JH Soudbites

The Life & Times of Rav Yaakov Ettlinger the Aruch Lener

Tachlis Media — Sat, 09 Nov 2024 17:09:13 +0000

Germany Jewry of the 19th century was going through a period of transition. Emancipation was a struggle which was incrementally achieved, and rampant secularization and integration into German society followed. The rise of Orthodoxy was an attempt to preserve tradition within the modern context. Rav Yaakov Ettlinger (1798-1871) was a pioneering leader in this regard. Known by his magnum opus, Aruch Lener, he served as the rabbi of Altona for 35 years and was one of the most influential leaders of German Orthodoxy during the 19th century. His life, times and accomplishments are a fascinating and important chapter of Jewish history in modern times.

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The Holocaust Research of Professor Yehuda Bauer

Tachlis Media — Sat, 02 Nov 2024 20:57:28 +0000

The field of Holocaust research has been enriched over the decades in both its scope and depth by generations of historians and researchers worldwide. For more than 60 years one of the premier scholars in this field was Professor Yehuda Bauer, whose groundbreaking research covering a wide array of aspects of the Holocaust, genocide and antisemitism transformed the field and had a decisive impact on Holocaust historiography. Among the many diverse topics which he contributed towards were Jewish resistance during the Holocaust, rescue activities of Jewish groups under Nazi occupation and American Jewish organizations such as the Joint Distribution Committee, the road to the Final Solution, the destruction of the shtetls during the Holocaust, Displaced Persons camps and immigration of survivors to Israel, the Holocaust within the context of genocide, trailblazing genocide research, Nazi ideology and its role in the Holocaust, Antisemitism throughout history, and many others.

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Remembering Tragedy on Happy Days

Tachlis Media — Sat, 26 Oct 2024 19:30:57 +0000

With the Jewish calendar full of happy holidays and joyous occasions, and Jewish history filled with tragic events, an inevitable paradox is confronted when wishing to commemorate a tragic occasion during a happy time. Unfortunately this was recently experienced with the desire to commemorate the first anniversary of the October 7th massacre on the holiday of Simchas Torah. There are quite a few examples throughout Jewish history of tragedy being commemorated on happy occasions, and the Jewish People have historically managed to strike a healthy balance between celebration and solemn remembrance. This episode will explore some of these historical paradoxes. From the First Crusade to a Krakow pogrom, and from the Soviet Union to the remembering the victims of the Holocaust, communal gatherings during the holidays were often utilized to remember the tragedies of the past.

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Polish Patriotism & Rav Dov Ber Meizlish

Tachlis Media — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 10:40:59 +0000

Following the partitions of Poland at the end of the 18th century, there were several attempts of the Polish people to revolt against Czarist Russia or Austria during the 19th century. An interesting component of this story is the Polish patriotic position adopted by one of the most prominent Polish rabbis of the 19th century, Rav Dov Ber Meizlish (1798-1870). As a wealthy businessman and learned scholar, Rav Meizlish emerged as a public activist and leading spokesman on behalf of the Jewish community, successively serving in the rabbinate of the two largest and most prominent communities in all of Poland – Krakow & Warsaw. Following a contentious tenure at the helm of the Krakow rabbinate in which his leadership wasn’t accepted by the entire community, and where he served as a Jewish representative in the Austrian parliament, he was appointed chief rabbi of Warsaw in 1857. During the 1863 Polish revolt against Czarist Russia, he took a prominent and public position in support of Polish independence. Following his passing in 1870 he was remembered not only by the Jewish community, but across Poland as an ardent patriot.

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The 1837 Tzfas Earthquake

Tachlis Media — Sun, 25 Aug 2024 11:23:45 +0000

On January 1, 1837, a devastating earthquake hit the upper Galilee and southern Lebanon, destroying towns, villages, property and roads, disrupting commerce and claiming the lives of thousands of victims. The ancient and mystical city of Tzfas was essentially destroyed at the epicenter of the earthquake’s damage, with most of its citizens killed, and the remainder being rendered homeless and penniless in the wake of this natural disaster. The traumatic event left a decisive impact on the trajectory of the Old Yishuv, with the wider social, economic and religious ramifications of this displacement being felt for decades. The rise of Yerushalayim with the downfall of Tzfas, messianic tension and subsequent disappointment, the funding apparatus of the Old Yishuv, and many other elements of Jewish life, would be heavily influenced by this one natural disaster which changed the Jewish history of the Holy Land.

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The Death Marches

Tachlis Media — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 13:30:13 +0000

Towards the end of 1944, as it became clear to the senior officers of the Nazi SS that the war was lost, they decided to evacuate the many concentration camps which held several hundred thousand inmates, and which stood in the path of the rapidly advancing Red Army. Himmler and his SS didn’t want to leave living witnesses to be liberated by the Allied armies, and they also wished to utilize the slave labor of concentration camp inmates in the remaining war industry in Germany for the duration of the war. During the winter of 1944-45, a mass evacuation of nearly a half a million prisoners commenced from large concentration camps such as Auschwitz-Birkenau, Stutthof and Gross-Rosen, along with many smaller camps, began under horrid conditions. Starved, diseased, freezing weather, lack of preparation for the journey, and constant shootings of those who lagged behind, made these death marches a murderous journey, in which tens of thousands were killed or died along the way. As trains were often unavailable, the bulk of these death marches took place on foot. This last deadly phase of the Holocaust was a tragic ending for many victims, and a traumatic memory for the few survivors.

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The Tzadik of Shtefanesht

Tachlis Media — Mon, 29 Jul 2024 12:28:37 +0000

Rav Avraham Matisyahu Friedman of Shtefanesht (1849-1933) was a grandson of Rav Yisrael Friedman of Ruzhin, leader of the Shtefanesht Chassidic dynasty for 65 years, and one of the most important rabbinical figures in Romanian Jewry during his lifetime. Though mysterious in his silent ways, he held sway over thousands who sought his advice and blessing, influencing the wider community well beyond the confines of his Chassidic followers. Upon his passing away childless in 1933, the Shtefanesht dynasty came to an end. But following his reburial in Israel in 1969, a resurgence of interest into his life story and the miraculous power of his prayer and blessing attributed to him, leaves a lasting legacy which only continues to grow with time.

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Haskala in 19th Century Imperial Russia Part II

Tachlis Media — Tue, 16 Jul 2024 16:43:50 +0000

The Jewish enlightenment movement – known as the Haskala, endeavored to implement changes within the Jewish communal structure in the modern era. Though the haskala in its many manifestations existed in many countries in the modern era, this episode will focus on the haskala in 19th century Czarist Russia. Throughout the 19th century, the haskala grew into somewhat of a movement, and promulgated initiatives to integrate Russian Jewry into surrounding society, through changes in communal infrastructure, education, economy, rabbinate and culture. Often working with the governmental authorities, the haskala faced much opposition from the traditional establishment. The story of the haskala, its limited impact, the response of the traditional community and the legacy of the haskala, reverberates down to this very day.

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Haskala in 19th Century Imperial Russia Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 14 Jul 2024 09:15:45 +0000

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Karaite Jews in Czarist Russia

Tachlis Media — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 08:08:18 +0000

Though never large in number, the Karaite communities of Russia are an interesting side chapter in Russian Jewish history. Residing primarily in the Crimean Peninsula, with communities in Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania, the Czarist government recognized the Karaites as distinct from Rabbinic Jews. Due to this recognition and intense lobbying efforts, the Karaite community was gradually absolved from the many restrictions pertinent to the Jews of the empire, including permission to reside outside the Pale of Settlement. Karaite scholars from Lutzk flourished in Crimea during the 19th century, and one of their endeavors was to write a new history of Karaites of the region. The most famous of these was Avraham Firkovich, whose research and collections played a large role in forming the new Karaite identity as ethnically distant from the Jewish People. Though much of his work was proven to be based on forgeries, the Karaite community of Russia was overall successful in remaining a distinct ethnic tribe from the Jewish People, and therefore not susceptible to Czarist discrimination.

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Tourbites: The Life & World of the Shach – Rav Shabsai Hakohen

Tachlis Media — Sat, 15 Jun 2024 19:26:07 +0000

Rav Shabsai Hakohen (1621-1663) was the author of one of the most important halachic works ever written, the Shach (Sifsei Kohen). His last rabbinical position and burial place in Holesov, Czechia, is a popular stop on Jewish history tours of Europe, along with the well preserved 16th century shul which served that community for centuries. On this episode of Jewish History Tourbites-Soundbites, we’ll explore the story of the Shach’s tumultuous life and great accomplishments, as well as the broader narrative of 17th century Polish Jewry which his life story reflects. Having been born into the rabbinic aristocracy during the golden age of Polish Jewry, he later fled his home and position in Vilna as a result of the upheavals during the Chmielnicki massacres of 1648-49 and the subsequent Second Northern War. His magnum opus was his commentary on Shulchan Aruch, the Shach, and he authored additional works on a variety of subjects including chronicles of Jewish history during his era.

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Tribute Episode: Rav Meir Wunder

Tachlis Media — Thu, 13 Jun 2024 10:28:37 +0000

The recent passing of Rav Meir Wunder (1934-2024) is an opportunity to pay tribute to this great man and his vast accomplishments as a historian, scholar and pioneer tour guide to Europe. Having attended Ponovezh Yeshiva in its early years, and gained a closeness with the Chazon Ish and many other Torah leaders of his time, he embarked on a career as a librarian. He eventually served as a librarian at the National Library of Israel for over 30 years. Emerging as a self-taught historian and respected scholar, he published his magnum opus six volume Encyclopedia of Chachmei Galicia, as well as numerous other volumes and essays on a wide array of topics of Jewish History. He was one of the early pioneers of Jewish history tours to Europe, leading hundreds of such tours for decades. May his memory be a blessing.

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Non-Ashkenazi Jews in Czarist Russia

Tachlis Media — Sat, 18 May 2024 18:44:46 +0000

Far from the Pale of Settlement, the Jews of Georgia, Bukhara, the Caucasus (Mountain) Jews, and other Jewish communities of Central Asia, found themselves under the jurisdiction of the Russian Empire over the course of the 19th century. These ancient Jewish communities had been under the influence of their Muslim surroundings for centuries, when through a series of conquests, they now found themselves confronting the Czarist regime. Unlike the majority of their brethren in Russia, they were not required to reside in the Pale, and as a result weren’t restricted by much of the legislative limitations applicable to the overwhelming majority of Russian Jewry. The story of Central Asian Jewry, is a lesser known narrative of Russian Jewry under the Czars.

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The Machine Matzah Controversy

Tachlis Media — Sun, 21 Apr 2024 20:03:26 +0000

The Industrial Revolution brought the mechanization of manual labor, and this reached the matzah baking industry in the mid-19th century. Although it was initially accepted in Western Europe, when it arrived in Galicia in 1857, it sparked a controversy between leading rabbinical authorities regarding the permissibility of its use. Tracing the development of the stages of this dispute leads one to the underlying reasoning of the opponents of the new machine. Beneath the veneer of a generic halachic difference of opinion, was the confrontation with modernity with modern technology as its expression.

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Beyond the Pale: Russian Jewry outside the Pale of Settlement

Tachlis Media — Sun, 14 Apr 2024 08:47:52 +0000

The Russian Czarist government restricted Russian Jewry to the western provinces of the empire through a series of legislative acts, which came to be known as the Pale of Settlement. Starting in the 1850’s, provisions were enacted which enabled certain types of Jews to reside outside the Pale. Wealthy merchants, those with academic degrees, certain kinds of military veterans and craftsman, were gradually permitted to reside anywhere they desired across the Russian Empire. This process is now referred to as selective integration, and it proceeded quite slowly, and was often accompanied by other restrictions. This integration process didn’t lead to the desired emancipation, and was further limited by a reactionary policy pursued by the Czar following the pogroms of 1881-82. The Jewish community of St Petersburg emerged as the self-appointed leadership of Russian Jewry, and interceded on behalf of the Jews within the Pale with limited success.

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The Yeshiva Elite in 19th Century Lithuania

Tachlis Media — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 10:06:50 +0000

A dominant feature of religious life of the 20th century has been the centrality of the Yeshiva institution for intensive Torah study. The modern yeshiva is a direct byproduct of its antecedents in the Russian Empire of the 19th century. The old oligarchy which controlled Jewish communal life in Eastern Europe for centuries, was a combination of the rabbinical and financial elite. The personality of the Vilna Gaon and his legacy among Lithuanian Jews cemented the scholarly ideal of total dedication to Torah study and knowledge. His prime student established the first modern yeshiva in Volozhin, but it took decades until the idea really spread. Torah study for the most part continued as it always had in the Lithuanian region, in local yeshivos and batei medrash. Due to a confluence of external factors facing Russian Jewry in the closing decades of the 19th century, the Volozhin style yeshiva finally caught on and began to spread. The story of how the scholarly elite of Lithuania studied Torah and institutionalized the idea of the yeshiva, is an important chapter in the story of Jewish life in Czarist Russia of the 19th century.

Enjoy earlier related episodes on this topic: 1. https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/the-legacy-of-the-vilna-gaon/

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Censorship in Czarist Russia

Tachlis Media — Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:40:40 +0000

The Czarist government implemented a policy of censorship of all published material in the empire, whether it was imported or printed locally. Though this was a general policy, there were unique particularities regarding the censorship of Jewish works. In the early years following the partitions of Poland, there wasn’t an effective mechanism of censoring in place, and it was only in 1826 when censorship for Jewish works was implemented in a systematic fashion. The government utilized the tool of censorship in order to assist in solving what they termed ‘the Jewish question’. Censorship of religious texts, especially those relating to Chassidic thought, mysticism and Kabbalah, was thought to distance them from sectarianism, integrate the Jews into Russian society, ‘improve’ them and make them more ‘productive’.

An outsized role was played by the censors themselves, who were generally prominent maskilim or even apostates. Later in the century, the government shifted away from censorship of religious works, and focused on secular literature and the emerging media of newspapers and periodicals in Russian, Hebrew and Yiddish. These were considered a greater threat from the Czarist perspective as they encouraged Jewish nationalism, socialism, aspirations of emancipation and revolutionary activity.

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Cantonists & The Czarist Military (+ Recap of a Trip to Ashkenaz/Germany) Featuring Dovi Safier

Tachlis Media — Sun, 03 Mar 2024 21:33:56 +0000

In 1827 Czar Nicholas I implemented the military draft on the Jewish community of Russia as a means of integrating Jews into Russian society. The Jewish kahal was required to supply the young recruits, who then generally served for 25 years in the Czar’s army. The most infamous element of the draft was the cantonists. These were a select group of future draftees who were taken at a younger age to special cantonist brigades, where they underwent paramilitary training, and significant percentages of its ranks converted to the Russian Orthodox Church. The story of the cantonists in Czar Nicholas’s army has gone down in Jewish lore as one of the great tragedies of modern Jewish history. Through both fact and legend, the cantonists fate has come to define the troubled relationship between the Czarist government and the Jewish subjects of the Pale, as well as the points of tension and conflict within the Jewish community itself. Though the military reforms of Nicholas’s successor Czar Alexander II ended the cantonist draft and shortened the general military draft following the end of the Crimean War in 1856, the saga of the cantonists would haunt Jewish history for decades to come.

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The Chassidic Movement in the Russian Empire

Tachlis Media — Tue, 20 Feb 2024 22:14:27 +0000

The cradle of the Chassidic movement was in the areas of the Polish Kingdom which were soon annexed to the Russian Empire during the partitions of Poland in the last quarter of the 18th century. This took place just as the nascent movement was spreading rapidly throughout these areas and beyond. Chabad in White Russia, the various branches of the Chernobyl and Ruzhyn dynasties in Ukraine, Karlin, Slonim, Apta, Savran, Breslov and many other smaller dynasties dotted the countryside across the Pale of Settlement.

The Czarist government initially didn’t recognize the chassidim as a separate entity within the Jewish community, though the initial stages of legislation actually benefited the development of the movement. The opponents of the Chassidic movement – misnaggdim and maskilim, as well as the chassidim themselves, at times attempted to involve the government in their internal disputes. Later in the 19th century the Russian government specifically singled out Chassidic custom, dress and leadership, and the chassidim of Russia had to contend with the unique circumstances of their communities development within the greater context of the challenges of the overall Jewish community in the Pale of Settlement under the autocratic rule of the Romanovs.

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Russian Jewry under the Czars 1881-1914

Tachlis Media — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 10:50:19 +0000

The aftermath of the assassination of Czar Alexander II in 1881 was a watershed time period in Russian Jewish history. A reactionary phase led to the passing of the infamous May Laws which restricted Jewish life, and reversed many of the previous reforms. A series of violent pogroms broke out primarily in Ukraine and southern Russia in 1881-1884. There was a mass expulsion of Jews from Moscow and its environs in 1892, ostensibly because they were residing there illegally outside the Pale of Settlement. Further restrictions were promulgated by the reactionary government of Czar Alexander III concerning Jewish trade and commerce within the Pale.

The autocratic reign of Czar Nicholas II during the years 1894-1917 were a time of upheaval for the Russian Empire as a whole, and a dark time for the Jews of Russia in particular. The Kishinev Pogrom in 1903 along with the government’s weak response in its prevention, strengthened antisemitic sentiment among the Russian people and government officials. Although Russian Jewry enjoyed limited reforms as a result of the failed Russian revolution of 1905, the bloody pogroms which accompanied it, caused a tremendous loss of life and property damage across the Pale. Jews participated in the electoral process of the newly established Duma, but the Czar and his government ministers continued to curtail any reform and issued further draconian restrictions on Jewish subjects. This culminated in the infamous Beilis Trial in 1913. Russian Jewry on the eve of World War I was battered and beaten, and seemed further away from emancipation than ever before.

