WATCH THIS: Rabbi Dr. Aaron Twersky: Chassidim Are Not Represented in the Moetzes Gedolei Hatorah

A. Disturbing to get up at Agudah Convention. There are ways to make such complaints.
B. I guess the Novominsker Rebbe wasn’t chasidishe enough.

Sad indeed…

Reb Aharon – Kol Hakovod
You said out loud what we have been thinking for years
Shkoach

Remember when the Rebbes basically took over the Israeli Moetzes, and Agudah became a party of chasidim? Nobody else felt at home then, either.

Who cares about the חסידים? Way bigger issue is that the Mizrachis & שומרי יום-העצמאות are disdained & despised, which is a way huger despicable disgrace

Please explain the need to post this….

The Vyelipoler Rebbe and Rabbi Yakov Horowitz (Rosh HaYeshiva of Beis Meir) are two Chasidim who are on the Motzes. While one can argue that they don’t have so many Chasidim it was always that way. The Rebbes who joined the Moetzes, despite their stature in learning were still always the ones who had very few Chasidim. Even the Bluzhover Rebbe despite the respected status and influence he had in the larger Chasidish world, had no mosdos during his lifetimes and weren’t the factor drawing Chasidim to Agudah

Show me a chassidishe Gadol in America and we’ll put him on Moetzes.
And how about the fact that chassidic courts want to do what they want to do with full autonomy of whatever the rebbe says, not as part of a large organization…?

Let me clarify….
Your headline is terrible (as they often are). You can add….Rabbi Zweibel responds….

As R Zwiebel said, this is a very long and perhaps complicated sugya. One of the reasons is because the manhigim of some of these kehillos do not want to join the Moetzes by principle, each with their own reasons. However, there are personalities who are very highly regarded within the Chasidish communities and are qualified “Gedolei Hatorah”, who should be considered to join the Moetzes.

There is a Chasidishe oilam at the convention now too.

Is Sol Werdiger, the chairman of the Agudah, not a Chusid??? Just because he does not look like Prof. Twerski does that mean he is not a Hasid?? There are many others there of Chasidic background. Just because they may dress in a more contemporary style, rather than 18th century Polish fashion, doesn’t mean that they are not Chasidic.

The fact is, as Reb Zwiebel alluded to, Hasidic communities mentioned by Dr. Twerski, such as Bobov, Belz, Vizhnitz, have held themselves apart from the Agudah for many years, going back to pre-war Europe. Yes, they may not have opposed it vehemently in public, like Satmar and Minkcacz Hasidism, but neither did they publicly support it as Gur Hasidism did. And that continues to this day. To blame Agudah for people that hold it at arm’s length, seems quite unfair.

Prof. Twerski lives in a Hasidic bubble of B.P., so he views things through such a lense.

Another person might say, where are the yeshiva leit of Lakewood and elsewhere? Why aren’t they at the convention? Maybe they have issues with Agudah too?

Or maybe, in general, physical attendance at conventions doesn’t appeal to people nowadays as much as decades ago. The world has changed a lot, since they years Prof. Twerski recalls, when figures like Rav Moshe, Rav Yankev, Rav Ruderman, Boyaner Rebbe, Novominsker Rebbes, Rav Pinchos Menachem Alter, Bostoner Rebbes, etc., were regular figures there.

no Rosh of the moetzes since the petira of the novominsker.

they don’t want to join and they have there own organization

This one should have been headline: Oh The. Irony
The others kept coming even though Agudah hasn’t catered to them demographically, bending itself in twists for Chassidim And their desires, and yet Chassidim demand still more?

This one should have been headlined: Oh The. Irony
The others kept coming even though Agudah hasn’t catered really to them demographically, bending itself in twists for Chassidim And their desires, and yet Chassidim demand still more?

Typical backstabbing to those who bear the the communities on their shoulders from those don’t

“There are no Chassidim here”

There are like seven Chasidim with shtreimels leading zemiros there now.

Should people complain that there are no yeshiva leit from Lakewood singing? Are we going to play the victim game and shout discrimination?

There are no Chasidim of the Lubavitcher Rebbeh shlit”a in the Moetzes. How terrible. How dare they discriminate against Chabad? There are no Breslover Chasidim in it either. Outrageous. Nor any Satmar.

The fact is that many of the big people at AIA are Chasidic, from Sol Werdiger and David Zwiebel on down.

Sorry, but with all due respect this claim is wrong. 1st and foremost, 2 members of the Moetzes are Chasidim, Rav Yaakov Horowitz, and Rabbi Yosef Frankel, Vialopil Rav.
Chasidim in America tend to for the most part be affiliated with Satmer and their offshoot communities.

The chassidishah Rebbes won’t join Aguda because they want to have the last say on everything. They are too powerful on their own to relinquish any power to an umbrella organization say the Aguda. If you listen to Rabbi Zwebel he sounds like he agrees but can’t do much about it so they “discuss it”.

Are any Modern Orthodox rabbis part of the Moetzes Gedolei Hatorah? At one time Rabbi Dr. Leo Jung z’tz’l and Rabbi Dr. Joseph Soloveitchik z’tz’l were.

U guys are ruining the story go watch the whole thing then speak. u sickos

I’m very upset and hurt by these comments. Did anyone have the decency to watch the whole thing as I did I hope so otherwise ur seeing half a picture, the way matzav paints it (surprising my previous comment is at the bottom of the page) I watched the whole 30 mins and he’s saying a moiradege Zach which I understand and love completely if any of u commenters that comment negatively did NOT watch all 30 min, rather just this 2 min clip, u should all beg Hashem mechillah for talking against a tzadik like Reb Ahron shlita that ur all ufor tachas his feet and even the dust under his feet,
chitzpinyaks

Charlie Hall, to quote Wikipedia “World Agudath Israel was founded in Kattowitz, German Empire (now Katowice, Poland), in 1912, with the purpose of providing an umbrella organization for observant Jews who opposed the Zionist movement.”
Therefore, as an anti-Zionist organization by definition, Zionist rabbis have no interest in affiliating themselves under the Agudah umbrella. Of course, Orthodox people across the board have many common interests and we want to protect our religious rights such as legislation and policy that affects education, definition of family, and so on. On such issues, various Orthodox and Christian umbrella organizations do work together to present a strong united front in trying to protect freedom of religion.
As others pointed out, it’s not a matter of including or excluding Chassidim but more a matter of who wants to join and whether they agree with Agudah’s agenda. But yes – greater effort can and should be made to find successors to the Novominsker Rebbe zt”l, the Bostoner Rebbe zt”l and so on.
Regarding Sefardim, they don’t divide themselves up in the same way that Ashkenazim do – yeshivish, balebatish, Modern Orthodox. Some are very strictly religious and others are more traditional and not as religious but all are included in the same community. If Sefardi rabbanim would become prominent in Agudah, it’s possible that those who are not as strictly religious might feel that they don’t belong. I’m just postulating, but it’s possible that some Sefardi rabbanim do not want to risk making some people in their communities feel excluded.
I’d be interested in hearing the voice of the Sefardi community whether they would feel comfortable having their Rabbanim represent them via Agudah. And likewise various Chassidish communities.

Sad to see Prof. Twerski lash out like that. Who put him up to it? Someone from his family or buddies in B.P.? Is he feeling okay? How is his health? He didn’t sound so well.

Which respected member of or major faction in the Chasidish world is looking to be a part of Agudah but is being excluded?

Thank you Rav Twerski for addressing the elephant in the room.

as it is regards to major USA chasidus, it is because the Agudah USA cannot get involved with favoring one Bobov or one Ger over the other.
Satmar – irrelevant to its divisions – cannot join as has been for decades.
Chabad has no Rebbe that anyone can speak with.

etc.

ben Avrohom

Chasidim control Agudah already.

Where are the Nusach Ashkenaz siddurim at the convention? Where are the parallel nusach Ashkenaz minyanim? They have separate minyanim for the Syrians according to their nusach.

These issues are best handled away from the public. We don’t need bloggers opining from the comfort of their armchair while sipping on diet Coke.

There should also be representation from Chabad, Breslov, and Neo Chassidus

Agidas Yisruel should buy a shtreimel and bekishe for their askanim, so they will have a Hasidic face for the public. Also throw in a few pairs of veise zuken.

Skvere and Bobov were never active in Agudah, but of course Ger, Vishnitz and Belz were always the major players in Agudah in Eretz Yisoel

I’M SORRY BUT I DON’T THINK ANYONE GETS THE POINT, WHAT IS THE MANDATE OF AGUDAH FIRST IS TO UNITE AS MANY YIDDEN FROM DIFFERENT SECTIONS AS POSSIBLE TO BE ONE VOICE UNITED (SOME DO NOT WANT TO ENTER FOR THEIR REASON) BUT FOR MOST THE ONES THAT WANTS TO THIS IS THE PLATFORM SO THE NAME AGUDAH BUT THERE NEEDS TO BE A DIEVERCTY I DONT THINK AGUDAH HAS DONE A GOOD JOB IT HAS NOT GONE REAL LITVISH OR CHASDISH JUST AMERICAN AND THE MESSAGE OF WHAT THEY HAVE DONE FOR OUR COMMUNITY LOCALLY THEY NEED TO COMMUNICATE BETTER NOT JUST THAT SOMEONE IN NEBRASKA DOSENT HAVE TO WORK ON YOM YOV BUT HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY CONNECT WITH US INGAGE .

There is a need to include rabanim of established communities such rabanim of the Syrian community of rababnim from the Chaftz Chaim comunity in Queens or Rabanim of large growing communities or dayanim of large established communities who are aware of the challenges facing the average frum person in their and the greater Jewish communities if you are not aware of the issues faces the average person you will be less relevant

So who if anyone was asleep at the switch for years as this situation unfolded? If representation was vital to the relevant groups of Chassidim, they should have spoken up much sooner. But maybe it was of no concern to them.

So I was sitting there in the room as this occurred. Was quite an awkward and comical event. Went for ten minutes . I actually felt bad for the Agudah officers, who were all sitting in that session.

Lunacy to be invited and say this. All the big Chasidish Rebbes have their own courts and dont need or want Agudah as they have their own political agenda. Winess the last election with Hochul splitting the Chassidishe vote. This was a dumb remark.

Firstly this speaker conveniently forgot that until 2 days prior to פסח of 2020,the top person of Agudah was a Chassidische Rebbe:- Novominske.
This speaker probably also forgets, that Chassidishe Rebbes are going to push for Jiddisch & abolishing English, and Agudah in this day & age cannot possibly run in Jiddisch like 60 year ago or 1 century ago.
This being said:- If R’ Zwiebel wants to see Agudah flourish in to the future, he is going to have to invite to the מועצת התורה:
1) The Bobov Rebbe who would be most accepted &amp Chassidic Rebbe on such a body
2) Rav Hershel Schachter or/& Rav Mordechai Willig, which would instantly exponentially magnify the size & חשיבות and respect and impact of the Agudah movement.
3) I am not familiar with Sephardic Rabbis in America other than Rav Yoesef Mizrachi & Rav Mansour, but a Sephardic Rabbi also must immediately be appointed too

There are multitudes of Nadvorna Rebbes. Not one on the Moetzes. A shanda.

Also numerous Spinka Rebbes, not one on the Moetzes.

Maybe add like three Nadvorna Rebbes, and two Spinka Rebbes, for starters.