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The Rebbe
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| Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson |
| What is it about the Rebbe that exudes so much |
| love – that makes him so immanent – binding |
| Jews from every walk of life to him so deeply? |
| THE REBBE: A Brief Biography |
| The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. |
| Schneerson, this century’s most dominant Jewish |
| figure, is clearly the one individual singularly |
| responsible for stirring and awakening the |
| conscience and spirit of post-holocaust world |
| Jewry. |
| Often described as the most phenomenal Jewish |
| personality of our time, “the Rebbe,” as he is |
| reverently referred to by millions of followers and |
| admirers around the world, radiates hope, |
| motivation and encouragement in an era rent with |
| confusion and despair. |
EARLY YEARS |
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| The Rebbe is seventh in the lineage of Lubavitch leaders, which began in the 18th |
| century with Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, author of the basic work of Chabad |
| philosophy - Tanya, and the Code of Jewish Law. |
| The Rebbe was born in Nikolaev, Russia, on the 11th day of Nissan, 1902, to Rabbi Levi |
| Yitzchak and Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson. The Rebbe’s father was a renowned |
| Kabbalist and Talmudic scholar. The Rebbe’s mother was an aristocratic woman from a |
| prestigious rabbinic family. |
| From early childhood the Rebbe displayed a prodigious mental acuity and soon had to |
| leave the cheder because he was far ahead of his classmates. His father engaged |
| private tutors for him and, after that, taught him himself. By the time he reached his |
| Bar Mitzvah, the Rebbe was a Torah prodigy. |
| The Rebbe met the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, in |
| 1923, in Rostov, Russia. In December, 1928 the Rebbe married Rebbetzin Chaya Moussia, |
| second daughter of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak. The Rebbetzin, well educated and |
| accomplished in her own right, is known throughout the Jewish world for her |
| exceptional erudition, leadership and compassion, yet unpretentious and humble |
| demeanor. |
| ARRIVAL IN U.S.A. |
| On June 23, 1941, the Rebbe and the Rebbetzin arrived in the United States, having |
| miraculously escaped the Nazi onslaught. His father-in-law, who had arrived in the |
| United States a year earlier, appointed him to head Chabad’s newly formed |
| educational, social service, outreach and publication organizations. |
| LEADERSHIP |
| After the passing of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn on the 10th of Shevat, 1950, |
| Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson ascended to the leadership of the flourishing |
| movement. |
| Motivated by a profound love for the Jewish people, the Rebbe launched an |
| unprecedented program to bring Judaism to every individual Jew, wherever he or she |
| may be. Inspired by the Biblical mandate: “And you shall spread forth to the West and |
| to the East and to the North and to the South” (Genesis 28:14), the Rebbe established |
| a corps of shluchim (Lubavitch emissaries) and charged them with establishing Chabad- |
| Lubavitch centers in every corner of the world. These dedicated men and women |
| reflect the commitment of Lubavitch to the entire Jewish people. It is no wonder that, |
| for many communities throughout the world, Chabad-Lubavitch, with its vast array of |
| educational and social service programming, has become the central address for all |
| matters Jewish. |
| Throughout his years of leadership of Chabad-Lubavitch, the Rebbe established |
| Chassidism – the study and practice of the Torah’s teachings of kindness - not as one |
| of the limbs, but as the heart and life of Judaism, with its emphasis on love for one’s |
| fellow, and serving G-d with joy. |
| SPANNING THE GLOBE |
| During more than four decades of inspired leadership the Rebbe made Lubavitch the |
| world’s largest Jewish outreach organization. |
| Today, some 3,300 Chabad-Lubavitch institutions span more than fifty-five countries on |
| six continents. These educational and social-service institutions serve a variety of |
| functions for the entire spectrum of Jews, regardless of affiliation or background. |
| Programs geared to humanitarian endeavors reach out beyond the Jewish community, |
| to all people. |
| ISRAEL |
| In Israel, the “Chabadniks” are particularly endeared to all. Their programs reach all |
| segments of the community, and they enjoy the respect of the population, regardless |
| of affiliation. From the soldier stationed on the front to the farmer on the kibbutz, |
| feelings of veneration and respect for the Rebbe run deep, as all have benefited in |
| some way from his concern. |
| FORMER SOVIET REPUBLICS |
| It was in Russia, specifically from |
| the small Belarus town of |
| Lubavitch (literally ‘city of love’) |
| that Chabad-Lubavitch was born |
| more than 200 years ago. A |
| history of heroic, clandestine |
| efforts by Lubavitch kept Judaism |
| alive under the most oppressive |
| and excruciating circumstances |
| conceivable, before and |
| especially after the Bolshevik |
| revolution and during the |
| Communist regime. |
| When the Soviet Union crumbled, |
| Lubavitch emerged from the |
| underground and the work |
| continues publicly unabated. The |
| Rebbe’s emissaries have |
| established some 200 institutions |
for Jewish learning and humanitarian |
 |
| aid throughout the FSU. |
| PEOPLE OF THE BOOK |
| Under the Rebbe’s guidance, Chabad Lubavitch publishes and distributes millions of |
| books, pamphlets, cassettes, DVD’s and educational materials in Hebrew, Yiddish, |
| English, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, Arabic, Farsi, Dutch, Swedish and |
| German. The Rebbe himself is author to over 400 volumes of Torah understandings, |
| letters, responsa and talks. |
| REVERSING THE TIDE |
| The Rebbe was often heard saying that “we dare not rest until every Jewish child |
