Leaving the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community - Leaving The Fold - Religion Documentary 

I LOVE how the father has chosen to remain close with his sons despite them leaving the fold. I think he's an awesome DAD. UPDATE: The son returned to the fold, and is now happily married, with children of his own.

I hope that the father doesn't think that he failed because his sons left the fold. The fact that his sons can sit down with him and have a nice conversation as was shown at the end, just proves what a wonderful father he was and still is.

The father being there for his children despite there spiritual disagreement was such a strong message. That’s such a powerful message and quite touching

The father’s unconditional love is what instilled in them the “wanderlust “ to feel free. While he prays, as all of us that are parents do for our children he has done a beautiful thing by continuing to show his love. Loved this!

The young man in Israel is so transparent and nakedly authentic. A beauty of such rarity, especially these days. May he find deep inner peace and happiness in life.

What an amazing father those 2 boys have , he desides to love them and pray for them , that is what we call a great father .

Despite the father and sons' disagreement on their views of lives and religions, they really love and respect for one another.

I lost 2 children, my son died at the age of 28 in 2013 (I donated a kidney) and my daughter had a terrible accident at the age of 18 in 1997 she could not talk, walk, was blind and on a feeding tube in a wheelchair for 20 years, I visited her every day and brought her home for visits, she died at the age of 38 in 2017, I WOULD BE GRATEFUL MY CHILDREN WERE ALIVE and believe in God., not what religion they are.

I could feel that father's pain and his love for his sons and HaShem.

That father should feel really proud of himself, he is a lovely man who has raised two handsome, intelligent sons - those sons are brave and no matter what will carry what they have learnt from their father all their lives. All those children are so brave and it must take guts to leave their community behind and live how they want to live, I truly hope and pray that they will all find peace as no matter what this life is short and there is no time to wast on differences, celebrate difference and live in peace.

i adore their father. That is a proper loving kind father not disowning his children. As a Christian ..... my son has converted to Judaism for his wife, and I went to hs beautiful Jewish wedding. His new family arent orthodox Jews, but follow all the traditions etc, and they are the most loveliest kindest people I have ever met. They respect my beliefs and they even lifted ME in a chair after the ceremony. We all love my daughter in law too. Of course if he hadn't met his wife, he wouldn't have done it. It does boil down to him at the end of the day

I met a haredi Jewish man during my first year at University. I am Greek, so at first, we had nothing in common. We became best mates, slowly over the years. He confided to me he was gay, and was desperate to escape from his situation and to be accepted. Of course my family and I assisted him and accepted him. His family disowned him. He suicided at the age of 26. Ten years later,I still think of him every hour of every day. I watched this video with reluctance. When I watched the scene when the young guy said reproducing with a non Jew would be the most tragic thing for his family, I felt so angry. NOOO. The most tragic thing for a family is to disown your own child because he is DIFFERENT, and then lose to him to suicide.

My man said it's rape to force two people to be together who don't even know each other. And he's right.

It's amazing to me that people from so many religions feel this way. I come from a Southern baptist background that I left behind. There is constant pressure to conform to what the group dictates. It has nothing to do with God or religion. You have to do and think what everyone else does right down to the clothes you wear and the politicians you vote for. If something doesn't make sense and you ask a question you are called sinful because you didn't obey without question. I struggled with this for decades. Like the rabbi said you get the feeling something isn't 100%. Thankfully, I didn't give up on God. I just came to the realization that there is a difference between God and religion.

That was a very powerful statement that young man made about two people not knowing each other and he felt it was rape and he is right it is rape for both of them

This is heartbreaking! What a great dad! And the boys are amazing too. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I totally understand the young men, but my heart cries with their dad😢

I cannot even begin to imagine how that must be. Living under the burden of so many rules. Fear is controlling, love sets free.

I am no longer a "religious/church" person............... but oh how I resonate with these people. I grew up a Catholic.............. now I am a person who believes in assisting others. Thank you for this vlog........... I truly appreciate it! HUHS

Beautifully done. Those young men are lucky and blessed to have such a father.

I could feel the love from the father to his boys. I appreciate how he was reaching to them and trying to listen.

I know the father of these two boys and he is a really outstanding human being.

The two Canadian boys are great. You couldn't desire better people in your society.

This was so well done, and wonderful that the father participated in the making of the documentary.

This father's love is so amazing. It's always hard when there's a lot of pressure from the immediate environment and how you can't be accepted enough. Dad is right in drumming in the message about taking responsibility. The other young man is speaking from the heart about arranged marriage. It's important to respect each experience and learn. Life must have purpose and balance. I think these young man mean well and they have their reasons. He can only pray and love his sons as always.

It can't ever be easy to leave your culture. Glad the one father still loves his sons and will not reject them out of hand.

So many people commenting on how great the father is that keeps in touch with his sons, despite them leaving the lifestyle he had laid out for them. Sure, he loves them, it shows and he may be better than many other orthodox fathers. But isn't that the way it SHOULD be? Keeping in touch with the kids who chose their own lifestyle is something that average families do. I feel more inclined to compliment the inner strength of the sons who broke free from intense brainwashing and managed to not lose their mind over the psychological stress that comes with it. Remember, the younger son could not marry the woman he loved because of family pressure. And the father, despite being very nice, is still trying to indoctrinate his sons and to make them afraid of a life in freedom and guilt-trip them for being their own persons. The sons deserve more praise than the father.

I particularly liked the young woman’s statement that her Hungarian community had written their own Bible. I wonder if the police ever arrested the people who violently attacked her sister. That was a criminal community. Shunning is bad enough, but assault and battery, arson, and destruction of property are illegal.

What a man of God the father is for not abandoning his sons.

I love the father. The boys love and respect him albeit their differences. THAT is beauty

You have done a great job with your 2 sons , they are smart , kind, and well balanced, what more could you ask for ? We Live in an incredible world and we have freedom to explore and decide for ourselves what path to take . You’ve done your job , relax ❤️

What a brilliant and loving dad they have. They are learning from each other and still bonding in their relationship despite their huge separation of ideas.

What a loving father, aslong as they have that bond nothing else in the world matters

I really admire these two young men.People can not go around in life dragging extra luggage, feeling guilty and doubting every decision and step that you make and thinking everything it's out of God's law. As long as you live a healthy life and try to be a fair, friendly and caring person is enough. We are not here to please our parents, friends or couples, we are here to grow and to be happy without destroying oursevelves neither destroy others.

I asked my mum about God's rules once and she said he only required 3 things from me - be kind when others suffer, be brave when others struggle and love those who hate as they hated themselves enough already

The father has such a young voice

What a wonderful father. God bless him - he did nothing wrong. Even though they disagree, their love for each oher will carry them through.

Ok, so I know some of the people in the video. My husband is actually one of the Hasidim at 17:17 . He was about 17 at the time and he is now 35. We are family friends with the Riven, the first two guys interviewed . They are a wonderful family. Hudi, the chef is actually religious again and has a wonderful wife and kids.

Amazing! The great love, patience, and kindness this father demonstrates towards his sons, is one lesson for all parents to learn from. Thank you and God bless all of you. This is one video I love!😊👍👏👏👏

I feel sorry for the dad. I feel his heart is breaking inside, but he doesn't show it. He is so fair with them. I'm sure his wisdom comes from his religious beliefs. I hope these two guys know how much their dad loves them.

This father is simply wonderful - I hope that in spite of everything they appreciate what a marvellous, inspiring dad they have.

The pain of this fantastic father hits hard. This is unconditional love.

You don't find many Orthodox men with the attitude this father has. Sir, you are a true mensch

What a wonderful father. I very much honour his unconditional love. I am wishing the family all the best

I’m only 11 minutes in and I feel bad that their dad doesn’t think they’ve opened the treasure chest. These brothers seem like they have expanded to a God that has created this expensive world and all it’s varied people. And it’s absolutely beautiful. They are not keeping ritualistic laws but already 11 minutes and sound like they have a spiritual connection.

The two boys have a good Abba who is wise. They are blessed. 💗

That is one cool dad. I would watch a series with that family.

My heartfelt best wishes to any oppressed person leaving a domineering sect. Have a rich and fulfilling life. Being a decent, honest and productive person is the most important aspect in life. Any human living an honest life should not fear judgement.

I am glad I was brought up in a non-religious family. I can be myself without guilt and without narrow stifling tribalism. I can appreciate the richness of diversity and freedom to find my own way in life just as the sons did in the video.

Bless the rabbi. Down to earth as a BT (ba'al teshuva). I'm glad he is there for people who left. Equally, I'm glad the people at the Hillel are also there for those that left, as it must be hard on their mental health without family or friends. I hope such people can still find their home in Orthodoxy, and I hope Orthodox people will be there for them too.

