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| {{quote|It is obvious, I thought, that any neighbor of the Jewish people should be treated, as the Torah commands us, with respect and compassion. Fundamental to the Jewish faith is the concept that every human being was created in the image of G-d, and our sages instruct us to support the non-Jewish poor along with the poor of our own brethren. | {{quote|It is obvious, I thought, that any neighbor of the Jewish people should be treated, as the Torah commands us, with respect and compassion. Fundamental to the Jewish faith is the concept that every human being was created in the image of G-d, and our sages instruct us to support the non-Jewish poor along with the poor of our own brethren. | ||
| <p>The sub-question I chose to address instead is: how should we act in time of war, when our neighbors attack us, using their women, children and religious holy places as shields. I attempted to briefly address some of the ethical issues related to forcing the military to withhold fire from certain people and places, at the unbearable cost of widespread bloodshed (on both sides!) -- when one’s own family and nation is mercilessly targeted from those very people and places.<ref></ref>}} | <p>The sub-question I chose to address instead is: how should we act in time of war, when our neighbors attack us, using their women, children and religious holy places as shields. I attempted to briefly address some of the ethical issues related to forcing the military to withhold fire from certain people and places, at the unbearable cost of widespread bloodshed (on both sides!) -- when one’s own family and nation is mercilessly targeted from those very people and places.<ref></ref>}} | ||
| ==Controversial comments regarding the impact of sexual abuse== | |||
| On 28 January 2013, a video of Manis Friedman discussing his thoughts about sexual abuse and how it should be handled was published on the web. . Friedman compared being abused to having a bad case of diarrhea,<ref>{{cite web |title=Chabad's Rabbi Manis Friedman 'Explains' Sexual Abuse|url=http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7dc_1359441068|accessdate=21 February 2013}}</ref> in that, while it may be shameful, it is not important that it be mentioned to a potential spouse. | |||
| In the video, Friedman claims that "there’s hardly a kid who comes to a yeshiva, to a program, that hasn’t been molested, sexually molested." He tells his audience that they should advise victims of sexual molestation to "get over it" and be a '']''. He relays that he advised a young woman who had been sexually abused and was "very, very ]", that the sin of neglecting to recite a '']'' of ''al hamihya'' after eating a piece of cake is "much more serious" than any sin committed by touching her inappropriately.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chabad's Rabbi Manis Friedman 'Explains' Sexual Abuse|url=http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7dc_1359441068|accessdate=21 February 2013}}</ref> | |||
| Chaim Levin, a Jewish ] activist who was sexually abused as a child in the Chabad community described Friedman's remarks as "reprehensibly callous and chillingly dismissive -- especially to those still struggling with an aftermath of depression, fear, feelings of worthlessness and sometimes even suicide, as well as mourning the loss of a precious and fundamental part of their psyches and souls."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chaim-levin/what-was-manis-friedman-thinking_b_2590290.html |author=Chaim Levin |title=What, Indeed, Was Manis Friedman Thinking? |publisher=Huffington Post |date=01/31/2013 |accessdate=2013-02-21}}</ref> | |||
| Rabbi Moshe Gutnick, Dayan of the ] ], wrote on behalf of himself, Rabbi Ulman, and Rabbi Kluwgant that "While it is unfair and we will not pass judgement on Rabbi Friedman without giving him the opportunity to defend himself , the YouTube clip stand alone requires strong comment from us." He goes on to write that "The clip appears to theologically trivialise and minimise the physical psychological and spiritual damage caused to the victims of sexual abuse." | |||
| Friedman later wrote on his Facebook page, "I have always believed in the importance of empowering victims of all kinds to move forward in building their lives. In my zeal to reinforce that belief, I came across as being dismissive of one of the worst crimes imaginable."{{citation needed|date=February 2013}} | |||
| ==With Bob Dylan== | ==With Bob Dylan== | ||
Revision as of 09:55, 21 February 2013
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Manis Friedman (full name: Menachem Manis haCohen Friedman; born 1946) is a Chabad Lubavitch Hassid. He is a Shliach, rabbi, unlicensed pastoral counselor, author, social philosopher and public speaker. Friedman is also the dean of the Bais Chana Institute of Jewish Studies.
Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1946, Friedman immigrated with his family to the United States in 1951. He received his rabbinic ordination at the Rabbinical College of Canada in 1969. He currently hosts a cable television series, Torah Forum with Manis Friedman, syndicated within North America. Friedman's first book, Doesn't Anyone Blush Anymore?, was published in 1990. It is currently in its fourth printing. Since the 1970s more than 150,000 of Friedman's recorded classes and lectures have been sold.
Manis Friedman's brother is the Jewish singer Avraham Fried.
Activities
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In 1971, with Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson's guidance, Friedman founded the Bais Chana Women International, an Institute for Jewish Studies in Minnesota, which became the world's first school of Jewish studies exclusively for women with little or no formal Jewish education. He has served as the school's dean since its inception.
From 1984-1990, he served as the simultaneous translator for a series of televised talks by the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Friedman briefly served as senior translator for Jewish Educational Media, Inc.
Friedman has lectured in cities throughout the US, as well as London, Hong Kong, Cape Town, and Johannesburg in South Africa, Melbourne and Sydney in Australia, and a number of South and Central American cities.
In the wake of the natural disasters in 2004 and 2005, Friedman authored a practical guide to help rescue and relief workers properly understand and deal with the needs of Jewish survivors.
In 2011 Rabbi Friedman's Bais Chana was ranked third in the Women's Empowerment category by GreatNonprofits. The ranking was based on reviews from former clients of the institute.
Teachings
Though not extensively published in book form, Friedman's teachings have been cited by many authors writing on various secular issues as well as on exclusively Jewish topics. Friedman's student and fellow author Shmuley Boteach cites Friedman often, including in his books The Private Adam (2005) and Dating Secrets of the Ten Commandments (2001). Barbara Becker Holstein quotes Friedman in her book Enchanted Self: A Positive Therapy (1997), Angela Payne quotes him in her book Living Every Single Moment: Embrace Your Purpose Now (2004), and Sylvia Barack Fishman quotes him in A Breath of Life: Feminism in the American Jewish Community (1995; part of the Brandeis Series in American Jewish History, Culture, and Life). Lynn Davidman, in her book Tradition in a Rootless World (1993), credits Friedman with playing a key role in the resurgence of Orthodox Judaism among women. In two separate autobiographies, Playing with Fire: One Woman's Remarkable Odyssey by Tova Mordechai (1991) and Shanda: The Making and Breaking of a Self-Loathing Jew by Neal Karlen (2004), both authors credit Friedman for their own returns to Judaism.
Moment Magazine Controversy
Rabbi Friedman was one of the featured Rabbis responding to questions posed in Moment Magazine's ongoing "Ask The Rabbi" forum. One of the questions posed was "How Should Jews Treat Their Arab Neighbors?" Included in his response as printed was the following quote:
I don’t believe in western morality, i.e. don’t kill civilians or children, don’t destroy holy sites, don’t fight during holiday seasons, don’t bomb cemeteries, don’t shoot until they shoot first because it is immoral. The only way to fight a moral war is the Jewish way: Destroy their holy sites. Kill men, women and children (and cattle.)
The first Israeli prime minister who declares that he will follow the Old Testament will finally bring peace to the Middle East. First, the Arabs will stop using children as shields. Second, they will stop taking hostages knowing that we will not be intimidated. Third, with their holy sites destroyed, they will stop believing that G-d is on their side. Result: no civilian casualties, no children in the line of fire, no false sense of righteousness, in fact, no war."
