Yaakov Meir Schechter: Do Not Leave Eretz Yisroel Now ---- Put This Idiot On The Frontlines In Gaza!

In response to the questions of many during the current eis tzarah, Rav Yaakov Meir Schechter was posed a number of shailos by his close talmid and associate, Rav Yehuda Deutsch.

Rav Yaakov Meir encouraged people not to fear and emphasized that they should “remain in Eretz Yisroel,” which is “a place of ultimate safety.”

Rav Yaakov Meir acknowledged that there are concerns from individuals living abroad who are considering returning and parents overseas whose children are studying in Eretz Yisroel. However, he unequivocally advised them to stay in the country, assuring them that there is no reason to leave.

Rav Yaakov Meir firmly believes that fleeing from the land is not the solution to the challenges at hand, and he urged Yidden to recite Tehillim to strengthen their faith and dispel fear.

Rav Yaakov Meir explained that reciting Tehillim at every available moment will not only strengthen one’s emunah, but also help eliminate fear.

“The root of fear,” he said, “lies in a confused mind and a lack of faith. Therefore, the solution is to recite Tehillim, which strengthens faith, clarifies the mind, and purifies the heart.”

I FULLY ENDORSE UNITED HATZALAH! I KNOW 100% OF YOUR DONATED DOLLAR GOES FOR EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT!

 

EMERGENCY CAMPAIGN FOR EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT

Shabbat morning at 6:20 am Israel was targeted by Hamas terrorists who crossed its border, infiltrating southern towns, resulting in many killed, people kidnapped, and hundreds injured. At the same time, thousands of rockets were launched into Israel, reaching Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. A state of war has been declared by Israel’s Defense Minister. In this state of emergency – unlike anything Israel has experienced since the Yom Kippur War – Israel needs your urgent support. We are launching an emergency appeal to raise funds for desperately needed supplies to provide our volunteers with the equipment they need to save lives and the protective equipment to keep themselves safe. The goal of the campaign is to raise $20 million to equip an additional 1,000 United Hatzalah volunteers with protective vests and helmets, oxygen tanks, defibrillators, trauma bandages, and tourniquets. These supplies can be ordered and delivered over the course of the next week to ensure that UH volunteers have everything they need to respond to the ongoing attacks. Our medics are on the front line and in need of support and reinforcements as they respond to lifesaving calls. The time is now. Your support is critical to ensure the safety of our volunteers and the people of Israel.

United Hatzalah of Israel is the largest independent, non-profit, fully volunteer Emergency Medical Service organization that provides the fastest and free emergency medical first response throughout Israel. United Hatzalah’s service is available to all people regardless of race, religon, or national origin. United Hatzalah has more than 6,500 volunteers around the country, available around the clock – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. With the help of our unique GPS technology and our iconic ambucycles, our average response time is less than 3 minutes across the country and 90 seconds in metropolitan areas. Our mission is to arrive at the scene of medical emergencies as soon as possible and provide the patient with professional and appropriate medical aid until an ambulance arrives, resulting in many more lives saved.

 PLEASE DONATE ANY AMOUNT YOU CAN:

https://israelrescue.org/campaign/israel-at-war/?utm_campaign=gaza2023&utm_medium=popup-new-2&utm_source=homepage

KEl Male Rachamim

An Almost Jewish Doctor & a Hungarian Meet In a Lab....

 

Drew Weissman, (Whose father was Jewish) immunologist, wins Nobel Prize for his work on COVID vaccines

Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman speak onstage at the Ninth Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, April 15, 2023.

 

(JTA) — Drew Weissman, a Jewish scientist who identified the technology that made possible the mRNA vaccines against COVID-19, has won the 2023 Nobel Prize in medicine. Weissman shared the prize with Katalin Kariko, his Hungarian-born research partner at the University of Pennsylvania.

Kariko and Weissman’s story of collaboration became famous in 2020 when the technology they had started experimenting with more than two decades earlier allowed the swift creation effective vaccines against the crippling pandemic.

The pair first encountered each other while photocopying research papers in 1998 and realized they were working on related topics. Kariko, who had been a low-level researcher for years, was trying to prove that messenger RNA, the genetic material that tells cells what to do, could be programmed. Weissman, a physician who previously worked under Dr. Anthony Fauci, later the U.S. COVID czar, at the National Institutes of Health, was working on a vaccine against HIV.

They teamed up and, in 2005, published a paper showing that mRNA could in fact be altered to instruct cells to take certain actions. But their breakthrough was widely overlooked for decades until it became clear that it could be used to take action against COVID-19, which was killing hundreds of thousands of people and crippling the global economy. Their technology fueled both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which arrived with unusual speed and effectiveness in late 2020 and together have been administered millions of times.

“Through their groundbreaking findings, which have fundamentally changed our understanding of how mRNA interacts with our immune system, the laureates contributed to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times,” the Nobel Prize committee said in announcing the award.

Weissman is the son of a Jewish father and non-Jewish mother who grew up celebrating Jewish holidays at home, he told the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent in 2021. Together with his wife Mary Ellen, who grew up in a more observant Jewish home, he sent his children to Hebrew school at Temple Beth Hillel/Beth El, a Conservative synagogue in suburban Philadelphia. Mary Ellen Weissman is heavily involved in Momentum, which seeks to engage Jewish women with Israel, and together with her husband has spoken to and donated to the organization.

Drew Weissman told the Exponent that his personal religious outlook was not specifically Jewish. ““I’m more of a Daoist, in that point of view that I think that Earth, nature is the supreme — the main component of life,” he said. “And that’s what needs to be celebrated.”

About a quarter of Nobel laureates in medicine over time have had one or more Jewish parents, according to Jinfo.org, a website that meticulously documents the Jewish lineage of prize winners across all fields. The site, which was updated swiftly to include Weissman, says that nearly 40% of U.S. Nobel laureates in medicine have been Jewish.

https://www.jta.org/2023/10/02/health/drew-weissman-jewish-immunologist-wins-nobel-prize-for-his-work-on-covid-vaccines?utm_source=JTA_Maropost&utm_campaign=JTA_DB&utm_medium=email&mpweb=1161-62716-462090

I Miss Ringling Brothers Circus --- Where The Clowns Were Funny & had Better Costumes! OY! The Gold Ol' Days Of Chol Hamoed...

 

Israel's chief rabbi: Secular Jews have lower intelligence....

 

"They do not find satisfaction in life; everything is driven by the desires of this world," Sephardi Chief Moronic Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef said.

Israel's Sephardi Chief Clown Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef

 

Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Yitzhak Yosef has said that the mental faculties of secular Jews who eat unkosher food are "impaired," and therefore it is "difficult for them to comprehend things."

His comments were released by Israel's Channel 13 on Sunday. 

The rabbi added that, "I observe everything happening within the secular community. They are in a state of jeopardy. They do not find satisfaction in life; everything is driven by the desires of this world."

"They are poor souls...they are jealous of us. They see the haredi sector, with its holidays and children, it is all jealousy," the rabbi continued. "And the hate is developed from jealousy." He also called on religious organizations to promote the ultra-Orthodox lifestyle to secular Israelis.

Opposition outrage by chief rabbi's comments

His statements have sparked a political uproar, with strong condemnations coming from the opposition.

The Sephardi chief CLOWN is seen as the masses pray at the Western Wall

 

Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid commented that Yosef has misrepresented his role, saying, "he is not the Chief Rabbi of Israel but rather the rabbi of a vocal minority that condemns millions of Jews who serve in the army, risk their lives, work, and support this nation. In one aspect, he is correct - they felt somewhat foolish tonight when they realized they are the ones funding his salary."

Yisrael Beytenu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman, also commented, "The sole foolishness with your statements is the fact that the secular public is funding and paying a salary to someone as uninformed as you." A member of his party, MK Yulia Malinovsky, added, "Based on Chief Rabbi Yosef's statements, even consuming kosher food alone doesn't ensure profound wisdom." 

 

List of 200 Jewish Nobel laureates: 1 observant Jew out of 200 laureates:

2005

Robert Aumann[231

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Jewish_Nobel_laureates

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-761245?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Excerpt%3A+Trump+wanted+%245b++from+SBF+to+not+run+in+2024&utm_campaign=October+2%2C+2023&vgo_ee=U0Cnp9xWz33fm%2F9cYm1%2Fa94frB0F1cyLbrCVMkTOeY%2FGLg%3D%3D%3AK8QxLBqa%2BRUUFgVWtliqCIH5l4rydqL8

Lest We Forget The Mass Slaughter Of Ukranian Jews By The Ukranians! On Sept. 3, 1941, the first murders took place in the gas chambers of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp. On Sept. 29, 1941, mass shootings of Jews began at Babi Yar in Kyiv, Ukraine.

 

The dark legacy of Babi Yar 

 

We must remember not only the Jews who were slaughtered but the millions of Jews who were never born. 

 

A memorial at Babi Yar in Ukraine, the site of a September 1941 massacre carried out by German forces and Ukrainian collaborators

 

 

The English word “holocaust” is borrowed from the Latin word holocaustum, used in the Latin translation of the Bible. This word is based in turn on a Greek word that means “burned whole” or “burnt offering.” In English, holocaustum was first used by an English chronicler of the second half of the 12th century—the monk Richard of Devizes—in order to describe an anti-Jewish pogrom that began in London after the coronation of Richard the Lionheart on Sept. 3, 1189. Some 750 years later, the Nazis decided to “burn” the Jews of Europe.

On the evening of July 31, 1941, in a luxurious baroque mansion in the Schorfheide Forest north of Berlin, Hermann Goering, the Nazi’s commissioner for the “Jewish question,” signed an order for the “Final Solution of the Jewish question.” It had been brought to him by Gruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich, the first deputy reichsführer of the SS. In 1961, Adolf Eichmann testified at his trial in Jerusalem that, in early August 1941, Heydrich summoned him, showed him a document signed by Goering and said: “The Führer has given orders for the physical extermination of the Jews.”

On Sept. 3, 1941, the first murders took place in the gas chambers of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp. On Sept. 29, 1941, mass shootings of Jews began at Babi Yar in Kyiv, Ukraine.

The Holocaust unites Jews because it is a tragic demonstration of their national and religious commonality. Jews speak dozens of languages, but what they have in common is the “language” of the Holocaust—a reminder of their common fate. The Holocaust continues to affect the entire Jewish people to this day. Professor Sergio Della Pergola of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, a specialist in Jewish demography, believes that if the Holocaust had not happened, the number of Jews in the world would now be between 26 million and 32 million.

Kyiv has fertile soil. Everything grows well in it, including antisemitism. In the ravine called Babi Yar, the soil was especially fertile. Everything that nature desired grew there. The women of Kyiv from time immemorial saw their husbands off to war from the site. Tears of grief mixed with the waters of the overflowing Dnieper. There was plenty of moisture in Babi Yar.

But woe to the Jews who wanted to live. The Nazis chose the largest and saddest ravine in Kyiv as the place of execution. Fifty years after the mass shootings, my landlord in Stuttgart, where I worked at the Max Planck Institute, told me that he had heard machine-gun bursts from Babi Yar. His wife recalled how he woke up from nightmares in which he heard the sound again, as well as shouts and prayers of “Shema Yisrael!” He would wake up, but my relatives would sleep there forever.

On Sept. 28, announcements in three languages—Russian, Ukrainian and German—were posted in the streets of Kyiv: “All Jews of Kyiv and its environs should come on Monday, Sept. 29, 1941, by 8 am to the corner of Melnikovskaya and Dochterevskaya (near the cemeteries). Take with you documents, valuables, as well as warm clothes and underwear and other things. Whoever of the Jews does not fulfill this order and is found elsewhere will be shot.”

The Jews believed they were going to be resettled, as there was a railroad freight station not far from the appointed place. Dozens of members of my family read this announcement. They packed their belongings and recited the Jewish traveling prayer, which included words addressed to God: “Save us from every enemy and ambush, from robbers and wild beasts on the trip, and from all kinds of punishments that rage and come to the world.”

But no one spared them from ambush, from robbers and from wild beasts. My grandmother’s brother was shot at Babi Yar in 1941, along with dozens of our family members. Unlike his relatives, he was not wounded. He crawled out of the moat of death and escaped.

As I grew up, I heard his stories. Often, he said, “Many Jews were killed, but because of these executions, even more Jews were not born.” When one honors the memory of the Jews who died in the Holocaust, one must be aware of the many millions of Jews who never existed at all because of the slaughter.

Twelve years before my scholarly visit to Germany, I repatriated to Israel. I chose Israel, a country of limited opportunities and unlimited dangers, a country of uncertain borders and certain enemies, a country of three seas and three deserts, standing at the crossroads of three continents, a country flowing with milk, honey and blood. Before leaving for Israel, I brought my 5-year-old son to Babi Yar. We came to say goodbye to those who could not leave with us.

https://www.jns.org/the-dark-legacy-of-babi-yar/?_se=bWpwb2xvQGJib3guZnI%3D&utm_campaign=Evening+Syndicate+Wednesday+9272023&utm_medium=email&utm_source=brevo

The Most Damning & Cogent View Of Donald Trump I've Heard To Date and Agree With Entirely - Mild Use Of Foul Language ...An Insurrection of Lies!

I believe that confronting anti-science movements is essential and necessary - Many of us even apply our training to develop novel and exciting technologies, such as new medicines, diagnostics, medical devices, or vaccines. A common denominator is that we use science to save lives.

Vaccine Research and Combating the Anti-Science Movement Go Hand in Hand...

 

Why You Should Trust Dr. Hotez and NOT medical smut peddlers like Shmuel Kamenetsky, Malkiel Kotler, Eli Ber Wachtfogel...v'chulu... and the other giants of ignorance & arrogance!

***“An authority who allows himself to be consulted [when a life is in danger] is reprehensible, and he who consults him (rather than speedily acting to save the life in danger) is a murderer” (Tur, Orah Hayyim 328).***

— An excerpt from Hotez's new book, The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science

Hotez is a professor of pediatrics and molecular virology and microbiology. 

 

by Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD

It might not be intuitive why, as an MD-PhD laboratory investigator who develops vaccines for global health, I should also take on the challenge of combating anti-science or authoritarian regimes. Some colleagues, especially those who have been scientists for decades, even question my taking a public stance. Their position is a traditional one, that countering anti-vaccine movements or defending science and scientists is best left to others, while speaking out to defend the discipline is even inappropriate for our profession.

