About the Rebbe
He was called the most influential Jewish figure of modern times — and yet he held no chair, ruled no state, and commanded no army.
Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902–1994) was the seventh and last Rebbe of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement. Under his leadership, a movement that had barely survived the Holocaust and Soviet persecution grew into the largest Jewish network in the world — with emissaries in a hundred countries.
For forty-three years, from 1951 to 1994, he led Chabad from 770 Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn. He left no successor and had no children, yet he left thousands of disciples and an idea that changed how every single Jew is regarded.
His approach was simple and revolutionary: no Jew is lost and no Jew is too far away. Every person deserves an outstretched hand — offered with warmth, respect and light, not reproach. That very thought still drives Chabad around the world today.
In brief
The life and the movement in numbers
A little light dispels much darkness.
The teaching of the Rebbe
770 Eastern ParkwayThe center of the world
Building number 770
The red-brick house at 770 Eastern Parkway in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn became the worldwide headquarters of Chabad. From here the Rebbe received people, delivered his talks, and directed emissaries across the globe.
The address "770" became a symbol: Chabad communities from Jerusalem to Melbourne replicate its facade. For thousands of Jews it is the place where the idea of light overcoming darkness took on a concrete, brick-and-mortar form.
Sunday dollarsMeeting everyone
A dollar for a good deed
For many years, every Sunday, the Rebbe stood for hours at the entrance of 770 and personally received thousands of people — from ordinary Jews to ministers and scholars. To each he gave a dollar bill to pass on to charity, adding a few words of blessing or advice.
The custom became a symbol of his whole approach: not to wait for people, but to go out to each one personally; to see in everyone not a line, but an individual with their own story and concerns.
In Azerbaijan
Chabad and the Jews of Azerbaijan
Chabad's connection with the Jews of Azerbaijan is older than the Rebbe himself. Already his predecessor, the sixth Rebbe, secretly sent rabbis to Baku during the Soviet era to preserve tradition among the Mountain and Ashkenazi Jews. One of them was Rabbi Simcha Gorodetsky (1903–1983), who supported the community for many years.
The work begun then was carried forward by the worldwide network of emissaries created by the seventh Rebbe. Today Chabad and the Jewish school Ohr Avner are active in Baku — part of that very movement that grew out of the house at 770.
Questions & answers
The Rebbe and Chabad in brief
Who was the Lubavitcher Rebbe?
When and where was Menachem Mendel Schneerson born?
What is the Chabad-Lubavitch movement?
What does the address “770” mean?
Who are the shluchim (emissaries)?
Is there Chabad in Azerbaijan?
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