Shmuel Schecter
Shmuel Halevi Schecter ( he, שמואל הלוי שכטר, February 21, 1915 – September 30, 2000) was a Canadian–American Orthodox Jewish rabbi, educator, and author. Born in Quebec and raised in Baltimore, he traveled to Eastern Europe to study at the Mir Yeshiva as a teenager and at the Kelm Talmud Torah as a young married man. In 1940 he returned to the United States, where he was a co-founder of the first kollel in America, Beth Medrash Govoha, in White Plains, New York. He was a Torah educator in New York and Boston for more than 50 years, and served as dean of Mesivta Toras Emes in Brooklyn. He published a commentary on '' Orchot Chaim LeHoRosh'', a musar work. Early life and education Shmuel Schecter was born in Lachine, Quebec, Canada. His mother died when he was four or five years old. Per his mother's request, at the age of seven he was sent to live with her brother, Rabbi Meshulam Zusha Cohen, a Torah educator in Baltimore.Shteierman, Yitzchok. "A Fire Lit in Kelm" ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, behind New York County (Manhattan). Brooklyn is also New York City's most populous borough,2010 Gazetteer for New York State . Retrieved September 18, 2016. with 2,736,074 residents in 2020. Named after the Dutch village of Breukelen, Brooklyn is located on the w ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the List of United States cities by population density, most densely populated major city in the United States, and is more than twice as populous as second-place Los Angeles. New York City lies at the southern tip of New York (state), New York State, and constitutes the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass. With over 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York is one of the world's most populous Megacity, megacities, and over 58 million people live within of the city. New York City is a global city, global Culture of New ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Daniel Movshovitz
Daniel is a masculine given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means "God is my judge"Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 68. (cf. Gabriel—"God is my strength"), and derives from two early biblical figures, primary among them Daniel from the Book of Daniel. It is a common given name for males, and is also used as a surname. It is also the basis for various derived given names and surnames. Background The name evolved into over 100 different spellings in countries around the world. Nicknames (Dan, Danny) are common in both English and Hebrew; "Dan" may also be a complete given name rather than a nickname. The name "Daniil" (Даниил) is common in Russia. Feminine versions (Danielle, Danièle, Daniela, Daniella, Dani, Danitza) are prevalent as well. It has been particularly well-used in Ireland. The Dutch names "Daan" and "Daniël" are also variations of Daniel. A related surname developed ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kelmė
Kelmė (; is a city in northwestern Lithuania, a historical region of Samogitia. It has a population of 8,206 and is the administrative center of the Kelmė district municipality. History Kelmė's name may come from the Lithuanian ''kelmynės'', literally: ''the stubby place'', because of the forests that were there at the time of its founding. Kelmė was first mentioned in 1416, the year that Kelmė's first church was built. Prior to World War II, Kelmė ( yi, Kelm) was home to a famous Rabbinical College, the Kelm Talmud Torah. According to an 1897 census, 2,710 of Kelme's 3,914 inhabitants were members of the town's Jewish population, the vast majority of whom were merchants and traders and lived in the town. Most of the Jews in Kelmė rural district were murdered during a mass execution on July 29, 1941. On August 22 a second mass execution occurred. On October 2, 1941, some Kelmė and Vaiguva Jews were murdered in Žagarė. The executions were committed by Lithuanians na ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jamaica, Queens
Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Springfield Gardens, Rochdale Village to the southeast; South Jamaica to the south; Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park to the west; Briarwood to the northwest; and Kew Gardens Hills, Jamaica Hills, and Jamaica Estates to the north. Jamaica, originally a designation for an area greater than the current neighborhood, was settled under Dutch rule in 1656. It was originally called ' before it took its current name. Subsequently, under English rule Jamaica became the center of the "Town of Jamaica". It was the first county seat of Queens County, holding that title from 1683 to 1788, and was also the first incorporated village on Long Island. When Queens was incorporated into the City of Greater New York in 1898, both the Town of Jamaica and the Vil ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yerucham Levovitz
Rav Yeruchom Levovitz ( he, ירוחם ליוואוויץ; ca. 1875-1936), also known by his hundreds of students simply as The Mashgiach, was a famous mashgiach ruchani and baal mussar (Jewish Ethics) at the Mir yeshiva in Belarus. Early life Maran Yeruchom Levovitz was born in 1875 (5635 in the Jewish calendar) in Lyuban, Minsk Voblast, Belarus (near Slutsk) to Avraham and Chasya Levovitz. He received his education in the yeshivas of Slobodka and Kelm. He was a disciple of Nosson Tzvi Finkel, and Rav Simcha Zissel Ziv of Kelm. Mir Yeshiva R' Yeruchom was the spiritual leader of the Mir Yeshiva in Belarus until his death in 1936. His disciples were said to have followed his every word, never doing anything that they "felt" he would not want them to do. Most of the leaders of the yeshivas of inter-war Poland were Levovits's disciples. They would come on occasion to visit him and seek his advice. After World War II, much of orthodox Jewry in Europe was wiped out, along w ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mashgiach Ruchani
A mashgiach ruchani ( he, משגיח רוחני; pl., ''mashgichim ruchani'im'') or mashgicha ruchani – sometimes mashgiach/mashgicha for short – is a spiritual supervisor or guide. He or she is usually a rabbi who has an official position within a yeshiva and is responsible for the non-academic areas of yeshiva students' lives.''HaRav Schach: Conversations: Stories to Inspire the Yeshiva World''. Elʻazar Menaḥem Man Shakh - 2004 p52: "Speaking about the position of Mashgiach Ruchani (Spiritual Supervisor) in a yeshiva, Rav Schach used to say that while it goes without saying that the Mashgiach must be a God-fearing man, and a person capable of inspiring others with his ..." The position of mashgiach/mashgicha ruchani arose with the establishment of the modern "Lithuanian Jews, Lithuanian-style" Mussar movement, mussar yeshivas. The prototype of this new type of rabbinical leader and educator was Rabbi Nosson Tzvi Finkel (Slabodka), Nosson Tzvi Finkel (1849-1927) known as th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rosh Yeshiva
Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and the Torah, and ''halakha'' (Jewish law). The general role of the rosh yeshiva is to oversee the Talmudic studies and practical matters. The rosh yeshiva will often give the highest ''shiur'' (class) and is also the one to decide whether to grant permission for students to undertake classes for rabbinical ordination, known as ''semicha''. The term is a compound of the Hebrew words ''rosh'' ("head") and ''yeshiva'' (a school of religious Jewish education). The rosh yeshiva is required to have a comprehensive knowledge of the Talmud and the ability to analyse and present new perspectives, called ''chidushim'' (novellae) verbally and often in print. In some institutions, such as YU's Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Semin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Semikhah
Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 CE. Since then ''semikhah'' has continued in a less formal way. Throughout history there have been several attempts to reestablish the classical ''semikhah''. In recent times, some institutions grant ordination for the role of ''hazzan'' (cantor), extending the "investiture" granted there from the 1950s. Less commonly, since the 1990s, ordination is granted for the role of lay leader - sometimes titled '' darshan''. Ordination may then also be specifically termed , "rabbinical ordination", , "cantorial ordination", or , "maggidic ordination". The title of "rabbi" has "proliferated greatly over the last century". Nowadays ''Semikha'' is also granted for a limited form of ordination, focused on the application of Halakha in specific settin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chavrusa
''Chavrusa'', also spelled ''chavruta'' or ''ḥavruta'' (Aramaic: חַבְרוּתָא, lit. "fellowship" or "group of fellows"; pl. חַבְרָוָותָא), is a traditional rabbinic approach to Talmudic study in which a small group of students (usually 2-5) analyze, discuss, and debate a shared text. It is a primary learning method in yeshivas and kollels, where students often engage regular study partners of similar knowledge and ability, and is also practiced by those outside the yeshiva setting, in work, home, and vacation settings. The traditional phrase is to learn ''b'chavrusa'' (בְחַבְרוּתָא, "in ''chavrusa''"; i.e., in partnership); the word has come by metonymy to refer to the study partner as an individual, though it would more logically describe the pair. Unlike a teacher-student relationship, in which the student memorizes and repeats the material back in tests, ''chavrusa''-style learning puts each student in the position of analyzing the text, org ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yaakov Yosef Herman
Yaakov Yosef Herman (1880–1967) was an Orthodox Jewish pioneer in the United States in the early 20th century. A native of Slutsk, Belarus, he immigrated with his parents and younger sister to New York City at the age of 8 and was left on his own five years later after his family returned to Russia. Following his marriage, Herman became known for feeding and lodging dozens of people in his home, including visiting European rabbis seeking kosher meals. He displayed a staunch commitment to mitzvah observance at a time that many abandoned their faith, and urged promising young Jewish men to pursue advanced Torah study in the great yeshivas of Europe, including his son-in-law, Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg (1910–2012). For his promulgation of Torah values to his co-religionists, Herman was called the "Chofetz Chaim of America" by Rabbi Boruch Ber Leibowitz, the Kaminetz rosh yeshiva, who lived with the Hermans for two years while he was fundraising in the United States. Herman ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mesillas Yesharim
''Mesillat Yesharim'' or ''Mesillas Yeshorim'' ( he, מסילת ישרים, lit. "Path of the Upright") is an ethical ('' musar'') text composed by the influential Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (1707–1746). It is different from Luzzato's other writings, which are more philosophical. ''Mesillat Yesharim'' was written and published in Amsterdam. The earliest known manuscript version, written in 1738, was arranged as a dialogue between a ''hakham'' (wise man) and a ''hasid'' (pious person). Before publication, it was rearranged to have only one speaker. The dialogue version often sheds light on the more well-known version. ''Mesillat Yesharim'' is probably Luzzato's most influential work, widely learned in virtually every ''yeshiva'' since formal study of musar texts was introduced to the yeshiva curriculum by the Mussar Movement of Rabbi Yisroel Salanter. Aim of the work The aim of this work extends beyond the achievement of the perfection of human character in Divine service. I ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |