25 Facts About Mordechai Rokeach

Mordechai Rokeach, known as Mordechai of Bilgoray, was a scion of the Belzer Hasidic dynasty and the right-hand man to his half-brother, Rebbe Aharon of Belz, the fourth Belzer Rebbe.

Mordechai Rokeach was the son of the third Belzer Rebbe, Rebbe Yissachar Dov Rokeach.

Rabbi Mordechai was one of seven children born to Rebbe Yissachar Dov Rokeach, the third Belzer Rebbe, in his second marriage to Chaya Devorah, daughter of Rabbi Avrohom Shmuel Pecsenik of Berezna.

Mordechai Rokeach got along well with people, a trait that would serve him later on as a town Rav and as a spokesman for Belz Hasidut in Israel.

Mordechai Rokeach married Sheva, the daughter of Rabbi Moshe Aharon Rabinowitz, the Kobriner Rav.

Mordechai Rokeach conducted tishen on Shabbat and Yom Tov, at which he delivered divrei Torah in the style of the Belzer Rebbes.

Mordechai Rokeach established a Talmud Torah in the city and provided for the spiritual and physical needs of the students.

Mordechai Rokeach consulted with him on every issue, attended his court on Shabbat, and even gave him kvitlach with the names of his family members.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach sent his wife and daughter to her father's house in Kobrin, while Rebbe Aharon's wife and five unmarried children stayed in Przemyslany under the care of one of his Hasidim.

Thanks to the untiring efforts and cash inflow from Belzer Hasidim abroad, the Rebbe and Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach managed to stay one step ahead of the Nazis in one miraculous escape attempt after another.

Rebbe Aharon and Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach spent eight months in Budapest before receiving highly rationed Jewish Agency certificates to enter Israel.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach delivered a lengthy speech combining Torah thoughts with commentary on the political situation, exhorting his audience to use their charity money to ransom Jews trapped in German-occupied Europe and to feed and clothe those who had managed to escape to then-free Hungary.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach was released later that evening, and the pair took the first train to Tripoli the next morning.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach continued to serve as his brother's right hand after the war, refusing to take a rabbinical position but dedicating his efforts to strengthening Torah Judaism and Belzer Hasidut.

Mordechai Rokeach chaired the Rebbe's planning committee for the first Belz Talmud Torah in Tel Aviv and yeshiva in Jerusalem, and represented the Rebbe at most events and conferences.

Mordechai Rokeach was heavily involved in helping war survivors obtain government benefits, housing and employment, and arranging weddings on their behalf.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach remarried in 1947 to Miriam, the daughter of Rabbi Tzvi Glick of Satmar.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach served as a link between the Belz community of old and the new community that his brother was establishing in Israel through his recording of every custom and practice that he had seen done in Belz.

Mordechai Rokeach was originally commissioned to write down these notes by his father, the third Belzer Rebbe.

At that time, paper was scarce, so Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach recorded his memories on scraps of paper, envelopes and wedding invitations.

Rabbi Mordechai Rokeach traveled to Paris, Zurich and Antwerp to convey the Rebbe's personal message.

Mordechai Rokeach impressed many with his Torah knowledge and powers of oration.

Mordechai Rokeach returned to Israel before Yom Kippur and fell ill during the Sukkot holiday.

Mordechai Rokeach died on 17 November 1949, and was buried in Tiberias in a funeral attended by thousands.

Rebbe Yissachar Dov named his only son, Aharon Mordechai Rokeach, born in 1975, after his uncle and his father.