(RNS) — In June, it will be 30 years since the death of Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the leader of the Chabad-Lubavich Hasidic movement, known among his followers simply as “the rebbe” — or “the rabbi.”But just who the rebbe was, and what his legacy means, is a live issue within the Chabad-Lubavich Hasidic movement, which since his death has been operating in a power vacuum.
Last week, that vacuum opened wide when a brawl broke out between rabbinical students and the New York City police after a secret tunnel was discovered underneath the global headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.
Police arrested nine men between the ages of 19 and 22 who tried to block a cement truck that had been sent to fill the tunnel. Charges included criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and obstructing governmental administration.
RELATED: Nine arrests at Chabad synagogue after students thwart filling of secret tunnel
But while it shocked Crown Heights’ Hasidic community, the tumult was just the latest in a three-decade-old clash among factions of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, a subset of Orthodox Judaism known for its mystical devotion and strict adherence to Jewish law. Since Schneerson’s death, his disciples have divided into two main groups, and perhaps smaller subgroups.
The Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson in Queens, circa 1987. (Photo by Shlomo Vishinsky, courtesy of Zev Markowitz/Chaiartgallery.com)
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Last week, that vacuum opened wide when a brawl broke out between rabbinical students and the New York City police after a secret tunnel was discovered underneath the global headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.
Police arrested nine men between the ages of 19 and 22 who tried to block a cement truck that had been sent to fill the tunnel. Charges included criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and obstructing governmental administration.
RELATED: Nine arrests at Chabad synagogue after students thwart filling of secret tunnel
But while it shocked Crown Heights’ Hasidic community, the tumult was just the latest in a three-decade-old clash among factions of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, a subset of Orthodox Judaism known for its mystical devotion and strict adherence to Jewish law. Since Schneerson’s death, his disciples have divided into two main groups, and perhaps smaller subgroups.
The Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson in Queens, circa 1987. (Photo by Shlomo Vishinsky, courtesy of Zev Markowitz/Chaiartgallery.com)
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