#ultra-Orthodox Judaism

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Men dancing at an Hasidic wedding, 1954. Hasids do not mingle the sexes outside of marriage—the men and the women dance separately.

Photo: Leonard Freed via Christie’s

[yz]

Purim. Bnei Brak. March 2023.

[ofpd]

seeing a lot of christian instagram reels has mainly just taught me that the average american christian's beliefs are literally worse than those of the small minority of jews who are right-wing and orthodox and whom people love to sensationalize

[mariacallous]

American Jewish food is most typically defined as pastrami sandwiches, chocolate babka, or bagels and lox. But I am here to argue that the greatest American Jewish food may actually be the humble hot dog. No dish better embodies the totality of the American Jewish experience.

What’s that you say? You didn’t know that hot dogs were a Jewish food? Well, that’s part of the story, too.

Sausages of many varieties have existed since antiquity. The closest relatives of the hot dog are the frankfurter and the wiener, both American terms based on their cities of origin (Frankfurt and Vienna respectively). So what differentiates a hot dog from other sausages? The story begins in 19th century New York, with two German-Jewish immigrants.

In 1870, Charles Feltman sold Frankfurt-style pork-and-beef sausages out of a pushcart in Coney Island, Brooklyn. Sausages not being the neatest street food, Feltman inserted them into soft buns. This innovative sausage/bun combo grew to be known as a hot dog (though Feltman called them Coney Island Red Hots).

Two years later, Isaac Gellis opened a kosher butcher shop on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. He soon began selling all-beef versions of German-style sausages. Beef hot dogs grew into an all-purpose replacement for pork products in kosher homes, leading to such classic dishes as Franks & Beans or split pea soup with hot dogs. Though unknown whether Gellis was the originator of this important shift, he certainly became one of the most successful purveyors.

Like American Jews, the hot dog was an immigrant itself that quickly changed and adapted to life in the U.S. As American Jewry further integrated into society, the hot dog followed.

In 1916, Polish-Jewish immigrant Nathan Handwerker opened a hotdog stand to compete with Charles Feltman, his former employer. Feltman’s had grown into a large sit-down restaurant, and Handwerker charged half the price by making his eatery a “grab joint.” (The term fast food hadn’t yet been invented, but it was arguably Handwerker who created that ultra-American culinary institution.)

Nathan’s Famous conquered the hot dog world. Like so many of his American Jewish contemporaries, Handwerker succeeded via entrepreneurship and hard work. His innovative marketing stunts included hiring people to eat his hot dogs while dressed as doctors, overcoming public fears about low-quality ingredients. While his all-beef dogs were not made with kosher meat, he called them “kosher-style,” thus underscoring that they contained no horse meat. Gross.

The “kosher-style” moniker was another American invention. American Jewish history, in part, is the story of a secular populace that embraced Jewish culture while rejecting traditional religious practices. All-beef hotdogs with Ashkenazi-style spicing, yet made from meat that was not traditionally slaughtered or “kosher”, sum up the new Judaism of Handwerker and his contemporaries.

Furthermore, American Jewry came of age alongside the industrial food industry. The hot dog also highlights the explosive growth of the kosher supervision industry (“industrial kashrut”).

Hebrew National began producing hot dogs in 1905. Their production methods met higher standards than were required by law, leading to their famous advertising slogan, “We Answer to a Higher Authority.”

While the majority of Americans may be surprised to hear this, Hebrew National’s self-supervised kosher-ness was not actually accepted by more stringent Orthodox and even Conservative Jews at the time. But non-Jews, believing kosher dogs were inherently better, became the company’s primary market. Eventually, Hebrew National received the more established Triangle-K kashrut supervision, convincing the Conservative Movement to accept their products. Most Orthodox Jews, however, still don’t accept these hot dogs as kosher.

But over the last quarter of the 20th century in America, the Orthodox community has gained prominence and their opinions, and food preferences, hold more weight in the food industry.

The community’s stricter kashrut demands and sizable purchasing power created a viable market, and glatt kosher hot dogs hit the scene. Abeles & Heymann, in business since 1954, was purchased in 1997 by current owner Seth Leavitt. Meeting the demands of the Orthodox community’s increasingly sophisticated palate, their hot dogs are gluten-free with no filler. Recently, they’ve begun producing a line of uncured sausages, and the first glatt hot dogs using collagen casing.

Glatt kosher dogs can now be purchased in nearly thirty different sports arenas and stadiums. American Jews have successfully integrated into their society more than any other in history. So too, the hot dog has transcended its humble New York Jewish immigrant roots to enter the pantheon of true American icons. So when you bite into your hot dog this summer, you are really getting a bite of American Jewish history, and the great American Jewish food.

[ravenkings]

i'm sorry but literally WHAT educated person thinks this???????????

as if people don't talk about the hindutva and ultra orthodox judaism????

[nando161mando]

Ultra-orthodox Jews protesting for a Free Palestine.

What an iconic symbol!

#Freepalestine #Palestine #Judaism

[bijoumikhawal]

I mentioned this in the tags of a post the other day, but since NK is high profile and getting a lot of videos shared, and I saw someone today decry a short speech one of their rabbis gave as "extremist", I guess I'll make a post too

Neturei Karta is a Litvish Ultra-Orthodox/Haredi antizionist group. In my experience, they are the most high profile antizionist group that ties that stance to their religious practice within Judaism, but they are not the only group (the Satmar are also generally antizionist, and they're a larger group, but they don't like NK).

As I mentioned yesterday, there was an incident with Iran- one of two, actually, but this one gets brought up more- where NK sent speakers to a conference specifically for the purposes of defending the existence of the Holocaust, as several Holocaust deniers were in attendance. The speaker specifically chosen had his grandparents die in the Holocaust. However, he also was blunt in stating his opinion that Zionists used the Holocaust to oppress others, Zionists had been collaborators and thwarted efforts to save Jewish lives. This prompted the Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi to call for their excommunication, essentially, and for the Satmar and broader Haredi movement to tell people to stay away from them. These remarks are complicated; many incidents one could classify as collaboration were Zionists trying to move Jews out of Europe, to save lives. However, when the speaker said the third statement, I'm fairly certain he was genuinely expressing his own intergenerational trauma. Early Zionists did indeed, have a fair amount of animosity towards Orthodox Jews. At one point Theodore Herzl (a founder of the modern Zionist movement) did express the opinion that Jews should convert en masse to Christianity, and the feeling was that the Orthodox who refused should be left to their fate. This accusation is a response to a very real tension among Jews that existed at the time. And the collaborationism was not always about saving lives; the Lehi gang, which committed the Deir Yassin massacre, sought out an alliance with the Nazis on several occasions, and expressed a desire for a totalitarian nationalist state.

Another incident was one where NK met with heads of state in early 2006, particularly Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, after criticizing other Jews for referring to remarks he made as antisemitic, and did an interview with Iranian press where they stated the Holocaust was used as a political tool by Zionists, that Zionism is "not Jewish, but political", and that not all Jews are Zionists. They also clearly stated that when they say they are not Zionists, they do not mean withdrawal to 67 borders, but a full dissolution of state, where Jews still can live with Palestinians. Later on in 2006, Ahmadinejad made comments about the reality of the Holocaust that prompted Haroun Yashayaei, one of the most prominent members of the Iranian Jewish community, to publicly speak put against him (and no, he didn't get arrested over that. He actually is also a movie producer and got an award in 2008).

It should be noted that in West Asia and North Africa, Iran is one of only a few countries that still has a significant Jewish population. The others are Turkey (14,500), Azerbaijan (7,200), Morocco (2,100), and Tunisia (1,000). For those unaware, this is significant because during the 1920s and 30s, many colonial governments stripped WANA Jews of citizenship, and in the 40s-60s, many post colonial WANA countries forcibly expelled local Jews. As a result, the centuries long presence of Jews in countries such as Egypt or Syria is down a hundred or fewer individuals in many cases. Ideologically, I do not support Iran's government because it's a theocratic state that treats Kurds like shit, but all of NK's interactions with Iran must be contextualized in light of this. This is not me using WANA Jews as a rhetorical device either: my paternal country, Egypt, which I wish I could so much as visit, is such a country. The 2016 Iranian census puts the country's Jewish population at 9,826. That's a number that I would weep to see reported in Egypt, and the second highest of any West Asia or North African country.

Personally while I hold no serious ideological disagreement with NK over antizionism, I do not wholly support them for other reasons (gender/sexuality politics reasons primarily). I bring up these incidents with Iran because in the past I've seen people claim they are Holocaust deniers, or that they think Jewish people brought the Holocaust on themselves. I have never seen a NK member say ANYTHING of that sort, and the idea that Jews bring antisemitism in any form on themselves is in fact an actual belief Herzl held. The closest I've heard is when NK distributed leaflets after a Chabad was attacked in Mumbai where they criticized Chabad for being in bed with Zionists. I'll be linking some articles in the replies of this post about this, including the text of the actual speech given at the Tehran conference so it can be read in full.

[spacelazarwolf]

If Judaism is trans-friendly why is there so much stress on differences between men and women, esp in orthodox sects? /gen q

i’m gonna be honest i really don’t see how this could be a genuine question bc the way it’s framed reads to be like “you claim judaism is trans friendly, and yet the gender binary still exists within it???????????????” also please for the love of fuck stop using orthodox sects as a gotcha. i am sick of hearing how “judaism is homophobic/transphobic/misogynistic bc *cited ultra orthodox group that the vast majority of the jewish community, sometimes literally even other orthodox jews, disagree with*”

[girlactionfigure]

Back in the 50s, Danny Thomas was a major TV star who had a successful comedy series on national television (CBS) called ‘Make Room for Daddy’ (Later changed to ‘The Danny Thomas Show’). The son of Maronite immigrants from Lebanon, read that a young medical student, the son of Chassidic immigrants from Ukraine, was struggling to pay his tuition, and donated the shortfall. As a result, countless lives were saved and made better by Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski.

Rabbi Twerski described the story in an interview with the Pittsburgh Quarterly on November 19, 2007:

“By that time, I had several children, so my dad and some members of the congregation helped me to pay for school. I applied for a scholarship through a foundation, but it didn’t come through, so in my third year, I fell two trimesters behind on tuition.

One day, I called my wife at lunch as always, and she asked, “What would you do if you had $4,000?” I said, “I’m too busy to talk about fantasies.” She said, “But you really do have $4,000!” I said, “From where?” She said, “From Danny Thomas.” “Who’s Danny Thomas?” She said, “The TV star.”

