The Civic Religion of the US

The Civic Religion of the United States and the “Subtle” Influence of Chabad-Lubavitch

Ali Arslan Azzali

While the recent conflict between Israel and the United States with the Islamic Republic of Iran may be interpreted exclusively in terms of hegemonic geopolitical imperatives — ranging from control over energy reserves to attempts to neutralise land-based trade corridors aimed at undermining US maritime supremacy — it is undeniable that there are political dynamics rooted in millenarian religious fanaticism that view the reconstruction of the Third Temple as a means of hastening the coming of the Messiah. The most influential of these is undoubtedly the ultra-Orthodox Hasidic movement, Chabad-Lubavitch.

 

 

1.

 

“The construction of the earth was begun at the centre, with the foundation stone of the Temple, the Eben Shetiyah, for the Holy Land is at the central point of the surface of the earth, Jerusalem is at the central point of Palestine, and the Temple is situated at the centre of the Holy City.”¹

 

A recent statement by media personality and political commentator Tucker Carlson sparked widespread alarm. In an episode of his show aired in early March 2026, titled 'War Update: Israel's True Motives, Potential False Flags, and Oncoming Global Crisis,'² he denounced the messianic nature of the war waged by the United States and Israel against the Islamic Republic of Iran. According to Carlson, one of the driving forces behind Operation “Epic Fury” lies in the desire to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem’s Old City, thereby making possible the reconstruction of the Third Temple and hastening the coming of the Messiah. Carlson attributed this process in particular “to the efforts of a group called Chabad… a very old organization about 250 years old, and it's a branch of Hasidic Judaism. It's an organization that was overseen for many years by a guy called Rabbi Menachem Schneerson. who was famously in Brooklyn, considered the Messiah by some of his followers, um, who was a friend of presidents or certainly someone presidents visited, a very powerful man. … Chabad has been pushing in a pretty subtle way, unless you look carefully, for the reconstruction of the Third Temple.”³

 This project, as noted by Yoram Peri and Gabi Weimann in “Haaretz,” reveals the process of ideological mutation within Zionism toward positions of theocratic radicalism and religious messianism: “At its inception, the Zionist movement had a small messianic stream⁴ that sought ‘to renew the Kingdom of Israel,’ to establish the ‘Kingdom of Shaddai’ [God], in which the Temple would have a central place. It started with Brit Habiryonim (the Association of Brigands), continued with some of the members of the 1940s Lehi underground and rolled on to the Jewish Underground, which tried to blow up the gilded Dome of the Rock 40 years ago. Its members, who were amnestied shortly after being convicted, today hold key positions in the Israeli government. And under the leadership of Ben-Gvir, the minister of national security in that government, together with a group of extremist MKs and rabbis, the dream of a Third Temple is gradually materializing. … Whereas in the past religious Zionism had supported the rabbinic prohibition, still in place, against visiting the Temple Mount for reasons of impurity, it now forsook this approach. In the present decade, even Haredi (Jewish ultra-Orthodox) groups that had espoused an even sharper stance against visiting the Temple Mount, started to support this.”⁵ 

The settler and political activist Yehuda Etzion, known for his involvement in the terrorist group Jewish Underground in the 1980s and arrested in 1983 by the Shin Bet “on charges of masterminding a plot to blow up the two mosques on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in order to hasten the coming of the Messiah and begin work on the construction of the Third Temple”⁶ , must be considered one of the precursors to figures such as Yehuda Glick, a Chabad rabbi and Temple Mount activist,⁷ and Itamar Ben-Gvir. In a commemorative interview with Ari Shavit, Etzion, recalling the events that led to his imprisonment, outlined the persistence of those eschatological premises, reinterpreting the Temple issue no longer as a subversive goal but as the fulfillment of that “biblical nationalism” which today finds its principal proponent in Yoram Hazony; a vision in which Israel’s political sovereignty cannot be separated from its theological and messianic foundation: 

“In the late 1970s I was introduced to the writings of Shabtai Ben Dov. Ben Dov prepared an operative plan for the establishment of the Kingdom of Israel. I learned from him that settlements were not enough, that there was an urgent need to replace the set of foreign values that Israel had adopted. American and European concepts had to be done away with. We needed to embrace concepts that followed directly from the Torah of Israel. We had to leave democracy behind and go back to the source. We had to foment a Kingdom Come revolution. “I knew that the Temple Mount was the focal point. The mountain is where our Father in heaven connects with us. The fact that the Temple Mount is not in our hands is the most damning testimony of how low we have sunk. The mosques on the Temple Mount are a humiliation to the people of Israel and the history of Israel and God. Blowing up the mosques would allow us to break through to the heavens. It would pave the way to sanctity, divine presence, the Sanhedrin, and the Temple. It would be a purge that would end the old corrupt era and usher in a new pure one, that would replace the secular State of Israel with a Torah- inspired kingdom. 

A third world war? An Islamic march on Jerusalem? Tens of thousands of casualties? I thought about these scenarios but came to the conclusion that they were pessimistic and alarmist. I realized that when the Dome will collapse all hell would break loose. But I didn’t think that .thousands of tanks would move on Israel and that hundreds of missiles would be launched. But I also thought that even if I was wrong, the risk was worthwhile. Ben Gurion thought that the foundation of Israel justified the war it begot. Now things are no different. It was absolutely clear to me that making Israel a holy state justified suffering a war against all of Israel’s enemies.”⁸ .

It is therefore no coincidence that Hamas “named its October 7 attack ‘Al-Aqsa Storm,’ claiming that increasing numbers of religious Jews entering the Al-Aqsa compound and the growth of the Third Temple movement, which seeks to build a Jewish Temple on the site, were among its primary motivations. ‘After the attack, Temple activists immediately took to social media and encouraged Jews to ascend the Temple Mount in even greater numbers.’”⁹ 

 

 

2.

“So what is the civic religion of the United States? What's the religion of the US government? What's the religion honestly of Donald Trump? It's not Christianity clearly. It's Israelism. It's the defense of Israel.”

