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Rabbi Dr. '''Yaakov''' (also '''Jacob''') '''Avigdor''' (March 20, 1896–March 30, 1967) was a [[Poland|Polish]]-Mexican [[rabbi]], author and [[Holocaust]] survivor. Prior to the Holocaust he served as [[Chief Rabbi]] of [[Drohobych]] - [[Boryslav]] in [[Poland]], and after the [[world War II|war]], as rabbi of the [[Ashkenazi]] community in [[Mexico]].
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[[Image: Jacob Avigdor.jpg| Rabbi Dr. Jacob Avigdor|thumb]]

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Rabbi Dr. '''Yaakov Avigdor''' (also '''Jacob''') (1896–1967) was a [[Poland|Polish]] [[rabbi]], author and [[Holocaust]] survivor, who served as [[Chief Rabbi]] of [[Drohobych]] - [[Boryslav]] in [[Poland]], and of the [[Ashkenazi]] [[Jewish]] community in [[Mexico]].
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[[File:Rabbi Jacob Avigdor.jpg|thumb|Rabbi Jacob Avigdor]]


==Life==
==Life==
He was born into a rabbinic family in [[Tyrawa Wołoska]], a [[shtetl]] in the Austrian province of [[Galicia (Central Europe)|Galicia]] between the cities of [[Sanok]] and [[Przemyśl]] (now southeast Poland) in 1896. He excelled in religious studies, and being considered a prodigy, was ordained at the young age of 16 years. Later he attended the universities of [[Kraków]] and [[Lviv]], obtaining a [[PhD]] in [[Philosophy]]. Acquiring a high reputation as an orator and [[Talmudist]], he was named Chief Rabbi of Drohobych and Boryslav, then in southeast Poland (now western [[Ukraine]]) in 1920 (age 24), where he officiated until the [[NSDAP|Nazi]] occupation. Being District Rabbi of about 80 surrounding villages, he also served as head ("Av") of the [[Beth din]].
Jacob Avigdor was born into a rabbinic family in [[Tyrawa Wołoska]], a [[shtetl]] in the Austrian province of [[Galicia (Central Europe)|Galicia]] between the cities of [[Sanok]] and [[Przemyśl]] (now southeast Poland) in 1896. He excelled in religious studies, and being considered a prodigy, was ordained at the young age of 16 years. Later he studied at the universities in [[Kraków]] and [[Lviv]], obtaining a [[PhD]] in [[Philosophy]]. Acquiring a high reputation as an orator and [[Talmudist]], he was named Chief Rabbi of Drohobych and Boryslav, then in southeast Poland (now western [[Ukraine]]) in 1920 (age 24), where he officiated until the [[NSDAP|Nazi]] occupation. Being District Rabbi of about 80 surrounding villages, he also served as head ("Av") of the [[Beth din]].


He officiated at the wedding of [[Menachem Begin]] which took place at his [[shul]], the [[Choral Synagogue (Drohobych)|Choral Synagogue]] in 1939.
He officiated at the wedding of future [[Prime Minister]] of [[Israel]] [[Menachem Begin]] and [[Aliza Begin|Aliza Arnold]] in May of 1939 which took place at the Eden Hotel in [[Truskavets]], Poland, which was a summer resort near Drohobych.


During the Holocaust, he lost his wife, his two daughters and his brother David the Rabbi of [[Andrychów]], among many family members. After his liberation from the [[Buchenwald concentration camp]], Avigdor became extremely active in the efforts of rescue and rehabilitation of Jewish refugees in postwar Europe. Upon immigrating to the U.S. in 1946, he accepted a pulpit in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]], and six years later he was offered the rabbinate of Mexico, holding that position until his death in [[Mexico City]] in 1967.
During the [[Holocaust]], he lost his wife, his two daughters and his brother David the Rabbi of [[Andrychów]], among many family members. After his liberation from the [[Buchenwald concentration camp]], Avigdor became extremely active in the efforts of rescue and rehabilitation of Jewish refugees in postwar Europe. After immigrating to the U.S. in 1946, he accepted a pulpit in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]], and six years later he was offered the rabbinate of Mexico, holding that position until his death in [[Mexico City]] in 1967.


Avigdor was much consulted on [[religion|religious]] and [[ethics|ethical]] questions by worldwide peers. A prolific writer, his topics included religious philosophy, Jewish history and [[tradition]]s, and commentary on [[bible|Biblical]] text. Most of his prewar works were lost. In Mexico, he became a regular contributor to [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]] periodicals, and published books in that language, [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. The Holocaust Museum at [[Yad Vashem]] holds a Hebrew calendar written by him from memory during his stay at Buchenwald (to view it, see below External Links).
Rabbi Dr. Avigdor was much consulted on [[religion|religious]] and [[ethics|ethical]] questions by worldwide peers. A prolific writer, his topics included religious philosophy, Jewish history and [[tradition]]s, and commentary on [[bible|Biblical]] text. Most of his prewar works were lost. In Mexico, he became a regular contributor to [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]] periodicals, and published books in that language, [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. The Holocaust Museum at [[Yad Vashem]] holds a Hebrew calendar written by him from memory during his stay at Buchenwald (to view it, see below External Links).


