|
The Coming of the King-Messiah
Lubavitch Hasidic Judaism
“Thank you Lord for not making me a non-Jew, for not making me a slave, for not making me a woman.”
Fundamentals of Judaism
The basis of Judaism is the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. Thus, anybody can consult their Bible and confirm with what exactitude certain sections of Judaism and Zionism are following a millennia old plan for world control on the assumption that the Jews are “God’s Chosen People.” The Talmud is an elaboration of the Torah which extends to many volumes, detailing every facet of a Jew’s thinking and being. The Kabballah is a mystical elaboration of the Torah said to have been given orally by God to Moses and not written down until the Medieval era.
Judaism traces its origins directly from the priestly caste of the Pharisees, which held sway over the Jews in Jesus’ time and were His principal opponents. 1
The Universal Jewish Encyclopaedia states of Judaism:
"The Jewish religion as it is today traces its descent, without a break, through all the centuries, from the Pharisees. "Their leading ideas and methods found expression in a literature of enormous extent, of which a very great deal is still in existence. The TALMUD is the largest and most important single member of that literature. . And the study of it is essential for any real understanding of PHARISAISM.2
The powerful Kabbalistic, mystical branch of Orthodox Judaism known as Lubavitch Hasidim, which we are considering here, identifies the “learned elders” of Jesus’ day as the Pharisees and their Sanhedrin, and today’s rabbis as their heirs. In seeking to explain why Jesus is not the Messiah they state:
“In Deuteronomy 17, this false prophet is also described as someone who would rebel against the authority of the judges of the Jewish people, and who should be put to death for his rebelliousness (v. 8-13, esp. v. 12). Who are the judges? The highest court in Israel was the Sanhedrin, which was established by Moses (Exodus 18:13-26; Numbers 11:16-29), and which lasted more than 15 centuries. The members of the Sanhedrin were the rabbis known as "Pharisees" (Pirushim, "those with the explanation"). G-d gave permanent authority to these judges to interpret the Law and G-d's Word, and it is a commandment to follow their decisions without turning even slightly to the right or the left (Deut. 17:11). But the false prophet would challenge the authority of the Sanhedrin, thus revealing himself to be an evil man.”3
Something of the nature of the messianic mission conceived by Orthodox Judaism, including the Hasidim, is indicated in the Torah and other passages of the Old Testament:
“The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
“And all people of the earth shall see that thou are called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.
“And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
“The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heavens to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thy hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.4
“And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou shalt hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe them and to do them. (Deuteronomy 28:9-13)
“Foreigners [Gentiles] shall rebuild your walls, and their kings shall minister to you . . .Your gates shall be open continuously; day and night they shall not be shut; that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, with their kings led in procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you; shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste….” Isaiah 60:10-12
“You shall suck the milk of nations, you shall suck the breast of kings; and you shall know that I, the LORD, am your Saviour and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Isaiah 60:16
“And strangers [Gentiles] shall stand and feed your flocks, strangers shall be your ploughmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the LORD, men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory.” Isaiah 61:5-6
“…And kings shall come from you and shall rule wherever the foot of the sons of man has trodden. I shall give to your seed all the earth which is under heaven, and they shall rule over all the nations according to their desire; and afterwards they shall draw the whole earth to themselves and shall inherit it for ever.” .Jub. 32:18-19.
Talmud
“The Talmud is an extensive commentary on the Torah. The Encyclopaedia of the Orient (online) describes the Talmud in this manner:
“Hebrew for 'study'. Talmud are the accumulated oral traditions of theological strivings inside the Jewish community through some centuries, now found in written form.
“There are two versions of the Talmud, one compiled in Babylonia, and one in Palestine. The efforts of writing them down took place between the 3rd century and the 6th CE. The Babylonian Talmud was written down in East Aramaic language, but has passages in Hebrew. The Palestinian was written in West Aramaic language but has many words from Greek. While the Babylonian consists of about 6,000 pages, there are only around 2,000 in the Palestinian. The Babylonian Talmud became authoritative, as the Jewish community here outlived the Palestinian both in time and in strength….
“The content of the Talmud is divided into two groups: Halacha and Haggada. Halacha deals with legal questions and decisions, while Haggada contain material that illustrate the law questions.
“The contents of Talmud are both judicial subjects as well as stories. The shape of the judicial content is often discussions, where all opinions are written down, as well as the conclusion of the discussions. This means that even the standpoints that lost the discussions, have been preserved”.
As noted, it is the Babylonian Talmud that is authoritative. There is controversy regarding what genuinely representative the Talmudic view on Gentiles and of Christianity. The Talmud is comprised of dialectical debates and discussions among rabbis, and for every statement there is seemingly a contradictory or opposing statement. However, there are definitive conclusions in the Talmud, which form the core Judaic attitudes, despite the attempted obfuscation of those who would whitewash the Talmud. That much has been exposed most recently by Israeli scholar Prof. Israel Shahak in his books on contemporary Judaism.5
Shahak wrote of Jewish History, Jewish Religion, that it “is, in a way, a continuation of my political activities as an Israeli Jew.”
“Those activities began in 1965-66 with a protest which caused a considerable scandal at that time: I had personally witnessed an ultra-religious Jew refuse to allow his phone to be used on the Sabbath in order to call an ambulance for a non-Jew, who happened to have collapsed in his Jerusalem neighbourhood.6 Instead of simply publishing the incident in the press, I asked for a meeting with the members of the Rabbinical Court of Jerusalem, which is composed of rabbis nominated by the State of Israel. I asked them whether such behaviour was consistent with their interpretation of the Jewish religion. They answered that the Jew in question had behaved correctly, indeed piously, and backed their statement by referring to a passage in an authoritative compendium of Talmudic laws, written in this country. I reported the incident in the main Hebrew daily, Ha’aretz, whose publication of the story caused a media scandal.
“Neither the Israeli, nor the Diaspora, rabbinical authorities ever reversed their ruling that Jews should not violate the Sabbath in order to save the life of a Gentile…It became apparent to me, as, drawing on knowledge acquired in my youth, I began to study the Talmudic laws governing the relations between Jews and non-Jews, that neither Zionism, including its seemingly secular part, nor Israeli politics since the inception of the State of Israel, nor particularly the policies of the Jewish supporters of Israel in the Diaspora, could be understood unless the deeper influence of those laws, and the world view which they both create and express is taken into account.”
Shahak exposes the misunderstanding that Judaism is based on a straightforward interpretation of the Old Testament, with its many humanitarian principles that are compatible with Christian love and charity. However, the Talmudic injunctions of Orthodox Judaism can only be understood by realising that the it is only Jews who are consider “human”, and that Gentiles are considered the spawn of Satan, whose life can only be spared in the Messianic Era by adopting the Laws of Noah and subjecting themselves to the Jewish Chosen People and their King-Messiah.
In numerous cases, Shahak shows, general terms such as “thy fellow,” “stranger,” or even “man” are taken to have an exclusivist meaning. The famous verse
“Thou shalt love thy fellow as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18) is understood by classical (and present-day Orthodox) Judaism “as an injunction to love one’s fellow Jew, not any fellow human. Similarly, the verse ‘neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy fellow’ (Leviticus 19:16) is supposed to mean that one must not stand idly by when the life (‘blood’) of a fellow Jew is in danger; but a Jew…is in general forbidden to save the life of a Gentile, because ‘he is not thy fellow.’”
A book published by the Central Region Command of the Israeli army, contains the following declaration by the command’s chief chaplain:
“When our forces come across civilians during a war or in hot pursuit or in a raid, so long as there is no certainty that those civilians are incapable of harming our forces, then according to Halakah [Jewish law] they may and even should be killed…. Under no circumstances should an Arab be trusted, even if he makes an impression of being civilized…. In war, when our forces storm the enemy, they are allowed and even enjoined by the Halakah to kill even good civilians….”
