[Avodah] Modern Orthodox

[Micha Berger]

On Wed, Dec 03, 2025 at 06:07:14AM +0200, Joel Rich via Avodah wrote:
> From Malka Z. Simkovich in Tradition
> > Postscript
> > Working on this essay gave me occasion to consider the rising tendency
> > among Modern Orthodox American Jews to accept the notion that judaism
> > cannot be authentically practiced outside the Land of Israel...

> Does this description fit your sense of galut MO's sense of self?

I actually hit "reply" for a tangent. I finally had a chance
to read your post during Chanukah. A key event during Galus
Yavan. A galus that occured while the core of the
Jewish People was in Israel.

Golah and Galus, when used in their terms-of-trade senses, are different
things. Golah is a geographic statement. Galus is a metaphysical
one. Golah is distance from our homeland; Galus is hester Panim and
emotional distance from the One Who gave it to us. As 7.10 taught us,
even those of us living in Israel are clearly still in Galus.

Now, on to RJR's actual point about Mod-O self-perception of
their practice necessarily being inauthentic because authentic
practice is only possible in Israel.

I don't think so. And I did make Aliyah.

One difference I noticed between Jews in the Greater NY area (let's
say the Monsey - 5 Towns - Lakewood triangle) compared to their
peers in Israel is that Jews in the golah are much much more likely
to focus on Judaism as a personal endevor. Our Mission Statements,
if we would have ones, would be about personal growth into an adam
shaleim, a tamim, one with a relationship with HQBH, what have
you.

And less about mitzvos as a means to reach national or communal goals.

Whilch would mean that "authentic practice" barely depends on context.
Mitzvos one misses out on, yes. But that's like saying that somoene who
never has a bekhor is less authentically practicing than one who made
a pinyon habein.

Besides, ever meet someone not surprised when they learn for the first
time of the Ramban about mitzvos in the golah being just for practice?
(And no, I don't think he meant what the naive read would say he did.)

A lichtikn un freilechn Chanukah!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 Despair is the worst of ailments. No worries
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   are justified except: "Why am I so worried?"
Author: Widen Your Tent                            - Rav Yisrael Salanter
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF