Liske (Hasidic dynasty)
Encyclopedia
Liske is the name of a Hasidic dynasty founded by Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Friedman. It takes its name from the Yiddish name for Olaszliszka
Olaszliszka
Olaszliszka is a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Hungary.Olaszliszka is nestled among the hills of the Tokay country side where the famous Tokay wines come from...

, a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén
Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén
Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén is the name of an administrative county in north-eastern Hungary , on the border with Slovakia. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Nógrád, Heves, Hajdú-Bihar and Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg. The capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county is Miskolc...

 county, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

.

Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedman

The first Lisker Rebbe, Rabbi Tsvi Hirsh Friedman, also known as Hershel Lisker, lived a very frugal life. Even though the community enjoyed great prosperity, he would not allow its leaders to raise his salary from one forint, which he received when first appointed to the position. He was a disciple of the Divrei Chaim
Chaim Halberstam
Chaim Halberstam of Sanz , known as the Divrei Chaim after his magnum opus on halakha, was a famous Hasidic Rebbe and the founder of the Sanz Hasidic dynasty....

 of Tsanz. His Torah sayings are collected in "Ach Pri Tvia" אך פרי תבואה and Hayoshor veHatov (2 vols).

The money that he accrued from the people coming to seek his advice was distributed to the poor and to further the various programs he instituted. For himself he built a humble home so as to accommodate the multitude of people who came to see him and ask his advice.

Among his major accomplishments was the building of the synagogue. The synagogue was built in a grandiose manner and able to accommodate 500 people. It was one of the largest of his time in Hungary. The Synagogue was built without a foundation to commemorate the Destruction of the Temple — as a testimony to the temporary state of the Diaspora.

To the community and his followers he left the following dictum:

"Rely on the ancient tradition, to observe and uphold the conservative life-style,
to hand it down from generation to generation."

The death of Tsvi Hirsh Friedman in 1874 heralded the end of prosperity in the Jewish community of Liske. To this day, on the day of his yahrzeit, the 14th day of Av
Av
Av is the eleventh month of the civil year and the fifth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar. The name is Babylonian in origin and appeared in the Talmud around the 3rd century. This is the only month which is not named in the Bible. It is a summer month of 30 days...

, thousands still converge to pray at his grave.

Rabbi Chaim Friedlander

At the death of Hershel Lisker in 1874 the mantle of leadership fell to his son-in-law Rav Chaim Friedlander, who at that time was Rav of Erdőbénye
Erdobénye
The village Erdőbénye has 1600 inhabitants and is located 20 km from the town of Tokaj in Northern Hungary. It lies in a valley surrounded by mountains and vineyards, in the middle of the famous wine-region ‘Tokaj-Hegyalja’, in Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen County. The village is one of the centres...

. Hershel Lisker had no surviving kin. Rav Chaim Friedlander
Friedländer
-Places:* a citizen of Friedland in Ostpreußen, modern Pravdinsk, Russia.* a citizen of one of the German towns or villages called Friedland.- Friedländer :* Albert Friedländer, German bank director, later French and Swiss author...

 came from the illustrious 14th Century Torah luminary, the Maharsha
Samuel Eidels
Samuel Eidels , was a renowned rabbi and Talmudist famous for his commentary on the Talmud, Chiddushei Halachot. Eidels is also known as Maharsha .-Biography:The Maharsha was born in Kraków, Poland...

. He himself was a great Torah scholar and outstanding orator with a mellifluous voice. Among his writings were the Tal Chaim—a homiletical explanation of each parsha, Tal Chaim Uverocho a glossary on the Talmud.

At this time there was a change in the political climate of Hungary plus a worsening of the economy. Nevertheless, the Rabbi and kehilla tried to continue with the social and religious services instituted by the first Lisker Rebbe under duress and great hardship. Rav Chaim Friedlander's concern did not only pertain to the economic hardship, but to the new political climate that worried him. A proclamation went out throughout the land that all Jews should be imprisoned and killed and their properties confiscated. The Rebbe went to shul and prayed—he offered himself as a sacrifice if this terrible verdict could be averted.

The following week as the Rabbi was sitting at the dinner table deep in thought, he took a piece of meat in his mouth, the food got lodged in his throat and he choked. In the merit of his sacrifice, the terrible tragedy against the Jews had been averted. The Tal Chaim, as he was called, died in 1904.

Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedlander

Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedlander, son of Rav Chaim, became the third Lisker Rebbe upon his father's death.

The Shari Hayusher as he was known by his sefer, was married in the city of Maad, and was from the bes din of Rabbi mordchai vilinger of Maad, then he got a position as the chief rabbi of Gava
Gavà
Gavà is a municipality in Barcelona Province , bordering the coast of the Mediterranean Sea between Viladecans and Castelldefels; not to get confused with the village of Gava in the Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county, in the Northern Great Plain region of eastern Hungary.Gavà has a beach and two...

 or Gávavencsellő
Gávavencsello
Gávavencsellő is a village in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county, in the Northern Great Plain region of eastern Hungary.-Geography:It covers an area of and has a population of 3938 people .-Leaders:...

 is a village in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg
Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg
Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg is an administrative county in north-eastern Hungary, bordering Slovakia, Ukraine and Romania. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Hajdú-Bihar and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén...

 county of Hungary until his father died.

He wrote 30 seforim, his most famous being the Shar Hayushor, a commentary on Tehillim, which he wrote while in prison during The White Terror.

The third Lisker Rebbe was appropriately called Charif Hershele because of his outstanding sharp mind. Besides writing books and fulfilling the position of Rabbi, he also lead a yeshivah disseminating Torah knowledge in his inimitable manner with a good smile and a good spirit. When the Holocaust occurred, the chassidim wanted to save him but he refused because he felt that his place and fate was with his townspeople. In his message to his son rav Yosef he said, "I know you will be saved and carry on as a designate (a successor to his father) to me from now on."

Era of Rabbi Yosef of Liska

After the Holocaust, his youngest son Rav Yozef moved to America, with his rebbitzin and one year old son, the present Lisker Rebbi. Rav Yozef worked endlessly to rebuild Lisker on this side of the Atlantic; until his sudden death on chuf ches shvat 1971.

Thirty years after his death his writings were published for the first time by Rabbi Yisroel Friedlander, until the present 2 volumes of "Tzvi Vechumid" were released, and more is to be published in the near future.

Lineage

  • Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedman (1808-1874) was a son of the hidden tzadik
    Tzadik
    Tzadik/Zadik/Sadiq is a title given to personalities in Jewish tradition considered righteous, such as Biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ṣadiq, is ṣ-d-q , which means "justice" or "righteousness", also the root of Tzedakah...

     Rabbi Aharon of Ujhel
    Sátoraljaújhely
    Sátoraljaújhely or אוהעלי ) is a town located in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county in northern Hungary near the Slovak border. It is east from the county capital Miskolc.- History :...

    .
    • Rabbi Chaim Friedlander (d. 1904), author of Tal Chayim – son-in-law of Rabbi Tsvi Hirsh
      • Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedlander
        • Rabbi Yozef Friedlander
          • Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Friedlander, present Lisker Rebbe
          • Rabbi Avrohom Yehoshua Heschel Friedlander, the Hivniv Rebbe
          • Pearl Gitel Leifer
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