Title:	Blessed Be the Surgeon? The Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Emuna u-mada’ Controversy and Its Legacy
Authors:	Tarant, Zbyněk
Citation:	TARANT, Z. Blessed Be the Surgeon? The Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Emuna u-mada’ Controversy and Its Legacy. Religio. Revue pro religionistiku, 2021, roč. 29, č. 2, s. 159-182. ISSN: 1210-3640
Issue Date:	2021
Publisher:	Masaryk University
Document type:	článek article
URI:	2-s2.0-85125849085 http://hdl.handle.net/11025/47283
ISSN:	1210-3640
Keywords in different language:	Ḥabad;Schneerson, Menachem Mendel (1902-1994);Grossman, Ḥaika (1919- 1996);theodicy;Holocaust memory;Ḥasidism;pikuaḥ nefesh;gilgul neshamot.
Abstract in different language:	This article analyzes the intellectual controversy sparked by the remarks of the last Rebbe of the Lubavitcher dynasty, Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902-1994), concerning the alleged Divine role in the horrors of the Shoah in the 1970s. The ensuing dispute took place in the form of essays, newspaper articles and op-eds, as well as private and open le- tters, and its echoes have occasionally resonated well into the 2000s. Closer inspection of the controversy, offered in this article, reveals not only the conflicting paradigms between traditional Jewish theodicy on the one hand and secular ethics on the other, but also the di- fferences between Ḥaṣidic hagiographic narration and scientific positivism. This article analyzes the entire debate by using original Hebrew sources, some of which have never been published in English. The Rebbe’s controversial words are analyzed in their full, original context, and the ensuing controversy is explored with a focus on the incompatible patterns of reasoning that may have hindered the dialogue. By further exploring the legacy of this controversy, the article also serves as a case study on how apocrypha are construed in con- temporary religious movements.
Rights:	© Masarykova univerzita
Appears in Collections:	Články / Articles (KBS) OBD

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