Silence is not an option when one witnesses masses of simple Jews being misled into idolatry. I wonder if Uman were in Israel in the times of Sanhedrin, whether it would be considered an Ir Hanidachat. (The first one in history as per the Gemara Sanhedrin 71:1).
It is painful to read articles like this one http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/766226.html around Rosh Hashana. Instead of making HKBH king they are turning a dead man into an idol.
We all pray that
ט לֹא-יָרֵעוּ וְלֹא-יַשְׁחִיתוּ, בְּכָל-הַר קָדְשִׁי: כִּי-מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ, דֵּעָה אֶת-יְהוָה, כַּמַּיִם, לַיָּם מְכַסִּים. {ס}
9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. {S}
We hope that we will find God himself and not one of his dead creatures.
Good Yomtov and Ketiva Vechatima Tova to all.
Wow - a breath of fresh air !
ReplyDeleteYeyasher kochacho !!!!!
Although I do not go to Uman myself, and strongly discourage the practice, I fail to see how this is idolatry. Let me give an explanation for those going to Uman:
ReplyDelete1) A great Rabbi told them that if they would come to him on Rosh Hashanah he would help them in going to Gan Eden.
2) Nowadays, many people go to Uman and it is an utterly inspiring experience (from what I have heard). Many people go for the experience, not because R. Nachman told them to go.
If you disagree with going to Uman, there are a number of issues that you can give:
1) R. Nachman never said that people should go to him on Rosh Hashanah
2) R. Nachman said that people should go to him on R. Hashanah, but was referring to when he was alive.
3) R. Nachman meant that people should come and pray by his grave on R.H., and he was a charlatan - what he said is contrary to the Jewish faith
In essence, it boils down to history - did R' Nachman say such a thing, and was he a talmid chacham that can be relied upon.
The majority of Jews and Rabbis seem to think that R' Nachman was a talmid chacham, so the only question is the historical veracity of the story in which he told people to pray by him on RH
>In essence, it boils down to history - did R' Nachman say such a thing, and was he a talmid chacham that can be relied upon.
ReplyDeleteThe halacha is that if a prophet who has Chazakah nad has proven that he can prophesize, comes and tells us to serve an idol, the beth Din has to kill him. You question whether going to pray at theb tomb of a Tzaddik, make it into a pilgrimage is permissible. If one goes to remind oneself that we all end up there fine. that might bring about Teshuvah but then go to the cemetery in your neighborhood. A non jewish one will do too. if however you are asking the dead to intercede, which is what the Nachman story tells , then it is idolatry. It is not with ease that mal'achei rachamim was permitted to be said, Gra in fact prohibits it, how much more this nonsense with Uman.
Velo Yada ish et Kevurato was just because of this. moshe Rabbeinu did not want to be Machshil klal Israel by them making him into an idol!
>if however you are asking the dead to intercede, which is what the Nachman story tells , then it is idolatry.
ReplyDeleteNo. this is a very old tradition attested to by the rishonim (the praying at the graves of tzaddikim, not this tzadik in particular). The Derashot HaRan discusses the practice of praying at the graves of tzadikim in a positive light. Even if the Rambam paskens that this is idolatry, the vast majority of poskim since him have disagreed - so all you can really say is that you find it hashkaficaly distasteful (as I do) but the categories of halacha is wrong - the majority just rejected the rationalist view on this one.
The only halachic issue I can think of is for those who leave EY to go to uman - are there no kivrei tzadikim in EY?!?!?! also, many leave their wives and kids alone for the holidays which I find inexcusable - definitely not in the spirit of this period of time. Also, many of the people who go have no money for such a trip and should probably save it for more important things.
There are many things to criticize about the Uman phenomenon - idol worship, however, is not one of them.
"if however you are asking the dead to intercede, which is what the Nachman story tells , then it is idolatry."
ReplyDeletethey don't actually pray to him to intercede, afaik. I'm with chardal.
In this period, we should look for the zchus in our fellow jews and pray that God judge us all favorably too.
god will judge us favorably when we give up spending good money on narishkeit.
ReplyDeletethe thousand spent could of been used to actually help people.
instead people are lured to a a tourist trap.
I understand that they get some secular israelis too, who might not otherwise daven...even if uman doesn't meet the standard of ideological purity, people might move on from there.
ReplyDelete