Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (נפתלי צבי יהודה ברלין also known as Reb Hirsch Leib Berlin, 1817- 10 August 1893) was a rosh yeshiva ("dean [of a] yeshiva") of the Volozhin yeshiva and author if several works of rabbinic literature in Lithuania. His name is commonly abbreviated by its consonants as Netziv (נציב which can also mean "pillar"). Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbÄ«;; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbÄ«) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished, (in knowledge). In the ancient Judean schools (and among Sefaradim today) the sages... 1817 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... August 10 is the 222nd day of the year (223rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1893 (MDCCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Rosh yeshiva (Hebrew: ראש ישיבה) (pl. ... Yeshiva or yeshivah (Hebrew: ישיבה pl. ... The Volozhin Yeshiva, also known as the Eitz Chaim yeshiva, was a yeshiva situated in Volozhin, present-day Belarus in the 19th century. ... Rabbinic literature, in the broadest sense, can mean the entire spectrum of Judaisms rabbinic writing/s throughout history. ...

Biography

Rabbi Berlin was born into a family of Jewish scholars renowned for its Talmudic scholarship. His father Jacob, while not a rabbi, was a Talmudic scholar; his mother was directly descended from Rabbi Chaim Volozhin, the main student of the Vilna Gaon who founded the Volozhin yeshiva. Although initially a weak student, legend has it that Rabbi Berlin applied himself to his studies after overhearing his parents debating whether he should pursue a trade. The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions of Jewish law, ethics, customs, and stories, which are authoritative in Jewish tradition. ... Chaim Volozhin (or Chaim Volozhiner or Chaim of Volozhin) (1749-1821) was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, Talmudist, and ethicist. ... Elijah Ben Solomon, the Vilna Gaon The Vilna Gaon (April 23, 1720 – October 9, 1797) was a prominent Jewish rabbi, Talmud scholar, and Kabbalist. ... The Volozhin Yeshiva, also known as the Eitz Chaim yeshiva, was a yeshiva situated in Volozhin, present-day Belarus in the 19th century. ...

His first wife was the daughter of Rabbi Yitzchok of Volozhin, the son of Rabbi Chaim Volozhin. His second wife was his niece, a daughter of Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein, the author of the Aruch haShulchan. A son from his first marriage, Rabbi Chaim Berlin, became the rabbi of Moscow, a daughter married Rabbi Refael Shapiro, and his son from his second marriage was Rabbi Meir Berlin (later Bar-Ilan). Chaim Volozhin (or Chaim Volozhiner or Chaim of Volozhin) (1749-1821) was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, Talmudist, and ethicist. ... Rabbi Yichiel Michel Epstein Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829-1907), often called the Aruch ha-Shulchan (after his main work, Arukh HaShulkhan), was a Rabbi and posek (authority in Jewish law) in Lithuania. ... A Haredi Judaism yeshiva (jewish school) of higher learning that allows their boys (or bochurim) to pursue a secular education while remaining in the yeshiva. ... Government Russia District Subdivision Russia Central Federal District Federal City Mayor Yuri Luzhkov Geographical characteristics Area  - City 1,081 km² Population  - City (2005)    - Density 10,415,400   8537. ... Rabbi Refael Shapiro Rabbi Refael Shapiro (1837-1921) was the famed Rosh Yeshiva of the Volozhin yeshiva and a son-in-law of Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (the Netziv). ... Meir Berlin, later Hebraized to Meir Bar-Ilan, (1880 - 1949, born Volozhin, Lithuania, died Jerusalem, Israel) was an Orthodox Judaism rabbi and leader of Religious Zionism, Mizrachi movement in USA and British Mandate of Palestine. ...

