Meir Dan Plotsky (or Plotski) (1866 - March 27, 1928) was 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 ...

and the president of Kollel Polen, a

talmudic scholar The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the center ...

who authored the ''Kli Chemdah'', a commentary on the ''

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 ...

''. He also authored the ''Chemdas Yisrael'' on '' Sefer ha-Mitzvot.'' Plotsky was the son of Rabbi Chaim Yitzchak Ber Plotzker of

Kutno Kutno is a city located in central Poland with 42,704 inhabitants (2021) and an area of . Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship since 1999, previously it was part of Płock Voivodeship (1975–1998) and it is now the capital of Kutno County. Dur ...

, who was first a follower of Rabbi Chanoch Henich of Alexander, but who then became a follower of the

Sfas Emes Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter ( he, יהודה אריה ליב אלתר, 15 April 1847 – 11 January 1905), also known by the title of his main work, the ''Sfas Emes'' (Ashkenazic Pronunciation) or ''Sefat Emet'' (Modern Hebrew), was a Hasidic Judais ...

of Ger. At the age of nine, Plotsky was sent to learn in the

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 ...

of Rabbi Chaim Eliezer Wax, the ''Nefesh Chayah'', in

Kalisz (The oldest city of Poland) , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''Top:'' Town Hall, Former "Calisia" Piano Factory''Middle:'' Courthouse, "Gołębnik" tenement''Bottom:'' Aerial view of the Kalisz Old Town , image_flag = POL Kalisz flag.svg ...

, president of Kupat Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes Kollel Polen. Shortly before his bar mitzvah, he became a disciple of Rabbi

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 ...

(the ''Avnei Nezer''), first Sochatchover

Rebbe A Rebbe ( yi, רבי, translit=rebe) or Admor ( he, אדמו״ר) is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement, and the personalities of its dynasties.Heilman, Samuel"The Rebbe and the Resurgence of Orthodox Judaism."''Religion and Spiritua ...

, whom he considered his lifelong ''rebbe muvhak'' (primary Torah teacher).Chinuch.org
/ref> Plotsky married at the age of 15 and spent the next 10 years in Dvohrt with his in-laws. In 1891, he became Rav in Dvohrt. Later he helped expose the forged Yerushalmi on ''

Kodshim 150px, Pidyon haben Kodashim ( he, קדשים, "Holy Things") is the fifth of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta and the Talmud, and deals largely with the services within the Temple in Jerusalem, its maintenance and de ...

'', claimed to be discovered by Shlomo Yehuda Friedlander, who also claimed he was a Sefardi named Shlomo Yehuda Algazi. At the age of 36 he published his work on the ''Sefer Hamitzvos'' of

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...

, called ''Chemdas Yisrael''. In 1918, he became Rav of Ostrow-Mazowiecka in eastern

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 populous ...

. He was voted chairman of ''Agudas Harabbanim'' of Poland, a prelude to Agudath Israel. In 1921, Rabbi Plotsky participated in a tour of American cities on behalf of the Agudath Israel, visiting New York, Baltimore, Boston and Cincinnati.The American Israelite, 29 Sep 1921, Page P6 At the age of 60, he left the rabbinate to head a large yeshiva in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, known simply as the Mesivta.

References

External links

* Kli Chemdah Volume 1 ( Piotrków 1927)
כלי חמדה חלק א'
(פיעטרקוב תרפ"ז

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plotzky, Meir Don 1867 births 1928 deaths Polish Hasidic rabbis 20th-century Polish rabbis 19th-century Polish rabbis Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah