Avraham Yehoshua Heschel

Avraham Yehoshua "Heschel"(or Abraham Joshua) (1595 – 1663) was a renowned rabbi and talmudist in Kraków, Poland.[1]

For the American philosopher, see Abraham Joshua Heschel. For the Hasidic rebbe see, see Avraham Yehoshua Heshel.

In 1654 Heschel became Chief Rabbi of Kraków, succeeding Yom-Tov Lipmann Heller upon his death.[1]

Subsequent to the Chmielnicki massacres, Heschel was lenient in allowing agunahs (women whose husbands were only presumed dead) to remarry.[2]

Heschel's second wife was Dina, the granddaughter of Saul Wahl, who according to folklore was king of Poland for one day.[1]

Heschel's main students are Rabbi David Halevi Segal (Taz), and Rabbi Shabsia Cohen (Shach).

Heschel is buried in the Old Jewish Cemetery of Kraków, also known as the Remuh Cemetery.[3]

References

1. Valley, Eli (1999). The Great Jewish Cities of Central and Eastern Europe: A Travel Guide and Resource Book to Prague, Warsaw, Crakow, and Budapest. Jason Aronson. p. 331. ISBN 9780765760005.
2. Eisenberg, Ronald L. (March 20, 2014). Essential Figures in Jewish Scholarship. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 175. ISBN 9780765709950.
3. Sherwin, Byron L. (1997). Sparks Amidst the Ashes: The Spiritual Legacy of Polish Jewry. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195355468.