The Rebbe, the Messiah, and the Scandal of Orthodox Indifference

Rating:
Summary: An Important Book
Review: I consider myself a Lubavitcher, a chassid of the Rebbe. I read Dr. Berger's book because I feel it is crucial to be able to respond intelligently to persons I come across who profess to agree with him. It is all too easy to be tempted to jump on the bandwagon when one's emotions are stirred up. Dr. Berger's book succeeds at this all too well. Unfortunately, Dr. Berger portrays a less than accurate picture of what Lubavitchers themselves are really professing and teaching. Some examples he gives are those of individuals who are well outside of "normative" Lubavitch, if there is such a thing. Others are taken completely out of their intended context. If the reader's agenda is to access information to bolster Dr. Berger's point of view, ie. that Lubavitch has ceased to be authentic, Torah-true Judaism, then that reader will find everything he's looking for in Dr. Berger's book. If, on the other hand, the reader sincerely seeks the truth about the Lubavitch movement, this book will serve him well as a starting point. I highly recommend that following a careful study of this book and of Dr. Berger's claims, the reader should then get himself to a Chabad Rabbi to debate one by one the points made in the book. The truly intelligent, logical thinking individual will be able to discern the truth about the matter once the other side is investigated throughly. For further reading, see Rabbi Chaim Dalfin's book, "Attack on Lubavitch."

Rating:
Summary: 'Disgusting' is the only word I can think of
Review: I have grown up in Chabad and try to adhere to the Torah principles of life within it. In no way shape or form does this book paint an accurate picture of Chabad. He is as far off as someone describing a large beatiful luxurious yacht that comes to save people stranded on an island, as 'a big paperweight that happens to float, and may one day sink and break a vital oil pipline (like the Russian nuclear submarine did)- we must destroy it!'

To compare xtianity, L'Havdil to Lubavitch is the most far off and disgusting thing I've ever heard. Does he know that not only has Lubavitch not dreamt of subtracting anything from Yiddishkiet Ch'V, but that the majority of Lubavitchers actually have a daily study of Chumash with Rashi, Tanya, Thillim, and Rambam! This is standard issue from the Rebbe and is in addition to any other Torah study during the day. Chabad also adheres to many very stringent Chumras and Minhogim. The Rebbe stands for absolute adherance to every last Mitzva and Minhag that we have- and with a full heart! Chabad is the only one who had the guts to tell Jew and non-Jew alike that the Torah in its ENTIRETY is true to its last letter, and that Moshiach is actually coming any moment- for real! It is largely due to the Rebbe that Jews feel proud to be Jews, in America and abroad. They are not ashamed of beards Tzitzis etc. and this was not the case 50-75 years ago!

If the author feels that he awaits Moshiach every moment, AND that he believes in every single last letter of the Torah with all his heart, AND helps others in belief in G-d and connecting to him through doing His Mitzvos learning Hid Torah, AND bases his views on Torah (not on xtianity, or relative TO it)- then and only then can he have a right to quote Torah on Moshiach and give his impression. Even so, in no way can one say for certain that person 'x' is NOT Moshiach unless there is absolute proof for this in Halacha. In the case of the Rebbe, there is no such proof. There is abundant proof to the contrary though.

However fearful one may be of an xtian-type idea emerging, or of fuel for the missionaries, this is no excuse to ridicule Lubavitch nor an excuse to even proclaim anything about the Rebbe. Just because they (xtians) use the Torah as proof (distorted proofs) to their beliefs, should we then Ch'V abandon the Torah because of that? It is a book like this that will help the missionaries by legitimizing a comparison. A Jew looks for objective truth based on the Torah alone, not in relation to religions that hijacked the Torah for their own ways...

I would highly recommend that one first study some Chassidus (Tanya would be a good begining,) learn some Sichos of the Rebbe, learn the Halachos of Moshiach in their sources, learn about Moshiach from all the many hundreds (thousands?) of sources in Torah, try and fulfill the Mitzvos with love and devotion, truly yearn for Moshiach and act in ways to bring the Geula about etc... only then could one honestly ponder who Moshiach might be.

Through acts of goodness and kindness we can hasten the coming of Moshiach. Each Mitzva and act of pure Ahavas Yisroel can tip the scale and bring about the complete and final redemption, immediately!
May we be Zoche to the Geula with Moshiach right away!

Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu V'Rabeinu Melech HaMoshiach L'Olam Voed!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent start, but more needs to be written
Review: In my opinion, the chief weakness of this book is that the author doesn't show you how the modern-day disturbing behavior of the Lubavitcher chassidic movement is rooted in the teaching and leadership style of their deceased rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Towards the end of the book, Berger skirts the issue a bit, and hints to the fact that any Lubavitcher chasid who would want to return to authentic Judaism while still maintaining a reverence for Rabbi Schneerson would have to "explain away" many disturbing things Rabbi Schneerson said in his lifetime. For instance: The Rebbe said that the Third Temple would descend from the sky and land next to the Lubavitch headquarters in Brooklyn and then proceed together with it to the land of Israel. The Rebbe also announced that he was a prophet. He said that the work of the Messiah was completed, and that the Messiah had arrived, and that all that we had to do was "greet" him. He also said that his deceased father-in-law (which means himself in the code of the movement, since they supposedly shared the same soul) was going to rise from the dead to redeem the Jewish people.

It's good that Berger makes this point, but we need others, perhaps rabbis who have left the movement, to come forward and write much, much more. People will only become completely convinced that David Berger is right and that Lubavitch is a dangerous deviant movement when they are shown how Rabbi Schneerson himself was the prime cause of the catastrophe. Criticizing the Lubavitcher chasidim while praising their rebbe will get us nowhere.

Although Berger finally seems aware of the fact that the Rebbe himself was the architect of mess the Orthodox community finds itself in today, but he refuses to make that point explicitly, probably because he realizes that he'd have to write another entire book to prove that point. He may also have realized that it will be easier to convince the public that the current behavior of the movement is disturbing than it would be to convince them that a beloved old sage was a modern-day false messiah. Most importantly, Berger wanted to write a book about things he knew he could prove conclusively and authoritatively in a short volume. Venturing into the realm of the Rebbe's leadership and teachings to show how he created the movement in its current state is simply something that someone else, another concerned scholar, will have to do.

So, in conclusion, David Berger's book is valuable, compelling, and excellently crafted, but only the very beginning of what is going to have to be done to repair the world of Orthodox Judaism.

Rating:
Summary: MUST READ!
Review: Rabbi Berger has written a very important book outlining the problems with Habad-Lubavitch messianism after the death of their leader in 1994. Because Berger clearly respects the rebbe, he fails to attack the rebbe for faults -- like claiming that his desceased father-in-law was the 'essence of G-d in a body' -- that brought us to this terrible crossroads. While the book suffers somewhat from anti-messianists within Habad being quoted anonymously (this because of legitimate fear of reprisal within the Habad community), I can personally attest to much of what Berger writes.

Even before the rebbe passed away, leaders in the movement were known to tell students to 'daven to the rebbe' (pray to the rebbe). I personally confronted one of these leaders. His answer? 'What do you do when you pray? You ask G-d for what you need. So ask the rebbe for what you need.' I should add that his employer, a senior member of Habad-Lubavitch, claimed to have reprimanded him for this. Somehow, though, he did not seem to be able to stop him from saying it.

Habad-Lubavitch has returned us to a debate that raged in Judea and Galilee almost 2000 years ago: Can a messianic candidate die with his mission unfulfilled only to be resurrected at some future date to complete his mission? If, as Habad-Lubavitch claims, this is possible, then any messianic candidate among Jews -- Bar Kokhba, for example -- may return to serve as the messiah, in direct contradiction to Maimonidies and dozens of other Jewish legal sources cited in Rabbi Berger's book.

Even more problematic, at least for Jews, is that nothing would prevent one from believing the same about Jesus. After all, he certainly had a messianic mission, his Jewish followers did keep Jewish law for the first few generations after his death (and would still be doing so today if not for the persecution of them by the Gentile Church), and (as Berger points out) his followers did spread a type of monotheism to a formerly pagan, polytheistic world.

But, sadly, as anyone can see, most of the anti-Berger reviews posted here consist of name-calling and mud slinging. If Habad-Lubavitch had real arguments to bring to bear against Rabbi Berger, you would have already seen them posted here.

Buy the book, read it, share it with your rabbi, the head of your Jewish Federation and the program director of your local JCC. Do not let Judaism be hijacked by these messianists, no matter how well-meaning or attractive they may be.

Rating:
Summary: A Book for Everyone Who Cares About Judaism
Review: This work succintly demonstrates the damage to religious Jewish theology which has been perpetrated by many in the Lubavitch group. While Rabbi Berger takes care to show respect to the Rebbe, Rabbi Berger takes much of the Orthodox establishment to task for not having the courage to address this issue.
One issue which was brought out in the book which requires further exposition is the chasidic conception of man in his highest spiritual states, an idea which Rabbi Berger says wasn't received well by those the Lithuanian camp. Also, it would be interesting to hear about how the chasidic view, which lead to authoritarianism, had influence in the yeshivas.
Especially important is Chapter 13, which was re-written in a more extensive format in the May '02 issue of Modern Judaism, which analyzes the various excuses given, as well as the truth, of how this collosal failure is being able to take place. It is a damning indictment indeed.

I apologize for the insulting reference to Rabbi E.M. Schach I previously posted in my review. May his memory be blessed.