Thread by @HasidicA

Ok I guess no one had done it so here goes. Our story starts in Kotzk in the year in 1839, Simchas Tora 5600, when there is a rebellion in Kotzk the Holy Izhbitzer has left Kotzk and started his own court.
Although he never reveled the reason why he left rumors spread.

He left they say because he beleived that while it's great to serve hashem with 100 purity and devotion with out a care for material needs. Not all people can live up to this. Most people cannot just ignore their physical needs, their hungry children or their outraged wives.

Most people need to take care of thir material needs as well. The rebellion hits kotzk like a lightning bolt. How can one rebel against the Holy Kotzker? Who many consider to be the greatest chasidic leader since the Bal Shem Tov, who died some 70 years prior.

But many left with the Izhbitzer, the wound has never fully healed. The chief proponent for staying in Kotzk was the young illuy Reb Yitzchck Meir Alter who preached loyalty to the kotzker above all else.

When the Kotzker died in 1859 RYM opened his own court in Gora Kalovara his chasidus which came to be known Gur or Ger stressed many things including torah, truth, "Sharfkeit". However, loyalty and humility to the Rebbe was above all.

Thus began an ethos in Ger of loyalty and humility to the Rebbe that was unmatched in other chassidic movement at any time except maybe Chabad in the 1990's
RYM had buried 10 children while he was still alive. After he passed away his grandson Reb Arye Leib Alter took over.

A joke describing the loyalty of Ger chadidim went like this. 3 rebbes asked their Chasidim to jump off a roof. The Gerer jumped before the rebbe finished the sentence, the Belzer said goodbye to his wife and kids before jumping and the Sighiter told the Rebbe to jump first.

ALA was rumored to have 100,000 Chasidim was considered the greatest Rebbe in Poland. He wrote the Sefer Sfas Emes which is a basic text in most yeshivos and learnt in almost all chasidus courts. He died in 1905 and son Reb Avrohom Mordechai took over. He wrote a sefer Imrei Emes

Under the Imrei Emes Leadership Ger reached its apex, hundreds of thousands of chassidim, many of his chassidim were rich industrialist like the Charna Family and others were leading Rabbonim in Poland like Reb Menachem Ziemba and Reb Chanoch Tzvi Hakohen Levin of Bendin.

With the outbreak of WWII he is rescued from the NAZI by the German foreign ministry who was not yet at war with the US and wanted to show good will towards the US. He came to Isreal a broken man he had lost many family members in the war. He dies in 1948.

He was buried in Yeshivas Sfas Emes in Geula due to the outbreak of the war, there was no access to any cemeteries. He had originally left a will that his brother Reb Moshe Betzalel take over but RMB was killed in the war. He changed his will to have his son Reb Yisroel take over

Reb Yisrael Alter was a Sharfe chosid. The word "sharfe" is hard to describe. While the best translation is witty, which is in part true, in this context it means a fanatic search for truth and unrelenting and unforgiving introspection. A hatred of falsity and excuses.

Rumor has it that he does not want to take over. That he is content with roaming the streets of Jerusalem at 2 am searching for lost souls and bringing them back just by giving them a "sharfe" look and sometimes even a slap. The chassidim don't want him either.

He is old fashioned very serious and very demanding. The hopes turn to his younger brother Reb Simcha Bunim. Who emigrated to Israel in 1933 who was a businessman an asken, an administrator and a warm fatherly figure. But RSB is missing no one knows where he is.

RYA takes over. RSB who did not want to be Rebbe either, especially in his brothers lifetime, has moved to Paris and was buying up blocks and blocks of bombed out buildings in post war Paris.

RYA is a very successful Rebbe he attracts hundreds of buchrim from Litvish and other Chasidic Yeshivos he creates a new generation of Sharfe Gerer Chasidim, alongside an older generationof rich balabatish Chasidim.

He leads the campaigns for the Aguda fighting off both Satmer who advocates not to vote and the Mizrachi who wanted a united relgious front.
At the time of his death in 1977 ger is the largest Chasidic court in Israel with controlling stakes in all the Charedi organizations.

Including the Aguda, Chinuch Atzmai and Vaad Hayeshivos. The war had left him childless. His children were all killed in the Holocaust and his marriage in Israel produced no children. His brother RSB took over the helm of the Court.

RSB treated his role as a Social Worker/ Reformer. He instituted many reforms which were copied by other courts and are now part and parcel of all chassidic courts in Israel. Including small weddings, moving out to new cheaper cities and limiting the menu of kidaishim for simchas

During his reign the Aguda split when Rav Shach founded Degel Hatorah but overall Gur remained the most powerful force in the Aguda and Israeli politics. After his death in 1992 there was tension as to who should take over.

