Barely a week ago, we said in EmunahSpeak: Perhaps They’re Better Than You, that as far as kiruv is concerned the Internet is a win win phenomenon with no apparent downside, which enables us to reach people that heretofore were totally inaccessible vis á vis kiruv in any form.
In light of the ongoing Chillul Hashem that has made Beth Shemesh the poster boy for hate and intolerance, courtesy of both Israel’s Leftist controlled media and the Internet, by way of You Tube, Twitter, Facebook and the like, it appears that the Internet also has a downside vis á vis kiruv. Thanks to the Internet, what used to be localized manifestations of Chillul Hashem, Mea Shearim style, have now become internationalized.
Not relishing the idea of eating my words, I deleted them instead. The words win win phenomenon with no apparent downside, have been safely consigned to a digital cemetery somewhere out in cyber space.
Halavai that the defusing of the tension in Beth Shemesh should prove to be as easy as the updating of the essay.
This brings us to Marcus Lehmann who, in the famous Hagaddah bearing his name, asks why this Golus has been so long. He gives four reasons, among them greed, sensuality, and indolence. Keep in mind that his Hagaddah was first published over one hundred years ago and he was referring to the German Jews of the late Nineteenth Century who were known for their yashrus, modesty, thrift and hard work.
What would he say about us!?
What would he say about us!?
But I digress, because greed, sensuality, and indolence were only reasons numbers two, three, and four.
Rabbi Lehmann writes that reason number one as to why this Golus of ours is shlepping out as long as it has is because of dissension, and he tells us that dissension comes in two flavors:
“There has been no lack of pious and holy men and women in the many centuries of the present Golus, but salvation could not appear because of the innumerable conflicts dividing the people. Sects and parties have continuously disturbed the peace of the exile. Sadducees, Boethusians, Minim, Karaites, Sabbateans, etc. have brought distress and confusion to the community of Jacob scattered throughout the world.
“But there were squabbles that did not involve great matters of principle. They very often arose over trifling affairs; and these conflicts turned into hate and enmity, which sometimes affected large segments of Jewry, but more frequently caused utter confusion within individual communities.
“Alas, the situation is no better today (late 19th Century).
“It is not sufficient that we have enemies about us, we also cause enmities amongst ourselves and often make our lives bitter for really trivial reasons. About two centuries ago the study of Talmud blossomed amongst German Jewry as perhaps never before. The communities of Germany both large and small were distinguished for their upright piety.
“Then there arose an unholy dispute which was directed particularly against the great Rabbi Jonathan Eybeshutz. The damage caused by this dispute, and the extent to which it contributed towards dissuading young people from studying the Torah and demoralizing the ranks of the G-d fearing cannot be adequately described.
“We do not wish to speak of the dissensions caused by the so-called Reform movement. But it is most inexcusable that there is continuous conflict and dispute amongst the orthodox and faithful Israelites, for it lengthens the night of the Golus.”
Without mentioning the names of or pointing fingers at the participants in the Beth Shemesh reality show, suffice it to say that it falls well within Rabbi Lehmann’s admonition concerning continuous conflict and dispute, and that it is certainly most inexcusable. To posit that he’s wrong about lengthening the night of the Golus would be more in the realm of wishful thinking than a credible critique of his conclusion.
If there ever was a squabble that did not involve great matters of principle, this was it. The secular Jews aside, why is it that nearly all of the factions that comprise Religious Jewry in the State of Israel are either directly involved in the Beth Shemesh imbroglio or stand condemned by way of group libel? Put another way:
Why did Hashem let this happen to us?
I’m not privileged to be in the know in these kinds of things so the best I can do is guess, but as is well known, Hashem punishes on the basis of midda keneged midda (measure for measure).
Meanwhile, there was another incident in which several Hesder boys quietly walked out of an Army performance in which female soldiers were singing. Aside from some grumbling at the fringes and a flurry or two of calls and emails from Hesder affiliated Rabbis there wasn’t all that much done about it.
The soldiers who walked out on the singing performed a Kiddush Hashem for which they were disciplined and basically hung out to dry by the non-response of the religious public. As we said above, there were no big protests to be carried by YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter to the far corners of the earth.
But maybe that’s what Hashem wanted. Maybe He wanted to see how big a deal would be made on a matter of great principle.
He didn’t see anything, and so the Satan came to Beth Shemesh to churn up a massive chillul Hashem on a kleinikeit instead.
Even though we wait for Moshiach every day as per the 12th of the Rambam’s ikkurim, Moshiach and Sinas Chinam can’t occupy the same space at the same time. For as much as Moshiach will come any time soon, given our current achdus meltdown, we might as well be Waiting for Godot.*
* Google Waiting for Godot if you are clueless.
* Google Waiting for Godot if you are clueless.
