Misplaced Pages

Chabad messianism

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by David Spart (talk | contribs) at 07:50, 5 March 2007 (→Mainstream Jewish response to Chabad Messianism: reformating, relace Singer anti-Berger quote with more relevant Singer pro-messianism quote. with refs, idel honorifics). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Revision as of 07:50, 5 March 2007 by David Spart (talk | contribs) (→Mainstream Jewish response to Chabad Messianism: reformating, relace Singer anti-Berger quote with more relevant Singer pro-messianism quote. with refs, idel honorifics)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
File:Messianist Flag.JPG
The Messianist Flag, the Hebrew word reads "Moshiach" meaning Messiah

Chabad Messiansim or Lubavitch Messianism is a term used to describe messianic beliefs within the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement. Many followers of Chabad believe that their late leader Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson is the Messiah and will return from the dead to lead the Jews out of exile and back to Jerusalem. The controversy surrounding these beliefs has been one of the major sources of division both within Chabad and the wider Jewish community since the Second World War. Adherents to this belief are termed Mishichist in Yiddish (Plural: Mishichisten).

History of Messianism

Before Schnerrson's death in 1994 a significant body of Chabad Hasidim believed that he was soon to be crowned as the Messiah - an event that would herald the Messianic Age and the construction of the Third Temple. Books and pamphlets were written containing purported proofs for the Rabbi's status as Messiah, some of which Schneerson opposed.

Attempts by his followers to persuade him to reveal himself as the Messiah were to no avail. Followers routinely sang the mantra "Long live our master, our teacher and our rabbi, King Messiah for ever and ever" in his presence - a chant that he often encouraged.

During the later years of his life Rabbi Schneerson's teachings were interpreted by many to mean that he was claiming to be the Messiah.

His death in 1994 did not quell the messianist fervor. Believers soon developed new rationales to justify the belief the Schneerson was the Messiah despite being dead. Some argued that he had in fact not died at all and was still physically present. Others argued that though he was dead Judaism did not rule out the possibility of the Messiah returning from the dead.

The development of this messianism and its impact on Chabad in specific — and Orthodox Judaism in general — has been the subject of much discussion in the Jewish press, as well as within the pages of peer-reviewed journals.

During Schneerson's life

According to research by Rachel Elior the expectations that the Rebbe was the messiah built slowly through the 1980s. While she argues that the messianism of Chabad can be traced back to the 1950s and the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe she cites evidence that the 1980s saw a upsurge in messianism. People would write letters addressed to Moshiach instead of the Rebbe, conversations centering around the Rebbe's true identity became more prevalent, and as the Rebbe became more and more fixated on the issue of Moshiach, the fervor grew. Elior argues that the development of Chabad Messianism was in response to the holocaust and constituted an attempt by Schneerson to offer an explanation and purpose in the face of such destruction offered "eschatological certainty and messianic purpose - what appeared to be the only rational response from a theological point of view."

According to Paul R. Carlson, Schneerson became more direct about the messianic age during the Gulf War of 1991. Schnnerson was quoted in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency as telling his followers that it would "herald the coming of the Messiah, who will stand on the roof of the Temple and announce to Israel, "The time of your redemption has come."" This message was immediately taken up by the followers with full page advertisments being taken out declaring the messianisc age to have arrived. other evidence for this included the fall of communism and the mass immigration of Russian Jews to Israel. Carlson cites Rabbi Chaim Bergstein in the Detroit Jewish News as saying "I'm not saying he is or isn't Mashiach, but there is no one as learned ...in this generation."

Rabbi Sholom Ber Wolpo raised the stakes in 1984 by publishing a booklet declaring Schneerson to be the Messiah. Schnnerson responded by by writing "It has come to pass that because of his activities ... hundreds of Jews have stopped learning Chassidus, and now oppose the Baal Shem Tov and his teachings in actuality."

