Tzemach Tzedek
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Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (; September 20, 1789 – March 17, 1866) also known as the Tzemach Tzedek (Hebrew: "Righteous Sprout" or "Righteous Scion") was an Orthodox
rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
, leading 19th-century
posek In Jewish law, a ''posek'' ( , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the application of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah, in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities are incon ...
, and the third rebbe (spiritual leader) of the Chabad Lubavitch Hasidic movement.


Biography

Menachem Mendel Schneersohn was born in Liozna, on September 20, 1789 (September 9 OS). His mother Devorah Leah died three years later, and her father Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi raised him as his own son. He married his first cousin Chaya Mushka Schneersohn, daughter of Rabbi Dovber Schneuri. After his father-in-law/uncle's death, and a three-year interregnum during which he tried to persuade the Hasidim to accept his brother-in-law Menachem-Nachum Schneuri or his uncle Chaim-Avraham as their leader, he assumed the leadership of Lubavitch on the eve of
Shavuot (, from ), or (, in some Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi usage), is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday, one of the biblically ordained Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan; in the 21st century, it may ...
5591 (May 5, 1831, OS). He was known as the Tzemach Tzedek after the title of a voluminous compendium of
Halakha ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Torah, Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is ...
(Jewish law) that he authored. He also authored ''Derech Mitzvotecha'' ("Way of Your Commandments"), a mystical exposition of the ''Mitzvos''. He compiled major works of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi for publication, including the '' Siddur L'Kol Ha'Shanah'' (commonly known as ''Siddur Im Dach''), ''Likutei Torah'' and ''Torah Ohr''. He also authored a philosophical text entitled "Sefer Chakira: Derech Emuna" (''Book of Philosophy: The Way of Faith''). He enjoyed close ties with other Jewish leaders. In the course of his battle against the ''
Haskalah The ''Haskalah'' (; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), often termed the Jewish Enlightenment, was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Wester ...
'' in Russia, he forged a close alliance with Rabbi Yitzchak of Valozhyn, a major leader of the
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 ...
, which led to warmer relations between them and the Hasidim. According to Baruch Epstein, his father Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein spent six months under the Schneersohn's tutelage, and learned most of his mystical knowledge during that time. This story is disputed by Hassidic historian Yehoshua Mondshine. Historian Eitam Henkin suggests that Rabbi Y. M. Epstein did meet with him, but only a few visits over a week or two, noting the testimony of Rabbi Yehuda Leib Maimon that he heard about this directly from his teacher. His close friendship with Professor J Berstenson, the Czar's court physician, often helped the delicate negotiations relating to the welfare of the community.''Encyclopedia of Hasidism'', entry: Schneersohn, Menachem Mendel. Naftali Lowenthal. Aronson, London 1996. He set up an organisation called ''Hevras Techiyas Hameisim'' to assist Jewish boy-soldiers who were being recruited and converted to Christianity by the Russian army. These soldiers known as Cantonists were taken away from the Jewish community to other villages. Schneersohn arranged for his students to pay them regular visits to keep up their spirits and discourage them from converting. In 1844–45 he took steps to increase the enrollment and viability of the Lubavitch
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 ...
s in Dubroŭna, Pasana, Lyozno, and Kalisz, expanding their enrollment to around 600 students in total. Repeated attempts by the authorities to entrap him using informers such as Hershel Hodesh, Benjamin the Apostate and Lipman Feldman failed.


Death and legacy

He died in Lubavitch on March 17, 1866, at the age of 76, leaving seven sons. He was succeeded by his youngest son, Shmuel as the Rebbe of Lubavitch, while three of his other sons formed breakaways of the Chabad movement which continue to some extent even today. Several of his sons established Chasidic dynasties.


