Every societal group must bear responsibility for the natural outcome of its own values. Accordingly, while Charedim may be within their rights to join those who label Boruch Goldstein and Yigal Amir as natural by-products of what is to them a misguided religious zionist movement, Charedim cannot simultaneously attempt to distance themselves from the natural by-products of their own movement. As orthodox Jews charged with carrying out their affairs to the highest possible degree of authenticity and probity, Religious Zionists and Charedim each must honestly acknowledge and attempt to root out their respective problem areas. Failure to even attempt to do so, on either side of the aisle, gives the clearest indication of values truly held, not merely espoused.

On the Charedi side of the ledger the following contrast is interesting, though not necessarily dispositive: In Monsey last year a local citizen was publicized as a brazen seller of non-kosher chickens purposely labeled as kosher in outrageous disregard to the ... Read More >>]]> Many have written – mostly recently our own Yaakov Menken on Cross-Currents on Jan 11 – to the effect that it is unfair to associate Charedim with NK. While indeed extremely unfortunate, this association in the public mind is, in my view, not unfair.

Every societal group must bear responsibility for the natural outcome of its own values. Accordingly, while Charedim may be within their rights to join those who label Boruch Goldstein and Yigal Amir as natural by-products of what is to them a misguided religious zionist movement, Charedim cannot simultaneously attempt to distance themselves from the natural by-products of their own movement. As orthodox Jews charged with carrying out their affairs to the highest possible degree of authenticity and probity, Religious Zionists and Charedim each must honestly acknowledge and attempt to root out their respective problem areas. Failure to even attempt to do so, on either side of the aisle, gives the clearest indication of values truly held, not merely espoused.

On the Charedi side of the ledger the following contrast is interesting, though not necessarily dispositive: In Monsey last year a local citizen was publicized as a brazen seller of non-kosher chickens purposely labeled as kosher in outrageous disregard to the community’s sensitivities. In Monsey a few months later a local citizen was publicized as a leader of the NK effort to brazenly embrace Iranian leadership while purposely dancing on the ashes of our exterminated grandparents and further endangering 5 million Jews in Israel in outrageous disregard to the community’s sensitivities. The chicken seller was run out of town, mainly by Charedim. For some reason the Iran-kisser is happily ensconced at home. This is not a call for action, but merely a vignette which understandably could be interpreted by the public as an indication of the values truly held.

I had to choose whether to fly with my husband and two of our boys to Berlin, or whether to stay home and have a few quiet days to myself. “Mom, you can do whatever you like,” said the boys, probably wishing in a way for a ‘guys’ trip just with their father, “but just decide quickly.” I chose Berlin.

I felt a bit awkward telling family and friends that we were going to Berlin on vacation. Most Jews likely feel ambivalent about visiting Berlin. On one hand there is a certain curiosity to see the city that begot one of the greatest horrors in human history. On the other hand there is a feeling of disgust and terror at actually being there. But it has a special meaning for me. Berlin is my mother’s birthplace. She lived there until the outbreak of World War II at which time she was fortunate to be able to leave on a kindertransport to England.

My parents traveled to Berlin in 1996 as guests of the Berlin government. Before my trip, I went through their photographs and wrote down the address ... Read More >>]]> Here is my sister’s travelogue from her recent visit to our mother’s birthplace in Berlin:

I had to choose whether to fly with my husband and two of our boys to Berlin, or whether to stay home and have a few quiet days to myself. “Mom, you can do whatever you like,” said the boys, probably wishing in a way for a ‘guys’ trip just with their father, “but just decide quickly.” I chose Berlin.

I felt a bit awkward telling family and friends that we were going to Berlin on vacation. Most Jews likely feel ambivalent about visiting Berlin. On one hand there is a certain curiosity to see the city that begot one of the greatest horrors in human history. On the other hand there is a feeling of disgust and terror at actually being there. But it has a special meaning for me. Berlin is my mother’s birthplace. She lived there until the outbreak of World War II at which time she was fortunate to be able to leave on a kindertransport to England.

