Herman Naftali Neuberger (26 June 1918 – 21 October 2005) was an

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 ...

and leader "for over half a century." He was the brother of

Albert Neuberger Albert Neuberger (15 April 1908 – 14 August 1996) was a British Professor of Chemical Pathology, St Mary's Hospital, 1955–1973, and later Emeritus Professor. Education in Germany Born in Hassfurt, northern Bavaria, the first of the three ...

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

FRS FRCP.

Younger years

Born in Hassfurt, northern

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

, he was the son of Meir and Bertha Neuberger (née Hiller), the youngest of three children.Death of Rabbi Herman N. Neuberger, Hon.

Benjamin Cardin Benjamin Louis Cardin (born October 5, 1943) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maryland, a seat he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously was the U.S. representat ...

, US House of Representatives, October 25, 2005 His parents hired a teacher, or

melamed Melamed, ''Melammed'' ( he, מלמד, Teacher) in Biblical times denoted a religious teacher or instructor in general (e.g., in Psalm 119:99 and Proverbs 5:13), but which in the Talmudic period was applied especially to a teacher of children, and ...

, to teach him about his heritage and the

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 s ...

. When Herman was eight years old, the Neubergers moved to

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the '' Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzbur ...

with its sizeable

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish community so that the three children could prosper and learn. When Herman was only 13, a few weeks after his bar mitzvah, his father died. While in Würzburg the young teenager met Rabbi Shamshon Rafael Weiss, an affluent Torah scholar who became his mentor. Rabbi Weiss convinced him that the best place for him to be was one of the larger

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are stu ...

s, so he traveled to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

to learn in the Mir Yeshiva. By 1938,

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. Ant ...

was growing in Europe due to the rise of the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

. Rabbi Neuberger had a relative in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

who was able to send him immigration papers to come to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

. Not wanting to leave others behind, he arranged for papers for some of his close relatives too. As good fate would have it, Mrs. Bertha Neuberger and her two other children had already escaped. He also helped Rabbi Dovid Kronglass, who would later become the

Mashgiach A mashgiach ( he, משגיח, "supervisor"; , ''mashgichim'') or mashgicha (pl. ''mashgichot'') is a Jew who supervises the kashrut status of a kosher establishment. Mashgichim may supervise any type of food service establishment, including ...

Ner Israel Ner Israel Rabbinical College (ישיבת נר ישראל), also known as NIRC and Ner Yisroel, is a Haredi yeshiva (Jewish educational institution) in Pikesville ( Baltimore County), Maryland. It was founded in 1933 by Rabbi Yaakov Yitzchok ...

, escape.

In America

On a visit to

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, the young yeshiva student met Rabbi

Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman ( Shushan Purim 1900, Daŭhinava - July 11, 1987) was a prominent Talmudic scholar and rabbi who founded and served as ''rosh yeshiva'' ( yeshiva head) of Yeshivas Ner Yisroel in Baltimore. Early life Ruderman was b ...

, who a few years prior had started a small

in a local synagogue, named

. Inspired by the great man, Rabbi Neuberger decided to stay in

and learn in the yeshiva full-time. At that time, the Yeshiva was only five years old and had fewer than forty students. By 1941 the young scholar was already on the Board. He helped with administrative functions and arranged for the construction of a new school building on Garrison Blvd.

Starting a yeshiva

In 1942, Rabbi Neuberger married Judy Kramer, Rabbi Ruderman's sister in-law. They remained married until her death in 1994. During these early years, Rabbi Neuberger helped develop the yeshiva become a true center for Torah.

Saving a nation

He took part in the rescue of

Persian Jewry Persian Jews or Iranian Jews ( fa, یهودیان ایرانی, ''yahudiān-e-Irāni''; he, יהודים פרסים ''Yəhūdīm Parsīm'') are the descendants of Jews who were historically associated with the Persian Empire, whose successor ...

. In 1975 the

Shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

was still in power in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...

and although the country was secular, Jews had few opportunities to study Torah. Rabbi Neuberger brought a small group of Iranian youngsters to the Yeshiva with the intent that they would go back to Iran after receiving their Rabbinnical degrees to become educators. Before the plan began to bear fruit, it was 1979 and the

Ayatollah Ayatollah ( ; fa, آیت‌الله, āyatollāh) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy in Iran and Iraq that came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Etymology The title is originally derived from ...

s took command creating a more awkward situation for

Persian Jews Persian Jews or Iranian Jews ( fa, یهودیان ایرانی, ''yahudiān-e-Irāni''; he, יהודים פרסים ''Yəhūdīm Parsīm'') are the descendants of Jews who were historically associated with the Persian Empire, whose successor s ...

. Through a series of connections, Rabbi Neuberger worked to help over 60,000 Jews escape from Iran in an operation still in effect today.

Recognition as a college

At this point in Jewish American history, Orthodox and Haredi yeshivas were not considered colleges and their degrees were not recognized. Rabbi Neuberger, along with his lifelong friend, Rabbi

Moshe Sherer Rabbi Moshe Sherer (June 18, 1921 – May 17, 1998) was co-Chairman of the Agudath Israel World Organization from 1980, and the Chairman of Agudath Israel of America from the 1960s, until his death in 1998. Career Sherer "joined Agudath Israel a ...

started the

Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools The Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools (AARTS) is a faith-based national accreditation association for Rabbinical and Talmudic schools. It is based in New York, NY and is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accredita ...

to help yeshivas gain recognition amongst American Colleges.

Around the country

Another major accomplishment of Rabbi Neuberger was gathering married bachurim (young yeshiva-men) learning in Kollel Avodas Levi, and sending them out to open outreach

kollelim A kollel ( he, כולל, , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features shiurim (lectures) and learning ''sedarim'' (sessions); u ...

around the country. Today there are kollelim in many cities including

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 498,71 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

;

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

; and

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

and

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

Influential Connections

He was described as "politically connected" and was an advisor to city, state and Federal officials on matters affecting his school and fellow Jews around the world.

Legacy

He was survived by his five children, Rabbi Sheftel, who succeeded his father as President of Ner Israel until his death on February 9, 2021, Rabbi Shraga, a Maggid Shiur in the Yeshiva, Yaakov and Isaac, both prominent lawyers in Baltimore, and Rabbi Ezra, Rosh

Kollel A kollel ( he, כולל, , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features shiurim (lectures) and learning ''sedarim'' (sessions); ...

of Ner Israel.

References

External links

HaRav Naftoli (Herman) Neuberger — Askan and Mechanech
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neuberger, Herman 1918 births 2005 deaths People from Haßfurt American Haredi rabbis Yeshivas Ner Yisroel

Herman Herman may refer to: People * Herman (name), list of people with this name * Saint Herman (disambiguation) * Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman Places in the United States * Herman, Arkansas * Herman, Michigan * Herman, Minne ...

Rabbis from Maryland Religious leaders from Baltimore Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States Clergy from Würzburg Mir Yeshiva alumni 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American Jews