Anthropologist Vanessa Ochs spent the year of Schneerson's death living among women in the Chabad congregation in Stamford Hill, London. She writes that:

"Before his death most of the women I encountered said they believed--or at least hoped--that their Rebbe would not die, but would rather emerge - "rise up" was the expression they used--as the Messiah. In the streets outside 770, I was told, women danced through the night with their tambourines, singing to greet the Rebbe as Messiah, despite his physical death "

By 1992 Chabad Messianism was gaining wide publicity. As the health of their leader deteriorated some Chabad followers became more vocal and explicit in their messianism. Time Magazine journalist Lisa Beyer reported on the issue that year, noting that the followers in Kfar Chabad were expecting Schneerson to reveal himself as the Messiah imminently. She reported that Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz had openly declared that Schnneerson should reveal himself as such, and arguing that even if he were to die "the leader's death would not disprove his Messianic potential."

After Schneerson's death

Schneerson's death lead to a rethinking of the theology of messianism within Chabad. While the funeral was attended by a few dozen extreme messianists who danced throughout the procession and argued that his death was a required part of the process of him returning as Messiah - most messianists were subdued.

Within months however, messianism had regrouped and now is the major force within the Chabad movement. Many Chabad follwers prefered to refer to the Rebbe's passing as a mere transition, while others refused to accept that the funeral had been anything other than a sham. In time Schneerson's passing began to be known as "Gimmel Tamuz" - the Hebrew date of his death.

The rebbe's collected speeches from the last two years of his life were collected into pamphlets and distributed by the messianists after his death to bolster the case that he was the Messiah under the title Besuras Hageula. These contained some of the strongest comments by Schnnerson that the messianic age was imminent and included hints that he was indeed the messiah. Such evidence was used to bolster the case for belief in his return.

The Rebbe in his later years repeatedly returned to the millenarian theme that had begun to envelope his writing. For example an US-Russia agreement on nuclear proliferation lead to the Rebbe declaring that this was linked to the biblical prophecy "they shall beat their swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore". (Isiah 2:4)

He referred to the citation of the UN building in New York as a sign that New York was a future world capital, since his father in law had chosen to make his home there. Tantalisingly for his followers he notes that the temple will first be rebuilt in New York before being moved to Jerusalem.

The belief that the Rebbe would soon return led to the construction of exact replicas of 770 Eastern Parkway in order that Schneerson would be able to feel at home on his return. Full size replicas have been constructed in Kfar Chabad and in Ramot, Jerusalem. A Chabad publication elucidates on this:

"We Lubavitch chassidim believe that Lubavitch is Jerusalem, the House of our Rabbi in Babylonia is the Temple, and the Rebbe is the Ark of the covenant standing on the "Even HaShetiya" in which the divine being and essence rests"

Expresions of Messianism within Chabad

There is a wide range of degrees of messianism within Chabad. The terms michichist and anti-michichst are loosely used with many of the later still taking the position the Schnnerson is the Messiah, but that he died so the term is potentially misleading. There is considerable dispute regarding the relative strengths of the various factions which is discussed below. Anthropologist Simon Dein has noted: "Lubavitchers held that the Rebbe was more powerful in the spiritual realm without the hindrance of a physical body. However some have now claimed that he never died. Several even state that the Rebbe is God. This is a significant finding. It is unknown in the history of Judaism to hold that the religious leader is God and to this extent the group is unique. There are certain Christian elements which apparently inform the messianic ideas of this group."

Some of main streams of thought within Chabad are set out below:

  • Some express the belief that Rabbi Schneerson was the best candidate for the Messiah in his generation, but now say that people were mistaken to believe that he was the Messiah. Rather, he could have been the messiah if God willed it to be so, but it was not to be. As such, the Messiah will come nonetheless in the person of some other great leader.
  • Some emphasize the belief that the classic meaning of death does not apply to a truly righteous person such as Rabbi Schneerson. In this view Rabbi Schneerson never "died", and is still alive in some way that ordinary humans cannot perceive. According to this view, the Rebbe would later be revealed as Messiah. . Many Chabad Hasidim refuse to put the typical honorifics for the dead (e.g. zt"l or zecher tzaddik livrocho, "may the memory of the righteous be for a blessing") after Rabbi Schneerson's name. They rely upon the Rebbe's statement that the world has entered a new period in its history and that, contrary to what has happened in the past, the leader of the generation will not be hidden "even through burial", but that he would remain alive until the revelation of the Messiah. .
  • Some argue that one leader in every generation has the potential to be the Messiah and that since Schneerson is still alive (in their view) he remains the only possibility in this generation.
  • Some elements within Chabad go further still describing Schnnerson as the greatest man who ever lived and/or perfect. They view Schneerson as godly to the extent that he is a part of God and is God "clothed in a body".." The prevalence of this position within Chabad is disputed, but certainly exists to some degree. This group is sometimes refered to as Elokist, though they view themselves as Messianist.."
  • A small number." of Chabad adherants have gone so far as to call Scheerson God, or even "God's creator". These people have generally been ostracised by more mainstream Chabad elements. These people are termed Boreinuniks a reference to the creator.

