Thursday, August 18, 2011

A Letter from the Zvehiller Rebbe of Boston's Mazkir to Hirshel Tzig (Part II)



Part I Here

The Mazkir continues:

Since the question came up we should tell that when The Rebbe married Sumner Redstone’s daughter she was frum, shomer Shabbos, kashrus, etc. and Mr. Redstone, who was not frum, even koshered his home out of respect and even to this day keeps a kosher kitchen for the three grandchildren, who all went to yeshiva and remain frum, a daughter and two sons, one of whom went to Mir and is now in law school and learning at Chaim Berlin. The Rebbe did agree to work with Mr. Redstone at his request in various businesses, and was very successful, and also continued as a rav in congregations at the same time. When the divorce came, partly because Mr. Redstone’s daughter became less frum not because The Rebbe became more frum, the fact is that The Rebbe unfortunately left with much less money than he had going in, in the divorce agreement giving up almost everything he had earned in return for the children to be kept in Yeshiva and a frum environment. Boruch HaShem The Rebbe has been successful at rebuilding since then.

Going back to the Chassidus; none of the late Rebbe’s sons felt worthy to be memalei mekomo, but all three wanted R’ Yitzchok Aaron to accept that, and there is a chumash from the late Rebbe that was later discovered and names R’ Yitzchok Aaron as being mamshich. One uncle, R’ Shmuel Yitzchok, was not successful at convincing him to move from Rav to Rebbe, but The Rebbe took over his position as Chaplain of the City of Boston when he passed away in 1974. But the other uncle, R’ Boruch Korff, was diagnosed with cancer shortly after the divorce from Redstone’s daughter and was successful, with the help of many other Rebbes in the family who called to get R’ Yitzchok Aaron to accept being Rebbe. The shidduch with the Shomrei Emunim’s daughter was made by the Skolier Rebbe. The Shomrei Emunim Rebbe did not go to the chasunah because it was in America and he doesn’t go to America, but the Shomrei Emunim Rebbetzin (who was the daughter of R’ Mordechai, the Zvhiler Rebbe of Yerushalayim, and a great granddaughter of R’ Shlomke Zvhiller, and a third cousin to R’ Yitzchok Aaron) did come to Boston for the chasunoh. And by the way, more on the question of how The Rebbe grew up and the frumkeit, after learning at Chaim Berlin he learned in Eretz Yisroel and received smicha at the age of 21 from the Zvhiler Rebbe, R’ Mordechai, and as it turned out twenty years later ended up marrying R’ Mordechai’s granddaughter, who is his present Rebbetzin. The Shomrei Emunim Rebbe accepts them and the grandchildren, but there is a lot of politics there and they aren’t following Shomrei Emunim hanhogos and chumros so people make a big deal out it. Some chasidim like to make stories and make splits, but the children are also close to the Shomrei Emunim Rav (the Shomrei Emunim Rebbe’s oldest son) who visits them and they visit him, and when the Shomrei Emunim Rebbetzin was niftar last year the children walked with the family and chassidim behind the Aron and The Zvhil-Mezbuz Rebbetzin sat in her home in Yerushalayim and many of the chasidim and cousins came.

The Shomrei Emunim Rebbe is not happy that his daughter wears a sheitel and doesn’t shave her head and wear a tichel, but the daughter is following our Rebbe’s shitah and in Zvhil/Mezbuz of prior generations they did not shave. (In fact, if you look at the picture of the late Rebbe’s wife on your website blog that was taken in Zvhil yet you can see that she doesn’t cover her hair – the times were different and times change, and we can’t judge by today’s standards. For example, many Rebbes, including the late Zvhil-Mezbuz Rebbe, R’ Yaakov Yisroel, used to wear ties, but today people say it’s ossur or too modern?)

By the way, the comment was correct about a daughter of the Shomrei Emunim Rebbe going to the Lubavitcher Rebbe and refusing to take the dollar. It wasn’t The Rebbetzin (who also went) but one of her sisters, and the reason wasn’t disrespect, but because they were raised that men and women don’t hand things to each other.

Lastly, I am also attaching:

- a picture of the late Rebbe’s tisch at the chasunoh of his son R’ Nuchem (the present Rebbe’s father) – there are many Rebbes there who are all cousins. In answer to one comment, it was not the norm back then for cousins who were not father/son/brother to wear shtreimelach at a relative’s simchah like it has become today;

- a picture of the present Rebbe with his cousins the late Talner Rebbe of Boston and the Zvhil-Klausenberg Rebbe of Union City;

- a picture of the late Rebbe’s ohel in Boston;

- and a picture of the late Rebbe that is almost identical to how the present Rebbe looks.

The bottom line though going back to your original posting is that we all mourn the assimilation and problems that are found in every Chassidic dynasty in every generation since the Baal Shem Tov. But as The Rebbe explains there is a strength and reassurance in the yichus that always brings einiklach back, and we pray that any yeridah is for the sake of aliyah and we know that whatever agmas nefesh the late Rebbe suffered he is having much nachas now from his grandson and great grandchildren.

I hope you find this useful and clearing up all of the confusion. If there is something we haven’t answered let me know and I will try to help.

Lazar Silbert

(The first four pictures attached – each labeled starting “47”, are pictures of R’ Nuchem’s chasunah in 1947. Note the picture of the Kallah, the present Rebbe’s late mother, coming to visit and sit with the Rebbes at their table, something that was certainly accepted back then but has been erased today with revisionism)

(PICTURES TO APPEAR TOMORROW, IY"H. THAT WAY YOU'LL COME BACK TOMORROW...)

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

"The bottom line though going back to your original posting is that we all mourn the assimilation and problems that are found in every Chassidic dynasty in every generation since the Baal Shem Tov."

!~

yehupitz said...

Tzig,
The posts of the last few days are giving me goosebumps. I'm shaking. Mamosh.

Anonymous said...

Hirshel
"By the way, the comment was correct about a daughter of the Shomrei Emunim Rebbe going to the Lubavitcher Rebbe and refusing to take the dollar. It wasn’t The Rebbetzin (who also went) but one of her sisters, and the reason wasn’t disrespect, but because they were raised that men and women don’t hand things to each other. "
this Shabos I saw in the Satmar Rebbes shmussen that the Satmar Rebbe said in the name of his father the Former Satmar Rebbe that the Sanzer ruv said, that the holy of holiest Reb Hirshel of Rimanov was touching the female heads when he blessed them,(this is probably also the Tzadik that the Munkacher mentions in Divrie Torah)
So my question is , hypotheticaly would the daughters of the SA/TA Rebbes go for a blessing to the holy Rimanover????

Anonymous said...

all so confusing

Anonymous said...

I am also confused
is the guy on the photo the current rebbe?
is he a SIL of the shomrie emunim?
was his father a SIL of redstone?
is he really a Rebbe? or a practicing lawyer?
How did the shiduch with shomer Emunim happen?
the Mume Libbey was the shadchen?

Anonymous said...

maybe his own children or grandchildren ; btw tho old satmar ruv zl did'nt believe all these bubbe massaes

Anonymous said...

I don't know if anyone reads comments on previous posts, so here it is on the last post:
A rebbeshe ainekil getting smicha from the aruch hashulchan? Was it some kind of joke? why did they go to him, by chssidim he was always a big joke.
(his son making up stories about the tzemach tzedek talking to him for a month straight when he was 27 only makes the joke funnier)

Anonymous said...

"הרב יעקב ישראל קארף זצ"ל, אדמו"ר מזוועהיל-מעזיבוז' באסטאן, יע"א "

between the picture of the above rebbe and the current one in part II, i opt for the old rebbe, just my opinion based on the picturs only.

JJJ said...

"A rebbeshe ainekil getting smicha from the aruch hashulchan? Was it some kind of joke? why did they go to him, by chssidim he was always a big joke."

you are an iddiyott.

Jake said...

Yes, that anoynmous Lubab about the aruch hashulchan was idiotic. I guess he must have argued with the AR on psak, or maybe in the aruch hashulchon hu'usid, he didn't mention Chabad...

This letter, gives me the creeps. Why is a Rebbe allowing his mazkir to post all the family yenteray on a blog - it makes no sense. Please, we didn't know that she doesn't have a bald head under the shaytel, and we could have leaved it as that.

Pray tell, who is this Rebbe and does he have any chassidim; do they hand him a kvittel when their wives and daughter's are in labour, do they ask him for invest advice, etc. Particularly, what is his mehalach, and what diffrentiates his chassidim from those of Spinka IV or Kraly?

Why does he send his kids to Chaim Berlin, of all places, not exactly the place for a Rebbisheh aynekel. Just cause his father went there due to extenuating circumstances?

Twistelton-Twistelton said...

Facinating. Although I think there is some slight revesionisim going on here

Anonymous said...

"one of whom went to Mir and is now in law school and learning at Chaim Berlin."

I guess you're allowed to go to law school in Chaim Berlin if you zeide is Sumner Redstone.

Mottel said...

Nice to hear my source is indeed accurate when it comes to the Zhviller with confirmation of my comment about the SA's daughters by the Rebbe.

itchiemayer said...

So how did Rabbi Korff and Shari Redstone get together anyway? I mean that is one strange shidduch.

Judging from a picture I saw of Kimberlee Korff, I'm not so sure she's frum. What Rabbi names their kid Kimberlee?

It's all very strange, no?

Anonymous said...

Anon
"A rebbeshe ainekil getting smicha from the aruch hashulchan? Was it some kind of joke? why did they go to him, by chssidim he was always a big joke."
the aruch hashulchan was no joke, why are you blaming him for his son shtick.

Anonymous said...

Reb Itche
Obviously when the future rebbe married Rothstiens(AKA Redstone) daughter, he was not frum
the rebbes Mazkir(if their is one)is haking a Chienik

yoske said...

Itchie,
i also had the impression taht he wasn't frum when they were married. I thnk that when they divorced, they sent their children to Maimonides, perhaps as a pshore of sorts

yakov said...

To Anon 1:49PM
As about Rimanover - times take changed.
Do you think any of today's orthodox would allow him/herself to eat at Rabbon Gamliel's table?

Gedalia said...

Tzig,

Nu.. The pictures?

RUSSIAN CHUSID said...

I do not understand all this Rebbes who came to USA in thouse days.From one side you had Milwakee Twerski family, which did go to college (some to a jesuit one:)) and behaved like real chasidisher yidden and from other side you have -shaved, almost assimilated.Where are the einiklach of all other Korfs, the Rebbe shlita first cousins?I guess they look like all the other majority of the rebeshe einiklach from thouse times.I hope they married jews..YOu gonna tell me do not judge? Yes, I will- I had it worse...
Looks like the "not nice, not eidel" way of khonyokes might have hope after all..
Plainer yidden, who did go to college, and were makbed on every kitsoi shel yid-their einiklach look better-I BET YE.

Hentel said...

Someone needs to make up a family tree. I'm completely confused. Who is who, where from and why?

This mazkir's talk is making me feel like I've fallen down the rabbit hole.

BelzFinAMool said...

When I grow up, Daddy, can I have a Mazkir of my very own?

Anonymous said...

you dont claim someone is not frum unless you actually saw them like be mechallel shabbos or eat traife which is impossible in this case. He was always frum. And by the way lots of frum people even chasidesh gave children secular names for the government.
Didn't know you could tell if someone is frum by a picture, even if not znius in the picture according to today's standerds.

Anonymous said...

When the Tzemach tzedek got the newly published ערוך השלחן, he commented: "א פארקערטע שלחן ערוך... " ( kovetz Tzemach tzedek of.36)