Avrohom Bornsztain
Avrohom Bornsztain (14 October 1838 – 7 February 1910), also spelled Avraham Borenstein or Bernstein, was a leading posek in late-nineteenth-century Europe and founder and first Rebbe of the Sochatchover Hasidic dynasty. He is known as the Avnei Nezer ("Stones of the Crown") after the title of his posthumously-published set of Torah responsa, which is widely acknowledged as a halakhic classic.[1] His only son, Shmuel, author of Shem Mishmuel, succeeded him as Rebbe.
Hilchos Gitten, Kav Hanaki
Hilchos Gitten, Kav Hanaki, Lubavitcher posek
wrote sefer Shaar HaKolel, birur of Baal Hatanya's sidduer of Nusach Ari, calls it that because Arizal says there are 12 gates into Jerus. one for each gate, but a 13th gate for BTs and people who don't know what shevet they are from
wrote sefer Shaar HaKolel, birur of Baal Hatanya's sidduer of Nusach Ari, calls it that because Arizal says there are 12 gates into Jerus. one for each gate, but a 13th gate for BTs and people who don't know what shevet they are from
the silent majority
Last week I called an old friend in Crown Heights. He comes from an old Chabad family, his father still has a Russian accent. I asked his views on Meshichism. And he told me in clear and strong words how he could not know who the Messiah is. One should go by the Rambam’s definition and the Rebbe might have been a good candidate but no one knows and now he is gone anyway. I asked, could the Messiah be a person who comes back from the dead? My friend said he doesn’t know. You have to go by the Gemara and he personally doesn’t know if such a thing is possible. I asked if he knew others who share his view. He said he believes most people in Crown Heights feel this way. They are the silent majority. The noisemakers, he said, violate the Rebbes instructions on this matter. A polite fellow, he sounded very irritated with the Meshichists.
Found on the web about the Rebbe and Zionism
The Rebbe protested the singing of Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem, at a Chabad gathering, and the Rebbe refused to use the words “Medinat Yisrael,” the State of Israel. The Rebbe also forbade the Star of David from being printed on Chabad books. “We are Zionists. But not the so-called Zionists who created the State of Israel, rather we are Zionists who pray thrice daily that ‘G-d lay His eyes upon Zion,’” the Chabad rabbi wrote. “The difference is immense.”Source
tri-annual Kinus Torah
https://anash.org/tri-annual-770-kinus-torah/
Sunday Isru Chag, the tri-annual Kinus Torah, which happens every Isru Chag of the shalosh regolim, took place in 770, where for several hours attendees heard from several featured speakers. They included:
Rabbi Avrohom Osdoba – Rov, Badatz Crown Heights
Rabbi Avrohom Boruch Pevzner – Rov, Anash Paris
Rabbi Schneur Zalman Labkowski, Rosh Yeshivah, Tomchei Tmimim, 770
Rabbi Michoel Seligson – Mashpia, Oholei Torah
Rabbi Sholom Shuchat – Dayan in Agudas HaRabbonim
Rabbi Mendel Marozow, Mashpia, Heichel Menachem
Rabbi Kuti Feldman – Mashpia, Yeshiva Timchei Tmimim – 770
Rabbi Schneur Schneerson, Ramat Aviv, Eretz Yisroel
R' Pinhas Hirschprung
Rabbi Pinhas Hirschprung (1912 – 1998[1]) was a Polish rabbi of Hasidic ancestry, who later emigrated to Montreal, Canada, where he served as Chief Rabbi.
Life[edit]
Rabbi Pinhas was born to Rabbi Chaim Hirschprung in the city of Dukla, in Poland (Galicia) in 1912. He first studied with his grandfather, Rabbi Dovid Tzvi Seeman (Yiddish: זעהמאן) (who was also the teacher of the Rebbe of Klausenburg, Rabbi Yekusiel Yehudah Halberstam), and later became a student of Rabbi Meir Shapiro, Dean of the Chachmei Lublin Yeshiva and founder of the Daf Yomi movement. Rabbi Shapiro once said about him that already as a youth, Rabbi Hirschprung knew all 2,200 folio pages (4,400 column pages) of the Talmud by heart.[2] After he reached the age of bar-mitzvah, he wrote his first book of Torah novellae[clarification needed], "Pri Pinchas", and then went on to write another book, "Ohel Torah", soon after.[citation needed] After Rabbi Shapiro died in 1933, Rabbi Hirschprung would test prospective students for admittance to the Chachmei Lublin Yeshiva, where entry required the memorization 200 Talmudic folio pages (400 column pages). He was endowed with an eidetic memory which enabled him to memorize the hundreds of volumes of rabbinic literature verbatim. Only a few other known scholars of the post World War II generation attained such a level of vast Talmudic fluency: Rabbi Chaim Kreiswirth, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky.[citation needed]
Rabbi Hirschprung shared a very close relationship with the Lubavitcher Rebbe.[citation needed]
Rabbi Hirschprung's name and legacy are associated with an Orthodox Jewish girls' school, Beth Jacob d'Rav Hirschprung, located in Montreal, and with an enrolment of nearly 600 students. The school was founded by Rabbi Hirschprung in 1953, and counts as its alumnae many teachers, professionals, and Jewish community leaders the world over.[citation needed]
His wife, Alta Chaya Hirschprung, died on March 4, 2012.[3] They are both buried in the Chesed Shel Emes Cemetery near Ste. Sophie, outside of Montreal.
Escape from Nazi-occupied Lublin[edit]
During World War II, Rabbi Hirschprung escaped to Kobe, Japan via Lithuania and then traveled on to Shanghai.[2] In 1941, he reached Canada on the last boat to leave before the attack on Pearl Harbor.[4]
Rabbinate[edit]
He served as the chief Rabbi of Montreal from 1969 until his death January 25, 1998[5] as well as dean (rosh yeshiva) of the Rabbinical College of Canada yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim Lubavitch Montreal.
R' Yehuda Meir Shapiro
Yehuda Meir Shapiro (Polish: Majer Jehuda Szapira; March 3, 1887 – October 27, 1933), was a prominent Polish Hasidic rabbi and rosh yeshiva, also known as the Lubliner Rav. He is noted for his promotion of the Daf Yomi study program in 1923, and establishing the Chachmei Lublin Yeshiva in 1930.
During the years 1922 to 1927 Shapiro was the first Orthodox Jew to become a member in the Sejm (Parliament) of the Second Polish Republic representing the Jewish minority of the country.
Biography[edit]
Early years[edit]
Yehuda Meir Shapiro was born on the 7th day of Adar (in Jewish tradition, also the birth date of Moses[1]) in the city of Shatz, Bucovina, then in the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, now in Romania, in 1887.[1] He was a descendant of Rabbi Pinchas Shapiro of Korets, one of the students of the Baal Shem Tov, and from his maternal side, of Rabbi Joseph ben Isaac Bekhor Shor, a French tosafist.[2] After cheder, Shapiro began to study with his grandfather, the Baal Minchas Shai (Rabbi Shmuel Yitzhak Schor). Another of his early teachers was Rabbi Shulem Moshkovitz (popularly known as the Shotzer Rebbe. He was also a well known kabbalist).
Shapiro began to get a reputation, and became known as the Illui of Shatz. From an early age, he was known as an outstanding leader and gifted speaker. He was soon ordained by many great scholars, including the Maharsham. His grandfather introduced him to the Chortkover Rebbe, and thus began his passion for Hasidism, and the beginning of his relationship with the Chortkover Rebbe.
Galina[edit]
His first rabbinical posting came in 1911[2] when he was appointed Rav of Galina. He spent ten years in the city, during which time he established a yeshiva called Bnei Torah. Construction commenced in 1920. The yeshiva held a Talmud Torah, a place to train rabbis, and a kitchen to feed orphaned children. It ran at a budget of over half a million marks. This yeshiva served as a prototype for what was later to become Chachmei Lublin.
Sanok[edit]
After leaving Galina, Shapiro began serving as Rav of Sanok in 1920.
Petrakov[edit]
In 1924, Shapiro accepted his third rabbinical position in Petrakov/Piotrkow.
Lublin[edit]
On 14 June 1931, he was appointed rabbi of Lublin in the old synagogue of the Maharshal.
Daf Yomi[edit]
Shapiro introduced the revolutionary idea of Daf Yomi (Hebrew: דף יומי, "page [of the] day" or "daily folio"), a daily regimen undertaken to study the Babylonian Talmud one folio (a daf consists of both sides of the page) each day. Under this regimen, the entire Talmud is completed, one day at a time, in a cycle of seven and a half years. Rabbi Shapiro introduced his idea at the First World Congress of the World Agudath Israel in Vienna on 16 August 1923.[3] The first cycle of Daf Yomi commenced on the first day of Rosh Hashanah 5684 (11 September 1923).[3] Now in its 13th cycle,[4] Daf Yomi has been taken up by tens of thousands of Jews worldwide.
Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin[edit]
Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin was, along with Daf Yomi, Shapiro's greatest achievement. He conceived of a yeshiva for Hasidic Poland, modeled on Lithuanian yeshivas such as Volozhin, Slabodka and Novardok, but which would train Hasidic rabbis as the next generation to lead Polish Jewry. The Yeshiva was housed in a massive building, housed hundreds of students, and had a vast library of over 100,000 books.
On May 22–28, 1924, the cornerstone laying ceremony took place for the construction of the yeshiva building. Approximately 20,000 people participated in the event. The opening ceremony took place on June 24–25, 1930. Apart from thousands of local Jews, around 10,000 people arrived from all over Poland and abroad. Shapiro served as rosh yeshiva until his death.
Łódź[edit]
In 1932 Shapiro was approached by leaders of the Jewish Community of Łódź, who wanted to offer him the position of Chief Rabbi of Łódź. Many people wanted to appoint Rabbi Mendel Alter of Kalish, (b. 1877, Ger) the brother to the Gerrer Rebbe (and youngest son of the Sfas Emes) to this position. Rabbi Shapiro negotiated that a large part of his wage would go to pay off the debts that Chachmei Lublin was still struggling to pay off. Eventually it was decided to give it to Rabbi Shapiro. After all the protracted negotiation that went on to get Rabbi Shapiro into this position, he died three days after being appointed Chief Rabbi.
Political activities[edit]
Agudat Yisrael[edit]
Whilst serving in Galina, Rabbi Shapiro began his involvement with Agudat Israel. He was present at its founding conference in 1912. In 1914 he was appointed head of the Education Department of Agudas Yisrael in East Galicia, becoming president in 1922 of Agudas Yisrael in Poland. He played a role in the conference in the city of Lvov, which had the purpose of launching the Aguda in Galicia, some two years after its founding in Katovitz in 5672 (c. 1911).
At the time, he was also added as a member to the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah. Rabbi Shapiro was initially very doubtful as to whether he should become an MP for the party, but was encouraged to do so by his rebbe, the Chortkover.
Rabbi Shapiro, together with Aron Levine and Zalmen Sirtzokin, chaired the committee which as a part of the Polish Ministry for Religious Affairs, held responsibility for delegating Rabbinical positions throughout Poland. He was also part of the Vaad HaChinuch.
Beginning in 1922, Rabbi Shapiro served as a parliamentarian to the Polish Sejm. In 1928 he stepped down as a politician so that he could devote all his energies to Chachmei Lublin Yeshiva.
Death[edit]
Shapiro became ill with typhus in 1933 and died within the month, on 27 October 1933 (7 Cheshvan 5694)[2] at the age of 46. His death was mourned in both Jewish and non-Jewish Poland. Countless newspapers across the entire political spectrum, from Orthodox to Yiddishist to socialist, featured front-page biographies of Rabbi Shapiro.
Shapiro's remains were reinterred in Israel in 1958, under the auspices of his brother. He was reburied in Har HaMenuchot with a full ceremony. Rabbi Yitzchok Meir Levin delivered a eulogy, as did those students of his who had survived the Holocaust.
Legacy[edit]
Shapiro is widely revered throughout the Jewish world as the founder of Daf Yomi. The neighborhood of Zikhron Meir in Bnei Brak was established in his memory by Yaakov Halperin; this is the neighborhood that hosts many of the major yeshivas in Bnei Brak.