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Russian Jewry under the Czars 1772-1881

Tachlis Media — Sat, 03 Feb 2024 20:06:42 +0000

From the time of the first partition of Poland in 1772, until the Russian Revolution in 1917, the Czarist Russian Empire was host to the largest Jewish population in the world. The generally antisemitic Romanov dynasty early on formulated solutions to what they referred to as the ‘Jewish question’. Based on the twin themes of subjugating the Jewish populace with a series of discriminatory and restrictive measures, while also attempting to integrate the Jews into the general population, the Czarist government fluctuated between the proverbial carrot and stick throughout the 19th century.

Russian Jews were restricted to an area known as the Pale of Settlement, and under the reign of Czar Nicholas I the Jews were included in the 25 year military draft with many young Jewish children being drafted as cantonists. During the great reforms of Czar Alexander II following Imperial Russia’s defeat in the Crimean War, a practice of selective integration was implemented in an attempt to incentivize the acculturation of Jews into Russian society. The czarist policy was generally consistent in this regard until 1881.

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Galician Greatness: Rav Shlomo Kluger

Tachlis Media — Sat, 27 Jan 2024 20:51:02 +0000

World renowned posek of the 19th century, prolific author and courageous leader, Rav Shlomo Kluger (1785-1869) achieved immortality in the Torah world through his nearly half century tenure as Magid and Av Beis Din in the prominent Galicia town of Brody. As political and economic changes swept through the Habsburg Empire over the course of the 19th century, traditional norms changed, technological advances brought new challenges and the hegemony of the traditional Kahal (Jewish communal autonomy) was irrevocably transformed. Rav Shlomo Kluger emerged as a charismatic and strong minded leader during this tumultuous time. Halachic queries arrived at his desk from all over Galicia and eventually from across Europe. He fought to maintain tradition and halachic norms despite attempts to modernize Jewish law. His literary legacy is almost unparalleled in Jewish history, and his many works are studied until this very day.

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The Legacy & Impact of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch

Tachlis Media — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 10:38:01 +0000

As the architect of Orthodoxy in the modern era, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888) has an outsized impact on the Torah world until this very day. In his own lifetime his leadership of German Jewry overall and in particular his own community of Frankfurt stemmed the tide towards secularization, and created a framework for a flourishing Torah community within modern life. His seminal works of The 19 Letters, Horeb, commentary on Chumash and hundreds of articles of his Collected Writings, formed the basis of his Torah outlook in the face of new challenges.

Yet his influence wasn’t limited to his own lifetime or his own community in Frankfurt or Germany. His impact permeates the entire spectrum of 21st century Orthodoxy. He pioneered the use the vernacular in Orthodox rabbinic life, initiated the first Torah oriented newspaper, spearheaded the first Torah education for girls, and laid the groundwork for much of what is considered standard Orthodox practice and values in contemporary society. A nuanced examination of his imprint on contemporary Orthodoxy can serve as a reevaluation of the crucial role he played in modern Jewish history.

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The Life & Legacy of the Aruch Hashulchan

Tachlis Media — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 11:15:27 +0000

One of the leading halachic authorities of the 19th century, Rav Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829-1908) achieved immortality through his indispensable magnum opus Aruch Hashulchan. He grew up in Bobruisk in the Russian Pale of Settlement, and served for a decade as rabbi of Novozybkov, before assuming the helm of the prestigious Novardok community, where he’d serve as rabbi for the remaining 34 years of his life.

Known far and wide as a decisive posek in all realms of halacha, many aspiring Torah scholars would come to him to request rabbinical ordination. Among his many projects was overseeing the development of the local Novardok yeshiva of Rav Yosef Yoizel Horowitz, the Alter of Novardok. The seminal work, the Aruch Hashulchan, was a bold endeavor to encompass all of halacha in a clear summary fashion. Undaunted by the daunting financial liabilities he’d ultimately encounter in order to facilitate the printing of the multi volume set, and despite the heavy hand of the Czarist Russian censors, he successfully published multiple volumes in his lifetime, and reaped the fruits of his labor as it became popular across the Jewish world. His legacy of leadership, as well as his enduring influence on the world of halacha remains until this very day.

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A Dream to Rebuild: The Early Years of Ponovezh Yeshiva

Tachlis Media — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 13:07:20 +0000

After losing his family, community and yeshiva in Ponovezh, Lithuania during the Holocaust, Rav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman (1886-1969), the Ponovezh Rav, endeavored to rebuild what was lost in the Land of Israel. He was a dreamer who carried out his vision with a zeal and energy which seemed superhuman. His crowning achievement was rebuilding the beloved yeshiva he lost in his hometown, by establishing the Ponovezh Yeshiva on a dusty hill on the outskirts of the small settlement of Bnei Brak.

Today considered one of the key components of the flourishing postwar Torah world in Israel, the sprawling campus is a vibrant testimony to the Ponovezh Rav’s determination and perseverance. When it opened its doors at the end of 1943 with seven students, he dreamed of a building which would one day be home to hundreds of students. Rav Shmuel Rozovsky was hired as rosh yeshiva and Rav Avraham Abba Grossbard as mashgiach. The yeshiva soon expanded and Rav David Povarsky and later Rav Elazar Menachem Shach were added to the yeshiva faculty. The Ponovezh Rav felt that his energetic building campaigns were the expression of a living Holocaust memorial, as the Torah world of Lithuania would experience a rebirth in the Ponovezh Yeshiva, and its affiliate institutions.

Listen to a previous episode exploring the life and accomplishments of the Ponovezh Rav: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/builder-dreamer-the-unstoppable-vision-of-the-ponevezher-rav/

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The Machal Fighters of 1948

Tachlis Media — Sat, 23 Dec 2023 18:46:54 +0000

A special place in Jewish history is reserved for the Machal fighters of 1948. These were primarily World War II veterans, who volunteered to fight for Israel during its War of Independence, and their participation served a key role in Israel’s victory. Comprised mostly of Jews, but included non-Jews as well, they formed the nucleus of Israel’s nascent air force, navy, and filled many specialized roles in the army.

One of the most important members of this volunteer corps was Al Schwimmer, an American Jewish veteran who organized a group of pilots and experienced aviation personnel on Israel’s behalf. He also organized the purchase of planes for Israel’s Air Force, transported the planes to Czechoslovakia, and then used the planes to bring badly needed weapons and ammunition to fight for Israel’s survival.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part X

Tachlis Media — Sat, 16 Dec 2023 22:16:01 +0000

In this final installment of ‘The Great Shanghai Escape’ series, we explore the story of the refugees stay in Shanghai during the war years. While integrating with the local Jewish community in Shanghai, the refugees remained there for the duration of the Japanese occupation until and even beyond the end of the war. Educational, religious and social institutions flourished, and the Mir Yeshiva settled into the Bais Aharon synagogue on Museum Road. Funding remained an issue throughout the war, and the refugees also had to sustain Japanese regulations, which included the ghettoization of Shanghai Jews towards the end of the war. Once the war was over, the next hurdle of finding a final destination took some time to overcome, as most refugees only left Shanghai a year or two later, primarily to the United States.

The refugees who had escaped to Shanghai represent one of the most incredible rescue stories of World War II. Their miraculous escape from the Soviet Union to Shanghai, ultimately saved their lives, as they were spared the ravages of the Nazi Final Solution once the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union. Their journey and their story is unique in the annals of that era, and has thusly earned a special place in Jewish history.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part IX

Tachlis Media — Sat, 09 Dec 2023 17:54:49 +0000

The refugees stay in Japan lasted much longer than their brief transit visas had initially allowed for, with the imperial government allowing them to remain for several months. Though some refugees made it to the United States or other countries, most had nowhere to go. With the Japanese government commencing the operational planning for Pearl Harbor, they wished to rid the country of all foreign elements, and the refugee community was unceremoniously deported to Shanghai, China, under Japanese occupation, where they’d remain throughout the war.

Many refugees were assisted by Professor Setsuzo Kotsuji, who later converted to Judaism. Others were assisted by the Polish ambassador to Japan Tadeusz Romer. The Jewish rescue activist Zorach Warhaftig continued to be active on behalf of the refugee community as well. The Dutch national Nathan Gutwirth was able to rescue a ship of 74 refugees who were missing documentation, by requesting assistance from the Dutch consul in Kobe, Japan, Nicolaas de Voogd. De Voogd provided the desperate refugees with Curacao visas, enabling them to arrive in Japan.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part VIII Featuring Dovi Safier

Tachlis Media — Sat, 02 Dec 2023 17:31:55 +0000

As part of our ongoing series about the Great Shanghai Escape, I had a conversation with my friend and collaborator Dovi Safier, who is a known expert on this topic, as well as having done some original research highlighting new angles of the narrative. Prior to getting to the topic at hand, our conversation covered recent history discoveries related to the family of the Slabodka Yeshiva, bearing witness to history, the recent rally in Washington, before we got to talking about the escape to Shanghai. We discussed the role of Rav Yitzchak Isaac Herzog in facilitating the escape and of Rav Avraham Kalmanowitz in funding the Mir Yeshiva and other rescue activities he spearheaded throughout his colorful career. The arrival of the refugees in Japan was another story we covered, including their reception by the local populace and the local Jewish community, despite the fact that anti-Semitic tropes were prevalent in the Japanese press. In order to create an even more authentic feel, Dovi inserted historic audio of eyewitnesses to some of the events described.

Check out a previous episode of Jewish History Soundbites relating to the refugees sojourn in Japan regarding the debate surrounding the halachic International Dateline: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/when-shabbos-was-sunday-the-international-dateline-controversy/

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part VII

Tachlis Media — Tue, 28 Nov 2023 13:43:49 +0000

The Soviets charged the refugees exorbitant fees for the exit visas and travel expenses. The Joint and the Vaad Hatzalah provided funds for these costs, with Rav Avraham Kalmanowitz investing herculean efforts to ensure the Mir contingent were able to fund their escape. Many refugees sold their personal belongings. They then embarked on a 10-12 day train journey on the Trans-Siberian Railroad across the vast expanses of the Soviet Union, arriving in the port city of Vladivostok. From there the Sea of Japan was crossed and the refugees settled temporarily in Kobe and Yokohama.

The refugees received a generally warm reception from the local Japanese as well as the small local Jewish community. When it became evident that Curacao wasn’t going to be practical as a final destination, Japanese and Jewish activists interceded with the Japanese Imperial government to extend the refugee’s visas. As a result, the refugee community was able to remain in Japan for several months.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part VI

Tachlis Media — Sun, 19 Nov 2023 21:17:57 +0000

Once one was in possession of a destination visa, came the most challenging phase of the escape – applying for a Soviet exit visa. Applying for an exit visa from the ‘communist paradise’ was potentially requesting for a one way ticket to Siberia. Despite the risks involved, thousands of refugees applied, and miraculously received a visa. The entire process had to be funded, and refugees received funding from either the Joint, the Vaad Hatzalah or by selling their personal belongings.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part V

Tachlis Media — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 09:32:17 +0000

As thousands of Jewish refugees scrambled for Curacao ‘visas’ and Japanese transit visas, many others were skeptic regarding the visa scheme, while others thought it a downright dangerous maneuver. Not only were the Curacao visas dubious at best, but the very idea of applying for a Soviet exit visa was understood by many to be viewed as tantamount to criminal activity by the Soviet authorities. In the world prior to the Nazi invasion and the Final Solution, the greatest fear was deportation by the Soviet to Siberian gulag. Many advocated against applying for these visas due to the inherent dangers involved.

Despite the opposition within the yeshiva community, Rav Leib Malin of the Mir Yeshiva encouraged the Mir contingent to apply for the visas as a group. Along with a few activists among the yeshiva students, the majority of the Mir Yeshiva students received Curacao and Japanese transit visas and prepared to join the throngs of Polish Jewish refugees headed for the east.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part IV

Tachlis Media — Mon, 06 Nov 2023 14:20:56 +0000

The summer of 1940 brought a measure of desperation in the search for visas in order to escape the clutches of the Soviet Union. Two Dutch citizens stranded in Lithuania independently contacted the Dutch consul in Riga LPJ de Decker, in order to seek his assistance in exiting the country. With Holland itself occupied by the Nazis since the previous May, it was thought to travel to the Dutch held island of Curacao.

Ambassador de Decker informed Peppy Sternheim Lewin and Nathan Gutwirth that no visa was required for entry to Curacao, it was up to the discretion of the local governor to permit entry. De Decker was asked if the passport could be stamped with the words ‘no visa required for Curacao’ while leaving out the stipulation that the governor’s permission was required. De Decker authorized the honorary Dutch consul in Kovno, Jan Zwartendijk, to stamp passports in this fashion, and he even acquiesced a further request that this Curacao ‘visa’ even be issued for non-Dutch citizens. When rescue activist Zorach Warhaftig heard about the Curacao ‘visas’ he immediately spread the word among the refugee community, and thousands of Polish refugees lined up to receive the Curacao visas from Zwartendijk. With their end visa in hand, refugees proceeded to the Japanese consul in Kovno, where Chiune Sugihara issued the vital Japanese visas.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part III

Tachlis Media — Mon, 30 Oct 2023 09:12:35 +0000

With the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in the summer of 1940, the search for visas to destination countries turned into a desperate endeavor for thousands of refugees who wished to escape a life under the communists. In order to execute an exit plan, one was required to be in possession of a full set of documentation attesting to every step of the intended journey. These included a passport, transit visas, end visas and perhaps most importantly, exit visas from the Soviet Union.

Many debated the wisdom of obtaining visas, paying exorbitant sums for dubious visa destinations. Others were concerned that the Soviets would deport to Siberia anyone applying for an exit visa. Yet others took the risk. The great rescue activist and Zionist leader Zorach Warhaftig emerged as a central figure in pursuing any feasible visa venue. Soon the Mir Yeshiva joined the visa bandwagon and the visa miracles began to fall into place.

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Bonus Episode: With Dovi Safier & Seforim Chatter host Nachi Weinstein

Tachlis Media — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 11:38:11 +0000

In this special bonus episode of Jewish History Soundbites, Dovi Safier and Seforim Chatter host Nachi Weinstein join me in discussing our article in Mishpacha Magazine about Rav Yonah ‘Minsker’, the famed Alter Mirrer who was killed by the Nazis and author of the newly republished Sefer Yonas Eilem. Our free flowing conversation covers some other topics as well.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part II

Tachlis Media — Sun, 22 Oct 2023 19:29:20 +0000

As thousands of refugees streamed into Vilna in the fall of 1939, a humanitarian crisis ensued, with neither local authorities nor the local Jewish community capable of providing for the throngs of refugees. The situation was especially acute for the many impoverished yeshivos who had found refuge in neutral Lithuania. Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski was the revered leader of the Torah world and in his capacity as head of the Vaad Hayeshivos, personally shouldered the responsibility for their welfare. He turned to his trusted student Rav Eliezer Silver in Cincinnati, who in turn established a rescue organization on behalf of stranded Torah scholars stuck in Lithuania, which eventually came to be known as the Vaad Hatzalah.

The Mir Yeshiva had by this time settled in the Lithuanian shtetl of Keidan, and for the next seven months attempted to return a sense of normalcy within the growing mayhem surrounding them. Over the summer of 1940, the Soviets occupied Lithuania and all illusions of that country remaining a safe haven were dissipated. The subsequently dispersed among four shtetls in the Lithuanian countryside, and it was from there that they visa search continued in earnest.

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The Great Shanghai Escape Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 15 Oct 2023 20:18:38 +0000

In this new series launched by Jewish History Soundbites, we’ll explore the story of the escape to Shanghai from war torn Europe during the early stages of World War II. Among the thousands of Jewish refugees who obtained visas was the Mir Yeshiva. This enabled them to traverse the Soviet Union, transit through Japan and ultimately spend the war years in Shanghai. Though this story is well known, it is often misunderstood, and this ongoing series will attempt to both clarify and organize the narrative, while dispelling some of the myths which have crept into the story over the decades.

Part one of the series will open with the operational situation of Polish Jewry and specifically Mir Yeshiva on the eve of the war. The crucial geopolitical event from this time period is the signing of the Molotov-Von Ribbentrop Non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, including a secret clause regarding the division of Poland. Following the invasion and occupation of eastern Poland, the Soviets returned the Vilna region to independent Lithuania, which appeared to many Polish refugees to be a temporary safe haven. Among the throngs of refugees headed to Vilna were many yeshivos, including the Mir.

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Rebbe Under Communism: The Ribnitzer Rebbe

Tachlis Media — Sun, 08 Oct 2023 20:17:41 +0000

Jewish History Soundbites podcast is back after a long hiatus. Lots of great content, explorations of Jewish history and ongoing series will be posted on a consistent basis in the coming months. Stay tuned.

The yahrtzeit of Rav Chaim Zanvil Abramovitz (c.1902-1995), the Ribnitzer Rebbe, is an opportunity to discuss the fascinating life and milieu of an individual who grew up in prewar Romania, survived the Nazis, defied the communists and lived out the final years of his long life in Israel and the United States. He somehow kept the flame of Judaism alive in postwar communist Romania, serving his community, and maintaining his personal ascetic practices such as utilizing the freezing Dniester River as a mikvah. His miraculous survival and leadership remains a legacy which continually grows, as his gravesite in Monsey attracts visitors and petitioners in the thousands.

