 Bobov Institutions in Jerusalem | |
| Founder | |
|---|---|
| RabbiShlomo Halberstam | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Israel, United States, Western Europe | |
| Religions | |
| Hasidic Judaism |
Bobov (orBobover Hasidism) (Hebrew:חסידות באבוב,Yiddish:בּאָבּאָװ) is aHasidic community withinHaredi Judaism, originating inBobowa,Galicia, in southern Poland,[1] and now headquartered in the neighborhood ofBorough Park, inBrooklyn, New York.[2]
Bobov developed into a leading Hasidic dynasty through the leadership ofShlomo Halberstam, aHolocaust survivor. After the death of his sonNaftali, a succession crisis ensued, leading to the ascension of Naftali's half-brotherBenzion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam as Grand Rebbe, and his son-in-lawMordechai Dovid Unger as leader ofBobov-45, a breakaway faction.
Bobov communities are found in theWilliamsburg section of Brooklyn; inMonsey, New York; Los Angeles;Lakewood, New Jersey; Linden NJ; Montreal; Toronto;Antwerp; and London.[1] In Israel, Bobov has large branches in Jerusalem,Bnei Brak,Ashdod,Elad,Beitar Illit, and an enclave, "Kiryas Bobov", inBat Yam.[3]
| Grand Rabbi Yisroel ben Eliezer Baal Shem Tov (1698–1760) founder ofHasidism | Grand Rabbi Dov Ber (1710–1772) theMaggid of Mezritch | Grand Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk (1717–1786) author ofNoam Elimelech | Grand Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Horowitz ofRopshitz (1760–1827) author ofZera Kodesh | Grand Rabbi Chaim Halberstam ofSanz (1793–1876) author ofDivrei Chaim | Rabbi Myer Noson Halberstam (1827–1855) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.Grand Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam (1907–2000) Third BoboverRebbe author ofDivrei Shlomo | 4.Grand Rabbi Hrh"k R Naftali Tzvi Halberstam (1931–2005) Fourth BoboverRebbe | Female Halberstam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1.Grand Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam (1847–1905) First BoboverRebbe author ofAteres Shlomo eldest grandson of theDivrei Chaim | 2.Grand Rabbi Ben Zion Halberstam (1874–1941) Second BoboverRebbe author ofKedushas Tzion | 5.Grand Rabbi Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam (b. 1955) Fifth BoboverRebbe | Grand Rabbi Rabbi Mordechai Dovid Unger Shlita (b. 1954) First Bobov-45Rebbe | Rabbi Yosef Unger Ruv ofBeth Midrash Apirion Shel Shlome and R"Y of Yeshiva Ketane of Bobov 45 | Rabbi Shulim Unger bobov-45 ruv london | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Female Halberstam | Female Halberstam | Female Rubin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Chaim Yaakov Tauber BobovDayan | Rabbi Yehoshua Rubin (born 1952) Bobov-45Ruv | Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Rabinovich presentRuv of Bobov-45 inMonsey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Female Halberstam | Female Rubin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teacher → Student | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Yonasan Binyamin Goldberger First Rebbe ofBikofsk &Rosh Hakolel of Bobov | Rabbi Shimon Goldberger Second and Current Rebbe ofBikofsk | Rabbi Meyer Yosef Eichenstein PresentRosh Hakolel of Bobov-45 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Father → Son | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Female Halberstam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Husband ↔ Wife | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Ben Zion Blum BoboverDayan ofLondon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Female Halberstam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Yaakov Yisroel Meisles BoboverRuv ofKiryath Bobov inBat Yam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Female Halberstam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Boruch Avraham Horowitz presentRosh Yeshiva of Mesivta Eitz Chaim of Bobov | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Baruch Dovid Halberstam Sorvosher Ruv | Rabbi Ben Zion Dov Halberstam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Chaim Yehoshua Halberstam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Yaakov Yosef Halberstam Ruv ofBeis Chaim Yehoshua | RabbiChaim Yehoshua Halberstam Rabbi ofSatmar inMonsey | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Yechiel Halberstam Pokshivnitzer Rebbe ofMonsey, NY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Yechezkel Dovid Halberstam Pokshivnitzer Rebbe | Rabbi Chaim Halberstam Pokshivnitzer Rebbe ofFlatbush | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Ben Zion Avraham Halberstam Pokshivnitzer Rebbe ofFlatbush | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rabbi Shloime Halberstam Pokshivnitzer Rebbe ofLakewood, New Jersey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bobov originated withShlomo Halberstam, who was the grandson of Grand RabbiChaim Halberstam ofSanz,[4] in theGalician village of Bobowa.[1]
While most of the earlyyeshivos (Talmudical academies) originated inLithuania, the 19th century saw the opening of similar institutions inPoland. The first yeshiva in Poland was established by the first Bobover Rebbe in 1881 inVishnitsa, where he was rabbi then; and it later moved with him to Bobov.
His work was continued by his son, Grand RabbiBen Zion Halberstam, author ofKedushas Tzion.[5] The Bobov Yeshiva was originally situated only in the town of Bobov itself. However, under his guidance, the court grew in numbers, with Hasidic youth flocking to Bobov. Subsequently, as many as sixty branches of the yeshiva under the nameEtz Chaim were established throughout Galicia.
