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The first rabbi of whom we know, although by hearsay only, was actually a merchant, but thanks to his rabbinical education, he also exercised the functions of rabbi. But he does not seem to have received any salary whatever from the Jews who were very few in number in his time.

We know from the report of the Municipal Serviytor, Marcyn Gorgok for the year 1628, that by order of the mayor of the city, he went to “the Jewish Doctor”, i.e. to the Rabbi, in connection with taking two young men to the town jail by order of the Elders of the Community for creating disturbances.

Of the Rabbis who followed him, we know:

1. In 1648 the Rabbi was Reb Hertz.
2. In 1633 the book “Petah Teshuva” (The Gateway to Repentance) by Reb Gabriel Ben Yehuda of Reisha was published in Amsterdam. It describes the distress caused by the Cossaks in 1648.
3. In Reisha Reb Aaron Samuel Kaidenower, author of “Birchat Hazevah” (Blessing of the Sacrifice) became Rabbi. He was subsequently rabbi in Frankfort on the Main and in Amsterdam.
4. After him, Reb Mordechai served as rabbi, following a term as Rabbi of Podheitze
5. In 1685, the Rabbi was Reb Moshe, who wrote an Approbation to work: “Zechor L'Abraham”.
6. He was followed as Rabbi by Reb Shneur ben Hanoch, who wrote an Approbation to the book “Gevurat Anashim”. He died on 27^th Sivan 5459 (1699) and his epitaph can be found in B. Friedberg's “Luhot Zikkaron”, Frankfurt 1904, p.98.
   His son Samuel was a well-known preacher in Kalish. His daughter, Buna died in 1725, and her grave is in the Reisha cemetery near his.
   After his death, Reb Gabriel of Cracow, who had studied in his youth at the Yeshiva of Rabbi Kaidenover, was selected as rabbi but refused to accept the post because he had been selected as Rabbi of Nickolsburg.
   When Reb Yehuda Leib, grandson of the Bah, author of the Responses: “Shaagat Aryeh Vekol Shahal”, who was Rabbi of Brest-Litovsk, passed through Reisha, the heads of the Community wished him to become the rabbi, but he was not prepared to accept the post.
7. The rabbi following Reb Shneur ben Hanoch was Reb Samuel Halevi, son-in-law of Reb Isaac of Posen, teacher of the “Magen Abraham”. He died on the eve of the new moon of Tevet 5479 (1719).
   In his time, the head of the Yeshiva in Reisha was the well-known Reb Jacob ben Joseph Reisher, who was also known as Jacob Bach, author of “Hok Yaakov” and the Responsa: “Shevut Yaakov”. He was born in Prague and died in Metz, February 1738. In 1713, he was invited to leave Reisha and become Rabbi in Ansbach. Later, he served as Rabbi in Worms. His book: “Minhat Yaakov” was printed in Prague in the year 1689.
8. The next rabbi was Reb Samuel Halevi who passed away in 1719. His uncle was Rabbi in Cracow,

[Page 36]

