Why I hate Lag Baomer

For weeks I’ve been writing about how, slowly but surely, the Charedi world is beginning to see the light — though it may be too little, too late.

The word “Charedi” itself, a made-up term, which I only learned after becoming a father of five, literally means “to tremble.” It refers to trembling in awe before HaKadosh Baruch Hu.

But let’s be honest — as you read this, you’re probably smiling and thinking, “I know a few Charedim who don’t tremble at all.”

Indeed, many are not trembling; instead, they are distancing themselves from the rest of the Jewish people and inventing new ideas as they go.

Another term I encountered only after becoming a grandfather is “Daas Torah.”

And truthfully, it means nothing — absolutely nothing.

Ask a Satmar chassid who his Daas Torah is, ask a Chabad chassid, ask a Litvak from Lakewood — not one will agree with the other. The phrase is used to intimidate the naïve and uninformed.

I know a young kollel man, a genuine talmid chacham, who divorced with several children. He consults his Daas Torah about whom to date and what to do next. Yet his Daas Torah has been wrong about every single woman he’s met.

This is what happens when people surrender their own judgment entirely.

Take Lag BaOmer, for example. These massive bonfires have no basis anywhere in Torah. Growing up in America, not one rebbe or rosh yeshiva ever made a fire on Lag BaOmer. Even Rav Yoelish Teitelbaum, the founder of Satmar, opposed the practice — he opposed it even for those living in Eretz Yisrael.

Or consider the idea of not working for a living. Rav Avigdor Miller was firmly against men learning all day while being supported by their wives.

The truth is that many serious, frum people are realizing that their Torah leaders are disconnected from Klal Yisrael. Those leaders receive filtered information from askanim with agendas, and their decisions are steering the community toward an abyss — a system that cannot sustain itself and will eventually collapse under its own weight.

People are beginning to speak out. For now, it’s mostly anonymous, but I predict that soon the silence will break.

Below is an article from a frum writer describing the Lag BaOmer fiasco — a symptom of a much deeper problem.

The Tzaddik from Meron Arrested after Sexually Abusing everything that Walked

 

A leading communal rabbi from Meron in northern Israel has been arrested for alleged “serious sexual offenses,” police said on Thursday, a week after he was accused by a cult watchdog of managing a tightly controlled group since at least 2011.

A statement from the Israel Police said Rabbi Yosef Shovely, 54, was arrested overnight Wednesday-Thursday following a covert investigation after multiple complaints were received.

Shovely is said to have maintained tight control over his followers, although it was unclear how many adherents he had.

Sources familiar with the details of the case told the Walla news site that according to complaints that had accumulated over time, Shoveli presented his control over followers as spiritual.

“He succeeded in entering into the lives of people and making them completely dependent on him. He controlled their daily routines, distanced them from their families, and some of them effectively became his servants,” a source with knowledge of the probe told Walla.

Shoveli was expected to be brought before a court for a remand hearing later on Thursday.

Police called on anyone who may also have been harmed by the suspect or have any knowledge of alleged crimes to come forward.

Last week, the Israeli Center for Cult Victims posted a warning about Shoveli, saying it had collected 16 testimonies against him, including from five people who were directly involved in the group’s inner circle, as well as from family members from the Haredi community.

The witnesses described “worrying patterns of dependence, control, harm to family ties, exploitation, an atmosphere of fear” and sexual exploitation in the group, with the earliest witness complaint being filed in 2011, according to the center.

Four of those who came forward said they were sexually assaulted by Shoveli, who presented the acts as “spiritual.” They said they were witnesses to assaults on other members, indicating a pattern of abuse in the group.

The center described an inner group of heightened control, and an external group among whose members “dependence, high piety, and harm to family ties” began to take shape.

In the internal group, members’ lives are intensely controlled, with the center noting some members wouldn’t even establish their own family without Shoveli’s approval.

Some even changed their last name to Shoveli, according to the center.

Members carry out daily chores for Shoveli, such as cleaning and caring for his children, without pay, the center said, adding that members viewed their servitude as a “privilege” and “mission.”

Shoveli said he “absolutely disavows all of the above and rejects the matters outright,” in response to the center’s claims.

Last year, survivors told a Knesset hearing harrowing tales of sexual abuse primarily taking place in ultra-Orthodox and national-religious communities, with abusers using the mantle of religion to justify the acts.

Mir Yerushalyim To Open New Branch In Beit Shemesh

 In a major development for the Torah world and the growing chareidi community in Beit Shemesh, a massive five-dunam plot of land has officially been allocated for a new branch of Mir Yeshiva in the Ramat Beit Shemesh Hey 2 (Neve Shamir) neighborhood.

