FailedMessiah.com

Consistently Dishonest British Pro-Shechita Group Attacks British Veterinary Association Over Shechita

A parliamentary petition demanding an outright ban on slaughtering animals without stunning them first has attracted more than 100,000 backers, causing Simon "Shimon" Cohen of Shechita UK to criticize the BVA for its "obsession" with ritual religious slaughter, calling it a "dereliction of their responsibility" by avoiding more pressing issues like mis-stunning.

Research Finds Early Mesoamericans Negatively Affected By Climate Change

Cantona, one of the largest cities in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica with a population of 90,000 people, was decimated and then abandoned, largely by and because of climate change, study finds.

Transgender Kids Show Consistent Gender Identity Across Measures, Study Finds

A study with 32 transgender children, ages 5 to 12, indicates that the gender identity of these children is deeply held and is not the result of confusion about gender identity or pretense – exactly the opposite of what traditional Orthodox and haredi Judaism claims. The study, led by psychological scientist Kristina Olson of the University of Washington, is one of the first to explore gender identity in transgender children using implicit measures that operate outside conscious awareness and are, therefore, less susceptible to modification than self-report measures.

Chabad Buries Donor On Its Property And Then Mortgages The Property And Loses It – And The Grave – In Foreclosure

Chabad of California took money from a major donor to buy a historic scenic mountain retreat, with the condition that Chabad would bury the man on the site when he died. Chabad complied, but shortly after the man died, Chabad mortgaged the property, including the man's grave, and lost in foreclosure. Here's what happened next.

Hasidic Rabbi Allegedly Fakes Being A Holocaust Survivor In Bid To Escape Extradition For Alleged Sex Crimes

Shuvu Banim sect Breslov hasidic leader Rabbi Eliezer Berland would like you to know two things – first that he’s impotent and couldn’t have sexually abused the women and girl who are is accusers, and second that he’s a Holocaust survivor who was injured and sickened in Nazi death camps and still suffers from those injures and illnesses today. The problem is, both of those claims by the 77-year-old Berland appear to be false.

Alan Dershowitz Reaches Erev Shabbos 'Truce' With Jewish PR Flack Ronn Torossian

“I responded in anger to what I believed were inappropriate comments by Ronn Torossian and I withdraw any comments that were hurtful.”

Israeli Hasidic Rebbe Issues Video Message To US President

The 92-year-old Rebbe of Kaliv, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Taub, issues a rare video message in English for US President Barack Obama in which he tells Obama that it isn't enough to say you are Israel's friend – you have toi show you are Israel's friend.

The Kaliver Rebbe, Rav Menachem Mendel Taub

Ancient Tablets From Jews' Exile To Babylonia Translated And Made Public For The First Time

A two-day, international symposium, “Jerusalem In Babylonia,” celebrating the publication of this volume, will be held February 2-3, 2015, at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem, Israel.

Haredi Rabbi Charged With Child Sex Abuse Sees Bail Reduced From $5 Million

"He had no idea that an arrest warrant was pending. He wasn't running from these charges."

More Rioting In Poneviz Yeshiva

The nearly decade-long succession battle for control of the Israel’s second largest non-hasidic Ashkenazi haredi yeshiva got even more heated tonight.

London Haredi Women Try To Stop Non-Jewish Cleaning Ladies From Raising Their Fees

A "goita" is a non-Jewish cleaning lady. In London, these women are most often from Eastern Europe and undocumented. They are usually paid a small amount of cash per hour off the books to work as house cleaners in the haredi community. And London haredi women want to keep it that way.

Women Shouldn't Talk Loudly Or Laugh In Public, Satmar Rebbe Says

“If a woman must go on the street, she should walk quickly and not stroll…not talk loudly, not laugh,” Teitelbaum said, and if she walks with her husband and there's contact [talking] with each other, its a "disgusting" act. Similarly, if she  meets a female friend and she talks to her on the street while her husband is there with them, it's a "disgusting act.” A couple "pushing a baby carriage together is disgusting,” as well, he said.

 

Wrapped In Quebec Flag, Man Tries To "Liberate" Haredi School Students

Draped in a flag of the Canadian province of Quebec, a middle-aged man tried to enter a haredi day school on Tuesday, claiming he wanted to ‘liberate’ its students.

Sefardi Haredi Renegade Party Joins Up With Hard Right-Wing Ashkenazi Racist Party

Eli Yishai's new political party, Yachad - Ha'am Itanu, has joined with the hard right-wing neo-Kahanist Otzma Yehudit Party to form a joint list for the upcoming Knesset elections.

Guma Aguiar Declared Dead

Guma Aguiar, the Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based multimillionaire who went missing at sea more than two years ago, was officially declared dead by a Broward County, Florida judge today.

Prominent Chabad Community Member, Under police Investigation For Alleged Child Sex Abuse, Tells Community It's Okay To Kill Fellow Jews Who Cooperate With Police

"It is practical halocho [Jewish law] that a mosser [informer] may be killed, here and now in 21st century Australia, by anyone who is able to get away with it."

UPDATED: Alleged Mikvah Voyeur Rabbi Refuses To Leave Synagogue-Owned House, Despite Being Fired And Told To Leave

Freundel is currently facing six separate voyeurism charges related to six separate victims, all secretly videoed naked as they prepared to immerse in the mikvah (ritual bath) next to Kesher Israel that Freundel controlled. Freundel could serve as much as six years in prison if convicted. But there are thought to me close to 100 victims overall and more charges could still be brought against him.

Climate Affects The Development Of Human Speech, Researchers Find

Cold, dry air leads to less tonal language and speech than hot humid air does. Researchers examined more than 3,700 languages and found 629 languages with complex tones. Most of those were found in tropical regions throughout Africa and Southeast Asia, while a few were found in humid regions of North America, Amazonia and New Guinea.

Haredim Charge British Government With Bias Over Haredi Schools

The British government’s Education Department’s inspection arm known as Ofsted is unfairly targeting haredi and hasidic schools, a haredi rabbi who works for Ofsted as an inspector told the National Jewish Education Conference for Primary School Teachers last week.

Police Raid Major Haredi Yeshiva In Middle Of The Night, Make Wave Of Arrests

Israel Police raided the Poneviz (Ponivitch) Yeshiva in Bnei Brak in the middle of the night and made a wave of arrests and detentions.

Haredi Rabbi Charged With Child Sex Abuse Extradited, Bail Set At $5 Million

Rabbi Frederick Martin “Ephraim” Karp was ordered extradited yesterday afternoon by a Queens, New York court to Maryland to face charges stemming from his alleged serial sexual abuse of a young teen girl.

Police Charge Haredi Man Who Mowed Down Pedestrian In Brooklyn Crosswalk

Simcha Rosemblatt was allegedly driving recklessly and without a valid license when he ran over Raul Leone-Vasquez.

"If Jews, God Forbid, Become Friends With Goyyim, God Will Punish [the Jews]," Hasidic Children's Storybook Says

"If Jews, God forbid!, become friends with goyyim [gentiles], God will punish them [the Jews]!" So teaches a hasidic children's storybook.

 

Haredi Rabbi Will Be Extradited, DA’s Office Says

Rabbi Fredrick Martin “Ephraim” Karp will likely be ordered extradited to Maryland to face child sex abuse charges there, a spokesman for the Queens, New York District Attorney’s Office reportedly said.

55,000-Year-Old Skull Found In Galilee Cave Offers Clues To The First Modern Europeans

The discovery of a 55,000-year-old partial skull in Northern Israel provides new insights into the migration of modern humans out of Africa. The rare find is reported in the journal Nature this week by an international team of Israeli, North American and European researchers.

Obsessive-Compulsive, And Orthodox

"Alone in my living room, I took three steps backward, then three steps forward in preparation for the Shmoneh Esrei, part of the afternoon prayer service. As I began to recite the first blessing, an image came to mind, unbidden: a Renaissance-era depiction of Jesus.…"

Rabbi Eliezer Berland: I Couldn’t Have Sexually Assaulted Those Women And The Girl – I Have No Sex Drive!

“I feel nothing. There are no sexual feelings anymore. For 20 years already.…Sex? No, no, no. I had surgery on my prostate. All lust is gone. I never touched those women."

Haredi Lawyer, Convicted Of A Sex-Realted Simple Assault, Still Denies Guilt

"This whole thing is very unfortunate," Neuberger said in court Tuesday, wearing a plaid scarf atop his suit collar. "It's a misunderstanding and I'm sorry I agreed to those facts."

OU Takes Out Ads Against Mayor To Try To Force City To Fund 1/2 Day Pre-K For Haredim, Orthodox

The OU has just published a series of ads claiming de Balsio’s prekindergarten policy costs Jewish families $50 million a year because de Blasio’s program mandates full-day participation, and Orthodox and haredi schools refuse to provide that. Instead, they provide a half-day of religious studies coupled with various additional amounts of secular studies.

Prominent Haredi Rabbi Arrested For Alleged Rape

A prominent 63-year-old Bnei Brak haredi rabbi, a head rabbi of a local haredi synagogue who is also a long time resident of the haredi city, was arrested Monday for the alleged serial rape a 17-year-old girl over an extended period of time.

Haredi Man Caught Smuggling West Bank Palestinians Into Israel

A 32-year-old haredi man from Bnei Brak was arrested Tuesday evening at a security checkpoint in the West Bank after he was caught trying to smuggle Palestinians into Israel.

"Urgent Appeal For Pidyon Shvuyim"

The haredi gang allegedly used an electric cattle prod and kidnapping to force husbands to give their wives a Jewish divorce known as a get. But this wasn't altruistic. These haredi thugs charged about $100,000 per divorce. They were arrested by the FBI, and the few who have not yet pleaded guilty – Rabbi Mendel Epstein, the alleged ringleader, for example, go on trial soon. And that means…another haredi pidyon shvuyim (redemption of the captives) appeal.

Sheldon Silver's Fall Happened Only So That We Haredim Turn To God For Our Needs, Haredi Letter-Writer Says

"…One of the most powerful people in New York State, a Shomer Shabbos Jew is losing his place of power and fame. The reason? So that we can turn to Hashem. For the last twenty years, since Sheldon Silver had become the Speaker, there have been people out to get him. Each year they try anew to find fault and scandals, and each year they have been thwarted. Up until this year that is. The current news could have broken at any point, it could have happened last year, three years ago, seven years ago, or, could have waited another three years to break. Yet it happened now. For us. For a purpose. I would like to request that when you cover the Silver story, that you do it in a way which befits your wonderful news station. In a way which does not feed onto Lashon Hara, and in a way which does not lead to an increase of Chilul Hashem.…"

Orthodox State Assembly Speaker Forced Out Due To Federal Corruption Charges

Sheldon "Shelly" Silver, an Orthodox Jew who is the powerful speaker of the New York State Assembly, has been forced out as speaker effective next week due to federal corruption charges filed against him. Silver allegedly took millions of dollars in kickbacks and bribes.

Child Abuse And Neglect Laws Aren't Being Enforced, Report Finds Federal Government To Blame

Laws intended to protect children from abuse and neglect are not being properly enforced, and the federal government is to blame. That's according to a study by the Children's Advocacy Institute at the University of San Diego School of Law, which says children are suffering as a result.

Baruch Dayan HaEmet: David Landau

Former Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz editor David Landau had the broad shouldered physique of an athlete, loved to play football [soccer], was an almost stereo-typed British gentleman except when his hackles rose, and then he could be the exact opposite.  He wore the black kippa of the ultra orthodox and inter alia studied at the Slobodka Yeshiva in Bnei Brak and the Hebron Yeshiva in Jerusalem, yet entertained political views that were far removed from those of the right.

Secret Recording, Emails Show Victim Of Sex Abuse At Chabad Threatened, Intentionally Smeared, Over Cooperation With Police

Fairfax Media has also obtained a series of emails which show how three influential members of [Chabad's] St Kilda's Yeshivah community asserted that the victim's assistance to police in the Cyprys case had "crossed red lines" and had the "potential to undermine the [Yeshivah] centre." They warned that if the victim continued "to stick his nose where it doesn't belong", a new article about the victim would be posted on an "anonymous blog."

Report: Infected Haredi Mohels Still Suck

A Rockland community member who has been involved with the issue said the two mohels did test positive for the virus. They both continue to perform MBP. “They are continuing to practice and use whatever safety practices they were using before, which is why they have never been sources of infection in the past,” the community member said, referring to the mohels disinfecting their mouths before performing MBP.

Joan Rivers' Family Sues Doctors, Clinic Over Comedienne's Death

According to the lawsuit, doctors ignored the concerns of the acting anesthesiologist, who urged caution after noticing “incredible edema,” or swelling, in Rivers’ throat. Anesthesiologist Renuka Bankulla suggested taking an internal picture to gauge how bad the swelling was. “You’re being paranoid…You’re such a curious cat. You always need to see everything,” the lead doctor, Lawrence B. Cohen, told her, before proceeding over her objections, the suit said.

Yesh Atid Woos Moderate Orthodox Voters, Launches a Moderate Orthodox Faction, Will No Longer Push For Allowing Public Transportation On Shabbat

Yesh Atid hopes to be able to draw disaffected voters who previously supported the National Religious Party, which morphed into the increasingly right-wing Zionist Orthodox HaBayit HaYehudi Party headed by Economy, Diaspora and Religious Services Minister Naftali Bennett.

Diamond Smuggler Arrested In Ben-Gurion Airport

A 43-year-old resident of Jerusalem returned from Italy and was arrested in Ben-Gurion International Airport when he was found to be allegedly smuggling diamonds.

Alleged Russian Spy Ring Busted In NYC

Eric Holder, the Attorney General of the United States, Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John S. Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and Randall C. Coleman, the Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) for the Counterintelligence Division, announced charges today against an alleged Russian Federation spy ring based in New York City.

New York City's Least Eligible Bachelor Is A Modern Orthodox Jew

Imagine opening your inbox to find a video of a hairy British man — wearing nothing more than a hat and a Union Jack to cover the family jewels — asking you on a date. For some other guy. A year ago, Yossi Rosenberg, 34 and a lifelong bachelor, decided to start outsourcing his romantic advances to convince women to go out with him.…

Haredi Gang Dumps Fish Oil Outside Leading Rabbi's Home In Latest Battle Over Non-Existent Jewish Graves

The protest is another in a long line of similar protests and violent street assaults allegedly carried out by the gang and by the Atra Kadisha graves protection organization.

Why War? Why Terror? Why ISIS?

What is it about war and terror that so many young men and women find so alluring? Could it be this?

An Interview With The Victim Of Isaac Neuberger

“This didn’t take away from the fact that a crime was committed,” he said. “This can define you as a person and it can shape you for the rest of your life. It will always be part of me. This man has vastly changed my life.”

 

The Lawsuit: NYC v Ben Zion Suky

The complete civil complaint in New York City's lawsuit against Ben Zion Suky, Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto's top aide (and a former pornographer who is also Pinto's relative), for running a dangerous and illegal hotel.

With The Help Of Right-Wing Allies, Haredim Block Funding For IDF Lone Soldiers Center

“They crossed an ethical red line — this is politics of the lowest kind. I think they’re embarrassing the haredi community. I don’t think the haredim would want to hurt lone soldiers."

Sheldon Silver, Out On Bail, Treated Like A Hero By His Orthodox Synagogue

New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver may have been arrested by the FBI Thursday and charged with taking at least $4 million in kickbacks and bribes, but he’s still a hero to his Lower East Side Orthodox community.

As Haredi Poverty Deepens, Young Married Haredim Feel An Even Greater Sense Of Entitlement – Because They Were Raised To

"My parents pay our rent and we go to them and my wife’s parents just about every Shabbos [to eat], and we also take frozen foods and cans [home to our apartment from their house]. Yes, we are parasites.… So what do you want? We should die of starvation? We should live on the street? We shouldn't buy diapers? What do you want from us?" – a young married haredi yeshiva student.