tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post2033235826821071265..comments2024-03-27T15:07:31.495-04:00Comments on <b><center>Unorthodox-Jew </center></b> <br><small>A Critical View of Orthodox Judaism</small>: Rosh Yeshivas--You Are Killing Our Children & GrandchildrenPaul Mendlowitzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887774341136059873noreply@blogger.comBlogger62125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-38245148068873093482014-05-23T00:26:41.862-04:002014-05-23T00:26:41.862-04:00I heard that Belsky ex father in law, rabbi Levin ...I heard that Belsky ex father in law, rabbi Levin that has been a rebbi for 40 years in telshe was told he should leave if he doesn't like it. This morning he had a heart attack and is in the hospital.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-80614324856686590862014-05-20T17:08:50.441-04:002014-05-20T17:08:50.441-04:00well belsky in Telz is just another atrocity these...well belsky in Telz is just another atrocity these telzers are doing. how do you keep a guy like that ? how can they ignore the fact he only had the job because he married the Rosh Yeshiva grand daughter ? how do you ignore his ex father in law a rebbi there for 40 years ??<br />we do know the "bus" for all the hundreds of Talmidim that were looking to come from Lakewood was canceled due to no sign ups, a few people that did go from lakewood were given tickets(payed for by ???) they also are taking all the boys from the mesivta and yeshiva to the dinner to try and fill it up !!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-65286982631812806452014-05-13T07:33:18.124-04:002014-05-13T07:33:18.124-04:00http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local/arti...http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local/article_bf169d9e-d53d-11e3-98c9-0019bb2963f4.html<br /><br />Is Tzvi Belsky crowing over real success or is there maybe a catch why so many people are flying in for the Telzer dinner, like is Rechnitz subsidizing airplane tickets?Executive Dreck-torhttp://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local/article_bf169d9e-d53d-11e3-98c9-0019bb2963f4.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-75679158231555843412014-05-09T10:54:37.221-04:002014-05-09T10:54:37.221-04:00UOJ thought he was making choyzek out of me but li...UOJ thought he was making choyzek out of me but little did he know that my favorite galich that I used to rub shoulders with is doch a meyuchess!<br /><br />http://nypost.com/2014/05/09/former-ny-archbishops-grandfather-was-likely-a-rabbi/<br /><br />Holy cow!<br /><br />John Cardinal O’Connor, the beloved late archbishop of New York, had a grandfather who was likely a rabbi and a kosher butcher.<br /><br />The astonishing revelation comes after a Long Island genealogist pulled century-old records to reveal the cardinal’s grandpa, Gustav Gumple, was listed the “second rabbi” at a synagogue in Bridgeport, Conn., The Jewish Week reported.<br /><br />Gumple worked at a “meat market” and may have also been a shochet — a worker trained and licensed to slaughter animals in a manner prescribed by Jewish law, according to the genealogist, Renee Steinig.<br /><br />Steinig was inspired to dig through old records — including 19th century Census data and Hamburg emigration papers — “out of curiosity” after the cardinal’s 87-year-old sister, Mary O’Connor Ward, learned recently their mother was born Jewish.<br /><br />She had converted to Catholicism at age 19 Chaim Dovid Zweibelhttp://nypost.com/2014/05/09/former-ny-archbishops-grandfather-was-likely-a-rabbi/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-67977016177224269782007-07-06T12:37:00.000-04:002007-07-06T12:37:00.000-04:00The Ramban provides the following ta'am for the ne...The Ramban provides the following ta'am for the negative mitzvah of esnan zonah= the prohibition of offering a sacrifice from kosher animals and or flour that was bartered for a prostitutes services: We didn't want to provide the prostitute with a rationalization for her sins and a salve for her conscience. We didn't want her to be able to say "Well I understand that it's not the kosher-ist way to earn a living but at least I'm doing it for a good cause".<BR/><BR/>There are Mafiosi who use their ill-gotten gains to build Basilicas and put their priest brother through seminary. Shouldn't Jewish philanthropists hew to a higher moral-ethical level?<BR/><BR/>Honoring these guys at dinners and through naming of buildings and Seforim editions after them sends the completely wrong message to our already under-secular-educated youth. To wit: "You can make it big time as a hustler and wheeler -dealer, even a totally dishonest one. Just as long as you give big money to good causes." What a deal! I can grow up to be a gonif-a BIG one- keep 80-90% of my ill-gotten gains to myself and live large. Just as long as I give 10-20% to the right causes.<BR/><BR/>Sick and perverse..really.