Difference between revisions of "Sassov (Hasidic dynasty)"

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{{short description|Galician Hasidic court originating in Sasiv; several successor lines; UK synagogue-charity of the same name}}
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{{short description|'''Hasidic dynasty named after Sasiv (Sasów) in Galicia, now Ukraine; several separate lines use the Sassov title, in Israel, the United States and London'''}}
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{{Hasidic sidebar}}
 
{{Infobox religious group
 
{{Infobox religious group
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| name           = Sassov (חסידות סאסוב)
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| name         = Sassov
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| image          =
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| type         = [[Hasidic dynasties|Hasidic dynasty]]
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| caption        =
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| founder       = Moshe Leib of Sassov (Moshe Yehuda Leib Erblich, c. 1745–1807)
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| type           = [[Hasidic dynasties|Hasidic dynasty]]
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| founded_place = Sasiv (Sasów, Sasov), eastern Galicia, now Ukraine
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| founder         = [[Moshe Leib of Sassov]] (Moshe Yehudah Leib Erblich, c. 1745–1807)
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| headquarters = Several lines: Kiryat Yismach Moshe (Ganei Tikva, Israel); Monsey, New York; formerly London
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| founded_date    = late 18th century
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| leader_title  = Rebbe
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| founded_place   = Sasiv (Sassov / Sassow), Eastern Galicia (now Ukraine)
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| notes         = Also spelt Sasov or Sassow; followers are called Sasover or Sassover. Moshe Leib settled in Sasov in the 1780s.<ref name="YIVOSasov" />
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| headquarters   = Historically Sasiv; successor courts in [[Kiryat Yismach Moshe]] (Ganei Tikva), [[Monsey, New York]], and historically [[London]]
 
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| notes           = Also spelt Sassow, Sasov; followers are called Sasover.
 
 
}}
 
}}
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'''Sassov''' (also '''Sasov''' or '''Sassow''') is a [[Hasidic dynasties|Hasidic dynasty]] named after the town of Sasiv (Polish: Sasów) in eastern Galicia, now in Ukraine. Its first Rebbe was Moshe Leib of Sassov (c. 1745–1807).<ref name="YIVOSasov" /><ref name="Myshtetl" /> The YIVO Encyclopedia says that Moshe Leib "left no Hasidic dynasty".<ref name="YIVOSasov" /> Several separate family lines have nevertheless used the Sassov title: his own Erblich descendants, now in Monsey, New York; a line appointed from the [[Belz (Hasidic dynasty)|Belz]] family, whose Teitelbaum descendants lead courts in Israel and Monsey; and a Rubin line in London.<ref name="Myshtetl" /><ref name="QJL" /><ref name="JMisc2021" />
  
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'''Sassov''' (also '''Sassow''', '''Sasov'''; Yiddish סאַסעוו) is a Galician [[Hasidic dynasty]] named after the town of [[Sasiv]] in Eastern Galicia, now in Ukraine. The first court was founded by [[Moshe Leib of Sassov]] (Rabbi Moshe Yehudah Leib Erblich, c. 1745 – 13 January 1807 / 4 Shevat 5567).<ref name="WPSassov">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassov_(Hasidic_dynasty) Sassov (Hasidic dynasty)], Wikipedia.</ref><ref name="WPMoshe">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Leib_of_Sassov Moshe Leib of Sassov], Wikipedia.</ref>
+
In the UK the [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] is a registered charity in north-west London. Its trustees include [[Benzion Freshwater]] and [[Solomon Israel Freshwater]].<ref name="CCSassov" />
  
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The name later attached to more than one family line. The founder’s Erblich descendants continued as rabbis; a separate “Sassover Rebbe” was installed in the late nineteenth century from the [[Belz (Hasidic dynasty)|Belz]] / [[Alesk]] orbit; a twentieth-century [[Teitelbaum family|Teitelbaum]] branch styles itself Sassov–Keretzky in Israel and Monsey; and a London Sassov court is recorded on the Mayer / Rubin line. The UK company-charity [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] (charity 1102303, company 04978521) uses the place-name but is a Golders Green / Finchley Road grant-making synagogue vehicle whose trustees include [[Benzion Freshwater]], [[Solomon Israel Freshwater]] and [[Graham Shurek Morris]]. It is not, on the public register, a rebbe’s court.<ref name="CCSassov">[https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/4005872 SASSOV BEIS HAMEDRASH], Charity Commission, 1102303.</ref>
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== History ==
 +
=== The town ===
 +
Sasiv was founded in 1615. In 1726 Jacob Sobieski granted the town a privilege. Its Jewish population was 223 in 1764 and 1,906 (58 per cent of the town) in 1880. Jews there made candles and ''atarot'' (ornamental collars for prayer shawls), and the town was a world centre for their production. The Jewish population was 1,761 (52.1 per cent) in 1912 and 1,096 (35.4 per cent) in 1921.<ref name="EJSasov" />
  
