The celebrity fad that really counts

We are living in a material world, as Madonna pointed out. The fabric she favours these days, however, is red string, worn around the wrist – and it is a spiritual thing, don’t you know. The bracelet is a feature of kabbalah, a mystical branch of Judaism. “Followers believe it wards off bad karma,” explained the New York Post.

Take some religious education from the Sunday People. “Kabbalah is a mystical off-shoot of the Jewish faith and is based on their ancient books,” it explained. Adherents “believe in… kindness and patience to everything”. Over to the Daily Express: “It is a philosophical system that draws parallels between the creation of the universe and the Hebraic alphabet. It uses science and mathematics to explain the nature of God, angels and souls.”

Whatever it is, Madonna has been “spreading the good word” (NY Post). The latest recruit to what the Sun termed “the whole celebrity kabbalah cult” is Stella McCartney. “[She] has clearly been persuaded to become a devotee,” claimed the Daily Mail. “The fashion designer has been seen in Los Angeles and Paris wearing the red string bracelet that followers believe offers protection from evil spirits.”

Before Stella came Britney Spears. “She mimics the Material Girl every chance she gets,” sniped the Express. But Madonna’s trendsetting power extends beyond the celebrity world. “Throughout her public life – the sex and the sects – a generation of females have followed her peripatetic psyche,” noted the Washington Post.

But Madonna and friends’ new-found faith has not found favour with many rabbis. “The hijacking of the teachings by celebrities, and particularly the marketing of products bearing the kabbalah name, has driven Jewish leaders to despair,” said the Birmingham Sunday Mercury.

Apart from the bracelet, what does this faith entail? “Kabbalah followers have to chant, pray and meditate every day, drink blessed water and perform bizarre-sounding rituals,” said the Bristol Evening Post. “One includes swinging a chicken over your head to absorb negative energy.” The music video clearly beckons.

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