Menachem Nochum Twersky of Chernobyl (born 1730, ,

Volhynia Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. Th ...

- died 1787,

Chernobyl Chernobyl ( , ; russian: Чернобыль, ) or Chornobyl ( uk, Чорнобиль, ) is a partially abandoned city in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, situated in the Vyshhorod Raion of northern Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine. Chernobyl is about no ...

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

) was a Ukrainian

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

, and the founder of the Chernobyl Hasidic dynasty. He was a disciple of the

Baal Shem Tov Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 22 May 1760), known as the Baal Shem Tov ( he, בעל שם טוב, ) or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystic and healer who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which ...

and the

Maggid of Mezritch Dov Ber ben Avraham of Mezeritch ( yi, דֹּב בֶּער מִמֶּזְרִיטְשְׁ; died December 1772 OS), also known as the ''Maggid of Mezeritch'', was a disciple of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer (the Baal Shem Tov), the founder of Hasidic ...

, and published one of the first works of Hasidic thought. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Hasidic movement.

Biography

Orphaned as a child, Twersky was raised by his uncle Rabbi Nochum, who sent him to be educated in one of the highly acclaimed yeshivot in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. After his marriage he earned his livelihood as a teacher of young boys, while continuing his intensive studies of

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 ...

. With the advent of

Chassidism 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 the ...

, Twersky became a disciple of the

, the founder of Hasidism. After the Baal Shem Tov's death, Twersky accepted the

as his mentor. His book ''Me'or Einayim'' (Light of the Eyes) was published after his death, and contains a collection of his homilies concerning the weekly Torah portions and selections of the

Talmud 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 cente ...

. The book gained widespread acceptance as one of the major works of Hasidic thought. He was succeeded as the Maggid of Chernobyl by his son Rabbi

Mordechai Twerski Mordechai Twersky (1770–1837), known as the ''Maggid'' of Chernobyl, was a Ukrainian rabbi. He was the son of Rabbi Menachem Nachum Twersky of Chornobyl and the second rebbe of the Chernobyl Hasidic dynasty. (The family surname originally come ...

. The surname would become known as Twersky in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The Chernobyl dynasty branched into a number of successive dynasties through Mordechai's eight sons, including those of

Skver Skver (also Skvir, Skvere, or Skwere; yi, סקווירא) is the name of a Hasidic dynasty founded by Rebbe Yitzchok Twersky in the city of Skver (as known in Yiddish; or Skvyra, in present-day Ukraine) during the mid-19th century. Followers o ...

Rachmastrivka Rachmastrivka is a Hasidic dynasty named after the town of Rotmistrivka, Ukraine. It is an offshoot of the Chernobyl dynasty dating back to the 19th century. The founder of the dynasty, Rebbe Yochanan Twersky (1816-1895), was the youngest son ...

, Trisk, and Talner. Twersky's daughter, Malka, married Rabbi Avraham of

Korostyshiv Korostýšiv (, , ) is a city in Zhytomyr Raion, Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine. Prior to 2020, it served as the administrative center of the former Korostyshiv Raion. Population: History The city was founded around the VI-VII centuries. According t ...

. Their daughter, Chava, wife of Rabbi Shakhna of

Pohrebysche Pohrebyshche () is a small city in Vinnytsia Oblast, Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Pohrebyshche Raion (district) in western Ukraine. Pohrebyshche is situated near the sources of the Ros River. Population: Names Pohrebyshche is al ...

, was the mother of Rabbi Yisroel Friedman of Ruzhin.

''Me'or Einayim''

Rabbi Twersky authored the books ''Me'or Einayim'' and ''Yesamach Lev'' (); they are often published together. They have gained widespread acceptance as major works and foundations of Hasidic ideology. ''Me'or Einayim'' comprises Hasidic insights on the

weekly Torah portion It is a custom among religious Jewish communities for a weekly Torah portion to be read during Jewish prayer services on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday. The full name, ''Parashat HaShavua'' ( he, פָּרָשַׁת הַשָּׁבוּעַ), is po ...

and

Jewish holidays Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' ( he, ימים טובים, , Good Days, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed in Judaism and by JewsThis article focuses on practices of mainstre ...

, influenced by Kabbalah; it was edited by his student Eliyah. Title page
/ref> ''Yesamach Lev'' collects Rabbi Twersky's insights on Talmudic-

Aggadah Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, ...

References

External links

History of Jewish Community in Chernobyl
{{DEFAULTSORT:Twersky, Menachem Nachum 1730 births 1797 deaths People from Zhytomyr Oblast Jewish scholars People from Volhynian Voivodeship Rebbes of Chernobyl Lithuanian Hasidic rabbis Ukrainian Hasidic rabbis Hasidic rabbis in Europe Students of Dov Ber of Mezeritch