Dear YWN,
Canada’s National Post is generally considered pro-Israel and pro-Jewish — with one glaring exception. It has a horrible bias against “Haredim” and the “Ultra-Orthodox”. The absolutely worst offender is National Post columnist, Barbara Kay, a Jew who doesn’t let an opportunity pass without spewing venom upon “Haredim”. One of the worst examples of this hatred is her op-ed article in today’s Post. Read for yourself. She has outdone herself.
This hateful piece calls for intelligent, thoughtful and respectful letters to the editor, en mass, from Haredim and non-Haredim alike. Your response should take the high road, which she, clearly, is incapable of doing.
YJ – (Canada)
The Fanatics Within by Barbara Kay, National Post:
“Strange times to be a Jew.” That’s the master theme, voiced early and demonstrated often, in a haunting 2007 novel about Jewish messianism, The Yiddish Policemen’s Union.
Michael Chabon’s darkly brilliant achievement in alternate history sprang to mind last week, when news broke that if Israel’s extreme right wing ultra-Orthodox—the Haredim, who control the Chief Rabbinate—have their way, who is or isn’t a Jew will be far more narrowly circumscribed than ever before in Israel’s history.
The Knesset has approved a draft bill that would permit the Haredim to dictate the criteria for legal Jewish status. They would then hold the power to exclude thousands of Jewish converts, even many converted by Orthodox rabbis, from eligibility for Israeli citizenship under the “law of return” accorded all Jews as aninherentright.
Whether the bill passes or not this time—Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reassured panicked Diaspora Jews he wouldn’t support it—it reminds us that, given Israel’s electoral system of proportional representation, the political will of the disproportionately swelling ranks of Haredim (now about 1.3 million) will, one rapidly approaching day, dominate the Knesset—and Jewish destiny.
The root of the word Haredim means anxiety, which is what all Jews should feel about a putative Haredi balance of power. The Haredim are not simply religious fundamentalists with a prolific birthrate. The most eschatologically ambitious amongst them harbour lunatic urges to “force history,” to hasten the arrival of a dilatory Messiah.
The Haredim are also not, as many people assume, a more “authentic” version of Torah-based Judaism. On the contrary. The Modern Orthodox, who hold that distinction, are rational, civically integrated and pluralistic in outlook. Haredi Judaism is a fossilized historical aberration from Orthodoxy. It began as an anti-establishment spiritual movement, but petrified into a constellation of self-contained planets, each orb cultishly gripped in its own charismatic-leader worship, all dependent on, but resisting contact with authentic evolutionary Judaism.
Many ritually lapsed Diaspora Jews entertain the mistaken notion that because the Haredim are so fanatically observant of the ritual law’s every tittle, they are spiritually purer or holier than the Orthodox, or that they are saving Judaism from the extinction they—secular, intermarrying Jews—feel guilty about facilitating.
Such Jews should worry more about the opposite possibility: that Israel’s parasitic Haredim, most of whom don’t serve in the military, or contribute to Israel’s economic and cultural life, could, through perfectly democratic means, reduce Israel to a farcically retrograde theme park, an 18th-century Hungarian ghetto by the sea.
In the Diaspora, extreme ultra-Orthodox cults (such as the Satmar in Quebec) are unassimilable, but at least politically ineffectual. The problem for Israel, where Haredim do seek and gain power over the nation, is Haredi messianism. Messianism, with its built-in temptation to force history by artificially setting the stage for the envisioned saviour, the world-healing man or system, even at the risk of carnage and mayhem, is a troubling feature of all fundamentalist beliefs, including secular “progressive” revolutionary movements.
In what seems like a wildly inventive plot in the Chabon novel, messianic Jews team up with messianic Christians in a hypnotic folie a deux around “end times.” This version of forced history involves a literal return to the days of the Temple, including animal sacrifices, a supposed condition for the Messiah’s arrival/return.