Tucker Carlson¹⁰

 

In the context of Carlson’s monologue mentioned earlier, the source of controversy was the reference to the “subtle” political influence exerted by the ultra-Orthodox Hasidic sect Chabad-Lubavitch,¹¹ considered “one of the most, if not the most, potent Jewish messianic movements in the 20th century”¹² as well as “a major force as purveyors of orthodox Judaism in america and beyond to other parts of the diaspora and within the boundaries of the modern state of Israel.”¹³ Under the leadership of the last Rebbe of the Lubavitch Hasidic court, Menachem M. Schneerson (1902–1994), has spread from its Brooklyn headquarters to over one hundred countries with “more than 3,500 institutions (and a workforce that numbers in the tens of thousands) dedicated to the welfare of the Jewish people worldwide” offering “a dazzling array of programs, services and institutions to serve every Jew.”¹⁴ It should therefore come as no surprise that the ideology underpinning the Chabad program—"from unwavering support for the concept of Greater Israel, opposition to any negotiations with ‘the Arabs,’ to its fundamental belief in messianic redemption"—has today led to an alliance with Itamar Ben-Gvir’s supremacist party, Otzma Yehudit (“Jewish Power”). This is demonstrated by the warm welcome the Lubavitchers extended to the Israeli minister during his recent visit to the United States, who spent “much of his tour visiting Chabad centers across the country and meeting representatives of the movement.”¹⁵ As scholars Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky note in an essay on Jewish fundamentalism in Israel: “From the June 1967 war until his death the Lubovitcher Rebbe always supported Israeli wars and opposed any retreat. In 1974 he strongly opposed the Israeli withdrawal from the Suez area, conquered in the October 1973 war; he promised Israel divine favors if it persisted in occupying that land. … Among the religious settlers in the Occupied Territories the Chabad Hassids constitute one of the most extreme groups. Baruch Goldstein, the mass murderer of Palestinians, was one of them.”¹⁶

One should not think, however, that the Rebbe’s attention was focused exclusively on the “chosen people.” Beginning in the early 1980s, in fact, Schneerson urged his followers to actively spread the Seven Laws of Noah¹⁷ among the Gentiles, viewing them as a tool to “civilize the world” and prepare it for the messianic era.¹⁸ In the Rebbe’s view, the Kabbalistic concept of Tikkun Olam (the repair of the world) would find its fulfillment precisely in this dynamic: the Jewish people are entrusted with the role of spiritual guides, while observance of the Seven Laws allows the rest of humanity to actively participate in the transition toward the era of the Messiah. In a well-known speech delivered in 1983, Schneerson stated: “Maimonides rules that every Jew was commanded at Sinai to influence all of mankind to observe the Seven Noahide Laws. In the past, Jews did not have the ability to do this. They were locked in ghettos and were forbidden to interact with, and certainly to influence, their non-Jewish neighbors… It is unquestionable that conditions have changed in recent times such that Jews and non- Jews have much greater interaction, and relations today are much closer and more connected. Therefore, even in a place where not a single Jew seems to live, you must do everything in your power to make that place more civilized, by promoting the observance of the Seven Noahide Laws.”¹⁹ 

 

 

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“In 2014, a teenage Noahide from Zamboanga [Philippines] fell victim to a spirit possession that caused him to ‘float’ and ‘scale the walls like a lizard,’ as witnessed by some 300 community members.”

Rachel Z. Fedman²⁰

 

In the Tanya, a seminal text of Hasidic Judaism written in 1797 by the first Chabad Rebbe, Shneur Zalman of Liadi (Lithuania, 1745–1812), a clear distinction is drawn between “the essential nature of a Jew and that of a non-Jew.”²¹ As Rav Assaf Bednarsh explains, according to the Tanya: “a Jew has two souls – a Godly soul, which partakes in some fashion in the actual substance of God Himself, and an animalistic soul, which descends from klipat noga, the evil that contains within it an admixture of divine light. Therefore, he explains, any good character trait found in a Jew reflects the essential goodness found in his soul. The soul of a gentile, however, according to the Tanya, is purely animalistic and not Godly. It descends from the evil forces that have no potential for goodness in them whatsoever. Therefore, any good deeds performed by gentiles are done for ulterior motives and cannot possibly reflect essential goodness. According to this philosophy, a gentile is not merely a lower form of life, but is essentially and irredeemably evil; his substance derives from the sitra achra, the evil forces that threaten all goodness and purity in the world.”²² Although “a gentile's soul is purely evil with no potential for Godliness,” those “devout gentiles” (Chassidei Umot HaOlam) who, in accordance with the teaching of the Torah, observe “the 7 universal laws” will receive a soul (“neshama,” the eternal and unchanging connection to the Creator), will be considered “righteous and honored” by God, and will have a place in the “world to come.”²³ 

Author Rachel Z. Feldman explains: “According to Jewish law, a ‘Noahide’ is a non-Jew who follows the ‘Seven Laws of Noah’ the commandments God gave to Noah after the flood, as derived from passages in the Torah. Following orthodox interpretation, Jews are required to observe all 613 commandments given in the Torah, while non-Jews are only obligated to observe the Seven Laws of Noah. These laws, considered to be a moral code for all of humanity, will guarantee the non-Jew a place in the ‘world to come’ … Around the world, from Texas to Nigeria to Mexico to the Philippines, ex-Christians are taking up Jewish rituals, studying Torah, taking Hebrew names, adopting Jewish styles of dress, and establishing synagogues. While historically there have been a number of philosemitic movements, such as Christian churches adopting Jewish practices, Noahidism of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries is unique in that it involves Christians completely revoking their faith and allowing Jewish rabbis to guide their studies, dictate the content of their rituals, and define their relationship to Judaism.”²⁴ Feldman attributes the spread of Noahidism “to Israel’s current prominent place on the world stage and the growing political and financial power of messianic Zionism. For the rabbis who mentor them online, the Noahides are an important sign that messianic times are approaching. These rabbis, largely members of Israel’s religious Zionist demographic, believe that the messianic era begins with the establishment of a Jewish theocratic state in Israel, supported by communities of Noahides worldwide. The majority of the rabbis who mentor Noahides are active members, or at least ideological supporters, of the Third Temple Movement in Israel, which aims to rebuild the Third Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount/Haram ash-Sharif in Jerusalem (where the Muslim shrine known as the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque are located), reestablish a Jewish priesthood, and lay the foundations for a fully theocratic state operating under Torah law.”²⁵

