As all Yeshivaworld readers are aware? I make it my business to take a strike at the Neturei Karta? Organization whenever possible. I post pictures, videos and letters from them. I also have? publicly asked many times why everyone is silent on this issue,? when we have these individuals on all the major News Networks getting prime time interviews? expressing their views & opinions and telling the world that they represent us – when in fact they DON’T! Finally, The Yated printed a piece on this issue. I suggest that you take out five minutes of your time to read it.–YW Editor.
Revulsion, disgust, repulsion, horror and fury are all still not sufficiently powerful adjectives to describe the feelings of this writer upon seeing two images over the past week.
The first was the image of a young �Chassidishe� looking man wearing a shtreimel. The young man had obviously determined that the best way to spend the holy Shabbos (Parshas Eikev) was to demonstrate in a Washington Park shoulder to shoulder with Arabs, waving a Lebanese flag. The caption beneath the picture stated, �� Neturei Karta Orthodox Jews Against Zionism wave a flag during a rally at Lafayette Park in Washington, DC on August 12, 2006. The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition organized thousands of demonstrators to march around the White House and call for Israel�s withdrawal from Lebanon and Palestine. This comes the day after the UN Security Council�s unanimous vote at the U.N. for a cease-fire.�
The second, even more repugnant image was a clip of a small group of people who call themselves Neturei Karta, at a pro-Hezbollah rally, in downtown Montreal, Canada.
Not only were they standing on the raised podium of honor, in full traditional Chassidic garb, long coats, beards and peyos blowing in the wind, but one group member actually addressed the rally. With words dripping venomous hatred, he condemned the Zionist establishment and said that his group protests the murderers of innocent Lebanese and Palestinian people and stands in solidarity with them. The frenzied cheering and hate- filled eyes of the Arab crowd combined with this individual�s malicious diatribe was enough to send chills down the spine of any Jew with even a modicum of feeling of the pain and the suffering that acheinu Bnei Yisroel are undergoing in Eretz Yisroel.
Besides the obvious fact that they are being used as the convenient idiots of North American supporters for Hezbollah, the actions of these wicked Jews, devoid of even an ounce of feeling for Jewish suffering, place Jews the world over in danger.?
In addition, they are besmirching worldwide the name of Orthodox Jews, Chassidic Jews and true, G-d-fearing kannoim.
Between Legitimate and False Kannous
Kannous, zealotry, is one of the most oft abused and misapplied, hallowed concepts in the Torah. Kannous that is not done in a manner rooted in the Torah, but rather out of a knee-jerk emotion with no basis in Torah and without the guidance of gedolei Torah and yirah, can descend into the most terrible hooliganism that is completely foreign to Yiddishkeit and Torah.
Rav Amram Blau, who founded the Neturei Karta in Yerushalayim, was close with the Brisker Rov and? the Chazon Ish and earned their respect. He, as well as his successor Rav Aharon Katzenelenbogen, were vehemently opposed to activities of this sort. As an indication of his disfavor, Rav Katzenelenbogen went to the Zionist Israeli secular court to enforce an order forbidding Moshe Hirsh from leaving Israel, to prevent him from engaging in joint activities with Jew-hating Arabs. Yet, cynically, the American group illegitimately uses the name of their group in a twisted bid to feign acceptance for their warped acts.?
The holy Satmar Rebbe, the Divrei Yoel zt�l, took great issue with the secular State of Israel, railing against its leadership, its actions and the very fact that a body such as the secular State existed on the hallowed soil of Eretz Yisroel.
Nevertheless, during the wars that Israel fought against its bloodthirsty Arab neighbors who sought to destroy every Jew living in the Holy Land, no person davened and shed tears for the welfare of his fellow Yidden more than the Satmar Rebbe. Anyone with even the most cursory knowledge of the Rebbe�s conduct during the wars fought by the State of Israel during his lifetime knows that the Rebbe publicly shed copious tears, never ceasing to daven that the Jews in Eretz Yisroel be protected from those seeking to kill or injure them.
True kannous, permeated by Torah and authentic ahavas Yisroel, can be the most uncompromising when it comes to ideology, while simultaneously possessing a heart that pulsates with love for every Jew; a heart that wishes with the deepest, most innermost desire that every Jew be safe and protected.
It goes without saying that the Satmar Rebbe, by virtue of his feelings towards the State of Israel, did not embrace its sworn enemies who desired to annihilate the State and all of the Jews living there. He would never have contemplated the concept of my enemy�s enemy becoming my friend; that concept has been publicly condemned by both him and his successors.
