Orthodoxy and the Diverse Face of Judaism

In recent months, the Orthodox Jewish community has been confronted by a flurry of issues involving the Orthodoxy's interaction with Reform and Conservative circles. As Orthodox Jewry continues to push forward into suburbia, it has become increasingly necessary for rabbinic leaders to formulate a position as to what, if any, relationship should be maintained with members of such progressive synagogues. This need, which has been tackled at "Dorm Talks" sessions here at YU, was underscored by recent events involving the New York Board of Rabbis.

Recently, the rabbinical umbrella group sponsored an inter-faith prayer meeting, leaving in its wake an uproar among the Board's more right wing clergymen. In response, the Board's president, a YU musmakh, issued a call to its members, trying to allay the fears of those disconcerted by the convocation. Essentially, the organization told its Orthodox members that the Board was simply providing notice of the event without taking any official position on it.

The board, which claims membership from all three branches of Judaism, has come under sharp attack from a variety of Orthodox rabbinic authorities of both the rightist and Modern Orthodox persuasions. Their contention is that positive outcomes, if any, from such a rabbinic organization would be overshadowed by the disturbing impression that Orthodoxy regarded more progressive, neo/non-halakhic Judaism as legitimate. Indeed, foremost amongst the opponents of such inter-denominational rabbinical groups have been the Roshei Yeshiva of our Yeshiva.

In a way, the problems encountered in dealing with interdenominational relationships affect even the laymen, and in particular the students and alumni of Yeshiva University. As Yeshiva students find themselves spread out in prominent graduate schools throughout the nation, and professionals and businessmen come in contact with Jews who hold different religious, if any, affiliations, the Yeshiva student is particularly vulnerable to the pitfalls that can result from such associations.

The notion of one sheltering one's self from contact with individuals of different ideologies is a uniquely religious idea. While the much heralded principle of Tikkun Olam is a critical component of traditional Jewish theology, it is similarly an accepted priority to regard one's own religious convictions and ideals on a higher plateau, addressing one's own religious needs before venturing out to help others. On the other hand the notion that mere contact with Conservative and Reform elements of Jewry will somehow weaken one's personal convictions and morals seems illiberal, a vestige of a more intolerant time. Certainly, in an age in which Orthodoxy is flourishing in America, can't our rabbinic leaders extend an olive branch of conciliation to our well-meaning brethren?

Post-modernist thought supposes that instead of there being a singular, absolute truth, there are various self- sustaining truths, each with its own contextual and circumstantial base. In the framework of traditionalist Orthodox Jewry, such a "tolerant" definition of truth cannot exist. Be it self-assurance or perhaps even hubris, one of the requirements for calling oneself an Orthodox Jew is the confidence that the Orthodox path, the path of the unchanging halakha, is the correct one. While there are various contrasting and even opposing streams of thought within Orthodoxy, the litmus test for defining authentic Judaism is adhering t Nevertheless, it is only organized cooperation on the rabbinic level which can send the message that the wall that separates traditional and progressive Judaism is capable of being breached.

This stance may strike the casual observer as intolerant or even "fundamentalist". If so, they are quite right, since despite the negative connotations of the term, fundamentalism, if defined as possessing a certain set of immutable beliefs, is the path of the Orthodox Jew. Regardless of whether one chooses to define oneself as Modern or Ultra Orthodox, there must be bedrock of personal beliefs, and those beliefs leave no room for progressive considerations. Thus, whether or not Orthodox rabbis continue to participate in organizations condemned by many Gedolei Torah is irrelevant, the fact being that participation in such groups is outside the pale of an authentic Jewish outlook. Orthodoxy has always been willing to open its homes and synagogues to Conservative and Reform Jewry.