Abraham Hecht
Encyclopedia
Abraham Hecht born on April 5, 1922 in Brooklyn, New York; is an American Orthodox
rabbi
affiliated with the Chabad-Lubavitch
movement, and is president of the Rabbinical Alliance of America - Igud HaRabanim.
Some regard Rabbi Abraham B. Hecht as one of America's most articulate Orthodox rabbinic leaders. Known as a "rabbi's rabbi" and a scholar of Torah
, he is rabbi emeritus of Congregation Shaare Zion
of Brooklyn, New York; the largest Sephardic
congregation in North America, comprising more than 3500 families which he served for more than fifty years.
.
Known as a distinguished orator, he has inspired many to study the teachings of the Torah and mitzvot. He has been a frequent contributor for over fifty years to various Jewish publications in English, Hebrew and Yiddish.
He is an advocate for Mihu Yehudi- Giyur K'halacha Who is a Jew?
, Shleimus HaTorah (see Torah study
) and Shleimus HaAretz - Pikuach Nefesh (see Land of Israel
).
He led protests against the film Monty Python's Life of Brian
, claiming that it "was produced in hell".
His promoted awareness on behalf of "Family Values" within the Jewish community as well as in society at large and his work on behalf of the Seven Universal Laws of Noah (Sheva Mitzvoth Bnei Noach).
Rabbi Hecht was a Hasid (disciple) of the last Lubavitcher Rebbi Menachem Schneerson and of the previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, and had the distinction of being of the first 10 students of Yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim
in America. He also served as a Shliach ("emissary") in Boston, MA; Buffalo, NY; Newark, NJ; and New Haven, CT; establishing Yeshiva Achei T'mimim elementary schools for both boys and girls.
, for his assertion at a rabbinical gathering, that Jewish Law (Halakha
) could permit the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin
and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres
for their proposal at Oslo to withdraw from parts of the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories
. On June 19, 1995, Hecht had told the gathered members of the International Rabbinical Coalition for Israel "that by handing over Israeli land and property, Israeli leaders are betraying Jews to non-Jews" and that, according to Maimonides
, "such people should be killed before they can perform the deed." An October 1995 article in New York Magazine referred to Hecht as the rabbi who "sentenced" Yitzak Rabin to death, and quoted Hecht as praising Israeli mass murderer and American expatriate Baruch Goldstein
, as "a great man, a holy man." At the time, Hecht was a senior rabbi of Congregation Shaare Zion in Brooklyn, the largest Sephardic Jewish congregation in the U.S.
Rabin was assassinated in Israel on November 4, 1995 by Yigal Amir
for signing the Oslo Accords
. After the assassination, Hecht was placed on a six-month paid leave by his synagogue and was, along with six other American Jews, barred for "security" reasons by the Israeli government from entering the country. According to Samuel G. Freedman
, author of Jew vs. Jew: The Struggle for the Soul of American Jewry, Hecht also influenced Harry Shapiro, who planted a pipe bomb at a Jacksonville synagogue in 1997 in order to prevent Peres from speaking in support of the Oslo Accords
.
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
affiliated with the Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch is a Chasidic movement in Orthodox Judaism. One of the world's larger and best-known Chasidic movements, its official headquarters is in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York...
movement, and is president of the Rabbinical Alliance of America - Igud HaRabanim.
Some regard Rabbi Abraham B. Hecht as one of America's most articulate Orthodox rabbinic leaders. Known as a "rabbi's rabbi" and a scholar of Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
, he is rabbi emeritus of Congregation Shaare Zion
Congregation Shaare Zion
Congregation Shaare Zion, is an Orthodox Sephardic synagogue located at 2030 Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn, New York. One of the largest Orthodox Jewish congregations in New York, it has an estimated 1,500 worshipers who attend its services Fridays and Saturdays for Shabbat...
of Brooklyn, New York; the largest Sephardic
Sephardi Jews
Sephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
congregation in North America, comprising more than 3500 families which he served for more than fifty years.
Biography
Rabbi Hecht is an author, and has published two books entitled, Spiritual Horizons and Spiritual Freedom; as well as a recently published autobiographyAutobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
.
Known as a distinguished orator, he has inspired many to study the teachings of the Torah and mitzvot. He has been a frequent contributor for over fifty years to various Jewish publications in English, Hebrew and Yiddish.