It is telling that the eminent Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh²⁶, a Chabad emissary and “spiritual guide” to West Bank settlers, was entrusted with writing the introduction to the Torat Hamelekh (“The King’s Torah,” 2009), the controversial treatise that examines the circumstances under which Jewish law would permit Jews to “kill gentiles, including children.” “The book suggests that there may be a reason to kill babies on the enemy side, even if they have not violated any laws, due to the potential future danger they might pose based on the assumption that they will grow up to be evil like their parents. The author also proposes that indirect killing of children could be justified as a means of exerting pressure on enemy leaders or if the children are obstructing a rescue operation and their presence contributes to murder.”²⁷ . The authors, Rabbis Yitzhak Shapira and Yosef Elitzur, after paying tribute to Ginsburgh as their “teacher and … source of inspiration since the day we began studying,”²⁸ offer an overview of the treatise: “In the first chapter, we will discuss the source of the prohibition of killing a Gentile who does not violate the Seven Noachide Laws. The second chapter will clarify the judgment of a Gentile who violates the Seven Noachide Laws.”²⁹  As Dr. Mahmoud Muharib notes, the radical ontological distinction asserted in the treatise is based, according to the authors, on a sort of “original covenant” whereby God asked all human beings to accept His Torah, but only the children of Israel consented: “Therefore, God distinguished the Children of Israel from all other human beings, and gave them a very special and reputable status and drew them to Him. Conversely, God degraded the gentiles, whom the authors call ‘Noah’s sons’ and classify them in lower ranks in a hierarchy of classification for the human beings,set by the King’s Torah. Noah’s sons must commit themselves to the Seven Laws ordained by God through the Children of Israel, with any Jew having the right to kill anyone from Noah’s sons who violates one of the Seven Laws. The implementation of this murder, according to the authors, does not require a court of law or prosecution witnesses. It is enough for a Jewish person to see or know that a non-Jew violates one of the Seven Laws and thus kills him.”³⁰ 

A 26 April 1996 article in the Jewish Week (New York) is dedicated to Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, who, among other things, 'wrote a chapter of a book in praise of Goldstein'. The article states:

 “Regarded as one of the Lubovitcher sect’s leading authorities on Jewish mysticism, the St. Louis born rabbi, who also has a graduate degree in mathematics, speaks freely of Jews’ genetic based, spiritual superiority over non-Jews. It is a superiority that he asserts invests Jewish life with greater value in the eyes of the Torah. ‘If you saw two people drowning, a Jew and a non-Jew, the Torah says you save the Jewish life first,’ Rabbi Ginsburgh told the Jewish Week ‘If every simple cell in a Jewish body entails divinity, is a part of God, then every strand of DNA is part of God. Therefore, something is special about Jewish DNA.’ Later, Rabbi Ginsburgh asked rhetorically: ‘If a Jew needs a liver, can you take the liver of an innocent non-Jew passing by to save him? The Torah would probably permit that. Jewish life has an infinite value,’ he explained. ‘There is something infinitely more holy and unique about Jewish life than non-Jewish life.’”³¹ 

The link between the rebuilding of the Third Temple and the spread of the Noahide codes is highlighted by the fact that the same institutions—including the Chabad-Lubavitch movement³² , the Noahide Academy of Israel, the Temple Institute, The Nascent Sanhedrin - Bnei Noah Court, ³³ and the Brit Olam – World Noahide Center—are simultaneously promoting their implementation. These entities operate in an integrated manner to confer upon Jerusalem the role of spiritual and civil center of a system of international scope; in this perspective, the physical structure of the Temple and the universal precepts for the Gentiles represent the complementary pillars of a single messianic horizon, aimed at recognizing in the Sanhedrin the supreme authority of a renewed ethical and legal order among the nations, according to the promise of Isaiah 56:7: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

 

 

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“To be our brother, as you desire, you have no need whatsoever to embrace Judaism in the way you believe—that is, by submitting to the yoke of our Law. We Jews are the custodians of the religion intended for all of humanity, the only religion to which the Gentiles are subject, and through which they are saved and truly in God’s grace. The religion of humanity is none other than Noahidism.”

Letter from Rabbi Elia Benamozegh³⁴ to Aimé Pallière³⁵

 

President Ronald Reagan³⁶ formally recognized the Seven Laws of Noah as a universal model for education with Proclamation 4921, issued on April 3, 1982. In this document, April 4, 1982—the 80th birthday of the Lubavitcher Rebbe and a date that already marked “Education Day USA”—was designated as a “National Day of Reflection” ³⁷ with the following rationale: “One shining example for people of all faiths of what education ought to be is that provided by the Lubavitch movement, headed by Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, a worldwide spiritual leader who will celebrate his 80th birthday on April 4, 1982. The Lubavitcher Rebbe's work stands as a reminder that knowledge is an unworthy goal unless it is accompanied by moral and spiritual wisdom and understanding. He has provided a vivid example of the eternal validity of the Seven Noahide Laws, a moral code for all of us regardless of religious faith. May he go from strength to strength.”³⁸  To honor the 84th birthday of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, President Ronald Reagan signed House Joint Resolution 582 into law on April 22, 1986. Approved by Congress on an expedited basis, Public Law 99-276 designated April 20, 1986, as “Education Day U.S.A.” This resolution marked an important historical milestone by formally incorporating the Seven Laws of Noah into federal text, recognizing them as the ethical foundations of American civil society.. 

Under the neoconservative ideology of the Reagan administration—inaugurated in 1981 alongside the historic November 30 Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Cooperation—and fortified by an alliance with the Likud leadership of Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir, the American government reframed its foundational identity. The administration identified “the historical tradition of ethical values and principles which are the basis of civilized society and upon which our great Nation was founded” [“the bedrock of society”] with the “Seven Laws of Noah,” tracing this moral lineage back “since the dawn of civilization.” Positioned as “the edifice of civilization,” these Noahide laws served as an ideological bulwark against Soviet atheistic materialism during the Cold War, a spiritual anchor without which humanity “stands in serious peril of returning to chaos.”³⁹ This vision found a natural affinity with the ideological framework of the Likud, which fused the nationalism of Zionism with the rediscovery of Jewish religious roots as a source of political legitimacy. The Talmudic-based Noahide universalism was thus elevated to a universal ethical code for the Gentiles: a sort of “primordial tradition”⁴⁰ that precedes and, in fact, subordinates every subsequent historical revelation, with the exception of Rabbinic Judaism. The legal recognition of this primacy, grounded in the hypothesis of an original truth preserved intact by Judaism alone, takes the form of the projection of a particular identity that aspires to become a universal law in order to exercise hegemony over others. According to scholars of the Emerging Sanhedrin, while “Judaism does not view itself as a universal religion, instead it sees itself as a national faith,” Christianity and Islam are said to derive from the Noahide laws: “The Biblical, Monotheistic, Abrahamic faith, that was common among non-Jews who lived in or around Israel for hundreds of years until the destruction of the second Temple, is called in Rabbinic literature ‘the Covenant of Bnei Noah’ or the ‘Noahide’ faith. This system of belief is thought by some scholars to be the root of Christianity and Islam, as it is referred to both in the New Testament and the Qur'an.”⁴¹

 

 

