Szlomo Zalman Lipszyc (1765

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

– 1839

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

), also known as Salomon Zalman Pozner as well as the Chemdas Shlomo from the title of the works he authored, was a prominent

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

rabbi, and first

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir ...

of Warsaw. Grob Szlomo Zelmana Lipszyca zewnatrz-Grave of Szlomo Zelman Lipszyc outside

He studied

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

in his hometown of Poznań until 1804. Later, material conditions forced him to accept the position of Rabbi of

Nasielsk Nasielsk is a small town in Masovian Voivodeship, Poland. It is located approximately north of the Polish capital Warsaw, on the Warsaw-Gdańsk rail line and serves as a railway junction. In 2020, the population of the town was estimated at 7,650 ...

, where he founded a

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...

. In 1819 he became Rabbi of the

Praga Praga is a district of Warsaw, Poland. It is on the east bank of the river Vistula. First mentioned in 1432, until 1791 it formed a separate town with its own city charter. History The historical Praga was a small settlement located at the e ...

district of Warsaw, and in 1821 he was elected the first Chief Rabbi of Warsaw. As chief rabbi, he did not become involved in the disputes of

Misnagdim ''Misnagdim'' (, "Opponents"; Sephardi pronunciation: ''Mitnagdim''; singular ''misnaged / mitnaged'') was a Jewish religious movements, religious movement among the Eastern European Jewry, Jews of Eastern Europe which resisted the rise of Has ...

with the

Hasidim Ḥasīd (, "pious", "saintly", "godly man"; plural "Hasidim") is a Jewish honorific, frequently used as a term of exceptional respect in the Talmudic and early medieval periods. It denotes a person who is scrupulous in his observance of Jewish ...

. He opposed assimilation, condemning the

Haskala The ''Haskalah'' (; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), often termed the Jewish Enlightenment, was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Western Europe and th ...

's Szkoła Rabinów w Warszawie (

Warsaw Rabbinical School Warsaw Rabbinical School (Warszawska Szkoła Rabinów) was a Junior High School for Jewish male youth established in 1826 on the basis of the ukase of the emperor Nicholas of July 1, 1825 and existed until the school year 1860/1861. History Th ...

), and the entry of Jews to the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

in 1831 (due to the necessary condition of shaving their beards and

payot Sidelocks in English, or ''pe'ot'' in Hebrew, English language, anglicized as payot (, "corners") or payes (), is the Hebrew term for sidelocks or sideburns. Payot are worn by some men and boys in the Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish community ...

). Many Polish rabbis studied in his Warsaw yeshiva. He was a prominent

halakhic ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is based on biblical commandments (''mitzv ...

authority and the author of three works entitled Chemdas Shlomo: rabbinical responsa (1839),

novellae In Roman law, a novel (, "new decree"; ) is a new decree or edict, in other words a new law. The term was used from the fourth century AD onwards and was specifically used for laws issued after the publishing of the ''Codex Theodosianus'' in 438 and ...

to several Talmudic treatises (vol. 1-3, 1851–1892) and

sermons A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. E ...

(1890). He carried on a scientific correspondence with Rabbi

Akiva Eger Akiva Eiger (, also spelled Eger; , ), or Akiva Güns (8 November 1761 – 12 October 1837) was a Talmudic scholar, halakhic decisor and leader of European Jewry during the early 19th century. Eiger is considered one of the greatest Talmudic ...

and Rabbi

Jacob of Lissa Jacob Lorberbaum or Jacob ben Jacob Moses of Lissa (1760-1832) , Hebrew: יעקב בן יעקב משה מליסא) was a rabbi and posek. He is most commonly known as the Ba'al HaChavas Da'as or the Ba'al HaNesivos for his most well-known works, ...

. He was buried in the

Jewish cemetery in Warsaw Jewish cemeteries of Warsaw refers to a number of Jewish necropolises in the city. Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery is one of the largest Jewish cemeteries in Europe. Located on Okopowa Street and abutting the Powązk ...

where an ohel was erected above his grave. Grandson Mojżesz Lipszyc was a rabbi in

Golub-Dobrzyń Golub-Dobrzyń () is a town in north-central Poland, located on the Drwęca. It is the capital of Golub-Dobrzyń County in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and has a population of 13,060. Golub-Dobrzyń was established on May 5, 1951 through me ...

, and then in

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

, where his great-grandson, Natan Lipszyc, also held rabbinical functions.

References

1765 births 1839 deaths 19th-century Polish rabbis Clergy from Poznań {{Authority control