But I believe that confronting anti-science movements is essential and necessary. Our training as biomedical scientists gives us the knowledge and tools to advance the fields of biochemistry and molecular biology, microbiology, neuroscience, pharmacology, and physiology. Many of us even apply our training to develop novel and exciting technologies, such as new medicines, diagnostics, medical devices, or vaccines. A common denominator is that we use science to save lives. I embarked on MD-PhD training to apply the then-new science of molecular biology -- the first gene had been cloned just a few years earlier -- to the study of medically important parasites in Africa and elsewhere. I brought hookworms into the Rockefeller University Laboratory of Medical Biochemistry (headed by Anthony Cerami, PhD) to take a first stab at developing hookworm vaccines. Now we have a human hookworm vaccine in clinical trials in Africa, as well as a vaccine for another devastating parasitic infection known as schistosomiasis, and of course our COVID-19 vaccine released for emergency use in India.

It is in that same spirit that I embarked on a parallel career of combating anti-science. My mindset for writing and publishing the book about my daughter, Rachel, was basically: If I don't write this or stand up for vaccines, then who will? After all, I am a vaccine scientist and have particular expertise on information that conclusively shows there is no vaccine-autism link. I also have firsthand knowledge about autism; I discussed with Rachel's medical geneticists the steps of whole exome sequencing to identify her autism gene. A downside to writing about Rachel was that it invited waves of attacks from the anti-vaccine movement. However, this also gave me experience and understanding about the tactics and approaches used by these groups. By circumstance, I became an anti-science expert.

 I was among the first to call out the Trump West Wing for its use of disinformation and anti-science propaganda -- not from brilliance, but because by default I had become a national expert in deciphering the rhetoric of anti-science, including the false narratives in particular, which in some cases are spun around real facts.

 Beginning in 2021 and continuing into 2022, with 200,000 unvaccinated Americans needlessly losing their lives because of their COVID-19 vaccine defiance and refusal, I again felt an obligation to confront and combat this anti-science aggression.

****** 

My Comments:

Achrei Mos, Vayikra 18:5. וָחַי בָּהֶם, Vachai Bahem: The Obligation to Preserve Life Countermands Other Religious Obligations 

וּשְׁמַרְתֶּם אֶת חֻקֹּתַי וְאֶת מִשְׁפָּטַי אֲשֶׁר יַעֲשֶׂה אֹתָם הָאָדָם וָחַי בָּהֶם  אֲנִי ה
Observe my ordinances and laws, that man shall do them and live; I am Hashem.

“The saving of a life overrides the commandments of the entire Torah; and he shall live by them and not die by them. Desecrate one Sabbath on his account that he may keep many Sabbaths” [Yoma 85b]. This law is the watchword of Judaism. “An authority who allows himself to be consulted [when a life is in danger] is reprehensible, and he who consults him (rather than speedily acting to save the life in danger) is a murderer” (Tur, Orah Hayyim 328). Maimonides, that master of conciseness, deviated from his regular manner and treated this issue with great elaborateness… [Rav Soloveitchik, in the original, inserts the previous citation of Rambam.]
 
The teachings of the Torah do not oppose the laws of life and reality, for were they to clash with this world and were they to negate the value of concrete, physiological-biological existence, then they would contain not mercy, lovingkindness, and peace but vengeance and wrath.[2] 

 "Rav Moshe Feinstein Zt"l, in his sefer "Igros Moshe," writes  that this common understanding of the pasuk is incorrect. That is not what the pasuk is saying. The true explanation is as basic as a Targum Onkelos. 

 
The Targum Onkelos translates this pasuk as: "and you should live through them in the World to Come." In other words, the pasuk is not telling us to stay alive and neglect the mitzvos, because life is more precious than mitzvos. The pasuk is telling us that the most precious thing in life is keeping mitzvos, because they bring us to olam haba, the World to Come.
Therefore, if I have a choice between observing the Shabbos or being murdered, the Torah says, "live!" Why? Not because life, for its own sake, is more precious than G-d's Commandments. Rather, life is precious because you can do those Commandments! 

Therefore, perform work on this Shabbos so you can keep so many more Shabbasos in the future. Eat chometz on Pesach. Why? So you can go on and do more mitzvos, and be worthy of life in the world to come. 

 
This is an entirely different perspective. Life is not valuable just for the sake of life itself, without a purpose. Life is not valuable simply in order for a person to work, do errands and go to ball games. That is not what makes life worth living! What does make life worth living? "V'chai bahem" - "l'chayei alma" [in the world to come]. Life that leads to this goal is worth living. The Torah is instructing us to violate the Shabbos and to eat chometz [leaven] on Pesach. Why? The reason is because a human life is valuable because it can do so many more mitzvos in this world. Therefore, violate the Shabbos once so that you can observe Shabbos many more times." 

*******

Those of us in the biomedical community who feel it is a moral imperative to direct our scientific energies toward saving lives must recognize that battling anti-science is an essential element of this cause. For inspiration, I turn to the writings and thoughts of Jacob Bronowski (1908-1974). Bronowski was a Polish-born mathematician and philosopher who taught mathematics in the U.K., and over time became a renowned public intellectual through his writings, and later as the presenter of a BBC documentary (and companion book) known as The Ascent of Man. One of the more moving segments was filmed at Auschwitz as Bronowski spoke about a dark side of science that can be twisted for nefarious purposes. Previously, in his 1956 book, Science and Human Values, Bronowski wrote about the liberation of the concentration camps and Holocaust victims, as well as the aftermath of the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He used these examples to develop an essential moral framework for scientists. Bronowski became one of the first "scientific humanists" in residence after the founding of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. When I met with Jonas Salk, MD, there in 1995, he explained to me that the rationale during the organization's early years for devoting a part of the institute to building bridges between the sciences and the humanities was the striking gap between the two groups. He and Bronowski believed that close intellectual contact between each discipline could significantly enrich the other. Over time, for the institute to focus on its continued excellence in biomedical sciences, this emphasis on the humanities became a lesser priority.

Therefore, it remains urgent to build out meaningful programs in the humanities and public engagement at many of our major research institutions and universities. There are now some interesting and successful examples of such collaborations, including the Center for Humanities & History of Modern Biology at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, strong programs in the humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a 2018 report from the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on integrating humanities and the arts into science, medicine, and engineering. However, much more needs to be done.

Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD, is a professor of pediatrics and molecular virology and microbiology, and the founding dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, where he is also the co-director of the Texas Children's Center for Vaccine Development. This piece was excerpted from his new book, The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science: A Scientist's Warningopens in a new tab or window. Copyright 2023. Published with permission of Johns Hopkins University Press.

https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/second-opinions/106399?xid=nl_secondopinion_2023-09-24&eun=g2011045d0r

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Hotez

https://www.bcm.edu/people-search/peter-hotez-23229

https://peterhotez.org/

UOJ & Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz Of Yated Ne'eman Collaborate On A Shabbos Shuva Drasha Heard 'Round The World!

 

UOJ & Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz Of Yated Ne'eman Collaborate On A Shabbos Shuva Drasha Heard 'Round The World!

A UOJ Archived Parody! September 21, 2009

Agudath Israel

The fascination with this group's downfall and the manner in which they hoodwinked shrewd, intelligent people seems bottomless. Why is the public appetite for details about how they defrauded people so insatiable?

The thousands of people who were wiped out spiritually when the web of deceit ripped apart, have yet to be quantified. Is it because they abused the trust of so many? Is it because they took every last dime of emunah? Is it because they took the lies from rabbis/gedolim when they knew that, and passing it off to the next sucker in line? Is it because of the unprecedented number of people whose trust they abused and lost?

Is it the spectacular amounts of cover-ups that they supposedly gobbled up that is driving the public's obsession with this group?

They are not the first group of crooks and sociopathic liars, and they won't be the last. They are not the first persons to look into people's eyes and lie to them. The world is, regrettably, full of fast-talkers who sweet-talk people into a variety of schemes aimed at fleecing them.

Most of us have had the experience of talking to habitual, bold-faced liars - and realizing that we are being lied to. Most people are intelligent enough to at least be on the lookout for charlatans.

It is true that we live in a period when we are more susceptible to those who are blessed with the gift of oratory and the ability to offer glib optimistic promises. It is doubtful if the current president-elect would be in his position if he wouldn't have been blessed with the gift of oratory. There are many other individuals in leadership positions who are looked up to by a variety of people strictly because of the way they communicate and not necessarily because of their superior knowledge or intellect. Can it be that the fascination with Agudah is that people are enamored by their salesmanship abilities?

What is so different about this group of rabbis? Why is everyone so fascinated by their capers?

These fabulously pathetic Jews generally view themselves and their lives as more important than those of the little people who have to sweat over a blatt gemora. The culture of power and privilege that comes with their immense phony emunah makes these Jews feel superior to common folk. With a multitude of subordinates like Zwiebel, Shafran and Weinberger catering to their every need and want, and a way of life that defies description, they seem to inhabit a parallel universe.

But it's more than that. The delusion of superiority enjoyed by the rabbis is reinforced by the masses who pay homage to them. Even rabbis who speak out against the worship of money, defer to the rich and bend over backwards (very far) to please the wealthy in their community.

Why?..... Speak to any Swiss banker!

A rabbi commands respect and attention wherever he goes. People point him out when he walks into a room and seek his counsel on various matters, most of which he often knows nothing about.

Everyone wants to be associated with gedolim and, more often than not, the barometer of tzidkas is the size of the rabbi's beard and hat. Usually it matters not how corrupt the rabbi is.

With very few exceptions, this is the way of the world. Honesty is viewed as naivete. One who declines to participate in an Agudah Convention because of the dubious ethics of that group of child-rape enablers, or refuses government benefits he may not be entitled to, is scorned as a fool.

The hardworking electrician or craftsman who works from early in the morning to late at night, never overcharging and remaining fastidious about paying his taxes, may not earn any one's admiration. It's the one who cuts corners, gives dishonest answers on government forms, overcharges and plays fast and loose with the rules who often seems to be more respected for his accomplishments.

An honest middle class man who pays his tuition and is punctilious in the giving of maaser and charity to the less fortunate isn't respected enough for his integrity and reliability. The same goes for the kindhearted fellow who doesn't push his weight around trying to dictate what others should do and does not let child-rapists run loose in his Borough Park two inches of backyard.

We have in our midst people of sterling character, individuals who are intelligent, capable and resourceful, who can envision solutions and follow through on a project to completion. These people realize that all their talents and possessions are gifts from Hashem. They remain humble and G-d fearing. It is this kind of person whom we need in positions of leadership, not the idiots we have now.

Unfortunately, however, we don't appreciate these people. We look for people with glitz and glamour of shtreimels, spudiks, Borsalinos, and the ganovim surrounding them. Awed by their success in duping people to buy them huge amounts of yeshiva real estate with private toilets and basements for their rebbes, we put our trust in these people, imagining that they possess the brilliance and competence to lead us to success.

Then, suddenly, our eyes are opened when we see the rabbis taken down by the cheapest UOJ tricks in the book. We are astounded. How were successful Jews taken in by these thieves? How did they allow themselves to ignore the most basic laws of trust that relatively unsophisticated people are familiar with?

The very people who inspired so much envy and hero-worship, and who we turned to for advice and guidance, have been exposed as fatally blinded by their hunger for more money and power. It fascinates people to realize that the rabbis are no smarter than they, and may even be less intelligent. Middle class people are amazed to see that the wealth they so covet is fleeting and meaningless, while the money they have given to fraudulent rabbis was used for the thieves own gain at the expense of the community.

The media will get over its obsession with child sexual molestation in the Jewish community; the public will soon lose its fascination with this story. Yet, long after the allure of these criminal incidents fades, we must remember its lessons.

Don't rush to respect these rabbis again. Don't become enamored by people who seem to to tell you the truth no matter what the situation. Don't judge a person by the black clothing he wears. Be a true Jew -- eliminate the middleman - go direct to the manufacturer! What kind of Jew buys retail?

Remember that sechel - common sense is a Divine gift intended for the recipient to better mankind and those around him. He who uses his gifts wisely has fulfilled his obligations and accomplished what is expected of him. The one who disburses his largess to worthwile mosdos of Torah and chesed has earned eternity for himself and his loved ones. He who squanders it in selfish pursuits or phony tzedakas and thieving yeshiva owners, leads an empty and purposeless life. He fritters away the benefits he could have accrued in this life and wastes numerous opportunities for eternity.

People who lead honest lives don't chase after phony promises and empty words of fraudulent rabbis behind the rainbow. They have their emunah the old-fashioned way - the Torah hakedosha. They avoid subterfuge and dishonesty. When asking sheilos, they take great care to diversify, never putting all their eggs in one rabbinic basket.

They know that nothing works in a straight upward curve; life has its ups and downs that affect every sphere of faith. Now its the down --- kick your kids out of kollel and force them to go to work.

Enough with these bums hamming it up in the Lakewood coffee room. Stop the checks to them and to the Kotlers --- tell Malkiel and Aron to get real jobs. Shenky can get them traffic cop jobs in a jif! You - parents - are expected to work yourselves dead so your kids can putz around in Atlantic City?

Even though your kids are devious, lazy bandits, don't become broken and give up hope when things are pointing down. Maintain your emunah and bitachon. In the good times, don't flaunt your success and don't force others to conform to your meshugasin of attending lavish yeshivah dinners and conventions. Remain committed to the greater good at all times. Tell the rabbis who knock on your door with their hands out, to kiss off!

We are currently experiencing a spiritual depression as well. Many good people are losing not only their emunah but their savings and the possessions they worked so hard to earn. Everyone we know seems to have been forced, at least somewhat, to lower their standard of living. In the dark as to what tomorrow will bring, many are now cutting back on all forms of spending and holding on to what they have.

People upon whom charitable organizations depended to continue their work are no longer in a position to be of much financial assistance. People with hearts overflowing with the desire to help, and who formerly supported yeshivos and enabled them to maintain genaiveshe real estate holdings, the golden chain stretching back as far as the thief was able to deceive you, are themselves broken-hearted and in need of support and mercy. Nothing like a good molesting by a rabbi to get them to appreciate how lucky they really are.