That concept, however, is what these so-called Neturei Karta kannoim have embraced. They have determined that Hezbollah, the Palestinian terrorists, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejead�s Iran – sworn enemies who desire to zap Israel and all of its inhabitants into nuclear oblivion – are their friends, to be fawned over, embraced and given legitimacy because of the one thing that they share in common: enmity for the secular State of Israel.
This knee-jerk reaction has no source in Torah. It is the product of emotion, of pure, unbridled hatred; a pure product of their taava to hate. It is not an ideology, but rather a taava like any other.
These people have shown that they would sooner literally kiss the arch-murderer Arafat, rather than embrace a Chassidic Jew, dressed identically, if he does not share their indiscriminate hatred of all who disagree with them. Hatred and beatings are reserved for those Jews who disagree with them.
Kissing Arafat, while beating fellow Jews, is a depraved level to which their so-called kannous has brought them.
Granting Legitimacy to Jew Haters around the world
If that was all their seditious behavior against Klal Yisroel accomplished, it would be bad enough, but what they are doing is far worse. They are granting legitimacy to Jew haters around the world; to all those who use Israel as an excuse to want to annihilate the Jews in Hitlerian fashion as they point to the concurrence of Orthodox-looking Jews with their beliefs, as proof that they are not anti-Semitic, just anti-Israel.
It is no wonder that Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky zt�l ruled that people like these who call themselves �Neturei Karta� should be considered �rodfim�� people who seek to kill their fellow Jews.
Rav Yaakov understood that by their actions they are legitimizing the designs of Jew haters to indiscriminately exterminate all Jews.
Is it any wonder that these same Neturei Karta members have been accepted with open arms by Ahmadinejead�s government as they visited Iran and were given prime time coverage on Iranian TV? They exclaimed that Ahmadinejead is not the only one who wants to wipe the State of Israel off the map; they share his belief.
In addition, they besmirch the name of all Chareidi Jews.
The average, non-religious Jew or non-Jew does not possess the knowledge to differentiate between this small fringe group and the hundreds of thousands of Torah-true Chareidi Jews. When they see these wicked Jews on TV standing shoulder to shoulder with bloodthirsty Hezbollah supporters, they are rightfully shocked that the Torah that these people claim to represent could advocate such behavior.
Thus, the name of the Torah, the name of Hashem, is irreparably defamed because of them.
Publicly Castigating Them: Right or Wrong
There are those who claim that? writing about their repugnant actions in our papers, we ourselves are giving legitimacy to a fringe group that has only a handful of diehard supporters.
We wish we could agree. Unfortunately, whether we write about them or not, this fringe group has already gained legitimacy in every corner of the world, among the most well-known and prestigious news reporters, as the networks have focused on them and many millions of viewers have been exposed to the images of these obviously Orthodox, Chassidish-looking men engaged in redifa against all Jews.
An example of how their views have been reported as mainstream can be gleaned from the fact that Mike Wallace, the long-time anchor of CBS�s �60 Minutes�, the most prestigious and highly rated network weekend news program, cited them as an example of Jews who agree with Ahmadinejead.
Wallace, interviewed last week by talkshow host Sean Hannity, was taken to task for having gone to Iran to interview Ahmadinejead for his program, while Ahmadinejead has openly admitted that he wants to wipe Israel of the map.?
Wallace, while reminding the world that he himself is Jewish, gushed about how Ahmadinejead isn�t anti-Semitic. He also told Hannity that he believes the man is honest, even though he�s said he wants to annihilate Israel. Wallace supported that claim by saying that there are Orthodox Jews who also believe that Jews shouldn�t be in Israel.
In truth, the damage that they cause and the chillul shem Shomayim is simply incalculable. We would all be far better off if they would cut off their beards and payos, take off their hats and yarmulkes, thereby resembling the anti-Semites that they are. Better yet, perhaps they should trade in their felt hats for turbans. Then they would really fit where they belong.
If they feel so enamored with Hezbollah and the Lebanese, perhaps they should move to Beirut, where they could show real solidarity with the poor Hezbollah people with whom they commiserate. Better yet, maybe they should move to Ahmadinejead�s paradise in Iran. Then they can be amongst like-minded people and not feel as if they are such a minority.
They don�t move there because they wish to use the freedom afforded them by this country to be rodef their fellow Jews.
They want to have the amenities, protection and infrastructure of frum communities, in Monsey, London, or Brooklyn, while using them as a launching pad to invite the world�s wrath on the very communities in which they live.
It is high time that caring Jews see them for what they are and stop giving them refuge in our communities, stop letting them use our stores, our shuls, our mosdos hachinuch from which they benefit. It is virtually guaranteed that if no one from our own communities would allow them to benefit from our communal infrastructure, their influence would be mitigated.
