| Rabbi Chaim Dovid Leibowitz ZT"L | |
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| In office 1933 – December 5, 1941 |
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| Preceded by | None |
| Succeeded by | Rabbi Henoch Leibowitz |
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| Born | 1889 Zhetl, Poland |
| Died | December 5, 1941 (aged 52) New York |
| Nationality | American |
Rabbi Dovid Leibowitz (1889-1941) was a leading rabbi and disciple of prewar Europe's Slabodka Yeshiva in Lithuania who went on to found the Rabbinical Seminary of America as its first Rosh yeshiva (dean) in Brooklyn, New York. His son, Rabbi Henoch Leibowitz, led the yeshiva until his death in 2008.
In his youth he was known as "Reb Dovid Warshawer." As a teenager, he studied in the Raduń Yeshiva, where he held private study sessions with his great-uncle, the Chofetz Chaim for 12 hours a day and helped write the last volume of the Mishnah Berurah[1]; he also learned there under Rabbi Naftoli Trop.
In 1908, Rabbi Leibowitz transferred to the Slabodka yeshiva, where he learned under the Alter, Rabbi Nosson Tzvi Finkel. In 1915, Rabbi Leibowitz succeeded his father-in-law as Rabbi of Šalčininkai. After six years, however, he returned to Slobodka as a founding member of the Slabodka Kollel.
In 1926, Rabbi Leibowitz came to the United States as a fund-raiser for the kollel and was invited to become the first[1] rosh yeshiva of Mesivta Torah Vodaath. Among his students were Rabbi Gedalia Schorr and Rabbi Avrohom Pam. In 1933, Rabbi Leibowitz founded Yeshivas Rabbenu Yisrael Meir Hacohen, named after his great uncle. (The Yeshiva is better known today as the Chofetz Chaim Yeshiva or the Rabbinical Seminary of America now located in Kew Gardens Hills, New York.) There he transplanted to the United States his unique style of Talmud study as well as the Slabodka school of Mussar.
He died on December 5, 1941 which was a Friday, and to provide proper respect for the deceased, the funeral was held on Sunday, December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor day. The yeshiva was headed for the following sixty-seven years by his only son, Rabbi Henoch Leibowitz.
References
- ^ a b *Ginzberg, R. Aryeh Zev (2009-04). "A Builder of Torah". Chazaq. http://www.chazaq.org/storage/File/april.exe. Retrieved 2009-04-12.
See also
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