Jacob Joseph of Polonne
Rabbi Jacob Joseph ben Zvi Katz HaKohen of Polonoje ( * before 1741, † about 1782 in Polonoje, Ukraine ) was a Hasidic rabbi and preacher.
Life
His year of birth and place of birth are unknown. He was first Rabbi in Shargorod, the then second largest Jewish community in the region of Podolia. 1741, he made the acquaintance of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, the Baal Shem Tov. This had disputes with his congregation result, and around 1748 he had to leave Shargorod. Until 1752 he lived in Raszków, a very small community. In 1750, he intended to travel to Eretz Israel from Raszkow out, but did not result from this plan. From Raszkow he went to Nemirow, where he remained until 1770 and Hasidism spread publicly. After the death of Arye body, the preacher of Polonoje, Jacob Joseph was appointed as his successor. He exercised this office for the remainder of his life, but felt bitterness that he could not take over as successor to the Baal Shem Tov, the head of the Hasidic movement. His son Abraham Samson settled in Tiberias and Safed and published his father's writings.
His writings and teachings
Jacob Joseph's first work, Toldot Yaakov Joseph, appeared in 1780 Korez and is considered his major work. It contains sermons of the author and " the words that I heard from my teacher ", ie Baal Shem Tov. This is the first work in which the basic teachings of Hasidism are discussed, both in the positive formulation as well as in the form of criticism of the traditional rabbinic leadership and their value system. In this book, Jacob Joseph described the traditional type of rabbis as the book called in turn critique that " Jewish demons, whose whole Torah study is only for their self-importance. "; it seems that some copies were burned in Brody. In addition, Jakob Josef comments published for the first four books of Moses. According to his view, the preacher is a doctor of the soul, he heals with the help of learned from him ethical principles. The preacher should have the general form, content and method of teaching his sermons note and adjust the level of each audience.
After the conviction of Jacob Joseph, the presence of God manifested in every human mind. A prominent role in his thought system plays the joy. The constant tension between the matter which drags man to evil, and the spiritual form, which seeks the good can be balanced by pleasure, evil inclinations are transformed with the help of an agent in order to achieve the good. As the main purpose of man he calls " Thou shalt surrender to Him." This devotion is possible only by joy, while fasting and self-mortification lead to grief, and sorrow is the root of all evil. For the prayer of a state of purity, concentration, and joy is required. The tzaddik has the power to reverse an adverse decision by his prayer into the good, also on behalf of his followers. In the social area of the tzaddik is compared to the head or the eyes of the body, and the amount of his followers with his feet. From this image, it follows that any parapraxis also the least important member of society - it is material or spiritual nature - harms the state of the tzaddik to a far greater extent. Thus, the tzaddik can fulfill his duties successfully, he must also be financially supported by his followers. A great meaning for Jacob Joseph had the se'uda schlischit, the "third meal " at the end of the Sabbath, which is taken in the Hasidic community together.