Rabbi Berlin led the yeshiva in Volozhin (in what is presently Belarus), then the largest institution of its kind, from 1854 to its closure in 1892. Despite the destruction (twice) of the town and the yeshiva building in large fires, its enrollment increased steadily under his leadership, and the yeshiva would produce a number of prominent rabbinic figures who led Eastern European Jewry until World War II. Amongst them was Rabbi Shimon Shkop. Valozhyn (Belarusian: Вало́жын; Russian: Воло́жин) is a town in the Minsk voblast of Belarus, 75 km northwest of Minsk. ... 1854 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Current division of Europe into five (or more) regions: one definition of Eastern Europe is marked in orange Eastern Europe is an eastern region of Europe variably defined. ... Combatants Allies: Soviet Union, United Kingdom, France/Free France, United States, Canada, China, India, Australia, Poland, New Zealand, South Africa, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, Bulgaria, Finland, Romania, Hungary, Burma Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian... The famous scholar Rabbi Shimon Shkop (1860-1940) was born in Tortz and died in Grodno. ...

In Volozhin, his leadership was contested by the popular Rabbi Joseph Dov (Yoshe Ber) Soloveitchik, whose style of Torah study differed substationally from Rabbi Berlin's. Rabbi J.D. Soloveitchik ultimately became rabbi of Slutsk, Warsaw and Brisk, where he founded the rabbinical dynasty that still carries his name. Torah study is the study by Jews of the Torah, Tanakh, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature and similar works, all of which are Judaisms religious texts, for the purpose of the mitzvah (commandment) of Torah study itself, meaning study for religious (as opposed to academic) purposes. ... Slutsk (Belarusian: Слу́цак, Слуцк; Polish Słuck; Russian: Слуцк) is a town in Belarus, located on the Sluc river, 105 km south of Minsk. ... Warsaw (Polish: , (?), in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto StoÅ‚eczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ... Central Square of Brest Brest (Belarusian: ; Russian: ; Polish: ; also known as BieraÅ›cie or BiareÅ›cie (Belarusian: respectfully) formerly Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk is a city (population 290,000 in 2004) in Belarus close to the Polish border where the Western Bug and Mukhavets Rivers meet. ...

In 1892, the Volozhin yeshiva shut down. There are several explanations and differing versions of events: 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

1. Russian authorities (influenced by Haskalah elements) sought to introduce a limited program of secular studies into the yeshiva. As this would seriously undermine the aims of the institution, Rabbi Berlin saw no other solution than to let the government close the yeshiva. A variation on this version is that Rabbi Berlin may have been willing to accept the secular studies but not in the manner it was presented by the authorities and their secular Jewish allies.
2. The yeshiva was closed due to its own internal upheaval. This internal strife was caused by Rabbi Berlin's attempt to install his son as Rosh Yeshiva. Recently available Russian governmental documents of the time clearly point to this conclusion

In any event, after the closure, Rabbi Berlin traveled to Vilna and other cities, trying to clear the yeshiva's debt. Haskalah (Hebrew: השכלה; enlightenment, intellect, from sekhel, common sense), the Jewish Enlightenment, was a movement among European Jews in the late 18th century that advocated adopting enlightenment values, pressing for better integration into European society, and increasing education in secular studies, Hebrew, and Jewish history. ... Location Ethnographic region Dzūkija County Vilnius County Municipality Vilnius city municipality Elderate Number of elderates 20 Coordinates General information Capital of Lithuania Vilnius County Vilnius city municipality Vilnius district municipality Population (rank) 540,318 in 2005 (1st) First mentioned 1323 Granted city rights 1387 Vilnius ( (help· info), Belarusian: , Russian...

In the last few months of Rabbi Berlin's life he suffered from diabetes and the consequences of a stroke. While he intended to travel to the Land of Israel, his medical condition made this impossible. He spent his last weeks in Warsaw, and is interred in a cemetery there. For the disease characterized by excretion of large amounts of severely diluted urine, see diabetes insipidus. ... A stroke or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) occurs when the blood supply to a part of the brain is suddenly interrupted by occlusion (an ischemic stroke- approximately 90% of strokes), by hemorrhage (a hemorrhagic stroke - less than 10% of strokes) or other causes. ... This article concerns the concept of The Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael) in Jewish and Christian thought throughout the history from its Biblical sources to the present day. ... Warsaw (Polish: , (?), in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: Miasto Stołeczne Warszawa) is the capital of Poland and its largest city. ...

