The Guardian has a look at Madonna’s nano obsessed new age Rabbi Philip Berg, who would probably be a worthy target for THRONG. The idea of two sets of rival angels brawling in the street over something neither of them understand has a certain Pyhonesque appeal.
According to this latest investigation, Berg has filled his version of Kabbalah with scientific terminology (quantum physics, nanotechnology, electrons, atoms, cosmology), to the embarrassment of those around him. “He never knew what he was talking about, and I cringed and begged him to stop,” says an old acquaintance.
He hasn’t: he now uses “science” to explain the potency of the Kabbalah water sold by the KC (£3.95 for a 1.5 litre bottle). This water (two bottles of which have been tested by the Guardian and have been found by a lab to be completely ordinary when reasonably fresh, and to contain some bacteria and fungi when a year old) was declared by Berg to have miraculous antiradiation properties; large quantities, he said, had been emptied into a lake in Chernobyl to clear the area of contamination. At shabbat services, participants were told to chant the word “Chernobyl” to show their faith in this mission. It is now sold as a “cure” for cancer, ageing and other conditions. The water is said to come from a spring in Canada, and its miraculous properties are supposed to be due to a special meditation performed by the Rav.
Well, theres one born every minute, and its an age old trick to baffle people with science and/or mysticism in order to make a buck. Not understanding either is no hindrance when it comes to making a fast buck.