Last Wednesday HaRav Shmuel Dovid Halevi Movshovitz,
zt'l, succumbed to a difficult illness he bore without
ceasing his labors in Torah study.
HaRav Movshovitz was born in 5697 (1937) to Rav Yosef
Eliyohu, rov of the Bat Shlomo settlement. His parents
infused him with a love of Torah from an early age and when
he was just nine years old they sent him to study at Yeshivas
Tiferes HaCarmel in Haifa. Later he transferred to Yeshivas
Or Yisroel in Petach Tikva, where he studied under HaRav
Yosef Rozovsky who later sent him to learn at Yeshivas
Ponovezh. Considered an illui and a great innovator in
his learning, he soon became one of the yeshiva's most
prominent talmidim.
Following the advice of his rebbe HaRav Povarsky, he switched
to Yeshivas Brisk to study under HaRav Yosef Dov Halevi
Soloveitchik. R' Shmuel would record his shiurim so
precisely that the Rosh Yeshiva used his notes to review his
own material. HaRav Shmuel maintained close ties with him for
the rest of HaRav Soloveitchik's life.
In 5720 (1960) he married Tovoh, the daughter of Rav Ben-
Tzion Brook, rosh yeshivas Novardok in Jerusalem. Rav
Movshovitz spent the next 25 years teaching Torah at Yeshivas
Beis Yosef.
In 5740 (1980) he completed years of work on handwritten
manuscripts by HaRav Avelei Posboler, rov of Vilna. When
HaRav Movshovitz approached the Kehillos Yaakov for an
approbation, the Steipler stood on his feet in honor of the
sefer and said after a long and healthy life HaRav
Avelei would receive him in Yeshiva Shel Maaloh. HaRav
Movshovitz also published works on the teachings of HaRav
Heschil of Krakow and his father, HaRav Yaakov of Lublin, on
the Tur and the Beis Yosef.
After completing these projects he turned to the Gra's
teaching's, his life's work. He began to extract the Gra's
writings on Shas and arrange them according to
maseches. He began to stay home and labor in Torah
from early morning until late into the night, hardly
sleeping.
Recently, while editing Sedeih Eliyohu on Megiloh,
he would say while he was delving into the Gra's writings
he would totally forget he was sick. Two weeks ago, while
working on the Gra's writings and completing a booklet he
wrote decades ago he had to be hospitalized due to an
infection. After nearly a week in the hospital his pure soul
departed with all of his family members standing at his
bedside.
At the Shamgar Funeral Area he was eulogized by his friends,
HaRav Gershon Edelstein, one of the roshei yeshivos at
Ponovezh; his daughter's father-in-law HaRav Nosson Tzvi
Finkel, rosh yeshivas Mir; HaRav Aryeh Finkel, rosh yeshivas
Mir Brachfeld; his brother-in-law HaRav Avrohom Noach Garbuz;
HaRav Yaakov Edelstein; and his son, HaRav Yosef Eliyohu, rov
of Jerusalem's Kiryat Moshe neighborhood. As the
levaya set out HaRav Dovid Cohen, rosh yeshivas
Chevron, delivered a hesped.
HaRav Movshovitz is survived by his son-in-law HaRav Yosef
Waldman, ram at Yeshivas Kaf HaChaim; son-in-law HaRav
Avigdor Arieli, rosh yeshivas Birkas Yisroel; his sons HaRav
Yosef Eliyohu, HaRav Yisroel, author of Os LeYisroel,
and HaRav Shlomo; his sons-in-law HaRav Aharon Yellin, HaRav
Yeshayohu Finkel and HaRav Ariel Gershon Turnovsky.
