Man In Search Of Heschel – Rabbi Barry Gelman

August 18, 2009

If you understand the title of this post you are ahead of the game.

I wonder why the Modern Orthodox community does pay more attention to and study the works of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. Aside from his book The Sabbath, much of his work goes unnoticed and certainly unstudied in our community.

Rabbi Heschel wrote and spoke about so many of the challenges of religion in a free society. He concentrated the need and difficulty of balancing the regularity of Jewish religious practice with spontaneity, referring to these to contrary principles as kevah and kavanah, the religious ideal of living a life of, what he called, “wonder” and “radical amazement” by never taking God’s world for granted and fundamental importance of Halacha as an ingredient of the life of a spiritually healthy Jew.

While many are familiar with Rabi Heschel as the rabbi who marched with Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma Alabama, many are unaware his focus on Halacha. I sometimes wonder if the popularity of the picture of Rabbi Heschel with King in Selma has diminished focus on the other aspects of his career.

Part of the reason why Heschel goes unnoticed in the Orthodox community is because he spent most of his career at the Jewish Theological Seminary – the flagship institution of Conservative Judaism. As such he is deemed “treif” by large segments of our community. To my mind this is a terrible shame and we continue to ignore his writings and teachings to our own peril. We should be teaching Heschel in our schools and in our shuls. Read the rest of this entry »

19 Comments | Halacha (Jewish Law), Jewish Thought, mitzvot | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Guilty As Charged – Rabbi Barry Gelman

August 11, 2009

Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who bestows good on the guilty, who has bestowed upon me much good.

The above is the text of the Birkhat HaGomel, a blessing traditionally recited by one who has survived a dangerous situation. The Talmud teaches that one who is released from captivity, recovers from a serious illness, crosses a wilderness or crosses an ocean is obligated to recite this blessing of thanksgiving. The Aruch Hashulchan and Mishna Berura conclude that survival of any dangerous situation requires the recitation of this blessing, not only the four mentioned in the Talmud.

The text of the blessing refers to God bestowing good upon the guilty. Reciting and hearing this blessing has always challenged me as I was bothered by the need for the public declaration of unworthiness. Of course, no one is perfect, but for our rabbis to paint with a broad brush everyone who says this blessing as guilty of some sin always seemed a bit harsh.

After learning the interpretation of this blessing offered by  Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook I am no longer bothered.

Rav Kook notes that this Bracha is meant as a reality check. All of the four situations mentioned by the Gemara take a person out of their routine and thrust them into unnatural and uncertain circumstances.  Only upon returning to the routine does one recognize just how remarkable routine life is. It is that recognition that creates the need to thank God.

So Rav Kook teaches that the seafarer who is torn from dry land and confronted with the power of the sea comes to recognize the wonder of routine life, the one who crosses a wilderness learns to appreciate the beauty of living in a society, a person who recovers from illness has a new appreciation for simple health and a person released from jail who presumably was incarcerated because of a moral failure, experience the horrible conditions of and learns a new appreciation of law and order.

Now we can understand what we are “guilty” of. We are guilty of only appreciating the order and routine of life that God has arranged after we suffer a jarring experience.  Life should be lived with a constant recognition of the good God bestows on us, but because we are so used to it, we forget.

This is a very important idea of the morethodox. We live a very normal and routine life. We, because of our unique hashkafa, do not spend the majority of our day in the rarified spirituality of the beit midrash. We live in communities that may not have a large orthodox population that may serve as a reminder of God’s presence and goodness. We are out and about the society and part of the routine workings of the world. It is that very routine way of life that Rav Kook warns us about.

I hope that I can live up to Rav Kook’s call.

Leave a Comment » | Jewish Thought | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Torah Alone does not a Mench Make –By Rabbi Hyim Shafner

August 7, 2009

A congregant of mine was confounded by the reports of Rabbis who were arrested for illegally trafficking in human organs. One person in the group said that some might justify their acts claiming the money would be used for yeshivahs and other important Jewish organizations. They turned to me and demanded to know if there really is a way to justify such things through the Torah?

