A Breslov mashpia Rb Kluger, a disciple of Rabbi Nissan Duvid Kivak of Jerusalem, travelled to Kiryas Joel, NY, the stronghold of the Satmar faction led by Reb Aron. This is a destination he has frequented quite regularly. And as usual, Kluger visited the Rebbe, who acts as the rov of KJ, soon after his arrival, to pay his respects and, as per his usual habit, to request permission to set up his own minyan for prayers and to give public lectures, a formality which is always granted as a matter of protocol.
On this occasion, he was greeted with a strong rebuttal. Not just a refusal to set up his own minyan for the few days he is in KJ, a refusal to so much as step within 2000 cubits of the perimeter of the city limits.
The Rebbe told him, whilst he accepts that Rb Kluger is a God fearing Jew, nevertheless, the teachings of Rb Nachnan of Breslov, which Kluger disseminates, are in sharp contradiction to the Satmar philosophy; and are no longer welcome in Kiryas Joel.
Is this a genuine claim? For years Satmar has been closely associated with Breslov. In Uman, just a few steps from the grave of Rav Nachman, there is a Satmar shul. Perhaps that shul is under the auspices of the beother, the other Satmar Rebbe - Reb Zalman Leib, with whom Reb Aron is enmeshed in a bitter dispute, and the 2 brothers keep on dragging each other through the civil courts? Or perhaps, he is trying to stem the loss of young chassidim who are deserting him and joining the ranks of the Breslav sects.
Either way, there is more to this story than meets the eye.
Ars longa, vita brevis, occasio praeceps, experimentum periculosum, iudicium difficile.
Do Satmar consult Rav Padwa before they do anything locally? Do Chareidim consult the local Bournemouth rabbi before setting up minyonim in town? No and no.
ReplyDeleteThe US is a free country and the arroagance that chasidic rabbis have in denying to other what they do the world over is repulsive. It is this kind of attitude that led the skverers to burn down the house of a chosid who davenend at another minyan.
I cannot agree with you more, however, Satmar is known for reacting violently and without proportion to the perceived misdemeanour, so be it right or wrong, if the Satmar Rebbe tells someone not to enter town, only a suicidal maniac would ignore the instruction.
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