Russian Presidents, Russian Rabbis, and Russian Jews

ז׳ לחודש השני תשע״ה

JTA: Senior Russian rabbi: Putin ouster would endanger Jews
April 25, 2015

MOSCOW — A senior Russian rabbi warned of grave danger to Jews if Russian President Vladimir Putin is swept from power.

Pres. Vladimir Putin and Rb. Alexander Boroda

Alexander Boroda, head of the Chabad-affiliated Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, made the warning Friday during a talk at Moscow’s 9th annual Jewish learning event organized by Limmud FSU.

“The Jews of Russia must realize the dangers inherent in the possible collapse of the Putin government, understand the rules of the game and be aware of the limitations,” Boroda said at a sessions, according to a translation provided by Limmud FSU.

The Moscow conference, which drew 1,400 participants, opened Friday at the state-owned Klyasma resort just outside the Russian capital.

Boroda’s Federation is among several Russian Jewish organizations that credit Putin for facilitating efforts to re-consolidate Russia’s Jewish community of 350,000 after decades of communist repression.

Under Putin, dozens of synagogues have been renovated with government support and a massive Jewish museum was opened in Moscow with state funding.

“In Russia, there is virtually unlimited freedom of religion and the Jewish community must ensure this situation continues,” Boroda said. “The support for religious institutions is wider than in the United States and defense of Jews against manifestations of anti-Semitism is greater than in other European countries. We do not have the privilege of losing what we have achieved and the support of the government for the community.”

All Russian Jews and especially those considering action against the Putin administration, Boroda said, “must understand the grave dangers that they take upon themselves and the potential consequences.”

Such endorsements of Putin by Jewish leaders have exposed them to criticism by liberal Jews and Jews in Ukraine, who oppose Putin’s crackdown on civil liberties and rivals, annexation of Ukrainian land and perceived nationalism.

Viktoria Mochilova, a Limmud FSU participant and social activist, dismissed Boroda’s message as one-sided and unrepresentative. While appreciative of government support for Jews, they, “similar to other Russian citizens, [desire] to improve the situation of the state and to strive to make it more democratic and honest,” she said.

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
All those mentioned in this report, Rabbi Boroda, his critic Viktoria Mochilova, so-called Jewish "leaders," liberal Jews, and Ukrainian Jews, are ALL wrong.

Not one mention of Israel. Not one mention of the only, true homeland of the Jewish People, and where a Jew's investment of time, energy, and money should be focused. Just more of the same old, "let's assimilate, and participate in the lands of our exile."

Do I really need to mention anything at all about Putin or the conflict in the Ukraine? No. It is all irrelevant.

Whether Jews are in physical danger or not, is irrelevant. Whether they are in spiritual danger or not, is irrelevant. Whether the Israeli Government or regime is good, bad, or ugly, is irrelevant.

The only relevant issue is where the Jewish People belong, and we belong in our own Land, fighting for, and investing our lives in our own Land, not in another people's land.

Russia, the Ukraine, and every other land, including the United States of America, belong to other peoples, not to us.

Regarding the Limmud organization, I'll just say that I'm not surprised, and we'll leave it at that.

Google it for more information. I can't be bothered right now.