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== Origin ==
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About 1,500 Jews lived in Sasiv at the start of the Second World War. German forces arrived on 2 July 1941. On 15 July 1942 an ''Aktion'' sent many of them to the Belzec death camp. The remaining 400 were sent to the Zloczow ghetto on 25 November 1942, and the local labour camp was liquidated in July 1943. The Jewish community was not re-established after the war.<ref name="EJSasov" />
  
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Sasiv (Polish Sasów) was a small Galician market town. In 1764 the Jewish population was recorded as 223; by 1880 it was 1,906 (58 per cent of the town). Jews there manufactured candles and ''atarot'' (ornamental strips for prayer-shawls).<ref name="JVL">[https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0018_0_17561.html Sasov], ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' / Jewish Virtual Library.</ref>
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=== Moshe Leib of Sassov ===
 +
Moshe Leib was born in Brody in about 1745. His teacher was Shmuel Shmelke Horowitz. He served in Apt (Opatów) and then settled in Sasov in the 1780s. He was known for his modesty, his love for his fellow Jews and his work to ransom captives, and was later a figure in the stories of I. L. Peretz and S. Y. Agnon. His teachings were published as ''Likute Ramal'' (1856) and ''Ḥidushe ha-Ramal'' (1921). He died in 1807. He had one son, Yekutiel Shmelke, and two daughters.<ref name="YIVOSasov" />
  
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Moshe Leib Erblich was born c. 1745 in Sasiv or Brody to Yaakov and Rivkah Erblich. His father was associated with the ''misnagdim''. He studied under [[Shmelke of Nikolsburg]] (a student of the [[Maggid of Mezritch]]) and later under the Maggid himself and [[Elimelech of Lizhensk]]. After a period in Opatów (Apt) he settled in Sasiv and gathered a court. Students and contemporaries named in the secondary literature include [[Tzvi Hirsh of Ziditchov]], [[Menachem Mendel of Kosov]], [[Yaakov Yitzchak of Peshischa]] (the Yid HaKadosh), [[Meir of Premishlan]] and [[Abraham David Wahrman]] of Buchach. Published teachings appear as ''Likutei Ramal'' and ''Torat HaRamal HaShalem''.<ref name="WPMoshe"/><ref name="YIVO">[https://encyclopedia.yivo.org/article/1231 Mosheh Leib of Sasov], YIVO Encyclopedia.</ref>
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== Rebbes and succession ==
 +
{| class="wikitable"
 +
|+ Lines using the Sassov title
 +
! Line !! Rebbe !! Base !! Notes
 +
|-
 +
| rowspan="5" | Erblich (descendants of the founder) || Moshe Leib Erblich || Sasiv || Founder; died 1807.<ref name="YIVOSasov" />
 +
|-
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| Yekutiel Shmuel Shmelke Erblich || Sasiv || Son of the founder.<ref name="YIVOSasov" /><ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
 +
| Yaakov Tzvi Erblich || Porozovo || Son of Shmelke; known as the Rebbe of Porozovo.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
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| Moshe Yehuda Leib Erblich || Monsey, New York || Son of Yaakov Tzvi, according to Myshtetl. A cantor in Israel, Great Britain and Canada who later settled in Monsey.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
 +
| Yaakov Tzvi Erblich || Monsey, New York || His son and successor.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
 +
| rowspan="4" | Belz appointment and Teitelbaum (Sassov–Keretzky) || Shlomo of Sassov || Sasiv || Grandson of Sholom Rokeach, the Sar Shalom of Belz. His father was the first Rebbe of Olesko (Alesk). Died 1919.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
 +
| Lipa Meir Teitelbaum || Kiryat Yismach Moshe, Ganei Tikva, Israel || Great-grandson of Shlomo; founder of Kiryat Yismach Moshe; the "Sassov"-Keretzky Rebbe. In his first marriage he was a son-in-law of Joel Teitelbaum of [[Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)|Satmar]]. Died March 1966.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
 +
|-
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| Yosef Dovid Teitelbaum || Kiryat Yismach Moshe || Son of Lipa Meir and Rebbetzin Bluma. Son-in-law of Dovid Moshe of Kretchnif and a disciple of the previous Klausenburger Rebbe.<ref name="Myshtetl" /><ref name="QJL" />
 +
|-
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| Chanoch Henoch Teitelbaum || Monsey, New York || Brother of Yosef Dovid.<ref name="Myshtetl" /><ref name="QJL" />
 +
|-
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| rowspan="2" | Rubin (London) || Chanoch Heinoch Dov Rubin || London (from 1925) || Died 1929.<ref name="JMisc2021" />
 +
|-
 +
| Simcha Rubin || London (Whitechapel; Golders Green from 1942) || 1910–2003.<ref name="JMisc2021" /><ref name="Matzav11Sivan" />
 +
|}
 +
Myshtetl notes that, as a result, Monsey has two separate Sassov courts.<ref name="Myshtetl" /> Myshtetl says that Shlomo, "although not from the lineage of the Sassover dynasty of Rebe Moshe Leib", took the title "Rebe of Sasov". The townspeople had asked the Sar Shalom of Belz whom to appoint after Moshe Leib's descendants had become rabbis in other towns.<ref name="Myshtetl" />
  
