Yehudah Jacobs Explained

Honorific-Prefix:Rabbi
Yehudah Jacobs
רב יהודה ג'ייקובס
Spouses:
Mrs. Esther Jacobs
Father:Asher
Mother:Esther
Birth Date:c. 1935
Birth Place:Cologne, Germany
Death Date:April 27, 2020
Death Place:Lakewood, New Jersey, U.S
Nationality: United States
Alma Mater:Beth Medrash Govoha

Rabbi Yehudah Jacobs (c. 1935[1] – April 27, 2020)[2] was a mashgiach ruchani in Beth Medrash Govoha,[3] the largest yeshiva located outside of Israel and the second to largest yeshiva in the world, second only to the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.[4] [5]

Biography

Rabbi Jacobs was born about 1935 to R' Asher and Esther Jacobs in Cologne, Germany.[1] [2] He learned in Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood Township, New Jersey arriving in the late 1950s during its earlier years under the leadership of Rabbi Aharon Kotler.[6] He married his first wife, Mrs. Ruthie, and settled in Lakewood together. He soon was appointed the mashgiach of Beth Medrash Govoha alongside Rabbi Nosson Meir Wachtfogel,[7] a position he held for many years. After the passing of his first wife (c. 1985), Rabbi Jacobs married his second wife, Mrs. Esther. In 2010, he moved to Israel, where he stayed for a few years, all the while keeping up with the Lakewood Yeshiva. He later returned to Lakewood.

Rabbi Jacobs was known in Beth Medrash Govoha for the thousands of vaadim he gave to students,[8] both before and after their marriages, where he gave advice on shidduchim and shalom bayis. Students sought after his advice in these areas.[3] It was said that he was "the greatest and most legendary shadchan" and that "he was the wisest of men."[9]

On April 27, 2020, after a month long battle with COVID-19, Rabbi Jacobs died in Lakewood.[10] [2] He is survived by children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Rav Yehuda Jacobs zt"l | Matzav.com.
  2. Web site: Rabbi Yehuda Jacobs. geni_family_tree. 30 March 1935 .
  3. Web site: BD'E - Hagaon Harav Yehudah Jacobs, Zt"l, Mashgiach of Bais Medrash Govoha | Hamodia.com. April 27, 2020. Hamodia.
  4. Mark Di Ionno. "How Lakewood became a worldwide destination for Orthodox Jews". New Jersey On-Line LLC. Retrieved October 3, 2019. It's Friday in Lakewood. A few thousand young men in black suits and wide-brimmed black hats are rushing toward Beth Medrash Gohova (BMG), the world's largest yeshiva outside of Israel.
  5. Steve Strunsky (April 16, 2019). "Lakewood yeshiva looks to use old golf course for new campus". New Jersey On-Line LLC. Retrieved April 19, 2019. Beth Medrash Gohova is said to be the world’s largest Jewish-affiliated university outside of Israel.
  6. https://mishpacha.com/so-human-so-great-in-tribute-to-rav-yehuda-jacobs/ "He arrived in Rav Aharon Kotler’s Lakewood in the late 1950s"
  7. Arem 2002, p. 240. Dershowitz 2006, p. 20.
  8. Web site: Lakewood: Petira of HaRav Yehuda Jacobs, Longtime Mashgiach At BMG. Y. W.. Editor. April 27, 2020.
  9. Web site: BARUCH DAYAN HA'EMES: Petirah of Rav Yehuda Jacobs ZT"L, Mashgiach of Lakewood [LEVAYA DETAILS] » The Lakewood Scoop » The heartbeat of the lakewood community]. www.thelakewoodscoop.com. 27 April 2020 .
  10. Web site: Lakewood: Petira of Rabbi Yehuda Jacobs, long time mashgiach at BMG, he was also the Leader of the Regesh Network organization, a helpline for kids, teens and young adults . theyeshivaworld.com . 27 April 2020 . August 21, 2020.