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Aaron Teitelbaum (born 20 October 1947) is one of the two Grand ''
Rebbe A Rebbe ( yi, רבי, translit=rebe) or Admor ( he, אדמו״ר) is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement, and the personalities of its dynasties.Heilman, Samuel"The Rebbe and the Resurgence of Orthodox Judaism."''Religion and Spiritua ...
''s of
Satmar Satmar (Yiddish: סאַטמאַר, Hebrew: סאטמר) is a Hasidic group founded in 1905 by Grand Rebbe Joel Teitelbaum, in the city of Szatmárnémeti, Hungary (now Satu Mare in Romania). The group is an offshoot of the Sighet Hasidic dynast ...
, and 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 the Satmar community in
Kiryas Joel, New York Kiryas Joel ( yi, קרית יואל, Kiryas Yoyel, ; often locally abbreviated as KJ) is a village coterminous with the Town of Palm Tree in Orange County, New York, United States. The village shares one government with the Town. The vast major ...
.


Background

Aaron Teitelbaum is the oldest son of the late Grand Rabbi of
Satmar Satmar (Yiddish: סאַטמאַר, Hebrew: סאטמר) is a Hasidic group founded in 1905 by Grand Rebbe Joel Teitelbaum, in the city of Szatmárnémeti, Hungary (now Satu Mare in Romania). The group is an offshoot of the Sighet Hasidic dynast ...
Moshe Teitelbaum, who was the nephew of the late Satmar Rebbe, Grand Rabbi
Joel Teitelbaum Joel Teitelbaum ( yi, יואל טייטלבוים, translit=Yoyl Teytlboym, ; 13 January 1887 – 19 August 1979) was the founder and first Grand Rebbe of the Satmar dynasty. A major figure in the post-war renaissance of Hasidism, he espoused ...
. Aaron Teitelbaum married Sasha, the daughter of Grand Rabbi Moshe Yehoshua Hager, the previous Vizhnitzer Rebbe of
Bnei Brak Bnei Brak or Bene Beraq ( he, בְּנֵי בְּרַק ) is a city located on the central Mediterranean coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1752 acres, or 2.74 squ ...
, Israel. In 1985, Aaron Teitelbaum was appointed as the chief rabbi and rosh yeshiva of the Satmar congregation in Kiryas Joel, which gave him authority over all the community's affairs. Some of the residents of Kiryas Joel at that time resented the appointment of Aaron, having issues with his personality and controlling nature.


Satmar succession feud

In May 1999, Moshe Teitelbaum appointed his second son,
Zalman Teitelbaum Yekusiel Yehuda III Teitelbaum, known by the Yiddish colloquial name Rav Zalman Leib (born 23 December 1951),Arye Ehrlich. Malkhut shel Khesed'. Mishpacha, 13 December 2012 (p. 28). is one of two Grand Rebbes of Satmar, and the son of Grand Ra ...
, as the local leader of the Williamsburg congregation. This was seen by some as a signal from Moshe that Zalman was to become Chief Rabbi after his death. Prior to May 1999, it was assumed that after the death of Moshe Teitelbaum, Satmar would be led by Aaron Teitelbaum, the eldest son. He was his father's representative in communal affairs, and assumed his father's responsibilities when his father traveled. Moshe's appointment of Zalman as the local leader caused factions to form around Aaron and Zalman. Aaron supporters claimed that Moshe was "swayed by his advisers" to appoint Zalman because the advisers were concerned they would lose influence under Aaron's regime. In April 2006, when Moshe died, each side declared their rabbi as the chief rabbi. At that time, Aaron supporters already controlled all assets in Kiryas Joel. Aaron supporters initiated legal proceedings to take control of the Williamsburg holdings from the Zalman supporters, including control of the sacred cemetery of the Brooklyn congregation. The court declined to render a decision, leaving the status quo. The non-decision was seen as a victory for the Zalman faction. Aaron's followers constructed, and began worshiping in, their own synagogue on Hooper Street.


