Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter, known as the "Sefat Emet," after his best-known work, was a Polish rabbi, Chasidic master, and rebbe of the Gerer Chasidic movement. His father died while he was still a boy, and he was raised by his grandfather, Yitzchak Meir Rotenberg-Alter, known as the "Chiddushei HaRim," after his own most famous work. He also served as head of the town's rabbinic court. Upon his grandfather's passing in 1866, he refused to fill his position, instead choosing to submit himself to the leadership of R. Chanoch Henoch of Alexander. When the rebbe of Alexander passed away in 1870, he reluctantly accepted the leadership of the Gerer Chasidim. Under his leadership, Ger became the largest and most influential Chasidic court in Poland. His many works were all posthumously called Sefat Emet, and they include a magisterial collection of Chasidic insights and teachings based on the weekly Torah portion and a scholarly commentary on Talmud. These works are widely studied throughout the Jewish world to this day. Unlike many Chasidic masters, he refused to accept money willingly given by his followers and supported himself from a small store run by his wife. Although he encouraged building and settling in the land of Israel, he was an opponent of the nascent Zionist movement. He died in 1905 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Avraham Mordechai, known as the "Imrei Emet."
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Sefat Emet
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