Jewish Funeral News
Jonathan Rosenblum writes: I will never forget an address by Rabbi Ephraim Wachsman at an Agudath Israel of America convention on the topic “Living a Life of Ruchnios amidst Gashmius.” There is no ruchnius amidst gashmius. “Pesach in hotels,” turned out to be the winning answer. And my friend’s central criticism was similar to that of Rabbi Wachsman: the Pesach hotel industry takes what should be one of the ultimate spiritual experiences of every Jew’s life and encases it in a thick wrapper of materialism.
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“The chilul Hashem alone,” he said, would be reason enough to close the Pesach extravaganzas.
That boy, my friend lamented, cannot possibly connect to the idea that Pesach cleaning parallels an inner process of removing the se’or she’b'isa � the physicality and inner materialism that holds us back in our performance of Hashem’s commandments. We may no longer exchange our old dirt floor for a new one every year at Pesach time, as they did in Europe. But if those ancestors could return to observe our preparations for Pesach, they would recognize their descendants and feel comfortable joining us for Seder.
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EVEN MY FRIEND recognizes that there are many perfectly legitimate reasons that families might go to hotels for Pesach. (In Eretz Yisrael , many yeshivos turn their dormitories into Pesach hostels.)
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The issue of deluxe Pesach extravaganzas is, in truth, just one more aspect of an ongoing tension in modern Orthodox life. Rabbi Yehoshua Geldzhaler once described to me the pre-war Antwerp Jewry of his youth.
Chavi: Only 6,000 Jews in Nebraska, 60 at my college, and I knew about 10 others my own age who were Jewish
YourMoralLeader: I’m embedding subliminal messages in these rock songs I play on here to prey on Emma.
Chavi: Lol
Emma: lol
Chavi: Emma, we’re awesome, come on 
YourMoralLeader: working so far
Emma: Yep
YourMoralLeader: chavi, what were the toughest parts about becoming jewish? for me it was losing my foreskin.
YourMoralLeader: It’s a sore issue for me.
Chavi: Ha! You actually did the circumcision!? Mazel tov on that. So I’m assuming you converted Orthodox?
YourMoralLeader: yeah, just kidding about the foreskin, i was circumsized at birth and I did it myself! I also cut my own hair
Chavi: For me it was dealing with everyone thinking it was a big joke … and then the whole Christian friends more or less disowning me
Chavi: Phew, lol …
Emma: I can imagine it would be Luke
Chavi: I was worried for a second
Emma: You did it yourself?
Chavi: Even the ritual circumcision hurts my brain
YourMoralLeader: yes
Emma: Liar
YourMoralLeader: i was precocious kid, just 8 days old
Chavi: good thing i have my own office at work
Chavi: else the laughter would garner funny looks
Emma: lol
Chavi: I’m following you via Twitter now, FYI
YourMoralLeader: chavi, have you lost friends, lost touch with friend due to your conversion?
YourMoralLeader: cool!
Chavi: A lot of my high school friends looked down their noses at me. I ejected myself from a forum with newspaper friends from the college paper becuase they were constantly making Holocaust and Jewish jokes and poking at me and my decision
Chavi: But for the most part — the true friends have stuck around
Emma: Thats good
Chavi: Football?
Chavi: Throwin’ around the old PIG SKIN?
YourMoralLeader: is that wrong?
YourMoralLeader: everything I do, it’s a sin
Chavi: With Pesach around the corner, even!
Chavi: For shame …
Chavi: So do you freelance now? Or …?
YourMoralLeader: i blog
YourMoralLeader: and sin