Moshe Sacks

Rabbi Moshe Sacks, also known as the Matnas Moshe, is a prominent rabbi belonging to the Satmar Hasidic movement. He is a dayan and posek affiliated with the Edah HaChareidis rabbinical council of Jerusalem, and spiritual leader of the Bnos Rochel girl's schools in Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh.
Rabbi Sacks lives in the Jerusalem neighborhood Kiryat Mattersdorf. He is often referred to as the Matnas Moshe, after the multiple volume commentary he authored on the Torah, Shulchan Aruch, and Talmud.
He was a student of Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum of Satmar and Rabbi Aharon Kotler. All three volumes of Matnas Moshe are dedicated to both of his teachers.
In keeping with the normative Satmar position, Rabbi Sacks accounts the State of Israel itself as an entity strictly forbidden by Jewish law, and he forbids voting in Israeli elections, service in the Israeli military, or voluntary acceptance of Israeli citizenship. In 1998, in the Chasam Sofer synagogue of Kiryat Mattersdorf, Rabbi Sacks engaged in an impromptu public debate with posek and educator Rabbi Yitzchok Izby, a Gerrer hasid, over whether the story of the twelve spies recounted in the Torah proves it's a mitzvah to vote in Israeli elections or the opposite. The engagement was friendly, but intense. The vast knowledge displayed by both rabbis left even learned bystanders deeply impressed and made it impossible for the congregants to determine a clear winner.
Rabbis Sacks's opinion is sought after by poskim and rabbis from various congregations and hasidic sects due to his vast knowledge in the practical application of halacha (Jewish religious law) and reputation for ignoring the various feuds within the Hasidic world. Due to his fluency in English, converts and those newly introduced to haredi Judaism are disproportionately represented among the private individuals who seek his opinion.
In June 2006 Rabbi Sacks was hospitalized and after lengthy surgery, recovered. He continues to guide the community that has grown around him.

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