What I Believe

I received an email from a man I greatly admire, although I often disagree with him. David Klinghoffer wrote with a suggestion, which I'll paraphrase: "Why not write a post on what you actually believe rather than simply bitching about every rabbi in the world?" Fair enough. This post will explain my "theology," so to speak. But there will be plenty of bitching involved, because what I complain about has so shaped my worldview that I cannot make my case without mentioning it.

I'm evolving. If you'd asked me three years ago, I would have spouted rhetoric largely indistinguishable from Avi Shafran, but with some carping about nepotism, cronyism and the missed opportunities generated by same added in. But that was then. I've seen enough since then to realize that my initial revulsion at the business of the haredi world, suppressed so long ago, was well justified. And I've seen that non-haredi Orthodoxy is no better.

I've also learned that many if not the vast majority of "facts" presented by the likes of Aish HaTorah, Agudah and Chabad are false, nothing more than slick, often cult-like PR.

Jewish belief is based on a mesora, on tradition handed down from father to son, teacher to pupil, from Mount Sinai until today. But a mesora is based on trust, on the honesty and credibility of the fathers and teachers who pass it down.

The lies of the kiruv movement and the lies and misbehavior of the so-called gedolim, the deification of a false Brooklyn prophet, and all those criminal convictions, indictments, investigations, abuse coverups and the like have real impact – they destroy the mesora, break the links in the chain, so to speak, that once bound us. If today's rabbis lie to us, why not Rashi? Why Not Moses?

And, indeed, if the findings of archeology, genetics, astronomy, and so many other scientific disciplines are to be believed – and they should be, in part because they independently confirm each other's work – our forbearers did quite a lot of lying. Either that, or they spoke in the language and style of their day, using myths to teach spiritual truths, never intending those myths to be taken as literal truth, And this, David, is what I believe. Those myths contain some of humankind's earliest memories, often in fragmentary form, of what came before civilization after the great ice age ended and humans discovered agriculture, built the first cities and began to live for the first time in groups larger than an extended family or band. They tried to make sense of their world and to communicate in a non-literate society important information to their children and grandchildren in ways it would be remembered without writing – through myth.

Our unique contribution to these early myths was to emphasize the power of God over the powers of the demigods, stars and other natural forces. It was to bring God into this world. Most cultures viewed the Creator or Sky God as being too remote, unknowable and unreachable to be dealt with – hence the pantheons of the ancients. Jews returned God to this world where we are commanded to make a home for him, both in our hearts and in our actions. We are also commanded to carry this message to the nations of the world.

But we do neither, instead obsessing over ridiculous minutia in halakha and defining ourselves down in the process. Worse yet are the lies and corruption, the stealing and fraud, the Abramoffs and the Lanners, the Balkanys and the Kolkos, rabbis Lau, Amar and Metzger, Elyashiv and the seemingly endless list of other black hatted and black garbed fools we call leaders.

So there you have it. I no longer believe in the mesora as preached in Orthodoxy. I follow halakha for the most part due to simple inertia. I find little religious inspiration in Judaism. Yet I still believe in God the Creator who many billions of years ago made room for specks of dust like us and started the process that brought us – and brings us – into being.

Think of the words of the marvelous Eric Bazilian song made famous by Joan Osborne:

What if God was one of us / just a slob like one of us / just a stranger on the bus / trying to make his way home…

God is in exile because we put Him there. He's with those poor children as their rabbi fondles their penises and as other rabbis lie to cover it up. He sits in the fraudulent beit dins and in the special assemblies called to fake non-existent lunch programs. He was there with Abramoff as he stole from poor Indians and gave to rich Jews and He was there when rabbis looked the other way. We, all of us, those who stole and those who lied, those who abused and those who covered up, and those who just closed their eyes and would not see – have turned God into a lonely old man riding a bus, a liar, irrelevant, lost.

I can't bring God home, but I can stop covering for and associating with those who abuse Him.

That is what I believe.