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Hasidic tradition emphasises his work on ''pidyon shvuyim'' (redemption of captives) and popular ''ahavat Yisrael''. The YIVO entry notes that he had one son, Yekutiel Shmelke, and two daughters, and treats the original court as not having become a large continuing dynasty in the classic sense.<ref name="YIVO"/>
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== Factions ==
 +
=== Israel ===
 +
In January 2025 the ''Queens Jewish Link'' reported on a visit to Queens, New York, by Yosef Dovid Teitelbaum, the Sasover Rebbe of Kiryat Yismach Moshe. Rabbi Simantov Yanetz hosted the visit in Briarwood on 27 January. According to the report, the Rebbe's eldest son leads a Sassov ''kehillah'' (congregation) in Borough Park, Brooklyn, and his other sons lead communities in Betar (Beitar Illit), Bnei Brak and Jerusalem.<ref name="QJL" />
  
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The pre-war Jewish community of Sasiv was destroyed in the Holocaust. About 1,500 Jews lived there at the outbreak of the Second World War.<ref name="JVL"/>
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Beitar Illit is an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank. In 2024 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found that Israel's settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem "have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law".<ref name="ICJ2024" />
  
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== Successor lines ==
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=== UK ===
 +
Chanoch Heinoch Dov Rubin, according to the historian Jeffrey Maynard the first Hasidic Rebbe to live in London between the wars, came to London in 1925. He set up a ''beis midrash'' (house of study and prayer) at 14 Fordham Street in the East End. He died in Westcliff in 1929, aged 40. Rabbi Shulman and the rebbes of Premishlan and Biala gave eulogies, and the Chief Rabbi, Joseph Hertz, attended the funeral.<ref name="JMisc2021" />
  
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Several groups later used the Sassov title. They should not be collapsed into one court.
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His son Simcha Rubin, born in Sassov in 1910, succeeded him. In 1930 he married Chava, daughter of Rabbi Dov Heschel of Lvov; 1,000 guests attended the wedding at the Portman Rooms. Matzav.com describes it as the first Hasidic dynastic marriage in England. In 1942 he set up the Sassover Beis Medrash on Helenslea Avenue, Golders Green. From 1957 the building was also home to Yeshivas Chayei Olam. During the war he helped refugees and orphans, and he later supervised kashrut in old people's homes. His second wife was Minna Weber. He died in 2003.<ref name="JMisc2021" /><ref name="Matzav11Sivan" />
  
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=== Erblich line ===
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== Finances and charities ==
 +
=== Sassov Beis Hamedrash ===
 +
[[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] is a charitable company (company 04978521), incorporated on 27 November 2003 and registered as charity 1102303 on 25 February 2004.<ref name="CCSassov" /><ref name="CH" /> Its registered office is at New Burlington House, 1075 Finchley Road, London NW11 0PU, and its contact email is at Cohen Arnold. It operates throughout London, owns or leases land, and had one employee and seven trustees in 2024–25.<ref name="CCSassov" />
  
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Moshe Leib was succeeded in the town by his son '''Yekutiel Shmuel Shmelke Erblich''' (c. 1800–1861). Later Erblich rabbis include a Porosov / Porozovo rebbe, Yaakov Tzvi Erblich, and a later Moshe Yehudah Leib Erblich (d. 1991), a ''chazzan'' who served in Israel, Britain, Canada and the United States before settling in Monsey. His son '''Yaakov Tzvi Erblich''' (d. 2020) was described as Sassover Rebbe in Monsey.<ref name="Myshtetl">[https://myshtetl.org/lvovskaja/sasiv_en.html Jewish Sasiv], Myshtetl.</ref><ref name="WPSassov"/>
+
Its objects are:<ref name="CCSassov" />
 +
* to advance the Orthodox Jewish religion and education;
 +
* "to maintain and develop the synagogue known as Sassov Beis Hamerdrash" (sic);
 +
* to relieve poverty among Jewish people throughout the world.
 +
The register does not give the synagogue's address.<ref name="CCSassov" />
  
