Aharon Yaakov Schwei (July 9, 1934 – April 24, 2020) 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-pag ...

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 a member of the

Chabad Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (; ; ), is a dynasty in Hasidic Judaism. Belonging to the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) branch of Orthodox Judaism, it is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, as well as one of ...

Hasidic Hasidism () or Hasidic Judaism is a religious movement within Judaism that arose in the 18th century as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine before spreading rapidly throughout Eastern Europe. Today, most of those aff ...

movement. Rabbi Schwei served on the Bais Din Tzedek (Jewish Rabbinical Court) of the Chabad community in

Crown Heights, Brooklyn Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue (New York City), Atlantic Avenue to the north, ...

.Collive Reporter. "Hate Blogs Are Killing Us". ''Collive.com''. Dec 12, 2010.
/ref>Collive Reporter. "Rabbis Fight Hate Blogs". ''Collive.com''. Dec 10, 2010.
/ref>"The Shluchim Unite". ''ChabadWorld.net''
/ref>Chabad.info. "Beis Din Recommends Eishel Kapparos". ''Chabad.info''. September 23, 2012.
/ref>Collive reporter. "Crown Heights Badatz Unites". ''Collive.com''. Feb 1, 2011.
/ref>

Rabbi of Crown Heights

As a member of the Crown Heights Beth Din (rabbinical court), Rabbi Schwei was one of the community's ''Marah D'Asra'' (Aramaic מרא דאתרא, a title equivalent to "Chief Rabbi"). The rabbinical court is the spiritual and religious body governing the Crown Heights Chabad community. After his death, three rabbis remained serving on the Beth Din: * Rabbi Avraham Osdoba, the ''

Av Beth Din The ''av beit din'' (), abbreviated ( ''avad''), was the second-highest-ranking member of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period and served as an assistant to the nasi. The av beit din was known as the "Master of the Court;" he was consid ...

'' (head of court). * Rabbi Yosef Heller * Rabbi Yosef Braun Each hold the title ''Marah D'Asra''.

Crown Heights Kashrus

Rabbi Schwei was involved in supervising and granting

kosher certification A hechsher or hekhsher (; "prior approval"; plural: ''hechsherim'') is a rabbinical product certification, qualifying items (usually foods) that conform to the requirements of Jewish religious law. Forms A hechsher may be a printed and signed ...

under the Crown Heights rabbinical court. In recent years, Rabbi Osdoba's authority as sole administrator of the CHK was challenged by others in the community, including supporters of Rabbi Schwei and Rabbi Braun arguing that the arbitration panel (Zabl"a) ruled that it should be run by a board of directors "There is a need to create a new Vaad HaKashrus, which shall be the executive body of the Rabbis and the Vaad Hakohol.Collive reporter. "CHK Stronghold is Challenged". ''Collive.com''. August 10, 2011.
/ref> The court however remanded this ruling back to the arbitration panel for clarification which is yet to reconvene

Statement on local blogs

Both Rabbis Osdoba and Schwei spoke out against several "hate blogs" created by members of the community.

Ordination

Rabbi Schwei received his rabbinic ordination from Rabbi Aryeh Leib Kramer, the former dean of the Chabad

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; 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 studied in parallel. The stu ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Family

Yaakov Schwei's brother, Rabbi Isaac Schwei (1932–1988) was a rabbi in the Chabad community of Montreal (also ordained by Rabbi Aryeh Leib Kramer).

Banning of Call of the Shofar

In December 2013, Rabbis Yaakov Schwei and Yosef Braun issued a letter stating that attending programs run by Call of the Shofar, a Jewish LGAT group based in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, is forbidden under Jewish law. They were later joined by the "Central Committee of Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbis in the United States and Canada," also known as Vaad Rabbonei Lubavitch who also banned COTS."Vaad Rabonei Lubavitch prohibit attending COTS."
''CrownHeights.info''. Accessed 2014.

Death

On April 24, 2020, Rabbi Schwei died in

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 ...

from complications associated with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

References

External links

CHJCC directory for the Beth DinGuide to Jewish customs for the fast of the 9th of Av. By Rabbis Schwei and Braun
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwei, Yaakov 1934 births 2020 deaths 21st-century American rabbis American Hasidic rabbis Chabad-Lubavitch rabbis 20th-century American rabbis Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in New York (state)