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Health: I looked up what R’ Moshe wrote about an eruv in Manhattan. He originally wrote that he held it wasn’t good. However, he wrote that yesh al mi lismoch, and he would not be against those who used it, because they did have a valid opinion to go by. He even wrote that this is a machlokes in halachah and Hashem is rejoicing over it!
Later, R’ Aharon Kotler wanted to sign strongly against it, and asked R’ Moshe to join in signing a letter. Out of respect for R’ Aharon, he signed. He write a letter saying that while he initially wrote a different opinion, he signed that letter for R’ Aharon.
So to the claim that nobody can argue on R’ Moshe, even R’ Moshe himself said that he understood the opinion that the eruv was good even though he didn’t agree, and felt there was nothing wrong with relying on those opinions.
TheBear: You’re completely wrong with your history of MO.
MO people didn’t look to Rabbonim from Europe for leadership. We simply respect them for who they are, because (shocker!) we don’t automatically look down on those who don’t share the same hashkafos as us.
Right-wing MO will not join with the yeshiva world. We are doing just fine, thank you!
I did some more digging into the gelatin thing with R’ Ralbag.
He does not allow regular gelatin. He allows Kolatin, which is gelatin made from properly shechted cows. It also has the OU hechsher on it.
R’ Ralbag was contacted regarding Trident gum, some of which had his hechsher. He stressed that regular gelatin is not kosher, but said a special run was produced with Kolatin in it.
I never heard of R’ Ralbag saying regular gelatin is kosher. I do know that he allows a synthetic gelatin to be used. Even if he does allow it, I never heard of any other Rav allowing it. In fact, every MO Rav I’ve ever spoken to told me not to use the Triangle K hechsher.
As for the UWS eruv, I honestly don’t know much about it. I assume there is a Rav they rely on. But to your point saying that nobody can argue on R’ Moshe zt”l, would you say the same about chassidim who use the eruv in Brooklyn? After all, R’ Moshe made it very clear that an eruv couldn’t be made in Brooklyn either. Or do you think chassidim can argue on R’ Moshe, but MO can’t?
My Rav told me he follows R’ Moshe with the eruvin. Most MO Rabbonim I know do the same. I did speak to a Rav who was a talmud of R’ Tuvia Goldstein zt”l, who told me R’ Tuvia held the Brooklyn eruv was allowed, and could be relied on. Would you say R’ Tuvia was able to argue on R’ Moshe?
I once went to daven Mincha at Rabbi Landau’s shul in Brooklyn. I was looking for a parking spot. I was getting a bit nervous, because it was getting close to shkiah, and I wanted to catch the last minyan.
I finally saw a guy getting into his car to pull out. He pulled out, I pulled in front of the spot, with my turn signal on, and shifted into reverse. Suddenly, a guy comes and zips head-first into the spot. I got out of the car and asked him, “What do you think you’re doing? That was my spot!”
He replied, “It’s almost shkiah, I need to catch the last minyan! Sorry!” and he ran off to the shul.
I’m sure Hashem really appreciated his tefillos that day.
HaKatan, you’ve claimed many times that MO is matir issurim. You’ve been asked what issurim they are matir, but have never answered with anything other than Zionism. Please realize that many big Rabbonim disagree with that, as they hold Zionism to be perfectly fine. Can you provide an issur that MO allows?
As for Daas Torah, MO definitely believes in asking a Rav halachic shailos, and not just deciding things for ourselves. However, we don’t believe that Rabbonim are necessarily experts in all areas. If I’m sick, I call a doctor, not my Rav. If I’m looking to buy a house, I’ll speak to a real estate agent and a mortgage broker, not my Rav. I speak to my Rav about matters that affect me spiritually. I sometimes ask my Rav about others issues simply because he is experienced in other matters and I value his opinion, but I take that as advice, not as an absolute psak that must be followed.
I think I’m going to write a hate post also. Not necessarily what I believe, but enough facts to make it legit. I’m gonna start working on it tonight. Let’s see if the mods post it.
Mods, why is it that the threads about Weberman were all closed, yet this thread remains open, allowing Hakatan/Joseph to spew his hate filled views?
The yeshiva that my kids go to keeps the doors locked. There is a security guard who needs to buzz you in, and he sits right by the door, so he can escort you somewhere if necessary.
If he’s not there, like if he’s using the restroom, you’ll wait. I’ve had to wait before to be buzzed in because he was away from the desk for a moment.
The school also has regular drills with the local police to know how to handle a shooter in the school.