Shlomo Artzi, a famous Israeli musical artist, is Shapiro's grand-nephew.[citation needed]
Works[edit]
Shapiro was considered a gaon (Torah genius) in his lifetime. He studied Torah extensively and was a great scholar even by the high standards of the era he lived in. His two major works are Ohr HaMeir and Imrei Da'as.
- Ohr HaMeir - It was in Petrakov that he printed his book of responsa entitled Ohr HaMeir in 1926. As a work it operates on many different subjects, from philosophy to halacha.
- Imrei Daas - a compilation of Torah thoughts on Halacha and Aggada, which was lost during World War II. The book contained an approbation from Rabbi Meir Arik of Meturnah.
- Vortelach - Shapiro was a quick and brilliant thinker, and his numerous vortelach (short responsa) have been collected in numerous volumes, and quoted in many books.
The Nazi Who Saved the Lubavitcher Rebbe - Tablet Mag.
When war broke out on Sept. 1, 1939, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, was staying in Otwock, a resort town outside of Warsaw where he’d established a Chabad yeshiva. The Rebbe was suffering from multiple sclerosis, he was overweight and a heavy smoker. He walked with difficulty.
The journey from Otwock to Warsaw was only 60 kilometers, but perilous. The Luftwaffe’s Stutka war planes bombed and strafed traffic and destroyed rail lines, leaving mutilated bodies and dead horses littering the road. Roadside ditches were filled with Poles hiding from the planes, which they called “death on wings.”
The Rebbe arrived in Warsaw with his family and a group of students, hoping to catch a train to Riga, Latvia, where Mordecai Dubin, a Chabad follower and member of the Latvian parliament, had arranged Latvian citizenship for the rabbi and his family. But Rabbi Schneersohn found the Warsaw train station destroyed and was forced to seek shelter among Chabad followers in the city.
More
Book
The journey from Otwock to Warsaw was only 60 kilometers, but perilous. The Luftwaffe’s Stutka war planes bombed and strafed traffic and destroyed rail lines, leaving mutilated bodies and dead horses littering the road. Roadside ditches were filled with Poles hiding from the planes, which they called “death on wings.”
The Rebbe arrived in Warsaw with his family and a group of students, hoping to catch a train to Riga, Latvia, where Mordecai Dubin, a Chabad follower and member of the Latvian parliament, had arranged Latvian citizenship for the rabbi and his family. But Rabbi Schneersohn found the Warsaw train station destroyed and was forced to seek shelter among Chabad followers in the city.
More
Book
Sleeping in sukkah
Why Do So Many People Not Sleep In A Sukkah?
Article talks about why many do not sleep in sukkah. Doesn't get into Lubavitch.
This letter from the Rebbe explains the Chabad position.
Article talks about why many do not sleep in sukkah. Doesn't get into Lubavitch.
This letter from the Rebbe explains the Chabad position.
Litvish velt sucks in a BT.
Brand new BT. Doesn't know any better. Maybe he wants to be Chassidic. Uh oh, he's swimming along and meets a New York Litvack. Watch what happens.
See it here
"You better care about yourself, because nobody else really cares." Roger Ebert explaining the perspective of the character Sonny in the film A Bronx Tale. Sonny;" You got to follow your heart."
See it here
"You better care about yourself, because nobody else really cares." Roger Ebert explaining the perspective of the character Sonny in the film A Bronx Tale. Sonny;" You got to follow your heart."
Who has the mesorah?
So who has the authentic tradition? Who is the representative of the mesorah? Many in the contemporary Litvish velt will claim that they have it. But is that so? Did you know that the chuppah is a somewhat recent innovation as is the bedekin? Original Ashkenaz used a tallis instead of a chupah and a chumpas mein (where the kallah is brought to the chassan and the two sit together) instead of the bedekin. In original Ashkenaz, birchos hatorah was said before korbannos at the end of birchos hashachar rather than at the beginning of davening. Aleinu ended with b'cavod. Baruch Shemei and ana b'ocach were not said at all. Akeidas Yitzchak was not said. There was no kaddish after aleinu. Korbonos were limited to parshas hatamid and the mishnayus. Upshirin was not done. A wimpel was wrapped around the sefer Torah, not a sash. Boys wore a tallis. Tefillin were smaller. The bracha on slanderers was totally different. Tallis went on just before korbonos. And then there's the short coats and clean shaven faces! And that is not all but you get the point. If you study minhag ashkenaz, you see the the Litvacks don't have THE mesorah.
They have A mesorah, one that put significant changes on the one they inherited. So why all the criticism of Chassidim. The changes from Ashkenaz to Polish are arguably greater than the ones to Sefard. What did Sefard do from there? Move hodu to before baruch sheamar? Move ein keloheinu to before Aleinu? They add a page of material to pezukei d'zimrah too. Minor stuff. Also, vidui every day. But overall, Polish and Sefard are pretty similar.
Actually, the Chabad siddur is in many ways closer to Ashkenaz. Birchos HaTorah is in the middle of the birchos hashachar as is tallis. The bracha for heretics mentions the 'evil kingdom.' The other brochos of Amidah are the same as Ashkenaz. As the Chabad siddur is 200 years old, we see that many of the changes made in nusah Poland/Lita are recent. I think the Chabad English siddur is the closest to original Ashkenaz of the English translations, closer possibly than the Hirsch siddur, which is Minhag Poland/Ashkenaz.
Is it all the influence of Chassidus? Much is, but chupah not, bedeken not. Boys not wearing tallis is probably from poverty. Some of it is just Eastern Europe. And if Chassidus was the main cause, is that a problem? Maybe it's a good influence.
Now the csav of the Ari is different from the Beis Yosef, the latter used by Litvacks. I'll give you that.
So what's the big deal if you go from Polish to Sefard? The changes are so vast anyway. If it were so horrible to not go with the more original nusach wouldn't all the Litvacks switch to Yekke? Certainly, the boys could put on a tallis now that the community is incomparably more affluent. One trip to Eretz Yisrael could put talleisim on 20 bochurim.
