Quote:
Originally Posted by abaya
That's nice. 
Btw, with the Jewish community thing... have there ever been times when you just felt stifled? Like, that you DIDN'T want a community supporting/watching you all the time, that you would have just liked to start over/be free, etc? Or have you always just wanted to be there, and never felt resentment/restlessness?
I'm curious because when I was an evangelical, I really loved being part of a Christian university community for 4 years... but I discovered that when I moved away, it was one of the most freeing/important decisions of my life. The support was gone, but so was the expectation for conformity... I was able to really get to know myself better, apart from that community-identity. I don't know if I would have experienced that, if I had moved into another evangelical community right afterwards (as many Christians do--seeking a new "church home" whenever they relocate).
But I also understand that many people prefer to always be part of a community, wherever they go (hence my membership on TFP!).  |
The Jewish orthodox community is very tight nitch and it definitely can be stifling. I was involved in a number of youth groups a few years back, and I really learned how easy it is to find out about any Jewish orthodox (and non-orthodox) people that live anywhere, by placing a few phone calls. I thankfully never dance to the normal toon, and am less mainstream, yet I love my community alot and over the past few years gotten involved and been trying to help out as much as I can in my own way.