"The Tzadik of Yavniel" - Rabbi Eliezer Shlomo Shick - Moharosh

Rabbi Eliezer Shlomo ben Menachem Zev Shick, also known as Moharosh (an acronym for Moreinu HaRav Eliezer Shlomo, "our teacher, our rabbi, Eliezer Shlomo") - a Breslov leader, was born in 1940.

Rabbi Eliezer Shlomo Shick was born in Jerusalem, Israel, into the family of Rabbi Menachem Zev, head of the Beit Din of the city of Tokaj (Hungary), and his wife Malka.

In his youth he studied at the Etz Chaim cheder. As a young man his family moved to New York, where he studied at Yeshiva Kashau, and later at Mesivta Tifereth Jerusalem under the guidance of Rabbi Moshe Feinstein.

At the age of 15, Shick came across a popular Breslov booklet, "Meshivat Nefesh," by Rabbi Alter Teplicer, which drew him to the teachings of Rebbe Nachman.

He began spending many hours every day in hitbodedut according to the guidance of Rebbe Nachman and studied Torah according to Rebbe Nachman's system of learning.

Seeing the impact this small booklet had had on him, he decided to spread Rebbe Nachman's teachings.

After his marriage in 1964, Rabbi Shick founded "Mesivta Heichal HaKodesh," an international organization dedicated to spreading Breslov teachings.

In 1965, Shick wrote, printed, and distributed 85,000 copies of booklets based on Rebbe Nachman's writings, selling them around the world below cost. He introduced countless readers worldwide to Breslov teachings.

In 1986, Shick founded a Breslov community - made up mostly of baalei teshuva (newly religious) - in the Galilean town of Yavniel in northern Israel.

This community, which calls itself the "City of Breslov," numbers more than 350 families, with a total population of about 3,100 people.

The community has numerous schools and programs for more than 1,000 children, including a Talmud Torah, a school for girls, yeshivas, and a kollel. Plans are now underway to open a new, expanded beit midrash.