“I don’t speak because I have the power to speak; I speak because I don’t have the power to remain silent.” Rav Kook z"l
Wednesday, January 1, 2025
Is the Jewish State the "Ultimate Evil" or a Golden Opportunity? Actions Of R' Yoel Teitelbaum ..Satmar Rebbe
6 comments:
Garnel Ironheart
said...
Through their hagiographies, Artscroll and Feldheim are able to create Gedolim. Just like Avigdor Miller who was a minimal figure but is now very famous, and the Satmar who should mostly be remembered for leaving his followers behind to die while he escaped to the one country he told them to never, ever go to.
Minimal? Coming from a fella who blew in from out of the orthodox orbit. His cajoling & op-eds likely seriously influenced elections from the end of the '70s
Although it is possible to refute every point in this ad hominem attack against the Satmar Rebbe, it is impractical to do so in this forum due to the restrictions on the space allocated to any response. It is therefore necessary to very succinctly demolish Keren-Kratz's main argument that the Rebbe's extraordinary popularity was due to his professed zealotry, not in spite of it.
Were that to be true, that the non-compromising position of the Rebbe was what attracted thousands to follow him, would that not suggest that Rav Amram Blau and his minions in the Neturei Karta would reign supreme. Even Keren-Kratz admits in this article that Blau's position was more extreme than that of the Rebbe. Nonetheless, the Neturei Karta has been largely marginalized and is deemed unacceptable to the mainstream Hasidic community.
But Keren-Kratz's main deficiency is where he fails to entertain the possibility that Rebbe's popularity was due to the areas in which the Rebbe excelled; namely his passionate "avdus hashem", the many fast days he voluntarily accepted upon himself, he lengthy davening which could consume most of his day. The Rebbe also made it acceptable for Jews to openly parade their religiosity without embarrassment. It is to the credit of the Satmar Rebbe that my grandchildren proudly display their payos and tztitsis.
Nor does Keren-Kratz consider the Rebbe's capacity for compassion for any individual Jew, nor is there any mention of the many chesed institutions founded or supported by the Rebbe. We must not forget that Hatzalah has its origins in Williamsburgh, not Tel Aviv University, Keren-Kratz's alma mater. Should we not take note of the fact the Rebbe insisted that every one of his adherents, regardless of their own wealth, must without exception dedicate one day per year where they would personally solicit funds door to door like a shnorer in order that they experience what an indigent Jew does?
It is one thing to argue that the Rebbe's scholarship was sub-par. It is quite another thing to ignore the totality of the personality of the Satmar Rebbe that made him the magnificent leader that he actually was.
Cyrano This is just ONE of the articles that Kratz wrote in reference to the Satmar Rebbe! I don't want to be put in a position of defending what Kratz wrote, since most of the historical part is well documented, but what I do want to add, since my own father z"l learned in the town of Satmar but by the Biksader Rebbe, I knew all of this and more! Let me tell you that Kratz has not even scratched the surface of this polemic! But what the common denominator is, is wherever the Satmar Rebbe went he left machlokas in his wake! Even in Williamsburg, Satmar drove his own nephew the Kloizenberger Rebbe z"l out of town and he had to relocate to Union City because of all the physical violence!
I'm old enough to remember what Satmar did to R' Hershele Spinker, I'm old enough to remember what Satmar goons did to Rav Moshe Feinstein z"l! The harassment, the humiliation, the physical violence is something that I will never ever forget. The Rebbe knew all about this, yet never did he try to stop this. I remember when Lubavitchers marched to Williamsburg Shuls to make Simcha to Holocaust Survivors on Simchas Torah and were met with beatings, stoning etc on Yom Tov itself! Those of us growing up in the 60's & 70's remember this all too well, we also remember when the Belzer Rebbe needed security at his Friday Night Tish in Boro-Park because of Satmar violence. I saw the graffiti on the brick walls on the Prospect Expressway "Yemach Shmo Berel!" I think that Kratz wrote the posted article with respect, I could have never been so polite! Most of the old chassidim of Satmar of Romania knew all this very well but were drawn to him for very different reasons, the main one was because of the fact that Survivors hung out together because they were all from the same background, though many Satmar Survivors who lived in Israel left him! Last night I had a discussion with a Satmar relative of mine and he told me that the Rebbe helped out a Zionist with money that once came to him for help! I told him that I heard the story and I don't believe it at all, and even if it were true, so they are making a big deal that the Rebbe helped another Jew who didn't agree with him! Wow!!!!!! He helped out another Jew Wow WEEEEE!!! The Zionists in Israel gave $300 million to Chareidie Moisdois this year alone and that is after all the cuts! You know something, yesterday a schnorrer with a silver bekeshe came into my shul and I gave him Tzedakka though I don't agree with anything he stands for, and I am not the Satmar Rebbe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6 comments:
Through their hagiographies, Artscroll and Feldheim are able to create Gedolim. Just like Avigdor Miller who was a minimal figure but is now very famous, and the Satmar who should mostly be remembered for leaving his followers behind to die while he escaped to the one country he told them to never, ever go to.
