Meir Atlas (; 1848–1926) was the rabbi of numerous communities in pre-World War II Europe and one of the founders of the

Telz Yeshiva Telshe Yeshiva (; ; also spelled ''Telz'') is a yeshiva in Wickliffe, Ohio, formerly located in Telšiai, Lithuania. During World War II the yeshiva relocated to Cleveland, Ohio in the United States and is now known as the Rabbinical College of ...

. He was an outstanding halachic authority who authored many

responsa ''Responsa'' (plural of Latin , 'answer') comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them. In the modern era, the term is used to describe decisions and rulings made by scholars i ...

and was one of the foremost

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

n rabbis of his time.

Biography

Rabbi Meir Atlas was born in 1848 in Baisagola,

. In 1875, together with Rabbi Zvi Yaakov Oppenheim, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Abel and the help of a German

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

layman, Ovadyah Lachman, Atlas founded the

in Telz, Lithuania. He later served as rabbi and spiritual leader in a number of cities, including Libau in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

, Salant in

, and

Kobryn Kobryn or Kobrin is a town in Brest Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Kobryn District. It is located in the southwestern corner of Belarus, where the Mukhavets river and Dnieper–Bug Canal meet. The town lies about east ...

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. In 1904, Rabbi Atlas was appointed rabbi to the community of Shavel. Meir's brother was Rabbi Eliezer Atlas. His daughter Michle was married to Rabbi Elchonon Wasserman,Weekly Biography: Hagaon Harav Elchanan Wasserman, Hy"d, ''Hamodia'' Newspaper, July 9, 2008, page C3 His other sons-in-law include Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski and Rabbi Yehudel Kahana Shapiro, the son of Rabbi Zalman Sender Kahana Shapiro. Rabbi Meir died on the 12th of

Shevat Shevat (, , ; from ) is the fifth month of the civil year starting in Tishre (or Tishri) and the eleventh month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar starting in Nisan. It is a month of 30 days. Shevat usually occurs in January– ...

in 1926.

References

1848 births 1926 deaths Haredi rabbis in Europe Lithuanian Haredi rabbis People from Radviliškis District Municipality {{Lithuania-rabbi-stub