Page 23 - HaMizrachi Tisha B'av 5782 USA

Living in two worlds, trusted in none foreign to me – but the game was It is not a coincidence that the story
essentially the same. of the dor haflagah, the generation of
I was raised in my father’s Modern dispersion, follows the story of Noach.
Orthodox shul, yet went to yeshivah in Moving to New York in 2015 was a While Noach teaches us that we
Lakewood. I learned from Rabbi Dovid culture shock. The lines in the sand cannot succeed alone, the dor haflagah
Soloveitchik, but have served as a rav between our communities have hard- reminds us of the challenges of work-
at two Young Israel shuls. I currently ened and the ideal of respecting the ing together with a group.
teach in a Beis Ya’akov and a Telshe mesorah of others is too often a mere
Yeshivah, while also writing and edit- pantomime instead of a deep and Rav Hutner, in one of his famous bon
ing for what some would describe as innate feeling. mots, once said: “The miracle of sev-
a Chassidishe-leaning magazine, Ami. enty rabbis sitting in different rooms
A proposal and making the same changes for Pto-
I have the unique perch of not just lemy’s translation was a great one. But
working with people of all stripes, What follows may seem passé, yet even greater still would be if they were
but also to learn, negotiate and con- sometimes we must have the courage in the same room and agreed on those
sult with them in matters of Torah and to be unoriginal. changes!”
hashkafah.
We are living in frightening times. I propose a meeting of the minds. A
Living in many ‘worlds’ may sound like Our youth are being spiritually chal- get-together of activists, askanim and
a pleasant ideal, however, in reality, lenged in ways not seen since the days leaders from both camps to discuss the
it just means that neither ‘side’ trusts of Hellenism. Satan is many things, common issues that are in front of us.
me. Those on the ‘right’ think I may but being a fool is not among them.
have fallen under the spell of culture, The bnei Torah from each camp must Rav Kook and Rav Yosef Chaim Son-
and those on the ‘left’ feel I am a qua- now focus on the myriad of concerns nenfeld had significant disagreements,
si-secret agent, seeking to hypnotize we share and work together to protect yet joined together on their Shabbat
their children to wear a black hat and our youth. The dangers of technology campaign throughout the Land of
grow payot behind their ears. and modern culture and its many poi- Israel. We must do the same.
But they are both wrong. sons must not be seen as a Charedi or I recall several years ago, when in Buf-
Religious Zionist issue. We must fight falo, a young Chassidic chatan stayed
Growing up, I attended the Eitz Chaim together for a culture that is palatable in the hotel across the street from the
elementary school, where the rebbeim for our most precious souls. shul for Shabbat. He came to every
were from Lakewood, Yeshiva Univer- shiur. After Shabbat he cried to me:
sity and Chabad while the students Noach, in the greatest failure of a ba’al “I was always told that modern Jews
were a mix of Chassidic, Modern Ortho- teshuvah movement in history, was were not frum. But I learned so much
dox, yeshivish and not-yet-frum. It was unsuccessful in leading humanity in from this Shabbos! I was touched in
an idyllic upbringing, perhaps lost to repentance to Hashem. But perhaps ways I never felt before.”
time. this was inevitable – for Noach was Each mesorah has so much to offer!

As a child, the greatest lay Torah alone. The Baal HaTanya and his rebbe, the
scholar I knew was a man named Dr. Rav Shraga Feivel once pondered:
Silverberg, who wore a kippah serugah. What happened to Avraham’s many Maggid of Mezeritch, once entered a
wedding together. The proverbial “you
Who cares what kippah he wore? While students? Where are they? What hap- go first” debate ensued. Finally, the
somewhere deep in the recesses of pened to their families? He explained Baal HaTanya said, “I will go through
mind I knew our hashkafot may not that Avraham could only offer one reli- the door and you, being a ba’al mofes (a
have been fully aligned, I viewed gious path – the path of chessed. Only miracle worker), can go through the
our differences like the differences after Yitzchak and Ya’akov introduced wall!”
between Ashkenazi and Sephardi new ways to serve Hashem, through
Jews. Though the Sephardic approach gevurah and Torah, would students be The Maggid looked at his student and,
to chazara (warming food on Shabbat) able to find the proper religious paths with a twinkle in his eye, responded,
is considered a violation of Shabbat by for themselves and remain committed “Let us make an even greater mira-
Ashkenazim, I understand that Sep- to Hashem for generations. cle. Let us widen the doorway and we
hardim are following their own poskim then can hold hands and walk through
and rabbanim and so their approach Our youth are looking for a teiva, an together.”
is legitimate. Perhaps a more apt alle- ark, to steer them through a very
gory for these hashkafic differences is, stormy world. We have the tools to
lehavdil, Major League Baseball’s Amer- save them. They need a multitude of
ican and National Leagues. I grew up leaders and streams of thought, all Rabbi Moshe Taub serves as the Rabbi at
in Toronto watching the American culled from mesorah, to choose from. Young Israel of Holliswood. He teaches in
League, and so whenever I stumbled Without these choices, many young many NYC yeshivot and schools and serves
upon a National League game some people will ultimately choose to leave as Rabbinic Editor and weekly columnist at
of their rules and customs seemed Torah observance altogether. Ami Magazine.

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