Slonim (Hasidic dynasty)
Encyclopedia
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
dynasty originating in the town of Slonim
Slonim
Slonim is a city in Hrodna Voblast, Belarus, capital of the Slonim District. It is located at the junction of the Shchara and Isa rivers, 143 km southeast of Hrodna. The population in 2008 was 50,800.-Etymology and historical names:...
, which is now in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
.
Today, there are two Slonimer Rebbe
Rebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
s, both in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
: one resides in Jerusalem and the other in Bnei Brak. Colloquially, the Jerusalem side is called the "White" (Veissa) side and the Bnei Brak side is called the "Black" (Shvartza) side, a reference to their political leanings, white meaning more liberal and black meaning more conservative in Haredi
Haredi Judaism
Haredi or Charedi/Chareidi Judaism is the most conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, often referred to as ultra-Orthodox. A follower of Haredi Judaism is called a Haredi ....
parlance. These names are also attributed to the fact that when Slonim Hasidim split into separate factions, the leader of one, Rabbi Sholom Noach Berezovsky, had a white beard and the leader of the other, Rabbi Avraham Weinberg, had a black beard. The factions are distinguished by different Hebrew spellings, the Jerusalem sect being known as סלונים and the Bnei Brak sect being known as סלאנים. They are two distinct groups today and have many differences between them.
The first Rebbe
Rebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
of Slonim was the author of Yesod HaAvodah. In 1873 he sent a group of his grandchildren and other Hasidim to settle in Palestine; they set up their community in Tiberias. Almost all of the Slonimer Hasidim in Europe perished at the hands of the Nazis
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
in the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
. The present-day Slonimer community was rebuilt from the Slonimer Hasidim who had settled in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Spiritual legacy
- Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism
- Rabbi Dov BerDovber of MezeritchRabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch was a disciple of Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidic Judaism, and was chosen as his successor to lead the early movement...
, the MaggidMaggidMaggid , sometimes spelled as magid, is a traditional Eastern European Jewish religious itinerant preacher, skilled as a narrator of Torah and religious stories. A preacher of the more scholarly sort was called a "darshan", and usually occupied the official position of rabbi...
(Preacher) of MezeritchMezhirichiMezhirichi is a village in the Korets Raion of the Rivne Oblast, Ukraine. It is located in western Ukraine, 13 miles W of Korets, 27 miles E of Rivne.- Names :Mezhirichi is also known as , , .- Jewish life in Mezhirichi :...
, disciple of the Baal Shem Tov- Rabbi Aaron Hagodol of KarlinKarlin (Hasidic Dynasty)Karlin-Stolin is a Hasidic dynasty originating with Rebbe Aaron the Great of Karlin in present-day Belarus. Karlin was one of the first centres of Hasidim to be set up in Lithuania....
, discipleApprenticeshipApprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
of the Maggid- Rabbi Shlomo of Karlin, disciple of the Maggid and of Rabbi Aaron Hagodol of Karlin
- Rabbi Mordechai of Lechovitch, disciple of Rabbi Shlomo of Karlin
- Rabbi Noah of Lechovitch, son of Rabbi Mordechai
- Rabbi Moshe of KobrinKobrynKobryn or Kobrin is a city in the Brest voblast of Belarus and the center of the Kobryn Raion. The city is located in the southwestern corner of Belarus where the Mukhavets River and Dnepr-Bug Canal meet. The city lies about 52 km east of the city of Brest. Kobryn is located at Latitude...
, disciple of Rabbi Noah of Lechovitch
- Rabbi Moshe of Kobrin
- Rabbi Noah of Lechovitch, son of Rabbi Mordechai
- Rabbi Mordechai of Lechovitch, disciple of Rabbi Shlomo of Karlin
- Rabbi Shlomo of Karlin, disciple of the Maggid and of Rabbi Aaron Hagodol of Karlin
- Rabbi Aaron Hagodol of Karlin
- Rabbi Dov Ber
Slonimer Rebbes
- Rabbi Avraham of Slonim, author of Yesod HaAvodah, disciple of Rabbi Noah of Lechovitch and Rabbi Moshe of Kobrin
- Rabbi Shmuel Weinberg of Slonim, author of Divrei Shmuel, grandson of the Yesod HaAvodah
- Rabbi Yissachar Leib Weinberg of Slonim, son of the Divrei Shmuel
- Rabbi Avraham Yehoshua Heshel Weinberg of Slonim-Tel Aviv, son of Rabbi Yissachar Leib
- Rabbi Avraham Weinberg of Slonim (1804 - 11 Cheshvan 1883), author of Beis Avraham, son of Grand Rabbi Shmuel
- Rabbi Shlomo David Yehoshua Weinberg of Slonim-Baranovitch (1912 – 1943), son of the Beis Avraham
- Rabbi Moishe Menachem Zylber of Detroit, son-in-law of Rabbi Shmuel Dovid Yehoshua Weinberg, known as the Divrei Shmuel and the "Foter"
- Rabbi Mordechai Chaim Slonim of Tiberias, grandson of the Yesod HaAvodah brother, disciple of the Beis Avraham, successor of Rabbi Shlomo David Yehoshua Weinberg
- Rabbi Moishe Menachem Zylber of Detroit, son-in-law of Rabbi Shmuel Dovid Yehoshua Weinberg, known as the Divrei Shmuel and the "Foter"
- Rabbi Shlomo David Yehoshua Weinberg of Slonim-Baranovitch (1912 – 1943), son of the Beis Avraham
- Rabbi Yissachar Leib Weinberg of Slonim, son of the Divrei Shmuel
- Rabbi Matisyohu of Slonim, grandson of the Yesod HaAvodah
- Rabbi Noah Weinberg of Slonim and Tiberias, grandson of the Yesod HaAvodah, brother of the Divrei Shmuel, a menahel of YeshivaYeshivaYeshiva is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim and in study pairs called chavrutas...
