Chabad-Lubavitch "Conservative Judaism"

It has been said that Chabad-Lubavitch is the new "Conservative Judaism". As is known, "Conservative Judaism"(which actually turned out to be, de facto, a more moderate version of Reform "Judaism"), a prominent Jewish "denomination" in the USA, which was considered the largest for decades in the post-WWII period, has been in steep decline more recently. Not coincidentally, in that same time period, Chabad-Lubavitch has expanded noticeably, by appealing to the constituency of the "Conservatives", namely Jewishly (relatively) ignorant Jews, who nevertheless wanted some manner of connection to Judaism, but were wary of too much. It was said that in the Conservative movement, the laity was not observant of the standards set out for them by their religious leaders. Chabad-Lubavitch, over time, took market share from the Conservatives by underselling them. While Conservative Temples charged hefty membership fees, and had strict  requirements for bar mitzvah candidates (such as a certain amount of months of bar mitzvah lessons and Jewish education), Chabad-Lubavitch offered religious services without those restrictions. They also posed as being more authentic, Orthodox, even Hasidic. However, as is known, Chabad-Lubavitch and its representatives have also taken liberties with their ignorant constituents who they picked up from the non-Orthodox and unaffiliated sectors.

A main marker differentiating Orthodox and non-Orthodox Judaism, which led to many disputes and conflicts in the past, was the mechitzah, separating the genders at religious services. While this is observed by Orthodox in general, among Chasidim it is expanded to a greater extent of separation, e.g. higher barriers, opaque, even outside religious services, etc.

Among the Chabad-Lubavitch however, one sees a deterioration in this basic, this fundamental of Orthodox Judaism, and certainly Hasidism. 

For example, recently, on the great holiday of Purim, a number of very prominent Chabad-Lubavitch megillah readings were mixed-gender, as the trademark practice of the non-Orthodox.

For example,

1) At Columbia University

2) In Washington, DC, under prominent Chabad operative Levi Shemtov, one of the most prominent Lubavitchers in the USA.

Corrupting Chanukah wasn't enough for them, now they defile Purim too?

We see here a great danger of modern-day Chabad-Lubavitch. Without a living Rebbe, and with a system which gives their operatives (especially prominent and well-connected ones) major leeway in setting up programming, PR, and fundraising, they can cut corners and worse, and stoop to various inappropriate and unorthodox gimmickry and arrangements, and even get away with such shenanigans.

Their own late leader, as I recall, taught that people should be brought up to Judaism, rather than Yiddishkeit brought down to them (chas veshalom). But in today's Chabad-Lubavitch, with their great focus on PR and appearing "with it", venerable and fundamental Torah principles can fall by the wayside. 

May הקב"ה protect us from the faux "Yiddishkeit" of Chabad-Lubavitch, its army of propagandizers ("influencers"), fellow travelers, and its ignorant constituents.

In the zechus of our rejection of עבודה זרה, as our ancestors did in this time period in ancient Egypt, may we be zoche to גאולה בקרוב.

א גוטען חודש

Feel-Good Chasidic Vertel Exposed as Baseless

 There is a Chasidic vertel (small vort) that goes something like this -

It says in the beginning of parshas Noach,נח איש צדיק (בראשית ו:ט). Rashi there comments from Chazal, יש מרבותינו דורשים לשבח, ויש שדורשים לגנאי (some of our Rabbis interpret this in a positive way, that Noach was a tzadik in his weak generation, all the more so would he have been in a stronger one, while others interpret it negatively, that in his spiritually meager generation he was considered righteous, but in a better generation he would not have been).

So the Hasidic comment notes that Rashi only uses the term מרבותינו (of our rabbis) when mentioning the positive interpretation, and not with the negative one. Why, it continues? To show us that someone who interprets negatively is not worthy of being called one of our rabbis.

Update: Our dear friend and commenter who goes here by the moniker of Old Litvak, has given us a source for this in ספר פרדס יוסף (lower left of page - more below in comments section).

                                       Litvish analysis and Fact check

 Though Hasidim and neo-Hasidim like the TYH folk may like that, it doesn't hold water. As seen in the beginning of פרשת ויקהל, which we just read, in שמות לה:ג, where Rashi cites a different machlokes, about fire on Shabbos. He also cites a first opinion with the expression מרבותינו there, while omitting it when afterward citing a second one, even though this not a case where one side is a positive interpretation and the other a negative one. Showing us that that just is the way of Rashi (perhaps, or should I say likely, to economize on verbiage and letters in the days before printing, when things were written by hand).

