I am not a number, I am a free man: The necessity of Modern Orthodoxy (Final instalment in the series)

“I am not a number, I am a free man!” The catchphrase of a TV show that I recommend to anyone who likes the best of what TV has to offer, particularly if you enjoy the slightly psychedelic offerings of the late 60s: The Prisoner. Even if you don’t normally watch TV, I would dust down the old VHS inside the secret passageway behind the Artscroll Gemorohs and see a few episodes by candlelight. If anyone particularly pious is reading this, it’s completely Kosher as Patrick Mcgoohan, the main character, refused to be involved in any scenes involving hanky-panky due to his Christian beliefs. It has taught me as much about the potential and importance of faithfulness to one’s own self than anything else.

Something interesting that I came across recently is the idea that one of the hallmarks of the modern period is a move in focus towards the individual and their inherent value. The Talmud has several references to the intrinsic worth of the individual including “Bishvili Nivra Ha’Olam – For me the world was created” and “if you save the life of one person, it is as if you have saved the life of the whole world”.  

The focus on a person’s ability to make their own moral decisions and have worth just for being themselves was a development that was rarely focused upon before the 18^th Century. I haven’t got round to reading a few classics on the subject that were recommended in a recent seminar but I hope to soon. In some ways this development can be seen in Hassidut. The focus fades from the Kabbalistic idea of fixing the cosmos and achieving a national redemption through specifically designated mystical practices to one whereby the individual could bring about personal and national redemption through their own mitzvoth and correct intentions.

A particularly interesting aspect of this that I noticed a few months ago was the response to one who sins. What is the motivation behind bringing a sinner to repent? Classically, the purpose of befriending the individual who had left the way of observance was to facilitate the restoration of the sinner’s performance of the correct actions and re-integration into the community of Israel. If they failed to respond correctly, however, it was probably not a valuable way to spend your time. Yet an element that is novel in the writings of R. Schneur Zalman in the Tanya is that we wish to pay attention to the ‘sinner’ simply because they are human beings and therefore people of worth. It doesn’t matter how they respond, they are important, they matter and we have a responsibility to them. A person deserves love even if they do not and will not act correctly.

It is this element which I believe is the greatest contribution modern orthodoxy is able to provide to Jewish society. Not as a religious ideology or movement but as an essential religious mind-set. To all Jews regardless of shirt colour. Whilst a community is defined by tangible and physical entities, the individual craves space for personal creativity. As the prisoner no.6 says, “ I will not be pushed, filed,stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own.” What Modern Orthodoxy promotes is the creation of a space whereby the individual can choose the path they take and give dignity and meaning to their personal lives. It is here I distinguish between two commonly used terms which are often used interchangeably but mean completely different things: Open mindedness and broad-mindedness.

This is not an exercise in semantics. Being open minded is essential for every human being regardless of how many hats you wear in the morning or whether or not you sing Hatikva straight before breakfast. It has nothing to do with ideology. It is simply the ability to recognise the intrinsic worth of other human beings. If I am not open minded I will never be able to have a successful relationship with anyone else because I will never be able to accept that the world can exist outside of my own context. I can never escape my own self-centred nature and actually help others in ways that will be beneficial to them. If a community is not open minded it cannot truly care for those within it or accept the individuals who occupy its borders who deviate from any norms whatsoever. 

It leads to basic character traits such as kindness and a desire to do good. It doesn’t mean I read the Independent and vote Labour. If I am able to understand that the guy down the road who wears a streimel and goes to Mikveh every day of the week is doing so out of his own conviction, and similarly that one who is non-observant has their own inner world that I cannot really relate to but can appreciate regardless, then I am able to function as a communally-minded person. I don’t need to agree with their lifestyles or even understand them, but I certainly need to have the humility to appreciate that I may not be the only one out there who has thought about the world. I respect you. I may not agree with you, or be able to understand you, but that is ok.

Mini rant: If I was to ever manufacture popular T- Shirts, which is a distinctly unlikely prospect but certainly one potential use for my CV, it would say something along the lines of “People are not Milk”. Why? Because we love seeing people in terms of whether they are ‘on’ or ‘off’ like a little switch. Sometimes I imagine the predicament of a person living in this weird sort of fridge, approaching their sell-by date. Hmmm. Shut the fridge door, stop worrying about them going off and try and understand what they are about.

In a way, the beauty of what Modern Orthodoxy has specifically come to stand for is this openness which recognises potential and the understanding that it is theoretically possible to gain from broadened horizons even if one may choose to reject it themselves.

