Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi (Hebrew: רב ראשי Rav Rashi) is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel, Israel has had two chief rabbis, one Ashkenazi and one Sephardi.[1]
Cities with large Jewish communities may also have their own chief rabbis; this is especially the case in Israel but has also been past practice in major Jewish centers in Europe prior to the Holocaust. North American cities rarely have chief rabbis. One exception however is Montreal, with two—one for the Ashkenazi community, the other for the Sephardi.
Jewish law provides no scriptural or Talmudic support for the post of a "chief rabbi." The office, however, is said by many to find its precedent in the religio-political authority figures of Jewish antiquity (e.g., kings, high priests, patriarches, exilarchs and gaonim).[2] The position arose in Europe in the Middle Ages from governing authorities largely for secular administrative reasons such as collecting taxes and registering vital statistics, and for providing an intermediary between the government and the Jewish community, for example in the establishment of the Crown rabbi in several kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula, the rab de la corte in the Kingdom of Castile or the arrabi mor in the Kingdom of Portugal, likely influenced by the expectations of their Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Anglican governments and neighbors.[3] Similarly, in the 19th century there was a Crown rabbi of the Russian Empire.[4]
By country / region
This section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2019) |
Albania
- Joel Kaplan (2010–present)[5]
Argentina
Sephardi (Syrian)
Sephardi
- Isaac Sacca (1997–present)
Ashkenazi
- Gabriel Davidovich (2013–present)
Austria
- Jitzchok ben Mosche von Wien, "Or Sorua" (ca. 1200–1270)
- Yom-Tov Lipmann Heller, "Tosfos Jomtov" (1578–1654)
- Scheftel Horowitz (1561–1619)
- Gerschon "Uliph" Aschkenasi (ca. 1612–1693)
- Samson Wertheimer (1658–1724)
- Mosche Chanoch Berliner (1727–1793)
- Isaak Noah Mannheimer (1824–1865)
- Lazar Horowitz (1828–1868), chief rabbi of Vienna
- Adolf Jellinek (1865–1893)
- Moritz Güdemann (1894–1918)
- Zwi Perez Chajes (1918–1927)
- David Feuchtwang (1933–1936)
- Israel Taglicht (1936), provisional chief rabbi
- Insp. I. Öhler (1946), preacher at the Stadttempel
- Akiva Eisenberg (1948–1983)
- Paul Chaim Eisenberg (1983–2016)
- Arie Folger (July 2016)
Belgium
- Eliakim Carmoly (1832–1839)
- Henri Loeb
- Aristide Astrue
- Élie-Aristide Astruc (1866–1879)
- Abraham Dreyfus
- Armand Bloch
Bulgaria
- Gabriel Almosnino (1880–1885)
- Presiado Bakish (1885–1889)
- Shimon Dankowitz (1889–1891)
- Moshe Tadjer (1891–1893)
- Moritz Grünwald (1893–1895)
- Presiado Bakish (1895–1898)
- Moshe Tadjer (1898–1900)
- Mordecai Ehrenpreis (1900–1914)
- M. Hezkeya Shabetay Davidov (1914–1918)
- David Pifano (1920–1925)
- No Chief Rabbi (1925–1945)
- Asher Hannanel (1945–1949)[7]
- Behor Kahlon (1990–2012)
- Aharon Zerbib (2012–2015)
- Yoel Yifrach (2015–Present)
Colombia
Ashkenazi
- Eliezer Paltiel Roitblatt (1946-1957)
- Chaim Menachem Bentzion Blumenkrantz (Early 1950s[8][circular reference])[9]