When a terrible person gets convicted of a crime, yes, I will be happy. Not because there are problems in the Jewish community, but because the problems are on their way to being resolved. Instead of the years of cover-ups that happened, the issue must now be dealt with. Instead of sacrificing innocent children to protect some animals, the animals will be taken care of as they deserve.
That’s why I’m happy. I wish we didn’t have the problems with these sick people to begin with. But they are there, and I want them to be dealt with.
HaKatan, I don’t think that’s a good answer. Years ago, R’ Gifter gave his famous speech attacking YU. He said they did what they did to get government funding. He said the money comes from Hashem, not the government, and you can’t go even one bit against what is right for government funding. I think if he were alive at the time Bloomberg was honored, he would have been dead-set against it.
Ferd: I based my post on information I had read. It seems that information was wrong. I did not intend to lie, I simply received false information – kind of like all the Satmar chassidim who listened to their Rebbe regarding the Weberman trial.
I apologize to the one anonymous dispatcher who was accused of refusing to help. I made no accusations against the other Hatzolah members, and therefore no apology is required.
I have nothing but the highest respect for Hatzolah members. I’ve used their services before, as have many relatives of mine. My Rosh Yeshiva, R’ Yaakov Bender, helped found Hatzolah in both Flatbush and Far Rockaway. I admire those who volunteer their services for Hatzolah, and wish them nothing but success.
Health: Not everyone is against him, and even if most are, it doesn’t speak to them. It all comes down to one person – the Satmar Rav in Williamsburg. Most of the people will go by what he says, even if they disagree. If he’s wrong, it flows down to everyone else. With regard to the whole Weberman case, he was wrong.
You wrote “Hatzolah (if they responded)”. Hatzolah was called. They refused to respond because of who he is. They can lose their license for that. No doubt people will cry anti-semitism, but it’s only because of their hatred for this hero of a man.
A few points:
R’ Nachum did NOT go to the attacker and tell him that his father was next. He had written online that he was thrilled Weberman was found guilty. He then wrote that Mr. X (I won’t post the name here) should pack his bags and get ready to join Weberman in prison.
Later, while he was walking down the street, Mr. X’s son walked up to him and threw a cup of bleach in his face. This account was verified by other people on the street who witnessed the attack.
What was really sad was that Hatzolah was called, and when they were told who the victim was, they refused to come.
aCookieJar: You wrote,”The reason experts are concerned about abuse is because child abuse causes children to go OTD.” I can’t believe that this is true. We should be concerned about abuse because it is a disgusting, perverted thing which harms people, whether they go OTD or not. According to you, if there is abuse which does not cause someone to go OTD, would it be ok? Abuse is wrong because of the act itself, not because of the results that come out from it.
Feif Un has informed me that he will not be returning. Popa, I told him your question, and he said to go troll your boss so you can get fired.
Feif Un,
I know you said you were leaving. But you don’t know what’s going on here! Popa revived his advice thread just to make himself relevant again! Your advice thread was the original, better one, so I’m reviving it as well. Please come back!
Now I’m going to walk over to your desk and tell you that I posted this.
iced: Now you’re just getting ridiculous, making things up. I won’t be responding to you anymore.
akuperma: You’re stretching with conspiracy theories now. Seriously, read some real info about the trial and you’ll see that there was evidence. As for the publicity, you are aware of how a jury is treated, right?
akuperma: There is not always physical evidence such as bruises. Even if there were, bruises can fade in a few days – who says she went to her doctor during that time?
You say nobody noticed? Untrue! The parents testified that they complained to the school and were told that if they continued to complain, their daughter would be expelled. Weberman took her on a drive to Monsey alone, at night, which Satmar hold is strictly forbidden! The parents again complained, and again were threatened.
iced: Why is everything bad anti-semitism? The prosecutor was likely chosen because he is a good prosecutor, not because of his religion. He works for the DA’s office. That’s all. He was found guilty because the jury believed the evidence against him – of which there was plenty.
Don’t forget that Weberman also admitted on the stand that he is a thief, and used tzedakah money from a charity he runs to pay his own personal bills – he took $11,000 in one month! He used it to pay his children’s tuition, and also to buy clothing in what can be described as a store that sells women’s clothing which should only be seen by her husband (and not just plain undergarments). He obviously isn’t very concerned with honesty.
akuperma: Oh please! It’s rude to the defendant? Who cares about a piece of dirt like him, who molests children?
There was no evidence? The girl testified that he molested her. She had gone to a social worker because she was having problems. She didn’t snitch right away. It took the social worker many hours of therapy to get it out of her. She also underwent a full psychiatric evaluation which determined that she had gone through a severe emotional trauma relating to abuse.