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“Education Day USA” was established in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter following a congressional resolution. By designating the 11th of Nissan (the Rebbe’s birthday according to the Jewish calendar) as “Education Day USA,” Carter sought to honor Schneerson’s commitment to “promoting education for all American citizens”⁴² . On that occasion, the Rebbe expressed the hope that the celebration would become “a permanent institution, especially since, by reason of the pervasive nature of education, it would lend further significance to other ‘Days’ such as Father's Day and Mother's Day and similar institutions which have become part of American life.”⁴³ Since then, every U.S. president has renewed the proclamation annually, and since 1992, under the administration of George H.W. Bush, the name has been formalized as “Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A.”⁴⁴

The latest Education and Sharing Day in the U.S. was proclaimed by President Donald Trump on March 28, 2026, designating March 29, 2026, as the official observance day.⁴⁵ The signing of the proclamation followed an official meeting held on September 29, 2025, in the Oval Office of the White House. On that occasion, the President received a delegation of 14 Chabad rabbis led by the movement’s top leaders.⁴⁶ Among those attending the meeting was Major Rabbi Mendy Stern, commanding chaplain of the 470th Military Intelligence Brigade, representing the link between Chabad and U.S. defense institutions. In addition to Jared Kushner—a key figure in mediation with the Orthodox Jewish community and architect of the Middle East strategy—the meeting was attended by top administration officials, including Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Strategic Advisor Stephen Miller, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, Director of Jewish Engagement Martin Marks, and Evangelical Pastor Paula White-Cain, the President’s spiritual advisor and head of the newly established White House Faith Office.

From its very opening lines, Trump’s proclamation sought to establish a connection between the 250th anniversary of American independence (1776–2026) and the 124th anniversary of Schneerson’s birth: a temporal coincidence aimed at elevating the legacy of Chabad to a pillar of national identity and a driving force behind a spiritual renewal inspired by the values of “character, patriotism, and integrity,” which are said to be the fruit of the “rigorous education” promoted by the Rebbe. The proclamation paid tribute “to the life, legacy, and vision of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson … one of the most influential Jewish leaders in modern American history,” who “in 1941 … escaped Nazi persecution and fled to the United States, where he assumed leadership of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.” It is important to note, however, that Schneerson’s father and father-in-law—the sixth Chabad Rebbe whom he would succeed—were granted diplomatic immunity in 1939 and assured safe passage through Berlin and Riga to New York thanks to the intervention of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, head of the Abwehr, the German military intelligence service.⁴⁷  Basing his views on the Torah, the Rebbe considered Hitler to be “a messenger of God in the same sense that Nebuchadnezzar is called "God's servant" in the Book of Jeremiah (chapter 25).”⁴⁸ With regard to the Holocaust, Schneerson compared “God to a surgeon who amputates a patient's limb in order to save his life. The limb ‘is afflicted with an incurable disease … The limb ‘is incurably diseased ... The Holy One Blessed Be He, like the professor-surgeon...seeks the good of Israel, and indeed, all He does is done for the good.... In the spiritual sense, no harm was done, because the everlasting spirit of the Jewish people was not destroyed.’”⁴⁹

The proclamation then goes on to express the intention  to “proudly advancing the Rebbe’s vision of intellectual achievement, righteousness, and faith … bringing back common sense to our classrooms and ending left-wing indoctrination of our students—ensuring that our schools foster excellence, instill civic engagement, and respect our country’s most foundational values.  ...  We are also working tirelessly to eradicate the scourge of anti-Semitism from our society, ensuring that every American can live out their faith free from fear, violence, and persecution.” The model of “rigorous education” championed by the Lubavitcher Rebbes was cited here as a means to counter the decline of values in public schools, holding up the model of Chabad yeshivas⁵⁰ as an example of excellence and integrity for all citizens. The proclamation, after reiterating the tribute to the “heroic life” and “enduring contributions of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson,” as well as the commitment to “to carry forth his legacy of fearless and moral leadership,” concluded with the statement that “America will forever be one Nation guided by the eternal wisdom and providence of the Almighty.”⁵¹ In a commentary on the speech’s closing sentence, the Chabad website notes: “[The] foundation upon which this country was born … ,’ the Rebbe explained in 1981, ‘is stated on every dollar bill printed in the U.S.A. — In G-d We Trust.’”⁵² .

 

 

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"We want Moshiach now / We don't want to wait!" ⁵³

 Tzivos Hashem Anthem⁵⁴ 

 

The presidential proclamation of March 28, 2026, was preceded by the publication in January 2025 on the iPetitions platform of a global petition - “To be addressed to the President of the United States of America, Donald J. Trump” - submitted by Rabbi Moshe Perets⁵⁵ and the Rabbinical Council of “Light Unto the Nations” – Noahide Academy of Israel,⁵⁶ which he chairs, titled “Education and Sharing Day U.S.A. Implementation.”⁵⁷ The initiative declared the goal of raising, by March 29, 2026—a date coinciding with the 124th anniversary of the Rebbe’s birth— 10,000 signatures to secure “$300M [in federal funds] to support the ‘Light Unto the Nations’ Educational Chabad Network⁵⁸ in the U.S. and globally, promoting the 7 Universal Laws from Torah for Humanity.”⁵⁹

The appeal was preceded by the premise that “for over four decades, the Rebbe called upon leaders, educators, and nations to recognize and promote the Seven Universal Moral Laws given by the Creator to all humanity through Moses at Mount Sinai”⁶⁰ and continued with a solemn declaration in which the signatory rabbis and community leaders recognized these principles as the foundation of justice and peace entrusted to humanity through the Torah, emphasizing that their dissemination is vital for the future of civilization and for bringing every individual closer to their Creator, ultimately calling upon institutions and world leaders to actively promote awareness and teaching of these principles.

Following the presentation of the Seven Laws, the “Key Objectives” were outlined, aimed at spreading the moral values of the Noahide Laws through the “Light Unto the Nations” program, which seeks to secure federal support for the integration of these ethical principles into educational systems:

1. “Expand Chabad’s Educational Mission

o Allow 300 Chabad Shluchim [emissaries] in 300 U.S. college campuses to provide weekly sessions on the 7 Universal Laws.

o Engage 6,000 Shluchim globally to host conferences and events promoting universal Torah ethics.

o Launch a BA/MA programs in Noahide Sciences in major American universities.

2. National Media & Awareness Campaign

o A 3-year initiative targeting universities, high schools, and communities to restore moral clarity and highlight America’s commitment to ethical values.

3. Strategic Financial Support

o Fund 1,300 Chabad Shluchim to lead this moral revival.

o Finance media campaigns, Noahide Sciences programs, and international events.

o Strengthen America’s values by countering foreign ideological influences.

