๐๏ธ Today in Jewish History โ 11 th Tishreiy
๐ฏ๏ธ Moshe Rabbeinu Appoints the First Jewish Judges
On 11 Tishrei, the day after Yom Kippur, Moshe Rabbeinu began judging the Jewish people and implementing the advice of Yisro to establish a judicial system for the nation.
As the Torah relates:
โืืืื ืืืืจืช ืืืฉื ืืฉื ืืฉืคืื ืืช ืืขืโ
โAnd it was on the next day that Moshe sat to judge the people.โ
Moshe appointed officers and judges over the people, including:
- Leaders of thousands
- Leaders of hundreds
- Leaders of fifties
- Leaders of tens
The Torah describes the qualifications sought for these positions:
โืึทื ึฐืฉึตืื ืึทืึดื, ืึดืจึฐืึตื ืึฑืึนืงึดืื, ืึทื ึฐืฉึตืื ืึฑืึถืช, ืฉึนืื ึฐืึตื ืึธืฆึทืขโ
โMen of valor, G-d-fearing men, men of truth, who despise dishonesty.โ
Chazal note that Moshe found men possessing some of these qualities, but not all in their complete form.
๐ฏ๏ธ This day marks the establishment of the first organized Jewish court system in history.
๐ฏ๏ธ The Great Outpouring of Donations for the Mishkan
On 11 Tishrei, immediately after Moshe informed the people that Hashem had forgiven the sin of the Golden Calf and commanded the construction of the Mishkan, the Jewish people responded with extraordinary enthusiasm.
Men and women alike brought gifts for the building of the Mishkan:
- Gold
- Silver
- Copper
- Precious stones
- Fabrics
- Wood
- Other materials
The Torah describes how the donations continued:
โืืื ืืืืื ืืืื ืขืื ื ืืื ืืืืงืจ ืืืืงืจโ
โAnd they continued bringing additional gifts to him, morning after morning.โ
The peopleโs generosity was so overwhelming that Moshe eventually had to order them to stop bringing additional contributions.
๐ฏ๏ธ The Mishkan was built through the united generosity and devotion of the entire Jewish people.
๐๏ธ Todayโs Yartzite โ 11 th Tishreiy
๐ฏ๏ธ The Passing of the Father of Shmuel bar Yitzchak
The Talmud records that the father of Shmuel bar Yitzchak passed away on this day.
He was known for the exceptional stringency with which he observed Yom Kippur, at times fasting for two consecutive days out of profound devotion and awe of Heaven.
๐ฏ๏ธ His conduct became remembered as an example of extraordinary personal piety.
๐ฏ๏ธ Martyrdom of Rav Huna bar Mar Zutra and Mar bar Rav Ashi
On this day are remembered Rav Huna bar Mar Zutra and Mar bar Rav Ashi ืืโื, among the leading sages of the closing generations of Babylonian Torah scholarship.
They were martyred al kiddush Hashem during a period of persecution against the Jewish community.
๐ฏ๏ธ Their sacrifice became part of the long chain of rabbinic leaders who gave their lives for the preservation of Torah and Jewish faith.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1093 โ The Passing of Rabbeinu Yitzchak ben Asher HaLevi of Speyer (the Rivan)
In the year 4853 (1093) passed away Rabbeinu Yitzchak ben Asher HaLevi of Speyer, one of the earliest Baalei Tosafos in Ashkenaz and a disciple of Rashi.
A remarkable tradition is recorded concerning his final illness. During the illness from which he ultimately passed away, Yom Kippur occurred. The physicians told him:
โIf you do not eat, you will certainly die; if you eat, perhaps you will survive.โ
Rabbeinu Yitzchak refused to eat and replied:
โืืจื ืืฉืื, ืืจื ืขืืืฃโ
โA certainty is stronger than a doubt.โ
He preferred not to violate the sanctity of Yom Kippur despite the doctorsโ assessment.
Later authorities discussed this episode extensively. Rabbi David ben Zimra (the Radbaz) emphasized that no halachic ruling may be derived from this story, since Jewish law unequivocally requires violating Yom Kippur to save a life, even when only a possibility of survival exists.
The Radbaz suggested that Rabbeinu Yitzchak may have personally sensed that his condition was beyond recovery and therefore understood his situation differently than the physicians did. As the Radbaz writes, โthe heart knows the bitterness of its soul.โ
๐ฏ๏ธ Regardless of the halachic discussion surrounding the incident, later generations remembered the Rivan as one of the great early Ashkenazic scholars, renowned for his devotion to Torah and his unwavering reverence for the holiness of Yom Kippur.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1769 โ The Passing of Rabbi Avraham Avish of Frankfurt am Main
In the year ืชืงืโื (1769) passed away the gaon Rabbi Avraham Avish of Frankfurt am Main, author of:
ืืจืืช ืืืจืื
A distinguished talmid chacham and posek, Rabbi Avraham Avish was among the respected rabbinic figures of eighteenth-century German Jewry. His sefer Berchas Avraham earned recognition among ืชืืืืื ืืืืื and contributed to the rich Torah scholarship of Ashkenaz.
๐ฏ๏ธ His legacy lives on through his Torah writings and the ืชืืืืื ืืืืื who studied them.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1810 โ The Passing of Rabbi David of Stepin
In the year ืชืงโืข (1810) passed away the holy Rabbi David ben Rabbi Yehudah Leib HaLevi of Stepin, ืืฆโื.
Rabbi David was one of the early Chassidic leaders of Volhynia and a disciple within the circle of the great masters of the first generations of Chassidus. He was known for his holiness, sincerity in prayer, and deep attachment to the path of the Baal Shem Tov.
๐ฏ๏ธ His influence helped establish the foundations of Chassidic life in the region.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1812 โ The Passing of Rabbi Tzvi Aryeh Landau of Liska
In the year ืชืงืขโื (1812) passed away the holy Rabbi Tzvi Aryeh ben Avraham Landau of Liska, ืืฆโื.
A respected Torah scholar and Chassidic personality, he was remembered for his devotion to Torah and avodas Hashem and for the spiritual influence he exerted upon those around him.
๐ฏ๏ธ His memory was cherished among the Chassidim of Hungary and Galicia.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1904 โ The Passing of Rabbi Yosef Zechariah Stern
In the year ืชืจืกโื (1904) passed away the gaon Rabbi Yosef Zechariah ben Rabbi Nosson Stern of Shavel, author of:
ืฉืโืช ืืืจ ืืืืกืฃ
One of the outstanding Lithuanian Torah scholars of his generation, Rabbi Yosef Zechariah was famed for his sharp analytical mind and extraordinary breadth of Torah knowledge.
His responsa cover a vast range of halachic subjects and continue to be cited by later authorities.
๐ฏ๏ธ He is remembered as one of the great poskim of nineteenth-century Lithuania.
๐ฏ๏ธ 1944 โ The Passing of Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Buhuลi
In the year ืชืฉโื (1944) passed away the holy Rabbi Menachem Mendel ben Rabbi David of Buhuลi, ืืฆโื.
A leader of the Romanian branch of the Ruzhin-Sadigura dynasty, Rabbi Menachem Mendel guided his Chassidim through some of the most difficult years in European Jewish history.
His foremost disciple was the gaon Rabbi Shmuel Tobias, later Rosh Yeshivah of Beโer Chaim Mordechai in Herzliya.
๐ฏ๏ธ He is remembered for his saintliness, humility, and unwavering dedication to his community.
๐ฏ๏ธ 2004 โ The Passing of Rabbi Asher Freund
In the year ืชืฉืกโื (2004) passed away the righteous Rabbi Asher ben Aryeh Mordechai Freund, founder of Yad Ezra, ืืฆโื.
Rabbi Freund devoted his life to helping the poor, the lonely, and those struggling with lifeโs hardships. Through his organization and personal example, he provided support and dignity to countless individuals.
A phrase frequently heard from him was that one should regularly recite:
- Psalm 90
- Psalm 91
which he described as powerful protection against the spiritual dangers of the street and the distractions of the modern world.
๐ฏ๏ธ His life was a model of chessed, simplicity, and concern for every Jew.
๐๏ธ Today in Chabad History โ 11 th Tishreiy
๐ฏ๏ธ 11 Tishrei, 5553 (1792) โ The Tzemach Tzedekโs Introduction to Torah by the Alter Rebbe
A few days after the passing of his daughter, Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, the Alter Rebbe took personal responsibility for the upbringing of her only son, the three-year-old Rabbi Menachem Mendel, the future Tzemach Tzedek.
Soon after the shivah, the Alter Rebbe summoned the chassid Rabbi Avraham ben Shimshon and asked him to serve as the childโs melamed. He explained that, for reasons known only to himself, he wished to introduce his grandson to Torah immediately after Yom Kippur, on the day popularly known as โHashemโs Name Dayโ (ืืขืจ ื-ืโืก ื ืืืขื).
The next morning, 11 Tishrei, the Alter Rebbe rose early and personally led the prayers. The young child recited the Kaddishim. The Alter Rebbe himself served as the baal korei.
That year the day fell on a Thursday, and the Torah reading was from Parshas Haโazinu. The aliyos were carefully arranged:
- The Alter Rebbe received the first aliyah.
- The childโs father, Rabbi Shalom Shachna, received the second.
- For the third aliyah, beginning with the words โืืืืจ ืืืืช ืขืืืโ, the young child was brought forward together with his teacher.
The aliyah was called out as:
โMenachem Mendel, son of Rabbi Shalom Shachna and Devorah Leah.โ
Witnesses recalled that the Alter Rebbe read the passage โืืืืจ ืืืืช ืขืืืโ with extraordinary emotion. As he reached the words:
โืืืฆืืื ืืืจืฅ ืืืืจโฆ ืืฆืจื ืื ืืืืฉืื ืขืื ืโ
โHe found him in a desert landโฆ He guarded him as the apple of His eye,โ
two large tears rolled from his eyes onto the Sefer Torah.
After the prayers, the Alter Rebbe instructed that the child be wrapped completely in a tallis so that he would not look at anything along the way. The child was then carried in the arms of adults as the Alter Rebbe, the family, and a large crowd of chassidim proceeded to the cemetery.
Arriving at the grave of Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, the Alter Rebbe approached the resting place together with the child and his father.
There, in a loud and joyful voice, he proclaimed:
โMazel Tov, Devorah Leah bas Sterna! Today I am bringing your son, Menachem Mendel ben Devorah Leah, into Torah. Bless him that just as he has entered Torah, so may he enter the chupah and good deeds, with long life and good years.โ
The assembled crowd answered a resounding:
โAmen!โ
For generations, Chassidim viewed this moving scene as far more than the beginning of a childโs education. It marked the formal entrusting of the future Tzemach Tzedek to the care of the Alter Rebbe and symbolized the continuation of the Chabad dynasty through the son of the daughter who had given her life for her father. ๐ฏ๏ธ