I was raised with this credo that our goal is to be part of the world and actively engaged. As I got older, I uncovered the fallacy of such an approach. Yes, ideally we are to be a light unto the nations but this is not accomplished when we adopt the spirit and adapt to the mores of general society. The last few weeks have revealed in so many ugly ways [I don't know details because I avoid reading salacious material that pollutes mind and soul. I just know in general how many scandals there have been. The latest - 3 professors from Dartmouth who were suspeneded for ....] what the "real world" is like.
As I wrote in the last post, our mandate is to be a holy nation - ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש - and we can only accomplish this if we distance ourselves as much as possible from the filth that abounds everywhere.
Everywhere.
That includes minimizing our contact with social media, entertainment etc. etc.
It doesn't mean that we shouldn't work and earn a living. But it does mean that afterward we return to our Jewish ghettos and try to raise our families in purity. The way to influence the world is to make a Kiddush Hashem wherever we go, elevating our levels of kedusha, increasing our learning [especially laws relating to financial honesty] and intensifying our davening.
And always, always - bi-simcha!
