg under Rabbi Avraham Shmuel Binyamin Sofer, son of the Chatam Sofer, where he likewise proved himself a diligent student. Some time later he married Sarah, daughter of Shlomo Zeltzer, a successful merchant who undertook to support his son-in-law for 10 years. In that town he entered the kollel of Rav Avraham Shaag. After his father-in-law moved away from Kobersdorf, he was left without means of support and began earning his living by teaching in a cheder. In 1873 his teacher decided to make aliyah to the Land of Israel, and Rabbi Yosef Chaim followed him to Jerusalem. In Jerusalem he became a student of Rav Auerbach of Kalisz, and in 1877 grew close to Rabbi Yehoshua Leib Diskin, whom he helped establish an orphanage and under whose chairmanship he headed a rabbinical court. Rav Sonnenfeld held the position of rabbi and director of the Shomrei HaChomot kollel and was among the founders of the Jerusalem neighborhoods of Meah Shearim, Batei Ungarin, and Beit Yisrael. In 1910, after the passing of Rabbi Shmuel Salant, he effectively became the chief Ashkenazi rabbi of Jerusalem. In 1913, together with Rav Kook, he toured the new settlements. In 1920 he refused to recognize the Chief Rabbinate and became one of the founders of the "Edah HaChareidis." Although Rav Sonnenfeld's views were more extreme than those of "Agudat Yisrael", which operated in Palestine according to Rav Hirsch's ideology of "Torah im Derech Eretz," the leader of the Aguda, Rabbi Moshe Blau, submitted to Rabbi Sonnenfeld's rulings, and Rabbi Sonnenfeld's opinion was heeded at the Aguda's world conventions. Rav Sonnenfeld lived in "Batei Machseh" (shelter houses) in the Old City, whose windows face the Western Wall, and when he left his home he tried not to sit for long anywhere else. Aside from this, he never left the Old City for more than 30 days.   May the merit of the Tzadik protect Am Yisrael!   https://silatehilim.com/%d0%ba%d0%b0%d0%ba-%d1%87%d0%b5%d1%80%d0%b5%d0%b7-%d0%b3%d0%b5%d0%bc%d0%b0%d1%82%d1%80%d0%b8%d1%8e-%d0%b2%d1%8b%d0%bd%d0%be%d1%81%d0%b8%d1%82%d1%81%d1%8f-%d0%bf%d1%80%d0%b8%d0%b3%d0%be%d0%b2%d0%be/