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The Jews of Sighet Part II

Tachlis Media — Sat, 19 Aug 2023 23:06:02 +0000

The Jewish history of Sighet is almost synonymous with its long line of rabbis from the Teitelbaum family. This rabbinic and chassidic dynasty dominated Orthodox life of Sighet for nearly a century prior to the community’s destruction in the Holocaust.

It began with the son of the Yismach Moshe, Rav Eliezer Nisson Teitelbaum, and was later continued with his son Rav Yekusiel Yehuda, the famed Yetev Lev of Sighet who established the Sighet chassidic dynasty as well as founding and heading a prominent yeshiva in town. He in turn was succeeded by his son the Kedushas Yom Tov, and it continued with his oldest son the Rav Chaim Tzvi, the Atzei Chaim. Upon his untimely passing in 1926, his 14 year old son Zalman Leib was chosen to succeed his father, while the deceased’s brother Rav Yoelish Teitelbaum wasn’t offered a position in Sighet and would later gain renown as the Satmar Rav. Though the community was mostly wiped out during the Holocaust - poignantly described by Sighet native Elie Wiesel - there was a resurgence of the community in the postwar, and it was briefly led by the Atzei Chaim’s surviving son Rav Moshe Teitelbaum, the Beirach Moshe.

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The Jews of Sighet Part I

Tachlis Media — Thu, 17 Aug 2023 18:35:52 +0000

Though only settled in the 18th century and flourishing in the 19th, the town of Sighet made its mark on Jewish history and its legacy accompanies Jewish life until this very day. Nestled in the Maramaros district in Transylvania, it was sometimes in Romania, other times in Hungary and for a long time in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

By the end of the 19th century, its sizable Jewish population was one of the largest in Transylvania and also one of the few which was largely Orthodox. In the century before the war, Sighet was home to some prominent historic personalities, while left an imprint on Sighet Jewish life and the wider Jewish community. One of the earliest prominent rabbinical figures to settle in the Maramaros district was Rav Yehuda Kahana-Heller (1743-1819), known by his work the Kuntres Hasfeikos. The Kahana family would dominate Sighet communal life for the next century. Sighet is almost synonymous with the Teitelbaum dynasty, with a decisive impact on both Sighet’s Jewish history as well as beyond its borders across the Jewish world.

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The Life & Times of the Baal Shem of Michelstadt

Tachlis Media — Thu, 03 Aug 2023 19:39:57 +0000

Rav Yitzchak Aryeh (Zekl Leib) Vormser, known as the Baal Shem of Michelstadt (1768-1847) was a prominent rabbi and kabbalist, who lived in Germany in the 19th century. Having studied under Rav Nosson Adler in Frankfurt, he gained renown as a ‘Baal Shem’, someone who utilized kabbalistic formulas to heal petitioners and pray for their salvation. He also had a yeshiva in Michelstadt, and authored many Torah works, most of which were lost in a fire in 1825. In a rapidly secularizing German Jewish community, the Baal Shem of Michelstadt was the light of Kabbalah, and a leader who German Orthodoxy revered for decades to come.

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The Mirrers Who Didn’t Make It

Tachlis Media — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 19:40:30 +0000

It’s well known that the Mir Yeshiva collectively and successfully escaped war torn Europe, being stranded first in Kobe, Japan, followed by a long exile in Shanghai, China. While mostly true, there were students who were unable for one reason or another to escape together with the yeshiva, and remained behind being martyred by the Nazis and their collaborators along with millions of their brethren.

One of the prominent ones was Rav Yona Karpilov (Minsker). As a student of Rav Elchanan Wasserman and Rav Baruch Ber Leibowitz, he arrived in Mir in 1926 as a budding scholar, and soon emerged as one of the closest students of the Mir mashgiach Rav Yerucham Levovitz, as well as one of the yeshiva’s leaders guiding many of the younger students. He was also part of a contingent who studied in Brisk under Rav Yitzchak Soloveitchik, the Brisker Rav. Many theories have been presented as to why he didn’t succeed in obtaining one of the coveted Sugihara visas in the summer of 1940, but ultimately he was in Kovno the following summer and not in Shanghai with his friends. He was murdered by Lithuanian collaborators in 1941.

This episode is sponsored by the OU. Make your Tish B'Av more meaningful with the OU. Renowned speakers, special programming, and live kumzits straight from the Kosel! For more information and to pre-register see below. https://go.ou.org/ejljxmkA

To support the efforts to publish Yonas Eilem, the writings of Rav Yona Minsker Hy”d: https://charidy.com/yonasilem

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Medicine & the Holocaust

Tachlis Media — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 23:11:01 +0000

The challenging and nearly impossible situations confronting Jewish victims during the Holocaust presented many varied moral dilemmas. This episode will explore some of those stories and dilemmas faced by members of the medical profession - physicians, nurses and healthcare providers. In ghettos and camps, with a dearth of medical supplies and proper hygienic conditions, many rose to the challenge and continued to provide health care and attempted to save as many lives as possible under increasingly dire straits.

Dr. Adina Swajger in the Warsaw Ghetto tried to provide care for children in the Jewish children’s hospital in the ghetto. When she realized she couldn’t save them, she decided to at least spare them the horrors of Treblinka. Dr. Gisele Perl performed abortions at Auschwitz in order to save the mother’s lives, and then spent the rest of her postwar career as a fertility specialist in order to bring more life into the world. Dr. Marc Dvorzhetzki served as a physician in the Vilna Ghetto and even in a concentration camp in Estonia towards the end of the war. And there are so many more. The dilemmas they faced, the heroic and selfless acts they courageously did to save others, can serve as a legacy to Jewish heroism in the face of Nazi atrocity.

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From the Ashes to the Hilltops: Rav Yehuda Amital

Tachlis Media — Fri, 14 Jul 2023 04:08:45 +0000

Rav Yehuda Amital (1924-2010) was a unique leader and builder of Torah of the 20th century. Born in Grosswardein, he survived the Holocaust and immigrated to the Land of Israel where he studied in the Chevron Yeshiva. While teaching at his father in law Rav Tzvi Yehuda Melter’s yeshiva in Rechovot he formulated the idea of the Hesder Yeshiva, through which the yeshiva students served in the military along with their yeshiva studies. Following the Six Day War he was hired to head the new Yeshivat Har Etzion in Gush Etzion. He remained at its helm for more than four decades. During the Yom Kippur War he lost eight students, and this tragic loss made a profound impact on him, coupled with his memory and view of the great destruction of the Holocaust. Later on in life, in addition to his yeshiva responsibilities, he publicly voiced his opinion on political issues. Though iconoclastic in many of his positions, he never hesitated to articulate what he felt needed to be expressed.

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Chasam Sofer Part V: Halacha & Leadership in a Changing World

Tachlis Media — Mon, 03 Jul 2023 13:59:52 +0000

Rav Moshe Sofer the Chasam Sofer (1762-1839) was both a leader and halachic decisor throughout his long rabbinical career. As he confronted a changing world where traditional Jewish life faced developing challenges of modernity, his vision, brilliance and sense of responsibility led him to utilize the halachic responsa he authored as a medium through which to express the traditional response through a continually evolving methodology.

While still a young rabbi in Mattersdorf, the Chasam Sofer defended the local Frankfurt custom of his youth against the hegemony of a collective Ashkenaz identity. Yet a decade later as rabbi of Pressburg, he utilized the idea of collective Ashkenaz halachic identity following the rulings of the Ramah, as a mechanism for closing ranks around a strong traditional base in the wake of expansive attempts at reforming traditional halacha. During the last decade of the Chasam Sofer’s life, he expressed a pessimism regarding the future of rabbinical leadership as he witnessed many rabbis of his day leaning towards the reforming of halacha. His creative solution this time was to raise the banner of the Jewish communal collective, elevating the status of custom and rabbinic ordinance to the level of a Torah ordained obligation. The Chasam Sofer’s keen perception of the challenges facing traditional Judaism form the basis of his legacy until this very day.

Check out our previous episodes on the life and leadership of the Chasam Sofer:

Part 1: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/hungarian-royalty-the-chasam-sofer-his-family/

Part 2: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/chasam-sofer-part-ii-old-traditions-new-message/

Part 3: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/chasam-sofer-part-iii-a-pressburg-situation/

Part 4: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/chasam-sofer-part-iv-from-frankfurt-to-exile/

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Antisemitism Part III: The Road to Racial Antisemitism

Tachlis Media — Sat, 24 Jun 2023 20:59:17 +0000

One of the enduring antisemitic tropes has been the ‘Protocols of the Elders of Zion’ forgery. Fabricated in Czarist Russia in the early 20th century, it was later exported to Western Europe and the United States. Jews have responded to Antisemitism in a variety of ways, including humor, emigration and Jewish nationalism.

The early 20th century saw the rise of racial Antisemitism which had evolved in the nationalistic environment of Europe of the late 19th century. The culmination of racial theory and racial Antisemitism was through the Nazi racial ideology which formed the ideological basis of the Holocaust and Final Solution. Antisemitism didn’t disappear following the war, and it manifested itself in the Soviet Union, Europe, United States and the Moslem world.

This series on the history of Antisemitism has been sponsored by the Touro Graduate School of Jewish Studies, a leading academic program in Jewish Studies that equips students with the tools to search out their own unique path into the study of Jewish history and scholarship. For more information on admission to the Touro Graduate School of Jewish Studies, including scholarship opportunities, please visit https://gsjs.touro.edu/ or call 212-463-0400, ext. 55580

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Antisemitism Part II: Nationalism & Modern Antisemitism

Tachlis Media — Thu, 15 Jun 2023 12:30:08 +0000

The 19th century brought the rise of nationalism in European society along with the idea of emancipation and equality among the nation’s citizenry. In Western Europe the Jewish population ultimately became beneficiaries of Emancipation, but nationalism generally precluded including the Jews on an ideological level. And thus modern Antisemitism was born. Emancipation stated that Jews are now part of society, and nationalism generally rejected them from society. The term Antisemitism was born in Germany, was quite prominent in France and was brought to the full brunt of its expression in Imperial Russia of the Czars where its massive Jewish population didn’t even receive emancipation. In the closing decade of the 19th century and the opening decade of the 20th, two major antisemitic trials rocked the Jewish world. Captain Alfred Dreyfus was a Jewish officer on the French general staff, who was falsely accused of espionage. The controversy surrounding his innocence and wrongful conviction divided French society. Mendel Beilis was a superintendent of a factory in Kiev and was falsely accused of ritual murder. The virulently antisemitic trial which ensued attempted to frame the entire Jewish People and was reminiscent of medieval anti Jewish expression.

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Antisemitism Part I: Old & New; Religious & Racial

Tachlis Media — Mon, 12 Jun 2023 10:38:27 +0000

Antisemitism or anti-semitism or anti-Semitism or Jew hatred or hatred of the Jewish People has been around since antiquity. Expressing itself in various ways over time and place, it has remained a salient feature of Jewish history often with tragic consequences. While the Middle Ages is often associated with religious/Christian/Church anti Jewish discrimination, which often culminated in expulsions, pogroms, crusades, forced conversions and ritual murder charges, the 19th century is more associated with a manifestation of antisemitism in a modern form, at the nexus of nationalism and Jew hatred. This was followed by racial antisemitism with its most deadly expression in the Nazi Holocaust.

Despite the seemingly orderly chronological sequence of the development of antisemitism over the millennia, it was often a confluence of factors - religious, economic, racial, nationalistic - through which anti Jewish policies were implemented throughout history. This three part series will explore some of the distinctive features of Jew hatred, with a focus on modern antisemitism of the 19th and 20th centuries.

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Chassidic Influencers: Mashpi’im & Recurring Themes of Chassidic History

Tachlis Media — Sat, 27 May 2023 20:32:54 +0000

The Chabad & Breslov chassidic dynasties have always had Mashpi’im - influencers or teachers - who taught chassidic thought and inspired their communities. In recent years there’s been a growing popularity of Mashpi’im around the entire chassidic world and even beyond. Where does the idea of a chassidic mashpia originate from? Does it have historical precedent in the chassidic movement? Is history repeating itself? How did the chassidic movement maintain its vitality so successfully over the centuries? This episode will attempt to provide a macro view with some recurring themes over the course of nearly three centuries of the history of the chassidic movement. In a seemingly cyclical fashion, the chassidic movement’s demographic growth and communal successes have led to institutionalization and a danger of losing the initial spiritual vitality so essential to its essence. At several junctures in its storied history, the chassidic movement has successfully rejuvenated itself in creative ways, never losing its spark or its mission despite external challenges and internal struggles.

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Live From Prague with Dovi Safier & Nachi Weinstein of Seforim Chatter Podcast

Tachlis Media — Thu, 18 May 2023 21:52:42 +0000

An unscripted conversation with Dovi Safier and Seforim Chatter podcast host Nachi Weinstein summarizing an amazing trip to Central Europe with the Daf Yomi Chaburah of Reb Sruly Borenstein and Eli Slomowitz of E&S Tours. This casual discussion covers the people and places we saw - Vienna, Bratislava (Chasam Sofer), Mikulov (Nikolsburg), Holesov (the Shach) & Prague. As we review this exciting trip, we attempt to provide some historical background and analysis, while it is constantly accompanied by light banter as well.

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Get Out! Get & Divorce in Jewish History

Tachlis Media — Thu, 18 May 2023 01:32:09 +0000

As long as there has been marriage, there has been divorce throughout history. The legal procedure of providing a ‘Get’ to terminate a marriage under Torah law, has often provided a window into the wider context of social and communal life throughout Jewish history. The intricate laws of Gittin have been the backdrop of rabbinical leadership, communal crisis and halachic creativity. In honor of the Daf Yomi commencement of Maseches Gittin, this episode will explore some curious angles and anecdotes in which a Get appears as the player in Jewish history.

This episode is sponsored by Daf Yomi with Shaul C. Greenwald, a fast-moving energetic daf shiur, delivered with clarity and intensity. The shiur is available daily on all podcast platforms, All Daf and Torah Anytime. https://alldaf.org/series/5677/

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Jewish Population Growth Through the Ages

Tachlis Media — Thu, 11 May 2023 15:23:17 +0000

Jewish population growth has fluctuated over the millennia. Unique circumstances of Jewish history have impacted Jewish demographics in a variety of ways, often adversely affecting Jewish growth through the ages. This episode will attempt to explore some basic elements of Jewish demographics, fluctuations as well as salient features, and examine the numbers and their significance. The great Jewish demographic story of the Modern Era is the population explosion of Eastern European Jewry in the 19th century, with the tragic and sudden demographic contraction as a result of the Holocaust.

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80th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

Tachlis Media — Sun, 23 Apr 2023 14:59:38 +0000

On April 19, 1943 the SS attempted the final liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto, with the goal of deporting the last Jews of the Ghetto to the gas chambers at Treblinka. Most entered their bunkers and the fighters began firing on the SS who had entered the Ghetto in order to commence the deportation. The SS retreated and their commander Jurgen Stroop resorted to burning down the entire ghetto which eventually crushed the uprising and the survivors were deported to Treblinka and Majdanek.

This episode will attempt to clarify some of these events and explore some of the questions that hindsight affords the luxury of speculating. Was the armed resistance an exercise in futility? Would perhaps more have survived had they not resisted the attempt to deport the last ones to Treblinka?

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Soviet Chassid: The Story of Rav Mendel Futerfas

Tachlis Media — Sun, 09 Apr 2023 00:53:33 +0000

Rav Mendel Futerfas (1907-1995) was a Lubavitch chassid who emerged as a leader under the most challenging circumstances in the Soviet Union. He was active in one of the greatest exit attempts for Jews from the Soviet Union under the cover of the repatriation agreement signed between the Soviet Union and Poland in the immediate aftermath of World War II. Under the terms of the agreement Polish citizens were permitted to return to Poland, and some Soviet Jews utilized the opportunity to forge Polish documents and finally exit the Soviet Union. Rav Mendel was arrested in the operations aftermath and sentenced to eight years of hard labor in Siberia. Upon his release, he embarked on a heroic attempt at igniting the fire of Yiddishkeit and Chassidic life in the post Stalinist Soviet Union until he finally was able to reunite with his family in England in 1964. The last decades of his life were spent as the central mashpia at Kfar Chabad in Israel until his passing during a visit to London in 1995.

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I’ve Got a Lovely Jewish Name: First Names in Jewish History

Tachlis Media — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 10:23:44 +0000

What are some of the sources and trends in Jewish first names over the centuries? Where do double names come from? How do names differ from community to community? How are Biblical names used? What about naming for ancestors? What was the status of non-Jewish names in Jewish life? What is the source of some common Yiddish names? First names have been a fascinating cultural and sociological phenomenon throughout history. In this episode of Jewish History Soundbites, we’ll explore some of the trends in Jewish first names as well as tracing some of the origins of some names and naming customs.

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The Vurke Chassidic Dynasty & Jewish Political Leadership

Tachlis Media — Sun, 12 Mar 2023 20:18:14 +0000

The Vurke chassidic dynasty took a leading role in Polish Jewish life of the 19th century, and spawned several prominent offshoots such as Amshinov, Aleksander and Strikov among others. Established by Rav Yitzchak Kalish as a faction of Pshischa, it flourished among his descendants and students in central Poland. Rav Yitzchak of Vurke (1779-1848) was a great chassidic leader, and earned renown as a pioneering ‘shtadlan’ or lobbyist, effectively ushering in a new era of Orthodox Jewish politics. In this capacity he represented the entire Jewish community of Poland, as his activities weren’t limited to Vurke or chassidim in general.

