Levi Yitzchak HaLevi Horowitz (born 3 July 1921,
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
died 5 December 2009,
Jerusalem) was a
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 ...
and the second
rebbe of the
Boston Hasidic Dynasty founded by his father,
Pinchos Dovid Horowitz. He was the first American-born Hasidic rebbe
and the founder of ROFEH International, a community-based medical referral and hospitality liaison support agency.
Family
Horowitz's parents were
Pinchos Dovid Horowitz, founder of the Boston Hasidic dynasty, and Sora Sosha Horowitz. His father died in November 1941. In November 1942
he married Raichel Unger Leifer of
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, a descendant of
Naftali Tzvi of Ropshitz.
Rabbinic career
In 1943, Horowitz was one of over 400 rabbis led by
Baruch Korff who traveled to
Washington, D.C. just before
Yom Kippur, to ask President
Franklin D. Roosevelt to rescue Jews from Hitler.
Upon becoming leader of the Bostoners in 1944, after his marriage and ordination at Yeshiva
Torah Vodaath
Yeshiva Torah Vodaas (or Yeshiva and Mesivta Torah Vodaath or Yeshiva Torah Vodaath or Torah Vodaath Rabbinical Seminary ) is a ''yeshiva'' in the Kensington, Brooklyn, Kensington neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York (state), New York.
History
T ...
, he announced that his primary thrust as rebbe would be aimed at the area's large number of college students, many of whom were away from home
In 1984, Horowitz established Givat Pincus, a Hasidic community in the
Har Nof neighborhood of Jerusalem and began dividing his time between Israel and Boston.
In 1999, an additional community was established in
Beitar for the next generation of Bostoner Chassidim.
Horowitz served as a member of the
Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of
Agudath Israel of Israel
Agudat Yisrael ( he, אֲגוּדָּת יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit., ''Union of Israel'', also transliterated ''Agudath Israel'', or, in Yiddish, ''Agudas Yisroel'') is a Haredi Jewish political party in Israel. It began as a political party rep ...
.
At the time of his death, he resided both in the U.S. and in Israel spending half a year in each country. Day-to-day leadership in his community had already passed on to his children.
Death and succession
Horowitz suffered a cardiac arrest on July 6, 2009, and was hospitalized in the Sharei Tzedek hospital in Jerusalem. He died on December 5, 2009 and was buried that night on the
Mount of Olives.
Per his will, he was succeeded by all his sons:
* his eldest son, the
Chuster rabbi, Pinchos Dovid Horowitz (died 2021)
as Bostoner rebbe of
Borough Park, Brooklyn
* his second son,
Mayer Alter, as Bostoner rebbe of Jerusalem
* his third son,
Naftali Yehuda, as Bostoner rebbe of Boston.
References
External links
ROFEH International
{{DEFAULTSORT:Horowitz, Levi Yitzchak
1921 births
2009 deaths
American Hasidic rabbis
People from Brookline, Massachusetts
Rebbes of Boston
Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah
Burials at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives