Baltimore, MD – The idea of a JCC open on Shabbos, even one far away from any Shabbos observant people, has caused great consternation in the Orthodox community of Baltimore these past few weeks. On Sunday, a rally attended by thousands of community members was held. The several community Rabbonim who spoke expressed their concerns and anguish about the possibility of such a venerable Jewish institution as the JCC being opened on Shabbos.
To a large extent the speeches were directed at the non-observant community – towards those who would happily open the JCC on Shabbos, expressing to them the deepest feelings of the sanctity of Shabbos and why it is so important to the Orthodox that the JCC remain closed. But was enough attention directed to the Kedushas Shabbos within the Orthodox community itself? One speaker decried those who on Shabbos afternoon remove their white shirts and replace them with Polo shirts. But surely there is more that needs to be said.
This past Thursday I was speaking with a friend who lives elsewhere. He mentioned that other “Orthodox” people in his hometown had arranged with the local JCC to be able to use the facilities on Shabbos without being required to swipe their bar codes and therefore violate the Shabbos. He described the Chilul Hashem that ensued when others found out about these arrangements.
Hearing him made me think about the scene here in Baltimore every Shabbos at Wellwood Elementary School. There are countless families at the Wellwood playground enjoying Shabbos in a manner that certainly shows the proper respect for the day. But there are others, children and adults, no longer dressed in Shabbos clothes, who spend their afternoon on the Wellwood basketball court, soccer field, and elsewhere playing all manner of sporting activities. Can you imagine the reaction of non-Orthodox people who would see this? “The Orthodox want us to keep the JCC closed, yet they themselves are playing ball on Shabbos!”
After sharing this concern with a few people, one friend told me that he had sent an email invitation to the Shabbos rally to a non-Orthodox friend of his. His friend wrote back that she was so incensed by what she saw at Wellwood when she drives by every Shabbos, and the hypocrisy, as she saw it, with protesting against the JCC opening, that she no longer wanted to hear about Orthodoxy.
As Chazal make clear in many places, we need to clean our own house first. And that goes for every one of us, even those not playing ball. Are we honoring Shabbos to the extent it should be honored based on our individual level of understanding and education? Until we can answer “yes” to that question, perhaps we need to stop suggesting to others how to live their Shabbos.
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Jerusalem native Rabbi Chayim Lando has more than two decades experience in Jewish Education. Rabbi Lando is the Director of the Learning Institute of Torah Empowerment (LITE) and the Program Director of Etz Chaim Center. Rabbi Lando is a member of Baltimore based OrganizationJews for Judaism
Kol hakovod to Rav Lando for properly chastising those narrow minded rabbonim who criticized the Baltimore JCC for providing facilities for yidden in Owings Mills who are not strictly shomrei shabbos. He correctly notes the hypocracy of their remarks at the rally last weekend and the need for them to focus their phony musar to their own olams and not pontificate to others.
Excellent Rav Lando.
Baruch hashem for sound and sane minds like rabbi lando who have seichel and sensible sense. Totally maskim with this.
keep it up harav lando, gr8 job, gr8 speach
even after all this we still can’t permit for the JCC to stay open ask any Rav or Posek and will tell you that we have to do what ever we can to keep them closed on shabbos.
Within an eruv, what is the issur of ball playing on Shabbos?
Opening the JCC would be mamesh Chilul Shabbos. How do you compare this to playing ball in a park with an eruv? Please, find me any av m’locho or toldah that is being violated. I can’t come up with any.
The Gemorah even talks about children playing ball in the streets on Rosh Hashanah. (This was the source for giving Hank Greenberg r’shus to play for the Detroit Tigers on Rosh Hashanah in the 1930s).
What exactly are “Shabbos clothes?” The suit you wear to shul in the morning? Where is there a din of wearing a suit all day long.
Sorry, but your naresh comment that “WE cannot permit the JCC to stay open” shows how ill-informed you are. Its not clear who “we” is supposed to represent. The Baltimore JCC board who represents the yiddeshe community voted almost unanimously to stay open beginning next shabbos so the issue has already been decided. Unless you plan on sitting in the door to block entry, I suggest you find a different “cause”. Follow rav lando’s advice and perhaps teach your schvuger a daf gamaorah.
