Judah Leib ben Isaac
Judah Leib ben Isaac of Szydłów was an 18th-century Polish rabbi who served as a representative of Kraków in the Council of Four Lands.He is also known by the Hebrew language acronym Rischak.
Biography
Judah Leib was born in Szydłów, Poland to an old and distinguished rabbinic family from Przemyśl. His birthplace led to his adoption of the surname Szydłowski to indicate his origin, as surnames were not mandatory at the time. His father, Isaac ben Samuel Zak, was the Chief Rabbi of Przemyśl and later Kraków. His mother was the daughter of Joshua Höschel ben Joseph, Meginei Shlomo, and Miryam Hillels thus being a descendant of Rabbi Moses Isserles and Rabbi Shimshon Loew the brother of Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the Maharal of Prague. His grandfather, Rabbi Shmuel “Schmelke” Zak, was the chief rabbi of Ostroh and husband of the great-granddaughter of Rabbi Eliezer Hirsch Treves, and thus a descendant of Rashi. Judah’s great-grandfather, Rabbi Meir Zak, adopted the family name Zak after his brother Rabbi Mordechai ben Avraham, chief rabbi of Lublin, was martyred. Zak is an abbreviation of the Hebrew expression Zera Kodesh, meaning "holy seed," or ”seed of saints” taken from Isaiah 6:13. The family name Z”K - the initials of Zera Kadosh - who gave their lives for the sanctification of gods name. Rabbi Meir Zak’s mother was Dinah Weil, a descendant of Meir of Rothenburg, the Maharam of Rottenberg. According to family tradition he was a descendant of Rabbeinu Jacob ben Asher, Baal Haturim, Rabbeinu Asher Ben Jehiel, The Rosh, Rabbi Eliezer ben Nathan, Ra’avan, and Rabbeinu Gershom.In his early years, Judah officiated as rabbi in Szydłów, later serving as representative of Kraków in the Council of Four Lands. After 1715, he became rabbi and president of the Yeshiva at Kraków, where he remained until his death in 1730. Judah is known for his many approbations of other rabbinical books and decisions, such as "Panim Me'irot," by Rabbi Meïr Eisenstadt, and "Berit Shalom," by Rabbi Pinchas ben Pelta. His son, David Samuel, served as the Av Beit Din of Szydłów and Chmielnik until 1731 and was the paternal grandfather of Shmuel of Karov.
Judah’s wife left a last will and testament that favored her younger son, Rabbi David Samuel, over the oldest son, Rabbi Yehoshua of Szydlow. Rabbi Yehoshua accused Rabbi David Samuel of forging the will, leading to a conflict between the brothers. Rabbi Yehoshua joined a Jesuit monastery and converted to Christianity because of the conflict. The conversion led to Rabbi Yehoshua being knighted by the king of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. After engaging in a public debate with his brother Rabbi Josef Szydłowski, the chief rabbi of Pinczow, he returned to Judaism. The conflict compromised Rabbi David Samuel so much that he left his position as the chief rabbi of Kraków. Judah’s son Rabbi Josef Szydłowski, the chief rabbi of Pinczow, married Liba Shapiro, a descendant of the chief rabbi of Kraków, Rabbi Nathan Nata Spira, the Megaleh Amukkot. Menachem Mendel of Rimanov the founder of Rimenov hassidim was the son of Rabbi Josef Szydlowski and Liba Shapiro and thus a grandchild of Judah Leib.
All six of Rabbi Judah's sons, who were also rabbis and heads of rabbinical courts in towns in southern Poland, mainly in Województwo świętokrzyskie and surrounding areas, signed the excommunication of the Italian rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato, the Ramchal, in 1734 because of the publication of his Kabbalistic books.
All six sons of Jehuda Leib adopted the surname Szydłowski to commemorate their town of origin.