Re: One klezmer's experience

[Marvin Margoshes <physchem...>]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Joshua Sharf" <jsharf (at) ix(dot)netcom(dot)com>
To: "World music from a Jewish slant" <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
Sent: Wednesday, September 03, 2003 11:56 PM
Subject: Re: One klezmer's experience


> There's a big difference between people who are trying to attract people
to
> Christianity, and people who are practicing a flavor of Judaism you don't
> find to your taste, don't you think?

Is Jews for Jesus a flavor of Judaism?  I think not, and virtually all Jews
agree with me on this.  Perhaps I can make the point of view clearer by
telling a true story.  Almost 50 yrears ago, I was working in a research lab
alongside a Japanese colleague.   He was engaged to a young Japanese woman.
One day, he told me that his fiancee was Catholic, so he was taking
instruction from a priest to become Catholic.  But he went on to say that he
would still be a Buddhist.  That attitude makes sense to one brought up in
an Eastern religion, and it is common in Japan.  But it is not allowed in
any of the major Western religions.  To a Jew, monotheism and the Trinity
don't fit together.

We are sensitiized by centuries of conversion efforts by Christians, often
compulsive.  And the efforts go on.  The politically-powerful Southern
Baptist Convention has made it official policy to convert Jews.

> Please, I don't see orthodox members of this list disparaging
Conservative,
> Reform, Reconstructionist, or Jewish Renewal.
>
We disagree on this mail list on religious matters, at times heatedly.  See
the recent discussion of Kol Isha as an example.  Most of us try to keep the
discussion impersonal, sticking to the ideas.  If we stray, our moderate
moderator brings us back into line.

> Joshua Sharf
> Site: http://www.viewfromaheight.blogspot.com
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <SICULAR (at) aol(dot)com>
> To: "World music from a Jewish slant" <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
> Sent: Wednesday, September 03, 2003 9:50 PM
> Subject: Re: One klezmer's experience
>
>
> > thanks for articulating that, Lori!  well-said indeed.
> >
> > I, on the other hand, was hired to play for a Lag B'Omer women's
drumming
> > circle event that was passed off as a self-empowerment sort of Jewish
> women's
> > gathering to me when I was called about it, and advertised as quite New
> Age-y.
> > But when I got there it was a rather rigid event trying to bring women
> into
> > more subservient traditional Jewish ways and a lot of political beliefs
> which I
> > will simply say were to me reprehensibly rightwing.  a sponsor website I
> looked
> > at afterward turned out to be a well-funded neo-Orthodox movement
office.
> > Since I had agreed to it as a business arrangement, I tried proposing
one
> or two
> > participatory ideas I thought would be more self-expressive and
> empowering --
> > things I knew from women's Rosh Chodesh groups and feminist seders
etc. --
> but
> > these were clearly unacceptable to the strategy of the motivational
> > speaker/leader. so  then I played but refused to give eye contact or
> anything beyond a
> > beat to the leaders of the gathering.  I felt very spiritually
compromised
> and
> > deliberately misled.... the purpose of the music as used here seemed to
be
> > helping these repressed people blow off steam and have a creative
outlet,
> while
> > trying to attract/proselytize other Jewish women.  nothing wrong with
that
> in
> > itself I guess, but they had purposely not told me about their movement
> > affiliation and underlying beliefs, sticking instead to the recruiting
> strategy
> > cover of this as a vaguely alternative-lifestyle event and creative
> outlet.  it
> > was held at New York's PS 122 performance space theater on an off night,
> to
> > further this image of something experimental and progressive.
> >
> > pretty creepy.
> > Eve
> > =================
> > - e v e  s i c u l a r  -
> > drummer/bandleader
> > ISLE OF KLEZBOS &
> > METROPOLITAN KLEZMER
> > 151 First Ave #145, NYC 10003
> > tel:  212.475.4544
> > fax:  212.677.6304
> > www.metropolitanklezmer.com
> >
> >
>
>



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