Or-Torah of Tiberias-
- Rabbi Avraham Weinberg of Tiberias and Jerusalem, author of Birkas Avraham, son of Rabbi Noah, disciple and nephew of the Divrei Shmuel, successor of Rabbi Mordechai Chaim
- Rabbi Avraham Weinberg, present Slonimer Rebbe of Bnei Brak, son of Reb Michel Aron, great-grandson of Yesod HaAvodah. The Rebbe of Bnei Brak is the son-in-law of Rabbi Shmuel Weinberg, son of the Birkas Avraham.
- Rabbi Sholom Noach BerezovskySholom Noach BerezovskyRabbi Sholom Noach Berezovsky served as Slonimer Rebbe from 1981 until his death. He is widely known for his teachings which he published as a series of books entitled Nesivos Sholom....
, Slonimer Rebbe of Jerusalem, author of Nesivos Shalom, son-in-law of the Birkas Avraham- Rabbi Shmuel Berezovski, author of Darchei Noam, present Slonimer Rebbe of Jerusalem, son of the Nesivos Shalom
- Rabbi Avraham Weinberg of Tiberias and Jerusalem, author of Birkas Avraham, son of Rabbi Noah, disciple and nephew of the Divrei Shmuel, successor of Rabbi Mordechai Chaim
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- Rabbi Shmuel Weinberg of Slonim, author of Divrei Shmuel, grandson of the Yesod HaAvodah
Main Hasidic works of Slonim
In addition to those works revered by all Hasidim, the Slonimer Hasidim particularly revere the following books: Yesod HaAvodah, Divrei Shmuel, Beis Avraham, Birkas Avraham, Nachal Aison. The Slonimer Rebbes of Jerusalem have authored two tremendously popular Hasidic works, Nesivos Shalom, by the previous Slonimer Rebbe of Jerusalem, and Darchei Noam, by the present Slonimer Rebbe of Jerusalem. Nesivos Shalom is extremely popular even outside of Hasidic circles. The version of the siddurSiddur
A siddur is a Jewish prayer book, containing a set order of daily prayers. This article discusses how some of these prayers evolved, and how the siddur, as it is known today has developed...
(prayer book) used by the Slonimer Hasidim in Jerusalem is called "Siddur Magen Avraham", and by the Slonimer Hasidim in Bnei Brak, "Siddur Oir Hayoshor" .
Controversy in Slonim school in Immanuel
Currently in Israel, there reside approximately 1,300 families that follow the Slonimer Rebbe from Jerusalem. In 2010, a dispute arose in ImmanuelImmanuel (town)
Immanuel is an Israeli settlement and a town with local council status in the West Bank. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics ,...
, a Jewish settlement in the northern West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
, over the integration of Ashkenazi
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...
Slonim girls in a school with Sephardi
Sephardi Jews
Sephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
girls from non-religious families. Over 120,000 Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
-observant Jews, including Haredi and Dati Leumi
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
Jews, rallied in Israel to keep the groups separate, with the fathers of 40 girls being jailed for their refusal to comply. The families insisted it was not a 'racial' issue, as 30% of those in the Hasidic track are Sephardic, and three fathers jailed were Sephardic, but rather that the "desire to remove their daughters from the influence of those less strict in their religious observance. Watching TV at home, having access to the internet and a more lax dress code among the other track in the school have been cited."
External links
- Hebrew Wikipedia site on Slonim
- Nesivos Shalom in English
- A Video of the Slonimer Rebbe of Jerusalem at the Western Wall "The Synthesis of Hasidic Pietism with Lithuanian Torah Scholarship in Slonimer Hasidut" in Immanuel Etkes, "Yeshivot u-Vatei Midrashot" (Jerusalem, Merkaz Shazar, 2006).