===Reuniting with son Isaac===
===Reuniting with son Isaac===
Rabbi Avigdor's son, Rabbi {{visible anchor|Isaac C. Avigdor}}, also survived the war (at [[Mauthausen concentration camp]]). He had seen the death of a man, and not long after the war, at a [[DP camp]] in [[Italy]], he wrote a document for his widow as witness. As she relocated (to Germany) and wanted to remarry, the senior Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, head of the local Jewish court, needed proof that the woman's husband had died. She gave Rabbi Jacob the formal document written by Rabbi Isaac. This is how the father found out the son was still alive, allowing them to reunite, many months after the war.
Rabbi Avigdor's son, Rabbi {{visible anchor|Isaac C. Avigdor}}, also survived the war (at [[Mauthausen concentration camp]]). He had seen the death of a man, and not long after the war, at a [[DP camp]] in [[Italy]], he wrote a document for his widow as witness. As she relocated to [[Germany]] and wanted to remarry, the senior Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, at the time head of the Jewish court in postwar [[Bergen-Belsen]], needed proof that the woman's husband had died. She gave Rabbi Jacob the formal document written by Rabbi Isaac. This is how the father found out the son was still alive, allowing them to reunite, many months after the war.


Rabbi Isaac included this story in a book about his father's life, ''Faith After the Flames: The Life of Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Avigdor'' and details are included in a published book review.<ref name=About.Father>{{cite web
Rabbi Isaac included this story in a book about his father's life, ''Faith After the Flames: The Life of Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Avigdor'' and details are included in a published book review.<ref name=About.Father>{{cite journal
|url=http://library.towson.edu/digital/enwiki/api/collection/mare/id/899/download
|url=http://library.towson.edu/digital/enwiki/api/collection/mare/id/899/download
|title= Book Review by David Warren
|title= Book Review | author = David Warren
|author= Martyrdom and Resistance, ISSN 0893-1571, Vol.32-No.2, Nov/Dec 2005, page 4
|journal = Martyrdom and Resistance | issn = 0892-1571 | volume = 32 | issue = 2 | page = 4
|date=2005 |}}</ref> The story of the father, the son, and the widow is also told by Holocaust writer [[Esther Farbstein]] in her ''Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1''
|date=2005 }}</ref> The story of the father, the son, and the widow is also told by Holocaust writer [[Esther Farbstein]] in her ''Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1''
<ref>{{cite book
<ref>{{cite book
|title=Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1
|title=Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1
|isbn=965-726505-3
|isbn=978-965-726505-5
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=772I7ZNUSKYC&pg=PA393&lpg=PA393
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=772I7ZNUSKYC&pg=PA393
|author=[[Esther Farbstein]]}}</ref>
|author=Esther Farbstein
|author-link=Esther Farbstein
|year=2007
}}</ref>


Rabbi Isaac C. Avigdor (1920-2010),<ref>{{cite book
Rabbi Isaac C. Avigdor (1920-2010),<ref>{{cite book
|title=Jewish Community of Hartford |page=50
|title=Jewish Community of Hartford |page=50
|url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1467115967 |isbn=1467115967
|url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1467115967 |isbn=978-1467115964
|publisher=Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford |date=2016
|publisher=Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford |date=2016
|quote=Rabbi Isaac Avigdor .. (1920–2010)}}</ref> son of Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, was a community rabbi in Connecticut "for a half century". For decades he was a columnist in [The [[Jewish Press]]<ref>{{cite newspaper
|quote=Rabbi Isaac Avigdor .. (1920–2010)}}</ref> son of Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, was a community rabbi in Connecticut "for a half century". For decades he was a columnist in [[The Jewish Press]].<ref>{{cite news
|newspaper=The Jewish Press |date=May 10, 2002 |page=42
|newspaper=The Jewish Press |date=May 10, 2002 |page=42
|author=Rabbi Dr. Isaac C. Avigdor (West Hartford, CT)
|author=Rabbi Dr. Isaac C. Avigdor (West Hartford, CT)
Line 69: Line 73:


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


5. Avigdor, Jacob. Sheelot Utshuvot Abir Yacov. (Autobiographical essay as preface). Reprint of 1934 edition. New York, 1949.
5. Avigdor, Jacob. Sheelot Utshuvot Abir Yacov. (Autobiographical essay as preface). Reprint of 1934 edition. New York, 1949.
Line 83: Line 87:


