Meir Atlas
Encyclopedia
Meir Atlas was the rabbi of numerous communities in pre-World War II Europe and one of the founders of the Telz Yeshiva. He was an outstanding halachic authority
who authored many responsa and was one of the foremost Lithuania
n rabbis of his time.
. In 1875, together with Rabbi Zvi Yaakov Oppenheim
, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Abel
and the help of a German Jewish layman, Ovadyah Lachman, Atlas founded the Telz Yeshiva in Telz
, Poland. He later served as rabbi and spiritual leader in a number of cities, including Libau
in Latvia
, Salant
in Lithuania
, and Kobryn
in Belarus
. In 1904, Rabbi Atlas was appointed rabbi to the community of Shavel
.
Meir's brother was Rabbi Eliezer Atlas. His sons-in-law included Rabbi Elchonon Wasserman
, Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski
and Rabbi Yehudel Kahana Shapiro, the son of Rabbi Zalman Sender Kahana Shapiro. His son was Professor Shmuel Atlas of the Hebrew Union College
. Rabbi Meir died in 1926.
Posek
Posek is the term in Jewish law for "decider"—a legal scholar who decides the Halakha in cases of law where previous authorities are inconclusive or in those situations where no halakhic precedent exists....
who authored many responsa and was one of the foremost Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
n rabbis of his time.
Biography
Rabbi Meir Atlas was born in 1848 in Baisagola, LithuaniaLithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
. In 1875, together with Rabbi Zvi Yaakov Oppenheim
Zvi Yaakov Oppenheim
Zvi Yaakov Oppenheim was Chief Rabbi of Kelm, Lithuania, and one of the founders of the Telz Yeshiva.Rabbi Oppenheim was born in 1854 in the small village of Yakubowe . He showed extraordinary talents from his earliest youth and at age nine could already study a page of Talmud with commentaries on...
, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Abel
Shlomo Zalman Abel
Shlomo Zalman Halevi Abel was one of the founders of the Telz Yeshiva and author of Beis Shlomo.Abel was born on Wednesday March 11, 1857 at Novomyesto-Sugint in Lithuania....
and the help of a German Jewish layman, Ovadyah Lachman, Atlas founded the Telz Yeshiva in Telz
Telz
*Telz can refer to the town of Telšiai, in Lithuania.*Telz is also used as the abbreviated name for:**Telshe yeshiva originally in Lithuania that was transplanted to Cleveland, Ohio....
, Poland. He later served as rabbi and spiritual leader in a number of cities, including Libau
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
, Salant
Salantai
Salantai is a small city in Lithuania. It is located in the Klaipėda County, Kretinga district.-History:This town is known for two famed rabbis: Rabbi Yisrael Lipkin Salanter and his teacher Rabbi Zundel Salant, who spent most of his life in Salantai....
in Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, and Kobryn
Kobryn
Kobryn or Kobrin is a city in the Brest voblast of Belarus and the center of the Kobryn Raion. The city is located in the southwestern corner of Belarus where the Mukhavets River and Dnepr-Bug Canal meet. The city lies about 52 km east of the city of Brest. Kobryn is located at Latitude...
in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
. In 1904, Rabbi Atlas was appointed rabbi to the community of Shavel
Šiauliai
Šiauliai , is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 133,900. It is the capital of Šiauliai County. Unofficially, the city is the capital of Northern Lithuania.-Names:...
.
Meir's brother was Rabbi Eliezer Atlas. His sons-in-law included Rabbi Elchonon Wasserman
Elchonon Wasserman
Elchonon Wasserman was a prominent rabbi and rosh yeshiva in pre-World War II Europe. He was one of the Chofetz Chaim's closest disciples and a noted Torah scholar.-Biography:...
, Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski
Chaim Ozer Grodzinski
Chaim Ozer Grodzinski was a pre-eminent Av beis din , posek , and Talmudic scholar in Vilnius, Lithuania in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
and Rabbi Yehudel Kahana Shapiro, the son of Rabbi Zalman Sender Kahana Shapiro. His son was Professor Shmuel Atlas of the Hebrew Union College
Hebrew Union College
The Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the oldest extant Jewish seminary in the Americas and the main seminary for training rabbis, cantors, educators and communal workers in Reform Judaism.HUC-JIR has campuses in Cincinnati, New York, Los Angeles and Jerusalem.The Jerusalem...
. Rabbi Meir died in 1926.