The Homesick for Lubavitch Podcast, hosted by Bentzi Avtzon, interviewed R’ Mendel Duchman, who lives in Los Angeles and is a businessman, business coach and motivational speaker.
Duchman is one of today’s most outspoken motivators and cheerleaders for shluchim and Lubavitch around the world.
But while R’ Mendel very much lives in “today,” he is also a staunch defender of the idea of “gezhe,” or the value of holding on to one’s past that can be traced to the old home back in Russia.
While “gezhe” has come to mean all kinds of things today, in this conversation they discuss how the past is an important part of today’s story and something that needs to be better understood, even celebrated.
Severely dislike the name of the podcast and really didn’t appreciate the self-aggrandizement. The Rebbe never emphasized yichus for a reason.
False statement
You may be right the Rebbe valued Yichus… I assume it wasn’t valued in the context you think it was.
Regardless, I’ll accept that if you can accept the facts that the Rebbe valued Gerim. In fact, the Rebbe said how Gerim are more loved by Hashem than “me and you” (it’s on video). I guess you can choose to think the Rebbe was just speaking like for the media… I choose to think he actually meant it.
What’s the point? Is it really about what the Torah or Rebbe said, or more about ourselves and our own image.
And he also valued Gezhe. Each has their advantage and their contribution to make.
Amazing!
I believe that as people, all created equal B’tzelem, I can certainly get behind defending gezhe.. I’m just not sure from what? Are gezhe kids not being accepted into yeshivos? to camps? Is there a shidduch crisis that’s unique to gezhe? Or perhaps when there’s R”L a tragedy, are gezhe less likely to have family in the community to step up with financial support? I’m against anyone being treated unequally for things they cannot control or choose. Thus, if I’m missing something, I would certainly like to be an ally! Or by “defense” do we mean defend their right to… Read more »
The Torah believes in an inherent quality of birth for being a Cohen. The Cohen then has to be respected and gets first in a lot of kibbudim. So just saying the Torah believes in inherent quality
The distinction the Torah makes of Kohanim is about specific religious roles and responsibilities, not about inherent worth or value as human beings.
The Torah also stresses to “love the ger”… I don’t see Gezhe lining up to marry Gerim based on their special status from the Torah. The Rebbe actually said by dollars that Gerim are loved by Hashem more than “you and me”.
I guess maybe it’s not actually so much about what the “Torah” says, rather our own social status were more concerned with.
i know mishpochos personally – the children are stars and many can be way more shtark than some children born into ‘gezhe’ and yet completely rejected
The Rebbe said in yechidus while discussing this issue that Kohanim is the *only* time there is a hierarchy in Torah
Nothing to do with kohanim, unless you think that having a certain last name gives them a halachik status 🙂
Please let us know which indignities the gezhe need to be defended against and I’ll be happy to support them.
Please let us know which shidduchim they are turned down for or shlichus positions they are rejected from due to their gezhe status.
Maybe we need a new protected class called “gezhe” since they are being so discriminated against.
Gezhe has become its own ethnic supremacy totally divorced from the classic concept of Yichus. In the classical sense, Yichus was an indicator for frumkeit and Yiras Shamayim. Nowadays, gezhe is literally just a cultural thing and nothing to do with how much a person learns or dAvens. In fact, the biggest Rabonim and mechanchim don’t even “shtam” from gezhe. We’ve been importing Rabonim and mechanchim from the tzugekumeners for decades because gezhe don’t really care about these things.
Rabbi Duchman mentions Avrohom Avinu as an example to make his point about how the torah teaches us to take pride in who we come from.
I would gently remind Rabbi Duchman how the Rebbe used Avrohom Avinu as an example to a father who asked the Rebbe if he was right to be hesitant about a prospective shidduch for his daughter, since the potential son in law lacked Yichus… “would you have refused Avrohom Avinu as a son in law?” the Rebbe responded, “after all, his father Terach worshipped idols”.
It’s all a bunch of zeroes. Unless you are the one in front of all the zeroes, its still zero.
1000000000000 os more then 99 all you need is a 1
Gezha isn’t zeros
in Judaism there in no 0’s
But you could try making another catchy line using our אב..ת
The problem is, when it becomes so obsessed with in shidduchim
But the title itself is so off putting. There is so much wrong with what gezhe means airs connotation these days versus what it should really be, valuing our illustrious past.
Gezhe these days is not what it was supposed to mean and is used as a means to create social classes in lubavitch in shidduchim, yeshivas and so much more and people doing the wrong this but it’s ok they are gezhe.
Then it’s bad…. but putting down Gezhe is ok?
You’re not allowed to remind a BT of their past.
Tell that to the people in charge of yeshivos, shadchanim, camps, and the gezhe kids in school.
Because bt’s are put all the time
That our family actually is gezhe and were chassidei Chabad for generations.
But we’re not particularly rich or well known or powerful, so nobody thinks of us as “gezhe.”
Boo hoo.
Gezhse word seems to trigger people and I understand…but it’s nothing to do with what R’ Mendel was saying….….I think you all missed his point!! I think R’ Mendel was just giving credit to the real and tremendous Mesiras Nefesh of his parent, grandparents, his ancestors his Gezshe and said it was BECAUSE OF THEM he is who he is today- It’s important to know and be proud of who you came from… R’ Mendel took from his Geszhe to be completely Ibergegeben to the KYY Childrens Program. He wasn’t claiming entitlement- he said his Gezshe inspired him, it empowered… Read more »
It’s a moot point because no one has ever suggested otherwise. No one ever suggested to not take pride in your heritage, etc or anything else you mentioned.
You know good and well what he’s defending, which is his right to feel on a higher social status than others.
There’s nothing wrong with being gezhe and proud of your lineage as long as you don’t become stuck up and snotty about it. So as long as it doesn’t make you a baal gaivah (in which case you should look down at yourself that chitzoiniyus is your priority and not avodas chassidus) it’s alright. Everyone has something to be proud of compared to others, just don’t become a stuck up snob!
I did not feel like he used it as a stepping stone. His point is that it’s important to him that his family know where they come from. And that it’s special to them. It’s a beautiful thing which should be cherished. I come from a BT family and we have our family roots which we are proud of as well.
What is this “gezhe”? The word is גזע pronounced geza. Gezhe is just the way Russians who never learnt to read properly mispronounce it, but they pretend it’s a badge of honour because their ancestors also couldn’t say it correctly. The capital of France is not Parije.
A tzaddik can’t walk in the steps of a Baal Tshuvah. We all have a heritage to be proud of. You did nothing to deserve your lineage.
It’s what you accomplish and leave behind that matters. Read my article in the next Nshei Chabad Journal.
once upon a Time the chassiidim came from Russia and they were the people that all future Lubavitch Chassidim looked up to…they were Earnest refined they Davend for hours and didn’t pursue material… It was not the word “gezeh” that gave them the credit, it was there erenskiet their sincerity and their unbreakable bond with the Rebbe ad Moser nefesh mammish. This discussion should be a wake up call to their descendants that it was not the last names of these Chasidim that people revered, but their day to day actions. That is the only way to keep up the… Read more »
On some sides of my family I have yichus, on others I don’t. I find that the Yichus is great (and a little confusing) for when you’re trying to figure out how you’re related to everyone and their next door neighbour. The only other time when I might occasionally think of my yichus is when remembering something I did that’s not right. Then my yichus will probably be crying at me from Shomayim. I have friends who are good, Chassidishe people and don’t necessarily have the ‘Yichus’ I have. I don’t see any difference in them based on that, and… Read more »