Is Chabad Lubavitch? Is Lubavitch Chabad? Are the two terms – “Chabad” and “Lubavitch” – synonymous? Chabad is an acronym; Lubavitch is a town. Chabad represents a hassidic philosophy; Lubavitch the ancestral home of a hassidic court. They are not synonymous. Cryptic though it may sound, Lubavitch is Chabad, but Chabad is not only Lubavitch.
The following editorial, on what world Jewry an learn from the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, appeared in the Washington Jewish Week.
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“Chef position available,” the advertisement read. Mendel, having just come out of Kollel, looks at the sign, grabs the strip of paper off the bottom and arranges an interview.
The past few sports weeks have zoomed by us like a NASCAR driver on the homestretch at the Talladega Speedway.
I was watching online the dedication of the new Chabad center in Kiryat Arbah named for the daughter of the shluchim there, Chaya Mushka Attiah, a”h. Besides shedding quite a few tears as I watched Chaya Mushka’s father dance with the sefer Torah and as I heard his voice break as he spoke a few words, suddenly a thought came to my mind: If a little girl could give up her life for the inyan of tznius, how much more so must we all make a huge effort to increase in tznius within ourselves, our children, our communities.
Two years ago, following the release of the Jerusalem Post’s first list of the world’s 50 most influential Jews, I was inspired to initiate an annual list of my own. Not of Jews, but of non- Jews, specifically those who are most positively influencing the Jewish future.
There is a tendency within Chabad to be quick to call out and put down another sector of the orthodox community when something is being done within Chabad that one may not approve of. For example, a report on someone taking a hard stance on Tznius usually results in comments such as “who do you think we are, Satmar?”
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has been assailed for saying at a fundraiser in Jerusalem that “culture” plays a large part in Israel’s superior “economic vitality” over the Palestinians, just as it does “between other countries that are near or next to each other. Chile and Ecuador, Mexico and the United States.” For this commonsensical statement of the obvious, he has been pilloried, not least by the Palestinian Authority’s Saeb Erekat, who described his remarks as “racist.”
Through the glorious grandeur that is the Modern Day Olympiad, and, more specifically so, its Opening Ceremony, the world as a whole recently embarked on what is sure to be a fun-filled and exciting next couple of athletics-viewing weeks.
Comments have been circulating, accusing Mitt Romney of ‘disrespect’ and poor choice in selecting Tisha Be’Av, a day of national Jewish mourning over the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, for his photo-op tour of the Jewish State. Frankly, I personally can’t think of a better day for him to visit.
Is the Chabad lifestyle sustainable? I believe it is not; here is why.
Just as there is a mitzvah to eat, there is a mitzvah to take care of your health. The Torah states, “Guard yourself and guard your soul very much (Deut. 4:9)” and “You shall guard yourselves very well (Deut. 4:15).” The Sages explain that these verses refer to the mitzvah of protecting one’s physical health.
The Crown Heights Community can be justifiably proud in the wonderful work of Hafatzus Hamayinus that they do worldwide. A prime example is your recent article of photographer Meir Alfasi, who traveled to the mountains of Bolivia, where he brought Judaism to fellow Yidden some of the most remote places on earth. However, with the many elderly and vulnerable residents that we now have in Crown Heights, one does not have to go to the remotest places on earth to help another Jew.
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Recently I took a trip with my nieces and nephews to visit my parents, their grandparents. The kids are two, four, and six years old, which means their enrollment in the Crown Heights school systems has varied from one year to three years, to none. They are sweet children, reminding me of all that is pure and good, and of complete naivety. On this trip, they also reminded me of something else.
We received this open letter from Devorah Leah Leopold in which she describes her inspiration to say tehilim for a critically ill teenage boy, Alexander Hecht.
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After reviewing and pondering some of the recent articles and associated comments on this website, I felt that there is a significant problem in the Lubavitch community that must be addressed. The problem is the prevalent practice of Lubavitch families employing non-Jewish (predominantly Hispanic) women to work in their homes assisting with housework and/or child care.
As a follow-up to my (controversial?) op-ed last week, and my comment there (#15), a truly amazing thing happened to me this past Shabbos that sent shivers through me. (It must be that either I am very far from Kedusha and Hashem wants me back, and/or readers of this article will have hischazkus from this.)
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