Many contemporary Israeli policies refer to Talmudic rules. Thus, Shahak declares:
“The Halakah forbids Jews to sell immovable property—fields and houses—in the Land of Israel to Gentiles. It is therefore clear that—exactly as the leaders and sympathisers of Gush Emunim [settler movement] say—the whole question of how the Palestinians ought to be treated is, according to the Halakah, simply a question of Jewish power; if Jews have sufficient power then it is their religious duty to expel the Palestinians…. Maimonides [the Talmudic scholar] declares; ‘When the Jews are more powerful than the Gentiles we are forbidden to let an idolater among us; even a temporary or itinerant trader shall not be allowed to pass through our land’.”
Shulchan Aruch
The conclusions arrived at from the rabbinical disputes and discussions in the Talmud are codified into coherent laws in the Shulchan Aruch. The following are summaries taken from Project Genesis, a rabbinical online programme run by Orthodox Rabbis, under the direction of rabbi Yaakov Menken. This should indicate something of the dual nature of Judaism in regard to Gentiles.
“The Shulchan Aruch ("Set Table") is a compendium of those areas of the halachah -- Jewish religious law -- that are applicable today. It was composed by Rabbi Yosef Karo of Safed (Israel) in the 1560's, and became generally accepted as authoritative after Rabbi Moshe Isserls of Cracow (Poland) supplemented it in the 1570's with notes (known as the Mappah - "Tablecloth") giving the rulings followed by Ashkenazic Jews.”
“It is forbidden to participate in any way in an interest-bearing loan made by one Jew to another (160:1-3), but it is permitted to lend money to a non-Jew at interest (Yoreh De’ah, 159:1-3)”
“Nowadays, when idolatry is not common, dealings with non-Jews are permitted if avoiding them would lead to resentment (148:1-12; see 152:1-2). A Jew should not be unnecessarily generous or complimentary to a non-Jew (151:11,14), but he may be charitable to him (Yorej De’ah, 151:12-13)”
“Jews may have Jews as indentured servants and may subjugate Jews who behave illegally, but may not own Jews as slaves (see 267:14-16); however, they may acquire non-Jews (of both sexes) as slaves (see Yoreh De’ah, 267:17-18).”
Kabala (Zohar)
The Kabala has a special relevance to our study because the Hasidim are distinguished from other branches of Judaism, including other Orthodox forms, by their adherence to this form of Jewish mysticism and occultism, which includes all the spells, curses and demonology one would expect from a magical work. Rabbi Louis Browne states of the Kabala and Zohar:
"… The Kabala . . . received its first impetus from a book called the Zohar (the 'Splendour'), late in the thirteenth century. This Zohar contained a Kabalistic explanation of the Torah that purported to reveal all the 'secret meanings' underlying the peculiar phrases and words of the holy text. A Spanish Jew named Moses de Leon, who sponsored the book, claimed it had been conceived and written by a wonder-working rabbi eleven hundred years earlier, and that the manuscript had lain hidden away all the intervening years in a mysterious cave. In all probability, however, he had compiled it himself from stolen material lifted by him from Hindu, Persian, and Hebrew writings."7
The Kabalistic tradition of Judaism as it relates to the divine origin of the Jews and the lower level of Gentiles is explained by Rabbi Jacob Agus:
“It is axiomatic in Kabalistic writings that the higher souls of Jewish people are derived from the divine pleroma -- the realm of Sefirot -- whereas the souls of all other nations are derived from the "shells." Rabbi Hayim Vital does not exempt converts from this rule (Aitz Hayim 7, 10, 7) (Aitz Hadaat, Bemidbar). The "Tanya" of Rav Sheneur Zalman was written for the general public. Its view of Gentile souls is in Chapter 6. The Zohar follows the same line, save that in the Midrash Haneelam; we note a certain effort to account for this difference. Before Adam sinned, he possessed the higher soul; after his sin, only his animal soul remained. Thereafter, the divine soul comes only to those who are preoccupied with Torah, entering the body of the Jewish male at age 13”.8
Kabalistic Jews thus regard Gentiles as the empty “shells” of the klippoth, the dark, ‘satanic’ sphere of the “Tree of Life”. The following passage from the Zohar indicates the genocidal nature of certain aspects of Judaism, which find reflection both in the Old Testament, where the defeated enemies of Israel are often exterminated, and in some commentaries on the Talmud.
'Happy will be the lot of Israel, whom the Holy One, blessed be He, has chosen from amongst the goyim [Gentiles] of whom the Scriptures say: "Their work is but vanity, it is an illusion at which we must laugh; they will all perish when God visits them in His wrath." At the moment when the Holy One, blessed be He, will exterminate all the goyim of the world, Israel alone will subsist, even as it is written: "The Lord alone will appear great on that day."'9
Lurianic Cabala
“This cosmic aspect of the Zohar is developed dramatically and with great consequence in 16th-century Lurianic Cabala (named for its formulator, Isaac ben Solomon Luria). The Lurianic system represents a response to the cataclysmic experience of Jewish exiles expelled from Iberia in the 1490s; it projects this experience onto the divine world. In this system, the En Sof withdraws into itself (tzimtzum) at the outset of creation, making room for the world, but also for evil. A cosmic catastrophe occurs during emanation when vessels of the divine light shatter and the sparks are imprisoned in the world in shards of evil (qelippot). The human task, through prayer and proper observance of the commandments, becomes nothing less than the redemption (tiqqun) of the world and the reunification of the Godhead. The Cabala was thus transformed into a popular messianic movement, which later generated Sabbatian messianism and 18th-century Polish Hasidism”10
The Lurianic Cabala continues to have a major influence on the Hasidim and on many influential movements of Jewry in Israel. As we shall see, the “human task” (sic) of redeeming the world from evil, is in fact only a Jewish task, and even then often considered only for the Hasidim. Firstly, under the Cabalistic and Talmudic lore only Jews are considered human, part of the divine spark, whilst non-Jews are manifestation of the “shards of evil”.
Certain apologists attempt to obscure the certain Orthodox teachings by claiming they are not authoritative or that they are no longer relevant to the modern world and were only the response to brutal persecution. This is not the case, and two Jewish scholars have completely exposed the nature of messianic Judaism and its attitudes towards Gentiles. Among those cited by Professors Shahak and Mezvinsky, Kook the Elder, is given particular attention because he is especially revered today.11
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1865-1935), Chief Rabbi of Palestine, referring to secular Zionists, writes:
"The denial of our 'Thou hast chosen us' vocation and singularity is a fatal blunder. Set apart from the Gentiles, as evident in our incomparable history, the Jewish excellence and nobility surpasses that of any other nation. Our self-recognition implies an awareness of the Jewish grandeur; its renunciation spells a denial of the self. A people that disregards its essence, diminishes its stature. The obliteration of our exalted nature is the sole cause of our decline...”
We quote from Shahak and Mevzinsky: Rabbi Kook the Elder, the revered father of the messianic tendency of Jewish fundamentalism, said:
“The difference between a Jewish soul and souls of non-Jews—all of them in all different levels—is greater and deeper than the difference between a human soul and the souls of cattle.”
Rabbi Kook’s entire teaching, which is followed devoutly by the leaders of the settler movement on the occupied West Bank, is based upon the Lurianic Kabala. Shahak and Mevzinsky write of the influence and nature of the Lurianic Kabala:
“One of the basic tenets of the Lurianic Kabala,” the authors write, “is the absolute superiority of the Jewish soul and body over the non-Jewish soul and body. According to the Lurianic Kabala, the world was created solely for the sake of Jews; the existence of non-Jews was subsidiary. If an influential Christian bishop or Islamic scholar argued that the difference between the superior souls of non-Jews and the inferior souls of Jews was greater than the difference between the human soul and souls of cattle, he would incur the wrath of all and be viewed as an anti-Semite by most Jewish scholars regardless of whatever less meaningful, positive statements he included.”