Comments

[Emilie]

I found this site mainly due to the article on Deborah Feldman. But I very much wanted to thank you for your literate explanation here. Many Jews, perhaps secular ones such as myself, feel as you do, little inspiration from our own religion, most certainly not a light unto the world and an increase in Hasidim of all ilks who have leaders who have virtually invented cults as they went along, with some of them thinking that living persons, now deceased, could have been the Messiah, despite this new Messiah having done nothing to make the world a wonderful place.

We are left with nothing because we cannot make a G-d out of the Christian god and so we look for religous inspiration anywhere, somewhere, if only we could find it.

I understand why some Jews are returning to Orthodoxy - they want something, anything. The problem is that instead of all Jewish leaders getting together and somehow reforming, updating, making palatable our religion, we are a fragmented lot. It is so very sad. This complete with the inclusion of anti-Semitism whenever the rest of the world wants it, we stand as part of a community that is offering little to us.

I do not write this lightly. I write this instead, after 70 years of trying to figure out why the religion I was born into offers me absolutely nothing in the way of spiritual inspiration.

[gillmank]

Shmarya,

I've had a similar experience in my religion, and it's so refreshing to see how genuine and open you are with how you're feeling.

I went away for a year to live in a community that was extremely poor, so that I could know what it was like to be poor instead of just throwing change in our version of the Tzedakah box.

That year changed my life and outlook on God forever. So many of the churches I'll go to have all these super ornate images of God with all these stained glass images of white people.

But, I think maybe it's different than that. I think He can be seen next to the starving children, the underprivileged, the broken-hearted, and people who aren't white.

Society is not a society filled with life, and though it's true people try to serve God in the way they're taught is the "right way", every person I've tried to explain the God of the Poor to rejects it and chooses comfort and ignorance.

It's frustrating. It's heart-breaking.

I hope you'll find a place to daven in which you're allowed to ask those questions, and free to encourage others to talk about the almost extinct Ethiopan Jews.

I've learned that it's good to bring about awareness and truth. But, people get crazy and attack-y if they feel it's presented in a way that attacks who they are or what they know. Don't make it about knowing.

See if you can make it about "just seeing", or coming with you to learn about it. Their own experiences will teach them much more than online Theological battles. That was hard and lonely to learn.

Be careful not to seclude yourself. A place for bitterness to fester will become your source of comfort, and this can change your actions to be less life-giving than originally planned. I see you. I see your heart.

It's beautiful.

[Hershel]

Instead of debating with you whether there is a "fixed" misora or a "broken" misora I would like to call to question your thirst for evil; tracing it, discussing it, promoting it.

You say that your work is to heal people, to allow them to defend themselves, but you are not healthy or safe.

You spend endless day savoring the pain, the corruption, the hurt.

Are there no good people and rabbis out there who have benefited from their faith?

Do you think that if you catch thousands of people doing bad things all good will be erased?

What would your world view be if you collected every selfless thing anyone ever did?

I call to question your "saving" of the Ethiopian Jews so many years ago.
Was it out of love, or were you looking for the most hurt people to think about?

The media lust for "catching child molesters" is not a outcome of people's own identification to some degree?

Those who follow the Rebbi's teachings are not filling their heads with the sickness every day many times a day, but enlightened people like you suffer much more than any abused child ever was.

BTW how about you post the Rebbi's "insensitive letter" here for people to come and see "how insensitive" it was?

You questions about the Rebbi being bad, you never had on g-d?

Seeing your profile now, and wondering if it was the Rebbi's cold shoulder that did this to you, or something you always had, i would have to conclude it to be the second.

The greatest doter couldn't heal you, but the Rebbi was wrong for not healing you?

I don't hold any of this against you, and I hope you find healing and peace.

[Benyomin]

Thank you for this brief but insightful bio into your intellectual world.
Your work is very important, because we need people like you who speak truth to power.
I was also hypnotized by Haredism and so much of what you write on your blog is familiar to me on a very personal level.
Thank God, I never had to be molested or raped in order to see through the lies of the rabbinate - I just had to go through a Haredi marriage and divorce to finally decide things had gone out of control.

Please keep up posting your opinions, facts, infographs, et al. and don't let any of the poor schlemazels bring your spirits down; they're simply sick and don't even realize it.

[Shmarya]

Thank you, Benyomin.

[David]

Maybe Karaite Judaism is more for you.

[John Adda]

I think you might like this article...

http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/a-rabbi-who-takes-care-of-the-needy-and-perhaps-of-himself-too.premium-1.435192

[Greg]

Nothing says 'strong theology' like quoting pop music.

[C.W.M.]

Shmarya,
Regarding: "the song by Eric Bazillian made famous by Joan Osborne"-- He was,,, Shalom brother and don't stop searching for the truth---- as another famous person was quoted "you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart"

[Leah]

I left the Catholic Church because of the same type of ordeal.
People are people.
It says in psalms and proverbs-
not to trust in man.

G-d is always Good, Beauty, and Truth
and loves us unconditionally

Despite of whatever happens to us in this life,
I do know the wicked are punished by G-d
and the humble are rewarded by G-d.

Go to anger management- and live life in the present.
You and I can not serve G-d with anger.

Judaism is a beautiful religion-
Never think the RELIGION is flawed, because of a few people.

[Tamara]

I mean this in the sincerest form, if you feel disenchanted with Judaism, why don't you try Christianity?

[Tamara]

I also don't mean Catholicism or the whole hoard of money hungering, abuse covering, cult-ish examples that is associated with Christianity. It's true as you wrote in one comment, that Christianity today is not what Jesus preached.

I know you think science has proved so many portions of the bible as fallible, however there's a certain point where you just need faith, as written in Hebrews 12.

Have you really opened your mind and heart to the teachings in the whole bible? Many things you wrote about the crumbling of Rabbi's and their congregations are fairly close with what Jesus preached.

I know I sound like a "Bible-basher" I am not really and honestly I don't really ever comment on peoples blogs. And if you think you know what kind of Christianity I belong to, I doubt it. So please don't stereotype me.

I do see all these comments, the anger and hostility is astounding. Who has that much time on their hands to sit and write verbal hatred?

[Ruth]

Hello Mr. Rosenberg, by writting this comment I hope BS"D to remind you of something you already know by dharing with you a little bit of my own experience with Torah Judaism. I am a single goya undergoing an orthodox conversion (not for marriage). What convinced me that Torah judaism was the best and only way to be a jew and serve HaShem as a jew was that I learned and know that the Torah is true, that HaShem The Creator of the world is its Author and so is the mesorah and today's halachah. How do I know? Because of the same facts you claim to be lies by Chabad and Aish. I am not part and do not want to be part of their movements/community but I know the same facts that they know and you know. The truth is universal.

That those facts instruct me not to believe a deceased person can be Messiah and to not assiociate myself with those who do, does not mean it excuses me (definitely more after the mikveh) from following all 613 Torah mitzvot and 7 Rabbinical mitzvot instituted with authority and knowledge from the same Div-ne Torah, regardless of the unfortunate physical and moral conduct of those who either ignore or knowlingly go agaisnt the Torah with the evil inclination's help.

I wish you with HaSh-m's help and blessing to have a spiritual and emotional refuah. Shabbat Shalom.

[Ruth]

P.s. Hillel used to say to not do to others what we would not want others to do to ourselves. I personally want to be judged favorably when judged, so I try to remember that it is a mitzva to judge others favorably too.

[Susan Benton]

I wish you had a reply button because I'd like to make replies to many of these posters.

In particular,I'd like to point out that in my experience bait and switch has been the standard type of lie told. You really believe one thing, and then they yank your chain and tell you that you didn't have it right, but in fact they just lied to you (again). Chabad and Aish are particularly good at this - I once went to a woman's shir with a title which led me to think it was about one thing - only to discover that had nothing to do with contents. When I complained to one woman she said 'what difference does it make?' To her it was just a night out, to me it was time and hard earned money for something I wasn't interested in. I consider that theft - of my time and money. Aish use to cover a bit of science - now they touch on it, refuse to answer questions, and treat the women like 2nd class citizens (which if they are single is true).

