Yeshiva Nezer Hatorah of Gateshead, England, led by Rav Naftoli Meir Lieberman, recently went on a trip to Morocco where they visited Jewish historical sites and kevarim.
While singing and davening at the kever of Rav Amram ben Diwan, a renowned 18th-century miracle worker, in the town of Ouazzane, the bochurim were joined by a group of Canadian tourists, one of whom told them he was Jewish and had not put on tefillin since his bar mitzvah – 55 years ago.
The boys and tourist, who identified himself as Mark, struck up a conversation, during which the bochurim convinced him to lay tefillin for the first time in over five decades.
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28 Responses
These bochorim have now officially become honorary Lubavitchers.
יפוצו מעינותיך חוצה! Who would have thought 50 years ago that such a thing would ever happen, that Gateshead bochurim would put tefillin on a secular Jew, instead of mocking Lubavitchers for doing so.
if the guy actually starts to do mitzvas and live a yiddish life, then it is worth it–but just putting on a pair of teffillin?-what are they, magic?
1) The institution involved is not the old, famous Gateshead yeshiva that goes back close to a century there. Rather it is a relatively young, much newer institution, that was made for boys who had difficulties elsewhere. A more typical yeshiva doesn’t take trips like the one described.
2) The fellow put on tefillin inside, in a sheltered Jewish site, not outdoors in an impure secular street, in public view, as Lubavitchers often do it.
Lubavitch does not have the exclusive ownership of kiruv rechokim. Just because Lubavitch started the kiruv movement before it became popular, doesn’t give them ownership rights.
Many of Lubavitch activities which were once mocked have become fully accepted.
Once long ago we mocked them for having pictures of their Rebbe – we called it AZ. Now gedolim pictures are popular.
We mocked their obsession with moshiach. Now moshiach is a popular topic of all gedolim.
Maybe Lubavitch is simply a bit ahead if it’s time.
Lived in Gateshead for over twenty years, never heard anyone mocking Lubavitchers for putting tefillin on non-from Jews. There are other things wrong with Milhouse’s comment, but לא עליך המלאכה לגמור.
Beautiful! May we have more and more uplifting posts such as this one.
Milhouse, the actual possuk is ופרצת ימה וקדמה… no possuk of יפוצו מעינותך…
משלי ה: ט”ז ורש” י
יפוצו מינתך חוצה – סוף שתקנה תלמידים ותורה הוראות ברבים ויצא לך שם
And Malbim explains chutza vs rechov in this possuk.( ברחובות פלגי מים), that chutza is being the house where only family members are, while rechov is the public domain.
Therefore the uforatzta to rechov is far greater than to the nearby chutza.
chabad didnt invent kiruv
yes i am quite impressed with much of what chabad does
“ if the guy actually starts to do mitzvas and live a yiddish life, then it is worth it–but just putting on a pair of teffillin?-what are they, magic?”
Agreed. Magic? No, more powerful. Never underestimate the power of a single mitzvah (not matter how big or small)… Shamayim sure doesn’t.
Bobbydaboy
יש קונה עולמו בשעה אחת
You don’t know the schar of one mitzvah
LOVE IT great work nezer lads
bobbydaboy they put tefillin on someone for the first time in years why do you have to be negative about it?
Lemayseh (you wrote: The fellow put on tefillin inside, in a sheltered Jewish site, not outdoors in an impure secular street, in public view, as Lubavitchers often do it).
Is it a requirement of your shulchan oruch that tefillin only be put on indoors?! Your shulchan oruch might have extra sections that are missing from the normative shulchan oruch.
Does your religion require that tefillin only be worn away from public view?! (When the Talmud states that the Nations will see the name of Hashem (tefillin) on you and will fear you – are these goyim in shul to observe Yiden wearing tefillin?!).
Is the outdoors, the place that you call impure and secular, disqualified for prayer?! (Yitzchok davened mincha outdoors in the open field and presumably Yaakov davened maariv outdoors too).
Yes, there might be dog poop outdoors, but in a shul there might be a baby with a smelly diaper too, or a stinking garbage can with rotting cholent from shabbos kiddush. We know to be cautious of such things, right?!
bobbydaboy (you wrote: if the guy actually starts to do mitzvas and live a yiddish life, then it is worth it–but just putting on a pair of teffillin?-what are they, magic?)
Iguess your hashkafa is that doing just one mitzva is no big deal. I assume you also believe that doing one aveira is also no big deal – like just one time eating a McDonald’s cheeseburger or chilul shabbos…you need to reset your hashkofa.
“Many of Lubavitch activities which were once mocked have become fully accepted.”
“Maybe Lubavitch is simply a bit ahead if it’s time.”
