By COLlive reporter
Rabbi Yosef Mizrachi, who finds himself in hot water for blunt remarks he makes in public lectures, explained that his criticism of accepting donations from non-religious Jews was not against Chabad per se.
“I spoke about people, not necessarily Chabad, that are complimenting wicked people that commit the worst sins against G-d,” Mizrachi told COLlive.com via email about remarks posted online on January 12, 2016.
In the video titled “Yosef Mizrachi calls Chabad hypocritical and money-hungry for tolerating secular Jews,” he says Lubavitch Rabbis promise contributors that “you will share Gan Eden with the Rebbe.”
“Woe to them on the day of judgement, as a result of all the seculars who die secular because of them,” Mizrachi adds in the clip that was posted on YouTube by a private user named Dan Cohen, a critic of Mizrachi’s speeches.
The Israeli-born Mizrachi worked in finance in New York City before teaching at Yeshivat Ohr Yisrael in Monsey, NY. He now lectures full time about Torah as part of his outreach “kiruv” work at seminars and his organization Divine Information.
His blunt talk often has him claiming that his words were taken out of context. Most recently, he was widely condemned for stating that the 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust were not halachicly Jewish. He later apologized.
He was also quoted as suggesting that Down’s Syndrome and autism are “punishments for sins committed in a previous life.”
Discussing the newly posted video referencing Chabad, Mizrachi said the video was a “response to the lies of the group of apikorsim (heretics) that fight me and other big Orthodox rabbis for years.”
“I love and admire Chabad and Breslav,” he told COLlive.com, repeating the statement that “wicked people” should be admonished “instead of telling them to stop and change, they say to them not to worry that they are good and righteous.”
Rabbi Mizrachi added that in the past, “a liar tried to claim that I spoke against the Rebbe, when the truth is that I love him and admire him a lot and post almost every day part of his writings on my Facebook pages.”
As he mentioned in a video posted on June 2015, Mizrachi said he has a silver coin that was given to him by the Rebbe and that he declined to sell it to an eager bidder. “Obviously, I kept it all these years,” he said.
Posted by Rabbi Yosef Mizrachi on Monday, January 11, 2016
Mizrachi is speaking truth in every way. Every thing he talks about is written. Those who are critical are to stubborn and afraid to admit the truth, perhaps because of fear, embarrassment or ego. Remove your anger and ego, and read your Chumash. As a secular jew I started reading and found he is correct. BH we are now observant for close to 2yrs. I was never given the education that should have been taught in my conservative shul. What I have learned by reading is so incredibly rich. I wonder why we were not taught the truth as Mizrachi… Read more »
Such a self proclaimed righteous person I would be certain that he would not touch the 13 attributes of mercy, which the Arizal (who he likes to quote) was so careful with. The beard is the source of mercy emanating from the 13 midois harachamim. Brought down into this world by the 13 strands of the beard as discussed in great length in the writings of Kaballa (which he is so fond of).
Here is Rabbi Mizrachi’s logic why the figure of 6 million murdered may not be so, according to HALACHA. See this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ksLt0amSEQ
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UspZ-BRp3K4
Rabbi Mizrachi said the number of Jews murdered was only 1 million. Unbelievable! See this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7Ly_KOAF1M
So appearantly he met twice with the Rebbe – and the Rebbe saw something special in Rabbi Yossi Mizrachi ..
I highly doubt this story. If this is true ~ He should be able to produce this special silver coin, right? Why was Yossi Mizrachi so special to not get 1 or 2 dollars like everyone else? And since he hasn’t sold it to anyone, can he show it to us???
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ej29zIhDEio
Look at the clip above. Mizrachi is a publicity hound who will denigrate anyone to uplift himself, do not drink his false sugar coated words, he hates Lubavitch and chasidim, he denigrates women who whear sheitels, he calls Jews goyim, he calls yiden who never had an education rashoim, even a five year old child learns Rambam and knows that gentiles have a different way to belief in Hahsem, but Mizrachi calls them wicked and praises Muslims as righteous.
The Rebbe would never bash him for saying this. It’s not proper to bash him for his opinion. Remember the 1st amendment. FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
he talks about the Rebbe and Shluchim in a very Chutzpdik way – he should go to the ohel and ask Mechilah!
his not a friend to say the least…
he thinks his better then everyone…
why does this man choose to believe that chabad’s chassidim think that a human is a G-d, chas vishalom, as if its a real issue. did he ever meet such a “Chabad Chassid”? i am chabad for the last 44 years! and i never met a fellow chabad Chassid (or anyone else) who believes such a stupidity! it’s interesting that people who claim to be careful about Shmiras Halashon, have no problem spreading libels on the Rebbe and chabad chassidim. shame on him! it’s like the guy who says; “i don’t hate chabad! some of my best friends are Chabad”… Read more »
If we bash him, are we any better?
Is a Holocaust denier!
I doubt this Mizrachi Charachter would have said what he said if he Saw Rabbi SD Raichik, Rabbi Cunin, Rabbi Shmotkin, etc. put on Tefillin on a not yet Frum Jew.
Problem is he aint seeing them, so where are the likes of these Rabbi’s in the younger generation?
What has he said so bad about chabad. The opposite he is saying how much he respects the Rebbe. Why is everyone blasting loshon hora. He’s saying very valid points.respect every jew.
