Private archives of Pinkas Kornfeld

Collection

Language:: French; Dutch; Flemish; English; Hebrew; Yiddish; Official Aramaic (700-300 BCE); Imperial Aramaic (700-300 BCE)

Scope and content:: This fonds contains material related to the various activities and matters in which Pinkas Kornfeld was interested. We mainly find correspondence, notes, minutes of meetings, reports, photos, bulletins, publications and press cuttings. We note files related to his activity as the president of the European Board of Shehitah and the Orthodox community Machsike Hadass, as the vice president of the FJO and the CCIB, to his functions within the WJRO and subject files on Agudath Israel, the Atra Kadisha, the Jewish cemetery in Putte, the Eruv of Antwerp, the Yeshiva in Kapellen, the Claims Conference, the ‘Karmel’ in Auschwitz, the synagogue in Heide, etc. as well as files concerning the periodicals for which Kornfeld is the editor in chief: Shabbat beShabbato (in Hebrew) and Lemaan Teida (in Yiddish).

Administrative/biographical history:: Pinkas Kornfeld (born in 1937) is active in a great number of Jewish institutions and associations. Firstly, he is the president of the Orthodoxe Israëlitische Gemeente van Antwerpen Machsike Hadass, of the European Board of Shehitah and of the Belgian section of Agudath Israel. In addition, Kornfeld is the vice president of the Central Jewish Consistory of Belgium (CCIB) and of the Forum der Joodse Organisaties, as well as secretary-general of the association Chasside Gur. He is also involved in the campaign for compensation for Shoah victims as the president of Solidariteit 3000 and board member of the Stichting voor het Jodendom van België. For many years Kornfeld has been publishing weekly newsletters in both Hebrew (Shabbat beShabbato) and Yiddish (Lemaan Teida). He is the author of a book on the Eruv in Antwerp (Straten der Stad). Professionally Pinkas Kornfeld was active in the diamond industry. (Interview of the author with Pinkas Kornfeld (30 October 2014)

Subject terms:: Education; Education--Yeshivot; Hebrew periodicals; Jewish community; Jewish press; Jewish-Christian relations; Kashrut; Orthodox Judaism; Rabbis; Restitution and compensation; Ritual slaughter; Synagogues; Trade and commerce; Yiddish periodicals

System of arrangement:: The files are ordered thematically and chronologically.

Access, restrictions:: Access requires the authorisation of Pinkas Kornfeld.