Grave of Rabbi Moshe Feinstein - Reb Moshe
Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986), known throughout the Jewish world simply as Reb Moshe, was the undisputed supreme Posek (halachic decisor) of American Orthodoxy and one of the most revered global authorities on Jewish law in the 20th century.
As the long-time Rosh Yeshiva of Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem (MTJ) on Manhattan’s Lower East Side and the head of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (Council of Torah Sages), Reb Moshe was the ultimate destination for the most complex, unprecedented legal questions of the modern era. Operating with a legendary, unmatched sweetness and absolute humility, he single-handedly dragged ancient Talmudic principles into the space age, tackling everything from space travel to advanced bioethics.
The Child Prodigy of Uzda
A Lineage of Sages: Born in Uzda, near Minsk, Russian Empire (now Belarus), Moshe was a direct descendant of the monumental 11th-century commentator Rashi. His father, Rabbi David Feinstein, was the rabbi of Uzda and a profound scholar.
Photographic Genius: By the time he was a teenager, Moshe had already memorized the entire Babylonian Talmud and its major codes several times over. He was appointed the Chief Rabbi of Luban in 1921, a position he held for sixteen turbulent years. During this time, he endured systematic harassment and surveillance by the Soviet communist regime, which was determined to eradicate religious practice.
The Lower East Side: A Global Judiciary
In 1936, realizing that the Soviet trap was tightening, Reb Moshe managed to secure exit visas and immigrated to the United States with his family.
He settled on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, accepting the position of Rosh Yeshiva at Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem. He lived in a modest apartment on East Broadway for the rest of his life. Despite his staggering stature, he refused to insulate himself in a wealthy suburb or an isolated compound. His door was literally unlocked; anyone—from a wandering homeless person to a United States Senator—could walk straight into his study.
The Master Decisor: Igros Moshe
Reb Moshe’s crowning legacy is his multi-volume masterpiece of responsa literature, Igros Moshe (The Letters of Moshe).
Whenever a rabbi anywhere in the world encountered a legal problem that had no clear historical precedent, they wrote a letter to the Lower East Side. Reb Moshe’s legal philosophy was defined by immense courage. While many of his peers preferred to be stringent or avoid ruling on highly controversial modern topics, Reb Moshe believed that a Posek has a divine obligation to look a problem in the eye and issue a definitive, compassionate ruling.
He pioneered landmark rulings on cutting-edge 20th-century dilemmas:
Modern Bioethics: He wrote extensively on the exact halachic definitions of death, navigating the advent of mechanical ventilators. He famously parsed the legalities of heart transplants, artificial insemination, and psychiatric therapy.
Navigating American Life: He addressed the realities of Jews living in a secular capitalist society. He ruled on the kashrut of mass-produced American milk (Cholov Yisroel vs. Cholov Stam), the permissibility of building synagogues with modern architectural anomalies, and the parameters of keeping a business open on the Sabbath via legal proxies.
The Agunah Crises: Demonstrating immense compassion, Reb Moshe utilized his vast erudition to find creative, absolutely valid legal loopholes to free Agunot (women anchored to marriages because their husbands had vanished in the Holocaust, died in submarine disasters, or refused to issue a religious divorce).
Angelic Humility and Tenderness
Though he wielded absolute authority over millions of people, Reb Moshe was universally famous for his radical, breathtaking gentleness. He never raised his voice, never spoke dismissively of ideological opponents, and went to extraordinary lengths to avoid hurting another human being's feelings.
The Dropped Milk Carton: It is told that when Reb Moshe was in his late eighties and highly frail, a young student accidentally knocked over a carton of milk in the yeshiva dining hall, spilling it all over the Rebbe’s shoes. Before the boy could even process his mistake, Reb Moshe looked up with a radiant smile and said, "Oh, thank goodness you spilled that! I was just thinking how hot my feet felt today, and that cold milk felt absolutely wonderful."
When world leaders or major American political figures visited his office, they were frequently stunned to find the world's premier Jewish jurist personally answering his own telephone and pouring tea for his guests.
Passing and Universal Grief
Reb Moshe passed away on March 23, 1986 (the 13th of Adar II, 5746, the eve of Purim) at the age of 91. His passing plunged the global Jewish world into deep mourning.
The American Farewell: His funeral on the Lower East Side drew an estimated 50,000 people, entirely paralyzing Manhattan's grid.
The Jerusalem Procession: His body was flown to Israel, where an unparalleled crowd of over 250,000 mourners marched through the streets of Jerusalem in one of the largest funerals in the nation's history. He was laid to rest on Har HaMenuchot, next to his close friend Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky, who had passed away just a few weeks prior.
Core Literary Works
Igros Moshe: An indispensable nine-volume encyclopedia of practical, modern halachic responsa that serves as a foundational textbook for every contemporary rabbinic judge.
Dibros Moshe: A multi-volume, highly complex analytical commentary on the Talmud, showcasing his pristine, classical Lithuanian methodology of parsing legal texts.
Darash Moshe: A highly accessible collection of his deeply ethical and philosophical commentaries on the weekly Torah portions.