Rav Yaakov Lorberbaum of Lisa

Early years

Rav Yaakov Lorberbaum zt"l, the Rav of Lisa (today Leszno, Poland), is known throughout the Torah world as the Baal Chavos Daas and the Baal Nesivos, after his two most famous seforim. He was the son of Rav Yaakov Moshe Lorberbaum and a great-grandson of the Chacham Tzvi, Rav Tzvi Ashkenazi, which made him a relative of Rav Yaakov Emden.

One tradition holds that his father, Rav Yaakov Moshe, passed away before he was born, and that a relative, Rav Yosef Teomim, the rav of Bursztyn, raised him. This would explain why father and son share the same name. Another tradition tells that his father, sick before the child's birth, dreamed that he would be healed through the merit of the son yet to be born, and therefore passed his own name to that son.

Rav of Lisa

Rav Yaakov learned under Rav Meshulam Igra. He served as av beis din (head of the rabbinical court) before accepting, in 1809, the position of Rav in Lisa. Under his leadership the yeshiva there grew, and hundreds of scholars came to learn from him. Among his talmidim were Rav Eliyahu Gutmacher and Rav Shraga Feivel Danziger, who later supported their colleague Rav Tzvi Hirsch Kalischer and his Chovevei Zion movement.

Together with Rav Akiva Eiger and Rav Akiva Eiger's son-in-law, the Chasam Sofer, Rav Yaakov fought forcefully against the maskilim (followers of the Enlightenment) and the reformers. In 1822 he left Lisa and returned to Kalish, where he lived for ten years and wrote many of his seforim.

A leading posek

Rav Yaakov was widely respected as a posek (halachic decisor). Rav Shlomo Ganzfried relied on him as one of three authorities behind the rulings of the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, and Rav Avrohom Danzig wrote the Chochmas Adam in consultation with him and with Rav Chaim Volozhiner.

His standing was such that it is reported that Rav Akiva Eiger once fainted when he was given an aliyah in place of Rav Yaakov.

Seforim

Rav Yaakov wrote many works on Gemara and on halacha. On Gemara and Shulchan Aruch Even HaEzer he wrote Toras Gittin, Beis Yaakov and Emes L'Yaakov. He also brought out his late father's Gemara works, including his well-known chiddushim on Maseches Keritus.

In halacha he wrote Chavos Daas on Yoreh Deah, Mekor Chaim on Orach Chaim, and Nesivos HaMishpat on Choshen Mishpat. It is said that Nesivos HaMishpat became famous through its sharp attacks on the Ketzos HaChoshen of Rav Aryeh Leib Heller. He also wrote Kehillas Yaakov and Derech Chaim, along with commentaries on Tanach and on the Haggadah, which are listed below.

His Chavos Daas has been printed in many editions of Yoreh Deah, including the Vilna 1894 edition, and his Nesivos HaMishpat in the Lemberg editions of Choshen Mishpat. His Derech Chaim is a very popular compendium and was reprinted often in the larger siddurim.

Later years and passing

Rav Yaakov passed away in Stryj, then in Galicia, on 25 Iyar 5592 (25 May 1832).

His Nachalas Yaakov was published after his passing by his cousin. It includes sermons on the Torah portions, halachic decisions, teshuvos and his last will, a well-known ethical will in which he asked his sons to set aside time each day for studying a minimum of one page of Gemara.