A club for all Jews,
regardless
By Genevieve
Schlosser
schlosse@mscd.edu
Chabad, a Judaism club, holds monthly classes
on its philosophy and religion for students to come and learn
more. Meetings are informative in nature, but their
last meeting turned into a heated debate about Israel and
Palestine.
"Last month, it got pretty heated," said
Ora Ort, wife of the rabbi who heads the organization.
The
word "chabad" is a Hebrew acronym for
wisdom, comprehension and knowledge. The philosophy teaches Jews
to structure their lives around those three principles.
"If people are interested in learning more
about their own religion we will teach them," Ort said. "Weíre
not trying to convert anybody."
The Chabad club wants to bring Jewish students
on campus together and, in some cases, teach them about their
Jewish identity.
Chabad is an intellectual approach to
understanding spirituality, founded by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of
Liadi, not long after the inception of Hasidism. The philosophy is
based on the teachings of seven rabbis.
This
group also believes all Jews are one "regardless of background, observance or affiliation," according
to the Website chabad.org. They will, however, answer questions
about Judaism from non-Jewish students in their classes and
when
they are doing outreach on campus.
Chabad is an offshoot of the Hasidic Judaism
founded by Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer during the 1740s in Eastern
Europe. He and his followers believed the Jewish religion had
become too scholarly and lost the capacity for spiritual joy.
Religious ecstasy is more important in Hasidism than religious
law.
Representatives of Chabad at Auraria can be
found at a table by the flagpole every Wednesday afternoon from
about 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Their goal is to get the message out
on their organization, to answer questions and have discussions.
For
information on the organization and their next meeting date,
contact the Political Science department at
303-556-2487.
ï Chabad was started in the mid-1700ís.
ï There
are over 4,000 Chabad centers (community houses) in 70 countries.
ï Chabad
customs are often in accord with the tradition of Kabalah
|
