The Elie Wiesel Living Archive

at The 92nd Street Y, New York. Supported by The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity

In Hasidism: Rabbi Wolfe of Zbarazh

Hassidic Master, Rabbi Wolfe of Zbarazh – a Study in Humility and Contradictions.

Oct 23, 1980

Son of the illustrious Rabbi Yechiel Michel of Zlochov, the humble and accepting Rebbe Wolfe became the opposite of his stern and demanding father. He always sided with the one who was whipped, or poor, or accused. Indeed, he went even further in this regard than the Baal Shem Tov: the latter saw the potential good in every Jew while Rebbe Wolfe saw them as good. Like Rebbe Zusia he had a genius for humility. Modest in aspiration, Rebbe Wolfe nevertheless “brought redemption on a small scale to individuals around him.” His move to Israel perhaps finally achieved the anonymity he always sought. A sort of anti-Rebbe, he wanted to be not the great light but rather a “shadow that recedes at dawn or twilight.”

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Subthemes:
1) Vanity and Humility in Hasidic Masters
2) Limits of Self-Awareness in a Tzadik and Saint
3) The Rebbe vs. the Hasid (Master and Disciple)
4) Jewish Suffering in the Nineteenth Century
5) Early and Lates Stages of Hasidism
6) Preparatory Stages of Hasidic Masters and Tzadikim
7) Compassion for the Poor, the Marginalized and the Sinner
8) Rabbi Wolfe as the Hasidic Anti-Hero
9) Vanity and Humility in Hasidic Masters
10) Fame and Anonymity Among Hasidic Masters
11) Silence and Solitude Among Hasidic Masters
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