Pinchas David Horovitz

Raw Pinchas David Horovitz , known as Admor von Boston (* 1876 in Jerusalem ; † November 28, 1941 in Williamsburg ), was the Grand Rabbi , Kabbalist and founder (1915) of the Boston Hasidic Dynasty ( Boston Hasidim ), who was also venerated by many as a miracle rabbi . In reports from his contemporaries, his great erudition, goodness and generosity are repeatedly emphasized.

Life

He was the first Boston Rebbe , descendant of Reb Schmelke von Nikolsburg and on the maternal side of the Lelov dynasty. According to the Jewish calendar, he was born in 5636 in the old city of Jerusalem. Up to the age of seven he was under the influence of his grandfather, Rav Eliezer Mendel Biedermann, the Admor of Lelov. After his death, Rav Biedermann's son, Rav David Biedermann, took his place. In his youth, Raw Pinchas learned David Tora from Raw Schne'ur Salman from Lublin . Later he continued his studies with great diligence in Zfat . When Pinchas David's father died, he returned to Jerusalem.

In 1915 he traveled adventurously from Eretz Israel via Europe to New York and then to Boston, where he was immediately accepted as Rebbe by the local Jewish community. He had turned down an offer from the congregation in New York and instead opted for Boston out of gratitude because that congregation had given him an entry visa to the USA.

In 1939 he went to Brooklyn and opened the Boston Beis Midrash ( Yiddish : "Lehrhaus") in Williamsburg . In his last years he lost his strength more and more, his eyesight decreased until he became completely blind. His wish to return to Jerusalem was no longer fulfilled. After his death - he died on the 8th Kislew 5702 in Williamsburg - his son, Raw Mosche, succeeded him in his capacity as Rebbe.

After the end of World War II , his remains were exhumed and transferred to Erez Yisrael, where he found his final resting place on the Mount of Olives next to his father. Allegedly, three and a half years after the first burial, his body showed no signs of decomposition.

literature

• The Jüdische Zeitung , No. 45, Zurich, November 12, 2010, page 13.
• Moshe D. Sherman: Orthodox Judaism in America: a biographical dictionary and sourcebook , Greenwood, Westport 1996, pp. 94-96 ( available online ).
• Mark L. Smith: Art. HOROWITZ, PINCHAS DAVID HA-LEVI , in: Encyclopaedia Judaica , 2nd A., Vol. 9, p. 941.
• Hanoch Teller: The Bostoner . Stories and Recollections from the Colorful Court of the Bostoner Rebbe, Rabbi Levi I. Horowitz, Jerusalem 1990, pp. 13-20.
• A Chassidic Journey . The Polish Chassidic Dynasties of Lublin, Lelov, Nikolsburg and Boston, foreword by Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Horowitz, Feldheim, Jerusalem 2002, p. 303ff et passim.