Public Recognition of Jewish Leadership:
We call for official international acknowledgment of the Jewish People as a ‘Light Unto the Nations’ Isaiah 42:6 ‘אֲנִ֧י יְהֹוָ֛ה קְרָאתִ֥יךָ בְצֶ֖דֶק וְאַחְזֵ֣ק בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְאֶצָּרְךָ֗ וְאֶתֶּנְךָ֛ לִבְרִ֥ית עָ֖ם לְא֥וֹר גּוֹיִֽם: "I am the Lord; I called you with righteousness and I will strengthen your hand; and I formed you, and I made you for a people's covenant, for a light unto the nations.’

Vision for the Future:
Establish the ‘Light Unto the Nations’ as the rectified format of the old ‘United Nations’ based on the 7 Universal Laws with twin headquarters in Jerusalem and Washington, D.C., serving as a moral beacon for all nations.”⁶¹

The text concluded with a passionate appeal to sign the petition to “bring redemption,” support “the expansion of Chabad’s educational mission,” commit to “advocate for global recognition of the Jewish People’s as the Choshen People by G-d,” and finally “live with and promote the 7 Universal Biblical Commandments.”⁶²

 

 

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As Shaul Magid notes, the Rebbe attributed a providential role to the United States in his eschatological vision of redemption: “For Schneerson, America was not just another stage of exile; it was a final necessary stage without which messiah could not come. And the role for Jews in America was not simply to wait for messiah’s arrival by engaging in acts of self-preservation— as was the case in previous exilic locales—but to transform the larger society in order for messiah to come. Schneerson thus represents a distinctive form of Jewish post-millennialism, a veritable social gospel on a global scale. This is possible precisely because of America’s good nature toward the Jews (Schneerson famously called America a ‘medina shel hesed,’ a ‘nation of kindness’) and because of the constitutional separation of church and state that enabled Jews to fully develop a program of social transformation using the tools of Judaism to bring its light to the gentiles. Wexler notes, ‘Elsewhere he argued that it was America in particular, rather than Israel, that provided the most fertile resources with which to craft a viable model for postwar Jewish life on a global scale.’”⁶³ As William Keenan notes in “The Times of Israel”: “Through its network of Chabad Houses, emissaries, and community programs, the movement built a worldwide infrastructure devoted primarily to Jewish religious outreach.”⁶⁴ Among the movement’s most prominent supporters are current President Donald Trump,⁶⁵ his daughter Ivanka,⁶⁶ his son-in-law Jared Kushner, the informal architect of the new administration, his golfing buddy and “peace envoy” Steve Witkoff,⁶⁷ as well as countless heads of state and politicians, including Vladimir Putin,⁶⁸ Volodymyr Zelensky,⁶⁹ Lech Walesa,⁷⁰ Benjamin Netanyahu,⁷¹ Isaac Herzog, Javier Milei,⁷² Edi Rama⁷³  and even the newly elected mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani.⁷⁴ It is also worth noting that during the annual gala of the “American Friends of Lubavitch,” held in Washington, D.C., on September 16, 2025, Alex C. Karp, CEO and co-founder of Palantir Technologies, was honored by Rabbi Levi Shemtov⁷⁵ with the prestigious “Lamplighter Award” for having “served as a guiding light for the Jewish community in challenging times.”⁷⁶ Karp received a menorah “because we believe,” Shemtov stated, “that the menorah is a symbol of enlightenment.” 

 

 

8.

 

On the anniversary of the attacks of October 7, 2023, the Chabad website commented on President Trump’s prayer visit to the grave of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson: “Millions of people send their written prayers via email and post to the Ohel,⁷⁷ while some 400,000 make pilgrimages there each year. Located at the Old Montefiore Cemetery, the Ohel is open 24/7 and has long been a place for reflection for private citizens and world leaders alike, Jews and non-Jews, each coming to the holy site to pray, seek inspiration and find solace. … On his way into the Ohel, Trump placed some money into the large tzedakah box near the entrance in keeping with Jewish tradition to increase charitable giving at this time of year. The Rebbe’s Ohel is the most visited Jewish holy site in North America, drawing people from all walks of life in a way similar only to the Western Wall in Israel. It is common for people to visit the Ohel to pray in proximity to a personal or professional milestone—whether a bar or bat mitzvah, wedding, anniversary, starting a new business or overcoming personal challenges. Indeed, the former president has survived two assassination attempts over the last few months. In many ways, Trump’s prayer visit is the continuation of a family tradition: Prior to both presidential elections, his daughter, Ivanka Trump, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, paid late-night, media-free visits to the Ohel.”⁷⁸ 

Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s nighttime visit to the Ohel is confirmed in an internal FBI report. The document, based on statements from a confidential human source (CHS), is recorded on form FD-1023 (specific section EFTA00000215), is dated October 19, 2020, and was released by the U.S. Department of Justice on January 30, 2026, as part of the disclosure of the “Epstein files.”⁷⁹ The memo was part of an FBI investigation into internal or external influences on the U.S. electoral process.

The memo opens by referencing emeritus Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz—noted for defending Donald Trump, representing Jeffrey Epstein, resolving a defamation battle with Virginia Giuffre, and supporting Chabad. During his time at Harvard, Jared Kushner was heavily involved in the local Chabad House, working closely with its director, Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi. The informant (CHS) reportedly learned that “Dershowitz influenced many students from wealthy families. For example. Josh Kushner (Josh) and Jared Kushner (Jared) were both his students. Dershowitz told CHS that if he were young again, he would be holding a stun gun as an Israeli Intelligence (Mossad) agent. CHS believed Dershowitz was co-opted by Mossad and subscribed to their mission. CHS still continues to communicate occasionally for Dershowitz.