named Reb Jacob Joshua, author of “Pnei Yehoshua”.
9. Rabbi Yehezkiyahu Yona (1659-1726) was Rabbi in Przemysl, had a dispute with his community and resigned his rabbinical post, retaining only the official Rabbinate. But he left that post as well and served as Rabbi in Reisha for several years.
10. Reb Aryeh Leib ben Shaul ben Heshel, Rabbi of Cracow, had also been Rabbi in Dukla and subsequently in Tarnopol during the years 1718-1724. He was then appointed Rabbi in Reisha where he served until 1728, and was afterwards rabbi in Glogow, where he proclaimed a ban on Rabbi Moses Haim Luzzato. During that period, he was also rabbi of Lwow and District. In 1740, he was appointed Rabbi in Amsterdam where he took an active part in the Eibeshuetz -Emden controversy. He was the son-in-law of Hacham Zvi Ashkenazi and, therefore, the brother-in-law of Reb Jacob Emden. He died on the 7th day of Passover 5515 (2.4.1755). The Rabbi to follow him was Moshe Nathan, son of Rabbi Israel.
11. Following him came Reb David Ber ben Reb Aryeh Leib, Rabbi of Zamosc.
12. When the latter was invited to become Rabbi in Lwow, his successor was Reb Aaron Judah Leib Atingo, son-in-law of Reb Haim Hacohen Rapoport. He died in 1781. During his term of service, Reb Zvi ben Reb Judah author of the work”Geon Zvi” was the head of the Yeshiva.
13. At the beginning of the 18^th century, Reb Ezekiel Joshua Feivel Teomim Frankel, who had been Rabbi in Przemysl, served as Rabbi in Reisha.
14. Rabbi Zvi Hersh died in 5554 (1794).
15. Reb Isaac Haim Blumenfeld, son of Rabbi Joshua Heshel was then invited as Rabbi. He was the son of the Parnass (Community President) Shlomo Zalman of Reisha.
16. He was followed as Rabbi by his son Reb Ezekiel Zvi who was the son-in-law of Rabbi Mordechai ben Zev of Brody and served as rabbi for 45 years, dying 19^th Kislev 5616 (1856).
17. He was followed by his daughter's son, Reb Isaac Haim Wallerstein, who had been Rabbi in Rohatin and died 11^th Nissan 5642 (1882).
18. In 1874-1873, the Rabbi was Reb Zvi Hersh Orenstein, who was welcome to Reisha after the Russian Government had expelled him from his rabbinical post in Brest-Litvosk. He was Rabbi of Reisha for two years, and after the death of Reb Joseph Saul Nathanson, was invited to replace him in the Low Rabbinate.
19. Reb Joshua Heshel ben Reb Isaac Haim Wallerstein was a rabbi and wrote two works: “Kerem Yehoshua” (Lwow 1899) and “Sede Yehoshua” Responsa) Lwow 1901. His sons were not rabbis but wealthy forest merchants. He died in 1904.
20. Afterwards, the rabbi selected was Reb Nathan Levin, son-in-law of the Lwow Rabbi, Reb Isaac Shmelkes, who had been Rabbi in Rohatin until he was invited to Reisha. Reb Nathan Levin was born in Brody and belonged to a famous rabbinical family. He was the pupil and afterwards the son-in-law of the Lwow Rabbi and had an ample Jewish and general education. He completed his studies at the Brody Gymnasium as an external student and matriculated there. In 1896, he was appointed Rabbi of Rohatin. He had enjoyed a comprehensive general education and had nationalist opinions, keeping away from all interventions and disputes among the pious and Hassidic groups. He called for the establishment of Jewish schools and a Jewish Gymnasium, for he held that education suited to the needs of the time was the best barrier against the assimilation of the younger generation.
    He opposed the aspirations of the Hassidic Rebbes who wished to split the communities as they had done in Hungary; for he regarded the united community as the Jewish national institution which best served the interest of Jewry as a whole.
    During his Rabbinate in Rohatin, he took part in Communities Day in the year 1900, and attended the first General Rabbinical Congress that met in Cracow in 1903.
    In 1905, he was appointed Rabbi of Reisha. The Hassidim opposed this appointment and began to protest against it. They published notices all over town opposing the decision of the community to appoint him. The leading opponent was a Jew from Russia, Reb Berish Steinberg. However, his personality won over the Opposition. In the course of time, the leaders of the Hassidim came to him and recognized him as their Rabbi too. He was gentle and modest and held open house. His decisions in Rabbinical law were known for their simplicity and wisdom, and he played an active part in all communal activities, serving as Rabbi until his death on 5 Elul 5680 (1926).
21. Reb Aaron Levin was born on 14^th Heshvan 5640 (31.10.1879) in Przemysl to Reb Nathan