- Alfredo Goldschmidt (1974–Present[10]) (appointed 1991)[11]
Sephardi
- Miguel Attias (1948-Early 1950)
- David Sharbani (Early 1950s-1978)
- Yehuda Benhamu (1978-1986[12])
- Yehuda Ari Azancot (1986-2000)
- Shlomo Meir Elharar (2000-2010)
- Avi Amsalem (2010-Dec. 2020)
Chabad
- Yehoshua Rosenfeld (1980–Present)[citation needed]
Cuba
- Meyer Rosenbaum (Son of Isamar of Nadvorna, Elected 1948: left Cuba in 1956, a little more than two years before Fidel Castro came to power in the Revolution)
- Raphael Yair Elnadav (1956–1959)
- Shmuel Szteinhendler current Chief Rabbi of Cuba and regional director for Masorti Judaism in Latin America.[13][14][15]
Croatia
- Miroslav Šalom Freiberger (1941–1943)
- Kotel Da-Don (1998–2006) from 2006 rabbi of the Bet Israel community Zagreb
- Luciano Moše Prelević (2006–)
Cyprus
- Arie Zeev Raskin (2005–present[update])[16]
Czech Republic
Denmark
- Abraham Salomon (1687–1700)
- Israel Ber (1700–1728)
- Marcus David (1729–1739)
- Hirsch Samuel Levy (1741–1775)
- Gedalia Levin (1778–1793)
- Abraham Gedalia (1793–1827)
- Abraham Wolff (1828–1891)
- David Simonsen (1892–1902, 1919–1920)
- Tobias Lewenstein (1903–1910)
- Max Schornstein (1910–1919)
- Max (Moses) Friediger (1920–1947)
- Marcus Melchior (1947–1969)
- Bent Melchior (1970–1996)
- Bent Lexner (1996–2014)[18]
- Jair Melchior (2014–present[update])
Ecuador
- Menachem Mendel Fried (2022- )
Egypt
- Refael Aharon Ben Shimon (1891–1921)
- Masoud Haim Ben Shimon (1921–1925)
- Chaim Nahum (1925–1960)
- Haim Moussa Douek (1960–1972)
Estonia
- Michael Alony (1995–1996)
- Shmuel Kot (2000–present[update])
The Far East
- Aharon Moshe Kiselev (1937–1949)
Finland
- Simon Federbusch (1931–1940)
- Elieser Berlinger (1946–1951)
- Mika Weiss (1957–1961)
- Shmuel Beeri (1961–1963)
- Mordechai Lanxner (1973–1982)
- Ove Schwartz (1982–1987)
- Lazar Kleinman (–1992)
- Michael Aloni (1995–1996)
- Moshe Edelmann (1999–2012)
- Simon Livson (2012–)[19]
Chabad Lubavitch Chief Rabbi of Finland
- Benyamin Wolff (2003–)[19]
France
- David Sintzheim (1808–1812)
- Abraham Vita de Cologna (1808–1826)
- Emmanuel Deutz (1810–1842)
- Marchand Ennery (1846–1852)
- Salomon Ulmann (1853–1865)
- Lazare Isidor (1866–1888)
- Zadoc Kahn (1889–1905)
- Alfred Lévy (1907–1919)
- Israël Lévi (1920–1939)
- Isaïe Schwartz (1939–1952)
- Jacob Kaplan (1955–1980)
- René Samuel Sirat (1981–1987)
- Joseph Sitruk (1987–2008)
- Gilles Bernheim (2009–2013) (elected 22 June 2008, resigned 11 April 2013)
- Haim Korsia (2014–)
Galicia*
- Aryeh Leib Bernstein (1778–1786)
- Edgar Gluck
Galicia in Central/Eastern Europe, as a political entity, ceased to exist in 1921; the title of its Chief Rabbi had already been abolished 1 November 1786 as part of the Josephinism Reforms.[20][21]
Due to its being a center for Jewish scholarship, the Rabbi of Lemberg was traditionally seen as the Rabbi of Galicia in the era prior to World War II.[22]
Greece
- Elias Barzilai
- Gabriel Negrin
Guatemala
- Meyer Rosenbaum (Son of Isamar of Nadvorna, Later Chief Rabbi of Cuba)
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
- Note that this list is not in chronological order.