Maybe the German rabbanim would tell you they should switch. But isn't it the Litvacks - ie the contemporary ones - who are pounding everyone for not being like them?
And let me ask you this, is the German minhag totally authentic? They added baruch hu v'aruch shemo and tashlich and kapparos. It's more authentic but not totally so. Much of the music, as much as I like it, seems 19th century German to me. Is the choir at Breuer's traditional? You know it's a mimicry of German choirs. I'm not criticizing that but saying rather that some careful innovation in a time of need is acceptable. Much of the music is composed by a man who I think wasn't frum. (Lewandaski) And latter day German Jews added lecha dodi as did everyone else. So if the German tradition is so totally precise and non-innovative, then what's up with Lecha Dodi? That was written a few hundred years ago by a Sephardi.
Well I thought you can't change anything! But we see one can add as necessary and appropriate.
And another thing. Let's say you keep minhag Galicia. That's nice. But that minhag wasn't always old. It developed. So why can't you take on the minhag of where you live now, that established by the frummer people? You live in NY and you start taking on what people do there as based on the poskim there? Why is that so terrible? Maybe it's good. You want some uniformity in the community. The main thing is you have tzadickim and scholars in charge.
All this isn't cut and dry. We don't abandon minhag willy nilly but we don't have to make ourselves crazy either.
So you want to keep minhag Chabad? Go for it if that helps you to connect to Chabad in the way you want to. It's as authentic as anything from Eastern Europe.
Same with hashkafa. It's so obvious that the typical Litvack is missing mysticism. The chasedei ashkenaz were mystics as well as talmudists. Chassidim are adding back what once was.
The popularization of kabbalah may be knew but the Arizal explains that this is needed in the days of Moshiach and we see these days are unlike any other in history.
And Torah study. They used to study grammar. They used to study mishnah and ein yaakov. They studied all kinds of things. This turning all study to a few parts of Gemara is a recent innovation as is doing it in the abstract style.
The point is go with the derech that works for you. All this hacking at derachim is a contemporary Litvish thing. And people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
The Litvish derech is fine and dandy. But if it's not for you, don't let anyone intimidate you into it.
And let's talk about the siddur. One thinks, the siddur in your hand came word for word from on high. Actually, they are put together by printers. I know a few people who made siddurim. They make all kinds of decisions of what to put in there, oftentimes based on what will sell. For example, the new Yekke siddur from Austria contains Baruch Shemei and ana b'ocoach in small print because so many people are accustomed to saying it, even though yekkes don't. Siddur try to pack in as much as possible to attract a larger crowd. It is very expensive to produce a siddur. I know a few people who have done it. You do one in a lifetime if you are so blessed. So don't think you have to say everything in a siddur. What do you say? That needs to be studied and discussed. New innovations certainly are not obligatory. So if you are new to religion and the whole siddur is too much don't feel bad for leaving out certain parts. And there is much that is the bare minimum, plenty actually.
So we see, the whole subject of derachim is complicated. Baruch Hashem! This is not a cult. We don't crush people. The derachim are there to help you! And therefore there is a significant element of personalization. If any yeshiva guy tells you otherwise, ask him why he's saying baruch shemei.
They have A mesorah, one that put significant changes on the one they inherited. So why all the criticism of Chassidim. The changes from Ashkenaz to Polish are arguably greater than the ones to Sefard. What did Sefard do from there? Move hodu to before baruch sheamar? Move ein keloheinu to before Aleinu? They add a page of material to pezukei d'zimrah too. Minor stuff. Also, vidui every day. But overall, Polish and Sefard are pretty similar.
Actually, the Chabad siddur is in many ways closer to Ashkenaz. Birchos HaTorah is in the middle of the birchos hashachar as is tallis. The bracha for heretics mentions the 'evil kingdom.' The other brochos of Amidah are the same as Ashkenaz. As the Chabad siddur is 200 years old, we see that many of the changes made in nusah Poland/Lita are recent. I think the Chabad English siddur is the closest to original Ashkenaz of the English translations, closer possibly than the Hirsch siddur, which is Minhag Poland/Ashkenaz.
Is it all the influence of Chassidus? Much is, but chupah not, bedeken not. Boys not wearing tallis is probably from poverty. Some of it is just Eastern Europe. And if Chassidus was the main cause, is that a problem? Maybe it's a good influence.
Now the csav of the Ari is different from the Beis Yosef, the latter used by Litvacks. I'll give you that.
So what's the big deal if you go from Polish to Sefard? The changes are so vast anyway. If it were so horrible to not go with the more original nusach wouldn't all the Litvacks switch to Yekke? Certainly, the boys could put on a tallis now that the community is incomparably more affluent. One trip to Eretz Yisrael could put talleisim on 20 bochurim.
Maybe the German rabbanim would tell you they should switch. But isn't it the Litvacks - ie the contemporary ones - who are pounding everyone for not being like them?
And let me ask you this, is the German minhag totally authentic? They added baruch hu v'aruch shemo and tashlich and kapparos. It's more authentic but not totally so. Much of the music, as much as I like it, seems 19th century German to me. Is the choir at Breuer's traditional? You know it's a mimicry of German choirs. I'm not criticizing that but saying rather that some careful innovation in a time of need is acceptable. Much of the music is composed by a man who I think wasn't frum. (Lewandaski) And latter day German Jews added lecha dodi as did everyone else. So if the German tradition is so totally precise and non-innovative, then what's up with Lecha Dodi? That was written a few hundred years ago by a Sephardi.
Well I thought you can't change anything! But we see one can add as necessary and appropriate.
And another thing. Let's say you keep minhag Galicia. That's nice. But that minhag wasn't always old. It developed. So why can't you take on the minhag of where you live now, that established by the frummer people? You live in NY and you start taking on what people do there as based on the poskim there? Why is that so terrible? Maybe it's good. You want some uniformity in the community. The main thing is you have tzadickim and scholars in charge.
All this isn't cut and dry. We don't abandon minhag willy nilly but we don't have to make ourselves crazy either.
So you want to keep minhag Chabad? Go for it if that helps you to connect to Chabad in the way you want to. It's as authentic as anything from Eastern Europe.