The new makom Torah will operate under the leadership of the Rosh HaYeshiva HaGaon HaRav Eliezer Yehuda Finkel, continuing the remarkable expansion of the Mir, today recognized as the largest yeshiva in the world.

The allocation was finalized following an extensive approval process and reportedly received strong support from Shmuel Greenberg, who has made the strengthening of mosdos haTorah a major priority in the city’s development.

The move is being viewed as another historic milestone in the continued growth of the Mir empire, which began in Yerushalayim’s Beis Yisroel neighborhood and later expanded to major branches including Mir Brachfeld in Modi’in Illit and the Mir yeshiva ketanah in Ramat Shlomo.

The establishment of a Mir branch in Ramat Beit Shemesh Hey is also being seen as a powerful sign of the neighborhood’s emergence as a major Torah center. Residents and askanim expressed excitement over the arrival of hundreds of bnei Torah who will bring the unique atmosphere and hasmadah associated with the famed Mirrer olam hayeshivos to the rapidly developing area.

At this stage, hanhalas hayeshiva is preparing for the initial planning phase of what is expected to become a major new Torah campus that will accommodate the yeshiva’s continued growth and expanding demand in the burgeoning Ir HaTorah of Beit Shemesh.

IDF Successfully Drafted 360 Chareidim This Week Despite Opposition From Leading Rabbonim

 

The Dam is finally cracking, as more and more Charedim want to be a part of the state and realizing that they are being led by a bunch of ancient disconnected clueless leaders who are being fed lies and propaganda by their handlers! 

They don't want to be resented by the rest of Klall Yisrael, and want to contribute to the welfare of their own families and the State! This is our State, the home of the majority of the Jewish people, and they are recognizing that what they were told in their Yeshivas is not sustainable and was never the way Klall Yisrael functioned! 

Reading Tanach, you will see every leader had an army! 

?האחיכם יבאו למלחמה ואתם תשבו פה

The IDF drafted approximately 360 Chareidi men this week, the military announced, marking progress in its efforts to integrate Chareidim into compulsory military service despite staunch opposition from rabbanim and roshei yeshiva.

Of the recruits, 231 joined combat roles including the Chashmonaim Brigade, the Netzach Yehuda Battalion, and the Paratroopers Brigade. Another 131 were assigned to combat support positions, including fighter jet technician units. The IDF expects more Chareidi conscripts to arrive over the coming two weeks as part of the same draft cohort.

The push comes as the IDF says it faces acute manpower shortages. Some 80,000 Chareidi men aged 18-24 remain eligible for service but have not enlisted. The IDF says it urgently needs 12,000 recruits — primarily combat troops — to sustain operations across multiple fronts.

“We are drafting more Chareidi soldiers out of operational necessity,” the military insisted.

The IDF has expanded infrastructure to accommodate Chareidi service members, implementing new protocols that allow them to maintain religious observance while serving. However, Chareidi leaders say the new frameworks for Chareidi soldiers are woefully inadequate. ‘

R' Shimon ben Yochi Refuses to protect family of 6 "idiots" from a Rocky Cliff After Attempting To Reach Meron From Tzfat, Zionists come to the recue

It seems that R" Shimon ben Yochai doesn't want the fires, and instead wants Jews to abide by the Zionists safety regulations. First there was an enormous tragedy where Jews murdered other Jews  and now there was at least 10 near misses.

The government was worried that Hezbollah would target Meron, and I don't even want to think what would have happened if this occurred. 

Again, Charedim by-in-large are a reckless community  and refuse to abide by safety standards because its issued by Zionists, but when they wind up in a hole and cannot get out, whom do they call? The Zionists! 

These children need to be put up for adoption, they will be much better off, the grandmother needs to be rushed to an asylum !

 Late on Tuesday night, a complex and dramatic rescue operation by volunteers from the “Galil-Carmel” rescue unit of the Israel Police came to an end. 

Six family members, a grandmother and her five grandchildren, aged 10 to 15 from Tzfat, who had attempted to reach the Lag BaOmer celebrations in Meron on foot, lost their way and found themselves trapped on a dangerous cliff.

The incident began in the early evening, when the grandmother called the police emergency center. She reported that the family was lost in the field, stuck on a cliff with no ability to continue walking. Despite a strict ban on accessing Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s tomb, the family tried to make their way from Tzfat to Meron through rough terrain. Rain in the area made the slopes especially slippery and dangerous, leaving the group stranded on the western slope of the Nahal Amud stream.

