Orthodoxy’s identity crisis
BEARING IN mind there is nothing that gives immunity to a rabbi from the ills of folly, the latest rabbinic melodrama surrounding Rabbi Dweck does not come as a surprise.
It is, however, a painful reminder of the poor state of British Orthodox Jewry.
Roughly speaking, there are two main Orthodox communities in Britain: the one commonly referred to as “Charedi” or “Strictly Orthodox” and the second as “mainstream” or “middle-of-the-road” Orthodoxy.
The two communities are institutionally separate, each having its own schools, synagogues, Beth Din, kashrut authorities etc. Each community also carries its own pathology.
The problem of the Charedi community is that it is narrow-minded and backward-looking. Its conscious decision to shield itself from the outside world makes it unaware of almost any of the great philosophical developments over the past 300 years and it is still speaking, even in its most highly intellectual circles, the language of yesteryear.
Furthermore, its interest in Jewish knowledge is confined to the narrow field of halachah, leaving out the rich literature of Jewish philosophy, theology and history, which remains a closed book to this community.
The problem of “mainstream” Orthodoxy is, in a nutshell, its inadequate religious devotion. This is enhanced by the loss of many of its more devoted members who leave to make aliyah. In this sense, the community is defeated by its own success. As a result, both Jewish literacy and observance are in a fairly poor state in this community.
In fact, there is an inherent contradiction built into the matrices of this community whereby it does not live up to its own standards; communal religious institutions run according to principles which most members of the community do not adhere to in their personal life.
This contradiction leads to a whole range of problems which are outside the scope of this article. The essential problem, in addition to being damaging in itself, makes it difficult for the “mainstream” Orthodox community to produce its own spiritual leadership, forcing it to import it from the Charedi community. This in turn leads, in many cases, to a schism between the community and its religious leadership.
British “mainstream” Orthodoxy finds itself in a serious identity crisis whereby, on the one hand it does not