The day was marked particularly by Chabad-Lubavitcher Hassidim with Hassidic gatherings, featuring short Torah discourses and singing. In the past, the day was marked in private by Hassidic leaders, but the second-to-last Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, turned it into a more public anniversary.
Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hassidism in the world, was born on the 18th of Elul in 5458 (1698). After many years as a member of the society of "hidden tzaddikim" (righteous men), living under the guise of an ignorant clay-digger, he was instructed by his masters to reveal himself and begin to publicly disseminate his teachings. This he did on his 36th birthday, the 18th of Elul 5494 (1734).
Known as the Besht, he mainly emphasized the three loves in Judaism - Love of G-d, Lover of Torah and Love of Israel - and taught that everything should be done with love and happiness.
Listen here to IsraelNationalRadio's Temple Talk show in honor of the anniversary - a special teaching about the righteous, humility, and learning to serve G-d with joy.
The teachings of the Besht spread throughout the Jewish centers in Russia, Poland and elsewhere - despite the objections of a strong traditionalist Jewish camp that opposed what they saw as antics that distracted from traditional Torah study.
Hassidut teaches that the principle aspect of serving G-d and fulfillment of the Torah's commandments is by sincerity of intention and heart-felt devotion. The Besht emphasized the importance and exalted level of the "simple people's" worship of Hashem. He saw the good in each Jew, admired and loved each individual, and emphasized the importance of prayer.
Probably the most important disciple, the Maggid Rabbi Dov of Mezritch, had an important disciple himself - Rabbi Shneuer Zalman of Ladi. He, too, was born on the 18th of Elul, in the year 5505 (1745). The leader of the Hassidim in Russia, he composed the famous work Tanya - the seminal work of Chabad Hassidut, studied by Jews all over the world.
Known as the Baal HaTanya, his release from prison on the 19th day of Kislev in 1798 has become an annual Chabad holiday. His son set up a center in the Byelorussian town of Lubavitch; decades later, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson (1880-1950), sixth in the Schneur Zalman dynasty, was expelled from Russia in 1927 and led the Lubavitchers to their present-day headquarters in Brooklyn.
Rabbi Yosef's son-in-law, Rabbi Menahem Mendel Schneerson, known throughout the world for his piety, knowledge, leadership, total self-dedication and counsel, was the seventh Rebbe; the position has remained vacant since his death in 1994.
Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hassidism in the world, was born on the 18th of Elul in 5458 (1698). After many years as a member of the society of "hidden tzaddikim" (righteous men), living under the guise of an ignorant clay-digger, he was instructed by his masters to reveal himself and begin to publicly disseminate his teachings. This he did on his 36th birthday, the 18th of Elul 5494 (1734).
Known as the Besht, he mainly emphasized the three loves in Judaism - Love of G-d, Lover of Torah and Love of Israel - and taught that everything should be done with love and happiness.
Listen here to IsraelNationalRadio's Temple Talk show in honor of the anniversary - a special teaching about the righteous, humility, and learning to serve G-d with joy.
The teachings of the Besht spread throughout the Jewish centers in Russia, Poland and elsewhere - despite the objections of a strong traditionalist Jewish camp that opposed what they saw as antics that distracted from traditional Torah study.
Hassidut teaches that the principle aspect of serving G-d and fulfillment of the Torah's commandments is by sincerity of intention and heart-felt devotion. The Besht emphasized the importance and exalted level of the "simple people's" worship of Hashem. He saw the good in each Jew, admired and loved each individual, and emphasized the importance of prayer.
Probably the most important disciple, the Maggid Rabbi Dov of Mezritch, had an important disciple himself - Rabbi Shneuer Zalman of Ladi. He, too, was born on the 18th of Elul, in the year 5505 (1745). The leader of the Hassidim in Russia, he composed the famous work Tanya - the seminal work of Chabad Hassidut, studied by Jews all over the world.
Known as the Baal HaTanya, his release from prison on the 19th day of Kislev in 1798 has become an annual Chabad holiday. His son set up a center in the Byelorussian town of Lubavitch; decades later, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson (1880-1950), sixth in the Schneur Zalman dynasty, was expelled from Russia in 1927 and led the Lubavitchers to their present-day headquarters in Brooklyn.
Rabbi Yosef's son-in-law, Rabbi Menahem Mendel Schneerson, known throughout the world for his piety, knowledge, leadership, total self-dedication and counsel, was the seventh Rebbe; the position has remained vacant since his death in 1994.