Rav Yitzchak was succeeded by both students and sons, with his younger son Rav Menachem Mendel remaining in Vurke, and known as the ‘Silent Tzadik’. He in turn was succeeded by his son Rav Simcha Bunim who eventually moved to the Land of Israel. Most of the Vurke community and leadership was decimated in the Holocaust.

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Chasam Sofer Part IV: From Frankfurt to Exile

Tachlis Media — Sat, 04 Mar 2023 21:34:15 +0000

Born into a prestigious Frankfurt family in 1762, Rav Moshe Sofer, the Chasam Sofer, would carry the Frankfurt legacy for the rest of his life. His teachers included the local rabbi Rav Pinchas Horowitz, the Haflaah, as well as a stint in Mainz with Rav David Tevli Shayer. But his primary teacher was Rav Nosson Adler. The Chasam Sofer joined his circle of mystics when he was 10-11 years old and remained devoted to him for the rest of his life. When the Frankfurt community opposed Rav Nosson Adler’s Kabbalistic separatist customs and he was excommunicated, the Chasam Sofer accompanied him into exile. Leaving Frankfurt with Rav Nosson Adler in 1782, the Chasam Sofer was never to return to his hometown.

Listen to our previous three episodes about the Chasam Sofer:

Part 1: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/hungarian-royalty-the-chasam-sofer-his-family/

Part 2: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/chasam-sofer-part-ii-old-traditions-new-message/

Part 3: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/chasam-sofer-part-iii-a-pressburg-situation/

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Tourbites: Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin

Tachlis Media — Mon, 20 Feb 2023 10:04:50 +0000

Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin was the grand vision of its founder Rav Meir Shapiro. Following a long fundraising campaign, it opened in a grand ceremony in 1930. Rav Meir Shapiro set the goal of the yeshiva with its very name Chachmei Lublin. This was to restore the crown of glory to the city of Lublin, which had been a Torah center for centuries.

The Torah legacy would be continued by creating a grandiose edifice which would be an honor for Torah and those who study it, and would contain a Bais Medrash, dormitory facilities, kitchen, dining room, an impressive library, a mikvah and even a model of the Bais Hamikdash. Though Rav Meir Shapiro tragically passed away at the age of 46 in 1933, Chachmei Lublin continued to flourish under the able leadership of Rav Aryeh Tzvi Frommer, the Kozhligover Rav. Though most of the yeshiva students and faculty ultimately were killed during the Holocaust, the legacy of Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin remains until this very day.

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Marriage Age in Jewish Eastern Europe of the 19th Century

Tachlis Media — Sun, 12 Feb 2023 11:47:53 +0000

Matchmaking and marriage has always been a part of the Jewish story. What was the age of marriage at different times in Jewish history? How did one’s socioeconomic background impact the age of marriage? Did rich and scholarly family marry their children off at different ages than working class Jewish families? Why did the age of marriage suddenly rise among the financial and scholarly elite in the late 19th century in Eastern Europe? Could marriage plans be made in the depths of Auschwitz? These topics will all be explored in this Jewish History Soundbites Episode on marriage in Jewish history.

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The Last Nazarite: The Life of Rav Dovid Cohen, ’Rav Hanazir’

Tachlis Media — Tue, 24 Jan 2023 08:50:24 +0000

In honor the Daf Yomi cycle commencing the study of Maseches Nazir, Jewish History Soundbites is proud to present in conjunction with the All Torah platform https://alltorah.org/ the story of the ‘Rav Hanazir’ Rav David Cohen (1887-1972). Having grown up in a rabbinic family in Lithuania, he studied in the yeshivos of Volozhin, Radin & Slabodka, before pursuing a general education in St. Petersburg, Freiburg, Germany & Basel, Switzerland. It was while in Switzerland during World War I that the most formative event of his life took place, upon meeting his lifelong rebbi Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook.

He immigrated to the Land of Israel in 1922, and was appointed to the faculty of Merkaz Harav. It was here that he assumed the status of a modern day Nazir, and abstained from haircuts and wine consumption for the remainder of his life. Along with other ascetic practices such as veganism, long silences and wanderings in the Judean desert, he wished to attain prophecy and prepare himself for the final anticipated redemption. This multifaceted individual edited the works of Rav Kook, engaged in mysticism, a synthesis of general science & philosophy with Torah knowledge, while maintaining his position as a teacher of Torah in Merkaz Harav.

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Tourbites: The Chozeh of Lublin

Tachlis Media — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 15:12:15 +0000

As the oldest Jewish cemetery in Eastern Europe, the old cemetery in Lublin contains some historical treasures and great personalities. One of the prominent ones we visit on trips is Rav Yaakov Yitzchak Horowitz, the Chozeh of Lublin (1745-1815). One of the primary students of Rav Elimelech of Lizhensk, the Chozeh became a teacher of the masses, and facilitated the spread of the Chassidic movement in central Poland.

Though he faced opposition, the Chozeh’s modesty and leadership preserved and his impact was seen through both the masses who sought his counsel and blessing, as well as through his many students who emerged as the next generations leaders of the chassidic movement across Galicia, Poland and Hungary.

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Aleksander the Great Chassidic Dynasty

Tachlis Media — Mon, 02 Jan 2023 08:45:00 +0000

Based in the Lodz suburb of Aleksandrow, the Aleksander chassidic dynasty was one of the largest and most prominent in prewar Poland. Established as a branch of Vorka-Peshischa in the mid 19th century, it grew under the dynamic leadership of successive generations of the Danziger family at its helm. The Bais Yisrael Yeshiva network contributed to its growth in the early 20th century. Aleksander gained further renown during its 30 year dispute with its arch rival - the Ger chassidic community based near Warsaw. Although Aleksander attempted to remain apolitical, they did nominally join Agudas Yisrael towards the end of the 1930’s.

Although given an opportunity to escape, the last great prewar leader of Aleksander Rav Yitzchak Menachem Mendel Danziger - the Akeidas Yitzchak, chose to remain with his followers. Having escaped from Lodz to the Warsaw Ghetto, he was deported along with his family and followers and martyred in Treblinka in the summer of 1942. A group of Aleksander survivors prevailed upon the only remaining member of the Rebbe’s family, Rav Yehuda Moshe Tyberg to lead and rebuild Aleksander. He did so and established an Aleksander court in Bnei Brak, even changing his family name to Danziger.

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Holy Crown in Brownsville: The Life & Times of Rav Moshe Rosen

Tachlis Media — Tue, 20 Dec 2022 07:50:56 +0000

Rav Moshe Rosen - the Nezer Hakodesh (c.1870-1957) was an early leader of American orthodoxy. Having served as a communal rabbi in Lithuania for three decades, he was the one who discovered the Chazon Ish as a young man in the town of Chveidan. In the late 1920’s he immigrated to the United States and settled in Brownsville. He served as the first rosh yeshiva of Torah Vodaath, and later served as a rabbi in Brownsville, whilst continuing to author his multi volume Nezer Hakodesh and other works. He served at the helm of the Agudath Harabbonim and was involved in many early initiatives of Jewish education during his thirty years in a leadership position of American Orthodoxy.

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Early Secularization in Jewish Europe

Tachlis Media — Mon, 12 Dec 2022 11:59:11 +0000

The expulsion of the Jews from the Iberian Peninsula at the end of the 15th century was a period of great upheaval, as a Spanish-Portuguese diaspora formed in Western Europe and the Mediterranean basin. At the same time, many conversos remained in their home country, while many others emigrated and attempted to rejoin the Jewish community.

As a result, there arose in communities such as Amsterdam, London, northern Italy and other places the beginnings of Jewish Enlightenment and early secularization, as the confrontation with the ideas of the Enlightenment and the modern world brought the challenge of Jewish identity to the fore. Jewish secularization did not commence in Mendelssohn’s Berlin of the 18th century, nor in Eastern Europe of the late 19th century. Secularization has been a slow but steady process through the 15th-18th centuries. Heretics and tragic figures from Converso families in Amsterdam such Uriel De Costa and Baruch Spinoza pioneered Jewish secularism, while an Italian rabbi in London named Rabbi David Nieto attempted to combat it. The addition of Sabbateanism and the rise of the court Jews in Germany in the 17th century, only led to an increasing trend towards secularization, long before Berlin and Mendelssohn.

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Yerushalayim Odyssey: Rav Yaakov Moshe Charlap

Tachlis Media — Sat, 03 Dec 2022 21:25:06 +0000

Rav Yaakov Moshe Charlap (1882-1951) was an important rabbinical leader in Yerushalayim during the first half of the 20th century. A product of the Old Yishuv, he was a student of Rav Yehoshua Leib Diskin, Rav Hirsh Mechel Shapiro and several others before becoming a lifelong close student of Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook. He served as the founding rabbi of the Shaarei Chesed and Rechavia neighborhoods, as well as rosh yeshiva of Merkaz Harav and his own yeshiva Bais Zevul in Shaarei Chesed.

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The US & The Holocaust: A Review

Tachlis Media — Sat, 26 Nov 2022 21:37:35 +0000

The story of the confrontation of the US and the Holocaust is done well in the recently produced Ken Burns documentary ‘The US & the Holocaust’. It purports to cover the entirety of the Holocaust from an American perspective, and is by no means limited to the story of potential rescue. From the immigration quotas, to American anti-Semitism and the isolationist movement, to the war itself.

There’s the story of how individual Jews confronted the reality of the developing Holocaust knowing that their relatives were facing impending doom. The questions of what role was played by the American people, the Roosevelt administration, Congress and the State Department - in particular senior officials such as Breckinridge Long - are duly analyzed. The response of the American Jewish community as a collective as well as individuals is explored as well. In addition, noble endeavors of the US government such as the Treasury Department’s role in the forming of the War Refugee Board is recorded as well.

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Founder of a Dynasty: The Bais Halevi

Tachlis Media — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 20:54:04 +0000

Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik - the Bais Halevi (1820-1892) was the founder of the Soloveitchik/Brisk dynasty. Following his studies in Volozhin and a short stint as a rosh yeshiva in Minsk, he was appointed assistant rosh yeshiva in Volozhin alongside the Netziv. In 1864 he departed to assume the rabbinate in Slutzk, where he remained until 1875 when he retired to Warsaw. In 1879 he moved once again this time to Brisk, where he served as rabbi until his passing.

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Jews, Sports & Identity

Tachlis Media — Tue, 08 Nov 2022 00:22:54 +0000

Jews and sports is an exploration of Jewish identity and integration in the modern world. This was expressed as Jews became fans of sports teams, with the most famous baseball fan in history being an eccentric Jewish woman named Hilda Chester. Jews were always prominent in the labor movement, and it was a Jewish labor organizer named Marvin Miller who, as president of the Player’s Union, successfully rid Baseball of the reserve clause and emancipated the players from the owner’s grip.

During the 1920’s and 30’s Jews were especially prominent in boxing. Benny Leonard and Barney Ross were famous boxing champions, but there were many others as well. Jewish participation in boxing is perhaps the most typical expression of both the struggles of the immigrant generation, along with the process of Americanization.

Several victims of the Holocaust were famous Jewish athletes. Eddy Hamel of the Dutch National Football (soccer) team, Victor Perez the boxer, gymnasts, fencers and others as well. Though they may have been celebrities known for their physical prowess, Nazi racial theory considered them Jews and they suffered the same fate as European Jewry.

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Organizing Orthodoxy: The Story of the Agudath Harabonim Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 06 Nov 2022 20:20:30 +0000

The Agudath Harabonim of the US & Canada was founded in 1902 with the goals of strengthening traditional Jewish observance in the country. Its membership was primarily composed of Eastern European immigrant rabbis, and they focused on the areas of Shabbos observance, kashrus, Jewish education, strengthening the office of the rabbinate and assisting their brethren back in the old country.

The Agudath Harabonim supported RIETS, founded the Central Relief Committee and Ezras Torah during World War I and the Vaad Hatzalah during World War II. Its leadership was composed by some of the greatest rabbinical leaders of the era, including Rabbi Moshe Zevulun Margolis (Ramaz), Rabbi Dov Bernard Levinthal, Rabbi Yisrael Rosenberg, Rabbi Moshe Rosen, Rabbi Yaakov Kontrovitz, Rabbi Eliezer Silver and many others.

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Our Grandfathers Came to this Land

Tachlis Media — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 22:48:35 +0000

The Great Immigration was the population movement of millions of Jews primarily from Eastern Europe to the United States and other countries over the course of a half century between 1875-1924. Although the process, scope, catalysts, challenges of the immigration and immigrants are fascinating aspects of the story, perhaps the most unique angle is the fact that the entire endeavor was a ‘silent revolution’. Throughout the 19th century the Jewish community in Russia and elsewhere debated, discussed and pondered solutions to the many challenges facing the Jewish community and Jewish identity in the modern era. No solutions were incredibly successful. Yet one was. Immigration. It completely transformed the Jewish landscape.

And it was this solution which was really a silent revolution, for it had no leadership, no political platform, no organization. It was a grassroots movement from rank and file anonymous individuals making subjective life choices regarding migration. It was this silent revolution which made a decisive and quite astounding impact on the future of the Jewish People.

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Feivels Going West: Jews in the Wild West

Tachlis Media — Sun, 30 Oct 2022 15:01:39 +0000

The German Jewish immigration of the mid 19th century caused a demographic explosion of the American Jewish community from a mere 5,000 in 1830 to approximately 250,000 in 1880. Economic opportunity, the California Gold Rush and a general American migration to the frontiers of the west, led thousands of these immigrants to try their luck as peddlers and merchants in San Francisco and other mining towns in the Wild West.

When Levi Strauss arrived from Bavaria with his family in 1847 he initially settled in NY. The Gold Rush enticed him to open a branch of the family’s dry goods business in San Francisco in 1854 where he serviced the mining community. Two decades later he began marketing Levi’s pants, which were the world’s first blue jeans with rivets to secure the pockets in the rough environment the miners operated in. Josephine Marcus was the daughter of German Jewish immigrants in NYC who migrated to California and later to Tombstone, Arizona where she married the legendary Wild West figure Wyatt Earp.

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Chasam Sofer Part III: A Pressburg Situation

Tachlis Media — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 10:16:51 +0000

Rav Moshe Sofer (1762-1839) - the Chasam Sofer - led the Pressburg Jewish community for 33 years. From the time of his initial appointment he faced struggles and challenges from progressive elements within the community. Even as the Chasam Sofer gained renown across the Habsburg Empire, he still was confronted with an unsuccessful attempt by community leaders in Pressburg to forcefully close his large and prestigious yeshiva and remove him from his rabbinical position. His tactful and ultimately successful approach to navigate these local challenges influenced his general outlook and leadership within the context of the broad reaches of Central Europe.

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Chasam Sofer Part II: Old Traditions, New Message

Tachlis Media — Sun, 02 Oct 2022 20:31:30 +0000

“Chadash Asur Min Hatorah” - Anything new is forbidden, has become a slogan in defense of Jewish tradition confronting the challenges of modernity. Formulated by Rav Moshe Sofer (1762-1839) the Chasam Sofer and longtime rabbi of Pressburg (Bratislava), he has become a symbol of the combatant and fearless leadership in defense of tradition against the onslaught of changes to that hallowed tradition. How did he do it? What were his methods? What was the context of the challenges he was facing? What complexities existed at the time which led the Chasam Sofer to exalt custom, restore the honor of the rabbinate and to be posthumously recognized as the father of Orthodoxy?

Check out Part I about the Chasam Sofer and his family: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/hungarian-royalty-the-chasam-sofer-his-family/

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United We Split: The Leadership of Rav Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky

Tachlis Media — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 19:11:19 +0000

Rav Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky (1867-1948) was the rabbi of the Eidah Chareidis community in Yerushalayim & headed the branch of Agudas Yisrael in that country for 15 crucial and tumultuous years. Having grown up in Hungary, he had previously served as rabbi of Galanta and Chust (Slovakia) for four decades. In Yerushalayim he oversaw the sweeping changes which were taking place in the Yishuv with immigration, the Great Arab Revolt, the policies of the British Mandatory government, World War II, the Holocaust, the UN Partition Resolution and the founding of the State of Israel. As a responsible and outspoken leader, Rav Dushinsky courageously led his community through this unique era, and aside from his rabbinical duties - along with his position as rosh yeshiva in the yeshiva which he founded - he took an active political role as well.

Ultimately the changing demographics due to the immigration of more moderate Agudists from Poland in Germany led to a split between the Eidah Chareidis and Agudas Yisrael, which was overseen by Rav Dushinsky and remains to this very day. Following his passing in 1948 he was succeeded by his only son Rav Yisroel Moshe Dushinsky (1921-2003), who built the Dushinsky community around the yeshiva and transformed it from an Ashkenaz Oberland community into a full Chassidic court.

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The Royals & The Jews

Tachlis Media — Sat, 10 Sep 2022 22:32:13 +0000

The Jewish People have had a long relationship with British royalty. From the expulsion of the Jews from England by King Edward I in 1290 to the resettlement which continued despite King Charles II returning to the throne in 1660. From Queen Victoria’s knighting Sir Moses Montefiore, to King George VI and his overseeing the end of the British Mandate on Palestine. From Princess Alice risking her life to saving Jews in Greece during the Holocaust to Queen Elizabeth II receiving Holocaust survivors on the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Though Queen Elizabeth II never visited the State of Israel, the Jewish community of Britain enjoyed a warm relationship with the royal family in recent history.