But the novel is reality-based. Apparently, in anticipation of a potential event, a corps of Haredim in Jerusalem have constructed an intricate scale model of Solomon’s Temple, as blueprinted in the Torah. The original was destroyed by the Babylonians, then rebuilt and restored (by the Judean king who ordered Jesus’ death), and destroyed again by the Romans. These messianists believe that if they can actually build this third Temple and sacrifice the Torah-prescribed, unblemished all-red heifer (which doesn’t exist, but dedicated breeding programs are attempting to create one), the Messiah will come.
There is, however, this one small problem: The Temple must be situated where it was in previous incarnations. Since the end of the Seventh century, that spot has been occupied by the symbolically freighted Dome of the Rock. It’s not going anywhere. That is, not of Muslims’ volition.
So up to now the restored temple remains a dream, not the terrorist plot in Chabon’s novel. The trouble is, as an influential secular Jew famously said, “When you will it, it is no dream.” Do messianist Haredim merely fantasize about the Third Temple, or are a critical mass of them “willing” it? With messianism comes irrationality, and sometimes irresponsibility.
Between “friends” like ultra-liberal Jews on the left and the Haredim on the right, authentic Jews may not need their other myriad enemies.
Letters to the editor:
http://www.nationalpost.com/contact/letters/index.html?name=Letters&subject=Letter+to+the+editor
Letters to Barbara Kay [email protected]
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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18 Responses
She is meaningless. Who cares what she spews?
Think of it, she could have mentioned worse, like burning garbage cans & protesting about goyishe bones.
Rather than slamming her, look into what is bothering an articulate person standing on the MO (modern orthodox) side of the fence.
If we are looking for Achdus, listening carefully is the minimum requirement.
Here is my letter to the editor… let’s see if they print it:
Barbara Kay’s article “Haredi Jews have become a threat to Judaism itself” is founded upon a completely fallacious argument. The source of the divide between various factions within the Jewish religious spectrum is: what defines Judaism? Some would opine that Judaism is a constant striving for a relationship with the Almighty, while others would argue that eating bagels and lox every Sunday morning is a more accurate description. Without an absolute definition, these are all merely just opinions.
According to the arguments presented in her article, Barbara Kay’s definition of Judaism seems to be: a modernized state of Israel with a liberal immigration policy. If this definitively defined Judaism, then I believe that most would concede that Haredi Jews threaten Judaism. However, the Haredi Jews define Judaism as an unwavering commitment to the laws given by G-d to the Jews at Mt. Sinai, effectively establishing the Jewish people as a nation. According to this definition, Haredi Jews are clearly not a threat to Judaism.
So, while Haredi Judaism clearly threatens what Ms. Kay idea of Judaism is, without accurately defining the term Judaism, the only argument that can be made is that Haredi Judaism threatens Ms. Kay’s personal ideals; not the still undefined term “Judaism” itself.
The source of the Haredi Jews “narrow minded” definition of Judaism is from what they claim to be divinely ordained laws explicitly spelled out in the written and oral Torah that have been passed from generation to generation since the time of the Exodus. My question to Ms. Kay is” what is the source of your “narrow minded” definition of Judaism?
Rob Bloom
Nebach.
What hatred.
If she only know what she was talking about.
When you have an agenda, who cares about the facts.
As we so sadly know throughout the last 2,500 years:
THERE’S NO BIGGER ANTI-SEMITE – THAN A JEWISH ONE!
Maybe if you showed respect for women by showing the writer’s picture she wouldn’t be so angry with the charadei world. I am a frum woman and I am angry that I have no rationale to tell my little granddaughters why a picture of a tzniyusdike woman cannot be shown in a frum magazine.
This sentence is rather disturbing coming from someone who is puportedly a Jew.
“The original was destroyed by the Babylonians, then rebuilt and restored (by the Judean king who ordered Jesus’ death)”
This sentence basicly parrots the xtian bible that portrays the Roman Proconsul Pontius Pilate (who historians portray as a rather cruel person who crucified people he didnt like all the time) as a tzadik who pleaded not to kill yushka, rather it was “the jews” who called for his death and “forced the hand” of Pontius Pilate. this xtian canard is the source for 2000 years of xtian hatred of jews. In her hate filled article she portrays todays “charedim” in the same light as the “pharisees” (the perushim – the torah jews). I’m sure she won over the xtian readers of the paper with this article. What is her agenda?
