When the Messiah and Ben Gvir meet: Chabad's turn
The article analyzes the shift in Chabad: from identification with the Israeli mainstream to support for Itamar Ben Gvir and nationalist radicalization, against the backdrop of the cancellation of enlistment arrangements and the arrest of Hasidim at Ben Gurion Airport. The author, Mani Glozman, quotes rabbis and Hasidim and describes the internal split within the Hasidic movement over political and religious issues.
The article analyzes the profound change that the Chabad Hasidic movement is undergoing, expressed in growing support for Itamar Ben Gvir, the cancellation of enlistment arrangements, and the arrest of Hasidim at Ben Gurion Airport. The author, Mani Glozman, argues that Chabad is transforming from a movement that served as a bridge to the general public into a nationalist and insular movement within the Haredi mainstream. The article quotes Rabbi Shneur Zalman Yaroslavsky, a member of the Chabad Rabbinical Court, who warns against identifying the movement as a political stream, and M. (a pseudonym), a Chabad Hasid on a mission in Asia, who sees Ben Gvir as addressing the "three completions" of the Rebbe. The article also discusses the messianic controversy and the enlistment issue, which intensified after the High Court ruling in 2024.