Hirschel Tzig has strongly criticized my integrity on his blog. He "proves" my lack of sincerity by the obvious fact that I do not publish anonymously. Only anonymous bloggers are sincere since their sincerity endangers them. Since I am apparently not concerned with being personally attacked that "proves" that I am not genuine and am merely a purveyor of hatred against Chabad. I would not be making this a post except that he is an influential blogger and a self proclaimed defender of Chabad. His style of defense is perhaps stronger proof than all the erudite and sensitive comments of Rabbi Oliver that there is something seriously wrong with Chabad today. He wrote the following on his blog - Circus Tent in a post title "Not-so-brave man"
=======================================I was recently made aware of the DaatTorah Blog. In a nutshell; the blog can be defined in one word: Hateful. In a scholarly, "We're concerned about the problematic teachings and sichos" kind of way. Which is kind of like the white supremacists pointing out the "problematic passages in the Talmud." If you have a problem with Jews then you'll believe anything. The same goes for Lubavitch, a microcosm of the entire Klal Yisroel. What DaatTorah is, is basically rehashed Areivim posts and thoughts by some of the shining stars who post there, Mr. Eidensohn included. One thing did surprise me, the fact that he put his name and picture up for all to see. His name is on all his comments on Areivim, but the picture adds a nice touch to it. Makes it a very open exchange of ideas and of opinions, and shows that he truly believes in what he opines, and is willing to put his face behind every comment.Why does that surprise me? After all, it's only the ones who show the hypocrisies of the mainstream that need to worry about their safety and the education and marriage prospects of their children. They're the ones who are terrified of people finding out who they are and phone calls made to their childrens' chadorim and schools that the ____________ kids are not be allowed there anymore. Not that I think I need to worry about THAT aspect of it, or at least that's I'm told, but I do need to worry in general, you never do know which zealot can decide that I offended his something or other and deserve to be hurt or my property damaged. So we live in anonymity, and the Eidensohns of the world are out there for all to know, maybe even thinking of themselves as respectable gentlemen doing what's right ------ fighting the evil empire, Chabad.
C'est La Vie.
Hirshel Tzig comment to "Chabad - Chasidim - not just Litvaks - are upset":
The Rebbe was referring not to "a drunk shliach" but to a Yid, a Baal Mesiras Nefesh in Russia, who made a statement, not disrespectfully I might add, about the Chazon Ish. The Chazon ish of 1954, not the Chazon Ish of 2008. By that I mean that his reputation was not what it is today.
I have issues with people who like the anonymous commenter you quote who make statements about groups they know VERY little about, and do not have the intellectual capacity to understand what they mean.
I'll reiterate the statement I made on my blog: This is nothing but pure unadulterated hate towards Chabad, albeit in a suit and tie. Sorta like Joe Kennedy's anti-Semitism, very refined, but still the same thing, if not worse.
I actually thought his mention of your sincerity was a backhanded compliment. Whatever.
ReplyDeleteRabbi Eidensohn, just as you say that Chassidei Chabad should understand where you and your colleagues are coming from, so should you try to understand where Chassidei Chabad are coming from.
The relationship that a Chabad Chossid has with his Rebbe is a very deep relationship. It's not just about learning Torah. It's a deep personal feeling, and it's supposed to be (see, for example Kuntres Hishtatchus from the Mittele Rebbe). What if someone would start a blog badmouthing your father, would you respond dispassionately? I don't think anyone would. And if you didn't, would that reflect badly on your character? Nope.
So when you come on here, for all to see, and in essence attack Chassidim and even the Rebbe, albeit in a scholarly sounding way, it's very upsetting. We know that these claims come from misquotes, exaggerations, third-hand reports, etc. Take your post right here. Is it really fair to jump to a conclusion that one hostile post tarnishes the entire movement? I think not. We also know that some claims have some truth to them, albeit exaggerated as if these are faults of everyone or most, when in fact it's only a small minority or even a handful. You see, we know that these are exaggerations.
For example, we know that the vast majority of Lubavitchers are very nice people, and the earlier post where you quoted something impolite that a Lubavitcher said to you really comes off as a totally unfair misrepresentation, when we know that it's not so. Also, we know that there exist some regrettable faults in certain individuals over which we don't have much control, and quite frankly, that also causes us pain.
This upset feeling is all the more intense when we as Lubavitchers know that a claim, certainly the one concerning revelation of Elokus in Tzadikim, is simply not factual.
I personally have been so upset that I've had to make a tremendous effort not to go there, and stick to the issues in a more understated way, because that's the way I'm going to have some constructive impact. I think that Hirschel's post wasn't constructive, but personally, I can relate to Hirschel's sentiments. And I know other Chassidim who are so upset when they see the distortions and exaggerations, etc., that they just can't handle it, so they avoid such sites and interactions altogether.
I don't know you personally; I'm still trying to figure you out from your blog, but there definitely exist people who have a sick, malicious agenda to attack everything about Chabad, one driven by far less than pure motives, even if only subconsciously. Everything they can get their hands on that sounds disparaging, they post, and all in the name of "exposing the truth." That's sinas chinam because although there are pretexts for the hatred, at the core those are not the reasons, and this is just evident in the way they talk. They are out there, and everyone knows the names of their blogs. Is it so far-fetched for someone to confuse you with them, that you should be surprised at a hostile response? (By the way, I'd appreciate a response, instead of just reposting my post for others to respond.)
http://www.save-a-torah.page.tl/
ReplyDeleteAnyone of Achai Hayehudim want to purchase a Torah?
Anyway, I decided to comment because the Orthodox and Ultra Orthodoxs worl is going through a MEAG "Mida Keneged Mida" tit-for-tat from heaven:
-The Zionist Orthodox in Israel have a Pilug on issues bring them to a point where one group is hesitating to call the other group's Rabbis "Rav" (Sound familiar, Yidden??!?)
- Now you guys (Chabad, Other Charedim, the blog writers, the comment writers etc) are blaming each other: You havent studied enough, you dont know Chabad, you are talking out of ignorance, etc)
The Tat that you are getting in your face is that you claimed for many decades that the more liberal Rabbis and scholars dont know enough, arent strict enough...
Now your Rabbis are getting it back in the face! Being blamed of being to liberal, etc!
-And What ever happened to the Commandment: "Lo Titgodadu" ? ? ?