==External links==
==External links==
*[https://training.ehri-project.eu/sites/training.ehri-project.eu/files/EHRI_YV_B_1_O_48_96_1_4_001ff.pdf Hebrew Calendar written by Rabbi Avigdor in Buchenwald], Yad Vashem website.
*[https://training.ehri-project.eu/sites/training/files/EHRI_YV_B_1_O_48_96_1_4_001ff.pdf Hebrew Calendar written by Rabbi Avigdor in Buchenwald], Yad Vashem website.
*[http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Drohobycz/dro095.html The Religious Life of the Jews of Drohobycz] (Avigdor is mentioned in the fifth paragraph).
*[http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Drohobycz/dro095.html The Religious Life of the Jews of Drohobycz] (Avigdor is mentioned in the fifth paragraph).
*[http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Drohobycz/dro171.html History of the Jews of Boryslaw] (Avigdor is mentioned in last two paragraphs).
*[http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Drohobycz/dro171.html History of the Jews of Boryslaw] (Avigdor is mentioned in last two paragraphs).
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Avigdor, Jacob}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avigdor, Jacob}}
[[Category:Chief rabbis of Mexico]]
[[Category:Chief rabbis of Mexico]]
[[Category:Polish rabbis]]
[[Category:20th-century Polish rabbis]]
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[[Category:20th-century rabbis]]
[[Category:1896 births]]
[[Category:1896 births]]
[[Category:1967 deaths]]
[[Category:1967 deaths]]
[[Category:Buchenwald concentration camp survivors]]
[[Category:Buchenwald concentration camp survivors]]
[[Category:Jagiellonian University alumni]]
[[Category:Jagiellonian University alumni]]
[[Category:Mexican Ashkenazi Jews]]
[[Category:Polish emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Polish emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:University of Lviv alumni]]
[[Category:University of Lviv alumni]]
[[Category:People from Sanok County]]
[[Category:People from Sanok County]]
[[Category:20th-century American rabbis]]
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[[Category:20th-century Mexican rabbis]]

Latest revision as of 18:53, 2 May 2024

Rabbi Dr. Yaakov (also Jacob) Avigdor (March 20, 1896–March 30, 1967) was a Polish-Mexican rabbi, author and Holocaust survivor. Prior to the Holocaust he served as Chief Rabbi of Drohobych - Boryslav in Poland, and after the war, as rabbi of the Ashkenazi community in Mexico.

Rabbi Jacob Avigdor

Life

[edit]

Jacob Avigdor was born into a rabbinic family in Tyrawa Wołoska, a shtetl in the Austrian province of Galicia between the cities of Sanok and Przemyśl (now southeast Poland) in 1896. He excelled in religious studies, and being considered a prodigy, was ordained at the young age of 16 years. Later he studied at the universities in Kraków and Lviv, obtaining a PhD in Philosophy. Acquiring a high reputation as an orator and Talmudist, he was named Chief Rabbi of Drohobych and Boryslav, then in southeast Poland (now western Ukraine) in 1920 (age 24), where he officiated until the Nazi occupation. Being District Rabbi of about 80 surrounding villages, he also served as head ("Av") of the Beth din.

He officiated at the wedding of future Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin and Aliza Arnold in May of 1939 which took place at the Eden Hotel in Truskavets, Poland, which was a summer resort near Drohobych.

During the Holocaust, he lost his wife, his two daughters and his brother David the Rabbi of Andrychów, among many family members. After his liberation from the Buchenwald concentration camp, Avigdor became extremely active in the efforts of rescue and rehabilitation of Jewish refugees in postwar Europe. After immigrating to the U.S. in 1946, he accepted a pulpit in Brooklyn, New York, and six years later he was offered the rabbinate of Mexico, holding that position until his death in Mexico City in 1967.

Rabbi Dr. Avigdor was much consulted on religious and ethical questions by worldwide peers. A prolific writer, his topics included religious philosophy, Jewish history and traditions, and commentary on Biblical text. Most of his prewar works were lost. In Mexico, he became a regular contributor to Yiddish periodicals, and published books in that language, Hebrew and Spanish. The Holocaust Museum at Yad Vashem holds a Hebrew calendar written by him from memory during his stay at Buchenwald (to view it, see below External Links).

Reuniting with son Isaac

[edit]

Rabbi Avigdor's son, Rabbi Isaac C. Avigdor, also survived the war (at Mauthausen concentration camp). He had seen the death of a man, and not long after the war, at a DP camp in Italy, he wrote a document for his widow as witness. As she relocated to Germany and wanted to remarry, the senior Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, at the time head of the Jewish court in postwar Bergen-Belsen, needed proof that the woman's husband had died. She gave Rabbi Jacob the formal document written by Rabbi Isaac. This is how the father found out the son was still alive, allowing them to reunite, many months after the war.

