In defending the notion that there are many Lubavitchers who do not believe the Rebbe is the Messiah, a commentor who calls himself LubabNoMore and who obviously does not consider himself a Lubavitcher anymore states the following:
Rabbi Levi Weinberg, Rosh Yeshiva of the (Lubavitch) Rabbinical College of Pretoria and editor and translator of "Lessons in Tanya" (an official Chabad english translation of the Tanya) has been public about his belief that The Rebbe passed away and that Chabad needs to move forward. At one point he even discussed the possibility of selecting an 8th Rebbe.
I wish it were that simple. But it isn’t. This is the kind if denial that is typical of how Lubavitch handles controversy. They are very careful to speak about controversial topics in ways which leave room for interpretation. The above quote by a Lubavitch anti Meshichist does not deny the possibility that the now deceased Rebbe is Moshiach and will arise from the dead. It only says that we ought not to dwell on it because it isn’t likely.
This is the approach of one of the more strident anti-Meshichist Lubavitchers, Dr. Immanuel Shochet of Toronto. He is of the belief that the Meshichsim in Lubavitch is indeed harmful to the movement and that the Rebbe… were he alive… would be very upset with it. If I recall correctly he even adds that the strident Meshichists undermine everything the Rebbe did and stood for. Many Lubavitch anti Meshichists say this.
But when pressed about it, Dr. Shochet defends the notion that believing in the second coming of a resurrected Messiah is a perfectly acceptable belief. He says it is fully sourced in the Gemarah, Midrashim, and Rishonim. He will cite chapter and verse.
In an e-mail debate I had with him a few years ago on the subject I challenged him about the Christological ramifications of that and he answered something to the effect: So what if they believe that? They believe a lot of things we believe, just because they believe in something doesn’t make it Assur for us to believe.
So… what’s the big deal? Let them believe it if they want? Who does it hurt? Look at all the good they do? Isn’t that far more important, than what is in their hearts about their Rebbe as Moshiach?
The problem is once you start saying that a man who began his mission on earth as the Messiah… died… and will be resurrected in a second coming... is a perfectly acceptable belief, you have Christianity.
Of course they get very insulted when someone says that because of what they say should be obvious differences. Christianity believes that their Messiah was God in an earthly incarnation. Lubavitch says, 'Chas V’Shalom' to that. The Rebbe is not God! True enough. And that makes such beliefs nothing more than Shtus (foolishness)… as Rav Ahron Soloveichik had said. It does not make it heresy.
They will also rightly claim that unlike Christianity, they do not reject the Mitzvos of the Torah. In fact they are as a group perhaps the most punctilious and conscientious of Mitzvah observers in all of Jewry!
But that does not mean we should just ignore it. It is still highly problematic, no matter what level Meshichist belief they maintain, whether as an overt Meshichist, an anti Meshichist… or anything in between.
For one thing, the early Christians in fact did not deify their Messiah. That happened later. Also, there is no evidence that the early Christians were anything more than devout Jews who happened to believe that their man was Moshiach and that he will be resurrected from the dead to lead them out of their bitter Galus. In fact there is a legend that Paul was actually a devout Jew whose mission was to make certain that Christianity would forever be distinguished from Judasim. So he created the theology of a new covenant not requiring Mitzvah observance for salvation.
There is an even bigger problem. The fact that the Rebbe once explained that a perfect human being is God ‘dressed’ in a body does not help matters much.Especially when so many Lubavitchers attribute perfection to the Rebbe.
Lubavtich explains that this does not literally mean God. But one is hard pressed to see it any other way. I believe that the idea behind that is that as man rises in Kedusha through Torah and Mitzvos he becomes more reflective of the essence of God. Done to perfection, man achieves God’s essence… and is merely a reflection of God wrapped in a body.
Taking the next step - from believing that the Rebbe is the Messiah to believing he is God clothed in a body is not so hard to understand.
There are a few Lubavitchers who actually believe that. The so called Boreniks. Most Lubavitchers condemn them as lunatics. But I think it’s easy to understand where they get the idea from. How many Boreniks are there? Who really knows?
Yet one of the most anti Meshichist Lubavitchers, Dr. Immanuel Shochet, still believes that the mainstream Christian belief about a Messiah is acceptable as long as he isn’t deified.
That is why Meshicism is such a dificulty. This is why Lubavitch just hit a major stumbling block in a conversion case in Israel. This is why Rabbi Keller and Dr. Berger are so strident in their objections. This is why Rav Shach called them Apikursim and Assured eating from their Shechita.
That is the problem. Here is the solution. It is simple really.
What is needed is more than just a statement by Lubavitch that the Rebbe is no longer alive and that we need to move on. While that is true, it is not enough. They have to say the following: The Rebbe, ZTL, died (or was Nifter - if you prefer) and is not Moshiach - Period. I’m sure there are more than a few Lubavitchers who would say this. But I believe they are a very small minority. The key is for the leadership to say it. To the best of my knowledge, no Lubavitch leader has ever said those words.
