Hyman Brodsky (August 11, 1852 – February 25, 1937) was a Russian-born American rabbi.

Life

Brodsky was born on August 11, 1852, in Bialystok,

Grodno Governorate The Grodno Governorate, (russian: Гро́дненская губе́рнiя, translit=Grodnenskaya guberniya, pl, Gubernia grodzieńska, be, Гродзенская губерня, translit=Hrodzenskaya gubernya, lt, Gardino gubernija, u ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, the son of Noah Brodsky. He attended yeshiva in Slonim and

Valozhyn Valozhyn, Vałožyn or Volozhin ( be, Вало́жын, , russian: Воло́жин, lt, Valažinas, pl, Wołożyn, yi, וואָלאָזשין ''Volozhin''; also written as Wolozin and Wolozhin) is a town in the Minsk Region of Belarus. The pop ...

. He received rabbinical degrees from Rabbi Hirsch Leib Berlin of Volosin, Rabbi Jacob Widrewitz of

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

, Rabbi Bernard L. Levinthal of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, and Rabbi Samuel Wein of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Brodsky immigrated to America in 1886 and served as a rabbi in

New York City, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, for several years. He then became rabbi of the Bené Ya'acob Congregation in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. While there, he served as school board chairman of the Talmud Torah and president of the Independent Chebrah Kadisha. He was also active in encouraging downtown Jews to become American citizens. He also served as rabbi in Cleveland, Ohio, at one point. In 1899, he became rabbi of Congregation Anshei Russia in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.HIAS HIAS (founded as the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) is a Jewish American nonprofit organization that provides humanitarian aid and assistance to refugees. It was originally established in 1881 to aid Jewish refugees. In 1975, the State Department ...

in New York City. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he collected $250,000 for the relief of Jewish war victims in Bialystok and travelled to Bialystok in 1919 to deliver the funds there. Brodsky published and edited the weekly serial ''Filadelfyer Shtot-Tsaytung'' in Philadelphia with Khayim Malits, contributed to the ''Byalistoker Shtime'' in New York City, and published in the Hebrew-language ''Hadevora''. He wrote two religious works in Hebrew, ''Maase Hoshev'' in 1906 and ''Divre Heshev'' in 1908. He used pseudonyms in his writings, including "Ḥoshev." He was involved in a number of local organizations, including Beth Israel Hospital, the Daughters of Israel, and the

Talmud Torah Talmud Torah ( he, תלמוד תורה, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary educ ...

. While he was a strict

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

Jew, he never publicly criticized the

Reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement ...

and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

movement and was occasionally invited to preach in their temples. Brodsky's wife's name was Sadie. His children were Nathan H., Rae, Beatrice, Florence, Sophie, Hannah, Sarah, and Yetta. Brodsky died at home on February 25, 1937. He was buried in the congregation cemetery on Grove Street.

References

1852 births 1937 deaths People from Białystok People from Belostoksky Uyezd Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States 19th-century American rabbis 20th-century American rabbis Orthodox rabbis from New York City Rabbis from New Jersey Rabbis from Philadelphia {{DEFAULTSORT:Brodsky, Hyman Clergy from Newark, New Jersey Burials in New Jersey 19th-century rabbis from the Russian Empire Volozhin Yeshiva alumni