amiricanyeshivish

This is an essay that I wrote not so long ago. It is a bit long, but I think it captures the essence of our beautiful community.

Hidden in Plain Sight: What the World Doesn’t See About Orthodox Jews
In the heart of Brooklyn and across the towns of New Jersey, nestled within the infrastructure of modern
American life, thrives a world largely unseen and profoundly misunderstood: the Orthodox Jewish community.
Despite its proximity to media capitals, academic institutions, and centers of cultural discourse, this deeply rooted
and highly organized society has been largely ignored or misrepresented by the mainstream. This is not due to
intentional secrecy, but rather a complex combination of philosophical distance, cultural unfamiliarity, and a
media landscape predisposed to seek conflict over understanding.

Mainstream discourse often prizes inclusivity, multiculturalism, and deep dives into global subcultures.
Documentaries explore the lives of monks in Tibet, memoirs unveil the hidden worlds of Amazonian tribes, and
think pieces dissect the moral systems of remote communities with care and nuance. Yet, when it comes to
Orthodox Jews—whether from yeshiva-centered communities like Flatbush, Lakewood, Monsey, Passaic,
Teaneck, or the Five Towns, or the vibrant Chassidic enclaves that span Williamsburg, Boro Park, and
beyond—the prevailing narratives are frequently reductive or even adversarial. The most visible portrayals often
come from those who have left the community, carrying with them personal trauma or ideological critique. While
every individual’s story deserves to be heard, the consistent elevation of only the “exit stories” creates a distorted
lens, as if the only authentic experience within Orthodoxy is one of escape.
This leaves the vast majority of Orthodox Jews—those who live full, joyful, spiritually ambitious lives within the
framework of Torah and mitzvos—largely invisible to the cultural mainstream. Instead of seeing the depth,
warmth, and intellectual sophistication of these communities, the outside world is handed stereotypes: the visibly
Hasidic Jew portrayed as quaint or extreme, or the emotionally repressed figure longing to break free from
religious “constraints.”

What is overlooked is a diverse, disciplined, and remarkably resilient society. In Lakewood, New Jersey, tens of
thousands of men gather each day in Beth Medrash Govoha, the largest yeshiva outside of Israel, engaging in
high-level talmudic study with the intensity and methodical rigor of any academic institution. These men are not
relics of a bygone era, but thoughtful, articulate, often bilingual individuals living lives of spiritual and intellectual
purpose. They are training their minds to think analytically, to question assumptions, to build logical arguments
within the framework of halacha. This is not escapism—it is an elite form of scholarship built on centuries of
tradition.

Surrounding the beis medrash is a growing infrastructure of frum-run businesses: in real estate, technology, law,
logistics, and finance. Offices in Lakewood, Monsey, and the Five Towns hum with commerce that is infused with
Torah values: daily minyanim, ethical business practices, respect for family priorities, and a constant sense of
accountability before Heaven. The fusion of professionalism and religious commitment produces a unique culture
of excellence without ego, ambition without arrogance.

The Orthodox world also places enormous value on education—not merely as a tool for material success, but as
a lifelong spiritual pursuit. Boys and girls are taught from a young age that learning is a sacred task. Yeshivos and
Bais Yaakovs produce graduates who are not only literate in Jewish texts but carry with them a deep moral
framework and sense of communal responsibility. While some Orthodox schools offer only limited secular
studies, many graduates go on to become highly competent businessmen and women. Through natural aptitude,
real-world experience, and a strong work ethic cultivated by their upbringing, they succeed in fields such as real
estate, finance, healthcare, and logistics—often building and running enterprises of considerable scale. The
curriculum may not mirror public school models, but it fosters resilience, identity, practical acumen, and a clarity
of purpose rarely found elsewhere.

Orthodox women, too, are often misrepresented. In reality, frum women are among the most dynamic forces in
their communities—running schools, leading chesed organizations, building businesses, managing households,
and serving as primary transmitters of Jewish values to the next generation. They are not voiceless, nor invisible;
they are foundational.

Alongside these yeshiva-oriented communities, the Chassidic world—too often misunderstood as monolithic or
insular—has built its own vibrant, expansive network of spiritual and communal infrastructure. From Williamsburg
and Boro Park to Kiryas Joel and the rapidly growing Chassidic neighborhoods in Staten Island, Lakewood, and
throughout New Jersey, these communities exhibit astonishing levels of cohesion, devotion, and mutual
responsibility. Monsey itself is home to a broad spectrum of Orthodox life. It includes a major Chassidic
population, from Vizhnitz to Skver to Toldos Aharon, each contributing richly to the city’s communal character.
The Chassidic commitment to davening with intensity, to preserving Yiddishkeit with pride, to building
multi-generational families grounded in emunah and simcha—all of this is deeply moving, and often missed by
outsiders.

