Non-messianism

This site is distinctly non-Messianic. I believe that claiming the Rebbe to be the Messiah serves mostly to embarrass him as do claims that he was the greatest of the Lubavitch Rabbis or the greatest man of the generation. When one says, as I will, that the Rebbe was a tremendous scholar and leader, one of the best of his day, then one tends to accept it. But once you say he was the greatest scholar of his day, then we look a little more closely. We say, what evidence is there that his Talmudic learning was as great as Rav Gustman, or Rav Feinstein, or Rav Soloveitchik? Suddenly, we start to doubt him in that area. Same when you call him the greatest tzadick or leader. You start saying, did he really do so much? Lubavitch made its mark, but it's not the only game in town. Most baalei teshuvah were not brought in by Lubavitch. Most of the so-called Lubavitch educational institutions are Chabad houses which are really homes that the Lubavitch residents assign this name and engage in usually small time help to the community in the form of Menorah lightings and the like. Chabad doesn't have more real schools than anybody else. They have a stronger presence in a few places: Australia, France, and Russia. But they are not dominant in America or Israel. You see, we start finding fault in them as a pushback to the hyperbole.

That's my thought on it. I have no idea who the Messiah is or will be and really it's none of my business. I'm just trying to be a simple Jew and to keep my emunah in tact in these sorry times. The 7th Rebbe is helpful to me. I enjoy his Torah very much. I like the 6th Rebbe too and of course the Baal HaTanya who is greater than all of them as the greats of the 18th century of course tower above contemporary people. Any claim that the 7th Rebbe, may he rest in peace, is greater than earlier rebbes is highly offensive to me.

Here are some other people I have found that oppose Messianism:

"During those years, there were strong forces within the Chabad–Lubavitch movement, led by the two executors of Schneerson's will; Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, and Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, resisting the messianic movement."Wiki)

"The Chabad–Lubavitch umbrella organization, Agudas Chasidei Chabad, and the governing body of Chabad–Lubavitch rabbis, Vaad Rabonei Lubavitch, have both denounced the messianic behavior." Wiki


Schneerson's response (Wiki):

The first record of Hasidim referring to Schneerson in messianic terms was in 1965. That year, Rabbi Avraham Parizh printed letters that spoke of Schneerson as the Messiah and started handing them out in Israel. When Schneerson learned of this, he immediately dispatch a telegram to Parizh in Israel saying that he was "shocked by the letter [you wrote and disseminated]" and asked that Parizh "immediately cease distributing it." Schneerson instructed Parizh to "gather and send to all extant copies of the letter, every last one, and please confirm immediately that you have fulfilled this instruction."[47]

In 1984 Sholom Dov Wolpo published a booklet identifying Schneerson as the Messiah. Schneerson publicly denounced these actions several times. During one of these talks he said that those involved [in the publication] were starting a new war against Chabad, and that he should never have to speak about it again. On Shabbat Bereshit, when Wolpo began singing a song that had long been popular in Lubavitch, which referred to Schneerson as the messiah, he abruptly stopped the singing and ordered that it never be sung again.[48]

In 1991, Rabbi Aharon Dov Halprin, the editor of Chabad’s Israeli magazine (Kfar Chabad) prepared an article that explained why the Rebbe was worthy of being considered Messiah. When the Rebbe got word of this he responded sharply, "If you, God forbid, [plan to] do anything even remotely similar, it is preferable that you shut down the periodical completely".[citation needed]

On a number of occasions Schneerson said that Rabbis should issue a psak din that Moshiach must come. In 1988 Rabbi Yitzchak Hendel issued a ruling stating, not that the Messiah must come, but that the Rebbe was to be the Messiah. When the Rebbe saw the ruling, he responded to Hendel and wrote "me’heichan dantuni? (- a Talmudic term connoting: on what basis have you ruled against me?) Is this the standard of all your rabbinic rulings!?"[49]

And in an urgent Yechidus with Rabbi Tuvia Peles, the Rebbe rebuked those who were making Messianic claims about him, saying "they are taking a knife to my heart. They are tearing off parts of me."[citation needed]

In the late 1980s and early 1990s Schneerson's talks became increasingly focused on the topic of Moshiach, that Moshiach was about to come, and what was needed to accomplish this. These talks would often take on a sense of urgency. This, coupled with Schneerson's frequent statement that ours is the "Last Generation of galut (exile) and it is the first generation of Geulah, the redemption" is one of the arguments put forward[by whom?] that the Rebbe is the messiah. On one occasion, during the Rebbe's talk at the International Conference of Shluchim ("emissaries"), he stated, "the work of the Shluchim has already finished, and the only task left is to welcome Moshiach".

In the early 1990s Hasidim became more vocal about Schneerson being the Moshiach, even submitting a petition to him asking that he reveal himself as the long-awaited messiah.

On one occasion in 1991, as the Rebbe was leaving the evening prayers when traditionally someone would start a song and the Rebbe would encourage it on his way out of the synagogue, some Chasidim began singing one of the Rebbe’s favorite lively songs, adding the words of Yechi -- "Long live our master, our teacher, our Rebbe, King Moshiach." The next morning, however, the Rebbe refused to go down to the synagogue until he was assured by Rabbi Groner that there would be no such songs sung again. Indeed, the song was never again sung in front of the Rebbe until some months after a stroke felled him and removed his ability to speak or write.

A few months later, a few people did muster the courage to start singing at an intermission in a Shabbos farbrengen a less overt song that implied that the Rebbe was the messiah. Within a few seconds the Rebbe heard it and immediately became very grave and said: "Really, I should get up and leave [the room]. Even if some people consider it is not respectful that I need to [be the one to leave], I don’t need to reckon with the views of a small number when [what they are saying] is the opposite of reality. However, first of all, it will unfortunately not help anyway. Secondly, it will disrupt the shevet achim gam yachad [brethren to dwell together in unity], for if I were to leave, others will leave, too."[50]

In 1992, a journalist from Israel said to the Rebbe, "We appreciate you very much, we want to see you in Israel; you said soon you will be in Israel, so when will you come?" The Rebbe responded: "I also want to be in Israel." The journalist insisted, "So when, when will you come?" The Rebbe responded, "That depends on the Moshiach, not on me." The journalist persisted, "You are the Moshiach!" to which the Rebbe responded, "I am not."[51]

Chenoch Leiberman

Chenoch Leiberman

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