I am not aware of others having big banners and incessant declarations that their leader is Moshiach, continuing decades after his levaya.
@bobbydaboy
Anybody who had learned masechtos rosh hashanah with meforshim and poskim, knows that when a yid puts on tefllin for even one time, he is removed from the category of a “karkafta d’lo manach tefillin”- a head that never put on teffillin-and then he is worthy of a chelek in olam habah!
Yes, putting on tefillin is “magic”!
@sensibleyid
You are right, Avraham Avinu invented it.
But it was for the most part ignored until the rebbe pushed it extremely and passionately, and eventually it has become accepted in the velt for the most part.
Chabad only does mitzvos outdoors? Putting on tefillin isn’t magic? One mitzvo doesn’t lead to another?
Why not take back the impure streets? Why should 90% of all of the Jews in the world be sheltered from all forms of Judaism and be forced to spend their lives mired in impurity? I thought we just finished Peasch. Enough of the impurity. Take back the streets.
Ujm (and maybe others), what in the world is wrong with trying to get other Jews to do mitsvos?
Lemayseh (wrote: I am not aware of others having big banners and incessant declarations that their leader is Moshiach, continuing decades after his levaya)
One’s ignorance of a fact does not diminish the fact. If you aren’t aware of something, that does not mean it isn’t. I will try to make you more aware:
Declarations by students that their leader is moshiach seems to be a jewish custom by sages of the gemarah, as evident from the Talmud:
מה שמו? דבי רבי שילא אמרי שילה שמו
שנאמר “עד כי יבא שילה”. דבי רבי ינאי
אמרי ינון שמו שנאמר “יהי שמו לעולם לפני
שמש ינון שמו”. דבי רבי חנינה אמר חנינה
שמו שנאמר “אשר לא אתן לכם חנינה”. ויש
אומרים מנחם בן חזקיה שמו שנאמר “כי רחק
ממני מנחם משיב נפשי”. ורבנן אמרי חיוורא
דבי רבי שמו שנאמר “אכן חליינו הוא נשא
ומכאובינו סבלם ואנחנו חשבנוהו נגוע מוכה
אלהים ומעונה”
What is his name? The yeshiva of R’ Sheila says: Shiloh is his name, as it is stated:“Until Shiloh comes.” The yeshiva of R’ Yannai says: Yinon is his name, as it is stated: “May his name endure forever; may his name continue [נּוֹןִי [aslong as the sun.”The yeshiva of R’ Chaninah says: Chaninah is his name, as it is stated: “For I will show you no favor” [הָ ינִ נֲ ח
Regarding, whether or not they continued to make such declarations after the death of their teachers, the context of the Talmud seems to suggest that they coninued to make such declarations even after the death of their teachers, This is a likely conclusion after carefully reviewing the Talmuduc text and context.
Firstly, after this passage, the immediate comment that Moshiach can possibly be from the departed, suggests that such declarations were made by students even after their teacher departed:
אמר רב נחמן אי מן חייא הוא כגון אנא שנאמר
“והיה אדירו ממנו ומושלו מקרבו יצא”.
אמר רב אי מן חייא הוא כגון רבינו הקדוש
אי מן מתיא הוא כגון דניאל איש חמודות.
Rav said: If he is among the living, [he is] like Rabbeinu HaKadosh. If he is among the dead, [he is] like Daniel the Beloved (שׁיִ א אלֵיִ ּנָ דּ
.(חֲ מֻ דֹות
Secondly, The Gemara does not quote the individual Sages R’ Sheila, R’ Yannai, and R’ Chaninah; it quotes their Yeshivos. (It is unlikely that students would be bold to make pronouncements in front of their teachers)
This could well mean that after each of these Roshei Yeshivos passed away, the Yeshivos they founded continued in their derech, and the students continued making such declarations, that their teacher was/is moshiach.
The Gemara is accordingly quoting the tradition in each Yeshiva regarding the name of Moshiach, based on the name of the founding Sage of their Yeshiva.
Third, See Sefer Toldos Tanaim v’amoraim chelek 3 page 1112 where he says it appears the Yeshiva of R’ Sheila continued after he passed away and also partly bases his reasoning that the Yeshiva is called “D’Bei” – the house of R’ Sheila. Regarding D’bei R’ Yannai see sefer Doros HaRishonim chelek 2 page 137 that also shows the Yeshiva continued after the passing of R’ Yannai. This is similar to “Beis” Hillel and “Beis” Shammai, who continued in the traditions of their founders, Hillel and Shammai, after they passed away.
This suggest that this passage of Talmud, of students declaring their teacher as moshiach, took place after the passing of their Roshei Yeshivos.
However, the ignorant remain ignorant and will continue to mock the wise. That is the way of all ignorant.
