Thursday, April 15, 2010

Eastern European Interests

B"H

Despite that I was born in Germany, I have always been interested in Judaism taking place in Eastern Europe and not necessarily in Germany. When I read about the Holocaust or collect information on Rabbis and communities, it will mostly be Eastern Europe. I actually do have roots there, as my mother came from Poland.

I have been trying to give a wide overview on haredi society, Jewish history, (some) science and plenty of Chassidut in this blog but I cannot deny that many things haven't even been mentioned. This happened due to lack of time, as I have only two hands and need to work and sleep sometimes.

I want to try fixing certain lacks of information by putting a few short teachings or descriptions about further Rabbis / haredi directions into the blog. I am actually a little ashamed that I have never really mentioned the Chatam Sofer, the Soloveitchik Rabbis (including the Brisker movement), Rabbi Aryeh Levin, the Kook Rabbis as well as Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, the Abarbanel, Rabbi Elchanan Wassermann, the "Netziv" (Rabbi Berlin), Rabbi Zadok HaCohen of Lublin or Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin. And those are only a few names on my list. Despite my chassidic preferences, I very much appreciate the teachings of the Litvishe (famous student of the Vilna Gaon), Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin.

We have a Brisker Synagogue in Jerusalem and I haven't even made it there once. Not yet. However, I am starting to put some information about different teachings into the blog and I will see whether I can put everything together as a whole.

4 comments:

  1. Seeing as you're a Yerushalmi, it is a bit sad there's never any content on R' Aryeh Levin or R ' Yosef Chaim...

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  2. B"H

    This has been very true but I try to change it.:-)))
    I also just found out that Rabbi Amram Blau (Bloi) wrote plenty of essays on different subjects. Even on Lubavitch.

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  3. When a "not so clean" store opened and stayed open on shabbos, Rav Yosef Chaim would sit next to the entrance, not at the entrance, but on the side of the entrance on shabbos, and recite Tehillim until the store finally closed on shabbos. They got so fed up with this guy in front taking away business! A lesson for today's residents of Meah Shearim.

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  4. B"H

    This was once done in front of the non - kosher "Mania" store in Agrippas Street. A few years ago, some Haredim gathered in front of the store and recited KADDISH.
    But they also blocked the entrance.

    After a while, some cops on motorbikes showed up and ran into the haredi crowd. Even secular bystanders were upset about the behaviour of the cops.

    Today shop owners call the police immediately and then there is always a mess.

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