Alexandru Şafran (or Alexandre Safran; 12 September 1910 – 27 July 2006) was a Romanian and, after 1948,

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...

. As chief rabbi of Romania (1940–1948), he intervened with authorities in the

fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

government of

Ion Antonescu Ion Antonescu (; ; – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian military officer and marshal who presided over two successive wartime dictatorships as Prime Minister and ''Conducător'' during most of World War II. A Romanian Army career officer who made ...

in an unusually successful attempt to save Jews during the Holocaust.

Biography

Şafran was born in Bacău, and received his doctorate in

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

from

Vienna University The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public university, public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the Geogra ...

(1933). He briefly succeeded his father as rabbi in Bacău, before becoming the

chief rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, 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 ...

of Romania in 1940, then the youngest chief rabbi in the world. In September 1940 Romania allied to Nazi Germany and, under Nazi influence, had begun to introduce anti-Jewish laws. In 1941, Şafran and Romania's Union of the Jewish Communities, through intervention with Nicodim Munteanu, the patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, convinced Antonescu to revoke an order forcing Jews to wear the yellow badge. Shortly thereafter, the government dissolved all Jewish organizations, so Şafran and other Jewish leaders formed an underground Jewish Council. In 1942, Şafran used his contacts with ambassadors (notably the Swiss

René de Weck René (''born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name (Renée being the feminin ...

), the queen mother Elena, and church officials, including the papal nuncio Andrea Cassulo,the message text
"Pius XII's Aid to Jews Was So Great That It Stirred Protests", New Revelations of Vatican Secret Archives, Analyzed by Historian, July 04, 2004, zenit.org, [Civiltà Cattolica, 1961, Volume 3, p. 462].
to convince Antonescu to resist German demands for the wholesale deportation of Jews. As World War II continued, the Jewish Council organized efforts to aid and lobby of the return of Jews deported to Transnistria. About 57 percent of Greater Romania's pre-war Jewish population of about 800,000 survived the war. In 1945 he worked with composer George Enescu to raise relief funds for Romanian famine, including a United States tour. However, Şafran refused to cooperate with Communist authorities after the war, and, in 1947, was forced into exile in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1948, he became chief rabbi of Geneva, where he remained until his death. There he worked with the United Nations, Red Cross, and other organizations to improve human rights. He wrote several books including a memoir, , 'Resisting The Storm'' in Englishublished in Romanian in 1995. His best known writing is on the Kabbalah. He was elected an honorary member of the Romanian Academy in 1997. He is buried in Israel beside his wife, Sarah. They had a son (Avinoam) and a daughter (Esther).

Notes

References

External links

"The Virtual Jewish History Tour — Romania"
by The American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise, 2006.
"Former Romanian Chief Rabbi Dies at 95"
by Frank Jordans, Associated Press, 28 July 2006.

by Associated Press, in ''The New York Times'' / (nytimes.com), July 29, 2006.

Obituaries, ''The Times'', London, August 9, 2006.
"Dr. Alexandre Safran"
''B’nai B’rith Europe News'', 18 August 2006.

cooperation in 1944. {{DEFAULTSORT:Safran, Alexandru 20th-century Romanian rabbis Modern Orthodox rabbis Chief rabbis of Romania Romanian Orthodox rabbis 20th-century Swiss rabbis Honorary members of the Romanian Academy Romanian memoirists Romanian expatriates in Switzerland Moldavian Jews People from Bacău 1910 births 2006 deaths 20th-century memoirists