There are multiple reasons why גדולי ישראל did not go along with the Chabad Lubavitch tefillin campaign. There are a number of issues I can think of (and gedolim may have additional ones as well). For example, modern streets have great פריצות, immodesty, which do not go with tefillin. Tefillin need גוף נקי. There are questions if one can be yotze with Lubavitcher tefillin. Etc.
Lubavitch do some amazing things, but also do certain things that are very questionable according to halocha and mesorah. Believing a dead man to be Moshiach and blessing this deceased man in benching and daavening is certainly halachikly incorrect and possibly apikorsus. Those lubavitchers that go beyond the mashichists and believe the Rebbe to be part of duality or trinity unfortunately have hopefully only lost the plot rather than mirroring the early christians. Let us daaven that the drum Chabad chasidim should carry on their ways of spreading yiddishkeit to lost Jewish people and avoid very questionable practices of worshipping the dead rather than the Ribbon shel Olom.
This Yeshiva from Gateshead is certainly following the mesorah and halocha and seeking to improve the lives of young teenage bochurim.
“blessing this deceased man in benching and daavening is certainly halachikly incorrect and possibly apikorsus” – if you are right, we had all better skip the blessing in Amida of “Al hatzadikim” where we bless ALL tzadidikim! Gosh, I never knew that brocha is “certainly halachikly incorrect and possibly apikorsus”. Thanks for enlightening us. Anything else you feel in davening needs to be immediately omitted by klal yisroel?
“Tefillin need גוף נקי” – indeed, as the Talmud states: א”ר ינאי: ‘תפילין צריכין גוף נקי כאלישע בעל כנפים Clearly we are not at that level to be like אלישע בעל כנפים. As such, we must continue to see how the Talmud interprets the requirement of גוף נקי, and then think if this is or isn’t a concern when someone puts on tefillin with a non-frum yid.
The Talmud continues: מאי היא? אביי אמר ‘שלא יפיח בהן’, רבא אמר ‘שלא יישן בהן Hence there are two possible concerns: (1) not to pass gas while wearing tefillin; (2) not to sleep while wearing tefillin.
Your concern about גוף נקי is that when putting tefillin on a non-frum person, during that minute or two, the non-frum person will let loose a stream of gas or he might fall asleep.
Does that really happen? When you meet someone, is it common for them to pass gas in front of you or do they fll asleep while meeting with you?! (Of course it is “possible”, but extremely unlikely, and not reason enough to neglect putting on tefillin).
As a Yeshivish-Litvish background, I am far from being someone that supports the derech of Chabad.
I do find comical any of the comments that proclaim that Chabad is somehow not adhering to basic halacha or even possibly apikursus.
The qualifications of the authors of such comments is, at best, that they spent a few years in yeshiva and maybe the more scholarly, also had a couple of years in kollel.
Yet, notwithstanding their very limited knowledge of Torah and their minimal familiarity with halacha, these authors challenge the views of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, whom by all accounts was a gaon and godol.
Is that not comical?! Would someone who took a course of math in high school, challenge a world renown mathametician? Yet, these authors feel comfortable challenging, and proclaiming that a gaon and tzaddik directs his chassidim to go against halacha by putting tefillin on non-frum yidden in the street. Is that not absurd on so many levels?!
It only requires basic Yeshiva education to realize the seriousness of the actions of the Mashichists and Elokists, some go against basic halocha and the Ani Maamins of the Ramban. They followed a great Tov when he was alive but since he died a couple of decades ago they send him faxes and he responds to their questions, they dance round his photo at their weddings, and simchas, they predominantly only learn his seforim, they change the nusah hatefilloh in a most serious way, they ignore certain basic halocha s like zeman tefilah so that a few devout chasidim can learn the rebbe’s sichos whilst most sleep off their hangover, and like oth
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It only requires basic Yeshiva education to realize the seriousness of the actions of the Mashichists and Elokists, some go against basic halocha and the Ani Maamins of the Ramban. They followed a great Tov when he was alive but since he died a couple of decades ago they send him faxes and he responds to their questions, they dance round his photo at their weddings, and simchas, they predominantly only learn his seforim, they change the nusah hatefilloh in a most serious way, they ignore certain basic halocha s like zeman tefilah so that a few devout chasidim can learn the rebbe’s sichos whilst most sleep off their hangover. There are other issues which I won’t discuss for various reasons, but it is surely time for the serious G-d fearing chabad chasidim to break away and serve the Ribbono shel Olom in accordance with minhagei chabad the teachings of all the great Chabad Rebbe’s and all the Tanoim, Amoroim, Rishonim and Acharonim. I write this as a pained fellow yid who wants his brethren to return to the derch Yisroel saboh