Page 19: "Vayoel Moshe (and yoel moshe)" who wrote this?....
Minimal? Coming from a fella who blew in from out of the orthodox orbit.
His cajoling & op-eds likely seriously influenced elections from the end of the '70s
Although it is possible to refute every point in this ad hominem attack against the Satmar Rebbe, it is impractical to do so in this forum due to the restrictions on the space allocated to any response. It is therefore necessary to very succinctly demolish Keren-Kratz's main argument that the Rebbe's extraordinary popularity was due to his professed zealotry, not in spite of it.
Were that to be true, that the non-compromising position of the Rebbe was what attracted thousands to follow him, would that not suggest that Rav Amram Blau and his minions in the Neturei Karta would reign supreme. Even Keren-Kratz admits in this article that Blau's position was more extreme than that of the Rebbe. Nonetheless, the Neturei Karta has been largely marginalized and is deemed unacceptable to the mainstream Hasidic community.
But Keren-Kratz's main deficiency is where he fails to entertain the possibility that Rebbe's popularity was due to the areas in which the Rebbe excelled; namely his passionate "avdus hashem", the many fast days he voluntarily accepted upon himself, he lengthy davening which could consume most of his day. The Rebbe also made it acceptable for Jews to openly parade their religiosity without embarrassment. It is to the credit of the Satmar Rebbe that my grandchildren proudly display their payos and tztitsis.
Nor does Keren-Kratz consider the Rebbe's capacity for compassion for any individual Jew, nor is there any mention of the many chesed institutions founded or supported by the Rebbe. We must not forget that Hatzalah has its origins in Williamsburgh, not Tel Aviv University, Keren-Kratz's alma mater. Should we not take note of the fact the Rebbe insisted that every one of his adherents, regardless of their own wealth, must without exception dedicate one day per year where they would personally solicit funds door to door like a shnorer in order that they experience what an indigent Jew does?
It is one thing to argue that the Rebbe's scholarship was sub-par. It is quite another thing to ignore the totality of the personality of the Satmar Rebbe that made him the magnificent leader that he actually was.
Cyrano
This is just ONE of the articles that Kratz wrote in reference to the Satmar Rebbe!
I don't want to be put in a position of defending what Kratz wrote, since most of the historical part is well documented, but what I do want to add, since my own father z"l learned in the town of Satmar but by the Biksader Rebbe, I knew all of this and more!
Let me tell you that Kratz has not even scratched the surface of this polemic!
But what the common denominator is, is wherever the Satmar Rebbe went he left machlokas in his wake!
Even in Williamsburg, Satmar drove his own nephew the Kloizenberger Rebbe z"l out of town and he had to relocate to Union City because of all the physical violence!
I'm old enough to remember what Satmar did to R' Hershele Spinker, I'm old enough to remember what Satmar goons did to Rav Moshe Feinstein z"l! The harassment, the humiliation, the physical violence is something that I will never ever forget. The Rebbe knew all about this, yet never did he try to stop this.
I remember when Lubavitchers marched to Williamsburg Shuls to make Simcha to Holocaust Survivors on Simchas Torah and were met with beatings, stoning etc on Yom Tov itself!
Those of us growing up in the 60's & 70's remember this all too well, we also remember when the Belzer Rebbe needed security at his Friday Night Tish in Boro-Park because of Satmar violence. I saw the graffiti on the brick walls on the Prospect Expressway "Yemach Shmo Berel!"
I think that Kratz wrote the posted article with respect, I could have never been so polite!
Most of the old chassidim of Satmar of Romania knew all this very well but were drawn to him for very different reasons, the main one was because of the fact that Survivors hung out together because they were all from the same background, though many Satmar Survivors who lived in Israel left him!
Last night I had a discussion with a Satmar relative of mine and he told me that the Rebbe helped out a Zionist with money that once came to him for help! I told him that I heard the story and I don't believe it at all, and even if it were true, so they are making a big deal that the Rebbe helped another Jew who didn't agree with him! Wow!!!!!!
He helped out another Jew Wow WEEEEE!!!
The Zionists in Israel gave $300 million to Chareidie Moisdois this year alone and that is after all the cuts!
You know something, yesterday a schnorrer with a silver bekeshe came into my shul and I gave him Tzedakka though I don't agree with anything he stands for, and I am not the Satmar Rebbe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cyrano
The one who started Hatzala was not Satmar, his name was Weber z"l. I lived next door to the family in Williamsburg!
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