Anon asked Staff ago Something I’ve noticed recently and which bothers me greatly is that when one looks at the order of Creation, animals were created before man, G-d permitted man to rule over the animals, but also enjoined upon him to honor all His creatures, including animals, to feed them first, etc. Jews were always farmers, so why are they afraid of animals? Why don’t they have pets? Moreover, I have heard that Charedi claim that one who does have a pet is not a frummer yid (does not follow the traditional Jewish practices). How did they reach this conclusion? Upon what do they based this claim of theirs?
Ilana Seoul
jsadmin Staff answered 20 years ago
Dear Ilana,
The topic of your question is not a religious matter but a social/cultural one. Throughout the diaspora years, Charedi Jewish communities struggled to survive physically and spiritually. Their culture developed against the background of this struggle, and their dress, areas of residence, and daily lifestyle were created and developed from this world of struggle and the battles of the Jewish minority against the hostile Christian majority. Pets symbolize a culture of leisure, economic well-being, and involvement with matters aside from sheer survival. That is why the Charedi, who still see themselves as living the diaspora life, are still educated as though they were fighting for their economic and spiritual survival, as is written, “In every generation they rise up against us to kill us.” Therefore any Charedi who raised a pet would be seen as separating himself from the collective, bowing out of the Charedi struggle for survival against those hostile to them. What is currently seen as hostile to the Charedi community is the enlightened world view of equality, freedom, and liberty. To understand their current diaspora-like thinking, read our review of a book by a Lakewood scholar, How the Charedi Deal with Exile Under Democratic Regimes. After you read this essay carefully, you will understand that the Charedi are in a different time and place.
Sincerely,
Daat Emet