Rav Zalman Nechemya Goldberg, ZTL

R' Rav Zalman Nechemya Goldberg, ZTL (VIN)

It is with great sadness that I report the passing of this giant in Torah at age 89. I do not use the word ‘giant’ lightly. His Torah knowledge was  encyclopedic. Which is demonstrated by the fact that he was the Chief Editor of the Talmudic encyclopedia.

The apple doesn’t fall that far the tree. That expression is usually applied to someone that is praised for the same qualities that their father had. Although not his actual son but son in law, it can certainly apply to Rav Zalman Nechemya Goldberg. I suppose that had something to do with why his father in law, Rav Shlomo Zaman Auerbach chose him for his daughter. (In the yeshiva world the Gedolim usually choose the most suitable Talmid Chacham they can find, Rav Sholomo Zaman chose well.)

 When the Yeshiva world speaks about ‘the Gedolim’ His name is not the first one that comes to mind. I believe that is because of his great humility. He was a person that did great things without any fanfare. He stayed out of the limelight. And was accessible to the public as was his father in law. And yet he was the ‘go to’ Posek for much of the Charedi world as well as the Centrist and even religious Zionist world, same as his father in law.

To show what kind of humility he had, when my son received Semicha from R’  Zalman Nechemya, he told my son that he should get a better Semicha since he didn’t think his was recognized enough. 

I rarely do eulogies for great people unless I had a personal connection to them or I was is some way inspired  by them. The truth is that I do not know that much more about him than what I just said. But his greatness in Torah and humility demanded that I should publicly mourn his loss. I will therefore end with an letter I got from a modern Orthodox admirer who had actually met him. 

History will record his gadlus be'Torah.  Beyond the world of Askanim, he maintained relationships across the Orthodox spectrum giving Shiurim at Chasidic institutions and Hesder yeshivot.  I had the zechut to be invited to a Shiur he attended on the dateline; his Hadras Pannim was an offshoot of his FIL.  A classic posek explaining reality to a Rosh Yeshivah. 

He ultimately is responsible for the RCA prenup.  Like his FIL, he worked hard to understand medicine and technology.

 Baruch Dayan HaEmes