Boyan (Hasidic dynasty)
Branch of the Ruzhin Hasidic dynasty, founded at Boiany in Bukovina in 1886 and now led from Jerusalem
| Boyan | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1886 Boiany, Bukovina |
| Founder | Yitzchak Friedman (1849–1917) |
| Leader | Rebbe Nachum Dov Brayer (since 1984) |
| Headquarters | Jerusalem |
| Type | Hasidic dynasty |
| Notes | |
Boyan, also called Boyan-Ruzhin, is a Hasidic dynasty descended from Yisrael Friedman of Ruzhin. It takes its name from Boiany in Austrian Bukovina, where Yitzchak Friedman set up a court in 1886. The YIVO Encyclopedia names Boyan-Ruzhin in Jerusalem and Sadagora in Bnei Brak as the only active branches of the Ruzhin dynasty today.[1]
After the death of Rebbe Mordechai Shlomo Friedman in 1971 the group had no rebbe for nearly 14 years, until his grandson Nachum Dov Brayer was installed in 1984. Mishpacha reported in 2013 that Boyan had about 2,000 families, including about 700 in Borough Park and Monsey and hundreds in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit, and that it banned unfiltered internet use among its members.[3] Most of the associations bearing the Boyan name in Israel's register are based in the settlements of Beitar Illit and Modi'in Illit.[2]
History
Ruzhin origins
YIVO describes the Ruzhin dynasty as founded by the Friedman family, with several dozen rebbes. Its founder, Yisrael Friedman (1796–1850), was a great-grandson of Dov Ber, the Maggid of Mezeritch, and led his court in Ruzhin in Kiev province in a "regal way". He fled Russia in 1842 and settled in Sadagora in Austrian Bukovina, and his sons founded courts in Sadagora, Chortkiv, Husiatyn, Ştefăneşti and elsewhere.[1]
His son Avraham Yaakov (1819–1883) led the Sadagora court. YIVO says he headed the Volhynia kolel and raised funds for the Tiferet Yisrael Synagogue in Jerusalem, named after his father. His elder son, Yitzchak (1849–1917), set up his own court in Boiany in 1886, while his younger son Yisrael (1852–1906) succeeded him in Sadagora.[1]
Boyan in the 20th century
YIVO says many of the dynasty's leaders moved to Vienna during the First World War, and that many of them favoured Ḥibat Tsiyon.[1] Mishpacha describes Yitzchak, author of Pachad Yitzchak, as the founder of Boyan and the father of Mordechai Shlomo Friedman, who moved his court to the Lower East Side of Manhattan 13 years before the Second World War.[3] Matzav.com says Mordechai Shlomo was 26 when he became rebbe.[4]
Vacancy and the installation of Nachum Dov Brayer
According to Mishpacha, Mordechai Shlomo died in Adar 5731 (1971). Neither of his two sons would become rebbe, and his son-in-law, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Brayer, also refused. The Gerrer Rebbe, Yisrael Alter, said Brayer's son would become the Boyaner Rebbe. On the Shabbat of Hanukkah 5745 (December 1984), after nearly 14 years without a rebbe, Nachum Dov Brayer was installed as rebbe. Mishpacha says he had been persuaded by the Gerrer and Lubavitcher rebbes and by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein. Until then the Bohusher Rebbe had received petitions (kvitlach) from Boyan Hasidim.[3] Matzav.com says Brayer was 20 when he was installed.[4]
Before moving to Israel Brayer studied at Yeshivas Chasam Sofer in Borough Park. In Sivan 5740 (1980) he married a daughter of Rabbi Zyshe Heschel, an executive of the Orthodox Union and a brother of Rabbi Moshe Heschel of Kopycznitz; the Vizhnitzer Rebbe conducted the ceremony.[3]
Community and institutions
Mishpacha reported in 2013 that Boyan had about 2,000 families, including about 700 in Borough Park and Monsey and a few hundred in London and Antwerp. Hundreds of families lived in Beitar Illit, which had five Boyan kloizen (prayer houses) and which "some say" was the group's real stronghold. The main building, on Malchei Yisrael Street in the Geula neighbourhood of Jerusalem, housed a yeshiva of about 400 students. There were junior yeshivas in Jerusalem (about 150 students) and Beitar Illit (about 200), and a talmud torah, a junior yeshiva and a large kloiz were being built in Borough Park. The girls' schools are called Beis Chava.[3]