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=== Belz appointment: Shlomo of Sassov ===
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{| class="wikitable"
−
 
+
|+ Sassov Beis Hamedrash: income and spending (financial years ending 30 June; earlier years rounded by the register)
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By the late nineteenth century the founder’s descendants had taken pulpits elsewhere and Sasiv had no resident rebbe. Townspeople asked [[Sholom Rokeach]] (the Sar Shalom of [[Belz (Hasidic dynasty)|Belz]]) whom to appoint. He named his grandson '''Shlomo''' (Shlomo Mayer / Shlomo of Sassov). Shlomo’s father was the first rebbe of [[Alesk]]; his mother was a daughter of the Sar Shalom. He died in 1919, reported at Lwów / Lvov.<ref name="WPSassov"/>
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! Year !! Income !! Spending
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+
|-
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This appointment is the source of later “Sassov” courts that are genealogically Belz / Alesk rather than Erblich.
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| 2021 || £176.09k || £165.36k
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+
|-
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=== Teitelbaum Sassov–Keretzky ===
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| 2022 || £228.55k || £210.31k
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+
|-
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'''Lipa Meir Teitelbaum''' (d. March 1966), a great-grandson of Shlomo of Sassov, took the style Sassov–Keretzky and founded [[Kiryat Yismach Moshe]] in Ganei Tikva. In his first marriage he was a son-in-law of [[Joel Teitelbaum]] of [[Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)|Satmar]]. From his second marriage to Rebbetzin Bluma two sons took the Sassov title:<ref name="WPSassov"/><ref name="QJL">Shabsie Saphirstein, [https://queensjewishlink.com/index.php/local/79-community-corner/shabsie-saphirstein/12068-sasov-rebbe-from-israel-visits-queens Sasov Rebbe From Israel Visits Queens], ''Queens Jewish Link''.</ref>
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| 2023 || £405.04k || £236.26k
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+
|-
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* '''Yosef Dovid Teitelbaum''' — Sassover Rebbe in Kiryat Yismach Moshe; son-in-law of David Moshe of [[Kretchnif]]; student of the previous Klausenberger Rebbe. Community reporting describes a small chareidi neighbourhood court (on the order of hundreds of followers, not a mass dynasty).
+
| 2024 || £257.97k || £253.15k
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* '''Chanoch Henoch (Heynach) Teitelbaum''' — Sassover Rebbe in Monsey.
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|-
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| 2025 || £741,762 || £275,281
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Other children of Lipa Meir named in the same accounts include Moshe (a Satmar ''dayan'' in Jerusalem), Shlomo (Alesk) and Esther (married into Biala).
+
|}
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+
In 2024–25, £659,800 of its income came from donations and £81,970 from investments. It spent £26,750 on raising funds and £248,530 on charitable activities.<ref name="CCSassov" />
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=== London / Mayer–Rubin line ===
 
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Hebrew-language dynasty lists record a Sassov court in London from the same Alesk–Mayer stock: '''Chanoch Henoch Dov''' as Sassover Rebbe in London (d. 13 Tammuz 5689 / 1929, in his father’s lifetime); then '''Simcha Rubin''' of Sassov–London (son-in-law of a Zinkov / Heshel line; d. 10 Sivan 5763 / 2003); then a grandson, '''Mordechai Yehuda Leib Rubin''', styled Sassov–London and reported as living in Vienna.<ref name="HeWiki">[https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%97%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%93%D7%95%D7%AA_%D7%A1%D7%90%D7%A1%D7%95%D7%91 חסידות סאסוב], Hebrew Wikipedia (Mayer / “Lev Sameach” line; distinguished there from the Moshe Leib Erblich article).</ref>
 
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That London court is the historical Hasidic use of the name in Britain. It is separate from the 2003 company-charity below.
 
