Moshe Aryeh Friedman (born 1972 in

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

), currently living in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, Belgium, is a practicing Haredi Jew. When speaking to the media, he introduces himself as "Rabbi Moshe Friedman", but his status as

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 ...

has been questioned and challenged by 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 ...

Chief Rabbi of Israel The Chief Rabbinate of Israel (, ''Ha-Rabbanut Ha-Rashit Li-Yisra'el'') is recognized by law as the supreme rabbinic authority for Judaism in Israel. It was established in 1921 under the British Mandate, and today operates on the basis of the C ...

Yona Metzger Yona Metzger (; born 1953) is an Israeli Orthodox rabbi and the former Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel. In 2013, while chief rabbi, a fraud investigation was opened. Metzger later pleaded guilty to a number of corruption charges, was tried and ...

. Friedman opposes Zionism, and therefore does not recognize Rabbi Metzger's authority. Friedman's views are somewhat close to the Satmar Hasidic group, but he is not affiliated with them. Officials of the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

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 ...

community claim that he has not proven that he has completed the rabbinical studies required to earn the title, and he was actually expelled from the Board of the Vienna Jewish Community. The Central Israelite Consistory of Belgium, in 2014, also stated that he has no right to bear the title "Rabbi" in Belgium. In 2006, Friedman participated in the

International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust The International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust was a two-day conference in Tehran, Iran, that opened on 11 December 2006. Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki said the conference sought "neither to deny nor prove ...

, stating: "I am not a denier of the Holocaust, but I think it is legitimate to cast doubt on some statistics."Fathi, Nazila
"Israel Fading, Iran's Leader Tells Deniers Of Holocaust"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', 13 December 2006. Retrieved 27 February 2008. He said that the figure of 6 million deaths during the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

was from a prophecy made before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and that the actual figure was closer to one million. Friedman's children were expelled from the

Talmud Torah Talmud Torah (, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary education in Hebrew language, H ...

school in Austria, where the family lived. He said it was because of his participation in the Holocaust conference; the school said its fees were not paid. After being banned from the Jewish community in Austria in 2007, he moved to

.Antwerp girls' school forced to admit boys – Israel Jewish Scene, Ynetnews
''Ynetnews''. In 2011, his family moved to Antwerp. Because no schools would admit his children, he sued, and in 2012, the court ordered a Jewish school for girls to admit his two sons, or face heavy fines. In February 2013, the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court.

References

1972 births 21st-century Belgian Jews Living people Anti-Zionist Haredim Holocaust denial in Austria Austrian Orthodox Jews American Orthodox Jews Belgian Orthodox Jews American emigrants to Austria American emigrants to Belgium People from Williamsburg, Brooklyn Rabbis from Vienna Clergy from Antwerp Haredi anti-Zionism Holocaust denial in Belgium {{Belgium-bio-stub

See also

References