Reuven Dov Dessler (1863–1935) was a rabbinic leader of the

Musar movement The Musar movement (also Mussar movement) is a Jewish ethical, educational and cultural movement that developed in 19th century Lithuania, particularly among Orthodox Lithuanian Jews. The Hebrew term (), is adopted from the Book of Proverbs (1 ...

and the director of the

Kelm Talmud Torah The Kelm Talmud Torah was a famous yeshiva in pre-holocaust Kelmė, Lithuania. Unlike other yeshivas, the Talmud Torah focused primarily on the study of Musar ("Jewish ethics") and self-improvement. Under the Leadership of Simcha Zissel Ziv The ...

from 1918 until 1931. He was born in 1863 in the city of

Liepāja Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Region and the third-largest city in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an important ice-f ...

(Libau) in Courland, Latvia. His parents were strong supporters of the

and especially of the efforts of

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 ...

Simcha Zissel Ziv Simcha Zissel Ziv Broida ( he, שמחה זיסל זיו; 1824–1898), also known as Simhah Zissel Ziv or the ''Alter of Kelm'' (the Elder of Kelm), was one of the foremost students of Yisrael Salanter and one of the early leaders of the Musar m ...

, who directed a yeshiva known as the

. In 1874, at the age of eleven, Reuven Dov became a student at the Talmud Torah, and he remained a student there as a student of Ziv for many years. While continuing to study at the Talmud Torah, Reuven Dov also took a position in the timber industry. In 1891, he married Hene Freidel Grodznsky, the daughter of Rabbi

Eliyahu Eliezer Grodzensky Eliahu or Eliyahu is a masculine Hebrew given name and surname of biblical origin. It means "My God is Yahweh" and derives from the prophet Elijah who, according to the Bible, lived during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BCE). People named Eli ...

and granddaughter of Rabbi Yisroel Lipkin Salanter, the father of the

. They had a son,

Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler (1892 – 31 December 1953) was an Orthodox rabbi, Talmudic scholar, and Jewish philosopher of the 20th century. He is best known for being the ''mashgiach ruchani'' ("spiritual counselor") of the Ponevezh yeshiva in I ...

. Hene Freidel died in 1895. Reuven Dov later remarried to Frume Rochel Rabinovitch, the daughter of Rabbi Ya'akov Rabinovitch of Telsiai. Frume Rochel died in a terrible domestic accident in December, 1922. In 1918, Reuven Dov became the director of the Kelm Talmud Torah, a position he held until 1931. In 1931, he moved to London, where his son Eliyahu Eliezer was living. Reuven Dov died in 1935.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dessler, Reuven Dov 1863 births 1935 deaths People from Liepāja Musar movement Mashgiach ruchani