Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenburg (יעקב צבי מקלנבורג) was a German

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 scholar of the 19th century, best known as author of the Torah commentary ''Hakketav Vehakkabbalah'' (''Haksav Vehakaboleh'').

Biography

He was born in 1785 (5545 in the Hebrew calendar) in Lissa (

Leszno Leszno (german: Lissa, 1800–1918 ''Lissa in Posen'') is a historic city in western Poland, within the Greater Poland Voivodeship. It is the seventh-largest city in the province with an estimated population of 62,200, as of 2021. Previously, i ...

), in the province of Posen,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, in the family of Rabbi Gamliel. At the time, Lissa was a famous center of Torah studies, and Mecklenburg began studying Torah as a student of the local ''Rav'', Zechariah Mendel, a friend and correspondent of Rabbi Akiva Eger. Zechariah Mendel was the son of David Tebla, the previous Rav of Lissa. R. Mecklenburg initially thereafter went into business. In 1831, at the age of 46, following commercial difficulties, he decided to quit business and was offered the rabbinical position in the city of

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was ...

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label= Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

. At that time, Königsberg Jews were under the increasing influence of the

Haskalah The ''Haskalah'', often termed Jewish Enlightenment ( he, השכלה; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Western Euro ...

, a reform movement, which Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenburg strongly opposed. Together with the

Malbim Meir Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Wisser (March 7, 1809 – September 18, 1879), better known as the Malbim ( he, מלבי"ם), was a rabbi, master of Hebrew grammar, and Bible commentator. The name ''Malbim'' was derived from the Hebrew initials ...

, he publicly opposed

Reform Judaism Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its ethical aspects to its ceremonial ones, and belief in a continuous sear ...

's 1844

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

convention. In the same period, he wrote ''Haketav VehaKabbalah'', his own commentary to the Torah. He served as Rabbi in Königsberg, for the rest of his life, for 34 years (1831–65). Before his death, he ordered that no

eulogies A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or a ...

be given at his funeral. In his will, he requested that ''Haketav VehaKabbalah'' be read after the public

Torah reading Torah reading (; ') is a Jewish religious tradition that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the scroll (or scrolls) from the Torah ark, chanting th ...

, during the first 30 days of mourning. In the opinion of others, Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi studied directly under Rabbi Gavriel Levi, a renowned Sephardic Rabbi. He mentions in his ''Haketav VehaKabbaleh'' Rabbi A. Eiger a few times as 'my Mentor and Teacher'. Example: In Leviticus 27:32, he states: I asked my Mentor and Teacher Rabbi Akiva Eger, etc.

Works

''Haketav VehaKabbalah'' (alt. ''HaKsav VeHaKabalah''; Heb. הכתב והקבלה: The Written

orah Orah ( Serbo-Croatian for "walnut") may refer to: Places Bosnia and Herzegovina * Orah, Bileća, a village in Bileća, Republika Srpska * Orah, Rudo, a village in Rudo, Republika Srpska * Orah, Ravno, a village in Ravno, Federation of Bosnia an ...

and the ralTradition) was first published in 1839. Mecklenburg's intent was "to demonstrate the indivisibility of the written Torah and its counterpart, the

oral Torah According to Rabbinic Judaism, the Oral Torah or Oral Law ( he, , Tōrā šebbəʿal-pe}) are those purported laws, statutes, and legal interpretations that were not recorded in the Five Books of Moses, the Written Torah ( he, , Tōrā šebbī� ...

”. His explanations thus connect the literal meaning (''

peshat ''Peshat'' (also ''P'shat'', ) is one of the two classic methods of Jewish biblical exegesis, the other being Derash. While ''Peshat'' is commonly defined as referring to the surface or literal (direct) meaning of a text,Goldin, S. (2007). Unloc ...

'') to the hidden meaning ('' derash''), focusing on the traditional Jewish sources (the

Mishna The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...

, 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 ...

, and the

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

). The commentary draws on that of the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( he , ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman'') known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון ''Der Vilner Gaon'', pl, Gaon z Wilna, lt, Vilniaus Gaonas) or Elijah of ...

and

Shadal Samuel David Luzzatto ( he, שמואל דוד לוצאטו, ; 22 August 1800 – 30 September 1865), also known by the Hebrew acronym Shadal (), was an Italian Jewish scholar, poet, and a member of the Wissenschaft des Judentums movement. Early ...

and occasionally includes contemporary non-traditional sources such as

Julius Fürst Julius Fürst (; 12 May 1805, Żerków, South Prussia – 9 February 1873, Leipzig), born Joseph Alsari, was a Jewish German orientalist and the son of noted maggid, teacher, and Hebrew grammarian Jacob Alsari. Fürst was a distinguished scho ...

and the

Biurists The Biurists were a class of Jewish Biblical exegetes, of the school of Moses Mendelssohn. Most of the Biblical commentators immediately preceding Mendelssohn had interpreted the Biblical passages from an individual point of view, and Mendelssohn wa ...

. See Oral Torah#In rabbinic literature and commentary. Other works include: *''Iyun Tefillah'' - a commentary on the ''

Siddur A siddur ( he, סִדּוּר ; plural siddurim ) is a Jewish prayer book containing a set order of daily prayers. The word comes from the Hebrew root , meaning 'order.' Other terms for prayer books are ''tefillot'' () among Sephardi Jews, '' ...

'', usually coupled with ''Derech HaChaim'' written by R. Yaakov Lorberbaum of Lisa. *''Hishtapchut HaNefesh'' - ''

viduy In Judaism, confession ( he, וִדּוּי, vīddūy) is a step in the process of atonement during which a Jew admits to committing a sin before God. In sins between a Jew and God, the confession must be done without others present (The Talmud c ...

'' (confessional prayers) for the eve of

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...

References

External links

Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenburg - “The Author of Haketav Vehakabbalah”
Hevrat Pinto
Jacob Tzvi Mecklenburg
Etz Hayim {{DEFAULTSORT:Mecklenburg, Yaakov 19th-century German rabbis Chief rabbis of cities German Orthodox rabbis Bible commentators 1785 births 1865 deaths People from Königsberg