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{{more citations needed|date=March 2013}}'''Barry Gurary''' (also: '''Gourary''', '''Sholom Dovber'''{{citation needed|date=March 2013}} or '''Berke'''<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Mindel|first=Nissan|author-link=Nissan Mindel|date=Dec 2, 2015|title=My Life and Times|magazine=[[Ami (magazine)|Ami]]|issue=245|page=100}}</ref>) (b. in [[Rostov-on-Don]], Russia February 10, 1923, d. [[Montclair, New Jersey|Montclair]], [[New Jersey]], United States March 14, 2005) was a rabbi. He was the nephew of Rabbi [[Menachem Mendel Schneerson]], the seventh [[Chabad|Lubavitcher rebbe]].
{{not verified}}

'''Barry (Sholom Dovber) Gourary''' (11/2/1923-15/3/2005, New-Jersey). Son of [[Shemaryahu Gurary]] and Chana daughter of R. [[Joseph Isaac Schneersohn]] of Lubavitch.
== Biography ==
Barry was born in Russia around 1926, approximately in Leningrad. He was considered by his grandfather as his heir.
Barry Gurary was the only son of Rabbi [[Shemaryahu Gurary]] and the nephew of Rabbi [[Menachem Mendel Schneerson]]. He married Mina Haskind.{{citation needed|date=April 2014}}
After the death of his grandfather in 1950, did not follow follow his uncle R.Menakhem Mendel and finally left Chabad. Tried to receive part of Chabad library, but the court ruled for the opposite side. These actions prevented him from becoming the next rebbe of Khabad after R.Menakhem Mendel. During the court hearing his father supported his uncle's side, while his mother his. After court decision never aroused his pretends again, and lived a peaceful life, far from publuc battles, although he was asked several times by chassidim to open a shul of his own. Died recently in New Jersey.

==Sources==
Gurary's relationship with Schneerson was a source of friction within the family and the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic community.<ref name="nyt-judge-awards">{{cite news |last1=Goldman |first1=Ari L. |title=JUDGE AWARDS RABBI'S LIBRARY TO HASIDIC UNIT |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/01/07/nyregion/judge-awards-rabbi-s-library-to-hasidic-unit.html |accessdate=26 May 2020 |work=New York Times |date=7 January 1987}}</ref>
http://www.mentalblog.com/2005/03/rabbi-barry-gourary-passed-away.html

One year after the death of his grandfather, [[Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn]], [[Menachem Mendel Schneerson]] became the seventh [[rebbe]] of the movement, while Shemaryahu Gurary, Barry Gurary's father, held the same positions he had in the past.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Telushkin|first=Joseph|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/859586312|title=Rebbe: the life and teachings of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, the most influential Rabbi in modern history|publisher=HarperWave|year=2014|isbn=978-0-06-231898-5|edition=First|location=New York, NY|oclc=859586312}}</ref>{{bsn|date=January 2023}}

=== ''Agudas Chasidei Chabad v. Gourary'' ===

Gurary's grandfather, Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, collected a large library of Jewish texts, which included several hundred rare volumes. Gurary said he was entitled to a portion of the library and was supported in this by his mother and his grandfather's librarian, Rabbi Chaim Lieberman.<ref name=":0" />

In 1984, Gurary entered the library and clandestinely removed some books which he sold to rare book dealers. One [[illuminated (manuscript)|illuminated]] Passover Haggadah from 1757 was sold for $69,000 to a Swiss book dealer who soon found a private buyer to pay nearly $150,000 for it. Gurary was observed on a security camera taking the books.<ref name=":0" />

Gurary said he had his mother's permission and the permission of his aunt, Menachem Mendel Schneerson's wife, to take the books. His aunt denied giving him permission.<ref name="nyt-books-suit">{{cite news |last1=Margolick |first1=David |title=SUIT ON BOOKS GIVES LOOK AT HASIDIM |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/18/nyregion/suit-on-books-gives-look-at-hasidim.html |accessdate=26 May 2020 |work=New York Times |date=18 December 1985}}</ref> Schneerson demanded that the volumes be returned. When Gurary refused, also refusing Schneerson's summons to a [[Beth Din]] (rabbinical court), Schneerson's legal team sought a temporary restraining order that would impound the books still in Gurary's possession, and a ruling that the library was the property of [[Agudas Chasidei Chabad]], the umbrella organization for the Chasidic movement.<ref name="nyt-books-suit"></ref> Schneerson's legal team included [[Nathan Lewin]], former ambassador [[Jerome J. Shestack]], and future Solicitor General of the United States [[Seth P. Waxman|Seth Waxman]].<ref name=":0" />

Schneerson said that the volumes were not the "personal possession" of Gurary's grandfather, but the "communal property" of the Lubavitch Hasidim. This view was supported by a letter from Gurary's grandfather indicating that the books were the heritage of the entire Jewish community.<ref name="nyt-judge-awards"></ref><ref name=":0" />

During the court hearing, Gurary's mother supported him while his father supported Schneerson. Schneerson was not deposed, but his wife, [[Chaya Mushka Schneerson]] was. Other witnesses included [[Nobel Peace Prize]] recipient [[Elie Wiesel]], who testified as an expert witness on Chasidic life.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite news |title=Rabbi Samarious Gourary, 91, an Educator |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/12/obituaries/rabbi-samarious-gourary-91-an-educator.html |accessdate=26 May 2020 |work=New York Times |date=12 February 1989}}</ref>

