Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Interesting Posts and Articles #34

  1. Discussions of pantheism and panentheism over at Mystical Paths.
  2. And JewishAnswers discusses why we don't believe in Casper the Holy Ghost.
  3. After warning, family of autistic teen attends different church
  4. Jameel discusses the closing of Volozhin, and 8 seconds at an IDF checkpoint
  5. Making the minimum grade a 50.
  6. A bet din comes to Bet Shemesh. Rafi G. discusses why worry. And another post about a haunted building in Bnei Brak.
  7. Burning the New Testament, which was disseminated to Jews in a proselytizing attempt.
  8. Summary of a speech by Joe Lieberman. And the Sun suggests him as a McCain running mate.
  9. In Nigeria, kidnapping Christian girls and forcibly marrying them off to Muslim men.
  10. OnTheMainLine discusses whether the Chasam Sofer only wrote to Maharatz Chayes with praises to prevent him from going off the derech completely.
  11. The full transcript of R' Shirman vs. Rav Druckman
  12. A Mother In Israel has info on a new cult -- Megeirot. See here, here, and the comments here. An excerpt:
    The women interviewed in the article, who had been trained by Sylvie to teach the method, continue to be grateful for many things that they learned. However, they were seriously disturbed by Sylvie's focus on sexual matters, including the close emotional relationships she developed with several husbands of her students. She interfered with the students' private lives and mocked students after class.

    ...

    Tens of thousands of shekalim went into Sylvie's pocket in the guise of sacred money, with a promise that the donors will merit blessings and be protected from harm. During the course of opening drawers, objects deemed unnecessary or impediments to growth remained with Sylvie. These included electrical appliances, a diamond ring, clothes and more.
  13. IDF chief rabbi gives his defense of his supposed chillul Shabbos.
  14. Muslim man threatens to sue driving school for sending transsexual instructor to teach his wife:
    'You have sent me a man. Send me a proper female. How dare you send a man with a deep voice,' he told Joanne Dixon, who runs the school in West Yorkshire.

6 comments:

Jameel @ The Muqata said...

thanks for the links! :-)

joshwaxman said...

you're welcome.

thanks for the posts!

Josh

Anonymous said...

Shalom Josh!,

I will stay anonymous but you once a long time ago came to my defense from the likes of "rebel Jew", and "failedMessiah" (who is still very failed.
Anyway, I am posting here what I posted on mominisrael concerning "megirot".
I know that it is hard (if not impossible) for people to read such unbelievable slander in a newspaper which leads people to say...."it must be true." I myself am a bit disturbed at our matzav in golus, but inspite of everything, I will still not stoop to the likes of "failedmessiah" and be mizazel Rabbanim.
I asked mominisrael to put up an announcement on her site so that all of those who were affected, and (infected) would have a chance to see some new and factual information...to help mitaken the kilkul, but I don't think she is interested,anyway..here is what I posted.

