Moshe Teitelbaum (1759 – 17 July 1841) (), also known as the Yismach Moshe, was the
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 ...
of Ujhely (
Sátoraljaújhely
Sátoraljaújhely (; archaic german: Neustadt am Zeltberg ; sk, Nové Mesto pod Šiatrom; yi, איהעל, Ihel, or ) is a town located in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county in northern Hungary along the Slovak border. It is east from the county ...
) in
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
. According to
Leopold Löw
Judah Leib "Leopold" Löw ( he, יהודה לייב לעף, hu, Lőw Lipót; 22 May 1811 – 13 October 1875) was a Hungarian rabbi, regarded as the most important figure of Neolog Judaism.
Biography
220px, Portrait of L. Löw
Löw was born ...
, he signed his name "Tamar", this being the Hebrew equivalent of Teitelbaum, which is 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 ...
for "
date palm
''Phoenix dactylifera'', commonly known as date or date palm, is a flowering plant species in the palm family, Arecaceae, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit called dates. The species is widely cultivated across northern Africa, the Middle Eas ...
" (compare German "Dattelbaum").
[ An adherent of the ]Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent
* Polish chicken
*Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...
Hasidic
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 ...
rebbe Yaakov Yitzchak of Lublin
Yaakov Yitzchak HaLevi Horowitz ( he, יעקב יצחק הלוי הורוביץ), known as "the Seer of Lublin" (), ''ha-Chozeh MiLublin''; (c. 1745 - August 15, 1815) was a Hasidic rebbe from Poland.
"Rabbi Yaacov Yitzchak, the Chozeh of Lublin, ...
as well as of Sholom Rokeach
Sholom Rokeach (1781 – September 10, 1855), also known as the ''Sar Sholom'' ( he, שר שלום, "Angel of Peace"), was the first Belzer Rebbe.
To Belzer Hasidim, he is known as "Der Ershter Rov" (the first rabbi), but in the city of Belz itsel ...
of Belz
Belz ( uk, Белз; pl, Bełz; yi, בעלז ') is a small city in Lviv Oblast of Western Ukraine, near the border with Poland, located between the Solokiya river (a tributary of the Bug River) and the Richytsia stream. Belz hosts the administ ...
, Teitelbaum was instrumental in bringing Hasidic Judaism
Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Judaism, Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory ...
to Hungary. Though initially opposed to Hassidism, after his son-in-law introduced him to Jacob Isaac Horowitz, he soon became an adherent.
Teitelbaum first served as a rabbi in Przemyśl
Przemyśl (; yi, פשעמישל, Pshemishl; uk, Перемишль, Peremyshl; german: Premissel) is a city in southeastern Poland with 58,721 inhabitants, as of December 2021. In 1999, it became part of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship; it was pr ...
, and later in Ujhely, where he was called in 1808. In Ujhely he founded a Hassidic congregation which was independent of the Galician leaders. In 1822 Teitelbaum was suspected of having supplied amulets to certain Jewish culprits who had been cast into prison for libel, in order to assist them in escaping. When called upon to vindicate himself he declared that the amulets in question served only as substitutes for the ''mezuzah
A ''mezuzah'' ( he, מְזוּזָה "doorpost"; plural: ''mezuzot'') is a piece of parchment, known as a ''klaf'', contained in a decorative case and inscribed with specific Hebrew verses from the Torah ( and ). These verses consist of the J ...
'' and that their only purpose was to protect their bearers against demon
A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...
s. Teitelbaum enjoyed an enviable reputation, with even Moses Sofer
Moses Schreiber (1762–1839), known to his own community and Jewish posterity in the Hebrew translation as Moshe Sofer, also known by his main work ''Chatam Sofer'', ''Chasam Sofer'', or ''Hatam Sofer'' ( trans. ''Seal of the Scribe'', and acron ...
paying him homage.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography:
*Aaron Walden Aaron Walden (born at Warsaw about 1835, died 1912) was a Polish Jewish Talmudist, editor, and author.
