Israel, Kosher Style?

Many years ago a Conservative rabbi told my husband about his first trip to California, probably in the late 1950s. He and a friend were looking for a place to eat and they found a “kosher style” deli. They debated whether this meant it was kosher or not. I think today we all know that kosher style is exactly not kosher.

Yet consider what calling it “kosher style” means. It links that deli to the long tradition of kosher food. It suggests that you will find familiar foods, a welcoming place, and something like home when you eat there.

I think Israel as a country is “kosher style.” Life here runs according to the Jewish calendar. During this high holiday season, you will constantly hear people, regardless of their religious preferences, wish each other שנה טובה (happy new year) or even  צום קל (easy fast). More than that, you will hear them say that they will handle tasks אחרי החגים (after the holidays). That’s not all: the entire school year works around the religious holidays, university semesters start after the fall holidays, and of course these are all legal holidays. The office work week runs from Sunday to Thursday, with (almost all) shops and other services running on Friday but not on Saturday.

The army may not meet the needs of the most strict groups in society but the food is kosher, people with “office” type jobs don’t work on Shabbat, even operational decisions take into account Shabbat and other religious considerations. I was once told a story of how troops in the Negev used to hunt the wild pigs and barbeque them, but not—heaven forbid—on army dishes.

Shabbat isn’t something enforced on the whole country. Public transportation is now available in many areas of the country, because people want it. Stores and malls are also open, again because people want it. Still, for most people, most of the time, Shabbat is the day of rest, the family day, the day for outings, and spending time not at work.

This whole country is a Jewish country. We have room for other religions and other habits, but we define ourselves as the homeland for Jews. We live up to that definition and those other concerns by being a bit flexible, by being “kosher style” if not strictly kosher all the way.

In the US and other Diaspora communities, this “kosher style” has largely vanished. People who grew up with little or no Jewish traditions but wish to ally themselves with their Judaism have embraced Tikkun Olam. Brandeis University has a whole article (well worth reading) about it.

Members of the Jewish left founded the New Jewish Agenda, which stated in its platform, “We are Jews who believe strongly that authentic Jewishness can only be complete with serious and consistent attention to tikkun olam (the just ordering of human relationships and the physical-spiritual world).”

…. It’s certainly a term that has taken on a huge number of meanings. For some, it’s a kind of secular messianism, a grand utopian vision.

But for others, it can mean something as small as taking out the recycling or putting solar panels on your roof. If you’re equating it with something so mundane, you have to ask, “Wait, what is tikkun olam exactly?”

We should keep in mind that tikkun olam is supposed to challenge us to move out of our comfort zone. If it becomes little more than a vaguely Jewish way of embodying politically progressive orthodoxies, it loses its meaning.

The article concludes that Tikkun Olam has (at least for some) become a vague “do-good” concept whose Jewish roots are hidden by a sea of well-meaning and indeed often extremely valuable contributions to society.

Those who make Tikkun Olam the core of their Jewishness often don’t cite Jewish texts or concepts for what they consider important, and don’t necessarily choose particularly Jewish causes or Jewish people as the recipients of their good deeds. I in no way wish to downplay the value of the actions done under this title. It’s just that Tikkun Olam (at least as many practice it) isn’t “kosher style.” It has its own substitute set of goals and aspirations rather than expressing the Jewish tradition it’s rooted in.

If “kosher style” is vanishing out there, here in Israel, it’s still strongly Jewish.

If “kosher style” is vanishing out there, here in Israel, it’s still strongly Jewish. So every year I show my faith in us. I deliberately walk in the street on Yom Kippur (luckily, I found this perfect photo by Yoav Aziz on Unsplash), to show my faith in the people of Israel who will not drive on this holy day. Of course, you do have to watch out for all the kids on bikes, roller skates, or skateboards.