Another baseless Hasidic "feel-good" vertel bites the dust. 

We must search for truth in Torah and life, rather than trying to force preconceived notions onto the text where they don't fit.

ברוך אלקינו שנתן לנו תורת אמת

In the zechus of אמת may we be zoche to the great ברכות that go along with it.

א גוטע וואך און א גוטען חודש

Berel Lazar, Russia Chabad Head - a Study in Lubavitch Propaganda, Duplicity, and Deception

Berel Lazar, the head of Chabad-Lubavitch in Russia, is one of the most prominent Chabadskers around today. The jet-setting Italian born leader cuts a dashing figure among his fellow followers of the Crown Heights, NY, faith, and is a leading player in global Lubavitch propaganda. He poses as "Chief Rabbi of Russia" (a questionable title, which anyway, he gained through manipulation and machination by the Chabad-Lubavitch in conjunction with the Russian government), which leads some people, who don't know the background of it, to treat him with greater deference and respect than if he would just be another Chabad-Lubavitch agent. It (sometimes) gives him access to places where he might not be welcomed otherwise. Of course, Chabad-Lubavitch deliberately promotes this, describing him as "Chief Rabbi of Russia" to outsiders, while among themselves, on the other hand, his claim to fame is being the head of Chabad-Lubavitch there, sent by their late leader. 

Recently, I was surprised to see that Project Inspire was advertising Lazar prominently as a featured guest at their upcoming convention. That is sad, as it is part of Aish HaTorah, which historically, has maintained a distance from Lubavitch. R. Noach Weinberg zt"l is not shepping nachas from such a deviation from the path he laid out. Also, at a recent Lazar event in Eretz Yisrael, some representatives of the Litvishe yeshiva world participated. Evidently, some people don't understand what Lazar is about, so to help you grasp what he represents, I will share some information. 

Exhibit one: As we posted in the past, in the 1993, a young Berel Lazar participated in a big Lubavitch messianic event, led by the late Shmuel Butman, promoting their late leader as Messiah, in the days when he was ill, following his stroke, before he passed away. You can see very clearly in the Chabad video, a young Berel Lazar, head of Chabad-Lubavitch in Russia, promoting his late Rebbe as Messiah, and bellowing יחי אדוננו וכו (click to play relevant segment).

Now perhaps one might say, that was a long time ago, what about more recently. That leads us to the next piece.

Exhibit two: This past summer there was a Shloshim gathering after the passing of Moshe Kotlarsky. Lazar spoke at it, ending with "there should be the real simcha with the התגלות (revelation) of the Rebbe" (just after 36:15 in the recording). Evidently he still holds him as Messiah.

Exhibit three: Less than three months ago, speaking at Lubavitch HQ in Brooklyn, Lazar stated "העולם כבר רואה שהמרכז של הכל הוא חב"ד" ('the world already sees that the center of everything is Chabad'). Click to see and hear.

These remarks, at Lubavitch events, to fellow Chabad-Lubavitch followers, show his essence. Of course, elsewhere, as typical among Lubavitchers, he is more guarded in his remarks generally, when among others.

The point that must be stressed here, is that a Lubavitcher going under another name or title is still a Lubavitcher. Even if he may call himself Rabbi rather than Shliach at times, he still is a Lubavitcher, and still must be held at a distance, as Rav Schach זצוקללה"ה, and other gedolim, who were very aware of the wiles and deceptions of Chabad-Lubavitch, taught us.

In the zechus of following our great גדולים, may הקב"ה grant us בשורות טובות, וימי גאולה וישועה בקרוב.

א גוטען חודש

Noach was an איש צדיק...Every Yid can be a Tzadik...A Song Gets A Long Overdue Makeover

In the past we have discussed here serious problems with a certain neo-Hasidic group and some of their activities, including the children's kiddie jingle "Every Yid's a Big Tzaddik", which they promote for all.

However, we needn't despair, it is possible for even a seriously flawed song, message, individual, or group, to be rectified and gain a תיקון. In that spirit, we share corrected lyrics for it (with the flawed, rejected lyrics crossed out nearby, for ease of comparison, contrast), to hopefully bring the catchy tune into compliance with mainstream traditional Torah Yiddishkeit.

