The idea of Jews always banding together is about as nonsensical as the idea that all blacks know each other or any other racial/cultural stereotype. In fact, I know of few peoples who are as institutionally fragmented as Jews. We like to think ourselves above all of that, but we are not. Just take a look at all the various categories of religious types, and those the rabbinics rejects as heretics. They told me that ‘once a Jew always a Jew.’ But is it true?
In my grandmother’s mind there were only two kinds of Jews; milchig or fleishig, and her concern was never your ideology, wealth, or lineage. She was only concerned with your health, your family, and your stomach. To her it didn’t matter where you prayed or IF you prayed. If you showed up as guest in her home you would be fed and treated as an equal.
She knew of my apostasy and treated it like a she would a bad cold. It didn’t ever stop her from loving me or wishing me the best of happiness. I’m sure that she, among my other family members, was concerned for my spiritual well-being, but she never hinted even a bit of animosity toward me or my newly chosen thought patterns. I’m sort of thankful that she wasn’t educated or highly skilled in the art of differentiation and labeling.
For all Jews, the rumbling of an empty stomach sounds and feels exactly the same. If we begin to believe that our ideological differences are more important than our biological and/or cultural similarities, we then, even in the face of danger will never be able to face immediate dangers in any unified way. I fully understand the desire of the religious Jew to protect and ensure his way of life, but at what cost?
I look at the rantings of a Josh, and the litany of rabbinic responsa dealing with heresy (or their conception of it) and I have to wonder. How can they claim to stand for all Jews? How can they claim to represent those who they vilify? And do such ravings really produce the desired effects? Will a non-religious Jew read the words of the Talmud and Shulchan Aruch, where he is called ignoramus, common folk, heretic, etc., and then suddenly become overwhelmed with love for the orthodox and repent his ‘evil’ ways? I think not.
Incidentally, I DO agree just a teeny-weeny bit with Josh’s cold attitude toward the victims. They were warned about the possibility, they were aware of the potential dangers, and decided to take their chances. They were adults, they were rational, and they knew the risks. This attitude does not intend to absolve the terrorists from responsibility, nor should it mitigate our outrage at the callousness with which the Moslem shows toward human life.
We wondered aloud why people become orthodox. It is social acceptance coupled with the need for control in their personal lives. The rabbis know how powerful the value of social pressure is and therefore, use it extensively to maintain control. I’m not talking about social order and civil obedience here, but a deeper form of mind and thought control that extends well beyond public view. By equating their authority with that of God, they ensured that their followers will respect their wishes even in deepest recesses of their hearts and cellars. God is watching and so is your rabbi.
The aspect of personal control is important. As one intimately familiar with 12 Step groups, I have witnessed many come to life transformation and new faith/ideas. The common denominator is lack of control. As long as an addict thinks he/she is in control (“I can stop whenever I want.”), there is no desire to stop the behaviour. Once one learns that it is the addiction/disease that is in charge, one is already on the way to recovery.
People like to be in control, or at least know that something is controlling the situation of at least guiding them to a better circumstance. Who likes to be powerless? Anybody? This issue is important is assessing rabbinic Judaism and its adherents. Both the aspects of control and powerlessness are addressed. As in a recovery program, surrender to the authority of the program and its promoters is paramount. Rabbis have taken the role of ‘sponsors’ and guidance counselors, and have made themselves indispensable cogs of the rabbinic machine.
For a person who seeks strict rule and regulation out of some socially based principle or a psychological need, rabbinic Judaism is the antidote for all of society’s dysfunction. One becomes powerless when relinquishing one’s own thinking and decision making to the authority of the rabbis, and at the same time will be taking on full-time rules and regulations as a guide for living. This, along with the social acceptance that comes with the validation of orthodoxy, has a powerful psychological effect. The decision making is no longer up to the individual, and the control (or lack of control) is transferred unto the principle/group, thus absolving the practitioner from any real responsibility to answer for it.
Its quite a relief to many to know that the burden of thinking for yourself, taking responsibility, and ‘connecting the dots’ now lie in the hands of others. It’s akin to a sort of intellectual and emotional retirement community, where meals, wheels, and ideals are provided.
SL
Posted by SL Aronovitz at October 24, 2004 12:23 AM | TrackBack