Rabbi Aaron Levin with his son, Rabbi Dr. Isaac Levin

Levin. In his early youth he obtained an outstanding knowledge of the Talmud and was a leading pupil of his grandfather, the Gaon Reb Isaac Shmelkes.
Refusing to rest satisfied with Halachic knowledge only, he studied German and Polish, the two languages of the country. He wrote essays in Polish and prepared for his matriculation examination at the Gymnasium.
In 1901 he married and for a while lived with his father-in-law at Wieliczko. In 1904 he was appointed Rabbi in Sambor, where he played a very important part in spite of his youth and won the hearts of the scholars.
In 1922, Rabbi Levin was elected a delegate to the Polish Seim, on the List of the Jewish block. In the Seim he was a member of the Agudat Israel fraction.
As a member of the Agudat Israel, Rabbi Levin took an active part in its activities. Special mention should be made of his positive attitude towards the Land of Israel, as expressed in his speech at the Third Grand Assembly held at Marienbad in 1936.
In 1926, his father, the Rabbi of Reisha, passed away. During the seven days of mourning, a delegation of the Reisha community visited him and requested him to accept the office. He told the Delegation that all those who wished him to accept the post should come to the Community Offices and sign their names on a petition to that effect.
During the limited time available, thousands of householders went and signed the letter to the Sambor Rabbi. A delegation of Heads of the Community brought the document to Sambor. Rabbi Levin agreed to accept the post provided that the official election should also be general, and not exclusively by the Community Heads. He assumed office in Reisha on 2^nd Adar 5687 (1927).
While he was Rabbi in Reisha the community of Frankfurt-on-the-Main requested him to become their Rabbi, but he refused.
His books are: “Davar Beito”, (Cracow 1899); “Matte Aharon” (Cracow 1908); “Birchat Aharon” (Drohobycz 1913); “Hadrash Vehaiyun” (Exposition and Investigation) on Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, published in Bilgoray between 1922 and 1939; “Avnei Hefetz”, Responsa (Bilgoray 1934).

 

Rabbi Aaron Levin (seated, second from right) with other rabbis who survived the Holocaust

 

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The history of Rzeszow-Reishe begins in the 14^th century when Kazimir the Great, King of Poland, selected a large tract of land near the river Wislok to become the town of Rzeszow, which served as a seat of the royal and noble families until the 16t^th century. And here was laid the foundation of what later became a great Jewish community.

Reishe was the home of famous Jewish scholar as early as the 16^th century. One of them was the famous Talmudical scholar and author, Reb Yaakov ben Josef Reisher, whose real name was Yaakov Back. He acquired the name “Reisher”, when he became Chief Rabbi of Reishe in 1695.

The town of Reishe was situated in Central Galicia, between Lwow (Lemberg) to the east and Krakow to the west. After Poland was partitioned in 1772, Galicia became a province of Austria until 1918. In that year the State of Poland was re-established, and Galicia again became a part of Poland.

In 1890, the population of Reishe was about 25,000 of whom 65% were of Catholic faith and Polish nationality, and about 35% of Jewish faith. Polish was the language of the province, but the Jews spoke Yiddish. They also spoke Polish and German, the official language of Austria. The extremely orthodox Jews only spoke Yiddish.

In the early 90's, Reishe was a mixture of old and new, ancient and modern. There were buildings and homes which were several hundred years old, and also new buildings which, at that time, were considered modern. In the Market Square stood the new City Hall, in marked contrast to the old Catholic Church two blocks to the West, built in the 15^th century with its tall tower and huge church bells.

Title-page of “Minhat Yaakov”

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Some of the houses in the principal streets of the city were old, but soundly built. However, many sections consisted of little shacks, typical of which was “Tepper Gesl”.

Reishe was a large Jewish commercial and distribution centre in Central Galicia. The large market square was the hub of the textile distributing industry, owned and operated by Jews. The annual turn-over ran into millions. Here also were concentrated the wholesalers of food, particularly flour, sugar, coffee as well as other products, all owned and operated by Jews.

There were many small predominantly Jewish towns within a few kilometres of Reisha, such as Titshin, Blazov, Glogov, Kolbusov, Lancut, Maden, Sokolov, Czudez, Fristik and others where Jews were the owners and operators of the principal industries. Merchants came to Reishe every weekday in their horse-drawn vehicles from the towns and villages within a radius of 3 to 30miles, to make purchases for their stores and attend to their affairs.

Jews were well represented in the medical profession as well as the practice of law. They also played a leading part in banking and finance. In the middle 90's the town had five banking institutions which were owned and operated by Jews. The majority of the accounts in the Austro-Hungarian Bank, which had a branch in Reishe, were also Jews.

The Reishe Jews also built-up industries. Among them was Asher Silber, President of the Reishe Kehilla (Community), who was also a major distiller of spirits. The largest candy factory in the city was owned and operated by Jews.

Reishe was also a major source of eggs, and sent several carloads a day to Germany. The exporters were Jews who operated a huge storage and packing plants, employing hundreds. In those days, refrigerated cold storage was unknown. During April, May and June, when eggs were plentiful, peasants brought large supplies into town and sold them to the dealers. The eggs were stored in large, deep concrete tanks filled with water. After the tanks were filled, the top of the tank was covered with a thin layer of plaster which acted as a protective covering. During the winter months, the eggs were removed from the storage tanks, cleaned and packed for shipment to Germany.