Seems to me that we are often too busy looking for the things the “other guy” does wrong instead of looking at them as a creature in the image of G-d. Rather than jumping on folks for what they do wrong, better to acknowledge and encourage what they do right. Even for the folks at Wellwood in polo shirts… they probably walked there — and if they brought snacks, they are probably kosher. Not all of us are ever going to fit the Yeshiva-Jew mold, but almost all of us would rather be accepted and loved for who we are, rather than judged on who someone else expects to to be. Love draws closer. Judgment and criticism drive away.
Dear Rabbi Chayim Lando Shlit”a
I don’t know you personally, however, I am very impressed with your observation of how we spend our Shabbos afternoons.
The Medresh teaches us that one of the reasons why Hashem destroyed the Bais HaMikdosh was because the Boys would play BALL on Shabbos. Much can be done to improve the Shabbos atmosphere standards in many nice Jewish homes, no matter of their backgrounds, many families are eager to do so, but who is going to teach us what a real Shabbos should look like.
Perhaps I may suggest, that once the topic of Kovod Shabbos has been opened, we continue having Rabonim across the USA etc. speak about it on Shevous, or it could be split up in many sessions, what ever they feel is the best, how about creating a program in the schools / Yeshivos to spend much time planting the seeds so we can hopefully feel the real taste of a Shabbos……..? The true feeling of Shabbos is not experienced when one joins a Kiddush club and downs a bottle of blue label!!! The real spiritual feeling can only be felt when we use Shabbos to get closer to Hashem , i.e. by studying the Torah, praying with feeling, singing “Jewish” songs at the three required Shabbos meals etc.
May we all be Zocha to use our special gift of Shabbos the way it was meant to be.
A Jerusalem Rabbi
looking forward to greet you soon at the coming of Moshiach.
how about people who bring the news paper to the shobbos table
From Issues in Practical Halacha:
Playing with inflatable balls is prohibited according to the Ktzos HaShulchan, while the Yesodei Yeshurun allows it.
Games played outside on the ground where there is a chance one might level the ground are forbidden even on paved ground according to all opinions. Playing these games indoors, however, is permitted by the Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchaso while forbidden by the Ktzos HaShulchan.
Those games which use the ground but where one would not come to level the ground are permitted by the Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchaso to be played even on bare ground. The Ktzos HaShulchan, however, forbids playing these games even indoors.
Games which do not use the ground at all are permitted both indoors and outdoors by all opinions.
One should not stop children from playing any of these games, even on bare ground, unless outside an eiruv.
As an person comming from outside of the frum world, I can tell you that these Shabbos rallies might get Frum people fired up but dont increase overall Shabbos commitment.
A non-frum Jew who looks at a protest against Shabbos desecretion doesn’t get fired up to observe Shabbos. The opposite, he or she thinks that the Orthodox are coming from Tehran to enforce religious rules on everyone. Just imagine a Jew whose minimal Jewish involvment invloves paying enormous dues to the JCC and going to the pool on Saturday. He or she doesnt know the aleph beis let alone Chumash and Rashi. Forget about Shas and poskim. Then along comes a crowd of people dressed in black talking about closing down the JCC which is the only connection this person has to Jewish identity. Its a personal attack and for this Jew whose motto is “live and let live” he or she cant understand why the Orthodox are “attacking” him or her.
Should we have Shabbos rallies. YES! But lets follow it up with something to spread the joy of Shabbos. Shabbos is an oneg for EVERY Jew when done properly.
Why doesnt the Baltimore community invite everyone in the non-frum community to a Shabbos table? Maybe its wishful but imagine for a second:
Imagine that the there was a Shabbos rally with big fanfare followed up with a general invitation to all Jews in the Baltimore area to spend Shabbos with volunteers in the frum community. Naive? crazy? Whats crazy about spreading oneg Shabbos to all Jews. Nothing would give more nachas to Avinu she b’shamayim
Someone who actively seeks a way to do his recreation on Shabbos without violating Shabbos– including asking the JCC to let him in without using an electronic card– is honoring the Shabbos, and making a kiddush Hashem. Someone who publicly denounces this man for insufficient frumkheit (to say nothing of some loony-tune who can’t imagine wearing a comfortable shirt on Shabbos) is creating a chilul Hashem. He’s making Judaism– and religious Jews– look ridiculous.