Chassidic communities are home to rich dynasties of Torah leadership, powerful traditions of chassidus, and
enduring models of communal self-reliance. They have built neighborhoods, shuls, schools, medical support
systems, and commercial networks that serve not only their own needs but often provide help to others as well.
Whether it’s Satmar’s global network of humanitarian aid, Bobov’s yeshivos and kollelim, or Belz’s sophisticated
infrastructure in Eretz Yisrael, these kehillos are dynamic forces in the Jewish world, operating with vision, order,
and spiritual energy.

Philanthropy is also a defining feature of frum life. Many Orthodox families, including those of modest means,
give generously and regularly to communal causes. Major tzedakah campaigns raise millions in a matter of
hours—often entirely within the community itself—supporting education, healthcare, and social services with
unmatched speed and efficiency. Acts of giving are not occasional gestures, but built-in expectations shaped by
halacha and minhag.

And then there is the chesed. The social support systems within these communities rival any developed country’s
welfare model—yet they are entirely grassroots, funded by internal tzedakah, and powered by volunteerism.
Organizations like Tomchei Shabbos deliver food to thousands of families each week, ensuring dignity and joy at
the Shabbos table. Kupas Ezra and countless gemachim provide emergency financial aid, medical equipment,
interest-free loans, bridal gowns, and baby gear. Chai Lifeline and RCCS coordinate medical care with logistical,
financial, and emotional support, often stepping in before families even realize what they need.
Hatzolah responds to medical emergencies faster than 911, staffed by frum men with professional training and a
sense of personal responsibility for every Jewish life. Misaskim supports families in mourning with both logistical
help and deep cultural sensitivity. Chaveirim offers roadside assistance, locksmith services, and home help—all
staffed by volunteers, all free of charge. This is a world where the communal response to suffering is automatic,
efficient, and infused with rachmanus.

This system is not ancient nostalgia. It is a modern miracle of organizational genius, communal cohesion, and
spiritual drive. It is built not on utopian ideals or government funding, but on generations of halachic obligation,
cultural memory, and lived Torah values. The foundation is the simple but profound idea: “Kol Yisrael areivim zeh
lazeh” — all Jews are responsible for one another.

Integral to Orthodox life is a powerful and continuous drive for personal growth. Whether through the disciplined
introspection of mussar, the heart-centered elevation of chassidus, or the ever-present call to deepen one’s yiras
Shamayim, there is a constant aspiration toward refinement and self-transcendence. This focus on inner
development is not an occasional project, but a way of life. Thousands forgo material advancement to learn in
kollel, dedicating their best years to spiritual striving. Many more choose careers in chinuch—teaching Torah,
guiding students, and building the next generation—while receiving only a fraction of what they could earn
elsewhere. Their sacrifice is not rooted in lack of ambition, but in a deep desire to serve Hashem and shape Klal
Yisrael from within. Others work hard yet live simply, channeling their resources into tuition, tzedakah, and
avodas Hashem instead of luxury or leisure. This quiet heroism—of living with fewer comforts to live with greater
purpose—has few parallels in the modern world.

Shabbos itself is a weekly re-centering of life around what matters most: family, faith, and rest. In a world driven
by screens and speed, Orthodox families step back for 25 hours to connect to each other and to Hashem. It is
both countercultural and deeply human—and it leaves an imprint on children and adults alike.
This intergenerational transmission of values, the seamless integration of past and present, is one of the
Orthodox world’s most remarkable features. Children are raised with respect for elders, and elders feel
responsibility for the young. Grandparents, parents, and children often live near one another, learn together, and
support each other with profound continuity. This sense of rootedness defies the modern myth that progress
requires detachment from tradition.

The Orthodox world has also become increasingly engaged in political life—not as a monolithic voting bloc, but
as a community that understands the real-world impact of legislation on religious liberty, education, zoning, and
communal infrastructure. Orthodox Jews vote in high numbers, organize civic engagement through local
askanim, and participate in policy advocacy, particularly where it affects yeshiva autonomy, Shabbos
observance, and protection of religious rights. This engagement is deeply local and often pragmatic. In
Lakewood, for example, Orthodox askanim regularly liaise with municipal officials on issues like traffic planning,
school transportation, and housing development — not in pursuit of favoritism, but to ensure that growing
communities can live safely and functionally within local law. In New York, organizations such as Agudath Israel
of America serve as a bridge between the frum community and state or federal government, advocating for
policies that preserve parental choice in education and protect religious institutions from burdensome regulation.
This advocacy is carried out with respect for the broader society and without compromising the community’s
spiritual mission.