Prevalence of Messianism within Chabad

The prevalence of the various views listed above amongst Chabad supporters is disputed. However, it is uncontroversial that few Chabad adherents will say that "the Rebbe was/is not the Messiah". Some will say that "he might be", but a very large number will say that he certainly is the Messiah. Indeed this appears to most observers to be the mainstream position - the difference between the Messianists and the anti-Messianists being over whether Schneerson is dead or not.

Some 250 Chabad emissaries have signed a Halachic ruling which rules that "The Lubavitcher Rebbe Shita is King Messiah" and concluding with the Yechi mantra.

A Chabad rabbi in Rechovot cited by David Berger argued in a messianist publication that "everyone knows that all Lubavitch Chassidim, despite the differing opinions, believe that the Rebbe is Melech HaMoshiach. This is the most open secret of the last decade"

Berger notes in a recent article for Yated Ne'eman that he is"unfamiliar with a single public declaration formally affirming that Lubavitch chassidim should not accept the belief that the Rebbe is the Messiah."

Some well known Chabad adherents are known to be messianists. The reggae performer Matisyahu had been quoted as saying: “He was definitely one of the candidates, if there are any candidates. I believe and I see how it could be.” On another occasion he has been recorded singing the Yechi mantra.

The number of Elokist Chabad adherents is thought to be small. Berger notes that "very few chassidim actually pronounce the sentence, "The Rebbe is the Creator," though the number is not as negligible as one might imagine." In an interview with the Jerusalem Post in 2001 Berger explained that in the view of some elokists:

The supremely righteous, of whom the Rebbe and Moses are the chief exemplars, annul their own essence to the point where their entire essence is that of God. It is permissible to bow to them with this understanding. For this reason, the Rebbe is omniscient, omnipotent, and entirely without limits. He is ‘indistinguishable’ from God. Because he is a transparent window for pure divinity, a ‘man-God,’ ‘when you speak to him, you speak to God.’"

Some Chabad adherents from the moderate camp argue that messianism is not a major force. According to Zalman Shmotkin, director of chabad.org "People don't actually believe the Rebbe is the Messiah. They say they believe, but really they want, they hope, they pray. But believe this no."

Berger argues that many Chabad messianist are coy about their beliefs ostensibly not to scare people away. He notes that even Menachem Brod, the leader of the moderates in Israel will not say that Schneerson is not the messiah.

Many of the major institution of the Chabad movement are controlled by messianists. Berger argues that "that the major institutions in the three primary population centers of Crown Heights, Kfar Chabad, and Safed are either dominated by overt believers in the Rebbe's Messiahship or suffused by that belief." He notes that in the movements largest Yeshiva Oholei Menachem, the administration ordered that Yechi be recited. He said that the chief rabbi of Kfar Chabad was "one of the first signatories of a 1998 halachic ruling requiring belief in the Rebbe's Messiahship" as did 250 other senior Chabad Rabbis.

Even the most anti-messianist Chabad followers do not currently claim that the Rebbe is not the Messiah. The most senior openly anti-messianist rabbi is Yoel Kahn. Kahn does not however argue that Schneerson is not the Messiah, but does argue that he is dead. In a 2003 proclamation by Kahn "messianists" are condemned for saying Schneerson is alive but not for describing Schneerson as the Messiah. A pamphlet produced by the anti-messianist camp including Menachem Brod makes a similar point

A report in Israeli daily Haaretz in February 2007 confirms Berger's assertions about messianism in Tzfat and 770. The article describes daily rituals of tending to Schneerson's chair and praying for his long life in chabad headquarters, and quotes students in Tzfat and 770 who appear to hold extreme messianist and even Elokist viewpoints.