The choices were between his mysterious angelic looking son Reb Yakkov Arye or his half brother Reb Pinchas Menachem. RPM was a world renowned Rosh Yeshiva and Talmid Chuchum. Rumor is that they cut a deal whereby RPM would lead and RYA would take over after his death.

RPM was stylistically not Gur he spoke at length during Tisch, he would smile alot, and his concers were not only with Ger but with other Chasidic courts as well he called a cease fire with Degel Hatorah and tried to include others in the decision making process. He died in 1996.

When he became Rebbe he appointed his son R Shaul as Rosh Yeshiva in Sfas Emes the position he just vacated. YSE is considered the Gerer Flagship founded in 1925 by Reb Menachem Kusher. The yeshiva produced 2 different paths of Sharfkeit: the "Zeligistons" and the "Brunneristons"

With his death in 1996 Ger and the world seemed to have lost an opportunity to learn and gain from this great man. A son of the Imrei Emes a relic of the gaurd and a first class Talmid Chacham and orator. After his death his nephew RYA takes over.

RYA is mysterious and good looking. His sharp blue eyes and his snowy white beard give him an angelic look. He has never held any position has never spoken in public more than a few words and has funny hand movements which add to his mystique.

As soon as RYA became Rebbe he took a hatchet to the system and began making wholesale changes. Some changes were minute like what type of hats the teachers would wear. Others were monumental even earth shattering.

However 2 of the changes would change the actual fabric of Ger. One is still being hotly debated to this day, in journals, and by thinkers all across the Jewish spectrum. The rebbe decread that the Yeshivos would stop learning iyun. This is a monumental shift.

Ger, the chasidus that stood for torah. The group that even the Misnagdim who falsely accused Chasidim of not knowing how to learn, begrudgingly respected the Torah in Ger. Ger the chasidus that produced the Chiddushei Harim the Sfas Emes, RMZ, the Kli Chemda,

And today Reb Mendel Shafran and Reb Naftuly Nussbaum would not be learning Iyun?
The second shift was the realignment of the Yeshivos. Ger had many Yeshivos, naturaly some yeshivos were considered better then others. The Rebbe did not like like this.

The Rebbe wanted all Yeshivos to be equal. He felt some boys who learnt in weaker Yeshivos had weaker names even though they were top boys. So the rebbe realigned the Yeshivos, combined or closed some old ones and opened new ones. This caused much pain for the Ramim.

As suddenly they were out of work or told to travel to distant cities for their work. The older buchrim suffered the most, Yeshivas that they were in, suddenly closed They were told to learn in other Yeshivas and some were not even offered an alternative. Many people were hurting

What deepened the frustration was the the fact that was no release valve. You were not allowed to criticize or even question the realignment. Anyone who questioned anything the Rebbe did was called a heretic. This is Ger listening to the Rebbe is part of their DNA.

The first Domino to drop was Reb Mendel Shafran. He is considered one of the greatest Talmedi Chachamim alive today a world renowned expert in Choshen Mishpat and was Gerer chasid. He could not beleive his ears. People who were around him described his as shell shocked.

He was an official or unofiicial Rav in Ger. They say he tried to talk to the Rebbe but was not allowed in. He stopped coming to Ger not on Shaabos not on Yomtov not on Rosh Hashana and not on Simchas Tora. He took his children out of Gur and sent them to Slonim.

This was a tremendous loss for Ger. RMS spoke publicly against the decision not to learn Iyun.
RSA was also out of job as YSE the Flagship Gerer Yeshivah was turned into a high-school and and now he was Rosh Yeshiva in title only.

A unified theory of the alignment emerged. The theory was, that all these changes were made to clip RS's wings. The ending of iyun was because this is somthing RSA excelled at, the closing of yeshivos was designed to take away RSA's yeshiva even the hat rule was because of RS.

Up until the hat rule most gerers wore regular hats and only a Rebbe and his children wore felt hats. This gave RSA an air of respect. Thus the Rebbe decreed that evry teacher no matter what age he taught must wear a felt hat. All this, the theory goes was to hurt RS.

Under the current, Ger is divided between the beleivers the "Maminim" and the non Maminim. The schism is so real, that it's a normal thing when asking information about a boy to ask: "is he a mamin"?
A vaad headed by R Yitzcok Zilberman (?) Is created

To deal with the problem they begin harassing blackmailing and bullying the non beleivers threatening to take away jobs, expel children from school and exposing the non believers. Gerers are unique in that they cannot comfortably attend other schools thus the threat is real.

