Fort Lauderdale, USA - A vacant McMansion in Victoria Park has become a Jewish religious attraction overnight, housing one of the holiest figures in the Jewish faith: the Grand Rebbe Meshulim Feish Lowy of Tosh, or just Rebbe Tosh.
While devotees drove miles to spend a few moments with the elderly, diminutive spiritual leader and to receive his blessing, some of the neighbors ran to the Internet to look up the Tosh sect. They begged City Hall for help, complaining about late-night stomping and moaning, loud music, crowds and cars.
"There is no doubt in our minds that the rabbi is a very spiritual man," resident Larry Eskesen wrote to his commissioner, " … but does he have to be spiritual so noisily?"
The clash came to a head this week.
City officials said no laws or codes are broken by the occasional spiritual meetings in the 6,800-square-foot home on Northeast 11th Avenue. Houses of worship — a church, or a synagogue — aren't allowed in Fort Lauderdale's residential neighborhoods. But officials said this appears to be a home where a spiritual leader lives, and his gatherings are akin to parties.
Some neighbors hoped the sect could be told to move its gatherings elsewhere. But the city won't be doing the telling, City Attorney Harry Stewart and Vice Mayor Charlotte Rodstrom advised.
Not lost on city leaders is what happened in Hollywood. That city tussled for years with the Chabad Lubavitch, which set up in a residential neighborhood.
"The Chabad is still there and Hollywood got tagged for $2 million," Stewart said.
Though not perfectly analogous, Cooper City was hit last fall with a jury verdict that it should pay $325,000 to Chabad of Nova for discriminating against the Orthodox Jewish synagogue by using zoning laws to keep it out of town.
And in the Indian Wells neighborhood west of Boynton Beach, neighbors fought unsuccessfully against members of the Anshei Chesed Congregation and their gatherings in a residential home.
A 2001 federal law, the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, empowered religious institutions in such battles. Stewart said they must be treated like any other group.
After researching the law and talking to an attorney, Victoria Park residents all but declared defeat this week.
At their monthly meeting Wednesday night, President Ted Fling told them "the courts are against us." He asked residents not to talk about it, lest they be sued.
In the past few weeks, their complaints hit City Hall, and code enforcers were dispatched. Lawyers were consulted. City officials were told someone played Nazi music so the Tosh visitors could hear it. Neighbors pleaded for help from their civic association. A secret meeting was held at a resident's house, with an attorney.
Finally on Tuesday, the city manager visited the house, and received the Rebbe's blessing. You could say the city manager gave the Rebbe the city's blessing, as well.
"When you have such a high-profile person visiting the city, you don't want them to feel unwelcome," George Gretsas said. " ... In Catholicism, it'd be like the pope."
Gretsas said he was concerned about the allegations of anti-Semitism.
"I wanted to make sure they knew that wasn't in the hearts of the city and that's not who the city is," said Gretsas, a devout Greek Orthodox Christian.
The Rebbe Tosh, born in 1921 in Hungary, isn't making Fort Lauderdale his new headquarters, but was here avoiding the Canadian winter. The house is for sale and neighbors think the sect is buying it as a retreat. The listing agent on the $1.5 million house, Ginene Boehm, said it's under contract but she couldn't disclose the buyer.
Tosh followers said Rebbe Tosh returned to his home base in Boisbriand, Quebec, on Wednesday, in preparation for Passover. No one's sure when he'll be back.