Then she read me an article from The Chicago Sun. Local officials had told Mr. Thomas about a young rabbi who was struggling to get through medical school. Thomas asked, “How much does your rabbi need?” They said, “Four thousand dollars.” He said, “Tell your rabbi he’s got it.”

Rabbi Twerski was a scholar with feet planted firmly in two worlds — the rabbinic world of Torah and Talmud study, and a medical doctor and licensed psychiatrist. It was a rare pairing that earned him respect in both the insular ultra-Orthodox Jewish world and wider American society. He was an expert on addiction and scion of a long line of prominent rabbis descended from the 18th-century founder of Hassidic Judaism, the Baal Shem Tov.

Rabbi Twerski was a prolific writer. He authored dozens of books on a wide array of subjects: from addiction and mental health to religious law for medical professionals and commentaries on Jewish texts. Twerski also collaborated with late “Peanuts” comic strip creator Charles Schulz on a series of popular self-help books featuring Charlie Brown and Snoopy.

May his memory be for a blessing.

Rabbi Yisroel Bernath

Danny Thomas was also the founder of St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

[secular-jew]

So you admit that even when a holy book instructs or excuses horrific acts to other people that doesn’t make the religion itself or its followers inherently evil?

Because for every fucked up thing in Muslim holy books I’m sure I can find something similar in other holy books or stories, just because one religion “doesn’t do it anymore” doesn’t mean the religion is inherently one of peace.

If your problem is solely with people’s actions then direct your ire towards those actions

But if you hate the beliefs behind these actions, then be consistent and hate ALL similar beliefs

There are people trying to fulfill a cow based prophecy in Israel right now so it’s not like wacko’s don’t exist in Judaism to.

There is a difference. Muslim caliphs, mullahs, and sheiks are constantly preaching the Quran to their flocks every week, and they are repeating the calls to Jihad, the destruction of an Israel, attacks on Jews and other Kafirs. And so, there are 5 murderous attacks, per day, documented, by those shouting Allahu Akbar, our Islamic God is Great, we are killing the unbelievers in Allah's name." 5 per day, 2,000 per year since these attacks have been documented starting in 2001, post 9-11, an Allahu Akbar event I witnessed personally, and lost 2 female colleagues who were killed in barbaric manner while doing their day jobs in the World Trade Center. Some of these 46.262 Allahu Akbar attacks have resulted in 1-5 deaths, some 200, and some 3,000.

This is not happening in Christianity or in Judaism, nor in Buddhism or Taoism.

Maybe you can tell me, how many Jews have blown up airplanes or flown them into civilian buildings? How many Buddhists have killed 200 people dancing at a beach bar? How many upset or ultra-orthodox Protestants kidnapped hundreds of Nigerian or Yazidi girls, and used them as personal sex slaves? How many Zoroastrians have blown up buses and pizzerias? Sure, Jews have wackos - every religion does.

I used to think that all religions were peaceful save for a few extremists, up until 9-11, after which I did an intense amount of research into the history of Islam and of Jihad (both are intensely and deliberately intertwined). Also, it turns out, Mohammad was no Moses and no Jesus. He's not like other actual prophets.

What I learned is that the effed up Islamic trilogy (Quran, Hadiths, Sirah) is very dangerous, is militaristic and political, and ~60% of the texts instruct Muslims, specifically, how to treat others (non-Muslims, Kafirs, unbelievers) as 2nd class citizens at best, and corpses at worst. This is a major and defining difference. I won't get into all the nuances bc it would take an entire book.

[adhdnojutsu]

Uchihas are Jew-coded

Preface: I'm Jewish. As with all marginalized minorities, outsiders are welcome to listen, ask questions etc. but not talk over or goysplain us. This applies especially to challenging our indigeneity. Which is not in "Gobacktoeurope"...

Obito

I first started headcanoning this after seeing Obito's Kamui dimension. His panic room looks a lot like the Holocaust memorial in Berlin.

He also said this to Rin:

Talmud (Sanhedrin 37a): “Whoever saves a single life is considered by scripture to have saved the whole world.'

Tikkun Olam: if I ruled the world...

Jews have a collective imperative of Tikkun Olam, aka fixing the world. Obito's and Madara's drive to do so means little on the face since many anime villains have this goal, but given the previous things mentioned, this looks like part of a pattern. Itachi and Sasuke, too, wanted to shoulder the weight of the world to make it a better place. Even if it meant the whole world hating you - like the whole world has hated and still hates Jews.

Let's delve deeper into that hatred, shall we? The anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that we secretly run the world is directly tied to our imperative to fix it. You can't fix anything without power and influence. In fact, the whole notion of Tikkun Olam being our job, may strike Gentiles as conceited and inspire hatred. Obito and Madara needed to "run the world" in order to "fix it" and were happy to accept that this meant being hated.

This "Jews control the world" conspiracy theory connects seamlessly to Konoha's suspicion of the clan conspiring to take over and using the Sharingan, a trait unique to the Uchiha, to control tailed beasts in order to execute such a take-over. Kotoamatsukami is the ultimate parallel to Jews secretly controlling the media, and with them, public opinion (but not in our favour?).

Just like the Sharingan, Jews have, or are accused of having, singular qualities that facilitate our rise to power. This is because Judaism is a closed (ethno)religion and opting in (converting), having interfaith families etc. is discouraged. In some ultra-Orthodox communities, this is taken quite far... Let's just say that Uchiha wives, too, take their husband's last name, but Mikoto Uchiha looks like Sasuke looks like Izuna... go figure.