Mainstream Jewish response to Chabad Messianism

Many in the Jewish community are appreciative of Chabad's widespread activities and their contribution to the Kiruv movement, however since the 1980s and Chabad's increasing focus on "hastening the coming of the Messiah" a number of Jewish groups and individuals have expressed their concern on the topic of Chabad Messianism.

The first major Jewish leader to openly criticise Schneerson and Chabad over Messianist fervor was Rabbi Eliezer Schach, the Rosh Yeshiva of the Ponevezh yeshiva and undisputed leader of Lithuanian Judaism. Schach repeatedly and bitterly attacked Schneerson and his followers describing Schneerson himself as "insane" an "infidel" and a "false messiah". (See also: Eliezer Schach: Opposition to the Lubavitcher Rebbe.)

In 1996 the main orthodox rabbinic grouping in the United States, the Rabbinical Council of America passed a resolution at its conference castigating messianism within the chabad movement. The resolution read:

In the light of disturbing developments which have recently arisen in the Jewish Community, the Rabbinical Council of America in convention assembled declares that there is not and has never been a place in Judaism for the belief that the Messiah will begin his mission only to experience death, burial and resurrection before completing it.

Modern Orthodox leaders have also responded to Chabad Messianism. The trend of messianism itself was criticized strongly by Rabbi Norman Lamm, chancellor and former president of Yeshiva University. Lamm argues that Schneerson’s statements could be misinterpreted to create a "distortion" leading to "moral nihilism." Lamm further argued that such open efforts to declare Schneerson the messiah would not have been tolerated before his death: "When he was alive, no one would have dared to discuss this." On another accoadion Lamm argued “I do not believe that the rebbe thought himself to be moshiach. But I do think he considered himself a possible candidate." Lamm decried the movement’s over-emphasis on messianism and belief that the rebbe is the messiah but simply concealed from view. "To continue this myth of his being moshiach is utter ridiculousness. It is easy for the messianically-oriented to distort the rebbe’s teachings and say “that the rebbe is part of the God-head. That is completely heretical and quite dangerous. I wonder if this distortion could and should have been avoided by responsible leadership of a movement that has not lost its vitality."

Some scholars of religion have made comparison with the development of early Christianity: Anthropologist Joel Marcus writes:

The recent history of the modern Chabad (Lubavitcher) movement of Hasidic Judaism provides insight into the development of early Christianity. In both movements successful eschatological prophecies have increased belief in the leader's authority, and there is a mixture of ‘already’ and ‘not yet’ elements. Similar genres of literature are used to spread the good news (e.g. miracle catenae and collections of originally independent sayings). Both leaders tacitly accepted the messianic faith of their followers but were reticent about acclaiming their messiahship directly. The cataclysm of the Messiah's death has led to belief in his continued existence and even resurrection."

Such comparisons are something which makes many Orthodox Jews uncomfortable. Scholar Mark Winer has noted that "The Lubavitcher movement's suggestions that their late rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson is the Messiah, reflect Christian millenarianism"

Some have gone so far as to describe Chabad messianism as halachic Christianity:

A substantial majority of a highly significant Orthodox movement called Lubavitch or Chabad Hassidism affirms that the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who was laid to rest in 1994 without leaving a successor, did everything subsumed under proposition two and will soon return to complete the redemption in his capacity as the Messiah. Hassidim who proclaim this belief hold significant religious positions sanctioned by major Orthodox authorities with no relationship to their movement."

Defence of Messianism

Some Jewish sources have argued that messianism - at least in the moderate forms - are not anathematic to Jewish Philisophy. Aviezer Ravitzky, chairman of the department of Jewish philosophy at Hebrew University, strongly disputes Berger's claims that the moderate Chabad teachings amount to heresy. David Singer, of the American Jewish Committee, argued that:

"The appearance on the Jewish scene of hasidim espousing a version of Second Coming theology is bizarre and disorienting. Still, under current conditions, the religious tremors it has set off may prove a boon for Orthodox belief. . . the messianic fervor of the Lubavitchers. . . is a welcome indication that the religious juices continue to flow in Orthodox Judaism."