You want halachic evidence, with 2 witnesses who saw the actual act? You won’t find it. Bus this isn’t a beis din, this is an American court. They have the right, according to the Torah, to set their own rules and laws, and we are required to follow them.
You say it’s anti-semitism? Why, because he was found guilty? That’s the old battle-cry of many Jews whenever they’re caught doing something wrong. The guy did something wrong, and he was caught. End of story. How are you so sure he was set up? What do you know about the case?
There were other victims who came forward, but were scared to testify. The victim and her family were offered a bribe of half a million dollars to leave the country and drop the case. Chassidim were arrested for taking pictures of her in court (which is illegal) and posting them online. Never mind that the Satmar Rebbe the internet is 100% assur. They posted the pictures to harass her! Why all the harassment? They were obviously trying to hide something.
HaKatan: You list all the things you claim Israel did wrong. The fact that they haven’t had peace isn’t an issue. We’re still in galus, and there won’t be peace. More Jews died in WW2 than in Israel – would you say we shouldn’t have been in Europe either?
The fact is that Israel watches out for all Jews, all over the world. Just recently, when some Satmar drug smugglers were in prison in Japan, who stepped in to help them? Israel! Israel helped the people who hate them, the Satmar chassidim! Did any Satmar people say, “Hey, Israel might not be that bad!”? Of course not! But Israel didn’t care. They saw Jews who needed help, and they did whatever they could.
Who rescued the Satmar Rebbe from the Nazis? A Zionist! But of course, the chassidim decided to cover that up, and don’t tell their kids that.
You should learn a few things from Israel and the Zionists.
Health,
If a beis din decides that a conversion is good, it’s good, end of story. Perhaps she wasn’t married yet when she converted, and hadn’t thought about covering her hair?
There are many places where it’s brought down that once a geirus is completed, we don’t invalidate it, even if we see the person sinning the next day.
Now here’s a question for you. A person is converting. They keep kosher, Shabbos, taharas hamishpacha, everything. The guy will learn 14 hours per day. He also happens to be a Zionist, who supports the Israeli government. Would you say the geirus is good?
Medium Size Shadchan: Lots of people also invested in Facebook when it went public. They did regret it.
In hindsight you can make judgments easily. Looking forward, you never know how things will turn out.
I think you should invest your life savings, and take out a 2nd mortgage on your home to invest as much as possible in this. You can make millions!
Oh, what’s that? You can lose it also? Nobody can predict the stock market? Wow, thanks for telling me!
The shul where I daven for the amud on the Yomim Noraim says almost all the piyutim. They usually follow the Artscroll machzor – if it says most congregations omit the piyut, they skip it. Otherwise they say everything.
Oh, and there is a mechitzah.
rebdoniel: I suggest that you ask the Rav of the shul you’re interviewing for. Whatever the minhagim of the shul are, that’s what you should do. What your Rav says doesn’t matter in another shul – you have to go by what that Rav says if you’re going to daven for the amud there.
besalel: Do you know what eidim zommimim are? There’s a difference between eidim zommimim and eidei sheker.
I had this discussion with a friend of mine a while back. The husband is required to support his wife. If she wants to forgo that support, she’s allowed to.
It would make a difference if she changes her mind. If we’d write that she’ll support him, it’s too bad – she accepted that she’d be providing the support.
If we continue to write that he provides the support, and she allows him to learn in kollel, she can change her mind. If he refuses to go work and support her, she can go to Beis Din and demand that her husband fulfill his terms in the kesubah. If he still refuses, she can demand a divorce.
The best way to lower tuition is to make it a community-based thing, and not just have the burden on the parents of the students.
Communities like Elizabeth, NJ do this to some extent. In Elizabeth, everything is under the JEC umbrella, headed by R’ Teitz shlita. The schools, shuls, etc. are all under one organization. Membership costs for shuls are higher than many other areas, but I believe some of that money is used for the schools.
In Bergen County, they’ve begun trying to do something like this, with NNJ Kids. Their goal is to make tuition a communal burden.
I heard that someone saw a picture of Sarah Schenirer that was taken in the wintertime, in Poland. She was wearing boots. These holy women are trying to be like Sarah Schenirer. Who are we to criticize such lofty ideals?
I did not eat turkey, but that is just because I don’t like the taste. The rest of my family had turkey, along with our guests.
I explained to my kids that while we thank Hashem for everything every day by davening, making brachos, etc., the USA designated this day to thank G-d for the freedoms we have. My grandparents truly appreciate what so many of us take for granted – the right to practice our religion without being persecuted for it. Therefore, out of hakaras hatov to Hashem for giving us the USA, we celebrate Thanksgiving. (On July 4th we celebrate out of hakaras hatov to the USA itself.)
MorahRach, you need to remember where the money comes from! The money doesn’t come from parents, it comes from Hashem. You will have whatever money you’re meant to have. If you’re meant to have what you have now, they could give you a million dollars tomorrow and it wouldn’t matter. All it would mean would be that more expenses would come up – which could chas v’shalom include some pretty bad things. Imagine if they gave you the money, and next week another storm came and destroyed your house. You’d say, “Wow, it’s good we got that million dollars!” What you don’t realize is that if they hadn’t given it to you, your home would be fine.
Hashem gives us what we need, and that’s all. Remember that, and trust in Him. I’ve lost count of how many times Hashem has helped my family when we thought we were completely broke. He always helps us.
Who’s been here the longest and has been active in the last few months?
Is there a list of users that can be sorted by the date they joined?
The Rav in my shul spoke about the conflict. He said that this is just a continuation of the ages-old conflict. The Parshah was significant. Eisav and Yishmael were closely connected – Eisav was Yishmael’s son-in-law.
So how does Yaakov defeat Eisav? Eisav uses his raw power. Yaakov wins by using the power of his mouth, and using it to draw closer to Hashem. The Rav told us that over Shabbos, we should make sure to use our mouths to get closer to Hashem, whether during davening, saying extra Divrei Torah at the meals, or simply singing extra zemiros. These all bring us closer to Hashem, and will help us triumph over Yishmael and Eisav.
Personally, I said an extra d’var Torah at each meal, and sang far more songs than usual. May this help us to triumph over those who wish to destroy us!
vochindik: PuhLease wrote in another thread that she used to share the account with her husband. She is now divorced. An is it so hard to believe that a woman with a good education won’t be successful when she’s married to an abusive husband, but that once divorced, she’d become successful? Hashem can change someone’s financial situation in a second. Why is it so hard to believe that it changed for PuhLease over 3 years?
Pascal’s Wager is inherently flawed for a few reasons.
1. Belief in God is not based on a wager. You can live as a religious person and go through the motions, but doing it because of the wager is not true belief in God. If belief is required, not just the practices, it wouldn’t work.
2. The Wager works if the only thing required was belief in a God. However, there are many different religions, and many are mutually exclusive. If you really don’t know what is true and what isn’t, how could you pick a religion? If you pick Judaism, the Christians believe you’re doomed forever because you don’t accept Jesus. If you pick Christianity, the Jews believe you’re in trouble because you do accept Jesus. Multiple religions throws off the while premise of the wager. It only works when there is one belief that works across the board.
ready now: How many OTD people have you seen come back just because someone told them “Yiddishkeit is THE BEST!”?
farrocks: In some cases, yes, it might be. Remove religious beliefs for a minute, because not everyone believes the same as we do.
Imagine someone who is suffering from a debilitating disease which is always fatal. It has a long, drawn out, extremely painful period of time before the victim dies. It is extremely hard on the patient, as well as his family.
In some such cases, a victim might prefer to die, rather than living in such excruciating pain. If they don’t believe in the same things we do, would you fault them for it?
ready now: You can claim that, but it’s simply not true. PuhLease is an adult, and knows the facts. I don’t know why she left, but I’m sure she thought it through beforehand.
I never said there’s anything wrong with begging, I just don’t think it will accomplish anything. It’s definitely not an intellectual response to OTD.
You said before “Yiddishkeit is THE BEST”, when in the opinion PuhLease, that’s obviously not true. You need to show WHY it’s the best instead of just repeating that line.
Some posters said MO shouldn’t support UJA, because although it gives them funding, it also supports Footsteps.
Perhaps MO learned from Agudas Yisroel and the Moetzes? After all, at the convention a few years ago, Mayor Bloomberg was honored for the funding he got the yeshivos – while he was campaigning to legalize same-sex marriage in NY!
shlishi: It’s about brand recognition. When you’re in a store and you don’t know which brand to buy, your brain remembers the names you’ve heard before, and you lean towards buying those brands.
Let’s say you tried a brand of ketchup. Let’s call it ABC Ketchup. You used it, and found that it tasted horrible. You decide not to buy it again, because you find it disgusting. If you hear a radio ad saying “ABC Ketchup is the best!”, will that make you want to try it again? Probably not. Now, if you heard an ad saying, “Heinz Ketchup is the best!”, you might try it, because you’re looking for a new brand to try.
