[Avodah] Individualism?

Micha Berger micha at aishdas.org
Tue Jul 3 11:12:22 PDT 2018


On Fri, Jun 22, 2018 at 01:01:47AM +0000, Rich, Joel via Avodah wrote:
: Anecdotally, it seems to me I've seen an increase in "individualistic"
: practices across the orthodox spectrum [e.g., davening at one's own pace
: with less concern as to where the tzibbur is up to (shma, shmoneh esrai,
: chazarat hashatz...), being obvious about using a different nusach
: hatfila, wearing tfillin at mincha...] I'm curious as to whether
: others have seen this? If yes, any theories as to why? (e.g., outside
: world seeping in?)

Or even the fact that fewer shuls try to separate tefillin wearers and
non-wearers on ch"m into separate minyanim.

Or regularly-meeting minyanim in Israel where the nusach is left to the
sha"tz, rather than the minyan having an established nusach.

According to traditional attitudes, not having a single custom is
divisive.

In today's mindset, getting together despite different background and
minhagim and davening together emphasizes our underlying unity.

I do think this is an artifact of the West's strong valuation of autonomy.
And given that "live and let live" is a very different ethic than "kol
Yisrael areivim", that could be considered assimilationist.

But I think there are other factors as well.

Current hashkafos tend to be about *my* connection to G-d, or *my*
self-perfection, and therefore play down the role of "our" and "us".

Also, to talk of some interrelated issues: The lack of minhag hamaqom,
or even an expecation of having one, naturally leads to the loss of
valuing minhag. Or of communal unity.

Yeshivos are hotbeds of such textualism. And everyone heard their RY or
found in a seifer a beautiful reason to... for different practices.

You know the4 main reason why there is such a point to (eg) say "geshem"
or not to say "amein" after the first line of birkhas haTorah or after
"ha'avir sheinah" is because all those things are machloqesin. In each
case there are opinions lehefech -- "gashem", or treating those as
seperate berakhos. Which forces a discussion by the acharon of why he
picked the side he did, which has the person learning the seifer motivated
to follow that side, and so such opinions end up more vehemently followed
than things we agree on. And this fosters diversity.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             We are great, and our foibles are great,
micha at aishdas.org        and therefore our troubles are great --
http://www.aishdas.org   but our consolations will also be great.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                        - Rabbi AY Kook


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