Ditto singles events - billed as a place to met your match, these are frequently used to prove to a congregation that they are 'doing something,' or as an opportunity to fill the shul's freezer (thru high registration fees and twice as much food as necessary - the rest goes into the shul freezer), as a way to generate business for the caterer, and the shul/rabbi is seldom are serious about actually making matches. I've met a lot of people with serious, I mean serious impediments to marriage(once met a mentally retarded dwarf), seen lots of girls in their 20s at over-30 signle events (who provide competition for ALL the other women there). Very often at single events attendees are forced to leave the hallways and places where they might be having a serious conversation with a potential mate so they can listen to some visiting rabbi drone on about the obvious. The fact is they aren't interested in any match they cannot control.

And then there is the charming rabbi who was my sponsor for conversion. At the time I didn't like him but had no choice. Years later this Kohen divorced his wife, married a divorcee and claimed that he found out he wasn't a Kohen after all.

I'd say more, but the fact is I have moved entirely away from religion now and find that it is more important to fight tyranny - religious or secular.

[Bill]

Try Christ

[Vania Melamed]

B"H

They won't recognize Pathans, either, or any Hodu Jews of Afghanistan. 'Makes me want to cry. I'm trying to snatch up any literature I can find documenting displaced Jews to translate and reproduce them. I wish there were a Sephardic orthodox missionary specifically that can help with this besides with just Indian Jews. However, you may want to contact Kulanu's Harriet Bograd regarding Ethiopian Jews. She has devoted an entire organization to feeding, education, clothing, and providing religious services to black and displaced Jews around the world. She is wonderful!

[Sarah Chava]

I am sure that you've been withstanding lectures, torment, and ostracizing for years now. I commend you on your truth and honesty in reporting. I think what you're doing is quite remarkable and in REALITY (where haters tend not to reside), it is a mitzvah you are doing for Klal Yisrael. Kol ha kavod!

[SK]

I have many liberal friends who are disappointed in Obama. They expected great things from him. They wanted him to close our secret prisons, end DOMA, support unions, and to take a strong moral stand against everything they consider wrong with modern life and particularly more conversative movements in America.

I myself have never been disappointed with Obama. This is because I never expected him to be Moshiach and I never expected him to fulfill various progressive fantasies. I simply expected him to be better than the alternative, to be smart, and to make the best decisions he could. He has done that (and more) from my point of view and so I am happy with him.

Chabad Lubavitch is everything you thought it was when you entered and it is also everything you think it is now. It is full of wonderful, kind, open-hearted people who will help a Jew in South Dakota make a minyan to say kaddish for his father and it is full of people who will lie and steal and cheat and cover up sin and who will harm their own children and who will turn out their children when they fall out of line.

This is true of many, many insular cultures. When you're in, you're in and there is a level of support and love that is absent in modern American life. But the flip side of unconditional love is unconditional hatred. When you're out, you are out, lest you ruin the party for those who are still inside.

There is nothing wrong with your blog. It is important, it is needed. But I am a little bit worried about you as a fellow Yid because Chabad gave you something you needed and you have not yet found another way back to G-d.

This other way to G-d will be less satisfying and more complex because belonging to a cult is always more satisfying than dealing with the complexity of life. But it is still important to seek it. This is because G-d is beyond these human limitations and human problems. G-d is always seeking us so we should at least try to return the favor.

I do not know where you will find G-d now but I hope that you will continue to seek. When you find a new community and new way to connect to G-d, you will be able to deliver tochechot with more compassion and less frustration. This is what I wish for you -- a warm place where you can continue to enjoy the best of our tradition. It does not, despite the marketing, contain everything. But it does contain a lot.

[PCS]

I agree with you. Mesora is broken, and the Bible is not literal truth. But you know that because you respect the truth, so respect the truth: all of it. It is true that despite the ugliness, Judaism is a religion full of beautiful and wonderful things, and wonderful and beautiful people. It is also yours, by virtue of your accident of birth and all the work you have done. So love the human things that are yours, and keep doing your work.

