From The Jewish Press editorial:
Mr. Feldman’s presumption is breathtaking. He offers dubious instant analyses of Jewish law and history in support of what seems to be his underlying premise that normative Judaism is far more an uncertain and elusive concept than most believe – which is contrary to the teachings over many centuries of highly regarded rabbinic scholars far brighter and more erudite than he.
And he has plainly mischaracterized what Modern Orthodoxy is all about. It is not, as he suggests, an always available contrivance to enable one to push to the side what others consider to be the requirements of Jewish law when they get in the way of some “modern” course of action or other. Nor is it haphazard or the stuff of individual ad hoc decision-making.
Rather, Modern Orthodoxy is predicated on serious intellectual rigor that leads to certain conclusions. Just as their ultra-Orthodox co-religionists, the Modern Orthodox are enjoined to act in accordance with what God wants of them, determined through time-honored methods of discerning the Divine will. Their primary focus must be on the requirements of Jewish law – not what will make for an easier fit with modernity.