Walden, who was an ardent adherent of Ḥasidism, is known especially for his "Shem ha-Gedolim he-Ḥadash" (Warsaw, 1864), a work of the same n ...
, ''Shem ha-Gedolim he-Ḥadash,'' p. 101;
Löw, ''Gesammelte Schriften,'' vol. II, 1890, p. 76, 84, 89, 91.
/ref>
Works
Teitelbaum authored three main works, "Moses Responded" ( he, השיב משה), a collection of responsa), ''Tefillah Le-Mosheh'' (, a commentary on Psalms
The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...
), and "Moses Rejoiced" (, 1849; 2d ed. 1898, containing homilies on the Torah
The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...
),[ and he is commonly referred to by the title of the latter. He originally wrote a significant portion of his commentary on ]Psalms
The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...
on the backs of personal notes handed to him by petitioners seeking his aid and blessing. These notes were transmitted via a succession of prominent hasidic
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 ...
rabbis, until finally being edited and published for the first time in Kraków in 1880.
His descendants became leaders of the communities of Sighet and 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 ...
known as Satmar Hasidim
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 dynasty ...
, and his name 'Moshe' was the inspiration for the ''Vayoel Moshe'' series of books authored by his descendant, Yoel 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 a ...
of Satmar. He was said to have identified his three prior ''gilgulim
Gilgul (also Gilgul neshamot or Gilgulei HaNeshamot; Heb. , Plural: ''Gilgulim'') is a concept of reincarnation or "transmigration of souls" in Kabbalistic esoteric mysticism. In Hebrew, the word ''gilgul'' means "cycle" or "wheel" and ''nes ...
'' (incarnations in Kabbalistic
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
terminology), saying that in his first gilgul he had been a sheep in Yaakov Avinu's flock,[The Biblical Patriarch ]Jacob
Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...
fathered the 12 Tribes of the Jewish people. Kabbalah teaches that his flock of sheep comprised the future root souls of Israel. The identification by Moshe Teitelbaum of this first incarnation, would accordingly be novel for his recollection of it in his second incarnation he lived in the time of Moses
Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...
, and in his third incarnation he lived during the time of the destruction of the First Temple
Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (, , ), was the Temple in Jerusalem between the 10th century BC and . According to the Hebrew Bible, it was commissioned by Solomon in the United Kingdom of Israel before being inherited by th ...
. Out of humility, he did not disclose the nature of the third incarnation, but his followers asked another 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 ...
, who identified it as the Biblical Prophet Jeremiah
Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...
. Regarding the first ''gilgul'', he taught his followers the song, he said, that he recalled Jacob would sing as he tended the sheep. The song, ''Yankel hut eine kleine Lamm'', is not related to the modern ''Mary Had a Little Lamb
"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an English language nursery rhyme of nineteenth-century American origin, first published by American writer Sarah Josepha Hale in 1830. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 7622.
Background
The nursery rhyme was fi ...
''.
His followers would teach of his previous identification with Jeremiah, and how this affected his present life. In his later days he yearned so much for the coming of the Jewish Messiah
The Messiah in Judaism () is a savior and liberator figure in Jewish eschatology, who is believed to be the future redeemer of the Jewish people. The concept of messianism originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible a messiah is a king or Hig ...
and the rebuilding of the Temple, that he wore his Shabbat
Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...
clothing the entire week, anticipating the Messiah's arrival. He died on July 17, 1841.
See also
* Teitelbaum
Teitelbaum ( he, טײטלבױם; ''teytlboym'', deriving from a Yiddish/Germanic word meaning " date palm ree) is a Jewish surname. Variants include Tetelbaum, Teitelboim
Notable people with the surname include:
* Aaron Teitelbaum (b. 1948), ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teitelbaum, Moshe (The First)
18th-century Hungarian rabbis
19th-century Hungarian rabbis
Rebbes of Satmar
Jews from Galicia (Eastern Europe)
Hasidic rabbis in Europe
Hungarian people of Polish-Jewish descent
1759 births
1841 deaths
Rebbes of Siget
Teitelbaum family