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-18409762227320170052007-07-06T10:30:00.000-04:002007-07-06T10:30:00.000-04:00There are many elements of the YU model that are c...There are many elements of the YU model that are certainly worthwhile. Rabbi Schachter certainly stands out as a giant of Jewish thought and practice.<BR/><BR/>My intellect tells me that no one person has all the answers. Some have vast Torah knowledge, but no real-life experience and wisdom.<BR/><BR/>Some have wisdom but it is not rooted in reason.<BR/><BR/>Certainly, Fundamentalists' ideology, based on myth, usually without any shards of reason, need to be discarded.<BR/><BR/>In brief---choose your rav with the expectation that he is a flawed human like all of us. If something sounds unreasonable, generally speaking, it is. <BR/><BR/>And then of course...are the crooks and gangsters disguised in black.Paul Mendlowitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05887774341136059873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-59750813201504714612007-07-06T09:05:00.000-04:002007-07-06T09:05:00.000-04:00In your opinion, are there any "non-bogus" messeng...In your opinion, are there any "non-bogus" messengers at all? Can Orthodoxy continue in any way when it is morally leaderless?<BR/><BR/>Does the YU model perhaps present an alternative?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-84454145515991794862007-07-05T17:35:00.000-04:002007-07-05T17:35:00.000-04:00So here is my question to UOJ:What people or insti...So here is my question to UOJ:<BR/><BR/>What people or institutions are left in this religion to believe in? For UOJ, what existential alternative is there to atheism? <BR/><BR/>----------------<BR/><BR/>I find myself in the Torah and its relevance to us as a people and a society, not in the bogus messengers that are destroying the beauty of our Mesorah. I find myself very much alone. I'm not certain what lies ahead for the future of the Jews as a viable religion. Orthodoxy turning radically right is no different than Fundamentalists in any other faith...Christian or Islam. The world can not survive as a civilization should they prevail!Paul Mendlowitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05887774341136059873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-20622350894606785292007-07-05T14:58:00.000-04:002007-07-05T14:58:00.000-04:00I have an existential question for UOJ.This partic...I have an existential question for UOJ.<BR/><BR/>This particular thread, as well as the entire blog, on one level resonates strongly. <BR/><BR/>On the other hand, the criticism is so ferocious and un-nuanced that credibility is strained. According to this blog, virtually all contemporary gedolim are complicit in covering up crimes of sexual predators, gladly sending them off with glowing recommendations to "other" yeshivos. The Yeshiva system itself is corrupt to the core: nothing less than a conspiracy by the greatest gedolim to impoverish an entire generation while their nepotism enriches their own families. Revered gedolim of the previous generation are equally as guilty. (After all, who is the present Rosh Yeshiva of MTJ?). <BR/><BR/>So here is my question to UOJ: what people or institutions are left in this religion to believe in? For UOJ, what existential alternative is there to atheism?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-37308381883169032302007-07-02T14:19:00.000-04:002007-07-02T14:19:00.000-04:00http://averagejew.blogspot.com/As an average jew l...http://averagejew.blogspot.com/<BR/><BR/>As an average jew living in Brooklyn and davening at one of the local shtiblach I have seen the progression of the yeshiva world rightward over the last two decades. Other than the annoying chumra du jour, it doesn't really affect my life. However, I find the axiomatic rejection of secular education problematic as a long term strategy for a sustainable and healthy community. When I was in high school in the 80's, the Rabbeim and yeshiva did not emphasize the importance of basic competency in secular subjects. This has progressed to the extent that a secular education is viewed as undesirable in some circles. The emphasis on learning to the exclusion of all other endeavors has resulted in a financial reliance on parents well into young adulthood without providing the basic tools for self reliance. While the emphasis on Torah learning is understandable and has resulted in more sophisticated halachic knowledge and observance it has resulted in a community with an impending financial crisis that will not be resolved by bitachon alone. There is currently an astounding amount of poverty within the Frum community. This is sure to get worse in the near future as the Baby Boomer parents age and are unable to support their children's families. The children will then be unable to support themselves adequately, resulting in decreased shalom bayis and the attendant risks of divorce and traumatized grandchildren. It will also result in less support for torah institutions, more financial strain on the community at large to support the unemployed and in the end, a backlash against the leaders of our community who encouraged the philosophy of learning without a long term plan. It is likely that the next generation will not have the luxury of learning rather than working. They may even reject the notion due to the trauma they endured as children which they will associate with a learning lifestyle. Even mature children who recognize the underlying ideals will feel uncomfortable with a learning lifestyle if they associate it with a lack of security at a young age.<BR/>It is difficult to advocate decreasing the emphasis on learning when it is the ultimate goal of every jew. It is even more difficult for our leaders to do so in a public setting given the importance of learning in our lives. However, it is their responsibility to do so. I recently became aware of an incident 10 years ago in which a major brooklyn institution was prepared to offer two tracks, one that was exclusively learning and one that allowed one day a week for vocational training. The details had been arranged. The individual spearheading the program was threatened by a major torah personality that if he put the program into effect, the torah personality would ensure that his children never got married. The reasoning was that one of these children who would have become a Rosh Yeshiva would become an auto mechanic instead. I find this attitude counterproductive and heartless. Presumably, any Rosh Yeshiva would sacrifice his own learning to save hundreds of families from poverty. In addition, you seldom find Roshei Yeshiva who could have been auto mechanics. People tend to be one or the other. It is the responsibility of the torah leadership to look out for all jews in every aspect of their lives. The number of hours spent learning is just part of the picture. The fact that this is not the pre-eminent issue among the Gedolei Hatorah and the community at large is a condemnation of our concern for our fellow jew. We are not concerned enough about people,families, children, to address this issue seriously and to solve it before it becomes an unmitigated disaster. And time is running out.<BR/>I started this blog in an effort to discuss this issue in a socially acceptable manner, and to organize a grass-roots effort to have it addressed formally and publicly by our leaders,to force them to formulate a workable strategy for sustainable growth in learning and fulfillment in yiddishkeit for the next fifty years.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-91515000473904992972007-07-02T12:32:00.000-04:002007-07-02T12:32:00.000-04:00Our son-in-law stayed in Yeshivah for over 21 year...Our son-in-law stayed in Yeshivah for over 21 years, subsequently got his GED, was accepted at Law School without a formal secular undergraduate degree and is today a successful practicing attorney.<BR/><BR/>What's wrong with such a scenario?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-34087990374913946062007-07-02T00:07:00.000-04:002007-07-02T00:07:00.000-04:00I recently taught "secular studies" (which should ...I recently taught "secular studies" (which should be called "parnassah necessities") in a local "Talmud Torah" with a long and distinguished history. I was shocked to discover how far behind all of the students were in their reading, math, and writing skills. Their proudest accomplishments are the large numbers of teachers they have driven from the classroom through a combination of rude, rebellious, and passive-aggressive behaviors. The "Rabbeim" stand by and do nothing. (Shtikah k'hoda'a, DUMMIE!) The parents who want to see change are stonewalled or browbeaten into submission. The students who want to learn are frustrated and are being denied an adequate education.<BR/><BR/>In the coming years, without remedial education, many of these boys will be incapable of finding economically sufficient employment outside the "yeshivishe velt." <BR/>Too few people are asking the question, "Who is going to support 'the Velt' in the future?" Tragically, I see a great economic collapse looming within the "frum" community, and the people who run the system are not only doing nothing about it, they are bringing it about through their attitude toward "secular studies." When will they realize the damage they are doing?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-4073062718388970552007-07-01T10:51:00.000-04:002007-07-01T10:51:00.000-04:00your right on target uoj keep it upyour right on target uoj keep it upAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-30711456177133654932007-07-01T01:22:00.000-04:002007-07-01T01:22:00.000-04:00"Gimpel" Wollmark was involved with Belsky and Per..."Gimpel" Wollmark was involved with Belsky and Peretz Steinberg in the bittul kiddushin scam.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-51211936041440308492007-06-29T01:19:00.000-04:002007-06-29T01:19:00.000-04:00Up in Monsey Ir Hakoidish you see exactly what a f...Up in Monsey Ir Hakoidish you see exactly what a few bucks can do when a stam bochur marries a PHD, Pappa Has Dough...you can buy my tatties' Yeshiva! Check out Shaarei Torah. Could there be a bigger schmuck than Wollmark? I mean, this guy couldn't teach a dog to sniff its own nuts before Old Man Wolfson laid some gelt on the table. Morty would be picking his dandruff off his shoulder in the back of the beis medrish if he hadn't tapped the mother load. Honestly, the smartest part of Mordechai Wollmark became a stain on a bedsheet about nine months before his bris. And he has access to untold lives to destroy, which is actually the one thing he's really good at. Keep on keepin on UOJ, you DA MAN!!