Even better, maybe this will spur them to move to Iran.
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11 Responses
KOL HAKAVOD to Yated!
A reader emailed me this–YW Editor
Dear Yeshivaworld,
Thank you for printing the article from the Yated on Neturei Karta. Finally, a frum publication got the guts to stand up to these people that besmirch the name of the frum Jews and Hashem in front of the whole world.
The only possible criticism I have on the Yated article, is that it wasn�t sharp enough. It is high time that all of my fellow Monsey residents, where most of these excuses for human beings live, come out and combat this chillul Hashem from their midst. When these guys come to daven at Vizhnitz or Satmar they should be driven out of the shul in shame.
When they enroll their kids in school, they should be sent home without rachmanus. Rachmanus on them is merachem al achzarim!
The group who they most besmirch is Satmar. Satmar should therefore be the first ones to distance themselves from them. They should not let them in their schools. I think we can be pretty certain that if Satmar wants, they know how to properly execute the petty terrorism to make these guys think twice before standing shoulder to shoulder with people that want to Nuke the Jewish people into oblivion like Ahmanadjehad.
UP
Monsey
I strongly suggest that everyone should do their utmost power to speak to them in their own language, i.e. threaten them with cheirem of the worst kind. This should be done by a bes din made up of the most respected chasidishe rabbonim.
And, most importantly, to somehow get such an event prominently into the news.
I would be more interested to see what a paper like the Yid, would have written about the NK. Better to hear what the the supposed view of the kanoim is , from them, not from yated.
The reason why we are still in golus is not because of a tiny handful of sick and confused shoitim but rather because sinas chinom has permeated very large chunks of our own communities.
Although the average Satmar chosid would not engage in the Chilul Hashem these deranged neturei karta nuts perpetrate, the sinoh oozes from so many of them when they talk about anyone who is a �tzioini�, (which too them is basically anyone who does not subscribe to their extreme shitos).
I read the mainstream Satmar publications when 10,000 yiddin were thrown out of Gush Katif last summer, and over 30 shuls and yeshivas etc. were abandoned to the wild mobs of Islamic filth. These publications were gushing with disgusting sinah and joyfully celebrating the misery of fellow yiddin. �They deserved it, these tzioini settlers who were the cause of the Holocaust� they triumphantly declared. I do not want to repeat all the rishus these articles exuded.
The Yatad itself is far from clean on this and during that same period made it quite clear that they were not going to lift a finger to help our suffering brethren because �the orange camp� never did anything to help the yeshiveshe olom with their issues.
The Yated and other mainstream chareidi publications often spew forth vicious sinoh against Lubavitch and Rav Kook or Rav Soloveitchik all in the name of kanous when in truth as this insightful author of the article quoted above correctly describes this behavior, it has nothing to do with yiras shomayim: “This knee-jerk reaction has no source in Torah. It is the product of emotion, of pure, unbridled hatred; a pure product of their taava to hate. It is not an ideology, but rather a taava like any other.”
I could go on and on but there is no point. Those that engage in false kanous are so blinded by there delusional sense of self righteousness, they will never admit any wrong.
A talmid of Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer zt�l once asked him why he davined in a chassidshe shteible Friday nights and not in a litvesher minyim close to his home. Rav Isser Zalman said that he used to davin there but he once overheard 2 bochurim making fun of Rav Kook. He was machlit then and there never to step foot in that minyin again.
I agree with most of what the article says, but wonder if something like this would make it into the Hebrew version of Yated that is available here in Israel – I’ve noticed that the “tone” of the Hebrew and English versions of the paper vary significantly.
I also wanted to note that while I agree with the majority of what Isser said in his reply, I think it is important to distinguish between those who denigrate Rav Kook and Rav Soloveichik, who, while they had shitos that were different from others in the Chareidi community, were considered by most of their contemporaries to be gedolim in Torah and Yiras Shomayim, whose shitos had a basis in Halacha. Contemporary Lubavitch, on the other hand, has unfortunately gone beyond what is acceptable – a majority of Lubavitchers now believe that the current dead “rebbe”, Menachem Mendel Schneurson, is one who should be worshiped and will return from the dead to lead us. This is the case among the majority, whether openly proclaimed or not. With this, they have left Yiddishkeit, and have become another form of Jews for Jesus. While I will daven for their safety and well being the same way I would for any other Yid who is currently “off the Derech”, I feel it is necessary to publicly speak out against their beliefs, iif for no other reason than to try to prevent others from following their warped form of “Yiddishkeit”.
a caring Israeli Yid
Did this article appear in the American or Israeli Yated? The two papers, despite the identical names, are very different; the Israeli publication (translated here) is published by the Degel HaTorah political party whereas the American paper is now published independently. This may explain the differences in “tone” between the two publications.