Noach was an איש צדיק, Noach was an איש צדיק

Noach was a big tzaddik, Noach was a big tzaddik

From his keppeleh to his fiselech, Noach was an איש צדיק

From his keppeleh to his fiseleh, Noach was a big tzaddik

Noach was an איש צדיק, Noach was an איש צדיק

Noach was a big tzaddik, Noach was a big tzaddik

From his keppeleh to his fiselech, Noach was an איש צדיק

From his keppeleh to his fiseleh, Noach was a big tzaddik

Every Yid can be a tzaddik, every Yid can be a tzaddik,

Every Yid's a big tzaddik, every Yid's a big tzaddik 

Every Yid can be a tzaddik, every Yid can be a tzaddik,

Every Yid's a big tzadik, every Yid's a big tzaddik 

From his keppeleh (head) to his fiselech (feet), every Yid can be a tzaddik

From his keppeleh to his fiseleh, every Yid's a big tzaddik

Instead of the delusional, dangerous falsehood in the other version, which leads to depression and disillusionment when it encounters real life, our version is realistic and hopeful at the same time. So if you are in a place where you cannot escape the song entirely, raise it up, be מתקן it, by substituting our lyrics.

May we be זוכה, merit בקרוב, to the day when ועמך כלם צדיקים will be a reality, אכי"ר.

(The longtime Pre-1A teacher, turned Hasidic Rebbe, behind the song under discussion)

Note - This seems to be an early video of it. Interestingly, it does not contain the second part of the song ("every Yid's a big tzaddik"), which is the major part of our problem with it. Perhaps that was not part of it originally, and was only added later?

Sleep vs. Sleepy "Learning"? Rav Miller Rules

Rav Avigdor Miller זצ"ל was old-fashioned (a term I am using here in a positive sense, as a compliment) in various ways. One of them was in his representation, modeling, and advocacy of classic healthy living, such as non-materialistic lifestyles, and enjoying, appreciating, and giving thanks for things like simple food, walking, fresh air, and the like (along with deep and genuine Torah spirituality, of course). 

Rav Miller was not part of the modern coffee-guzzling, caffeine-fueled, pill-popping "frum" culture practiced by too many (with frequent harried travel often part of the mix). Rather he was far from it. He ate simply, traveled little, liked to walk, breathe fresh air, eat fruit, drink water, enjoy nature.

This occasionally comes into sharp relief in his words, as seen in an important Q & A exchange with him shared recently by Toras Avigdor:

Rav Avigdor Miller on Getting Enough Sleep

Rav Miller's words at the above linked page are very important, but there is even more that can be added to them, which I think he would agree with, for example,

1) Proper sleep is not only important for mental health, it is vital for physical, general health as well.

2) When a person is tired, lacking adequate sleep, their learning is usually quite deficient and inferior in comparison to when they are properly rested, in areas such as comprehension and retention.

It was shared by gedolim that there is an inyan of ביטול תורה באיכות, qualitative bittul Torah, meaning that if someone can learn Torah on a higher level and suffices rather with a lower one, he has not done properly (ביטול תורה - עולמות, see section ט toward bottom, in English some info here). While that expression and idea is usually invoked with regard to something like someone reciting Tehillim simply and seemingly superficially vs. learning תורה שבעל פה with deeper understanding, לענ"ד it could be applied to learning sleepy vs. learning rested too.

Modern research has shown the great importance of good sleep for mental functioning and memory. Even Harvard University, although they may be quite confused in other areas, testifies strongly to that:

Want to improve your memory? Get a good night's sleep! - Harvard Health

Sleep well, and learn better. Recharge yourself with good sleep, and resist the allure of coffee, cigarettes, and other quick "fixes", which don't do the job you need and want long-term (if even short-term).

There are people that push themselves hard to wake up early for a shiur, don't sleep enough, guzzle coffee to keep going, and then wonder why they hardly recall anything from such "learning" sessions. Is that the way to go? הקב"ה wants us to understand, enjoy, and retain our learning. Don't fool yourself. You are surely not fooling Hashem. Learn when you are properly prepared, rested, and alert, and the yields will be something to write home about.

ברכה והצלחה

California Fire Exposes Chabad-Lubavitch Fraud

Followers of the Chabad-Lubavitch faith have been playing a game with people for years, Good Chabad Lubavitch - Bad Chabad Lubavitch (akin to Good Cop - Bad Cop), in which they purport that the lunacy of their sect is of a small, crazy messianic faction, but that the main group (represented by the Krinsky-Kotlarsky-Shemtov establishment Agudas Chasidei Chabad faction, which runs Chabad.org, and more) are not like that. Although they hold the same or basically the same beliefs as the openly messianic group, they make great efforts to hide or obfuscate things which may turn off others (especially potential donors, of course), such as their belief that their late last leader is the messiah, in an attempt to conceal them from outsiders. Of course, that is another scam of the Chabadskers. As we saw in our previous post, we see now again clearly, where a Chabad of the allegedly mainstream faction has Torahs which are covered with mantels (specially designed and inscribed Torah coats/covers) with their messianic mantra of  יחי אדוננו וכו on them, proclaiming their long (over thirty years) dead leader as Messiah.