He is an advocate for Mihu Yehudi- Giyur K'halacha Who is a Jew?
Who is a Jew?
"Who is a Jew?" is a basic question about Jewish identity and considerations of Jewish self-identification. The question is based in ideas about Jewish personhood which themselves have cultural, religious, genealogical, and personal dimensions...
, Shleimus HaTorah (see Torah study
Torah study
Torah study is the study by Jewish people of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature and similar works, all of which are Judaism's religious texts...
) and Shleimus HaAretz - Pikuach Nefesh (see Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
).
He led protests against the film Monty Python's Life of Brian
Monty Python's Life of Brian
Monty Python's Life of Brian, also known as Life of Brian, is a 1979 British comedy film written, directed and largely performed by the Monty Python comedy team...
, claiming that it "was produced in hell".
His promoted awareness on behalf of "Family Values" within the Jewish community as well as in society at large and his work on behalf of the Seven Universal Laws of Noah (Sheva Mitzvoth Bnei Noach).
Rabbi Hecht was a Hasid (disciple) of the last Lubavitcher Rebbi Menachem Schneerson and of the previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, and had the distinction of being of the first 10 students of Yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim
Tomchei Temimim
Tomchei Temimim is the central Yeshiva of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement...
in America. He also served as a Shliach ("emissary") in Boston, MA; Buffalo, NY; Newark, NJ; and New Haven, CT; establishing Yeshiva Achei T'mimim elementary schools for both boys and girls.
Controversy
Hecht was featured in a June 23, 1995 article by Larry YudelsonLarry Yudelson
Larry Yudelson , also known by his pen name Reb Yudel, is editorial director and owner of Ben Yehuda Press, a specialty publisher of Jewish religious texts...
, for his assertion at a rabbinical gathering, that Jewish Law (Halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
) could permit the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin
' was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77 and 1992 until his assassination in 1995....
and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres
Shimon Peres
GCMG is the ninth President of the State of Israel. Peres served twice as the eighth Prime Minister of Israel and once as Interim Prime Minister, and has been a member of 12 cabinets in a political career spanning over 66 years...
for their proposal at Oslo to withdraw from parts of the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories
Israeli-occupied territories
The Israeli-occupied territories are the territories which have been designated as occupied territory by the United Nations and other international organizations, governments and others to refer to the territory seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 from Egypt, Jordan, and Syria...
. On June 19, 1995, Hecht had told the gathered members of the International Rabbinical Coalition for Israel "that by handing over Israeli land and property, Israeli leaders are betraying Jews to non-Jews" and that, according to Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
, "such people should be killed before they can perform the deed." An October 1995 article in New York Magazine referred to Hecht as the rabbi who "sentenced" Yitzak Rabin to death, and quoted Hecht as praising Israeli mass murderer and American expatriate Baruch Goldstein
Baruch Goldstein
Baruch Kopel Goldstein was an American-born Jewish Israeli physician and mass murderer who perpetrated the 1994 Cave of the Patriarchs massacre in the city of Hebron, killing 29 Palestinian Muslim worshipers and wounding another 125....
, as "a great man, a holy man." At the time, Hecht was a senior rabbi of Congregation Shaare Zion in Brooklyn, the largest Sephardic Jewish congregation in the U.S.
Rabin was assassinated in Israel on November 4, 1995 by Yigal Amir
Yigal Amir
Yigal Amir is the Israeli assassin of Prime Minister of Israel Yitzhak Rabin. The assassination took place on November 4, 1995 at the conclusion of a rally in Tel Aviv. Amir is currently serving a life sentence for murder plus six years for injuring Rabin's bodyguard, Yoram Rubin, under...
for signing the Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
. After the assassination, Hecht was placed on a six-month paid leave by his synagogue and was, along with six other American Jews, barred for "security" reasons by the Israeli government from entering the country. According to Samuel G. Freedman
Samuel G. Freedman
Samuel G. Freedman is an American author and journalist and currently a professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He has authored six nonfiction books, including most recently Who She Was, a book about his mother's life as a teenager and young woman, and Letters to a Young...
, author of Jew vs. Jew: The Struggle for the Soul of American Jewry, Hecht also influenced Harry Shapiro, who planted a pipe bomb at a Jacksonville synagogue in 1997 in order to prevent Peres from speaking in support of the Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
.