Angry at God, for possibly not existing?

I once posted about the intellectual mind f*** that newly minted skeptics go through - OJ can't be true, but it must be true, but it can't be true, but it must be true and so on, 24*7. After a while that abates, and you (probably) realize that a) it is highly unlikely to be true and b) apart from practical personal considerations (which may be huge) it doesn't actually matter very much.

However when it comes to God, I think it's a different story. I can accept that OJ isn't true, it doesn't even make much of a difference to my life. I'm fine being Orthoprax, and my community is LWMO anyway.

But if God doesn't exist then what's the point of anything? Sure, I'll still be a good person (actually I'll still be the exact same person I am now), but there doesn't seem much point to going the extra mile. Rather, I'll spend any additional energy on making the most out of this life. I guess there are some people for whom going the extra mile IS making the most out of this life. But me, not so much. On the other hand, if God does exist, then it seems reasonable to me that maybe things do matter in some ultimate way (afterlife please!), and so it's worth trying to be extra good. At least a little. Sometimes.

But trying to figure out whether God exists or not is a bit of a waste of time, since there's absolutely no evidence or credible arguments. Plus the whole concept is incomprehensible anyways. There are always arguments, but for a skeptic what it really boils down to is being open to believe, or not, which is really more about emotion than anything rational.

I think there are a number of options here:

1. Accept that God possibly might not exist, but maintain a type of Pascal's wager. Since He might exist, you should be good. Maybe not as good as you would be if you knew for sure that He exists, but good enough so that if it does turn out that He exists, you aren't in too much trouble. And while doing all that, make the most out of this life cos that's possibly (probably) all you're ever going to get. However, davening to a possibility is difficult.

2. Try and convince yourself (through whatever means possible) that God actually exists. Go to Aish seminars, Gateway Weekends, or hang out with inspirational God infused individuals. Whatever it takes to convince (brainwash) yourself. I'm sure it can be done. Just like that anti-homosexual therapy.

3. Convince yourself that God does not exist. Read Dawkins, Hitchens, or hang out with inspirational Atheists. This is probably easier than number 2.

4. Set aside the question of whether He exists or not, and throw yourself into secular ethics - the type that don't depend on a God to make you want to be good. I don't really understand how they work, but I guess they do, at least for some people. Maybe it's got something to do with the evolutionary driven motivation to be altruistic. (Or maybe as according to some misninformed skeptics, it's absolutely logical and rational to be altruistic - LOL).

5. Get angry at God for possibly not existing. Just like you got angry at the Chareidim when you realized that Moshe wasn't 20 feet tall. Or when you got angry at the MO when you realized that Orthodoxy is in fact NOT compatible with Modernity. Or when you got angry at Jacobs and Heschel because at the end of the day, there was absolutely no basis for their beliefs either.

6. Wait for a sign from God. After all, there are people who say they got a sign. It could be anything. And it doesn't have to be anything which would convince anyone else. I mean, I don't want to cause a massive problem in shifting the nekudas habechirah too much. But just a sign for me. Would that be too difficult? A lot of people have gotten signs. Even a near death experience (with full and immediate recovery) would be ok. As long as it contained one of those tremendous life altering type experiences. So you'll say God can't give signs. But why not? Let's say the sign only convinced the one person, and everyone else wasn't convinced for whatever reasons. What's wrong with that? So you'll say it takes away your bechirah. But so does indoctrinating your children from a young age. How is that ANY different? In fact, the ENTIRE point of our Chinuch system IS to take away our kid's bechirah when it comes to our fundamentalist beliefs. Really, I think that for a skeptic who has exhausted every avenue, a sign would be quite appropriate. Why wouldn't God give a sign to such a person? Could be He doesn't care if you believe in Him or not. Could be He doesn't actually exist. Or could be He's got some cheshbon. You can't question God. I guess you should be grateful you're alive, and not in the terminal ward or a concentration camp. And if you are in the terminal ward, as many of you eventually will be, well, I guess you'll worry about that then.

So which option will I take? I think I'll start with 6, and daven for a sign. If I get one, all well and good. If not, I'll try 4 (and probably 5 at the same time). If that don't work I'll go for 2, and when that fails I'll probably stick with 1. And then I'll repeat that cycle every few days ad meah ve'esrim (or bias Hamoshiach, whichever comes first), please God.

The Year of the Fire

Adapted from here.

The Year of The Fire
by David A. Linn

A college student infiltrates and exposes an Orthodox cult.

Rich Maisel was your typical Jewish teenager growing up on New York's Long Island in the early 1980s. He had a strong Jewish identity, was a supporter of Israel, and was active in many Jewish social causes. Jesus worshipping, though, wasn't really part of the equation.

Like many other Long Island high school graduates, Rich registered at the State University of New York at Albany (SUNYA). Freshman year for Rich at SUNYA passed fairly uneventfully. He was doing well enough in his studies, had part-time jobs at the kosher cafeteria and teaching Hebrew school in the local Reform temple, and he was making new friends. During his sophomore year, Rich was elected president of the university's Reform Jewish student group. At the same time, an Orthodox Jewish outreach group called "The Fire of Torah" opened in Albany.

DECEPTION AND SLICK MARKETING

The Fire, like all Orthodox Jewish outreach groups, used deception and slick marketing to appeal to uninformed Jews, attempting to convince them that the best type of Jew is one who believes in Torah Min Hashamayim and keeps Halachah. The Fire’s public functions and services were drawing increasing numbers, and somehow it had even succeeded in having one of its fellow believers hired as a Hebrew school teacher at the local Conservative synagogue.

All of this raised the ire of Chaim Feinberg, z"l, a young, fiery Messianic Jew living in Albany's small Messianic community. He brought his concerns to Scott Moskowitz, an active member of the Messianic Jewish student's group at SUNYA. Scott, in turn, raised the issue with Rich and suggested that they endeavor to find a non-Jewish student to join the Fire to investigate its inner workings and tactics.

But finding a non-Jew willing to take the risks involved in such an endeavor was no easy feat. And so Rich boldly volunteered to accept the job himself. "While I don't know much about Jewish law," he said, "I've heard of the concept of saving lives, pikuach nefesh. Doesn't this job fall into that category?"

Unsure of what to do, Moskowitz asked Rich to speak with Chaim Feinberg about his proposal.

Rich called Feinberg, who immediately expressed his misgivings. After a lengthy discussion, however, Feinberg softened to the idea, but was not willing to make a decision on his own. There were many thorny moral issues involved in the proposal, such as exposing Rich to fundamentalism and the attendance of The Fire’s functions on weekends. Feinberg spoke with a renowned spiritual leader. After clarifying the issues and gaining his support, he called Rich.

"Okay, Rich, we can move forward with the plan. But," Feinberg cautioned, "there will be strict ground rules that you'll have to follow throughout the process." These rules included the instruction that Rich was not to take a single move without Feinberg's approval, and that after each meeting with The Fire, Rich would need to sit and learn with Feinberg as a sort of deprogramming. Rich readily agreed to the rules, hung up, and promptly broke the first rule: he called Rabbi Birnbaum, the leader of The Fire, directly.

INFILTRATING THE SONS

During that first phone call, Rich and Rabbi Birnbaum spent two hours talking. Rich laid the bait: he was lonely, Albany was so gloomy, everybody was so materialistic, he was a twice-a-year Jew who yearned for more spirituality. Birnbaum did not just take the bait, he gobbled it up voraciously. He told Rich that he knew exactly how he felt since he, too, had attended college in Albany.

Birnbaum asked, "Do you have a Bible?" Rich responded affirmatively and Birnbaum instructed him to open it to the Book of Deuteronomy. Birnbaum then attempted to "show" Rich how the Tanach speaks of Torah Misinai and explained to him that not believing in that makes someone "un-Jewish." In fact, Birnbaum explained, believing in Torah MiSinai made a Jew "complete."

After hanging up, Rich excitedly called Feinberg to advise him of the call. Feinberg was irate. After all, Rich had broken his agreement not to take any steps without Feinberg's consent. At the same time, Feinberg saw in Rich a bit of his own passion and, deep down, he knew that they had the right guy for the job.

And so, now fully cognizant of the importance of following Feinberg's rules, Rich began to attend The Fire’s services. He was embraced with warmth by his "fellow members." They were enthused to share their love of Torah and their common Jewish roots, and they were thrilled by Rich's musical ability.

Rich quickly became a stalwart of The Fire community. Before long, he was bar-mitzvahd, crowned with a yarmulke, and became a "baal teshuvah." Eventually he gained "spiritual growth," and the other members of the group believed that he was on a high madreigah, and that his prayers to Hashem were special. With each "spiritual growth," Rich rose higher in the ranks of The Fire until he became an Orthodox Kiruv worker himself.

Throughout this time, Rich maintained a full credit load at the university and continued to lead Hillel's Reform group, teaching Hebrew school and working in the campus kosher kitchen. Nearly everyone, including his parents, family, and friends, remained unaware of Rich's double life.

Rich was in constant contact with Feinberg, nearly matching hour for hour the time he spent with The Fire -- deprogramming, learning together, and reporting on the tactics, inner workings, and funding structure of the Fire. At one point Larry Levy, then executive director of Jews for Jesus in Baltimore, was flown in to add his expertise to the deprogramming team working with Rich. On the inside, other than Rich's insistence that Fire members seek scientific knowledge for mythological tales in Genesis, Rich pretty much became their poster child.

Months went by. Rich found himself in dozens of situations for which he never could have planned. He and Feinberg found that prior consultation was often not possible. Rich learned to think fast and fly by the seat of his pants -- and debriefing and damage control afterward became critical.

Nearly six months in, Feinberg decided to test the waters: how would The Fire treat a fellow believer who began expressing doubts? And so Rich began leaving meetings early, quietly expressing skepticism, and skipping meetings altogether. Before long, Rich was picked up by Rabbi Birnbaum and a few friends, who invited him for coffee. As it turned out, coffee was not what Birnbaum had in mind.

THE THREAT

The ride was nearly two hours long through unknown, labyrinthine roads in upstate New York. It ended at a ultra orthodox yeshivah in the Catskills. After sitting down, Rich was told, "You should never leave from beneath the umbrella of Torah." If he did, Birnbaum threatened, he would go to gehenam and lose his Olam Habah. While Rich didn't believe such nonsense, as the hours rolled on through the night -- there in the middle of nowhere -- and the gruesome stories built to a fever pitch, the fact that he was hours away from normal civilization with potentially violent strangers frightened him more and more.

Rich was not returned to his dorm for over ten hours. Shaking and terrified, he didn't even bother to go to his room. He phoned Feinberg and demanded, "Come get me... now!"

Rich spent the next three days recovering at the Feinberg home. Before he left, Feinberg told Rich, "That's it. It's time to plot our exit strategy."

Suddenly, Rich was a "believer" again and a faithful Fire meeting attendee. The Fire had been planning a grand, community-wide Purim play, followed by a speech by a Historical revisionist about how Orthodoxy was the only authentic Judaism. Rich had already been cast in the role of Achashveirosh. It was decided that Rich would take advantage of the public forum to expose and denounce Rabbi Birnbaum and The Fire of Torah.

On the night of the play, dozens of Rich's fellow students were in attendance, secretly aware of Rich's intent. For some strange reason, Rabbi Birnbaum and his wife remained close to the stage during the presentation of the play. Just as Haman's plot was revealed to Achashveriosh, who was about to order that Haman be hanged on the gallows that he had built for Mordechai, Rich broke character and began his denunciation:

"Guard, guards, seize him! He shall be hanged on the same gallows that he has built for the Jews." Turning to Birnbaum he said, "This is the modern-day Haman in new colors!

"This man, this missionary, systematically deceives Jews into believing that they can only gain ultimate fulfillment by being a fundamentalist. The Fire of Torah is so obviously and painfully a fundamentalist conversion group. This is the new Haman, my friends. I have been here, personally evaluating The Fire of Torah for six months, and I can honestly say to every person in this room that there is not a single drop of truth here, only a sad, sad pretense. What happens after a Jew is lured here by phony Jewish stars and sweet-sounding Hebrew words? Like me, he will be called a baal teshuvah, not a Reform Jew but a baby believer in Torah Min Hashamayim and other historical revisionism.

"I feel very sad tonight. This is Purim, a holy night, when the Jews were saved from soul-destroyers like The Fire of Torah. I pray that each and every Jew in this room will turn immediately to a true religion, a religion that has no room for false beliefs and that celebrates life as it was meant to be celebrated -- a life where people believe in the truth, and are not forced to believe in lies.

Rabbi Birnbaum, who was standing nearby, rushed toward Rich and tried to push him off the stage. But Rich stood his ground. Rich's fellow SUNYA students shouted in support, and the crowd split into two factions. Pushing and shoving broke out. In the videotape of the play, a representative of Aish Hatorah (the world's largest Orthodox Outreach group, which funds projects to ensnare secular Jews) looks on dourly, and a pistol can clearly be seen being drawn from someone's waistband. Thankfully, no one was injured, and the police eventually broke up the fracas and forced Rich and his supporters to leave the building.

THE FIRE EXPOSED

The denunciation was successful. It publicly exposed The Fire for what it was, and reports run by local newspapers helped spread the story. Birnbaum pressed criminal charges against Rich, and many of Rich's former friends from The Fire began to make large contributions to Orthodox Yeshivas and other organizations in his name in order to save his soul. But these were the least of Rich's problems. Many Fire members believed that Rich was an apikorus incarnate, and so Rich began receiving repeated telephone death threats. It was evident that he needed to be out of the public eye.

