Lubavitcher Sparks Outrage by Burning Bible

Shneur Odze, a 33-year-old Lubavitcher who is running as the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) candidate for mayor of Manchester, ignited a firestorm by burning a bible that was left at his door by missionaries, and then publicizing the photo on social media.

from the Times of Israel:

A high-profile rabbi and aspiring politician stirred up controversy in British media when he burned a Bible on the eve of Passover.

Rabbi Shneur Odze, a 33-year-old United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) candidate for mayor of Manchester, tweeted a photo of the burning bible last Monday.

“Grateful to whoever put a missionary bible amongst our synagogue’s books. Was wondering what I’d burn my Chametz with,” he tweeted, a reference to the leavened bread that Jews destroy on the eve of the Passover festival.

The tweet has since been deleted, but Britain’s Daily Mail reported on the incident on Sunday.

Click here to continue reading at the Times of Israel.

Back in 2014, Odze sparked controversy by refusing to shake women’s hands amid a run for the European Parliament on the UKIP ticket, which led many in the party to call for his ouster.

22 Comments

  • Baila

    I might also burn a missionary bible. But if I was a Jewish politician looking to be accepted by not drum or Jewish people I would do it in private!

  • Great Dane

    Of course, halacha states that a bible written by a non believer (of the Jewish faith) should be burned. However, I think the battle our generation faces is one of Jews and Christians against atheists and radical islam. As such, I agree with Baila that this should not have been made a public spectacle. It’s a lose-lose situation.

    • Beautiful kiddush Hashem

      That took guts.
      You fight fire with fire.
      Missionary goons want to destroy our neshamas. May the rabbi’s bravery wake up Yidden to realize that it’s not ok to read or own any missionary items. It you find any in your mail box, burn it.

  • Dear lord

    So sickening. Just politely call a church and donate it or something. Or throw it out discreetly. Don’t burn something that someone else holds as being holy. What if a Christian burned a Torah?! What a Chillul Hashem. I hope this guy never wins anything.

    • totally agree

      its not funny, it doesnt help anyone, and its not right.
      we dont have a mitzvah to burn crosses, either.

    • Milhouse

      How dare you compare kedusha to tum’ah? If a Xian were to burn a Torah it would be terrible, because the Torah is holy; when we burn a New Testament it is right and proper, because the NT is unholy and unclean, just like a pornographic book or a KKK poster. That Xians have the opposite opinion is irrelevant; not all opinions are the same. They are wrong and we are right.

    • Milhouse

      פסילי אלהיהם תשרפון באש

      ונתצתם את מזבחתם ושברתם את מצבתם ואשריהם תשרפון באש ופסילי אלהיהם תגדעון

  • um

    k, so we can burn their books and publicise it and make a joke, but we go crazy when they do it to us?

    • B"H

      If we gave out book to them we do not go crazy, we go crazy when they come and take out books (a Sefer Torah is not cheap)

  • Andrea Schonberger

    In the United States it’s considered free speech to burn a bible but I don’t know about England or other countries. I get missionary stuff in the mail but I just toss it in the recycle bin–I live in Washington state and we seem to be in a continuous burn ban to protect the air quality so I’d probably get a court summons if I burned anything in public. A few months ago a Mormon missionary yelled at me for a dumb reason and I yelled back so I guess that counts as exercising my right to free speech LOL!

  • The kangeroo

    Moonchester must have a lot of pyromaniacs,the Rabbi walks on burning coal another chabadnic burns books in public.And that probably is the tip of the iceberg.

  • Tsk tsk tsk!

    Mamash? l wonder what his aveira count is? Moshe Noah, Schlomo, Avraham names were in that Bible. Plus he destroyed ivrit lettering. He did not do a favor for Hashem.

    • Milhouse

      Since when is it an aveira to destroy the names of Moshe, Noach, Shlomo, or Avraham? And since when is it an aveira to destroy “ivrit”? He did exactly as Hashem commanded.

      The unusually high level of ignorance in your comment makes me suspect that you are a Xian idolater pretending to be a Jew.

  • quagmire

    not sure if you fools realize he’s making a statement against missionaries coming in to our shul and stealing a torah is incomparable and quite brainless a comparison kol hakavod

  • The kangeroo

    It is not what he did.People can do whatever they want, as long as they do not do in public and scare the horses

  • Chani

    Yeah, that’s sickening. Just quietly donated it. I don’t care if you agree or not, don’t destroy someone’s Holy item. As someone else pointed out, if it was a Torah people would lose their minds and probably call it anti-semetic.

  • Crown Heightser

    Would the Rebbe do this?

    That is the ONE question every “shaliach” (representative of the Rebbe) needs to ask himself.

    If missionaries left a bible at the Rebbe’s doorstep, would he publicly burn it? Yes or no?

    As a representative of the Rebbe, a shaliach must act accordingly. As far as chassidim: Every chosid represents the Rebbe!

  • doing his own thing

    this is what you need to ask a rav instead of just following your gut and possibly getting many other jews in trouble