Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site agrigene.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!agrigene!buchbind From: buchbind@agrigene.UUCP Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish Subject: Re: Re: I think we have a problem. Message-ID: <138@agrigene.UUCP> Date: Wed, 12-Jun-85 20:36:03 EDT Article-I.D.: agrigene.138 Posted: Wed Jun 12 20:36:03 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 16-Jun-85 08:26:41 EDT References: <379@unc.UUCP> <404@unc.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: Agrigenetics Madison,Wi. Lines: 54 > Frank Silbermann: > I believe that the vast majority of Jews on usenet ARE assimilationists. I think that any Jew intent on assimilating is admitting failure if s/he spends time reading this newsgroup, let alone contributing to it. If they are trying to assimilate they aren't going to read anything with the 3 letters *j*e*w*. > At least that seems to be true of the Jews my age (twenties) that I've > met in New York, Florida, and North Carolina. So a newsgroup such as > net.religion.jewish.portnoy is not such an outrageous idea, after all. > I myself have tried to assimilate, but gave up for the time being > because I was so bad at it. Frank, give it up permenantly if you have to work at it. The object is to be yourself. If you can't be yourself without being Jewish, then BE JEWISH! Now all you have to do is figure out what it means for Frank Silbermann to be Jewish. First work on how you are going to be Jewish; that's hard enough a problem without first having to solve the question of how future generations (i.e. other people) will remain Jewish. (If the Orthodox had truely solved that problem, the Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist movements and assimilated Jews would not exist; we'd all still be Orthodox. [Even the Lubavitch can't keep Jews out of the Moonies! -:]) After all, future generations might want a say in the matter. > I read "Portnoy's Complaint" and saw a lot of myself in the main character. Personally, I would be offended by a *portnoy. > Jews in the more liberal movements do not often remain Jewish for more than > three or four generations. To ensure that the Jewish people does not die out, > the Orthodox way may be the only viable path. An interesting new discussion. Historically, how monolithic has Judaism been? There are a few Samaritans (technically they're Israelites, not Jews) and Karites around. The Falashas aren't Halachic. What of the differences (which are well tolerated among the Orthodox) between Sephardic and Ashkinazi practice? What about Judaism having survived as an evolving civilazation (phrase stolen from M. Kaplan) or folk tradition as opposed to it being a legal/theological system. Comments? Facts? Corrections? Thoughts? Flames? partly -: follows: Frank also commented on why the Orthodox seem to dominate this newsgroup. Unfotuneately, I've deleted the text (and I'm not going to start typing this over again). What I'd like to know is how they have time to type so much, having ~14% less time in the week available for the net than the nonfrummies. add to that the controversial assertion recently made in net.singles that Orthodox tend to be sports fanatics while nonOrthodox tend to be sedentary. -- Barry Buchbinder Agrigenetics Corp. 5649 E. Buckeye Rd. Madison, WI 53716 USA (608)221-5000 {seismo,ihnp4,harpo}!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!agrigene!buchbind