In difficult straits, rabbis, yeshivas and Jewish organizations will find themselves various unethical schemes to attain wealth and success by taking moral shortcuts. When tempted by dishonesty and duplicity, one has but to remember Margo's downfall. In the end, the truth always emerges, but the rabbis' have short memories, are short on brains, and have been shortened by untrained mohelim.

Frauds and lies will only get you so far. Eventually, the treachery will catch up with you. Together with your wealth, all those adoring friends who couldn't do enough for you will disappear.

Everything temporary comes to a crashing end. Only truth is enduring. Shidduchim for your kids will disappear unless you create some new fraudulent Ponzi scheme -- and Agudath Israel will get the government's money to teach you exactly how to pull it off! Project Dope!

At times like these, we search for things that will uplift and inspire us positively. Neginah, song, has the power to do that in unparalleled ways. Good Jewish music is intended to reach the recesses of our neshamos and make us into better people. Simple poetic words of timeless truth when combined with proper music have a way of doing just that.

Sing and declare "Toras Hashem Temimah" loud and often! Beseech God with "Achas Shoalti", and remember our only source of sustenance when singing "V'yiten L'cho Elokim M'tal Hashomayim...."

[The Lord's Torah is perfect, it restores the soul. The Lord's testimony is reliable, it makes the simple person wise.












Track Title: Toras Hashem
Composer: Feivel Mendlowitz
Ensemble: The Choir of Pirchei Agudath Israel of America
Conductor: Stanley Sperber
Language: Hebrew
Album/Collection Title: Pirchei Sings - Ani Maamin
Label: Pirchei Records
Country of Publication: USA
Archived by the Trustees of Dartmouth College

There is one thing I ask the Lord, one thing that I desire --- That I might dwell in the Lord's house all the days of my life, witnessing the Lord's goodness and contemplating in His sanctuary.

And the Lord giveth from the dew of the Heavens....

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE:


As these hit songs proclaim, let us stay strong and cling to our beliefs. Let us cast aside the alma deshikra that tempts us every day from the bowels of 42 Broadway, and strengthen our connection to the One Above and His Torah. In that merit, we will be zoche to greet Moshiach Tzidkeini, may he come speedily, in our day.

{Contact the Yated for the original undoctored article - Pinny you owe me one --- a check to Survivors For Justice would be a good start!}

 

READ COMMENTS:

https://theunorthodoxjew.blogspot.com/search?q=UOJ+%26+Rabbi+Pinchos+Lipschutz+Of+Yated+Ne%27eman+Collaborate+On+A+Shabbos+Shuva+Drasha+Heard+%27Round+The+World%21

Israelis should carry guns on Yom Kippur, police say --- So Should Americans Who Know How To Use A Gun! (PM)

(My opinion - Take an unloaded gun to shul before yom-tov, on a separate trip, take the clips and ammo.  Always check & follow the gun laws in your state!) PM

 

In a press statement, the Israel Police spokesperson urged Israelis to carry guns for personal safety amid the High Holy Days.

POLICE PATROL outside al-Aqsa Mosque amid clashes in the area this week.

The Israel Police spokesperson suggested that Jews should carry weapons on Yom Kippur in a Tuesday press statement.

The recommendation came in a message regarding police preparedness as the approach of the Jewish High Holy Days brings increased security risk in a Tuesday press statement.

As part of the measures that the public should take, he emphasized was for citizens to carry weapons and be trained in their use.

The Israel Police spokesperson, Commander Eli Levi, noted the police were ramping up their preparedness at key locations across Israel.

“As every year, in preparation for the High Holy Days, the level of readiness has been increased in certain areas, with an emphasis on cities such as Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and prayer and entertainment venues,” Levi said.

He went on to assert that in the weeks leading up to the High Holy Days, Israel faces more severe threats to public safety as a result of crime and terror.

“Now, a few days before Yom Kippur and during the holiday season, there are dozens of alerts. Alongside the escalating incitement to terror on social media, this has led the Israel Police to deploy thousands of officers, Border Police, and volunteers,” he stated.

Levi went on to explain that, at this time, the Israeli security apparatus is focusing on stopping terrorist acts before they occur, being able to respond immediately in the event that they do, and doing everything possible to keep the public safe.

Levi: Israelis should carry weapons

However, keeping the public safe, Levi advances, involves the active participation of the public in their own personal safety. That is, the public should carry weapons, he says.

“Today,” Levi said, “we reiterate the call of the Chief of Police and the Head of Operations and call on the public to carry weapons and be trained in their use when necessary, to bear their weapons during these days, even in places of prayer and family entertainment.”

The Israel Police spokesperson also addressed violent crime in Israel, particularly in the country’s Arab sector. He noted the police’s ongoing effort to combat such violence, particularly via the confiscation of weapons, saying that every firearm, explosive, or grenade recovered could prevent it from making its way to those intending terroristic violence.

Levi also warned against harboring illegal residents who unlawfully crossed into Israel.

“Most importantly,” he added in conclusion, “promptly report any unusual event that you find yourself involved in or exposed to and any publications that raise concerns about incitement to terror and violence on social networks."

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-759794

Some Winner --- It was at the Skylark that Polovets is alleged to have slipped a drug into her drink. The lawsuit says that she was “suddenly disoriented and began to lose control of her motor functions” and was “overwhelmed by distress, confusion, and fear.”

 

Genesis Prize Winner - CEO Stan Polovets accused of drugging and sexually assaulting woman

Stan Polovets, center, with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, left, presenting the 2022 Genesis Prize to Pfizer Chairman and CEO Albert Bourla, right, in Jerusalem, Israel, June 29, 2022. (Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images for The Genesis Prize Foundation) 

 

(JTA) – Stan Polovets, an oil industry executive who used his wealth and connections to help establish one of the most prestigious awards in the Jewish world, has been accused of drugging and sexually assaulting a woman he took out on a date. 

The woman, identified only as Jane Doe 1, made the allegations in a civil lawsuit filed against Polovets, the CEO of the Genesis Prize Foundation, in Manhattan last week. She is demanding financial compensation whose amount would be determined in court. 

The Genesis Prize annually recognizes outstanding achievement by Jewish individuals through a ceremony and a $1 million grant that’s typically distributed to charity. The prominence of the award’s winners — a list that includes Michael Bloomberg, Natalie Portman, and Natan Sharansky — has elevated the prize’s profile and led people to call it the “Jewish Nobel Prize.”

Speaking through his lawyer, Polovets has denied the allegations and accused the woman of targeting him for his wealth. 

“He completely and unequivocally denies the allegations and looks forward to clearing his name in a courtroom at the appropriate time,” said attorney Mark Bederow. “We believe that this is nothing more than an attempt to extract money from Mr. Polovets.”

Polovets is divorced as of July following a court proceeding initiated by his ex-wife, Erina Polovets, in January 2021.

The foundation, which is registered in Israel and maintains an office in New York, released a statement saying that it stands behind Polovets. 

“The foundation believes that false accusations of sexual assault injure not only the person falsely accused, but also survivors of sexual assault,” the statement says. “The important philanthropic work of The Genesis Prize Foundation will continue without disruption.”

According to the lawsuit, Polovets met the woman, a single mother of a young child, through a matchmaker in the summer of 2021. On their second date, in December 2021, the two went to see play and afterward had a drink at the Skylark, a luxury cocktail lounge in midtown Manhattan.