Same with hashkafa. It's so obvious that the typical Litvack is missing mysticism. The chasedei ashkenaz were mystics as well as talmudists. Chassidim are adding back what once was.
The popularization of kabbalah may be knew but the Arizal explains that this is needed in the days of Moshiach and we see these days are unlike any other in history.
And Torah study. They used to study grammar. They used to study mishnah and ein yaakov. They studied all kinds of things. This turning all study to a few parts of Gemara is a recent innovation as is doing it in the abstract style.
The point is go with the derech that works for you. All this hacking at derachim is a contemporary Litvish thing. And people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
The Litvish derech is fine and dandy. But if it's not for you, don't let anyone intimidate you into it.
And let's talk about the siddur. One thinks, the siddur in your hand came word for word from on high. Actually, they are put together by printers. I know a few people who made siddurim. They make all kinds of decisions of what to put in there, oftentimes based on what will sell. For example, the new Yekke siddur from Austria contains Baruch Shemei and ana b'ocoach in small print because so many people are accustomed to saying it, even though yekkes don't. Siddur try to pack in as much as possible to attract a larger crowd. It is very expensive to produce a siddur. I know a few people who have done it. You do one in a lifetime if you are so blessed. So don't think you have to say everything in a siddur. What do you say? That needs to be studied and discussed. New innovations certainly are not obligatory. So if you are new to religion and the whole siddur is too much don't feel bad for leaving out certain parts. And there is much that is the bare minimum, plenty actually.
So we see, the whole subject of derachim is complicated. Baruch Hashem! This is not a cult. We don't crush people. The derachim are there to help you! And therefore there is a significant element of personalization. If any yeshiva guy tells you otherwise, ask him why he's saying baruch shemei.
A Meshicist Explains Himself
Rabbi Reuven Wolf
Some interesting stuff here but seems to me he makes several logical leaps and strings them together to create something of a fantasy.
Some interesting stuff here but seems to me he makes several logical leaps and strings them together to create something of a fantasy.
Maharal-Chabad
The Maharal-Chabad Nexus
An Interview With Dr. Naftali Loewenthal
Q: As a scholar who has written extensively on Chabad Chasidic thought, how do you define the connection between the Maharal’s thought and that of Chabad Chasidism?
A: The Maharal was in a sense the first Chasidic writer, because like the later Chasidim, he communicated ideas based on the Midrashic, Aggadic and Kabbalistic dimensions of Jewish thought, seeking through them to create an ethos and a mode of personal relationship with the Divine.
The overt form of much of his writing is the exposition of Aggadic and Midrashic passages, without using Kabbalistic terminology. However, many of the ideas he communicates are based in Kabbalistic sources such as the Zohar and Sefer Yetzirah.
Q: Is there any indication in Chasidic texts suggesting that Chabad directly traces its ideas to the Maharal?
A: Rabbi Shneur Zalman wrote on the title page of Tanya that it is based on “books and on authors.” There is a Chabad tradition that the ‘books’ he refers to include those of his ancestor the Maharal, while the ‘authors’ include Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk, who was an older colleague of Rabbi Shneur Zalman and in some ways was also his teacher.
I find it interesting that this R. Menachem Mendel also leads us back to the Maharal as an influence on Rabbi Shneur Zalman. Dr. Bezalel Safran has written an extensive discussion of the thought of the Maharal and compares it closely with the thought of R. Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk (in Betzalel Safran Hasidism, Continuity or Innovation? Harvard, 1988).
One can suggest that elements of the Maharal’s perceptions of spirituality, reaching him both by the Maharal’s printed works and through their influence on his colleague Rabbi Menahem Mendel of Vitebsk, were systematized in Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s Tanya.
Q: What are some examples of the direct influence of the Maharal in the substance of Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s teachings?
A: An important theme in Chasidic thought is what has been called Panentheism, the idea that “all is within G-d.” The theme of the second section of Tanya is that the first line of the Shema means not merely that there is One G-d, but that there is only G-d, because all is within G-d.
The Maharal gives forceful expression to this concept in Gevurot Hashem (NY, 1969; Israel, 1980, p.181) where he states that belief in G-d means not only the belief that G-d controls existence and gave the Torah, but also that “G-d is everything and that there is nothing outside Him.” Merely to believe that G-d “exists,” says the Maharal, is not enough. One must believe that all is G-d and is within G-d, very close to Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s teaching.
Another possible example is the Maharal’s use of the theme of Tzelem Elokim, the “Divine Image.” In his writings this idea takes a number of different forms. According to Safran, these relate not only to the Divine indwelling in the individual but also to that in existence as a whole.
I would suggest that the systematization in Tanya presenting the idea of the Divine Soul in the individual, and the Divine “Radiance which fills the worlds” in existence in general, while using themes from the Lurianic Kabbalah, are also consonant with the Maharal’s teachings and may even be inspired by them.
http://lubavitch.com/news/article/2027172/The-Maharal-Chabad-Nexus.html
Accordingly, it is incorrect to say, as we sometimes hear people in Lubavitch say, that women are more spiritual than men. The Maharal says that it is men who are more spiritual.
The Maharal says that, though created
simultaneously, the asynchronous formation of the first man and woman does have
bearing on their relative spiritual makeup. However, the male was formed last.
"There is to conclude that, just the opposite, the woman was created first. Even though concerning the matter that [Hashem] took the bone from [Adam’s] bones [to create Chava], and this occurred after the creation of Adam, in the final analysis [we can conclude] that Chava was created first. Behold, it is written, “Male and female [He] created them” and “[He] called their name Adam.” It appears that immediately before this [the formation of Chava], the female was created as a pair [with the male]. And then the female [as a distinct entity] was formed [before the male was]. The order of the creation is given as first the mammal, then the woman, and then the male. One sees that the working of the creation is always that the one at a higher level comes last. So here, the male is last since he is more chashuv. In this is the reason behind the saying of the Rabbis that the woman matures more quickly than the man – the girl at twelve and a day and the boy at thirteen and a day. This is the completion of their maturity. This all follows from the principle that each thing with more completeness, its completion comes last. There, the formation of the male is last and not first.[1] Thus, the formation of Adam occurred after the formation of Chava and this indicates the spiritual ascendancy of the male over the female. One contemporary educator proposed to the author that this formation might be a final formation that consisted of the closing of Adam’s flesh after the material was taken to form Chava."
