Karlin-Stolin Rebbe Pays "Historic" Visit To Israel Museum

The head of the Karlin-Stolin Hasidic dynasty received a behind-closed-doors tour of the Israel Museum, the home of the Dead Sea Scrolls,  last week, the first official visit there ever by a major ultra-Orthodox leader.

The Karlin-Stolin Rebbe Rabbi Baruch Shochat at the Israel Museum (Photo: Kikar HaShabbat)

Originally published at 9:49 pm CDT, Sunday, 4-22-2012

Senior ultra-Orthodox leader pays historic visit to Israel Museum
Rabbi Baruch Shochat is known for his openness to art and culture, and encourages his followers to take an interest in art and archaelogy.
Yair Ettinger • Ha’aretz

The head of the Karlin-Stolin Hasidic dynasty received a behind-closed-doors tour of the Israel Museum last week, the first official visit there by a major ultra-Orthodox leader.

Rabbi Baruch Shochat is known for his openness to art and culture, and encourages his followers to take an interest in art and archaelogy. The guided tour of the Jerusalem museum, which lasted about three hours, gave the rabbi a look at the Judaica and ethnography wings, as well as the interiors of the historic synagogues that are now housed at the museum. He also visited the Shrine of the Book, where the Dead Sea Scrolls and related archaeological finds are on display.

The rabbi - whose community is based in Jerusalem's Mea She'arim neighborhood - informed his hosts that he had previously visited the museum. This time, he was accompanied by a delegation of about 15 people, including his wife. The rabbi is said to have shown great interest in what he saw and asked many questions.

Tuesday's visit came at the behest of the Israel Museum, which is planning an exhibition on the world of Hasidism, due to open in June.

Associates of the rabbi, who is a collector of Judaica in his own right, asked that museum officials not inform the media about the visit, and many leading Hasidic figures were not aware that it had taken place.

The curator of the upcoming exhibit, Ester Muchawsky-Schnapper - of the Mandel Wing for Jewish Art and Life - confirmed that the rabbi had paid an official visit, adding that in recent months she has been in touch with a number of Hasidic communities in Israel and abroad seeking their assistance with the exhibition.

Comments

[perry]

And your point is?????

[Stoliner Rebbe]

stoliner rebbe likes to tour the world, he was seen in many other countrys just waering a cap and touring.

Stoliner Rebbe Visits Chabad Shul in Azerbaijan: http://www.crownheights.info/index.php?itemid=42056

[AnarchyGirl]

"Associates of the rabbi...asked that museum officials not inform the media about the visit..."

Classic.

[chicago sam]

How wonderful! This article made me happy.

[Yaakov]

I am trying to achieve an equilibrium in my approach to the orthodox world. It takes conscious effort not to swing too far into the negative.

This kind of story presents a challenge. It's an opportunity to see a bit of light from where there is usually just darkness. But, even then, it acts as a foil to put the request of his "associates" in stark contrast to the Rabbi's own positive behavior.

And, how do I weigh a little good against the structural negativity that seems irreducible? It seems as though the "holy spark" this act represents can't be salvaged from the ashes in which it is embedded.

I don't like to feel cynical, it's not my usual attitude. I hope this really is something that could grow to help change the Weltanshauung of at least part of the charedi world.

[Litvish]

They wanted the media to not be informed so that his followers wouldn't visit the museum,too.

Double standards?

So what else is new.

[seymour]

Posted by: Litvish | April 23, 2012 at 06:03 AM

I think he does want his followers to go

however i think he i very progressive

he took his wife

[Yochanan Lavie]

I think this is a positive development. Maybe he'll allow his followers to go, or at least see select exhibits.

[yechi ben levitas]

this is a no news day.behind closed doors seems very unappropriate for this site which deals very often with news that has arisen as it arose from actions from behind closed doors.

[groogle]

the ignorance on this site is pretty telling. He didn't want the media to know about the visit until after he leaves because if the media announced the visit, thousands of peopple would have showed up to watch, and he wanted to have a calm relaxed tour so that he can understand.

But he definitely wanted everyone to find out - after he leaves, so that they go too. He's not stupid, he knew everyone would find out after the visit.

People like Litvish can't see the good in anyone haredi. Typical cognitive dissonance.

Yaakov has issues of his own. It is obviously a huge struggle for your mind to grapple with the obvious good that you see with haredim. To you everything is black and white - either good or bad - and you can't fathom that some haredim are good and some are bad. You see the entire community as either collectively good or collectively bad, and you can't connect the dots with all these puzzling good sides to them. You are mentally insane and you need psychiatric help.

[שלא כדרכה]

...אויך מיר א רבי

[Shmarya]

You are mentally insane and you need psychiatric help.

Posted by: groogle | April 23, 2012 at 07:08 AM

What an obnoxious fool you are.

The Dead Sea Scrolls and many other priceless archeological finds from the Second Temple and Mishnaic periods are housed in the Israel Museum, as are entire synagogues from Eastern Europe.

Yet none of the so-called haredi gedolim have ever bothered to visit until now.

And this is true even though some of those archeological finds help clarify or illuminate aspects of halakha.

This speaks very poorly of haredi leadership.

That the Karlin-Stolin Rebbe finally broke that taboo and visited is a very good thing, but it certainly does not wipe away the willful ignorance of his peers and the willful or enforced ignorance of his peer's followers.

[jancsibacsi]

Very nice of him, i like a rov that is not afraid of his own shaddow and his thinking is universal:)

[jancsibacsi]

groogle-You think you are better with the stupid words that you use against others here makes you much much more vicious and demented,someone like you who wholds himself on a highter maderige should act and write the way you do about others is definitly mentally disturbed, phew di shtinkst to high heaven

[Yaakov]

groogle:

What you claim about me is nonsense. It is not supported by what I actually write, and I can categorically deny it.

It is only because I see some good in orthodoxy that I have any struggle at all. The negative aspects are overwhelmingly evident. And, unlike you, I do not confuse people with their ideologies. People are not the milieu in which they live.

The irony of your claim that I am the one thinking in false dilemmas is almost certainly lost on you. The two times you have commented on me you've instead held up a mirror to your own prejudice and confusion.

[Adam Neira]

This is heartwarming news. As prophesied it looks like the petty divisions between the various sects are breaking down.

[Goldstar]

Last August I was at the kotel for Friday night tefila and had the misfortune of landing directly in front of a group of Karlin-Stolin chasidim.

Apart from their obnoxious minhag of screaming kabalat shabbat at the tops of their lungs (ensuring that the kavana of every other minyan within 200 yards was irretrievably ruined), at one point the leader of the K-S group came over to me and asked if I could cover up my daughter's shoulders because they were distracting his from his davening. My daughter is 4 years old.

[jancsibacsi]

Adam Neira-Stop dumping youre infantile fantasies here on a reality based audience.

[Yaakov]

Adam Neira:

Do you really see this as substantive proof of prophecy?

I must say, that seems really odd. Even if I were to accept the prophecy aspect as valid, this small event doesn't seem to have any weight. Why did you even say this? Surely you knew that people would attack it.

It's really hard for me to understand your mindset.

[ah-pee-chorus]

yaakov-

how dare you question the messiah!!

[jancsibacsi]

Goldstar -Dont you understand they are the masters ans we are their servants we serve them,they live in such a fantasy that they lost all touch with reality, only when they get a gigantic punch will they come to to their senses until then they think everyone is suppose to abide by their dictates.

[yid hapashut]

That the Karlin-Stolin Rebbe finally broke that taboo and visited is a very good thing, but it certainly does not wipe away the willful ignorance of his peers and the willful or enforced ignorance of his peer's followers.

Posted by: Shmarya | April 23, 2012 at 07:49 AM

Stoline Rebbe isn't responsable for the actions of others.
Please follow his recent public apperances and interaction, and you'll see that this occurances wasn't out of his 'normal' conduct.
Some times is very hard to see the light in the darkness, especially when darkness is "black and white"; however, he definitely stands out as the bright light.

[jancsibacsi]

yid hapashut-You dont sound so pushit to me you write in the darkness its very hard to see the light in the darkness it is very easy to see the light just open youre eyes and you will see it:)

[yid hapashut]

:)seeing it :) but you catch my drift i hope.

[Adam Neira]

To Yaakov,

Prophecy is crystal clear that various Jewish streams will come together in the Messianic Era. There have been a number of very important meetings between previously distant groups lately in the Jewish fold. (I won't list them all here as I don't have time.) This is another. Regarding you not understanding my mindset, well unless you knew exactly what I had been through, how I process things and what I am aware of you couldn't possibly conceptualise my frame of reference, so don't be too hard on yourself.

Cheers !

[Adam Neira]

To Jancsibacsi,

This may be too difficult for you to handle, but what if there is indeed a hierarchy of wisdom on the Planet ? Some people unfortunately just can't handle the fact that some people may know more about a certain subject than them. I always defer to greater wisdom in fields I know nothing about. For example, I am not a good cook, but I could learn. Let me explain by using an analogy...

Say you are a junior mountain climber that thinks he is pretty good. Ascending the mountain he suddenly finds himself in real trouble. He may not seek help if he is confident he can get himself out of the predicament. If things get really dangerous he may seek out the advice, counsel and wisdom of a more experienced climber higher on the mountain. If he heeds this advice, pulls his head in and humbles himself for a moment, he might just rise higher on the mountain and enjoy his splendid adventure.

Now sometimes the experienced mountain climber who has ascended the mountain many times and proven his theories through science, law, and personal experience may give all the advice in the world to the budding climbers and they still will not listen to him. He will then choose who he gives his received wisdom to. His climbing school will prosper.

[jancsibacsi]

Adam Neira |-Actually it was exceptionally easy for me to handle after what you just wrote i will say this you adam are in a perpetual halucinatory mode and if you dont break out of it you will become a zombie which you already more or less are.

[Dovy]

I actually have always found Adam's remarks quite refreshing and usually well-informed.

[Yaakov]

Adam Neira:

I am not concerned with the precise details of your cogitation. I am just surprised you would act so foolishly. You seem reasonably intelligent yet you say things that, no matter what their merit, cannot be expected to communicate anything useful.

You didn't really answer my question so I am going to assume that you really don't have a good answer.

[jancsibacsi]

Yaakov-You hit the nail on its head talks so much but says nothing hahaha this adam

[frum but normal]

of all the chasidic rebbe's he is the most normal one,i remmember some years ago i was on the same EL-AL flight with him,and guess what? he actualy sat next to his wife.

[ZIY]

Stolin has a long history of interest in chasidic manuscripts & paraphernalia. See the most recent JRoB:

http://www.jewishreviewofbooks.com/publications/detail/the-lost-textual-treasures-of-a-hasidic-community

As I understand, the Stoliners are still sleuthing for their lost treasures.

[Max]

I have never heard a bad thing about the Karlin Stoliner.

Can't say the same thing about Shmarya.

[David]

at one point the leader of the K-S group came over to me and asked if I could cover up my daughter's shoulders because they were distracting his from his davening. My daughter is 4 years old.

Posted by: Goldstar | April 23, 2012 at 09:53 AM

He should be reported to the police. This is not normal.