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Kehilas Yetev Lev D'Satmar (Williamsburg, Brooklyn)
Encyclopedia
Congregation Yetev Lev D'Satmar is a large Satmar
Hasidic
synagogue
located at Kent Avenue and Hooper Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn
. It has been dubbed a "miracle" synagogue because it was constructed in just 14 business days.
Moshe Teitelbaum
placed his oldest son Aaron
in charge of the Satmar community in Kiryas Joel, New York
, but in 1999 he appointed his third son Zalman
as his successor, a position traditionally given to the eldest son. Since then the two sons and their respective followers have been feuding over who is the rightful successor of Moshe, with the followers of Aaron attempting to gain control of approximately $372 million worth of Satmar buildings and land (including its synagogues) in Williamsburg and elsewhere. Following his death in April 2006, Moshe's will supported Zalman, as did a Satmar rabbinical court
, though supporters of Aaron dispute the validity of both. After a New York state court ruled in July that the dispute was outside of its jurisdiction, followers of Aaron, who, in previous years, had been excluded from main Satmar institutions and celebrated the High Holy Days
in a large tent, started plans to build an alternative main synagogue.
. As a result of the rapid pace of construction, a number of the city's Department of Buildings rules were violated, including "working without a sidewalk shed" and "straying from approved plans". The department did not take action after two reports of unsafe working conditions, but issued a stop-work order after a worker fell about 20 feet from a metal structure on September 15. Nevertheless work continued; according to the New York Sun
, Jennifer Givner, a department spokesperson "could not rule out the possibility that the department had given the go-ahead to resume work", and the congregation denied that it broke any rules.
The 13,000 or 18,000 square foot steel frame
structure has cinder block
walls and is covered in stucco
. The interior was not fully finished in time for the New Year, and it was planned that the concrete floors would be covered with wood and the walls with marble in time for the Simchat Torah
holiday three weeks later. The structure seats between 2,300 and 4,350 and has a total capacity of 7,000 people. It is named after Aaron's great-great-grandfather Rabbi Yekuthiel Yehuda Teitelbaum, known as "The Yetev Lev", after the name of a book of Torah
commentary he published.
Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)
Satmar is a Hasidic movement comprising mostly Hungarian and Romanian Hasidic Jewish Holocaust survivors and their descendants. It was founded and led by the late Hungarian-born Grand Rebbe Yoel Teitelbaum , who was the rabbi of Szatmárnémeti, Hungary...
Hasidic
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
located at Kent Avenue and Hooper Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
. It has been dubbed a "miracle" synagogue because it was constructed in just 14 business days.
Background
In 1984 Satmar RebbeRebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
Moshe Teitelbaum
Moshe Teitelbaum (Satmar)
Moshe Teitelbaum was a Hasidic rebbe and the world leader of the Satmar Hasidim, which is believed to be one of the largest Hasidic communities in the world, with some 120,000 followers.-Early life:...
placed his oldest son Aaron
Aaron Teitelbaum
Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum is one of two Grand Rebbes of Satmar, and the chief rabbi of the Satmar community in Kiryas Joel, New York...
in charge of the Satmar community in Kiryas Joel, New York
Kiryas Joel, New York
Kiryas Joel is a village within the town of Monroe in Orange County, New York, United States...
, but in 1999 he appointed his third son Zalman
Zalman Leib Yekusiel Yehudah Teitelbaum
Rabbi Zalman Leib Teitelbaum is one of two Grand Rebbes of Satmar, and the third son of Grand Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum, the late Rebbe of the Satmar Hasidim. He is the son-in-law of the previous Bistritzer Rebbe of Brooklyn...
as his successor, a position traditionally given to the eldest son. Since then the two sons and their respective followers have been feuding over who is the rightful successor of Moshe, with the followers of Aaron attempting to gain control of approximately $372 million worth of Satmar buildings and land (including its synagogues) in Williamsburg and elsewhere. Following his death in April 2006, Moshe's will supported Zalman, as did a Satmar rabbinical court
Beth din
A beth din, bet din, beit din or beis din is a rabbinical court of Judaism. In ancient times, it was the building block of the legal system in the Biblical Land of Israel...
, though supporters of Aaron dispute the validity of both. After a New York state court ruled in July that the dispute was outside of its jurisdiction, followers of Aaron, who, in previous years, had been excluded from main Satmar institutions and celebrated the High Holy Days
High Holy Days
The High Holidays or High Holy Days, in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim , may mean:#strictly, the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur ;...
in a large tent, started plans to build an alternative main synagogue.
Construction
In 2006 the synagogue was built in 14 days by a team of over 200 workers, including 125 employees and 80 volunteers. Workers worked 18 hour days in order to have the building ready in time for the Jewish New YearRosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. As a result of the rapid pace of construction, a number of the city's Department of Buildings rules were violated, including "working without a sidewalk shed" and "straying from approved plans". The department did not take action after two reports of unsafe working conditions, but issued a stop-work order after a worker fell about 20 feet from a metal structure on September 15. Nevertheless work continued; according to the New York Sun
New York Sun
The New York Sun was a weekday daily newspaper published in New York City from 2002 to 2008. When it debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of an otherwise unrelated earlier New York paper, The Sun , it became the first general-interest broadsheet newspaper to be started...
, Jennifer Givner, a department spokesperson "could not rule out the possibility that the department had given the go-ahead to resume work", and the congregation denied that it broke any rules.
Building
Steel frame
Steel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal -beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
structure has cinder block
Cinder block
In the United States, a concrete masonry unit – also called concrete block, cement block, and foundation block – is a large rectangular brick used in construction. Concrete blocks are made from cast concrete, i.e. Portland cement and aggregate, usually sand and fine gravel for high-density blocks...
walls and is covered in stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
. The interior was not fully finished in time for the New Year, and it was planned that the concrete floors would be covered with wood and the walls with marble in time for the Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah or Simḥath Torah is a celebration marking the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle...
holiday three weeks later. The structure seats between 2,300 and 4,350 and has a total capacity of 7,000 people. It is named after Aaron's great-great-grandfather Rabbi Yekuthiel Yehuda Teitelbaum, known as "The Yetev Lev", after the name of a book 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...
commentary he published.
External links
- Congregation Yetev Lev D'Satmar of Kiryas Joel Inc. v. Congregation Yetev Lev D'Satmar Inc., New York Law JournalNew York Law JournalThe New York Law Journal, founded in 1888, is a legal periodical covering the legal profession in New York, United States. The newspaper covers legal news, decisions, court calendars, and legislation, and provides analysis and insight in columns written by leading professionals...
, February 9, 2006. - Matter of Congregation Yetev Lev D'Satmar, Inc. v Kahana, Appellate Division, Second Department, 2006 NYSlipOp 05627, New York State Law Reporting Bureau, July 11, 2006.