Rabbi Yehudah Jacobs (c. 1935 – April 27, 2020) was a

mashgiach ruchani A mashgiach ruchani (; pl., ''mashgichim ruchani'im''), sometimes mashgiach for short, is a spiritual supervisor or guide. They are usually a rabbi who has an official position within a yeshiva and is responsible for the non-academic areas of yesh ...

(counselor) in Beth Medrash Govoha, the largest

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 ...

outside of Israel and the second largest in the world after the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Biography

Jacobs was born about 1935 to Rabbi Asher and Esther Jacobs in

Cologne, Germany Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and over 3.1 million people in the Cologne Bonn urba ...

. He studied in Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood Township, New Jersey starting in the late 1950s under Rabbi Aharon Kotler. He married his first wife, Ruthie, and they settled in Lakewood. He soon was appointed the

mashgiach A mashgiach (, "supervisor"; , ''mashgichim'') or mashgicha (pl. ''mashgichot'') is a Jew who supervises the kashrut status of a kosher establishment. Mashgichim may supervise any type of food service establishment, including slaughterhouses ...

of Beth Medrash Govoha alongside Rabbi Nosson Meir Wachtfogel, a position he held for many years. After his first wife died (c. 1985), Rabbi Jacobs married his second wife, Esther. In 2010, he moved to

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, where he stayed for a few years, all the while keeping up with the Lakewood Yeshiva. He later returned to Lakewood. On April 27, 2020, he died of

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 ...

in Lakewood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobs, Yehudah 1940s births 2020 deaths Year of birth uncertain American Haredi rabbis American people of German-Jewish descent Mashgiach ruchani Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in New Jersey Rabbis from New Jersey Beth Medrash Govoha People from Lakewood Township, New Jersey People from Cologne