I spent this past Shabbos in a shul (outside of Baltimore) that had a continuous murmur floating in from the back of the room throughout the entire davening. A murmur I can assure you that was not contributing to the conduciveness of the Kedusha in the room.
Then it miraculiously stopped. . . right when the Rabbi started his drash.
Then the Rabbi finished his drash and we started Mussaf. Then about the time I got up to Tekanta Shabbos, the murmer stated again, only this time it was louder. I wonder if the Kiddush Club had anything to do with it. . .
Anyways, this post was going to be a rant about talking in shul. But I have to mention some of the other things that went on during this past weekend.
You see we had traveled out of town for a family wedding (I won't tell you where because of the possibility of Lashon Hara), and lets just say that the entire situation was an educational experience.
The first thing that turned me off was obviously the lack of any fear for G-d in the Shul. I suppose there is something to be said that these people actually go to Shul on Shabbos, but no one has ever taught them how they're supposed to act there. I'm sure that when any of these people are in a meeting at work, they are not turning around and chating with the guy sitting next to them.
Just a thought.
The next big thing that turned me off this time was the wedding.
I could handle the large amount of women not dressed modestly (here's where having to wear glasses comes in handy, all you have to do is take them off). I could handle the hour long Chuppah! (My sister said that she actually enjoyed the long Chuppah "It didn't feel rushed" she said. Well, when you do everything before you actually get married, I guess there's no real rush to get to the Yichud room. Right? Just a thought). I could even handle the weird "She circles him 3 times, then he circles her 3 times, then they circle each other together." Strange, I don't remember coming across that one anywhere in a legitimate halachic authority.
I understand why they do it, they want to show that women are equal to men. Which in my case is a big mistake. Not they they shouldn't be equal to men, but they're already on a higher level than men are. Why would you want to lower them to the level of men? True, they are equalizing the sexes, but they have the whole concept backwards.
I'm not going to even talk about the mixed dancing. All I know is that is assur to have mixed dancing at weddings. Don't ask me to tell you where it says (but if anyone knows please tell me). Anyways, as soon as it started I had to leave the Shul and I went outside to throw up. I was absolutly disgusted. I then left the wedding and went back to the hotel, where I spent an hour learning Gemara, and then I watched Enterprise. At least I wasn't ruining my Neshama.
Anyways I was talking to someone about my whole 'experience' in this foreign city, I was saying the nerve of these people to stand at a Chuppah, that was going to lead to a wedding with mixed dancing, and they had the nerve to mention the Beit Hamikdash! I'm sure that's a topic that makes some people very uncomfortable, because that's what was on everyone's mind!
So the person I was talking to pointed out that all of those people are considered as if they were children captured and raised by non-Jews. It's not their fault for what they do, they have been 'captured' by the society around them. I suppose if you look at it that way, it's pretty incredible that anyone comes to Shul at all. They even had shiurim there.
A shocking realization hit me the other week when I walked of the bathroom to find my 4 year old brother playing on the floor. I said 'Hi' and he looked up at me and stared, shocked.
"What's wrong" I asked.
"You didn't say Asher Yatzar."
I suppose we're all 'captured' in some sense, all we need is a good jolt to free ourselves from the prison that we put ourselves. And I can assure you that I will be saying Aher Yatzar every single time I leave the bathroom for the rest of my life!
Then it miraculiously stopped. . . right when the Rabbi started his drash.
Then the Rabbi finished his drash and we started Mussaf. Then about the time I got up to Tekanta Shabbos, the murmer stated again, only this time it was louder. I wonder if the Kiddush Club had anything to do with it. . .
Anyways, this post was going to be a rant about talking in shul. But I have to mention some of the other things that went on during this past weekend.
You see we had traveled out of town for a family wedding (I won't tell you where because of the possibility of Lashon Hara), and lets just say that the entire situation was an educational experience.
The first thing that turned me off was obviously the lack of any fear for G-d in the Shul. I suppose there is something to be said that these people actually go to Shul on Shabbos, but no one has ever taught them how they're supposed to act there. I'm sure that when any of these people are in a meeting at work, they are not turning around and chating with the guy sitting next to them.
Just a thought.
The next big thing that turned me off this time was the wedding.
I could handle the large amount of women not dressed modestly (here's where having to wear glasses comes in handy, all you have to do is take them off). I could handle the hour long Chuppah! (My sister said that she actually enjoyed the long Chuppah "It didn't feel rushed" she said. Well, when you do everything before you actually get married, I guess there's no real rush to get to the Yichud room. Right? Just a thought). I could even handle the weird "She circles him 3 times, then he circles her 3 times, then they circle each other together." Strange, I don't remember coming across that one anywhere in a legitimate halachic authority.
I understand why they do it, they want to show that women are equal to men. Which in my case is a big mistake. Not they they shouldn't be equal to men, but they're already on a higher level than men are. Why would you want to lower them to the level of men? True, they are equalizing the sexes, but they have the whole concept backwards.
I'm not going to even talk about the mixed dancing. All I know is that is assur to have mixed dancing at weddings. Don't ask me to tell you where it says (but if anyone knows please tell me). Anyways, as soon as it started I had to leave the Shul and I went outside to throw up. I was absolutly disgusted. I then left the wedding and went back to the hotel, where I spent an hour learning Gemara, and then I watched Enterprise. At least I wasn't ruining my Neshama.
Anyways I was talking to someone about my whole 'experience' in this foreign city, I was saying the nerve of these people to stand at a Chuppah, that was going to lead to a wedding with mixed dancing, and they had the nerve to mention the Beit Hamikdash! I'm sure that's a topic that makes some people very uncomfortable, because that's what was on everyone's mind!
So the person I was talking to pointed out that all of those people are considered as if they were children captured and raised by non-Jews. It's not their fault for what they do, they have been 'captured' by the society around them. I suppose if you look at it that way, it's pretty incredible that anyone comes to Shul at all. They even had shiurim there.
A shocking realization hit me the other week when I walked of the bathroom to find my 4 year old brother playing on the floor. I said 'Hi' and he looked up at me and stared, shocked.
"What's wrong" I asked.
"You didn't say Asher Yatzar."
I suppose we're all 'captured' in some sense, all we need is a good jolt to free ourselves from the prison that we put ourselves. And I can assure you that I will be saying Aher Yatzar every single time I leave the bathroom for the rest of my life!
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