The same report said thousands of Boyan Hasidim had signed a pledge not to use the internet or iPhones as a condition of membership, with filtered internet allowed only after review by a committee. In Boyan housing projects about 30% of homes were to be sold to people outside the group.[3] Israel's register lists a housing committee of Boyan Hasidim, registered in 2024.[2]
Military service
Writing in The Jerusalem Post in November 2023, Levi Cooper of the Pardes Institute said that "as a rule, Boyan Hassidim … do not serve in the IDF", but that the group is relatively open and some Zionist Boyan Hasidim do serve. On Rosh Hodesh Heshvan (15–16 October 2023), during the war with Hamas, Brayer sent a prayer book, Tehinot Et Ratzon, with a Hebrew letter to Hasidim whose children or spouses were serving. Cooper notes that the letter did not mention the state, the IDF or the word "soldier", and that the group's weekly email did not mention it.[5]
Selected leaders
| Leader | Dates | Base | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yisrael Friedman of Ruzhin | 1796–1850 | Ruzhin, then Sadagora | Founder of the Ruzhin dynasty[1] |
| Avraham Yaakov Friedman | 1819–1883 | Sadagora | Son of Yisrael; father of Yitzchak[1] |
| Yitzchak Friedman | 1849–1917 | Boiany | Set up the Boyan court in 1886; author of Pachad Yitzchak[1][3] |
| Mordechai Shlomo Friedman | died 1971 | Lower East Side, New York | Son of Yitzchak[3] |
| Nachum Dov Brayer | rebbe from 1984 | Jerusalem | Grandson of Mordechai Shlomo[3] |
Institutions in Israel
Israel's register of associations lists the following active associations with Boyan in their names. Eleven more with the name have been struck off and are left out, as are two whose stated objects, but not names, mention Boyan.[2][6]
| Association | Number | Registered | Address | Income (latest report) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beit HaKnesset Beit Avraham VeOhel Yaakov DeChasidei Boyan, Tiberias (בית הכנסת בית-אברהם ואהל-יעקב דחסידי באיאן בעיה"ק טבריא) | 580015642 | 21 August 1987 | 3 David Yellin Street, Jerusalem | – |
| Merkaz Kehillat Chasidei Boyan BaIr Beitar (מרכז קהילת חסידי באיאן בעיר ביתר) | 580187839 | 14 July 1991 | 2 HaAdmor MiRuzhin Street, Beitar Illit | ₪123,829 |
| Mosdot Boyan Bnei Brak (מוסדות באיאן בני ברק) | 580193993 | 3 September 1991 | 3 HaRav Rabinov Street, Bnei Brak | ₪1,568,444 (2024) |
| Beit HaSefer LeBanot DeChasidei Boyan-Ruzhin Yerushalayim (ביה"ס לבנות דחסידי באיאן-רוזין ירושלים) | 580230118 | 25 July 1993 | 4 Avigdori Street, Jerusalem | ₪4,406,989 (2024) |
| Talmud Torah VeGanim LeYaldei Boyan BeBeitar Illit (תלמוד תורה וגנים לילדי באיאן בביתר עילית) | 580460343 | 17 May 2006 | 26 HaAdmor MiRuzhin Street, Beitar Illit | ₪10,226,877 (2025) |
| Mosdot Kehillat Boyan Modi'in Illit VeKiryat Gat (מוסדות קהילת באיאן מודיעין עילית וקרית גת) | 580563500 | 20 September 2012 | 8 Ba'al Shem Tov Street, Modi'in Illit | ₪13,221,723 (2024) |
| Mif'al Torah VaChesed SheAl Yedei Chasidei Boyan Beitar Illit (מפעל תורה וחסד שע"י חסידי באיאן ביתר עילית) | 580584159 | 3 February 2014 | 19 Aharon Fishel Street, Jerusalem | ₪2,235,295 (2024) |
| Ya'azoru Boyan (יעזורו באיאן) | 580591048 | 11 September 2014 | 29 Rabbi Akiva Street, Beitar Illit | ₪25,950,236 (2024) |
| Mekor HaChesed SheAl Yedei Chasidei Boyan BeEretz HaKodesh (מקור החסד שע"י חסידי באיאן בארה"ק) | 580629707 | 24 November 2016 | 18/5 Rabbi Akiva Street, Beitar Illit | ₪94,000 (2023) |
| Ezer Nisu'in DeChasidei Boyan (עזר נישואין דחסידי באיאן) | 580658235 | 22 March 2018 | 5 HaNatziv Street, Jerusalem | ₪114,818 (2023) |
| HaMerkaz HaOlami Ruzhin Boyan – Beit Chayeinu (המרכז העולמי רוז'ין באיאן - בית חיינו) | 580709426 | 12 October 2020 | 22 Nahar HaYarden Street, Beit Shemesh | ₪385,300 (2022) |
| Amudei Bracha VaChesed – Boyan (עמודי ברכה וחסד - באיאן) | 580714822 | 29 December 2020 | 8 Yismach Yisrael Street, Beitar Illit | ₪9,339,574 (2025) |
| Shtilim Tze'irei Bachurei Boyan (שתילים צעירי בחורי באיאן) | 580718021 | 10 February 2021 | 11 Chayei Yitzchak Street, Beitar Illit | ₪21,600 |
