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rrmoderatorMoishe3rd:
See [
www.culteducation.com]
This is a fairly typical complaints about Aish. I have received quite a few similar complaints.
[b:80908042b5]The Pain of One Jewish Mother--a cautionary personal story
June 1998 [/b:80908042b5]
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While he was in Israel he was approached at the Western Wall by a man named Jeff Seidel--who asked him if he would like to have a "Shabbat (Sabbath) experience" with a Jewish family? My son trustingly said yes and was pulled into an experience that I believe included psychological techniques akin to "brainwashing"--designed to ultimately encourage him to leave his family and choose an isolated lifestyle within a closed community in Israel as an ultra-Orthodox Jew.
This is her belief system and her projection via her dissatisfaction with Orthodox Judaism.
It is possible that there are twisted people in the Torah observant world who have some sort of "nefarious" brainwashing plan leading people in a step by step process to join some kind of cult. However, as "Jeff Seidel" fades out of the picture and is replaced by a succession of completely different people, unless they are all involved in this "plot," then her "brainwashing" scenario does not hold water.
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Jeff Seidel introduced my son to an organization named "Aish HaTorah", whose mission seems to include influencing Reform and Conservative Jewish young people to become ultra-Orthodox. This organization often targets Jewish youth traveling without their parents in Israel. They slowly lure them step-by-step into a radically different lifestyle--they (e.g. Mr. Seidel) never really fully disclosed the actual intent of their ultimate mission.
The "mission" of all Torah observant Jews is to influence non observant Jews to more closely observe the Laws and practices of Judaism. This is neither a "secret" nor is it "nefarious."
And, yes, we do live a radically different lifestyle than most non-observant Jews and most of the human race in general. We dress differently; we eat different foods; and we tend to isolate ourselves more from the general community. We do indeed engage in ancient "cultic" practices. However, there are clearly laid out reasons for all of this which are available for literally anyone to investigate and research. These particular practices and this particular religion is the oldest surviving organized religion on Earth and one might, just might, inquire as to why this is so as opposed to blanketly condemning and slandering what one does not understand and what one has absolutely no interest in understanding.
Aish HaTorah is a completely above board organization which offers absolutely no compulsion whatsoever. Her charges are ludicrous.
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"Aish" [Ha Torah] begins by having lessons, which are attended by both young men and women to discuss general topics about Judaism.
I am taking this step by step, because you, rr, appear to be claiming that this "process" is "brainwashing or otherwise "wrong.'
So far, so good.
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These initial topics discuss the happiness of being one of "God's Chosen People" and are not controversial.
What the !!!?? "Being one of G-d's Chosen People" is NOT controversial?
It would seem that one's innate prejudices are in play here. The fact that this women is Jewish and accepts the idea that she is one of G-d's Chosen people, which the majority of the human race rejects and that people who are extremely worried about cults would find ridiculous, is apparently of no account to this woman.
I find that exceedingly biased and inaccurate on her part.
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The young person is often paired with another who has already been indoctrinated and that person may be instructed to become friends with the newcomer.
Objection! The word "indoctrinated" is prejudicial and without substance, Your Honor. Request to have it stricken from the record!
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The discussions gradually separate the men from the women--after these friendships have been developed the more serious indoctrination into the concept of "The True Torah" begins.
OH MY G-D!! THEY SEPARATE MEN FROM WOMEN IN ORTHODOX JUDAISM! Didn't see that one coming... What an odd "cultic" practice.
"Serious indoctrination" Objection!
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Young people are often encouraged to change their way of dress to conform to their new "friends"--although they are told they do not have to change their dress "until they are ready". The clear implication is that--they will eventually be "ready".
Yes, and... this is a problem... why?
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At the end of the summer, my son called and said he did not want to return to law school--a goal he had set for himself and discussed for many years, but instead he now wanted to stay a while in Israel to "study Judaism". I did everything I could to get him to return home, but he was being told by Aish's rabbis--"God" was more important to his future than his parents.
Herein lies the difficulty.
If one does, indeed, believe in G-d and believe that G-d gave the Torah to the Jews on Mt. Sinai, then, of course G-d is more important than ____ .
If one puts "G-d" in quotation marks, indicating their own disbelief or uncertainty of His existence and influence, then one is going to be mightily ticked off if one chooses to follow G-d than follow the dictates of their previous life.
I am going to gloss over the rest of this letter as this is the crux of the matter.
The mother in question here acknowledges that her son still wishes to pursue being a Torah observant Jew even out of the "clutches of the Aish people," and that she can deal with it better because he looks more normal and is eating okay....
Well, yeah... She sounds like a concerned mother. "Don't be a slob. Take care of your health. Eat... Eat..."
This is good.
This mother will, or perhaps already has, come around to realize the error of her ways when she attends her grandson's bar mitzvah or perhaps wedding amongst a group of his peers who have never used drugs; believe in the sanctity of marriage and sex; and who do not care to know who Britney Spears or any icon of the entertainment world is or what they are doing.
Right now, her hysterical account of Aish's nefarious brainwashing agenda is unfounded; unsubstantiated; and untrue.
If her son were to actually have treated her in the manner that she filtered through her prejudicial attitudes, then he would have been severely admonished by his rabbis as the fact is: "Honor your Mother and Father" is one of the "biggies" in the World of Mitzvos and Torah.
He obviously is "honoring" her in that he is trying to accede to her fears and concerns without abandoning what he believes to be what G-d commands him to do...
I humbly submit that this letter, in all of its biases and misconceptions, proves that Aish DOES NOT "tear families apart."