[Aaron]

Dear Shmarya

The Rebbe may have not extended an open hand to Ethiopioans, but Rebbe overal did much good, no Shlichim force the Jewish faith on people, and the mitzvot we have in Tohrah form a moral code for all humanity, it may not be perfect, but I believe we must believe in Hashem.
I hope you will find and marry an Ethiopian Jew. it would help their own cause if they stayed more religious, but same could be said for Russian Jews. Shmarya, Jews have enough people in world who hate us - Why should we add to this by spreading Intrafaith hate, It encorages Antisemitism if we do that. Many religious Jews have not accepted Rebbe as a Mesiah without rejecting Judiaism itself, if Rebbe was not Messiah, that is not a blemish on all the rest of Jews in world, is Islam better? Surely not!

[Diane]

G-d wants us to be close to Him. Talk to G-d ask Him to reveal Himself to you. I promise you He will answer!

[Account Deleted]

Hello Shmarya,

Thank you for sharing your story and experience. I feel very relieved and inspired to know that there others out there who had similar negative experiences in the Frum community. I became Frum in Boro Park after doing a Gerus because I was 3/4 Jewish except for my mother's mother. The relationship with my Rebbi and community was severed when my friend from Shul, who was 17 at the time and a 1/2 Jewish ger was almost molested in an alley in Boro Park by my Shul's yom tov/shabbos Chazan.
After bringing this up we were both accused of lying, conspiring, trouble-making and I was accused of not keeping shabbos even though my old Rebbi, his Rebbi, the rebbitzens and other members of the community knew that this Chazan has been kicked out of his own community of Bobov and most other shuls for trying to touch boys and has been found sodomizing other men in the local mikvas for years. Nothing was ever done about him and my friend made alyah while I am no longer frum but happily married with two babies.

Thank you for starting this blog site Mr. Rosenberg, I only recently discovered it. It's reassuring to know there are others not afraid of Emes. Also thank you for bringing these stories to light and forcing this growing evil to face justice for their crimes.

Sincerely,

Eugene

[Shmarya]

Thank you for your kind words and for your support, Eugene.

[Account Deleted]

My pleasure Shmarya and don't ever feel alone in this We must all stay strong and hold on to emunah (faith) in the face of a shape-shifting enemy which forces us to ask such existentially difficult questions about the past, present and future of our little nation.

[Eli]

Hi Shmarya,
I accidentally came across this blog while ironically trying to find the address of a particular Bet Chabad at which I was supposed to attend a service. I've been reading your posts and comments and I want to commend your efforts. Many people, such as myself, grew up with an orthodox upbringing and found it to be unfulfilling, dishonest, irrational, corrupt, and based on faith in fallible men, with little to no historical credibility to these sacred "mesorahs." Unfortunately, people just see us as disturbed, pitiful and unlearned (it's actually the learning which has driven many of us away. While it is clear that many of these brainwashed cretins do not think critically or listen to reason, as evident by these antagonistic comments, I hope you realize that these criticisms NEED to be brought to light and cannot be silenced any longer by these insular communities.
Kol hakavod, and hazak ubaruch

[Lees]

God gives everyone the ability to answer their own questions.

Because, a mind capable of a high level question can find the high level answer.

It is only limited by the amount of work you want to do to answer them.

You should write less and work more. If you are satisfied with your answer then yes the next step is to test your answer in fire and in debate as the Truth will always win.

Are you merely soliciting fire here?
I would not suggest you tempt others to your path; at least until you know have done the due process to test your thoughts.

who is to say that you will have yet another revelation and change your mind again and leave a wake of confused souls behind you, waiting for their bolt of lightning (moment of inspiration) to catch up again.

[Shmarya]

I think you'd probably do much better in this world and the next if you refrained from telling people what to do – especially when you don't know them and you have no idea who they are.

If this is a difficult concept for you – and I suspect that it is – go see a mental health professional.

[Geraldine Leale]

I'm not Jewish, I'm lapsed Catholic, a bit HIndu and falling in love with Sufi.
I really commend your journey and your courage.
In the words of the Buddha, walk on. Its what we all have to do.

[Azeem]

You should really look into Islam.

[Reuben]

You honor God more than these hate filled rabbis you cover in your posts.

[TalkerWhoDoes]

Have been here before, just read this page for the first time. Wow.

Chills are running up and down my body. So exquisitely written, not least because of the solid foundation of fact it is built upon. Your opinions and feelings come across almost as an afterthought... aside from the instant identification of revulsion at behavior that does not promote (frankly, is antithetical to) the beliefs we were given as children.

Remarkably astute, and well-written. Portions of your work are likely to be admired generations from now. Thank you, thank you, for voicing what so many of us feel. Nailed it!

[Mead]

You sound just like the secularists that criticize the Catholic Church and all other Christian religions. Do you really think God is going to take your objections to other people's behavior as an excuse to not be as devout to him as possible? I am sure Judaism must have went through worse corruption and scandal throughout the centuries. My Messiah recognized this and brought it to light. But he is also the Son of God. He said he who is without sin, cast the first stone. So you would have to ask yourself how many of the over 300 commandments have you broken yourself. No one is perfect. No one can be. We are flawed since Eden. You have to turn away from these things that distract you from your faith and turn to God. I mean Catholicism has perk priests too, but we also survived the Borgias and many other horrible things. But God even had a use for the Borgias. Maybe God has a positive use for those rabbis too. Don't get yourself discouraged. I spent a good chunk of my life as a pagan because I catered to the kinds of thoughts you are having. Be careful.

[Mead]

Pedo priests. Autocorrect fail

[Karaite-oriented Jew]

You should look into Karaite Judaism. It is more focused on the Tanakh itself and disagreement and debate about interpretation is a key facet. There are no rabbis to obey. There are hakhams to help understanding, but you can disagree with them and not be condemned for it.

[Karaite-oriented Jew]

Additionally, there is substantial evidence that the Tanakh is mostly factual. Read this article here by Professor Gary Rendsburg: http://jewish30yrs.mcgill.ca/rendsburg/index.html The archaeological record actually does support much of the Tanakh. But revisionists have attempted to erase and write this out of history.

[Mokum]

Sad so sad I have sent an email addressing issues which I feel may be applicable.
If the Rabbi wants to change the world go ahead and live in peace however do not engage in such bitterness and anti-Semitism by publishing photos of bearded Jewish men displaying the Shoah star which led to millions of our people being murdered. I am really sad at heart for this person as they want to belong and have not realized that you do not need validation of others to lead a good life and do Mitzvoh. Please do not publish the name of G-d in such a manner and this is the first thing a child learns, I hope you find healing and comfort and indeed peace of mind.

[Shmarya Rosenberg]

Exactly what type of mental illness do you have? Are you off your medication?

Or are illiteracy, gross stupidity and false allegations your baseline?

[purpledynasty]

I've read through some of your bio and blog, and find you intriguing. I'm a secular American Ashkenazi Jew, Brooklyn born and raised - still live here too. :) I was Bar Mitzvah'ed at age 13 in a Reformed shuel, and the family never kept Kosher - but I always strongly identified culturally as a Jew despite being so ignorant of our faith. I'm over 50 years old, and some time in my late 40's I started doing lots of reading about our faith, especially about our heritage (Google led me to your Khazar page).
The reason I'm adding this to your comments page is because I'm wondering if you've thought of practicing and following the Karaite Jewish tradition? When I consider your strong identification with our faith and the devotion to the faith that you've already demonstrated it would seem that your ONLY "beef" is with the EXACT same "people" that caused a schism in the faith generations ago. The more I read about the seeds of Karaite Judaism and the struggles they had with Rabbinites, it reads very similar to your own plight. While many would ascribe Karaite Judaism to something akin to the Reform Judaism movement, Karaites were in fact strict adherents to the faith, and it was only their contention that each generation must interpret Tenach for themselves WITHOUT the burden of thousands of years of previous rabbinic interpretation - interpretations that have distorted our understanding and practice of the faith as the Karaites knew it.
I'm quite interested in your opinion on this matter, and was surprised that you didn't pursue a modern day American Karaite approach to the faith following your excommunication - it would seem a natural fit.