Check out these related episodes:

Jews of London Part I: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/british-royals-baalei-tosfos-blood-libels-the-story-of-london-part-i/

Jews of London Part II: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/from-cromwell-to-montefiore-the-jews-of-london-part-ii/

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On the Cusp of Modernity: The Noda B’yehuda

Tachlis Media — Sun, 04 Sep 2022 09:13:56 +0000

The Jewish world of the 18th century was at the nexus of internal and external transformative events which would lead into the modern era. Political changes included the effects of the Seven Years War in central Europe and the partitions of Poland to the east. Internal Jewish disputes such as the Get of Kleves and the Rav Emden Rav Eybeschutz controversy, were accompanied by the challenges presented by the remnants of the Sabbatean movement, the spread of the nascent Chassidic movement and the early Haskala.

With a leadership career spanning the majority of this tempestuous century, Rav Yechezkal Landau (1713-1793), the Noda B’yehuda, rose to the occasion navigating through the turbulent waters which the Jewish community faced throughout. World renowned as a posek, he also ran a yeshiva and exhibited prodigious leadership skills both internally as well as with the government of Austria.

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A Light in the Darkness: Rav Levi Yitzchak Schneerson

Tachlis Media — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 22:39:43 +0000

Rav Levi Yitzchak Schneerson (1878-1944), father of the Lubavitcher Rebbe Rav Menachem Mendel Schneerson, served as rabbi in Yekaterinoslav in the Soviet Union. As he valiantly attempted to maintain traditional Jewish life under increasingly challenging conditions under the communist regime, he succeeded in opening a mikva, baking matzos, answered halachic queries, collected charity and distributed it to the needy, kept the shul open for services and celebrated the Jewish holidays with his community.

These illegal and anti Soviet activities eventually led to his arrest and interrogation at the hands of the NKVD in 1939. They didn’t succeed in breaking him during lengthy interrogations, and the transcripts of the NKVD on his file serve as an invaluable resource to understanding the narrative of his arrest and eventual exile. Sentenced to five years of exile in far away Chili, Kazakhstan, he was soon joined by his wife Rebbetzin Chana, who cared for him as his health deteriorated and they often faced starvation during their long years of isolation. Her memoirs provide another invaluable window into the tribulations which they sustained during this challenging time. He passed away on 20 Av, 1944 in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

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1897: A Year of Transition

Tachlis Media — Sat, 13 Aug 2022 23:16:54 +0000

Though change is generally a gradual process through history, it’s worth noting how several momentous events which were indicators of a dynamic Jewish community all occurred during the year 1897. The first Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland, the founding of the socialist Bund political party in Vilna, the Pulmoss Hamussar in Lithuania and the founding of the Tomchei Temimim Yeshiva of Chabad in Lubavitch. Are these seemingly unrelated events which differ so much in ideology, goals and constituency at all connected? Or do all four separate events indicate some unifying trends taking place in the volatile situation the Jewish People found themselves within as the 19th century came to a close?

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The Working Group & its Desperate Rescue Attempts

Tachlis Media — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 14:26:50 +0000

The Slovakian Working Group was likely the most heroic attempt at Jewish rescue during the Holocaust. Dealing directly with the SS and their Slovak collaborators, members of the Working Group bribed the perpetrators, smuggled goods and Jews across borders and disseminated information regarding the development of the Final Solution to Switzerland and Hungary.

Representing the full gamut of Slovakian Jewry, the Working Group included Gisi Fleischmann of the Zionist movement who was also a representative of the Joint Distribution Committee, Rav Michoel Ber Weissmandel who represented the Orthodox community, the Zionist leader Dr. Oskar Neumann, the Neolog rabbi Armin Freider, and the assimilationists Dr. Tibor Kovac and Andrej Steiner. Together they formulated ever daring plans to save Jews. Though most of their plans didn’t come to fruition, their heroism stands as the most daring attempt to save Jewish lives during the Holocaust.

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

With Tisha B'Av approaching, check out Aleph Beta's collection of inspiring Tisha B'Av videos. Rabbi David Fohrman, founder of Aleph Beta, explores some of the most beloved Tisha B'Av texts to discover the deeper meaning and relevance of the day.

And for a limited time only, our listeners get $18 off an annual Aleph Beta membership, which will give you access to all the Tisha b’av videos plus hundreds more on parsha and the other holidays. Go to Aleph Beta and enter coupon code Soundbites22 for $18 off an annual premium membership.

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From Young Rosh Yeshiva to Senior Sage: Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer Part II

Tachlis Media — Thu, 28 Jul 2022 15:41:24 +0000

Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer (1870-1953) was a great Torah leader of the 20th century, whose life story spanned eras and continents. As a young teenager he studied in the vaunted Volozhin Yeshiva, then married into the prestigious Frank family of Kovno, where he subsequently was appointed rosh yeshiva of Slabodka. This was followed by his departure for Slutzk where he remained as rosh yeshiva and later as communal rabbi for decades.

Following the formation of the Soviet Union and the challenges of maintaining religious life therein, he immigrated to Palestine in 1925. There he assumed the leadership of the Eitz Chaim yeshiva and served in several leadership positions in both the yishuv and later in Israel, where he oversaw the growth of the emerging Torah community.

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

Jewish History Soundbites is coming to NY! Register here for the upcoming tour of the Mt. Judah cemetery with Yehuda Geberer on July 29, 9:30 am

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From Slabodka to Slutzk: Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer Part I

Tachlis Media — Mon, 25 Jul 2022 08:45:04 +0000

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

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Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust Part III: The Sobibor Revolt

Tachlis Media — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 16:09:59 +0000

Within the framework of Operation Reinhard, the Nazi extermination of Polish Jewry, the SS built three death camps in Eastern Poland - Belzec, Treblinka & Sobibor. The latter was the smallest of the three, and a quarter of a million primarily Polish and Dutch Jews were killed in its gas chambers during its year and a half of existence. It was at Sobibor that on October 14, 1943 a great prisoner escape took place. Led by the son of a Polish rabbi named Leon Feldhendler & a Soviet Jewish Red Army officer named Sasha Pechersky, these two unlikely leaders joined together to formulate a plan to save not just themselves but to give all of the 600 inmates at Sobibor an equal chance to escape.

The revolt killed several SS officers, 300 Jewish prisoners made it to the forest and nearly 50 survived the war. As they broke for the fences, Pechersky demanded that anyone who survive should tell the world what went on in Sobibor.

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

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Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust Part II: From a Tunnel in Novogrudok to the Bielski Partisans

Tachlis Media — Thu, 14 Jul 2022 21:11:09 +0000

On the night of September 26, 1943 232 Jews escaped through a tunnel from the Novogrudok Ghetto. Nearly 170 survived, primarily by joining the Bielski partisans who operated nearby in the Naliboki forest. This was likely the greatest escape in Nazi occupied Europe throughout the entire war and Holocaust.

The tenacity and courage of the last Jews of the Novogrudok ghetto to dig a 250 meter tunnel leading to the forest, combined with the capability of joining Tuvia Bielski and his partisans, facilitated one of the most astounding stories of Jewish survival during the Holocaust. Tuvia Bielski famously said that he prioritizes saving lives over killing Germans. The result was that his partisan unit was a family camp which saved over 1,200 Jews, among them the escapees of the Novogrudok tunnel.

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

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Growth & Consolidation: The Lev Simcha

Tachlis Media — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 22:04:26 +0000

Rav Simcha Bunim Alter (1898-1992), the Lev Simcha of Ger, was a leader during a time period of growth and consolidation. Having grown up in Poland and emerged as a great Torah scholar, he moved to Palestine in 1934, and then returned to Poland shortly before the war and was a crucial player in facilitating his father’s escape from the Nazi inferno. Upon his older brother the Bais Yisrael’s assuming the mantle of leadership in 1948, the Lev Simcha sojourned in Paris and Antwerp for several years before returning to Israel. In 1977, at the age of 79, he became the leader of the Ger Chassidic community, and immediately embarked on a series of innovative measures to enhance the lives of his chassidim whom he cared for in a fatherly way. He pioneered the establishment of Chassidic communities on the periphery for cheaper housing, and encouraged his followers to look after their health and quit smoking. In many ways he expressed his practical understanding and ability to creatively confront the changing demographics his era had been presented with. On the world scene, he continued the legacy of his forebears as the leader of Agudas Yisrael in the political realm, and presented the idea of the Daf Yomi of Yerushalmy at the Knessiah Gedolah in 1980.

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Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust Part I: Monsieur & the Belgian Orphans

Tachlis Media — Tue, 05 Jul 2022 13:27:10 +0000

Jewish History Soundbites is proud to launch a special series entitled ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’. It will explore the narratives of Jews under Nazi occupation risking their lives to save others during the Holocaust. Each unique profile will explore another story, angle and individual (or group of individuals) who though their own lives were at risk still did everything in their power to save others.

The series opens with the story of Yona Tiefenbrunner, known to the orphans he saves as ‘Monsieur’. Born in Germany, he arrived as a refugee in Belgium shortly before the war’s outbreak. He initially opened an orphanage at his own expense in order to assist German Jewish refugee children. With the Nazi occupation of Belgium and the subsequent deportations in 1942, his Brussels orphanage emerged as an island of rescue, as the Nazis miraculously allowed the orphanage to operate and spare the children from deportation to the east. Maintaining a semblance of normalcy under increasingly challenging conditions, Yona managed to care for the orphans' physical and religious welfare until liberation. Following the war, the orphanage relocated to Antwerp and cared for children survivors until its closing in 1960.

To dedicate an episode in the Jewish History Soundbites ‘Jewish Saviors of the Holocaust’ series, please contact Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

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An Enlightened Song: The Story of Shir

Tachlis Media — Mon, 27 Jun 2022 11:30:24 +0000

Prague has had its fair share of characters throughout its storied history, yet Shlomo Yehuda Rapoport (1790-1867) or Shir as he was known was definitely one of the more interesting ones. Born into a rabbinic family in Lvov, Shir married the daughter of Rav Aryeh Leib Heller, the author of the Ketzos Hachoshen. Though he remained a scholarly, observant and rabbinic Jew for the remainder of his life, he also associated with the emerging Galician Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment) of his era.

His intellectual pursuits included the study of medieval Jewish philosophy, languages, general science, history and literature, while his social circles included the famous maskilim of Galicia. In an attempt to alleviate his financial struggles his friend Yosef Perl arranged for his appointment to the rabbinate of Tarnopol. Traditionalist opposition made the position unsustainable, and in 1840 he was appointed rabbi of Prague where he remained until his passing.

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Captain from Kovno: Rav Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor

Tachlis Media — Sun, 19 Jun 2022 11:11:14 +0000

Perhaps the most acclaimed leader of Russian Jewry of the 19th century was Rav Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor (1817-1896). A long-time Rabbi of Kovno, his impact reached the far reaches of the Russian Empire and beyond. He served as the leading posek in all halachic matters, the arbiter of many disputes and lent his name to diverse causes such as the Kovno Persushim Kollel and Chovevei Zion. Exhibiting leadership on the burning issues of the day, he forged a relationship with the financial elite in St. Petersburg and with Czarist government officials lobbying on behalf of the general community.

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Frum Politics: Rav Yehoshua of Belz, Rav Shimon Sofer & Machzikei Hadas

Tachlis Media — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 20:39:08 +0000

Founded in 1879 the Rav Yehoshua of Belz and Rav Shimon Sofer, the Machzikei Hadas political party was the first Orthodox political party in Jewish history. The unique status of Galician Jewry of the 19th century, as a heavily traditional, demographically large community who had already received emancipation from the Habsburg monarchy in 1867, led the leaders of Orthodox Jewry there to utilize the benefits of emancipation to further the cause of traditional Jewry. Rav Shimon Sofer even got elected to the Austrian parliament.

The mouthpiece of the organization was a newspaper of the same name, and emerged as another modern tool to preserve tradition. Though its influence waned after an initial decade of success, this pioneering endeavor left a lasting impact on the developing environment of Orthodox politics.

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Shavuos Musings & Uri Zohar Tribute

Tachlis Media — Fri, 03 Jun 2022 09:54:59 +0000

The recent passing of Uri Zohar is an opportunity to pay tribute to this unique individual who made the journey from the apex of the Israeli entertainment world to embracing religious observance.

With Shavuos approaching, it’s an opportunity to reflect on some of the historical events which are associated with this season throughout history. From the deportations of Hungarian Jewry in 1944, to liberation a year later, to the events of the First Crusade and the Khmelnytsky massacres of 1648-49, many tragic events somehow occurred around this time. The yahrzeits of both the the Baal Shem Tov and the Ger Rebbe the Imrei Emes are on Shavuos as well. These and several other curious events, are analyzed in these musings on Shavuos and Jewish History.

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A Chassid in Krakow: The Maor Veshemesh

Tachlis Media — Sun, 22 May 2022 09:21:47 +0000

Rav Klonymous Kalman Halevi Epstein (1751-1823) is known by his posthumously published work the Maor Veshemesh. Born into a poor family, he spent the bulk of his childhood selling bagels in the streets of Krakow to support his family. He eventually emerged as a budding Torah scholar, and later joined the nascent Chassidic movement, becoming a close follower of the Noam Elimelech of Lizhensk.

He later attempted to establish a chassidic presence in Krakow, but faced much opposition from the establishment. Eventually returning to his home town of Neustadt, he gained a following, while he himself continued to travel to the great tzadikim of his day. His burial site in Krakow is much visited until this very day, while his primary legacy in the form of his sefer Maor Veshemesh is sometimes referred to as ‘the Shulchan Aruch of Chassidus’.

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Shylock & Friends: The Jews of Venice

Tachlis Media — Mon, 16 May 2022 11:12:22 +0000

Jews have lived in Venice for more than a millennium. In 1516 the Jewish community of Venice was restricted to one area of the city, and this came to be known as the Ghetto, the first of its kind in Europe. Jewish life flourished, and it became a pioneering center of the printing of Hebrew books, most famously in the printing press of the Christian Daniel Bomberg.

Though there were many famous Jewish personalities of Venice, including Don Yitzchak Abarbanel who lived out his last years in the city, the most famous Venetian Jew never even existed at all. Shylock is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice. While Shakespeare used - and to a certain extent created - anti-Semitic tropes which unfortunately were perpetuated by subsequent anti-Semites over the ensuing centuries, in many ways the character reflects the restricted reality of Venice’s Jews at the time.

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Hungarian Royalty: The Chasam Sofer & His Family

Tachlis Media — Sat, 07 May 2022 20:14:18 +0000

One of the most influential Torah leaders in the modern era was Rav Moshe Sofer, the Chasam Sofer (1762-1839). Rabbi, rosh yeshiva, posek, prolific author, and most of all, a charismatic leader who confronted the challenges of modernity, and led the forming of a traditional response in changing times.

A component of the legacy of the Chasam Sofer was his illustrious family, who emerged as something of a rabbinic dynasty in the ensuing generations. His son the Ksav Sofer succeeded him in Pressburg, while another son Rav Shimon Sofer was the rabbi of Krakow. Many of his descendants were rabbis all over the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Many either escaped or survived the war and continued his legacy in the rebuilding during the post war until this very day.

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Get it? The Strange Story of the ’Get of Cleves’

Tachlis Media — Mon, 02 May 2022 13:45:22 +0000

The strange story of the Get of Kleve (or Cleves) rocked the rabbinical world of the 1760’s. What commenced as an innocuous question regarding a young man’s mental faculties, and his resulting capability of participating in a divorce ceremony, soon exploded into a general dispute about a rabbinical courts sole jurisdiction over a halachic dispute and the imposing of majority opinion among rabbis.

While the Frankfurt rabbinical court maintained that the groom in question was insane and therefore the get which he delivered was invalid, an increasing number of rabbis across Europe agreed with Rav Yisrael Lifshitz regarding the validity of the get. Eventually Rav Yechezkel Landau of Prague, the Noda B'yehuda, entered the fray, insisting that the divorce document was valid. The dispute can be viewed within the larger context of events of Jewish society of the 18th century, with loosening control of the kahal and early signs of modernity causing instability within the circles of established authority.

This episode is sponsored by Legacy Judaica in honor of their upcoming auction, Sunday, May 8, 2022, 1:00 PM EST. The catalog is available here: https://bidspirit.com/r/3axy For a unique opportunity to purchase historical artifacts, books, letters of historical personalities and more, check out the Legacy Judaica auction.

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More than a Miracle Worker: Rav Eliyahu Guttmacher

Tachlis Media — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 20:21:37 +0000

Rav Eliyahu Guttmacher (1796-1874) was a German rabbi who gained renown as a miracle worker during his tenure in the rabbinate of Gratz (Greiditz). Thousands from Poland and all over Europe would petition him asking for his blessings and prayers on every conceivable issue. A student of Rav Akiva Eiger, he was also a Kabbalist, and later a proto Zionist and supporter of the ideas of his colleague Rav Tzvi Hirsh Kalisher.

In 1932 a large cache of kvittelech sent to Rav Guttmacher was discovered. An analysis of this rare collection yields much information on the social, economic and religious life of Polish Jewry during the 19th century.

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From Rugby to the World Stage: Rav Avigdor Miller Part III

Tachlis Media — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 09:26:29 +0000

With his appointment as congregational rabbi of the Young Israel of Rugby in East Flatbush in 1947, Rav Avigdor Miller embarked on the most famous aspect of his storied career. He saw his role as rabbi primarily as a teacher of Torah, and he envisioned a community committed to Jewish observance and Torah study. To that end he focused on teaching Torah, engaging in the delivery of classes for beginners in Gemara and a myriad of other topics.

