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Gedaliah Aharon Koenig

 

 
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Gedaliah Aharon Koenig
 
 
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Rabbi Gedaliah Aharon Koenig (1921–1980), a respected Breslover
Breslov (Hasidic dynasty)

Breslov is a branch of Hasidic Judaism founded by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov a great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism. Its adherents strive to develop an intense, joyous relationship with Names of God in Judaism and receive guidance toward this goal from the teachings of Rebbe Nachman....
 Hasid
Hasidic Judaism

Hasidic Judaism is a type of Orthodox Judaism or Haredi Judaism Orthodox Judaism religious movement. Some refer to Hasidic Judaism as Hasidism, and the adjective chasidic / hasidic applies....
 in Jerusalem
Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and its List of Israeli cities in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if Positions on Jerusalem East Jerusalem is included....
, Israel, was the driving force behind the establishment of the Breslover community in Safed
Safed

Safed is a city in the North District of Israel of Israel and a center for Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. At an elevation of 800 meters above sea level, Safed is the highest city in the Galilee....
, which is now led by his son, Rabbi Elazar Mordechai Koenig
Elazar Mordechai Koenig

Rabbi Elazar Mordechai Koenig is the spiritual leader of the Breslov Hasidic Judaism community in Safed, Israel....
.

in the Old City of Jerusalem, Koenig was originally a Lubavitcher
Chabad

*Chabad is an acronym for Chochmah, Binah, and Da'at, the three levels of Sefirot related to cognition according to the Kabbalah.*Chabad-Strashelye, Strashelye is a branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism....
 Hasid. He was drawn to Breslov by Rabbi Abraham Sternhartz
Abraham Sternhartz

Abraham Sternhartz , also known as Avraham Shternhartz, was an Orthodox Judaism rabbi in Ukraine and a unique and unsurpassed figure in the chain of transmission of Breslov teachings from the early generations of the movement to the latter ones....
, a key figure in the chain of transmission of Breslover teachings from the early generations of the movement to the later ones.






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Rabbi Gedaliah Aharon Koenig (1921–1980), a respected Breslover
Breslov (Hasidic dynasty)

Breslov is a branch of Hasidic Judaism founded by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov a great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism. Its adherents strive to develop an intense, joyous relationship with Names of God in Judaism and receive guidance toward this goal from the teachings of Rebbe Nachman....
 Hasid
Hasidic Judaism

Hasidic Judaism is a type of Orthodox Judaism or Haredi Judaism Orthodox Judaism religious movement. Some refer to Hasidic Judaism as Hasidism, and the adjective chasidic / hasidic applies....
 in Jerusalem
Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and its List of Israeli cities in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if Positions on Jerusalem East Jerusalem is included....
, Israel, was the driving force behind the establishment of the Breslover community in Safed
Safed

Safed is a city in the North District of Israel of Israel and a center for Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. At an elevation of 800 meters above sea level, Safed is the highest city in the Galilee....
, which is now led by his son, Rabbi Elazar Mordechai Koenig
Elazar Mordechai Koenig

Rabbi Elazar Mordechai Koenig is the spiritual leader of the Breslov Hasidic Judaism community in Safed, Israel....
.

Biography

Born in the Old City of Jerusalem, Koenig was originally a Lubavitcher
Chabad

*Chabad is an acronym for Chochmah, Binah, and Da'at, the three levels of Sefirot related to cognition according to the Kabbalah.*Chabad-Strashelye, Strashelye is a branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism....
 Hasid. He was drawn to Breslov by Rabbi Abraham Sternhartz
Abraham Sternhartz

Abraham Sternhartz , also known as Avraham Shternhartz, was an Orthodox Judaism rabbi in Ukraine and a unique and unsurpassed figure in the chain of transmission of Breslov teachings from the early generations of the movement to the latter ones....
, a key figure in the chain of transmission of Breslover teachings from the early generations of the movement to the later ones. Sternhartz was the great-grandson of Reb Noson Sternhartz
Nathan of Breslov

Nathan of Breslov , also known as Reb Noson, was the chief disciple and scribe of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, founder of the Breslov . Reb Noson is credited with preserving, promoting and expanding the Breslov movement after the Rebbe's death....
, who was the leading disciple of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov
Nachman of Breslov

Nachman of Breslov , also known as Reb Nachman of Bratslav, Reb Nachman Breslover , Nachman from Uman , was the founder of the Breslov ....
. He immigrated from Uman, Ukraine to Jerusalem in 1936 and taught many students, producing Breslover leaders for coming generations. Koenig became one of Sternhartz's leading disciples.

Koenig married Esther Yehudit, the daughter of Rabbi Dovid Moshe Ehrentrau of Jerusalem.

When the Jews of the Old City were expelled by Jordanian
Arab Legion

The Arab Legion was the regular army of Transjordan and then Jordan in the early part of the 20th Century....
 forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War

The 1948 Arab-Israeli War, known by the Israelis predominantly as War of Independence and War of Liberation , and by Palestinians as the Catastrophe , was the first in a series of wars fought between the Declaration of Independence State of Israel and its Arab neighbours in the long-running Arab-Israeli conflict....
, Koenig followed Sternhartz to the neighborhood of Katamon. He eventually made his home in Meah Shearim.

It was Sternhartz who entrusted Koenig with the mission of establishing a Breslover community in Safed. Koenig gave his life for this cause, raising funds and working to establish this Torah center in 1967.

Other work

In addition to his work on behalf of the Breslover community in Safed, Koenig was renowned for his encyclopedic knowledge of Breslover Hasidut and Kabbalah
Kabbalah

Kabbalah is a discipline and school of thought discussing the mysticism aspect of Judaism. It is a set of esoteric teachings that are meant to explain the relationship between an infinite, eternal and essentially unknowable Creator deity with the finite and mortal universe of His creation....
. He wrote Chayei Nefesh, a book explaining the meaning of binding oneself to the tzaddik
Tzadik

Tzadik is a title which is generally given to those who are considered to be righteous such as a spiritual master or rebbe. The root of the word tzadik, is tzedek , which means justice or righteousness....
 (in response to Nefesh HaChaim by Rabbi Chaim Volozhin
Chaim Volozhin

Rabbi Chaim Ben Yitzchok or Chaim Volozhin was an Orthodox Judaism rabbi, Talmudist, and ethicist. Popularly known as Reb Chaim Volozhiner, or simply Reb Chaim, he was born in Valo?yn when it was a part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and died there while it was under the control of the Russian Empire....
), and left many unpublished manuscripts filled with his chiddushim (new Torah
Torah

The term "Torah" , or Five Books of Moses or Pentateuch, refers to the entirety of Judaism's founding Halakha and ethical religious texts....
 thoughts) on Likutey Moharan, Rebbe Nachman's major work.

Koenig's one-room home in Meah Shearim was always open. He was known for his ability to connect with any Jew
Judaism

Judaism is a set of beliefs and practices originating in the Hebrew Bible , as later further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts....
, no matter his age or background, and gave practical advice to all who sought it.

Koenig died in Manchester, England on 23 Tammuz
Tammuz (month)

Tammuz is the tenth month of the civil year and the fourth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar. It is a summer month of 29 days....
 1980, while working on behalf of the Breslover community in Safed. His widow
Widow

A widow is a woman whose husband has died. A man whose wife has died is a widower. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood or viduity....
, Esther Yehudit, died on Shavuot
Shavuot

is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan . Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day Names of God in Judaism#In English gave the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai....
 day, 9 June 2008.