Chassidic Rabbis Pronounce Religious Ban Against Each Other

(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)

A controversy between two of the leading Chassidic rabbis in Eastern Europe led to their application of the “Cherum,” the religious ban against each other.

The controversy is of long standing between the Rebbe of Munkacz, Czechoslovakia, and the Rebbe of Belz, Poland. The numerous followers of these rabbis are participating in the controversy. The Rebbe of Belz recently published a pamphlet in which a “Cherem” is pronounced against the Rebbe of Munkacz on the charge that he had desecrated the memory of the late Chassidic Rabbi of Belz. In reply to this pamphlet, the Rebbe of Munkacz, Schapira, pronounced the religious ban in the synagogue. The matter may end in the court as the pronouncement of a religious ban is punishable under the law by one year’s imprisonment.