Flashes from the dark

A friend of mine began a blog. This is what he has to say.

"This blog was designed to explore the hidden side of humanity through art. As the study of and creative preoccupation with beauty, art is something I've long struggled with. I thought it fundamentally if not blatantly vain and therefore devoid of any substantive value. Indeed, like vanity in general, I regarded it as positively dangerous. At the same time, I've always found myself drawn to art with the bright eyes and excitement of a much better person. This fostered quite a tension as I felt intellectually and morally compelled to reject art while being viscerally and intuitively inclined to embrace it.

It was only recently that I succeeded in balancing this equation, in finding a happy medium where dichotomy becomes duality. Beauty, I've come to conclude, is only superficially vain (this may well constitute a whimsical type of recursion, but I believe it the truth nonetheless), holding a well of fantastic meaning just below its surface. Beauty, I now believe, is a form of communication.

This is easiest to see in art, where the beauty is the deliberate expression of the artist. Inevitably there will be a message communicated through its beauty and a meaning that underlies it. This can be more difficult to see in natural beauty, but without invoking a creator and his/her teleological message I will defend my position by referring to the response natural beauty evokes in its viewer. It is a sort of cosmological introspection when deep and inflective emotions are aroused in the self-assembled cells that previously embodied distant nebulae. These emotions are of course our reaction to natural beauty and give voice to the thoughts of the subconscious. In doing so, beauty becomes communication - flashes of meaning (perhaps personal, perhaps universal, perhaps intrinsic and transcendental, and perhaps a superimposed invention) from the vast darkness of existence.

In this sense, this blog is devoted to revealing the under-received and under-realized communications floating all around us. It is a tribute of sorts to the unseen museum next-door. I hope to post here the works of myself and my friends. Our most meaningful expressions of self that nobody knows."

Additionally, I will be posting my photographic work, simply, the photos I like on his blog, yes, I enjoy being pretentious. 

'Flashes from the Dark' has it all, humor; poetry and prose. 

http://flashesfromthedark.blogspot.com/

Real Original. (a great name for a fresh juice brand)

Parents in Jerusalem rallied on Sunday against the haredi separation barrier built between secular and religious kindergartens. The parents of children who attend Pashosh kindergarten in Kiryat Hayovel protested against the separation fence established between the secular kindergarten and the haredi kindergarten Etz Hadaat next door.

It does not stop there. Separate buses, trams, benches. There is even a separation barrier in between the men and women at the synagogue! What has the Jewish world come to.

History repeats itself.

Rabbi Yankel Meir Geisserhacht, a controversial figure both in the haredi and Modern Orthodox worlds is in the process of reformulating the Nuremberg Laws to make them applicable to the non-haredi sector.

I do not know how to react...Abstinence is Awesome?

The Orthodox Union (OU) has begun an 'Abstinence is Awesome' website. It is nice to see that an orthodox body has finally admitted to the existence of sexual urges among teenagers. But is the webpage really necessary? 

Judaism has traditionally run away from anything remotely connected to Christianity, but now, we have adopted the Christians way of dealing with sexually promiscuous teenagers. 

Check out both the OU and Christian webpages below. 

http://www.ou.org/abstinence/index/C509

http://www.surfinthespirit.com/teens/whyabstinence.html

Convinced? 

Real practical...

To me, books like 'Living With Moshiach' have no place on one's Jewish bookshelf. It is simply not practical and pure speculation (on that note, half the masechtot we learn are not practical today but for some emotional connection I would leave them on the shelves. They do have a place on the Jewish bookshelf). I would have no problem if it became the sequel or prequel to 'Lord of the Rings' or 'Harry Potter'.  

What bothers me most about this genre is that Jewish publishing houses have taken complex Jewish concepts which very few people understand and comprehend and publishe short books, aimed at people who are less fluent in Jewish texts in order to bring them closer to Judaism. 

For all those atheists out there, I would also poke fun at the book 'The Way of God' but I cannot laugh at Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, the prominent Italian Jewish rabbi, kabbalist, and philosopher.

Tuna from a mermaid, deep loving sigh.

‘Sirena Tuna’ available in Australia has been covered by the OU in America for the past few years. However, in shocking news ‘OU’ has decided to withdraw their hecsher. When approached Rabbi Eli Gutenburg of the ‘OU’ kashrut division stated that any good standing kashrut authority would not cover such tuna simply because of the non-tznius image on the top of the tuna.

The spokesman for Sirena tuna, David Huxley responded, “that the image is stepped in tradition and mysticism. We do not question your Jewish customs and nitpicking behavior into our cooking and packaging process so not question our image and secondly halachikly all that is considered erva is covered.” This last remark took the Jewish world by surprise due to the fact that Mr Huxley is an atheist, subsequently the assumption being that he did not understand religion let alone halacha.

The chief rabbi of ‘Kosher Australia,’ Rabbi Yaakov Weissgarden has deemed ‘Sirena Tuna’ not to be kosher because of the misleading packaging. Rabbi Weissgarden claimed that simple Jews might think that the tuna, which they are eating, comes from a mermaid that has never, throughout history, been kosher. This, in Rabbi Weissgarden’s opinion would cause the majority of Jews who do not have expert knowledge of kashrut to buy mermaid meat that is unquestionably trief.

Rabbi Weissgarden has also pointed to the Trade Practices Act 1978 section 52, misleading and deceptive conduct. Many have disregarded this argument as another rabbi touching on subject matter out of area of expertise in an attempt to prove his point. 

Whatever Works

Rabbis have announced that from the start of the new Jewish year, men and women will not halachikly be allowed to be buried one next to another.  Rabbi Yaakov Meir Zelig surmised these rabbis’ opinions by stating, “every year we strive to become better yidden, this is something that must change. What sort of message are we sending to our children to allow such behavior. Personally, I feel like a hypocrite when telling my son not to sit next a lady on the bus whilst planning on being buried next to my wife! What will I respond if my son realizes this hypocrisy. What could I say?”

Rabbi Yechiel Neiserschmidt has a differing of opinion. In his sefer Kodesh Ha’bayis V’chu”tz, with haskomos from some of the greatest gedolim of our generation, he claims that not only religion on earth has moved to the right but also Olam Habah, which traditionally has always been a mixed event has become separate.

Modern Orthodox rabbis strongly contend this reasoning. They claim that there is no issue of ichud and shomer negia regarding souls. A soul is not bound by the rules of human nature, subsequently allowing the soul access to any room, nook or cranny irrregardless of walls and doors. Due to the fact that these primary issues regarding mixed societies do not exists olam habah will continue to operate as a ‘mixed society.’

In opposition to this Rabbi Yechiel Neiserschmidt and the haredim have threatened to pull out of the existing olam habah and create their own paradise with rabbinic supervision, separate seating and glatt kosher meals. 

A study conducted…

A study conducted by the Agency for Jewish Continuity reported last week that a Modern Orthodox girl or female in general is more likely to receive a reply by swearing whilst walking past a haredi male on Shabbat rather than saying Good Shabbos or Shabbat Shalom.

Immediately after the haredim were informed of this factually proven scenario they held a melaveh malkah in honor of the commitment the yidden have shown in this time of adversity. Rabbi Yechiel Teichmansell announced, “that we, as true authentic yidden are closer than ever in bringing the moshiach. May we continue in reducing conversations with women and hopefully one day, through technology be able to reduce conversations with the female gender altogether.”

According to an anonymous source, Modern Orthodox rabbis are preparing to release a pesak halacha banning men from replying to Good Shabbos or Shabbat Shalom from women on the street. It must be made clear that this is not due to a halchik consideration but rather to gain acceptance in the haredi world.