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== United Kingdom: [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] ==
 
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[[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] is a charitable company incorporated 27 November 2003 (company 04978521) and registered 25 February 2004 (charity 1102303). Objects include advancement of Orthodox Jewish religion and education, maintenance of “the synagogue known as Sassov Beis Hamedrash”, and relief of Jewish poverty worldwide. Correspondence address on the Commission file: New Burlington House, 1075 Finchley Road, London NW11 0PU (Cohen Arnold). Income for the year to 30 June 2025 was £741,762; expenditure £275,281.<ref name="CCSassov"/><ref name="CCGov">[https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/about-the-register-of-charities/-/charity-details/4005872/governing-document Governing document], Sassov Beis Hamedrash, Charity Commission.</ref>
 
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Trustees on the live card include [[Benzion Schalom Eliezer Freshwater]], [[Solomon Israel Freshwater]], [[Graham Shurek Morris]], Luzer Rokach, Moshe Broner, and (from 7 May 2025) Robert Vorhand and Israel Rubin.<ref name="CCTrus">[https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/about-the-register-of-charities/-/charity-details/4005872/trustees Trustees], Sassov Beis Hamedrash, Charity Commission.</ref>
 
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The Freshwater brothers are principals of the [[Daejan]] / [[Freshwater group]] property companies and sit on [[Bobov]]-adjacent and UOHC charities ([[The Raphael Freshwater Memorial Association]], [[Mayfair Charities Limited]], [[Service to the Aged]], [[The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations]]). Morris is also a trustee of the [[Schreiber Charitable Trust]], [[The Morris Charitable Trust]] and [[Friends of Nahalat Moshe]]. The overlap is a North-West London Orthodox grant network. It does not, by itself, show that the charity is the seat of a sitting Sassover Rebbe, nor that the Freshwaters are Sassov Hasidim rather than Bobov / UOHC actors using a historic shtiebel name.<ref name="CCTrus"/>
 
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== Disambiguation ==
 
  
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
−
! Name
+
|+ Sassov Beis Hamedrash trustees (Charity Commission register, October 2026)
−
! What it is
+
! Trustee !! Appointed !! Trustee of other charities
 +
|-
 +
| [[Benzion Schalom Eliezer Freshwater]] || – || Parsha Ltd; Beth Jacob Grammar School for Girls; [[Mayfair Charities Limited]]; [[The Raphael Freshwater Memorial Association]]; [[Service to the Aged]]; Regent Charities; [[The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations]]
 
|-
 
|-
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| [[Moshe Leib of Sassov]] (Erblich, d. 1807)
+
| [[Solomon Israel Freshwater]] || – || Zichron Chaim; Service to the Aged; Mayfair Charities; The Raphael Freshwater Memorial Association; TOL Charity
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| Founder of the original court in Sasiv
 
 
|-
 
|-
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| Erblich Sassover Rebbes (Monsey)
+
| [[Graham Shurek Morris]] || – || The Morris Charitable Trust; [[Schreiber Charitable Trust]]; [[Friends of Nahalat Moshe]]; Investream Charitable Trust; TMAVA CIO
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| Male-line descendants of the founder
 
 
|-
 
|-
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| Shlomo of Sassov (d. 1919)
+
| Luzer Rokach || 24 September 2012 || The Grove Manor Charitable Trust; Helenslea Tzedoko Ltd
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| Belz grandson appointed to the vacant town
 
 
|-
 
|-
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| Sassov–Keretzky / [[Kiryat Yismach Moshe]]
+
| Moshe Broner || 6 June 2012 || Friends of Ohel Yizchak Umiriam; Rabbi Shohel Cohen Memorial Fund; Toled Foundation; Shellix Co Ltd
−
| Teitelbaum branch; Yosef Dovid in Israel, Chanoch Henoch in Monsey
 
 
|-
 
|-
−
| Sassov–London (Mayer / Rubin)
+
| Robert Vorhand || 7 May 2025 || Beth Jacob Foundation; North West London Chevra Kadisha
−
| Historic London court; later Vienna
 
 
|-
 
|-
−
| [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]] (1102303)
+
| Israel Rubin || 7 May 2025 || None on record
−
| UK charity / company; Freshwater–Morris board
 
 
|}
 
|}
 +
Source: Charity Commission register.<ref name="CCSassov" />
  
 
== See also ==
 
== See also ==
−
 
 
* [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]]
 
* [[Sassov Beis Hamedrash]]
−
* [[Benzion Freshwater]]
 
−
* [[Graham Shurek Morris]]
 
−
* [[Schreiber Charitable Trust]]
 
 
* [[Belz (Hasidic dynasty)]]
 
* [[Belz (Hasidic dynasty)]]
 
* [[Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)]]
 
* [[Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)]]
Line 100: Line 117:
  
 
== External links ==
 
== External links ==
−
 
+
* [https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/4005872/full-print Charity Commission: Sassov Beis Hamedrash (1102303)]
−
* [https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/4005872 Charity Commission: Sassov Beis Hamedrash]
+
* [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04978521 Companies House: Sassov Beis Hamedrash (04978521)]
−
* [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04978521 Companies House: 04978521]
 
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* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassov_(Hasidic_dynasty) Wikipedia: Sassov (Hasidic dynasty)]
 