Positions

In May 2012, Teitelbaum forbade his followers from possessing computers in their homes, unless the computers are strictly necessary for a business and have a
content-control software An Internet filter is software that restricts or controls the content an Internet user is capable to access, especially when utilized to restrict material delivered over the Internet via the Web, Email, or other means. Content-control software det ...
program. He also ruled that his followers may not possess
smartphone A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, which ...
s under any circumstances. In keeping with the traditional beliefs of Satmar, Teitelbaum is firmly opposed to Zionism. Teitelbaum is affiliated with the Jerusalem-based anti-Zionist
Edah HaChareidis The Charedi Council of Jerusalem ( he, העדה החרדית, ''haEdah haCharedit'', Ashkenazi pronunciation: ''ha-Aideh Charaidis'' or ''ha-Eido ha-Chareidis''; "Congregation of God-Fearers") is a large Haredi Jewish communal organization based ...
, particularly with the organization's vice president,
Moishe Sternbuch Moshe Sternbuch (or Moishe / Moses Shternbuch, he, משה שטרנבוך) is a Haredi rabbi. He serves as the ''Ra'avad'' (Chief) of the Edah HaChareidis, vice-president of the Rabbinical Court in Jerusalem, and the rabbi of the Gra Synagogue in ...
. In April 2013, Teitelbaum denounced the proposed draft of Haredi men by the
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branch ...
as "a decree worse than the annihilation of the Jewish people". In June 2014, contemporaneous to the
2014 kidnapping and murder of Israeli teenagers On 12 June 2014, three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped at the bus/ hitchhiking stop at the Israeli settlement of Alon Shvut in Gush Etzion, in the West Bank, as they were hitchhiking to their homes. The three teens were Naftali Frenkel (16, ...
, Teitelbaum blamed the parents of the dead teenagers for their murder, proclaiming:
"During the funerals, the parents eulogized their sons, but I think it would have been preferable if they had done tshuva epented if they had said viduy onfessionwith tears, in the nusach tylethat is used on Yom Kippur, to repent for their decision to live and learn Torah in a place of barbaric murderers."
The speech was broadcast on Kol Satmar, the Satmar news service. Teitelbaum was criticized for making such remarks about parents while they were mourning their children. He also said that he wants to establish a Satmar community in Romania.


Children

*Rabbi Menachem Mendel, heir apparent, previously used to serve as a Chief Rabbi of the Satmar community, and also as a
Rosh Yeshiva Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primar ...
, in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, Belgium. In 2006, according to his father's order, he returned to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
, and was appointed to serve as a Chief Rabbi of his father's followers in Williamsburg. In 1984, in a wedding which took place in
Nassau Coliseum Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, east of New York City. The Long Island venue is approximately east of the eastern limits of the New York City Borough of ...
with the participation of tens of thousands of people, he married his first cousin, Rebbetzin Brucha Sima, daughter of Rabbi Bearish Meisles, the Chief Rabbi of the Satmar community in Borough Park and son-in-law of the deceased Grand Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum of Satmar. This wedding was considered to have been one of the greatest events in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish world. *Rebbetzin Chaya, married to Rabbi Chanoch Henich, son of Grand Rabbi Yitzchok Ashkenazi of Alesk. *Rebbetzin Sarah Miriam, married to Rabbi Boruch, son of Grand Rabbi Nochum Efraim Teitelbaum of Volova. *Rebbetzin Hinda, married Rabbi Shimon Ze'ev, son of Rabbi Zalman Leib Meisles, Chief Rabbi of the local Satmar community in Sea Gate. *Rabbi Chaim Tzvi, serves as a Rabbi of the Sighet synagogue in Williamsburg. Married to Rebbetzin Rivkah Sarah Chaya, granddaughter of Rabbi Moshe Halberstam, the previous Grand Rabbi of the Kiviashd community in Brooklyn. Named for his great-grandfather. *Rebbetzin Channa, married Rabbi Duvid Dov, son of Grand Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky (The second), the current Rebbe of the Dushinsky dynasty in
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. *Rabbi Yoel, married Rivkah Blima, daughter of Rabbi Leibish Eichenstein from Monsey. *Rebbetzin Margulis, married Rabbi Yosef, son of Rabbi Yoel Rokeach from Monsey.


See also

*
Hasidic Judaism Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of contem ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Teitelbaum, Aaron 1948 births American Hasidic rabbis Living people Anti-Zionist Hasidic rabbis Rebbes of Satmar 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American rabbis Rabbis from New York City People from Borough Park, Brooklyn Descendants of the Baal Shem Tov Teitelbaum family