Message-ID: <20000901145549.19666.rocketmail@web221.mail.yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 1 Sep 2000 07:55:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: Moish Geller <moishg@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: REB-SHLOMO digest 1110
To: Mailing list for Reb Shlomo Carlebach Foundation <reb-shlomo@shamash.org>
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In reference to Dovid'ls' questions:

If  you go to the cemetary in  Krakow and search
diligently, you will find a kever with a mazteva that
says: "Yosele Kamtzan HaKadosh". It doesn't say Reb
Nachum or anything else. 

To get a good idea of Shlomo's relationship to
stories, read the quotations from him in Rabbi
Yitzchak Buxbaum's book on Jewish storytelling.


I would add that when we ascribe appelations suh a
'singer', 'performer', 'storyteller', etc. to Shlomo
we are doing him an injustice. All of Shlomo's
methadology, all the devices he employed were part of
one whole: Compassionate service, relief of suffering,
bringing joy, love and healing, all in the service of
the One and His Torah. A story was a device for
helping know something in a more powerful way then
instructing people on what to do.

A story allowed Shlomo to speak to a diverse audience
with the same words. As far as Chabad appropriating
history...... People share what they know and have
heard from others. It's not a situation where tghere
is a cabal of Chabadnikim sitting in a dark room,
conspiring. 

The recent discussion about the 'Fifth Son' is
illustrative. I stated strongly that the Mei
HaShiloach spoke of the Fifth Son long before the
Rebbe the did. I was asked for my source. Well my
source was Shlomo. If Shlomo said something, I always
assumed that it is the truth. I have not been able to
locate in the Mei HaShiloach where he refers to it. So
aside from doing the same thing, I must apologize
because I responded in a sharp, knee-jerk way. I've
got a lot of work to do in my relationship to the fum
world. 

We all tend to sub-conciously look to affirm group
identification and pride. I think that's what we're
seeing with Chabad. The problem lies when you are
speaking on behalf of HaShem, Torah and Yiddishkeit
and not make clear the caveat that this is Chabad's
vision of things. You end up mekarevim people to
Chabad's Yiddishkeit as if that's the sum and
substance to Yiddishkeit. Ultimately there is a
damaging mindset that tends to confuse Chabad and
Yiddishkeit and instead of an all encompassing
indetification with all Jews and the whole world,
Chabad becomes the world center.

But this is human nature and we all suffer from.

The Gemora: "Shiv'im Panim l'Torah" - Seventy faces to
the Torah. It is my humble (maybe not so humble)
opinion that people think that there is a 2
dimensional map in Heaven with 70 states, like a map
of the U.S. with 5o states. Each one is equal to the
other. One person lives in one state and I live in
another. Not better or worse, holier or not, just
different.

However, the subtle truth is that each person thinks
the State they live in is where it's really at.
Otherwise, they'd move. What 'frum' Yid wants to say
that I'm a 'less' Yid, not a  'more'Yid. If I'm a
'more' Yid, then I move to the highest 'state' if the
one I'm in is not the highest. Because I'm a Yid
committed serving the Most High in the most high way.

So we end up with disguised elitism and triumphalism
in our group identification, with a subtle energy
about us that the way we've got God is 'the' way. And
instead of unifying the Jewish People, we end up
alienating by pushing group agenda and identification.

The great thing about being a Shlomo Chasid is the
anarchic aspect. We are not a group or sect or
organization. We defy being organized. And most
importantly, we encompass not only the entire Jewish
world, but the WHOLE world. We are chassidim of ALL
the Rebbe's and ALL the aspects of Torah. We are
Chassidim and Misnagdim, We are frum and not so Frum,
we are Jewish and not so Jewish. Indeed it's like a
vision of the Coming World where we are all one
together under the One and Only One.

Let it be so. Let it be that we are all ready to drop
our 'levush', our outsides, indeed anything that needs
be dropped so we can all be together forever and ever
when we make it to the Promised Land. 

PS: For those who would say, "but what about the
different paths  and dress of the 12 Tribes?" Well,
Chabad and Lithuania and Morocco are not tribes. Let
the Tribes come together in a tribal way with there
tribal levush, if that's what HaShem wants. But
outside that, we are all for the most part from Yehuda
and the eruv rav (the mixed multitudes who left with
Israel from Egypt).. 

Indeed, the Kotzker said that all the miracle-making
inclined Rebbe's came from th eruv rav. So we should
ALL chill out on or triumphalism and group elitism.

Meanwhile, we must honor Chabadnikim for their genuine
mesirus nefesh to go anywhere to save a Jew. If they
didn't who would.

One note on the Neila issue. There's plenty of work to
be done 'organize' tghe motley world of Shlomo chevre.
There's enough work to be done to the save world in a
Shlomo way without any machlokes over 'rights' and
money, etc. All those weighing in on this issue, Where
are you? You really care about diseminating Shlomo's
teaching? Well I invite you to contact me and I'll
show you at least 14 million ways you can without any
'problems' from Shlomo's family. If after actively
commiting yourselves to serving haShem by serving His
creation, you still have something to say, we cn then
talk about it. But not before.

Meanwhile, I'm back in yerushalayim, FINALLY, on
Sunday night.

CHODESH TOV - The King is in the Field! 

Much love and peace, Moish