Rich had always toyed with the idea of spending junior year abroad and now the idea seemed perfect. He enrolled in Christian University. After a few weeks at Christian U, the seed of Jesus that had been planted in Albany and watered by Chaim Feinberg began sprouting. Why did I travel halfway around the world to study the same things I had been studying in Albany? Rich wondered. What am I doing in the spiritual capital of the world without tapping into anything spiritual?

By the end of September, Rich had enrolled in a Messianic Theology School
King Solomon teaches us "There is a time to plant and a time to uproot that which has been planted." Sometimes, it seems, by uprooting what has been planted, a person also plants anew. While The Fire of Torah has been relegated to the dustbin of history, Rich Maisel and his family are living a blossoming Jesus centered life.

Area Chareidi Shul more OO than area MO Shul?

In the post below, ej extols the praises of the Open Orthodox. However in my part of the world, I think the local Chareidim fit his description rather better. My local Chareidi shul is a huge kiruv shul - and that being the case, they welcome anyone and everyone. The mechitzah is low low low, people drive up to the front door on Shabbat, women turn up in jeans, and the Rabbi admionishes anyone who makes disparaging comments about this. Sure, their ultimate goal is to catch and brainwash unsuspecting secular Jews. And failing that their goal is to at least get wealthy secular Jews to support their institutions (or maybe that's actually their primary goal har har). But mitoch sheloh lishmah bah lishmah - by mixing with the non frum and secular types, it has some tolerance creating effects. Meanwhile the local MO shul has traditionally been more insular - non MOs are not particularly welcome (though things are changing a bit).

Also, the MO in general are passionless. There's no ruach. And what ruach there is often seems contrived. The Chareidim though have the passion, the spirituality and all the good stuff. It just feels more authentic (perhqaps this is just my bias). And my local Chareidi shul doesn't even support child molesters and tax fraudsters! Sounds to be good to be true!

So what's the down side? Why don't I daven by the Chareidim? Well, before I got skeptical I used to say that I couldn't stand the Chareidim because of their ridiculous hashkafas (e.g. Torah & Science). But now I realize that from a rational perspective, the MO are equally ridiculous, and the real difference between the Chareidi shul and the MO shul is just cultural and values based. I actually like most of their values, so I guess the real issue for me is purely cultural: the Chareidi / kiruv culture is a bit icky, at least from a modern perspective.

Now, you might be wondering what about all the LWMO Orthoprax that I claim are in MO - shouldn't that be a deciding factor for me in picking a shul? Yes and no. Firstly, the Chareidim have a few of those types too - for example spouses of kiruv projects who don't claim to be Orthodox. In a way they are actually better than the LWMO Orthoprax, because they're out in the open, while the LWMO OPs often stay in the closet. Secondly, at the end of the day, we are all in shul, davening to a possibility. But it's hard to daven to a possibility, and I would almost rather the guy davening next to me believes in what he's doing, rather than faking it to some extent like I do.

So I don't think I'll be going over to the dark side anytime soon, but I should pay them a visit. At the very least it will either cure me of this ridiculous fantasy, or maybe I might just get inspired.

Open Orthodoxy is the answer according to ej

Open Orthodoxy would be an answer to many of these problems. I define it as LWMO plus a genuine lack of concern for how frum is the guy sitting next to you in shul. Instead of playing catch up to RWMO, Open Orthodoxy (OO) and the Open Orthodox (also OO, as in “How OO of you.”) would become the center of a larger more vibrant space.

Such an open kind of Orthodoxy would incorporate some or many of the innovations of Shira Chadasha, and thereby alleviate the demand for egalitarian minyanim. Part of openness involves never asking anyone to show their tzizit, which when interpreted as a general principle ends up being a welcoming place to gay Jews who want to daven in an Orthodox shul.

Because the shul is flexible the children raised there are less likely to rebel. They may end up for a time less frum, but the rebellion, the anger and the rage that never quiets down is largely missing.

The solution to the money problem is to bring down the price of Jewish education which can't be achieved without economies of scale. LWMO is too small especially outside NY. The solution is to create non denominational elementary schools, as was done just recently in downtown Chicago. In addition an open allgemeine Orthodoxy would be accepting of those parents who prefer SSDS over the RW Orthodox day school.

The face of this Open Orthodoxy is directed to all those Orthodox on the left and those Conservadox and Conservatives who look to Orthodoxy. When you look towards Conservative Judaism while remaining Orthodox, LWMO doesn’t look watered down at all. Embracing the drift to Conservative culture while maintaining the halachot and practices of Orthodoxy provide additional spiritual strength. As things stand now LWMO is racked by guilt for being who they are, and in a panic of what they might become

The gedolim of OO would include the great Jewish academic scholars who have taught us so much about tanach,kabalah and Jewish history. (See my old post (6/26) on EJ "Geek Jews.") The decision making power is bottom up from the members of the community. The OO recognize if we look to salvation from the gedolim nothing will ever happen.

The DH is a source of anguish to charedim in a 10 step self help program and all those who were brought up in a yeshivish atmosphere. Conservatives, and I am talking the rank and file, who never thought of doing mitzvot out of a sense of ‘must’ have no problem with the DH. It just floats past them, as in "what else is new?" In OO, mitzvot are performed out of love for tradition, the Torah and the Jewish people. The DH and its possible resolution is put on hold until Judaism is sufficiently secure and self confident to work through the issues.

The OO realize that openness without Orthodoxy tends to become vapor, and a closed inward looking Orthodoxy is way too suffocating and narrow minded.

What are the major issues affecting Modern Orthodoxy?

Someone asked me this question, and here's my answer (in no particular order). Some of these are specific to MO, some to OJ in general, and maybe some to all fundie religions.

1. Women's Issues

Women Rabbis, Women's Tefillah Groups etc. Personally, none of this bothers me, but it seems to be a real hot potato in many parts of the MO world.

2. Gay Rights

I sometimes wonder if I'm overstating this one, but it seems to me that this should be a major problem, even if it isn't. Maybe this one is just waiting for the "paradigm" case.

3. Biblical Scholarship, Science etc

Probably not something that bothers your average Joe, but those in the know are certainly troubled by this. MO has no good answer.

4. Kids going OTD

Partly because of 3 above, or sometimes 2, but maybe just from unlimited exposure to the secular world, coupled with the general lack of passion in the MO world, means that a lot of MO kids go OTD.

5. Kids flipping out

Some of MO's best and brightest go the other way. They see that MO isn't passionate and UO is more 'authentic' and less 'watered down'.

6. Dependancy on the Chareidim

Mohelim, Shochtim, Rabbeim - you name it, MO are dependant on the Chareidim. And not just professionally, but sociologically too - the Chareidim are the engine that drives the ship. I'm not sure that MO could even survive without UO.

7. The LW MO (from a RW pov)

The LW are sinking the whole ship. They're going too far left and will incur the wrath of the chareidim. They will ruin our institutions and cause the RW MO to have to jump ship and become Chareidi. Then the LW MO will drift to Conservative and MO will be finished.

8. The RW MO (from a LW POV)

The RW MO are ruining everything. They're going too far right and will ruin our institutions. We have no choice but to create alternatives e.g. YCT, which will then split MO and lead to its eventual demise.

9. Lifestyle

It's expensive being OJ. UOs might make sacrifices, but MOs won't. MO's want top quality schooling, housing etc. In order to cope with the financial burden, MOs will have less kids, leading to a demographic decline.

10. Lack of inspiring leadership

UO have their Gedolim, we have the Chief Rabbi. It's not enough.

YU Rosh Yeshivah: We should set aside those Gemaras which don't have the proper values

I recently heard a shiur from a well known YU Rosh Yeshivah. He's a really nice guy and I don't want to get him into trouble, so even though his shiur was given in public I'm not going to say who it is. The topic of his shiur is the well known conundrum for MOs, when the Torah's values are inconsistent with what we regard as 'the right values'.

The examples he gave were:

• Not having to return an avedah to a goy
• Tous Akum muttar
• And that all time favorite: Can you be mechallel shabbos to save a goy?

He gave a few approaches:

1. In reality, you should be able to keep an avedah (finders keepers), it's not theft since the owner has lost his property rights For "achichah", the Torah says you should go lifnim meshuras hadin and return it. Same deal with Tous Akum.
2. The Torah is talking about "uncivilized" nations (he didn't exactly define what that means.) Nowadays, especially in the US, of course people are civilized, so you have to return to them. There's also a reading in the Meiri which implies that the'res no distinction between goyim and yidden in this regard, i.e. an uncivilized Jew (an atheist?) would also not merit having his lost object returned. Also, it could be that since nowadays it's regarded as morally normal to return an avedah, that becomes the halachah too.
3. He went on about the famous Meiri at length. He said its unbelievable how in some sectors of Judaism they ignore that Meiri and continue to treat goyim like second class citizens (background players).