It was at the Skylark that Polovets is alleged to have slipped a drug into her drink. The lawsuit says that she was “suddenly disoriented and began to lose control of her motor functions” and was “overwhelmed by distress, confusion, and fear.” A blood test later conducted by a private lab showed traces of benzodiazepines, a class of drugs commonly known as roofies or the date rape drug, according to the lawsuit. 

The woman claims that Polovets took advantage of her diminished state and prevented her from catching a ride home. He allegedly took her to his home and sexually assaulted her as she came in and out of consciousness. 

According to another allegation in the lawsuit, the Skylark intentionally destroyed security footage that was later sought by law enforcement officers. The lawsuit refers to an ongoing criminal investigation into her alleged assault. 

Polovets’ attorney said his client has fully cooperated with the New York Police Department and that he hasn’t heard from police since November 2022. No criminal charges have been filed against Polovets. 

The Skylark said it cannot yet respond to the allegation against it.  

“The Skylark was just made aware of the complaint and we are in the process of investigating the claims. As anyone would, we have great empathy for the victim,” the lounge’s attorney said. “However, until we know all the facts, we are not in a position to make any statement with regard to the allegations other than to say we will take this matter seriously and are investigating.”

A Russia-born American businessman, Polovets is a veteran deal maker in the oil and gas industry. In 2007, he teamed up with Russian billionaire oligarchs Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven, and German Khan to found the Genesis Philanthropy Group, whose original philanthropic focus was aiding the Jews of the former Soviet Union. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, the three oligarchs were placed under Western sanctions and subsequently resigned from its board. Polovets led GPG until 2014 and helped spin off the Genesis Prize as an independent entity with a $100 million endowment in 2012. 

In May, the Genesis Prize announced it would bestow a special recognition marking its 10th anniversary on Barbra Streisand. A ceremony for the singer and actress — who pledged to direct her $1 million prize to groups aimed at protecting the environment, promoting women’s health, combating disinformation in the media and aiding the people of Ukraine — is slated to take place next month in Los Angeles.

Wearing Garments Of Avoda Zara & Synthetic Shaitels --- Mental Illness Is Real Right At The Top Of The Pyramid!

 

Public health is about caring about your neighbor, which I would argue is also what religion is about. Which [is why] I think it's deeply disingenuous to say that, for religious reasons, you're going to put your child and those with whom your child comes into contact in harm's way. How is that a religious principle for any religion?

 

Dr. Paul Offit Goes Off on Religious Vaccine Exemptions

 

— Mississippi "loophole" may allow people to avoid vaccination for any reason at all

The ruling was basically, if you can have a medical exemption,

In this video interview, Paul Offit, MD, director of the Vaccine Education Center and attending physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, discusses a recent law passed in Mississippi that allows for religious exemptions from vaccination.

Offit is also a member of the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee.

The following is a transcript of his remarks:

So, an anti-vaccine group called Informed Consent Action Network, which is not a religious group at all, set about trying to establish religious exemptions in states that don't have them. This was their first effort in Mississippi.

The ruling was basically: If you can have a medical exemption, why can't you also have a religious exemption? And that was it. Now, there will no doubt be people in Mississippi who will choose a religious exemption, not necessarily because they have a religious exemption to vaccines, but because they just don't want to get a vaccine. And now this is a loophole that allows them to do it.

We'll see how it plays out, whether there's a standard that has to be met, like you have to have a letter from your religious leader that says that you feel strongly about this and point to statements in the Bible about not putting foreign things into your body, about why you shouldn't get a vaccine. Because the textbook of the three major religions were all written well before the first vaccine, which was in the late 1700s, so there's nothing in those texts that says you shouldn't get a vaccine. I think it's just used as a reason not to get it, which is I think exemplified by the fact that it was an anti-vaccine group that brought it.

If you look at California, for example, which never had a religious exemption but had a philosophical exemption, they suffered a major pertussis, or whooping cough, outbreak in 2010. In 2014-2015, a major measles outbreak that started in Southern California spread to 25 other states and spread to Mexico, the Philippines, and other countries.

Eventually what a state senator did was he eliminated the philosophical exemption. With that, immunization rates in California rose. So there is, not surprisingly, a direct relationship between being able to easily exempt yourself from vaccines and having vaccine rates decline and eliminating those non-medical opt-outs and having vaccine rates rise.

What the end result will be is that there will be children who will now not get a vaccine where they would've gotten it before. There will be an erosion of herd immunity. The only question is, will it erode enough that you'll start to see outbreaks of the most contagious of the infectious diseases that are vaccine preventable, which is measles?

All you can do is try and encourage vaccination as much as you can, which protects the child to some extent. I mean, no vaccine is 100% effective. If you're exposed to a vaccine preventable disease like measles, even if you've been vaccinated, it's possible you could get measles. So, all you can do is the best you can do.

But the thing that's most upsetting in this to me -- let me put it this way: the worst thing that an anti-vaccine activist can say as far as I'm concerned is, "What do you care what I do? You're vaccinated." This makes two incorrect assumptions. One is that vaccines are 100% effective, which is true of no vaccine. And two, that everybody can be vaccinated. I mean, there's 9 million people in this country who are immune compromised. They depend on those around them to protect them.

The best example is that story in California. I think one of the reasons that Richard Pan, who was the state senator, successfully eliminated the philosophical exemption was this little boy who kept showing up at the meetings trying to support his bill to eliminate the philosophical exemption. His name was Rhett Krawitt, and he had acute lymphoblastic leukemia. He would stand up at these meetings -- well, he wouldn't stand up; he would stand up in a chair so he could reach the microphone because he was little. He was only 7. And he would say, "What about me? I depend on you to protect me. Don't I count?" He was the voice of society.

And I think that's the tension. I mean, public health is about caring about your neighbor, which I would argue is also what religion is about. Which [is why] I think it's deeply disingenuous to say that, for religious reasons, you're going to put your child and those with whom your child comes into contact in harm's way. How is that a religious principle for any religion?

When children were separated from their parents at the southern border, who was there first? It was Christian relief societies that were there. I mean, Constantine, who was the first Christian emperor of Rome, at a time when child abuse was the crying vice of the great Roman Empire, established, essentially, organizations to help children. So I don't get it. I don't get it.

It seems to me like such the ultimate contradiction in terms to say that you have religious exemption to vaccination.

 

WATCH VIDEO:

https://www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdisease/vaccines/106355

A Lying Group Of The Dregs of Society - Jew-Haters - Money Prostitutes - Filthy Hypocrites! Just In 3 Days Of Headlines!

1 -New letter reveals Pope Pius XII had detailed information on Nazi killing of Jews

 

Vatican archive documents on mass killings in Poland undercut Holy See’s argument that it couldn’t denounce Holocaust as it was unable to verify diplomatic reports

Undated file photo of Pope Pius XII

2 - After accusations by top Ukrainian official, Vatican Bank denies receiving funds from Russia 

3 -Vatican brings its message for peace in Ukraine to Beijing 

 

A high-ranking Ukrainian official accused the Vatican of taking money from Russia and called Pope Francis a ‘Russophile.’ 

 

 

 

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — After a close aid to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Pope Francis of being a Russophile and the Vatican of receiving Russian funds, the Catholic Church issued a statement denying the accusations on Sunday (Sept. 10).

