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Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (Hebrew: מועצת גדולי התורה, "Council of [great] Torah Sages") refers to the supreme rabbinical policy-making council of several related prestigious Haredi Jewish intra national organizations.
Contents
- In Europe
- In the United States
- In Israel
- Past members
- Current members belonging to Agudath Israel
- Current members belonging to Degel HaTorah
- Current members
- References
The component words of the name are transliterated in a variety of ways. This is frequently done as Moetzet and less frequently as Gedolai and ha-Torah or ha Torah. The phrase is regularly shortened to Moetzes or The Moetzah.
Rabbis sitting on the various Moetzos are usually either one of the more prestigious rosh yeshivas ("heads") of yeshivas or Hasidic Rebbes who are also usually regarded by many ultra-orthodox jews to be the Gedolim ("great/est") sages of Torah Judaism.
In Europe
Prior to World War II, only one such body existed, the World Agudath Israel .
In the United States
The Moetzes of Agudath Israel of America serve as religious decisors, leadership, and political and policy liaisons with state and federal government agencies on behalf of many American orthodox Jews. The council, consisting primarily of rosh yeshivas and Hasidic rebbes, directs Agudath's policies and leadership. Formerly known as the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah, the body was started in 1941. It sets all major policies and guides the organization according to its precepts of Da'as Torah.
In Israel
The Moetzet (usually transliterated with an ending "t") of Agudat Yisrael likewise constituted the Israeli Ashkenazic haredi community's religious policy leadership, and exercises strong control over political matters for strongly observant Israelis, such as joining government coalitions.
Prior to Degel HaTorah's late 1980s break from Agudat Israel (because of the dominance of the Polish Hasidic groups), there was only one Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah in Israel. With the breakaway (led by Rabbi Elazar Shach), two separate, at times complementary, councils were created. The Haredi Sephardi Jews of Israel had also at one time followed the leadership of the Moetzet of Agudat Yisrael when it was still a body that generally spoke for most of Israel's Haredim. Eventually, however, the Haredi Sefardim broke with their Ashkenazi counterparts, (again because of the dominance of the Polish Hasidic groups,) and established the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah ("Council of [wise] Torah Sages"), which in turn became the source for the formulation and expression of the policies and agenda of the Shas political party in the Israeli Knesset. Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef became the main leadership figure of this council.