[1] Maharal, Gur Aryeh, Vayikra 12:2, beginning of parshas Tazriah.
"There is to conclude that, just the opposite, the woman was created first. Even though concerning the matter that [Hashem] took the bone from [Adam’s] bones [to create Chava], and this occurred after the creation of Adam, in the final analysis [we can conclude] that Chava was created first. Behold, it is written, “Male and female [He] created them” and “[He] called their name Adam.” It appears that immediately before this [the formation of Chava], the female was created as a pair [with the male]. And then the female [as a distinct entity] was formed [before the male was]. The order of the creation is given as first the mammal, then the woman, and then the male. One sees that the working of the creation is always that the one at a higher level comes last. So here, the male is last since he is more chashuv. In this is the reason behind the saying of the Rabbis that the woman matures more quickly than the man – the girl at twelve and a day and the boy at thirteen and a day. This is the completion of their maturity. This all follows from the principle that each thing with more completeness, its completion comes last. There, the formation of the male is last and not first.[1] Thus, the formation of Adam occurred after the formation of Chava and this indicates the spiritual ascendancy of the male over the female. One contemporary educator proposed to the author that this formation might be a final formation that consisted of the closing of Adam’s flesh after the material was taken to form Chava."
[1] Maharal, Gur Aryeh, Vayikra 12:2, beginning of parshas Tazriah.
Maharal (Bava Metzia 59a): All those who
follow the advice of their wife fall into Gehinom – This is truly incredible.
We explain this also in relationship to Avos (1:5), All those who talk a lot
with their wives are idle from words of Torah and in the end they inherit
Gehinom. You should know that the woman is compared to Substance while the
man is compared to the Form in every place. And when the Form is not
separated from the Substance but rather the Form follows after the Substance
entirely – he falls in Gehinom. That is because it is well known that the
deficit is attached and bound with the Substance. This is alluded to by
the Sages when they noted that when the woman was created the Samech was
created with her. Because we don’t find the letter Samech in the Torah until
the woman was created. ויסגר
בשר תחתנה Bereishis (2:21) and closed
up the flesh. That teaches you that with the woman was attached the deficit
which is Satan who is the Angel of Death. When the
Form follow after the Substance the Form obtains the deficit. That is because
Gehinom is only the complete deficit as we learn from the names Gehinom
itself... But this is only when the husband listen to her regarding worldly
matters. But regarding household matters, “He should bend down and listen to
her”. That is because it is clear that the Form stands on the Substance and the
Substance serves the Form and is like a house for the Substance. Therefore
regarding household matters “He should bend down and listen to her”. In
contrast in worldly matters, if the Form follows after the Substance – then
such is loss and deficit for the Form. However according to the other answer of
the gemora that a husband should listen to his wife also for worldly matters
that is because the Form stands on the Substance and thus also advice worldly
matters are relevant. It is only spiritual matters that should be avoided from
the wife. That is because the husband is considered the abstract Form but not
the Form in the Substance. In such a case if the man follows after the
Substance it would be a deficit for him. That would mean that the Form which is
the abstract Form is sunken in the Substance which is a completely negative for
the Form. Understand these matters in depth because they are very clear.
Maharal (Avos 1:5):Don’t have excessive idle
conversations with women. ...That is because
one who does is going towards and is attracted to a reality which is lacking
and he is clinging to an deficit which is evil. This is like we said above in
the introduction that when the woman was created that Satan was created with
her. This is stated in Bereishis Rabbah (17), That the letter “samech” does not
appear in the Torah until woman was created. This is to teach us that when the
woman was created that Satan was created with her. The explanation of this is
as we said. The woman is more materialistic then the man because the man is
considered to be on the level of Form relative to the woman. And since the
woman is more materialistic the Satan was created with her. That is because the
Satan is the Angel of Death which is the power which causes a lack amongst the
created beings. That is because the lack is associated with material as is
known concerning material which it clings and is attracted by the deficit. This
is what is meant that when the woman was created that Satan was created with her.
In other words this is referring to the level of man because the male is on
a higher level than the female. That is because the female is attached to
absence and deficit. Now to explain the Mishna which says that whoever has
excessive idle conversations with womem causes evil to himself. That is because
when a man follows after the woman who is clinging to the deficit – there is no
greater evil than the deficit as is well known. This however is does not
degrade the woman herself at all. But rather it is saying that when a man goes
down from his level to go after a woman with excessive idle chatter then the
man is deviating from reality and moves toward deficit. Thus it is negative and
evil for the man when he deviates from his proper level which is the level of
the male and goes after something which is lower than his proper level.Thus
when the Tanna of the Mishna points this out, he is not coming to diminish the
love a man has for his wife. Because unquestionably a man should love his wife
as he loves himself and the Tanna is not addressing that at all. He is only
concerned with a man having excessive idle chatter with his wife. Because to
the degree he has excessive idle chatter with his wife he goes down from the
level of the male and is attracted to material which is attached to deficit.
Thus he is causing evil to himself.[to be continued]
Maharal, Tiferes Yisrael, Perek 28
Free Translation:
Rav Tachlifa says, it is fitting to proceed with women first at the receiving of Torah. The reason
for this stems from the fact that connection to Hashem comes through the commandments. The man is
better fit for this connection. The woman is more physical and her level is not as high as is the man’s.
Therefore Adam HaRishon was commanded first since he was closer to Hashem. The woman’s greater
distance from Hashem led to her initiation of the first sin and destruction upon the world. Because her
connection is lacking, she caused sin which greater damaged the connection. The first man’s connection
was also not complete as was Israel’s at the receiving of Torah. They received a complete connection.
Since the connection at Gan Eden was not complete, therefore the man went first and afterward the
woman.
