[Avodah] Vaad 4 aratzot, mehitzot, and kabbalat shabbat

[David Riceman]

I've been trying to understand a halachic category for the recent furor over kabbalat shabbat.  I have a working hypothesis, but I'm not happy with it.

As I understand it American Jewry has never had a unified minhag or a governing body.  Even the attempt to establish a chief rabbi of NYC failed miserably.  "orthodox" has always had multiple meanings, but one of those has always included anyone who observed Halacha.

That's why the rabbis of the previous generation expressed their opposition to lack of mehitzot in halachic terms, whereas la'aniyut da'ati mehitza is best understood as a widespread custom.  Now, however, we see that the rabbis of our generation are trying to enforce uniform customs in America.

I can think of two precedents for this, but neither fits particularly well.  Professor Ta Shma argues (I'm stranded here without references) that, even though there were varying local customs in ashkenaz, there were also some uniformly accepted customs.  It's not clear to me, however, how and whether these were enforced.  The second is Vaad 4 Aratzot; as I remarked once before on this list, I don't know of any customs it enacted.

So here are some questions: is this best understood as an attempt to overturn the one universal custom of American Jewry, by establishing something resembling a kehillah structure with the authority to veto customs? What will be the status of Shuls which are shomer mitzvoth but outside of this authority? Will it be structured like a classical kehillah, where all Jews have a vote and conclusions require consensus, or (as seems to be happening), more like clerical rule?

As a more practical question, what, if anything, should those of us who agree with the practical conclusion but have grave misgivings about the process, do?

David Riceman

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