Jeffrey Epstein was represented by Dershowitz. CHS remembered Dershowitz tell Alex Ocasta (U.S. Attorney of Southern District of Florida at the time) that Epstein belonged to both U.S. and allied intelligence services. CHS shared phone calls between Dershowitz and Epstein during which he/she took notes. After these calls, Mossad would then call Dershowitz to debrief. Epstein was close to the former Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Barak (Barak) and trained as a spy under him. Barak believed Netanyahu was a criminal. Saudi Arabia, Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are allied against Qatar, Turkey, Iran and Syria.”⁸⁰

The memo continues: “CHS advised Chabad is doing everything they can to co-opt the Trump presidency. Chabad is basically state-sanctioned Judaism. It is used by Putin to keep tabs on all the Russo-Jewish oligarchs.⁸¹ On the day Trump was elected President. Ivanka Trump and Jared were at the gravesite of Rabbi Scheersom, who was the most powerful Rabbi in the Chabad network. Jared didn't disclose his stake in Cadre, because of its ties to the Russian state (NFI)⁸². CHS believed this was/is the ‘real’ Russian collusion story. Kushner has moved a lot of Russian investment money around. The FBI should investigate Kushner's family charities to find evidence of corruption and money laundering. Chabad routinely uses charities to launder money.”⁸³

The source then mentions: “the deep ties the Kushner family has with Israel⁸⁴ and their history of corrupt business practices and alleged violations of election laws. CHS stated that if the FBI is serious about investigating the Kushners and their relationships with Middle East. they should look closely at Ken Kurson,⁸⁵ who ‘knows everything’ (NFI). CHS advised Henry Kissinger introduced Charles to Cui Tiankai. the Chinese ambassador to the U.S., a relationship that could have been helpful; at around the same time of the introduction, Anbang was entering negotiations with the Kushners over 666 Fifth Avenue.”⁸⁶

Overturning the media narrative of those years, centered on the so-called Russiagate, the FBI informant thus asserts that the true source of foreign influence on the White House was not Moscow, but the State of Israel: “CHS advised that this was a real collusion story - Trump has been compromised by Israel. and Kushner is the real brains behind his organization and his Presidency.”⁸⁷

 

Footnotes

¹ Louis Ginzberg, The Legends of the Jews, Vol. 1, The Jewish Publication Society, Philadelphia, 2003, p. 7. 

² The Tucker Carlson Show, War Update: Israel’s True Motives, Potential False Flags, and Oncoming Global Crisis, tuckercarlson.com, March 4, 2026

³ Ibid.

⁴ According to Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Kook (1865–1935), the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Palestine under the British Mandate and a renowned Kabbalist, “the process of national revival of the Jewish people was perceived as a Revealed End, and was ultimately due to lead to the full redemption of Israel, namely: the establishment of the religious kingdom and the renewal of the rites on the Temple Mount. To this end, he established the Torat Cohanim yeshiva in 1921. This institute of religious higher learning was intended, as its declared intentions stated, to study ‘the talmudic order of Kodshim, the regulation of worship in the Temple, the commandments that relate to the Land of Israel and the religious laws relating to the state.’” Motti Inbari, “Rabbi Kook and Merkaz Harav Yeshiva’s Attitude toward Going Up the Temple Mount,” The Times of Israel, https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/, October 29, 2015.

⁵ Yoram Peri and Gabi Weimann, “Now in Power, Israel’s Messianic Far-right Is Dead Serious About Rebuilding the Temple,” “Haaretz,” haaretz.com, August 29, 2024.

⁶ Massimo Giuliani, The Temple and the Messiah, in: Theopopedia. Archiving the history of theological-political concepts, ed. by T. Faitini, F. Ghia, M. Nicoletti, University of Trento, 2015–2017, p. 147.

⁷ Life in Messiah (YouTube channel), Jerusalem, Temple, and Messiah: An Interview with Yehudah Glick, youtube.com, June 13, 2024.

⁸ Ari Shavit, My Promised Land, New York, 2015, p. 217.

⁹ Messianism and the Israel-Palestine Conflict, Dartmouth University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, fas.dartmouth.edu, June 23, 2024.

¹⁰ The Tucker Carlson Show, Tucker on the New Religion of Trump’s America and His Mockery of Jesus Christ, tuckercarlson.com, April 15, 2026.

¹¹ William Keenan, Chabad, Jared Kushner, Tucker Carlson, and the Third Temple, “The Times of Israel,” blogs.timesofisrael.com, March 13, 2026. Particularly serious would be the fact that Tucker Carlson’s accusations reportedly followed several attacks against members of the sect, the most serious of which occurred at Bondi Beach, Australia, in December 2025, and the following January at the Crown Heights headquarters in Brooklyn.

¹² Shaul Magid, “Another Side of the Lubavitcher Rebbe,” Tablet, tabletmag.com, July 3, 2019.

¹³ Elliot R. Wolfson, Open Secret: Postmessianic Messianism and the Mystical Revision of Menahem Mendel Schneerson, Columbia University Press, New York, 2009, p. xi.

¹⁴ About Chabad-Lubavitch, chabad.org.

¹⁵ Lir Spiriton, Shomrim, Behind the Smiles and Doughnut Stands: Chabad’s Growing Alliance With Far-right Minister Ben-Gvir, “Haaretz”, https://www.haaretz.com/, June 5, 2025.

¹⁶ Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky, Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel, London, 2004, p. 61.

¹⁷ According to Chabad.org, the seven Noahide laws are: 1. Do not profane G-d's Oneness; 2. Do not curse your Creator; 3. Do not murder; 4. Do not eat a limb of a still-living animal; 5. Do not steal; 6. Harness and channel the human libido; and 7. Establish courts of law and ensure justice. The 7 Noahide Laws, chabad.org.

¹⁸ 1983: The Rebbe’s Message to Mankind, chabad.org. See also Universal Mission (August 25, 1986), chabad.org: “Many teachings of the Torah are addressed to non-Jews, even if they are not expressly included in the Seven Laws of Noah. If it is a matter that appeals to the innate moral sense of human beings, then it applies to them as well.”

¹⁹ Light Unto the Nations: Part 2: Greater Opportunity, Greater Responsibility, chabad.org. 

²⁰ Rachel Z. Feldman, The Children of Noah, “Nova Religio”, Volume 22, Number 1, University of California Press, August 2018, https://muse.jhu.edu/. 

²¹ Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Likutei Amarim (Tanya), chapters 1–2. 

²² Rabbi Assaf Bednarsh, Jews and Gentiles, “Yeshivat Har Etzion,” Topics in Hashkafa—Lesson 20, https://www.etzion.org.il, February 24, 2019.

²³ Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz, Sanhedrin Letter to Trump: “You have been elected to fulfill a heavenly mission”, https://israel365news.com/, February 14, 2025.

²⁴ Rachel Z. Feldman, The Children of Noah: Has Messianic Zionism Created a New World Religion? (PDF). “Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions”. 22, Berkeley: University of California Press, p. 117.

²⁵ Ibid., pp. 117–8.

²⁶ Rabbi Yitzchak Feivish Ginsburgh, born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1944, heads the Od Yosef Chai yeshiva in Yitzhar, a West Bank settlement considered a hub for radical young settlers. The Wikipedia entry states: “Ginsburgh also advocates for the reconstruction of the Jewish Temple, believing that this would promote spiritual elevation and hasten redemption.”

²⁷ Wikipedia entry for “Yitzhak Shapira.”

