Shlomo Katz answers his critics about the "Musical Hallel"

 

DIN: Personally I don't care how someone davens, after 3,500 years there are Yidden that are going to shul to connect to Hashem, who are we to criticize how they choose to connect to the RBS"O? If you don't like it, keep your boring davening, but let others do it in their own ways. Kol Hakoved, Reb Shlomo! 

I’ve noticed that our musical Hallel on Chol Hamoed Sukkos is being discussed on social media.

Many were inspired by it. Others criticized it as being some sort of “reformation” of our Avodas Hashem.

The specific, technical question is not new. There is room for debate in the realm of halacha and minhag.

But something else has crept into this conversation, and it must be called out.

Musical Hallel is suddenly being dismissed by some as “a Modox invention.” As a “Zionist” phenomenon. As something that belongs to a supposedly “less serious” stream of Orthodox Judaism.

That’s not a Torah argument.

There is an enormous difference between a halachic debate and saying, “Of course those kinds of Jews would do something like this.”

The first is a machlokes. The second is using Torah language as cover for contempt toward other frum Jews. And we should be intellectually honest enough to know the difference.

You are 100% entitled to believe that another Torah community is mistaken. Torah Judaism has never had full uniformity of minhag, hashkafah, or practice.

But disagreement in this realm demands enough respect for another Torah community to actually engage its position.

And no - labels are not arguments.

“Modox” is not a mareh makom.

“Zionist” is not a legitimate rebuttal.

Our mesorah contains fierce machlokes. Beis Hillel and Beis Shammai were not engaged in a campaign of “let’s all get along.” They believed that matters of Torah were worth arguing about.

But they argued about Torah.

That distinction matters.

Because there is something deeply unhealthy about reaching for Torah language when what you really want to say is that you do not respect the religious world of the Yidden standing across from you.

We can argue more seriously by insisting that we defend Torah ideas with Torah substance rather than sociological cudgels.

If there’s one thing that we can learn on this 3rd anniversary of October 7th, it is perhaps that we need to recover more honest machlokes. The art of holy disagreement while still loving and respecting our brothers and sisters who might not agree with every one of our opinions.