Rabbi Isaac included this story in a book about his father's life, Faith After the Flames: The Life of Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Avigdor and details are included in a published book review.[1] The story of the father, the son, and the widow is also told by Holocaust writer Esther Farbstein in her Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1 [2]

Rabbi Isaac C. Avigdor (1920-2010),[3] son of Rabbi Jacob Avigdor, was a community rabbi in Connecticut "for a half century". For decades he was a columnist in The Jewish Press.[4]

Works

[edit]
  • Nauka Talmudu -1928 (Polish, with subsequent Hebrew and German editions, three volumes)
  • Chelek Yacov - 1929 (Hebrew)
  • Metafizyka Judaismu -1931 (Polish, Doctorate Thesis, Lviv University)
  • Haemunah V'haphilosophia‡ -1933 (Polish)
  • Sheelot Utshuvot Abir Yacov -1934 (Hebrew, two volumes)
  • Harambam V'shitato B'philosophia‡ -1935 (Polish)
  • Ayeh Sofer -1937 (Hebrew)
  • Torat Halashon -1938 (Hebrew)
  • Sheelot Utshuvot Heshiv Yacov -1939 (Hebrew)
  • Al Hashchitah‡ - 1939 (Polish)
  • Techiyat Yacov -1950 (Hebrew)
  • La Cronología Judaica -1954 (Spanish)
  • Maimónides, su Vida y Obra -1955 (Spanish)
  • [Chelek Yacov Aleph - 1956 reprint of Chelek Yacov]
  • [Chelek Yacov Bet - 1956 reprint of Ayeh Sofer and Techiyat Yacov].
  • Kuntres Kol Yacov -1956 (Hebrew)
  • Shevichtav V'sheval Peh (In Shrift Un Vort) - 1957 (Yiddish, volumes I and II) and 1958 (Yiddish, volume III)
  • La Vision del Judaismo -1959 (Spanish, two volumes)
  • Machshoveh V'loshn (Gedank Un Shprach) -1959 (Yiddish)
  • Reflexiones Sobre la Torá -1960 (Spanish)
  • Dee Yiddishe Froy/La Mujer Judía - 1960 (Yiddish and Spanish)
  • Hegyon Yacov -1962 (Yiddish, two volumes)
  • Torah Sh’veal Peh -1962 (Yiddish, volume I) and 1963 (Yiddish, volume II)
  • Haskel V'yadoa -1962 (Hebrew, volumes I and II) and 1963 (Hebrew, volume III)
  • Der Yiddisher Shabos/El Sabado Judío -1963 (Yiddish and Spanish)
  • Haemuna Hanotzrit L'or Hahalacha Hayehudit -1964 (Hebrew)
  • Oifzatzn Un Esayen -1965 (Yiddish)
  • Mikdash Meat -1965 (Hebrew)
  • Mul Baayot Hador -1965 (Hebrew, volume I) and 1966 (Hebrew, volume II)
  • Síntesis del Talmud: Exposición de su Desarrollo Histórico -1966 (Spanish, two volumes)

(‡ Hebrew translation of the Polish title per biographical source in the Hebrew language; original Polish title unknown)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ David Warren (2005). "Book Review". Martyrdom and Resistance. 32 (2): 4. ISSN 0892-1571.
  2. ^ Esther Farbstein (2007). Hidden in Thunder: Perspective on Faith, Halachah and Leadership, volume 1. ISBN 978-965-726505-5.
  3. ^ Jewish Community of Hartford. Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford. 2016. p. 50. ISBN 978-1467115964. Rabbi Isaac Avigdor .. (1920–2010)
  4. ^ Rabbi Dr. Isaac C. Avigdor (West Hartford, CT) (May 10, 2002). "In honor of Shavuot, 5762". The Jewish Press. p. 42.

5. Avigdor, Jacob. Sheelot Utshuvot Abir Yacov. (Autobiographical essay as preface). Reprint of 1934 edition. New York, 1949. {trans: Questions and Answers "Abir Yacov"}.

6. Farbstein, Esther. The Forgotten Memoirs. Shaar Press, New York, 2011.

7. Gelber, N.M. Sefer Zikaron L'Drohobych, Boryslaw V'ha-seviva. Tel-Aviv, 1959. {trans: Book of Remembrance to the Jews of Drohobych, Boryslaw, and Surroundings}.

8. Wunder, Meir. Meore Galitsyah: Entsiklopedyah L'chachme Galitsyah, Machon L'hantsachat Yehadut Galitsyah, Jerusalem, 1978. {trans: Encyclopedia of Galician Rabbis and Scholars}.

[edit]
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