When a member of New York’s Hasidic sect “filed a complaint with New York City’s social distancing complaint hotline” after he found forty people gathered in a synagogue that was supposed to be locked, he became Hasidic Enemy Number One, his photograph posted all over town with words identifying him as a snitch.
So far, this is absolutely typical cult behavior, including the suggestion that he be killed. (Same stuff in Israel right now in similar cults: “On April 14, in the Kirya Haredit … police had to rescue a man from a mob angry that he informed authorities about a ritual bath that had remained open in violation of government regulations.”)
Oh but then the JTA found a Yeshiva University professor to explain it all!
“The origin of this situation is that in much of Jewish history, Jews weren’t treated fairly before the law,” said Moshe Krakowski, a professor at Yeshiva University who studies haredi Orthodox society.
“Ultra-Orthodox culture is a very learned culture, so everybody’s got exposure to the same texts. So you’ll have people who will accuse others of all sorts of things, including mesirah, on the basis of their understanding, but not necessarily sanctioned by any rabbinic authority.”
Moshe, Moshe, Moshe. Do you really want to go on record telling us that we have to understand that because Jews have been treated badly they flout public safety laws and talk about killing law-abiding fellow Jews who report them to the police? Does that make sense, Moshe?
And why are you telling people who know better that ultraorthodoxy is learned? Let’s go back to your second statement and see if we can make sense of it.
Point One: UItraorthodoxy is learned. Memorizing prose passages, reciting them aloud repeatedly, handing your children appallingly substandard educations, and blindly following the opinion of your rabbi ain’t learned, my man. The same text exposure, absolutely, which is of course the primary sign that they don’t know much – people of one book and all that. So let’s not have any learned bullshit, please. Even their rabbis, if we can judge by some of the most prominent in the US and Israel, are dangerous idiots.
Point Two: So you say ‘so.’ So – because they are all learned and all read the same texts, they’ll accuse others of all sorts of execution-worthy offenses because… uh… huh? Oh, because for instance in their learnedness they learn that Judaism sanctions death for people who call the cops on Jews who break the law. Others may disagree! But you have to admire the intellectual ferment here…
April 27th, 2020 at 1:25PM
Plus ca change! My fourteenth great-grandfather was tossed out of the Anglican Communion for asking too many questions (about one set of learned b.s.) He’s honored as a Learned Elder … of the Puritans in Massachusetts Bay (where all those East Millponds and Millpond Heights and what have you) are understanding not necessarily sanctioned writ all over the map. Stay safe.
April 27th, 2020 at 2:57PM
Stephen: Toujours la même chose.