Born on 14th November 1876 in Krakow, Chaim Hilfstein, son of Jakub and Zofia, née Rosner, was a social and political activist, a Zionist and a consultant in internal medicine who worked at the St.Lazarus hospital in Krakow.He graduated from St.Ann’s gymnasium in Krakow in 1897, followed by Medicine at the Jagiellonian University. Hilfstein obtained his PhD title in 1904. A member of the National Jewish Council for Western Galicia in November 1918. In 1897, Hilfstein co-founded the ”Przed-świt-Haszahar” Jewish Youth Association which was the first Zionist organisation in Krakow. Throughout the interwar period, together with Ozjasz Thon, Hilfstein was one of the leaders of the Zionist Organisation of the Lesser Poland and Silesia region. He was a delegate at Zionist congresses in Karlsbad (1921), Vienna (1925)…
Born on 13th November 1888 in Chrzanow, Ignacy Izaak Schwarzbart, son of Markus Saul and Chana, née Michalik, was a lawyer, politician and a publicist. A deputy to the Sejm of the 6th term (1938-1939), member of the National Council of the Polish authorities in exile, board member of the Jewish Religious Community in Krakow (1924-1936) as well as a city council member (1933-1939). A 1908 graduate of a gymnasium in Podgorze who studied Law at the Jagiellonian University and obtained his PhD title in1913. After finishing university, he ran his own law firm. During WWI, he served in the Austro-Hungarian Army and later on in the Polish Army. Between 1921–1925, Schwarzbart was the editor-in-chief of Nowy Dziennik, a local Zionist newspaper in Krakow. A member of the Administrative…
בס”ד Following the murder of 1500 mostly Jewish men, women and children on 7 Octoer by Hamas-Terrorists, a wave of antisemitism is travelling through Europe. This wave had already started before the beginning of Israel’s military response to bring back secuirty and defence to the country, and it is getting bigger. Antisemitic words and antisemitic attacks have consequences. Many of our felllow Polish Jewish citizens are afraid of leaving their homes, of wearing a kippa oder a pendant with the star of David. Jews are insulted and spat on. Jewish homes have been sprayed. What is done to our Jewish citizens and what they have had to endure is intolerable. This Thursday marks the 85th anniversary of the German Pogrom Night. In the night from 9 to…
The carnage committed by the Palestinian terrorists of Hamas against Israeli citizens, mostly civilians, including women and children, cannot be repeated. Every country, every people that is attacked, among which Israel and Jews alike have the right to defend themselves. The consequences of the most tragic act of extermination perpetrated against Jews since the Shoah must include measures that prevent further atrocities by Hamas or by other terrorist organisations. If the international community has not undertaken concrete or effective actions in order to secure the Gaza strip from Hamas terrorists, whose only goal is the destabilisation of the peace process and their means the instrumental exploitation of Palestinian society, the burden to secure the area and its borders falls unto Israel. Evaluating the events and expressing an…
It has been almost one month that Israel was perfidiously and brutally attacked by terrorists whose admitted purpose is genocide, who want to wipe out Jews from the face of the earth. They broke the most ancient rules of war, proudly slaughtering old women and babies and taking them as hostages. Sadism such as theirs had not been seen for 80 years. They cowardly disrespect and beat their prisoners, desecrate the bodies of the dead, use their very own children as human shields, knowing that civilised nations will not repeat their crime. At the same time, the hydra of antisemitism rears its ugly head once again in Europe. Genocidal slogans are sung and repeated. Who was the actual aggressor on 7 October is forgotten and Israel is…
Born on 3rd November 1840 in Częstochowa, Szymon Dankowicz was a progressive rabbi connected with the Tempel Synagogue. A patriot and a great advocate of the agreement with Polish people. A graduate of School of Rabbis in Warsaw, Jewish Theological College in Wrocław as well as the Philosophy and History Faculty at the Central School of Warsaw. He was issued a smicha which he received from Dow Ber Meisels. In 1862, Szymon Dankowicz published a Jewish coursebook through Orgelbranda, a publishing house from Warsaw. Between 1861-1862, he participated in patriotic demonstrations and as a consequence, was arrested by the Russian authorities and exiled. His patriotic career includes being a January Uprising participant (1863-1864), too. From the mid 60’s of the 19th century, he held the position of a preacher at the Tempel Synagogue.…
Born on 1st November 1889 in Krakow, Józef Lustgarten, son of Wilhelm, was a footballer, sports official, coach of the national team, international referee as well as a lawyer. A IIIrd Jan Sobieski Gymnasium graduate who studied law in Krakow and Vienna where he completed a judicial apprenticeship and successfuly passed a certified referee exam in 1913. During WWI, Lustgarten fought for the 1st Legion Brigade. In 1919, he obtained his PhD title and started his career as a clerk and a solicitor. After the end of WWI, Lustgarten made huge efforts to revive two local footbal clubs, greatly weakened by WWI , namely Cracovia and Wisła. His professional articles published in Przegląd Sportowy covering the topic of umpiring constituted a must-read for all aspiring would-be referees. Apart from dealing with the…
On Saturday morningIsrael was brutally attacked by the terrorist organisation Hamas. Once more Jewish blood has been spilled. We are deeply struck by this situation, even more as many of our closest live in Israel and serve in the armed forces. We thank everyone for the incoming expressions of solidarity. We see them as a sign of brotherly support for Israel in this hour of need. We offer our deepest condolences to the families of those who were murdered. We wait for the release of women, children and the elderly from the imprisonment by Hamas. We also firmly condemn the terrorist act that took place in the State of Israel. The Council of the Jewish Religious Community in Kraków
Rabbi Gershon Shaul Yom-Tov Lipmann ben Nathan ha-Levi Heller’s yahrzeit began last evening at the Remuh cemetery. Heller (1579-1654) was an exceptional Talmudist and the author of religious literature and numerous works in the fields of kabbalah, philosophy, maths and astronomy. He was born in Wallerstein and according to Majer Bałaban, Lipmann was a far cry from regular Polish Jews. He was balanced, versatile and was not keen on pilpul. Before coming to Krakow, Lipmann Heller was a rabbi in the Czech Republic (Mikulov, Moravia), Austria (Vienna) and Poland (Niemirowo and Włodzimierz Wołyński). For 28 years he held the position of a dayan in Prague. During the Thirty Years’ War, he faced the difficult decision to establish the contribution that particular members of the Prague Community were to pay. As…
Born in 1583 (his exact date of birth is unknown), Natan Spira, an outstanding Kabbalist, preacher, expert in Talmudic and philosophical literature, chairman of the rabbinical court in Krakow, died on 20th July 1633. Interestingly, Spira was the son-in-law of a member of the Kraków kehilla, Mojżesz Jakubowicz, who provided him with support and resources to let him continue his studies. Natan Spira was considered a saint by his contemporaries. He preached that the dispersion of the Jewish nation (diaspora) and the transmigration of souls (gilgul neshamot), through successive incarnations, were the punishment for the contamination of Israel with sin. He dedicated all his fortune to charity and science.Acording to Henry Halkowski, starting from 1617, Spira was the rector of the Krakow yeshiva, where he taught Torah,…