Environmental Issues

There's something about YU... Maybe it's the fresh air, lovely scenery, or ... something else. It makes people feel so free. I don't understand why everybody who has been through the Yeshiva system knows at least one other person who has gone through the Yeshiva system, then came to YU, and seems to have misplaced something. For many, it's the hat (I'm not getting into whether or not it's necessary, but you must agree it is at least a sign of commitment). For others, it's the yarmulke. You'll sometimes see it in their hand... other times not at all.

Where did it go? Maybe he forgot it at home... or maybe in shiur this morning. At least he remembered to wear those sweatpants from when he was in Israel for the year (are the two connected?). What is going on here? I think every frum guy in YU knows at least one person like this, and then there are some who did such complete 180's that nobody from there past finds themselves here.

I don't blame the institution for this. Although it may not be their fault, I do believe that it's something they must address. If YU claims to be the epicenter of centrist orthodoxy, and yet will let this type of thing slide, what does it say about the future of centrist orthodoxy? "Tzitzis optional"?

Our brothers are slipping, and we care. (The proof that you care, is that you notice it.) We need to let the administration know that we demand an institution where people feel encouraged to start wearing yarmulkes (even when they visit) and not a place they come to remove "another burden" from over their heads.

I reiterate -- I am not laying blame, I am just asking for them to step up and clean up a mess before it becomes even more disasterous.

On YU Frum.

I received a comment that asked me to back up a point I made about YU being not frum (more or less). I would like to say that this comment is a mistake. Perhaps it was my fault.

I believe that this may have been in response to my comment "... the direction the school is headed..." I would like to say that the imperative word there is "headed." On it's way, not quite there. I hope that explains it better.

My beef is not with frum YU students, who are the most consistently frum people I have ever seen. What they do in school, they will do at home, and will do in social situations. In YU you'll be hard pressed to find a guy who is oreo in yeshiva, then goes into the world smoking and cursing (Don't kid yourself to think that it's like that everywhere). When they learn about something new, they take it on or it'll eat at them (they don't just forget about it) - that is noble, the essense of being frum.

Ah. So where is my problem? When the response to Rabbi Schachter saying "you should have a religious individual teach a [certain] class" is that the person would rather have the most qualified person teaching even if their morals are subject to question - this shows that the respondent views madda for its own sake... so what is the purpose of this school again? Tumah U Madda?... That's not right... I can't quite remember the phrase in situations like this.

Then there's the accredation of the business school. Business is almost always about (making money) [earning a living]. There is almost no higher purpose to that concept. So if the accredation is to get the guys better jobs that's one thing - although they may want to address certain incompetancies in a different office first. If they are just looking to make it a better school for academic reasons on their own, well... I pity them. They may disagree, but then it could be because we come from slightly different viewpoints.

As always, all terms are based on my original definitions, otherwise my posts would be much longer. So please don't argue based on the "dictionary" meaning of things.

What is Frum? a definition

This is basically a repeat of the last post from the original hocker blog. As I said there, it is only a partial statement of my view on frummness, but here I modified and shortened it even more.

I believe that being frum is, in it's essence, trying to do the will of God in this world. Thereby every action should become to further that goal. This means that, since His primary command was to learn Torah and do mitzvos, any time that can be spent doing them... should be. Additionally, any time that really needs to be spent in support of that goal, classicly: working to attain living wage, should be done but is not a goal of its own.

The problem that has arisen is that people have so often brought their cultural baggage into the equation that they misconstruct His will. I don't claim to know what His full plan is, but I wouldn't claim to know it, nor would I coin a term for it, scavange for sources from a similar idea, then pass it of as Emes for all to do.

What is the point of Torah U'madda?

How is it meant for the furtherence of His will? Perhaps it may be a goal of some intellectual indiviuals who would like to study things, but had a napoleonic complex and needed to defend it. Even if there are some who do really intend something spiritually pure... they number so few it wouldn't warrant an entire undergraduate school around it (let's face it, almost all of the Graduate programs are not Jewish - where did that idea come from? but that's for a later time) .

The direction our school seems to be taking looks too much like madda for madda's own sake. That wouldn't be frum.

Back Again

For all of those who were here for the previous edition, this is a brand new start. Make no assumptions based on the previous posts, this is under new management.

For all of the incoming readers, this is a blog focused on hocking about the "Frum" side of YU. Enjoy!