Rabbi Ephraim Padwa (born 1940) is a senior

Haredi Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...

rabbi in London. He is rabbinical head of the

Stamford Hill Stamford Hill is an area in Inner London, England, about 5.5 miles north-east of Charing Cross. The neighbourhood is a sub-district of Hackney, the major component of the London Borough of Hackney, and is known for its Hasidic community, the ...

-based

Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations is an umbrella organisation of Haredi Jewish communities in London, and has an estimated membership of over 6,000. It was founded in 1926, with the stated mission "to protect traditional Judaism", and ha ...

, succeeding his father

Chanoch Dov Padwa Rabbi Chanoch Dov Padwa (17 August 1908 – 16 August 2000) was a world-renowned Orthodox Jewish posek, Talmudist and rabbinic leader. Early years Chanoch Dov Padwa was born on 17 August 1908 (20 Av 5668 in the Hebrew calendar) in Busk, a smal ...

, who died in August 2000. Padwa is an internationally regarded ''

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 ...

'' who was listed by ''

The Jewish Chronicle ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' as the 13th most influential Jew in Britain. In 2005 Padwa was filmed by the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

TV programme '' Dispatches'', telling an alleged abuse victim not to report his abuser to the police, citing the ''

halachic ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comman ...

'' prohibition of ''

mesirah Mesirah (or mesira, he, to turn over, italic=yes) is the action in which one Jew reports the conduct of another Jew to a non-rabbinic authority in a manner and under the circumstances forbidden by rabbinic law. This may not necessarily apply ...

''. Subsequently, a spokesman for Padwa doubted the credibility of the alleged victim, claiming the allegations had already been dismissed by social services as "malicious".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Padwa, Ephraim 1940 births Living people English Orthodox rabbis Haredi rabbis in Europe People from Stamford Hill Rabbis from London Dispatches (TV programme)