The Jew in The Modern World

In a few days I will be going of to a secular college. Given this drastic change in my life I felt it was worthwhile to re look at an excerpt from Rav Hirsch's "The Jew in the Modern World". The excerpt is a response to the liberal and reform movements whithin Judaism. Although it was written in the 18th century, the ideas are as true today as they were back then. The bold is my own doing, for the purpose of highlighting a few important ideas.
Rav Hirsch- The Jew in the Modern world- Emerging Patterns of Religion Adjustment

First a point of fact, it was not "Orthodox" Jews who introduced the world "orthodoxy" into Jewish discussion. It was the modern "progressives" Jews who first applied this name to "old, "backward" Jews as a derogatory term. This name was at first resented by "old" Jews. And rightly so. "Orthodox" Judaism does not know any varieties of Judaism. It conceives Judaism as one and indivisible. It does not know a Mosaic, prophetic, and rabbinic Judaism, nor Orthodox and Liberal Judaism. It only knows Judaism and non-Judaism...It does indeed know conscientious Jews and indifferent jews, good Jews, bad Jews or baptized Jews; all nevertheless, Jews with a mission which they cannot cast off. They are only distinguished accordingly as they fulfill or reject their mission.
Now what about the principle, the world redeeming principle of religion allied to progress? If it is meant to be a principles, something more than an empty phrase meant for show - it must have a definable content and we must be permitted to clarify it. In the expression "religion allied to progress," progress is evidently intended to qualify religion. Indeed, this is the very essence of the "idea," not religion by itself but religion only to the extent in so far as it can co-exist with progress, in so far as one does not have to sacrifice progress to religion. The claim of religion then is not absolute but is valid only by permission of "progress"? What, then, is this higher authority to which religion has to appeal in order to gain admission? What is this "progress" evidently not progress in the sphere of religion, for the the expression would amount to "religion allied to itself" which is nonsense. It means then, progress in every sphere other than religion. Speaking frankly, therefore it means: religion as long as it does not hinder progress, religion as long as it is not onerous or inconvenient.
The subordination of religion to any other factor means the denial of religion; for if the Torah is the law of God how dare you place another law above it and go along with God and His law only as long as you thereby "progress" in other respects at the same time? You must admit it: it is only because religion does not mean to you the word of God, because in your heart you deny divine revelation, because you believe not in Revelation given to man but Revelation from man, that you can give man the right to lay down conditions to religion
"Religion allied to progress"- do you know, dear reader, what that means? Virtue allied to sensual enjoyment, rectitude allied to advancement, uprightness allied to success. It means a religion and a morality which can be preached also in the haunts of vice and iniquity. It means sacrificing religion and morality to every man's momentary whim. It allows every man to fix his own goal and progress in any direction he pleases and to accept from religion only that which does not hinder his "progress" or even assist it. It is the cardinal sin which Moses of old described as a "casual walking with God."...
Now what is it that we want? Are the only alternatives either to abandon religion or to renounce all progress with all the glorious and noble gifts which civilization and education offer mankind? Is the Jewish religion really of such a nature that its faithful adherents must be the enemies of civilization and progress?...We declared before heaven and earth that if our religion demanded that we should renounce what is called civilization and progress we would obey unquestioningly, because our religion is for us truly religion, the word of God before which every other consideration has to give way.we declare, equally, that we would prefer to be branded as fools and do without all the honor and glory that civilization and progress might confer on us rather than be guilty of the conceited mock- wisdom which the spokesman of a religion allied to progress here displays.
For behold whither a religion allied to progress leads! Behold how void it is of all piety and humanity and into what blunders the conceited, Torah criticising spirit leads. Here you have a protagonist of this religion of progress. see how he dances on the graves of your forefathers, how he drags out their corpses from their graves, laughs in their faces and exclaims to you: "Your fathers were crude and uncivilized; they deserved the contempt in which they were held Follow me, so that you may become civilized and deserve respect!"
Such is the craziness which grows on the tree of knowledge of this "religion allied to progress"!
If our choice were only between such craziness and simple ignorance, again we say we would remain ignorant all our life-ling rather than be thus godlessly education even for one moment.
There is, however, no such dilemma. Judaism never remained aloof from true civilization and progress; in almost every era its adherents were fully abreast of contemporary learning and very often excelled their contemporaries. If in recent centuries German Jews remained more or less aloof from European civilization the fault lay not in their religion but in the tyranny which confined them by force within the walls of their ghettos and denied them intercourse with the outside world. And, thank goodness, even now our sons and daughters can compare favorably in cultural and moral worth with the children of those families who have forsaken the religion of their forefathers for the sake of imagined progress. They need not shun the light of publicity or the critical eye of their contemporaries. They have lost nothing in culture and refinement even though they do not smoke their cigars on the Sabbath, even though they do not seek the pleasures of the table in foods forbidden by God, even though they do not desecrate the Sabbath for the sake of profit and enjoyment.
Indeed, we are shortsighted enough to believe that the Jew who remains steadfast amidst the scoffing and the enticement of the easy going world around him, who remains strong enough to sacrifice to God's will, profit inclination and the respect and applause of his fellows, displays a far greater moral strength and thus a higher degree of real culture than the frivolous "modern" Jew whose principles melt away before the first contemptuous glance or at the slightest prospect of profit, and who is unfaithful to the word of God and the teachings of his fathers in order to satisfy the whim of the moment.