I answered that Judaism, whether the Torah or the Talmud, contains many diverse ideas, not just one opinion and not just one way of thinking about God or the world.  For instance, regarding the question of how we should view non-Jews and how we should act toward them we could look at Abraham. Abraham left a conversation with God, the Torah tells us, in order to run out into the desert and welcome three nomads who were not Jews. Abraham was the first Jew and these nomads, as far as Abraham knew, were idol worshipers. This would be one way to answer the question of what our attitude could be toward non-Jews. On the other hand, one might look at the book of Deuteronomy in which Moshe commands the Jewish people to destroy those who are idol worshipers.  (No doubt the two cases can be seen in different lights and many lomdishe hairs be split, never the less it is the divergence in general attitude expressed by both sides that I am calling attention to.)

Another example of the variety of theological stances within Judaism is with regard to the question of asceticism. A statement in the Talmud tells us one will have to give an account for every pleasure they did not take advantage of in this world (Tal. Jer. 4:12). Additionally there is an opinion that the Nazir (Nazerite) brings a sin offering at the end of his Nazarism to atone for the sin of forbidding upon himself that which the Torah permits.  On the other hand there is a second opinion in the Talmud that the sin offering of the Nazir is due to his leaving behind a higher ascetic state.  The rabbis tell us, “Sanctify (separate) yourself even from that which is permitted.”  In Jewish history there were of course whose central practice was extreme asceticism such as Chasidey Ashkenaz in the 12th century.  Which direction should we take?

Direction can not come only from reading the Torah or even the oral tradition, these are varied and can be used to rationalize anything, including selling human organs for gain.  In the end Torah, written or oral, (at least in their written forms), are not enough to guarantee that we will live a life that is right and good in the eyes of God or others, -our own moral worldview and personal theology must be brought to bear upon Torah as a meta guide.  And this too must be part of the Torah and mesorah (oral tradition).  What we quote from the Torah will be filtered based on who we are and what our world vision is, so we must thoughtfully cultivate a correct worldview.   In Judaism today there are many world views: Zionist/non-Zionist, Torah u’Madah/Torah Im Derech Eretz, Open Orthodoxy/Insular Orthodoxy, etc., etc.

Morethodoxy does not claim to change anything in Torah (God forbid), rather to help present a set of glasses through which to see the Torah, a guide for balancing the varied approaches which are within the Torah.  It is a path accentuating an attitude of rachum v’chanun, first and foremost merciful and loving.  When faced with two approaches within Judaism it is a guide and path for choosing the approach that is, (within halacha), more inclusive not less.  It is not, God forbid, a path of molding the Torah to our selfish desires or to the vagaries of modern life and low brow chapters of western culture, but of opening our eyes and souls to the Torah in ways that Torah alone may not allow us to see.

The Ramba”n said it long ago (v’etchanan and k’doshim) . It is not enough to keep the Torah. If one only keeps the law one may still be a disgusting person.  Jewish law demands that we go beyond the law to do what is right good at the eyes of God and people.  Ours is a religion that is quite legally based yet if one were to just keep the law that would not be enough in our relationship with others or in our relationship with God. V’asita Ha’yashar V’hatov –“Do what is right and good”- go beyond the letter of the law with regard to how you treat others and Kidoshim Tihiyu, -“You shall be holy”-sanctify yourself beyond the letter of the law in your relationship to God.

The Torah alone does not a Mench make. It requires also spectacles through which to see the Torah, ones ground from the glass of things like moral training, philosophy and musar, learning the great ideas of other religions and moral and philosophical systems, chassidut and kabbalah, reading the great secular books, seeing the great works of art, appreciating the natural world God has made and its aesthetic and scientific beauty, exploring the important human ideas and insights -within humans in general and within ourselves in particular (usually through psychotherapy)- so that we can move beyond their own needs and see those of others more clearly.

In the end if our glasses through which to see the Torah and the world are placed correctly and our filters though which to sift the torah and our experiences are honed well we will achieve the goal of being Jews, to be merciful and gracious in imitation of the Divine One and to be a “light unto the nations”; we will not be selling illegal goods to further spiritual life.