According to the doctrines upon which Gush Emunim militant settler movement, the National Religious Party, and the Hasidism, are based, non-Jews have “satanic souls” Shahak and Mezvinsky note that “the role of Satan, whose earthly embodiment according to the Kabala is every non-Jew.”
Common to both the Talmud and Halacha, Orthodox religious law, is a differentiation between Jews and non-Jews. Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubovitcher Rebbe12 who is the principal character of this study, explained that:
“The difference between a Jewish and a non-Jewish person stems from the common expression: ‘Let us differentiate.’ Thus, we do not have a case of profound change in which a person is merely on a superior level. Rather, we have a case of ‘let us differentiate’ between totally different species. This is what needs to be said about the body: the body of a Jewish person is of a totally different quality from the body of [members] of all nations of the world…A non-Jew’s entire reality is only vanity. It is written, ‘And the strangers shall guard and feed your flocks’ (Isaiah 61:5). The entire creation [of a non-Jew] exists only for the sake of the Jews…”
Israeli Rabbi Yitzhak Ginsburgh, states:
“If you saw two people drowning, a Jew and a non-Jew, the Torah says you save the Jewish life first. If every simple cell in a Jewish body entails divinity, is a part of God, then every strand of DNA is part of God. Therefore, something is special about Jewish DNA…If a Jew needs a liver; can you take the liver of an innocent non-Jew passing by to save him? The Torah would probably permit that. Jewish life has an infinite value.”
Hasidic Judaism
The Chabad Lubavitch is the most significant branch of Hasidism, itself a branch of Orthodoc Judaism. Of Hasidic Judaism, an online encyclopaedia states:
“Hasidic Judaism (also spelled Chasidic) was founded by Israel ben Eliezer (1700-1760), also known as the Ba'al Shem Tov, or the Besht. Hasidic Judaism was formed in a time of persecution of the Jewish people, and in a time when European Jews had turned inward to Talmud study; many Jews at this time felt that most expressions of Jewish life had become too academic, and that they no longer had any emphasis on spirituality or joy. The Ba'al Shem Tov set out to change this.
Prelude to the Hasidic movement
In Poland , where since the sixteenth century the bulk of the Jewry had established itself, the struggle between traditional rabbinic Judaism and radical, Kabbalah-influenced mysticism became particularly acute after the Messianic movement of Sabbatai Zevi . Leanings toward mystical doctrines and sectarianism showed themselves prominently among the Jews of the southwestern provinces of Poland, while in the north-western provinces, in Lithuania, and in White Russia, rabbinical Orthodoxy held sway. This was due in part to the social difference between the northern Lithuanian Jews and the southern Jews of the Ukraine. In Lithuania the Jewish masses were mainly gathered in densely populated towns where rabbinical academic culture (in the yeshibot) was in a flourishing state; while in the Ukraine the Jews were more scattered in villages far removed from intellectual centers.
Pessimism in the south became more intense after the Cossacks' Uprising under Bohdan Chmielnicki and the turbulent times in Poland (1648-60), which completely ruined the Jewry of the Ukraine, but left comparatively untouched that of Lithuania. The economic and spiritual decline of the South-Russian Jews created a favorable field for mystical movements and religious sectarianism, which spread there from the middle of the seventeenth to the middle of the eighteenth century.
Besides these influences there were deeply seated causes that produced among many Jews a discontent with rabbinism and a gravitation toward mysticism. Rabbinism, which in Poland had become transformed into a system of religious formalism, no longer provided satisfactory religious experience to many Jews. Although traditional Judaism had adopted some features of Kabbalah, it adapted them to fit its own system: it added to its own ritualism the asceticism of the "practical cabalists" of the East, who saw the essence of earthly existence only in fasting, in penance, and in spiritual sadness. Such a combination of religious practises, suitable for individuals and hermits, was not suitable to the bulk of the Jews.
Hasidism gave a ready response to the burning desire of the common people in its simple, stimulating, and comforting faith. In contradistinction to other sectarian teaching, early Hasidism aimed not at dogmatic or ritual reform, but at a deeper psychological one. Its aim was to change not the belief, but the believer. By means of psychological suggestion it created a new type of religious man, a type that placed emotion above reason and rites, and religious exaltation above knowledge.
Israel ben Eliezer
The founder of Hasidism was Israel ben Eliezer, the Ba'al Shem Tov, also known as the Besht. His fame as a healer spread not only among the Jews, but also among the non-Jewish peasants and the Polish nobles. He was said to at times successfully predict the future.
About 1740 Besht established himself in the Podolian town of Miedzyboz. He gathered about him numerous disciples and followers, whom he initiated into the secrets of his teachings not by systematic exposition, but by means of sayings and parables. These sayings were transmitted orally, and were later written down by his disciples, who developed the disjointed thoughts of their master into a system. Besht himself did not write anything. Being a mystic by nature, he regarded his teachings as a prophetic revelation.
Fundamental Conceptions
The teachings of Hasidism are founded on two theoretical conceptions: (1) religious panentheism, or the omnipresence of God, and (2) the idea of Devekut , communion between God and man. "Man," says Besht, "must always bear in mind that God is omnipresent and is always with him; that God is, so to speak, the most subtle matter everywhere diffused....Let man realize that when he is looking at material things he is in reality gazing at the image of the Deity which is present in all things. With this in mind man will always serve God even in small matters."
Devekut (communion) refers to the belief that between the world of God and the world of humanity there is an unbroken intercourse. It is true not only that the Deity influences the acts of man, but also that man exerts an influence on the will of the Deity. Every act and word of man produces a corresponding vibration in the upper spheres. From this conception is derived the chief practical principle of Hasidism — communion with God for the purpose of uniting with the source of life and of influencing it. This communion is achieved through the concentration of all thoughts on God, and consulting Him in all the affairs of life.
The righteous man is in constant communion with God, even in his worldly affairs, since here also he feels His presence. An especial form of communion with God is prayer. In order to render this communion complete the prayer must be full of fervor, ecstatic; and the soul of him who prays must during his devotions detach itself, so to speak, from its material dwelling. For the attainment of ecstasy recourse may be had to mechanical means, to violent bodily motions, to shouting and singing. According to Besht, the essence of religion is in sentiment and not in reason. Theological learning and halakic lore are of secondary importance, and are useful only when they serve as a means of producing an exalted religious mood. It is better to read books of moral instruction than to engage in the study of the casuistic Talmud and the rabbinical literature. In the performance of rites the mood of the believer is of more importance than the externals; for this reason formalism and superfluous ceremonial details are injurious.
The spread of Hasidism
Israel ben Eliezer's disciples attracted many followers; they themselves established numerous Hasidic sects across Europe. After the Besht's death, his cause was carried on by his followers, especially Dovber of Mezeritch . From his court students went forth; they in turn attracted many Jews to Hasidism, and many of them came to study in Mezhirech with Dov Baer personally. Hasidic Judaism eventually became the way of life of the majority of Jews in the Ukraine, Galicia, and central Poland; the movement also had sizable groups of followers in Belorussia-Lithuania and Hungary. Hasidic Judaism came to Western Europe and then to the United States during the large waves of Jewish emigration in the 1880s.
