Kalonymus Kalman Shapira of Piasetzno

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Grand Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira

Grand Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira (1889 - 1943) or Klonimus Kalmish Shapira was the Rebbe of Piaseczno, (usually spelled: Piaseczna).

1 Life
2 War Years
3 Works
4 Legacy
5 External links

[edit] Life

Rabbi Shapira was born in Grodzisk, Poland. He was named Klonimus Kalmish after his maternal grandfather, the renowned Maor Vashemesh. He was the scion of a distinguished family, which included Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk, the Chozeh of Lublin and the Maggid of Kozhnitz.

In 1905, Rabbi Shapira married Rachel Chaya Miriam, the daughter of Rabbi Yerachmiel Moshe of Kozhnitz. She helped him prepare his lectures and books, even adding pertinent insights of her own.

In 1909, he was appointed Rabbi of Piasetzno, near Warsaw. There, he attracted many Chassidim. He was deeply focused on the education of children and young men, establishing the Yeshiva Da'as Moshe in 1923.

[edit] War Years

After the Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939, Rabbi Shapira was interned with a few of his Chassidim in the Warsaw Ghetto, where he ran a secret Synagogue. His inspirational speeches of this period were recovered from the ruins of the ghetto and published under the title Aish Kodesh (holy fire).

After the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was crushed in 1943, Rabbi Shapira was taken to the Trevaniki work camp near Lublin. Prisoners who were completely worked out by exhaustion and starvation were removed and sent to Treblinka. Rabbi Shapira spent his last few months in Treblinka, where he was murdered by the Nazis in 1943.

[edit] Works

Hovot HaTalmidim (The Students' Obligations), which was aimed at teenagers and has become a standard textbook in Yeshivot. Hachsharas HaAvreichim (preparation of young men), targeted at young married men.

Aish Kodesh

[edit] Legacy

The current Rebbe of Piaseczna is Rabbi Kalman Menachem Shapira, shlita who is the great-nephew of the first Rebbe, Klonimous Kalman. Rabbi Kalman Menachem resides in Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel and leads Congregation Aish Kodesh, a synagogue as well as the worldwide headquarters for spreading the teachings of his great-uncle. There is also a synagogue in Woodmere, Long Island, New York called "Congregation Aish Kodesh", dedicated to the memory of Rabbi Shapira.