I am not impressed with the comparison of wearing polo shirts (what nonsense, I forgot there is an issur in the Torah of not wearing polo shirts on Shabbos) and playing ball, which is within the realm of Shabbos halacha according to many poskim, and outright chillul Shabbos as would be exemplified by the JCC. This Rabbi may have a good point, in saying that we need to show proper kavod Shabbos and some people do not, but please do not make this point by throwing off examples such as polo shirts and ball playing…we are not allowed to add to what the Torah prohibits. Now it may be that those same people that wear polo shirts and play ball on Shabbos do not show proper kavod Shabbos by talking in shul, kiddush club nonsense, etc but to say that their lack of kavod Shabbos is because they play ball, and wear polos, that’s just ridicuolous, and is the reason why many non-orthodox feel so “judged” and turned off by orthodox people, because instead of showing them that you can be normal and dress normal, so long as you follow an orthodox Rav and accept Torah MiSinai and Shaas and poskim, we show them that the artificial ingredients in modern day orthodoxy are what really matter, like not wearing C’V a polo on Shabbos. Complete nonsense.
totaly ludicrus comment where one does something wrong dosent indicte the whole community. maybe someone should explain the avla to those people but to say fix your house first smacks of haugtiness and is totallt misguided self examination is in order
What’s wrong is his assumption that sports are a kind of chilul shabbos. On the contrary, the Shulchon Oruch says that for young people who enjoy running around, that is their oneg shabbos (301:2). As for playing ball, there is an opinion that balls are muktzeh, but the Ramo permits it (308:45). How is it a chilul Hashem or a “dirty house” to engage in permitted activities that are oneg shabbos?
Have we ever thanked the Reform for building this wonderful facility. If we can only criticize, but not be makir tov, then our criticism is of no value. Why should they listen to us?
I think the last line is the most important: “perhaps we need to stop suggesting to others how to live their Shabbos. ” People need to understand that their way is not the only way to properly keep Shabbos. You don’t have to wear a white shirt and shoes all day to be shomer shabbos. There is nothing inherently wrong with playing catch (within an Eruv) or playing on playground equipment. Not everyone can sit still on long, long summer shabbatot that end at 9, or sit inside learning all day.
Unfortunately, the “Black Hat” crowd has always been shortsighted, pennywise and pound foolish. Better the JCC should be closed, and the not-so-strictly-observant should go to the movies or the mall instead, than to go to the JCC where they might (gasp!) encounter some Orthodox jews who are using the JCC facilities in a shomer shabbos way. Why do you think Judaism is called “yahadut”? Because it’s supposed to bring Jews TOGETHER… not keep us apart. The whole reason we have eruvin in the first place is to foster community; without eruvei chatzeros and eruvei tchumin many people would have to stay homebound on shabbat, not come to shul with small kids, not be able to visit others, bring food to those in need, etc. Rabbi Lando is right! Stop being so concerned with “yenem”…. you look at yourself first. Let Hashem worry about yenem.
#8 where is that medrash. shulchun urech ohr hachaim 308 seuf 45 the rama is matir, mechaber assur, but so severe that bais haildash was charuv? is it possible you were mistaken. our mase rav is to play until bar mitzvah.
#20 why dont you also mention the mechaber forbids it . not that i want you to follow the mechaber, that ask whever you rely on, but if you bring only one shita we assume its unanimous
#26 ..listen your right, but a lot of people are far from that madreigeg lo nitnu hatorah liemalachai hashares’ but if your talking about those newspapers that have indecent pictures and non shabbos subjects then its assur because of ‘vdaber davor’ and all week becaus of histacklus.
As for swimming on Shabbos in an indoor pool, the Shulchan Aruch allows it (339:2) if there is a rim around the pool (so that there is no possibility of water spilling over the edge), there is also no concern that the swimmer will make a raft or float.
With all due respect rabbi you live in a town with rav heineman, rav hopfer, and rav berkowitz. You should really keep quiet and let the gedolay torah run the show
i think the point is, it is easier to condemn others than be perfectly responsible oneself.
People might ask why such outrage over a community center opening minimal facilities on Shabbos with such a huge turnout but you cant organize such a crowd of outraged religious Jews to combat child molestation in the same community in, yeshivas, shuls, etc.? You are worried about the unaffiliated Jews being mechalel Shabbos but can’t rally the same support and concern to prevent children from being shoved off the derech to begin with? What is wrong with this picture?
#39ry for the hack chainik,your right, but since that opinion is the mechaber and you bring the rama and preface it with ‘there is an opinion’ a klotz like me would understand that the ‘opinion’ is a obscure poisek who likes to be machmir and i should diregard him legabay the rama, but as it is the mechaber,the bais yosef then you should mention him in contrast to the rama not just an ‘opinion’..so my observation is (a little) right..just thought so not to, but not to hock…
#45 your comparison is ….here we have the chilil shabbos in front of us so we go and protest the chillil while its being done, so if you find us exactly who, where when a molestation is taking place we can organize a protest at that spot ..but you will have to make sure the act is still going on when we protest ,deal? get it ? do you understand what is wrong with YOUR picture?
Ninty percent of the yidden who showed up to protest have never given a dime to the JCC and most have probably never even used its facilities. This is just another case of trying to dictate “moraility” to those who are not orthodox and have no interest in doing so unless you offer some positive message or opportunity.
#54 heated water is assur without the chassash of causing the hear to go on .also breicha is not a pool
PS swimming pool that is dedicated for swimming,the gezarah of ‘chovious shel shayten still stands.after all how ‘small’ is a small swimming pool 50′ by 100′ ?
i was at the rally and one of the main things said was that we have to improve our own shabbos, that we are the ones to blame because while we may be keeping the laws of shabbos correctly, we aren’t keeping the spirit of shabbos . noone said polo’s are assur, but the hloiness of shabbos is not just ntil the end of the meal, its until nightfall. so one must honor the shabbos the whole day . of course we must correct ourselves, noone argues. however, noone argues that if you see fellow jews doing an aveira we have to show our disagreement with it otherwise we will be held liable.
Are JCC’s are permitted to stay open during the week.? Most of them have mixed swimming and non-Jewish members, as well as programs with kol isha.
Better that bored kids from shomer Shabbos homes play ball on Shabbos then gather together to indulge in mechalel Shabbos activities, using drugs included. And I hope no wiseguys will be commenting that using drugs is not being mechalel Shabbos. Neither is drinking. But you know what I mean.
s#62 the heter of hot mikvah is shvacheh, see urech hashulchen. in all mikvahs there is a sign to be nizhar to go in and out , no soaking. warm pools are no heter whatsoever because of the gezeiroh of ‘rechitza’
#62 … what you state in last parag. is not so pahshut…one can be a novol birshs hatorah. ‘talmud hoyo…’ the whole issur of conducting business shabbos was assured by novi yirmiyuhu because it isnt ‘shabbosdik’. as he came into yerushlaim and the atmosphere of shabbos was being violated , people were conducting business without violating any of the ’39’. Even a minor thing as uncovering a table shabbos is assur, so how more about going in weekday dress. if one comes up with argument of ‘i feel comfortable in this , this is my oineg shabbos’,its slippery slope. the tanneh of the animal is like that and the torah is matir for them (rashi ‘leman yanuach shochu…’
#67 .. are you on drugs?? mixed swimming, kol beisha ervah are accepted avairos?? where did you pick up that one? your reyoh from isha listening to ish so therefore the other way around is mutter? there is no issur for isha to listen to ish. how can you even make such a statement ‘accepted avairos’?. you think g-d is your pal or something, and say ‘hey g-d, you know nowdays its different this belongs to the dark ages’ afreh lepimeh
#76 please dont show your ignorance…if they are open and that causes a yid to drive there because they are open they are causing a yid to be mechallel shabbos, even though that yid will drive anyway for other purposes. this halacha that ‘he is going to do it anyway’ is only mutter legabay a non jew when it involves ‘amira leakum shevis’. what you say about ball since the rama is mattir others dont count i pointed out to you the machaber assured, so even as you say you follow strictly , as an ashkenaz, the rama in this case its not so simple see somon 518 ‘m’a’ ‘tiray zahav’ they seem to concur leissur. now again you can hold leheter (after you ask your poisek )but just dont make away ,in this case, the issur of the mechaber, magan avrohom, tirey zahav
By distinguishing between us and them (Orthodox and other) we miss the point. Rabbi Lando points out a problem among those who’s should know better. Great point. It, in no way detracts from the responsibility of every Jew to protest a JEWISH COMMUNITY center publiclt desacrating shabbos.
