From: chr04ha@vmsa.technion.ac.il (Amitai Halevi)
Subject: Re: Jewish Fundamentalism
Organization: Technion, Israel Institute of Technology
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 23:01:11 GMT

In article <1992Nov4.014614.4919@sarah.albany.edu>, mark@fenris.albany.edu 
(Mark Steinberger) writes:
> 
> There is no movement within Judaism which calls itself Fundamentalism.
> 
> As far as I know, the term Fundamentalism is not used by any religion
> outside of Protestantism.
> 
> Therefore, if you are referring to Jews as Fundamentalists, you are
> making your own classification of beliefs within Judaism. And
> therefore, before you give a description of the beliefs and behaviors
> that you ascribe to "Jewish Fundamentalists", you should tell us who
> they are.
> 
> Is this term assumed to by synonymous with Haredim? With Hasidim? Do
> you call Rabbi Shlomo Goren a Fundamentalist? Rabbi Kook? Rabbi
> Riskin?
> 
> Please define your terms.

An excellent suggestion:

The American College Dictionary defines Fundamentalism as follows:
"A movement in American Protestantism which stresses the inerrancy
of the Bible not only in matters of faith and morals but also as
literal historical record and prophecy e.g., of creation ... etc.
(opposed to modernism)."
 
While we are not obliged to limit the term Jewish Fundamentalism
as narrowly as this (for example, we might use the inerrancy of the 
Halacha as the basic criterion), let us retain the definition cited 
above for the present purpose, subtituting "Judaism" for "American 
Protestantism".

Defined in this way, no movement in Judaism since the Karaite schism
can remotely be characterized as Jewish Fundamentalism.  This being
so, one wonders why spiritual leaders across the entire Orthodox
spectrum in Israel (Aguda, Degel Hatorah, Shass, Mafdal) joined in
expressing horror at Shulamit Aloni's "heresy" in doubting the
historical validity of the story of creation as it appears in the 
first few chapters of Genesis and, in particular, for advocating
teaching the theory of evolution in the (non-orthodox) schools.

It is inconceivable that the leaders of the ultraorthodox factions
or the official Chief Rabbis of Israel continue to take the story 
that the world was created in six days literally.  They are
certainly aware that "Maaseh Bereshit", like "Maaseh Merkava",
was understood by the sages allegorically.  For example (P'sikta
Rabati, 1):  "For G-d, one day is a thousand years." [This and
all the following translations are my own.]

The only rational justification of their furious attack on the
Minister of Education, aside for the attempt to gain political
advantage for the parties under their influence, is Ms. Aloni's
violation of the precept that "Sitrei Torah" must only be revealed 
to a select few; as far as the rank and file is concerned, "What 
they don't know won't hurt them."  

In his Commentary on the Mishna, Rambam explains the injunction
(Hagigah-Ch. 2, Mishna 1) that Maase Bereshit should be taught to
no more than two, presumably gifted, students at a time: "The 
multitude cannot understand these things ... if the ignoramus
were to hear them his faith would be undermined since he would 
think that they contradict the truth".	Rambam goes on to explain
that "The scholars understand  `Maaseh Bereshit' to be natural 
science and the investigation of the origins of reality."
From this point of view, the idea that schoolchildren should be
exposed to a modicum of scientific knowledge is heresy indeed.

If this is the opinion of Rambam, the most enlightened of medieval
scholars, it in not surprising that it is shared by Rabbis Schach
and Joseph (less enlightened and no less medieval).  For an
indication of how far the Chief Rabbinate of Israel has
deteriorated since the days when the late Rabbi A.I.H. Kook held
that position, consider his opinion that the teaching of Darwin's
theory of evolution is innocuous (Orot Hakodesh, 1): "The difficuly
of reconciling biblical passages or masoretic sayings with evolution
imposes no hardship on maintaining popular understanding on a sound
foundation.  ...  The common ear has become accustomed to hear ... 
that this passage or that saying is one of `sitrei torah', and
thus transcends its literal meaning, so his mind is set at rest".

Amitai Halevi

 *---------------------------------------------------------------*
 | E.A. Halevi, Department of Chemistry, Technion - I.I.T.       |     
 | "Mipnei seiva takum, vehadarta pnei zaken" - Leviticus 19, 32 |
 *---------------------------------------------------------------*

> --Mark