And yet, this world remains largely invisible.

The failure to explore or even acknowledge this community is not merely a missed journalistic opportunity. It is a
failure of cultural imagination. In a society hungry for meaning, spiritual depth, and ethical clarity, the Orthodox
Jewish world quietly models a life of service, faith, humility, and purpose. It offers a counter-narrative to the
dominant culture: one that celebrates restraint over indulgence, duty over self-expression, continuity over
disruption.

To be sure, the Orthodox world is not monolithic and not without its challenges. But the beauty of Torah life, the
cohesion of its families, the joy of its communities, and the sheer scale of its chesed infrastructure deserve to be
understood—not merely tolerated, exoticized, or critiqued. They deserve to be *seen*. Though diverse in
customs, dress, and even ideology, Orthodox Jews are bound by a shared commitment to Torah and mitzvos,
and a sense of mutual responsibility that transcends internal distinctions.

It is time for new voices to emerge. Not to rebut the painful stories, but to complete the picture. We need authors,
filmmakers, and journalists who live this life to step forward and tell it as it is: complex, honest, and radiant with
emunah. We need the world to meet the Orthodox Jew not through the lens of departure, but through the lens of
commitment, resilience, and holiness in daily life.

Because what has been built in Lakewood, in Boro Park and Flatbush, in Monsey, in Williamsburg, in Kiryas Joel, in Manhattan and Queens, in Passaic, in
Teaneck, in the Five Towns, and in every growing Chassidic enclave across Staten Island and New Jersey—simply does not exist anywhere else. And it is time the world knew.

Thank you @yuda the maccabee for referencing Rabbi Mordechai Nuergershal’s speech.

I just listened to the whole thing, and it is fantastic!

Anybody who really cares about understanding rather than spewing hatred should take the time to listen.

@Shazshen

“And obviously all the roshei yeshiva, etc. who weigh in with their two cents on these inyanim.”

You seem like a Yodea Sefer and maybe even a Talmid Chochom, but that line is mevazeh Talmidei Chachomim, which Chazal put in the category of apikores.

As mentioned earlier the only real break is in Chodesh Av whether from Rosh Chodesh or Tisha Beav.

Most serious Kollelim have only from from Tisha Beav. Yeshivos vary.

And yes, a serious Yeshivaman is in Kollel from Shacharis until 11 p.m., with small lunch and supper breaks. If you don’t know such a person, it is probably because you hung around the wrong Chevra when in Kollel (if you were at all).

And yes, a Kollelman needs a break from structured learning, whether it is to spend time with his family, which commonly he may barely see from Shabbos to Shabbos because the little ones are asleep when he gets home from night seder, or to learn his own limud at his own timing.

Bachurim, for sure need bein hazmanim. They are basically mandated students; some of them happy and prosperous in Yeshiva; some not. They are young boys holding up the world with their Limud Hatorah, and need to feel that we appreciate them and give them their appropiate breaks.

I think anyone kvetching about too much bein hazmanim doesn’t appreciate the sacrifice Kollel Yungerleit are making, living on an extremely tight budget, forgoing all the extras most people take for granted as “must haves” and are the one keeping those others alive and well in their zechus.

Same with our Hielige Bachurim who are “horoving” in learning. Some love it and some don’t. But are doing it anyways.

Of course there are the “leidigeiers” but that doesn’t take away from the ones putting in the best of their kochos and are upholding the world- YOUR WORLD!!

HONOR THEM. RESPECT THEM. SHARE IN THEIR ZECHUS!!!!

Quote from Shari Goodman on Arutz7
It was not President Trump who refused to enforce our immigration laws. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who opened our southern border to 10 million illegals from across the globe. By erasing President Trump’s Executive Order, worked out with Mexico, to house illegals there, it was you, Biden, who is responsible for the entry of drug cartels, criminals, gang members, rapists, and terrorists from enemy countries into our collective home. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who secretly and illegally flew 325,000 illegals from across the globe to cities across the U.S. at taxpayers’ expense. It was YOU

It was not President Trump who allowed CCP affiliated military age men to enter our collective home illegally. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who erased our energy independence by shutting down the Alaska Pipeline and making us once again energy dependent on foreign sources. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who enriched Russia by removing sanctions he put into place. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who shut off our domestic supply of energy. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who handed over Afghanistan along with billions of dollars in military hardware to the Taliban. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who left behind Americans and Afghanis working with the U.S. to die at the hands of the Taliban. It was YOU!

