Thursday, January 07, 2010

I Should Tell You

I never saw "Rent" before. Now that I have, I'm torn. The film supports a lifestyle I find fascinating, and honestly, attractive. Not for its irresponsibility- that frightens me, to be truthful- I could never live so irresponsibly. But for the jewel colors and the beauty, the spontaneity and the passion. And most of all for what it glorifies and upholds, the desire to support, love, respect and be enthralled by humanity always.

Any religious person, must, of course, face such a divide. There is a great war that occurs between how much we love man and how much we love God. As a Jewess, I can't fully support all of the themes and ideas in the film (especially the supposition that supporting everything taboo is by default the way in which we become individualistic); as a human being, I find them to be inspiring. There's something gemlike and sparkling in the film, beginning with the fire licking at the eviction papers as they fall into the street and ending with Mimi's comment that Angel was looking good in Heaven.

And of course, I love the song "Your Eyes."

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

would you support a public discussion at yu of the issues raised by the film? of sexual themes in art?
KT
Joel Rich

Anonymous said...

Hey Chana, how was your Biblical Hebrew final last night? You can't exactly tell us how hard you studied and not inform us about the result. Right?

Chana said...

Joel,
It depends how mature the people are.

Anonymous said...

Any religious person, must, of course, face such a divide. There is a great war that occurs between how much we love man and how much we love God.
=========================

I don't think this is so, this is your nissayon. There are many who claim not to experience the dialectics of life (I'm not fortunate enough to be one of them)

BTW how would the R"Y feel about such a public discussion?

KT
Joel Rich

Anonymous said...

JR,
does it EVER occur to you that most of your comments on this blog and many other blogs are ridiculously inappropriate?

Anonymous said...

Anonymous,
No, but I would be pleased to hear more on why you think it so.
KT
Joel Rich

Anonymous said...

cuz ur tryn to imply Chana is a hypocrite, practicing a double standard, all straight, and goody goody on the outside, corrupt, a slave to her senses (and grammatical tenses) inside. This is simply untrue, false, inimical to fair play.

I think Chana has a brilliant future before her and will enrich Jewish scholarship. She is also feminine and, we assume, available. Who knows? She might meet someone through this medium, or have met someone already who appreciates her mind as well as her castle and chocolate cake.

Her blog is not a public forum; her purpose in debating was clearly a Kiddush Hashem. Of all the blogs where the response of Rav Twersky and other sundry issues were dissected, hers attracted the most intelligent debate. She deserves better.

YU has purchased at least one Professor of Arthistory. Why don't you approach them?

go fly a kt

Suomynona said...

Joel Rich,

Are you the evil twin of Rich Joel?

:)

TK

Adam said...

Dialectic in ideological struggles, while oftentimes painful, is usually a vehicle for growth and greater understanding. Depth that would have been invisible in isolation is revealed when contrasted with an opposite.

That being said, I'm not sure if there's any fundamental divide between love of man and love of God. I find the two often reinforce each other in a spiraling loop of delight and appreciation. Man is amazing, complicated, intense, messy, confusing, passionate and ultimately wonderful. How much more so the creator who brought all this splendor into being? Something so vast it defies all comprehension that gives rise to and orchestrates every occurrence of life and wonder that our senses perceive. Seeing His works, how can we not love their creator. Loving the creator, how can we not delight in His works?

Anonymous said...

Anonymous,
Thanks for your input.

Your point seems related to this blog only so I'd appreciate your insights on the other blogs you mentioned as well.

I am not trying to imply anything about Chana, only trying to understand the thought process behind her posts. I agree that she likely "has a brilliant future before her and will enrich Jewish scholarship" and hope that she attains this. In my experience it is constructive to have others challenge your thought process (the chavruta system comes to mind)

As to "Her blog is not a public forum; her purpose in debating was clearly a Kiddush Hashem. Of all the blogs where the response of Rav Twersky and other sundry issues were dissected, hers attracted the most intelligent debate. She deserves better. " I'd appreciate some further explanation of how you understand "public forum" and how blogs fit into that definition. I'm also unclear on what she deserves better than?


As to YU and art history, why don't I approach them about what?

KT
Joel Rich

Anonymous said...

Suomynona said...
Joel Rich,

Are you the evil twin of Rich Joel?

:)

TK
-------------------
No, he was actually (really) a year ahead of me at MTA. However, one of the older members(Z"L) of my shul congratulated me on becoming president of YU.
KT
Joel Rich

inkstainedhands said...

Chana, I can understand how you feel about it. I watched Rent years ago and saw it on Broadway before it closed, and this is one of my favorite musicals, but at the same time, I felt uncomfortable with the fact that part of it went against my 'values' and those of Judaism.

This is definitely something worth discussing.

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Mr. President.

The issue you raised was "a public discussion at yu of {the issues raised by the film?} of sexual themes in art?"

The appropriateness of such a public forum for the YU Museum would best be addressed to the Director of the Museum who would consult with the administration.

Sex sells, titillates. Ask Rabbi Shmuely.

A blog is more than a reshut ha-yachid, a karmelit or mavui, rather than a reshut ha-Rabbim.

Advertising a live program in a rented space constitutes, in my opinion, a public event. The blogsphere is meaningful and meaningless, trial by anonymous peers, judge and jury.

Surely, you have better things to do.

Anonymous said...

Why is someone being so rude to a respectful and respected regular commenter?

Grow up a little and learn some derech eretz, Anonymous.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous 2:16 - Good question, I always appreciate feedback ( I can always either act on or discount)


Anonymous 10:26-I think about your last line often. If you're interested, contact me off-line.

KT
Joel Rich

Anonymous 2:16 said...

No no, Joel Rich--I meant it the other way around! I was asking why this other person was being rude to you!

I apologize for the confusion.

Anonymous said...

I understood that - I would really like to know the answer to your question from the other anonymous :-), that might be helpful feedback for me. Sorry for confusing you.

KT
Joel Rich