Rabbi Shalom Elchonon Jaffe

Rav Shalom Elchonon Yaffe was born in the town of Vabolnick, Lithuania just outside of Vilna in 1858. His primary teacher was his father a noted torah scholar and a descendant of Rav Mordechai Yaffe the Baal Halevushim (d. Posen, Poland, 1612). At the age of fourteen he was sent to the Volozhiner Yeshiva were he studied for six years and was ordained by Rav Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin (Netziv) and Rav Yitzchok Elchonon Spector.
Rav Yaffe participated in the founding convention of the Agudath HaRabonim in 1902 and was appointed director of its kashrus division. In 1905 he was elected its third president and remained an influential member until his passing.

Shalom Elchanan Jafee, a rabbi and communal leader, was born in Vobolnick near Vilna, Lithuania, on May 15, 1858. As a boy he studied with his father, Rabbi Shimon Jaffe, a noted Talmud scholar. At the age of 14, Jaffe was sent to the famous yeshiva at Volozhin, Lithunania, where the renowned scholars Rabbi Raphael Shapiro and Rabbi Naphtali Zvi Yehuda Berlin headed a yeshiva. Following his marriage at the age of 18, Jaffe continued studying for two years until 1878 when he was invited to serve as rabbi of Offen in Kovno Province. Before assuming the rabbinical position, Jaffe received ordination from Rabbi Issac Elchanan Spektor and Rabbi Naphtali Azi Yehuda Berlin. In 1886 Jaffe became rabbi at Zimmel, where he remained for three years before making his first trip to America in 1889 to visit relatives. Upon returning to Europe he briefly served as rabbi of his home town, Vobolnick, and then accepted an offer to become head of the beth din in St. Louis, Missouri. Jaffe remained in America for the rest of his life.

Jaffe's tenure in St. Louis lasted about five years, marred by a feud that developed between him and Rabbi Zechariah Joseph Rosenfeld, the rabbi of a nearby congregation. Rosenfeld had permitted Jews to carry their tallith and other items on the Sabbath, claiming that an eruv (permits traditionally observant Jews to carry limited items from their home) was in place. Jaffe rejected the kashruth of the eruv and published a treatise explaining his position. In addition, Jaffe disagreed with Rosenfeld's perspective on other halakhic (Jewish law) matters, including the kashruth of a local mikvah and the proper spelling of the name "St. Louis" in religious documents. Jaffe was, therefore, pleased to accept an offer in 1897 to serve as rabbi of a Brooklyn, New York congregation. Four years later, in 1901, he became rabbi of the prestigious Beth Hamidrash Hagodol in New York City.

Within a decade, Jaffe emerged as an influential figure in the rabbinate of New York's lower east side. He was one of the three most powerful rabbinic authorities in the kosher supervision of New York slaughterhouses and butcher stores, a position that allowed him to determine the qualifications of rabbinic supervisors and shochitim and that also entailed substantial financial benefit. This powerful position at times made Jaffe a target for criticism by those, such as Rabbi Gabriel Zev (Velvel) Margolis, who considered the standards of the New York kashruth industry too lax. Though Jaffe and Margolis remained lifelong foes, Jaffe retained the confidence and support of the great majority of his colleagues.

Jaffe published several books ad articles, primarily Talmudic and religious commentary. His first work, PRI ESHEL, was a commentary on Tractate Yevamot. In his response on halakhic matters, SHOEL K'INYAN, he discussed matters of contemporary Jewish law. His personal papers included several unpublished manuscripts and correspondence with leading European rabbis.

Jaffe died at Beth Israel Hospital in New York, on November 15, 1923, leaving a wife and six children.

Biographical text courtesy of Orthodox Judaism in America: A Biographical Dictionary and Sourcebook by Moshe D. Sherman