YS GOLD 

It is with deep sadness that we report on the passing of Harav Eliyahu Shmuel Heftler, zt”l, the long-serving Rov of Kehilas Magen Avraham-Dukla on the Lower East Side and one of the last remaining links to the vibrant prewar Jewish life of Vienna and the historic post-war Lower East Side of Manhattan. He was a soul of a bygone era who combined the profound internal sincerity of old Galician chassidus with decades of devoted service to Torah, education, and rabbinic leadership.  

Early Years and Escape from Europe

Rabbi Heftler was born in Vienna, Austria, where his parents had settled after fleeing Galicia during the tumult of World War I. Named after his maternal grandfather—the distinguished Dayan Rabbi Eliyahu Shmuel Wien, zt”l—young Eliyahu Shmuel grew up in a home steeped in the traditions of Chortkov and Sanz. His father was a prominent member and gabbai at the local Sanzer Kloiz. In his infancy, Rabbi Heftler merited to have the holy Chortkover Rebbe, Rav Yisrael Friedman, zy"a, serve as his sandek. Tragically, he was orphaned of his father at the tender age of eight.  

Following the Nazi Anschluss in 1938, Rabbi Heftler witnessed the horrifying nights of Kristallnacht and survived fourteen months under direct Nazi oppression. In the spring of 1939, just months before the outbreak of World War II, he managed to escape to London, England, alongside his mother and siblings.  

Wartime Refugees and the Tree of Life

Upon arriving in London, the family was warmly embraced by the Shotzer Rebbe, Rav Shalom Moskovitz, zt”l, with whom they shared close ancestral ties. Guided by the Rebbe's counsel, Rabbi Heftler entered Yeshivas Etz Chaim in London's East End. There, he spent eleven formative years absorbing Torah and yiras Shomayim under the revered Mashgiach, Rav Eliyahu Lopian, zt”l.  

During the wartime bombings of London, he was evacuated to the countryside. He later spent three years at a children's hostel established by the Sasover Rebbe near Manchester. It was there that he forged a lifelong bond with his childhood contemporary, the future Gaon and Gavad of Jerusalem, Rabbi Yitzchok Tuvia Weiss, zt”l. At his Bar Mitzvah, arranged lovingly by the Shotzer Rebbe, another giant of Anglo-Jewry, Rav Chuna Halpern, zt”l, personally prepared the young boy to deliver his complex pshetel. He would later attain semichah after years of intense, private study with the Stanislavover Rav, Rav Meshulam Ashkenazi, zt”l.  

Rabbinic Leadership on the Lower East Side

In 1950, Rabbi Heftler and his mother immigrated to the United States, settling initially in Williamsburg before finding his true calling across the river. His dynamic rabbinic career began at the youthful age of twenty-one when he was asked by a congregation of Boybriker congregants to step up to the pulpit. Shortly thereafter, in 1956, he was officially appointed as the Rov of Kehilas Magen Avraham-Dukla on Manhattan's Lower East Side.  

For forty years, Rabbi Heftler led this historic institution—then the largest Galician Shul in the area—with absolute devotion. He was a staunch guardian of the traditional framework of the community, setting high standards of ehrlichkeit for his community and seamlessly integrating authentic European chazzanus into the American landscape. Alongside his rabbinic duties, he spent decades as a foundational rebbi in the Bobover Talmud Torah, leaving an indelible imprint on the first generation of post-war American youth.  

Throughout his seven decades in the neighborhood, he maintained warm, respectful relationships with the Torah luminaries of the generation, including the great Posek Harav Moshe Feinstein, zt”l, and the Skverer Rebbe, Rav Yaakov Yosef Twersky, zy"a, from whom he witnessed open miracles. In addition, Rav Heftler had an ardent connection to the Admorim of Boyan. 

A Legacy of Truth and Simplicity

In his later years, Rabbi Heftler watched the magnificent rebirth of Orthodox Jewry with tremendous joy, yet he remained a vocal proponent of old-world temimus. He frequently lamented the modern commercialization of religious life, urging the younger generation to look past the external trends, styles, and "publicity" of contemporary society, and to focus instead on internal character, genuine Torah learning, and heartfelt devotion.  

Rabbi Heftler leaves behind a glorious legacy of historical memory, a wealth of Torah scholarship, a wonderful Torah family, and generations of talmidim and congregants who were elevated by his noble character and unwavering adherence to the truth.

The levaya will take place at 7:00 this evening at the Boyaner Beis Medrash in Boro Park. 

Yehi zichro baruch.