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-38825971999080986862007-06-28T17:25:00.000-04:002007-06-28T17:25:00.000-04:00That's exactly the brainwashing/cultist ideology t...That's exactly the brainwashing/cultist ideology that "they" succeeded with people like yourself. Some of the best and brightest former yeshiva guys, including myself, see it for what it really is/became.<BR/><BR/>Therefore the outrage; a beautiful system run amok with thieves and bogus ideologies.Paul Mendlowitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05887774341136059873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-44177655037727027262007-06-28T17:17:00.000-04:002007-06-28T17:17:00.000-04:00Unbelievable blog. In my experience, the level of ...Unbelievable blog. In my experience, the level of cynicism and bitterness some people feel toward the "yeshiva velt", is directly proportional to the lack of personal success they experienced within that system. Logically speaking, the yeshiva world is in no way more corrupt or plagued with problems than any other society. This indicates that personal insecurity and perhaps a subtle inferiority complex is the driving emotion in blogs such as these. My advice: do as I do; attempt to maintain a personal relationship with the noisen torah, and cleanse yourself of festering and self-destructive feelings about the yeshivish. shykeeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-19791188724357570422007-06-28T07:17:00.000-04:002007-06-28T07:17:00.000-04:00http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom...http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/2007/06/chabad-takes-ma.html<BR/><BR/>Anything new in Chicagoland with Jacob Perlow's shvogger Eichenstein?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-9308211774793598502007-06-28T07:12:00.000-04:002007-06-28T07:12:00.000-04:00Heilman, give it up. No one takes your babbling se...Heilman, give it up. No one takes your babbling seriously except a few of the freshmen at Queens College, Gary Rosenblatt and the NY Times.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-50396629331043342782007-06-28T01:23:00.000-04:002007-06-28T01:23:00.000-04:00As someone whose late husband was one of those all...As someone whose late husband was one of those allergic-to-gainful-employment guys, I can assure you that there's nothing noble or uplifting about living on peanut butter for six weeks at a time. All this extreme poverty does is foster a latent hatred for the "god" who supposedly wants you to live this way. Figuring out I didn't have to buy that line of garbage was one of the most liberating experiences of my life - but so many others are still trying to live in fantasy land that it will take a serious economic upheaval to change anything - and even then the casualties will far outnumber the survivors.<BR/><BR/>And yes, it will be in our lifetime - it is nearly upon us now. The price of oil has nowhere to go but up (china and india certainly aren't going to stop their expansion and development for the sake of the American public, much less the orthodox communities). The saudis are pumping seawater into the oil fields to flush out more crude as fast as they can, but production still dropped over 6% last year and will continue to drop from this point forward. Ditto Mexico, etc. <BR/><BR/>We are only at the tip of the iceburg in the housing bubble meltdown, too, so what little equity we think we have we actually don't - aside from the inevitable doubling of the price of gasoline. And with that goes the price of food, medicine, transportation, and even clothing - and any household good made from plastic. <BR/><BR/>Most families are on the brink as it is - there isn't any room for all these price increases. These young men are contributing nothing to the economic well-being of their wives and children, parents and extended families, their shuls and children's schools, or the community at large. Instead, the Rabbis are bleeding them dry and living like high rollers while the families of the young men are near bankruptcy. It has to stop. The young men must learn trades and skills and crafts so that our communities can be self-sufficient for all our needs - personal items, household items, and items for the welfare of the community, as well as professional white-collar jobs that actually serve the people instead of just being fraud funnels and "unconventional" accountants for the Rabbis scams. <BR/><BR/>I don't know how it can be done, but if this too-good-to-work attitude doesn't change and the young men step up and accept their God-given role to support their families, it's going to be a bloodbath. And it's all the Rabbis fault.