Doubting the Devout: The Ultra-Orthodox in the Jewish American Imagination

225 Pages·2009·1.728 MB·English

by  Nora L Rubel

“ Doubting the Devout analyzes the representation of the Ultra-Orthodox (haredim) in popu-
lar Jewish American literary narratives, arguing that these narratives provide insight into
the deep anxiety many in the mainstream Jewish community experience in relationship to
the haredim. The book’s great strength lies in its close reading of texts and the originality D
and boldness of the argument. Nora L. Rubel makes a significant contribution to the study O D O U B T I N G
of contemporary American Judaism.” —Rebecca T. Alpert, Temple University U
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Before 1985, depictions of ultra-Ortho- Unpacking the work of Allegra
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dox Jews in popular American culture Goodman, Tova Mirvis, Pearl Abraham, N
D E V O U T
were rare, and if they did appear, in Erich Segal, Anne Roiphe, and others, G
films such as Fiddler on the Roof or as well as television shows and films,
within the novels of Chaim Potok, they Nora L. Rubel investigates the choices th
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evoked a nostalgic vision of Old World non-haredi Jews have made as they rep-
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tradition. Yet the ordination of women resent ultra-Orthodox Jews. In these
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into positions of religious leadership artistic and aesthetic acts, Rubel recasts
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and other controversial issues have the war over gender and family and the
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sparked an increasingly visible and vol- anxieties over acculturation, Ameri-
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uble culture war between America’s canization, and continuity. More than
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ultra-Orthodox and non-Orthodox just a study of Jewishness and Jewish
Jews, one that has found a particularly self-consciousness, Doubting the Devout
creative voice in literature, films, and speaks to the struggle among religion,
other media. family, and culture.
“ Provocative, disturbing, and deeply insightful, Doubting the Devout explores the anxiety The Ultra-Orthodox in the
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over ultra-Orthodoxy in American Jewish life today. Penetrating into the writings that
U Jewish American Imagination
few before her have had the courage to scrutinize, Rubel exposes deep-seated fears that
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modern Jews—and those who read them—alternatively nourish, vanquish, or repress.”
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—Jonathan D. Sarna, Brandeis University, and author of American Judaism: A History L
NORA L. RUBEL is assistant professor of religion and classics at the Uni-
versity of Rochester and teaches courses on American Judaism, religion and
ethnicity, and religion in relation to American foodways.
Author Photo: Richard Baker
NOR A L. RUBEL
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RELIGION AND AMERICAN CULTURE IA
Cover design and illustration by Kelly Blair
Printed in the U.S.A.
doubting the devout
Religion and American Culture
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The Religion and American Culture series explores the interaction between
religion and culture throughout American history. Titles examine such
issues as how religion functions in particular urban contexts, how it interacts
with popular culture, its role in social and political conflicts, and its impact
on regional identity. Series Editor Randall Balmer is the Ann Whitney Olin
Professor of American Religion and former chair of the Department of
Religion at Barnard College, Columbia University.
Michael E. Staub, Torn at the Roots:
The Crisis of Jewish Liberalism in Postwar America
Amy DeRogatis, Moral Geography: Maps, Missionaries,
and the American Frontier
Arlene M. Sánchez Walsh, Latino Pentecostal Identity:
Evangelical Faith, Self, and Society
Julie Byrne, O God of Players: The Story of the Immaculata Mighty Macs
Thomas E. Woods Jr., The Church Confronts Modernity:
Catholic Intellectuals and the Progressive Era
Clyde R. Forsberg Jr., Equal Rites: The Book of Mormon, Masonry,
Gender, and American Culture
Andrew C. Rieser, The Chautauqua Moment: Protestants, Progressives,
and the Culture of Modern Liberalism
Craig D. Townsend, Faith in Their Own Color:
Black Episcopalians in Antebellum New York City
Michael D. McNally, Honoring Elders: Ojibwe Aging,
Religion, and Authority
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d o u b t i n g

th e
d e v o u t
the ultra-orthodox in the
Jewish American imagination
norA L. rubeL

Columbia University Press New York
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Columbia University Press
Publishers Since 1893
New York Chichester, West Sussex
Copyright © 2010 Columbia University Press
All rights reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Rubel, Nora L., 1974–
Doubting the devout : the ultra-orthodox in the Jewish American imagination /
Nora L. Rubel.
p. cm. — (Religion and American culture (New York, N.Y.))
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-231-14186-4 (cloth : alk. paper) —
isbn 978-0-231-14187-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) —isbn 978-0-231-51258-9 (e-book)
1. Ultra-Orthodox Jews—United States—Public opinion. 2. Public opinion—
United States. 3. Jews in popular culture—United States. 4. American
fiction—Jewish authors—History and criticism. I. Title. II. Series
BM205.R83 2009
700'.48296832—dc22 2009012413
Columbia University Press books are printed on permanent and durable
acid-free paper.
This book is printed on paper with recycled content.
Printed in the United States of America
c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
References to Internet Web sites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing.
Neither the author nor Columbia University Press is responsible for URLs
that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.
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The burden isn’t either/or, consciously choosing from possibilities
equally difficult and regrettable—it’s and/and/and/and/and as well.
—Philip Roth, The Counterlife
This work is dedicated to the memory of Moshe Yerushalmi (1917–1999),
whose grandchildren continue to live out the “and/and/and/and/and”
of Jewish possibility.
May his name be for a blessing.
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contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: A Family Feud 1
1. Orthodoxy and Nostalgia in the American Jewish Imagination 23
2. Rebbes’ Daughters: The New Chosen 46
3. The New Jewish Gothic 80
4. Muggers in Black Coats 109
Conclusion: They Are Us in Other Clothes 147

Notes 153
Bibliography 175
Index 201
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AcknowLedgments
O
ver the past few years I have wondered if this book might be
an unconscious act of therapy. Growing up in a Reform Jew-
ish household, I used to envy my Orthodox cousins for their intimate
knowledge of Jewish law and practice. I also resented them for their
ability to seem “more Jewish” than I. Over the years we made differ-
ent decisions about our lives, both toward and away from the practices
of our parents—perhaps making our journeys more similar than our
destinations. I am quite certain that without both the pleasures and
pains of our relationship, this book would never have been written. But
if this book is therapy for my own ambivalent religious sentiment, it is
in many ways a study of a shared pathology, one that runs rampant in
the American Jewish community—the anxiety of what it means to be a
“real” Jew.
So much of writing is a silent conversation with oneself. If you are
lucky, you get to actually speak with real people once in a while. I have
been quite fortunate in that respect and therefore owe many thanks to
many people. Those with whom my conversations helped shape the
direction of this project include Lawrence Baron, Annemarie Brennan,
Matthew Brown, Dan Clanton, Jill DeTemple, Marcie Cohen Ferris,
Leslie Fishbein, Sylvia Hoffert, Jenna Weissman Joselit, Pam Lach,
Shanny Luft, Peter Manseau, Sean McCloud, Mary Ellen O’Donnell,
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