Of course, in the case of Jews, this quality is not so much a gate-kept genetic trait, as a gravitation towards intellectual and influential professions passed down through generations. This is a direct result of anti-Semitic policy though: often being excluded from handicraft etc, Jews shifted the focus to administrative, financial and legal sectors. Jews are also traditionally studious, so our apparent domination of the Noble Prize is a result of this.

But no matter the cause of our success in certain areas, it would obviously have Gentiles eyeing us with suspicion. Why is a single ethnoreligious minority so prominently represented in positions of influence and acclaim? What might we be plotting? Why shouldn't we be plotting, since we ARE - allegedly - conniving, manipulative and greedy? Better get rid of us. Remember: Nazis hated Jews and were scared of arts and literature. Being Jewish and being an intellectual are, if you ask anti-Semites, shortcuts to power. You know who else hates books and Jews? Every single terrorist organization, be it Taliban, Hamas, ISIS,... Anti-intellectuals are often anti-Semites. Education is power. Jews love education. Terrorist regimes hate smart subjects. Ignorance is cheaper than bullets, after all.

Ghetto Uprising/Beware the Beginnings

The clan suspected the compound was just the beginning. Although the discrimination the Uchiha actually suffered - a compound, which all the other clans got, too, and surveillance - was not comparable to the Warsaw Ghetto or any other real world segregation, Fugaku and other clan members expected it to take a turn for the worse if ignored. And in order to prevent another Holocaust, you must recognize and fight the beginnings.

These beginnings are upon us once more. Anti-Semitism has been skyrocketing, and blaming Israel, a single, far-away country, is dishonest, considering:

Palestinians have massacred Jews decades before there even was a state of Israel; what Nakba was their excuse in 1922? What Nakba was there in Iran?

Jews are entitled to Israeli citizenship, all moving expenses paid, so why do many live in Diaspora? Could it be that they do not wish to be involved with the state of Israel? So why take it out on them, unless one already hated Jews?

The most recent rise in anti-Semitism didn't follow Israel's bombardment of Gaza, but the DAY of Hamas' mass rapes, mutilations, torture, and murder of 1000+ Jews on October 7. People who don't usually praise children, including those of "colonizers", getting slaughtered and mutilated, suddenly praised exactly that. These people have always been anti-Semitic and found an excuse to be loud about it by weaponizing Palestinian suffering, which they only care about because Jews are the culprit. Proof: Houthis are starving Muslim children in Yemen, China oppresses Uyghur Muslims, Assad gassed Muslims, America bombed Muslims for 20 years, but - crickets. Think about it.

Likewise, the Narutoverse counterpart of the Nazis or Hamas, Tobirama and his acolytes, have found many a lazy excuse, most notably the Kyuubi attack. They suspected an Uchiha, and little did they know they were right, except, just like Netanyahu and the people under his command, a single deranged Obito did not represent a critical mass of Uchihas. And yet, the clan, just as world Jewry, faced collective punishment. The Narutoverse Nazis were frothing at the mouth for an excuse for decades, and notable Uchiha individuals kept delivering, not least because their own incompetence, just like Netanyahu's, allowed things to get that far to begin with.

Isobu

Doesn't Isobu look a lot like shellfish? And isn't he why Rin killed herself? Rin was Obito's everything and she died because of this monster. Not that it was Isobu's fault, but still.

Jews aren't allowed to eat shellfish. Obito has every reason to hate shellfish for the mere memory that stuff evokes. I know it's a bit of a reach, but again, patterns.

Dress Codes

For a proud, prominent clan with a bit of a superiority complex for their gate-kept characteristics, the Uchiha sure dress very modestly, the women even more so. In fact, they might just be the least flashy of all Konoha communities. The muted colours and baggy cuts scream "modesty". If you've ever wandered an Orthodox Jewish neighbourhood, you'll see the women tend to wear long, plain skirts, long, tight sleeves, ultra-conservative shoes, and plain, long or covered hair.

Mikoto fits right in, but so do other Uchiha women. Izumi is a bit "daring" with her sleeveless look, but her overall style still fits. Nobody in that clan seems to have much vanity, while the general population of Konoha and the Narutoverse at large, is a lot more individualistic.

"This guy just slaughtered the whole police force, let's throw a kunai at him and see what happens" bless her little heart

Flag Infestation

Uchihas have no chill when it comes to plastering their logo everywhere in their compound. They were driven out of the general public and are doubling down on pride as a result. Same applies to Jews in the safety of our indigenous homeland (the Jewish Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem predates Islam, born in modern Saudi Arabia, by many centuries, so don't Gobacktoeurope me).

Oh, and a Nazi found an excuse to ghetto them up, assigned some of them authority to keep their own in check (Sonderkommando/"Konoha" military police), then got rid of them all and managed to sell it as a necessary evil.

[deconstructingchabad]

The Rebbe and LGBTQ Rights

Warning for: extreme homophobia, transphobia, conversion therapy, medicalizing language, etc etc

Chabad is nothing if not an expert in PR. Unlike other Chassidic factions, or, indeed, other Chareidi (what you might call "ultra-Orthodox") factions in general, Chabad has spent a lot of effort into disguising their true politically conservative views until you've already been sucked in. This had led to the very false belief, especially among younger generations who aren't so familiar with Orthodox Judaism as a whole, that Chabad is on the progressive side of Orthodoxy.