He also talked about what if you were on a remote desert Island with a goy (so there was no issue of 'ayvo' or 'chillul hashem') would you save him on shabbos? He said he asked some roshei yeshivos - one replied, "yes, but then I'd beg hakodosh boruch hu for forgiveness afterwards", another responded yes, and I wouldn't have to ask forgiveness. He said he could accept either of these two views (though he held like the second one), but couldn't accept someone who said 'no'.

He also said we need to create a torah shebaal peh on the torah shebaal peh, i.e. to decide which bits are ok and which bits are not.

Anyways, it was more detailed than my scrappy notes above, but he spoke quickly and I couldn't take notes.

There are, of course, some fundamental issues with his whole approach, and I wasted no time haranguing him about them. To his credit he held his (shaky) ground, and responded to my harangues with good humor and grace. If ony all RY's were like this guy!

This is what I asked him:

1. Who defines "proper values"?
2. We don't follow the Torah (i.e. the biblical text). We follow Chazal, even when Chazal completely reinterpret the Torah (e.g. ayin tachas ayin). So since our entire religion is chazal based, and you say we can disregard chazal when they don't have proper values, what does this do to our religion?
3. If you say we should disregard gemaras which don't reflect the "proper values" (his words), then where does this stop? Why not disregard the gemara about homosexuality (HS) too?
4. The only serious source for much of his talk was that one Meiri. So if the Meiri didn't exist then what?
5. He claims he is not influenced by "Western Values". But clearly he is, since Chareidim in Bnei Brak don't struggle with these issues!

His response, in a nutshell:

"HS is clearly forbidden in the Torah. True, Chazal reinterpret Torah on occasion, but where they don't, we can't. There's no chazal discussion or rishonim or anyone who mattirs HS, so there's no wiggle room there for us. However the Torah is vague about aveda's akum (etc), and there are rishonim (i.e. the Meiri) who have the "correct values", therefore of course we should follow the Meiri (and similar approaches when we can)."

On the one hand I applaud his attempt to try and make halachah as morally acceptable as possible. And most peoplethere felt the same way and were very happy with his speech. But on the other hand, his approach is deeply flawed. How does he decide that the Meiri has the proper values here? The Meiri was a yochid, maybe the proper value is like the Chareidim? So he'll say it's obvious. But surely only from a Western POV? So he'll say, no, it's a Torah POV. But clearly it isn't. Secondly, if that Meiri didn't exist, then what? So he admitted he would have a problem in that case.

Also, the parallels here to the intellefundie Science and Torah kvetches are interesting. They follow a similar approach. They have the Rambam and Saadyeh Gaon for Breishis, so they kvetch metaphor. But when it comes to Shemos, they're a bit stuck. Sadya says you can go metpahorical, only if a) logic/science demands it, AND b) it doesn't affect ikkaei hadas. But when you go metaphorical in shemos (e.g. 2 million people leaving egypt), it starts to affect the whole storyline, leading to Har Sinai, so it becomes problematic, so they won't kvetch it. Plus we have Rishonim and Acharonim who were liberal on Breishis, but no one credible who was liberal on Shemos.

I asked this YU RY about all this too, he said he rejected the DH (surprise!) but that he was troubled by the 2 million. Gil admits that too. (Note to Militant Skeptics: You want to make some progress - attack the 2 million number).

So basically, he goes as far as he can within the tradition, as long as he can find some Rishon (or maybe a famous Acharon) to support him. He (claims he) believes that this is all driven by Torah values, but I think it's clearly driven by Western values. Though values in general is a tricky subject (nature vs nuture etc).

Anyways, if I were him I would just say that values are subjective anyway. Who's to say what the right values are? But of course being MO he can't say that. He has to say there's one true set of values, and his are it.

Diversity Quiz

OJoe thinks I'm wrong about the whole diversity thing. Well, I'm pretty sure I'm right, and I have devised a scientific test to prove it. I searched through Facebook, looking at the friends of my MO friends, and the friends of my non Jewish and secular friends. And the differences were clear - my secular friends had friends of all types - black, white, Christian, Jewish. My MO friends all had the same MO friends. White, Jewish, MO. And of course UO is even lesss diverse.

But if you still don't believe me, let's do a quiz.

1. Racial Diversity
How many black friends do you have?
a) All my homies bro!
b) One or two
c) I'm kinda friendly with some guys at work
d) I should be friendly with a Shvartze? Are you nuts?

