Raphael Evers (born May 8, 1954) is a Dutch-Israeli

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 ...

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 ...

. He was a rabbi in the Netherlands and Germany. On August 1, 2021, he made aliyah to

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

.Geen weg terug
'' Nieuw Israëlietisch Weekblad'', 27 June 2021

Family

Evers was born in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, and grew up in

Amsterdam-West Amsterdam-West () is a borough (Dutch: ''stadsdeel'') of Amsterdam, Netherlands, to the west of the centre of the city. This borough was formed in 2010 through the merging of four former boroughs Oud West, Westerpark, De Baarsjes and Bos en Lomm ...

. He is the son of Dutch-Jewish parents, Hans Evers and

Bloeme Evers-Emden Bloeme Evers-Emden (; 26 July 1926 – 18 July 2016) was a Dutch Jewish lecturer and child psychologist who extensively researched the phenomenon of "hidden children" during World War II and wrote four books on the subject in the 1990s. Her i ...

(1926-2016). His mother was deported from

Westerbork Camp Westerbork ( nl, Kamp Westerbork, german: Durchgangslager Westerbork, Drents: ''Börker Kamp; Kamp Westerbörk'' ), also known as Westerbork transit camp, was a Nazi transit camp in the province of Drenthe in the Northeastern Netherlands, ...

to Auschwitz in September 1944 on the same train as

Anne Frank Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank (, ; 12 June 1929 – )Research by The Anne Frank House in 2015 revealed that Frank may have died in February 1945 rather than in March, as Dutch authorities had long assumed"New research sheds new light on Anne Fra ...

, whom she had known in Amsterdam. Evers-Emden survived the war, and later published four books detailing her research on Dutch Jewish children hidden during the war.

Rabbinic ordinations (
Semikhah Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 ...
)

Evers received Semkihah for Dayanut from the following Rabbi's: Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Dayan Chanoch Ehrentreu, Rabbi Meir Just, Rabbi Zalman Nechemia Goldberg, Rabbi Moshe Halberstam and Rabbi Aryeh Ralbag. In addition, Evers received regular Semikhot from a variety of Rabbi's from different streams within

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses ...

. Evers received

Rabbinic ordination Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 C ...

from: * the Chief Rabbi's of Israel Rabbi Avraham Shapira and Rabbi

Mordechai Eliyahu Mordechai Tzemach Eliyahu ( he, מרדכי צמח אליהו, March 3, 1929 – June 7, 2010, on the Hebrew calendar: 21 Adar I, 5689 - 25 Siwan, 5770),

* Rabbi Meir Just (the Netherlands) * Rabbi Zalman Nechemia Goldberg (Jerusalem) * Rabbi Moshe Halberstam (Sanz - Jerusalem) * Rabbi Moshe Halberstam (Bobov - Antwerp) * Rabbi Yacov Chaim Sarna (Jerusalem) * Rabbi Dov Lior (Kiryat Arba) * Rabbi Avraham Kopschitz (Jerusalem) * Rabbi Avraham David Rosenthal (Jerusalem) and * Rabbi Elchonon Halpern (London). Evers is one of the very few post-Holocaust recipients of the highest Dutch

Semikhah Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 ...

, the so-called Moreh degree.

Rabbinate

In addition to his position of Chief Rabbi of Dusseldorf, he also served as a Dayan in the Beth Din of the

ORD Ord or ORD may refer to: Places * Ord of Caithness, landform in north-east Scotland * Ord, Nebraska, USA * Ord, Northumberland, England * Muir of Ord, village in Highland, Scotland * Ord, Skye, a place near Tarskavaig * Ord River, Western Austral ...

(Germany) and the European Beth Din. Since 1990 and until his departure in 2016 to Germany, Evers served as the rabbi of the ''

Nederlands Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap The Nederlands-Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap ( en, Dutch Israelite Religious Community) (NIK) is the umbrella organisation for most Ashkenazi Jewish communities in the Netherlands, and is Orthodox in nature, while to be described as traditional ...

'' (Dutch Israelite Religious Community). He also served 26 years as the dean of the ''Nederlands Israëlitisch Seminarium'' (Dutch Israelite Seminary), where Dutch rabbis and Jewish teachers are trained. Among other positions, he served as the Rabbi of Rotterdam from 1992 until 2010 and as the Rabbi of the Kehillas Ja'akow synagogue in Amsterdam. Evers finished two Master degrees in Clinical Psychology and Conflictuology (1981) and in

Tax Law Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...

(1985), both at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

. He is known for his encyclopedic knowledge on almost all facets of Judaism.

Additional functions and activities

Evers is an honorary member of the

Conference of European Rabbis The Conference of European Rabbis (CER) is the primary Orthodox rabbinical alliance in Europe. It unites more than 700 religious leaders of the mainstream synagogue communities in Europe. It was founded in 1956 on the initiative of British Chief ...

