Jerusalem – Rabbi Greenblatt Goes Public: I Lost Everything To Madoff

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    Rabbi Ephraim Greenblatt Photo: MishpachaJerusalem – In an extraordinary interview with Mishpacha magazine, renowned gadol and posek Rabbi Ephraim Greenblatt reveals for the first time publicly that he lost all his money when he invested his life savings with Bernard Madoff.

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    When interviewed by Mishpacha magazine for their Pesach issue, Rabbi Greenblatt was asked what prompted him to leave the United States and return to Eretz Yisroel. It was clear that the question was a difficult one for Rabbi Greenblatt and the interviewer was prepared to turn off his recording device. Rabbi Greenblatt, however, insisted that the recorder be left on as he wanted his story to be made public.

    Rabbi Greenblatt told Mishpacha, “I worked hard in America and saved money. Baruch Hashem, my position paid me well. I was able to give every grandchild $50,000 when they got married. And then I took a foolish step. I heard that Jews were depositing money with a wealthy man who offered high returns and I decided to do the same. That man was Bernard Madoff. For the first five years I earned $100,000 from my investment each year and then gave him the profits to reinvest. When the fraud was exposed, I lost all my money. I have nothing left. He is sitting in prison but I have been left penniless. Today it is hard for me to give even fifty dollars to my grandchildren.”

    Rabbi Greenblatt, who received semicha from both Reb Isser Zalman Meltzer and Reb Moshe Feinstein, is one of the last talmidim of Reb Moshe Feinstein and is known to be a gadol and a posek. Rabbi Greenblatt spent fifty eight years transforming Memphis, Tennessee into a burgeoning Torah center and is the author of Rivevos Ephraim.

    Today, Rabbi Greenblatt lives in a three room rented apartment in Har Nof. His library of 26,000 seforim, which was too expensive to ship to Eretz Yisroel, remains in Memphis.

    Rabbi Greenblatt continues to answer questions from all over the United States and delivers regular shiurim by phone to his balabatim back in America.

    To read the full Mishpacah interview click here PDF


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    60 Comments
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    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    as per rabbi greenblatts family he was misquoted and neverheard or knew mr nadoff
    it is true that the rav did invest with a “frum known person” and was taken for a ride but it definatly wasnt nadoff

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Nebech…. You can’t trust anyone with your money these days… just a little betuchon can help.

    Joe Shmoe
    Joe Shmoe
    13 years ago

    Wow what an ehrliche yid. He places the blame on himself! “And then I took a foolish step.” thats my man! accepts it and lives with it! not like all the other people who considered themselves invincible! ACCEPT IT! that’s the definition of being human! Make mistakes, Learn from them, AND LIVE WITH IT!

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Most of his library is being sold in Lakewood

    poshiter yid
    poshiter yid
    13 years ago

    Again we learn a yisod what’s to good to be true is to good to be true

    ubet
    ubet
    13 years ago

    To # 1. you’re right , it wasnt NADOFF. It was MADOFF!!!!!

    Loshon Hora
    Loshon Hora
    13 years ago

    Maybe people should donate him money, he for sure is a good cause.
    BTW his story is chizuk to me I laso lost money on stupid moves in the Stock real estate & foreign currency, and as I try to make it back the way I lost it I lose more, now I have almost nothing to lose. I guess that everyone makes at least on expensive mistake in a life time, but it was decreed from above.

    Anti-Anonymous
    Anti-Anonymous
    13 years ago

    R’ Greenblatt says it was Madoff, it was Madoff. I believe him over an anonymous poster.

    Harry
    Harry
    13 years ago

    I dont how Mishpacha manages to get such scoops every time. Great article.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    is he related ot Rav Noteh Greenblat? SOunds like a similar biography, i wonder if it is another name that he is known by. I never met Rav note but heard a lot about him, that is why i cannot recognise from the picture.

    ShrewdInvestor
    ShrewdInvestor
    13 years ago

    Pardon me for being so crude, but what kind of money are we talking about? Bernie the crook would not look at you for under hundreds of thousands of dollars.

