All three grew up in well-known aristocratic families, studied in the "Ivy League" of Lithuanian yeshivos, and to this day study in kollelim and teach in yeshivos.
What they said was quite revealing about the nature of that community and what they personally think about it. None of this was shocking to me. What is special about this, however, is the stature of the people saying it. What did they say? Consider for example the following comment by one of those rabbis:
We have a synagogue here in the neighborhood whose large part of the congregation is very modern Haredim. I will describe a typical 'balebat' (householder) like this: He has two phones – one a smartphone without filtering, and one kosher so he can talk to the Rebbe in Talmud-Torah; he can't remember the last time he opened a sefer; if you try to talk to him in a study session, you will discover that he is quite an ‘am ha’aretz’…
And yet these same Charedim will argue that Rabbi Bezalel Cohen founder of a Charedi high school whose Hashkafa is not an exact clone of the standard Charedi Hashkfa is a total heretic.
This kind of indoctrination does not change lightly. The harder anyone tries to change it, the more resistance there will be. Multiply that by tens of thousands of young people. Which is constantly reinforced by the influences of their teachers and mentors. How does one even begin to change a mentality of those that do not quite make the grade and still believe in the party line? According to one of the interviewees) they rationalize it:
"They say to themselves, 'I have an evil inclination, I don't meet the standard, but my way to connect with my grandfather and my father is to adhere to the 'pure view.' I personally don't study, but by opposing conscription and core studies, I connect with the greats of the generation and strengthen them. This is my contribution ."
What about the actual war? Don’t they feel anything about
the ultimate sacrifices being made on their behalf? Here is the reality. (Which was recently corroborated by Rabbi Uri Deutsch at the Agudah convention):
"Why should they feel it? This is happening far away, beyond the mountains of darkness," replies Rabbi Shlomo. "You don't know anyone and it has nothing to do with you at all. You hear rumors here and there when people are killed, but it has no relevance to everyday life. It's not a matter of public awareness, and explanations won't help at all. The average Lithuanian Haredi doesn't know what citizenship is and what civic duties are. As far as he is concerned, he's not a citizen.
As noted in the article, they are quite high on themselves for doing nothing but sitting in the Beis HaMedrash. When it come to getting married they are placed on pedestals where they can select or reject the many Shidduch offerings thrown at their feet. The system turns them into people who lack any life skills, and yet their self esteem is through the roof having been indoctrinated to believe they are the ‘crown of creation’.
This description of their own community was pretty harsh. At first I felt that these 3 rabbis had some sort of chip on their shoulder.
I don’t recall any internal criticism like it.
On the other hand, I have spoken to Avreichim in Kollelim over
the years and now that I think about it, it has a ring of truth to it. Even though their criticism was not to the same
enormous extent.
I hate to throw cold water on a revelation that should stimulate desperately needed change. But this interview will not change anything. Certainly not from the top down. But not even from the bottom up. There will be no groundswell rebellion that will see significant Charedi enlistment. The indoctrination is too deeply imbedded into their brains. The repercussions of ‘speaking the truth to power’ in this community is real and the consequences too devastating.
That’s why these there rabbis from prominent families remained anonymous. Had they revealed their identities they would have been toast. Branded as heretics who have left the pristine path of Torah laid out for them by the ancestors and teachers. Fakers who don’t belong in Kollel and should certainly not be teaching children.
The only way one can make it in that world even as ‘children of royalty’ is by toeing the line completely. And there can be no revolution without young leaders like this coming out of the closet. A lot of them. Enough to make a critical mass of respected rabbis in Kollel need to stand up and say, ‘The emperor has no clothes’. I don’t believe that there are enough people like that to make a difference. Because even if they agree - the consequences of coming out are too severe for them and their families.
