I saw an ad for an "Incredibly Moving and Meaningful Cruise Experience". Today, everything is an "experience". To the point that I asked my friend who is a Maggid Shiur what masechta he is teaching. He said "Succah". I told him that I am sure that he will make the "Succah experience" very special for his talmidim. After I said that, I was like "Where did THAT come from?" It came from hearing "experience" describe almost everything.
Or how about this ad: The [Orthodox kiruv organization] ---- ---- High Holiday Experience feels more like a fascinating series of TED talks than a service.
Get ready to change the way you see the High Holidays forever.
RSVP Includes Sushi Buffet, Lunch Break Shofar Infusion, and Lox and Bagels Break-Fast. For full schedule click the RSVP button below.
Hey - it's kiruv. Advertising that you will scare people to death מאימת יום הדין won't fly, so you gotta do what works. But still. Rosh Hashana-Ted-Talk-Sushi-Buffet. I don't know.... They are probably right and certainly have good intentions but it rubs me wrong. What do you think?
Back to the cruise ad. What is moving about a cruise? A cruise is for people with lots of extra money who want to enjoy themselves. These "moving and meaningful" cruises are to places like Alaska and the Caribbean. Places that are REPLETE with INCREDIBLE episodes in Jewish History, where great scholars lived and taught, where tremendous bastions of Torah were established.
Ehhhhhhhh - not!
So if you have extra money [about $2,500 per person for the week] and part of your Avodas Hashem is cruising - them by all means. Go and have fun!😊😊
But you want "MEANING"? For that we have other "experiences". Like davening at the Kotel or at Kivrei Tzadikim. Or davening at all, anywhere. Going to a shiur. Writing a FAT check for tzdaka. Opening your home to guests.
Or visiting the sick in the hospital. That would be even MORE MOVING than seeing Alaska, eating more than your digestive tract can handle and enjoying the company of attractive married women in a relaxed vacation setting... [This does not mean to imply that anything inappropriate happens during these cruises but that maybe the atmosphere is not 100 percent kedusha-dik. But see here.]
