Lev Grigorievich Toitman (russian: Лев Григорьевич Тойтман; 1925 – September 11, 2007) was a soldier in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Toitman is known for the "foundation and revival of the local Jewish community" in

Birobidzhan Birobidzhan ( rus, Биробиджа́н, p=bʲɪrəbʲɪˈdʐan; yi, ביראָבידזשאַן, ''Birobidzhan'') is a town and the administrative center of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, Russia, located on the Trans-Siberian Railway, near th ...

.Far East Jewish Community Chairman Passes Away
Federation of Jewish Communities

Jewish Community leadership

Lev Toitman was the

Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS (FJC) is a Jewish organisation dedicated to restoring Jewish life, culture and religion in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the former Soviet Union. The FJC was founded on August 1, 1997 ...

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

for Birobidzhan, the capital of the

Jewish Autonomous Oblast The Jewish Autonomous Oblast (JAO; russian: Евре́йская автоно́мная о́бласть, (ЕАО); yi, ייִדישע אװטאָנאָמע געגנט, ; )In standard Yiddish: , ''Yidishe Oytonome Gegnt'' is a federal subject ...

.“JEWISH HOMELAND” IN RUSSIA’S FAR EAST TO MARK 70TH ANNIVERSARY BY BUILDING SYNAGOGUE
The Russian Jewish Congress During the time of his leadership, the Jewish Community of Birobidzhan had a membership of about 4,500. Lev Toitman led this community from 1997 until he died on September 11, 2007. In 2004, Lev Toitman participated in the 70th anniversary celebration for the Jewish Autonomous Oblast. The anniversary was celebrated with the opening of

Birobidzhan Synagogue The Birobidzhan Synagogue was established in 2004. The synagogue is in the city of Birobidzhan, which is the capital of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, the only autonomous oblast of Russia. It is "the first synagogue in Russia to be built partly w ...

. Toitman played a role in both the

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

's construction and opening. On the day of the opening,

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 of ...

Mordechai Scheiner Mordechai Sheiner ( he, מרדכי שיינר; russian: Мордеха́й Шейнер) is an Israeli Orthodox rabbi associated with the Chabad Hasidic movement. Sheiner served as Chief Rabbi of Jewish Autonomous Oblast from 2002 to 2011.

, 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 Birobidzhan and

Chabad Lubavitch Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic groups ...

representative to the region, said "Today one can enjoy the benefits of the

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

and not be afraid to return to their Jewish traditions. Its safe without any

Anti-Semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and we plan to open the first

Jewish day school A Jewish day school is a modern Jewish educational institution that is designed to provide children of Jewish parents with both a Jewish and a secular education in one school on a full-time basis. The term "day school" is used to differentiate s ...

here".Far East Community Prepares for 70th Anniversary of Jewish Autonomous Republic
Federation of Jewish Communities

Awards and Medals

Lev Toitman was awarded the

Order of Friendship The Order of Friendship (russian: Орден Дружбы, ') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation established by Boris Yeltsin by presidential decree 442 of 2 March 1994 to reward Russian and foreign nationals whose work, deeds a ...

in 2005 for organizing the Jewish Community of Birobidzhan. For his service at the front during World War II, and for being seriously wounded in battle, he earned two medals for bravery. Lev Toitman also bore the title 'Honorable Citizen of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toitman, Lev 1925 births 2007 deaths Jewish Autonomous Oblast Russian religious leaders Russian Jews

Jewish Community leadership

Awards and Medals

Further reading

See also

References