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Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam
Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam
	Halberstam at a Kolel Chibas Yerushalayim gathering
Personal
Born	Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam; 1955 (age 68–69); New York
Religion	Judaism
Spouse	Rosa Wachsman
Children	Chaim Shulem; Chaya Fradl; Dovid; Chana Ruchel; Rifkah Sheindel; Mordechai Dov; Yechezkel Shraga; Avrohom Yehoshua Heshil; Miriam Beila; Nechumah; Yisroel Elimelech; Shlomo
Parents	Shlomo Halberstam (father); Freida Rubin (mother);
Jewish leader
Predecessor	Naftali Halberstam
Began	March 23, 2005
Ended	Current
Dynasty	Bobov

Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam (Hebrew: בן ציון אריה לייבוש הלברשטאם; born 1955) is a Polish-born American rabbi. He is the current Rebbe of the Bobov Hasidic dynasty. Appointed in 2005, Halberstam has a direct lineage to the founder of the Bobov Hasidic dynasty.

Early life

Ben Zion Aryeh Leibish Halberstam was born to the third Bobover rebbe Shlomo Halberstam and his second wife.^[2] His father had lost his first wife and most of their children in the Holocaust,^[3] but a son, Naftali, survived.^[1] Naftali was later reunited with the family in Borough Park, Brooklyn.^[1]

Appointment

Right after his father's passing in 2000, Naftali was appointed as fourth Bobover Rebbe at age 69,^[1] while Halberstam was appointed as Rav Hatza'ir (assistant rabbi). Naftali died right before the Purim holiday in 2005,^[4] which led to a succession crisis over who should be the Grand Rebbe of the many Bobov Hasidim worldwide.^[1] When a vote failed to solve the matter the battle of succession was brought before a beth din (religious court) in 2007, which ultimately ruled that Halberstam would be declared the fifth Rebbe of Bobov (אדמו"ר מבאבוב) with its headquarters on 48th Street in Borough Park,^[5] while Unger can choose the title Rebbe of Bobov-45 (אדמו"ר מבאבוב-45), located on 45th Street.^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]

Career

In 2014, Halberstam launched Kinyan Torah, a program to encourage laymen to learn Talmud. Those enrolled in the program were able to take the monthly test and those who scored an 80 or above earned a stipend. The program was expanded to include young children in 2023.^[9] At times over a thousand test takers were recorded.

In 2021, he launched a $125 million campaign to build new schools for the elementary boys and girl school.^[10]

As of 2024, Bobov has satellite communities in Monsey; Toronto;^[11] Lakewood NJ;^[12] Linden NJ;^[13] London;^[14] Montreal;^[15] Antwerp;^[16] and Williamsburg NY;^[17] in addition to many locations in Israel.