  
 
== Notes ==
 
== Notes ==
−
<references />
+
<references>
 +
<ref name="YIVOSasov">Gad Sagiv, [https://yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Mosheh_Leib_of_Sasov Mosheh Leib of Sasov] ''YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="EJSasov">''Encyclopaedia Judaica'', [https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0018_0_17561.html Sasov] ''Jewish Virtual Library'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="Myshtetl">My Shtetl, [https://myshtetl.org/lvovskaja/sasiv_en.html Jewish Sasiv] ''myshtetl.org'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="QJL">Shabsie Saphirstein, [https://queensjewishlink.com/index.php/local/79-community-corner/shabsie-saphirstein/12068-sasov-rebbe-from-israel-visits-queens Sasov Rebbe From Israel Visits Queens] ''Queens Jewish Link'', 29 January 2025, accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="JMisc2021">Jeffrey Maynard, [https://jewishmiscellanies.com/2021/07/13/what-was-the-sassover-rebbe-reading-a-signed-volume-containing-three-books-bound-together-and-an-interesting-berlin-subscription-list/ What was the Sassover Rebbe reading? A signed volume containing three books bound together, and an interesting Berlin subscription list] ''Jewish Miscellanies'', 13 July 2021, accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="Matzav11Sivan">Matzav.com, [https://matzav.com/todays-yahrtzeits-history-11-sivan/ Today's Yahrtzeits & History – 11 Sivan] ''Matzav.com'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="CCSassov">Charity Commission for England and Wales, [https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/4005872/full-print Sassov Beis Hamedrash, charity 1102303: full print] ''register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="CH">Companies House, [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04978521 Sassov Beis Hamedrash, company 04978521] ''find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk'', accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
<ref name="ICJ2024">International Court of Justice, [https://www.icj-cij.org/node/204176 Summary of the Advisory Opinion of 19 July 2024] ''icj-cij.org'', 19 July 2024, accessed 26 October 2026.</ref>
 +
</references>
  
 
[[Category:Hasidic dynasties]]
 
[[Category:Hasidic dynasties]]
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[[Category:Orthodox Judaism in the United Kingdom]]
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[[Category:Hasidism]]
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[[Category:Hasidic Judaism in the United Kingdom]]
 
[[Category:Jewish charities in the United Kingdom]]
 
[[Category:Jewish charities in the United Kingdom]]
 
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Revision as of 23:47, 26 October 2026

Hasidic dynasty named after Sasiv (Sasów) in Galicia, now Ukraine; several separate lines use the Sassov title, in Israel, the United States and London

Hasidic dynasties
Overview

Hasidic dynasties | Haredi and Hasidic groups in the US | Chabad-Lubavitch movement

Dynasties

Belz | Biala | Bobov | Boyan | Breslov | Chabad-Lubavitch | Chernobyl | Dushinsky | Ger | Karlin-Stolin | Lelov | Munkacs | Nadvorna | Pupa | Rachmastrivka | Sadigura | Sanz-Klausenburg | Sassov | Satmar | Shomer Emunim | Skver | Slonim | Spinka | Toldos Aharon | Toldos Avraham Yitzchak | Tosh | Vizhnitz

Founders and early masters

Baal Shem Tov | Dov Ber of Mezeritch | Elimelech of Lizhensk | Shneur Zalman of Liadi | Nachman of Breslov | Moshe Leib of Sassov

Present-day rebbes

Aaron Teitelbaum | Zalman Teitelbaum | Yissachar Dov Rokeach | Yaakov Aryeh Alter | Yisroel Hager | Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam | David Twersky | Boruch Meir Yaakov Shochet

20th-century rebbes

Joel Teitelbaum | Aharon Rokeach | Menachem Mendel Schneerson

Politics and communal bodies

Agudat Yisrael | United Torah Judaism | Degel HaTorah | Edah HaChareidis | Neturei Karta | Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations

Places

Uman | Stamford Hill | Williamsburg, Brooklyn | Kiryas Joel, New York | Bnei Brak | Beitar Illit | Modi'in Illit

United Kingdom

Satmar institutions in the UK | Belz Communities | Satmar Kolel

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Sassov
Founded Sasiv (Sasów, Sasov), eastern Galicia, now Ukraine
Founder Moshe Leib of Sassov (Moshe Yehuda Leib Erblich, c. 1745–1807)
Leader Rebbe
Headquarters Several lines: Kiryat Yismach Moshe (Ganei Tikva, Israel); Monsey, New York; formerly London
Type Hasidic dynasty
Notes