Another aspect of the realignment was the Rebbe's bid to take control of all the organizations. Ger is a bottom up organization where people get together and open school, shtiblach, and organizations that are affiliated but to not legaly owned by Ger.

The Rebbe tried to get all these organizations under his control. He was basically successful anyone who resisited him was bribed, harrased and cajoled to fall in line. Most of the Ger institutions in Isral are now controlled by entities controlled by the Rebbe or his associates.

These are organizations worth millions. Ger boasts that have 100 yeshivas. In every city in every town everthing came under control of the Rebbe. In America he is not met with same success. The organizations and administrators are too big, too independent to fall in line.

The Rebbe's problems with America began many years ago. In ger there was an unwritten rule, "America is different". Although having 2 months summer vacation or playing ball or going swimming is unheard of in Isreal. in Ger in America in day camp and camps it is the norm.

The rebbe wanted to uproot this phenomenon whoever heard of such a thing that Gerer boys can go swimming? He implemented rules that were beginning accepted. Yeshiva would be over Rosh chodesh Av. 4 weeks vacation no bungalow colnies no upstate all the boys stay home.

The camp would be transferred to a different entity controlled by the Rebbe and would be used as a girl's camp. The camp was used one Summer as a girls camp but the bills were not paid and the the camp was not maintained.

Let's meet Duvid Mendel Berliner. He is a successful buisnessman and loves ger with all heart and soul. He has donated millions over the years to different Ger charities. He bailed out the camp 2 or 3 times before he had enough. He decides to take over the camp and run himself.

When the Rebbe asked him to use the camp for Girls he agrees. But after the mismanagement of the year he demands Ger should pay the bills and pay for someone to maintain it. The Rebbe's people offer to pay the bills if they can transfer the camp to the Rebbe's name. DMB refuses.

DMB is the first person to outright tell the Rebbe "no!" He tells the Rebbe that if he wants the camp he would have to pay back all the money that he invested plus management fees somthing like $3.5 million dollars which was about the value of the camp. The Rebbe refused.

The Rebbe is a multi millionaire several time over. His father RSB has left him an inheritance worth close to $700M. The rebbe decides to sue sue DMB in court for control of the camp. Meanwhile DMB grand child is getting married to Yakkov Litzmans grandchild.

Ironically Yakkov Litzman is a member of the Knesset a slick politician who talks Hebrew with a heavy Chareidi American accent and is the Gerer Rebbes closest confidante. When DMB comes to Isreal all hell breaks loose his apartment is trashed, he is yelled at on the street.

On one occasion the police has to rescue him from a violent mob. One another occasion they hung up signs outside his apartment calling him a pedophile. DMB ignored the entire thing. No one has ever stared down Ger. Did he have a secret backer?

Suddenly out of nowhere a letter appears signed by RSA against violence saying this is not how Jews act and this id not how the Rebbe wants us to act. The letter lands on Grr like a Tsunami, RSA is backing DMB.

The Rebbe argument in court is, the Articles of Incorporation of the camp require the board and directors of the camp to follow all direction of the Rebbe of Ger in Israel. In DMB papers he responds he is listening to the Ger Rebbe but right now there is two Ger Rebbes RYA & RSA

The vaad demand RSA retract his letter RSA refuses. The parties enter into a marathon of negotiations. RSA want his Yeshiva back. They offer a small kolel. He demands that Ger stop expelling boys who are not Maminim. And he demands a position for one of his brothers.

The negotiations are far raging and all inclusive. The deadline for the negotiations has been set if RSA does not retract his letter by Simchat Torah he will not be allowed in the Beis Medrash for simchat tora and not receive the Aliya je receive every year Kol Hanarim.

The 2 sides are deep in negotiations an agreement seems imminent. However, somthing happens and the negotiations fall apart. Rumors swirl that the negotiations die on the request of RSA's mother the Rebbitzin of the late RPM.

Either way, Simchas Torah 5780 exactly 180 years after the Holy Izhbitzer rebelled against the Holy Kotzker. R Shaul Alter the son of Reb Pinchas Menachem the Rebbe of Ger, and Rosh Yeshivas Sfas Emes rebelled against the Ger Rebbe, Announcing that he won't retract the letter.

He announces that he will be making his own minyan in Seminar Levine a short distance from the Gerer Beis Medrash. RSA's people are promising thousands will be there. Ger says he won't have a minyan.
It turns out a disaster for RSA only about 200 show up.

A good percentage of the people in attendance are not even Gerer Chasidim
RSA has not told anybody why he left Ger. Rumor has it that RSA said it's not enough to have beautiful building and money and programs for the Chasidim we need some spirituality, what has happened to Kotzk?

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