- Meir Eisenstadt known as the Panim Me'iros (1708–), rabbi of Eisenstadt and author of "Panim Me'irot"
- Alexander ben Menahem
- Phinehas Auerbach
- Jacob Eliezer Braunschweig
- Hirsch Semnitz
- Simon Jolles (1717–?)
- Samson Wertheimer (1693?–1724) (also Eisenstadt and Moravia)
- Issachar Berush Eskeles (1725–1753)[24]
- Joseph Hirsch Weiss—grandfather of Stephen Samuel Wise[25][26]
- Samuel Kohn
- Simon Hevesi (father of Ferenc Hevesi)
- Ferenc Hevesi
- Moshe Kunitzer a pioneer of the Haskalah movement in Hungary (1828–1837)
- Koppel Reich
- Chaim Yehuda Deutsch
- József Schweitzer
- Robert (Avrohom Yehudoh) Deutsch
Iran
- Yedidia Shofet (1922–1980)
- Uriel Davidi (1980–1994)
- Yosef Hamadani Cohen (1994–2007)
- Mashallah Golestani-Nejad (2007–present)
Ireland
- Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog (1921–1937)
- Immanuel Jakobovits (1949–1958)
- Isaac Cohen (1959–1979)
- David Rosen (1979–1984)
- Ephraim Mirvis (1985–1992)
- Shimon Yehudah Harris (1993–1994)
- Gavin Broder (1996–2000)
- Yaakov Pearlman (2001–2008)
- Zalman Lent (acting Chief Rabbi, 2008–present)[citation needed]
The appointment of a new Chief Rabbi of Ireland has been put on hold since 2008.[27]
Israel
The position of chief rabbi (Hebrew: רַב רָאשִׁי) of the Land of Israel has existed for hundreds of years. During the Mandatory Period, the British recognized the chief rabbis of the Ashkenazi and Sephardi communities, just as they recognized the Mufti of Jerusalem. The offices continued after statehood was achieved. Haredi Jewish groups (such as Edah HaChareidis) do not recognize the authority of the Chief Rabbinate. They usually have their own rabbis who do not have any connection to the state rabbinate.
Under current Israeli law, the post of Chief Rabbi exists in only four cities (Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Beersheba). In other cities there may be one main rabbi to whom the other rabbis of that city defer, but that post is not officially the "Chief Rabbi".
Many of Israel's chief rabbis were previously chief rabbis of Israeli cities.
Sephardi
|
Ashkenazi
|
Military Rabbinate
- Shlomo Goren (1948–1968)
- Mordechai Piron (1968–1977)
- Gad Navon (1977–2000)
- Israel Weiss (2000–2006)
- Avichai Rontzki (2006–2010)
- Rafi Peretz (2010–2016)
- Eyal Karim (2016–)
Japan
- Binyamin Edre'i (2015–present)[30]
Lebanon
- Moïse Yedid-Levy (1799–1829)
- Ralph Alfandari
- Youssef Mann (1849)
- Aharoun Yedid-Levy
- Zaki Cohen (1875)
- Menaché Ezra Sutton
- Jacob Bukai
- Haïm Dana
- Moïse Yedid-Levy
- Nassim Afandi Danon (1908–1909)
- Jacob Tarrab (1910–1921)
- Salomon Tagger (1921–1923)
- Shabtai Bahbout (1924–1950)
- Benzion Lichtman (1932–1959)
- Shahud Chreim (1960–1978)
Luxembourg
- Robert Serebrenik (1929–1941)
Mexico
- Shlomo Tawil (1998–Present)
Macedonia
- Avi Kozma
Morocco
- Mardo Chee Bengio[31] Chief Rabbi of Tangier.
