Eliezer Schindler
From the Old World to the New
Eliezer (Layzer) Schindler (1892-1957)
Biography – Eliezer (Leyzer) Schindler was a Yiddish writer, idealist, and activist during the interwar period in Europe and after WWII in the United States. A fascinating character, well-known and beloved for his simple, beautiful poetry, he was also an integral part of the intense intellectual, cultural, and religious life of this period. He was a prolific writer with over 31 published books, and wrote for numerous newspapers and journals. His poems and songs were sung in secular and religious homes throughout Europe. He was an activist and organizer, having been one of the founders of several Yiddishist and Zionist organizations, and was described as a “pillar” of the Bais Yakov schools for Jewish girls, a revolutionary movement that established schools to provide Jewish education to girls.
Eliezer had two children, and 7 grandchildren, among them, Miriam Oles, whose passion for Yiddish literature led her to research and share her grandfather’s history, and Rabbi Judy Schindler, who is an activist herself. They have created video blogs to capture the revolutionary, spiritual, and globally impactful nature of his Jewish poetry and activism.
For more on Eliezer Schindler’s extensive biography click here
About this Video Blog “Eliezer Schindler – From the Old World to The New”
Eliezer Schindler lived in a world where the printed word was published and widely disseminated and where Yiddish was widely spoken and understood. This Eliezer Schindler – From the Old World to the New video blog seeks to share his writings and wisdom digitally and in English with this generation and the next. Two of his granddaughters, Miriam Oles and Judy Schindler, have a passion for preserving and passing on his wisdom.
Episodes
Remembering our Great, Great Grandfather’s Sukkah
This poem called Our Sukkah was written by Eliezer Schindler reflecting on the Sukkah built by his grandfather, Alexander Moshe Schindler (born in 1826 in Tychin, Galicia).
Episode 9 – Sali Schindler: A woman whose strength surpassed them all
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler One of the final lines of Proverbs 31 is engraved on Sali Schindler’s headstone. It states, “At alit al kulanah – you exceed them all.” Sali was far from the archetypal eshet chayil – women of...
Episode 8 – 1970 Hijacking: Sali Schindler standing strong in the face of terror
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler On September 6, 1970, Sali Schindler, Eliezer’s wife, boarded a plane from Zurich, Switzerland, to New York. About one hour after takeoff, the captain stated, “We will not be going our way but do not be frightened,...
Episode 7 – Resilience on a chicken farm in New Jersey
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler Within a year of fleeing the Holocaust in 1938, Eliezer and Sali Schindler bought a chicken farm in Lakewood, New Jersey. It was their hope that in becoming a chicken farmer, their son, Alexander, would be able to avoid being...
Episode 6 – Kulam Kedoshim – All of them are holy
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler In his book, Eliezer Schindler, reflects on the his family, his teachers, and his world that was lost in the Holocaust. What did these pages of dedication that he titled “Kulam kedoshim – All of them are holy”...
Episode 5 – 700 Letters to Nathan Birnbaum
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler Nathan Birnbaum, a renowned Austrian writer, journalist and Jewish thinker coined the term “Zionism.” While Birnbaum was one of the original Zionist thinkers, he moved on to embrace other philosophies that no longer...
Episode 4 – Siberia and the Seeds of Jewish Outreach
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler Eliezer Schindler was drafted into the Austrian army during World War I. As a prisoner of war in Russia, Schindler wandered in the forest finally settling in Siberia. There he lived alongside a group of Subbotniks – a...
Episode 3 – My Shtetl Tyczyn
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler Eliezar Schindler was born in Tyczyn, Poland. Though his family left when he was 8 years old for greater economic opportunities in Munich, Germany, he always carried in his heart the shtetl in which he was raised. The Hasidic...
Episode 2 – Lullaby 1933
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler Eliezer Schindler was well aware of the threat Hitler posed. He had read Hitler’s Mein Kampf (1925) and was familiar with Hitler’s political manifesto characterized by rabid antisemitism. In January 1933, when Hitler...
Episode 1 – A revolutionary in girls’ education
by Miriam Oles and Rabbi Judy Schindler This inaugural video blog post focuses on Eliezer Schindler’s support of a revolution in Jewish education for girls in early 20th century Poland. The Bais Yakov schools, for which he wrote he anthem, spread globally and...