In 1986, the court ruled in favor of Agudas Chassidei Chabad, and the ruling was upheld on appeal in 1987. Agudas Chassidei Chabad located and paid the various book collectors who had bought the books from Gurary and the volumes were returned to the library. In total, Agudas Chassidei Chabad paid $432,000 to buy back the various books.<ref name=":0" />

Gurary worked as a management consultant.<ref name=":0" />

==Sources and external links==
* Chmouel Lubecki: "Didan Notzach"
* Sholom Ber Levin: [https://web.archive.org/web/20130429184041/http://www.chabadlibrary.org/books/pdf/didannatzach.pdf "''Mishpat HaSfarim''"]
* Moshe Bogomilsky: "The story of Hey Teves"
* Pesach Burston: "Tshura - Hey Teves - South Africa"
* Shaul Shimon Deutsch, ''Larger than Life''
* Avrum M. Ehrlich, Leadership in the HaBaD Movement {{ISBN|0-7657-6055-X}}

==References==
<references />

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurary, Barry}}
[[Category:1923 births]]
[[Category:2005 deaths]]
[[Category:American Orthodox Jews]]
[[Category:Schneersohn family]]
[[Category:Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn]]
[[Category:Chabad-Lubavitch related controversies]]
[[Category:Soviet emigrants to the United States]]

Latest revision as of 02:34, 17 February 2024

Barry Gurary (also: Gourary, Sholom Dovber[citation needed] or Berke[1]) (b. in Rostov-on-Don, Russia February 10, 1923, d. Montclair, New Jersey, United States March 14, 2005) was a rabbi. He was the nephew of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Lubavitcher rebbe.

Biography

[edit]

Barry Gurary was the only son of Rabbi Shemaryahu Gurary and the nephew of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. He married Mina Haskind.[citation needed]

Gurary's relationship with Schneerson was a source of friction within the family and the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic community.[2]

One year after the death of his grandfather, Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, Menachem Mendel Schneerson became the seventh rebbe of the movement, while Shemaryahu Gurary, Barry Gurary's father, held the same positions he had in the past.[3][better source needed]

Agudas Chasidei Chabad v. Gourary

[edit]

Gurary's grandfather, Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, collected a large library of Jewish texts, which included several hundred rare volumes. Gurary said he was entitled to a portion of the library and was supported in this by his mother and his grandfather's librarian, Rabbi Chaim Lieberman.[3]

In 1984, Gurary entered the library and clandestinely removed some books which he sold to rare book dealers. One illuminated Passover Haggadah from 1757 was sold for $69,000 to a Swiss book dealer who soon found a private buyer to pay nearly $150,000 for it. Gurary was observed on a security camera taking the books.[3]

Gurary said he had his mother's permission and the permission of his aunt, Menachem Mendel Schneerson's wife, to take the books. His aunt denied giving him permission.[4] Schneerson demanded that the volumes be returned. When Gurary refused, also refusing Schneerson's summons to a Beth Din (rabbinical court), Schneerson's legal team sought a temporary restraining order that would impound the books still in Gurary's possession, and a ruling that the library was the property of Agudas Chasidei Chabad, the umbrella organization for the Chasidic movement.[4] Schneerson's legal team included Nathan Lewin, former ambassador Jerome J. Shestack, and future Solicitor General of the United States Seth Waxman.[3]

Schneerson said that the volumes were not the "personal possession" of Gurary's grandfather, but the "communal property" of the Lubavitch Hasidim. This view was supported by a letter from Gurary's grandfather indicating that the books were the heritage of the entire Jewish community.[2][3]

During the court hearing, Gurary's mother supported him while his father supported Schneerson. Schneerson was not deposed, but his wife, Chaya Mushka Schneerson was. Other witnesses included Nobel Peace Prize recipient Elie Wiesel, who testified as an expert witness on Chasidic life.[3][5]

In 1986, the court ruled in favor of Agudas Chassidei Chabad, and the ruling was upheld on appeal in 1987. Agudas Chassidei Chabad located and paid the various book collectors who had bought the books from Gurary and the volumes were returned to the library. In total, Agudas Chassidei Chabad paid $432,000 to buy back the various books.[3]

Gurary worked as a management consultant.[3]

[edit]
  • Chmouel Lubecki: "Didan Notzach"
  • Sholom Ber Levin: "Mishpat HaSfarim"
  • Moshe Bogomilsky: "The story of Hey Teves"
  • Pesach Burston: "Tshura - Hey Teves - South Africa"
  • Shaul Shimon Deutsch, Larger than Life
  • Avrum M. Ehrlich, Leadership in the HaBaD Movement ISBN 0-7657-6055-X

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Mindel, Nissan (Dec 2, 2015). "My Life and Times". Ami. No. 245. p. 100.
  2. ^ a b Goldman, Ari L. (7 January 1987). "JUDGE AWARDS RABBI'S LIBRARY TO HASIDIC UNIT". New York Times. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Telushkin, Joseph (2014). Rebbe: the life and teachings of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, the most influential Rabbi in modern history (First ed.). New York, NY: HarperWave. ISBN 978-0-06-231898-5. OCLC 859586312.
  4. ^ a b Margolick, David (18 December 1985). "SUIT ON BOOKS GIVES LOOK AT HASIDIM". New York Times. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Rabbi Samarious Gourary, 91, an Educator". New York Times. 12 February 1989. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
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