YUD TES KISLEV

In Celebration of Yud Tes Kislev

Gut Yom Tov to Chabad that cares for every single Jewish Neshoma and brings everyone closer to the Abishter!

L'Shono Tova Tichoseivu V'Seichoseimu

GUT YOM TOV! GUT YOM TOV! Shturem.org wishes all readers and all Anash the world over a Gut Yom Tov, and may we go from the Geulah of Yud-Tes Kislev to the Geulah ha'amitis v'hashlaimo, NOW! All the above brochos are especially pertinent this year, in Shnas HaMosayim since the histalkus of the Alter Rebbe.

MAY YOU BE INSCRIBED AND SEALED FOR A GOOD YEAR IN THE STUDY OF CHASSIDUS AND THE WAYS OF CHASSIDUS.

From the Alter Rebbe's letter: This indeed must be made known, that on the day G-d made for us, the 19th of Kislev, Tuesday (the day on which "it was good" was said twice in Torah) yahrzeit of our holy teacher whose soul is in Eden, while I was reading in the book of Tehillim the verse "He redeemed my soul in peace," before beginning the following verse, I emerged in peace by (the act of) the G-d of peace.


From Yale University: Legacy of Hassidism in Modern Times
A Live Lecture by Rabbi YY Jacobson at Yale on the 19th of Kislev. [Soon to be uploaded at Yeshiva.net.] Photo from CoLive.com.

Yud Tes Kislev Address at Jewish Women's Convention
The Chassidic Response to the Challenge of Modernity: The Judah-Tamar Drama The Joseph and-His-Brothers Drama.Presented at the 51st Neshei Chabad Convention of Southbury, CT ...  18 Kislev 5773 - December 1, 2012 [Photos courtesy CrownHtsinfo]

"The 300 Chabad women and girls who gathered at the 51st Nshei Ubnos Chabad Convention at the Heritage hotel in scenic Southbury were more than grateful for participating." "What's so amazing is that everyone here has a story," ... "Everyone here has something to share, and we are all inspired by each other." Shluchos listening to chassidus by Rabbi Y.Y. Jacobson

And one who came along with Mommy:

B"H Yud Tes Kislev comes to Boro Park. Photos courtesy of CrownHeights. This past Motzai Shabbos hundreds of men from all different Chassidusin gathered in the Ateres Golda ballroom in Boro Park for a Seudas Melava Malka and Farbrengen marking Yud Tes Kislev, which was organized by Chassidus Library and publisher Heichal Menachem.

From Arutz Sheva:
"Chabad-Lubavitch hassidim around the world began on Monday to celebrate Yud Tet Kislev, known by its acronymt "Yat Kislev" and called by some the “Rosh Hashanah of Hassidism.”

The holiday falls on the 19th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev, according to the Jewish calendar. It was on this date in 1798 that the founder of Chabad Hassidism, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi (1745–1812), was freed from his imprisonment in czarist Russia.

More than a personal liberation, this was a watershed event in the history of Hassidism, heralding what Chabad terms a new era in the revelation of the “inner soul” of Torah.

The public dissemination of the teachings of Hassidism had in fact begun two generations earlier. The founder of the hassidic movement, Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov (1698–1760), revealed to his disciples gleanings from the mystical soul of Torah which had previously been the sole province of select Kabbalists in each generation. This work was continued by the Baal Shem Tov’s disciple, Rabbi DovBer, the “Maggid of Mezeritch”.

The Baal Shem Tov spoke to the common man, whose life was hard and whose knowledge of Torah was limited, bringing joy and acceptance to those who could not spend their time studying in yeshivas. People generally see hassidism as characterized by this joy, singing and dancing, as well as special customs, but it is actually based on a deep, philosophic approach to Judaism which is studied in religious and academic milieus today.

Rabbi Schneur Zalman went farther than his predecessors, bringing these teachings to broader segments of the Jewish population of Eastern Europe. More significantly, Rabbi Schneur Zalman founded the “Chabad” approach—a philosophy and system of study, meditation, and character refinement that made these abstract concepts more easily and rationally comprehensible and practically applicable in daily life.

In the fall of 1798, Rabbi Schneur Zalman was arrested on charges that his teachings and activities threatened the imperial authority of the czar, and was imprisoned in an island fortress in the Neva River in Petersburg. In his interrogations, he was compelled to present to the czar’s ministers the basic tenets of Judaism and explain various points of hassidic philosophy and practice. After 53 days, he was exonerated of all charges and released.

Rabbi Schneur Zalman regarded his arrest as but the earthly echo of a heavenly indictment against his revelation of the most intimate secrets of the Torah. He saw his release as signifying his vindication in the heavenly court. Following his liberation on the 19th day of Kislev, he redoubled his efforts, disseminating his teachings on a far broader scale, and with more detailed and “down-to-earth” explanations, than before.

The nineteenth of Kislev therefore marks the “birth” of Hassidism: the point at which it was allowed to emerge from the womb of “mysticism” into the light of day, to grow and develop as an integral part of Torah and Jewish life."*