Views and influence

Rabbi Berlin had a traditionalist approach to Torah study that was at odds with the highly analytical style of lomdus ("learned intellectual analysis") that was pioneered by Soloveitchik. Torah study is the study by Jews of the Torah, Tanakh, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature and similar works, all of which are Judaisms religious texts, for the purpose of the mitzvah (commandment) of Torah study itself, meaning study for religious (as opposed to academic) purposes. ...

Politically, he favored Jewish settlement of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael), then under the control of the Ottoman Empire; he was initially a member of the Chovevei Tzion movement (founded by his contemporary Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalisher), but later distanced himself from them. This article concerns the concept of The Land of Israel (Hebrew: ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael) in Jewish and Christian thought throughout the history from its Biblical sources to the present day. ... Imperial motto (Ottoman Turkish) دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power (1683) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital Söğüt (1299-1326), Bursa (1326-1365), Edirne (1365-1453), İstanbul (1453-1922) Imperial anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Sovereigns Padishah of the Osmanl... Hovevei Zion (transliterated Hebrew, alternatively Hibbat Zion; English translation: Lovers of Zion) organizations are considered the forerunner and foundation of the modern Zionist movement. ... Zvi Hirsch Kalischer. ...

Bibliography

• Ha'emek She'eila ("The Depth [of the] Question"), a commentary on the She'iltoth, a geonic work of halakha by Achai Gaon;
• Meishiv Davar ("Response [in] Kind"), a collection of his responsa;
• Ha'emek Davar ("The Depth [of the] Word"), a Torah commentary;
• A commentary on the Song of Songs.
• Meromei Sadeh ("Heights [of the] Field", used as a reference to the tribe of Naphtali by Deborah in the book of Judges), comments and insights on selected volumes of the Talmud.

Geonim (also Gaonim) (גאונים) (Singular: Gaon [גאון] meaning pride in Biblical Hebrew and genius in modern Hebrew) were the rabbis who were the Jewish Talmudic sages who were the generally accepted spiritual leaders of the Jewish community in the early medieval era, in contrast to the Resh Galuta/ Exilarch who wielded secular... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ... Note: This is based on an entry from the 1906 public domain Jewish Encyclopedia The responsa literature, known in Hebrew as Sheelot U-teshuvot (questions and answers), is the body of written decisions and rulings given by rabbis to questions addressed to them. ... Torah () is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. ... Rabbinic literature, in the broadest sense, can mean the entire spectrum of Judaisms rabbinic writing/s throughout history. ... The Song of Solomon or Song of Songs (Hebrew title שיר השירים, Shir ha-Shirim) is a book of the Hebrew Bible—Tanakh or Old Testament—one of the five megillot. ... In the Book of Genesis, Naphtali (נַפְתָּלִי My wrestling, Standard Hebrew Naftali, Tiberian Hebrew Nap̄tālî) is the sixth son of Jacob and the founder of the tribe of Naphtali. ... Deborah or Dvora (דְּבוֹרָה Bee, Standard Hebrew Dəvora, Tiberian Hebrew Dəḇôrāh) was a prophetess and the fourth Judge and only female Judge of pre-monarchic Israel in the Old Testament (Tanakh). ... Judges may refer to the Book of Judges in the Bible more than one judge. ... The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions of Jewish law, ethics, customs, and stories, which are authoritative in Jewish tradition. ...

Sources

• Epstein, B.. Mekor Baruch. Sections translated as: My Uncle the Netziv by Rabbi M. Dombey. Brooklyn, New York: Mesorah publications ltd. ISBN 899064930.