[David]

Today, 20 October 2013, I have for the first time become aware of this site. I am at once disappointed that I had not seen it years ago, and yet elated that it even exists. After reading the "About" section evidently written 7 years ago and many of the comments (why the vitriol when nothing more than social discourse is needed??), I can immediately say that this is a new home for my approach to being Jewish. I will support this site in any way and all ways that I can. I consider myself what is now more commonly know as an "atheist ritual Jew" although much of what was written in the About section has meaning and I am ruminating on the content with eyes wide open and the exhilaration of finding this wonderful site. Thank you.

[Diane Kruas]

I came to your blog looking for more information regarding the recent tragic murder of the Levy children and find your views interesting.

I am the daughter of a former Sutmar Chasid. My father was born in Sutmar in 1923 and narrowly escaped the Holocaust. He had playmates and distant relatives on the Kastner train (ransomed to the Nazis) which carried the Sutmar Rebbe and wealthy members of the community to safety and later freedom. My grandparents died in Auschwitz. Why? Well, a couple of reasons. #1, in the 1920s when they had the opportunity to emigrate to the US, the Rebbe convinced them that it was an evil, amoral place where they would not prosper and would lose their Judaism. #2, in 1944, they were told they didn't have enough money to join the train, also they needed to stay behind and would come with the 2nd wave.

In reality, they died because they were lied to by the Sutmar Rebbe. Perhaps my family did not have the money or yiches but the Rebbe and his cronies were saved. They ended up in Williamsburg (NYC).

After the war, my father cut off his payess and threw away his straimle. He no longer had to observe the law as made by liars. Interestingly, I am sure he would have supported your cause of Ethopian Jews. He supported many civil rights protests in the 1960s and gave many jobs to the dis-advantaged, ensured they had the means to put themselves through college and "make something" of themselves.

Diane Kraus

[alittlesong]

A very interesting site. What a journey you've been on. I am not a scholar, but grew up between two religions and ultimately chose Judaism. I am not a fan of any orthodoxy, for many of the reasons you cite. I was turned off by the blind faith, hate and vitriol that I've heard from the mouths of devout Christians and Chasidic Jews. However, I believe that there are many wonderful traditions and teachings that we can still embrace.

May your journey continue to lead you to peace. You have a good soul.

[ray]

Dear Shmarya,

I am sorry that you have been going through this seemingly endless wilderness of man-made traditions and doctrines which have formed a seemingly impenetrable wall of endless opinions , debates and discussions around what is known as the Torah and the Tanahk... I pray that Adonai Himself will draw You into His Tabernacle... beyond the Veil... Into the Holy of Holies... And meet with You there... And I want You to know... That if You want to Know Him... He will reveal Himself to You... He never meant for it to be as hard to understand... Just let go of commentary and read His Tanahk for Yourself... And spend time just being at peace in His Secret Place... I Promise He will put the pieces together better than Rashi, Rambam or any human being... Shalom

[M&E]

Fact is, my friend, you "doth protest too much"!

In answer to your admired friend who asked you clarify your beliefs, you rap away at what you DO NOT BELIEVE IN!

I will summarize the heft of it: You feel Jewish tradition embodies MANY LIES.

But rather than determine the validity of this one key claim, cleanly, neatly and BRIEFLY - you accept it and bombast away, shooting from the hip at anything that moves, left or right.

[Jacob kon]

Come home God loves you

Please we need you.

Stop this none sense you are confusing people, and pushing
Our God farther away.

Love

[RABBI REUVEN GREEN]

I LEFT JUDAISM, CHRIST INSANITY AND ISLAM. THOSE RELIGIONS PRODUCE MANY WARS, MUCH INSANITY.

[Dayenu]

You seem to be very disappointed with Rabbis. Google "Karaite" - this may be for you.

[Aaron]

Thanks for telling your "truth" and to be brave enough to say it. I am an Orthodox Jew not because I necessarily believe the stories literally, but because I think one needs a solid framework to grow spiritually, and I happen to be Jewish. That doesn't mean I can't question Rabbinical authority. But I am still careful in my observance of Shabbat and Kashrut, for example.

