Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Peeping Tom underneath the immodest Bridge

B"H

How far should the whole modesty issue go ?
Sometimes I really feel that especially haredi society is becoming more and more crazy. What mostly drives me nuts are certain rabbis claiming that Meshiach doesn't come because there are so many immodest women.

How do those rabbis know why Meshiach decided not to show up ? Have they ever spoken to him ?

Usually we get the impression that it is always men inventing more and more restrictions. Women should wear this and not that; they have to be in the kitchen and take care of the kids.
Higher studies for women ?
"Chas ve'Shalom".
The modern orthodox and other may think that rabbis making such decrees are a bunch of old guys who have nothing to do with regular society but just sit somewhere in their dark study room and care about the continuation of their own power.

Whoever has thought this way is very much mistaken.
There are many haredi women who insist on the modesty issue. Just look at the woman of Chassidut Gur emphasizing the bedroom Takanot of their group. And now there is another issue which, at first glance, seems to be so ridiculous.

Countless religious women complained about the new Jerusalem bridge being totally immodest. Complaints about the bridge located at the entrance of the city are anything but new but now, it really seems to get out of control.
Religious women complained that the railing of the bridge could be a temptation for perverts because the railing is made of transparent plastic. Let's assume that someone is standing below the bridge, he could look up and thus start peeping tom by looking the women under their skirts.

Women walking over the brigde fear that everyone underneath the bridge would be able to see their underwear due to the plastic material. And those religious women raising the issue, want the railing material changed into something else where one cannot look through. Or in other words, the bridge is immodest and it has to be turned into something modest.



The immodest railing made out of plastic. Would you look through it and become a peeping tom ?
Photo: Ynet


Honestly, I would have never imagined how people can be so fanatic about modesty. It doesn't mean that there shouldn't be no modesty at all but what would have our foremothers said about the whole subject ? The foremothers, the Prophetess Devorah, Beruriah, Rashi's daughters and many other famous Jewish women.

People are getting more and more crazy and I am asking myself if this might be the reason why Meshiach refuses to come. Well, at least, he shouldn't be standing under the bridge !

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