Rabbi Ahron Soloveichik in a letter (the authenticity of which has been questioned)and expressed praise for its work and stated that the moderate messianic position is not outside the realm of Orthodox Judaism. Pinchas Hirshprung, Av Beth Din of Montreal has said that the belief that the Lubavitcher Rebbe is Moshiach is totally valid.

A few non-Chabad Jewish figures have expressed their concurrence with the belief that Schneerson is indeed the messiah. These include Eliyahu Shmerler, a Rosh Yeshiva connected to Sanz, Yaakov Yosef, a son of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. Aaron Leifer, Rabbi of Nadvorna-Safed, signed a halachic decree the Lubavitcher Rebbe is Messiah.

Moshe Idel argues that Judaism historically has accommodated the idea of a messiah who rises from the dead; for example, the late King David is considered in Jewish literature as a leading candidate for the post of Messiah . Idel, however, does not promote the belief that the Rebbe is the Jewish Messiah. Directly commenting on Chabad's messianic ideologies, he states that having continued

". . .messianic hopes and speculations ushered in by his predecessor, R. Joseph Baer, which were formulated during and perhaps even triggered by the Holocaust, R. Menachem Mendel developed a rhetoric of more acute messianism, which inspired many of his followers to worship him as the Messiah, even after his death. The depth and breadth of messianic expectations and propaganda at the beginning of this decade stemming from Habad Hasidic circles had no precedence since Sabbateanism, even though their effects on the actual religious behavior of the believers seem, at least for the time being, to be minor."

The "Yechi" Mantra

See main article Yechi

"Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu v'Rabbeinu Melech haMoshiach l'olam vo'ed!" (יחי אדוננו מורנו ורבינו מלך המשיח לעולם ועד) is a phrase used by many Lubavitch Chassidic to pray and proclaim that the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson the messiah. It means "Long Live our Master, our Teacher, and our Rabbi, King Messiah, for ever and ever." The phrase can be seen printed in various settings, notably on pamphlets, posters and small prayer cards. It is chanted by many people at the end of daily communal prayers in Lubavitch congregations, including the main Lubavitch synagogue in Crown Heights, "770". Yechi has a complex and controversial history dating back to the mid-1980s and is often viewed as a litmus test to differentiate the messiansits from the so-called anti-messianists or non-messianists.