And, IsraeliYid, R’ Aaron Soloveitchik, ZT”L, R’ Yisroel Belsky, ShLT”A, R’ Nechemiah Goldberg, ShLT”A, etc. disagree with your assessments.
IsraeliYid Says:
Contemporary Lubavitch, on the other hand, has unfortunately gone beyond what is acceptable �with this, they have left Yiddishkeit, and have become another form of Jews for Jesus.�
You have unfortunately fallen for the shtusim constantly being spewed forth by those who are motivated by machlokis and sinas chinom. I asked Horav Shloma Miller Shlita, Rosh of the Lakewood Kollel in Toronto and one of the most respected Talmidei Chachomim and poiskim in North America if there is any chashash of drinking the wine or counting for a minyim a Lubavitcher if he is a mishichist. He told me it is total am horatzis to even pose such a shaala. The is no issur in kol hatorah kula to believe someone is Moshiach dead or alive, and to compare this with avodah zora is ludicrous. However, he added it is very silly to believe that there is any merit in identifying who moshiach is, therefore although he would not hesitate to count them for a minyin he would hesitate to trust a mashgiach who is silly.
I am, to put it mildly, a nogea ba-davar with respect to criticisms of contemporary Lubavitch. Let me make a few very brief observations with respect to the last posts. With respect to R. Aharon Soloveitchik, please read what I wrote in “Ha-Rebbe Melech ha-Mashiach, Sha’aruriyyat ha-Adishut, ve-ha-Iyyum al Emunat Yisrael” (Urim), pp. 72-75. R. Belsky expressed the strongest criticisms of Lubavitch to me on the phone in the wake of what I wrote about this subject in Jewish Action a decade ago, and there is a tape in which he speaks about these developments with the deepest concern. I have a 2003 letter from R. Shlomo Miller in which he asserts that one finds “apikorsut u-minut” in the widely-read journal “Beis Moshiach,” and, he adds, the people who write these things are not to’im (as other Lubavitchers may be) but “mesitim.” He does not believe, however, that these views are held by a majority of Lubavitchers. In my view, though the messianist belief itself is not avodah zarah, it destroys the gedorim of the messianic faith of Judaism. As to Lubavitch avodah zarah, it is far more widespread that most people assume. For my assessment of the reality on theground, see http://chareidi.shemayisrael.com/archives5766/pinchos/olubavtchpnc66.htm.
David Berger
Dr. Berger,
Sorry, no sale here. Expressions of “deepest concern” and “strongest criticism” are not synonymous with claims that “they have left Yiddishkeit” and the like. And spare us claims in private letters to yourself from Rabbis A, B and C. If they do not consider those concerns powerful enough to state publicly they are not for public consumption.
And regarding your linked article, I am among those who consider the medium of publication as a “p’sul”. Face it; The Jewish Week and other similar “modernische” publications did not run with it whereas they have carried similar material from you in years past. Only a politically-charged hareidi journal was interested. Why? Perhaps your story has run its course already and is no longer the “deep[] concern” it was a decade ago. Nowadays, the only ones still interested are those who have a bone to pick with Lubavitch – and have since long before “meshichisten” ever became an issue. The “mainstream”, however, is not interested. Your cite from Rabbi Miller suggests that he does not currently view the matter with nearly the grave import that you do as “[h]e does not believe…that these views are held by a majority”. And what has Rabbi Belsky said in the past few years to suggest otherwise?
The orthodox world has moved on, Dr. Berger. Get over it and stop living in the past.
To those who took issue with my characterizaion of modern-day Lubavitch – I personally heard Rav Yisroel Belsky Shlita state, in response to a very specific question asked by a close friend, that the non-Mevushal wine of a Meshichist Lubavitcher is not a she’ela of Yayin Nessech, but is definitely Yayin Nessech. Rav Belsky went on to state that the only differece between the beliefs of those who await the return of the dead Rebbe and Christians was that the former believe in a duality, while the latter believe in a trinity. Similar statements were made by Rav Belsky in a speech he made back some time between late 2000 and early 2002 at a gathering at Agudas Yisrael Bais Binyamin, at Ave. L and Nostrand Avenue, though I can not recall his exact words.
With regards to Rav Aharon Soloveitchick (ZT”L)’s views – having never discussed the issue with him, I can not comment directly; however, I have discussed the issue with his son, who generally follows his father’s shittos, who strongly believes that the views of the Mesianics are outright appikorsus.
I know nothing about Rav Nechemia Goldstein, so I can not address his views.