Thousands attend funeral of Charedi rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, 104

Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, the spiritual leader of Israel’s non-Hassidic strictly-Orthodox Jews of European descent and one of the country’s most influential and powerful rabbis, has died at the age of 104.

Shteinman was taken to hospital several weeks ago with shortness of breath and died early on Tuesday.

Hundreds of thousands took part in a funeral procession in the central Israeli strictly-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak.

Get The Jewish News Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

Police blocked major roads around the cemetery and emergency medical services were on hand to deal with the flood of people clamouring to get a close look.

The emergency service Magen David Adom said even before the funeral began it had treated about 70 people for injuries resulting from the dense crowd.

Shteinman was a longtime political kingmaker whose orders were strictly followed by his representatives in parliament.

Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman

His influence, however, far surpassed just that and he was seen as the leading voice of the entire community on many issues of religion and state.

Following the 2012 death of his predecessor, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, he was widely regarded as Gadol Hador, or “leader of the generation”.

The strictly-Orthodox, known in Hebrew as Charedim, or “those who fear God”, are the fastest growing sector in Israel.

Due to their high birth rate, they now number more than one million people, or about 12% of Israel’s 8.7 million citizens, with the majority living beneath the poverty line.

Shteinman was known for his rabbinic scholarship, his relatively pragmatic rulings and extremely modest lifestyle.

He was often called to judge on sensitive matters such as how much the traditionally insular community should integrate with the larger Israeli society, embrace technology, pursue higher education, work or agree to serve in the largely security military.

In recent years, he had faced a challenge from a more extremist rabbi in Jerusalem who sent thousands into the street to protest the small numbers of strictly-Orthodox who have enlisted.

Rabbi Yehoshua Pfeffer, an expert on the strictly-Orthodox community, said until just recently Shteinman was of clear mind and hosting followers who sought his advice.

“He was a person who knew very carefully how to balance the needs of the community with the needs of the individual,” he said. “His legacy is greatness of scholarship … but at the same time a very nuanced leadership.”

Israeli president Reuven Rivlin praised Shteinman as a leader who “carried on his shoulders the existential weight of the Jewish people”.

The country’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called him a “giant of Jewish learning”.

“The Jewish people have lost a lighthouse of spirit, heritage and ethics,” Netanyahu said.

“(Shteinman) established an important link in the chain of thousands of years of Torah, and his memory will rest forever in the annals of our nation.” 

Support your Jewish community. Support your Jewish News

Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.

For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.

Read more

Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.

You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.

100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...

Engaging

Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.

Celebrating

There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.

Pioneering

In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.

Campaigning

Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.

Easy access

In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.

Voice of our community to wider society

The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.

We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.

Help us here