dare I wnter this den of lions ? (more like toohless lions, I fear).
For starters, a few corrections:
R”S.R.Hirsch shittah was WAY MORE secular than Yeshiva University today. Check out the curriculum of his Jewish school in Frankfurt. There was way more “limudie chol’ than limudei kodesh. The essence of Hirschian philosophy is that Yiddishkeit can prosper amongst the gentiles even while having to accept some of their constrictions on work and life (for example, German sermons and university education). All this can happen ,he maintained, WITHOUT giving up the trappings of Orthodoxy.
This is precisely what Yeshiva University proclaims and practices. Hence, Hirscian Judaism is ABSOLUTELY the precursor of so-called “modern Orthodoxy”. Abd all the roshei yeshiva in YU are of the same idea- they follow Hirsch in his steadfast defense of halacha- HIS understanding of halacha- yet accept that living amongst the gentiles, one has to adapt some their ways.It is ludicrous to say that Hirsch would side with the chareidim today. He was the quintessential “torah umadda” advocate.
Anything else is plain revisionism by some latter-day rejectionists of Hirschian philosophy who cannot admit that Hirsch was not on their side. Virtually all of Orthodox Germany followed in his path- whether Rav Hildesheimer, R’Dovid Hoffman, the Berlin Rabbinical Seminary, and more. An interesting note: the Berlin seminary’s last rosh yesiva was one of the greatest talmidim of Slobodka- Rav Weinberg. zz.l.
I found Joseph and other’s comments on the “modern orthodox” jews repulsive and offensive. In times like today, when the Jewish world cries for some kind of achdus, insulting thousands of jews is not doing “rotzon hashem”.
I am not going to engage in the question of Kollel and whether it contravenes halacha, or whether there is room today for innovations in halacha.I prefer to be “min hane-elovim velo min ho-olvim”. To me, every Jew, every single jew has a holy neshomo and should be embraced, not rejected.