Ger גור

Rooted in Peshischa and Kotzk

Rabbi Yitzchak Meir Alter (1798–1866), the “Chiddushei HaRim,” was in his youth a close disciple of Rabbi Simcha Bunim of Peshischa, whose path — deep learning and uncompromising truthfulness — later became the foundation of Ger ^[1]. After that Rebbe’s passing in 1827, he followed the Kotzker Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel ^[1].

When the Kotzker Rebbe passed away in 1859, most of his Chassidim accepted Rabbi Yitzchak Meir as their Rebbe. He was then living in Warsaw, and soon afterward he became av beis din of Góra Kalwaria — in Yiddish, “Ger” — where he established his court ^[1].

The Rebbes of Ger

After his passing in 1866, the Chassidim wanted his grandson, Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, then 18 years old, to become Rebbe. He declined, and most of the Chassidim went to the older Rabbi Chanoch Henoch HaKohen Levin. After the latter’s passing, Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib — the “Sfas Emes” — took up the leadership ^[1]. He was followed by his eldest son, Rabbi Avraham Mordechai Alter, the “Imrei Emes” ^[1].

In 1926 — a rare step for a Polish Hasidic dynasty — the Imrei Emes founded a yeshiva in Jerusalem, named after his father: “Sfas Emes.” Its first rosh yeshiva was his brother, Rabbi Nechemia Alter ^[1].

Destruction and Rebuilding

Before the war Ger numbered more than 100,000 Chassidim. Almost all of the Gerrer Chassidim in Europe perished in the Holocaust ^[1]. The Imrei Emes escaped and began rebuilding the movement anew in Eretz Yisroel ^[1]. The fifth Gerrer Rebbe, Rabbi Yisrael Alter — the “Beis Yisrael” — helped rebuild Ger after its destruction, and under him the Ichud Mosdos Gur was founded, which supports some 100 educational institutions in Eretz Yisroel ^[1].

Ger Today

The current Rebbe is Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter ^[1]. The center of the movement is in Jerusalem: in addition to the Sfas Emes yeshiva and a beis medrash on Rehov Ralbach in Geula, the great Ger beis medrash on Rehov Yirmiyahu was dedicated in the late 1990s. In 2022 the building was completed, making it the largest synagogue in the world, with room for up to 20,000 worshippers ^[1].

There are large Gerrer communities in Bnei Brak, Ashdod and Jerusalem, and in America — in Borough Park, with more than 1,000 families ^[1]. There are also communities in London, Antwerp, Zurich, Manchester, Monsey and Lakewood ^[1]. Ger has a broad network of Talmud Torahs, yeshivas, kollelim and Bais Yaakov schools, and its leaders wield great influence in Agudath Israel ^[1].

In 2019 a group of Chassidim under Rabbi Shaul Alter, a son of a former Gerrer Rebbe, broke away and founded Kehillas Pnei Menachem — the first split in the history of Ger ^[1].