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Posts
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Do they exist?
What is a non-frum prepper?
Yes. I am one.
EDC, SIP, GOOD, BOB, INCH, TEOTWAWKI
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do you have any resources that you recommend for frum people interested in becoming preppers?
I asked a very well known Anglo kiruv rav (he probably wouldn’t mind me mentioning his name but I won’t just in case) about prepping – not necessarily for end of the world but just in case of a major disaster. My shaila wasn’t so much on stocking food, etc but more on having a family plan in case of major disasters/emergencies, etc. His exact words were, “There is nowhere to escape from Hashem. You need no plans”
I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of prepping but I’ve never really delved into it because of a personal theory I have called the “sprained ankle” theory. It goes like this – somebody can have all the right gear, a good weapon, a hiding place, etc. But when everything collapses and they go into survival mode all of a sudden one day they trip on a stone and sprain their ankle badly now no longer being able to run from danger or the like quickly enough so all the amazing preparation and training was for naught because of an unpredictable chance occurrence.
It doesn’t need to be a sprained ankle – it could be anything (getting food poisoning, competitors for food or shelter getting the jump on you, etc). The sprained ankle itself just represents how despite our best planning we are totally unable to plan for even the most simplest of things Hashem can throw our way.
That theory has basically kept me from spending a lot of time and energy getting involved in prepping. Though I still think it would be amazing to know how to start a fire without matches or know what kind of plants you can eat in the wild, etc.
There are many resources available online. But one of my most important preps has been knowledge. I have amassed books and guides on a wide variety of topics from security strategies to self sustaining food supplies to knot making. I think it’s one of my best preps. Sure you could stockpile things, but after a while you’d run out. Knowledge never really expires, or runs out. And someone, somewhere, at some time will need the knowledge that you possess. So while I do have inventory of various and sundry items, I have a healthy supply of knowledge too. As for combining prepping with Judaism……there is no guarantee that times will be smooth till moshiach, on the contrary…..they’re supposed to be rough, very rough. Personally, I have always valued independence, the ability to be productive and to thrive without the input or participation of other people. It’s not always possible, but it’s a goal.
“His exact words were, “There is nowhere to escape from Hashem. You need no plans”
Terribly silly argument IMHO. You go to work, don’t you? To make money to live. Under the above premise, we should never do anything for parnassah. But we don’t rely on miracles, do we? Prepping to me is just like parnassah, not going crazy building bunkers and the like, but also not relying on miracles. You put smoke detectors in your home? You have (hopefully) health insurance? Car insurance? Why? Isn’t it all in Gods hands anyway? Hard times come and go, periods of strife and danger wax and wane, I put my hishtadlus in. And if it’s all for nought, (sprained ankle theory) well……my arms are too short to box with God and it is what it is.
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