My parents traveled to Berlin in 1996 as guests of the Berlin government. Before my trip, I went through their photographs and wrote down the address of my mother’s former home. My mother explained that the address, 33 Brunnenstrasse, is actually the entrance to a courtyard surrounded by several apartments and that when my mother was a girl it also included a synagogue called Bnei Zion. My parents had found it all more or less intact ten years ago, and my mother eagerly described to me exactly where her apartment was and which staircase to take to reach it. She urged me to knock on her former front door, as she had not had the courage to do so ten years earlier.

On the third afternoon of our trip my husband and I and our two boys set off to find 33 Brunnenstrasse. As we usually do our touring by foot, and we had already done several hours of walking that day, this adventure was met with perhaps a little bit less enthusiasm than I would have liked. No matter; I assured them that it would be most worthwhile.

My mother’s former home is in what was referred to as East Berlin before the fall of the Berlin Wall and Communism. Today, it is a poor, graffiti covered and neglected neighborhood, still not having recovered from the Communist era.

It was a long walk and not easy to find. We finally spotted number 33 and to our utter amazement standing at the entrance was a Yeshiva bochur replete with black hat, dark suit, white shirt and flowing tzitzis. Was this a mirage? Where were we?

We were indeed at 33 Brunnenstrasse, only today it is home to the Yeshiva Gedola and Kollel of Berlin. The young gentleman at the front door explained to us that about a month earlier the Yeshiva had moved there from different location in Berlin. Apparently a wealthy secular Jew had purchased the entire 33 Brunnenstrasse apartment complex and, upon becoming religious, he had donated it to the Yeshiva.

Today it is undergoing major renovations. My mother’s apartment is now part of a modem dormitory and the former Bnei Zion shul is in the process of being converted into a Beis Medrash and dining hall. Although the construction is far from complete, the Yeshiva is fully operational with boys from all over Germany and several who come from the U.S. for varying lengths of time. Two had arrived a few hours earlier from Waterbury, Connecticut. Some of the other apartments are already occupied by the Kollel families and one is being used as a kindergarten for the Kollel children.

As we stood around trying to absorb what we were hearing and seeing, we realized that the Yeshiva was beginning to daven Mincha. My husband and sons joined in their minyan, an experience that they will remember for a long time.
We were overwhelmed.

Sixty seven years earlier my mother and her family were forced out of their home and shul by the Nazis. Today on that spot stands a living, viable, growing Yeshiva, exactly what the Germans sought to eliminate. A most worthwhile trip, indeed.

Chana Sorotzkin, October 2006

QUESTION:

Dear Gedalia:

I’ve been meaning to ask you a question for some time now, and finally have a chance since law school finals are over and I’ve started my not-too demanding summer job.

While this year was definitely a challenge in terms of balancing family, learning, and law school, that challenge was not what I found most difficult. For me, the greatest difficulty was no longer being “in learning” and feeling outcast and looked down upon, to a degree, by those still “in learning.”

At the outset I have to admit that much of my feelings may be a result of my own insecurities as a baal teshuva [newly observant Jew] and the like, but I did receive comments from some people that, in my mind, were patronizing at best and insulting at worst (i.e. “don’t worry, I know some people who went to law school who still became a rabbi – talmid chacham – mechanech, [Torah scholar or teacher] ... Read More >>]]> I recently received the following painful question and gave the following response. It is posted here with the questioner’s permission, of course. Readers’ comments, as always, are welcome. I have added some translations from Hebrew in brackets throughout this post.

QUESTION:

Dear Gedalia:

I’ve been meaning to ask you a question for some time now, and finally have a chance since law school finals are over and I’ve started my not-too demanding summer job.

While this year was definitely a challenge in terms of balancing family, learning, and law school, that challenge was not what I found most difficult. For me, the greatest difficulty was no longer being “in learning” and feeling outcast and looked down upon, to a degree, by those still “in learning.”

At the outset I have to admit that much of my feelings may be a result of my own insecurities as a baal teshuva [newly observant Jew] and the like, but I did receive comments from some people that, in my mind, were patronizing at best and insulting at worst (i.e. “don’t worry, I know some people who went to law school who still became a rabbi – talmid chacham – mechanech, [Torah scholar or teacher] etc.,”), as if being a frum lawyer and supporting one’s family is not “good enough”.

