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November 22, 2002/Kislev 17 5763, Vol. 55, No. 13
Spiritual agoraphobia
RABBI DAVID WOLPE
The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles
In the late Middle Ages, some Jews first banned and then instigated the burning of the books of Maimonides, the greatest philosopher Judaism ever produced. The fight was not over Maimonides as an individual; rather, the dispute centered on his incorporating Greek learning into his philosophy.
History has rendered its verdict; the defenders of Maimonides have been vindicated. Yet, the battle of insularity vs. openness endures. It is an old battle, and it has taken a new and ugly turn. Two new salvos were reported this past week.
Jonathan Sacks, the chief rabbi of Britain, was forced to retract statements he made in his book, "The Dignity of Difference" (Continuum Publishing Group, 2002). In that work on tolerance, Sacks stated that no one tradition has a monopoly on spiritual truth. For thus acknowledging that others were not bereft of truth, Sacks was charged with heresy by his fellow Orthodox rabbis in Manchester, England.
In a kindred development, Rabbi Joseph Reinman pulled out of a book tour schedule with his co-author, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch. Together they had written "One People, Two Worlds" (Schoken Books, 2002), a book that explores the differences between Hirsch, a Reform rabbi, and Reinman, an Orthodox rabbi. The Agudah statement, forbidding Reinman to tour, stated that "light cannot coexist with darkness, nor can falsehood be peddled with truth."
The Talmud teaches that there is wisdom in other traditions. This recognition has found prominent Orthodox advocates in our own time. As Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein wrote, "Who can fail to be inspired by the ethical idealism of Plato, the passionate fervor of Augustine or the visionary grandeur of Milton?" In other words, Lichtenstein wrote, all truth does not reside in one religion.
But this argument is not decisive for spiritual agoraphobics. They are afraid of the world beyond the walls of their own ideologies.
Contrary to Sacks' critics, Judaism has, in fact, long benefited from encounters with other cultures. The Talmud was enriched by Greek language and wisdom. Kabbalah was deepened by Sufi mysticism. Medieval Jewish poets wrote elegant poems in imitation of their Islamic contemporaries. On the testimony of his own children, the Vilna Gaon "mastered the seven branches of secular learning."
There is great beauty and meaning to be found in what is often denominated "ultra-Orthodoxy.'' But too insistent a purity becomes airless, and the profundity of the culture is dissipated by an unwillingness to look outside itself.
Orthodoxy is not monolithic; spiritual agoraphobia is a trend, not a movement. If life teaches us one invariable lesson it is that we are not stronger for forbidding criticism from those who think differently. Staying home with those who act and think like you may strengthen your own convictions, but it does not deepen your soul, or ultimately ensure your closeness to God, the Author of all.
David Wolpe is the senior rabbi of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles.
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