His response is worthless
In the video he curses out the shluchim nothing to do about what he thinks about the rebbe
so he can come say he admires the rebbe that could be true but in his video he was cursing out the shluchim and saying that because of them people remain secular which is totally ubsered and false because shluchim are at the forefront of making people frum
to all,
referring to this RM
Remember :”there are no bad Jew’s, just some Jews do bad things”.
It is people like him that send Jew’s further away, how does he call his program “Kiruv” it should really be called “Rochok”.
He says he has the utmost respect for the Rebbe,
if he truly did, he would never talk this way and would follow the way The Rebbe taught how to bring Jew’s close to their roots.
Folks as opposed to most other rabbis who have written about Mizrachi subsequently to my hue and cry, including such luminaries as Rabbi Shmuly Boteach I’ve chosen to stick to a narrow issue. I didn’t and don’t feel it necessary for me to defend the holy saints who sacrificed themselves in the Holocaust. Nothing I or anyone else can do it because we’re simply inadequate. It would be farcical to even waste our time and demeaning to them to even lower ourselves to debate it with a meshugeneh rabbi. Furthermore, I’ve no doubt, as we say in Yiddish, that these… Read more »
he quotes the rebbe about there is no yid a chilony – and basically laughs at it – if he really means he is sorry – since its clear he is laughing at chabad – he needs to go to the ohel and ask mechilah! and take upon himself to never make such “mistakes”
But as to one who is not his companion — his equal — in the Torah and the mitzvot, so that (as our Sages say concerning the ignorant in general) even his deliberate transgressions are regarded as inadvertent acts, since he is unaware of the gravity of sin; nor is he on intimate terms with him; — not only is one not enjoined to hate him: on the contrary, he must in fact, strive to become closer to him, as the Alter Rebbe states shortly. To hate such a sinner is surely unjustifiable, since no sin that he commits is… Read more »
Of course you’re right ,sadly. It’s not a mere coincidence that the Chait Haegel was about a cow made out of gold.
Many of our comments are doing the same as R M. , judging The idea is that. This secular Jew will fill this love and reciprocate love to Hashem and Torah and at his own peace will start doing mitzvot) The difference between a Shliach and another institution is that thAt when a shliach get a very large donation , in most cases a large portion goes directly for his personal expenses ,or to his big shul that is going to generate more donations ,or savings , money has a tremendous power , look at the end of mansechet Ketuvot… Read more »
Mizrachi obviously has no comprehension what those words mean. The Rebbe Rashab is speaking about a person to himself. How a person must deal with himself. With others it must be completely different. There are so many statements about that from all the Rebbeim including the Rebbe Rashab.
What Mizrachi does is what he always does. First he didn’t say what he said. Then even if he did here is proof that what he said is right.
Mizrachi is one big “sfek sfeikah”!!
He is stam a bluffer that has a loud mouth and can’t contain himself. Not sure if he himself knows what he is saying. He cant be taken seriously .
Rabbi Mizrachi,
Surely you’re aware of the Rabbinic lesson:
“Syag L’Chochmah Shtikah.”
or an English one: “If you have nothing good to say, don’t say it.”
How is anyone even goiress this idiot?!
He just said last week that only one million jews were killed in the war. Even his explanation didn’t hold any water.
All his speeches are geared to simple minded superstitious people. no toichen whatsoever.
About chabad? I have personally heard him bash Chabad, putting them with breslov in one bag.
The major donor of our community is completely secular, lets just say he leads a very unkosher lifestyle even for secular standards and all together is a very bad man. This is well known, but as long as he keeps donating to the rebuilding of the shul and the rabbis and extended families mortgages, he truly believes that he is first in line for when moshiach comes. When this person was doing something awful to a poor family in the community I asked the rabbi, his mashpia to intervene. The rabbi flat out told me he knows about all the… Read more »
You know the story about Berdetchiver and the maggid…..no Jew has any right to judge….JUDGE YOURSELF and grow.
As for all the “Seculars” LOL
The REBBE clearly stated the EVERY Yid is affiliated …..affiliated with Hashem.
Either way he is still a Jew and wow when he becomes a Chossid hes gonna really shine.
every second word is a scar thats his success scaring people they say because his scaring me his right but what he says doesn’t apply to him hakol mutar lo
Lies! All of it! He just trying to get in good books by good people at Chabad. Cannot trust anyone that says anything against the 6 million Kedoshim
Please don’t try and be PC here with him. He is wrong. He speaks false. He is mirachek Yidden. He does not deserve a platform to “justify” his nonsense. Keep him away.
theres no need to discuss him on a website like col
he can try to deny what he said and claim that it was taken out of context… To give him the benefit of the doubt (which he has a challenge at times doing for others…) I listened to his words and watched the clip multiple times. It is clear that he made a mistake and should ask forgiveness instead of being self righteous. Its that simple. Please don’t be so high on the horse or play the victim and simply recognize your wrong and apologize for your words – especially when he claims to like Chabad. People, human beings can… Read more »
As a true Lubavitcher, it is honestly of no consequence whether or not he likes Chabad. It is his intolerance of what he considers “non observant” Jews that we consider medieval at best, and blatantly wrong at worst. As critical as we are of ourselves we have no right to impose those judgements upon others (as per Perakim 31 and 32 of Tanya)
This guy is a fraud, teaches his own version of judaism and claims to know exactly why things happen to people, something only a navi could know.
he is a fraud
He is a pompous, lying bigot. But like other Rabbis we know, even bad publicity is better than no publicity. Now everyone knows who he is. Rabbosai: if you booked him to speak at an event, or allow him anywhere near you, time to think again. Who needs this piece of garbage.