Upon receiving the call, a command post was set up at the Kfar Shamai parking area. The unit’s search teams raced against time, with one team scanning the terrain and using sirens until they established voice contact with the trapped family. The operation was carried out in close cooperation with inspectors from the Nature and Parks Authority and volunteers from United Hatzalah. A drone operated by United Hatzalah located the group on the cliff and illuminated their position for rescuers. In the first stage, a flashlight and thermal blankets were dropped from the air to prevent hypothermia among the children.

Due to the difficult terrain and slippery rocks, the unit’s rope rescue team (climbing, rappelling, and rescue) was deployed. The rescuers built a complex rope system, through which the family members were safely extracted one by one out of the streambed. After a medical check by the unit’s paramedic, the family was evacuated home safe and sound.

It is worth noting that this was the second consecutive day of operations for the “Galil-Carmel” rescue unit in the Meron area, after they had also been engaged the previous day in rescuing hikers and worshippers in the region.

The rescue unit stated:

 “We reiterate that access to the Meron area is strictly prohibited. The combination of challenging terrain and unpredictable weather can end in disaster. Our volunteers worked long hours in the rain, using specialized rope systems to bring the grandmother and her grandchildren home safely.”

Jonathan Pollard launches bid for Knesset

 

I met with Jonathan Pollard a couple of months ago, and my wife and I had an hour discussion with him in Yeushlayim, and found him to be extremely intelligent, honest and would make a great spokesperson for Israel from the Knesset.

For those who say that Pollard is a criminal and that he sold secrets to Israel for money, I say so what?? 

At the end of the day, he gave those secrets to Israel, not an enemy of the USA!

Israel for political reasons abandoned him.

For those who accuse him of treating his first wife, Anne, badly, that is not true. According to an interview to The Times of Israel on Nov 20, 2015, she says that she has no idea why Jonathan divorced her. We don't know why he divorced her and he never gave her closure, but why is that an issue in his campaign?? 

We are not electing a pope!

If we start scrutinizing the Knesset members you will be left with a handful of honest, clean background people. 

What is interesting to note is that those criticizing Pollard because of his background also hate members of the Knesset  who phenomenal backgrounds like Ben-Gvir and Smotrich! 

Jonathan Pollard, who was held for 30 years in a U.S. prison for espionage on behalf of Israel, intends to run in the upcoming Knesset elections.

'The country was abandoned on October 7th just as I was'

In an interview with i24NEWS he says the idea took shape after the October 7th massacre.

 Which party did he join and what is his criticism of the current actors on the right of the political map?

The Jewish American 'Conception' ('conseptziya') VS. the Israeli konseptziya

 

The world has read extensively about the flawed Israeli 'conseptziya' (understanding of reality) that paved the way for the October 7 surprise attack. Far less has been written about a simultaneous breakdown occurring within American Jewry. While one relates to the horrors of kinetic warfare, the other concerns the true position and stability of the Diaspora.

For decades, American Jews operated under their own flawed 'conseptziya,' regarding their status in society-assumptions that have been exposed by the surge of Jew-Hatred since October 7. In both cases this misdiagnosis of reality led to huge lapses in judgement and planning.

President Trump Urges Jews to observe Shabbos to Honor U.S. 250th Anniversary....

 

President Trump has called on American Jews to observe a national Shabbos from sundown May 15 to nightfall May 16 in recognition of the nation’s 250 years of independence and the community’s contributions to America.

Trump made the suggestion Monday during his proclamation for Jewish American Heritage Month.

"Fake Rav" Seidenfeld from Monsey issues Fake Siruv Against Rav Mordechai Willig !

Who is this Seidenfeld who pretends to be a Rav? I lived in Monsey for over 30 years and never heard of this Bais Din? The chutzpa to issue a "siruv" to Rav Willig! 

A Monsey beis din has placed Rav Mordechai Willig - Av Beis Din of the Beis Din of America - in nidui.

The declaration, dated 8 Tammuz 5785, was issued on the letterhead of Beis Din Tzedek Mishpat Hatorah at 207 Bates Drive, Monsey, and calls on the public to distance themselves from him.

Rav Willig is one of the senior dayanim of the most established beis din in North America - the body that has issued seruvim against Gett refusers for decades.

The community deserves public answers from this Gett abuse-enabling “Dayan” named Seidenfeld on Bates in Monsey.

 

Baal Teshuva Lunatic Traveled from the USA to Israel so he "Can spit on Tziyonim"

 

This raving sicko says that he lived in the USA but came to Israel so that he can spit into the face of Tzyoinim! He adds that he became a "Baal Teshuva" after witnessing a Hafgana! 

But what I'm surprised is that there are adults all around them looking like normal people who are listening to this meshiginar and have no reactions! 

And he is saying this with children around him! 

Is it any wonder that Chardeim are splitting away from these sickos?