The Lubavitcher Rebbe may well go down in Jewish history as one of the leading Jewish figures of the 20th century. His great impact on Jewry world-wide cannot be disputed. But will his legacy exclusively be one of great achievement? Or will it be tarnished by the events of our day taking place within in its own environs right now? Events that I believe can be directly attributed to the Rebbe, who near the end of his life over focused on the coming of Moshiach, predicting his arrival was imminent.
A couple of weeks ago, there was an item in the news that went mostly unnoticed. In fact I hardly noticed it myself. It was an article about a lawsuit currently taking place that is making its way through the Court of the state of New York. It centers on who will ultimately control the fate of the main Shul in the building at 770 Eastern Parkway which is considered Chabad World Headquarters to all Lubavitcher Chasidim. Anyone who has ever read anything at all I have written about Lubavitch will know that amongst various problems facing Klal Yisroel now, the Messianism of Lubavitch is one of the bigger ones. There are two stridently opposing factions.
There are the Meshichists, rabid supporters of the notion that the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson was or is the Messiah and either died and will soon be resurrected in a second coming to complete his mission here on earth… or is in fact still physically alive and is merely waiting until the right time to lead his the Jewish people out of Galus in the final redemption.
Then there are the Lubavitch anti Meshichists, those strongly opposed to them. And they have been doing everything they can to quiet down the Lubavitch Meshichists. They correctly believe that the Meshichists are making a laughing stock out of Chabad and will destroy all the good works Lubavitch has done. So a fight ensues. And it is so acrimonious that it has been taken out of the Lubavitch’s religious court system and has gone to the secular courts to be adjudicated. They are about to embark on a full blown trial.
The lawsuit is, in effect, about who will ultimately control the face of Lubavitch… the Messianists or the anti-Messianists. And this is no small thing. Why is that building so important? I’m not sure but 770 has had an important place in Chabad theology for quite some time now. The building has been replicated in many parts of the world including Israel. I’m told that many in Lubavitch feel that this building is or will serve as the Beis HaMikdash… or at least it should be considered as holy… or some such nonsense. I’m not sure how accurate that statement is but the fact that it has been replicated brick for brick in Israel and so many other places is indicative of how important that building is to all of them.
As I understand it the purse strings of Lubavitch are controlled by the saner, anti-Meshichists. And the leadership as a whole seems to stem from them as well. But to the Meshchists that is far from a settled issue and I’m sure they would dispute that assertion.
They in fact seem to have an unlimited supply of funds for their ads, posters, glitzy publications, and other antics. The actual Shul which is the centrpeice of 770 is controlled by the Messianists to this day. To experience what goes on there any given day would shock just about any non-Lubavithcer. And if the proliferation of Messianist posters, Moshiach flags on cars, the rise of Beis Moshiachs all over the world, and yarmulkes on the heads of children (and even some adults) …all of which proclaim the Rebbe as the Messiah… are any indication, the Moshichists are winning.
What is the source of the lawsuit? Form an article in the Forward:
“The roots of the lawsuit lie in a fracas over just this very matter back in 2004. In the middle of a November night, a band of rowdy youngsters tore out a plaque that had recently been installed at 770 by the global leaders of Chabad, who own the building. The youths were angered by the plaque because it referred to Schneerson with a Hebrew acronym used for dead people, which conflicted with the youngsters’ view that the rebbe is a still living messiah.”
To me this entire episode is yet another indication of the true feelings of just about all Lubavitchers on the issue of whether the Rebbe is the Messiah and will be resurrected in a second coming. The following statement, I believe, reveals the innermost thinking of vast numbers of Lubavitchers.
“In his affidavit, the lead gabbai, Rabbi Zalman Lipskier, wrote that “the real issue in dispute involves conflicting views on how our faith views the passing of the Grand Rebbe Schneerson and whether or not at this time he may be referred to publicly as the Messiah.”
Whether or not at this time he may be referred to publicly as the Messiah?!
I no longer think it can be reasonably argued that the anti Meshichists in Lubavitch can be truly defined as anti-Meshichist. They believe it. They just hold it can’t be proclaimed yet. And this is what the “war” in Lubavitch is all about… a war that has divided families.
Let me repeat what my Rebbe, Rabbi Aaron Soloveichik has said about this belief: It is Shtus! And of course just about every other Rabbinic leader of any stripe outside of Lubavitch would agree.
These beliefs are total nonsense. And I really do not believe enough has been done by the rest of the Torah world to impress this upon Lubavitch. And if Lubavitchers truly care about the Rebbe’s legacy, they will accept that simple truth.