This couldn't be further from the truth.

While Chabad doesn't hold any views unique to Charedi Judaism with respect to the rights and respect of LGBTQ individuals, they have done a better job at hiding them.

You may think that perhaps this isn't such a bad thing- after all, isn't it a good thing that Chabad isn't picketing at Pride parades or outright throwing queer people out of their Chabad houses? And while of course it's good that Chabad isn't engaging in those types of homophobic and transphobic behavior, that doesn't mean that what Chabad does engage isn't just as harmful.

Chabad will be intentionally vague to outsiders about their true opinions of LGBTQ people, while in reality they fund and campaign for conservative political leaders and agendas and make life a living Hell for those unlucky enough to be born as queer into the movement.

Since Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, or 'The Rebbe' as he is better known, is the axial power within the Chabad movement (despite being dead for decades now), lets take a moment to unpack what he actually believed about LGBTQ people.

I (OP) am a transgender man. In January of this past year, I was lucky enough to be able to get a gender affirming double mastectomy, something that I had been yearning for for years and something that I, seven months later, still do not regret. But the months leading up to my surgery were fraught with emotional battles with my parents, who are deeply involved in the Chabad movement. They felt that what I was doing was wrong and went against, if not Judaism as a whole, then their values within Chabad. As part of my parents' attempts to dissaude me from continuing my medical transition, my mother sent me a letter the Rebbe had written to a seemingly trans (if not, at least, gender questioning) individual. Followers of the Chabad movement place immense value onto responsa letters by the Rebbe, even to the point of almost placing as much value on them as Torah, so it was no surprise that my parents held this letter, written in 1985, to such a high pedestal and as something to base their current beliefs upon.

Here is the scan my mother sent to me:

RABBI MENACHEM M SCHNEERSON Lubavitch 770 Eastern Parkway Brooklyn, NY 1123 493-9250 Mr. Chabad of Northern California 2340 Piedmont Ave. Berkeley, Ca. 94704 Greeting and Blessing: By the Grace of G-d 22nd of Av, 5745 Brooklyn, N.Y. This is to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 7th of Av. There is surely no need to point out to you at length that one of the basics of our Torah, Toras Chaim, is that Hashem is the Creator and Master of the Universe, whose benevolent Providence extends to each and everyone individually, and that He is the Essence of Goodness, and it is in the nature of the Good to do good, particularly in regard to our Jewish people, to whom. he has given His Torah, Toras Chaim, of which it is stated that it is "our life and the length of our days," together with its Mitzvoth whereby Jews live. As you know, and indicate also in your letter, there are Mitzvoth which apply to Jewish males, and those that apply to Jewish females, and the distinction in regard to the fulfillment of the Mitzvoth, is a far-reaching one. In light of the above, it is not clear why you should want to interfere with HaShem's blessings and contemplate a change of sex; especially as it would immediately bring in complications regarding Torah and Mitzvoth, even assuming that there would be no problems in other areas. And since this is quite plain and understandable, there is no need to elaborate on it. As for your writing that you have sometimes had the desire to have been born a female, etc. it is not surprising that a human being cannot understand the ways of HaShem, Who surely knows what is best for every individual. If it is somewhat troublesome to you, it would be advisable that you However, if this desire should talk things over with a Torah-observant psychologist. I suggest that you should have your Tefillin checked to make sure they are Kosher. With blessing,, M. Schneerson

And here is a letter from 1986 that is often shared around that is the Rebbe's response to a man "struggling with homosexuality":

RABBI MENACHEM M. SCHNEERSON Lubavitch 770 Eastern Parkway Brooklyn. N. Y. 11213 493-9250 By the Grace of G-d 25th of Shevat, 5746 Brooklyn, N. Y. Greeting and Blessing: This is to acknowledge receipt of your letter of Jan. 26th, in which you write about a serious problem. As requested, I will remember you in prayer for the fulfillment of your heart's desires for good. While all blessings come from HaShem, a Jew is expected to do what is necessary in the natural order. In the matter of the said problem, you surely know that there are doctors and psychiatrists who treat it, and have been successful in many cases. I know of a number of cases of people who had this problem but eventually overcame it, married and raised a family. While on this topic, I would like to clear up a misconception that has led some individuals into confusion and wrong conclusions. The misconception stems from the argument that since some individuals are born with this problem, it must be a "natural" thing; hence it cannot be designated as a wrong, or a sin, and there is therefore no need to do anything to change it, or at any rate, it is not a serious problem at all. That this approach is entirely without foundation can be seen from the fact that the Torah (called Toras Chaim and Toras Emes because it is our true guide in the everyday life) declares that to indulge in it, or even to dwell on it mentally, is a grave transgression of HaShem's commandment. Hence, it is also clear that the problem is controllable, for if it were beyond human control, HaShem would not have made it a sin. The fact that the problem may largely be congenital does not alter the situation. Every day children are born with particular natures and innate tendencies or drives, some of them good and some of them bad. This is why human being have to be trained and educated, so as to develop and strengthen the positive characteristics and eliminate the bad ones. The Creator endowed human beings with the capacity to improve, indeed even to change, their "natural" (i.e. inmate) traits. A case in point is kleptomania. It is generally recognized that kleptomania is a very compulsive drive. But no one will suggest that because it is probably inborn and extremely difficult to resist, the kleptomaniac should be told that it is okay for him to steal, or that there is nothing he can, or should, do about it, and so on. Similarly in the case of one who is born with a drive to destroy things, or with a quarrelsome or aggressive nature, or with a propensity to cheat or lie, or any other inmate trait that is considered reprehensible. No normal society would declare that since one was born that way, one should be allowed to go through life according to his natural desires and tendencies. Such an