My comments only have a marginal impact on the issue but I believe highlight the discussion. The Bais Yakov of Baltimore had a menahel who untimely passed away , was tremendous in his ahavas Yisroel and instituted 11th to 12th grade teaching about the European chorbin. Last night I met the teacher who is currently teaching this subject and is highly qualified and due to my unfortunate personal and literary expertise I give her an A1 grade. She told me that this year for the first time she has girls in her class to whom this subject is ancient and not relevant which highlights how far we have left behind the children, women and men who were murdered in Brikenau and other extermination camps. Of course if Germany should decide to shell out more money everybody runs to the trough. Of course this no fault of the school the fault lies with the homes who avoid this subject because it could interfere with their digestion of Yoshon pizza.
The mokom of baalei teshuva is Or Someach and it is protected by the treifene Zionisten and here in Baltimore a rav whose shul is full of “baalei teshuva” spoke well at shoah meeting. Maybe if we would know more of the chorbin the question of opening the JCC would become moot and we would understand the uniqueness of the torah and Jewish religious life and our precarious position even in the best golis we ever had
I recently went to a Lag B’Omer B B Q at the local Young Israel. There were lots of families with kids and several Rabbis there. Sadly, noone sang one song. No V’amartem Ko Lechai, No Amar Rabbi Akiva, NOTHING AT ALL. I was so upset I hung my head and thought these kids will grow up and say: Frumkeit has no meaning. The holidays are boring. I might as well go to the JCC and play ball…
#87 lag bomer is no holiday whatsoever…
I don’t mind that certain MO familes where Kahkis and polo shirts at Wellwood on Shabbos. I also don’t mind that some of these families throw around a football or frisbee. They obviously are enjoying Shabbos in their own way and it is within MY tolerance limits.
What I do mind are the high school boys prancing around with their shirts off and wrestling in front of the girls. This happened a couple shabbosim ago. This was beyond MY tolerance limits.
#89 the point is not ‘you dont mind’ but is it in the spirit of the heilige shabbos, see #75 so now what is wrong with boys with their naked chests wrestling around in front of girls , and even not in front of girls, on shabbos(lets not get into weekdays) so they are not wearing ther tzitzes. so what if i will eat fri nites pizza or frankfurters for shabbos seudah and somked fish platters for the day seudah or how how about just tuna sanwhiches…this goes into ‘al titosh toras omacho’..and thats what was pointed out you can be a novel brishus hatorah. also i’m sure those boys and girls werent flirting either during the ‘match’ and they’re so oisgearbet they didnt have hirhurim ( see article VIN “yeshivah students attend course on harrassment’ with posters who say there is no such problem even though the natural order of things are leheopoch . just all the mussar seforim and kame memres in shas had the problem…so this is what is pointed out about MO hashkafaall thruout articles
#89 you see, you also have a shabbos problem . you ‘i dont mind’ this and ‘i dont mind that’ ‘i have tolerance for this’ and for that’ .and who are you that you are a deciding factor of whats wrong or right to do shabbos. how many time did you learn hilchos shabbat that you should have the ‘feel’ of what is right or wrong to do shabbat?
hey milhouse , i see the guy touched a raw nerve , heh…anyway he is right you are far from comprihending ‘al titosh toras imacha’ . also in shulchen urch there is a din ‘kol hamvazeh es hamoed’ ,which refers to chal hamoed, if you eat chal hamoed WEEKDAY FOODS YOUR ARE BEGADER MEVAZE HAMOED.. ehrlich yidden (not that those who dont are not ehrliche) eat even on chol hamoed only shabbodige foods, fish ,soup basar, kolshken shabbos..looks like your a yid who has no mesorah..the rest of your gibbrish is not worth rebuking
hey milhouse dont fly off your handel ,i did not protest playing ball on shabbos or yom tov please re-read what i said .your see only red in front of your eyes because someone dared to show you your not the big talmud chacham you hold yourself to, that you cant see the words properly
#100 thats what the ‘beheimas’ tanneh is legabay shabbos see rashi ‘leman yonuach …vechol behmtacha’ so youre in good company
#100 listen big ‘talmud chochem’ mese. avos (ethic of fathers) perek 3 mishneh 11 ‘vehamevazeh hamoados’ Rabbeinu ovaayeh mi’bartenurah : ‘oi nohek bom minhuk chol b’achuleh ushtueh’ he heats weekday foods…now if evrything goes regarding eating whats pshat, and he’s not talking about fasting
#100 by the way, megaleh panim batorah is also in that mishneh..of which you also dont know the right pshat