Rabbis of Bialowieza

The first Rabbi traced in the sources was Jacob Mejer Halperin. He was mentioned in Memorial Book of Sokółka , where he is mentioned as a father in law of Rabbi from Zabludów - Jossele. The text clearly states, that Jacob Mejer Halperin was a Rabbi in Bialowieża (Grodno Governorate), and in Voranawa (then Vilna now Grodno Governorate) during the times when Jossele was a Rabbi in Sokółka - before 1856 [1]. In the Encyclopedia of Jewish Communities in Poland, Jacob Halperin is described as the successor of Rabbi Mejer - the head of Qahal in Jałówka in the beginning of XIX century, with a comment, that he later moved to Voranava [2]. Very often the smaller Jewish communities had Rabbis which were commuting from other villages and cities. In this way, one person could serve as a Rabbi for several communities at once or sequentially. We find name Halperin in the sources from XIXth and XXth centuries, which suggest, that Jakob Meyer might have lived in Bialowieza long enough for his family (sibling, or his own children) to settle. Because we know that the Halperin/Galperin/Galpern family lived in Bialowieza before the Second World War - brother Abraham and sister Cila died with their parents during the Holocaust [3], Yaffa (Szejna) Halperin Kartzinel, their sister survived in the emigration in Izrael, so as their brother Lazar Halperin survived in Russia. Unfortunately children of the mentioned above do not have any knowledge about the Rabbi Halperin [4].



Rabbin Kopel Kahana - copyright Michael Wallach (in the collection of NPG London)

We know a little more about the second Rabbi from Bialowieza, but the sources are not always coherent with each other. Rabbi Kahana Koppel, who signed documents as Rabbi K. Kagan was a Jewish, Roman and English law scholar [5]. He was born in 1895 in Ejszyszki or Kupiszki (both are today in Lithuania) he studied in Yeshivas in Lithuania and was serving as a Rabbi in Bialowieza and Rużany (Grodno Governorate). He moved to London in the 30s as reported by The Palgrave Dictionary of Anglo-Jewish History [7] or before the war as Rabbi Raymond Apple says [6] to study law at the Cambridge University, that is why he survived the War.

As we know from the Yad Vashem Archives, his wife Sosza (Sarah) stayed and died in Bialowieza, during the Holocaust, she came from Kobrin, from the Szmojsz family. Her father Michael Szmojsz was a well-known Rabbi in Kobrin, also her uncle and brother were Rabbis, her sister just like her was a Rabbi's wife. In "The Book of the memory of Kobryn", in the chapter about Rabbi Michael Szmojsz we read the note about his son in law - Rabbi Koppel Kahana is the famous scholar, graduate of Beit Ichak Yeshiva, the head of Bejt din in "Yalovitch" [9, 10], however we couldn't find this city in any sources. But if the letter B was the first in the name of the mentioned place, it could give - Bialovitch (Białowieża), however the place "Yalovitch" no where could be found. In the British Archives, we have found the certificate of Naturalisation of a Rabbi and a Lecturer - Kopel Kahan Kagan. It seems highly improbable, that the scholar with the same double-name emigrated to the United Kingdom at the same time. We may assume that it concerns the same Rabbi, however part of sources does not support the above-mentioned facts. The document states the birth date - May 15, 1882, not 1885, Polish nationality and the stated birthplace is Kiszyski, not Ejszyszki (Eišiškės) [11]. We failed to establish the existence of the village of that name. In the document, we also see a different name of his wife - Ada, not Sosza, but the document was written in 1949, so there is a chance that they have married one more time. The document also states the names of his parents: Leah and Judel. Jenny Martin, a relative of the Rabbi, who lives in Cape Town in South Africa reports the same names of the Rabbi parents, but the place of birth is different again - Kupiszki (In Yiddish - Kupishok, in Lithuanian - Kupiškis, today Lithuania) There is a large group of descendants of Jews from Kupiszki in Cape Town in South Africa, who were emigrating here from the end of XIXth century [14]. The family from Cape Town reports, that maiden name of Lea - Rabbi's Koppel Kahan mother - was Kagan. It could explain the double-name of the Rabbi - Kahan/Kagan. Lea and Judel Kahana had two more daughters - Nechama Kahan, Raja Witz and a son David Falke Kahan. There is no record about the ancestors of Rabbi's father - Judel, but the genealogy of Rabbi's mother goes many generations [12]. Jenny Marin, remember that her grandmother recalled the visit of Rabbi Koppel Kahan in Cape Town, who came there to collect money to support the community in Kupiszki. Jenny Martin had no knowledge about the fate of the Rabbi, nor about his stay in the United Kingdom. This may mean that Koppel had come to collect the money from the community Kupiszki in Africa from Poland, it is not known whether the Bialowieza, or from another location, where he studied at the famous Lithuanian yeshivas. Jenny Marin also remembers, that Rabbi Koppel Kahana (Kagan) was preaching in Cape Town [13].

The proof that Koppel Kahana was a Rabbi in Białowieża, and at the same time proof that Białowieża had a rabbi, is (among other sources) the letter from 1930 written in Yiddish by rabbi Kopel Kahana to rabbi Woodridge. The letter has a double signature stamp - in English and in Yiddish: Rabbi Kopel Kagan Białowieża Poland.

