Abraham
Jacob Koppel Singer
Last Rabbi in Shamorin/Šamorín
and his community
1888
– Pressburg/Bratislava
1944
- Oswiecim/Auschwitz CC
Jan
Hevera
2008
The community of Jews in Šamorín was
founded in the second half of the 19th century. After a period of
time this community tore apart a mother community in Mliečno(Milchdorf, Tejfalu), first filial,
later it became independent.
Their offices relocated and the
rabbinate moved to Šamorín also. After this, Šamorín became a town where
many rabbi characters worked e.g.: Samuel Austerlitz (at the time he was in charge when the
synagogue was built, later he was working as a rabbi in Miskolc), Dr.Hillel
Weiss and the last one to serve as rabbi in the history of this town was rabbi
Singer. So lets take a closer look at the history and remember the last
head rabbi of Šamorín Abraham Jacob
Koppel Singer, his family and his Jewish community which tragically and
violently ended its existence in šoa (holocaust). In 2008 we commemorated the 120th
anniversary of his birth. This year is the 56 th anniversary of his martyrdom in
the concentration camp Oswiecim.
Abraham Jakob Koppel Singer was
born on the 4th of February 1888 in a jewish rabis family in Bratislava (at
that time called Pressburg). His father’s name was Jisroel (1856Bodrogkeresztur– 1917 Pressburg) and
mother’s name was Rajzl/Terezia (birth name Eherensteu (1849 Pressburg– 1931Bratislava) and their
address was Vysoka 1 street, Bratislava. His father was a rebe (person
educated in jewish religion) in one of the jewish communities in Bratislava and
the son of the head rabbi Abraham Jacob Singer in Lučenec who worked there
since 1858. Abraham’s brothers and sisters were Batseva, Foga and Chaim David.
He was studying at a famous college for rabbis (ješiva) in Bratislava, which was
famous because of Chatam Sofer/Moshe Schreiber (1762 – 1839). Abraham was
taught by Chatams descendants. He finished with his studies in 1913. He was
a rosh ha jeshiva
(head director) of this college for a period of time. Singer was chosen to
accompany ceasar Fracis Joseph I. when
he visited this jewish community.
Later
he was called to work as a rabbi – dayan (judge) in the town of Kežmarok (in
Spish county). He
cooperated with another educated rabbi named Abraham Cvi Grümburg (1839 –
1918). Singer cooperated with him until Grümburg died in
1918. Later he worked with his son – Singer’s good brother Simcha Natan Grünburg (1884 – 1944), who was
called to work here from Telcs (town in Hungary - place where he worked
before). According to Hebrew law, he inherited the position of head rabbin in
Telcsi after his father died. Rabbi Rosh bet din – dayan
(judge) Singer married the youngest daughter Malka/Margita (19 October 1889 –
1944) of head rabbi Abraham Cvi Grünburg
on the 13th of April 1915. Their first child Shmuel/Alexander was born in 1916
and then the other children, Dina/Edita, Izrael, Jitl/Jolana(Marti), Lazar and
Herman were born. Daughter
Edita got married to rabbi Friedrich (died in 1939) in 1938 in the town of
Humenne. Singer’s son Alexander and daughter Jolana (1921 – 2008) survived the
horror of shoa (holocaust).
After the second world war, Jolana got married to Moshe Laufer (they met
each other in a concentration camp) who became a boss of a local jewish
community after they moved to the USA. They had three sons. One of them became
a lawyer and rabbi, he has 13 children and he continues to lead the community.
The situation in the town of Kežmarok (inhabited
mostly by Germans) was difficult and the poverty was obvious.
In the
summer of 1926 rabbi Singer with his family left the town of Kežmarok and settled down
in his final place of work, the town of Šamorín, which was far away from Kežmarok. Here
he replaced his colleague and classmate from college Dr. Hillel Weiss who went
to work as a rabbi in a town called Wienerneustadt in Austria. Singer‘s new location was different because there was economic
prosperity in Žitný ostrov – a river island. This community had a new
synagogue (built in 1912). The equipment for the synagogue was almost half the
price of the whole building. This was caused mostly by beautiful benches made
from solid timber constructed by carpenters Baráth from Šamorín. These days they
are gone and nobody knows where they went. There was active Christian and
Jewish community life in Šamorín. Mr.
Schwarz was a shames
(beadle) and Mr. Jicchack Ignaz Stern was a cantor and shachter (formulary
animal cutter). The last of the Rosh ha kehilas (chairmen) of this town was long time chairman Aron
Tauber (1875 – 1944) who was also working as a mohel (circumcision person) and
helped out as a cantor as well. Rosh ha kehilas (chairmen) serving before Aron were: Abraham Waldmann
(1852 – 1944) – the first Rosh
ha kehilas, Miksha
Frankl (1868 – 1931), Natan Steiner (1874 – 1944), Viliam Bonyhady (born
in the town of Senec). Miksha
Frankl and also Maxi Stern (1868 – 1934) were the Chairmen of
Chevra kadisha (holy
association for charity and funerals).
Maxi’s
wife Frida (birth name: Holzer; 1884 – 1944) was a secretary, later she was a
chairperson of a womens association. There was a mikve (formulary bath) behind
the synagogue. Bet ha midrash
(beside synagogue) was
used as a synagogue when the actual synagogue wasn’t yet fully constructed.
Later it was used as a chapel and study room.
The synagogue in Shamorin
built in 1912.
