The Rosh Yeshiva Of Lemberg

The Life and Works of the Preeminent Halachist, Rabbi Yehoshua Falk Katz (1555-1614)

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Alexander ha-Kohen Falk Katz, prominently known as the S’ma (an acronym of the title of his Sefer Meiras Einayim) was born in Krakow in 1555. He studied there under his relative, Rabbi Moshe Isserles (the Rema) and subsequently moved to Lublin where he studied under Rabbi Shlomo Luria (the Maharshal).

Rabbi Falk married Baila, a learned daughter of Yisrael Eidels, a wealthy and prominent leader of the Jewish community in Lemberg. For nearly twenty-five years, Rabbi Falk headed a yeshiva that was supported by his father-in-law. As a fascinating aside, Baila Falk issued two halachic rulings regarding the lighting of candles on yom tov and several prominent Acharonim debated whether the halachah follows her opinion.

Three of Rabbi Falk’s four major works were published under the title Beis Yisrael (named in part for his father-in-law, Yisrael Eidels):

Perishah: A commentary in which Rabbi Falk briefly explains the Tur’s rulings based on the original Talmudic sources.

Derishah: A commentary in which Rabbi Falk delves deeper into the Talmudic sources and Rishonim and draws support and proof for his explanations. He often argues with the Beis Yosef’s interpretation of the subject.

Beurim: A commentary that contains innovative rulings based on responsa that were published after the Shulchan Aruch.

Rabbi Falk’s forth major work, Sefer Meiras Einayim, is a commentary on the Choshen Mishpat section of the Shulchan Aruch. It appears that he intended to write Sefer Meiras Einayim on all four sections of the Shulchan Aruch, but died before he had a chance to complete them.

The majority of Rabbi Falk’s other works were destroyed in fires in Lemberg during his lifetime and after his death. They include: 1) chiddushim on fourteen masechtos of the Talmud, 2) commentaries on the Rif and the Ran, 3) Kabbalistic and philosophical treatises, 4) a commentary on the Torah, 5) a super-commentary on Rashi, and 6) a collection of hundreds of responsa, of which only a small fraction is extant. n

Nosson Wiggins (@jewishhistorysheimhagedolim) is the author of two books on the subject of Jewish history, “The Tannaim & Amoraim” and “The Rishonim” (Judaica Press). He researches Jewish History at the Klau Library, HUC-JIR in his hometown of Cincinnati and leads tours of Klau’s Rare Book Room. He is a passionate enthusiast of Jewish history and when he’s not in the hospital working as a nurse, he can be found researching and writing posts for his Substack, “Jewish History—Sheim Hagedolim.”