Re: One klezmer's experience

[Sam Weiss <SamWeiss...>]

At 03:25 AM 9/4/03, Mary Lowther wrote:
> ...playing
> the music just feeds into this skewed, sneaky proseletyzing. 
> But what if one were to take the view that
> klezmer allows Messianic Jews to get in touch with their roots - that,
> even though they have become Christians, they don't want to forget that
> they are also of Jewish heritage and choose to celebrate this? 

If they really wanted to get in touch with their roots they would not
expend so much energy and money in trying to uproot all of us who are
still in touch with our roots.  

> Isn't it
> in one's own best interest to have friends of various religious and
> non-religious persuasions?

With friends like these, who needs persecutors?

> ...Perhaps
> from my perspective as a non-spiritual, pragmatic non-believer I don't
> have a problem with playing music for anyone who likes to hear it. 
> I also like to play klezmer because it's an affirmation that says: 
> "Hey, the bad guys didn't win and Jewish culture is thriving,
> laughing, dancing, crying and feeling alive!" 

It is very hard for decent Christians or lapsed Christians to appreciate
the fact that these are indeed the bad guys.  Without a personal
investment in what it is that "skewed, sneaky proselytizing"
(to use your words) Christians (of =any= stripe) are trying to plunder,
it is very hard to fathom the utter criminality and the wretched
perversion of their obsessive behavior.  Try to think of it as a
variant of "identity theft" or kidnaping, and you will
understand the pain that is felt by those who are deceived into working
towards their goals.  

One Saturday afternoon I found pages from the current bulletin of a local
Messianic congregation tacked to our synagogue's bulletin board.  It
had been placed there by guests of that morning's Bar Mitzvah
service.  At times like these I wonder why the disorder called
Messianic Judaism does not have its own separate DSM-IV code.

_____________________________________________________________
Cantor Sam Weiss === Jewish Community Center of Paramus, NJ ---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org ---------------------+ Hosted by Shamash: The Jewish Network http://shamash.org A service of Hebrew College, which offers online courses and an online MA in Jewish Studies, http://hebrewcollege.edu/online/ * * FREE JEWISH LEARNING * * Shamash invites you to join MyJewishLearning.com, a comprehensive, objective, authoritative and interactive learning resource in all areas of Judaism. Free membership via http://www.myjewishlearning.com/shamash ---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org ---------------------=