There was a Moshav zekenim nearby
the synagogue – almshouse. Shalamon Tausig was a long time bedesman of
this almshouse („shalamon tausig – ha lefekszik alszik“ – „when he lies down
into the bed and falls asleep immediately“ – children were laughing at him).
The National Jewish public school (5 grades) was also placed
here. Teachers working at this school: Gyula Hübsch (till 1930, later in the town of
Senec), Manó Stadler (1882 – 1939) and Mikulash Lampert (1909
– 1944, teaching until 1935, then moved to the town of Šaľa) and others.
Some Christian children also attended this school. Head Rabbi Singer also ran a small jeshiva
for about 12 – 13 poor bochers (students) from many parts of the country. One
of officers of this town named Viliam Bonyhady allowed a small lodging
house to be constructed right by his own house for these students. Melamed (a
teacher of religion classes) Baruch/Bernát Berger (1898/1900 – 1929) was helping Singer. He
was teaching the Talmud and religion classes in chedera (school – religion
lessons class) and was Singer’s assistant too. He died of tuberculosis and was
buried in the cemetery in the town of Mliečno. He was survived by his wife, his daughter and his
son.
There were two cemeteries in this
town, both of them were used until the second world war. One of them – the
older one (almost 300 years old) is in the old town of Mliečno where
there is an ancient deteriorating synagogue. The new one is inside the town
right by the Christian cemetery where mostly immigrants were buried, rarely
natives. Sixteen Jewish soldiers, who died in a local concentration camp from
the First World War, also rest here.
Jewish lawyers were also working
here: Dr. Karol Pártoš (1858 – 1938), Dr. Kardoš and Dr. Ing. Desider Steiner
(1903 – 1937). One of the doctors working here was quite famous. His name was
Dr. Eugen Wolf (1892 – 1945).
Inhabitants consisting mostly of
Hungarians and a diminishing German population
were tolerant of one another so life was peaceful here. Rabbi Singer was
in touch with the local Christian priests. He lived with his family in
a rented house that belonged to Mrs. Weiszova (from the same community),
close to the town hall on Hlavná 4 street. The Jewish family of Mr. Urban
(owner of a clothing shop), originally from the town of Piešťany, also
lived here. There was a room in this house where he worked as
a judge (dajan) overseeing religious matters. The typical thing about this
room was that three walls were covered by shelves with books from floor to
ceiling. The books contained mostly regligious themes from centuries past with a high historical
value. Rabbi Singer was a bibliophile. Some of his books were discovered by his
brother Chayim David (bookseller in Bratislava on Kapucinska street). These
books were damaged during the second world war, used as toilet paper or burned.
This
family, similar to other Jewish families, were frequently visited by friends
and certain Rabbi. One of the honered guests besides certain colleagues and
other students was Singer’s good
brother Rabbi Horowitz from Frankfurkt am Main (sometimes in Jerusalem). His
role in the Jewish community was important because he was a president of
Kolel shomre ha chamot – which means the Association of Guardians of the Walls
in Jerusalem. Poor and begging Jewish people wandering in from different parts
of the state hoped to receive handouts from rich Jews to pay for their
childrens wedding or for the construction of a house. These same people
usually visited Rabbi Singer taking it as an unwritten duty. All of these
visits were required to be accompanied by a domestic Jew from the town, in this
case a man named Mr. Schönfeld. They usually stayed over in the
aformentioned almshouse. Rebecin (rabbin’s wife) Mrs. Singer, who had a gift
for hospitality, hosted these visitors with beverages, milk and fresh homemade
bread. She prepared this bread on her own. She made several big loafs of bread
which her sons brought by wheelbarrow to the old baker Mr. Karl Lichtenstein
(1850 – 1936) on Malstreet and than back home. There were also poor families
along side wealthier ones in the town that Singer included in his duties.
Especially on holidays, for instance Purim - people used to endow each other.
Singer usually got offerings from wealthier members of the community on similar
occasions. He usually made equal shares of the major part of those offerings,
put those shares into the envelopes and gave them to the poor and widowed of
this town. These envelopes were delivered by his oldest brother Shmuel/Alexander
(Singer earned 1400,- SKK every year).
There was a countryside that
belonged to this town. At least one Jewish family in every village of this
countryside was involved in trade. Most of the Jewish families lived in Dobrohoshty
and Vojka where the small Bet ha midrash was built. Östereicher, Stadler,
Fleischman, Steiner and other families lived here also. The Lustig family lived
in the town of Blatná na Ostrove and the town of Kyselica (the same name
family) for more than a hundred years. In the town of Gutor (later
Hamuliakovo) the Blau family and later the Feigenbaum family lived for
a long period of time. All of these families belonged to their Jewish
community and were buried at the cemetery in Mliečno. There were more than 300
people that belonged to this community.
In 1938, when the situation for
the Jews was about to get worse and more dangerous, the southern part of
Slovakia became a part of Hungary. This reality delayed the tragic end of
Rabbi Singer, his family and the whole Jewish community in this area, although
the delay was short lived. In the spring of 1944 the time had come. The
transportation to concentration camps began. The brutal and forced end of life
for many Jews, as well as for Singer, became a reality. He died with many others
as a burned sacrifice.
Based on memories of Singer’s oldest son (93 years old)
Ing. Alexander Singer
Prepared by Jan Hevera
Shmuel Singer
1916-2013
English translation by: Martin Korenica
and Scott Boeser
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