HasidicRebel
July 17, 2003 6:30 PM   Subscribe

The Hasidic Rebel. A blogger from inside the Hasidic community provides some insight into a lifestyle few are familiar with.
posted by srboisvert (11 comments total)
 
via The Village Voice
posted by srboisvert at 6:32 PM on July 17, 2003


Thanks for the link. Really interesting stuff--the comments too. I've just started reading and have already learned number of things. And I'm having fun trying to picture the Hasidic Rebel jamming to Lee Ann Womack.
posted by lobakgo at 6:43 PM on July 17, 2003


from a blog comment:

I was with you until Lee Ann Womack. That's the thing about you, HR. You'll start off saying sensible things about how there's too much xenophobia and silliness in the Chassidic community. Ok, sounds sensible. But listening to female vocalists? Come on! Having a more liberal philosophy and criticising aspects of a community are one thing. But casting away the Torah? And in a public forum, at that! I mean, the very least you could do would be to realise that you're setting a bad example for the Jewish readers of your blog.

damn those female vocalists!
posted by quonsar at 6:46 PM on July 17, 2003


Interesting reading, being from New Hampshire, I can say that I've seen Chasidim maybe twice in my life: once in the movie PI, once in the movie Snatch.
posted by crazy finger at 7:36 PM on July 17, 2003


Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jewish...fundamentalists all over look the same. I'm not trying to be mean. I used to be a cult member myself, and understand the dynamic. It's intense, though, reading such a precise explication of how religious adherents police each other.
posted by kozad at 7:43 PM on July 17, 2003


I've seen Chasidim maybe twice in my life

<bart>
hey look! it's z. z. topp! you guys rock!
</bart>
posted by quonsar at 7:59 PM on July 17, 2003


kozad- that reminds me of a joke I heard on vacation in Utah once. Anyway, I've heard the same joke retold a few times since, but basically:
Q: How do you keep [religious fundamentalist] from [sinning] on your [trip together]?
A: Bring two of them (fundamentalists).

KA-POW!
posted by crazy finger at 8:13 PM on July 17, 2003


The way I see it, most debates are inherently dishonest. Why? Because very rarely do debaters come with the attitude of "Let the best argument win." They all want to be the winner. In a truly honest debate, both sides say, "Let's both put forward the best argument for our respective positions, let's examine both of them, and the most sensible one is the one each of us will accept." It is possible, of course, that in the end both would stick to their original argument. But the difference is, that each one came with a readiness to actually examine his or her own positions in a new light.

It's great to know that not only does Metafilter read the Hasidic Rebel, he's plainly quite familiar with Metafilter.

Great link -- and a more interesting blog than most.
posted by BT at 8:35 PM on July 17, 2003


I just finished Chaim Potok's The Gift of Asher Lev a few weeks ago (after having read the first book several times over the last few years). It left me almost wanting a chance to be a part of a Hasidic community, even with the display of the agonizing problems of being different inside of just such a group. Definitely interested in this blog.
posted by weston at 8:52 PM on July 17, 2003


This is fascinating! Ya gotta love the Internet - how else could one get a window into such a closed and strange world?

I've only just started reading too, but this post struck me as particularly interesting.
posted by CunningLinguist at 9:26 PM on July 17, 2003


Interesting, thanks.
posted by plep at 12:09 AM on July 18, 2003


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