Eliezer Shlomo Schick (May 29, 1940 – February 6, 2015),
also known as Mohorosh (acronym for ''Moreinu HaRav Eliezer Shlomo'', "Our teacher, our rabbi, Eliezer Shlomo", מוהרא"ש מברסלב
[Gantz, Nesanel. "Mohorosh – The Tzaddik of Yavne'el". '']Ami
AMI or Ami may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
*AMI-tv, a Canadian TV channel
**AMI-télé, the French-language version
* AMI-audio, a Canadian audio broadcast TV service
*''Ami Magazine'', an Orthodox Jewish news magazine
Businesses ...
'', February 11, 2015, pp. 30-31.) was a
Hasidic
Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of contem ...
rabbi and prolific author and publisher of
Breslov teachings. He wrote and disseminated approximately 1,000 different pamphlets based on the teachings of Rebbe
Nachman of Breslov
Nachman of Breslov ( he, רַבִּי נַחְמָן מִבְּרֶסְלֶב ''Rabbī'' ''Naḥmān mīBreslev''), also known as Reb Nachman of Bratslav, Reb Nachman Breslover ( yi, רבי נחמן ברעסלאווער ''Rebe Nakhmen Breslover'' ...
. He was the founder and leader of the self-styled "Breslov City" in the
Galilee
Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...
town of
Yavne'el
Yavne'el ( he, יַבְנְאֵל, ar, يفنيئيل) is a moshava and local council in the Northern District of Israel. Founded in 1901, it is one of the oldest rural Jewish communities in the country. According to the Israel Central Bureau o ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, and had thousands of Hasidim around the world.
Early life
Eliezer Shlomo Schick was born in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
,
Mandatory Palestine
Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...
, to Rabbi Menachem Zev, the ''
gaavad'' (head of the rabbinical court) of
Tokay, Hungary, and his wife Malka.
[ As a young boy, he learned in the ]Etz Chaim
Etz Hayim, also transliterated as Eitz Chaim ( , meaning "Tree of Life"), is a common term used in Judaism. The expression can be found in , referring to the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden. It is also found in the Book of Proverbs, where it i ...
cheder
A ''cheder'' ( he, חדר, lit. "room"; Yiddish pronunciation ''kheyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language.
History
''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th ...
.[ When he was a youth, his family relocated to ]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 L ...
, where he studied in the Kashau yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; 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 s ...
and then in Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem
Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem ( he, מתיבתא תפארת ירושלים, ) (MTJ) is a yeshiva in New York City, and one of the oldest existent yeshivas in the city. It is the institution formerly led by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, and then led by hi ...
under Rabbi Moshe Feinstein
Moshe Feinstein ( he, משה פײַנשטיין; Lithuanian pronunciation: ''Moshe Faynshteyn''; en, Moses Feinstein; March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986) was an American Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and ''posek'' (authority on ''halakha''—Je ...
.[
At the age of 15, Schick came across the popular Breslov booklet ''Meshivat Nefesh'' by Rabbi ]Alter Tepliker Alter Tepliker was the sobriquet of Rabbi Moshe Yehoshua Bezhilianski ( 1919), a learned scholar and leading Breslover Hasid in Uman, Ukraine in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Biography
Born in Teplik, Ukraine, he became active in the Br ...
, which attracted him to Rebbe Nachman's teachings.[ He began to spend many hours each day in '']hitbodedut
Hitbodedut or hisbodedus ( he, הִתְבּוֹדְדוּת, lit. "seclusion, solitariness, solitude"; Tiberian: ''hīṯbōḏăḏūṯ'' , Ashkenazi: ''hīsboydedēs/hīsboydedūs'' or ''hīsbōdedūs'', Sephardi: ''hitbōdedūt'') refers to ...
'' per Rebbe Nachman's instructions, and studied more Torah
The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "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. In that sense, Torah means the s ...
in accordance with Rebbe Nachman's system of learning.
In 1962 he married Shifra Rotenberg, daughter of the Kossoner Rav, Rabbi Asher Yeshaya Halevi Rotenberg.[
]
Breslov teacher
After his marriage, he began delivering ''shiurim
Shiur (, , lit. ''amount'', pl. shiurim ) is a lecture on any Torah topic, such as Gemara, Mishnah, Halakha (Jewish law), Tanakh (Bible), etc.
History
The Hebrew term שיעור ("designated amount") came to refer to a portion of Ju ...
'' in Hasidic thought
Hasidic philosophy or Hasidism ( he, חסידות), alternatively transliterated as Hasidut or Chassidus, consists of the teachings of the Hasidic movement, which are the teachings of the Hasidic ''rebbes'', often in the form of commentary on th ...
to ''avreichim'' (married Torah students) and ''bochurim'' (unmarried men) in Boro Park
Borough Park (also spelled Boro Park) is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City. The neighborhood is bordered by Bensonhurst to the south, Dyker Heights to the southwest, Sunset Park to the west, ...
, and began corresponding with students and others who sought his advice to strengthen their own religious observance.[
In the 1970s Schick began writing small pamphlets distilling the lessons and teachings of Rebbe Nachman. He eventually authored, printed, and distributed approximately 1,000 titles in ]Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, hundreds of which were translated into English.[ He also printed thousands of copies of Rebbe Nachman’s ''Likutei Moharan'' and ''Sippurei Maasiyos'' and sold them at cost price, popularizing Breslov teachings around the world.][ Among present-day Breslov leaders who were introduced to Breslov teachings through Schick's pamphlets was Rabbi ]Shalom Arush
Shalom Arush ( he, שלום ארוש) is an Israeli Breslov rabbi and founder of the Chut Shel Chessed Institutions. He spreads the teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov among Sephardic and Ashkenazic baalei teshuva, as well as many non-Jews, aro ...
.[
Additionally, Schick wrote dozens]["Harav Eliezer Shlomo Shick, zt"l, of Yavne'el". '']Hamodia
''Hamodia'' ( he, המודיע – "''the Informer''") is a Hebrew-language daily newspaper published in Jerusalem. A daily English-language edition is also published in the United States, and weekly English-language editions in England and Israe ...
'', Israel news, February 12, 2015, p. 9. of ''sefarim
''Sifrei Kodesh'' ( he, ספרי קודש, , Holy books), commonly referred to as ''sefarim'' ( he, ספרים, , books), or in its singular form, ''sefer'', are books of Jewish religious literature and are viewed by religious Jews as sacred. T ...
'', among them ''Erech Apayim'' (on anger management), ''Ilan Hachaim'' (on not wasting time), and commentaries on Rebbe Nachman's works.[
]
Breslov leader
Beginning in the 1980s, Schick began visiting his Hasidim in Israel regularly, and established a synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
in Safed
Safed (known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardi Hebrew, Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), i ...
.[ In 1985][ he founded the Heichal Hakodesh Breslov community – largely consisting of '' baalei teshuvah'' (newly religious adherents) – in the Lower Galilee town of ]Yavne'el
Yavne'el ( he, יַבְנְאֵל, ar, يفنيئيل) is a moshava and local council in the Northern District of Israel. Founded in 1901, it is one of the oldest rural Jewish communities in the country. According to the Israel Central Bureau o ...
, Israel. This community, which calls itself "Breslov City", numbered nearly 400 families as of 2015, representing 30 percent of the town's population.[ The community maintains its own schools and civic organizations, including a ]Talmud Torah
Talmud Torah ( he, תלמוד תורה, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary educat ...
, girls' school, yeshiva ketana, yeshiva gedola, kollel
A kollel ( he, כולל, , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features shiurim (lectures) and learning ''sedarim'' (sessions); ...
, and ''chesed
( he, חֶסֶד, also Romanized: ) is a Hebrew word that means 'kindness or love between people', specifically of the devotional piety of people towards God as well as of love or mercy of God towards humanity. It is frequently used in Psalms i ...
'' and ''tzedaka
''Tzedakah'' or ''Ṣedaqah'' ( he, צדקה ) is a Hebrew word meaning "righteousness", but commonly used to signify ''charity''. This concept of "charity" differs from the modern Western understanding of "charity". The latter is typically un ...
'' organizations.[ A large '']beis medrash
A ''beth midrash'' ( he, בית מדרש, or ''beis medrash'', ''beit midrash'', pl. ''batei midrash'' "House of Learning") is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall." It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth kness ...
'' (study/prayer hall) was completed in 2012.[
Schick was known for encouraging early marriage among his adherents, conducting weddings in Yavne'el for girls aged 16 and younger, in violation of Israeli law.
Schick divided his time between his homes in Yavne'el and Boro Park. He also established synagogues in Monsey, Monroe, and Williamsburg, and spoke at them frequently. He had thousands of Hasidim around the world.][
Schick also established a Yeshiva "Tifereth Hatorah" in Williamsburg for Breslover students, led by Rabbi Yoel Roth.
]
Final years
In April 2012, Schick suffered a heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
and underwent surgery, from which he recovered. In 2015 he was treated for the final stages of leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute– ...
in New York City, where he died on February 6, 2015.[ He was buried in Yavne'el.][
Schick left more than 120 volumes of ]responsa
''Responsa'' (plural of Latin , 'answer') comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them. In the modern era, the term is used to describe decisions and rulings made by scholars i ...
, consisting of nearly 75,000 letters and other unpublished writings. The collection is known as ''Shailos U'teshuvos Asher B'Nachal''.[
]
Notes
External links
Breslev-City - Official website of Mesivta Heichal Hakodesh
Official YouTube channel
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Schick, Eliezer Shlomo
Breslov rabbis
American Hasidic rabbis
Hasidic rabbis in Israel
20th-century rabbis in Jerusalem
21st-century rabbis in Jerusalem
20th-century American rabbis
People from Borough Park, Brooklyn
1940 births
2015 deaths