our religion in certain quarters has become a business. You know as well as I that Chabad had become a business. That is sad...That is not what the Rebbe intended. I still live in the same place I grew up as a kid. I see the 'new' hassidim come and go, yet I feel no real closeness to them at all, save for the fact that we are Jews. I yearn for a time in my youth 40-50 years back when lubavitch was all about yiddishkeit. My Rebbes at the time were all holocaust survivors. They were true yidden with a sense of misiras nefesh. Today Chabad Lubavitch has became a racket, with their foileh schnorrishe shtick. I am saddened by their shtick.

It's my job and I'd be broke in no time if I didn't.

Let me see: "The good things are Judaism. The bad things are bastardization of Judaism." With this stupid philosophy you can justify anything. Let me try: -COMUNISM is always good. The USSR was a bastardization of comunism. -The REBBE is always good. Bad things are a bastardization of his teachings. -ALLAH is always good. Bad things happens because of bastardization of islam. -The HOROSCOPE is always correct. If it was not, then it was a bastardization of the real, infallible astrological horoscope. -FALAFEL is always good. Bad falafel is a bastardization of the real falafel. -It is always a good day. Bad days are a bastardization of the weather forecast.

in palaces.The money they collect goes for good deeds.

I see them everyday here in Montreal They are dressed to the nines, they tool around in nice pricey vans and SUVs and their kids esp the girls are iphoning themselves into a trance. They are a far cry from the Lubavitch of old..Trust me on that one. How do you spell BS? C H A B A D

Al, Sounds like you have a personal problem with Chabad. Did someone hurt your feelings? There are plenty of sucessful Lubavitchers now. Many of them are not shluchim. They have careers and are very well off. And G-d willing there will be even more. I am very happy to see that our people are doing well and besides having a part in the modern world are the examples of observance of Torah and Mitzvot. I think you are just jealous.

I agree with Rabbi Brackman that Judaism itself cannot be negative, it is the system connecting us to the "Good and Benevolent". It is up to us, the "users" how we connect to this blessed system, with what intention we turn towards it. If we turn towards Judaism with the intention to change ourselves, so we can "become like Him", than we can fulfill our mission of "Becoming Light onto the Nations", teaching the world how to unite, how to build mutual guarantee above inherent differences, hatred.

is that they don't study the Torah for themselves. They study Rabbi's perspectives and interpretations which in many cases are wrong and they miss out on the beauty and brilliance of the Torah. They don't know Hebrew well enough to appreciate the sheer beauty of Yeshayahu and many other parts of the Torah. They don't understand the evolution process of the Torah and think that Moshe came down from Sinai with the Koren version of the Tanakh. They don't understand the impact of the Babylonian Exile and introduction of Aramaic along with the loss of our original writing system. Similarly they don't understand the further distancing of Jews from their origins and fundation of the core of Jewish texts in Hebrew that occurred in Europe. They key is to get back to the Torah and Holy language - Hebrew.

Almost every Lubavitch institution prominantly displays the picture of the Lubavitcher Rebbe which is in violation of the commandment that you should not have images. This follows the reasoning that Moshe's grave site was to be secret so he would not be worshipped in death as the Lubavitchers have done with their Rebbe.

There is nothing to be jealous of the Chabad schnorrers. They serve the new Jesus Christ where they have elevated a dead Rabbi to cult and god status. Yes they are that dumb. They are so far removed from Judaism that only ignorant people believe in their nonsense. Most of them couldn't learn a blat gemorah if their lives depended on it. There is nothing jewish about them. They are schnorrers, nothing more nothing less.

Hillel instructs us that what is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. This is the whole of Torah, the rest is commentary, go out and learn. Rabbi Akiva instructs us that the fundamental principle is to love your fellow as yourself. In essence the point us to the fact that the primordial mitzvah is to be as the One G-d, and his only true description -- the one which we die with upon our lips -- is that He is Unity. How is Unity represented in our world? On the Hillel side, to the Left, a respect of difference. Hate subliminated into respect of difference and individual uniqueness (a miniature "one") -- a bit of pushing away, personal space -- is a good thing to the extent that it allows. But the Right, Rabbi Akiva, must be the stronger -- and overriding, overpowering umbrella of Love that draws in above hate. So stand the unque positve and negative charges of the one atom, and so will stand an ideal world of balance. The other Mitzot are certainly important, even there great value at the level of physical custom as a base -- but there importance stems from the essentials: The small Gematria (addition of the place digits) of 613 mitzvot (6+1+3) is the 10 dibrot (saying of the 10 "commandments"), also the 10 Spherot of Creation -- the "fingers" as it were ("...This is the finger of G-d" -- Exodus (Shmot) 8:15, etc.) and of that is 1. Of the 613, the 365 negative ones ("Lo T'Aseh") go to 14, the Gematria of "Yad" (hand). [Note the 14 knuckles representing the Halachik hand, what is ritually washed.] This is the Left hand, the 14 go to 5, the five fingers, and the man->G-d ("Adom L'Makom") tablet of the 10 commandments. Similarly, the 248 positive ("T"Aseh"), also go to 14 and 5 -- the Right hand. One pushes away weakly with the left, and pulls in strongly with the right. This, as observed by Rav Simcha Wasserman, OB''M, leads to bring someone close, and turning them around in alignment. [Notice that this aligns and unifies while respecting individuality. Unified existence without erasing uniqueness -- nay infinitely enhancing the uniqueness of the whole, for is not the whole greater than the sum of its parts? Therein stands the goal of Humanity and the special leadership role of the Jewish people and Israel. This is the essence of non "basterdized" Judaism -- and can there be a purpose of any greater good than this?!