I cannot for the life of me understand why people should be looked down upon for doing what is the sensible thing to do: get a job to support one’s family. Not everyone is cut out to be a rabbi, not everyone has wealthy family to support them in learning, and not everyone has the bitachon [Trust in G-d] of the Chazon Ish or the Chofetz Chaim [great Torah sages of the early 20th century]. As someone who became observant at age 25, and left behind a lot to do that, I take particular umbrage at the condescending attitude of some. There are individuals who either explicitly or implicitly look down and put down other religious Jews who are not of the same “breed” regardless of their circumstances or background.

Have you had similar feelings? If so, how have you dealt with them? I appreciate and look forward to your response.

RESPONSE:

With your well-articulated question you’ve put your finger on one of the most urgent Orthodox Jewish issues of our times. This is not a Baal Tshuva issue and this is not a bitachon issue; this is an everywhere issue. I felt and feel it constantly.

Regardless of what anyone might say, our goal as Jews must be to become ovdei Hashem, to serve G-d, and to increase His honor in this world. Each individual must decide how best to achieve that goal using his/her own G-d given talents and challenges. Every Jew must learn so as to be knowledgable and every Jewish man should be ‘holding in learning’, but that does not mean that the way for every Jew to bring about the goal of serving G-d is or should be limited to learning.

In a certain sense there is confusion between means and ends, as if learning per se was the only goal, athough for some certainly full-time learning to the exclusion of other endeavors is the correct ‘career’ path. Rav Yaakov Weinberg said it best. Here is an edited (by me) excerpt from pps 95-102 of a new book called Rav Yaakov Wienberg Talks About Chinuch, edited by Rabbi Doniel Frank and published by Targum/Feldheim. (The book is set up in question and answer form, hence the conversational style.)

“People think that life is about being a gaon [great Torah scholar] and not about avodas Hashem [service of G-d]……..The central issue is to know that we were not made to learn Torah and become talmidai chachomim [Torah scholars], but to serve the Ribono Shel Olam, the Melech malchai hamelachim, the King of kings, who gave us the Torah. That is the purpose of our existence and that is what it is all about. There are many ways by which one can be effective. One person is effective as a rabbi, and another is effective as a rav; one person is effective as a cheder rebbe and another is effective as a rosh yeshivah. One person is effective as an insurance salesman, and another is effective as a lawyer. Ba’alebatim [lay people] can have an enormous influence, one that a non-ba’alebas cannot have. And if you develop ba’alebatim who are bnai Torah, you can change an entire community……..The point is that we all have to know that we were created in order to make a contribution to hisgalus kvodo [the revelation of His honor] – that is the purpose of our existence, and that is what justifies our existence. And if we do not satisfy that purpose, then the whole purpose of our existence will have been a failure. Therefore, all of our thoughts, goals, and hopes have to be in terms how to best be megaleh kavod Shamayim [cause the revelation of Heaven’s Honor]……When you think this way, it is no longer a choice whether you are going to be a great rosh yeshivah or an insurance salesman but about where will you be most effective, what will enable you to make the greatest contribution to the Ribono Shel Olam. The truth is that the Ribono Shel Olam’s mitzvahs are not meant for us to be talmidai chochomim, and not even for us to learn Torah specifically. They are meant for each and every one of us to be mesharso, His servant; they are for us to bring about hisgalus kvodo (the revelation of His glory). “Lichvodi barosiv, yetzartiv, af asisiv” – Whom I have created for My glory, whom I have formed and even perfected.” (Isaiah, 43:7). All the olamos [worlds]were made to reveal and increase kavod Shamayim, the essential purpose of our existence……The Chafetz Chaim suggested that we think like a businessman who is willing to lose here if he stands to gain more there; who tries to make as much profit as he can, but if by asking for more he loses, he will ask for less; who tries to figure out how, in the long run, he will make more; who gives up today for tomorrow. In short, he makes investments……In order to be able to influence, you have to be a ben Torah. And there are degrees of being a ben Torah, and these will strongly determine your ultimate effectiveness as a mashpia [a spiritually influential person]. Therefore we are required to sit and learn and complete ourselves until such time that we feel most capable of making the overall impact that will be helpful towards revealing kavod Shamayim….Boys should be talmidei chachamim [Torah scholars]. But a talmid chacham does not necessarily refer to one who is “Toraso umnaso,” to someone who is learning full-time….. Therefore, every Yiddishe kind [Jewish child] should be taught that the ideal is to serve Hashem — that is the whole purpose in life and that is what we are here for. As he grows up, you will see which way is the most effective for him to do that. That will, of course, depend on his talents, inclinations, background, and situation in which the Hashgachah [Divine Providence] puts him. Different people have different purposes.”

