lubavitch | Imamother

yo'ma

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 3:33 pm

I was brought up in a litvisha household and never had anything to do with lubavitch because we didn't travel in the same circles. Lately, I've been communicating (here and elsewhere) with a lot of lubavitch. I was just curious, besides for minhagim, how is it different? Oh, I'm happy where I am, so I'm not changing, I'm just a frum jew.

Newsie

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 3:36 pm

Before you compare your standard Litvish home with the standard Lubavitch home, you probably need to start with the basics- like comparing Chassidus with Misnagdim. Even though the lines have been blurred in these days, there are still significant differences between Chassidim and non.

yo'ma

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 3:40 pm

I wasn't comparing, just trying to learn about other people. Just for the record, I'm not against anybody, jewish is jewish. (of course religious is helpful.)

TzenaRena

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 5:32 pm

yo'ma, it's funny, I thought that you might be Lubavitch, don't know why. it was just a feeling. Do you have any contact with Lubavitchers in your area?

I think you can glean a bit of information on this board itself, but try chabad.org for some more in depth articles, and for really in depth articles, books, publications, Sichos in English, at www.sichosinenglish.com.

I think an extremely helpful book to read would be the Lubavitcher Rebbe's memoirs about the early history of Chassidus, and the earliest Chassidim, and for a portrait of how the study and philosophy of Chassidus is reflected in the life of Chassidim.

You could also read the series of "Sefer HaToldos" of the Chabad Rebbeim. Essays of "On the learning of Chassidus" (Kuntres Limud HaChassidus) by the Previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Lubavitch, and other related essays. "On the Essence of Chassidus", by the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

and of course Tanya, the fundamental sefer of Chassidus.
What would you like to know more about?

grin

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 5:41 pm

I don't quite understand what it is you would like to know. As the prev. posters have said, in a nutshell:

first off is the strong connection to the Rebbe, and in addition, to the prev. 6 Rebbes' inc of course to sefer hatanya, along with the offshoot of connecting with the Rebbe's hanhagos, inc.the chidush of mivtzo'im.

what else did you want to ask?

yo'ma

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 5:44 pm

Quote:

What would you like to know more about?

Well, I hear pple say things and they say it's bec they're lubavitch. All I really knew about it is, everybody follows the rebbe (I don't get that pple talk like he's still alive and such). Also that they are mekarev non-frum jews. I always respected Lubavitch for trying to mekarev pple and chassidim for wearing the "chasidisha garb".

Where I live now, all the pple I know are Lubavitch because they're the only ones who speak english.

chaylizi

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 5:45 pm

funny- I have lubavitch cousins & chassidish cousins & yeshivish cousins. we respect them for who they are. we don't spend too much time emphasizing differences. maybe because it's family. it would be nice if gantz klal yisroel thought the same way.

TzenaRena

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 6:12 pm

learning about Lubavitch doesn't have to mean emphasizing differences. Aderaba, the study of Chassidus is the study of G-dliness, and our G-dly source and connection, so that it is actually unifying of Jews. It is Chassidus that teaches us that "being moreover all of a kind and all having one Father - therefore, all Israelites are called real brothers by virtue of the source of their souls in the One G-d; only the bodies are separated."(Tanya, Likutei Amarim ch. 32)

Tehilla

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 6:15 pm

Rav Ginsburgh of Kfar Chabad said that dafka, in today's world we should be learning works of all the tzaddikim because it unites them in Gan Eden, and fosters ahavas yisroel, hastening Moshiach...

chaylizi

Tue, Mar 25 2008, 6:16 pm

that's nice TzenaRena.

Motek

Thu, Mar 27 2008, 1:07 pm

yo'ma wrote:

here's a thread (thanks crayon210) that will give you info:

http://Imamother.com/forum/vie.....hagim

the thread is not only about minhagim

chocolate moose

Thu, Mar 27 2008, 1:29 pm

Tehilla wrote:

Rav Ginsburgh of Kfar Chabad said that dafka, in today's world we should be learning works of all the tzaddikim because it unites them in Gan Eden, and fosters ahavas yisroel, hastening Moshiach...

Maybe I should tell him aboaut my experiences at my litfishe shiurim.

grin

Thu, Mar 27 2008, 2:20 pm

it's interesting - I went to Litvishe schools and was always bothered by the answer "because that's what the Torah tells us to do", altho it never affected me more than just in thought.
Then when I married a Lubav., I thought it was mostly an inyan of his levush and minhagim; I didn't realize at the time that most of the minagim were meant for me, too.
Over the years, I've seen how much more fulfilling the Lubav. derech is and how much it includes women also, b'davka.

yo'ma

Thu, Mar 27 2008, 3:29 pm

Thank you Motek, when I have a chance I'll read it, it's long.

chanaroch, I don't see how or where you understood that there was any sort of lack of respect. Most of the time when someone wants to know about someone, it means interest, not disrespect.

amother

Fri, Apr 04 2008, 2:03 pm

haha, this is so funny, I'm lubavitch but I moved 2 beis yaakov during high-school b/c I felt that I was missing out in the lubavitch school having a tiny class.
so my best friend is litvish and is actually a descendent of the Vilna Gaon, so I've had this conversation about 1,000,000 times lol.

I felt, from all my different experiences, that the main difference between Litvish and Lubavitch as PEOPLE (basically the minhagim define what we follow, but it is WHO we are as a person that defines WHAT we are. I know plenty of people that call themselves lubavitch, but in no way does their actions compliment anything the Rebbe said or preached! I also know people that call themselves frum, and in no way do their actions seem frum at all!!)

I found the difference between the lubavitch school and the litvishe school that I went to was the WAY they think. the WAY they answer the questions, and the WAY they look at the world.

EG. In lubavitch, if a student has a question, there is no doubt that the teacher will be able to find on her own an answer from simple-complicated in one of the Rebbes sichos, or the previous rebbes writings.
In BY, we once asked a question, which when I went home, my friends father, a Rav (lubavtich) answered me in 5 minutes, and it was a very satisfactory answer. when we got back to school after shabbos, my teacher had told me that she had asked her husband the question, and it had actually reached a very important rav in Israel, and he answered the question. also a good answer, but I found the one answered in a sichah much more fulfilling and accepting to our simple ears.

The main point of lubavitch how it started, was that people who have a lesser understanding, can understand GREAT big things, in a simple way. That is how it started. Our 5 year olds can learn the same thing as the 30 year olds, but on different levels.
But with litvishe, they study in great depth, but only the greatest minds can understand. the ones who are not so smart get kind-of left unknowing what other amazing things there are.

I also found that litvish was alot alot of mussar, which spoken to people who have accustomed their ears to hearing it, is ok, and helps a person to grow and become a better person. but being listened to by someone who is used to hearing "do good, be good" and other positive things, and is now hearing "you are bad, you will be punished" (these are of course not LITERAL terms I heard...) can create a very rebellious effect.

A positive I found going to a litvish school, was that the girls were much more into their Shmiras Halashon, than other Chassidish or Lubavitch schools. I don't know about chassidish, but the girls in my community were all about gossip gossip. the lubavitch were less, but not so carefull as they should be, but with the litvish, if you would say 1 thing it would be "I dont want to hear LH" which I found great!!

Hope this helped Very Happy

theres so much more... but its friday and I still gotta cook!!!

yo'ma

Fri, Apr 04 2008, 2:12 pm

thanks amother, that was very informative.