2. Economic Diversity
How many poor or mega wealthy friends do you have?
a) All my friends are poor. We all pay tuition!
b) I only hang out with the crowd who eats glatt kosher while skiing down Macchu Picchu
c) I'm best buds with the homeless guy who lives on the corner of Columbus and 107th.
d) Actually, my shul is the one place where the very rich and very poor can be friends

3. Religious Diversity
a) My best friends are the members of the inter-faith dialogue group I run
b) I hang out occasioanlly with some non Jewish colleagues
c) I chat to my non Jewish neighbors once in a while
d) I debate online with Skeptics / Chareidim
e) Are you asking about Goyim or Reform? Eh, same difference. No way!

4. Orthodox Diversity
a) Some of my best friends are Lubavitchers
b) My circle is very broad - all the way from Centrist MO to RW MO
c) I have some Chareidi relatives whom I occasionally see at family simchas
d) I wouldn't step foot in a Chareidi shul if it was the only minyan in town! (unless I was saying kaddish)

Diversity in the Orthodox Community

No, I'm not talking about the Black Hats (a.k.a. The Chillul Hashem community) vs the Kippa Srugot. I'm talking about real diversity, you know, the kind they teach you about in diversity training. There isn't much of it in OJ. 99% of us are white and middle class. None of us are openly gay; gay people either go OTD, or are forced to repress their gayness. Most people are pro Israel and have similar political views.

But according to my diversity training, diversity is a very good thing, with lots of benefits. In recent years a little tiny bit of diversity has crept in, in the form of Baalei Teshuvas, though many of them, in an effort to try and fit in, have become the biggest robot-sheep-conformists of all.

True, we do argue a lot about the minutae - is Breishis the literal word of God or the metaphorical word of God, but the differences between the extreme fundamentalists and the not quite so extreme fundamentalists are really insignificant compared to the diversity that exists in the rest of the world. I have posted about this before - its the narcissism of small differences. This occurs for a number of reasons - we're all so tightly intertwined, that even small differences become large. We agree on all the big things so the only things left to argue about are by nature the small things. We're all nuts.

So the question is, does our community suffer due to lack of diversity? The whole point of a religious community is that is is founded on shared goals and ideals. On the other hand, too much of that creates robot-sheep-conformists.

Bottom line: I think we probably could benefit from some more diversity.

The Oorah Kars 4 Kids Scandal

I'm not much of a scandal-macher (that doesn't sound right), but the Kars-4-Kids thing really bugs the heck out of me. I continue to see Kars-4-Kids ads in the local press, where they claim that they are 'helping kids'. But as has been widely reported, the whole thing is a front for Oorah, which is a kiruv organization. Yet you'ld be hard pressed to find any mention of that on the Kars-4-Kids website. It's a scam, and a huge chillul hashem waiting to happen. How can Oorah's sponsors condone this???

Orthodox Jews are an abomination and should be stoned to death

Jews are an abomination says my Holy Text, and they should be stoned to death. I asked my religious leader about this, and he told me that it's only practicing Jews that are the problem, and that nowadays of course we don't stone people to death, but practicing (i.e. Orthodox) Jews are certainly an abomination before God. I then asked a different religious leader about this and he told me 'Hate the sin, not the sinner', so I guess that means I should hate the practices of Orthodox Judaism, but not Orthodox Jews themselves (though in truth, when I see Orthodox Jews acting all Orthodox Jewish it's kinda hard to distinguish). I then asked a head of an educational institution about this and he said that the Holy Text was only talking vis-a-vis God, i.e. God thinks Orthodoxy is an abomination, but that doesn't mean we humans should hate the Orthodox. But I find this hard to understand, since isn't the whole point of the Holy Text to teach us values?

Chillul Hashem Summary Report Week Ending August 7th 2009

You think this is all just a bizarre co-incidence? Media Focus? Copy cat crimes? Iit's been going on for years but was never really reported? Or maybe it's just a massive anti-Chareidi conspiracy.

1. Spinka Rebbi pleads guilty in an $8.5 million tax evasion scam (August 4, 2009)

2. Haredi Woman Allegedly Stole Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars

3. 10 named in alleged U.S.-Israel tax fraud (An ex-rabbi who allegedly led an effort to obtain illegally $35 million in state and U.S. income tax refunds was arrested in Israel, U.S. officials said Monday)(August 3, 2009)

4. Letter from Be'ersheva: The Haredi Factor - No matter who it murdered gays and lesbians in Tel Aviv, haredim share the blame (August 5, 2009)