I never met either set of my grandparents. And, as far as I know, my two sets of grandparents never met each other. They were all born in Lodz in the 1880s and 1890s and lived in Germany between WWI and WWII. All four of them were slaughtered by the Germans. We know the general location where the slaughters took place, but there is of course no specific grave or marker at the place of the crimes.

My father’s brother lived in London. He died about twelve years ago and is buried at the Enfield cemetery in London. I was very fond of my uncle (my son born shortly after his death is named after him) and I always hoped for an opportunity to visit his gravesite. The opportunity came about ... Read More >>]]> My daughter was married last week to a fine young man. She is our eldest and she is the first of our children to be married. It is a firm Jewish belief that deceased anscestors are in some way present at a wedding. So, in contemplating the extraordinary course of events through which G-d led us to arrive at this joyous day, I recalled to myself some of our family history.

I never met either set of my grandparents. And, as far as I know, my two sets of grandparents never met each other. They were all born in Lodz in the 1880s and 1890s and lived in Germany between WWI and WWII. All four of them were slaughtered by the Germans. We know the general location where the slaughters took place, but there is of course no specific grave or marker at the place of the crimes.

My father’s brother lived in London. He died about twelve years ago and is buried at the Enfield cemetery in London. I was very fond of my uncle (my son born shortly after his death is named after him) and I always hoped for an opportunity to visit his gravesite. The opportunity came about two years ago. My mother’s brother (he’s also British) had had a son who died in the 1950s at a young age, and now it was the 50th anniversary of the boy’s death. I took off to London to join my cousins as they organized a family weekend to commemorate the occasion. The focal point of the weekend was a Sunday morning visit to the cemetery to unveil a new headstone for the young boy as well as a new, free-standing stone containing the names of my maternal grandparents. When I heard that the cemetery we would be going to was called Enfield I was particularly intrigued and prepared myself for my long-awaited visit to my uncle’s gravesite. After the ceremony for the young boy and seeing my maternal grandparent’s names on a new headstone I walked about 100 yards to my father’s brother’s gravesite. Although I had seen pictures of the headstone I had forgotten that at the end of the inscription the names of his parents, my paternal grandparents, were noted.

So, 60 years after the slaughter, the two sets of grandparents finally had their names properly commemorated in stone, 100 yards from each other, close enough to be ’seen’ together, and in London of all places. And last week they were again present together as their grandson walked their great-granddaughter down the aisle in Monsey. May their memory be a blessing for all of Israel.

“Traditional Judaism places a premium on the family bond and emphasizes heavily the unique and exclusive nature of the husband-wife relationship. Judaism expects men to reserve their sexuality for their wives and women to reserve their sexuality for their husbands. While sometimes hard to appreciate in our over-stimulated and media-saturated world, the power of touching can (or should) be formidable, and many Orthodox Jews – even though it is ‘merely’ a business setting – do not touch or shake hands with someone of the opposite gender. This is not strictly speaking forbidden by Jewish law; it is more in the nature of being very attuned to the issue. (Similarly, although not strictly speaking forbidden by Jewish law, many Orthodox couples will not hold hands or show affection in public. This is not prudery, it is privacy. Affection and passion are inherently private matters.)