1 Comment | Contemporary Issues, Jewish Thought, Morality | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Hyim Shafner

Chessed Begins At Home – Rabbi Barry Gelman

August 4, 2009

Olam Chessed Yibaneh – the world can be built through kindness”.  This statement sums up the great potential inherent in acts of kindness.  
We live in a community where many are deeply involved volunteer organizations of some sort or another. These activities fall under the category of chessed – acts of kindness that we do for others. Our tradition puts a high value on chessed. In fact, the well known rabbinic statement – “Derech Eretz Kadma L’Torah – Good Character comes before Torah” teaches that before the Jewish people could receive the laws of the Torah, the importance on good character, including chessed, had to be taught. According to some, this is why the Torah starts with the stories of our foremother and forefathers, stories that, by example, teach right from wrong. 
At the same time, chessed that we do for those outside our immediate circle may impede our ability to do chessed for those closest to us. 
The following is a question posed to Rabbi Shlomo Aviner regarding the balance required between doing acts of chessed for the general community and one’s responsibilities towards ones family.

Question: “My husband devotes many hours each day to learning Torah, communal activities and spreading Judaism at stands. At home, he is spent. When I am speaking with him, he falls asleep… He does try to stay awake but without success. “

Answer: “Tell your dear husband in your name, in my name, in the Name of the Master of the Universe, and in the name of human conscience that “the poor of your house takes precedence.“ Even though you bring great benefit to humanity, and it is your glory, your wife takes precedence over the rest of humanity. Remember the story of King David, who refused to accept the kingship, as long as not everything was arranged with his wife Michal. All humanity is important, but it has other saviors. There were those who were concerned about it before you and there will be those who will be concerned about it after you. But your wife only has one savior: you. She therefore takes precedence. She relies on you. Do not betray her. All of this is written in the Ketubah, which is read under the chuppah, that you will cherish her and all sorts of other things. Before we add stringencies, one must fulfill his basic obligations. This is the general rule: your wife takes precedence. And, of course, I also say to you: your husband takes precedence.”

The examples given in this particular instance are simply those that relevant to the questioner. There are other family related responsibilities that should take precedence over our communal action. Making spending time with children a priority over communal responsibilities is one that comes to mind very easily.

There are many good reasons to be involved in communal affairs. In fact, if our community did not have so many dedicated volunteers we would simply not be able to function. This is why it is so important to find the proper balance to make sure that while we do volunteer our time for our community; our family is not being neglected. It goes without saying that communal responsibilities should never be taken on or extended as a way to avoid family obligations.

The Torah does not wish our love for those in the wider circles of our life to be built up at the expense of our omission of our obligation to those nearer to us. Nechama Leibowitz, writing about the biblical commandment to give Tzedakah, teaches: One who goes beyond his natural circle, into which he was born (family, birthplace, nation) and flies to distant climes to heal the misfortunes of humanity, the downtrodden and wretched of remote communities, whilst his own home, neighborhood, city and homeland cry out for assistance, ignoring them in the conviction that their plight is too circumscribed and petty for him to bother about… – charity begins at home.”

1 Comment | Contemporary Issues, Jewish Thought | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Gentiles and Kiddush Hashem – Rabbi Barry Gelman

July 28, 2009

I have spent the last week in Camp Moshava in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. Being here has been a real treat. Camp Moshava is a living breathing “kiddush Hashem”. One of the many outstanding aspects of my experience thus far has been the wide variety of orthodox Jews that work here.

I mention Kiddush Hashem because, except for my experience here this week, my thoughts have been on the tremendous chillul Hashem created by the Rabbis arrested last week for offenses ranging form money laundering to human organ trafficking.

I have no doubt that the actions that these rabbis have been accused of have done enormous damage to the perception of Torah. I am deeply concerned that these actions will create doubt and cynicism in the hearts and minds of young people towards religious leadership. One way to combat these outcomes is for the Modern Orthodox community to clearly state that these actions were wrong and that the greed that led to them is not in keeping with a spiritually sensitive Judaism.

Rabbi Aaron Lichtenstein coined the term “glatt kosher hedonism” to refer to the belief (desire) that observant Jews can have it all. Our communities, the Modern Orthodox, pride ourselves on appreciating what is good, wholesome and spiritually fortifying in general culture. In doing so, we run the risk of letting our guard down in the pursuit of having it all. So as not to allow this tragedy to go without any positive outcome, our communities need reiterate the importance of Zniut – modesty in the way we live.

