mw13:
Kol hakavod to Rav Yitzchok Fingerer and BJX. They do fabulous kiruv work. Expecting them to succeed in combating Footsteps is like matching an ant to a Sherman tank. We need to understand a bit more about what that wicked organization is, how they work, and who is affected by it.
It looks for adults, not just teens. It is well schooled in how missionaries work, and they have used a Yiddishe kopp to develop ways of snaring our own right from under our eyes. The sales pitch is about how they catch Chassidishe souls who are dropping out, and offer them training, jobs, GED, social supports, etc. While they do some of this access, it is secondary to their real goal. They are h*ll bent on taking as many neshamos away from Yiddishkeit, and accomplish this by creating a dependency for these resources. They indoctrinate against Torah and mitzvos, teaching their prey to look at the steps of throwing away Yiddishkeit and heritage as honorable achievements. They are insidious and parasitic.
The real antidote for this poison is simchas hachaim within the fold of Yiddishkeit. It may truly be secondary what malbush someone wears, with all due respect to family minhagim. But if our young people lose passion for Torah and Mitzvos, they are easy prey for these predators.
Now comes the hard question. What are we, as a community, having our leaders, yeshivos, and schools, doing to make being a frum Yid something inherently gratifying? Do we demonstrate a feeling of accomplishment in having davened in the morning, or are we thrilled to be done with it so that we can move on to our other activities of the day? Do we enjoy learning, or has it been diverted into a competitive exercise (under the mistakenly interpreted קנאת סופרים? Are we busy looking to be the biggest tzaddik, the best bochur in yeshiva, the worthy recipient of kavod, getting the last word in on a debate in the CR, fame or fortune?
If we made our mission for our young generation to insure their experience of Torah and Mitzvos was precious and enjoyable, we would have little to no loss to missionaries like Footsteps. But, alas, we are not fulfilling ואהבת את ה’ אלקיך, in which we are obligated to achieve שתהא שם שמים מתאהב על ידך. There is occasional lip service to Ahavas Hashem. But where is the action? If we cannot see the impact, then we are not doing the job.
It would be a lovely idea to make the approaching Elul into a month of seeking Ahavas Hashem. Teshuvah becomes much easier.