Kotzk (

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...

: קאצק) is a Hasidic dynasty originating from the city of

Kock Kock is a town in eastern Poland, about north of Lublin and south-east of Warsaw. It lies in Lublin Voivodeship, in Lubartów County. It is the capital of the administrative district Gmina Kock. Historically Kock belongs to the Polish provin ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, where it was founded by Menachem Mendel Morgenstern (1787–1859). Kotzk is a branch of Peshischa Hasidism, as Menachem Mendel Morgenstern was the leading disciple of

Simcha Bunim of Peshischa Simcha Bunim Bonhardt of Peshischa (Yiddish: שמחה בונם בונהרט פון פשיסכע, ; – September 4, 1827) also known as the Rebbe Reb Bunim was the second Grand Rabbi of Peshischa ( Przysucha, Poland) as well as one of the key le ...

(1765–1827). Following Simcha Bunim's death he led the divided Peschischa community, which he eventually incorporated into his own Hasidic dynasty. Kotzk follows a Hasidic philopshy known for its critical and rationalistic approach to Hasidism and its intense approach to personal improvement which is based on a process of harsh constructive criticism and total transparency of self. Kotzk is closely connected to other branches of Peshischa Hasidism such as Ger and Aleksander and is currently based out of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

History

Nearing the end of his life Menachem Mendel Morgenstern lived in total seclusion from his followers. After his death, he had already amassed a large following. His eldest son, Dovid Morgenstern (1809–1893) succeeded him as the Kotzker rebbe, despite minor criticism from his followers who wanted

Yitzchak Meir Alter Yitzchak Meir Rotenberg-Alter ( yi, יצחק מאיר אלטער, pl, Icchak Meir Rothenberg Alter, he, יצחק מאיר אלתר) (1799 – 10 March 1866), was the first Rebbe of the Ger Hasidic dynasty, which he founded in the town of G� ...

(1799–1866) to succeed him as Kotzker rebbe. It was around this time that

Avrohom Bornsztain Avrohom Bornsztain (14 October 1838 – 7 February 1910), also spelled Avraham Borenstein or Bernstein, was a leading posek in late-nineteenth-century Europe and founder and first Rebbe of the Sochatchover Hasidic dynasty. He is known as the ...

(1838–1910), a leading disciple of Menachem Mendel Morgenstern founded the Sochatchov Hasidic dynasty based in

Sochaczew Sochaczew () is a town in central Poland, with 38,300 inhabitants (2004). In the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), formerly in Skierniewice Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Sochaczew County. Sochaczew has a narrow-gauge railway ...

. This alongside the rejected leadership of Yitzchak Meir Alter led to several minor splits amongst the community. Before the Holocaust, Kotzk was of the largest Hasidic groups which number in the tens of thousands. The last Kotzker rebbe before the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

, was

Yitzchak Zelig Morgenstern Yitzchak Zelig Morgenstern of Kotzk-Sokolov (Hebrew: יצחק זליג מורגנשטרן, מסוקולוב, Yiddish: זעליג מארגענשטערן, מסאקאלאוו, of Sokolov; 1866 - 16 October 1939 (3 Cheshvan 5700)) was an Admor and Ros ...

(1866–1939), the fourth Kotzker rebbe who served as a member of the

Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (, "Council of great Torah ages) is the supreme rabbinical policy-making council of the Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaTorah movements in Israel; and of Agudath Israel of America in the United States. Members are usually pr ...

. During the Holocaust a huge percentage of the community was murdered, and following the atrocities of the Holocaust, the remaining Hasidim of Kotzk immigrated to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

alongside the sixth and last Kotzker rebbe, David Solomon Morgenstern (1904–1962). After his death, the community split into several fractions, the largest of which was led by Mendel Meir Morgenstern (1921–2013) who was a grandson of Yitzchak Zelig Morgenstern and the founder of the Israeli branch of Kotzk based out of Bnei Brak.

Succession of Kotzk

* Grand Rabbi Menachem Mendel Morgenstern (1787–1859), First Kotzker Rebbe. ** Grand Rabbi Dovid Morgenstern (1809–1893), Second Kotzker Rebbe. *** Grand Rabbi Chaim Yisrael Morgenstern (1840–1905), Third Kotzker Rebbe. **** Grand Rabbi

(1866–1940), Fourth Kotzker Rebbe. ***** Grand Rabbi Jacob Mendel Morgenstern (1887–1939), Fifth Kotzker Rebbe. ****** Grand Rabbi David Solomon Morgenstern (1904–1962), Sixth Kotzker Rebbe. ***** Rabbi Moshe Dovid Morgenstern (1892–1937). ****** Grand Rabbi Mendel Meir Morgenstern (1921–2013), Kotzker Rebbe of Bnei Brak. ******* Rabbi Dovid Morgenstern ******* Rabbi Yitzchak Zelig Morgenstern

References

Hasidic dynasties of Poland Orthodox Judaism in Poland {{Poland-hist-stub