It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the petirah of Rav Chanoch Friedman zt”l, a distinguished talmid chochom and marbitz Torah who served as Rosh Kollel and Av Beis Din of Kollel Bais Yechiel in Har Nof.

Rav Friedman devoted his life to harbotzas haTorah and psak halacha, guiding talmidim with clarity, depth, and unwavering dedication to the truth of Torah. In his role at Beis Yechiel, he helped shape a generation of bnei Torah, instilling in them a love for learning and a commitment to living lives guided by halacha. As Av Beis Din, he was sought after for his wisdom and fairness, adjudicating matters with sensitivity and precision.

Rav Friedman grew up in Chicago, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Yosef Friedman, and later learned at Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood under Rav Aharon Kotler, becoming the youngest talmid in the yeshiva and learning b’chavrusa with Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, today the rosh yeshiva of Slabodka.

Rav Friedman was widely known as an extraordinary masmid who would complete Shas every single year, marking the siyum during hakafos shniyos in his Bais Medrash, Bais Yechiel, in Har Nof. His completion of Shas followed the structured learning schedule he maintained in his personal time. In addition to his regular learning in Bavli, Yerushalmi, and Shishah Sidrei Mishnah, he served as a rosh kollel and would learn b’iyun each morning with the kollel yungeleit, delivering deep, analytical shiurim on the sugyos being studied. He also maintained a daily shiur in Shulchan Aruch, had a long-standing chavrusa spanning decades, and still managed to complete Shas Bavli, Shas Yerushalmi, and all six sedarim of Mishnah.

In the drashah he would deliver at his siyum, he would say: “גם אתם יכולים.” He would quote the Chofetz Chaim in his sefer Toras HaBayis, where he writes that when a person accepts upon himself a genuine commitment, with a firm resolve to carry it out no matter what, he merits special siyata d’Shmaya.

He recently said, “I see it in my own life. Over the past year, there were several times when it seemed that, according to the natural order, there was no way I would be able to keep up with my daily learning goals. But I began to learn, and from Shamayim they took care of me and granted me special siyata d’Shmaya, which enabled me to fulfill the commitment I had taken upon myself.”

Those who knew him describe a figure of quiet greatness, whose anavah matched his scholarship. He carried himself with dignity and warmth, offering guidance and encouragement to all who turned to him. His influence extended far beyond the walls of the kollel, reaching mishpachos and communities both in Eretz Yisroel and abroad.

Rav Friedman was the brother of Rav Avraham Friedman, Rosh HaYeshiva Emeritus of Hebrew Theological College, as well as Mrs. Debbie Greenspan.

The levaya will take place today, Erev Shabbos, Friday, April 10, at 2:00 p.m. at Congregation Adas Yeshurun, located at 3050 West Touhy Avenue in Chicago, and on Sunday, at 10 a.m., at Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood. From there, arrangements will be made for kevurah in Eretz Yisroel.

Yehi zichro boruch.