 

I will conclude with two brief notes that were emailed to me recently in reaction to the scandal.

 

Rabbi Riskin mentioned a number of times that when he still lived in New York and was starting his own yeshiva high school (“Mesivta Ohr Torah” in Riverdale), he interviewed 17 candidates for the job of Rosh Yeshiva.   After ascertaining all knew how to learn, he asked them, “Suppose you ordered by mail an electric shaver from Alexander’s Department Store.   And instead of one shaver being delivered, 3 shavers were delivered.   What would you do with the other two?”   Rabbi Riskin reported that sixteen of the seventeen insisted that they keep the other two shavers because stealing for a gentile is permitted.

 

The last applicant (Rabbi Moshe Chaim Sosefsky who is now the Rosh Hayeshivah of Yeshivat Ohr Yerushalayim) insisted on returning the shaver quoting Bava Metzia Perek 2 Yerushalmi: Rabbi Shimon Ben-Shetach bought a donkey from an arab. When RSBS was removed from the seller, he noticed there was something in the saddle: a valuable diamond whose sale would have put RSBS on easy street for the rest of his life.  But RSBS insisted on returning the diamond to the arab as it would be better for the gentile to bless the G-d of Shimon Ben-Shetach than for Shimon Ben-Shetach to obtain any financial benefit such as this.

 The following, written by Rabbi Moses ben Jacob of Coucy, authoer of the Sefer MItzvot Gadol on positive Mitzvah # 74 is very timely.

And I have already expounded to Galus Yerushalayim in Spain (Sefarad) and the other Galuyos under Christianity (Edom), that now that the Galus has lasted too long a Jew must separate himself from the frivolities (Hevlei) of the world and grasp the seal of Ha’Kadosh Baruch Hu, which is Truth, and not lie, neither to Jews nor to non-Jews, nor to deceive them in any matter, and to sanctify ourselves even in that which is permissible to us, as it says

(Tzefani’a 3:13): “The remnant of Israel will not commit foul deeds nor speak falsehoods, nor will there be found in their mouths treacherous tongues.” And then, when Ha’Kadosh Baruch Hu comes to redeem us the non-Jews will say that He is just in doing so, for we are men of truth and Toras Emes is in our mouths.

But if we conduct ourselves towards the non-Jews with deceit (Rama’us), then they will say: “See what Ha’Kadosh Baruch Hu has done, that He has chosen as His portion thieves and cheats.”

Furthermore, it is written (Hoshe’a 2:25): “And I will plant them in the earth.” Why does a person plant a measure of grain in the earth? In order to cultivate several measures. So too Ha’Kadosh Baruch Hu planted Yisroel in the various lands so that converts would join us. As long as we conduct ourselves amongst them with deceit who will cling to us? And, we find that

Ha’Kadosh Baruch Hu was upset even by theft from evildoers, as it says(Bereishis 6:11): ” And the land was filled with theft (Chamas).”

Further, I bring proof from the Yerushalmi Chapter Eilu Metzi’os (Halocho 5), where it says: “The elder rabbis (Rabbanan Savi’ai) bought a measure of grain from non-Jews and found within it a bundle of money. They returned it to them, and the non-Jews said: ‘Blessed is the G-d of the Jews.’” Many similar stories of lost items that were returned to non-Jews because of Kiddush Hashem are related there.

Leave a Comment » | Contemporary Issues, Jewish Thought | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

A Vacation From Ideology – Rabbi Barry Gelman

July 14, 2009

I am on vacation in New York and whenever I visit New York I try to make time to visit my favorite Jewish book store, Biegeleisen. You see, I am a seforim junkie and I must get my fix every year. To my mind there is no better dealer that the good people of Biegeleisen. 

 

WARNING: Do not confuse Biegeleisen with a Judaica store for there are no fancy havdallah sets, no cookbooks and no jewish music for sale there. Beigeleisen is seforim only (almost all hebrew with a few englsih books floating around).

