Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg |
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Rabbi Scheinberg at a brit milah in 2004
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| Religion | Judaism |
| Denomination | Haredi |
| Alma mater | RIETS Mir yeshiva (Belarus) |
| Personal | |
| Nationality | American |
| Born | Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg 1 October 1910 Ostrov, Poland |
| Died | 20 March 2012 (aged 101) Jerusalem |
| Spouse | Bessie (Basha) Herman |
| Children | Fruma Rochel Rivka Chana Zelda Alpert Simcha |
| Parents | Yaakov Yitzchak Scheinberg and Yuspa (Yosefa) Tumback |
| Position | Rosh yeshiva |
| Yeshiva | Torah Ore |
| Began | 1960 |
| Residence | Jerusalem |
| Semicha | RIETS - Rabbi Boruch Ber Leibowitz |
Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg (born October 1, 1910, died March 20, 2012) was an important Jewish leader. He was born in Poland and grew up in America. Later, he moved to Jerusalem, Israel, in 1965.
He was a Haredi rabbi, which means he followed a very traditional form of Judaism. He was also a rosh yeshiva, which is like the head of a special Jewish school called a yeshiva. Rabbi Scheinberg led the Torah Ore yeshiva in Jerusalem. He also led Yeshivas Derech Chaim in Brooklyn, New York.
People often asked him for advice on Jewish law (called halacha). He was one of the last great Torah scholars who studied in Europe before World War II. He was also a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah, a group of leading rabbis in Israel.
Contents
Rabbi Scheinberg's Early Life
Rabbi Scheinberg was born in Ostrov, Poland. He was the second son of Yaakov Yitzchok Scheinberg and Yuspa (Yosefa) Tamback. In 1914, World War I started, and his family lost contact with his father. His father had gone to America to avoid being forced into the Polish army.
By 1919, his father had saved enough money. He opened his own tailor shop. He then paid for his wife and children to come to America.
Moving to America
When he was 9, Chaim Pinchas moved with his family to an apartment in New York City. He briefly went to public school. Then, he joined the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School. He studied there until he was 14.
A man named Yaakov Yosef Herman encouraged him to go to a yeshiva in New Haven, Connecticut. This school, led by Rabbi Yehuda Levenberg, taught only Jewish subjects. Herman also wanted Scheinberg to marry his daughter, Bessie, who was 12 at the time. Scheinberg left the yeshiva at 16 and a half. By then, he had studied the entire Talmud, a main Jewish text.
At age 17, Scheinberg went to Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. He studied there with important rabbis like Shlomo Polachek and Moshe Soloveichik.
When Scheinberg was 19, he married Bessie Herman, who was 17. He received his rabbinic ordination (semicha) before his wedding.
Studying in Europe
After they married, Rabbi Scheinberg and Bessie moved to Mir, Belarus. This was in Poland at the time. They lived next to a yeshiva where Scheinberg studied. He was one of the few married students there. He was also one of the few American students.
His wife's brother and sister also moved to Mir with their spouses. Scheinberg's younger brother, Shmuel, came to study at the Mir yeshiva when he was 14. He was lucky to escape Europe on one of the last ships before World War II began.
Blessings from a Great Rabbi
The Scheinbergs' first two daughters, Fruma Rochel and Rivka, were born in Poland. When they were expecting their first child, they visited Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan. He was known as the Chofetz Chaim and was a very important Jewish leader. They wanted to receive his blessing.
Rabbi Scheinberg asked for an extra blessing because he had traveled all the way from America to study. The Chofetz Chaim joked, "Moses came down all the way from heaven to teach the Jews Torah. What’s the big deal about coming from America to Europe?!" Then he blessed them.
While in Europe, Rabbi Scheinberg also studied at the Kaminetz yeshiva. He received another rabbinic ordination there.
Life in New York
In 1935, the Scheinbergs returned to America. This was because his American citizenship would have run out if he stayed abroad for more than five years. Soon after returning, Rabbi Scheinberg was offered a job. He became the mashgiach ruchani (spiritual supervisor) of the Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim in Queens. He held this job for 25 years.
During this time, he also became the rabbi of a synagogue in the Lower East Side. He gave Torah lectures to working men there.
The Scheinbergs had three more children in New York: daughters Chana and Zelda, and a son, Simcha. They also helped raise Rivky Kaufman. She was one of seven orphans after Bessie's sister died suddenly in 1938.
In 1960, Rabbi Scheinberg opened his own yeshiva, Torah Ore. He did this with help from his brother Shmuel and his son-in-law. The yeshiva started with only six students. It grew to include many local Sephardi boys.
Moving to Israel
In 1963, Bessie's sister Ruchoma visited their father in Israel. She saw a new Jewish neighborhood being built in northern Jerusalem called Kiryat Mattersdorf. Ruchoma told Bessie about it, and Bessie wanted to buy an apartment there too.
Rabbi Scheinberg was not sure about moving his family and yeshiva to Israel. But he took a trip to see the new neighborhood. He decided it could work. The builder encouraged him to move his yeshiva to Jerusalem. He offered good deals on apartments and land for the school.
In May 1965, the Scheinbergs moved into their new homes. Their daughter Fruma Rochel's family and their son Simcha's family also moved. Over 20 of Rabbi Scheinberg's students moved with them.
Building the Yeshiva in Jerusalem
Rabbi Scheinberg first set up the Torah Ore yeshiva in an orphanage building in Jerusalem. In June 1967, the Six-Day War began. Many American tourists went home. But Rabbi Scheinberg told his students to stay. None of them left the yeshiva. During the war, he stayed with his students in the bomb shelter. He gave them encouragement.
After the war, Rabbi Scheinberg planned to build a permanent home for his yeshiva. Torah Ore moved into its current building in Kiryat Mattersdorf in 1971. By 2011, the yeshiva had almost 800 students.
Bessie, Rabbi Scheinberg's wife, was a very important partner in his work. She supported him and his students. She opened her home to many people who needed her husband's advice. They even had a phone in their bedroom so people could reach him anytime.
Rabbi Scheinberg became a go-to person for Americans in Israel. They asked him for advice on raising children, finding homes, and even medical issues. He also approved many Jewish law books for adults and children. His neighborhood talks to English-speaking women were put into a book called Heart to Heart Talks in 2000.
Later Life and Legacy
Rabbi Scheinberg's wife, Bessie, died on October 21, 2009. She was 96 years old, and they had been married for over 79 years.
Rabbi Scheinberg passed away in a Jerusalem hospital on March 20, 2012. He was 101 years old. He had been sick for a short time with a kidney inflammation and an infection. About 70,000 people attended his funeral. It started at the Torah Ore yeshiva and went to the Mount of Olives Jewish Cemetery.
His only son, Rabbi Simcha Scheinberg, took over as the head of Torah Ore yeshiva.
Works
Rabbi Scheinberg wrote several books on Jewish law and thought:
- Derech Emunah U-Bitachon (The Way of Faith and Trust)
- Tabaas HaChoshen – a detailed explanation of a classic Jewish law book, first published in 1951.
- Mishmeres Chaim
- Shiurei Rebbe Chaim Pinchas – his lessons and new Torah ideas on different parts of the Talmud.
- Netivot Chaim (translated into English as The Torah Way of Life)
- Imrei Chaim
Images for kids
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Rabbi Scheinberg in 2010.