attitude will help neither the individual, nor the society. On the contrary, everything should be, and is, done to help individuals to overcome their neurological problems, whatever they may be. Needless to say, the person who is afflicted with this or other neurological problems, may well ask, 'Why has HaShem created such a compulsive drive, which is in direct contradiction to His moral Code? Why has He afflicted me, who desires to comply fully with His commandments?" No human being can answer such questions, which only HaShem, the Creator, can answer. One observation that can be suggested in relation to the question, "Why me?" If an individual experiences a particularly difficult, or trying, situation, it may be assumed that HaShem has given him extraordinary powers to overcome the extraordinary difficulty. The individual concerned is probably unaware of his real inner strength; the trial may therefore be designed for the sole purpose of bringing out in the individual his hidden strength, which, after overcoming his problem, can be added henceforth to the arsenal of his revealed capacities, in order to utilize both for infinitely greater achievements for the benefit of himself, and others. Maimonides, the "Guide of the Perplexed" of his generation and of all subsequent generations, who was also acclaimed as the greatest physician of his time, declares in a well known passage in his famous Code, Mishneh Torah (Yad Hachazaka): "Every person has the option (power), if he so desires, to direct himself to do only good and be a Tzaddik, or, if he chooses, to follow the bad road and be a Rasha. Do not ever think that a person is predestined from birth to be a Tzaddik or Rasha. Nor is there any inner compulsion to make a choice, but one has the capacity to choose the right behavior, and it is entirely a matter of one's own will and determination" (Free translation from Hil. Teshuva, ch. 5. See it there at length). A final remark from the scientific viewpoint. To say that the human mind and neural system are unimaginably intricate, is to say the obvious. Only the Creator knows His handiwork. But the Creator has endowed the human mind with wonderful qualities to probe the mysteries of nature, to research and experiment and steadily gain more knowledge about himself and his physical and mental capacities. Considerable progress has been made by scientists in their studies of the brain cells and hormones. It is now clear that a wide range of human emotions and sensations can be stimulated artificially with the aid of electronic and biochemical techniques. It is now generally agreed that most, if not all, neurological disorders, including deviant sexual behavior, probably proceed from chemical(hormone) deficiencies or irregularities during the period of youth. Some neurological disorders are already being treated successfully in certain areas involving the neural system, and it is to be hoped that the range will expand and eventually include the whole spectrum of neurological disorders, both of individuals and of nations.

In the meantime, we can only put our trust in HaShem, and strengthen our adherence to the Torah and Mitzvoth, of which it is written, "They are our life and the length of our days." With blessing, M. Schneerson

With the above two letters, you can see the Rebbe recommending seeing a "Torah-observant psychologist" (this is a euphomism for conversion therapist, as you will see) to someone questioning their gender identity and comparing homosexuality to kleptomania and neurological disorders.

In 1987, the Rebbe was quoted as saying the following about homosexuality: (I had to dig a little to find this because. PR experts. But. Thank you so much to The Canadian Jewish News for reprinting his statements in 1987 and saving all their scans.)

"Any bill that proclaims that the 'rights' of these people must be protected and supported, should be seen for what it really is: It is taking away their right to be really protected (also -- from themselves); it is depriving these people of the vitally needed help! In simple physical terms it will bring even more suffering and pain to them, to their loved ones and to all society. Certainly all must be done to assure that this will not occur." "We are not dealing with the inalienable right of freedom of choice; we are not dealing with the innate and sacred, democratic right of free will; we are dealing with an issue of abnormality." ''In simple language, (homosexuality) is a sickness. And just because the patient proclaims he is normal does not make the malady any less dangerous." "there is no insult intended and no derogatory attitude suggested. . . . When a person is ill and someone volunteers to help him get well, there is no disrespect involved at all. "A special responsibility lies on the parents, educators and counselors to educate those afflicted . . . with a loving and caring attitude." When one acknowledges that homosexuality is destructive, he will realize "that it is no different from a child who is born with the tendency to tear out his hair or bang his head against the wall. But there is a very tragic difference in that this trait when practiced is much more devastating because it destroys both body and soul." "One person may stay only to lick the sugar and ' 'swear the pill is sweet." Another may come along and say: "I don't care if there is poison under the sugar, so long as I can enjoy the momentary pleasure of the sweetness .'.. . I don't care what the consequences will be." "Is it truly satisfying after the act? Or does it only provide momentary gratification . . . Are all his (or her) protestations about 'the great pleasure' and 'satisfaction' really true? Or has he Just been saying this for so long that now he is not willing, or is ashamed, to admit that he is wrong." -

Now, you may say that the Rebbe was only repeating what was the scientific and social consensus of the time, but homosexuality was officially removed from the DSM in 1973, over ten years before the Rebbe made his statements. The mid-1980s, when the Rebbe made these statements, were marked by the deaths of thousands upon thousands of Americans from the AIDS epidemic, and yet the Rebbe thought it appropriate to compare homosexuality to kleptomania or a poison pill. This isn't me singling the Rebbe out for his homophobia and transphobia- his ideas certainly weren't unique, especially among other fundementalist religious leaders- but I am holding him to a higher scrutiny because of the way in which the modern Chabad movement has attempted to whitewash his ideologies and market themselves as any less than the religious fundementalists that they are.

