Rebbe Nachman once said, “I myself was greatly motivated to serve HaShem through stories of tzaddikim.
“All the great tzaddikim used to visit the home of my holy parents. We lived in Medzeboz, which was also the home of the Baal Shem Tov. Many would come to visit the Baal Shem Tov’s grave and they would mostly stay at my father’s house.
“It was from them that I heard many stories of tzaddikim, and this moved me towards HaShem.”
It was primarily through this that the Rebbe was stirred to attain the great things that he did.
With this in mind, the Breslov Research Institute proudly presents our latest book, A Century of Growth, which contains stories and biographies of some of the leading Breslover Chassidim from around 1900 until the present day. Through war and peace, through poverty and trials, through opposition and oppression, these “giants among giants” persevered in their unwavering devotions to HaShem, daily utilizing Rebbe Nachman’s teachings to improve upon and increase their commitments to God and their fellow men.
With just a few hundred chassidim from Rebbe Nachman’s passing (in 1810) until about 1900, Breslov teachings were mostly unnoticed, ignored, and even abused. Yet, the chassidim were relentless in their pursuit of truth. Beginning around 1900, there began an expansion of Rebbe Nachman’s teachings beyond the Ukraine into Poland and the Holy Land. Many people began to discover the Rebbe’s teachings, and there were thousands of them leading up to WWII.
Then disaster, in the form of the Holocaust, struck. Following the war, there were maybe some 150 chassidim who survived, in Russia, the DP camps, the Holy Land, and in North America. Yet today, in 2024, there are thousands upon thousands of Jews all over the globe who are engaged and immersed in Rebbe Nachman’s writings. How did this happen?
Find out in A Century of Growth how, from a handful of survivors, the Breslov movement grew to the many, many thousands of followers worldwide and about those chassidim who made this possible—through their search for truth!
Continue their legacy and take part in this special project. Become the continuing generation by helping spread the light.
