Rav Shneur Kotler zt”l, On His Yahrtzeit, Today, 3 Tammuz

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rav-shneur-kotlerRav Shneur Kotler zt”l was the son of the Lakewood rosh yeshiva, Rav Aharon Kotler zt”l. Upon the passing of his father in 1962, Rav Shneur became the rosh yeshiva of Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood, New Jersey. Born in Slutsk, Russia, where his maternal grandfather Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer was the rosh yeshiva and rov, Rav Shneur escaped to Mandatory Palestine in 1940. There, he studied under leading gedolim of Yerushalayim, among them Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer who had moved there previously.In 1947, after World War II, he moved to Lakewood to join his father, who had brought his yeshiva there from Europe. Rav Shneur assumed the leadership of the yeshiva with his father’s petirah in 1962. He transformed Lakewood into a flagship center of excellence and fulcrum of the yeshiva world. It was under his leadership that the yeshiva grew.

Whereas his father had actively restricted enrollment to a select group of talmidim, Rav Shneur opened the yeshiva doors.From a group of approximately 200 talmidim, the yeshiva grew to almost a thousand talmidim by 1981.

Rav Shneur Kotler in his younger years.
Rav Shneur Kotler in his younger years.

Rav Shneur sent out groups of yungeleit, pioneers, to establish kollelim in major communities across America, from Philadelphia in the East to Los Angeles in the West. The members of these kollelim would divide their time between learning and spreading the experience of Torah learning to the local Jewish populations. There are now Lakewood satellite kollels operating in 30 cities across North America.

Rav Shneur was active in communal organizations and issues. He held leadership positions as a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudas Yisroel of America and was on the rabbinical boards of Torah Umesorah and Chinuch Atzmai. Rav Shneur was also very active in helping Jewish refugees from Russia and Iran.

Rav Shneur was niftar in 1982 in Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston. He was 64. Tens of thousands assembled at the levaya in Yerushalayim; even vaster throngs had attended the levaya in America.

He was survived by his wife, Rebbetzin Rischel telita; a sister, Rebbetzin Sarah Schwartzman of New York; eight children, and many grandchildren. With his untimely petirah, his son, the current rosh yeshiva, Rav Aryeh Malkiel Kotler, took over the leadership of the yeshiva, together with three other grandchildren of Rav Aharon Kotler, Rav Dovid Schustal, Rav Yeruchem Olshin and Rav Yisroel Neuman.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Dovid Bernstein-Matzav.com Newscenter}


28 COMMENTS

  1. I knew Reb Shneur, zt”l. His kindness, tolerance and sensitivity to others were remarkable, and remain a testament to how it could be and once was, but is no longer.

  2. i second the motion of# 2 #3 you may not have agreed with him but sof kall sof he was the lubavitcher rebbi and we do not have to distort history

  3. Reb Shneur Kotler, z’t’l. May his family and loved ones be comforted among the mourners of Tzion and Yerushalaim.
    Many tzadikim have been taken from us in just the last months. May they all intercede on behalf of klal Yisrael.
    Gimel Tammuz is such an auspicious time. Also, it is when Yehoshua Bin Nun commanded the sun to stand still!

  4. If you have a problem, speak to Rav Shach, Rav Hutner and other gedolim.

    This is a site for the Olam hayeshivos.

  5. It is also the Yahrtzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

    Today, Gimmel Tamuz is also the Yartzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

    You mean he died? I remember a full page ad in NYT saying otherwise.

  6. To all these people who ask for the lubavitcher’s yartzheit to be include, why dont they ask lubavitcher’s why they are not team players? They never joined Agudas Yisroel, they never joined the fight for independent education in eretz yisroel, they never joined the fight against giyus habanos. Chabad is not a team player and have seperated themselves from larger torah jewry. When chabad changes we can discuss mentioning a yartzeit which they themselves deny.

  7. The reason the rebbe’s yahrzeit is NOT promulgated is due to the foolishness of tens of thousand of his followers who still believe he is the messiach and the sinfulness of thousands of his followers who attribute even greater powers to him. I.E =kefira

  8. When the followers of the Lubavitcher Rebbe make mention on their sites and newspaper of the following people, then Matzav and others will mention the Rebbe’s yahrtzeit. The following:

    Rav Moshe Feinstein
    The Satmar Rov
    Rav yaakov Kamenetsky
    The Chazon Ish
    Rav Chaim Ozer
    Rav Aharon Kotler
    Rav Yitzchok Hutner
    Rav Henach Leibowitz
    Rav Noach weinberg

    and others.

    when they mention these yahrtzeits, Matzav will mention the rebbe’s on the main page, right Matzav?

  9. To all you idiots who keep repeating like a broken record that it’s also the Lubavitch Rebbe’s yortziet: The Rebbe never died! He is MELECH leolam vaed! He is Moshiach tzidkeinu!

  10. The fact that so many people believed he could be Moshiach, tells you what a Tzadik he was. No one ever claimed you or I are Moshiach.

  11. Shmuel 2 and others, your argument is beyond absurd. Who cares what they do, matzav should do the right thing(im not saying discussing the Rebbi is neccesarly the right thing.) But not mentioning it to get back at them for not mentioning real gedolim is childish.

  12. To comments 5 & 21, ur svaras would make sense except for the facts which you say yourselves, which is, they are chabad websites which cater exclusively to lubavitch news. On the other hand matzav is the news website for not only litvishe yidden but is also caters for chasidishe news as well.

  13. #23 you do realize your “argument” works for yoshke and shabsai tzvi as well. Are they tzadikim merely because many people thought/think they were moshiach

  14. Frum websites only mention yartzeits of people who (they and their followers, especially the leaders of the movement they left behind)believe in all 13 principles of the Rambam, not just the last two!

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