With the demographics changing in East Flatbush in the early 1970’s, Rav Miller took the unprecedented step of moving his entire congregation to Flatbush. In his later years his impact and influence exponentially increased beyond the confines of his congregation through the publication of his books, the increased attendance of his lectures - especially his Thursday night lecture - and the dissemination of his recorded lectures on cassette tapes.

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Rabbi & Educator: Rav Avigdor Miller Part II

Tachlis Media — Thu, 07 Apr 2022 14:43:55 +0000

Rav Avigdor Miller assumed the rabbinate of Walnut Street Shul in Chelsea, Massachusetts in 1939, and would remain there for six years. Seeking better educational opportunity for his children, he moved to East Flatbush, Brooklyn in 1945 and would remain there for the next three decades. He assumed a position as mashgiach in Yeshiva Chaim Berlin in Brownsville, and began educating his young charges with the values he had brought from Slabodka.

At around the same time he was hired as congregational rabbi at the Young Israel of Rugby, where he would have a decisive impact on generations of congregants. Following his departure from Chaim Berlin in 1965, he expanded the scope of his activities with his involvement in other Brooklyn Yeshivos such as Netzach Yisroel, Mir and Eastern Parkway. In addition, he gave classes to the girls of Bais Yaakov in Williamsburg and Boro Park.

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The Maharal of Prague

Tachlis Media — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 19:14:58 +0000

The Maharal of Prague (c.1512-1609) was more legend than reality. His teachings and diverse scholarship seem to grow more popular with time, but who was he and what was the world that he lived and operated in?

The Maharal was a communal rabbi in his hometown of Poznan (Poland), Nikolsburg (Moravia) and Prague (Bohemia). He was a posek and kabbalist, a communal leader and a prolific author. He stood at a crossroads of Jewish history and made a decisive impact in his own time and through his legacy. Emperor Rudolf II of the Holy Roman Empire moved the seat of the royal court to the Prague Castle in 1583, and his religious tolerance coupled with his eccentric obsession with the occult sciences added to Prague’s mystical reputation. And it was in Prague where the Maharal would lead the community, teach his students and publish many of his acclaimed works.

This episode of Jewish History Soundbites on the Maharal is sponsored by “Short Machshava on the Daf”, a project of Machsheves Yechezkel. The Short Machshava Shiur aims to give an understanding of the Agadita/Machshava of every Daf in shas, following the Daf Yomi schedule, adding a new Depth to the Daf, and is given by Rabbi Yechezkel Hartman, a Talmid of Rabbi Moshe Shapiro zt"l, and a Maggid Shiur in Lawrence NY.

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Baltimore meets Slabodka: Rav Avigdor Miller Part I

Tachlis Media — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 11:42:49 +0000

Rav Avigdor Miller (1908-2001) was a unique and influential rabbinical leader on the American scene of the 20th century. With his life spanning most of the tumultuous 20th century, his life story is somewhat a microcosm of Jewish life during historic times.

Born in Baltimore into a home of immigrants, he went to study in RIETS in New York and eventually made the courageous decision to cross the ocean to study in the Slabodka Yeshiva in Lithuania. It was there under the tutelage of his rebbi Rav Isaac Sher and other great mussar personalities that would come to define him and his teachings for the rest of his life. It was also there that he married his wife Chana Etel Lesin, the daughter of Rav Yaakov Moshe Lesin the rabbi of Neishtat-Sugind. After spending six years in Slabodka, he returned home in late 1938, at the cusp of a long career where he would transmit the legacy of the past to generations of students and congregants.

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The History of Soviet Jewry Part III: Refuseniks & Immigrants

Tachlis Media — Fri, 25 Mar 2022 00:40:02 +0000

Soviet Jewry in the 1970’s and 80’s was a large community which was struggling to define its Jewish identity. Following the Six Day War in Israel, the Refusenik movement gained traction, with many young Soviet Jews applying for exit visas, and willing to sustain the consequences when their applications were denied. Anatoly Sharansky, Ida Nudel, Eliyahu Essas, Yosef Mendelevich, Yuli Edelstein, and many others were exiled or went to prison for the crime of desiring to exit the Soviet Union. For some there was a resurgence of Jewish observance.

In the 1980’s emigration increased, and the last great emigration from Russia began. Many arrived in Israel, while others went to the United States or Germany. In Israel they integrated while maintaining elements of their own culture.

Rav Avraham Yaakov Pam thought it imperative to create a school system where children of immigrant families from the Soviet Union would be accommodated, and where they would be introduced to religious education.

This series on the history of Soviet Jewry is sponsored by Shuvu - Chazon Avraham, a network of schools in Israel whose student body is primarily composed of children of immigrants from the former Soviet Union. Support Shuvu’s educational projects here: https://www.shuvuusa.org/donate

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The History of Soviet Jewry Part II: Destruction & Memory

Tachlis Media — Sun, 20 Mar 2022 14:25:28 +0000

The Molotov-Von Ribbentrop non-aggression pact ultimately led to the annexation of large swaths of territory into the Soviet Union. The Jews of eastern Poland and the Baltic States now had to acclimate to the realities of Soviet Jewish life. With the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union - Operation Barbarossa - on June 22, 1941, the mass shootings of Soviet Jewry began.

The Holocaust in the Soviet Union was unique in many respects. The Einsatzgruppen SS killing squads, along with local collaborators, murdered the Jews of the Soviet Union through mass shootings outside of the towns. Survival under Nazi occupation was rare, and was only possible by escape to the unoccupied areas of the Soviet Union or by serving in the Red Army. The Soviet government appointed the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee, headed by leading Soviet Jewish writers and intellectuals. They generated publicity regarding the Holocaust, and gathered data which was eventually published as the Black Book.

The postwar Stalinist repression of Jewish life was one of the darkest periods of Jewish history in the Soviet Union. Sustaining Jewish life became nearly impossible, and those who struggled to do so did it heroically and against all odds.

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The History of Soviet Jewry Part I: From the Pale to the Revolution

Tachlis Media — Sun, 13 Mar 2022 20:12:43 +0000

The Russian Revolutions of 1917 drastically transformed the lives of the largest Jewish community in the world. Emancipation was finally achieved, the hated Czar was finally deposed and they could finally reside outside the Pale of Settlement. With the founding of the Soviet Union in 1922, new challenges arrived on the scene. The new found freedom led to widespread assimilation. Couple with the mass internal migration to urban centers, this brought a great breakdown of traditional Jewish life. The Soviet communist government was openly hostile to organized religious life, and its rabbis were hounded and exiled.

This series on the history of Soviet Jewry is sponsored by Shuvu - Chazon Avraham, a unique network of schools in Israel whose student body is primarily composed of children of immigrants from the former Soviet Union. The students represent a closing chapter of Jewish history, a bookend effect as it were as descendants of the Soviet Jews who experienced the Revolution and its results. Support Shuvu’s educational projects here: https://www.shuvuusa.org/donate

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Brisk Management: Another Look at Rav Chaim Brisker

Tachlis Media — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 21:10:38 +0000

Rav Chaim Soloveitchik, known as Rav Chaim Brisker (1853-1918), has enjoyed an outsized influence on the methodology of Talmudic study and the development of the modern Torah world. As a historical figure he was not only influential but beloved as well, with countless stories of his kindness, care and leadership initiative as rabbi in Brisk as well as in wider rabbinic circles across the Pale of Settlement.

From his adopting abandoned children on his doorstep to his attempts at implementing pension plans for deceased rabbis widows and orphans, his care and attention to detail bespoke the responsibility he felt towards the less fortunate of society. His Torah teaching career commenced at age 27 in the Volozhin yeshiva, and he later had informal interactions with students while in Brisk. From these oral teachings, together with a limited textual legacy in the form of his published works, his imprint on the development of the Torah world is felt until this very day.

See previous episode about Rav Chaim Brisker: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/voice-of-clarity-a-tribute-to-rav-chaim-brisker/

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From Slonim to Tverya: The Nesivos Shalom Part II

Tachlis Media — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 18:35:06 +0000

Rav Shalom Noach Berezovsky was appointed Slonim Rebbe shortly prior to his father in law’s passing in 1981. As he had served as the rosh yeshiva of Slonim for decades, this enabled him to enjoy a close relationship with his followers who were for the most part his own students. The background of the Slonim dynasty has its roots in White Russia, with antecedents in the court of Rav Mordechai of Lechovitz and Rav Moshe of Kobrin. Rav Avraham Weinberg, the Yesod Ha’avodah, founded the Slonim dynasty. He was succeeded by his grandson Rav Shmuel Weinberg, who passed away in exile in Warsaw. Following World War I, his son Rav Avraham Weinberg, the Bais Avraham, reestablished the Slonim court in Baranovich. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

A Teacher from Slonim: The Nesivos Shalom Part I

Tachlis Media — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 21:24:53 +0000

The Slonim Rebbe, Rav Shalom Noach Berezovsky (1911-2000) was known by his popular work the Nesivos Shalom. Having grown up in Baranovich in the center of the Slonim chassidic dynasty, he was appointed by the rebbe the Bais Avraham to record his weekly discourses. Following his marriage and move to Tverya in 1935, he first found employment as a rosh yeshiva in Achei Temimim-Lubavitch in Tel Aviv.

Having heard of the decimation of the Slonim community in Europe during the Holocaust, he embarked on ambitious mission: to found a Slonim yeshiva in Yerushalayim with the goal of rebuilding the chassidus. With his father in law election as the Slonim Rebbe, he was now the rosh yeshiva of a fledgling chassidic community. He then succeeded his father in law the Birkas Avraham as rebbe in 1981.

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From World War to Revolution: Iranian Jewry Part II

Tachlis Media — Sat, 12 Feb 2022 20:25:27 +0000

Iranian Jewry in the 20th century saw much upheaval. The rise of the Pahlavi dynasty brought much hope to the Persian Jewish community. Iran served as a center of some important events of World War II with the Anglo-Soviet invasion of the country, as host of the Teheran Conference, the exit of the Polish Anders Army through Iran and many Jewish refugees arriving there including the famous ‘Yaldei Teheran’.

Another period of relative stability was interrupted towards the end of the 1970’s with the Revolution and the subsequent Iran-Iraq war. Much emigration occurred around this time. Rabbi Herman Neuberger and other activists engaged in the rescue of many Iranian Jews, and this sparked a renaissance of Iranian Jewish life in the United States. Many immigrated to Israel as well. Rabbi Neuberger arranged their attendance of Ner Israel - tuition free - and many emerged as leaders of the Iranian Jewish community.

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Princes of Persia: Iranian Jewry Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 06 Feb 2022 15:11:09 +0000

The ancient Jewish community of Persia/Iran is one of the oldest Jewish communities in the world. The site of the Purim story and many Biblical and Talmudic era luminaries, it continued to flourish through times of stability and persecution.

One of the great rabbinical leaders in the city of Hamedan, Iran in modern times was Chacham Mola David Sasson Rabban (1879-1974). As rabbi of the community he oversaw its growth and later decline in mid 20th century to widespread emigration, while corresponding with rabbis across Iran and in neighboring Iraq. He also ran the local Otzar Hatorah school, which was part of network of traditional Jewish education which facilitated the renaissance of Jewish life in Iran and later in Iranian diaspora Jewish communities.

This podcast is sponsored in honor of the release of the first sefer of its kind! The writings of the Av Bet Din of the city of Hamadan, Iran, Rabbi David Sasson Rabban, including a whole section on the minhagim of the Jews of Iran. Published by Machon Magen Avot publishing house, and is available on their website moroccanhalacha.com, along with all other sefarim by Machon Magen Avot. In Israel it can be obtained in the Sifria Hasefaradit Rechov Bucharim 4. https://magen-avot.myshopify.com/products/the-writings-of-chacham-rabbi-david-sasson-rabban-of-hamedan-iran

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Chabad & Zionism Part II

Tachlis Media — Sun, 30 Jan 2022 17:01:27 +0000

With the passing of the fifth rebbe of Chabad the Rashab in 1920, his son Rav Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson (1880-1950), the Rayatz, or the Freidiker (previous) Rebbe, took over the Chabad-Lubavitch movement at a time of crisis. Through the decades of his leadership he expressed a commitment to the ideals of his father in regards to Zionism, while dealing with the practical upheavals of Jewish life including the Holocaust and the founding of the State of Israel.

This was continued by his son in law and successor Rav Menachem Mendel Schneerson. While in theory, the opposition to ideas such as ‘aschalta digeula’ remained, practical considerations of caring for the needs of the Jewish People and furthering Jewish observance took precedence.

Of special note was the relationship enjoyed between both Rebbe’s and the third president of the State of Israel, Zalman Shazar.

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Wise Man of Hungary: Rav Yehuda Aszod

Tachlis Media — Sat, 22 Jan 2022 22:08:54 +0000

Rav Yehuda Aszod (1796-1866) was one of the architects of the emerging Hungarian Orthodoxy of the 19th century. A student of the Maharam Banet, he went to serve in the rabbinate and as a rosh yeshiva in several towns, the most prominent of which was in Dunaszerdahely in the Austrian Empire.

Ideologically positioned between neo Orthodoxy as represented by Rav Ezriel Hildesheimer and Hungarian Ultra-Orthodoxy as represented by Rav Hillel Lichtenstein, Rav Yehuda Aszod emerged as a leader of mainstream orthodoxy along with his colleague the Ksav Sofer. For decades he confronted modernist trends, any assault on tradition, and engaged in polemics with assimilationists and reformists alike. In 1864 he headed a delegation which met with Emperor Franz Jozef I in an unsuccessful attempt to block the opening of a reformist rabbinical seminary.

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A Dazzling Light: The Life & Impact of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan

Tachlis Media — Sat, 15 Jan 2022 20:45:05 +0000

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan (1934-1983) was a dazzling light on the Jewish history scene of the 20th century. With family origins in Thessaloniki, Greece, he was born in the Bronx, and eventually studied at Yeshiva Torah Vodaath and Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem. Returning to the US he became a physicist and then a pulpit rabbi, before entering the world of Jewish outreach.

In his later years he maintained a prodigious literary output, authoring a large amount of works across the gamut of Jewish thought, mysticism, chassidic thought and practical Jewish observance. Much of this was commissioned by NCSY, which is where he did much of his kiruv activities. His tragic passing at the young age of 48 cut short his life work and accomplishments, but his impact continues until today through his many published works.

This episode has been sponsored by NCSY in honor of the republication of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s books. Connect more to Mitzvos and Yiddishkeit with Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Zt”l’s republished and enhanced books. The library of 10 books covers the deeper meaning of some of the most important mitzvos. A project of NCSY in conjunction with Artscroll.

For More Information and to Buy the Books:

https://go.ncsy.org/rVOC

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The Czars & The Jews Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:56:45 +0000

Following the partitions of Poland in the last quarter of the 18th century, the largest Jewish community in the world found themselves under the rule of the Romanov dynasty in the Russian Empire. Each Czar formulated a distinct policy in regards to the Jewish population, and many of these policies, along with the Jewish community’s reaction, often has ramifications until this very day.

Catherine the Great was czarina during the years of the partition itself, and she commenced her Jewish policy influenced by the ideas of enlightened absolutism. Jews were granted partial emancipation but the beginnings of their confinement to what would become known as the Pale of Settlement began as well. At the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, Alexander I assumed power, and he initially was viewed as a somewhat enlightened ruler, primarily due to the opportunities afforded through his ‘Jew constitution’ promulgated in 1804.

He was succeeded by Czar Nicholas I, who went down in history as a sworn enemy of the Jews and an evil ruler. It was under his watch that the infamous cantonist decrees took place. He also attempted to meddle with internal Jewish affairs by reforming the educational institutions and by the annulment of the kahal communal structure.

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The Roar of the Lion: The Life of Rav Leib Malin Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 02 Jan 2022 11:51:05 +0000

Prewar student of Rav Yerucham Levovitz and the Brisker Rov, leader during the Mir Yeshiva’s wartime escape to Shanghai, and postwar builder of Bais Hatalmud in Brooklyn, Rav Leib Malin (1906-1962) was the ‘Lion of the Mir’.

In part 1 of examining his life and accomplishments, we examine his family background, leadership role in the escape to Shanghai, and his replanting Torah through his Bais Hatalmud yeshiva in the postwar United States. The unique circumstances of this rebuilding attempt, made his all encompassing vision of what a yeshiva is a historic landmark in the role that the yeshiva institution was to play in revitalizing traditional society. No longer to be limited to an educational role, a yeshiva was to be a lifelong communal affiliation, a revolutionary role which has arguably bore fruit through the contemporary yeshiva community worldwide.

This episode has been sponsored by 20 Minute Daf. A daf yomi shiur led by Reb Shaul Greenwald, 20 minute daf is where you feel the geshmak of Daf Yomi. In just a little over 20 minutes, you'll get a clear and thorough explanation of the sugya. Listen to 20 Minute Daf on all podcast platforms, WhatsApp, and at 20minutedaf.com

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The Emergence of a Leader: The Life of the Chazon Ish Part III

Tachlis Media — Sat, 25 Dec 2021 22:29:57 +0000

In part 3 of the story of Rav Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz (1878-1953), the Chazon Ish, his path is traced from his relative obscurity to his emergence as a leader. From expressing halachic positions for the Poalei Agudas Yisrael agricultural settlements, to building yeshivos across the new yishuv, the Chazon Ish soon emerged as a well known posek with the psak he issued regarding the International Dateline.

