Is Chabad Lubavitch?

Is Chabad Lubavitch? Is Lubavitch Chabad? Are the two terms – “Chabad” and “Lubavitch” – synonymous? Chabad is an acronym; Lubavitch is a town. Chabad represents a hassidic philosophy; Lubavitch the ancestral home of a hassidic court. They are not synonymous. Cryptic though it may sound, Lubavitch is Chabad, but Chabad is not only Lubavitch.

Chabad is an acronym for hochma (wisdom), bina (understanding), da’at (knowledge) – the three intellectual faculties in the kabbalistic system of viewing the world. The acronym refers to the school of hassidic thought pioneered by one of the early and influential hassidic masters, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Lyady (1745-1812). Rabbi Shneur Zalman taught that the mind must rule over the heart; it is the intellect that should define our relationship with the Almighty. This school focuses on developing a methodological approach to understanding God. The seminal text of the Chabad school of thought is Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s Tanya, which was first printed in 1797.

Lubavitch – or Lyubavichi, as it is known – is today in Russia. The town is most famously associated with the contemporary branch of hassidism that has a worldwide presence. Hassidic masters of this branch are descended from Rabbi Shneur Zalman, and the branch takes its philosophy from Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s writings.

Was Rabbi Shneur Zalman a “Lubavitcher”? Born in Liozna, he moved to Lyady later in life and was buried in Hadiach. As a young boy, Shneur Zalman had studied under Rabbi Yissachar Ber of Lubavitch – presumably in his teacher’s city. Later, some of his opponents who sought to undermine his authority lived in Lubavitch. We might well ponder whether Rabbi Shneur Zalman would have felt any affection for that town. But either way, calling Rabbi Shneur Zalman a “Lubavitcher” would be anachronistic.

After Rabbi Shneur Zalman died, his son and successor, Rabbi Dov Ber Shneuri (1773-1827) settled in Lubavitch, and it was from his base in this town that he led his disciples. The custom among most – but not all – hassidic groups is that the branch of hassidism takes and preserves its name from where the founders of that branch lived. Lubavitch, therefore, takes its name from the town where Rabbi Dov Ber led his disciples. Rabbi Dov Ber’s son-in-law and successor, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (1789- 1866) – known by the title of his multi-volume work, Tzemah Tzedek – also presided in that town, as did his son after him, Rabbi Shmuel (Maharash, 1834-1882).

Maharash’s son, Rabbi Sholom Dov Ber (Rashab, 1860-1920) was born in Lubavitch, but during World War I he fled to Rostov-on-Don. That signaled the end of the presence of hassidic masters in Lubavitch, although the name “Lubavitch” continued – and continues – to live on as a hassidic identity. CONTINUE...