It is worth noting that traditional Judaism promotes one’s inner self over the outer, physical trappings. ... Read More >>]]> I was recently asked to explain why in business settings many orthodox Jews do not shake hands with members of the opposite gender. Here is how I responded:

“Traditional Judaism places a premium on the family bond and emphasizes heavily the unique and exclusive nature of the husband-wife relationship. Judaism expects men to reserve their sexuality for their wives and women to reserve their sexuality for their husbands. While sometimes hard to appreciate in our over-stimulated and media-saturated world, the power of touching can (or should) be formidable, and many Orthodox Jews – even though it is ‘merely’ a business setting – do not touch or shake hands with someone of the opposite gender. This is not strictly speaking forbidden by Jewish law; it is more in the nature of being very attuned to the issue. (Similarly, although not strictly speaking forbidden by Jewish law, many Orthodox couples will not hold hands or show affection in public. This is not prudery, it is privacy. Affection and passion are inherently private matters.)

It is worth noting that traditional Judaism promotes one’s inner self over the outer, physical trappings. For this reason Orthodox Jews, both men and women, tend to dress more modestly than is generally common today in western society. For men in a business setting this does not pose anything unusual, as most business settings tend to conform to basic standards of modesty. For women, however, basic business attire has a number of variations, some of which do not conform to traditional senses of modesty.”

I would appreciate comments to my response.

I have also thought about this for a very long time (not in the context of the parade, but in the overall context of gay marriage) and have concluded that there is no such perspective; those who do not accept that there is a G-d Who gave us Leviticus have no source for a consistent moral code. Absent this consistency society can legislate whatever it wants based on passing trends. For example, witness the shift in ‘morality’ concerning abortion, euthanasia and gays over the past 35 years. The great ‘ethicist’ Peter Singer has written that “we find that we can no longer accept the ethics of the past.” I would argue instead, as Henry James said, that “a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices. ”

Our current cultural debate about gay marriage necessarily engages two camps who cannot hear each other precisely because they are living under different mental ... Read More >>]]> Jonathan Rosenblum wrote: “I have been thinking for some time about how to fashion an argument against the “Gay Parade” in Jerusalem (and elsewhere) that would resonate with non-religious people and those who do not view homosexual acts as sinful. Citing Leviticus will be inadequate.”

I have also thought about this for a very long time (not in the context of the parade, but in the overall context of gay marriage) and have concluded that there is no such perspective; those who do not accept that there is a G-d Who gave us Leviticus have no source for a consistent moral code. Absent this consistency society can legislate whatever it wants based on passing trends. For example, witness the shift in ‘morality’ concerning abortion, euthanasia and gays over the past 35 years. The great ‘ethicist’ Peter Singer has written that “we find that we can no longer accept the ethics of the past.” I would argue instead, as Henry James said, that “a great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices. ”

Our current cultural debate about gay marriage necessarily engages two camps who cannot hear each other precisely because they are living under different mental and psychological regimes – one has a G-d given moral system while the other, unfortunately, does not. (If this sounds familiar, you might want to think about the current debate in Israel about the disengagement plan….) Once G-d is not in the picture the world pretty much becomes do as you wish, with periodic adjustments to window dress a perceived morality which upon objective scrutiny does not have much in the way of legs.

I’ve had a recurring thought of a way to explain to others our opposition to the gay lifestyle. In a nutshell: It is an essential aspect of our Jewishness that we strive to be other-oriented rather than self-oriented. This leads us directly to G-dliness, or is perhaps a subset of G-dliness, as we strive to serve His needs rather than our own. By marrying someone who is wired like me (a male) or even someone not wired like me but nonetheless innately familiar to me (a female, but a close relative of mine) I will not become as other-oriented as I would had I married someone who is completely different than I am. (This also gives context to the linkage between feminism – ‘no differences’ between roles of men and women – and the gay lifestyle.)