But Israel received a complete connection when Torah was given to them. This is demonstrated
by the case of Adam who received only a portion of the commandments and therefore his connection was
incomplete. Because of the complete connection established at the receiving of Torah, it was safe to
approach the women first. The women are not at a level as high as are the men, but the connection at
Sinai was complete. Afterwards the man was commanded, his connection and his level are higher than
that of the women. Therefore the command of the women preceded the men. The receiving of Torah by
the women shows that this reception of all of Israel was complete. And this complete reception is a
greater thing. Therefore she is mentioned first.
Explanation:
Commandments solidify the connection of people to Hashem. However, a person must be
equipped to handle the connection. Only a portion of commandments were given in Gan Eden, so the
connection of man to Hashem made at that time was incomplete. Since Adam was naturally better
connected to Hashem than was Chava, he was better able to constructively manage the incomplete
connection made at that time. Chava’s initiation of the first sin is proof that her connection was lacking
something that Adam’s did not lack. At Har Sinai, a full set of commandments was given and therefore a
complete connection to Hashem was being formed. Under such conditions, the danger of giving Torah to
women first was satisfactorily eliminated. The women are still at a lower spiritual level than are the men,
but there was no danger at Har Sinai of their being at a lower level leading to destruction.
With the danger eliminated, it was better to approach the women first for various other reasons.
These reasons include their enthusiasm for commandments, to encourage them to lead their children in
the ways of Torah, and to emphasize to them their reward for enabling their husband’s Torah learning.
The enthusiasm of women mentioned in the first reason is an individual personality trait. It is not a
comprehensive desire for commandments, but rather an initial desire. The Radal explains that this
enthusiasm wears off when obstacles to the commandments appear (Radal on Midrash Rabbah, Shemos
28:2:4). The third reason relates to a fear that the women would prevent their husbands from accepting
Torah since the women may not see what gain they have from Torah since only men are commanded to
learn it. Speaking to the women first was a way of demonstrating to them their equal share in their
husband’s reward for learning.
Literal Translation:
Rav Tachlifa says, it is fitting to proceed with women first. And this is because the decree and the
command from Hashem, may He be blessed, to man who receives it, is the covenant and the connection
of Hashem to man, who received the decree. And this is explained in many places. And since the man is
more fitting to the covenant and the connection with Hashem, may He be blessed, since the woman is
more physical, and the level of the woman is not like that of the man, therefore, the man was commanded
first since his level was close to Hashem, may He be blessed. And because of this, the woman destroyed
since the connection of the woman to Hashem, may He be blessed, is not like that of the man. Behold,
her connection is lacking. And since the connection is lacking, it came from this destruction that damages
the connection. And this thing is specifically by the man who did not receive the complete connection
like all of Israel who received a complete connection. Therefore with regard to the man was the
connection according to his level, the man went first and the woman after. All is according to the level of
the person.
Rather, Israel received a complete connection when Torah was given to them. And the proof of
this is that Adam HaRishon received only a portion of the commandments and therefore the connection
was not complete but Israel, since the Torah given to them was compete, their connection to Hashem was
complete. Therefore it is fitting for the woman to be commanded first at the receiving of Torah since this
thing was a complete connection. The woman is not at such a level when she received the decree but it
was a complete connection. And afterwards the man was commanded his connection and his level are
greater than that of the woman. Therefore the command of the woman preceded the man. The receiving
of Torah by the woman shows this that the reception of all of Israel was complete. And this is a greater
thing. Therefore she is mentioned first.
Rav Tachlifa says, it is fitting to proceed with women first at the receiving of Torah. The reason
for this stems from the fact that connection to Hashem comes through the commandments. The man is
better fit for this connection. The woman is more physical and her level is not as high as is the man’s.
Therefore Adam HaRishon was commanded first since he was closer to Hashem. The woman’s greater
distance from Hashem led to her initiation of the first sin and destruction upon the world. Because her
connection is lacking, she caused sin which greater damaged the connection. The first man’s connection
was also not complete as was Israel’s at the receiving of Torah. They received a complete connection.
Since the connection at Gan Eden was not complete, therefore the man went first and afterward the
woman.
But Israel received a complete connection when Torah was given to them. This is demonstrated
by the case of Adam who received only a portion of the commandments and therefore his connection was
incomplete. Because of the complete connection established at the receiving of Torah, it was safe to
approach the women first. The women are not at a level as high as are the men, but the connection at
Sinai was complete. Afterwards the man was commanded, his connection and his level are higher than
that of the women. Therefore the command of the women preceded the men. The receiving of Torah by
the women shows that this reception of all of Israel was complete. And this complete reception is a
greater thing. Therefore she is mentioned first.
Explanation:
Commandments solidify the connection of people to Hashem. However, a person must be
equipped to handle the connection. Only a portion of commandments were given in Gan Eden, so the
connection of man to Hashem made at that time was incomplete. Since Adam was naturally better
connected to Hashem than was Chava, he was better able to constructively manage the incomplete
connection made at that time. Chava’s initiation of the first sin is proof that her connection was lacking
something that Adam’s did not lack. At Har Sinai, a full set of commandments was given and therefore a
complete connection to Hashem was being formed. Under such conditions, the danger of giving Torah to
women first was satisfactorily eliminated. The women are still at a lower spiritual level than are the men,
but there was no danger at Har Sinai of their being at a lower level leading to destruction.
With the danger eliminated, it was better to approach the women first for various other reasons.
These reasons include their enthusiasm for commandments, to encourage them to lead their children in
the ways of Torah, and to emphasize to them their reward for enabling their husband’s Torah learning.
The enthusiasm of women mentioned in the first reason is an individual personality trait. It is not a
comprehensive desire for commandments, but rather an initial desire. The Radal explains that this
enthusiasm wears off when obstacles to the commandments appear (Radal on Midrash Rabbah, Shemos
28:2:4). The third reason relates to a fear that the women would prevent their husbands from accepting
Torah since the women may not see what gain they have from Torah since only men are commanded to
learn it. Speaking to the women first was a way of demonstrating to them their equal share in their
husband’s reward for learning.