This can readily be seen here:

 It's a mitzvah: LA fires activate Jewish law of saving Torah scrolls from calamity | The Times of Israel

In the right and left photos on the top showing the Chabad scrolls, one sees clearly at the top of their covers, in a sort of crescent form, the messianic mantra.

While normally hidden, they are now out in the open for all to see.

נתגלה קלונם וחרפתם, השקר של חב"ד-ליובאוויטש

Don't be fooled by them, don't support them.

Of course, this is a big part of their general playbook, taking advantage of disasters to promote themselves, and to fundraise, whether it involves cases of flooding, hurricanes, fires, or otherwise, they offer free publicity and fundraising opportunities, so Chabad-Lubavitch PR Inc. is there to take advantage and monetize the situations for their benefit.

Even the so-called "Yeshiva World News" falls for their fraud, promoting them against the true Yeshiva world's traditional stance. For shame. 

ושומר נפשו ירחק מהם, וכ"ש שלא לתמוך בהם, וילך בטח בעזרת השי"ת

Chabad-Lubavitch Defiling of Chanukah (ר"ל)

Chanukah is one of the great ימים טובים (holidays) of the Jewish people. It is identified, connected, infused, suffused with holiness, the fight to maintain our sanctity in a hostile, impure world. Who does not know about the פך השמן הטהור, the flask of pure oil, that played such a vital role in it.

מתתיהו כהן גדול and the חשמונאים stood up for the קדושה וטהרה of כלל ישראל, their holiness and purity.

But now, millennia afterward, there is a group that has hijacked Chanukah for its own motives, defiling it in the process, R"L. An aggressive, dangerous Messianic sect that uses Chanukah as a giant platform to promote themselves and their late leader, which they hold to be the Messiah, despite his passing away over three decades ago. In their zeal to promote themselves and their events, they engage in various questionable activities along the way.

The other day I saw some egregious examples of this when I took a look at a video of a very recent Chanukah event in NYC put on by Chabad-Lubavitch (a branch of, that is part of the allegedly "non-messianist" faction, led by a grandson of a close associate of their late leader) with their ex-follower, the singer Matisyahu.

In the course of it, Chabad-Lubavitch had a young child shout out yechi...three times, promoting their long deceased leader as Messiah, from the stage. Additionally, the performer, Matisyahu, used improper vulgar language in his performance.

Is this what Chanukah is about? Such things are antithetical to the true meaning of the great Yom Tov.

And this is by no means the only way or instance of Chabad-Lubavitch playing (improper) games with it. In Washington, DC, less than a month ago, a prominent Chabad-Lubavitch agent, sang "brachos" (albeit using "Hashem") at a Capitol Congressional event over a menorah which was lit there, the thing is, however, that it was over a week before the holiday then. A Chabad-Lubavitch faux Chanukah. A different example related to the same fellow: at their "National Menorah" lighting" near the White House in the beginning of the Yom tov, a chazan they had there sang the bracha of להדליק נר without saying shem Hashem. Those are just a few prominent examples that we became aware of, who knows what may have happened elsewhere. Such shenanigans cheapen the holy Yomtov.

The גדולי ישראל that warned us against Chabad-Lubavitch (even when they seem on the surface to be doing something right), like Rav Schach zt"l, the Brisker Rav zt"l, and many others, were very wise, understanding, foresighted, and prescient, and have been proven correct on the matter many times over. We need to take a lesson from this in general, with regard to Chabad-Lubavitch, to not fall for their loud, flashy, and glitzy, and gaudy lures even if they seem at first to be kosher, as they have a חזקה, a presumption, based on a long record, to corrupt things with their messianism and mistaken theology, and not to be deceived by their deceptive massive propaganda apparatus.

In the זכות of following our great leaders, our Torah sages and elders, may we be zoche to true holiness and purity, leading the way to the true Moshiach, במהרה בימינו אמן.

Update: Chabad-Lubavitch subsequently released their PR piece on the event described in the beginning of the post, in which the attendance was exaggerated (thousands claimed, though from the photographs it looked like hundreds to me), and the messianic part was not reported. Typical of the deceptive propaganda of the dangerous sect of the false messiah of our time.