“The IOR does not receive or invest money from Russia,” read a statement by the Institute for Religious Works, using the Italian acronym IOR for the institution more commonly referred to as the Vatican Bank. “The IOR strongly rejects the allegations of the Councilor, according to whom the IOR would be investing Russian money.”

The Vatican Bank insisted the institute only provides financial services to Catholic organizations and that it is held to the highest possible international standards.

“Any statements made to the contrary in the media are based on nothing and must, therefore, be considered as such,” the statement concluded.

Mykhaylo Podolyak, a top adviser to Zelenskyy, called Pope Francis a “Russophile” in an interview on Ukrainian television Channel24 that aired Sept. 8. “The Vatican can’t have any mediation role, because it would betray Ukraine and justice,” he said.

Podolyak also stated that the Ukrainian government plans to “look into the Russian investments that are being made in the Vatican Bank” and promised to “study this more in detail.”

Pope Francis has promoted peace in Ukraine after the Russian invasion in February of last year, but has stopped short of openly criticizing Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin. Vatican diplomacy has been focused on attempting to build a bridge between the warring factions and to promote a lasting peace.

The pope sent a peace envoy, the experienced diplomat and Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, to visit Russian elites in Moscow and meet with Ukrainian leaders. The cardinal also met with members of the United States government, and the pope hinted that the next stop for Zuppi might be Beijing. While Zelenskyy has publicly thanked the Vatican for its peace efforts, especially in helping displaced children to reunite with their families and other charity work, he has also made it clear Ukraine is not interested in the pope’s mediation offer and will seek peace “on its own terms.”

---

A few diplomatic blunders have also hindered Pope Francis’ chance to bring peace. In a message to young people in Russia in late August, the pope was quoted praising the great history and legacy of Russia, including Russian historical figures like Catherine the Great and Peter the Great, which was interpreted by some as a papal sanctioning of Russian imperialist aims.

Addressing those comments, Podolyak said that “it doesn’t make sense to speak of Pope Francis as a mediator, if he takes on a Russophile position that is obvious to all.”

“I was not thinking of imperialism when I said that,” said Pope Francis, while justifying his comments aboard the papal flight returning to Mongolia (Sept. 4). “Maybe it wasn’t the best way of putting it, but in speaking of the great Russia, I was thinking not so much geographically but culturally.”

Francis’ trip to the Central Asian nation was largely seen as an overture to its larger neighboring countries of China and Russia, which don’t have official diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

While the pope acknowledged his error, he also underlined that “Russian culture is so beautiful, so immensely profound, and it must not be canceled because of political issues.” On a previous occasion, Francis suggested the Russian invasion had been caused by “NATO’s barking at Russia’s door.”

MORE:

https://religionnews.com/2023/09/11/after-accusations-by-top-ukrainian-official-vatican-bank-denies-receiving-funds-from-russia/

 

The meeting with Chinese officials is the latest step in Pope Francis’ appeals for peace in Ukraine.

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — Pope Francis’ envoy for peace in Ukraine, the Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, made history on Thursday when he became the first Vatican prelate to meet with Chinese officials in Beijing. The meeting was the latest step in the pope’s diplomatic efforts to put an end to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

An experienced diplomat and the president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, Zuppi met with the Chinese Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs, Li Hui, who was charged with promoting Beijing’s 12-point peace plan for Ukraine. Hui was also the Chinese ambassador to Russia and has traveled to Moscow and Kyiv.

“The meeting, which was open and cordial, focused on the war in Ukraine and its dramatic consequences, underlining the need to join efforts to favor dialogue and find paths leading to peace,” read a Vatican statement on Thursday.

MORE:

https://religionnews.com/2023/09/15/vatican-brings-its-message-for-peace-in-ukraine-to-beijing/

 “The novelty and importance of this document comes from this fact: that on the Holocaust, there is now the certainty that Pius XII was receiving from the German Catholic Church exact and detailed news about crimes being perpetrated against Jews,” Coco was quoted by Corriere as saying.

ROME (AP) — Newly discovered correspondence suggests that World War II-era Pope Pius XII had detailed information from a trusted German Jesuit that up to 6,000 Jews and Poles were being gassed each day in German-occupied Poland, undercutting the Holy See’s argument that it couldn’t verify diplomatic reports of Nazi atrocities to denounce them.

The documentation from the Vatican archives, published this weekend in Italian daily Corriere della Sera, is likely to further fuel the debate about Pius’ legacy and his now-stalled beatification campaign.

Historians have long been divided about Pius’ record, with supporters insisting he used quiet diplomacy to save Jewish lives while critics say he remained silent amid the Holocaust.

Corriere is reproducing a letter dated Dec. 14, 1942 from the German Jesuit priest to Pius’ secretary which is contained in an upcoming book about the newly opened files of Pius’ pontificate by Giovanni Coco, a researcher and archivist in the Vatican’s Apostolic Archives.

Coco told Corriere that the letter was significant because it represented detailed correspondence about the Nazi extermination of Jews from an informed church source in Germany who was part of the Catholic anti-Hitler resistance that was able to get otherwise secret information to the Vatican.

According to the Belzec memorial which opened in 2004, a total of 500,000 Jews perished at the camp. The memorial’s website reports that as many as 3,500 Jews from Rava Ruska had already been sent to Belzec earlier in 1942 and that from Dec. 7-11, the city’s Jewish ghetto was liquidated. “About 3,000-5,000 people were shot on the spot and 2,000- 5,000 people were taken to Bełżec,” the website says.

The date of Koenig’s letter is significant because it suggests the correspondence from a trusted fellow Jesuit arrived in Pius’ office in the same three weeks before Christmas 1942 that Pius was receiving multiple diplomatic notes from the British and Polish envoys to the Vatican with reports that up to 1 million Jews had been killed so far in Poland.

While it can’t be certain that Pius saw the letter, Leiber was Pius’ top aide and had served the pope when he was the Vatican’s ambassador to Germany during the 1920s, suggesting a close working relationship especially concerning matters related to Germany.

According to “The Pope at War,” by Pulitzer Prize-winning anthropologist David Kertzer, a top secretariat of state official, Monsignor Domenico Tardini, told the British envoy to the Vatican in mid-December that the pope couldn’t speak out about Nazi atrocities because the Vatican hadn’t been able to verify the information.

“The novelty and importance of this document comes from this fact: that on the Holocaust, there is now the certainty that Pius XII was receiving from the German Catholic Church exact and detailed news about crimes being perpetrated against Jews,” Coco was quoted by Corriere as saying.

 MORE:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/new-letter-reveals-pope-pius-xii-had-detailed-information-on-nazi-killing-of-jews/

Agudath Israel Wants Your $10 MILLION to Lie About The Record Of Hasidic Yeshivas & Put Up Billboards Pushing the Big Lie - Instead Of Lambasting The Frauds They Partner Up With Them With The Approval of Their Grand Rabbis!

 

Hasidic School to Pay $8 Million After Admitting to Widespread Fraud

 

The Central United Talmudical Academy, which operates the largest all-boys yeshiva in New York State, acknowledged illegally diverting money from federal food aid and other programs.

 

The operators of the Central United Talmudical Academy in Brooklyn admitted in federal court to diverting government money in a wide-ranging fraud.

