While the Greek Empire, for the most part, allowed for Jews to flourish materially and financially,
Jews under the rule of the Romans were oppressed and encountered persecution and difficulties.
In Think Jewish (p. 90), Zalman Posner asks:
“Is the survival of Judaism dependant on anti-Semitism? Wasn’t persecution always a major force
in the preservation of the Jewish people? It seems that whenever Jews have liberty, they soon cast
off their Jewish identity and assimilate into the society in which they live. It is often pointed out,
that the great Jewish, religious and cultural treasures of the past are products of the ghetto, in which
Jews were barred from the universities and professions, but that once the ghetto walls had fallen,
the Jews became such eager participants in the culture of the non-Jewish world, that in the process,
their own Jewish heritage was lost.”
We have never lived in a more free-of-ghetto society than the one we live in today.
What makes us think that it will be different this time? Why should we think that this time Jews and Judaism will thrive despite these new freedoms?
Thoughts?
Vlad wrote...
It’s obvious that in hard times all people, not Jews only, need an idea to stay united.
In mathematical terms - anti-Semitism is a necessary condition for Jews to seek answers in their religion, but not sufficient.
The main condition of survival of Judaism stays in its ability to give satisfactory answers to contemporary questions. In 20th century many Jews were looking to Marxism as source of recipes to “cure” world. Since the collapse of communism all main stream religions have a revival period. The main challenge of Judaism to reach ordinary Jew not only in time ritual ceremonies i.e. birth, marriage and death, but more often then that.
Yisroel Dolnikov wrote...
Try selling that to someone (our children, our selves etc) that to be part of this 'team', this 'family' you need to accept being hated. (As we learned in last week's class, this was a major deterrent for Romans in 2nd and 3rd century CE to not become Jewish, even though they really liked Jewish ideas).
So G-d should continue to make our situation better and better so that we feel 100% safe and accepted. BUT - how do we then not assimilate?
Interestingly, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, in his last printed discourse describes this very challenge as THE Challenge of Our Time and as the key to bringing Moshiach. How to not only survive, but to thrive, grow and connect deeper to our Jewishness in a world that does not threaten us from without?
Vlad mentions an important part of the answer in that Jewish ideas need to reach people not only in times of ritual ceremonies - but to provide real answers, insights for real needs.
Jewish wisdom in my experience contains vital insights that can help people in all areas of their lives: relationships, meaning, parenting, work, personal growth - you name it.
The trick is that most people still associate Judaism only with a)obtuse, shallow things they learned in school before bar mitzvah and b)wedding/birth/bris/death - lifecycle rituals.
The challenge is for those offering access to this wisdom to do a better job in making the shift in people's mind from Judaism=Shule to Judaism=Growth, answers, wisdom.
Vlad wrote...