Rebdoniel, that judgmentalism goes a lot deeper than gerim and bt’s and it’s not limited to haredim. What a luxury it is to be able to investigate your neighbor’s ancestry, hobbies, scrape-or-stack, and all the rest. When RSR Hirsch established his kehilla in Frankfurt, he set two conditions for membership: brit mila and a kosher marriage. When Jews began to move into Borough Park, there were enough shomrei Shabbat to sustain only one shtibl (Chevras Shomrei Shabbos, it’s still there). In many European communities today, the Rav sees the smiling side of a minyan on Shabbat only, if then. All across America are communities that report one-sixth affiliation with Jewish institutions of any kind (e.g., JCCs).
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