Woodcliff Lake, NJ – Agudah Convention: Rabbi Zwiebel Takes On Scandals In Jewish Community

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     Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel addressing the convention Nov. 15, 2014Woodcliff Lake, NJ – In a passionate speech at tonight’s Agudah convention in New Jersey, Executive Vice President Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel addressed the recent scandals that have affected the Jewish community and the detrimental effect they have on the Jewish community’s standing in the eyes of the outside world.

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    Alluding a quote made last month by Nancy Dubler, an ethics consultant for the city’s Health and Hospitals Corporation who referred the Agudah as an 800 pound gorilla because of its political clout, Rabbi Zwiebel cautioned that while the magnitude of the Jewish community may impress the outside world, it is our adherence to mitzvos that makes Hakadosh Baruch Hu look upon us favorably.

    Referencing recent headlines that have propelled the Jewish community to the center of the media spotlight, Rabbi Zwiebel said that it often seems as if we are surrounded by scandals.

    “Week after week almost, stories about financial improprieties or allegations of them, stories about horrifying, unspeakable interpersonal improprieties,” said Rabbi Zweibel. “It’s so hard to pick our heads up. And if we think that that we need to be strong, we need to be able to be a gorilla, we need to be able to get the powers that be to have respect for us. Yes they care about votes, but they read these headlines too. They read these stories too.”

    Rabbi Zwiebel’s words came just days after one New York family made headlines for massive welfare and mortgage frauds and weeks after a Washington DC rabbi was accused of planting cameras in a women’s mikvah.

    In an emotional moment, Rabbi Zwiebel related a story of the Baal Hatanya who was imprisoned and was davening in his tallis and tefillin. A warden came up behind the Baal Hatanaya and began screaming at him to turn around. The curses and threats persisted as the Baal Hatanya continued his tefillos, and once done, he turned to face the warden who ran away in fear after seeing the Baal Hatanya wrapped in his tallis and tefillin.

    Questioned by a chosid who observed the incident, the Baal Hatanya quoted the possuk which states that when the world will see Hashem’s name upon us, they will fear us, and brought out a gemara which explains that the words “shem Hashem” refer to tefillin she’b’rosh.

    The chosid wondered aloud why his tallis and tefillin never elicited a similar reaction and the Baal Hatanya replied that it is the difference between tefillin she’b’rosh and tefillin shel rosh: if tefillin are worn superficially, then the wearer is no different than anyone else on the street.

    “Tefillin has to penetrate b’rosh, has to get into your kishkas,” exhorted Rabbi Zwiebel. “It has to make you a better person, a different person, a person who is elevated.”

    “That is the elephant in the room, the scandal,” continued Rabbi Zwiebel. “The tefillin that remain al harosh haven’t penetrated b’rosh.”

    In his moving closing remarks, Rabbi Zwiebel noted that it is incumbent upon each of us to strengthen ourselves in our performance of mitzvos in order to regain the respect of the outside world.

    “When the nations of the world see and they look and they see the tefillin and they see the sheitlach and they see the kosher restaurants and they see all of the outer trappings of yiddishkeit, they look at us and they say this person is special. This person in fact conducts himself in a way which is elevated… that is when we can be 800 pound gorillas.”


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    14 Comments
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    jack25
    jack25
    9 years ago

    Finally someone talking some sense!!!

    jack25
    jack25
    9 years ago

    Finally , that’s what we’ve been waiting for!!! He should be renamed the head rabbi of all klal Yisroel for really taking on today’s issues!!

    villyamsburger
    villyamsburger
    9 years ago

    Im sorry I did not get the similarities between the two can you please repeat that. Tx

    ChasidicTzioni
    ChasidicTzioni
    9 years ago

    Tefilin shel rosh means the tefilin ON your head. She’berosh means the tefilin IN your head. If the wearing of tefilin hasn’t made an impression on you, how can you expect it to make an impression on a goy. If the tefilin are worn inside your head, the holiness of the tefilin penetrates your whole mind, then the tefilin will make an impression on the goyim.

    Rabbi Zwiebel, in his so very talented way, has hopefully made an impression on the people who heard him speak. The problem is that the people who make scandals are the ones who wear their tefilin on their heads not inside themselves. The message of their tefilin hasn’t made an impression on them.

    wsbrgh
    wsbrgh
    9 years ago

    Bs’d. All of this says “The American galus is OVER.”. How many known Jews do you actually believe will be living in the good old USA 20 years?

    BarryLS1
    BarryLS1
    9 years ago

    Mazel Tov, finally!!

    Tenor12
    Tenor12
    9 years ago

    The big elephant in the room is the lack of Derech Eretz and universally considered basic education in this community. The Yeshivas are dispatching 19 year old boys to start life on their own without a morsel of worldly knowledge.

    Fast forward 4 years and there are 3 children in the mix with a $2,500 monthly rent expense.

    I’m not condoning any of these illegal actions but desperate situations will yield desperate actions. Expect these “scandals” to intensify and increase with time unless a solution to the core underlying problems are considered.

    Enough with the speeches

    Yossi_Schochet
    Yossi_Schochet
    9 years ago

    Executive Vice President Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel addressed the crowd with a story from the Baal Hatanya. Only in America!!! Imagine if someone dared to try that in Eretz Yisroel – I doubt he would get off the stage in one piece.Can we expect a call from Agudah that members should start learning Tanya???

    9 years ago

    There are so many devastating problems in our community today. Making eloquent speeches is not about to even begin to solve any of them. We are all waiting for our leadership to actually lead!

    Yossi_Schochet
    Yossi_Schochet
    9 years ago

    So the “real” message is: The answer to all our problems can be found in the Tanya.

    9 years ago

    Greed and kavod are the problems. People who can’t afford to buy houses should rent apartments. There is no shame in doing that. The shame is being arrested and having your family portrait pasted all over the gentile press. Better never to marry than do that!

    Crazykanoiy
    Crazykanoiy
    9 years ago

    Unfortunately speeches alone will not end this problem. The problem will only come to an end when attitudes change, and heterim for all types of “shtick” are stopped being given.

    bewhiskered
    bewhiskered
    9 years ago

    We have had חומרות on wild salmon, Brooklyn drinking water, שייטל’ס, airplane travel in plastic bags for כהנים, and a thousand other situations that deal exclusively with anything that is בין אדם למקום. Has anyone ever heard of a חומרה on לא תגנובו in this דור עקש ופתלתול?