It is said Afghanistan contains $1 trillion dollars in mineral deposits and the largest lithium deposits needed to produce batteries used in electric vehicles. It was not President Trump who left behind a country rich with minerals to the awaiting Red Chinese. It was YOU!

When President Trump left office the inflation rate was 1.4%. When Biden took office inflation rose to 9.1% in 22′ and although it has since fallen, prices today are up to 19% higher than when President Trump left office. Under President Trump we had the lowest inflation in 50 years. YOU erased it.

It was not President Trump who has increased unemployment to record levels due to unnecessary lockdowns forced upon Americans. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who erased the tariffs placed upon Red China to correct the trade imbalance. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who went on a spending spree thus raising our national debt to $34 trillion. It was YOU!

When it came to law and order it was not President Trump who defied our Supreme Court by erasing a $7.4 billion dollar student debt left for taxpayers to foot the bill. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who has allowed domestic terrorist organizations (Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and Hamas proxies here in the U.S.) to assault Americans verbally and physically in urban areas throughout the country. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who weaponized our DOJ, FBI, and CIA to target the opposition (Trump staffers, Trump supporters, attorneys, journalists, and Trump himself). It was YOU!

Before the 20′ Presidential Election, it was not President Trump who coordinated with social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook as a means to censor information about the Hunter Biden laptop, your role as the “Big Guy” in Ukraine’s Burisma, and the effort to censor critics of the Covid vaccine. It was YOU!

Joe Biden has had a history of selling out the United States to the Red Chinese, Russia, Ukraine, and Iran. It was not President Trump who gave our enemy Iran a total of $80 Billion since coming into office. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who enriched an almost bankrupt Iran by removing previous sanctions. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who in 2022 sent our CIA to Brazil to aid in the overthrow of democratically elected President Jair Bolsonaro in favor of the installation of Communist Lulu da Silva as president. It was YOU!

Under President Trump’s leadership and the Abraham Accords which he enacted; he left behind a stable thriving Middle East with no new wars under his dime anywhere in the world. Look what has happened since. Trump would never threaten Israel. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump who got us into a proxy war with Ukraine. It was YOU!

It was not President Trump that enabled and allowed Hamas to conduct a massacre in Israel on Oct. 7th. It happened under your watch. It was YOU!

Due to the failure of the Palestine Authority to recognize Israel, President Trump closed their offices in NYC and Washington D.C. It wasn’t President Trump who opened the once closed offices of the P.A. headquarters here in NYC. It was YOU!

It wasn’t President Trump who resumed funding of UNWRA, (a Hamas proxy). It was YOU!

It wasn’t President Trump who threatened Israel with an arms embargo. It was YOU!

It wasn’t President Trump who left American hostages in Gaza. It was YOU!

It wasn’t President Trump who refused to veto a U.N. anti-Israel resolution which called for a cease fire thus enabling Hamas to regroup and survive. It was YOU!

And it is not President Trump who is currently working with the Israeli Left in Israel to conduct a four-part plan for a Color Revolution in an effort to overthrow the democratically elected government of Bibi Netanyahu. It is YOU!

You cannot differentiate between Haifa, Israel’s thriving northern port, and Rafah, Hamas’ tunnel-ridden terror city. Trump is not dictating to Israel. It is YOU!

I would suggest to look into Silver Springs a suburb of Baltimore

For a non chasidish hat most people go to Hatbox or Cuff n Co

common

Are you the Troller Rebbe’s gabbai? You are totally obsessed with him. Do you get a salary or maybe a tenure from him? And btw what great things does gabbai of Troller Rebbe do with his time besides eating Troller shirayim and saying over Troller kanaus.

Just wondering….

they say a story about a Bais Yaakov shabbaton in Baltimore when the speaker announced “All in towners go to the right and all out of towners to the left”
All Baltomorian and Boro Park girls went to the right.
That was 35 years ago. Today it would be Lakewood instead of Boro Park. lol

@dorah

Just because there are dozens of Rabbonim supporting the rally is that a reason for Harav Sorotzkin to lose his title “Rabbi”?