While losing much of his family during the Holocaust and suffering other personal challenges during the 1940’s, the decade saw him become an address for many seeking his advice and blessing as his fame began to spread. With the founding of the State of Israel in 1948, the Chazon Ish was at the cusp of his final position in the Jewish world - an undisputed leader.

Check out the earlier episodes about the Chazon Ish here:

Part 1: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/a-guiding-light-the-life-of-the-chazon-ish-part-i/

Part 2: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/a-guiding-light-the-life-of-the-chazon-ish-part-ii/

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Iron Yid: The Story of Zishe Breitbart

Tachlis Media — Mon, 20 Dec 2021 11:12:57 +0000

Zishe or Siegmund Breitbart (1893-1925) was a circus strongman, and a Jewish folk hero of his day. Having grown up in an observant home in Strykov in Poland, his remarkable strength eventually led him to the Busch circus in Germany, where he toured the world, bending iron, and holding incredible weights on his chest, among other feats of strength.

To the Jewish masses of Eastern Europe, he was a superhero. He was proud of his Jewish identity and never shied away even in the face of anti-Semitism. His generosity to Jewish causes knew no bounds, and he continued to affiliate with his community. At age 32, at the height of his fame, a work accident led to an infection and he passed away in Berlin in 1925.

This episode is sponsored by Genazym Auction House in honor of its upcoming auction on Tuesday, December 28, 2021, 12:00 PM EST. Check out the catalog for the opportunity to own a piece of Jewish history. A tangible piece of our heritage is just a bid away: https://bit.ly/3Fd4T12

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The Haflaah: The Life & Legacy of Rav Pinchas Horowitz

Tachlis Media — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 18:50:33 +0000

Rav Pinchas Horowitz (1731-1805), known by his most enduring literary work ‘the Hafla’ah’, was unique in the respect that the varied aspects of his legacy enjoyed a broad consensus across the Jewish world. He served for 33 years at the helm of the Frankfurt rabbinate. His works Hafla’ah, Makneh and others on Shas have become classics in the yeshiva world, while his Torah commentary Panim Yafos enjoys enduring popularity as well. His relationship with the Maggid of Mezritch and the level of Rav Pinchas’s identity as a chassid has been a matter of dispute, and has also come to define his legacy.

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Come on and Ride the Train: Railroads & Jews

Tachlis Media — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 12:40:41 +0000

The development of the railroad and the laying of rail track across the Russian Empire in the late 19th century, had a tremendous impact on traditional Jewish life in the Pale of Settlement. The railroad brought economic changes, implosion of communal structures and challenges to traditional norms. It enabled information to travel and for the spread of ideas, and for isolated shtetl’s to have access to wider society.

Among other things, the development of the railroad in Russia enabled the spread of anti-Semitism and pogroms. It also played a crucial role in facilitating the Great Immigration. Without the railroad, emigrating would be relegated to an unachievable dream for most. With the railroad, the cost and time for travel was significantly reduced.

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Chabad & Zionism Part I: The Rashab

Tachlis Media — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 13:39:23 +0000

Rav Sholom Dovber Schneerson (1860-1920), better known as the Rashab, as the fifth Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch, was one of the leaders of Russian Jewry at a time when it confronted many challenges of modernity. One of those challenges was the new Jewish nationalism as expressed in the nascent Zionist movement in the late 1890’s. The Rashab decided to confront what he understood to be a danger to traditional Judaism, by initiating a project which would present a united Orthodox front in opposition to Zionism.

To that end he partnered with Yaakov Lifshitz and the ‘Lishka Hashechora’ in Kovno. In January 1900, a pamphlet entitled Ohr Layesharim was published, which included a letter of the Rashab clarifying his opposition to Zionism. He expressed theological opposition - evoking for the first time the violation of the ‘three oaths’ by attempting to force the redemption prior to Moshiach’s arrival. He also expressed concern regarding the secular nature of the Zionist leadership, and even raised practical challenges the movement would confront which he believed would prevent its goals from being realized.

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The Legacy of the Vilna Gaon

Tachlis Media — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 09:50:10 +0000

The Vilna Gaon, or the Gra, or Hagaon Hachassid, were just several of the titles by which Rav Eliyahu Kramer (1720-1797) was known during his lifetime and to posterity. It would be difficult to find many others who had the influence and impact on Jewish life which the Gaon had and continues to have on Jewish society. This episode will examine some of the aspects of the Vilna Gaon’s legacy, both during his own lifetime and through the more than two centuries since his passing.

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Modesty & Majesty: The Tolna Dynasty

Tachlis Media — Wed, 17 Nov 2021 12:07:19 +0000

The Tolna chassidic dynasty is a branch of the Chernobyl dynasty founded in Ukraine in the 19th century. Rav Dovid Twersky of Tolna (1808-1882) was one of the most influential leaders of chassidic Ukraine in the mid 19th century, spreading his influence throughout the Kiev area. He was succeeded by his grandson Rav Menachem Nochum, who in turn was succeeded by his three sons, all of whom immigrated to the United States.

The prominent Tolna Rebbe of modern times was Rav Yochanan Twersky (1906-1999). Presumably the first active Rebbe in Montreal, he had an impact on Canadian Jewry until his move to Israel in the 1950’s. It was there that he modestly acted as a chassid of the Ger Rebbes, while attempting to stay out of the limelight. Despite his attempts, he gained a significant following, and was a beloved leader to his chassidim. He was succeeded by his grandson Rav Yitzchak Menachem Weinberg, the current Tolna Rebbe and by other descendants.

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Rosh Yeshiva & Rebbe: The Pnei Menachem of Ger

Tachlis Media — Thu, 11 Nov 2021 16:45:01 +0000

Rav Pinchas Menachem Alter (1926-1996), known as the Pnei Menachem of Ger, led an interesting career in public leadership. Born into prewar Polish chassidic aristocracy, he escaped with his father the Ger Rebbe following the outbreak of the war. He eventually became the rosh yeshiva of the flagship Sfas Emes Yeshiva, and later the head of Agudas Yisroel in Israel.

In his last years, he served as the Rebbe of Ger for just over three years before his passing in 1996. Renowned for his Torah scholarship, warmth, modesty and accessibility, he was beloved well beyond the confines of the Ger court.

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A House Divided: The Partitions of Poland & the Jews

Tachlis Media — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 08:34:49 +0000

The three partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793 & 1795 ended the Polish Kingdom (or the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth), and divided it between Austria, Russia and Prussia. This had far reaching consequences for the largest Jewish community in the world which had resided within the borders of the kingdom.

Their new rulers desired a more central authority, and much of the Jewish autonomy was curtailed as a result. The Jewish communities of each empire found themselves under new political entities, new laws, new language and culture, and they now were on a different trajectory than their brethren who were on the other side of an international border.

In the last years of the Polish Kingdom the Four Year Sejm took place between 1788-1792. The reforms which were raised in regards to Jews economic opportunity and political status, would echo through the Jewish communities of partitioned Poland throughout the upcoming 19th century.

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According to Rav Tikochinsky…. The Live of Rav Yechiel Michel Tikochinsky

Tachlis Media — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 07:57:27 +0000

One of the leaders and influential poskim of the Old Yishuv in Jerusalem, Rav Yechiel Michel Tikochinsky (1871-1955) had an outsized impact on the world of halacha, especially in regards to zmanim- halachic time. As the long-time administrator of the Eitz Chaim Yeshiva and accompanying institutions, he oversaw its move to the new city in Yerushalayim, where it entered an era of expansion and growth.

He pioneered many areas of halacha, including the laws of mourning, shmittah, the halachic international dateline, laws of Jerusalem and the Bais Hamikdash. Having cultivated both a love as well as a keen understanding of astronomy from a young age, he arrived at formulas for calculating the various zmanim in halacha. In 1905 he initiated the publication of what was to became an incredibly influential calendar where he presented his views on zmanim and customs of Jewish life.

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The Chief Rabbi: Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

Tachlis Media — Sat, 23 Oct 2021 22:12:20 +0000

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948-2020) was one of the great figures of recent Jewish history. As Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1991-2013, he was the great spokesman for both British Jewry as well as on the larger Jewish stage.

Sponsored in tribute to one of the generation's inspiring Torah luminaries - join a special evening of learning and conversation in memory of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks ztz"l upon the occasion of his first yahrzeit - register to watch on Tuesday, October 26 at 7:00 pm EST at ou.org/rabbisacks

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Great American Jewish Cities #19: Boston Part II

Tachlis Media — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 09:57:04 +0000

Boston part II is here, with another foray into the history of the Boston Jewish community. As the Jewish community migrated from the West End to Roxbury, Dorchester and eventually Brookline, new institutions were built to accommodate the needs of the growing community.

Rav Joseph B. and Tonya Soloveitchik established the Maimonides Hebrew Day School, and hired Rabbi Moses Cohen as the principal. Other early rabbis included Rabbi Rephoel Landau, the Tolna Rebbe Rav Meshulam Zusha Twersky, the Boston Rebbe Rav Levi Yitzchak Horowitz, Rav Shlomo Margolis and out in Chelsea was Rabbi Kalman Lichtenstein. Generations of the Feuerstein supported these institutions with their philanthropy as well being leaders in the hospitality that the Jewish community of Boston became renowned for.

Rav Soloveitchik maintained a yeshiva in town for several years called Heichal Rabbeinu Chaim Halevi, and in the 1950’s Rav Shlomo Margolis assisted with the establishment of a Lakewood yeshiva headed by Rav Leib Heyman which also lasted for several years.

Listen to part I of Jewish Boston here: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/great-american-jewish-cities-season-2-1-worcester-boston/

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10th Yahrtzeit Special: Memories of Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel

Tachlis Media — Sat, 16 Oct 2021 17:28:20 +0000

To commemorate the 10th yahrtzeit of the Mir Rosh Yeshiva Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel (1943-2011), here is another installment of impressions and recollections of this great man and his impact on the larger Torah world. Viewing his great accomplishments over the course of his 22 year tenure at the helm of Mir Yeshiva, one is tempted to see them in the greater context of the rebirth of the Torah world in the postwar era. His projects can be seen as launching an era of expansion, following decades of modest rebuilding.

From his modest beginnings as a youth in Chicago, the young Rav Nosson Tzvi travelled after high school to his great uncle, Rav Leizer Yudel Finkel in Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem. During his years as Rosh Yeshiva, he was beloved for his love which he exuded to his talmidim, and awed by all for his dedication despite the effects of his debilitating illness.

Listen to our previous episodes about the life of the Rosh Yeshiva Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel:

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Great American Jewish Cities #23: Houston Part II

Tachlis Media — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 17:06:58 +0000

In this second installment on the Jewish history of Houston and South Texas, the renaissance of Orthodox through the pioneering efforts of Rabbi Joseph Radinsky of the United Orthodox Synagogue, Rabbi Shimon Lazaroff of Chabad and Rabbi Yehoshua Wender of the Young Israel of Houston. The development of air conditioning led to a population explosion in Houston in 1960’s, and the S&L scandal led to its reduction in the late 80’s. Nevertheless, institutions were built, schools grew and a Kollel was founded in recent times as well.

40 miles to the west lies the town of Hempstead. Its rise and decline as a Jewish community is through the story of the Schwartz family and its patriarch Rabbi Chaim Schwartz. The port of Galveston was home to a prestigious community, as well as the oldest established Jewish community in Texas. With Rabbi Henry Cohen’s arrival in 1888, he’d leave his imprint on Texas and American Jewish history through his activities over the ensuing more than six decades. The most prominent role played by Galveston was with the ‘Galveston Plan’, an attempt to reroute Eastern European Jewish immigrants to Galveston due to the overcrowding of New York. With a direct Bremen-Galveston route in place, over 10,000 Jews arrived in the port between the years 1907-1914.

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Great American Jewish Cities #23: Houston Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 18:09:20 +0000

Jewish roots in southern Texas precede the Civil War. Jewish communities emerged in Houston, Galveston and other cities and towns across the Texan frontier. As commerce developed in the second half of the 19th century, the Jewish population grew and established synagogues.

From the Reform Beth Israel - which started out as Orthodox - to the Orthodox Adath Israel, the immigrants from Germany and later Eastern Europe left an imprint on Jewish and general Houston society. Rabbi Yaakov Geller was a rabbi from Galicia, and Max Goodman was a shochet from Lithuania. Pioneers in recent history include the United Orthodox Synagogue of Rabbi Joseph Radinsky, Rabbi Shimon Lazaroff with Chabad and Rabbi Yehoshua Wender of the Young Israel of Houston.

As South Texas’s Jewish history is explored, Houston, Galveston and other towns play their part in the unfolding Jewish story.

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Romanian Revival: Interwar Romanian Rabbinical Leadership

Tachlis Media — Sun, 03 Oct 2021 08:44:24 +0000

Rav Yehuda Leib Tzirelson (1859-1941) and his younger compatriot Rabbi Moshe Yosef Rubin (1895-1980), were but two examples of the unique rabbinical leadership enjoyed by the Romanian Jewish community during the tumultuous first half of the 20th century. With the outer districts of Bukovina and Bessarabia being absorbed into the new nationalistic and increasingly anti Semitic Romania, it took courageous leadership to provide an anchor of tradition during that time period.

What made the story even more unique was their leadership in the Romanian Agudas Yisroel organization, while maintaining Zionistic positions on settlement of the Land of Israel and the future founding of a State. Rabbi Rubin was able to escape to Bucharest following the war's outbreak and continued his rescue activities and Agudah leadership from the capital. Following the war, he immigrated to the United States, where he later founded the Geder Avos organization to protect and maintain Jewish cemeteries in Europe. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Sale or No Sale? Shemitah in Modern Times Part II

Tachlis Media — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 17:34:40 +0000

With the passing of Rav Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor in 1896, his true opinion of the 'Heter Mechira' which he had authored became a matter of everlasting dispute. In the ensuing shmittah years, other rabbis weighed in on the issue, with some supporting the heter mechira, while others remained opposed. With the rise of settlements during the Second Aliyah in the early 1900's, as well as the more secular nature of the colonists, the shmittah issue came to the fore again with the upcoming shmittah year of 1910. Rav Yaakov Dovid Wilovsky - the Ridbaz - was the most vocal opponent of the heter mechira, and he disputed the then rabbi of Yaffo, Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook. This sharp dispute defined the heter mechira issue during that year, though the two maintained a close personal friendship. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Land on Sabbatical: Shemitah in Modern Times Part I

Tachlis Media — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 14:23:46 +0000

With the onset of the First Aliyah in the 1880's, and the beginnings of Jewish agricultural settlements as a result, the issue of how to observe Shmita came to the fore. Most of the original colonies were funded and managed by Baron Edmund De Rothschild, and he and his managers weren't too keen on having the farmers disengage from agricultural activities for an entire year. The leaders of the Chovevei Zion movement sought a way to resolve the issue and the original 'Heter Mechira' was formulated. With the tacit support of Rav Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor, the land was sold to a non-Jew for the duration of the shmita year. Most of the colonies availed themselves of the Heter Mechira. The Ekron-Mazkeret Batya settlement decided to follow the ruling of the Jerusalem rabbinate and observe shmita in its ideal form. The Baron and his managers saw this as a revolt, and accused them of being lazy, but they held steadfast. The ensuing tension and struggle would set the stage for both shmita observance as well as the overall religious-secular tensions of the Yishuv for decades to come. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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The Chant of Torah: The Life of Rav Naftali Trop

Tachlis Media — Thu, 09 Sep 2021 21:18:53 +0000

Having gained fame as the Radin Yeshiva, as well as immortality through his Torah which is still studied worldwide, Rav Naftali Trop (1871-1928) was an important Torah leader who left an impact on the pre war yeshiva world of Eastern Europe. A product of Slabodka and Kelm, he brought Talmudic scholarship as well as the mussar movement to his students. Imparting life lessons by personal example, Rav Naftali was a caring individual who took responsibility for others beyond the walls of the yeshiva as well. Though his untimely passing in his 50's brought an end to a life of teaching Torah, his family and students continued his legacy for years to come. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Crisis Management: The Great Crisis of the Chassidic Movement

Tachlis Media — Fri, 03 Sep 2021 11:05:39 +0000

Modern times brought a host of challenges to the Chassidic movement in the closing decades of the 19th century and intensified in the 20th. World War One and the havoc that it wreaked led to a full blown crisis. Demographically the chassidic movement began to decline in numbers for the first time in its history. Urbanization transformed the chassidic experience and the interaction between the Rebbe and his followers. The Russian Revolution left the chassidic heartland and birthplace of the movement behind the Iron Curtain. Immigration to the west and United States loosened the affiliation of the immigrants to the courts. This crisis was met courageously by chassidic leaders in a variety of creative ways. A renewed focus on education led to the establishment of yeshivos, and even girls' education was encouraged for the first time. Spiritual renewal was seen in courts such as the Piacezna Rebbe Rav Klonymous Kalman Shapira. Involvement in politics and using the media became more common. And a stronger shift towards traditionalism became the most recognizable and long lasting effect on the movement across the entire chassidic society. Emphasis on a uniform form of dress to promote a collective identity, became perhaps the most recognizable manifestation of this new way of closing the ranks in a changing, increasingly urban society. This episode is sponsored by Alephbeta.org . Filled with stunningly animated videos and audios on the parsha, holidays, prayers, and more. Their goal is to help people discover the beauty of Torah and add to its meaning and relevance. Their programs on the yomim tovim will leave you moved, inspired and with a new understanding of the significance of these holy days.