Rabbi Friedman's response was printed with several errors, including the omission of a paragraph. Attempts by the rabbi to have the magazine correct the errors were not successful, despite the great controversy caused and the deep offense taken by many readers including Jews, Muslims and others. Rabbi Friedman released a statement addressing those readers, which included:
It is obvious, I thought, that any neighbor of the Jewish people should be treated, as the Torah commands us, with respect and compassion. Fundamental to the Jewish faith is the concept that every human being was created in the image of G-d, and our sages instruct us to support the non-Jewish poor along with the poor of our own brethren.
The sub-question I chose to address instead is: how should we act in time of war, when our neighbors attack us, using their women, children and religious holy places as shields. I attempted to briefly address some of the ethical issues related to forcing the military to withhold fire from certain people and places, at the unbearable cost of widespread bloodshed (on both sides!) -- when one’s own family and nation is mercilessly targeted from those very people and places.
With Bob Dylan
In the 1980s Manis Friedman accompanied Bob Dylan to a farbrengen (hasidic gathering) of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in Brooklyn. Dylan had frequented Friedman's home in St. Paul. Friedman's book "Doesn't Anyone Blush Anymore?" eventually won the following blurb from Dylan: "Anyone who is married or thinking about getting married would do well to read this book."
Published works
Books
- Doesn't Anyone Blush Anymore? Reclaiming Modesty, Intimacy and Sexuality.
- The Relief and Rescue Workers Guide to Judaism - a Rescue Workers Handbook.
Audio
- The Art of Living (12 lectures based on the Lubavitcher rebbe's responsa)
- Chassidic Thoughts at Bais Chana (16 lectures on every aspect of Judaism)
- Family - Getting to Like The People You Love (14 lectures on healthy relationships)
- Holiday Series (9 lectures on modern application of holiday messages)
- It's Good To Know (16 lectures; the answers to the hardest questions)
- Living With The Times (54 of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson's lectures on Torah)
- Rambam - Perplexed No More! (14 lectures - the mysticism behind Maimonides' teachings)
- The Rest of the Story (20 telling stories)
- The Ring of Truth - Jewish Philosophy (4 lectures)
- The Ring of Truth – Faith (6 lectures)
- The Ring of Truth - The Inner Jew (6 lectures)
- The Ring of Truth - On Torah and Mitzvos (5 lectures)
- The Ring of Truth - The Vast Eternal Plan (5 lectures)
- How To Be A Mentch (12 lectures base on the Ethics of Our Fathers)
- The Tanya (42 Lectures on the most basic Hassidic Text)
- Get To Know Your Soul (12 lectures on why you do what you do)
- The Holistic and Kabbalistic; Kabbalah and Homeopathy
- Not for Women Only; Relationships
- Moshiach; Why Believe When You can Understand?
- Why Me; Why do Bad Things Happen to Good People?
- You Are What You Believe
- What's Love Got To Do With It; Three ingredients to everlasting love.
- Nothing Besides Him - Tanya for everyone!
References
- "Video: Dangerous, Idiotic And Insulting – Rabbi Manis Friedman 'Explains' Child Sexual Abuse - FailedMessiah.com". Failedmessiah.typepad.com. 2013-01-29. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
- ^ It's Good To Know. 2007. "http://www.rabbifriedman.org/RabbiManisFriedman.asp
- IPC Media. 1996-2010. "http://www.nme.com/artists/avraham-fried
- Bais Chana. 2005-2010. "http://www.baischana.org/content/view/13/124/
- "Top Women's Empowerment 2011 Nonprofit Organizations on GreatNonprofits - Volunteer, Donate, Work". Greatnonprofits.org. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
- Moment Magazine (May/June 2009). "Ask The Rabbi". Retrieved June 10, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Friedman's apology for his choice of words regarding dealing with enemies.
External links
- Official website
- Official blog
- A collection of articles and audio classes by Rabbi Manis Friedman
- Ongoing series of lectures in video and audio form
- Report of the controversial comments regarding child sex abuse on Failed Messiah
- Transcript of Friedman's remarks regarding child sex abuse