Try Safe Telecom phone. It is an Android that comes already blocked with lots of kosher apps. Not so cheap though. $300 plus.

Would like to add a couple of own shailos for the 45 year old plus Yeshivishe oilam.

1. Which event was it that Rav Shach Zt”l decided Israeli election outcome broadcasted on all Israeli media?
2. Name 5 official Roshei Yeshiva of Bais Hatalmud from 40 plus years ago.
3. Which 5 famous shidduchim did Rav Berel make?
4. Why was Rav Mottel Weinberg Zt”l not asked to speak again at Agudah Convention?
5. Who really wrote Chiddushei Rav Aryeh Leib? Chiddushei Rav Shloime?
6. Who did Rav Giftor “defrock” from their smicha?
7. Why did Rav Shach leave post of R”Y of prewar Karlin?
8. Who did Rav Aaron Kotler Zt”l consider his Rebbi muvhak?
9. Who convinced Rav Shach not to put kol korei against Artscroll gemaras?
10. Who wrote sefer Binyan Oilam? Amala shel Torah?
11. Who was moiche when Rav AY spoke about Rav Moishe Feinstein?
12. Who is Rav Nachum Truker? Rav Abba Ludzer?
13. Which 2 Litvishe Gedolim learned with a Lubavitcher chassid bechavrusah all Toras Chabad?
14. Where was Rav Meir Stern Shlita’s first Yeshiva?
15. Who started Yeshiva Shaar Hatorah in Queens?
16. In which Shul was Rav Dovid Soloveichik’s Yeshiva?
17. Who was Rav Chaim Soloveitchik’s shver?
18. The Mishna Brurah only quotes one time a Gadol from his times. Who and why?

Just posted on Geribben thread. If you don’t like some of it please edit but don’t not post alltogether please. I put alot of effort into it. 🙂

Sure. I’ll just need some time to get the answers.

@Pepper

I can state one thing great Biden did. He showed us all how much the Dems hate Trump. They are willing to back an old senile crook who trips over his own feet with an ultra dumb VP. All that just not to vote for Trump. He has exposed the divide our country has fallen into like no one else can.

Now that is something you have to grant him. Real genius I say.

@Emunas

Which seforim did Rav Aron Strusaleh write? I sincerely would be interested in learning them bezh

And I know ones who got exposed to it in the best Yeshivos. The ones you think it can never happen in. And prescription drugs is a makkas medinah. It can start from someone who had a tooth surgery or a bachur who raided his grandmothers medecine cabinet. Hashem yishmor!!

Avira
My wording may have sounded off but my point is true. And no not all have left the haven of Yeshiva when they started.

I heard from a big Askan “Oib es Christilzichs es Yidishzichs”.
I know of too many “once normal” Yeshiva bachurim from perfectley regular /normal families who are not with us anymore(I mean unfortunatley they are in the Bais Hachayim) R”L because they fell into drug use because of social pressures/anxiety/depression etc.

All I know is that is the only shirt my with it yeshivishe kid is willing to wear.

I never had the zchus to read HP. Was too old. But I sure enjoyed Hardy Boys until my parents caught me reading the casefiles. LOL that stuff is childsplay compared to what our children can find today online R”L

And he had no intent on it going online forget about viral. It was a shmuz he was supposed to give live to a certain group of people but couldn’t make it so had it recorded for them. Someone cut one snippet of it and posted on the internet. Rabbi Leiser doesn’t even have internet access himself. I know him well. Real authentic Yeshiveshe guy.

From all the “sinas chinam” or “it ain’t different in xyz community” it would seem that no one has a good answer to OP’s question.

Hello? Anyone there that can answer it without shifting the question on others or screaming sinas chinum?

To emphasize what was reiterated so many times….

I had a conversation with a Chabad bachur many years ago when I was a young impretionable bachur myself. We were sitting next to each other in an airport. I had a sefer with me (Derech Hashem from the Ramchal) and this chabd bachur who was a few years my senior started making deragetory comments against the sefer and litvishe Yeshiva bachurim in general.
I was very shaken up and tried not to get confrontational with him and told him that I just know what we are told by our Gedolim…
His retort which still repulses me 25 plus years later was…
“Do you mean the “Gedolim” of Siman Gimmel in Shulchan Aruch?”
I think everyone can understand the meaning and depravity of that comment told to a young innocent 17 year old Yeshiva boy trying to mind his own buisness.
But of course this was all in the name of saving a poor lost soul from eternal Snag damnation.
G-D bless his soul