Zalman Sorotzkin

Who was Zalman Sorotzkin?

Zalman Sorotzkin, also known as the Lutzker Rav, was a famous Orthodox rabbi who served as the rabbi of Lutsk, Ukraina.

Sorotzkin was born in Žagarinė, Lithuania in 1881. Initially, he studied with his father, Rabbi Ben-Zion Sorotzkin, who was the town's rabbi. He then studied in the yeshivas of Volozhin and Slabodka.

Sorotzkin was a son in law of the Telzer rav and rosh yeshiva, Rabbi Eliezer Gordon. When Gordon died in 1910, Sorotzkin was offered the position as rabbi and rosh yeshiva in Telz. He did not accept the position and was shortly after appointed as Rabbi to Voranava, Belarus. This enabled him to establish a close relationship with Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzenski. In Voranava, Rabbi Sorotzkin established a yeshiva ketana. After two years in Voranava, Rabbi Sorotzkin moved to Dziatłava, where he served as rabbi for eighteen years. As Zhetel was the birthplace of the Chofetz Chaim, the Chofetz Chaim would affectionately refer to Rabbi Sorotzkin as "my" rav.

In 1914, owing to the German invasion, Rabbi Sorotzkin moved to Minsk and became a close friend of the Chazon Ish, who rented a room from Rabbi Sorotzkin. Upon the end of the war, Rabbi Sorotzkin returned to Zhetel.