Poshut, I understand a little more where you’re coming from, somewhere in between two different worlds, perhaps, not fitting in with either. (Though I don’t know if you grew up in this way as well or you evolved thus over the years.)
I hear what you have to say about chareidim, but let me try to explain why I think you have such a low opinion of chareidim.
I think you don’t really underdstand where they are coming from, and your perceptions of their motives are just that- perceptions. You perceive them through the eyes of someone who is not really part of them, and therefor you misunderstand alot of what makes them tick. (You can argue that the same is true of Chareidim not really understanding secularists. This is true. But we are not trying to say that we understand them or are part of them. This is a chareidi site after all)
Take for example the issue with the state of Israel. You write “…and the chareidim show true overflowing ahavah and thanks towards the soldiers, with gedolei yisroel making speeches of thanks (and possibly apologizing as well for the historic negative attitude towards the state). ” You say this because you feel there is what to apologize for. Go and study the writings of the gedolim and their opinions and maybe you’ll understand how the chareidi “negative” attitude towards the state was based on their daas torah! Maybe the Zionists should apologize to the Torah world for the way they treated us??? Go research for yourself about the tremendous abuse the early Zionists afflicted on the frum survivors of Europe after ww2. and how they kidnapped the yemenite children, and covered up their tracks. And read up about the massive sin’a they continue to harbor against the chareidim. There is enough written evidence and proof to these things. You write about chareidim “They either deny the existence of things they don’t want to hear, or else ban them.” this perfectly describes those that defend the zionists. (Do you know that the book “perfidy”, which exposes zionists shocking betrayal of the Jewish plight during WW2 was banned from being sold in Israel for many years?? If you havent read it–you must)
So what should the chareidim apologize for exactly? And none of this even touches upon the core issues of whether or not we may recognize the state of israel, whether taking eretz yisroel by force was halachically permissible, which is too complex to go into now. But do your self a favor and OPEN your mind and go learn about why chareidim hold the positions they do. Why the gedolim of yesteryear, from the satmar Rav to the brisker Rav and everyone in between, held the way they did. You may be surprised at some of the assumptions you have that are based in a fallacy.
I say this based on your comments about the chareidi world in many of the posts. I feel, by reading them that you really are a sincerer Jew who loves Hashem, and much of what you write displays a strong feeling for yiddishkeit. But you are living in a world of ditorted reality (vis-a-vis chareidim) You are like on the edge looking in, but not really grasping what you see, just coming up with your own conclusions.
You remind me a bit of a Shabbos guest we used to have. He was ostensibly “frum” but his hashkafos were so out of whack, it was incredible. He didnt necessarily believe in Torah Shebaal Peh. He once said to me, “I feel I really got a well rounded education. For elementary school i went to a yeshiva day school, and for high school i went to a prep school. So I know both Torah and secular knowledge, as opposed to yeshiva guys who “only” studied Torah.” He fancied himself more qualified and intelligent because he was in both worlds.
If it wasn’t so sad, i would have laughed out-right. He thinks he knows Torah because he learned until 9th grade?! But the point is he truly felt he was a part of our world, and therefor could make judgements. In fact he hadn;t even gotten a taste.
I don’t mean to compare you to him exactly, because you obviously know more Torah than he does. But as far as thinking you understand the chareidi situation, there the similarities lie.
I can’t help but wonder if you don’t find it frustrating to communicate with chareidim in this website and what you gain by it?
There is alot to comment on your letter, as you are probably wondering why I decided that you don’t undersatand chareidim, but i will limit myself to one more thing you wrote because it is late and i need to go to sleep.
You write, “They are afraid of secular knowledge,… So when I hear a chareidi knocking science, which is quite common, I think he must be from another planet.” This line is so obtuse! Firstly, the science community themselves don’t agree on alot of things, For example Global warming is to some a fact and others a contrived fantasy. I dont know which camp you’re on and neither do i care, but there are legitimate respectable scientific minds that hold either way. Same thing in the medical world. I recently heard from a promenant frum doctor the following, “As a doctor, I have very little faith in medicine. I have faith only in the RBSO. The doctors know less than one percent of what there is to know wbout the human body. ” I could go on and on, but what emerges is that ALOT of what we call sciense is only theory, not fact. The best example of this is the Theory of Evolution which is the only one taught in schools across the country. If you want to somehow fit evolution into the Torah account in Bereishis and say it’s not a contradiction, thats your choice (some have done so), I have no problem with it. But you can hear why we Jews, who are known to be the most cynical of peeople are not ready to swallow any theory in the name of science. it doesnt make us backwards or deniers. That being said, I think that all chareidi schools teach science so it’s not like its a “chareidi shitah” to abolish any learning of science.
If you don’t undersatnd why the Gadol you mentioned doesnt use daylight savings, be humble about it (your trademark, RIGHT?) and know that you just dont understand, but do not judge by saying where is it geting us? what do YOU understand about why a tzaddik does what he does??
If you want to know the meaning of true ahavas yisroel, you will only find it by the chareidim. Did you ever hear of stories of secularists coming out and doing chessed with people? There was a beautiful story written by Nachman seltzer and published by the hamodia recently (do you read that chareidi paper?) about a rabbi Dovid Goldwasser (I Think)who heard there was a army camp of some 600 soldiers not far from his moshav who had no food or adequite supplies. When they had a day off, he invited them to his moshav, gave them a pool to swim in, gourmet food, provided music, etc then gave them beds with quilts…in the morning he presented them with a new change of clothes (600 sets!) and new army equipment they were lacking. This was a very moving story about a CHAREIDI displaying ahavas yosroel to SECULAR chayalim without any motive of being mekarev them, simply because they were jews. These storie are not always publicized, but they are out there.
Remember this: what we are against is the zionist philosophy, and the secular ideas. NoT the people themselves, who by and large today are in the category of tinok shenishbu.
I hope i have not offended you in any way with my long post. It was not my intention. Rather, you seem to be a sincere chap who deserves to know the truth. If I did, I ask mechila.