3, (APPLAUSE!!!!) GREAT LETTER!!!!!
5, Why should YWN show the picture? Tell your granddaughters that they are blessed to grow up and read frum “publications” like YWN where there actual halochas of tznius are kept. Kudos for YWN for not putting the picture up which by the way as I saw it in other places HAD IR AYGINA HUR SHOWING AND NOT A SHAYTIL!
#5,jakyweb, why in the world do you need this lady’s picture?! Is this really why she hates Frum Yidden? Did you see the photo that accompanied the original article in the National Post? Check it out by clicking the author’s name above. Is that just an innocent photo of Kaporos or are the Post/Kay trying to support an underlying theme: “Those Haredim are crazy & dirty. Can you imagine a more insane ritual than this?…”
Don’t believe me? Copied below are excerpts of an email she sent last night to an unhappy reader.
_________________________________
—– Original Message —–
From: Barbara Kay
To:
Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 2010 8:12 PM
Subject: Re: National Post’s Hatred of ‘Haredim’
I don’t pick the pictures, but in fact it represents an ultra-Orthodox ritual…I mentioned Hungary because that is where the crazy Satmars come from, and it seemed appropriate…Yes, I am suggesting an anti-democracy revolution. Sorry your feelings were hurt. Barbara
____________________
So is the only problem here really the fact YWN doesn’t include the photo of a ‘tzniyusdike’, bitter, self-hating, ignorant, Jewish woman who is out to marginalize a major segment of Jews (just as the anti-Semitic world is trying to marginalize Israel!)?
Please!
Funny she doesn’t mention the Arabs who have a higher birth rate than Charaidm, don’t serve in IDF,are bigger “parisites” and have idea that are much less in line with her beloved enlightened western values.
She writes MO is more athentic then charaidim.
Wondering why embracing the modern world is the litnis test for athenticey?
Domocriey has this horrible issue that if all the liberals stop have kids the county goes more right. To change the election system to take away representation from people because they don’t share your values don’t seem very democratic.
#5 i think you can join this kay
its interesting how people who dont believe in torah misini etc have nerve to define judaism..any religion l’havdol, if you just do your own thing, do what you feel is right and discard what you decide belongs to the dark agas is no religion
First of all I think this Barbara Kay person is a meshumad reform lunatic. That being said, where is it written that the face of a frum woman is untzniyusdik? Does this mean that we will never see pictures of Sarah Scneirer or other role models of how a Bas Yisroel presents herself to the world?(as a recent issue of Mishpacha magazine decided not to show) ever again in frum magazines?
And modern orthodox don’t believe in the rebuilding of the bais hamikdash where the temple mount currently stands?
I am MO and have my own issues with Charedi Judaism, but rebuilding the Bais Hamikdash is not one of them. This article is pretty ridiculous IMO.
#13 no,very shvach
This is silly. Of course those who are being labeled “MO” want the Beis Hamikdash rebuilt, where it belongs on the Har Habayis. Perhaps its some of these stupid comments that are being leveled against “MO” Yidden that are a direct cause for some of the hatred this women has towards “charedim”.
What she wrote is vile and ugly. What some are writing here isn’t far from it.
#16 vsorry, yes i know the truth hurts, but thats the fact..the outlook of the conservative, reform are slowly creeping in to MO
#14 can you describe yourself when you say your MO as opposed to ‘chareidi’?..the way i understand chareidy meas one who believes in relavation of hashem on har sini and gave us torah shebeksav and torah shebal peh which is codified in 4 parts of shulchen urech which each and every simon and seuf is binding for everyone according to his minhug eg: sfardim according bais yousuf and ashkenazim according to rama..so which one do you belong to that you take yourself out of the chareidim? and if you dont belive in the above, nu whats your problem there are pleny goyim adm jews who were born jews but…(reform , conserative christians, RE: this marshass arrirah in the canadin post this week the articles is mentioned inYWN testerday. she speaks for all those movements) who hate us bcause we adhere to the above ‘lama nikra shemo sini shemishom yarda sia leyisroel’