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Rav Chaim
Lifshitz
Founder and Director of
Sadnat Enosh
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Rav Ze’ev Chaim Lifshitz
is the founder of
Sadnat Enosh Institute and the Sadnat Enosh methodology.
Born in
Israel and trained in the great analytical traditions of the Lithuanian Yeshivas,
Rav Lifshitz is a scion of the scholarly dynasties of the Lithuanian Torah
world. Rav Lifshitz represents Torah Judaism – the authentic spirit of
Torah as taught by the great sages of the Lithuanian and Chassidic
schools.
His gifted father, a close student of the Chofetz Chaim
and one of the great scholars of the Lomzhe and Chevron yeshivas, taught
him his first Torah. As a growing child, he "sheltered in
the shade" of the Chazon Ish, and drank of his wisdom. He served as
“right hand” to Rav Yechiel Yaakov Weinberg zatsal, author of the shutim
series, Sridei Eish. Rav Lifshitz participated closely in the writing and editing of
these responsa.
For years Rav Lifshitz was a talmid muvhak of Rav Shlomo
Zalman Auerbach zatsal, and for decades he maintained close personal
contact with his illustrious cousins Rav Moshe Feinstein zatsal and Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik zatsal.
Sadnat Enosh is
an independent institution, unaffiliated with any organizational
frameworks or educational institutions. Bishaim omrom, Rav Lifshitz acknowledges the theoretical influences of pioneering
developmental psychologist Jean Piaget, his teacher at the
University of Geneva for six years. Piaget taught the idea of Structuralism: Aspiring to achieve balance between opposing
vectors. Th principle of Structuralism is dominant in Judaism, and
reflects the Jewish view of man and universe. However, there is one significant
difference between the Piagetian view and the Jewish view: While Piaget follows Western perception, and seeks
the balance somewhere between the two sides, Judaism proposes a three-dimensional
structure. Height, meaning spirituality, is the third dimension and the dominant factor: The spiritual
dimension of height determines the direction, organizational pattern and goals for the other factors.
Organization - prioritization - is counted as being of greater importance than balance in the
Jewish perception; organization is a guideline of Jewish psychology as formulated by Rav Lifshitz.
Not sufficing with these theoretical formulations, Rav Lifshitz has
developed a comprehensive methodology out of these theories that has produced a unique system
of diagnostic and counseling
techniques.
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