6/12/08 7:59 PM, Anonymous said…

Great Loshon Horah. Great Motzei shem Rah!...Congratulations on spreading lies about people, their families, their children, all on the hearsey of others who hold grudges and have ulterier motives.
I am sorry to break up your motzei shem rah party. I have read Shmirot Haloshon about 14 times in detail, including in depth, and you are no different than any other group of Ballei loshon horah, or even worse, Motzei Shem Rah, which is considered by the Rambam to be equal to the severity of the 3 major sins of, avodah zorah, murder, and arios.
My Chardei wife has been involved in megeriot for 4 years. It has absolutely changed her life and mine. She couldn't take care of our household of 8. I was washing dishes. I was doing alot of the cooking and I almost couldn't take anymore the non stop arguments between me and my wife. It was gehinnom. when I saw my wife changing, little by little, each month it was amazing. She became a Yiddeshe mother. No more anger. Her strength came back, and she does EVERYTHING in the house. She is a real kiddush hashem and speaks very nicely to the children, and me her husband. ....what a cult.!!!
I saw her each day doing megirot. what did she do? she went through the shelves and drawers in the house "that she had made", and was able to find many many things that she didn't need. When you ask yourself a real question...why am i holding on to things I no longer use etc, you just may get to know yourself. The idea is to free ourselves from all of our negative thoughts, and limitations. And, each time she did this, she did it with a prayer. "Anah Hashem.....please help me with this middah or that middah." Everyday she was saying over and over again ..Ana Hasem, (what a cult). It doesn't surprise me that in our velt today, saying "anah Hashem is a cult".
Of course in the time of the Bal Shem Tov, the vilna goan and many others called him an epikores. In fact many Litveshe Rabbanim were very very against the Chassidic Admorim and put those in cherem who belonged to these "cults" as well.
So, when I saw one day an article in the hamodia-English, filled with Motzei Shem Rah, with the name of this Rav and that Rav, that a new cult has been discovered..called megirot, I was very very disappointed. Why? I knew that these Rabbanim did not know anything about megirot and certainly didn't go to a class, but they have their askanim who look around for problems and come back and report on things they see as problems. The rabbanim completely rely upon these askanim and that is it.
Now, I have been learning in known Yeshivot for many years, and am considered a respectful Chareidi family. I am sorry, but I have seen for years with "my own ears and eyes," (a prerequisite of shmirot Haloshon), and I know that saying "Anah Hashem", (something that I myself should be saying more often,) and clearing out drawers, is in NO WAY whatsoever a cult or avoda zorah. I was ver dis heartened to see how low in this long golus we have sunk, to use such big names of Rabbanim and to say in their names "CULT", avodah zorah", and if they allowed their names to be used this way, then I am even more dis heartened.
I myself have spoken to Sylvia for many many hours on the phone, and I never heard once a word of Kefirah, or avodah zorah etc. ANd I did keep my ears open to be sure. She is a Yirei Shemayim, and as is her derech, she will never respond to any criticism since she knows it is all from Hashem and for her to grow.
I went to Harav Moshe Halbershtam, zt"l, with my wife, and he himself said, "What, clearing out your drawers is avodah zorah"?? He did not forbid my wife to do it, we in fact we asked why they came out with their P'sak, (i.e the aidah Hacharadit) against it. The answer... "WE don't want our Chareidishe women mixing with the mizrachi type" This was the answer from Harav Shternbuch who I know personally.(So, if this is the reason, then say so,,, but to call it and everyone involved in it cult members and ovdei avoda zorah?)
It should be known that the Chasidishe admorim did not assur it, Belz, and one very well know Tdadik type admore (I will not mention his name on the internet) Has 2 of his daughters still doing it, (with a Chareidi counselor).
The one who wrote the artcile above (Erlich), I can promise you she is not very "Erlich" at all. She with out any permssion went into someone's private home, (not a public building) with the direct intention to defame someone. I promise that the house owner would not have agreed, (g'neives daas). She is a friend of another mizrachi women who had a grudge against sylvia for not allowing her to continue with the shiurim.they planned this set up, and there you have it, lies about sex, money etc.
I can tell you, that my wife has spent hundreds of hours on the phone with Sylvia over the years, and she was never charged one shekel!!!!! I myself have spoken to her on the phone, and she never asked for money. The one's who pay are the one's who are able to. She does not care about money. I am saying because I know first hand.
Just like when someone comes to a dyan for a judgment, can the dyan hear the diyyun if he has personal gripe against the person? this Erlich is no better.
I know of another chareidishe women from Meah Shearim, (I met her personally), and she begged Rav Halbershtam to allow her to continue with this "CULT", and he did. (can you imagine a rav in the aida allowing a frum women to continue going to cult meetings.?
Isn't it disheartning that all of us poor nebech, chareidim with yeshiva and bais yaakov backgrounds, all of that Torah education...we can't know what a cult is..avodah zora, etc.
And all of those lies about sex, taking things out of context to do the final asassination.
If I had lived 250 years ago, I would have chosen to be in cherem and follow the Baal Shem tovs cult, and of cours Rabbi Nachman's. I also would have followed the Ramchal's cult as well, (as they were all called in those days). Well, now I have a real wife, she cooks she cleans, she davens, she honors me and respects me, and she honors herself as well. This is another cult that I will stay in.
Let it be known, not ever shiur is for everyone, not every shul is for everyone, and not every neighborhood is for everyone....but the Emmes must be spoken!
I swear that all of the above I know personally, and not hearsay. All is true and factual.
yehuda | 06.12.08 - 7:33 pm | #

joshwaxman said...

thanks. I'll see what to do with this. (no promises.)

Kol Tuv,
Josh

mother in israel said...

I asked mominisrael to put up an announcement on her site so that all of those who were affected, and (infected) would have a chance to see some new and factual information...to help mitaken the kilkul, but I don't think she is interested,
Please don't make assumptions. I didn't even see your request in my email until someone sent me here.

Anonymous said...

Tizku L'Mitzvos!

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