Cantor Arik Wollheim: Shalom From Jerusalem

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SHALOM FROM JERUSALEM

Shabbat Parashat Ekev Menachem Av 19 5770 July 30, 2010

Shalom,
It has been a long time since my last Shalom from Jerusalem, and I hope this message finds you all well and enjoying the summer.

First of all, I would like to thank all of you who called, emailed, and expressed concern and interest in my Mom's health. Your support and prayers were and are very much appreciated. As you know my mother is in the midst of chemotherapy treatment, and we are hopeful that all our prayers to the Almighty are going to be answered so we will have good news to share at the end of August.

While we wait for news and pray that the treatment is effective, we slowly began to return to our regular lives, which for the last ten weeks have been on hold. Writing my weekly Shalom from Jerusalem article is one of those things that I have missed, and I am very happy to return to it now.

Some months ago, the story of the Haredi girl's school in Beitar Ilit shook the whole country. The press reported that a group of parents belong to a Chassidic sect, called "Slonim," refused to send their daughters to school because they were forced to be in the same classroom with Sephardic girls. Those parents argued that the issue was not racial but religious. They claimed that the Sephardic families did not have the same standards of observance as they did, and they were concerned about a negative influence on their daughters. The matter was brought to court, and the ruling was in favor of the authorities, and the parents were ordered to send their girls to school. The rebellious parents, backed by their Admor (head of the Chassidic sect) stated that the Supreme Court has no authority to interfere and since this is a religious matter there could be no compromise, as a matter of principle. The court had no choice but to force the parents into custody, but not before they were declared as heroes in the Haredi camp.
In the meantime a compromise initiated by Rabbis, Knesset members and public officials was achieved, allowing for a "time out." During the summer vacation the situation will be investigated further, and all parties will seek a solution that will accommodate everybody's needs.

Those who read the papers and listen to the news might have the impression that racial strife is a usual and pervasive phenomenon in Israel. However, even though it is unfortunately a situation that exists among some, it is not by far the most common state of mind in Israel. In fact the opposite is what occurs most frequently. Israeli society, including the Haredi component ( far behind others but still part of the process) is going through a process of becoming a melting pot. One's geographical family of origin matters very little, and is becoming less significant as time goes by. Keep in mind that Israel is still a very young country and a country of immigrants as well. Development of a cohesive national identity takes time, although we are well on our way.

Israeli society has been dealing with this issue even before 1948. Tension between Ashkenazim and Sephardim was very common, but as time progresses, and more and more Israelis are sabras, geographical ancestry has become less and less important. ("Sabra" is a nickname for native born Israelis, actually a cactus that is hard and prickly on the outside and soft and sweet on the inside; quite an apt analogy!) The institutions of education and even more the army, are the great levelers of our society, and in effect, serve to stir that melting pot.

The Haredi society being secluded, isolated, and autonomous, is less affected by these catalysts. To some extent, among Haredim, it still matters where your grandfather grew up, but even there, the strong forces of the society in Israel are slowly making their mark.

This point is clearly illustrated by a subject dear to me; music. As you know, Jewish music, as other aspects of Jewish life, was influenced by its surroundings. We can find Sephardic music influenced by Arabic music, and Ashkenazi music influenced by Europeans. In the post modern era, the popular Ashkenazi music is called Chassidic music even though it has little in common, if anything, with authentic Chassidic music. This is why this genre is named neo-Chassidic by musicologists. This type of popular music is very similar, if not identical, to other Western popular music forms, such as rock and roll world music. Only the lyrics reveal the fact that it is actually liturgical. Here, one can find a blend of influences including eastern, Balkan, Greek and even MTV!

Two very clear examples demonstrate the phenomenon that I call a "salad" of musical influences, where the boundaries of each type disappear and new things emerge, creating interesting new hybrids. There are two mega stars of the genre; Yaakov Shwekey and Lipa Schmeltzer.
Shwekey, born into a family who came from Syria, sings in Ashkenazic pronunciation many melodies that are based on Chassidic (or at least from Eastern Europe) motives, and Schmeltzer, who belongs to the "Skvira" Chassidim, sings in Yiddish using rhythms originating in the Middle East and accompanied by greek and Turkish instruments.

But music is only the tip of the iceberg. When I went to Yeshivah we did not have a set nusach or (version and tunes) for the davening, so in order to accommodate all students, the nusach would change according to who led the service. Therefore, for example, you could find yourself davening Shacharit in the Sephardi nusach and Musaf in the Ashkenazi one.

It is true that this process of breaking the dichotomy between Ashkenazim and Sephardim, Haredi and Zionist is more common among the non Haredi communities. But everywhere, some of the walls are slowly coming down. More and more Minyanim in recent years are becoming less homogeneous; you can find Zionist, next to Haredi, knitted kipas next to black hats and everything in between. It is no longer a rare phenomenon to find Haredi and Zionist members of the same family. Today you can find Haredim in the army and Zionists in the yeshivah.

I think that the reality of life in Israel today causes polarized opposite to become closer to one another. The change is in the streets, created by those individuals who are committed to creating one new society, respecting our differences, but breaking down artificial categories that cause strife and division. These are people and practices that dispense with the old definitions and restrictions, creating the beautiful mosaic that is Israel today.

Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem,

Cantor Arik Wollheim