[Avodah] Ehrlachkeit, not Frumkeit

[Harry Maryles]

--- On Wed, 6/22/11, T613K at aol.com <T613K at aol.com> wrote:




From: Micha Berger micha at aishdas.org


>> The word "frum" has become a near-synonym for Orthodox. How this came
to be is noteworthy.

"Frum" descends from the German "fromm", meaning pious or devout...

"Frum iz a galech; ehrlich iz a Yid - the town priest is
`pious', a Jew is refined." 

>>>>>

... "frum" means Torah-observant and "ehrlech" means "honest, having integrity, having principles." If you look up ehrlech in a Yiddish-English dictionary, you will find it defined as "honest."

The two categories overlap, they are not meant to be contrasted and certainly not opposite. And BTW "ehrlech" does not mean "refined." The word for "refined" is "eidel."
 

The wry apercu attributed to R' Kotler -- "Frum is der galach" -- is meant as a criticism of those frum Jews who are not ehrlich... 

A frum Jew should be ehrlich, and should also be eidel.
 

Translation: An observant Jew should be honest -- should be ethical, should have integrity, should be principled -- and should /also/ be refined in his dress, speech and manners.
 

If he keeps Shabbos, keeps kosher, keeps the mitzvos -- he is frum. It is not a /bad/ thing to be frum, it's just not enough for a fully-developed Torah Jew.
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I agree but I think these definitions are a bit simplistic. 
 
Even though the word Frum has always meant being religious in the BALM sense, it has evolved into a perjorative when combined with the suffix 'keit'. 
 
Frumkeit has come to mean a kind of Yuhara ... a showing off how Frum one is by adopting certain outwardly apparent Mitzvos, Minhagim, and Chumros; wearing a type clothing common to a community that is percieved as more religious or using certain catchphrases and idioms common to their culture - so as to identfy with them and percieved by others as part of that community... instead of doing it entirely L'Shem Shomayim. 
 
Also - Ehrlichkeit as we use it today is more than just being honest. I think it implies attaching a high value to (and practicing) BALC as well as being Frum in BALM.
 
If someone is called an Ehrliche Yid, I think it means that he is 'Frum' in both BALM and BALC... and considers every act he does in a 'Kiddush HaShem/Chilul HaShem' sense. IOW they would avoid even the appearance of any wrong doing of any kind.
 
HM

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Try this: http://haemtza.blogspot.com/

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