Yaakov Aryeh Alter
Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter | |
|---|---|
 Rabbi Alter as Sandek at a bris milah | |
| Title | Gerrer Rebbe |
| Personal | |
| Born | Yaakov Aryeh Alter 18 May 1939 |
| Religion | Judaism |
| Parents |
|
| Jewish leader | |
| Predecessor | Rabbi Pinchas Menachem Alter |
| Dynasty | Ger |
Yaakov Aryeh Alter (Polish: Jakub Arie Alter, Hebrew: יעקב אריה אלתר, born 18 May 1939) is the eighth, and current, Rebbe of the Hasidic dynasty of Ger, a position he has held since 1996. He lives in Israel, and has followers there and in the United States, Europe, and Canada. He is a member of the Presidium of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudath Israel.
Life
Yaakov Aryeh Alter was born on 29 Iyar 5699 in Lodz, Poland, in 1939, to Rabbi Simcha Bunim Alter, also known as the Lev Simcha, who later became the sixth Gerrer Rebbe, and Yuta Henya, daughter of Rabbi Nehemiah Alter, his grandfather's brother. He was named after his ancestor Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Guterman of Radzymin.[1] In 1940, he immigrated with his father and grandfather (Rebbe Avraham Mordechai Alter) to Eretz Israel. He studied in the Talmud Torah Etz Chaim. For many years, he studied Torah at a synagogue known as Rashi Shtiebel in Bnei Brak. His full proficiency of all volumes of Sefer Mishnah Berura is well-known, and he describes himself as a student of the Chafetz Chaim,[2] even though he never met him. He married Shoshana, daughter of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Weitz, one of the heads of Yeshivat Chiddushei HaRim.
Rebbi Alter is one of the wealthiest people in the ultra-Orthodox sector and in Israel in general, and is ranked third on the list of the richest rabbis in Israel, with a net worth of approximately NIS 350 million to NIS 500 million (between approximately $95 million and $135 million) due to real estate investments his father made in north Tel Aviv, Arsuf and Jerusalem before Israel’s establishment.[3] Despite his wealth, he lived in an apartment in an ordinary residential building in the Chazon Ish neighborhood in Bnei Brak until 2011 when he moved to Jerusalem.
He and his wife have five sons and four daughters.[4]
In 1996, after the passing of Pinchas Menachem Alter, his nephew Yaakov Aryeh Alter became the Rebbe of Ger.[5]
In 2007, approximately 50,000 people attended the wedding of Alter's oldest grandson in Jerusalem.[6]
In 2016, Alter's hassidim were estimated at 11,859 families.[7]
In 2019, Shaul Alter and his followers split off from the dynasty led by his cousin Yaakov Aryeh Alter.[8] As of 2021, membership of Shaul Alter's breakaway faction only consisted of some 500 families.[9]
Rebbes of Ger
- Yitzchak Meir Alter (1798–1866)
- Chanokh Heynekh HaKohen Levin (1799–1870)
- Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter (1847–1905)
- Avraham Mordechai Alter (1866–1948)
- Yisrael Alter (1895–1977)
- Simchah Bunim Alter (1898–1992)
- Pinchas Menachem Alter (1926–1996)
- Yaakov Aryeh Alter (b. 1939)
- Shaul Alter (b. 1957)
External links
References
- ^ "Handwriting of the Rebbe Yaakov Aryeh of Radzymin a special segulah for protection". winners-auctions.com. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
- ^ Israel, David (30 August 2021). "The Gerrer Rebbe, 82, Contracted the Corona". The Jewish Press. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ Ettinger, Yair (2012-06-11). "Forbes Presents: The Richest Rabbis in Israel". Haaretz. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
- ^ "Gur Hassidic wedding of the year". Retrieved 2011-02-04.
- ^ "Gerrer Rebbe Recovering After Surgery | Matzav.com". matzav.com. 11 July 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ Editor, Y. W. (28 February 2007). "Yerushalayim: 50,000 people attend Gerrer Chasunah". The Yeshiva World. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
{{cite news}}:|last1=has generic name (help) - ^ Wodzinski, Marcin (2018). Historical Atlas of Hasidism. Princeton University Press. p. 207.
- ^ "Religious Affairs: The Gerrer rebellion". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
- ^ "Baltimore Jewish Life | Followers Of Rav Shaul Alter Purchase 40 Million NIS Property Near Jerusalem Entrance". www.baltimorejewishlife.com. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
