Levi Yitzchak HaLevi Horowitz (born 3 July 1921,

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, died 5 December 2009,

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 ...

) was a

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 t ...

and the second

rebbe A Rebbe () or Admor () 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 Spirituality (Audio)''. UCTV, 20 Oct 2011. web. ...

of the Boston Hasidic Dynasty founded by his father, Pinchos Dovid Horowitz. He was the first American-born Hasidic rebbe and the founder of ROFEH International, a community-based medical referral and hospitality liaison support agency.

Family

Horowitz's parents were Pinchos Dovid Horowitz, founder of the Boston Hasidic dynasty, and Sora Sosha Horowitz. His father died in November 1941. In November 1942 he married Raichel Unger Leifer of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, a descendant of Naftali Tzvi of Ropshitz.

Rabbinic career

In 1943, Horowitz was one of over 400 rabbis led by Rabbi Eliezer Silver and Rabbi Baruch Korff who traveled to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, just before

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

, to ask President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

to rescue Jews from Hitler. Upon becoming leader of the Bostoners in 1944, after his marriage and ordination at Yeshiva Torah Vodaath, he announced that his primary thrust as rebbe would be aimed at the area's large number of college students, many of whom were away from home In 1984, Horowitz established Givat Pincus, a Hasidic community in the

Har Nof Har Nof () is a neighborhood on a hillside on the western boundary of Jerusalem with a population of 20,000 residents, predominantly Orthodox Jews. History In Talmudic times, Har Nof was an agricultural settlement that served Jerusalem. Remains o ...

neighborhood of Jerusalem and began dividing his time between Israel and Boston. In 1999, an additional community was established in

Beitar The Betar Movement (), also spelled Beitar (), is a Revisionist Zionism, Revisionist Zionist youth movement founded in 1923 in Riga, Latvia, by Ze'ev Jabotinsky, Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky. It was one of several right-wing youth movements tha ...

for the next generation of Bostoner Chassidim. Horowitz served 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 ...

of Agudath Israel of Israel. At the time of his death, he resided both in the U.S. and in Israel spending half a year in each country. Day-to-day leadership in his community had already passed on to his children.

Death and succession

Horowitz suffered a cardiac arrest on July 6, 2009, and was hospitalized in the Sharei Tzedek hospital in Jerusalem. He died on December 5, 2009, and was buried that night on the

Mount of Olives The Mount of Olives or Mount Olivet (; ; both lit. 'Mount of Olives'; in Arabic also , , 'the Mountain') is a mountain ridge in East Jerusalem, east of and adjacent to Old City of Jerusalem, Jerusalem's Old City. It is named for the olive, olive ...

. Per his will, he was succeeded by all his sons: * his eldest son, the Chuster rabbi, Pinchos Duvid Horowitz(II) (died 2021) as Bostoner rebbe of

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

* his second son, Mayer Alter, as Bostoner rebbe of Jerusalem * his third son, Naftali Yehuda, as Bostoner rebbe of Boston.

References

External links

ROFEH International
{{DEFAULTSORT:Horowitz, Levi Yitzchak 1921 births 2009 deaths American Hasidic rabbis Clergy from Brookline, Massachusetts Rebbes of Boston Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Burials at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives