Uri Zohar and Son debate religion amongst the palm trees in Jaffa where Uri lived before finding G-d. He was tired of the partying, the drugs, and the need to belong, so he gave it all up for a small apartment in Mattersdorf. It seems like the son has issues with Yiddishkeit, and his father tries to reason with him. Watch the video, it's a recording of a broadcast that was shown on Israel's Channel 2 TV.
I never liked Uri Zohar. I found him to be "the answer" to Chabad Kiruv activities, and therefore an affront to Chabad. In 5748-49 he was paraded around as the solution to the Chabad "Kiruv" problem. They had him speak at the Degel HaTeyreh conventions telling the people not to be impressed by Chabad's Shluchim and Kiruv, because they did it all wrong. He instead had all the answers. That at a time that he was Frum for all of maybe 13 years.
More on Uri from Wikipedia Hebrew.
Over the years I believe he lost much of his anti-Chabad rhetoric and has begun to focus on true issues, namely that of Jewish education. He does run Lev L'Achim, which was originally set up to push out Reb Sholom Lipshitz from Yad L'Achim because he wouldn't be Mekabel Morus of מרן in B'nei Brak, but even LL has branched out into other activities. He was Aryeh Deri'i's main defender during his trial and subsequent jail time, and even would sit with him at the Yeshivah that they set up for him in prison for long periods of time.
I have since been able to overlook his past indiscretions (I Mean as a Frum Yid...) and see him as a great asset to the Jewish community. Lubavitch cannot appeal to all Jews, so he does fill a great need. He has the know-how to reach the masses with his acting and directing background, and he does it quite well, using both humor and the mass media to appeal to an Israeli public that still loves him after all these years.
41 comments:
In case you missed these comments...
Why isn't a chossid farbrenging on tes-yud kislev???
Those chasidishe lines from toras shalom on the side of your blog almost make me vomit, please take them off. Learn to distinguish between chol and kodesh.
I'm terribly sorry you feel that way. Try eating pickles and herring before you visit this here blog. It'll help keep your food down.
Moron.
Tzig
You write that you did not like Uri Zohar because you felt he was being used against Chabad:What happened to try judging a person objectively?
I also found it strange and hypocritical that you had a problem with Zohar lecturing when he had been frum for only thirteen years:Listen my friend, you are a Boro Park Hungarian who became Lubavitch some years ago and today you are the 'big' Chabad 'defender'.Sounds similar to your taynes against Zohar? There is a saying, 'people who live in glass houses should not throw stones'
Tzig, I am sorry - the guy is a פאץ פאצאוויטש , a white Amnon Yitzchak.
berl, had he been a lubavitcher, you would have accepted him "as is". no?
no I would not.
Berl
I don't see his approach as being the same as AY. He doesn't preach hell and damnation like AY does. What they do have in common is that they both are angry at the secular establishment that robbed them of their heritage, but I think that's where it ends. I may be wrong though.
On the other hand, what do you mean by 'accepted'? I accept Uri Zohar as well, in exactly the same way I accept Amnon Yizchak. They both preach a primitive version of Judaism that makes me cringe, but if it gets someone to keep Shabbos, kashrus, etc, then they both serve a purpose. Is that 'accepting' enough? Incidentally, we have plenty of Lubavitchers today that fit the same description and I accept them the same way, only wishing they weren’t Lubavitchers.)
Tzig,
I understand they are not identical; each has his particular 'primitivism' that is well received by a specific primitive audience. (I even find Amnon Yitzchak’ version less offensive).
Berl
I'm surprised that AY is less offensive to you, what is it that makes you feel that way?
Relax, the דגש is on the 'offensive', not on the 'less'!
(and 'less' because he is funny, in a Jackie-Mason-sort-of-a-way)
Gershy:
The point is that I'm not paraded around by the "establishment" as UZ was. I was also Frum beforehand, that's very different. I don't think a Lubavitcher BT would get up in front of thousands to bash some Litvishe Godel.
what is primitive judaisim ?does it mean the non moshiach based judiasim?
Anon,
Nope, it's Judaism geared for the likes of you. Don't ever change.
Berl
I imagine you haven't had the time to watch the clip linked here. I think you may be pleasantly surprised. I understand his form of Judaism may be bland, but what can we do, the man has yet to learn Chassidus.
It's a pleasure to listen to Amnon Yitzchak, just for his Hebrew oratory and diction. The content isn't all that bad either, but just listening to him speak is a mechayeh.
Milhouse
what about UZ, do you care for him?
Well, we have a bunch of Lubavitchers calling others 'primitive'. Do you know what secular Jews think about Lubavitchers? You probably guessed:Primitive!(and money grubbing charlatans, at least for some of their shlichim) At least other Orthodox don't have a problem accepting their leaders passing, don't need to 'write letter and insert in book' to know what to do.Classic example of pot calling kettle black.
'friscan
pretty primitive thinking gfor a prgressive guy from the left coast....
'friscan
that doesn't come close to what they think of snags like yourself...............................
'Write letter, put in book,get amazing answer!"
Primitive or not.Address, this please.
Does anyone have any info on how UZ first started becoming a Ba'al Teshuvah. I remember hearing that R. Greenwald from Kfar Chabad had what to do about it (obviously just in the early stages).
Anyone else heard anything about it?
I know someone who can answer that. Well, is he a Mushpa of Reb Tzvi G?
I don't know much about UZ, never heard him speak. I'm just noting that AY is a great speaker in the Hebrew language, even if you completely ignore what he's actually saying.
I never heard that but its possible.The question will be asked Tzigaleh
Take black box, strap on arm, connect to G-d. Primitive?
Thanks J.A.G.
Asking in igreys=laying tefillin?
Tzig, you can do better
1) you don't lay Tefillin, you lay eggs.
2) Of course Igreys isn't Tefillin, but sometimes we all do strange things. And we don't even know it.
OK Hirshel here is the story.
He met R. Tzvi Greenwald at a bris and challenged him on some fundamentals of Judaism. R. Greenwald answered him elegantly and frankly and then challenged Zohar right back. He was very impressed with R.Greenwald and they kept a correspondence. When he started to grow in his Yidishkeit he featured R. Greenwald on his television program where he told his audience" This man sparked the very first real interest in Judaism in me"
That was all before the wonderful world of "maran" got hold of him and the rest is history…………………
watched it. he is a bit extreme but so is shvei of CH
oh Tzib
you can't compare him to Shvei. just because they're so different.
comparisan is only in the extremism
ok, pick someone else. but as you & i know there are plenty on either side
So everybody's got a Chabad twist to them, eh? even Uri Zohar? You people are just great.
anon, please explain yourself as i'm kinda dim-witted
Thanks, Just a guy.
and anon, you're right - we are just great, ain't nothing you can do about it.
"So everybody's got a Chabad twist to them, eh?"
facts are, that chabad & shlomo carlbach, turned on many jews to judasim, many more than actually stayed chabad or carlbach.
I read Uri Zohars book in the 80s and he had a paragraph where he mentions the great gedolim of our age, and includes R. Shach and omits the Lubavitcher Rebbe. For me anyone who has become frum and at the same time is against other frum Jews is a flawed Bal teshuvah or at least is keeping Torah umitzvos but is missing Ahavas Yisroel and is ready to judge others negatively. For me that was a turnoff, aND PROBABLY WHY many find him distasteful. It is likely that negativity that causes his son to be turned off, but thats just my wild guess. Still, I wish him well.
Maybe it was a secret in 2006, but in 2015 everyone knows rav shlomo zilverberg of שערי חסד took r uri into yiddishkeit from step 1.
Who is rav greenwald?
is there anyone you do like?
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