Sassov (also Sasov or Sassow) is a Hasidic dynasty named after the town of Sasiv (Polish: Sasów) in eastern Galicia, now in Ukraine. Its first Rebbe was Moshe Leib of Sassov (c. 1745–1807).[1][2] The YIVO Encyclopedia says that Moshe Leib "left no Hasidic dynasty".[1] Several separate family lines have nevertheless used the Sassov title: his own Erblich descendants, now in Monsey, New York; a line appointed from the Belz family, whose Teitelbaum descendants lead courts in Israel and Monsey; and a Rubin line in London.[2][3][4]

In the UK the Sassov Beis Hamedrash is a registered charity in north-west London. Its trustees include Benzion Freshwater and Solomon Israel Freshwater.[5]

History

The town

Sasiv was founded in 1615. In 1726 Jacob Sobieski granted the town a privilege. Its Jewish population was 223 in 1764 and 1,906 (58 per cent of the town) in 1880. Jews there made candles and atarot (ornamental collars for prayer shawls), and the town was a world centre for their production. The Jewish population was 1,761 (52.1 per cent) in 1912 and 1,096 (35.4 per cent) in 1921.[6]

About 1,500 Jews lived in Sasiv at the start of the Second World War. German forces arrived on 2 July 1941. On 15 July 1942 an Aktion sent many of them to the Belzec death camp. The remaining 400 were sent to the Zloczow ghetto on 25 November 1942, and the local labour camp was liquidated in July 1943. The Jewish community was not re-established after the war.[6]

Moshe Leib of Sassov

Moshe Leib was born in Brody in about 1745. His teacher was Shmuel Shmelke Horowitz. He served in Apt (Opatów) and then settled in Sasov in the 1780s. He was known for his modesty, his love for his fellow Jews and his work to ransom captives, and was later a figure in the stories of I. L. Peretz and S. Y. Agnon. His teachings were published as Likute Ramal (1856) and Ḥidushe ha-Ramal (1921). He died in 1807. He had one son, Yekutiel Shmelke, and two daughters.[1]

Rebbes and succession

Lines using the Sassov title
Line Rebbe Base Notes
Erblich (descendants of the founder) Moshe Leib Erblich Sasiv Founder; died 1807.[1]
Yekutiel Shmuel Shmelke Erblich Sasiv Son of the founder.[1][2]
Yaakov Tzvi Erblich Porozovo Son of Shmelke; known as the Rebbe of Porozovo.[2]
Moshe Yehuda Leib Erblich Monsey, New York Son of Yaakov Tzvi, according to Myshtetl. A cantor in Israel, Great Britain and Canada who later settled in Monsey.[2]
Yaakov Tzvi Erblich Monsey, New York His son and successor.[2]
Belz appointment and Teitelbaum (Sassov–Keretzky) Shlomo of Sassov Sasiv Grandson of Sholom Rokeach, the Sar Shalom of Belz. His father was the first Rebbe of Olesko (Alesk). Died 1919.[2]
Lipa Meir Teitelbaum Kiryat Yismach Moshe, Ganei Tikva, Israel Great-grandson of Shlomo; founder of Kiryat Yismach Moshe; the "Sassov"-Keretzky Rebbe. In his first marriage he was a son-in-law of Joel Teitelbaum of Satmar. Died March 1966.[2]
Yosef Dovid Teitelbaum Kiryat Yismach Moshe Son of Lipa Meir and Rebbetzin Bluma. Son-in-law of Dovid Moshe of Kretchnif and a disciple of the previous Klausenburger Rebbe.[2][3]
Chanoch Henoch Teitelbaum Monsey, New York Brother of Yosef Dovid.[2][3]
Rubin (London) Chanoch Heinoch Dov Rubin London (from 1925) Died 1929.[4]
Simcha Rubin London (Whitechapel; Golders Green from 1942) 1910–2003.[4][7]

Myshtetl notes that, as a result, Monsey has two separate Sassov courts.[2] Myshtetl says that Shlomo, "although not from the lineage of the Sassover dynasty of Rebe Moshe Leib", took the title "Rebe of Sasov". The townspeople had asked the Sar Shalom of Belz whom to appoint after Moshe Leib's descendants had become rabbis in other towns.[2]

Factions

Israel

In January 2025 the Queens Jewish Link reported on a visit to Queens, New York, by Yosef Dovid Teitelbaum, the Sasover Rebbe of Kiryat Yismach Moshe. Rabbi Simantov Yanetz hosted the visit in Briarwood on 27 January. According to the report, the Rebbe's eldest son leads a Sassov kehillah (congregation) in Borough Park, Brooklyn, and his other sons lead communities in Betar (Beitar Illit), Bnei Brak and Jerusalem.[3]