| Yeshivat Ruzhin-Boyan Mesivta Tiferet Yisrael – Modi'in Illit – Elad (ישיבת רוזין-באיאן מתיבתא תפארת ישראל-מודיעין עילית-אלעד) | 580720324 | 25 March 2021 | 2 HaRav MiPonevezh Boulevard, Modi'in Illit | ₪7,553,491 (2025) |
| Merkaz HaChasidut Boyan (מרכז החסידות באיאן) | 580735652 | 20 January 2022 | 3 Yochanan ben Zakai Street, Beitar Illit | ₪5,551,790 (2025) |
| Kehillat Chasidei Boyan Modi'in Illit (קהילת חסידי באיאן מודיעין עילית) | 580757367 | 15 December 2022 | 23 Ba'al Shem Tov Street, Modi'in Illit | ₪30,000 |
| Mosdot Boyan Rama Dalet Beit Shemesh (מוסדות באיאן רמה ד' בית שמש) | 580764413 | 27 March 2023 | 6 Mar Ukva Street, Beit Shemesh | ₪147,789 |
| Tomchei Torah Yeshivat Boyan (תומכי תורה ישיבת באיאן) | 580768885 | 14 June 2023 | 18 Rabbi Akiva Street, Beitar Illit | ₪1,625,713 (2024) |
| HaMerkaz LeEzra LeChasidei Boyan BaAretz UVaChul (המרכז לעזרה לחסידי באיאן בארץ ובחו"ל) | 580780005 | 6 December 2023 | 29 Rabbi Akiva Street, Beitar Illit | ₪36,720 |
| Orach LaTzaddik Boyan (אורח לצדיק באיאן) | 580781391 | 25 December 2023 | 18 Yismach Yisrael Street, Beitar Illit | – |
| Yad Lachma Anya – Kollel Boyan (יד לחמא עניא - כולל באיאן) | 580782027 | 3 January 2024 | 35 HaChozeh MiLublin Street, Beitar Illit | ₪928,068 (2025) |
| HaKloiz HaGadol DeChasidei Boyan (הקלויז הגדול דחסידי באיאן) | 580785103 | 14 February 2024 | 37 HaRav Yaakov Mutzafi Street, Beitar Illit | – |
| Yeshivat Boyan "Tiferet Eliezer" Elad (ישיבת באיאן "תפארת אליעזר" אלעד) | 580786721 | 5 March 2024 | 7 HaRan Street, Beitar Illit | ₪406,729 |
| Va'adat HaDiyur DeChasidei Boyan BeEretz HaKodesh (ועדת הדיור דחסידי באיאן בארה"ק) | 580796381 | 29 July 2024 | 17 Nachum Hefetzadi Street, Jerusalem | – |
| Nachalat Yisrael Boyan – Achim LeSimcha (נחלת ישראל באיאן - אחים לשמחה) | 580802239 | 28 October 2024 | 45 Kedushat Levi Street, Beitar Illit | ₪37,987 |
| Kehillat Boyan Chayei Yitzchak – Beitar (קהילת באיאן חיי יצחק - ביתר) | 580825651 | 17 September 2025 | 9 HaMaggid MiMezritch Street, Beitar Illit | ₪38,305 (2025) |
| Association | Number | Registered | Address | Income (latest report) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tiferet Yisrael BeMasoret Boyan (תפארת ישראל במסורת בויאן) | 580623189 | 14 February 2016 | 17 Bnei Brit Street, Jerusalem | ₪1,827,239 (2024) |
Eighteen of these 27 associations are registered in West Bank settlements: 15 in Beitar Illit and three in Modi'in Illit.[2] The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ) says Beitar Illit was set up in 1985 on Palestinian-owned land from Husan (3,430 dunums), Nahhalin (688 dunums) and Wadi Fukin (567 dunums).[7] ARIJ says Modi'in Illit was established in 1990 on land from the Palestinian villages of Ni'lin, Deir Qiddis, Bil'in, Al Midya and Kharbatha al-Misbah, 5,656 dunums in all, and that Israel declared it a city in 2008.[8] In its advisory opinion of 19 July 2024 the International Court of Justice found that Israel's transfer of settlers to the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and its maintenance of their presence there, is contrary to the sixth paragraph of article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.[9]
United States
The IRS Business Master File for New York lists these tax-exempt organisations with Boyan or Ruzhin in their names. Organisations that only have an address on Ruzhin Road in Monroe are left out.[10]
| Organisation | EIN | Address on IRS file | IRS ruling | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Congregation Boyaner Kloiz Tifereth Mordechai Shlomo | 23-7216374 | 1320 45th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | August 1972 | Church[10] |
| Chevras Tzirim Yad Efraim Ostrowce of Boyan Inc | 11-3015366 | 260 Marcy Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211 | June 1990 | Church[10] |
| Gomlei Chesed of Boyan | 11-3137704 | 3054 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210 | April 1993 | Church[10] |
| Congregation Zichron Mordechai Shlomo | 13-3751249 | 441–451 West End Avenue, New York, NY 10024 | April 1995 | Church; sort name "Cong Boyan of the West Side"[10] |
| Mosdos Boyan | 11-3450215 | 1205 44th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | September 1998 | Church[10] |