    Or did the Rabbi invest indirectly with made-off through some intermediary?

    jancsi
    jancsi
    13 years ago

    wow what a wanderfull rebbi he is and truly honest human being i feel for him he worked hard all his life and was honest in all his ways a truly godel hador a humble and wanderfull person

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    “one of the last Talmidim of R’ Moshe Feinstein”????? Are you kidding me? R’ Iser Zalman maybe, not R’ Moshe

    memphis is the place
    memphis is the place
    13 years ago

    Both Reb Nuta and Reb Efraim are relatives and great workers for klal yisroel.

    yisroel
    yisroel
    13 years ago

    It was Shereshevsky from Norfolk, Va. that nebach Rav Ephraim got beganeved from nisht madoff. Ich hub gehert dus fun di mispocha

    yisroel
    yisroel
    13 years ago

    not rav note, rav note is still in memphis rav ephraim is mispocha though.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Tell him to sell off the Library. It will at least give him some money for the grandkids.

    family member
    family member
    13 years ago

    Rabbi Efraim Greenblatt is related to Rabbi Nota Greenblatt and is a brother-in-law with Rabbi Shlomo Brevda

    JERSEY BOY
    JERSEY BOY
    13 years ago

    FACT; R Nota and R Ephraim are brothers. The journalist has it on tape. Your anonymous posters cant fargin Mishpacha these contsistent super-scoops.

    a little math
    a little math
    13 years ago

    26000 seforim X $10 (average price of a sefer) = $260 000
    This great Rav had an incredible investment income. I wonder if he has advice on how to staart that kind of investment for the yidden of eretz yisroel. Learn from the mistakes. Don’t mess up with the recipe

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    that is what happends when a Rabbi becomes businessman

    YerushalmiYid
    YerushalmiYid
    13 years ago

    “Last talmidim of Rav Moshe”? With all due respect to Rabbi Greenblat, there are many other Talmidim of rav Moshe alive and well.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Rav Ephraim is a walking encyclopedia. He was in the Irgun before the state of Israel and moved to Memphis where he was the Shamash of the Anshei Sefard for many years. His wife, A”H was a tzadekes. His Rivvos Ephraim is a bracha. Maybe he could put them up for sale so people could buy them for his parnasa. I’d buy a set even though I have a few volumes. One is signed by Rav Ephraim.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    “transforming Memphis, Tennessee into a burgeoning Torah center “
    obvioulsy the writer has never been to memphis…. although having 2 large orthodox shuls etc (non of which rabbi greenblatt was rabbi) has been a steadily dying frum community for the last 50 years… only recently with chabad and the kolel has there been some kind of resurgence

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    I, attended Mesivtah Tifferet Y’rashalaim ,1946.

    Godol HaDor
    Godol HaDor
    13 years ago

    I am mechutonim with the Greenblatts. Rav Efraim is a nephew of Reb Noteh.
    He made money in kashrus etc he was never a pulpit Rabbi he spent most of his days in his third floor learning and writing.
    His wife a”h made money
    He is takeh from the last true talmidim of reb moishe zt”l who else is??
    Reb moishe passed away over 25 yrs ago and was unwell for years. R Efraim and others, learnt with/from him and had real phone contact with him to hear psokim etc. That type of relationship
    Stopped years before his passing.
    I feel very sorry that this great man, who all his like was non political and loving of every ben torah, every type and stripe has suffered so much.

    mkamm
    mkamm
    13 years ago

    he had a lot of money and lost it,I in the beginning I had very little and now i have very little.At least he gave something to his grandchilden.If i passed away i couldnt leave anyone a nickel.And i work very hard.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Anyone who is skeptical as to how close R’ Efrayim was to R’ Moshe should just take a look at the Igros Moshe. I don’t think there is any other single individual who has more teshovos addressed to him there.

    By the way, does anyone know where it is possible to purchase a set of Rivevos Efrayim? I have wanted to get it for years, but never found it in any book store.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    This is incorrect. The SIPC Government investment insurance reimbursed each Madoff fraud account $750,000. What happened to that money?

    eliezer shulman
    eliezer shulman
    13 years ago

    Mishpacha magazine have it on tape and the family will admit it.

    anonymous
    anonymous
    13 years ago

    I am from Memphis. R Efraim is indeed a tremendous talmid chacham, however, he did not open the yeshiva in Memphis and didn’t have anything to do with it. He was an 8th grade rebbe in the day school & baal koreh in Anshei Sphard and a wonderful person, but did not in any stretch of the imagination build the Torah community of Memphis singlehandedly as seems to be claimed in the article.

    yosefben
    yosefben
    10 years ago

    Late post…by a couple years. I am not from Memphis but lived there for about ten years and Rav Greenblatt is a true jewel!! Wonderful person….