I found an interesting pamphlet on Hebrewbooks - S'fas Emes relating to the controversy surrounding Rabbi Teitelbaum's appointment as Satmar Rav. I'm a little confused as to some of the details (no doubt the official biography of the Rav, Moshian Shel Yisrael provides a more thorough account). But there seems to have been some irregularity in the election. In the usual Hungarian fashion, some suggested that the community be divided in two so both R' Teitelbaum and his opponent (Rabbi Halberstam) could serve as Rabbis.
I assume it is the Munkatcher Rav's involvement here that lead to the kind of tension that caused his Minchas Elazer to be placed on a Satmar גניזה list.
Also interesting is the claim that the R' Teitelbaum's letter was censored - his statement concerning the halachic argumentation of the Rabbi of Bistritz(?) was removed.
Update: Bar Uryan sends us to an interesting Yiddish newspaper that contains "a laundry list of victims of Satmar campaign violence".
מלחמת מצוה החדש.
ReplyDeleteThanks! You can see the censored letter on pg. 10
ReplyDeleteBut you surely realize you're entering a virtual mindefield.
ReplyDelete[Hurry there before the commenters' cesspool begins!]
Looks fascinating. My Yiddish is not that great. Can you summarize the main point of the article?
ReplyDeleteThe point? A laundry list of victims of Satmar campaign violence (which, according to some, is the true story behind the Rabbonus of Krole and Satmar).
ReplyDeleteSee also this thread.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I will add it to the main post.
ReplyDeleteI think the geniza list to which you refer, which was once posted by S., was by a Belzer chasid.
ReplyDelete