 

The store is located in Borough Park, Brooklyn, a well known chareidi community. The streets are lined with kosher food stores, clothing stores for women with clothes that meet the modesty standards of that community and many yeshivot and shteibels (small one room synagogues).

 

Sometime visiting communities like Borough Park makes me feel like I am on a different planet. The ways and customs of that place are so different in so many fundamentally important ways from those that I and my community practice. I have often felt bad about this reality and naively hoped that it could be different. Sort of my own little, “can’t we all just get along” dream. 

 

For some reason this year’s pilgrimage to my seforim mecca left me feeling differently. Read the rest of this entry »

6 Comments | Jewish Thought, Parshiot/Holidays | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

We need a new code of Jewish Law – Rabbi Barry Gelman

July 7, 2009

It is time for a new code of Jewish Law.

 I know this may sound a bit radical, but it really isn’t.

Some background. For the most part we learn Halacha from codes that were written in Eastern Europe in the 19th Century. Examples are: the Hayyei Adam, Kitzur Shluchan Aruch and Aruch Hashulchan. Add to that the Mishna Berura which is technically not a code but rather a commentary on the Shulchan Aruch and we have an impressive list of halachik source that still guide us to this day.

Most of these codes and commentaries relied on the written word of rabbis who came before them and did not fully consider the social, geographic and political reality of the times. The mishna berura is an excellent example of such a work.

The exception to this rule is the Aruch Hashulchan. According to Dr. Simcha Fishbane, author of The Boldness of An Halakhist, An Analysis of the writings of Rabbi Yechiel Mechel Halevi Epstein, The Arukh Hashuhan, Rabbi Epstein did consider the “social, economic and political reality of the Jews of his period and geographical location, the latter part of the 19th century in eastern Europe. Rabbi Epstein preferred considering his reality rather than basing his rulings solely upon the writings of earlier authoritative rabbinical authorities.”  Read the rest of this entry »

16 Comments | Contemporary Issues, Halacha (Jewish Law), Judaism and Homosexuality, Women and Judaism | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Modern Orthodoxy To The Rescue – Rabbi Barry Gelman

June 30, 2009

Gabi and I recently watched Religulous,a 2008 documentary film starring comedian Bill Maher that satirizes organized religion.

If only Bill Maher had interviewed a Modern Orthodox Jew…

I used to get very upset when cynics like Maher went public, but more recently I have come to appreciate the importance of the questions that Maher posses. I have realized that challenges to religious claims ultimately can be of great service to religion. Encountering and considering challenges like those presented by Maher makes faith stronger and richer.

Maher is merciless in his interviews of people he considers religious fanatics. He has clearly done his homework and seems to know the contents of the bible better than the subjects he interviews.

To be fair, he spreads his mockery equally between Christianity, Judaism and Islam…no faith is safe from his barbs and jibes.

There are a few aspects of the film that strike me as very important for Jews to consider.  I will share my take on three of them. Read the rest of this entry »

10 Comments | Contemporary Issues, Jewish Thought | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Mergers. Are They Good For The Jews? – Rabbi Barry Gelman

June 23, 2009

Recently there have been reports of Conservative and Reform synagogues merging in order to deal with the difficult economic situation in America.  

In towns where the Jewish population cannot sustain both a conservative and reform congregation these mergers are necessary. Some of the arrangements have been very creative and credit is due to those who negotiated these mergers. It is heartening to see cross denominational cooperation and people thinking outside the box to sustain Jewish institutional life in times of crises.

There is another side of the story. While for years people have been talking about the closing of the gap between Reform and Conservative Judaism, with Reform Judaism becoming more traditionally minded and Conservative Judaism taking more liberal positions, these mergers represent a leaving behind of ideology. (see link to merger article below)

Now, before readers get all upset… I know that in some of these cases it was either merge or close…I am, however, interested in analyzing an underlying reality that allowed these mergers to happen.

My point is that synagogues and movements with strong ideologies would make for very difficult merger partners. Synagogues with strongly held beliefs, nuanced opinions and unique character are not easily folded into other synagogues. Read the rest of this entry »

5 Comments | Contemporary Issues, Jewish Thought | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Barry Gelman

Next Entries »
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 115 other followers