Wednesday 12 June 2013

The Lubavicher Rebbe

Originally published 6/12/13, 11:17 am.
In honour of 3 Tammuz

«Pinchas Hirschprung

Rabbi Pinchas Hirschsprung, Chief rabbi of Montreal, who shared a very close relationship with the Lubavitcher Rebbe and served as Rosh Yeshiva at the Chabad yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim Montreal, wrote a lengthy letter about Chabad Messianisim to Baruch Frishman, executive director of Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools (AARTS), in response to efforts by some Haredi rabbis to decertify Oholei Torah/Oholai Menachem (a major Lubavitch yeshiva in which the messianist belief is proclaimed) from this organization (see below). In the letter Hirschsprung wrote that there was no shadow of a question in halacha about (the permissibility of) the singing and proclaiming of the Lubavitcher Rebbe as the messiah, that it was based on clear passages in the Talmud, Zohar, and Kabalists whom the Jewish people all rely upon for contemporary halacha. He also pointed to the fact that the Rebbe himself used such references on his father in law Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, and that he himself was someone to rely on. He also praised the efforts of the Lubavitcher Rebbe and his followers in the task of bringing Jews closer to Judaism, saying "who knows this work better than them".[74]»

Chabad messianism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chabad_messianism


Best Regards,
RRW

1 comment:

Rabbi Ben Hecht said...

With all due respect to Rav Hirschprung and not necessarily in support of the attempt to oust these Lubavitcher yeshivas from the AARTS, there is a great difference, I believe, between the Rebbe's reference to his father-in-law in Messianic terms and the present behaviour of the Mashichists. In the same way, I believe, there is a subtle halachic difference between the sources brought in support of this practice and the present practice itself. This is, obviously, for a longer presentation than what can be said in this comment. Suffice to notice the development of the Boreinu Mashichists in Israel -- which is clearly outside the pale -- and to trace their emergence from this general group. Simply, there is, in my opinion, a problem in this practice that is indicated by the fact that the Boreinus could have emerged from them.

Rabbi Ben Hecht