Literal Translation:
Rav Tachlifa says, it is fitting to proceed with women first. And this is because the decree and the
command from Hashem, may He be blessed, to man who receives it, is the covenant and the connection
of Hashem to man, who received the decree. And this is explained in many places. And since the man is
more fitting to the covenant and the connection with Hashem, may He be blessed, since the woman is
more physical, and the level of the woman is not like that of the man, therefore, the man was commanded
first since his level was close to Hashem, may He be blessed. And because of this, the woman destroyed
since the connection of the woman to Hashem, may He be blessed, is not like that of the man. Behold,
her connection is lacking. And since the connection is lacking, it came from this destruction that damages
the connection. And this thing is specifically by the man who did not receive the complete connection
like all of Israel who received a complete connection. Therefore with regard to the man was the
connection according to his level, the man went first and the woman after. All is according to the level of
the person.
Rather, Israel received a complete connection when Torah was given to them. And the proof of
this is that Adam HaRishon received only a portion of the commandments and therefore the connection
was not complete but Israel, since the Torah given to them was compete, their connection to Hashem was
complete. Therefore it is fitting for the woman to be commanded first at the receiving of Torah since this
thing was a complete connection. The woman is not at such a level when she received the decree but it
was a complete connection. And afterwards the man was commanded his connection and his level are
greater than that of the woman. Therefore the command of the woman preceded the man. The receiving
of Torah by the woman shows this that the reception of all of Israel was complete. And this is a greater
thing. Therefore she is mentioned first.
--------------------------------
Seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem M. Schneerson on the
Exemption
Explanation
for the Exemption of Women from Time-bound Commandments
The Seventh
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem M. Schneerson, zt’l
Today’s portion of Rambam concerns
the mitzvah to write a Sefer Torah. The obligation to write a Sefer Torah,
however, devolves only upon men, not upon women. What connection, then, is
there between this mitzvah and women?
We shall resolve this difficulty by
first explaining why in general there are certain mitzvos which women are not
obligated to carry out. It is not because women are inferior to men. It is
because G-d has given each Jew a mission uniquely suited to the individual: A
task for men and a separate task for women – and a mission common to both men
and women.
The relationship between men and
women may be compared to the workings of a person’s body. All of a person’s
limbs are part of the one body; yet each limb has a different function: the
head – intellect, the heart – emotions, etc. Thus the body has two separate –
but simultaneous – dimensions. On the one hand, all its limbs share the same
life-force: the blood circulates to all its limbs, and only when circulation in
all limbs is proper is the body healthy. Simultaneously, each limb has its own
distinct character and function.
Within the body of Jewry, the same
two dimensions are operative. There are some aspects of Torah which men and
women share equally. For example, the mitzvah, “Love your fellow as yourself.”
Since this mitzvah is most important for the continuing health of Jewry – it is
Jewry’s “life force” – it devolves upon men and women equally. Similarly, the
mitzvah, “to know that there is a First Being” – knowledge, not just faith – is
obligatory upon women as upon men.
Simultaneously, there are aspects of
Judaism in which men and women differ, with special missions given to a man and
others to a woman. So that each can carry out his or her task fully, he or she
is freed from other obligations. Although these other obligations are holy
matters, the full and proper accomplishment of one’s special tasks demands that
one be freed of these other obligations.
For men to carry out their task for
example, they are freed of duties such as rearing children from birth. To this
end, G-d created the world such that a child, in his early years, needs and is
dependent on this mother specifically.
In similar fashion, women were freed
of certain obligations so that they can devote themselves fully to their unique
task. A child’s education in his early years, for example, is the mother’s
responsibility, and to this end, women are freed from the obligation to fulfill
certain Mitzvos which men are duty-bound to do. Women are thus able to devote
all their energies to their unique mission.
In the above described relationship
between men and women – that each is freed of certain duties so that they can
properly carry out their primary mission – a wonderful element is introduced.
Because G-d is whole and perfect, He implanted the trait of wholeness and
perfection also in Torah and mitzvos. Thus, although women are not obligated to
perform certain mitzvos, they can still attain the state of wholeness and
perfection effected through fulfilling these mitzvos — although they do not
actually perform them! How?
Women are freed from performing
mitzvos which are obligatory only at a specific time (e.g., tzitzis, which is
obligatory only during the day). The AriZal writes concerning such mitzvos:
“When the male performs the mitzvah, it is unnecessary that the woman should
also do them separately, for she has already been included with him at the time
when he does the mitzvah ... This is the meaning of our Sages’ statement,
‘One’s wife is as one’s body.’” Similarly, the Zohar says that a man (or woman)
alone is “half a body.”
In other words, when Torah frees a
women [sic] from certain mitzvos, it frees her only from doing them— so that she
can devote her time and energies to her unique mission. The state of wholeness
and perfection that is attained, and the reward that accrues, from these
mitzvos, does pertain to women also — through her husband performing them.
This applies even to a girl before
she is married, through the fact that her destined partner in marriage performs
the mitzvos she is not obligated to do. For just as a man and a woman are but
“half a body” before marriage, and are whole only when married, so too their
soul is whole only when they are together: that is, a man and wife have a
single soul.
However, although destined partners
in marriage have one soul (as the soul is in the heavenly spheres), G-d’s
desire is that when that soul descends to earth it should for a time (before
marriage), be divided into two: half the soul in the boy and half in the girl.
Each fulfills its mission separately until the right time comes when G-d joins
them, and they fulfill their tasks together, fortified by the special Divine
blessing (Bereishis 1:27 -28),
“He created them male and female; and He blessed them.”
The joining of two halves of one
soul, which for years were separated from each other, sometimes even in
different lands, is the reason for the intense joy at a marriage, infinitely
greater than the joy at any other event. It is the greatest joy imaginable when
G-d, Who “sits and makes matches, assigning this man to that woman and this
woman to that man,” brings the halves of the soul together to make them again
one soul.
G-d, of course, knows even before
marriage to whom each half of a single soul belongs. Thus, when a boy performs
a mitzvah devolving on men only, his fulfillment of it counts also for the
other half of the soul which resides in his destined wife. He may not know of
it, but G-d does.
In the light of the above, we can
now understand that the mitzvah of writing a Sefer Torah applies to women and
girls, too.
Sichos in English, Iyar-Tammuz 5744,
Vol. 21, pp. 69-72, N’shei Convention.
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