²⁸ Yitzhak Shapira, Yosef Elitzur, The King’s Torah, Vol. I, Yeshiva of Ohr Yosef Chai, 2009, p. 32 (digital edition).

²⁹ Ibid., p. 33.

³⁰ Mahmoud Muharib, The King’s Torah and the Killing of Palestinians, “Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS),” Doha, Qatar, October 2011. (PDF available at dohainstitute.org)

³¹ Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky, op. cit., p. 62.

³² Yehuda Shurpin, Messiah & the Third Temple, chabad.org.

³³ The Sanhedrin in English, Bnei Noah, the Sanhedrin’s relationship with non-Jews, https://www.thesanhedrin.org. On the same website, see also the page: Jerusalem Court for Issues of Bnei Noah.

³⁴ “The idea of Noahidism as a religion, rather than a purely theoretical discussion in Jewish law regarding the legal status of non-Jews, was elaborated by Elijah Benamozegh (1822-1900). Benamozegh was an Italian Rabbi and kabbalist who promoted the Noahide laws as the universal religion of the future, that would unite humanity under a singular monotheistic moral code. Benamozegh’s writings were edited and disseminated by his student, Aime Palliere (1875–1949), a French theologian and Zionist, who, like many Bnei Noah today, followed a trajectory from Catholicism to Evangelical Christianity and eventually Judaism. Under the spiritual direction of Benamozegh, Palliere was discouraged from conversion to Judaism, and instead took on the status of a Noahide. He dedicated his life to the study of Torah, spreading the Noahide message, and working as a leader within the Zionist movement in France. Palliere viewed Zionism as part of the destiny of the Jewish people, who by returning to the holy land and taking on their role as the ‘chosen people,’ would help gentiles to realize their own destiny in becoming Noahides.” Rachel Z. Feldman, The Bnei Noah (Children of Noah), “World Religions and Spirituality Project,” wrldrels.org, October 8, 2017

³⁵ Marco Morselli, Aimé Pallière and Judaism, nostre radici.it.

³⁶ The Rebbe and President Ronald Reagan, chabad.org.

³⁷ Ronald Reagan, Proclamation 4921—National Day of Reflection Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/244830.

³⁸ Ibid.

³⁹ H.J.Res.582 - A joint resolution to designate April 20, 1986 as "Education Day U.S.A.", congress.gov. See: https://www.congress.gov/bill/99th-congress/house-joint-resolution/582/text

⁴⁰ “Some of the earliest references to the ‘Seven Laws of Noah’ are found in the Babylonian Talmud (Tractate Sanhedrin, folios 56a–60a), where they appear in the context of a theoretical rabbinic discussion concerning the status of non-Jews in the Land of Israel. According to the rabbinic consensus in the Talmud, these seven laws constitute God’s original pre-Jewish covenant with humanity and remain binding on all of humanity.” Rachel Z. Feldman, The Bnei Noah (Children of Noah), cit.

⁴¹ The Sanhedrin in English, Bnei Noah, the Sanhedrin’s relationship with non-Jews, cit.

⁴² Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 92 Part 1.djvu/254, en.wikisource.org.

⁴³ Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, “Education is the Cornerstone of Humanity,” speech delivered on April 18, 1978, chabad.org.

⁴⁴ George Bush, Proclamation 6421—Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 1992, “The American Presidency Project”, www.presidency.ucsb.edu.

⁴⁵ The White House, Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2026, whitehouse.gov, March 28, 2026.

⁴⁶ Motti Wilhelm, President Trump Hosts Oval Office Meeting with Chabad Rabbinical Delegation, chabad.org, September 29, 2025.

⁴⁷ Bryan Mark Rigg. Rescued from the Reich: How One of Hitler’s Soldiers Saved the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Yale University Press, 2006.

⁴⁸ Yehuda Bauer, God as Surgeon, “Haaretz,” https://www.haaretz.com/, June 1, 2007.

⁴⁹ Ibid.

⁵⁰ A Chabad yeshiva (also known as Tomchei Temimim) is a higher education institution characteristic of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. It differs from traditional yeshivot in its integration of the study of the Talmud and Jewish law with Hasidic philosophy (Chassidut).

⁵¹ The White House, Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2026, cit.

⁵² President Trump Proclaims Rebbe’s Birthday Education & Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2026, chabad.org, March 29, 2026. It also states: “During a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last year, he presented President Trump with a dollar from the Rebbe. The dollar gifted to the President was presented in a custom leather case engraved with gratitude to ‘a true friend and partner of Israel and the Jewish people.’” Ibid.,

⁵³ “We want Moshiach (the Messiah) now, we don’t want to wait.” The anthem was sung by children for the first time in front of the Rebbe during a Tzivos Hashem rally on October 8, 1980. We Want Mashiach Now, chabad.org. 

⁵⁴ Tzivos Hashem (literally “Army of God”) is an organization based in Brooklyn, New York, founded in 1980 as a youth group within the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. Its mission is to promote Jewish traditions and practices among Jewish children, both Orthodox and non-Orthodox. https://en.wikipedia.org. In a speech addressed to students in the lower grades of yeshivot, Rabbi Schneerson stated: “May G-d grant that every Jewish child be successful in his or her duties as a soldier in Tzivos Hashem, each rising to attain ever higher ranks in the army. May they, together with all of us, receive quickly in our time the greatest soldier of all, our righteous Moshiach. For nearly six millennium the world has been waiting for that auspicious moment. The time is near. The battle intensifies. The end draws close. And on that great and awesome day the Army of Hashem will once again ‘go out with a high hand’ and ‘kingship will be the L-rd’s.’” Tzivos Hashem: The Jewish Army, chabad.org.

⁵⁵ “Rabbi Moshe Perets is the founder and executive director of NoahideAcademy.org, the world’s largest website dedicated to information on Noahidism. Since 2016, he has managed the website of the Noahide Academy of Israel as part of the nonprofit organization “אור לעמים” (Light Unto the Nations). He completed his rabbinical studies at the Chabad Yeshiva in Brussels in 2011.” What is the Covenant of the Rainbow?, https://www.noahideacademy.org.

⁵⁶ The profile of the “Noahide Academy of Israel” Facebook page states: “The Noahide Academy in Jerusalem—Light Unto the Nations Global Group—is led by the Rabbinical Council of Israel for the Nations and offers teaching, training, and guidance to gentiles around the world.” Official website: www.noahideacademy.org.

⁵⁷ Rabbi Moshe Perets, Education and Sharing Day U.S.A. Implementation, “ipetitions,” ipetitions.com.

⁵⁸ Since 2016, the “Noahide Academy of Israel” has been officially registered in Israel as the non-profit association “Light Unto the Nations Global Group” (registration number 580619815).

