Battle Among Lubavitch Erupts Over Rebbe’s Will
By Jeffrey Goldberg
The Forward, June 17, 1994
NEW YORK — Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, the chauffeur-turned-Richelieu of the court of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, appears to be doing a masterful job of outmaneuvering his rivals as he asserts day-to-day control of his late master’s empire — and cracks down on Lubavitch’s still-potent Messianic faction.
Less than 72 hours after the death of the Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the streets of Crown Heights were buzzing with talk of the Rebbe’s will, which was read Tuesday night to a crowd of thousands of Chasidim at Lubavitcher headquarters. The talk centered not so much on the will itself, but on Rabbi Krinsky, the man designated by the Rebbe as executor of his estate, and on the rabbis who witnessed its 1988 signing — most importantly, Rabbi Leib Groner, Rabbi Krinsky’s rival in the Rebbe’s fractured secretariat. Chasidim see the Rebbe’s deft hand at work in the will’s construction: By having Rabbi Groner as witness, Lubavitcher insiders say, the Rebbe forestalled any challenge to Rabbi Krinsky’s bona fides as executor.
Second Will?
Though Rabbi Krinsky is emerging as the most powerful “secular” force within the movement, there is no clear indication of who — if anyone — will become the movement’s eighth rebbe. Though speculation is rife in this superstitious movement that a second, “secret” will exists that names a successor, no document has yet been produced. However, one Crown Heights rabbi, Yoel Kahn, is mentioned frequently by Chasidim as a man of immense spiritual stature. It was Rabbi Kahn who instructed the 3,000 Chasidim who gathered at the movement’s Eastern Parkway headquarters Tuesday night on the proper way to mourn for the Rebbe. But Rabbi Kahn is also said to be sympathetic to the hard-core Messianists and their leader, Rabbi Shmuel Butman, which could put him out of favor with the hundreds of international emissaries who are allied with Rabbi Krinsky.
It has been a remarkable week in the Lubavitch movement, as a man who thousands believed to be immortal stunned many of his followers by dying. Despite the massive funeral and frenzied outpouring of grief, there are some in Crown Heights who say they don’t believe the Rebbe is dead, and others who say that his resurrection is imminent. Some of these resurrectionists, who critics within the movement say are straying far from traditional Judaism, have even taken to sleeping near the Rebbe’s grave in a Queens cemetery, hoping to be the first to see their Messiah rise from the dead.
Resurrectionism — the seemingly logical next step after Messianism — appears to be strong among teenaged boys in Crown Heights. Rabbi Krinsky and his allies have been moving to squash this trend. One Krinsky ally bluntly said that “this fringe element has had a tragic impact.” The ally, Rabbi Yisrael Deren, a Lubavitch leader in Connecticut, suggested there was a split between the Rebbe’s far-flung emissaries, or shluchim, and leaders of the Messianic faction, saying: “Within the ghetto of Crown Heights, it’s very easy to distort what the Rebbe has said.”
Though the role of executor is technically a minor one, especially considering that the Rebbe’s personal estate is being valued at less than 50,000, many Lubavitchers are reading a great deal into the Rebbe’s selection of Rabbi Krinsky. The fact that the Rebbe did not give Rabbi Groner any specific tasks is viewed as a blow to his standing. “For six years, Groner has said that Krinsky has no right to be involved in the finances and should not be involved in medical decisions about the Rebbe, but here is the Rebbe giving responsibility to just one of them — Krinsky,” said one knowledgeable Chasid.
While many Chasidim say the will’s significance extends beyond the Rebbe’s physical estate, granting Rabbi Krinsky a great deal of power, Rabbi Groner doesn’t see it that way. Angry and tired, Rabbi Groner said Tuesday that “the will only transfers the responsibility of the Rebbe’s property to Agudas Chassidei Chabad (the Lubavitch governing body).” Rabbi Groner did not appear at the Tuesday night will reading.
‘Indescribable Void’
Rabbi Krinsky has studiously avoided speaking about his role in the movement. In a Tuesday press conference, Rabbi Krinsky spoke only of the “indescribable void” left by the Rebbe’s death and blanched when asked if the will implied that he would be the next rebbe. “Heaven forbid,” he said.
For now, though, Lubavitchers seem loathe to discuss a successor to Rabbi Schneerson — instead, they are finding new ways to venerate their fallen leader. Already, the Rebbe’s grave is becoming a shrine visited by hundreds of Chasidim a day. Even the Rebbe’s office at 770 Eastern Parkway is becoming a shrine. On Tuesday, groups of Chasidim filed silently passed hulking security guards to kiss the Rebbe’s mezuzah and gaze at his Spartan sanctuary. On the simple, brown desk, next to five burning candles, is a stack of books that contain photographs of the Rebbe’s beloved shluchim. A metal barrier in the doorway keeps pilgrims from entering the room — “Gan Eden Elyon,” or “The Upper Garden of Eden” in Lubavitcher terminology — but a security guard said that once a plexiglass shield is placed over the Rebbe’s bookshelves — to protect the books from “sticky fingers,” he said — visitors will be allowed to enter the room.
“This is a holy place,” said one of the students studying Talmud on the steps by the Rebbe’s study, “and it will always be a holy place.”