Two of the largest soap and candle factories were established and operated by Jewish owners, one by the Zineman firm and the other by Meyer Adler. The town had no gas or electricity, so the candle was the only practical medium of illumination in the synagogues. Jews were also prominent in the lumber and building material industry. One of the largest of these firms was owned and operated by the Drucker Brothers and another by Samuel Fett, father of the well-known journalist, Ben Zion Fett. The largest hardware and metal building material producer was the firm of Adler Brothers. Most of the building contractors were Jews. The Shiff firm was one of the large producers of paper materials for writing and wrapping.

Reishe was also wholesale and retail centre for cotton and wool fabrics. Some of the largest and best-known firms were Haim Wolf Bau, Zecharia Jezower, Josef Feiwel, Herman Lubash, Mendel Korn, Shimon Sandhaus, Shimon Drucker, Kahane & Brown. Of the retail stores, 90% were owned and operated by Jews, and most of them were located in the market section, the large commercial centre of the city. A large number of stores with large modern window displays were also located in the Wola Section, in Ruskawies and in the 3 May Street.

The largest brick factory was owned and operated by the Mintz firm. Michael Birman was the owner of the largest hardware firm. The manufacture of soda and sweet drinks was likewise owned and operated by Jews.

Reishe had an organized Jewish Kehilla which was recognized by the Government. The Kehilla officials, the President, Vice President and the Council, were elected by the Jewish residents of the city. The Kehilla had its own building in the Market Square. The cost of its maintenance was covered by special taxes paid by the Jewish population.

In the early part of this century, Reishe had a large number of Jewish intellectuals, lecturers and journalists. One of them was Naftali Gliksman, the Hebrew teacher, lecturer and editor of the Yiddish weekly “The Yiddishe Folkszeitung”. Another was Ben Zion Fett, a prominent journalist and orator who was a Zionist leader in the early part of this century. He established his home in Israel after World War I and became the sports editor of the Israeli daily, “Haaretz”. One of the outstanding scholars was Moshe Wiesenfeld whose brother, Leon Wiesenfeld was editor of the Reishe Yiddish weekly journal: “Die Gerechtikeit”. He settled in the United States after World War I. He wrote for the New

[Page 40]

“Haivria” Girls Society with their teacher, Feldman

A well-known Reishe poet was Nahum Sternheim whose poems were published in the Yiddish press. One of the Hebrew teachers was Meshullam Davidson, a native of Russia, who came to Reishe in the early part of the century. A lecturer and major contributor to the modern Hebrew culture of Reishe, he settled in Israel after World War I. Mendel Karpf was also a well-known journalist. Berish Weinstein, who emigrated from Reishe to the United States, is a well-known poet. Another Reishe personality who came to the United States after World War I was Simcha Seiden. He established his residence in Miami, Florida and became the producer of the weekly Yiddish radio programme: “The Jewish Forum of the Air”, one of the outstanding radio programmes in the U.S. He passed away in 1960 aged 72.

On Friday night and Saturdays, as well as Jewish Festivals, the city looked like a deserted town. All stores, except for the few owned by non-Jews, were closed. The only people on the streets were Jews attired in black silk “kapotes” (robes) and “Shtreimel”, carrying the “Tallit” (prayer-shawl) on their way to the House of Prayer, accompanied by youngsters with long silk kapotes and wide round velvet hats.

Late in the afternoon the main streets were crowded with Jews, men, women and children, strolling and greeting each other until late at night.

Reishe was also a Hassidic centre. One of the well-known Hassidic Rabbis in the early part of this century was the Rebbe Reb Luzerl. Hundreds of Hassidim came to him from Hungary, Bukowina, Russia and all parts of Galicia. The Rebbe resided in a nice two-storey brick house and also had a large synagogue where he and his Hassidim worshipped daily. He also had a special room where he received Hassidim and followers, who came to him whenever they were in need of help and advice.

At that time, Reishe also had two other Hassidic Rebbes. One was the Rebbe Reb Yehuda Ungar, known as the Sokolover Rebbe, who came from the little town of Sokolov and established his residence in Reishe. The other Rebbe was Reb Abraham Hayyim Horowitz, who also left his small town and established his residence in Reishe.

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The “Hashahar” Organisation in Reishe

Aid Committee for Jewish Soldiers in Reishe

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