Mordechai Lightstone
{{Short description|American Chabad rabbi}}
{{infobox person
|name = Mordechai Lightstone
| birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1984}}
| occupation = Social media director for Chabad.org
| image = Mordechai Lightstone TED Talk.jpg
| caption = Lightstone as a TED resident in 2018
|
}}
Mordechai Lightstone (born 1984{{cite news
|url=https://jewishinsider.com/2020/10/daily-kickoff-marilyn-strickland-vs-beth-doglio-in-washington-state-when-voters-meet-on-whatsapp/
|title=Daily Kickoff
|first1=
|last1=
|publisher= Jewish Insider
|date=October 30, 2020
}}) is a Chabad rabbi who directs social media for Chabad.org and is the founder of Tech Tribe.
{{Chabad (Rebbes and Chasidim)|Rebbes of Chabad}}
Biography
Lightstone was an early social media adopter, helping to start the Chabad-Lubavitch presence on Twitter in 2008,{{cite news |last1=Stelter |first1=Brian |last2=Cohen |first2=Noam |title=Citizen Journalists Provided Glimpses of Mumbai Attacks |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/world/asia/30twitter.html |access-date=2 July 2021 |work=The New York Times |date=29 November 2008}}{{cite news |last1=Lakein |first1=Dvora |title=CHABAD 2.0: The Next Generation |url=https://www.lubavitch.com/chabad-2-0-the-next-generation/ |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Lubavitch.com |date=3 February 2009}} and later Snapchat.{{cite news |last1=Mangla |first1=Ismat Sarah |title=Finding God On Snapchat: Jews, Christians And Muslims Connect With Millennial Believers One Snap At A Time |url=https://www.ibtimes.com/finding-god-snapchat-jews-christians-muslims-connect-millennial-believers-one-snap-2275172 |access-date=2 July 2021 |work=International Business Times |date=21 January 2016}} Lightstone has been described as "Twitter’s most prominent rabbi",{{cite news |last1=Leibovitz |first1=Liel |title=Let go of bagels, my fellow Jews. Embrace the slice. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2019/03/28/take-it-this-fat-jew-theres-solid-case-bagels-sliced-like-bread/ |access-date=2 July 2021 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=28 March 2019}} regularly tweeting from his personal account in addition to the account he manages for Chabad.{{cite news |last1=Rosen |first1=Armin |title=Like Twitter Like Talmud |url=https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/like-twitter-like-talmud |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Tablet Magazine |date=21 March 2016}}
= Tech Tribe =
Lightstone directs Tech Tribe, along with his wife Chana. It is an organization for Jewish people in technology and hosts events such as the #openShabbat Friday night dinner at SXSW and Comic-Con.{{cite news |last1=Frydberg |first1=Tracy |title=Deep in the heart of Texas, have a Jewish connection at SXSW |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/deep-in-the-heart-of-texas-you-can-have-a-jewish-connection-at-sxsw-this-year/ |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Times of Israel |date=7 March 2018}}{{cite news |last1=Jeffries |first1=Adrianne |title=Banned from the internet for three hours in the middle of SXSW |url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/3/10/4086420/banned-from-the-internet-for-three-hours-in-the-middle-of-sxsw |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=The Verge |date=10 March 2013}}{{cite news |last1=Finkel |first1=Rebecca |title=The Messiah Will Be Tweeted |url=https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/06/the-internet-isnt-the-problem-for-the-hasidic-community-its-its-best-chance-for-survival.html |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Slate |date=19 June 2013}}{{cite news |last1=Frishberg |first1=Hannah |title=3G Could End This Year. For People Who Rely on Basic Phones, That's a Big Problem. |url=https://onezero.medium.com/3g-could-end-this-year-for-people-who-rely-on-basic-phones-thats-a-big-problem-102e53eba151 |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=OneZero |date=2 February 2021}} In 2021 they launched a project to create an NFT Torah.{{cite news |last1=Blokh |first1=Noa |title=Torah on the Blockchain: The First-Ever NFT Torah |url=https://www.lubavitch.com/torah-on-the-blockchain-the-first-ever-nft-torah/ |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Lubavitch.com |date=14 June 2021}}
Appearances and recognition
Lightstone was a 2018 TED resident speaking about bringing "centuries-old wisdom to modern-day social media".{{cite news |title=Meet the Fall 2018 class of TED Residents |url=https://blog.ted.com/meet-the-fall-2018-class-of-ted-residents/ |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=TED Blog |date=19 September 2018}}{{cite web |title=Illuminating modern life with ancient wisdom |url=https://www.ted.com/talks/mordechai_lightstone_illuminating_modern_life_with_ancient_wisdom/up-next |website=TED |date=9 May 2019 |access-date=2 July 2021}}
In April 2020, Lightstone was featured in the Saturday Night Seder alongside other Jewish personalities.{{cite news |last1=Kaplan Sommer |first1=Allison |title=What 'Saturday Night Seder' Tells Us About American Jewry in the Coronavirus Age |url=https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium-what-saturday-night-seder-tells-us-about-american-jewry-in-the-coronavirus-age-1.8761714 |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Haaretz |date=12 April 2020}}
In June 2021, Lightstone was awarded a Rockower Award for his column on Al Jaffee.{{cite web |title=AJPA - 2021 Competition Winners |url=https://www.ajpa.org/2021-Competition-Winners/ |website=AJPA |access-date=2 July 2021}}
In July 2021, Lightstone was named as one of The Jewish Week's 36 under 36.{{cite news |url= https://jewishweek.timesofisrael.com/mordechai-lightstone-36-digital-pioneer/ |title=Mordechai Lightstone, 36, Digital pioneer|date=13 July 2021|publisher=The Jewish Week}}
Personal life
Lightstone lives with his wife Chana in Brooklyn, New York. Together they have seven children.{{cite news |last1=Bellon |first1=Tina |title=Empty trains, clogged roads: Americans get behind the wheel to avoid transit |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-transit-idUSKBN22W29X |access-date=2 July 2021 |publisher=Reuters}}
References
{{reflist}}
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Category:21st-century American rabbis
Category:Chabad-Lubavitch rabbis
Category:Orthodox rabbis from New York City