- Raphael Ankawa (1918–1935)
- Mikail Encaoua
- Chalom Messas (1961–1978)
- Aaron Monsonego (1994–2018)
- Yoshiyahu Pinto[32] (2019–present)
Nepal
- Chezki Lifshitz (2000–present)[citation needed]
Norway
- Isaak Julius Samuel (1930–1942)
- Michael Melchior (1980–present[update])[33]
Panama
- Zion Levy (1951–2008) Sephardic Chief Rabbi
- Aaron Laine (1986–) Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi
- David Perets (2016–) Sephardic Chief Rabbi
Peru
- Abraham Moshe Brener (1930-1967)
- Baruj Epstein (1966-1967)
- Yaakov Kraus (1987-1998)
- Efraim Zik (1999-2009)
- Itay Meushar (2009-2016)
- Salomon Cohen (2016-2019)
Poland
- Jacob Pollak (appointed 1503)[35]
- Moses Fishel (1541–1542)
- Dow Ber Percowicz (1945–1956)
- Zew Wawa Morejno (1956–1957)
- Dow Ber Percowicz (1957–1961)
- Uszer Zibes (1961–1966)
- Zew Wawa Morejno (1966–1973)
- Pinchas Menachem Joskowicz (1988–1999)
- Michael Schudrich (2004–present[update])
Poland: Armed Forces
- Chaim Elizjer Frankl (?–1933)
- Major Baruch Steinberg (1933–circa 12 April 1940) murdered by NKVD in the Katyn massacre
Romania
- Yaakov Yitzhak Neimerov (d. 1940)
- Alexandru Safran (1940–1948)
- Moses Rosen (1948–1994)
- Menachem Hacohen (1997–2011)
- Rafael Shaffer (2011–Present)
Russia
- Adolf Shayevich (1983, officially since 1993–present[update])
- Berel Lazar (2000–present[update])
Military Rabbinate
- Aharon Gurevich (2007–present[update])
Serbia
- Isaac Alcalay, also Chief Rabbi of Yugoslavia from 1923 to 1941
- Isak Asiel
Singapore
- Mordechai Abergel[36]
Slovakia
- Moses Sofer (1806–1839)
- Samuel Benjamin Sofer (1839–1871)
- Simcha Bunim Sofer (1871–1907)
- Akiva Sofer (1907–1938)
- Izidor Katz (1950–1968)
- Baruch Myers (1993–present)[37]
South Africa
- Judah Leo Landau (1915–1942)
- Louis Rabinowitz (1945–1961)
- Bernard M. Casper (1963–1987)
- Cyril Harris (1988–2004)
- Warren Goldstein (2005–present[update])
Spain
- Baruj Garzon (1968–1978), the first Chief Rabbi in Spain since the expulsion in 1492
- Yehuda Benasuli (1978–1997)
- Moshe Bendahan (1997–present[update])
Sudan
- Solomon Malka (1906–1949)
- Haim Simoni (1950–1952)
- Massoud El-Baz (1956-1965 by which time the Jewish community in Sudan had declined so dramatically that they could not afford to pay a Rabbi)[38]
Syria
- Yom Tov Yedid (1960–1982), moved to the United States in 1982 and died 27 July 2016 in the United States
Thailand
- Yosef Kantor (1992–present)
Transylvania (before 1918)
Note: The chief rabbi of Transylvania was generally the rabbi of the city of Alba Iulia.
