It has been noted to me that there is an apparent contradiction between my essay on Yoatzot and my essay on Female Rabbis in Orthodoxy. How is it possible for me to say that I am opposed to female rabbis because of a slippery slope argument yet be in favor of Yoatzot which are the closest things to a rabbi a woman could be?
A careful reading of what I wrote will show that I am uncertain as to the technical impermissibility of female rabbis. It seems that the entire argument against it based on what Rabbi Herschel Schachter wrote is in the area of Tznius. This is commanded to both men and women. Men of necessity are allowed to be more public. The need of Klal Yisroel to know “what the Halacha is” outweighs the requirements of Tznius. But only one gender is needed. Thus, women who can rely on male Poskim do not need to violate the concept of Tznius by being “out there” as Poskim themselves. To me this is a weak argument but it does carry enough weight to justify the general status quo with respect to giving woman formal Smicha. That line is drawn to prevent women from unnecessary violations of “Tznius”.
But Yoatzot are not rabbis. That line is clearly drawn. Their degrees clearly include that condition, if I understand correctly. They may not “Paskin”. So they are one step removed from being “out there”. The benefits of a trained and knowledgeable Yoetzet dealing in sensitive and personal sexual matters with members of her own sex far outweigh any violation of Tznius. In fact I would argue that Tznius is enhanced rather than violated in any way.
Contrast that with the concept of Rabbinic Interns pioneered by Rabbi Avi Weiss. To me this is the exact opposite of Tznius. And it smacks largely of a radical feminist agenda that sees Torah Judaism as denying a woman her rights to participate equally with a man. Rabbi Weiss has to jump through many hoops to devise ways that may technically be within the parameters of Halacha yet allow a woman to function as a rabbi in a Shul. This is a public display of feminism and not Halacha. Even on a practical level, when one goes so far out of the norms of their community so as to make it look odd even to the most liberal among Torah Jewry, I contend that a line was crossed. What is gained? And what is lost? The slippery slope has been traversed and the only thing missing is crossing the finish line. These Rabbinic Interns are nothing more than defacto pulpit rabbis doing so in a very strange way. This is an unnecessary violation Tznius requirements of Torah Jewry.
