19 Kislev

The 19 Kislev (Hebrew: י"ט כסלו‎) refers to the 19th day of the Jewish month of Kislev.

Festival of the liberation of Rabbi Shneur Zalman

History

The date is significant within the Hasidic movement. Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (Hebrew: שניאור זלמן מליאדי‎), the first Rebbe of Chabad (also known as the "Alter Rebbe" in Yiddish) was informed upon by a certain Avigdor and arrested on trumped-up charges of supporting the Ottoman Empire. His informers pointed to the fact that he would urge his followers to send money to the Land of Israel as "evidence" of his alleged insurrectionist aspirations (in fact, the money was sent to support poor Jews). At the time, the Land of Israel was a part of the Ottoman Empire, which was at war with Russia. Rabbi Shneur Zalman was charged with treason, and released in the secular year 1798 on the Jewish date of Tuesday, 19 Kislev. The fifty-three days of Rabbi Shneur Zalman's imprisonment are said to correspond to the fifty-three chapters of the first section of the Tanya.