<!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1107304683 0 0 159 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:swiss; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1073750139 0 0 159 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:10.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} -->
The JW community are having a field day with this crap.
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach: Jackson 's death 'an American tragedy'
I just got off the phone with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the rockstar Rabbi who
was a close friend of the, as of a few hours ago, late Michael Jackson when
the two worked together on Heal the Kids.
"It is an American tragedy," Boteach said. "This guy could sing and dance -
he lived the American dream and this is the end of the story. This is not
what our values are supposed to be about."
"It was obvious what Michael always needed," the Rabbi continued. "He needed
connection with God, spirituality and family. Michael was a Jehovah's
Witness and when he was a Jehovah's Witness he was doing quite well, but
then he had a falling out with the church and that is when all these
problems began."
If you think it's surprising for a Rabbi to say that someone's problems
began after they were kicked out of a church, then you don't know Shmuley
Boteach, an Orthodox Rabbi in his one category.
Boteach hadn't spoken with Jackson in five years, having severed their
relationship when he no longer felt that he could help the troubled King of
Pop. But speaking by phone from Iceland , Boteach sounded heartbroken
talking about his old friend.
"To be honest," he told me. "I miss him. I know people saw him as a bad
person. But that wasn't true. He was a person with a lot of issues and sadly
he never addressed those issues. But he had a lot of good in him. He just
never overcame this toxic celebrity culture."
The Rabbi added that he had long feared this day was coming.
"When they announced these new concerts, I thought that was an omen. That
was a bad thing. Michael was going to have to train extensively for these
concerts, and from what I new of him, he was not in any mental frame of mind
to be doing concert," Boteach said.
"Michael didn't need more concerts; he didn't need more album sales. He
needed to rescue his life."