Mayer Alter Horowitz is an American Hasidic

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 ...

. Since 2009, he has been the Bostoner

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 ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Early life and education

Horowitz was born in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, the son of Levi Yitzchak Horowitz, the second Bostoner rebbe, and Raichel Unger Leifer. He is a ninth-generation descendant in the male line of Shmuel Shmelke Horowitz, the Nikolsburger rebbe. His older brother, Pinchos Dovid Horowitz, is the Bostoner-Chuster rabbi of

Borough Park, Brooklyn Borough Park (also spelled Boro Park) is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City. The neighborhood is bordered by Bensonhurst to the south, Dyker Heights to the southwest, Sunset Park to the west, ...

, and his younger brother, Naftali Yehuda Horowitz, is the Bostoner rebbe of Brookline, Massachusetts. Horowitz received his

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 ...

at the

Ponevezh Yeshiva Ponevezh Yeshiva, often pronounced as Ponevitch Yeshiva ( he, ישיבת פוניבז׳), is a yeshiva founded in 1908, and located in Bnei Brak, Israel since 1944. The yeshiva has over three thousand students, including those of affiliated insti ...

in Bnei Brak and

Beth Medrash Govoha Beth Medrash Govoha ( he, בית מדרש גבוה, Sephardi pronunciation: ''Beth Midrash Gavoha''. lit: "High House of Learning"; also known as Lakewood Yeshiva or BMG) is a Haredi Jewish Lithuanian ''yeshiva'' in Lakewood Township, New Jerse ...

Lakewood, New Jersey Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A rapidly growing community as of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 135,158 representing an increase of 41,415 (+45.5% ...

. From 1969 to 1989 he was the Senior Rabbi of Congregation Beth Pinchas in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Move to Israel

In 1984 he and a group of Bostoner Hasidim immigrated to Israel and helped found Mosdos Boston of Israel, which established the Bostoner community of

Har Nof Har Nof ( he, הר נוף, lit. ''scenic mountain'') is a neighborhood on a hillside on the western boundary of Jerusalem with a population of 20,000 residents, primarily Orthodox Jews. History In Talmudic times, Har Nof was an agricultural settl ...

. He became the Senior Rabbi of the Givat Pinchas synagogue, continuing in that capacity as Bostoner Rebbe of Jerusalem. In 1980, Horowitz helped establish Kollel Boston in the Bukharim quarter of Jerusalem. The Kollel moved to Har Nof with the establishment of the Bostoner community there. From 1984 to 1989, Horowitz traveled back and forth between Boston and Har Nof, and beginning in 1989 settled permanently in Har Nof. In the late 1980s, he established a second synagogue in Har Nof, called Beis Shlomo, and continued as Senior Rabbi until 1995. In 1998, he helped his father establish the Bostoner Community in

Beitar Illit Beitar Illit ( he, בֵּיתָר עִלִּית; officially Betar Illit; "Illit" is pronounced "ee-leet"; ar, بيتار عيليت) is an Haredi Jewish- Israeli settlement organized as a city council in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, sou ...

. In 2007, he founded Machon HaNesher HaGadol, a publication company.

As Grand Rabbi

In 2009, after the death of his father, he was designated to succeed his father in Har Nof. He also took his father's position as a member of the

Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (, "Council of great Torah ages) is the supreme rabbinical policy-making council of the Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaTorah movements in Israel; and of Agudath Israel of America in the United States. Members are usually pr ...

of Agudath Israel of Israel. Horowitz frequently travels to Jewish communities in Israel, Europe, and North America to proselytize for Bostoner Hasidism. Since becoming Bostoner Rebbe of Jerusalem in 2009, he has visited

Waterbury, Connecticut Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, and

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, among others. In the summer of 2012, Horowitz helped launch a weekly magazine publication in conjunction with ''

The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the paper ...

'' called ''Kosher English'', designed to help Israeli Haredi readers learn and improve their English-language skills, and supervises its publication. In the Bostoner tradition, Horowitz has composed dozens of original songs and melodies including "''Borey Niv''" "''Re'ay Nah''" and "''Yivorechicho''"

References

External links

Bostoner Rebbe Mayer Alter Horowitz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Horowitz, Mayer Alter American Hasidic rabbis Living people Ponevezh Yeshiva alumni Rebbes of Boston Year of birth missing (living people) he:חסידות בוסטון#הדור השלישי