But what about the modern Chabad movement? Surely, even if modern adherents of Chabad didn't hold the Rebbe's words to such esteem as they do, perhaps the movement's ideologies have progresses with the times, and, dare I say it, modernized?

Well, they have. Sort of.

Any reference to homosexuality or gender divergence as being a disease has been virtually scrubbed from Chabad's public records (of course, this doesn't mean that the previously shared letters don't get passed around in private circles, such as the letter my mother sent to me in an attempt to dissuade me from persuing life-affirming medical intervention), but you can easily find what today's Chabad religious minds have to say with a quick little Google search:

"The issue is marriage. Marriage is, and always was, a religious idea: the idea that a relationship between a man and woman can be sanctioned as a holy union, as a partnership in which G‑d takes part. Does the California Supreme Court believe that their ruling will obligate G‑d to enter a relationship He does not condone? Marriage is not a civil institution; it is a religious one. The Court's intervention in this matter is, in my opinion, a dangerous precedent. This is a decision that should be left to the clergy." -Naftali Silberberg, 2008

"How do you navigate that journey? Thank G‑d, we have a Torah that provides a map, given to us by the One who gave us life. It tells us which desires we can embrace and elevate, which longings we can subdue and tame, and which we must reject or re-channel entirely. The Torah tells us unequivocally that the homosexual act is of that last category. Even if it burns inside for a lifetime, the best thing for you, for your health, and for your ultimate satisfaction in life is to subdue and re-channel that desire........ .......So yes, just as we don’t judge a fellow Jew for breaking Shabbat or eating non-kosher, so we don’t judge for the type of sexual life they are practicing and certainly not for the desires they never chose to have in the first place. In all cases, we look deeper, to the divine soul within. Encourage such people in the good things they are doing. Help them grow in the realms of Jewish practice and spirituality where they wish to grow. Let that soul shine." --Tzvi Freeman

It's pretty hard to find any official statements regarding LGBTQ issues made by Chabad because the devil works hard but Chabad's PR team works harder; however, I have the advantage of coming from within the community, and I know where to look.

So here are a few anecdotes from people such as myself, and what they've heard and dealt with due to Chabad:

(TW: extreme homophobia, sexual violence, conversion therapy)

Chabad is by no means a progressive branch of Orthodoxy. It is not unique in its queerphobia in comparison to other Orthodox Jewish movements, but it has spent a great deal of time and energy generating an illusion of being "milder" than other Charedi wings, when in reality it engages in just as much suppression and exclusion, even to the point of conversion therapy, as other Charedi groups do.

Just because you've seen that one photo circulating around Tumblr of a Chabad shliach putting Tefillin on a rainbow-flag caped individual does not change reality. A Chabad shliach putting Tefillin on an individual they view as undeniably a man (even if that person identifies as a woman or nonbinary, which they could have) is not the progressive win you think it is. It is no different from the refrain you hear from fundementalist Christian groups that preach to "love the sinner, hate the sin". They still view LGBTQ people as inherently sinners, whether they're doing so with a smile or not. And while I believe everyone is entitled to their beliefs, it is the deception that is most insidious to me, and young queer people have a right to know who it is they're endorsing when they endorse Chabad.

If you are in a similar situation as I once was, here are some resources:

JQY.org

Eshelonline.org

[giyrut-girlie]

so when i started my degree i made a hachlata that i was gonna only wear skirts and dresses to uni bc at the time that was the judaism i wanted to live.

those following along at home know that ive been kinda deconstructing the ultra-orthodox/chassidishe influences on my judaism. i'm still pursuing orthodox conversion and still very much value some of the wisdom of chassidut in particular but have been figuring out where i stand on certain values.

with that - i'm currently at uni, waiting for my next class.

i'm wearing pants. and i still love judaism. i still love orthodoxy.

i don't 100% know how i feel yet about the whole thing, but i think the answer is good?

i think this was a very tangible step in acknowledging that the way i live judaism wont match up to people's expectations of orthodoxy, but that the most important thing in my relationship to hashem and being an active participant in yiddishkeit rather than accepting the minhagim of my rabbi just bc that's all i know.

anyway i love you jumblr and i love getting to share in this with you all

[jewish-microwave-laser]

Is it possible, as anti-Zionists insist, to separate Zionism from Judaism? Is Zionism mere "politics," as opposed to Judaism, which is authentic "religion"?

The answer depends on what one means by Zionism. If it refers to the political movement that emerged in the late nineteenth century, then certainly, there are forms of Judaism that are independent of Zionism. In the era before the establishment of Israel, Jews vehemently debated the wisdom of the Zionist program. Marxist Jews rejected Zionism as a diversion from the anticipated world revolution. Ultra-Orthodox Jews rejected Zionism as a secularizing movement, while some insisted that only the messiah could bring the Jews home.

But if by "Zionism" one means the Jewish attachment to the land of Israel and the dream of renewing Jewish sovereignty in our place of origin, then there is no Judaism without Zionism. Judaism isn't only a set of rituals and rules but a vision linked to a place. Modern movements that created forms of Judaism severed from the love of the land and the dream of return all ended in failure.