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-55621995026122784272007-06-27T22:16:00.000-04:002007-06-27T22:16:00.000-04:00The differences between active and quiescent funda...The differences between active and quiescent fundamentalism, two stages of the phenomenon, help explain developments among contemporary Orthodox Jewry, which is also divided along these lines.<BR/><BR/> Included in the former category are Orthodox Jewish settlers in the Land of Israel as well as Chabad Hasidim who are on a mission to transform Jewish life. Those who make up haredi Jewry, and in particular those in the world of the yeshivas, constitute the latter category. The year of yeshiva study spent in Israel by young Orthodox Jews from America plays an important role in shaping these categories. <BR/><BR/>The fundamentalist view is that there is a single truth, that the people who share this truth are tied in an unbroken chain to the past, and that this truth is not limited to the private domain but can and should be imposed on the public square. This truth is articulated as fundamentals of the faith, which must be practiced or believed if one is truly to be among God's defenders.<BR/><BR/>Of course, despite the fundamentalist assertion that these essentials are tied to tradition, and often demanded by an inerrant text, fundamentalism reinvents that past by selectively retrieving from it those elements that challenge alternative truths that are offered by contemporary culture. As such it constitutes a kind of counterculture and society. Fundamentalism is therefore often engaged in an intense battle against forces in the contemporary world that, in its view, seek to undermine or to defile the world as it sees it. <BR/><BR/>This culture war can essentially be conducted in two different modes. One can be called active fundamentalism, in which the battle is waged aggressively, taken to the enemy who is to be completely obliterated. Sometimes fundamentalists become active because they believe they have no choice. The enemy is at their gates and about to enter into and defile their world; they cannot keep the enemy out and so they are forced to fight back. Other times they become intensely engaged in the culture war because they think the enemy has been weakened and this is an opportunity to finally, apocalyptically, liquidate those forces that oppose the truth. <BR/><BR/>A second phase of fundamentalism is its quiescent or passive stage. Adherents believe they are in possession of the truth that will ultimately triumph and dominate the public square but for the moment must remain in protected waiting. Although the alternative ways of living are seductive and dangerous, these quiescent fundamentalists argue, they are ultimately doomed. All true believers have to do is to insulate themselves from becoming defiled until that judgment day, when history will right itself as stated in the prophecies of the inerrant text. The key is to remain behind a wall of virtue, protected, waiting for the day that all true believers know is coming and for whose signs they are constantly on guard. <BR/><BR/>Whether quiescent or active, cultural and social struggle is at the heart of fundamentalism.<BR/>There must be an enemy. Fundamentalists are much better at fighting against something than at simply defining what it is they stand for.<BR/><BR/>And that is why they often thrive precisely where they can perceive themselves as surrounded by enemies. The promise of a better time is always easier to live with than the need to deliver on the promise when the time has come, as the fundamentalist regimes that come to power soon discover. <BR/><BR/>Hence, it is not surprising that at least in the case of Jewish fundamentalism, one finds its adherents in two of the most visible precincts of secularity and modernity: the United States and especially New York, as well as the modern state of Israel. In both these locales, the enemy and the counterculture are quite close and visible. <BR/><BR/>Active fundamentalists among the Jews have largely been confined to those religiously inclined messianists who believe that through a particular set of activities they can hasten the day of redemption. For some these activities mainly involve religiously settling what they consider the biblical Land of Israel. Having elevated this "commandment" above nearly all the other 612, they are convinced that by doing so they are being true to the fundamentals of Judaism. Their conviction that this activity not only sets them apart from Jews who have hopelessly compromised God's will but also is indispensable for righting history and saving the world often places them in opposition to the rest of Jewry, whose Judaism is more complex and less essentialist. This is the fundamentalism of the religious bloc that once called themselves Gush Emunim. For these Jews any compromise in settlement activities, especially within the territories conquered in 1967, is tantamount to retarding the redemption and a propaedeutic to Jewish destruction. For them nothing more than settlement in the Holy Land, particularly when accompanied by religious faith and practice, is a full expression of Judaism. This activity is fundamental for assuring Jewish continuity. <BR/><BR/>There are other active fundamentalists for whom the redemption can be hastened not by settlements but by acts of Jewish ritual activity. For these fundamentalists, Judaism is boiled down not to the need to establish settlements in the God-promised land but to the practice of a set of ritual acts - lighting Sabbath candles, donning phylacteries, giving charity, and so on - whose performance by all Jews - and in some cases also by non-Jews - will hasten the day of the Messiah's return and hence the redemption. This is the approach of Chabad Lubavitch. For them the religious transformation of the nonobservant and secular Jews into Lubavitcher Hasidim as well as the assurance that the "Seventy Nations" - that is, the non-Jewish world - abides by the seven Noahide commandments is the key mission of Judaism.<BR/><BR/>Both these groups are engaged in an active struggle to bring about as soon as possible the time of redemption, a utopian messianic age, and to dominate the public square with their beliefs and practices. They believe they are absolutely right in their emphases, that God is on their side and abetting their activities, that they are fulfilling His commandments as presented in holy writ, and that history is close to the day of judgment and the "first flowers of redemption," when the world - and particularly those who currently fail to see the truth in this way - will recognize that they are right. They are often willing to challenge the status quo and engage in world-transforming activities, regardless of the this-worldly consequences. For these active fundamentalists, the world is divided in a Manichean way between those who are joined with them and those who are their opponents. The fact that they see enemies nearby, both from within and without, only encourages them to continue in the struggle and trust that history will vindicate their efforts. <BR/><BR/>Quiescent fundamentalists also believe that the world will someday learn the truth. They too emphasize certain essentials of the faith. But they are ready to wait patiently. In the meantime, they build the walls of their fortress, remain within their enclaves, and construct a corps of believers and defenders of the faith. This is largely the strategy of the haredi world. They too see themselves in a struggle, but most consists of keeping the secular, contemporary, seductive West at bay. This is a society that has used the yeshiva as its instrument of choice, raising study in it and life around its strictures and leaders to the highest level. <BR/><BR/>The yeshiva is viewed as a protective and insulated environment in which Torah Judaism can grow. Secular learning is regarded as not having particular ontological value; it may have pedagogic value of a very limited sort. Those who abandon yeshiva life or are unwilling to support it are portrayed as Jews who contribute to the undoing of Judaism at worst and as hopeless compromisers who have endangered Jewish continuity at best. The quiescent fundamentalist Jews who are, in contrast, willing to make the material sacrifice and embrace what one haredi rabbi called the "heroic retreat" from concerns and entanglements, to be in contemporary society but not caught up by it, are the ones who assure Jewish continuity.<BR/><BR/> Fundamentalism is essentially an illness of the mind, regardless of the "religion".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-36705402196351197962007-06-27T21:52:00.000-04:002007-06-27T21:52:00.000-04:00Prof. Heilman, Is there really a difference betwee...Prof. Heilman, <BR/><BR/>Is there really a difference between Chassidic or, to a lesser extent, Yeshivish Judaism, and Wahabi Islam?<BR/><BR/>Yes, we don't preach death cults because it isn't in the nature of the religion (save for Amalek) but what really distinguishes the isolationism of extremist Islam with the close-minded beliefs of Chasidic Judiasm, as it pertains to interaction with the outside world.<BR/><BR/>Do you ever watch the HBO 'Big Love'? Can't you envision the polygamy sect leader (Roman) as the Chasidic Rebbe or the Rosh HaYeshiva, whose distorted, antiquated view of religion is shunned by all but a few of his followers?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-39098700013728275772007-06-27T19:57:00.000-04:002007-06-27T19:57:00.000-04:00The complexity of Judaism is lost; the contributio...The complexity of Judaism is lost; the contributions of general culture are often denied. The only concerns are those that are the fundamentals of the faith. Whether this guarantees the continuity of Judaism and the Jewish people is of course subject to debate. The Jewish people has throughout the millennia of its existence managed both to retain some key elements of its identity while also adapting to the societies and cultures in which it found itself. That ability to rebuild and recreate itself was what allowed a people that began as a Temple cult and became a people of books to survive exile and dispersion. It was nothing less than the capacity to be different in different times and places, even as it remained attached to a covenant and a history, that enabled the Jews to endure. To those who argue today that all this complexity can be devolved into a few fundamentals, one can only say time will tell. If one considers what has happened to the rich culture of Islam as it has devolved into Islamist fundamentalism as a model, the Jews who espouse this option would do well to rethink their strategy.