In PuhLease’s case, she (he?) already tried Judaism, and for some reason found it lacking. Telling her “It’s the best!” is not going to change her opinion.
In my ketchup example, how would ABC Ketchup get the customer back? Maybe by giving a small free sample to the customer, saying, “Your bottle must have been bad. Here, try this sample, and you’ll see that our Ketchup really is delicious!”
We need to show OTD people that Judaism is delicious. Not just through words, but through actions, so they can actually “taste” it for themselves, to see that their first impression was wrong.
Unfortunately, much of the content here in the CR will only deliver the message that their initial thoughts were correct.
ready now: Obviously, PuhLease does NOT think that “Yiddishkeit is THE BEST.”
I’m just wondering, did you honestly think, “You know, here’s this person who, as an adult, made an informed decision not to be frum. I’m just going to write “Yiddishkeit is THE BEST.” and that will make them want to be frum again”?
In other news, a new gemach is opening in Brooklyn – a license plate gemach, so people can get gas every day!
snowbunny: Who says that R’ Moshe’s heter doesn’t apply anymore?
Additionally, even if it doesn’t, R’ Belsky issued a psak which is different than R’ Moshe’s psak, which allows it.
As for trusting hechsherim, that’s a choice you need to make for yourself.
Just remember not to be stupid about it! If there are trees coming down in your area, do not try to go to shul. It is pikuach nefesh!
Last year, when Irene was coming in (it came on a motzei Shabbos if I remember right), the Rav of my shul said that if many trees were coming down, the shul would not have a minyan, as he wanted people to stay indoors where it would be safer.
I really can’t understand why this topic is still around. There is still nothing constructive going on here, only pointless bickering that serves no purpose other than to offend people.
Mods, can you please not only close this thread, but delete it entirely? It serves no purpose other than to highlight the unfortunate chasm that still exists between observant Jews.
Rabbi Pruzansky laid out some things that will help our children grow up frum. I’m going to lay out something that I believe will bring us closer to the geulah, where it will be evident to all that the Torah way is the only proper way. Instead of looking at the negative in people and their way of life, let’s focus on the positive, and not write derogatory remarks about anyone. The Beis HaMikdash was destroyed because of sinas chinam. Let’s work on our ahavas Yisrael – even going above and beyond the basic requirements – and in this way, bring Mashiach.
I happen to know Feif Un outside the Coffee Room. We’re good friends. I spoke to him about this thread, and he gave me the ok to write about our conversation.
He really is gone from the CR. He had been considering it for a while and decided the time had come.
He’s mentioned before that he had a rough time spiritually growing up. He had some very rough times in yeshiva – he had bad rabbeim, bad experiences with the so-called “elter bachurim”, and other things. These things drove him away from his right-wing upbringing. For a while he wasn’t frum at all. He didn’t keep Shabbos. He didn’t keep kosher. He was dating a girl who was in a sorority in college.
Despite the rough times, he decided, on his own, to become frum again. Because of the rough times he had, he went with the Modern Orthodox route. This also caused him problems, with family and friends who didn’t approve of his choices. But he still fought back, and became frum again. In time, his family and friends saw how sincere he was as a Modern Orthodox Jew, and came to respect him for it.
He told me that seeing comments here such as these:
“Modern Orthodoxy is apikorsus”
“If it’s M, it ain’t O. If it’s U, it ain’t Y. If it ain’t D, it’s OTD.”
“Modern Orthodox were never on the derech if someone knows better then not to go against Hashem and he does it anyway then he is off the Derech Hashem.
A modern orthodox person is worse then some1 who is completly off (if they were never on to begin with) bc it seems that modern orthodox ppl know the right things to do and the proper ways to serve Hashem but they choose to live a Modern Orthodox lifestlye as oppose to a regular Orthodox lifestyle they choose to be off the derech knowingly…Hashem should have mercy on the modern orthodox people that know they’re doing wrong and continue living there foolish ways living in denial of true service to Hashem…God willing they will realize that they are fooling no one except themselves and start to serve Hashem properly…”
just remind him of why he left the path of Judaism years ago. He said that every time he hears people talking like that, for a second, he feels regret that he came back to frum Judaism.
I don’t understand how the so-called moderators can allow statements like those to be published. I know that I once spoke to Rabbi Yaakov Bender after he gave a speech on the internet, and asked him about the “frum” sites – such as YWN. He told me the Rabbonim on the Moetzes are against them, and tried to get YWN shut down, but the owner of the site ignored them. Now I understand why they were so against it.
The site needs a major overhaul in terms of the content allowed here. The Mods need to do a better job.