mentalblog.com comments:
The Belzer Moshiach or is Moshiach a Belzer?!
Well, by now, it's 5768/2008, and this young upstart, Yissachar Dov Rokeach (born 1948 -- ok, so he is now 60, but still young) has mesmerised and hyptnotized and collected many of the offsprings of old-time Belzers or any who may have been even faintly or remotely affiliated to come to his side.
How to explain why they are drawn to him and do his bidding, which is only ONE thing, kleibing and collecting GELT, MOMON, MUCHO DOLAROS, to build up the the Belzo mosdos in Antwerrp, Montreal, NYC, Monsey, London (well in London there are the "mordim/rebels" who oppose him! so he treads carefully there) and starting with the epicenter of the huge "Belz world Center" -- they actually do have a gradiose name for it that is longer than this, something about it being the "center of Torah and Chasidus" -- the monstrous shull in Jerusalem built on disputed land that was snatched from the clutches of Frukandler from Chayim Berin yeshiva in Brooklyn who was going to build a yeshiva there for his rebbe Rav Hutner, but this Belzer rebbe was too quick and smart for them, he has, after all, the mind of a corporate raider, and one day Frukandler woke up and tens of thousands of his investing in a prime Jerusalem block went down the tubes of the Belzers. Neat trick.
But the main point now, and it has been known that Belzers have believed this for a long time, is that this man, this obese depressed case, this excuse for a human that never smiles nor looks happy ever, even at his own family's simchas, is the MOSHIACH to his followers.
Take a moment and let that sink in...yes, they, the anshei shlomeinu of Belz all over the world believe and even worse behave as if Yissachar Dov Rokeach is MOSHIACH Tzidkenu, and that, hehe, the Lubabs had wrong it all along and that, hehe, the poor suckers in the rest of the Chasidishe velt are nebech deprived, and that, hehe, the entire world must be made to pay, by hook or by crook, and quite often it is by crook because there have been and are many scandals and corruption in Belz, such as when the head of Belz in America once upon a time was sleeping with his heimishe secretary and a group of Belzers themselves went and photographed them going on trysts and the rebbe, on a fundraising trip to the USA, instead of kicking the scoundrel out on his butt into the street caved in and paid him off with more than a million bucks and told the frum secretary who had been the lover to go back to her husband. Now isn't that wonderful what a man who thinks and belives he is the true Moshiach can do, even if it is not what the Halcha might advise?
this is personal, what happened?
Some years ago, a non-lubavitch relative of mine from Boro Park complained bitterly that the frum world is very unhappy with the Moshiach campaign. I replied that instead of complaining, he should just wait about twenty years and by then surely other frum kreizen will be calling their Rebbes and Rabbonim moshiach too...
חכם עדיף מנביא
a better question why the rebbe created the impression that he was the only one who cared about it. Many did before and after him. and many played and play the part.
The Belzers have a newspaper in America and one in Israel. Is there any written evidence in anything written in the papers or in what the rebbe has said to indicate that he believes he is moshiach or that a significant number of chasidim believe this? If not is your view that this is a secret revealed only to the initiated which you are now revealing here for the benefit of the many readers of this blog. Should I call up Belz and tell them their secret has surfaced on the internet?
give them a call
Belz is very proud of its rebbe, nd the large empire he has built.He has also shown great leadership for his community and for Charedim in general.
As far as I can tell there is no attempt by Belz to impose his hegemony over any other Jewish group.
Its the Chassidim's right (and perhaps obligation) to believe that their leader is the potential mashiach of his generation. It may seem funny to us " secular minded "Jews
Lubavitch is different , from day one in 1951 the idea was to impose Chabad hegemony on other Jewish groups by hook or crook. The Messiah campaign was to impose the rebbe and the believe in his Messiahship on all of World Jewry.Witness the posters, newspaper ads, radio spots etc. Even Goyim needed to believe in this Messiahship.
Finally as long as he was alive, the idea may have seemed funny to some, but his followers and others had a legitimate right (perhaps obligation ) to believe that his is the Messiah in potentio.Why not he was a great jewish communal and political leader perhaps not the outstanding religious leader but certainly the greatest Jewish Communal leader.
But after he died ? And a second coming ? And Divinity ? And Mashiach ad sof kol hadoros?
Its these concepts not believe in a living leader as Messaih that has raised grave doubts.
In fact the Machne Hacharedi has dropped several hints in the last few years about the possible special nature of their leader. But this does not bother me , as I wrote they have every right to believe and HOPE that he is the one spoken of.
The Machne Hacharedi is also the best weekly Charedi papaer in the world contianing tremendous anmout of Torah and Chassidius with the weekly parsha analysis by Rav Pinchos Friedman the chavrusa of the belzer rav.
The paper is about Torah, Chassidus and not about a personality cult of the Rav. Of course the rav is leader of Blez and is honored in the paper.
who made up the name 'Hareidi' and why do Chasidim accept it?
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