[mk]

wow, freakin frimaks....

how about now? what are your current views?

[Abraham]

Dear Shmarya,
After reading your website I came to a maskanah that
The best words for you are the words of the Lubavitcher rebbe shlita
That you should be spending your energy with the Jews around you
And you are doing it trough your website just not in the right direction
May H' help you to see the light and use your powerful neshama to encourage others to bring iden close to the creator ,and use your talent to teach the Ethiopians that your feel so much for them the 7 nohahide laws
May H' help you to do teshuva and gedola theshuva that brings the Geulah
Bessorot tovot

[ona malik]

Hi HaHaHa
This is wonderful This man loves HAshem sooo much and sees with wondrous eyes what others have no eyes too c. His points are human and NOW in such a time not only to truly help a Jew but to b a Jew and work for HAshem is the true call of duty.Cant anyone hear his cries are for U. I so admire that he noticed all the the incidentals. But what makes us tick is the doing and he did do. Cheers

[Patrick in Michigan]

I think you need to accept Christ and really get to know God.

[Leo]

Hi Shmarya,

I come from time to time to your site and finally decided to post a comment of your "what I believe" which I found quite inspiring.

I saw that your post dates back to 9 years ago so I imagine that you moved further in your journey (maybe an update would be nice), but anyway I'll send you my thoughts. [Apologies if you find them irrelevant.]

I am a Torah observant Jew and a scientist. Maybe because I grew up in a milieu with people from very different backgrounds, including non-Jews, I developped an outlook that allows for a healthy acknowlegment of our sages' humanity and failure. This does not reduce the respect and love I have for them (although some people do feel it does, I disagree).

I do not believe in perfect mesora, but I believe in our sages' extreme efforts to preserve it. Sometimes they failed and made mistakes, "mistakes even we can see". Yes, there will always be people who will use the Rambam (or another venerable source, but I am quoting the Rambam here since he apparently believed in a perfect mesora and wrote explicitly about it) to silence rather than to enlighten you. (A simple glance at the comments should suffice.)

I wonder also how you would react to David Halivni's approach to the mesora. And the tiqun it implies.

But this is true also in science. And strange as it may seem, there are more and more ignorant scientists. Science in our day is much more efficient than in the Rambam's, and you may laugh at the Middle Age scholastics but then you have to acknowledge that the scope of science has also been greatly reduced since. The true and hard questions that Aristotles, Descartes and Newton and others asked have not been answered by modern science. Many scientists have no clue about this (most of them do not even care). See for instance
http://chomsky.info/talks/201401--.htm
(This is hardly the only way to approach these questions, but the point is that even someone who certainly cannot be labelled as a postmodernist recognizes the necessity to deal with these questions)

Even science (with all the ambiguity of its changing definition through the ages) needs a "mesora". This is what even Chomsky says, quite convincingly.

So I guess my point is this: a broken mesora but a mesora nevertheless. You need the tools of science to criticize the mesora but you need the mesora to criticize science.

So the criticism goes both ways. And you do not need to make haste to make religion and modern science coincide. A healthy gap can be maintained. (And please don't take this to mean one should go all the way back to creationnism'...)

leo

[Donkadonk]

Can someone please explain to me, why nobody has murdered this filthy, fat, disgusting, lying, pig with a pony tail, you guys often refer to as Shmarya Rosenberg??? Like really? This abomination is still living and breathing and no body has yet to rid us of this turd!? If he was a Muslim, they would have chopped his head off long ago. Here is a lesson we must actually learn from the Arabs. We need to start preparing for the Messiah, which firstly has to include somewhere killing Shmarya Rosenberg, and shutting down this horrid site.

[John]

I see that most of the comments above were made in 2007.
Have your views, beliefs and ideas evolved any further since then?
I really would like to know.
Email me and let me know.
Thank you,
John

[Binyomin Prager]

Mr. Shmarya, you are a mentally sick person that needs a lot of Tefillos and psychiatric help. May Hashem give you a Refuoh Sheleimoh soon.