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</font><font size=2>You may post this in my name.<br><br>
I am coming from a different direction. I do not have problem with
people adopting new customs, as long as they pose no problem
halakhically.<br>
What I do object to is hypocrisy. While I doubt any particular
person here is being hypocritical, the stance of various movements within
Judaism is, if not hypocritical, at the very least
self-contradictory.<br>
If one does not object to adopting new customs, then why, pray tell, do
some groups make a big issue out of wearing the European fur hats (AKA
shtreimels or spodiks)? Why do some groups insist that one shabbos
one must wear long coats, as the upper class wore in Eastern
Europe? Why do some groups insist that suits worn to shul on
shabbos or rabbis' garb must be black? Why insist that the children
speak Yiddish? The reason given for all is that "we do not
want to change what our holy forefathers wore." Fine and
dandy, but then they should not be so eager to adopt new customs
either. And if you say that there was no problem in chasidim in
Europe adopting the opsheren, which according to chasidic sources was a
chiddush unknown to the BeShT and R. Berl Mezricher, or other new-fangled
customs (such as standing when the choson and kallo walk down the aisle),
then what is wrong with wearing a nice navy-blue suit and speaking
English?<br>
Make up your minds. And, if you adopt the logically teneble
position that "I prefer to do what my grandfather did, but there is
nothing wrong with other people changing their custom," then don't
criticise other Jews for changing their dress (as long as it is tziusdig)
or the thousands of other things that are condemned by the chareidi
establishment as dangerous innovations.<br><br>
<br>
-----Original Message-----<br>
From: Prof. Levine
[<a href="mailto:llevine@stevens.edu">mailto:llevine@stevens.edu</a>]<br>
Sent: Sun 5/17/2009 1:08 PM<br>
To: T613K@aol.com; avodah@lists.aishdas.org; Larry.Levine@stevens.edu;
Mandel, Seth<br>
Subject: Re: Are Upsherin and Bonfires Taken from the Gentiles?<br><br>
At 12:49 PM 5/17/2009, T613K@aol.com wrote:<br>
>Make no bones about it, it is unfortunate that the Lag B'Omer<br>
>bonfire should be a bone of contention between Jews. [To be
serious<br>
>for a moment:] Can we not agree that once a minhag has become so<br>
>accepted and its origins largely forgotten, that we can forget
about<br>
>how it started and not object to it anymore? That is the
etzem<br>
>davar. (Sorry.....)<br><br>
IMO absolutely not! We have to work to eliminate the
error.<br><br>
YL<br><br>
<br><br>
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