Navonim - The Ramblings of Garnel Ironheart

Navonim - The Ramblings of Garnel Ironheart
BUY THIS BOOK! Now available on Amazon! IT WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE COMPLETE!

Tuesday 1 September 2009

A Supporting Word

(Thanks to CJ Srullowitz for the hat tip)

One of the recurring forms of criticism of the Chareidi world is that they do not sufficiently condemn the savages in frum clothing that are currently running riot in our holy Yerushalayim. However, as opposed to the craven apologetics of some folks, it is possible to find Orthodox voices community that are sick and tired of what's going on there. One of these voices is Rav Steven Pruzansky who, in his latest blog piece, not only unequivocally notes his disgust with the protestors but also explains how this sad situation has come about.
What I like best about the piece, however, is how is parallels my recent post on picking and choosing. It's always nice to know that someone else is thinking along the same lines as me (although Rav Pruzanky might not be so happy to discover that!):
Where a simple outsider sees “piety,” a more astute observer sees scrupulous observance of some Mitzvot and a wholesale disregard of others. The standard accusation against more modern Jews – that they “pick and choose” the mitzvot that suit them –applies with equal cogency to them: they may dress modestly, but many are public charges – violating the Talmudic mandate that one should “rather treat his Shabbat like a weekday than become dependent on public support.” They dutifully rest on Shabbat but treat its corollary – to “work for six days” – with disdain. They are close-knit but only within a narrowly-drawn circle; the concerns of other Jews, and love of other Jews, are not always readily apparent. If it were otherwise, they would not attempt to propagate their views by inconveniencing others, who are unsure of and uninterested in whatever point they are really making. Their study of Torah and observance of mitzvot are often punctuated by superstitions and irrational behavior that have no place among Torah Jews, including but not limited to fetishizing certain forms of dress. They can adopt every minority opinion – every stringency – except in the areas of Kavod habriyot, Ahavat Yisrael (respect for the dignity of others and the love of Jews), and several others as well.
Their attempt in that small enclave to re-create the European shtetl has succeeded, at least to the extent that they have duplicated the grinding poverty that typified European Jews when we ignore the mythology and the nostalgia. And it is poverty that – just like in Europe – has no escape, as the educational constraints they place on themselves deprive them of any realistic opportunity to better themselves economically. And, as I see it, that is the primary source of their discontent – not the secularism, the immodesty, the Zionism that surrounds them – but the happiness, the satisfaction, and the contentment that so many others derive out of life – especially the Torah life – that they are denied. Unable to contribute or even to discourse with others, their sole recourse is to stones, imprecations, and blockades. How sad… To be given an opportunity to re-create a fully-Jewish life in a land of Israel under Jewish sovereignty, and instead to squander it – in the process, antagonizing even other Torah Jews. Many are misguided, and to a great extent, misled by their leaders. And I am unaware of even one Jew who performed even one mitzva or avoided one sin as a consequences of a stone being hurled his way.

As I noted before, it's Elul. Yes, we all pick and choose but perhaps the first step towards genuine teshuvah is recognizing that and admitting our short comings with a resolution to try and do less of that in the coming year. Perhaps we cannot stop the chilul HaShem these primitives are committing for the world to see but in our personal lives we can still endeavour to commit as many acts of kiddush Hashem as we can to counteract them.

10 comments:

ysh said...

R. Pruzansky is not Chareidi. He's MO.

Mighty Garnel Ironheart said...

Noted and corrected. Thanks

CJ Srullowitz said...

Thanks for your comments on my blog and for the hat tip (would that be black or straw?)

I would not describe Rabbi Pruzansky, lulei demistafina, as MO or as Chareidi. He is very much in the mold of his rebbe (and mine) Rabbi Berel Wein, shlit"a, who I would describe as Classical Orthodox.

Mighty Garnel Ironheart said...

> would that be black or straw?

Baseball!

And I like your defintion of Rav Pruzansky. I wish more rabbonim out there were like that.

seekingJustice said...

Just a small thought on it. I recently contacted one of the more "frumer" family members of my husbands ex-wife in my desperate attempt to find peace. And I mentioned to that person the horrors of the Chilul Hashem that her relative had created. The answer was, and it blew me away, "there is so much Chilul Hashem that is going on in our community that one more does not change anything". And I suppose to forgive this person on Yom Kippur?

Mighty Garnel Ironheart said...

SeekingJustice,

1) That's a horrible answer! OMG, she really said that? Think about it, eh? "Yeah, I've mowed down 10 innocent people, who'll care if I take out no. 11"? Talk about the wrong attitude.

2) Yes, you are supposed to forgive her. Chazal tell us that one who overlooks the offense given by another gets his sins overlooked by Heaven as a reward. By forgiving, you not only gain Heavenly approval but the knowledge of moral superiority.

sharona said...

He makes a good point in the post that there are some people who are trying a make a good difference in that community. I agree with him that that's what they need, people on the inside helping to improve things.

Bezras Hashem, may individuals in their community keep making good improvements. And may we in general make good improvements on ourselves also :)

SeekingJustice said...

Dear Garnel,
I like your comment and cannot really be mad at people for long time - forgiveness is my middle name. BUT (there is a big BUT about it), after reading for the first time the court papers and what they did to my husband - I don't want to be even near the place where G-d will take his vengeance upon them. I don't think that they are even qualify for forgiveness, there are certain sins that there is no Mechila for on Yom Kippur.

Mighty Garnel Ironheart said...

SJ, I understand. But you have already identified the most important this - vengeance is for God to decide on. As hard as it is for us, we can't always know what the best course of action is.

We should all have a healthy and fulfilling set of upcoming holidays.

SeekingJustice said...

Thank you! I am working on it!