DuringWorld War II, the Bobov Hasidic movement was destroyed. The second Rebbe himself was murdered inthe Holocaust, together with family members[1] and thousands of his followers.
Barely 300 Hasidim survived, and the Rebbe's son,Shlomo Halberstam, took it upon himself to rebuild Bobov.[6] He first settled in theWest Side of Manhattan, later moving to theBedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. The yeshiva, which was originally located at 184 Brooklyn Avenue, later moved to the nearbyBorough Park neighborhood. Shlomo Halberstam was known for his wisdom, his caring for others, and his steadfastness in not taking sides in disputes.
Over the more than fifty years[7][6] that Shlomo Halberstam was Rebbe of Bobov, he founded and built a worldwide network of synagogues, Hasidic schools for boys and girls,[8]mesivtas (high schools), and post-high school houses of learning. Besides schools, a summer camp for boys was founded in 1957 inFerndale, New York, and a girls camp, Camp Gila, was founded a few years later. At the time of his death in August 2000, he was mourned by more followers than his father had in pre-war Poland. At his funeral it was publicly announced that his oldest son Naftali would succeed him as Rebbe, and his younger brother Ben Zion would serve asRav Hatzair (assistant rabbi).
With Shlomo Halberstam's death, his older son,Naftali Zvi Halberstam, succeeded him. Naftali Zvi died on March 23, 2005[1] (12th ofAdar II, 5765), at age 74, leaving a wife, two daughters, and two sons-in-law:Yehoshua Rubin, Rav of Bobov-45; andMordechai Dovid Unger, Rebbe of Bobov-45.
After Naftali Tzvi Halberstam died in 2005, a dispute arose[9] among Bobover Hasidim as to who should attain the dynasty leadership. Some began to followBen Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam, the younger half brother of the late Rebbe, while others followed his son-in-law Unger, who was older by one year.[10] Unger had already ensconced himself firmly within the community by then, and could not challenge his own father's leadership ofDombrov, which anyway was not as substantial a dynasty.[11] The matter of succession was brought before abeth din (religious court) in 2007, which ruled that Halberstam would be declared the fifth Rebbe of Bobov (אדמו"ר מבאבוב) with its headquarters on 48th Street in Borough Park,[12] while Unger would be Rebbe ofBobov-45 (אדמו"ר מבאבוב-45), located on 45th Street.[12][13][14][15][16] While the former community retained the rights to the name "Bobov", Unger's faction was permitted to use the name, provided that the qualifier be added to it.[17]
An offshoot of the Bobov dynasty, Bobov-45 is headquartered in Borough Park. It has branches inWilliamsburg andMonsey, New York;Lakewood, New Jersey; Los Angeles; Montreal; London; Manchester;Antwerp; and an enclave "Yishuv of Chasidei Bobov-45" inUnion, New Jersey. In Israel, Bobov-45 has branches in Jerusalem,Bnei Brak,Beit Shemesh,Ashdod,Elad, andBeitar Illit.
The third Bobover Rebbe, Shlomo Halberstam, rebuilt the Bobov Hasidic dynasty in the United States after losing his wife and most of his children inthe Holocaust. His son Naftali, who survived,[18] became the fourth Rebbe upon his father's death. He had no sons but left two daughters, one of whom married Yehoshua Rubin, and the otherMordechai Dovid Unger. In 2005, after Naftali's death, a group of Bobover Hasidim loyal to his son-in-law, Mordechai Dovid Unger, preferred him to take over the position of Rebbe of Bobov.
The dispute was taken to abeth din (arbitration panel), which ruled that Halberstam held the rights to the name "Bobov", and to all Bobov institutions. Unger was allowed to use the name Bobov, provided that a qualifier be added to it.[19] The suffix "-45" was henceforth adopted in tribute to the street on which the community center of the sect was located at the time. In addition, thebeth din ordered Bobov to pay $6,200,000 to Bobov-45's Rebbe anddayan in twenty-five quarterly installments, as an allotment of their faction's share of the inheritance of the Bobov enterprise's assets, it is unknown what the value of the assets were at the time.
Unger, the firstGrand Rabbi of Bobov-45, is the younger son-in-law of the fourth Bobover Rebbe, Naftali Halberstam. Unger has been active in the wider Jewish community.[20] Yehoshua Rubin, the older son-in-law of Halberstam, is the currentdayan and rabbinical leader of the sect.
Community institutions, such as asynagogue, have been built within Bobov-45. Other Bobov infrastructure includes aYeshiva,[21]beth midrash (study hall),[22]cheder (elementary school),[23]yeshiva ketana (secondary school),[24]mesivta,[25]girls school,[26] day camp,[27] and wedding halls.[28]
...had been all but wiped out by the Nazi Holocaust. Virtually single-handedly, Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam, who has died aged 92, revived it.
The Bobov rebbe, Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam, ...
Chasidey Bobov-45 Beth Hamedrash, London, UK. The congregation should not be confused with the Beth Hemedrash of Kehal Chasidei Bobov of Egerton Road N16, which follows Ben Zion Halberstam's leadership.
