(1810-1883). Founder of an ethical movement, known as Musar, which spread through many of the yeshivot of Eastern Europe. Born in a small town in Lithuania, Israel Lipkin spent his youth studying the Talmud. He was given to reflection and was deeply concerned with self-improvement. In his later years, he was recognized as a great Talmudic authority. His modesty was proverbial and so was his generosity. His ethical philosophy was in close agreement with that of Maimonides. Advocating participation in worldly matters, rather than isolation from them, he sought to win back to Judaism those yeshiva and university students who had been influenced by the Enlightenment movement. He hoped to have them return to the study of the Torah and observance of its laws. It is an interesting fact that Rabbi Salanter included the Hebrew translation of Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanac among the list of ethical books recommended to his students.