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‘Jewish festival’ a bad idea

Judaism is not some kind of ornament; northern Israel festival is not the real thing

Speaking out against popular trends is usually a difficult task for a writer. There are many reasons for this, with the first one being the fear of being designated as a radical who withdraws from society and objects to any refreshing winds.

 

Yet despite this, please allow me to express some serious reservations over the “Lo Ba’Shamaim” Jewish festival at Kfar Blum in northern Israel. For me, the mere idea of connecting Judaism to a festival is a sort of kosher pride parade; a sort of declaration that we, religious Jews, are cultured after all and are capable of discussing issues that are unrelated to the Gaza expulsion.

 

Indeed, I feel no need to find myself setting up a stall at the festival in order to show that my faith is not an old remnant of the past.

 

When I was in the army, and the guys were looking for someone to deliver some “Jewish lecture” on Shabbat or some religious guy to lead Kiddush or talk about the current holiday, I usually refused to take part.

 

Festivals deal with trivialities, folklore 

I always explained to the puzzled people that Judaism is not some kind of ornament for a party or for the holiday, but rather, substance that requires investment. Yet as we know, investment is the opposite of festivals, which mostly deal with trivialities and folklore.

 

Some people may disagree here and say: What’s wrong with some good Jewish atmosphere? Well, there is nothing wrong with it, as long as you understand this is only about leisure, rather than the real thing. Just like American Idol is not a serious show and those performing in such shows are not real creators, but rather, only imitators, the same is true of the festival at Kfar Blum.

 

To my regret, in practice this difference does not sink in when talk about Judaism; anyone with a Jewish opinion or even someone whose connection to religion goes back to kindergarten is perceived as an equal whose opinion should be taken seriously.

 

Or in other words, just like no imitator of Freddie Mercury will even get close to the real thing, the same is true in deeper areas of life as well. 

 


פרסום ראשון: 07.08.08, 01:36
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