| receives a proper Jewish education.” |
| The American Jewish day-school system, initiated and pioneered by Lubavitch in the |
| 1940’s, has displaced across a wide spectrum the once-prevalent ideology that Jewish |
| education was a dutiful appendage to the real business of acquiring a secular |
| education. Jewish day schools have since become accepted and desirable even to |
| those who once opposed them. This, as well as the outreach programs of Chabad- |
| Lubavitch, have served as a guide for others to emulate. |
| Innovative and creative programs such as Chabad Day Schools and Gan Israel Summer |
| Camps for unaffiliated children, Jewish Holiday and Moshiach Awareness Campaigns, |
| Chabad Houses on college campuses, and the famous Mitzvah Mobiles, have raised the |
| awareness of Jewish life and Jewish practice among millions of Jews, motivating them |
| to explore and to examine their identity. |
| CONCERN FOR ALL |
| There is a story told about the Rebbe’s early life that seems to be almost symbolic of |
| much that was to follow. When he was nine years old, the young Menachem Mendel |
| dived into the Black Sea to save the life of another boy who had fallen from the deck |
| of a moored ship. The sense of other lives in danger seemed to dominate his |
| conscience. People “drowning” and no one hearing their cries for help; children |
| deprived of a Jewish education; young Jews on campus; families in isolated |
| communities, under repressive regimes…all in need of help. |
| The Rebbe motivated all those whom he reached to take part in this task to reach out |
| to others, to help them, to educate them and bring them together. |
| FOUNTAIN OF BLESSINGS |
| For many years, every Sunday morning, huge crowds of men, women and children |
| gathered at Lubavitch World Headquarters and patiently awaited their turn to meet |
| the Rebbe face-to-face to receive his blessing. The Rebbe gave each individual a crisp, |
| new dollar bill to be given to charity, often explaining that the most important thing |
| two people could do when they meet is to help a third person. This extraordinary |
| custom attracted people from all walks of life, many of whom traveled thousands of |
| miles just for this momentary, yet unforgettable encounter. |
| From the Rebbe’s Childhood |
| From the time that I was a child attending cheder, and even before, the vision of the |
| future Redemption began to take form in my imagination – the Redemption of the |
| Jewish People from their final Exile, a redemption of such magnitude and grandeur |
| through which the purpose of the suffering, the harsh decrees and annihilations of |
| Exile will be understood... |
| (from a letter written by the Rebbe on his 54th birthday in 1956; free translation) |
| Reciprocating Love |
| A promising young man who became close to a group of Lubavitcher yeshiva students in |
| France was quite taken with the Chabad-Chassidic way of life and its teachings of |
| warmth and spirituality, with one exception. He was uncomfortable with the extreme |
| reverence the Chassidim have for the Rebbe. He shared his feelings with his friends and |
| they proposed that he travel to New York and pose his concerns to the Rebbe |
| himself. |
| “Why is it that the Chassidim literally venerate you?” he asked. “I love every Jew |
| débordement” (literally, overflowing, in French), the Rebbe answered. “The love the |
| Chassidim have for me is simply a reflection of my love for them.” |
| The Main Objective |
| But at the core of all these accomplishments is the Rebbe’s main objective – to inspire |
| all of us to revere and love G-d, His people, His creations, and to devote our lives, |
| individually and communally, to Torah and the fulfillment of G-d’s will. |
| The Rebbe’s brilliant insight into the human experience and world events, his genuine |
| compassion for others, his strong leadership and his profound, endless flow of genius, |
| and his inspiring a generation to earn and longingly anticipate Moshiach’s arrival, made |
| him a legend in his lifetime, and won him the admiration, respect and awe of all who’ve |
| come to know him. |
| But what we know best is what the Rebbe himself has told us in no uncertain terms, |
| that the role of our generation is to actually bring about the Torah-promised |
| Redemption and to prepare ourselves and the entire world for it. |
| THE IMMINENT ARRIVAL OF MOSHIACH |
| One objective pervades it all. One goal is at the forefront of a century of life and |
| achievement: a world devoid of hate and greed, a world free of suffering and strife, a |
| world suffused with the wisdom and goodness of its Creator. No less. |
| In virtually every talk the Rebbe gave, every letter he wrote and every action he |
| initiated, the theme, the sign-off and the objective was: the coming of Moshiach, the |
| attainment of the Redemption. |
| The idea of a universal redemption, heralded by a global leader called Moshiach (“the |
| anointed”) is a basic tenet of the Jewish faith. The Jew believes that the world which |
| G-d created possesses the potential to fully reflect the infinite goodness and |
| perfection of its Creator. And the Jew believes that the realization of this goal is the |
| very purpose to which his or her soul has been invested within a physical body and life. |
| But perhaps no leader in history emphasized the urgency and immediacy of Moshiach as |
| did the Rebbe. In this, the Rebbe was echoing the great Jewish sage Maimonides, who |
| more than 800 years ago had said: a single deed, a single word, even a single thought, |
| has the power to tip the scales and bring redemption to the world. |
| The Rebbe believes that if we open our eyes to this reality, we can bring redemption |
| to the world. Today. In the words of the Rebbe, “We want Moshiach NOW!” “Moshiach |
| is now ready to come…all we have to do on our part is to add in deeds of goodness and |
| kindness” and “The time for your redemption has arrived!” |
| May the Rebbe’s prophecy of “Moshiach Now” be fulfilled immediately! |
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