Listeners of Jewish History Soundbites for a limited time will receive the gift of Koren’s brand new, flexcover Tanach. To get your free gift today, go to Alephbeta.org and enter coupon code freetanach when you subscribe to an annual premium membership. Hurry, offer ends September 30th!

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The Chofetz Chaim & His Attempts to Move to the Holy Land

Tachlis Media — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 09:57:52 +0000

Rav Yisrael Meir of Radin, better known as the Chofetz Chaim (1838-1933), is one of the most beloved historical figures in recent memory. His storied life convers many aspects, and in this episode the focus is on the saga of his attempts at immigrating to the Land of Israel. While yearning to move there for many years, he laid practical plans to carry it out as well. Over the course of a half a century, several attempts were made but none brought to fruition. In 1925 his bags were packed and a home was even purchased for him in Petach Tikvah, but again it didn't work out. Check out additional Jewish History Soundbites Chofetz Chaim related episodes: 1. https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/simplicity-complexity-enormity-the-family-of-the-chofetz-chaim/ 2. https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/the-chofetz-chaim-myths-abound/ 3. https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/a-historic-campaign-the-chofetz-chaim-sefer-torah/ This episode is sponsored by 20+ minute daf with Shaul Greenwald. Maseches Beitzah begins on Thursday, so join in to a clear, concise and geshmak Daf Yomi Shiur. https://www.20minutedaf.com/ https://www.torahanytime.com/#/speaker?l=619 For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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On the Way to Canaan’s Land: The Five Aliyot to Palestine

Tachlis Media — Mon, 30 Aug 2021 09:10:04 +0000

Known to history as the five waves of 'Aliyah', immigration to the Land of Israel, the late 19th and early 20th century saw a slow but steady stream of Jewish immigration which laid the foundations of what later become the State of Israel. These waves of immigration were part of a larger trend of general and specifically Jewish immigration to the west during this time. The first aliyah was a product of the Chovevei Zion movement and established the first agricultural colonies. The second aliyah was a result of the nascent Zionist movement and beginning of the socialist and nationalistic nature of the immigration. On the heels of World War I and the Balfour Declaration came the third aliyah, a very idealistic and nationalistic wave of immigrants who established many of the early kibbutzim. The fourth aliyah was primarily from Poland and was more urban in nature, while the fifth was largely a result of the Nazi rise to power in Germany and included many German Jewish refugees. This episode is sponsored by Beis Medrash Mevakshei Emes of the Mishkafayim neighborhood in Bet Shemesh in honor of their current fundraising campaign. Join at cmatch.me/Bmme For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Architect of American Orthodoxy: The Life & Times of Mike Tress Part II

Tachlis Media — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 10:27:34 +0000

He was a clean shaven, American born, public school educated, successful businessman. And he was also the architect of American Orthodoxy and a leading rescue activist during the dark years of the Holocaust. Mike Tress (1909-1967) grew up as an orphan in Williamsburg. Joining the nascent Zeirei Agudas Yisroel organization, he soon emerged as its leader, giving it a sense of mission and purpose. Spearheading shabbos campaigns, activating Pirchei and Bnos chapters, and founding Camp Agudah in the midst of a world war and rescue work, are just some of the projects which he initiated to promote Orthodoxy in the United States. His encounter with Rav Elchonon Wasserman during the latter's trip to the country in 1938 defined his life mission, and reverence for Torah leaders became part of his essence which he then imparted to his young charges. Perhaps the most fateful chapter of his storied career was his endless attempts at rescue work in the years preceding, during and following the war. Obtaining visas for refugees, raising funds for rescue and complete devotion to rebuilding both physically and spiritually following liberation, while personally commiserating with every individual and feeling their pain. Having sold his business and used all of his assets for communal work, he was truly an individual who lived his life to help others. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Architect of American Orthodoxy: The Life & Times of Mike Tress Part I

Tachlis Media — Tue, 24 Aug 2021 12:53:35 +0000

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A Guiding Light: The Life of the Chazon Ish Part II

Tachlis Media — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 20:48:44 +0000

Rav Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz (1878-1953) known by his magnum opus the Chazon Ish, was indisputably one of the greatest Torah leaders of the 20th century. In this second installment about his life, achievements and influence, the period of his residence in Vilna is examined. During his thirteen years in the 'Jerusalem of Lithuania', he formed a close relationship with Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, who often sought his advice on a myriad of issues. The Chazon Ish also studied with young students, and developed some interesting relationships, most notably with the future noted Yiddish writer Chaim Grade. In 1933 the Chazon Ish moved to Palestine, where he settled in the new yishuv of Bnei Brak. It was at this stage that he began to take on a more public leadership role, initiating local projects in the area. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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Mussar Makes a Mir Debut

Tachlis Media — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 15:22:11 +0000

The Mussar Movement was promulgated by Rav Yisrael Salanter in the mid 19th century, as an attempt to bring ethical standards of conduct to the forefront of national consciousness. In the closing decades of the century, Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel, the Alter of Slabodka, incorporated the ideas of mussar into an educational philosophy which would become part of the curriculum of the great Lithuanian style yeshivos.

In 1907, the Mir Yeshiva decided to associate with the mussar movement and hired its first Mashgiach, Rav Zalman Dolinsky. In the years leading up to World War One, Rav Yerucham Levovitz served a first stint in the position as well. Following the Yeshiva's return from its imposed exile, it continued to be associated with the ideals of the mussar movement and hired mashgichim to oversee the ethical growth of its student body. A loose association developed into the essence of the Yeshiva's identity with the return of Rav Yerucham in 1924. It was then that the yeshiva entered its 'Golden Age', and Rav Yerucham's charismatic personality and unique mussar philosophy made the yeshiva central to the mussar ideals in the years preceding the Holocaust. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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From Cromwell to Montefiore: The Jews of London Part II

Tachlis Media — Fri, 13 Aug 2021 10:29:34 +0000

Following the Edict of Expulsion in 1290, no organized Jewish life existed in England for centuries. Following the Spanish Expulsion in 1492, a few Conversos secretly settled in England under a Christian identity. The official resettlement of Jews in England commenced with the negotiations held between Menashe ben Israel and Oliver Cromwell in the 1650's. Though allowed to unofficially resettle in England, full emancipation wasn't achieved until 1858. Prominent Jews of the 19th century included the Rothschild family, Moses Montefiore and Benjamin Disreali, who though born Jewish, was baptized at the age of 12.

The Sephardic community of London achieved prominence and influence with the founding of the Bevis Marks Synagogue, the longest continuously in use synagogue in Europe. An early prominent rabbi was Hacham David Nieto. The Ashkenazi community built the Great Synagogue of London. Listen to Part I here: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/british-royals-baalei-tosfos-blood-libels-the-story-of-london-part-i/ For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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A Moroccan Legacy: Rav Yitzchak Ibn Walid

Tachlis Media — Fri, 06 Aug 2021 12:55:32 +0000

One of the greatest leaders of the Moroccan Jewish community in the 19th century was Rav Yitzchak Ibn Walid (1777-1870). The Jewish community of Tetuan was founded by Spanish exiles and saw commercial success over the coming centuries. Despite his reluctance to assume a rabbinical position, Rav Ibn Walid was appointed rabbi of Tetuan in 1830 and led the community until his passing four decades later. As a noted halachic posek he corresponded with rabbis across the Sephardic world, much of it published in his magnum opus Vayomer Yitzchak. As a leader of his community, he cared especially for the poor, the downtrodden and orphans. For more on the customs and traditions of Moroccan Jewry check out the newly published book Magen Avot Daily Halachah published by Mosaica Press. You can check it out on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1639723064?ref=myi_title_dp or on the publisher's website: https://mosaicapress.com/product/magen-avot-daily-halachah/ You can also check out more seforim on Moroccan Halacha and minhagim on moroccanhalacha.com For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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From Poland to Petach Tikva: The Lomza Yeshiva Part II

Tachlis Media — Sun, 01 Aug 2021 18:15:58 +0000

The Lomza Yeshiva in Poland and later in Petach Tikva, Israel, was unique in many respects. Founded in 1883 by a student of Rav Yisrael Salanter named Rav Eliezer Shulevitz, it was the first Lithuanian style yeshiva in the area of chassidic Poland. In its heyday, the majority of its students would come from chassidic backgrounds. With its expansion, his capable sons in law took over - Rav Yechiel Mordechai Gordon, Rav Yehoshua Zelig Roch and Rav Moshe Leib Ozer. The latter's son Rav Eliezer Ozer, ran the Kollel in Lomza Petach Tikva until his recent passing. The famed mashgiach Rav Moshe Rosenstein left a big impact on the yeshiva's growth and education during the interwar period. Rav Yechiel Mordechai Gordon led the yeshiva, and spent much time in the United States fundraising on its behalf, before eventually settling in Petach Tikva in 1950. In 1926, Lomza took the pioneering step in opening a branch of the yeshiva in Palestine, and the building on Rechov Herzl in Petach Tikva was dedicated in 1930. This would be the premier institution of Torah learning in the Land of Israel in the coming decades. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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From Poland to Petach Tikva: The Lomza Yeshiva Part I

Tachlis Media — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 21:10:06 +0000

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Leader Among Peers: Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski at Rabbinical Conferences

Tachlis Media — Sun, 25 Jul 2021 19:15:42 +0000

Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski (1863-1940) was one of the greatest rabbinic leaders of the 20th century. A recent book by Rabbi Dovid Kamenetsky profiles some of the aspects of his leadership of Russian and world Jewry through the first decade of the century. One of the highlighted facets of his activities is his dominant role in various rabbinical conferences between the years 1907-1910. There was the attempt to establish the Knesses Yisrael organization, which was the first ever attempt at the organization of traditional Jewry in Russia. Then there was the Vilna conference of 1909, which was a preliminary meeting to the rabbinical commission in St. Petersburg which was to be called by the Czarist government the following year. Also in 1909 was the Bad Homburg conference, which laid the foundation for the founding of Agudas Yisroel. Finally there was the famous rabbinical conference in St. Petersburg in 1910. In all of these gatherings, Rav Chaim Ozer's organizational ability, leadership and practical approach led him to be one of the central figures at each subsequent meeting. This firmly established him as one of the primary leaders of Russian Jewry. Related Episodes: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/a-father-to-his-people-r-chaim-ozers-leadership-in-turbulent-times/ https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/e/scholar-statesman-rav-meir-simcha-and-the-1910-conference-in-st-petersburg/ This episode has been sponsored by Genazym Auction House. Join the auction this coming Wednesday, July 28, 2021. Check out the catalogue at www.genazym.com , for fascinating artifacts of Jewish history. Questions or details contact Genazym - https://bit.ly/Genazym10full office@genazym.com Or at: +1-845-826-1645 , 845-501-9990 For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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In the City of Death: The 1903 Kishinev Pogrom

Tachlis Media — Sat, 17 Jul 2021 23:41:25 +0000

Special Tisha Ba'av Episode The 1903 Kishinev Pogrom was a tragic massacre, with reverberations within the wider Jewish world remaining until this very day. Goaded on by anti-Semitic newspapers with cries of 'Death to the Jews', a blood libel was fabricated and a mob was unleashed on Easter Sunday, April 19, 1903. Leaving 49 killed, hundreds maimed and injured in its wake, Jewish property was destroyed and looted as well. Claims of complicity of the police and government were voiced in many quarters. But it was primarily the after effects of this pogrom which had a long term transformative effect on Jewish society in Russia and worldwide. The great immigration to the United States was already long underway, but it significantly intensified in the years following Kishinev and the subsequent 1905 revolution. American Jewry was galvanized to assist the victims, and this cemented the relationship US Jewry was to have with their brethren back in Eastern Europe. Within Russia, many of the Jewish youth became radicalized as a result of the massacre, joining clandestine revolutionary organizations with the goal of overthrowing the Czar. The most profound impact was felt within the nascent Zionist movement. Chaim Nachman Bialik was dispatched by the historian Shimon Dubnow to gather testimonies from survivors. Following his five week stay in Kishinev, Bialik penned 'Be'ir Hahareiga' - In the City of Death, a poem about the pogrom. Powerfully written, it also included strongly worded accusations in regards to the perceived passivity of the victims. The poem and its message was to have an immense impact, as it was published and translated and became immensely popular. Vladimir Jabotinsky's conclusion was to organize Jewish self defense, and Theodore Herzl's conclusion was the Uganda proposal at the Sixth Zionist Congress. The shadow of the Kishinev tragedy was to hover over the many subsequent, and ever greater tragedies of the bloody 20th century. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

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From Brisk to Beitar: The Life of Menachem Begin Part I

Tachlis Media — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 18:48:36 +0000

One of the most influential leaders in the history of the State of Israel, Menachem Begin (1913-1992) led a very colorful life and career. Though known for his public persona, he was a very complex character who faced many setbacks at every stage. Growing up in a somewhat traditional home in Brisk, he later joined the Beitar movement of Revisionist Zionism led by Vladimir (Zev) Jabotinsky.

Arrested by the Soviets in the early part of the war, he was sentenced to slave labor in Siberia. In the interim, the Holocaust arrived in Brisk, and most of his family became its victims. The long shadow of anti-Semitism and the Holocaust would accompany him throughout his decades of public service, and would impact his decisions as a leader of both the underground and later as a politician. He emerged as the leader of the underground organization Etzel (Irgun), with the stated goal of forcing the British out of Palestine. With the founding of the State of Israel, he spent three decades in the opposition, leading campaigns against the reparations agreement with West Germany and the like, until finally winning the elections in 1977. Though he accomplished much as prime minister, including a historic peace treaty with Egypt, the unfolding disaster of the Lebanon War led to his retirement and ultimate seclusion during his later years. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

Gone, but not Forgotten: Obscure Chassidic Dynasties of Yesteryear

Tachlis Media — Sun, 11 Jul 2021 15:11:05 +0000

Smaller and lesser known Chassidic dynasties are almost entirely forgotten, as a result of their being almost entirely wiped out during the Holocaust. Each one had a following with a demographic and geographical reach and impact during centuries of their existence. And each one is a story. The Ungar family of the Dombrova dynasty, Shpikov was a branch of Skver, large ones like Melitz, Alexander and Radomsk are more obscure today as well. Some were large, some very small, some influential, while others made less of an impact. But each and every one formed a component of eastern European Chassidic life until the war. One of those was the Zabeltov dynasty, which was a branch of the Kossov dynasty, most famous through its Vizhnitz branch. Rav Dovid Hager (1797-1848) was a son of the founder of the Kossov dynasty Rav Menachem Mendel Hager. Having moved to the town of Zabeltov, he emerged as a charismatic leader of the region. His descendants continued in the town until the Holocaust. Almost the entire extended family along with their followers were tragically murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

Great American Jewish Cities #22: Detroit Part I

Tachlis Media — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 14:09:34 +0000

The rich Jewish history of the Motor City includes many fascinating institutions and individuals. From the early farming settlements in Michigan, to the immigrant communities of Detroit proper, this part one of a series on Detroit Jewish history will examine some of the personalities and their impact on the developing community. There was the interesting experiment of Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin of Detroit, which hosted one of the first Siyum Hashas celebrations in the United States. Rav Yehuda Leib Levin was an early rabbi who founded what was to become the Beth Yehuda school, eventually named for him. With the arrival of Rav Avraham Abba Friedman and later Rav Shalom Goldstein, Jewish education was transformed. With Rav Simcha Wasserman, later Rav Joseph Elias, Rav Shmuel Yerachmiel Kaufman and other legendary Detroit educators, the original Beth Yehuda spawned a Jewish education revolution which formed the basis of the community's growth in the coming decades. Following the war, Rav Leib Bakst of the Mir Yeshiva would arrive and stand at the helm of the yeshiva for the next 55 years. A student of Radin & Kelm, Rav Eliezer Levin later served as the rabbinical leader and architect of the city's Jewish infrastructure for decades as well. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

Justice for All: The Incredible Story of Jacob Robinson

Tachlis Media — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 11:48:28 +0000

A relatively unknown, yet one of the most influential Jews of the 20th century, Jacob Robinson's (1889-1977) list of accomplishments are seemingly endless. After receiving his doctorate in law, he was drafted into the Czarist military with the outbreak of World War One. After spending three years in a German POW camp, he returned to the newly created independent Lithuania, where he emerged as a leading Zionist, politician, jurist, educator, writer and much more.

First representing Jewish interests in the Lithuanian parliament, he soon reached the international stage, arguing for minorities rights in international platforms such as the League of Nations, and entering into an ill fated partnership with Weimar Germany to promote minorities rights. In his efforts to protect Jewish minority rights around the world, he was one of the founders of what would eventually become the World Jewish Congress in 1927. Escaping to the United States in 1940, he soon went to work formulating the legal basis for prosecution of Nazi war criminals post war, eventually serving as a special adviser to the prosecution at the Nuremberg trials. Seeing the failure of the tragic minorities rights saga of interwar Europe, he drafted the new principle of Human Rights, which led to the UN commission on Human Rights. He also assisted the nascent State of Israel with legal counsel at the UN and drafted the reparations agreement with West Germany, later overseeing the Claims Conference. In later years he was a pioneering Holocaust researcher, and was one of the founders of Yad Vashem. Finally, he served as the special legal counsel at the Eichmann trial in 1960, writing the legal basis for the prosecution. For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at: yehuda@yehudageberer.com Subscribe To Our Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/

You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com