- Joseph Reis Auerbach (d. 1750)
- Shalom Selig ben Saul Cohen (1754–1757)
- Johanan ben Isaac (1758–1760)
- Benjamin Ze'eb Wolf of Cracow (1764–1777)
- Moses ben Samuel Levi Margaliot (1778–1817)
- Menahem ben Joshua Mendel (1818–23)
- Ezekiel Paneth (1823–1843)
- Abraham Friedmann (d. 1879), last chief rabbi of Transylvania
Tunisia
- Chaim Madar (1984–2004)
Turkey
- Eli Capsali (1452–1454)
- Moses Capsali (1454–1497)
- Elijah Mizrachi (1497–1526)
- Mordechai Komitano (1526–1542)
- Tam ben Yahya (1542–1543)
- Eli Rozanes ha-Levi (1543)
- Eli ben Hayim (1543–1602)
- Yehiel Bashan (1602–1625)
- Joseph Mitrani (1625–1639)
- Yomtov Benyaes (1639–1642)
- Yomtov Hananiah Benyakar (1642–1677)
- Chaim Kamhi (1677–1715)
- Judah Benrey (1715–1717)
- Samuel Levi (1717–1720)
- Abraham Rozanes (1720–1745)
- Solomon Hayim Alfandari (1745–1762)
- Meir Ishaki (1762–1780)
- Eli Palombo (1780–1800)
- Chaim Jacob Benyakar (1800–1835)
- Abraham Levi Pasha (1835–1839)
- Samuel Hayim (1839–1841)
- Moiz Fresko (1841–1854)
- Yacob Avigdor (1854–1870)
- Yakir Geron (1870–1872)
- Moses Levi (1872–1909)
- Chaim Nahum Effendi (1909–1920)
- Shabbetai Levi (1920–1922)
- Isaac Ariel (1922–1926)
- Haim Bejerano (1926–1931)
- Haim Isaac Saki (1931–1940)
- Rafael David Saban (1940–1960)
- David Asseo (1961–2002)
- Ishak Haleva (2003–present[update])
Uganda
- Gershom Sizomu (present[update]) (see: Abayudaya)
Ukraine
- Yaakov Bleich (1990–present)[39]
- Azriel Chaikin[40] (2003–2008)
- Moshe Reuven Azman (2005–present)[41]
United Arab Emirates
- Levi Duchman (2015-present[update]) first resident rabbi to the UAE, appointed Chabad Shaliach to the UAE in 2020, making him the first Chabad Shaliach in a Gulf country. Directs the Jewish Community Center of the UAE. Rabbi Yehuda Sarna is the current Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Council of the Emirates.
United Kingdom and Commonwealth
Ashkenazi chief rabbis
- Judah Loeb ben Abraham Ephraim Asher Anshel (1696–1700)[42]
- Aaron the Scribe of Dublin (1700–1704)[42]
- Aaron Hart (1704–1756)[42]
- Hart Lyon (1758–1764)
- David Tevele Schiff (1765–1791)
- Solomon Hirschell (1802–1842)
- Nathan Marcus Adler (1845–1891)
- Hermann Adler (1891–1911)
- Joseph Herman Hertz (1913–1946)
- Israel Brodie (1948–1965)
- Immanuel Jakobovits (1966–1991; knighted 1981, life peer 1988)
- Jonathan Sacks (1991–2013; knighted 2005, life peer 2009)
- Ephraim Mirvis (2013–present)
Spanish and Portuguese community Hahamim/senior rabbis
The Sephardi Jews in the United Kingdom are mainly members of independent synagogues. There is no single rabbi recognised by them as a chief rabbi. The Spanish and Portuguese community, however, consists of several synagogues, charities, a beth din and a kashruth authority. These are under the leadership of an ecclesiastical head. Historically, the individual who fills this role is recognised as a senior rabbi of Anglo Jewry, being the leader of the oldest Jewish community in the country. The Senior Rabbi was traditionally given the title, Haham, meaning "wise one". Since 1918, however, only Solomon Gaon was given this title. The official title of the holder of this office is now The Senior Rabbi of the S&P Sephardi Community of the United Kingdom.