Beitar Illit is an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank. In 2024 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found that Israel's settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem "have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law".[8]

UK

Chanoch Heinoch Dov Rubin, according to the historian Jeffrey Maynard the first Hasidic Rebbe to live in London between the wars, came to London in 1925. He set up a beis midrash (house of study and prayer) at 14 Fordham Street in the East End. He died in Westcliff in 1929, aged 40. Rabbi Shulman and the rebbes of Premishlan and Biala gave eulogies, and the Chief Rabbi, Joseph Hertz, attended the funeral.[4]

His son Simcha Rubin, born in Sassov in 1910, succeeded him. In 1930 he married Chava, daughter of Rabbi Dov Heschel of Lvov; 1,000 guests attended the wedding at the Portman Rooms. Matzav.com describes it as the first Hasidic dynastic marriage in England. In 1942 he set up the Sassover Beis Medrash on Helenslea Avenue, Golders Green. From 1957 the building was also home to Yeshivas Chayei Olam. During the war he helped refugees and orphans, and he later supervised kashrut in old people's homes. His second wife was Minna Weber. He died in 2003.[4][7]

Finances and charities

Sassov Beis Hamedrash

Sassov Beis Hamedrash is a charitable company (company 04978521), incorporated on 27 November 2003 and registered as charity 1102303 on 25 February 2004.[5][9] Its registered office is at New Burlington House, 1075 Finchley Road, London NW11 0PU, and its contact email is at Cohen Arnold. It operates throughout London, owns or leases land, and had one employee and seven trustees in 2024–25.[5]

Its objects are:[5]

  • to advance the Orthodox Jewish religion and education;
  • "to maintain and develop the synagogue known as Sassov Beis Hamerdrash" (sic);
  • to relieve poverty among Jewish people throughout the world.

The register does not give the synagogue's address.[5]

Sassov Beis Hamedrash: income and spending (financial years ending 30 June; earlier years rounded by the register)
Year Income Spending
2021 £176.09k £165.36k
2022 £228.55k £210.31k
2023 £405.04k £236.26k
2024 £257.97k £253.15k
2025 £741,762 £275,281

In 2024–25, £659,800 of its income came from donations and £81,970 from investments. It spent £26,750 on raising funds and £248,530 on charitable activities.[5]

Sassov Beis Hamedrash trustees (Charity Commission register, October 2026)
Trustee Appointed Trustee of other charities
Benzion Schalom Eliezer Freshwater – Parsha Ltd; Beth Jacob Grammar School for Girls; Mayfair Charities Limited; The Raphael Freshwater Memorial Association; Service to the Aged; Regent Charities; The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
Solomon Israel Freshwater – Zichron Chaim; Service to the Aged; Mayfair Charities; The Raphael Freshwater Memorial Association; TOL Charity
Graham Shurek Morris – The Morris Charitable Trust; Schreiber Charitable Trust; Friends of Nahalat Moshe; Investream Charitable Trust; TMAVA CIO
Luzer Rokach 24 September 2012 The Grove Manor Charitable Trust; Helenslea Tzedoko Ltd
Moshe Broner 6 June 2012 Friends of Ohel Yizchak Umiriam; Rabbi Shohel Cohen Memorial Fund; Toled Foundation; Shellix Co Ltd
Robert Vorhand 7 May 2025 Beth Jacob Foundation; North West London Chevra Kadisha
Israel Rubin 7 May 2025 None on record

Source: Charity Commission register.[5]

See also

External links

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Gad Sagiv, Mosheh Leib of Sasov YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe, accessed 26 October 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 My Shtetl, Jewish Sasiv myshtetl.org, accessed 26 October 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Shabsie Saphirstein, Sasov Rebbe From Israel Visits Queens Queens Jewish Link, 29 January 2025, accessed 26 October 2026.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Jeffrey Maynard, What was the Sassover Rebbe reading? A signed volume containing three books bound together, and an interesting Berlin subscription list Jewish Miscellanies, 13 July 2021, accessed 26 October 2026.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Charity Commission for England and Wales, Sassov Beis Hamedrash, charity 1102303: full print register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk, accessed 26 October 2026.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Encyclopaedia Judaica, Sasov Jewish Virtual Library, accessed 26 October 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Matzav.com, Today's Yahrtzeits & History – 11 Sivan Matzav.com, accessed 26 October 2026.
  8. ↑ International Court of Justice, Summary of the Advisory Opinion of 19 July 2024 icj-cij.org, 19 July 2024, accessed 26 October 2026.
  9. ↑ Companies House, Sassov Beis Hamedrash, company 04978521 find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk, accessed 26 October 2026.
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