"When all is light, you will be enlightened" - a tea bag.
An aspect of being modern orthodox is not only studying science and history as well as Torah, but attempting to reveal God through these subjects. Often times in my weekly e-mail I will quote non Jewish sources or tell a story not found in the Torah to illustrate a point. I believe all of history, all of science in fact every aspect of reality is a revelation of God.
Oftentimes it is easy to be extreme. Some groups of Judaism have segregated themselves off from the outside world concerned about high rates of assimilation and being influenced. Others have denigrated the tradition and Halacha and have nearly removed it completely from there Jewish life. These two opposite extremes are black and white. What is difficult is to straddle the middle ground, that is a realm where you might encounter danger and contradiction, both adhering to the tradition while being a productive member of society is extremely difficult at times.
In this week's Parsha the commandment of Tzizit is given to the Jewish people. Any garment that has four corners requires ritual strings or titzit to be attached to them. However if you are not wearing a four corners garment you are not required to wear Tzizit. Nowadays we do not wear many four corners garments, however the Jewish tradition has been to intentionally wear a four cornered garment and attach Tzizit to it , thereby participating in the Mitzvah.
There is a danger to this practice. If one of the four corners of the Tzizit rip or are removed accidentally you are now wearing a four corners garment without Tzizit, which is a biblical prohibition. If you did not put the four cornered garment on in the first place you would be safer.
This is Modern Orthodoxy. We enter into the modern world at great risk, in the hopes of achieving a dynamic, engaging Judaism. We desire to be a "Light onto the nations" as Yeshayah the prophet has charged our people with being. It is only through engaging in the outside world can our Judaism truly reach its full potential and that is why our sages have always encouraged us to put on the tzizit, despite the risks.
An aspect of being modern orthodox is not only studying science and history as well as Torah, but attempting to reveal God through these subjects. Often times in my weekly e-mail I will quote non Jewish sources or tell a story not found in the Torah to illustrate a point. I believe all of history, all of science in fact every aspect of reality is a revelation of God.
Oftentimes it is easy to be extreme. Some groups of Judaism have segregated themselves off from the outside world concerned about high rates of assimilation and being influenced. Others have denigrated the tradition and Halacha and have nearly removed it completely from there Jewish life. These two opposite extremes are black and white. What is difficult is to straddle the middle ground, that is a realm where you might encounter danger and contradiction, both adhering to the tradition while being a productive member of society is extremely difficult at times.
In this week's Parsha the commandment of Tzizit is given to the Jewish people. Any garment that has four corners requires ritual strings or titzit to be attached to them. However if you are not wearing a four corners garment you are not required to wear Tzizit. Nowadays we do not wear many four corners garments, however the Jewish tradition has been to intentionally wear a four cornered garment and attach Tzizit to it , thereby participating in the Mitzvah.
There is a danger to this practice. If one of the four corners of the Tzizit rip or are removed accidentally you are now wearing a four corners garment without Tzizit, which is a biblical prohibition. If you did not put the four cornered garment on in the first place you would be safer.
This is Modern Orthodoxy. We enter into the modern world at great risk, in the hopes of achieving a dynamic, engaging Judaism. We desire to be a "Light onto the nations" as Yeshayah the prophet has charged our people with being. It is only through engaging in the outside world can our Judaism truly reach its full potential and that is why our sages have always encouraged us to put on the tzizit, despite the risks.
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