A Russian official has apologized after his deputy published an op-ed that referred to the Chabad-Lubavitch movement as a “neo-pagan cult” striving for “global domination,” JTA reports. Top leaders of Chabad in Russia, who have been navigating a fine line in their relationship with the government during the country’s war on Ukraine, criticized the column published last week in a state magazine as antisemitic. Russian chief rabbi, Berel Lazar, who is part of Chabad, called the column “a piece of vulgar antisemitism.” His top deputy warned that the column heralded “a new era in Russia’s relations with Jews.”
In the column, published in the Argumenty i Fakty weekly newspaper, Aleksey Pavlov, secretary of the Security Council of Russia, a government committee of experts, spoke of the need to perform “desatanization” in Ukraine, which Pavlov claimed had hundreds of neo-pagan cults. He included “the Chabad-Lubavitch sect,” as he called it, on a list of various religious groups that he said proved his point.
Nikolai Patrushev, a spokesperson for the security council, said, “I apologize for the op-ed, which contained several erroneous statements about the followers of Chabad-Lubavitch,” read the statement. “This interpretation represented only Alexey Pavlov’s personal point of view and in no way represents that of the Security Council of Russia. Talks have been had with the writer of the op-ed.”
{Matzav.com}
Vivacious group. Not bad to leave.
ISN’T Chabad a MESSIANIC GROUP?
Many believe that the rebbe is still alive. Go visit 770.
many believe that Yaacov Avinu did not die
Not really. The gemara in Taanis writes that since it doesn’t write “vaYamas” that, therefore, “Yaakov avinu lo meis”, as there is a drasha to be made there.
But he most obviously did biologically die, as he himself said he would and as that same Torah records “Vayigva…” which means that he perished.