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| Number of Chabad Hasidim Sign Petition Backing Rabbi Who Harassed, Threatened Child Sex Abuse Victims
Failed Messiah
September 8, 2015
http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/2015/09/large-number-of-chabad-hasidim-sign-petition-backing-rabbi-who-harassed-threatened-child-sex-abuse-victims-234.html
[the petition] https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Y1_6Y_hPc8f8pNHTiT6d2tR69nYmSjWyBtxloPsmO6g/viewform?c=0&w=1
"…We stand behind Rabbi Telsner in solidarity of both him as an individual as well as the position of Rabbi as a representative of the wider community. The Koach HaTorah and Halachic principles must be upheld despite there being impediments and hardships. We further insist that the Yeshivah Centre - true to its title of being “Under the auspices of the Lubavitcher Rebbe” - follow the directives, principles and spirit of the Rebbe’s explicit and inferred opinions in its running and operation. This point is not negotiable.…"
The following petition is being circulated in the Chabad community of Melbourne, Australia.
Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Telsner resigned as the top rabbi of Chabad's Yeshivah Centre after he – again – lashed out a victim of child sex abuse, verbally attacked other victims and their families and showed no remorse for his previous bad behavior.
But powerful Chabad families don't want Telsner to go, just as they don't want any of the other disgraced Chabad rabbis to be punished or reprimanded or fired.
And so we now have this petition, which reads in part:
"…We stand behind Rabbi Telsner in solidarity of both him as an individual as well as the position of Rabbi as a representative of the wider community. The Koach HaTorah and Halachic principles must be upheld despite there being impediments and hardships.
"We further insist that the Yeshivah Centre - true to its title of being “Under the auspices of the Lubavitcher Rebbe” - follow the directives, principles and spirit of the Rebbe’s explicit and inferred opinions in its running and operation. This point is not negotiable.…"
The "Koach HaTorah and Halachic principles" the petition is talking about appears to be the prohibition against mesira (informing), meaning don't "inform" on fellow Jews, even if they are pedophiles or enablers of pedophiles. Don't call police. Don't tell the media. Don't complain. Don't make a fuss. That essentially what Telsner repeatedly told victims and it's a big part of what got him in trouble. The petition is saying Telsner was right to threaten victims this way because the halakha and the Torah say so.
(A large number of poskim, decisors of Orthodox Jewish law, even some Chabad poskim, rule that there is no ban against informing when it comes to child sex abuse, and that all child sex abuse must be reported to police. But large portions of Chabad hasidim disagree, apparently including the signatories below.)
When the petition says "follow the directives, principles and spirit of the Rebbe’s explicit and inferred opinions in its running and operation," it appears to mean (in part) not to commit mesira and not to penalize rabbis who tried to follow that directive.
Here's the petition:
Show of Solidarity with Rabbi Telsner
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We the undersigned express our dissatisfaction with the events surrounding the stepping down of Rabbi Telsner.
Such a matter has a far reaching community impact and requires careful thought and understanding of the feelings of the Yeshivah Centre constituents.
We stand behind Rabbi Telsner in solidarity of both him as an individual as well as the position of Rabbi as a representative of the wider community. The Koach HaTorah and Halachic principles must be upheld despite there being impediments and hardships.
We further insist that the Yeshivah Centre - true to its title of being “Under the auspices of the Lubavitcher Rebbe” - follow the directives, principles and spirit of the Rebbe’s explicit and inferred opinions in its running and operation. This point is not negotiable.
Ari Schachter
Reuven Centner
S Tayar
Y Barber
R Centner
H Serebryanski
M Feiglin
M Engel
M Cohen
Anonymous
Y Green
A Ruschinek
Anonymous
Y Engel
SB Odze
L Kurinsky
E Marcus
Anonymous
M Lipskier
Y Schneier
CM Heidingsfeld
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
D Gould
Anonymous
Anonymous
L Heidingsfeld
I Teleshevsky
L Raskin
S Dickshtein
M Rubin
B Liberow
Y Raskin
N Gurevitch
Anonymous
T Cyprys
S Greenbaum
L Jacobson
CL Schneier
M Wolko
D Elmakeas
J Wolko
R Nerenberg
M Lipskier
M Gordon
A Benhamou
C Morozow
J Wolko
E Benhamou
R Lipskier
Y Rosenfeld
D Amzalak
K Mazuz
S Amzalak
V Gordon
CM Chaikin
E Elmakeas
A Schachter
R DeVries
SB Engel
MY Meyer
YM Rafael
G Meyer
S Morozow
R Ruschinek
C Lerner
C Goldzweig
C Engel
E Kerbel
M Engel
R Kerbel
Y Lerner
S Wolko
M Abenaim
D Adelist
C Adelist
R Pincus
N Adelist
S Adelist
P Adelist
M Adelist
E Levin
D Berkovits
Y Cohen
M Adelist
T Rapp
T Pincus
T May
Anonymous
C Engel
M Adelist
A Gordon
M Bacher
K Shusterman
S Serebryanski
Anonymous
Anonymous
N Fishman
Joey T
DR Herszberg
Y Salamon
A Wellis
Y Havin
C New
Y Estermen
Anonymous
Anonymous
D Neubauer
M Greenbaum
T Broh
D Kaye
N Alba
E Engel
MM Lipskier
M Raskin
E Levin
J Selwood
G Ablett
M Kaminetzky
A Gelman
R Baskin
S Morris
R Lebenholc
Y Lebenholc
D Morris
R Liberow
S Schneier
YB Lebenholc
Y Cohen
Anonymous
Anonymous
B Cyprys
Anonymous
L New
M Chaikin
B Spigler
S Spigler
C Blesofsky
Anonymous
S Silcove
Anonymous
Silcove
C Kaye
R Aron
S Aron
S Gorelik
R Jacobs
Y Wajsbort
K Warlow-Shill
Anonymous
M Elkman
N Elkman
Anonymous
Anonymous
Y Nerenberg
S Silcove
A Hoota
Y Stein
Anonymous
R Amzalak
Y Rodal
Anonymous
Mrs Gould
C Ruschinek
I Leeds
R Ruth
B Ruschinek
C Goldzweig
Anonymous
M Gelman
S Mazuz
Anonymous
Anonymous
M Stern
US Stern
B Koppel
Anonymous
C Kaminetzky
I Broh
Y Nagler
SB Abelsz
S Koppel
Y Unfanger
Y Adelist
N Shmerling
M Moshal
Anonymous
R Blecher
S Klagsbrun
E Goldberg
E Kantor
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