It is with deep pain and regret that YWN shares the petirah of HaRav Elyakim Schlesinger zt”l, who was niftar at the age of 104, concluding a life that spanned more than a century of Torah, mesorah, and an unwavering commitment to Klal Yisroel.

Born in Vienna on 22 Cheshvan 5682 (1921) to his parents, Rav Dovid and Baila, Rav Schlesinger zt”l came of age during a turbulent era for European Jewry. He was able to leave Europe at the age of 10, in 1931, when his family relocated to Eretz Yisroel and settled in Tel Aviv. There, the foundations of his lifelong avodas haTorah were laid.

His early Torah development took place under the influence of Gedolei Hatorah from the prewar years. Among his primary rebbeim was Rav Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky zt”l, under whose guidance Rav Schlesinger absorbed the derech of authentic Yerushalmi Torah. He later learned in Yeshivas Kaminetz and in Yeshivas Lomza in Petach Tikvah, becoming known for his crystal-clear havana, yiras Shamayim, and fealty to mesorah.

He married his wife, Dina Yehudis, the daughter of Rav Moshe Blau zt”l, and following the petirah of his father-in-law, he was appointed Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Pnei Moshe in Yerushalayim. Even then, at such a young age, his sense of achrayus extended beyond his immediate surroundings.

At the behest of the Brisker Rov, Rav Schlesinger undertook the difficult mission of returning to Europe in order to rebuild Torah life on the continent. He first served as Rosh Yeshiva in Kapellen, Belgium, where he spent two years strengthening a fragile postwar kehilla. He later settled in London, where he founded Yeshivas Harama, a mosad that would become one of the pillars of serious lomdus in England. The yeshiva’s name reflected his reverence for the Chasam Sofer and his descendants, including the Kesav Sofer and the Daas Sofer, who had been among his rabbeim.

Over the ensuing decades, Rav Schlesinger zt”l became one of the most influential and respected Gedolei Torah in England’s frum community. He maintained close and enduring relationships with leading gedolei Yisroel, including the Chazon Ish, and was widely sought after for hadracha on both hashkafic and communal matters. His rare firsthand knowledge of earlier gedolim, and his ability to convey their derech with clarity and fidelity, were preserved in his sefer Hador Vehatekufah, which stands as an invaluable historical and Torah record.

In addition to his role as Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Schlesinger was deeply involved in public affairs affecting Torah Jewry. For many years, he devoted himself to the protection of kevorim across Europe, even serving as chairman of a committee dedicated to safeguarding cemeteries from desecration. He was also known for his firm and uncompromising positions on issues relating to chinuch and religious independence, earning a reputation as a courageous and consistent voice of daas Torah.

Rav Schlesinger zt”l was also a prolific mechaber, whose seforim reflect both breadth and depth. His multi-volume Beis Av spans Shas, halacha, machshavah, and drush, and he authored additional seforim, including a Haggadah shel Pesach, all characterized by his unique clarity.

The petirah of HaRav Elyakim Schlesinger zt”l is the loss of a living bridge to a vanished world—a talmid of prewar Europe, a builder of postwar Torah, and a guardian of mesorah well into the modern era.

Yehi zichro baruch.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)