The Litvaks that saved USSR Torah Yiddishkeit

 Ubiquitous Chabad-Lubavitch propaganda, disseminated by the minions of their faith, some fellow travelers, and various naive others, puts forth a notion that they saved Yiddishkeit and Torah in the Soviet Union. That others fled, gave up, succumbed to the persecution and difficult conditions.

The reality however, is different. Though much of it may not be as well known as the Chabad tales to many.

ב"ה, over time, more has come out about the mainstream Yiddishkeit in the USSR and its heroes. In that vein, I was very happy to see a great account about two talmidim of the Radin yeshiva of the Chofetz Chaim zt"l, and their monumental work in הרבצת התורה והיהדות behind The Iron Curtain, in the latest issue of Mishpacha magazine. 

Highly recommended reading.

Read and learn, read and be inspired, read and enjoy.

זכר צדיקים לברכה, לחיי העולם הבא

The Real Reb Moshe Kotlarsky: Chabad-Lubavitch Partisan, and Messianic Believer

 Reb Moshe Kotlarsky, a prominent leader in the "establishment" Chabad-Lubavitch group (the one that attempts to conceal, play down, explain away problematic positions, such as their continuing belief that their late Rebbe, who died almost thirty years ago, is the Messiah) passed away earlier this week. Too much of the craven mainstream mass media, has been figuratively falling over itself since, fawning over him and flattering his group, painting him as some sort of mainstream Jewish leader, being led by the nose, as the saying goes, by the massive Chabad-Lubavitch propaganda apparatus. Typical of Chabad-Lubavitch, which acted similarly after the passing of Reb Yoel Kahn, a prominent teacher in the group, a few years back.

In order to better understand the real Reb Kotlarsky, beyond the glitzy PR of his group, we take you to some video you may not have seen (or for those who are Yiddish/Hebrew challenged, may not have understood).

At a Chabad gathering in Kazakhstan a few years ago -

a) Implores in prayer at gravesite of his Rebbe's father that 'we need the Rebbe (d. 5754/1994) here in a physical body to take us out of golus, bring us to Yerushalayim, והוא יגאלנו (and he will redeem us)'. 

b) Asks that Chabad-Lubavitch shluchim succeed in making Jews closer to "נשיא דורנו" (a Chabad-Lubavitch term for their Rebbes, meaning leader of our generation), his late Rebbe who passed away almost thirty years ago. That reveals what Chabad-Lubavitch is aiming for in its activities - bringing people closer to their sect and its long gone leader.

This shows you what Kotlarsky and his group are about. Not what they say in English to the media. But what they say in Yiddish/Hebrew among themselves.

More can be said, but due to busyness, will suffice with this to make the point now.

א גוטען חודש און א גוטען שבת

When the Novhardok Mussar Yeshiva came to the USA - Reminiscences of an American Boy

In the wake of the recent passing of Rav Yechiel Yitzchok Perr zt"l, as when he lived among us, the way of life of the Novhardok mussar movement (usually overshadowed by the Slabodka mussar camp) got some long overdue exposure. Sort of a Novhardok mussar renaissance, one might say. Rav Perr taught, publicized, and disseminated ideas and practices from that school. But it wasn't just coming from him. There have also been new works from Eretz Yisrael in recent years, such as professional audio recordings of Novhardok songs, as well as historical works on the group.

Recently I was in a seforim store, where I was pleasantly surprised to see a new attractive volume from a modern publisher on the writings of Rav Yisroel Salanter zt"l. I started looking at it, and to my pleasant surprise it included a very interesting, detailed first-person account of the early years of Novhardok in the USA, written by a well-known scholar. In it one gets an intimate look at its struggle and adaptation to its new home. It can be seen online (p.17-25). 

Enjoy!