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-90217557396823298492007-06-27T17:36:00.000-04:002007-06-27T17:36:00.000-04:00Harry misses the objective,In a dark, evil, and cr...Harry misses the objective,<BR/><BR/>In a dark, evil, and cruel world - playing nice with words doesn't exactly achieve great results.<BR/><BR/>The mean spiritedness, blurring of the truth, hiding of the facts, and bullying of abuse victims in Jewish circles, deserve a harsh and bold response. Especially the denials and threats from the rabbinical faculty - because all they're really interested in doing is saving their own behinds. <BR/><BR/>They have interior motives and interests to preserve, and I assure ever Harry out there that they care not one iota about the victims they leave in their<BR/>paths. <BR/><BR/>As far as using expletives and detailed and graphic language concerning sexual abuse by UOJ - That's just the nature of the beast. People's ears perk up more when they experience a strong conviction of moral belief - even if swearing and cursing, and a certain sense of ugliness is portrayed in the process. <BR/><BR/>At the end you have to ask yourself this question. Which would you rather have - a nivel peh, brutally honest and caring individual who genuinely cares about Judiasim and our future generations - OR<BR/><BR/>A masquerade of so called talmidei chachomim and Rabonim who speak in an erliche and nice tone of voice who lie constantly to your face when they claim they TRULY CARE ABOUT YOUR CHILD WHO WAS SEXUALLY ABUSED.<BR/><BR/>You like nice words, read a nice Kosher book, You want great results for our future generations, read this blog and pass it on to your friends.<BR/><BR/>UOJ and others DO give a shi*t about Klal Yisroel, Can't say that about Harry and the gedolim!<BR/><BR/>''' Unforgiven '''Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21519732.post-3368396459608876932007-06-27T16:46:00.000-04:002007-06-27T16:46:00.000-04:00"OUJ you are right on the money. Keep making them ..."OUJ you are right on the money. Keep making them fear you...one day soon they will wake up...."<BR/><BR/>Keep dreaming, dude. <BR/><BR/>Let's look at the fact: Are there any individuals in their 20's that are productive members of society that still live in the yeshivish world? I can't think of any that I know of though I'm sure there must be some (more likely outside NYC, where the need to integrate with others is greater due to the smaller yeshivaish communities). The lack of social skills and xenophobic 'better-than-everyone-else' culture that these yeshivas foster leads to two possible outcomes: either you stay in the community and flounder or you leave the community and succeed. Those that leaves are denigrated as deserters to the cause of Torah. <BR/><BR/>There's no reason for the heads of these schools to wake up. So long as they are able to use peer pressure to perpetuate silly ideas and take religious extremism to new heights, these yeshivas will only get stronger while the middle ground of people who work and follow black-hat Judaism shrinks. As the baby boomer generation - those who grew up with more contact with the real world as a function of the economic necessity of the community of the day ( i.e. post-war survivors that were too busy trying to make a living to worry about religious trivialities that are today's rage) - ages and gets replaced by a new breed of Jewish leaders that have no real education or leadership skills because they've lived in a bubble, the power that the Roshei Yeshivas wield will only grow stronger. The heads of the schools will be relied on because the leaders will understand, deep down, that they don't have the capabilities to adequately direct the community in the right path. The doctor or lawyer or investor that acts a lay leader today will die out and be replaced by the children of these lay leaders - many of whom were taught to be risk-averse students of halacha, catering to the whims of their parents, who dreamed that they had the opportunity to have done the same. And as these individuals need to distinguish themselves in some way, shape, or form, new methods of isolationism will emerge - new takanas that didn't exist will spring up and peer pressure will dictate that the new takana represents the true way of the Torah. <BR/><BR/>Eventually, the madness will end. It will probably be through economic necessity -- a culture that looks down at a strong work ethic and a secular education cannot possibly survive in perpetuity - but I don't think it will happen in our lifetimes. Only once individuals are forced to deal with common sense in order to feed their families will a return to normalcy pervade. Until then, this is what the yeshivaish world is going to have to learn to live with.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com