COLLEGE PARK, MD — Yaakov Davidson of Houston, Texas is officially getting out of the closed-off ‘bubble’ of Modern Orthodox Judaism. “I’ve just been on the same path my whole life,” Davidson said of the decision. “I really wanted to get out of the same system, the same echochamber. I think it’s really healthy to experience new ways of life and open up my way of thinking.”
At a family shabbat this past friday, Davidson announced his plans to skip out on his second year of Yeshiva in favor of attending Maryland University, where he will study pre-law. Davidson claims he will only attend Hillel shabbats “most of the time,” assuming he is not home for a family simcha. Davidson had previously planned on attending Yeshiva University in Washington Heights.
The son of a Rabbi and brother of two doctors, Davidson has always been the black sheep of the family. “You know, his brother Chaim did Shana Bet at Shaalvim, and got his PhD at Harvard? Even his sister Channa did Shana Bet.”
Davidson emphasized that while he fears the fast-paced brutality of the outside world, he is excited for his impending adventures and for whatever this new and basically off-the-derech life will bring him.
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