ok, all of you, lay off of mariner. It is obvious that he was talking out of anger, and frustration. We all get frustrated at times. The reason why he was angry, I thought, was because it is frustrating to feel like you need to defend yourself when you are in the right. True or not, we can all relate to that feeling one way or another.
Rabbi of berlin, I was not “appalled” by his words, as you phrased it. I simply felt there was alot of energy there. Lets all try to debate the points in question, not the people in question.
Zalman: I feel your comments are entirely offensive without any basis for them. Where do you get the idea that mariner feels “inauthentic”? I thought it was just the opposite: he feels HE is the authentic one, and thats what his point was.
In regards to the clothing issue, your idea of the “jewish” mode of dress is supposed to look like the picture of the shtetel yid, yet you seem to forget about 4000 years of jewish history! My husband often (only half-jokingly says) that if Chassidus would have started in Texas, all chassidim would today be wearing cowboy hats and boots. Think about it. Theres alot of truth there.
It may interest you to know why the chassidim dress like they are stuck in a time-warp, while the non-chassidim dress more “modern,” like a “prusta goy,” if you will. I heard this bit of historical fact from R’ Avrohom Chaim Feuer, Shli’ta. I don’t know what his source is, but its enlightening just the same.
He says that in Europe, at a certain point in history, (not sure when) the powers that be made a decree that Jews were prohibited from dressing in a manner that makes them look like Jews. Some of the rules were that men were forbidden to sport beards, long jackets…and the women were forbidden to wear kircheifs. The penalty for disobedience was death.
The chassidish Rebbes felt that this decree is a case of “yeharog v’al yaavor”, and instructed their chassidim not to follow the new laws. The Litvish Rabbonim felt that its assur to risk one’s life for this, and must be followed. That is when the yidden starting shaving, wearing short jackets, and the women began to wear wigs.
So you see, the issue with clothes is once again an issue with yidden followng the instructions of their own Rabbonim. This remains true until today, despite the fact that there is no death sentence over our heads.
A little bit of knowledge goes a long way.