Tag Archives: rabbis

Memories of My Teachers

Posted on May 26, 2020 by ACassel

By Meyer Yitzhak Edelman Originally published by the Keidaner Assn of New York, 1930.  1. My first rebbe was Noach Reubens, who taught the youngest children. He lived on the northwest corner of the marketplace by German Street. The cheder … Continue reading →

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From ‘The Annihilation of Lithuanian Jewry’

Posted on March 24, 2020 by Andrew

Keidan by Efraim Oshry The following is an entry from Oshry, Efraim, “The Annhilation of Lithuanian Jewry” (New York, 1995) Originally published in Yiddish as  “Khurbn Lita”. New York, 1951. LITHUANIAN NAME: Kėdainiai RUSSIAN NAME: Keidany LOCATION: A district capital … Continue reading →

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Tales of the Talmud Society

Posted on March 9, 2020 by ACassel

by Dr. Hyman J. Epstein Dr. Hyman (Chaim Yakov) Epstein (1881-1951) was an active participant in Jewish affairs in early 20th century New York, helping to organize the Bronx Jewish Hospital and the New York “kehillah” which for several years … Continue reading →

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Rabbis of Keidan

Posted on March 7, 2020 by ACassel

By Shmuel Hadari and Josef Chrust The Jewish settlement in Keidan is ancient, and the town’s Jewish community is one of the oldest in Lithuania. The town held a respected place in the “Council of the Land of Lithuania,” in … Continue reading →

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The Mir Yeshiva

Posted on March 2, 2020 by ACassel

By A. Simcha Hacohen Kaplan (Tzfat, Israel) The yeshiva at Mir, Poland, one of the greatest yeshivas in the world prior to the Second World War, was forced into exile. This great Torah stronghold had existed for more than 100 … Continue reading →

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The Russian Exile

Posted on March 2, 2020 by ACassel

By Bella Adler (Basel, Switz.) I was born and raised in Keidan. Our Jewish life was very well developed. We had Tarbut and progymnasium Hebrew schools. Most young people were Zionists. We had Hashomer Hatzair, Beitar and other organizations. We … Continue reading →

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Mass Graves

Posted on March 2, 2020 by ACassel

By Chaya Gel (Jerusalem) I was born in Keidan, where I lived in 16 Gedimino Street. When the Russians conquered Lithuania the first time in 1940, they nationalized our business and seized our house. I went to live with my … Continue reading →

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Rabbi Avraham Halevy Sochen

Posted on February 27, 2020 by ACassel

By Dr. Mordechai Sochen (Minneapolis) My father, Rabbi Avraham Halevy Sochen (may he rest in peace) came to Keidan at the end of the last [19th] century, and married my mother (may she rest in peace), Feyge, daughter of Reb … Continue reading →

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Rabbi Shlomo Feinsilber

Posted on February 27, 2020 by ACassel

By Sheynke Chittin (Beit Zera, Israel) From the 1977 Keidan Memorial Book, p. 217. Translated by Bella Golubchik. If I shut my eyes I can conjure up in my memory a picture of our little town. The Smilga river we … Continue reading →

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Of Wood and Medicine

Posted on February 27, 2020 by ACassel

By Mordechai Muller (Moscow) An excerpt from a letter, written on November 28, 1965, to Yehuda Ronder, Kovno, by Mordechai Muller, a Moscow resident. The writer (the son of Alter the badkhn, or wedding-jester) ended up in Moscow after the … Continue reading →

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