Unleashing the richness, meaning and beauty of classic Chassidic texts in a readable and flowing English
Chassidic
Classics
Upwards: In Heaven and On Earth
With an introduction by Liel Leibovitz
This is a book of stories about the greatest Chassidic master you’ve never heard of: Rabbi Mordechai Leifer of Nadvorna, known as Reb Mordchele.
What made him great? Some famous rabbis were holy seers, mystics who can see the future, perceive souls with perfect clarity, converse with animals, and see many more layers of reality than those visible to the ordinary eye. Others were great communal leaders wholly focused on the fate of their flock here on earth.
Reb Mordechele was both. He fed the hungry with one hand, and parted the heavens with the other.
The stories collected here, culled for the first time from a wide array of verifiable sources, represent the first definitive account of this extraordinary man’s life. But the stories collected here aren’t really stories at all: They’re spiritual lifelines, designed to help all of us, but particularly those of us who aren’t familiar with Judaism’s sacred texts, to find new and inspiring ways to reconsider every aspect of how we live and what we live for.
Take this book, then, as an instruction manual for the soul, and read as much or as little of it as you’d like to find inspiration of your own.
“Each of us,” the Rebbe taught, “is a vessel. The question is not whether we shine—but what light we choose to hold.”
Endorsements
Rabbi Moshe Weinberger
Founding Morah D’asrah of Congregation Aish Kodesh, mashpia and noted translator of Chassidic work
This sefer is not a biography—it is a hisgalus, the revelation of a tzaddik whose fiery heart still burns through every page. Reb Mordchele of Nadvorna becomes a rebbe not just of the past, but for our generation. Reb Moyshe Silk has opened a doorway into a world of simplicity, awe, and avodah that our neshamas are longing to return to.
Rabbi Yitzchok Breitowitz
Rav, Ohr Sameach, Jerusalem
This remarkable work brings to light the life and teachings of a Tzaddik who embodied both profound spiritual elevation and selfless service to his people. In an age hungering for authenticity, Upwards offers inspiration rooted in rigorous tradition and lived Chassidus. Moyshe Silk has gifted us a sefer that uplifts the mind and the soul.
Rabbi Shais Taub
Shliach of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in Five Towns, NY and Director of SoulWords
Upwards is more than the story of a true gadol b'Yisroel; it's a glimpse into a way of life that challenges each of us to live with greater faith, resist cynicism, and believe in miracles. I congratulate my friend, Reb Moyshe Silk, on a job well done in bringing the life and teachings of the holy tzadik R' Mordchele of Nadvorna to light.