This leads me to broad-mindedness, which is something completely different. This is what Modern Orthodoxy is most frequently associated with. To be a broad-minded religious individual is to have a certain vision in life which constantly seeks to integrate universal elements into the religious experience. For some, it will be the pursuit of philosophy, the sciences, travelling, charity projects, literature etc. For others these will be distractions and a waste of time. It is an active restlessness which pursues what are apparently ‘secular’ activities as a means of fulfilling the individual personality, without which it feels unfulfilled and frustrated. What many modern Orthodox thinkers are trying to grasp and define, in my opinion, is simply the spirit of broad-mindedness within the individual. A desire to see all frontiers of knowledge as expressions of God’s wisdom. A way of expanding the sphere of religion beyond religious action. This is perhaps a rare spirit, and one which sometimes we are made to feel needs suppression. But it is not a movement or a core identity partly for the reason that it does not and cannot carry slogans as part of its self-expression. Crucially, I think it is something that is real to some people and imaginary to others. It is hard to make that the ideological basis for a generic group of people. 

So, all in all it makes sense for me to reject the three card trick presented by many as the categories of contemporary Orthodoxy in a manner reminiscent of a ticket inspector on a train:

“Hello sir, with whom do you associate? The Modern Orthodox or of those of a more Chareidi persuasion? And would you like sugar with that?” “I’m sorry sir/madam, I cannot accept the terms you are offering me, I will have to shop elsewhere.”

Ideological choice shouldn't be confused for what is a vital religious framework. Breadth presents you with a wide spectrum. If your conclusion is that you find meaning exclusively through Talmud Torah and see nothing in, say poetry and ‘culture’ then great. Go for it. This shouldn’t make you ideologically ‘narrow minded’ or persona non-grata in the MO camp. It’s just part of being an individual where you need to make judgement calls about these things.

I have some friends who cannot understand how anything other than Gemarah Rashi Tosfos is a valid expression of religiosity. They see the rest as nice decoration but not the meat and potatoes. I get that, to be honest. I would be a complete and utter fool if I was to try and showcase the attractions of a Beethoven symphony and medieval longbow techniques to these people (or any people, for that matter). Actually, forget the symphony bit I would get distracted and start talking about batting averages of England test openers in the 50s. I digress. It would mean nothing to them and would be shameless and pretentious.

 Something life has taught me in the last year or so is that an essential element of human relationships is the ability to understand the context of the person you are addressing and appreciate that they will process their experiences within that framework.

I have other friends, on the other hand, who read books obsessively and whilst might appreciate the world of Talmud Torah would readily admit it is not what gets them up in the morning. For them, the ‘broad minded’ paradigm which Modern Orthodoxy appears to offer with its remarkable variety of personalities, subject matters and creativity, this can be religious salvation. But are they intrinsically more Modox ( I know that is an annoying word) than their counterparts who decide to send their children to schools which offer less secular education? (I am not talking about the practical value of education/ gets you jobs etc. that is a separate subject and one which plenty of blogs happily rant about and is not my style)   

I could just conclude that the broad mindedness that we like to refer to as Modern Orthodoxy is for the individual but not for the community and cannot be constructed as a system. But I won’t say that. This is because modernity somehow becomes synonymous with open-mindedness as well. Basic values have become confused with a mysterious modern ideology. The open-mindedness which contains within it so many aspects of essential goodness becomes dismissed as innovation. Without this element, I don’t see how any community can thrive and be a successful example to others.

 Being part of an open-minded community is wonderful for the simple luxury of not feeling judged and meeting people who are warm and welcoming. Being tolerant and accepting is just part of being decent human beings, not a liberal conspiracy. The attractiveness of the self-defined modern Orthodox communities is not the ideology but rather that its open-mindedness is a breath of fresh air which is fundamentally and beautifully human. It remains symbolised by figures such as R. Soloveitchik as it aspires for the full-flowing expression of the human spirit to be expressed in profoundly religious ways even if none of its members ever pick up a book of his in their lives. The collective framework is open-mindedness (essential) and the individual element is the broad-mindedness (optional).

To  semi-conclude my last four posts, in my mind the ‘Modern-Orthodoxy’ of R. Hirsch in 19^th Century Germany, Rav Soloveitchik in YU or R'Lichtenstein in the Gush is not a movement but rather the manifestation of a certain spirit into a particular society and culture which enabled it to flourish. The creative personalities of these individuals are embodiments of individuality at its flowering summit rather than the outcomes of an ideological movement. And I ask myself, is there really an ideal model for a perfect society? As long as people have free will, no. But that very Modern Orthodox value of open-mindedness promotes a communal spirit which can lead to people bringing out the best in the others around them, with all their 'perfect imperfections', because all in all, I guess we are just bricks in the wall, and in my mind this is certainly something to be celebrated.