Hasidism gradually branched out into two main divisions: (1) in the Ukraine and in Galicia and (2) in Lithuania. The first of these divisions was directed by three disciples of Dovber of Mezeritch: Elimelech of Lezhinsk, Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev, and Menachem Nahum of Chernobyl, besides the grandson of Besnt, Baruch of Tulchin. Elimelech of Lezhinsk affirmed that belief in Tzaddikism is a fundamental doctrine of Hasidism. In his book "No'am Elimelekh" he conveys the idea that the Tzaddik ("saint") is the mediator between God and the common people, and that through him God sends to the faithful three earthly blessings, life, a livelihood, and children, on the condition, however, that the Hasidim support the Tzaddik by pecuniary contributions ("pidyonim"), in order to enable the holy man to become completely absorbed in the contemplation of God. Lithuanian Hasidim followed Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi.
Practically this teaching led to the contribution by the people of their last pennies toward the support of their tzaddik ("rebbe"), and the tzaddik untiringly "poured forth blessings on the earth, healed the sick, cured women of sterility," etc. The vocation of tzaddik was made hereditary. There was a multiplication of Hasidic dynasties contesting for supremacy.
Hasidim versus non-Hasidim
Early on, there was a serious schism between the Hasidic and non-Hasidic Jews. European Jews who rejected the Hasidic movement were dubbed by the Hasidim as "mitnagdim", (lit. opponents). Some of the reasons for the rejection of Hasidic Judaism was a novel emphasis on different aspects of Jewish laws ; even more problematic was the overwhelming exuberance of Hasidic worship; their untraditional ascriptions of infallibility and Miracle -working to their leaders, and the concern that it might become a messainic sect…
On a more prosaic level, other Mitnagdim argued that Jews should follow a more scholarly approach to Judaism. At one point Hasidic Jews were put in cherem (a Jewish form of communal excommunication); after years of bitter acrimony, there was a rapprochement between Hasidic Jews and those who would soon become known as Orthodox Jews. Since then all the sects of Hasidic Judaism have been subsumed into Orthodox Judaism, particularly Ultra-Orthodox Judaism.
During the Holocaust the Hasidic centers of Eastern Europe were destroyed. Survivors moved to Israel or America, and established new centers of Hasidic Judaism. Some of the larger and more well-known Hasidic sects still extant include Breslov, Lubavitch (Chabad), Satmar, Ger, and Bobov Hasidim.
There has been significant revival of interest in Hasidic Judaism on the part of non-Orthodox Jews due to the writings of non-Orthodox Hasidic Jewish authors like Martin Buber, Arthur Green and Abraham Joshua Heschel. As such, one now finds some minor Hasidic influences in the siddurim (prayerbooks) of Conservative, Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism”.13
Chabad Lubavitch
Turning to the same source, a succinct account is provided for the Chabad Lubavitch branch of Hasidism:
“Chabad Lubavitch, also known as Lubavitch Chabad , or simply Chabad or Lubavitch, is the name of a movement of Orthodox Jews belonging to hasidic Judaism who follow the teachings and customs of halakha as taught by their Rebbes (rabbi, leaders). Until the death of their last leader , Rabbi Menachem Schneerson in 1994 , they were governed by a succession of leaders, each descended from the founder of the movement.
The names Chabad and Lubavitch each have a history. Chabad is a Hebrew acronym for Chochma (Wisdom), Bina (Understanding), and Daat (Knowledge), that was chosen early on by its founder, based on the mystical teachings of the kabbalah. Lubavitch is the name of a small town in Russia meaning "town of love". It was Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi who founded the movement; his son established court there, and the name stuck. In hasidic Judaism , a dynasty normally takes its name from the town in Eastern Europe where it was born and originated. The followers of Lubavitch place great emphasis on the value and meaning of their group name and town of origin. They say that this evokes, symbolizes, and embodies who they are.
The movement functions with a mission that they call uforatzta ("and you shall spread out"), yama, vakedma, tzafona,vanegba ("westwards,eastwards,northwards, and southwards") derived from Genesis 28:14 (God's promise to Abraham).
They have trained and ordained thousands of rabbis, educators, fundraisers, and administrators, who are all accompanied by equally motivated spouses and large families with the many children typical of very Orthodox couples, all of whom aim to fulfil their mandate of Jewish outreach, education, and revival. They look for and recruit people who want to join them, and they have been major players in the Baal teshuva movement of encouraging alienated Jews in becoming more religiously observant.”14
The “Rebbe”
Continuing with the same source for a definition of the Lubavitch leader, the “rebbe”:
“Rebbe is a title that may be given to a rabbi in Orthodox Judaism, particular in Hasidic Judaism. It is a Hebrew word denoting "my teacher".
Orthodox Jews use the term to denote someone that their perceive not only as the religious leader of their congregation, but as their spiritual advisor and mentor. A rebbe is someone whose views are accepted not just on issues of religious dogma and practice, but in all arenas of life, such as politics and social and issues.
One example is Orthodox Hasidic Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, the last leader of the Chabad Lubavitch hasidim; he was referred to as "The Rebbe" bu Lubavitch Hasidim. Each Hasidic sect refers to their leader as "The Rebbe".
Some Hasidic rebbes have thousands of followers, or disciples called hasidim , (meaning "righteous ones"), whilst others may have only a few hundred. Some only have a title , but don't have a following beyond their own family members.”
Rabbinic line of descent
Founders of Hasidic Judaism and the heads of Chabad:
Founder of Hasidism: Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer 1698 - 1760. Known as the Baal Shem Tov, abbreviated as BeSHT , meaning "Master of the Good Name", a title rarely applied, and only in exceptional circumstances to a known Jewish holy man and miracle worker beloved and revered by the common folk. According to Hasidic tradition, he studied the inner secrets of the Torah under the legendary Biblical figure Achiah the Shilonite, who the Talmud identifies as never having died. Based his nascent movement in Mezibush.
Succesor: Rabbi Dovber of Mezeritch d. 1772. Sought out the Baal Shem Tov and became his leading disciple. He was well-versed in the Lurianic Kabbalah and when he met the Baal Shem Tov he acknowledged him as his master in this area of esoteric mystical wisdom. Upon the death of the BeSHT he assumed the leadership of the movement that would become known as Hasidism .
Founder of Chabad Lubavitch: Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi 1745 - 1812, son of Rabbi Boruch.
Second generation of Chabad: Rabbi Dovber 1773 - 1827, son of Shneur Zalman.
Third generation of Chabad: Rabbi Menachem Mendel 1789 - 1866, grandson of Shneur Zalman and son-in-law of Dovber.
Fourth generation of Chabad: Rabbi Shmuel 1834 - 1882, son of Rabbi Menachem Mendel.
Fifth generationof Chabad: Rabbi Sholom Dovber 1860 - 1920, son of Rabbi Shmuel.
Sixth generation of Chabad: Rabbi Joseph Isaac Schneersohn 1880 - 1950, only son of Sholom Dovber.
Seventh generation (Final) of Chabad: Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson 1902 - 1994, sixth in paternal line from Rabbi Menachem Mendel , and son-in-law of Joseph Isaac. After his death, being childless, no successor was chosen. His followesr believe that he will return as the King-Messiah or Moschiach.
Menachem Mendel Schneerson
The Wikipedia online encyclopaedia has this entry for Schneerson
Menachem Mendel Schneerson (April 18, 1902 - June 12, 1994) Jewish Orthodox haredi [Ultra-Orthodox] rabbi who was the 7th Rebbe (paramount spiritual leader) of the Lubavitch hasidim, their movement being known as Chabad Lubavitch. He is fifth in a direct paternal line to the third Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel (known as the Tzemach Tzedek), his namesake.