- Jacob ben Aaron Sasportas (1664–1665)
- Yehoshua Da Silva (1670–1679)
- Jacob Abendana (1681–1684)
- Solomon Ayllon (1689–1700)
- David Nieto (1701–1728)
- Isaac Nieto (1732–1740)
- Moshe Gomes de Mesquita (1744–1751)
- Moshe Cohen d'Azevedo (1761–1784)
- Raphael Meldola (1806–1828)
- Benjamin Artom (1866–1879)
- Moses Gaster (1887–1918)
- Shem Tob Gaguine (1920–1953) (officially the "Ecclesiastical Chief of the Spanish & Portuguese Jews' Congregation," not the Haham)
- Solomon Gaon (1949–1995)
- Abraham Levy (1995–2012) (officially the Communal Rabbi and Spiritual Head of the Spanish & Portuguese Jews' Congregation, not the haham)
- Joseph Dweck (2013–) (elected Senior Rabbi of The S&P Sephardi Community, not the haham)[43]
United States
A chief rabbinate never truly developed within the United States for a number of different reasons. While Jews first settled in the United States in 1654 in New York City, rabbis did not appear in the United States until the mid-nineteenth century. This lack of rabbis, coupled with the lack of official colonial or state recognition of a particular sect of Judaism as official effectively led to a form of congregationalism amongst American Jews. This did not stop others from trying to create a unified American Judaism, and in fact, some chief rabbis developed in some American cities despite lacking universal recognition amongst the Jewish communities within the cities (for examples see below). However, Jonathan Sarna argues that those two precedents, as well as the desire of many Jewish immigrants to the US to break from an Orthodox past, effectively prevented any effective Chief Rabbi in America.[44]
Uruguay
- Jaime Spector (1931–1937)
- Aaron Milevsky (1937–1943)
- Aaron Laschover (1943–1967)
- Nechemia Berman (1970–1993)
- Eliahu Birenbaum (1994–1999)
- Yosef Bittón (1999–2002)
- Mordejai Maarabi (2002–2009)
- Shai Froindlich (2009–2010)
- Isaac Fadda (2011–2012)
- Ben-Tzion Spitz (2013–2016)
- Max Yojanan Godet (2017–present)
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
SephardiAshkenazi
By cityAmsterdam, Netherlands
Antwerp, Belgium
Baltimore, Maryland – United States
Birobidzhan, Russia
Budapest, Hungary
Caracas, Venezuela
Chicago, Illinois – United States
Copenhagen, Denmark
Frankfurt, Germany
Gateshead, United KingdomThe Hague, Netherlands
Haifa, Israel
Hannover, Germany
Hebron, West Bank
Helsinki, Finland
Hoboken, New Jersey – United States
Jerusalem
Edah HaChareidis
Kyiv, Ukraine
Krakow, Poland
Leiden, NetherlandsLeeuwarden, Friesland, Netherlands
Milan, Italy
Modi'in Illit, IsraelMontreal, Quebec, Canada
Moscow, Russia
Munich, Germany
Netherlands – Inter-Provincial Chief rabbinate
New York, New York – United States
Nové Zámky, Slovakia
Paris, France
Rome, Italy
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Shanghai, China
Sofia, Bulgaria
St. Louis, Missouri – United States
Tel Aviv-Yafo, IsraelSephardi
Toronto, Ontario, CanadaVienna, Austria
Warsaw, Poland
Würzburg, Germany
Zagreb, Croatia
"Grand Rabbi"Occasionally, the term "Grand Rabbi" is used to note a Hasidic Rebbe, particularly used on letterhead when the letterhead is in English.[citation needed] See alsoReferences
External linksMedia related to Chief rabbis at Wikimedia Commons
|
- CS1 Spanish-language sources (es)
- Webarchive template wayback links
- All articles with dead external links
- Articles with dead external links from September 2017
- Articles with permanently dead external links
- Articles with dead external links from November 2011
- CS1: Julian–Gregorian uncertainty
- CS1 French-language sources (fr)
- CS1 maint: archived copy as title
- Articles with dead external links from December 2017
- Articles with short description
- Short description with empty Wikidata description
- Use dmy dates from September 2020
- Articles containing Hebrew-language text
- Articles using small message boxes
- Incomplete lists from August 2008
- Articles needing additional references from November 2019
- All articles needing additional references
- All articles lacking reliable references
- Articles lacking reliable references from May 2021
- All articles with unsourced statements
- Articles with unsourced statements from September 2021
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2008
- All articles containing potentially dated statements
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2016
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2013
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2010
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2009
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2007
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2011
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2012
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2021
- Articles with unsourced statements from February 2007
- Articles with unsourced statements from October 2010
- Articles with unsourced statements from May 2018
- Commons category link is locally defined
- Orthodox rabbinic roles and titles
- Chief rabbis