Even if this analysis is accurate, though, it is probably not effective as an explanation to others. In Western society heterosexual marriage itself has become little more than a temporary bond between the spouses, ‘serial monogamy’ they call it, and as soon as someone is bored or frustrated they move on. This itself is very self-oriented, so once heteros are acting selfishly within marriage, why can’t we extend to gays the same status? To those who say that marriage stands for the idea of striving for life-long monogamous relationships and ought to be preserved as such even if the realities fall short, the standard response is that the marriage institution itself would motivate gays to be long term ‘monogamous’, rather than promiscuous, something that, given those limited choices, can only benefit society. There is no satisfying answer to these challenges unless you have Leviticus.

I have obviously over-simplified some things in this post, but I thought it better to articulate the basic idea rather than write a magazine length piece on the subject. Comments?

1. Post-siyum a picture taken outside the Meadowlands (in New Jersey) showing ‘Racetrack’ and ‘Siyum HaShas’ directional traffic signs side-by-side was widely circulated and re-printed. The caption attached to this picture was ‘anu rotzim v’hem rotzim’, a quote from the siyum text itself meaning, basically, ‘They run to do what They feel is important (the Racetrack) and We run to do what We feel is important (Torah study).’

Something about this caption bothered me, but remained inchoate. I thought maybe it was the fact that the siyum’s venue in the various arenas, using the same facilities and infrastructure as are generally used for decidedly non-Jewish events, was much more of a statement than just the traffic sign; and that somehow using this caption diminished the overall distinction. Then I thought it was the fact that it was so gleefully sent around, raising my fear that We would use the siyum as a whip to denigrate Them. (See Marvin Schick’s April 4th post about how We sometimes talk about Them; I cannot agree more with his sentiments).

Finally we had our neighbors over for Layl Shabbos (Friday ... Read More >>]]> Two expressions of a single idea:

1. Post-siyum a picture taken outside the Meadowlands (in New Jersey) showing ‘Racetrack’ and ‘Siyum HaShas’ directional traffic signs side-by-side was widely circulated and re-printed. The caption attached to this picture was ‘anu rotzim v’hem rotzim’, a quote from the siyum text itself meaning, basically, ‘They run to do what They feel is important (the Racetrack) and We run to do what We feel is important (Torah study).’

Something about this caption bothered me, but remained inchoate. I thought maybe it was the fact that the siyum’s venue in the various arenas, using the same facilities and infrastructure as are generally used for decidedly non-Jewish events, was much more of a statement than just the traffic sign; and that somehow using this caption diminished the overall distinction. Then I thought it was the fact that it was so gleefully sent around, raising my fear that We would use the siyum as a whip to denigrate Them. (See Marvin Schick’s April 4th post about how We sometimes talk about Them; I cannot agree more with his sentiments).

Finally we had our neighbors over for Layl Shabbos (Friday Night Dinner) and Mrs. Neighbor saw the picture, for the first time, and exclaimed, “That’s not the right caption! The right caption for that picture should be ‘malchus shel chesed’ (a government of kindness). Bingo. What a Country. My feelings exactly. Can anyone imagine that in Europe 60 years ago or more there would have been hundreds of uniformed police helping us, assisting us, directing traffic, to attend an event of this sort? G-d Bless America. Philo-semitic. It’s been good for the Jews. (No need to comment on the ways in which the freedoms offered in this country have also proven to be most challenging to Jews; that’s very true but not at all the point.)

Dr. Schick, if you’re reading this you may want to stop here.

2. Marvin Schick is afraid of the Christians in this country. On May 30th he wrote here on Cross-Currents “What about racism? …What is emerging is an increasingly expanding comfort zone between Orthodox Jews and right-wingers. Are we forgetful of history? Do we delude ourselves and forget that those on the right include far too many who have articulated anti-Semitic views? Are we forgetful of what Jews experienced for centuries at the hands of devout Christians?”

C’mon. The right is racist but the left is not? If you’re against affirmative action you’re a racist? Where is anti-semitism today, on the left or on the right? Visit Columbia or San Jose State or virtually any other campus; you can also try the EU. The more left the more anti-Semitic. Don’t get caught in a time-warp. It is true that liberal democrats in this country allowed people like Marvin and me to enter into academia and the law, but that doesn’t mean that the current views and policies of the left continue forever to be good for the Jews. Of course it also doesn’t mean that the views and policies of the right are always good for the Jews, but any objective read of where we are today leads to the conclusion that authentic Judaism is more closely aligned with today’s right than today’s left.