⁵⁹ Rabbi Moshe Perets, Education and Sharing Day U.S.A. Implementation, op. cit.

⁶⁰ Ibid.

⁶¹ Ibid.

⁶² Ibid.

⁶³ Shaul Magid, op. cit.

⁶⁴ William Keenan, op. cit.

⁶⁵ The Trump family’s connection to the Lubavitcher movement dates back to his father Fred, as evidenced by a gift presented by the Chabad delegation to President Trump during an official visit to the White House on September 29, 2025: “The rabbis also brought a more personal gift: a replica of the plaque installed in the Beach Haven Jewish Center in Gravesend, Brooklyn, dedicated to the president’s father, Fred Trump. The original plaque, dated December 15, 1956, was placed in appreciation for Mr. Trump senior’s donation of land for the center, his financing of much of its construction, and his ongoing support of the synagogue. He was also remembered for extending kindness to many of his Holocaust survivor tenants, frequently allowing them to delay rent payments until they were able to pay.” Motti Wilhelm, “President Trump Hosts Oval Office Meeting with Chabad Rabbinical Delegation,” op. cit.

⁶⁶ In November 2024, Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner donated $1 million to the Chabad community in the United Arab Emirates in memory of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who was murdered in Abu Dhabi. See: Kushner brothers, Ivanka Trump, Karlie Kloss pledge $2 million to UAE Chabad after killing of Chabad rabbi/shaliach, “Jewish World,” jewishworldnews.org, December 5, 2024.

⁶⁷ Steve Witkoff Davened Yom Kippur at Chabad in Miami Beach, “COLlive,” collive.com, October 5, 2025.

⁶⁸ Ben Schreckinger, The Happy-Go-Lucky Jewish Group That Connects Trump and Putin, “Politico”, politico.com, April 9, 2017. See also: Cnaan Liphshiz and Talia Lavin, Is love or politics behind Putin’s promotion of Chabad?, “The Times of Israel”, timesofisrael.com, March 15, 2014.

⁶⁹ Yaakov Ort and Faygie Levy Holt, “Ukrainian President Meets with Chabad Rabbis Ahead of Rosh Hashanah,” chabad.org, September 14, 2023. Also: “Ukraine’s Jewish president-elect meets with Chabad rabbis,” “Australian Jewish News,” www.australianjewishnews.com, May 7, 2019.

⁷⁰ David Chase, Lech Walesa and the Rebbe’s Dollar, chabad.org.

⁷¹ Living Torah, Don’t Be Intimidated, April 19, 1988, chabad.org.

⁷² Leila Miller, “In Catholic Argentina, President Javier Milei has a rabbi — and likes talking about it,” “Los Angeles Times,” latimes.com, December 9, 2023.

⁷³ The Jewish religious network Chabad-Lubavitch, the link between Rama and Trump in the FBI files, Pamfleti, pamfleti.net, February 1, 2026.

⁷⁴ Joseph Strauss, Mamdani visits Chabad rebbe’s grave, increasingly a pilgrimage site for politicians, “The Times of Israel”, timesofisrael.com, December 17, 2025. 

⁷⁵ Rabbi Levi Shemtov is a prominent figure in Washington, D.C., often referred to as the “Rabbi of Capitol Hill.” He serves as Executive Vice President of the American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad) and acts as a key liaison between the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and the U.S. government.

⁷⁶ Zoe Bell, “Chabad Honors Palantir CEO, House Minority Leader With Lamplighter Awards,” *Washington Jewish Week*, https://www.washingtonjewishweek.com/, September 22, 2025.

⁷⁷ “The term Ohel (lit. ‘tent’) refers to the structure erected over the resting place of a Tzaddik, a righteous person.” Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch, https://www.ohelchabad.org/.

⁷⁸ President Trump Marks Oct. 7 With Prayer Visit to Ohel, chabad.org, October 7, 2024.

⁷⁹ FBI, Form FD-1023 (10/19/2020), sec. EFTA00000215 (“Epstein Files,” 01/30/2026), https://www.justice.gov/age-verify?destination=/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00090314.pdf

⁸⁰ FBI, Form FD-1023 (10/19/2020), sec. EFTA00000215 (“Epstein Files,” 01/30/2026), cit.

⁸¹ Ben Schreckinger, The Happy-Go-Lucky Jewish Group That Connects Trump and Putin, cit.

⁸² “A real estate company part-owned by Jared Kushner has received $90m in foreign funding from an opaque offshore vehicle since he entered the White House as a senior adviser to his father-in-law Donald Trump. Investment has flowed from overseas to the company, Cadre, while Kushner works as an international envoy for the US, according to corporate filings and interviews. The money came through a vehicle run by Goldman Sachs in the Cayman Islands, a tax haven that guarantees corporate secrecy”. Jon Swaine, Company part-owned by Jared Kushner got $90m from unknown offshore investors since 2017, “The Guardian,” https://www.theguardian.com/, 10 June 2019.

⁸³ FBI, Form FD-1023 (October 19, 2020), sec. EFTA00000215, cited p. 2.

⁸⁴ “According to the Jerusalem Post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ‘has long been a friend of the Kushners, and particularly Jared’s dad, Charles Kushner, a major donor to pro-Israel and Jewish causes.’” FBI memo concludes Trump 'compromised' by Israel, new Epstein Files show, “The Cradle”, https://thecradle.co/, 31 January 2026.

⁸⁵ Ken Kurson: a very close friend of Jared Kushner; he was the editor of The New York Observer (the newspaper owned by Kushner).

⁸⁶ In 2007, Kushner Companies purchased 666 Fifth Avenue for a record-breaking $1.8 billion, financed almost entirely by debt. When the 2008 real estate crash wiped out the building's cash flow, the family faced potential bankruptcy ahead of a massive debt maturity deadline in 2019. During Donald Trump’s presidential transition, the Kushners sought a bailout, initiating negotiations with China’s Anbang Insurance Group. This connection was facilitated by Henry Kissinger, who introduced Charles Kushner to Chinese Ambassador Cui Tiankai. After the Chinese option collapsed, the property was rescued in August 2018 by Brookfield Asset Management through a 99-year, $1.1 billion lease paid upfront. However, the deal sparked intense scrutiny over conflicts of interest; Brookfield’s primary financier was the Qatar Investment Authority, a sovereign wealth fund directly impacted by Middle East foreign policy overseen by Jared Kushner.

⁸⁷ FBI, Form FD-1023 (10/19/2020), sec. EFTA00000215 (“Epstein Files,” 01/30/2026), op. cit., p. 2.