In 1950, upon the death of his predecessor, father-in-law, and cousin Rabbi Joseph Isaac (Yosef Yitzchok) Schneersohn (Known as the "Previous Rebbe" or Rebbe Rayat"z), Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (known as "The Rebbe") assumed the leadership of the Chabad (from the Hebrew acronym for "Knowledge, Understanding, and Wisdom"), sect of Hasidic Judaism.
Early life and education
Born in Nikolaiev, Ukraine , he received mostly private tuition. He was enrolled in the secular Yekaterinoslav University for part-time study of mathematics at the age of 16. His father Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneerson, a renowned kabbalist who served as the Chief Rabbi of Yekaterinoslav (Dnepropetrovsk) from 1907-1939, was his primary teacher. He intensively studied Talmud and Rabbinic literature, as well as the hasidic view of mysticism and Kabbalah. He married Chaya Mushka Schneerson in 1929 and went to live in Berlin, Germany, studying engineering and philosophy. Lubavitch publications state that he received "degrees at Heidelberg". ..
In 1933 Rabbi Schneerson moved to France. According to histories authorized by Lubavitch, he studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, though official school records are ambiguous. He learned to speak French which he put to use in establishing his movement there after the war. The Chabad movement in France attracted many Jews who immigrated there from Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia.
Rabbi Schneerson's activities spread to many surprising parts of Judaism. Since the time of the Rebbe Shalom Dovber, Chabad had been involved with the Sephardic world. Rabbi Schneerson was revered by Rabbi Israel Abuchatzirah (known as Babba Sali), Rabbi Meir Abuchatzirah, Rabbi Yitzchak Kaduri and Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (a former Chief Rabbi of Israel). The latter two often visited him in New York , while the others maintained a correspondence with him. In the late 1970s, Rabbi Schneerson joined with other organizations to orchestrate an exodus of Jews from countries such as Iran, laying the framework for Sephardic Hasidim. There are currently several Sephardic Chabad congregations.
…According to the billionaire mining magnate Joseph Gutnick of Australia, it was Rabbi Schneerson who pointed out to him the precise geological points on a map of Australia to commence mining for gold. He was also given guidelines in his search for diamonds. Gutnick was subsequently appointed by Rabbi Schneerson as his main representative to the Isreali government, and was instrumental in the election of Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister of Israel in 1996. [Emphasis added].
America and leadership
In 1941 Rabbi Schneerson escaped from France and joined his father-in-law Rabbi Joseph Isaac (Yosef Yitzchok) Schneersohn in the Crown Heights section Brookly, New York. He spent some time working in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In 1942 , his father-in-law appointed him director of the movement's central organizations, placing him at the helm of a budding Jewish educational and hasidic outreach empire across the Unites States, Canada, Israel, and North Africa.
Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneerson passed away in 1950. His followers immediately began pressuring Rabbi Schneerson, then known as the Rama’sh --an acronym of his name, to succeed his father-in-law. At first he steadfastly refused, saying that his father-in-law lives on. In that vacuum, another candidate for leadership emerged--Rabbi Shemaryahu Gurary, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok's elder son-in-law, married to the his elder daughter. Rabbi Gurary, known as the Rasha’g failed to capture support among the Hassidim , who continued pressuring Rabbi Schneerson to relent and accept the position of Rebbe. On the first anniversary of his father-in-law's passing, he finally relented and became Rebbe …
Rabbi Schneerson intensified the outreach program of the movement, bringing in new followers from all walks of life, and aggressively sought the expansion of the Baal teshuva movement. Other Orthodox Jews were bothered by the fact that Lubavitch outreach efforts extended to them as well as to non-affiliated Jews. The Satmar sect attacked him for not sufficiently opposing Zionism. The proximity of Crown Heights to Satmar enclaves in Brooklyn, and the conversion of prominent Satmar Hasidim to Chabad caused friction, culminating in an incident in which a group of Lubavitchers walking through the Satmar enclave in Williamsburg on their way to visit a synagogue to spread Rabbi Schneerson's message were set upon and beaten by a mob.15 Nonetheless, Rabbi Schneerson and Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, the Satmar Rebbe held each other in high esteem. [Emphasis added].
By the time of Rabbi Schneerson's death in 1994, he had overseen the training of thousands of young Chabad rabbis and their wives, and sent them all over the world as shluchim ("emissaries" in Hebrew) to further Jewish observance. [Emphasis added].
Methodology and critique
Rabbi Schneerson instituted a system of "mitzvah campaigns" called mivtzoim; these encouraged Jews to be keep kosher, observe Shabbat, learn more Torah, help in writing a Torah scroll, taught women to observe the niddah laws of Jewish family purity (laws pertaining to menstruation and ritual immersion afterwards in a pool of water known as a mikveh), accepting a belief in Moshiach (the Jewish Messiah). They went out to street-corners, and rode in "mitzva tanks", mobile outreach centers, encouraging Jews to increase their religious observance. He also launched a campaign to promote observance of the Seven Noahide Laws among gentiles.16 [Emphasis added].
He hardly ever left Crown Heights, except for frequent lengthy visits to his father-in-law's gravesite, the ohel ("tent"), in Queens17. Upon the death of his wife in 1988 , he further secluded himself, first in his home on President Street and after the year of mourning, moved into his study above the central Lubavitch synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway which is known as "770" - "Lubavitch World Headquarters". From 1989 until his hospitalization in 1994, Rabbi Schneerson did not leave "770"18 except for his pilgrimages to Queens.
It was from "770" that he directed his emissaries' work. He would hold court around the clock involving himself in every detail of his far-flung movements' developments. People making appointments to see him would be summoned at all hours of the night. He did not sleep much. The highlight of his public role would be displayed during special celebrations called farbrengens on Sabbaths, holy days, and special days on the Chabad calendar when he would lead the packed hall with long talks called maamorim or sichos, and with songs called nigunim, that would last all night. They would often be broadcast via satellite to Lubavitch branches all over the world.
He oversaw the building of schools, community centers, youth camps, college campus centers (known as Chabad houses,) and reached out to the most powerful Jewish lay leaders and non-Jewish government leaders wherever they found themselves. The United States Congress and President issue annual proclamations declaring that the Rebbe's birthday, usually a day in March or April that coincides with his Hebrew calendar birth-date of 11 Nisan (a Hebrew month), be observed as Education Day in the United States. [Emphasis added].
Political activities
Politicians of all stripes came to see him, regardless of their party political affiliations. Be they Democrats or Republicans, they sought his support. Generally, Lubavitch tends to support more conservative politicians such as those who back school prayer, are anti-abortion, pro-Israel, and are generally supportive of Bible values, about which Rabbi Schneerson was very publicly vocal.19 Aspirants for the job of mayor, governor, congressman, senator, in the states of New York and New Jersey would come calling and have their pictures with the rebbe published in newspapers with large Jewish readerships and voters. Towards the end of his life, thousands of ordinary people would line up to receive a dollar bill from him personally, which was to be donated to charity, and a quick blessing from him.
Following the death of his wife in 1988 he withdrew from some public functions and became generally more reclusive. In 1991, he stated that: "I have done everything I can do to bring Moshiach, now I am handing over to you (his followers) the keys to bring Moshiach ." A final campaign was started to bring the messianic age through acts of "goodness and kindness" and massive advertising in the mass media such as many full-page ads in the New York Times urging everyone to contribute toward the messiah's imminent arrival.20
Rabbi Schneerson paid close attention to, and rejoiced in, the fall of communism in Eastern Europe starting in 198921. Under the Bolsheviks his father-in-law had been imprisoned and tortured and had his massive collection of writings confiscated, and the movement banned on pain of exile to Siberia. Once the Iron Curtain fell, he wasted no time in flooding the former Soviet Union with hundreds of new shluchim. During the Desert Storm war against Iraq in 1990-1991, messianic fever ran high as Rabbi Schneerson interpreted events in the light of Torah and midrash, declaring that: "Moshiach is already here, all we need to do is to open our eyes to see him."
Israel and politics
Rabbi Schneerson never visited the State of Israel, where he had many admirers and critics. One of Israel's presidents, Zalman Shazar, was a religiously observant person of Lubavitch ancestry and his visits to Schneerson were reunions of sorts. Prime Minister Menachem Begin and later Benjamin Netanyahu also paid visits and sought advice. In the elections that brought Yitzhak Shamir to power, Rabbi Schneerson publicly cajoled his followers and the Orthodox members in the Knesset to vote against the Labor aligment leading to articles in Time and Newsweek and many newspapers and TV programs.
During the Six Day War in 1967 and the Yom Kippur War of 1973, he called in public for the Israel Defence Forces to capture Damascus in Syria and Cairo in Egypt. He was vehemently opposed to any withdrawals by Israel's armies from captured territories, and was against any concessions to the Palestinians.22 He lobbied Israeli politicians to legislate on Who is a Jew to declare that "only one who is born of a Jewish mother or converted according to halakha (Jewish biblical religious law) is Jewish". This caused a furor in the United States where Reform and Conservative Jewish philanthropies cut off their financial support of Lubavitch.
Later Life
In 1977 he suffered a massive heart attack while celebrating the hakafot ceremony on Shmini Atzeret.23 Nonetheless, he insisted on finishing the ceremony with the customary dancing. Despite the best efforts of his doctors to convince him to change his mind, Rabbi Schneerson refused to be hospitalized. This necessitated building a mini-hospital in "770." Although he did not appear in public for several weeks, he continued to deliver talks and discourses from his study via intercom. On Rosh Chodesh Kislev, the first day of the Hebrew month of Kislev , he left his study for the first time in over a month to go home. His followers celebrate this day as a great holiday each year with a feast of thanksgiving to G-d24 for his miraculous recovery.
In [1991], he faced an anti-Semitic riot in his neighborhood of Crown Heights which became known as the Crown Heights Riot of 1991 . The riot began when a car accompanying Rabbi Scneerson's motorcade returning from one of his regular cemetery visits to his father-in-law's grave accidentally struck an African American child who subsequently died. In the rioting, a young rabbinic student was murdered, many Lubavitchers were badly beaten, and much property was destroyed.25
In 1992 he was felled by a serious stroke while at the grave of his father-in-law. The stroke left him unable to speak and paralyzed on the right side of his body. Nonetheless, he continued to respond daily to thousands of queries and requests for blessings from around the world. His secretaries would read the letters to him and he would indicate his response with head and hand motions.
Despite his deteriorating health, he once again refused to leave "770." Several months into his illness, a small room with tinted glass windows with an attached balcony was built overlooking the main synagogue. This allowed him to pray with his followers, beginning with the Rosh Hashana services and after services, to appear before them by either having the window opened or by being carried onto the balcony. During these appearances his followers would sing Yechi Adonenu Moreinu v'Rabbeinu Melech Hamoshiach l'olam voed! --Long live our Master our Teacher and our Rebbe King Moshiach forever and ever! He vigorously encouraged the singing by swaying to and fro and swinging his hand--as he had done at the numerous farbrengens over the years.26
In 1994 he was hospitalized for the first time due to complications following cataract surgery. While in the hospital, he suffered another massive stroke which left him in a coma for three months.
Rabbi Schneerson died childless and was buried beside the previous Rebbe, his father-in-law, leaving behind no successor. One other hasidic group, Breslov has functioned for almost 200 years without a live Rebbe , deliberately not choosing one after the death of Rav Nachman (1772-1810). Since no-one was named to succeed Rabbi Schneerson, his followers have adopted a system of delving into his voluminous published correspondence and writings that are examined for guidance in all situations. The shluchim hold regular annual meetings and conferences where they plan more activities in the name of the Rebbe . This is combined with regular visits to his grave in Queens, New York, which has become a shrine to the Lubavitch hasidim.
What makes them "tick"? A famous letter by the Baal Shem Tov, Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, the founder of Hasidism printed in the book Keter Shem Tov, relates that he ascended to the higher realms. There the Baal Shem Tov met the Messiah and asked when he would come. The Messiah replied Lichsheyafutzu maayenotecha hachutza - (Hebrew:) "When the wellsprings of your (teachings) will spread outwards (over the world)". Thus spreading the doctrines of Hasidism is every Hasid's creed and connection to the original mission of the movement.
Controversial Legacy
Hasidism has been charged with by other Orthodox Jews of creating a cult of personality since its inception. These charges resurfaced with greater intensity as Rabbi Schneerson's influence increased. His followers had an extremely high level of devotion to him; they believed that he was infallible, and many proclaimed that he was the messiah. They believed implicitly in his vision, that he had supernatural powers of insight, prophecy, and powers to change the world. Behind closed doors many other Orthodox Jews began to call Lubavitch a cult. The bitter opposition against Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer Baal Shem Tov was reborn, with the primary antagonists being disciples of the Vilna Gaon.
Rabbi Schneerson's death was a major event in Orthodox Judaism. Many of Chabad's opponents rejoiced in what they thought would be the end of a rivalry. Some Chabad Hasidim were thrown into shock and disbelief. Others were disillusioned. Yet others proclaimed that it barely mattered. Accustomed to believing that he was the Messiah, they believed that another vital step in the drama of Messianic redemption had been played out, and that he would soon return to redeem the world. During the funeral procession many Chabad Hasidim cried, but some danced in joy at what they believed was the signal of the messianic age, which they stated would certainly appear within a few hours, if not a few days. Many of his followers are still waiting for him to appear. As the number of Chabad Hasidim is difficult to estimate, and no formal surveys have ever been conducted, it is virtually impossible to guess how many people reacted.
Some Hasidim openly declared that Rabbi Schneerson had not, in fact, died at all; some saying that he had shed his mortal body or that he was in hiding, waiting for an appropriate time to reveal himself, in keeping with Schneerson's interpretation of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) that he articulated after the passing of Rabbi Joseph Isaac Schneersohn.
This has caused a large part of the Jewish community to renew their denouncements of Chabad as being outside the pale of Judaism altogether. Many Orthodox rabbis associated with Lithuanian Judaism teach that Chabad is effectively becoming a new religion, similar in its development to Christianity. These accusation are in dispute as the Lubavitch continues to lead a very strict Orthodox life-style adhering to the Shulkhan Arukh (also known as the Shulchan Aruch or Shulchan Oruch) (code of law) and halakha. This opposition has not stymied the Lubavitchers; for some it has hardened their resolve to fulfil their rebbe's mission of ushering in the messianic age.
The controversy is aggravated by the fact that the charges come from a long standing opposition to Chabad and Hasidism. His main critic in the Orthodox "Lithuanian" yeshiva haredi world in Israel, was their own paramount leader, Rabbi Elazar Shach. The late Rabbi Shach was the scion of an older generation that existed before the Holocaust, when opposition to Hasidim was more rampant. He was Rabbi Schneerson's fiercest critic, continuously denounced Lubavitch as "heretics" and their leader as misguided or worse. The prominent hasidic rebbes in Israel such as those of Ger, Vizhnits, Belz, never said anything in public against Rabbi Schneerson, viewing him as part of the world of chasidus - hasidism.