The philo-Semitism in this country is unprecedented since the Second Commonwealth, and makes the Golden Age of Spain seem merely like brass in comparison. Stop worrying about Christians and let’s take care of ourselves. Isn’t it interesting that (i) the Democrats’ outreach to Jews is comprised almost entirely of building up fear of Christians as a reason for Jews to stay with the Democrats (admittedly, they do occasionally offer up such gems as the eternal ‘jewish values ‘ of abortion on demand and gay rights, and often couched in terms of Judaism’s ‘pursuit of justice’ – ouch) ; and (ii) the two Jewish demographics most likely to have voted for Bush in ‘04 were religious Jews and intermarried Jews, i.e., the two kinds of Jews who, for better and worse, do not fear the impact of Christians on their life goals. The US Congress supports Israel the way it does because of Christian Americans, not because of Jewish Americans. Let the Jewish community spend more energy building Jews and less denigrating Christians. Now that would be good for the Jews.

Judaism promotes hard work and substance over style. It is inconceivable that a Torah leader would have any bit of his personality invested in marketing his image and reputation. Torah leaders are almost literally designated by the people as a result of their piety and scholarship. Yes, sometimes we ‘worship’ our heroes – in some circles there even seems to be a trend in that direction. But, and here’s the key, our heroes do not worship themselves. Memo to Madonna, Arnold and the rest: at the end of the day it’s not how well you look or sell, it’s what you are.

Which brings me to the fine folks celebrating next week’s Siyum HaShas. Clearly only a small percentage of those in attendance are actually completing all of Shas. What are the rest of us (yes…sigh…us) doing there?

I can’t speak for others but I know why I ... Read More >>]]> One way in which authentic Judaism differs from societal norms currently in vogue in the Western world is that Judaism abhors the cult of hero-worship. Before you lift your strongest finger to punch out your indignant comment, well, let me try to explain. Also, be nice because this is my first post.

Judaism promotes hard work and substance over style. It is inconceivable that a Torah leader would have any bit of his personality invested in marketing his image and reputation. Torah leaders are almost literally designated by the people as a result of their piety and scholarship. Yes, sometimes we ‘worship’ our heroes – in some circles there even seems to be a trend in that direction. But, and here’s the key, our heroes do not worship themselves. Memo to Madonna, Arnold and the rest: at the end of the day it’s not how well you look or sell, it’s what you are.

Which brings me to the fine folks celebrating next week’s Siyum HaShas. Clearly only a small percentage of those in attendance are actually completing all of Shas. What are the rest of us (yes…sigh…us) doing there?

I can’t speak for others but I know why I wouldn’t want to miss it. These guys trudged out every morning or every night, rain or shine, often bleary-eyed and bone tired, to plow through the daily two-sided page of terse aramaic diamond-hard sentences and structures, surviving mostly on the skill of their teachers and the books of Artscroll. In this daily push, this consistency, lies greatness. Unheralded, no marketing plan and no fan base, just doing the right thing every single day even when it hurts. This is the essence of Judaism. It is what makes ordinary folks into heroes, and we attend their moment in the spotlight out of recognition of what they have achieved and the powerful lesson it holds for us all, men, women and children, long-time learners and beginners alike. Low-key consistency doing the right thing is the highest of virtues.

Yocheved and Miriam, the mother and sister of Moshe, are first introduced to us in the Torah as Shifra and Pu’ah, because these names in Hebrew allude to their devotion and care for children. Day in, day out. Lots of diapers. Lots of meals. Always available, never ‘off’. The greatest women of the generation became great through their selfless devotion to babies. Their greatness is not in spite of this, it is because of this.

Back in my Brooklyn days I marveled at all the elderly gentlemen, some in their nineties, who trudged in every day for Shacharis. They were old and frail and utterly dependable. A friend of mine called them, somewhat lovingly, the Shufflers – they couldn’t walk fast and they’d just shuffle along, but they’d be there every single day. You could set your clock to them. My heroes.