Sons

He had seven sons: 1. Rabbi Baruch Shalom (1805–1869) did not become a rebbe in his own right; he chose to remain in Lubavitch and become a chasid of his youngest brother. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch, was his great-great-grandson. 2. Rabbi Yehuda Leib Schneersohn (Maharil) (1808–1866) settled in
Kopys Kopys is an urban-type settlement in Orsha District, Vitebsk Region, Belarus. As of 2025, it has a population of 600. History The first references to Kopys are dated at 1059. From the 14th century, it was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and ...
a few months after the death of his father, where he founded the Kopust branch of Chabad. He died two months later. He had three sons: * Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Schneersohn (1830–1900), oldest son of Rabbi Yehuda Leib, assumed his father's position in Kopust. He is the author of a work on Hasidism titled "Magen Avot" ("Shield of the Fathers"). * Rabbi Shalom Dovber Schneersohn of Rechitsa (d. 1908), known as the Rashab of Rechitsa. Succeeding his brother, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman, Rabbi Shalom Dovber served as the Kopuster movement's rebbe in the town of Rechitsa. Rabbi Shalom Dovber seems to have died without a successor. * Rabbi Shmaryahu Noah Schneersohn (1842–1924), known as Shmaryahu Noah of Babruysk. Succeeding his brother, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman, Rabbi Shmaryahu Noah served as the Kopuster movement's rebbe in the town of Babruysk. He was rav of the chasidim in Babruysk from 1872, and 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 ...
there in 1901. He authored a two volume work on Hasidism, titled "Shemen LaMaor" ("Light for the Luminary").Lowenthal, Naftali. Schneersohn, Shmaryahu Noah. ''Encyclopedia of Hasidism'', Jason Aronson Publishers. London. 1996.Schneerson, Shmaryahu Noah. ''Shemen La'moar''. Vol. 1. Kfar Chabad, Israel. (1964): p. 1
Available at HebrewBooks.org
/ref>Schneerson, Shmaryahu Noah. ''Shemen La'moar''. Vol. 2. Kfar Chabad, Israel. (1967): p. 1
Available at HebrewBooks.org
/ref> 3. Rabbi Chaim Schneur Zalman (1814–1880) was Rebbe in Lyady after his father died. He founded the Liadi branch of Chabad. He was succeeded by his son, Rabbi Yitzchak Dovber (1835–1910) of Liadi, author of ''Siddur Maharid'', and his son-in-law, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak (d. 1905) of Siratin, a scion of the Rebbe of Radzimin. 4. Rabbi Yisroel Noach (1815–1883) of
Nizhyn Nizhyn (, ; ) is a city located in Chernihiv Oblast of northern Ukraine along the Oster River. The city is located north-east of the national capital Kyiv. Nizhyn serves as the capital city, administrative center of Nizhyn Raion. It hosts the ...
founded the Niezhin branch of Chabad. Although officially a Rebbe, he had only a small following. He had no successor. His son was Rabbi Avraham Schneerson of Kischinev, whose daughter, Nechama Dina Schneersohn, married Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, the sixth Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch. 5. Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak (1822–1876) was a Rebbe in Ovruch. He founded the Avrutch branch of Chabad. He was compelled to assume this position by his father-in-law, Rabbi Yaakov Yisroel of Cherkas (son of Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobyl and son-in-law of the Mitteler Rebbe) against his father's wishes. His daughter, Shterna Sarah, married the Rebbe Rashab. Thus, he was the maternal grandfather and namesake of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, the sixth Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch. 6. Rabbi Yaakov, although leaving descendants, died at quite a young age. He lived in Orsha. Little is known about him. 7. Rabbi Shmuel Schneersohn (Maharash) (1834–1882) of Lubavitch, his youngest son, succeeded him as the Rebbe of Lubavitch.


''Ohr HaTorah''


Notable students

* Rabbi Hillel Paritcher * Rabbi Shneur Zalman Fradkin of Lublin


Works

* ''Ohr HaTorah'' - Chassidic discourses * ''Sefer HaLikkutim'' - A Chassidic encyclopedia * '' Derech Mitzvosecha'' - An explanation of the mystical reasons for the Mitzvos * "Tzemach Tzedeck Chiddushim al HaShas" commentary on the
Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...
* Responsa Tzemach Tzedek - 8 vols.Chabadlibrary.org Online edition in Hebrew
/ref> *"Igros kodesh" - a collection of about 100 surviving non-halachik responsa * ''Sefer Chakira: Derech Emunah'' - exposition of Jewish philosophy *"Kitzurim V'Haoros" - scholarly glosses on the Tanya


Notes


External links


Chabad.org: The Tzemach Tzedek




{{DEFAULTSORT:Schneersohn, Menachem Mendel 1789 births 1866 deaths People from Lyozna district Belarusian Hasidic rabbis Hasidic rabbis in Europe Kabbalists Rebbes of Lubavitch Jewish philosophers Schneersohn family Chabad-Lubavitch poskim