The soundtrack to this documentary is lovely.

these are people that haven't necessarily lost their faith or walked away from it! They have just walked away from their orthodoxy! the father and the sons see that its the love that matters most!

What a great DAD

I really love the dynamic between the father and the sons and the maintenance of the traditions along with it

I can understand what the father is going through because I put my father through the same thing when I left the faith I was raised in and went into one directly opposite it. My sister helped me understand later in life that it was important to him because it was something he could give me that he really cared about. Unfortunately, it wasn’t one I was comfortable with.

I wish this lovely dad could pray for his boys to be happy no matter what - not that they go back to where they came from as it appears they were not happy there... hugs for all.

I am someone who left a very dysfunctional faith and had difficulty doing so. From my observations, religion is the only thing we have in our society that separates men and women, causes parents to hate their children, insists upon enforcing antiquated, unreasonable rules just for the sake of it, Causes people to feel guilt and shame and horrible just because they don’t follow those rules, and I could go on all day.

I can see why he left. The amount of rules and do's and don'ts is overwhelming!

I can’t believe the dad is anything less than proud of these young men. As a mom they are perfect just like they are.

An elegant, compassionate, insightful documentary. Thank you for sharing 🙏

The truth is that you always let your back door unlocked for your children and your children will appreciate it! Because love is never harsh 🕊🥰

My grandfather was Jewish and married out; his father disowned him for this. This happened in London, England in Edwardian times; my grandfather and his brother who also married out never spoke about their Jewish heritage very much; both were very liberal-minded men; they each faced a lot of discrimination from others; WW1 and WW2 they both survived; and I often wonder what my Jewish great-grandfather was like as a man.

The boys are right. Every decision had already been made for them from birth and handing over your will to anyone is tragic, but not irreversible. So glad they got out.

a loving father, how lucky those two men are, thank you

As someone who has gone down this path, I find it refreshing (though unusual) that everyone in this documentary has relationships with their family.

The brothers have a really nice dad considering how often we hear of hasidic families completely disowning the relatives that leave the community/lifestyle. I hope the older brother is/was able to get back with the non-jewish woman he's still in love with and that his family realizes that his happiness is what matters the most and be glad that someone out there cares for him like they do.

The LOVE of that father…wow. I feel father’s pain … really sad

I love the conversation between the father and his two sons. I know for sure he just tried to make sure that his sons will always in the right path of their live. "Not everythings out there is meant to be tasted. And not everthings out there meant to be experienced." Thank you sir.

I adore that dad and his boys. It's not the tragic story about children getting pushed out of family. They are still talking, still loving, did not lose each other about religion. Think this is such a important thing.

My parent were holocaust survivors, they were orthodox jews before they rejected the religion completely, all my life leaving among gentiles I felt lost &an outcast, my grandma kept @ taught me what my belief should be grandma died. for many years I felt lost, to be Jewish is a gift from GOD one should cherish this great gift

I found this video to be a more nuanced discussion about leaving ultra orthodoxy. Nicely done.

Their father is a gentle man who loves his sons, unconditionally. He continues to teach them.

I see great love between the boys and their father. Three people striving but still loving.

Catholism has a lot of rules. I rebelled against it and eventually came back to the faith. I'm happy now and glad I did.

Love the conversation between the Dad and his sons at 47:00. Both stating their cases and being respectful of each other. 🥰

I grew up in a conservative Christian home. My parents are very loving and never abused me in any way. However, I know it would break their hearts if they knew I'm not a "orthodox" Christian anymore. I'm not an atheist, but I don't believe in a literal interpretation of the Bible anymore and don't believe in substitutiary atonement theology anymore. It has been a gradual process for me over many years of deconstructing Christianity, but I don't have the heart to tell my family what I really believe. These young men are very lucky to have such an great father who still loves them and breaks bread with them even though they have profound religious differences between them. Not many people in their situation are so lucky.

There are many of us parents out here that feel that broken heart yet love their children as this father does.

What a powerful documentary. Thank you all for sharing your life experiences with us and for being so beautifully genuine! God bless you!

I really like the rabbi he seems so down to earth and like he says, he was once the young people that he tries to help and become friends with.

The younger brother, Huda… at 5:36 onwards, preach it!! Those are exactly the beliefs I hold🤗🤗 How wholesome that the dad and his two boys can still sit together and have an intellectually stimulating conversation ❤️

This was beautifully done. The harm high demand religions cause far outweigh the benefits, especially when it tears families apart. Thank you for showing the love and the darkness. Humanity in a nutshell.

I'm an atheist, these strict religious people in all faiths seem to cultivate OCD and anything that deviates from their rituals causes anger, anxiety, feelings of doom and gloom. Without religion, life is just as trying, but you have more time and freedom to figure it out on your own without others' opinions.

The father of the two men is a very wise man. These two men remind me of Ecclesiates.. I believe their father is definitely right. They will come to the conclusion when they experienced it themselves. Ecclesiates is so very beautiful and so true. It suits that very well. Great documentary. Enjoyed watching it. May God bless all of you.

I am middle aged and still finding my way in the world we do that until we die and if we don't do that we are already dead!

Underrated doc. I like how the religious side is insistent that the family ought not to sever ties.

Feeling guilt can oftentimes make people much more aware pf their actions. Guilt isn't always a negative.

I wasn't baptized and my family wasn't very religious but I have to say that sometimes I wish I could believe in something that brings me peace and tranquility. I am fascinated by people who put everything into their faith.

The father is a diamond himself. He is the true essense of love , acceptance and understanding. His sons look and sound like very balanced young men.

This is not about the "good" father story. It is about the rights to choose keeping the essence of who you are. And either side should not reject each other and live a balanced and accepting life with no prejudgement nor absolute thuths.

those two boys are extremely blessed to have such an amazing father!

That father is extremely right and not typical of fathers in that religion. There comes a point with people when they don't want to believe the way that you believe that you love them and you pray for them. He's a good father! :-)

I love the wholesome dynamic between the father and his sons.

The Father said about 4 words and i knew he was a special kind man and you can see him struggling with his pain by letting his son choose his life.Lovely but very heartbreaking

A great documentary. All the guys are so brave and smart. Levi is my hero. Everyone here sympathizes with the father. I sympathize with the sons. I can only imagine what courage it takes to come to their dad's house and be listening to the "old plate" again and again. It's painful, it's tormenting. Their father will love them, but he'll never ever reconcile with their decision. "It's the last option you can try before you commit suicide." .... My heart is bleeding. You can't imagine how cruel this world is to people who decide to leave the fold. You think differently = you are not one of us. The girl was beaten almost to death for wearing pants!!! Unbelievable.. mindblowing.. I've seen kids in youth villages in Israel.. kids who were kicked out of their houses by their parents because they stopped being observant. You may say whatever you want, but it's barbaric, primitive, cruel and absolutely mindblowing. I admire all of the guys! May you be happy in all of you endeavours! Lots of love.

The Father loves his sons and they love him. The one thing I found disturbing was the couple on their first date she told him how she felt about her supporting the family financially and she expected him to work. He looked at her and the words he said will forever stick with me. “I would have to work”. He told the matchmaker woman “I am King”, he was saying I am head of the house, but yet he does not want to share in the responsibility of support, financially or physically. I don’t understand!

Ya'll... I must have been cutting some onions this morning... 😭this was so touching

1000s of years of orthodox tradition is like the titanic plotting a course on the ocean, with its captain holding tight to the wheel, refusing to change direction, while more and more of the passengers jump ship.

This is so sad to watch. Sad to see how these guys have been caught up in something they did´nt choose and are so restricted by... and just as sad to see their father grieve. I think this shows that he just wants to do what he has been taught is best for human kind... I would´nt want to be caught up in it and I think that many of these communitites can really destroy people, they do so much damage to anyone who dos´nt conform, anyone who does not find themselves of the same persuation, but I think a lot of it is honest belief that this is best... What a painfull world to live in, for all parties.

My grandfather was Jewish and left his faith. He became a Christian. In is final days on earth, he regretted his decision And felt very guilty for not teaching his children about his Jewish heritage. He was a decent man, loyal to his family, devoted to his church, devoted to his community and lived a principled and clean life but the regret as he was dying was so sad to see. I went to live with a Jewish family for a while. They are beautiful people. They are wise and intelligent people. Bless the sons. I pray they are ok. The Jewish community is very special. The larger world is a great unknown. Best wishes to these sons and family.

Wow, the conversation between the two sons and their father around 40 min was great to watch and listen to as it shows that both parties are open and willing and loving to discuss a topic that touches all on a very deep level. Some of the other stories of young people that left the fold however are truly sad and frankly quite harrowing.

I feel the same way about my kids from going astray from out believes and I too pray that I have the strength this father has to let them follow in their own believes, yet remind them of their faith and guide them with love and compassion so hopefully they return home....Very strong documentary!