Another major proponent of the opposition to Chabad is Professor David Berger, a Modern Orthodox Rabbi and professor of history at the City College of New York. Berger gained prominence for his fierce opposition to Chabad , advocating ostracism of prominent Rabbis affiliated with the movement and boycotts. He has been behind efforts to bring about condemnations and written books on the subject. Berger specialized in earlier messsianic movements in Judaism, has written essays and a book purporting to show that many followers of the late Lubavitch Rebbe revere him not just a Messiah, but literally as God Himself. Berger is affiliated with Modern Orthodoxy.27
There is a continuing battle within Chabad Lubavitch over the legacy of Rabbi Schneerson. As few are willing to discuss their private views, and there is no mechanism for reading minds, there is little that can be truly known about what is mainstream in Chabad views, but such a high profile movement can be studied given its gigantic output of religious and political materials.
Controversial Concepts of Hasidism
A controversial belief among Hasidim first appeared in the Tanya28 mentioning that every Jew is endowed with a "spark of holiness" that is from the Creator. Based on the teachings of Rabbi Isaac Luria, the Baal Shem Tov and the Ohr Ha'Chaim, Rabbi Shneur Zalman taught in the name of the Zohar that "He who breathed life into man, breathed from Himself." He taught that the "Holy One Blessed Be He, Torah, and the people of Israel are one." Further, he taught that a person became a vehicle (merkava in Hebrew) for the deity when he performed a mitzvah. The tsaddik as a human who performed only that which was commanded, was constantly such a vehicle. The reaction was immediate. Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin wrote a book length response named Nefesh Ha'Chaim (Breath of Life), defending the traditional views of Eastern European Orthodox Judaism.
The views of Rabbi Schneur Zalman were adopted and expounded upon by various leaders of Hasidism including Rabbi Elimelekh of Lizhensk. Rabbi Schneerson, in the year after the passing of his father-in-law, termed these beliefs into the concept of atzmut v'mahut melubash b'guf (Essence and Being constricted into a body). Quoting his late father-in-law, Rabbi Schneerson taught that a Rebbe is literally Atzmus unget'n in a guf ( Yiddish:) the essence [of God] clothed/incarnated in a human body. (Source: Likutei Sichos II: p. 510-511). While the term received little attention at the time, it was later used to shock those who have no exposure to these sources.
Judaism teaches that there is a potential Messiah in every generation. For instance, the Kabbalists identified Rabbi Isaac Luria as the Messiah of his generation. Often Hasidism identifies the leader of its sect as the Messiah. During the time of the Vilna Gaon, these views were actively discouraged due to a spate of false Messiahs such as Sabbatai Tzvi. Hasidism was condemned as a new incarnation of false Messianism. Over strenuous objections, Hasidim continued to proclaim their leaders as the Messiah. Breslov for instance, never selected a successor to Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, believing that he will be the Messiah. Similarly, many Chabad Hasidim believe that Rabbi Schneerson is the Messiah.” [Our emphasis throughout].
Presidential homage
The author of the above encyclopaedic citation, apparently an Orthodox but non-Hasidic Jew, has commented on the political influence of Rebbe Schneerson in both Israel and the USA. This has been expressed in the homage paid to Schneerson as a great educator and humanitarian, by US Presidents, Senate and Congress. These Shabbez Goyim29 have stated that the 7 Noahide Laws, supposedly given by the Jewish God to the Gentiles to tame them of their animalistic or ‘satanic’ propensities as a prelude for the reign of the King-Messiah, are the basis of civilisation. . President Reagan and both Presidents Bush have consciously and overtly placed the USA under the spiritual dispensation of anti-Christian Hasidim who aim to outlaw Christianity as “idolatry”, ban all Christian celebrations and blot out the name of Jesus, on pain of death for all those who resist, as we shall prove in due course. Following are the presidential proclamations subordinating the USA to Hasidic spiritual domination:
Proclamation 5463 -- Education Day, U.S.A., 1986
April 19, 1986
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
“From earliest colonial days, Americans have always known that education is the golden key that opens the door to achievement and progress. This Administration has placed renewed emphasis on excellence in education, and already the results are encouraging. By setting high standards we challenge the young to stretch their mental muscles and strive to achieve the best that is in them. Such an education succeeds because it makes learning an adventure.
Education is like a diamond with many facets: it includes the basic mastery of numbers and letters that give us access to the treasury of human knowledge, accumulated and refined through the ages; it includes technical and vocational training as well as instruction in science, higher mathematics, and humane letters. But no true education can leave out the moral and spiritual dimensions of human life and human striving. Only education that addresses this dimension can lead to that blend of compassion, humility, and understanding that is summed up in one word: wisdom.
``Happy the man,'' Scripture tells us, ``who finds wisdom. . . . Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who come to possess her.''
The Congress has sought to call attention to these durable values by adopting resolutions that pay tribute to the example of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, a man who has dedicated his life to the search for wisdom and to guiding others along its pathways. He exemplifies the rich tradition of the Seven Noahide Laws, which have been the lodestar of the Lubavitch movement from its inception.
In recognition of Rabbi Schneerson's noble achievements and in celebration of his 84th birthday, the Congress, by House Joint Resolution 582, has designated April 2030 as ``Education Day, U.S.A.'' and authorized and requested the President to issue an appropriate proclamation in observance of this event.
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Sunday, April 20, 1986, as Education Day, U.S.A., and I call upon the people of the United States, and in particular our teachers and other educational leaders, to observe that day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and tenth.
In a permeable on the proclamation of “Education Day, USA” in 1991 by Pres. George Bush Snr., “The American Friends of Chabad-Lubavitch” describe themselves as a lobby inculcating Hasidism among Congressional staffers (among whom there are always many Jews):
“Chabad-Lubavitch is now an international movement with headquarters in New York. The American Friends of Chabad Lubavitch in Washington, D.C. coordinates activities for Chabad on Capital Hill, lobbies for Chabad causes, and runs study groups and social programs geared towards congressional staffers. In 1991, Chabad-Lubavitch in cooperation with President Bush established the observance of Education Day, USA "to return the world to the moral and ethical values contained in the Seven Noahide Laws."
Public Law 102--14 (H.J. Res. 104): March 20, 1991
Education Day, USA Proclamation
Joint Resolution to designate March 26, 1991 as "Education Day, USA"
“Whereas Congress recognizes the historical tradition of ethical values and principles which are the basis of civilized society and upon which our great Nation was founded;
Whereas these ethical values and principles have been the bedrock of society from the dawn of civilization, when they were known as the Seven Noahide Laws;
Whereas without these ethical values and principles the edifice of civilization stands in serious peril of returning to chaos;
Whereas society is profoundly concerned with the recent weakening of these principles that has resulted in crises that beleaguer and threaten the fabric of civilized society;
Whereas the justified preoccupation with these crises must not let the citizens of this Nation lose sight of their responsibility to transmit these ethical values from our distinguished past to the generations of the future;
Whereas the Lubavitch movement has fostered and promoted these ethical values and principles throughout the world;
Whereas Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, leader of the Lubavitch movement, is universally respected and revered and his eighty-ninth birthday falls on March 26, 1991;
Whereas in tribute to this great spiritual leader, "the rebbe", this, his ninetieth year will be seen as one of "education and giving", the year in which we turn to education and charity to return the world to the moral and ethical values contained in the Seven Noahide Laws; and
Whereas this will be reflected in an international scroll of honor signed by the President of the United States and other heads of state: Now, therefore be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That March 26, 1991, the start of the ninetieth year of Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, leader of the worldwide Lubavitch movement, is designated as "Education Day. U.S.A.". The President is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe such day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In 2002 Pres. George W Bush issued a Congressional medal in honour of the late Rebbe Schneerson, making June 28th a “Day of International Tribute” for the Rebbe The Bush Administration describes the proceedings and medal thus:
Rebbe Schneerson as the King-Messiah
When the Rebbe died in 1994 he was acclaimed by his followers as the King-Messiah or “Moshiach”, who will return to establish his Kingdom over the world. Under the entry for Chabad-Hasidim at the online University of Calgary, the opinions of a Lubavitch Hasid are included, sating the following about Scheerson as the King-Messiah:
“Also, concerning the coming of Moshiach, please note; the Rebbe himself stated clearly that the "time of your Redemption has arrived," and he emphasized that he was making this statement as a prophecy. He said much more than to simply prepare ourselves for the Redemption, as you state. He said that the Redemption has begun. No Lubavitcher will argue with this. The Rebbe also said quite clearly that he is Moshiach, in many sichos. True, he never said the words "I am Moshiach," but he made numerous unmistakable allusions to that fact, so that there can be no question regarding his identity.
