Jewish Apathy? Part 1
I just finished reading a debate between Rabbis Joseph A. Polak and Mayer Schiller about the current state of Jewish youth, specifically high school and college age students.
Rabbi Polak addresses the perceived increase in Jewish apathy. He claims, and I believe rightfully so, that many Orthodox students do not have the ability to relate Judaism to their own personal lives. His personal anecdote about the difference between reactions of Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews to a value question is frightening. Why is it that we are not able to think in terms of value judgements? Judaism is not supposed to be a religion of simply taking everything at face value. Yes, as an Orthodox Jew, I accept a tradition of thought, but I also recognize the ability for the system to adapt, with limitations, to the world we live in. We should be teaching this to our students. Oh, but wait, we are afraid of people thinking too much. The truth is that it is not the high schools so much that are the problem. Let's face it, many students in High school don't usually care so much about the social issues of the times. Of course, when we study in Israel, we are also not exposed to social issues so much. For the men (I dont know much about women's seminaries/yeshivot, so I am restricting my comment to the men's yeshivot), Israel is a year of immersing ourselves in Gemara, because we are told this is the essence of learning. For some of us, other areas were also important, whether they be Bible or philosophy. Nevertheless, we are not often asked what we think about something, why we cherish a certain law. Now granted, our primary goal in Israel is religious growth, but that cannot be internalized without recognizing our love for the system.
Why do we follow the law? Very often, people will be more religious due to social pressures. While this is not the worst method of promoting religious growth, it is often detrimental if the person is susceptible to peer pressure, especially when the person forgets that the social pressure should lead to following the law for its own sake (shelo lishmah bah lishmah). I think the issue Rabbi Polak is trying to explain is the need to ask the value question, the need to recognize why we do what we do. This is not a call for figuring out the purpose of each law (taamei hamitzvot). It is simply a call to change our education system ever so slightly. Give five minutes once a week to asking high schoolers these questions. Maybe a little thinking will be good.
Anyways, Rabbi Schiller responds and simply seems to not recognize the apathy that Rabbi Polak speaks about. I think part of why he doesn't see it is because he is only looking around at the tri-state area. Being an outsider to some extent (I have been in NY for a few years now), I can say that many people I know often feel this apathy. Judaism seems to be a religion of going through the motions. This is especially the case for those about to go to Israel. Now, maybe Rabbi Schiller is a phenomenal teacher whose students are excited about Judaism. However, barring his own classroom, I think he doesn't take into account what is happening with other kids. This might even be more of the case with out of town students. When we, who grew up in smaller Orthodox communities, leave home, often we are ill prepared for the world of the tri-state area. Many are ill-prepared for secular college, though this is often not because of a lack of contact with non-Jews. Of course, being ill-prepared is no excuse to simply hide behind the cushion of Yeshiva University, which is basically what Rabbi Schiller advocates. I think the answer is what Rabbi Polak is driving at. We need to present Judaism as a viable religion in the world, a religion that can handle all comers. A religion able to function in the Postmodern college environment, were many students are relativists and don't see a difference between one thing and another. We cannot ignore the personal aspect of Judaism. If we do that, we will suffer spiritually.
I just finished reading a debate between Rabbis Joseph A. Polak and Mayer Schiller about the current state of Jewish youth, specifically high school and college age students.
Rabbi Polak addresses the perceived increase in Jewish apathy. He claims, and I believe rightfully so, that many Orthodox students do not have the ability to relate Judaism to their own personal lives. His personal anecdote about the difference between reactions of Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews to a value question is frightening. Why is it that we are not able to think in terms of value judgements? Judaism is not supposed to be a religion of simply taking everything at face value. Yes, as an Orthodox Jew, I accept a tradition of thought, but I also recognize the ability for the system to adapt, with limitations, to the world we live in. We should be teaching this to our students. Oh, but wait, we are afraid of people thinking too much. The truth is that it is not the high schools so much that are the problem. Let's face it, many students in High school don't usually care so much about the social issues of the times. Of course, when we study in Israel, we are also not exposed to social issues so much. For the men (I dont know much about women's seminaries/yeshivot, so I am restricting my comment to the men's yeshivot), Israel is a year of immersing ourselves in Gemara, because we are told this is the essence of learning. For some of us, other areas were also important, whether they be Bible or philosophy. Nevertheless, we are not often asked what we think about something, why we cherish a certain law. Now granted, our primary goal in Israel is religious growth, but that cannot be internalized without recognizing our love for the system.
Why do we follow the law? Very often, people will be more religious due to social pressures. While this is not the worst method of promoting religious growth, it is often detrimental if the person is susceptible to peer pressure, especially when the person forgets that the social pressure should lead to following the law for its own sake (shelo lishmah bah lishmah). I think the issue Rabbi Polak is trying to explain is the need to ask the value question, the need to recognize why we do what we do. This is not a call for figuring out the purpose of each law (taamei hamitzvot). It is simply a call to change our education system ever so slightly. Give five minutes once a week to asking high schoolers these questions. Maybe a little thinking will be good.
Anyways, Rabbi Schiller responds and simply seems to not recognize the apathy that Rabbi Polak speaks about. I think part of why he doesn't see it is because he is only looking around at the tri-state area. Being an outsider to some extent (I have been in NY for a few years now), I can say that many people I know often feel this apathy. Judaism seems to be a religion of going through the motions. This is especially the case for those about to go to Israel. Now, maybe Rabbi Schiller is a phenomenal teacher whose students are excited about Judaism. However, barring his own classroom, I think he doesn't take into account what is happening with other kids. This might even be more of the case with out of town students. When we, who grew up in smaller Orthodox communities, leave home, often we are ill prepared for the world of the tri-state area. Many are ill-prepared for secular college, though this is often not because of a lack of contact with non-Jews. Of course, being ill-prepared is no excuse to simply hide behind the cushion of Yeshiva University, which is basically what Rabbi Schiller advocates. I think the answer is what Rabbi Polak is driving at. We need to present Judaism as a viable religion in the world, a religion that can handle all comers. A religion able to function in the Postmodern college environment, were many students are relativists and don't see a difference between one thing and another. We cannot ignore the personal aspect of Judaism. If we do that, we will suffer spiritually.
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