List z 1930 roku pisany w jidysz przez rabina Kopel Kahana

The letter seems to be written in New York - and Kopel Kagan can be found on the list of passengers of the Berengari ship accessible in the Ellis Island Museum (link to Ellis Island). The ship left the port Cherbourg in France on the 26th of February 1930 and arrived in New York on the 4th of March 1930.

The document from the museum gives us very specific data: Kopel Kahana, born in 1892 in Olszyszki, Poland, 38 years old, of Polish nationality and Jewish race, rabbi, permanent resident of Białowieża (written “Białowicz”) on street Stoczek, living with his wife (illegible: perhaps Kacan lub Kahan Rosla), speaks and writes in Jewish language, he is 5ft tall [152cm], has grey eyes, hair and skin fr. [t/n: “fr” probably refers to fair], of good mental and physical health. He received a half-year visa (number 1122) on the 25th of December 1929, and on Ellis Island he received a residence permit valid till 20.04.1931. He was never in USA before, and the main reason for his trip was to visit his friend, mister Tendler (unknown first name), living in New York on 147 Essex Str. [24]

Unfortunately, the data doesn’t clarify the place of Rabbi’s birth as “Olszyszki”, just like “Kiszyszki” stated in the naturalisation act, doesn’t exist on the map. The document also gives us the third version of his wife’s name - Rozla (probably Roza), next to previous Sosza and Ada.

We don’t know for how long did Kahana return to Białowieża after his stay in New York and whether this trip influenced his move to Cambridge.

After graduating from Cambridge in the years 1946 -1968 Kopel Kahana was a lecturer of law and Talmud at the Jews' College in London (today known as the High School of Jewish Studies), where he "brought a new generation of British Rabbis fascinated by his teachings" [5]. In the 60's he also worked as a visiting professor of Talmud and allied studies at the Bar-Ilan University in Negev, Israel. Among the number of his publications, we find: "Three Great Systems of Jurisprudence" (1955), "The Case for Jewish Civil Law in the Jewish State" (1960), "The Theory of Marriage in Jewish Law" (1966), "Personal Status in Jewish Law". He published his articles in few top American and English law journals as K. Kagan. All biographical notes about Rabbi Kopel Kahan describe him as a great scholar and a fantastic academic teacher with a great charisma. In the Encyclopedia Judaica, we read: "Kahana represented the rare type of Lithuanian Gaon, who was acquainted with modern legal studies and whose contributions in this field were considerable" [5]. Rabbi Tovi Preschel, who himself was considered an expert on the Talmud describes a meeting with Kopel Kahan in the 40s in the house of Rabbi Abba Bornstein in London, where Kahana "presented his spectacular Talmudic erudition" in the game with a needle. One person stuck a needle into a page of the Talmud and when informed of the last of the pages through which the needle had penetrated, Rabbi Kahana would tell you the word on that page, that the needle had touched [17].

Elazar Kalman Tiefenbrum (whom the text by Preschel, recalling Kahana is dedicated), a well known Hassid painter, who was specialised in portraying great Rabbis, has painted also a portrait of Kopel Kahana. Tifenbrum tried to depict not only the resemblance to the people he painted but also their moral and spiritual strength. His portraits hang in many Jewish homes and institutions, in many countries and were often published in many newspapers and journals [17].

The words of praise on Kopel Kahana, leaving for the retirement was also written by Rabbi Raymond Apple in 1970. Among other things we read there: "the master of jurisprudence and the Jewish sage — meet and combine harmoniously to produce a unique personality, respected by lawyers and revered by Rabbis the world over" [24].

It is known that after his retirement in 1968, Rabbi Kahana has left to Israel, but it is unclear for how long [18]. Rabbi Kopel Kahana Kagan died in 1978. The Jewish Chronicle has denoted it on July 21, 1978: "Rabbi KopelKahana, the eminent Talmudist who was a world authority on the Halacha, died last Friday in Bournemouth" [19].

The residents of Bialowieza recalls the Rabbi. It is not clear whether it is about Kopel Kahana or the Rabbi who has taken his place when Kopel left to Cambridge. The villagers recall the years before and during the World War II, so this is certainly the memories above same one - the last Rabbi of Bialowieza. Unfortunately, no one remembers his first or last name. Zinaida Buszko (born 1928) says, "I remember, the Rabbi had a beard. He was not young anymore, he was in his 40s, or maybe he was older" [14]. Jan Sawicki (born 1929) says: "I remember the Rabbi only by appearance, he was wearing a gaberdine, and he was about 60 years old" [15]. Jan Sawicki remembers the Rabbi to be 20 years older, than Buszko says, however, we need to remember, that for a young person every adult is "old", so we can not take the age stated by our interviewers as true.

Ulica Waszkiewicza 108, współczesny widok domu, w którym rabin wynajmował pokój.

Thanks to the memory of Dackiewicz we learn that the Rabbi lived closed to the synagogue. He rented a house owned by Buszko family, on Waszkiewicza street, formerly known as Stoczek. "The Rabbi? Where he lived? It's almost the very centre of Bialowieza, at the Buszko's house. He was renting it vis a vis Rapczuk's house. The Rabbi's landlord - the old Buszko has become very alike the Rabbi himself, he had a long beard, and he read the Bible. I worked as a tailor, just in front at the workshop of master Naumnik. When the old Buszko sat by the window, with his beard, he looked just like the Rabbi" [15; 16].