Schneerson, Menachem Mendel

▪ 1995

      Russian-born rabbi (b. April 14, 1902, Nikolayev, Russia [now in Ukraine]—d. June 12, 1994, New York, N.Y.), was a towering figure in Orthodox Judaism and for 44 years the charismatic spiritual leader of the New York-based Lubavitch Hasidic movement. He built a religious empire from the remnants of a Russian flock, whose numbers had been decimated to a few thousand by the Holocaust, into a powerful following of some 200,000 believers worldwide. Schneerson attracted members by using several strategies: converted campers (dubbed "mitzvah tanks") that served as recruitment centres canvassed New York City; toll-free telephone numbers, satellite television hookups, and faxes of Talmudic disquisitions were made available; full-page newspaper advertisements were published; and Schneerson himself, a mesmeric figure with piercing blue eyes and a flowing white beard, dispensed blessings and a crisp new dollar bill to each Sunday morning visitor. A Sorbonne-educated scholar, Schneerson became the seventh Lubavitcher grand rabbi in 1950 following the death of his father-in-law. Schneerson, though he had not traveled beyond Crown Heights, Brooklyn, the site of the Lubavitch World Headquarters, in 37 years, had a strong influence on Israeli politics, both within the Knesset (parliament) and among the electorate. Because many of his followers revered Schneerson as the potential Messiah, his death caused great consternation, especially when his hoped-for resurrection failed to take place. He was childless and did not designate a successor.

* * *