[ThanBook has a review of the Post Orthodox debate so far, and I strongly recommend it to those who have just joined the discussion. In terms of my ideas, I posted these clarifications to his posting.]
Thank you for your observations. I would like to clarify two points.
1) I think that the left is spiritually hungry, but its hunger and its frequently uncritical acceptance of western norms leads it to violate (sometimes grossly) the texture of halakhic tradition.
2) I am, indeed, sympathetic with the concerns that Gil labels as 'Post-Orthodox.' I don't, however, think that many of them are Post-Orthodox. On the contrary, I think that the RW has so constricted the halakhic and spiritual parameters of normative Orthodox tradition, that much that is 100% acceptable is now rejected.
I say that in full recognition of the fact that there are boundaries beyond which a person, despite all the sincerity and good intentions in the world, places himself beyond the realm of Traditional Judaism.
2 comments:
One question connecting your thoughts to Brill's is the issue of why are the Post-Orthodox (i.e. no longer self-idetifying as Orth.) jumping ship - is it that they fell the Orthodox ground is shifting under their feet - so that it is not they who have changed but the Ortho. world around them. Tied to this is the pathetic state of leadership in the Orth. world these days. It has gooten so bad that even the charedi apologist Jonathan Rosenblum took to attacking the current Rabbinic Haredi leadership in his J. Post. column. I long for the days of R. Moshe, who, even if I could not buy everything he had to say (e.g college studies), I could appreciate the overall level of reasonableness and common sense exuding from every tshuva. I don't know anybody these days who is a "recognized" gadol and who gives me the warm and fuzzies. In the absence of leadership and role models, people get lost...
Chaval al d'avdin.......
I have heard of the days when the Rabbinical Assembly Proceedings were in HTCs Beit Midrash (along with ashtrays of course).
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