Divrei Torah - Ribnitzer

He was a holy man, a tzaddik, and his name was Chaim Zanvil Abramowitz, known as the Ribnitzer Rebbe zt’l (d. 1995). His holiness and asceticism were well-known and thousands sought him out for his brachos.

The Ribnitzer Rebbe was born in Botosani (Botoshan), Romania in 1902. His father, R’ Moshe, was a Chassid of the Tzaddik, Rabbi Avrohom Matisyahu Friedman of Stefanesti (Shtefenesht), and his mother was Mrs. Yuta Tzippora. His father passed away when young Chaim Zanvil was two and a half and he moved to live in the Rebbe’s home in Shtefenesht where he soaked up the holiness and the spiritual path of removal from matters of this world. The Ribnitzer Rebbe later said that he learned the entire Torah from his Rebbe and by the age of 18 he already knew all of Shas with Rashi.