Yosef Yitzchak "Yossi" Jacobson (Hebrew: יוסף יצחק יעקבסון or ג'ייקובסון) (born June 11, 1972), also known as YY Jacobson, is an American Chabad rabbi and speaker from Monsey, New York.

Jacobson served as editor-in-chief of the Algemeiner Journal, and as a choizer (transcriber) for Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Contents

• 1 Early life and career
• 2 Talks
• 3 Works
• 4 Personal life
• 5 References
• 6 External links

Early life and career

Yosef Yitzchak Jacobson was born on June 11, 1972 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and grew up there as part of a Chabad Hasidic family. He started his studies in Oholei Torah, after which he moved to study in Chabad's Central Tomchei Temimim Yeshiva of 770 Eastern Parkway.

In 1990, at the age of 17, Yosef Yitzchak was recruited by his brother Simon to join the team that prepared the public addresses of Menachem Mendel Schneerson for publication. This role is known as a choizer or meiniach. Not being able to use recording devices because of Shabbat and Jewish Holidays observance, they were charged with memorizing talks, lasting many hours. After Shabbat or the Jewish Holidays he would get together with the rest of the team to transcribe those public addresses.

As a senior fellow, Jacobson taught Talmud, Kabbalah, and Hasidic philosophy at Chabad Lubavitch Rabbinical Seminary Chovevei Torah.

Jacobson was initially tested on his semikhah (rabbinic ordination) by Pinhas Hirschprung as well as by Zalman Labkowsky. Having to still complete a last part of his test, Jacobson returned to 770 in 2011 to get tested and receive his rabbinical ordination through Labkowsky.

In 2005, Jacobson followed in the footsteps of his late father Gershon Jacobson as editor-in-chief of the Yiddish weekly Algemeiner Journal, which he contributed to for a number of years. He was a mashpia (spiritual mentor) at the Chovevei Torah Yeshiva in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and a teacher at the Ohr Chaim Learning Center in Monsey, New York.

Talks

Jacobson holds public talks on many subjects. Some noted talks included:

• The role of religious leaders in today's world.
• The Rebbe and the Rav.
• Spiritual Leadership in Persistent Conflict
• 2008 keynote address at the annual US military Chief of Chaplains Senior Leadership Training Conference, as the first rabbi to give this keynote

Works

Jacobson aut*d the following series

• "A Tale of Two Souls" on the Tanya
• "A Journey Through the fundamentals of ch*idus" in conjunction with Mayan Yisroel of Flatbush
• Emunah Series
• Captain, My Captain

Personal life

Jacobson lives with his family in Monsey. His siblings are author Simon Jacobson, Boruch Jacobson—a Chabad shliach at Hunter College, Freida Hecht of Norwalk, Connecticut and Chana Krasnianski of Manhattan.

References

External links

• TheYeshiva.net