By the time the state was established, anti-Zionism had become peripheral in Jewish life. Aside from a vocal fringe, most ultra-Orthodox Jews made their peace with the Jewish state. Israel's declaration of Independence was signed by representatives of almost the entire spectrum of the Jewish community—from ultra-Orthodox to Communists. That document attests to the legitimacy, within the Jewish people, of the state created by Zionism.

In recent years there have been renewed attempts, especially on the fringes of the Diaspora left, to create a Jewish identity severed from Israel. But with nearly half the world's Jews living in a thriving Jewish-majority state, the debate has long since been resolved. If in the past one couldn't separate the land of Israel from Jewish life, today the same holds true for the state of Israel.

from "Need and Longing" in Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor by Yossi Klein Halevi, pp. 42–43

[queenwille]

is it finally time to reveal that one of the main reasons hamas took the chance on october 7th was a political crisis in israel?

i’ll try to make it short for my ADHD sibs in the crowd:

israel had a really tough political crisis between 2019 to 2022, where no elected leader was able to gather a government (men) under the israeli democratic requirements, so it led to 5 elections in 4 years 🫨

when finally netanyahu managed to build a coalition by selling his dignity and the israeli soul to religious extremists (as he always does since he only cares about being on top, no matter what) the very large secular and left public in israel were having non of that.

forward a few months, the extremist criminal members of the coalition tried to pass an absence law that takes the grand jury’s power to overrule the government if needed, which fired up protests and manifests literally EVERYWHERE. public facilities closed down as an act of rebellion, roads were blocked and much more. Galant, the minister of defense, said publicly that the gov really needs to freeze the passing of that law due to valid concerns about the country and its citizens’ safety. due to that comment, netanyahu publicly announced that he’d be firing galant for going against the government’s current agenda. oh boy, the night that happened, all hell broke loose. people literally shot the country down until the late late hours of the night. the lack of freedom of speech was a serious deal breaker (reminder: they have been protesting HARD for W E E K S). many were on reserved duty (it’s when they complete their mandatory service, but come every once in a while for a few days of duty like training or backup and in case of a war, they need to report back to duty when they’re up to date and well trained) said they wouldn’t come to their scheduled duty days under a government that is extremist, not equal (ultra orthodox don’t have to serve as the rest) and doesn’t allow freedom of speech. it was a whole thing, netanyahu changed his tune real fast. you need to understand that for israelis to rebel against their duty is extreme af. military service in israel is mandatory and a valuable part of the soldiers’ culture and identity, it’s not a just job they chose like in many countries.

BACK TO THE AGENDA. hamas documents and recordings revel that they were very much aware of the ongoing civil (and military) crisis and mentioned it as a perfect opportunity to hurt israel.

many of you think that when we identify with the word zionist, it means we agree with everything. the main thing y’all cancel when you call israelis white colonialists, it’s first the rich and diverse population it has. are all christians alike? do all muslims think the same? why is it that when it comes to the jewish people, everyone is so quick to assume we’re all clones? judaism itself has a few ethnicities which is very much a topic on the israeli agenda since like forever. and then you have, as any other religion, religious people and then secular and then people who are in between. that’s all before you mention the 2.5m non jews living in israel.

TL;DR no, not only not all israelis support netanyahu, but you’d actually be surprised how many oppose to his egocentric regime. take the time and ask, don’t just take the easy way out of goysplaining.

[probablyasocialecologist]

There are queer people in Palestinian society fighting for their freedom – check out the website of alQaws, one such organisation, which has existed for years now. AlQaws stresses that, before anything else, their organisation is part of the struggle for Palestinian freedom – as they put it, when a queer Palestinian goes through an Israeli checkpoint, the IDF doesn’t care about their sexuality. Queer Palestinians face Israeli bombardment in Gaza right now, face attacks on the West Bank right now. Missiles and settler attacks don’t bring them liberation. Claims that Palestinians experiencing homophobia find refuge in Israel don’t match up with reality either. Since 2018 Israel has defined itself as ‘the national home of the Jewish people’, making the second-class status of non-Jewish people clear. Palestinians from the West Bank can only enter Israel with a military permit. Al Jazeera reported last year that ‘Palestinians from the West Bank living on stay permits in Israel cannot get health or social benefits, cannot work in many professions, and until recently were not allowed to drive.’

[...]

What about ‘LGBT-friendly Israel’? Netanyahu’s ruling coalition includes United Torah Judaism, which back in June declared that the ‘LGBTQ community poses greater threat to Israel than Hezbollah or Hamas’. Vicious homophobia is a strong political current in Israel – increasingly so, as the religious right gains in influence. In 2015, an Israeli settler attacked Jerusalem Pride, stabbing three marchers and killing 16-year-old Shira Banki. Reactionary views on sexuality and marriage in Israel go far beyond queer people. The only Jewish marriages conducted in Israel are those by Orthodox rabbis. No interfaith marriages are possible, nor marriages for non-Orthodox Jews. Since 2001, more than 66,000 Jewish Israeli couples have had to go to other countries to get married. Only this August, Israeli women in Tel Aviv protested against gender segregation in Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) areas of the city which literally forces them to sit at the back of the bus. So much for Israel, a haven of sexual liberation.