Hillel Rivlin of Shklov (; 16 September 1757–- 2 June 1838 and the Hebrew date 2 Tishrei 5518–9 Sivan 5598) was a close disciple of the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman''), also known as the Vilna Gaon ( ''Der Vilner Goen''; ; or Elijah of Vilna, or by his Hebrew acronym Gr"a ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu": "Our great teacher Elijah"; Sialiec, April 23, 172 ...

. Along with some other pupils of the Vilna Gaon, he is credited with having revitalized the

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

in what is now Israel (then the Ottoman province of

Damascus Eyalet Damascus Eyalet (; ) was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire. Its reported area in the 19th century was . It became an eyalet after the Ottomans took it from the Mamluks following the 1516–1517 Ottoman–Mamluk War. By Gábor Ágoston, Bruce Alan ...

), by immigrating to

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

in 1809.

Early life

Hillel Rivlin's father was Rabbi Binyamin Rivlin of

Shklov Shklow is a town in Mogilev Region, Belarus, located north of Mogilev on the Dnieper River. It serves as the administrative center of Shklow District. It has a railway station on the line between Orsha and Mogilev. In 2009, its population was ...

, the cousin and student of the Vilna Gaon.

Personal life

Rivlin married Zipora, the daughter of Moshe Yozal in Hever. Their son, Rabbi Moshe Rivlin, was the rabbi of the Ashkenazi community in Jerusalem from 1840 to 1846. Rivlin's son-in-law was the philanthropist and businessman Shmarihu Luria of Mohilev, the father-in-law of Rabbi David Friedman of Karlin and Yehiel Michal Pines. Rivlin's descendants, starting with his great-grandson Rabbi Yosef Rivlin, were among the first settlers to live outside the walls of the

Old City of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem (; ) is a walled area in Jerusalem. In a tradition that may have begun with an 1840s British map of the city, the Old City is divided into four uneven quarters: the Muslim Quarter, the Christian Quarter, the Arm ...

. He is considered one of the patriarchs of the

Rivlin Rivlin () is a primarily Jewish family originating from Austria and Eastern Europe, which became established in early 19th century Palestine (now Israel). There are also branches of the family in several other countries. The family The Rivlin fami ...

family.

Career

In 1782, when the Gaon of Vilna realized he would not be able to immigrate to the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

, he appointed Hillel Rivlin to head the "Chazon Zion" movement which helped organize Jews from Belarus to immigrate to Israel. In 1809, Rivlin, as the head of a group of the students of the Gra, immigrated to the Land of Israel.

Author

He was also the author of the esoteric text known as Kol HaTor, that describes the 999 footsteps of the Messiah's arrival. Until approximately the 1980s the book was preserved only in manuscript form, when it began to be published in stages.

References

1758 births 1838 deaths 18th-century Lithuanian rabbis Ashkenazi rabbis in Ottoman Palestine 19th-century Lithuanian rabbis Burials at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives 19th-century rabbis in Jerusalem {{Ottoman-bio-stub