(CER). During his position at the NIK, Evers appeared frequently in Dutch and international press (Radio, Newspapers and TV) to advocate and explain about

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

and issues related to the Jewish community. As a result of his work for promoting cultural understanding between the Dutch Jewish and the Muslim Moroccan community in the Netherlands, he was awarded a place in the Golden Book of Moroccan Judaism and later received an official award of Gratitude from King Mohammad VI of Morocco. Rabbi Evers - anti racism multi-faith panels

Rabbi Evers - anti racism multi-faith panels

Evers served in a large number of voluntary board positions throughout his career, including the boards of Jewish youth organizations, schools, museums and general professional NGO's. He also participated in many national and international inter-faith panels and initiatives like the Forum A to Z, encouraging the Dutch government to fight low literacy.

Antisemitism

After the murder of Theo van Gogh on November 2, 2004, Evers presented, alongside representatives of Christian and Muslim communities, a ''Samenlevingscontract'' (Cohabitation Agreement) to the President of the Dutch

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

.He has also spoken out on the increasing

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 ...

displayed by Dutch Muslim residents of Moroccan and Turkish descent, allowing himself and his mother to be filmed on the subject by French television. In 2010, his son Bentzion Evers told the press that he was planning to move to

because of anti-Semitism, and that his father was also planning to leave the Netherlands after his retirement. Six of Evers' children already left the country, before Raphael Evers and his wife Channa eventually moved to Israel.

Publications

Evers published 8 Hebrew-language volumes of his Responsa "Weshav Werafa" documenting Halakhic questions he was asked to rule on as

Posek In Jewish law, a ''Posek'' ( he, פוסק , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the position of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities a ...

and Dayan He also published more than 30 books in

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

on a variety of Jewish topics, among others: * ''Tsedaka het bijbelse tiende'' (on giving

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

) * ''Kaddiesj: Theoretische en praktische aspecten van het Kaddiesj-gebed'' (lit.: "Kaddish: Theoretical and practical aspects of the

Kaddish Kaddish or Qaddish or Qadish ( arc, קדיש "holy") is a hymn praising God that is recited during Jewish prayer services. The central theme of the Kaddish is the magnification and sanctification of God's name. In the liturgy, different version ...

prayer") * ''Aan tafel bij de rabbijn'' (lit.: "Sharing meals with the rabbi"—on eating and drinking from a Biblical perspective) * ''Talmoedisch denken'' (lit.: "Talmudic thinking"—on how to interpret the rules of the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

) * ''Oude wijn in nieuwe zakken'' (lit.: "Old wine in new jugs"—on current events in the Jewish community) * ''Tijd van leven'' (lit.: "Time of living"—on the 24-hour economy) * ''Op het leven!'' (lit.: "On life!"—on medical-ethical topics out of a Jewish perspective) * ''Geen bloemen, wel bezoek'' (lit.: "No flowers, although there are visitors"—on death and

mourning Mourning is the expression of an experience that is the consequence of an event in life involving loss, causing grief, occurring as a result of someone's death, specifically someone who was loved although loss from death is not exclusively ...

) * ''De Echte Tora'' (lit.: "The Real

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 ...

"—on the history of the Talmud) * ''Moge uw ziel gebundeld worden (lit.: May Your Soul be Gathered up - on Bereavement)'' * ''De sja'atnez wijzer (verboden combinaties van wol en linnen): een moderne gids voor de diniem van sja'atnez voor de praktijk'' (on the laws of

shaatnez ''Shatnez'' (or ''shaatnez'', ; he, ) is cloth containing both wool and linen ( linsey-woolsey), which Jewish law, derived from the Torah, prohibits wearing. The relevant biblical verses ( and ) prohibit wearing wool and linen fabrics in ...

) * Transfer-Free (on Noachide Laws) All of Evers's published books can be looked up at the

Royal Library of the Netherlands The Royal Library of the Netherlands (Dutch: Koninklijke Bibliotheek or KB; ''Royal Library'') is the national library of the Netherlands, based in The Hague, founded in 1798. The KB collects everything that is published in and concerning the Ne ...

.Royal Library of the Netherlands
/ref> He also writes articles on a regular basis for newspapers and magazines, as well as study material used in Dutch schools. He is a frequent spokesman for the Jewish point of view on radio and television, and during debates and lectures.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evers, Raphel 1954 births Living people 20th-century Dutch non-fiction writers 20th-century Dutch rabbis 21st-century Dutch non-fiction writers 21st-century German rabbis Chief rabbis of cities Clergy from Düsseldorf Dutch emigrants to Israel Dutch expatriates in Germany Dutch Orthodox rabbis Hebrew-language writers Israeli Orthodox rabbis Israeli people of Dutch-Jewish descent Jewish Dutch writers Jewish religious writers Rabbis from Amsterdam Rabbis from Rotterdam University of Amsterdam alumni