“As to what transpired on Gimmel Tammuz, there is some debate. But note that many sources state clearly that Moshiach can come from among the dead. Of course, in my opinion and in the educated opinion of many Lubavitchers, the Rebbe did not die. In the sefer Arba Meos Shekel Kessef, by R. Chaim Vital, he states that Moshiach will disappear briefly, while he receives the soul of Moshiach, and will then reappear, at which point everyone will flock to him.
“Also note that the Rebbe himself said that this generation is different than the previous generation in that there will be no histalkus, and that the Nasi haDor is not subject to geniza. There are many other things the Rebbe stated, telling us that he is Moshiach, and to one who is intellectually honest with himself, there is no doubt.
“When Moshe Rabbeinu went up on Har Sinai, the satan showed Bnei Yisroel -- Moshe Rabbeinu's "chassidim" -- an image of Moshe indicating that he had died.
“The Rebbe said most importantly that all that remains is Kabballos haAm, that the Jewish people accept Moshiach as Moshiach. That is our avodah now.”31
One of the most avid apostles for the coming of Schneerson as the King-Messiah is Rabbi Moshe Yess, a self-described “unordained rabbi by choice” who runs “Messiah Watch International”32.. Rabbi Yess, in explaining the return of the Rebbe as Moshiach provides a historic timeline based on the Kaballah and Talmud, stating:
“The above timeline goes from year 188 (left side) till the present. Item #1 (in the white circle) conveys that Prophetic Teachings about Judaism's King Messiah and End of Days were passed on orally and via scrolls from the Talmudic Era and later compiled in a Sacred compilation work called the Yalkut Shimoni circa 1300.
Within this Yalkut Shimoni compendium is found the following ancient Jewish Prophecy which I will now simplify as:
When a Gulf War#1 (1991) scenario occurs...in that year Judaism's King Messiah will reveal his existence."
By definition any true Prophecy comes from God. So a Prophecy can be understood as God's "telegram" to man about a future event.
Notice also how Rabbi Schneerson identifies himself in 1991 as the Yalkut Shimoni Prophesied it would happen! Notice that both events, 1) the Gulf War#1 and 2) Rabbi Schneerson's self revelation as Judaism's King Messiah happened in 1991.
The higher blue arc represents another Prophecy from a different Sacred Jewish Source, namely, the Kaballah which was written down circa year 200.
The Kaballah describes in detail a space event wherein 21 "pieces" would impact planet Jupiter. That event occurred in 1994 when the fragmented Shoemaker-Levy 9 asteroid pumped 3 pieces a day for one week straight into Jupiter.
Furthermore....that same Kabballah states that this space event would be seen by all mankind and that it represented the Heavenly Announcement of the imminent arrival of Judaism's King Messiah.
Prior to his "passing" Rabbi Schneerson was visited by the former Chief Rabbi of Israel. Here are the chief Rabbi's comments given publicly after that special meeting:-
Rabbi Mordechi Eliyahu, the past Chief Rabbi of Israel after his visit to the Rebbe said. "I saw that no secret is hidden from him, and I mean that simply and explicitly. He knows all of the Talmud, Poskim (legal precedents) and in the Mystical works his understanding is VERY VERY deep. He is the master of light. He is a master of all the Torah. And is an expert on everything that is happening in Israel. His face shines like an angel of G-d and he himself is higher than any angel. He is the greatest Torah master in our generation and no one is even close to him. And together with this he worries for every Jew in the world."
One could postulate that even though Rabbi Schneerson identified himself numerous times publicly to the Jewish world as King Messiah.....perhaps he was a little "deranged" shall we say?
One could also postulate that even the 1,000 Chassidic Rabbis who saw clearly that he was and still is King Messiah even after his passing were and are also a little "deranged" about him?
But if you will carefully study the home page links to the Gulf War and The Jupiter Event there you will find the truth that silences all scepticism and mocking.
Prophecy comes from God alone. Only God can impart knowledge of future events that happen hundreds of years in the future.
The Gulf War and the Jupiter Event are two such God given Prophecies. They "sandwich" (in the context of time..i.e. 1991 and 1994) Rabbi Schneerson's self proclamation and provide nothing less than Independent Divine corroboration and Divine Affirmation that Rabbi Schneerson's claims about himself being Judaism's and mankind's Final Redeemer, King Messiah are indeed true!
God has sent two clear messages to the world in the above fulfiled Prophecies for all the doubters and scoffers to ponder.
Understand that Rabbi Schneerson handed out to his followers (of which I am one) profound discourses which explain why King Messiah must die as part of the process of his later revelation. Plus...(when the world is able to come to terms with this) the world will understand that even though there was a formal death and burial according to Jewish Law...all of the "death scenario" is nothing but a concealment of the actual truth...namely, that in spite of his "passing" Rabbi Schneerson is literally alive...a soul in a body...here in this world.....as alive physically as you or I.
Only a very small handful of people have any inkling of what we are dealing with here. We have a pending event that will surpass by far what happened on Mount Sinai with Moses...and I mean this literally....and in our days.
There will be a Divine Intervention wherein the physical world will become literally transparent to reveal the hidden Godliness that gives life to all creation.
We will see Rabbi Schneerson reappear physically in his younger physical body and he most certainly will destroy all evil at its spiritual root. Get that? NO MORE EVIL...FOREVER!!!33
Everyone will have a home and enough food to eat. No more illness.... FOREVER!!!. Universal peace and perfection will reign forever.
Rabbi Schneerson will literally rule from sea to sea with the willing and enthusiastic consent of the vast, vast, majority of mankind.34 [Emphasis added].
Debate within Orthodox Judaism
For many of those not of the Lubavitch Hasidic faction, however, the declaration of Schneerson not only as the King-Messiah but also of his actual divinity, is seen with concern. Rabbi Berger remarks upon the influence of the Lubavitch which goes beyond their immediate sect, as they have become rabbis in non-Lubavitch congregations [one being the Wellington Hebrew Congregation in New Zealand], stating:
“…First, a large segment-almost certainly a substantial majority-of a highly significant Orthodox movement called Lubavitch, or Chabad, Hasidism affirms that the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who was laid to rest in June 1994, initiated the authentic messianic mission and will soon return to complete the redemption in his capacity as the messiah….
Second –and far more important– Hasidim who proclaim this belief, including some who have ruled that it is a belief required by Jewish law, routinely hold significant religious posts with the sanction of major Orthodox authorities unconnected with their movement. These range from the offices of the Israeli rabbinate to the ranks of mainstream rabbinical organizations to the chairmanship of rabbinical courts In Israel and elsewhere, not to speak of service as scribes, ritual slaughterers, teachers, and administrators of schools and religious organizations receiving support from mainstream Orthodoxy. For much of Orthodox Jewry, then, the classic boundaries of the messianic faith of Israel are no more….
“…And still more-much more. From late 1996 through 1997, something began to emerge that many observers have found difficult to digest that they refuse to believe the evidence before them. For a significant number of Lubavitch Hasidim, the Rebbe himself is nothing less than pure divinity….”35 [Emphasis added].
|