| Yeshivas Boyan Tiferes Mordechai Schlomo | 11-3450353 | 1205 44th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | October 1998 | Church[10] |
| Congregation Gomlei Chesed Chasdeiyosef Elizer of Boyan | 75-2992950 | 1 Stetner Street, Spring Valley, NY 10977 | March 2002 | Church; sort name "Project O&R"[10] |
| Congregation Machane Boyan Aishel Avrohom | 33-1004276 | Hurleyville Road, Loch Sheldrake, NY 12759 | June 2002 | Church[10] |
| Congregation East Side Rebbis Kloiz Chevrah Bnei Yitzchak Boyan Inc | 82-5337082 | 247 East Broadway, New York, NY 10002 | March 2010 | Church[10] |
| Kupas Maos Eretz Yisroel Meir Baal Hanes Rizhin Boyan Inc | 46-0929080 | 1045 54th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | February 2014 | Public charity[10] |
| Khal Boyan of Monsey | 47-5276086 | 230 Viola Road, Monsey, NY 10952 | November 2016 | Church[10] |
| Congregation Kloiz Boyan | 86-1390889 | 1414 56th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | May 2021 | Church[10] |
| Cong Yazorey of Boyan | 87-2451077 | 4118 14th Avenue, Suite 171, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | June 2022 | Church[10] |
| Boyan Toddlers Inc | 99-1467819 | 4315 12th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | September 2024 | Church[10] |
| Mesivta Tifereth Israel of Rizhin Jerusalem Inc | 13-2682612 | 247 East Broadway, New York, NY 10002 | May 2025 | Church[10] |
| Cong Boyan Merkaz Haolumi | 42-2572908 | 4118 14th Avenue, Suite 171, Brooklyn, NY 11219 | May 2026 | Church[10] |
None of these organisations appears on the IRS list of automatic revocations of tax exemption.[11]
United Kingdom
Friends of Boyan Trust (registered charity 1114498, registered 1 June 2006) is based at 23 Durley Road, London N16 5JW, in Stamford Hill. The register describes its activities as "the advancement of the orthodox Jewish faith, orthodox Jewish religious education, and the relief of poverty in the orthodox Jewish community". Its trustees are Jacob Getter, Mordechai Freund and Nathan Kuflik. In the year to 31 December 2024 its income, all from donations and legacies, was £974,237 and its spending £897,784.[12]
See also
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 David Assaf, translated by David Louvish, Ruzhin Hasidic Dynasty YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Registrar of Associations, Israeli Ministry of Justice, Register of associations and public benefit companies: search "באיאן" data.gov.il, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Aryeh Ehrlich, Majesty and Mystery in Boyan Mishpacha, 20 March 2013, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Matzav.com Israel News Bureau, 24-Year-Old Son of Sadigura Rebbe Named as His Successor Matzav.com, 18 August 2020, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Levi Cooper, A hassidic grand rabbi's voice of support of the IDF amid war with Hamas The Jerusalem Post, 4 November 2023, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Registrar of Associations, Israeli Ministry of Justice, Register of associations and public benefit companies: search "בויאן" data.gov.il, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem, "Expanding the settlement of Betar Illit" Warmly welcoming to the US Mideast special envoy G. Mitchell POICA, 9 March 2010, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem, While debating about settlements; "Israel declared the settlement of Modi'in 'Illit as the third Jewish city in the occupied West Bank" POICA, 5 May 2008, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ International Court of Justice, Summary of the Advisory Opinion of 19 July 2024 icj-cij.org, 19 July 2024, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13 10.14 10.15 10.16 Internal Revenue Service, Exempt Organizations Business Master File Extract: New York irs.gov, 13 October 2026, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, Automatic Revocation of Exemption List (data download) irs.gov, accessed 27 October 2026.
- ↑ Charity Commission for England and Wales, Friends of Boyan Trust (1114498): full print Register of Charities, accessed 27 October 2026.