For years, the largest private Hasidic Jewish school in New York State illegally diverted millions of dollars from a variety of government programs, paid teachers off the books and requested reimbursements for meals for students that it never actually provided, the yeshiva’s operators admitted in federal court on Monday.

As part of the widespread fraud, school officials took money intended to feed children and used it to subsidize parties for adults, federal prosecutors said.

In order to avoid facing criminal charges, the school, the Central United Talmudical Academy in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, agreed to pay fines and restitution totaling more than $8 million, according to a deferred prosecution agreement filed Monday in Federal District Court in Brooklyn.

“Today’s admission makes clear there was a pervasive culture of fraud and greed in place at C.U.T.A.,” said Michael J. Driscoll, assistant director in charge of the F.B.I.’s New York office, referring to the school by its initials in a statement. “We expect schools to be places where students are taught how to do things properly. The leaders of C.U.T.A. went out of their way to do the opposite.”

In court on Monday, a lawyer representing the yeshiva, Marc Mukasey, said school leaders would work collaboratively with the government to fulfill its obligations under the agreement, which has been in the works since 2019. After the hearing, Mr. Mukasey declined to comment further. School leaders did not respond to phone and email messages seeking comment.

The filing came six weeks after a New York Times investigation revealed that about 100 all-boys Hasidic schools across the state had received more than $1 billion in taxpayer funding in recent years while most were denying their students a basic secular education. The Central United Talmudical Academy figured prominently in that article.

Since then, Hasidic schools have come under intensifying government pressure on multiple fronts, with officials scrutinizing what the schools teach and how they manage their finances.

Timeline: New York’s Oversight of Hasidic Schools

Card 1 of 8

State law requires all private schools to provide an education comparable to what is in public schools. In 2015, New York City’s education department said it would investigate complaints about the quality of secular education in schools in the Hasidic Jewish community. Here’s a timeline of the investigation:

July 2015: Graduates of Hasidic religious schools, known as yeshivas, wrote a complaint about the poor secular education they received. Then-Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration opened an investigation into the schools, but it soon stalled, plagued by delays and a lack of cooperation from the yeshivas.

November 2018: The state released updated rules outlining what nonpublic schools like yeshivas must teach and for how long – with consequences for schools that did not comply. Hasidic leaders sued, and the rules were thrown out in court in 2019.

December 2019: The city Department of Investigation found the de Blasio administration delayed a report on the schools. A few days later, the city finally released findings: only two of 28 yeshivas that officials visited were offering a basic secular education. The investigation has not concluded, and the city has done little to follow up.

Sept. 11, 2022: A New York Times investigation found scores of schools are systematically denying children a basic education, a violation of state law that has trapped generations of students in a cycle of joblessness and destitution. Even so, The Times found, these institutions have collected more than $1 billion from city, state and federal sources in the past four years alone.

Sept. 13, 2022: The State Board of Regents voted unanimously to approve rules that would force Hasidic yeshivas and other private schools to prove they are offering basic secular instruction. The vote came after four years of tumultuous debate about how the government should regulate the schools.

Oct. 6, 2022: The New York education commissioner ruled that a large boys' yeshiva in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is violating state law by failing to provide a basic secular education. This is the first time the state has taken action against a Hasidic boys' school. New York City had earlier recommended the school be found in compliance with the law.

Oct. 24, 2022: The operators of the largest private Hasidic school in New York State admitted to diverting millions of dollars from government programs in a widespread fraud scheme, paying teachers off the books and receiving reimbursement for student meals that they never actually provided.

In September, the State Board of Regents approved a set of rules requiring all private schools, including yeshivas, to prove they are teaching nonreligious subjects like English and math or face a loss of funding.

The state education commissioner ruled this month that one Brooklyn boy’s yeshiva that had been the subject of a lawsuit was not complying with the state law requiring all private schools to provide a basic secular education. That school will have to work with the New York City Education Department to improve.

As part of the agreement filed in court on Monday, the Central United Talmudical Academy will be subject to an independent monitor for the next three years, after which prosecutors will dismiss the charges. The school will be able to submit a list of potential monitors for the government to approve.

The school has more than 2,000 male students enrolled at one location and 2,500 female students at separate buildings nearby. It is the flagship organization of a powerful faction of the Satmar group of Hasidic Judaism run by Grand Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum. The faction operates several other schools in Brooklyn and the lower Hudson Valley.

The Williamsburg school received about $10 million in government funding in the year before the pandemic, according to a Times analysis of city, state and federal funding records.

During a hearing on Monday, U.S. District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis said he was “deeply concerned” about the behavior the yeshiva admitted to engaging in. “It is my hope that this is a new beginning,” he added.

Judge Garaufis implored two school representatives, Cheskel Berkowitz and Yoel Weisz, to follow through on the promises the school had made to eliminate any financial impropriety, “for the good of the community.”

The federal investigation into the school, led by the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York, stemmed from a criminal case against two of its former leaders, Elozer Porges and Joel Lowy. Both men pleaded guilty in March 2018 for their roles in a conspiracy to defraud the government through school nutrition programs.

During that case, the investigators found evidence of other fraud and broadened the scope of their inquiry, the federal authorities said.

The documents filed on Monday revealed that the school was at the center of a varied and wide-ranging fraud scheme.

For years, the documents showed, the school paid many of its teachers and other employees in part with cash, coupons and life insurance policies, making it seem as if the employees were earning less than they really were and allowing them to pay lower taxes and qualify for welfare.

From 2010 to 2015, the school paid employees with at least $12 million in coupons — 17 percent of its total employee compensation — which the workers could use as cash in Hasidic grocery stores and other shops, the investigators found.

The school also set up no-show jobs for friends of employees and other community members, the documents said.

The yeshiva also benefited from its fraudulent payment practices because many employees and other community members used their welfare status to receive New York City vouchers for child care — and then used them to pay the school, according to the documents. The Times reported last month that a city voucher program sent nearly a third of its total funding to Hasidic neighborhoods last year.

The federal investigation found that the school defrauded government programs meant to provide meals to low-income children, receiving more than $3.2 million from 2014 to 2016 in reimbursement for what the authorities said was an “almost entirely fictitious” meal program.

The fraud included the fabrication of records and dozens of sworn misrepresentations to government agencies, the authorities noted.

In some cases, the court documents said, yeshiva officials claimed that they provided meals to children on days when the school was not in session.

In recent years, as the school has negotiated with the prosecutors, it has replaced its executive management team and developed a new set of controls, among other changes, the authorities said.

“Today’s resolution accounts for C.U.T.A.’s involvement in those crimes and provides a path forward to repay and repair the damage done to the community, while also allowing C.U.T.A. to continue to provide education for children in the community,” said Breon Peace, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, in a statement.

The Times investigation found that the Central United Talmudical Academy, like other Hasidic schools, focused almost exclusively on providing religious education, with little instruction in English, reading and math and almost no classes in history, science or civics.

The Times also reported that Hasidic boys’ schools tend to score much lower on state standardized exams than other schools in New York.

In 2019, the Central United Talmudical Academy agreed to give state standardized tests in reading and math to more than 1,000 students, The Times found. Every one of them failed.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/24/nyregion/hasidic-yeshiva-fraud-central-united-talmudical-academy.html