5. A turf war heats up in Tel Aviv: Some residents of the mostly secular Ramat Aviv district, alarmed by the increasing presence and proselytizing of ultra-Orthodox Haredim, are trying to drive them out (August 6, 2009) (Chabad lures teenagers with wine and booze, outraged secular parents claim)

6. Showdown in the Catskills: Judge Orders Hasidim To Get Out - Skver girls camp has numerous health and safety violations, including mold, missing ceiling tiles, exposed wiring, leaks and water running over electrical boxes. Several rooms and a mikva are filthy (August 5, 2009):

7. Prosecution: Put 'abusive mom' under full house arrest outside Mea She'arim (August 5, 2009)

8. Rabbi Yehuda Kolko - Sexual predator Rabbi Yehuda Kolko–out of jail and unregistered as a sex offender in a plea bargain his victims' families objected to–takes a vacation

9. Fake Rabbi Rapes, Defrauds, Steals- Staff member of defense Ministry allegedly raped, sodomized and stole from women and their children. Told women to "drink from" his holiness (August 4, 2009)

10. Mayor Illegally Funnelled Money To Ohel And Agudah - Agudath Israel of America got $1.1 million, Ohel $400,000 (August 4, 2009)

11. Officer hurt in haredi rally against opening of parking lot on Shabbat: Ultra-Orthodox try to break through police barricade, prevent entrance of cars to Karta parking lot near Old City; 15 haredim detained during disturbance; secular group greets lot's visitors with flowers, list of Jerusalem businesses open on Shabbat (August 1, 2009)

12. RUBASHKIN CLAIMS HE WAS FRAMED - Rubashkin also denies allegations he helped one of his former managers flee the country to avoid arrest (July 31, 2009)

13. Haredi Man Arrested With 15 Lbs Of Cocaine Strapped To His Body: Man arrested at Heathrow Airport (July 29, 2009)

14. Monsey couple with millions in mortgages charged with welfare fraud (July 28, 2009):

15. Sefardic Mail Thieves Caught In Ramapo, Rockland County, NY - The pair, both Sefardi haredi, stole mail in New York, cashed the larger checks in Israel:

16. Brooklyn Couple Arrested after Leaving Child Alone in Vehicle

17. High Court: Haredi school must end discrimination

18. The Ethiopian intentionally run over by a politically connected haredi yeshiva student tells her story.

Breaking News: Area Chareidi Community Fails to Cause Massive Chillul Hashem

In breaking news tonight, an area Chareidi community was found not to have caused any significant Chillulei Hashem since at least Pesach. The complete lack of tax defrauders, child molesters, gay killers and trash burners surprised veteran Chareidi watcher Dr Samuel Heilhitlerman, who remarked 'I really don't understand this situation. It flies in the face of everything we expect from the Ultra Orthodox community, this is mamash unbelievable!'. Area Chareidi, Yaakov Katz speculated that the the local Modern Orthodox community was to blame. 'Those guys are always going on about Business Ethics, Community Responsibility and trying to perfect the World'. 'Such goyish ideas have infected our community, leading to the current sad state of affairs' he said. Area askanim are working tirelessly to corrrect the situation, and will be holding an asifah on 'how much our Torah institiutions are dependant on behaviors not compatible with dina demalchusah'.

Thank(s) God (assuming You exist)

I met a guy today (oh boy) who told me that he hates nausea, and that the Good Lord looks out for him because in the past 30 years he's never been nauseas. I too absolutely detest nausea, yet ironically I'm writing this post while currently nauseas. [Update I feel better!] On the other hand, God (assuming He exists) has been so good to me in every facet of my life - wife, kids, great job, everything I need. Not neccessarily everything that I want, but you can't always get what you want. I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude to God, and everytime the thought crosses my mind I say a silent thank you.


But what if things go bad? What about all the people with cancer and worse? Can everyone be thankful? Yeah, there's always someone worse off, but still. Then there's the answer that God doesn't owe you anything, not even life itself, so just be glad you got to live at all. Unless your life has always been a living hell I guess, in which case you might not have that much to be thankful for. But those people are few and far between. And anyways, if you had serious issues from birth, you are probably coping with it very well, as it's the only kind of life you've ever known.


Which brings me to my main point. We all live in our own subjective worlds. What we experience to be true is certainly very true to us, but may not be true at all to anyone else. And there's no realistic way to get around that, except with some rigorous critical thinking. And a key aspect of critical thinking is to start to question the basic assumptions that are so ingrained that we don't even think of questioning them - for example that the world is real, or that God wrote the Torah.

Assumptions really are the key to everything, here's a great article on this topic. As the old saying goes: Never assume, because if you assume, you can make an ASS out of U and ME.