File:IMG 0293.JPG
A sign "welcoming Moshiach", on display in Crown Heights

See also

Citations

  1. Another 'Second Coming'? The Jewish Community at Odds Over a New Form of Lubavitch Messianism, George Wilkes (2002). Reviews in Religion & Theology 9 (4), 285–289.
  2. The Lubavitch Messianic Resurgence: The Historical and Mystical Background 1939-1996, Rachel Elior in Toward the Millenium: Messianic Expectations from the Bible to Wacoed. Peter Schäfer and Mark Cohen, 383-408. (Leiden: Brill, 1998)
  3. Christianity After Auschwitz: Evangelicals Encounter Judaism in the New Millennium By Paul R. Carlson, Xlibris, 2000, p43
  4. The Revelation of Melech HaMashiach (King Messiah), "Yechi HaMelech", Sholom Ber Wolpo, "The Committee for Fulfilling the Rebbe's Directives"
  5. Waiting for the Messiah, a Tambourine in Her Hand, Ochs, Vanessa L., Nashim: A Journal of Jewish Women's Studies & Gender Issues - Number 9, Spring 5765/2005, pp. 144-169
  6. Expecting the Messiah - An Ultra-Orthodox sect says the Redeemer is due to arrive any day now - and he might be an American Time Magazine, Lisa Beyer, March 23, 1992
  7. What Really Happens When Prophecy Fails: The Case of Lubavitch. Dein, Simon. Sociology of Religion, 9/22/2001.
  8. Jewish Icons: Art and Society in Modern Europe, Felsenstein, F., Criticism, 1999.
  9. Still waiting for the messiah. Jewish Chronicle 6790, 11 June 1999.
  10. Besuras Hageula, Schnnerson compendium. p. 173
  11. Besuras Hageula, Schnnerson compendium p. 212-219
  12. Building 770 in Kfar Chabad: Changing Israeli Landscapes: Buildings and the Uses of the Past, Alex Weingrod, Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Aug., 1993), pp. 370-387
  13. Sichos HaGeula,Chabad Publication
  14. Mosiach is here now: just open your eyes and you can see him Simon Dein, Anthropology & Medicine, Volume 9, Number 1/April 01, 2002
  15. Example of Chabad exegesis on the death of a great man
  16. Rabbi Levi Yitzchack Ginsberg, of Kfar Chabad Yeshiva, in his book Mashiah Akhshav, volume IV, 1996
  17. Dvar Malchut, Parashat Shoftim, 5751; Sefer Hisvaadiyus 1991 vol. 4 Page 204
  18. Mosiach is here now: just open your eyes and you can see him Simon Dein, Anthropology & Medicine, Volume 9, Number 1/April 01, 2002
  19. Mosiach is here now: just open your eyes and you can see him Simon Dein, Anthropology & Medicine, Volume 9, Number 1/April 01, 2002
  20. Mosiach is here now: just open your eyes and you can see him Simon Dein, Anthropology & Medicine, Volume 9, Number 1/April 01, 2002
  21. Waiting for a revelation, Yair Sheleg, Haaretz, 26 Feb 2004.
  22. Halachic Ruling signed by 250 Chabad emissaries declaring Schneerson to be the Messiah (Hebrew)
  23. Beis Moshiach 424, 25 Tammuz, 5763, p. 10
  24. On the Spectrum of Messianic Belief in Contemporary Lubavitch Chassidism, David Berger, July 2006.
  25. Interview with Matisyahu, Jew School
  26. The Fragility of Religious Doctrine: Accounting for Orthodox Acquiescence in the Belief of a Second Coming Modern Judaism, Volume 22, Number 2, May 2002, pp. 103-114
  27. Jewish Sect Finds Their Messiah, Daniel C. Peterson and William J. Hamblin, Meridian Magazine, 2004
  28. Years After Death, Messiah Question Divides Lubavitchers Liz Leyden, Washington Post, June 20, 1999
  29. Algemeiner Journal, 19 Adar I, 5763
  30. HaNekudah haChabadit 1 Tishrei, 5764
  31. Lubavitcher Rebbe as a God Haaretz, Saul Sadka, 02.14.07
  32. Another 'Second Coming'? The Jewish Community at Odds Over a New Form of Lubavitch Messianism, George Wilkes (2002). Reviews in Religion & Theology 9 (4), 285–289.
  33. Christianity After Auschwitz: Evangelicals Encounter Judaism in the New Millennium By Paul R. Carlson, Xlibris, 2000, p59
  34. Christianity After Auschwitz: Evangelicals Encounter Judaism in the New Millennium, Paul R. Carlson, Xlibris, 2000, p69.
  35. Conference Weighs Rabbi's Legacy The Forward, Steven I. Weiss, November 11 2005]
  36. Lubavitcher Rebbe Meets The Academy The Jewish Week, Debra Nussbaum Cohen
  37. Messianism and Christianity, Joel Marcus, Boston University School of Theology Studies, 2001 - Cambridge Univ. Press.
  38. "Be Ready When the Great Day Comes", Mark L. Winer; European Judaism, Vol. 37, 2004]
  39. A messianism that some call heresy Jacob Neusner, October 19, 2001, Bard College
  40. The Rebbe, the Messiah, and the Heresy Hunter David Singer, 2003 First Things 133 (May 2003): 42-49.
  41. (Yanover)
  42. "Messianic Mystics" on page 243

References

Further Reading

  • The Jewish Messiahs: From the Galilee to Crown Heights, Harris Lenowitz, University of Utah, 2nd ed. (Oxford, 2001).
  • Salvation or Destruction? The Meaning and Consequences of Lubavitch Messianism, Kraut, B., Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies - Volume 20, Number 4, Summer 2002, pp. 96-108.

External links

Categories: