Homosexual Rabbis and Same Sex Civil Unions

Something amazing happened last week. It was an event that might ordinarily be ignored by the Orthodox community but instead was rather extensively reacted to. Both Agudah through their brilliant writer Rabbi Avi Shafran and by the Rabbinical Council of America through an official statement. It was even the focus of the Rabbi’s Shabbos Drasha in the Agudah Shul in St. Louis where I Davened this week. What I am talking about is that the Conservative movement’s Halachic arm has decided by majority vote to ordain homosexual men and women into their rabbinate. They also voted to permit, at the discretion of the officiating rabbi, the union of same sex couples.

Why, one may ask is there so much discussion in Orthodox ranks about this issue? After all what do we care? Why is it our business that a movement which was years ago declared heretical has now taken yet another step away from normative Halacha?

I’m not exactly sure. But let’s take a closer look at it.

Let us first examine what exactly is so terrible about ordaining homosexual rabbis. The truth happens to be that there are probably some homosexual rabbis already practicing in the Orthodox rabbinate. And they may very well be rabbis in good standing… even amongst Charedim. How …you may ask… is that possible? The answer is that Judaism does not deal with inclinations. It deals with acts. The Torah realizes that people may have Taavos… desires for immoral acts. But desires not acted upon are not sinful. Desiring illicit sex is not the sin. It is acting upon the desire that is. So, if a rabbi has a pre-disposition for male sex it is his job to fight off those inclinations just as it is a heterosexual’s job to fight off an in an inclination for illicit heterosexual acts.

What the Conservative movement has done is they have given their blessing to it. They are making a statement. “Declare your homosexuality and we will give you Smicha, no less than if you declare your heterosexuality”. This cannot possibly be in accordance with the Torahs’s strong and clear admonition against homosexual practice. One has no need to declare publicly his homosexuality if he does not plan on acting upon it.

The Conservative movement can no longer simply say, “Hate the sin, not the sinner”. They are saying, “Embrace the sinner and his sin.” Why else declare your sexuality before getting ordained?! No rabbinical candidate has ever been required to declare his sexuality. This is nothing less than turning the Torah on its head.

Granting rabbis the right to perform “homosexual unions” is the same thing. They can say they are not sanctioning marriage, just “civil unions” all they want. But if a rabbi does it, this gives the ceremony an aura of a religious sanction. Two men living together as husband and “wife”…blessed by a rabbi! Does anyone take seriously that such a union will be a “sexless” marriage? I think not.

No. The Conservative movement has completely lost any claim to being a Halachic movement. If anything they have become an anti-Halachic movement. Their rabbinic leadership is merely play acting at keeping Halacha now. I urge them to listen to one of their own leaders, Rabbi Neil Gillman who realized this fact quite some time ago and had the integrity to call a spade, a spade! The should drop the pretense of following Halacha once and for all.

So once again, why do we care? The answer is in an old Yiddish expression. “Azoi vie S’Krisiltzech, Yiddlezich”. Loosely interpreted this means that the Torah world is not immune to what goes on in the non-Jewish world. The Conservative movement long held out not succumbing to the current fad of granting homosexual behavior its imprimatur. There was a big internal dispute about it. But the “good guys” lost. And to their credit, they resigned. But just as this kind of thinking has permeated the Conservative movement, it has permeated the Orthodox world as well. While it is true that the RCA clearly denounced the Conservative movements new turn, the very fact that they felt the need to do so shows a concern that some of this kind of thinking will bleed into the more left wing fringes of Orthodoxy.

Not long ago the movie, “Trembling Before God” was released. It was, according to all reports, a well made movie featuring an Orthodox homosexual rabbi who “outed” himself. As I understand it, the movie also featured an interview with Ner Israel Rosh HaYeshiva, Rabbi Aharon Feldman in that movie. Rabbi Feldman showed great sympathy towards Frum homosexuals, as we all should. But then some time after the movie’s release this homosexual rabbi wrote a “Teshuva” of sorts trying to justify his behavior.

We need to really be careful about this matter. It is one thing if someone is a homosexual and knows it’s wrong. Even if he has succumbed to temptation, he will will feel bad and want to do Teshuva. But when a sincere Orthodox homosexual rabbi tries to use the Torah as a source for permitting the behavior itself, can it be that we are not that far away from a Left Wing Orthodox Yeshiva ordaining practicing homosexual rabbis and condoning ceremonies of homosexual unions?

The Woman Who Would Be Rosa

There has been a letter floating around the internet about an incident that happened to a Frum woman on a bus that goes to the Kotel. It is kind of a turn on the Rosa Parks story.

The number two bus in Jerusalem whose route takes it from Har Nof to the Kotel is frequented mostly by Charedim. As such it has an unofficial status as a “Mehadrin” bus. Mehadrin busses are specially designated busses by Egged to serve the Charedi community with respect tp its religious sensibilities. Specifically separating the sexes, men in the front and women in the back. Why the back for women? Because, based on a Gemarah, a man is not supposed to look at the back of a woman. So women sit in the back, men in the front… problem solved. Except for the fact that women end up being second class citizens. Well, you might say it can’t be helped. It’s Halacha… you see. Besides, I’ve sat in the back of a bus. Not really so terrible. Not much worse than the front.

But is it Halacha? I don’t think so. If it were, no one would ever be permitted to take any bus anywhere that wasn’t segregated by sex. And we know that isn’t the case. So what the Mehadrin bus is doing is simply being sensitive to a Chumra. But… be that as it may. That is the custom that has evolved in Israel. There are official Mehadrin busses that segregate the sexes. And there are unofficial busses that operate this way.

There is an American Oleh, a Frum woman who would have none of that. She was going to pull a “Rosa Parks”. She decided that she wanted to go to the Kotel and Daven K’Vasiken. Every day. She took the number two bus, but instead of going to the rear she decided to sit in the “Men’s section”. Halacha was after all on her side. Why should she be relegated to second class citizenry? Besides, the number two buss is not a Mehadrin bus. It was a regular bus where people could sit where they wished. But, no one thinks of it that way. The vast majority of people using it are Charedi and treat it as a Mehadrin bus. That’s the way it’s been for years.

Well, after a few weeks of traveling this way and getting stares and comments from the Charedi passengers, men and women alike… all hell broke loose. A Charedi man decided he wasn’t going to take it anymore. He went over to her and asked for her seat and told her to move to the rear. Here is her account of what followed:

“I smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I'm not moving but there are 2 seats in front of me, 1 across the aisle - you can sit there". He refused and demanded MY seat. I was somewhat amused at this childish and arrogant behavior but told him again, politely and quietly, that I am not moving and that if he really, really wants to sit here, he could even sit in the empty seat next to me. But - I'm not moving. This man stared at me for about 10 straight seconds and then spat in my face. Without missing a beat, I jumped up, called him a son-of-a-(deleted), and spat back at him. This brought screams from the women calling me a crazy woman. He responded to my response with a push in the face and a punch to the breasts that sent me flying on to the floor. I jumped up and punched him back. At this point, no fewer than 4 other men jumped up - not to defend ME - but to ATTACK me by punching, hitting, slapping, and kicking me to the floor. I was fighting back the whole time but was no match for 4 men in such cramped quarters. I finally got enough aim to kick one man in the privates and he went limping back to his seat in unmistakable agony. (Yes, I DO smile every time I think about it in the aftermath). But, in the meantime, the "holy" man sat in my seat and had discarded my bag onto the middle of the aisle. I went after him again, demanding my seat back. He spat at me which evoked the same response from me. My snood had come off my head during this scuffle so I knelt down to the floor to find it and the "holy" man kicked me in the face. The kick was so strong that the dirty outline of his shoe could be seen on my right cheek. Within a short amount of time my cheek began to swell and it took no less that 4 Ibuprofens over Shabbos to keep the swelling and the pain down. At the time of the kick, however, I felt no pain - only rage, equally distributed between the Chillul Hashem and the perversion of what some of these Chareidim call "kedusha".”

The letter continues with more of the same.

What are we to make of all this? Well, I cannot tell you how embarrassed and disgusted I am by this massive affront to both man and God. Chilul HaShem does not even come close to describing it. How in heaven’s name can anyone decide that his rights have been so violated that it warranted Nazi-like behavior toward another human being, let alone a woman, let alone a Jew, let alone a Frum Jew?! I can’t even imagine such a thing happening in my worst nightmare. Not only one man, but several beating this poor woman to a pulp! The outrage should be universal, no matter how one feels about Charedim. These Charedim were criminals. Nothing less. But are they really crimnals in the eyes of all?

I’m not so sure. The evidence shows that no one on that bus was happy with what this woman did. She took it upon herslef to violate a the sensibilties of an entire community. And these peole felt it. They tried to stop her verablly from doing it… to no avial. And when this Charedi fellow decided to “do something about it” were the other passengers secretly cheering? Why did no one come forward to help her? It almost seems like this beating was cathartic for the other passengers. Their Kedusha was finally restored. The woman had finally been put in her place.

Can this really be the thinking? I’m not so sure it wasn’t.

To be sure, no one wanted this woman to be beat up the way she was, but based on the “rightous indignation” expressed by many passengers to her in the past, and the lack of anyone coming to her aid. I’m not so sure they weren’t all getting some perverse pleasure from this woman getting her “just deserts”. Of course I don’t really know what they were actually thinking. But circumstances do not seem favorable to conclude that the passengers were in any way sympathetic to her plight.

Now it must be said, that this woman did want to be a bit of a martyr here. She chose her battle. She had to know that she was upsetting people. Yet she continued sitting in that spot every day and upsetting everyone else’s sensibilties. This was no Rosa Parks type act. There was nothing racist going on here. Just a hyper-sensitivty to the mixing of the sexes. And the vast majority of women using that bus actually prefered this aragngement. So she was not really fighting for any real cause but her own.

And it finally came to a head. Was she right in insisting on this seat since it was legally her right… in spite of the community standards that opposed women sitting next to or in front of men? I don’t know. There is certainly room to question her wisdom on this issue. But there can be no doubt about the sheer evil that followed. And the people who participeted in beating her up were no better than Nazis. And the by-standers?

Sex and the Internet

There has been much written about the ills of the internet. These ills are so pervasive and all encompassing that they can affect virtually every aspect of one’s life. Just as the Torah mandates how one should behave in any and all circumstances, so to does the internet provide obstacles to observing Halacha in any and all circumstances.

The focus of much of the banning by Charedi rabbinic leaders is in the area of pornography sites. To be sure that is enough of a reason for them to be concerned. But that of course is not the only danger. Much heresy, for example, can be found there and easily destroy one’s spiritual health if one is insufficiently prepared.

But there is another phenomenon that seems to be taking hold in the Frum Community. Something I would call “Frum online hookup lists”. According to an article in an online magazine, there is a preponderance of Frum Jews “looking for Mr. Goodbar”... that is: commitment free casual sexual partners. These individuals are from all walks of Orthodox life, including a great number of Charedim. Many are married. They are often members in good standing in their respective communities with families and young children who would normally not even dream of “hooking up”. But the anonymity of internet has enabled these individuals to seek sex without being stigmatized by their own communities. And the problem seems quite huge.

I have to ask, “What is going on here”? Is Torah Chinuch failing in this regard? I realize of course that the vast majority of Frum Jews do not go on these lists looking for illicit sex. But there are significant numbers that do. FrumSex, a six-year-old Yahoo! Group boasts almost 2000 members!

This begs the question, “Is opportunity the mother of activity?” Would these people not be involved at all in such behaviors were it not made so easy for them? And does that matter? How big is the group of Frum Jews that are religious primarily because of rote behavior and peer group pressure?

If Orthopraxy is a source of the problem then it is no longer enough to just practice rituals in a rote manner for social reasons. One must be religious in both an idealistic sense and a practical sense with core ideals as the true motivation.

But the situation is probably a lot more complex than that. There are shades of grey. It could be that there are some with core ideals who still succumb to temptation. There are still others who are Moreh Heter, explaining away Issurim as being Muter. What was telling in the article was that Frum Jews seek out Frum sex partners. Why? Because there is a rudimentary desire to avoid Issurei Erva at some level. For example a man might ask that a potential female sex partner not be a Niddah and that she use the Mikva prior to their encounter so as to avoid the Issur of Kareis!

So why do I oppose a ban the internet if these terrible influences are so compelling upon even Frum Jews? ...who might encounter such websites by chance and then slide down the slippery slope to hell?

Because banning doesn’t help. Many of the people who utilize services like this know about the ban and are members of the very community that bans it. Does anyone think a rabbinic ban will prevent someone from using the internet if that same person would violate Issurei Erva? I don‘t think so. I have written about the pros and cons of the internet before and I won’t repeat the arguments here except to say that there is enough positive on the internet and enough people who are not interested in vilolting Issurim with it to not ban it.

So what’s the solution to these kinds of problems? I don’t know. The problems are real. Those who use the internet as a tool to achieve whatever form of illicit behavior they want is a pervasive fact of life ...and probably growing exponentially. I don’t think there is an effective answer that will be total. Making it the forbidden fruit will only increases appetites.

While this won’t solve the problem completely, I think that the educational system is the key. We need to examine why there are so many Orhtoprax... and not enough Orthodox! Why are Yeshivas turning out so many Jews who practice the mintutia of Halacha and seek Chumros like using the Chazan Ish’s Shiur for the Araba Kosos, yet when it comes to matters like these, some of those people succumb so easily?

It is about parenting and education. Children develop their personalities at a very early age. What ever input a parent can make to develop a sense of ethics and morality at the earliest age should be priority number one. Sexuality is a normal pert of the human pshyche. And it too begins to develop at an early stage. One should be careful not to traumatize a child at any sexual stage of development as this is the cause for sexually perverse behavior in adults.

There are two areas of education that need to be the focus if this issue is to be properly tackled. One is the teaching of morals. The other is dealing with the psychology of human sexuality. Our educators need to start implementing seriously, a curriculum that deals with these issues in tandem. But even that is not enough. Parenting courses should be given to every high school student, boy or girl. It should be mandated and guided by rabbinic leadership in conjunction with the best minds in the field of child psychology. To me this is a given and yet I believe it is virtually non-existent in the Orthodox world. Perhaps if this is done now it can eliminate this kind of behavior in the future... or at least diminish it. And perhaps it can even prevent yet another molester from ever developing again. I’m not sure. But at least it would be a step in the right direction.

Iraq, James Baker, and the Jews

The Baker Hamilton Bi-Partisan Report on Iraq was released today. I am not going to comment on the substance of this report since I basically agree that “staying the course” is not a viable option. See my recent post on the subject. But I do want to comment on one aspect. It is an aspect that is constantly being thrown up by various so called experts on the Middle East. The report strongly recommends that as part of an over-all approach to dealing with the problems in Iraq, the administration must engage more directly to solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem. The two chairman made it very clear that there is no solving anything unless the Israeli/Palestinian problem is solved. They said it was a unanimous concern of all the Middle Eastern leaders that they spoke to. Well, What a surprise! The Arabs want the US to engage in the peace process. I guess they feel the Palestinians should just be pressured to back off and leave Israel alone.

No? …Maybe not.

I can’t say I’m surprised at that recommendation. I’m not that familiar with Lee Hamilton’s views on Israel except to say that when he was in congress I do not recall him being all that supportive. But James Baker is another story. He revealed his true colors when he was Secretary of State for the President’s father. He cares about as much for Israel’s welfare as he does for Maldive’s welfare. In other words, not much.

The suggestion to engage in the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians has been a code word for putting more pressure on Israel to give in to Palestinian demands. There is no consideration about the futility of that because of the intractable attitude from Hamas, the majority party in the territories to seek Israel’s destruction.

Serve up Israel on a platter. That’s the solution. I don’t care how they couch the terms. It is nothing short of what Baker said to his boss when he was Secretary of State. When asked about his views at the time, his attitude was something to the effect: Hmmm… 40 million Arabs, 6 million Jews… “Blank” the Jews. They didn’t vote for us anyway!”

What do they expect the President to do? Sell out the Jews to appease the Arabs? I really think that any individual who thinks that Israel can negotiate with people who have vowed to destroy it, is either an idiot, an anti-Semite, or a fool. It’s as simple as that. It can’t always be Israel who does all the giving and the Palestinians who do all the taking. The only people who should be getting pressure are the Palestinians. If that’s what the report advocates, then I am all for it.

An Absurd Position

Well, I guess we can rest easy now. The honor of Shmiras Shabbos has been upheld. The rabbinic leadership in Israel has decided to boycott El-Al. Again. Why? Because they departed from their policy of Shmiras Shabbos one time. It was done in response to a mechanical problem they encountered that caused tremendous delay for which they wanted to make up some time. I am not debating here the issue of Chilul Shabbos. There might very well have been Chilul Shabbos. And it should be protested when it happens. But to boycott an airline that has been more accommodating than any other to an extent that may cause its demise is ridiculous and counter-productive. Is it really necessary for our rabbinic leadership to boycott them and risk their financial ruin?

From an article in Ha’aretz:

“An official boycott could deal a fatal blow to El Al as it would obligate not only ultra-Orthodox travelers from Israel, but also tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox travelers from abroad.”

It is mind boggling that a boycott like this would be ordered by the rabbinic leadership. Remember that El Al is not a Frum airline. The El Al people people are about as sceular as they come. Yet in an effort to accommodate the Charedi traveler, Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblum reports that: “there is not currently any competitor that comes close to El Al in its efforts to be “chareidi-friendly.” To boycott to such an extent is biting of the nose to spite the face!

And statements like the one from Rav Chaim Kanievsky do not help matters either: “the plane's mechanical fault was a sign of divine confirmation of a statement Sunday by Rabbi Haim Kanievsky, an influential figure of the Lithuanian stream, broadcast on the community's Kol Hai radio station, that flying El Al endangered life.” How does he know that? Does he have Ruach HaKodesh? I doubt it.

So the Kaanaim who anticipate the coming “harsh steps” to be taken by rabbinic leadership have been canceling flights left and right: (There has been)“80% cancellation of reservations of Chareidi clients with El Al, despite the steep cancellation fees (up to $1700) imposed in some instances.”

What about talking to the El Al leadership before taking any action? No dice! “El Al CEO Haim Romano called the committee of rabbis for a meeting but was rebuffed Monday night.”

Now it is true that EL Al could use some tweaking in the accomdations it provides for it’s customers. But a boycott like this?! Absurd!

Sex Abuse and Agudah’s Response

There is an open letter to Rabbi Matisyahu Salomon at a blog located here. It contains a poignant step by step description of events concerning the sexual abuse case of a Rebbe at a famous Yeshiva and its apparent cover-up by the Rosh HaYeshiva. The letter castigates Rav Salomon for turning an abuse issue into a Kavod HaTorah and blogger issue.

In the comments section fellow blogger Rabbi Gil Student takes the blogger to task for not having enough courage of his convictions to identify himself. I totally agree and I think it takes away a bit from his credibility. That being said, I agree with the gist of what he says. Even though he gave no explanations as to how he came to know so many of the victims, or how he came upon so much detailed information about the involvement of rabbinic leaders with the case over the years, my gut reaction is to trust his account of events.

The real guilty party here is the Rosh HaYeshiva, Rabbi Lipa Margulies, who apparently covered this thing up for so many years. I don’t know if he just stubbornly refused to believe it or didn’t care. I suspect the former but that is no excuse.

As for alleged abuser, Rabbi Yehuda Kolko, the overwhelimg evidence of his guilt shows that he is a very sick man and morally bankrupt … a man with little or no conscience. And while he was abusing his young victims for four decades, he managed to put up a good front. And it is my understanding that he raised a decent family. This makes the tragedy that much greater because among his victims are those very same members of his family. The shame they must feel is beyond description. I feel sorry for them. They must be going through a living hell.

The truth is that I find less fault with the handling of the rabbinic leadership who were involved in examining this case over the year. But there is some fault to placed there too, in their apparent inability to recognize that a real problem existed… the extent of it… and its longevity. Clear knowledge of it now and indignation over how it was handled is the result of our 20/20 hindsight. And in the defense of these rabbinic leaders, they must be protective of all Rabbanim who have a Chezkas Kashrus until proven otherwise. But I agree that they were a bit over zealous in this regard and not zealous enough in the other. The results were devastating. And the reticence to pursue this case more zealously, unnecessarily prolonged the problem. I’m sure that as we speak all involved regret not being more “hands on”. The result of this reticence is tragic... tragic for Kavod HaTorah, tragic for Klal Yisroel, and most importantly tragic for the many victims and their families.

I posted my views about UOJ when he decided to stop posting and gave him credit for his accomplishments while blasting his methods and shotgun approach to all manner of hearsay about others, many of whom were innocent.

But the bottom line is that this blogger is basically correct. Furthermore, I believe that if this letter is not responded to, it should be put in an even more public forum because the questions raised about Agudah’s response to this issue are valid in my view and deserve a public response.

I end with a comment made to the blogger by Yeshiva University Mashgiach Ruchani, Rabbi Yosef Blau:

"The pattern of failure of the rabbinic leadership to respond to the ongoing accusations over three decades is extremely disturbing. Your letter's credibility is enhanced by the specific chronology. When similar accusations surfaced about the OU, and how it dealt with allegations against Baruch Lanner, they created an independent commission to investigate."

"If Daas Torah is interpreted that the gedolim can not be questioned then no mechanism exists to evaluate the situation. Perhaps a group of rabbinic authorities who have not been involved and are respected for courage and integrity would be willing to examine the evidence and make suggestions for a future policy."

To this I say, Amen.

Clarity and Determination to Succeed

I am pessimistic! Because I do not think either The United States or Israel have the guts to do what’s necessary.

The situation with respect to world events and how it affects Jews, the State of Israel and even western civilization itself is not good. There seems to be a confluence of factors that can only be seen as negative and I see no way out short of actions that would violate the most basic of principles, the sanctity of human life. Because what's needed will inevitiblly entail destruction of innocent human life in massive numbers.

The situation I am talking about is the ascendance of militant Islam. It is now in its strongest position ever and it has been developing for over a quarter of a century... beginning with the Islamic revolution of Iran. That day back in 1980 when Ayatollah Khomeini came out of exile and walked back into Iran was the watershed event that seems to have irretrievably changed history... finally hitting home on 9/11.

For the people of Israel, Arab/Islamist hatred and murder dates back to the advent of modern Zionism. Jews in Israel have been killed by Arabs for over a century now. But until the Iranian revolution, Islamist belligerency took the form of rhetoric and actions were mostly military resulting in Arab-Israeli wars. It was armies fighting armies. There was no such thing as committing suicide/mass murder for a cause. This has occurred because militant Islamist clerics mostly based in Iran, have spread the Islamist ideal and suicide bombing type tactics to all who are willing to join the “fight for the cause”.

When a religious person believes that God is on his side he is capable of anything. The dual motivation of Mesiras Nefesh for God and the belief that murder to achieve their goal is a religious obligation makes this tool the most effective and successful tool that anyone has ever used. It has worked in Israel and of course it is now being used successfully in Iraq..

The rules of war have changed. No longer is there a respect for rules of war or worry over the loss of innocent life. Whether one’s own or even one’s fellow Muslim, it is expendable. So in addition to Israel being unable to defend itself as it has in the past by defeating armies, so too the has United States been unable to defend itself in Iraq. We are no longer fighting armies. We are no longer fighting people. We are fighting an idea.

The idea is the belief by Islamists that a new world order under Islamic law by any means necessary must be established. No army, no matter how strong can fight that. There are no soldiers in uniforms. The enemy is camouflaged. Thye blend into the population, hiding in plain sight! They “hit” and they “hide”. Or they hit and they die. All for the cause!

And this brings me to four major forces of Islamism that are on the rise, and which the civilized world has been unable to stop: Iran, Iraq (i.e. those who are fighting the United states there), Lebanon (Hezbollah), and the Palestinians (Hamas, et al). And they all have one thing in common: The belief that Islam should rule the world by any means necessary. There immediate target is Israel. It is in the heart of the Islamic world and they see it as the biggest obstacle to a Pan-Islamic Middle East. And they despise United States for supporting Israel. Their goal is to expel or kill all Jews in Israel and turn it into the Islamic Republic of Palestine. None of these entities can be defeated by mighty armies. The Israeli war against Hezbollah demonstrated that. As does Hamas. As does the war in Iraq. As does the defiant and militant attitude of Iran.

Iran has no fear of any repercussions for seeking to develop a nuclear weapon and once they do, they will use it in the name of God to destroy the Jewish State, God forbid. Ahmadinejad has already promised that... in so many words. Iran, once the arch enemy of Iraq is now the chief supporter of the Islamist factions there. By invading Iraq and toppling Sadaam Hussein the United States did Iran a favor. It opened up the doors to changing Iraq from a secular dictatorship into an Islamic republic. Iran couldn’t be happier even while bashing the US for doing so. The US presence is but a hiccup to Iran in achieving that goal.

The American people can no longer stomach the bloodshed and worsening conditions in Iraq. The pressure from congress, the American people and the world community to pull out is so strong and the prospect of victory so weak that it is just a matter of time before the US pulls out and the Islamists take over... creating another Islamic republic next door to Iran.

And Israel is just plain tired of wars and bloodshed. But Islamists are just getting warmed up. Nasrallah put it well. In speaking about the determination of his people to achieve their goals with respect to Israel he said, “We love death more than the Israelis love life”. That about says it all. All Islamists have the same mentality. The fighting in Iraq will not stop until Iraq becomes an Islamic Republic. The fight against Israel will not stop until Israel becomes an Islamic Republic. If this means killing every Jewish man, woman, and child and a few thousand Muslims in the process... that’s the price! And they are going to pay it.

How does one fight an idea? Certainly not with negotiations. You can’t negotiate away an ideal. The only way I can think of is with massive strength. This means the United States has to declare a Crusade... a holy war. And Israel has to declare a Milchmes Mitzva. We need to turn to God and ask for his intervention ... and then pull out all the stops. So too, The United States. Islamists call it a Jihad. It’s time we treated it that way. Many innocent people in enemy territory will die. But that’s war. It can’t be helped. The civilized world must fight it to win. The US and Israel are superpowers. It’s time they flexed some muscle. World opinion be damned. Or all is lost.

Mysterious Chasidic Tales

Did the Chozeh MiLublin commit Suicide? I doubt it. Did the son of Chabad founder, Rav Shneur Zalman of Lyadi convert to Christianity in 1820? Probably. Professor David Assaf has written a fascinating book about great Chasidic figures with stories like these.

Although I am not a Chasid in any way, my attitude about Chasidus is well known. And I have written about it. I am a direct descendant of Rav Shimon Maryles MiYaruslav, an early Chasidic master,(circa: late 18th early 19th century). My paternal grandfather was a Chasid of the Chortkover Rebbe who is of the famous Chasidic dynastic line of Rizhun. Both he and my father as a youngster used to go visit the Rebbe.

My father who was not really a Chasid in any real sense of the word, retained a nominal bond with that Chasidus even after moving to the small and very unchasidic city of Toledo, Ohio the after the holocaust. After retiring to Bnei Brak, Israel, my father returned to that environment “body and soul” joining the Boyaner Chasidim (also of Rizhin) and immersed himself in that culture... participating with them as much as possible. He Davened in their Shteeble, went to their Melave Malkas and banquets, and donated money to their Yeshivos. He loved that culture which harkened back to his boyhood

My great ancestor, Rav Shimon Maryles, was a Talmid Muvhak of the Chozeh MiLublin. In fact he rebelled from his own Mesorah because his father was an avowed Misnagid. The story is brought down in a Halacha Sefer, “Shaarim Mitzyanim BeHalacha” in in the form of a Shaylah.

So why do I bring up all this up now? Because of a very intriguing article in Ha’aretz on the Chozeh, Rizhin, and other historical Chasidic figures contained in that aforementioned book written by Professor Assaf.. The stories there-in are quite negative. The article itself is about this historian who researched these Chasidic figures and then writing mostly about the troubling events in their history. It is rather lengthy, as newspaper articles go but it is well worth one’s time to read it.

To be sure one can question the motives of the author who was raised in an observant DL home and is no longer observant. But no one can really question the incidents themselves. They happened. The only question is how these events are to be interpreted. These is an open question. But I find it both coincidental and remarkable that my both my recent, and relatively distant ancestors (seven generations back) were so intimately involved with two of the Chasidic masters that Professor Assaf focuses on.

Among the more captivating stories is the one told of an apparent heir to the throne of Shpikov. (He was asked to ascend by their Chasidim but turned it down). This son... of Rabbi Yitzhak Nahum Twersky of Shpikov wrote a letter of “confession” in 1910, that “covered 27 notebook pages with hardly any erasures”. He wrote it at about the time he was supposed to marry the daughter of the Belzer Rebbe of that era. It is about his true thoughts and feelings with respect to Chasidus and its customs. And it is nothing short of shocking! Here is an excerpt from the article:

“In his letter, Twersky complains about the custom of shaving the head of a bridegroom and about the sidecurls that are "long and thick, dangling on the face and moving hither and thither, as taken by wind, and upon the white, shaven head they appear as if stuck on with glue." And the bride? Her head is shaven, too, and what a look this is for a young couple - "he with shaven head and she with shaven head.”

And there is so much more about him and about other great Chasidic masters. Stories that are historically viable albeit the author does contribute his own analyses and conclusions. But this particular story stands out because it is based on the written word of the individual himself and not by a historian interpreting some event.

For a more complete history of my own Yichus, I recommend the biographical book written by my nephew, Rabbi Ari Maryles entitled, “Rebuilding the Foundations” published by Targum Press. It was written for the Charedi reading public and reflects their hagiographical approach to history. While it does not mention any of the negative aspects of my ancestors or their mentors, it does give you a picture about their lives and views.

For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Question: What do Sacha-Baron Cohen and Rav Yosef Sholom Elyashiv have in common? Answer: They are both Shomer Shabbos. But what separates them is far greater than what unites them. In fact they could very well be on the extreme opposite polar ends of the Tumah/Tahara spectrum. Rav Elyashiv as most people know is a Gadol, a rabbinic figure who is from that generation of Gedolim who are among the last of an era. A man whose every breath is designed to serve God, the Jewish people and to make a Kiddush HaShem. Agree with him or not on various issues, that is the case. Mr. Cohen is not a Gadol. But I am told he is a Shomer Shabbos and Shomer Kashrus Jew... a comedian from London who was raised Orthodox and supposedly remains observant. So, what about it, you ask? Not much except for the fact that Mr. Cohen is responsible for a Chilul Hashem of epic proportion.

His film “Borat” is an unquestionable hit. It has produced a tremendous amount of "buzz" ...and revenue for him and his investors. And it received some “rave” reviews (although not exclusively). I’m told is a tour-de-force, exposing latent anti-Semitism in this country. According to the reviews I’ve read or seen, he is quite successful at exposing a subtle undercurrent of anti-Semitism amongst some typical American citizens. Were that all he did I could perhaps applaud it myself. Although in fact I do not believe it to be true just because he found a few innocent victims to prey upon. Apparently he used a faux anti-Semitic attitude in his character Borat who speaks a heavily accented English, peppered with Hebrew (used as Kazakh, the language of Kazakhstan) to draw out anti-Semitism in his targets. Be that as it may, that is not what is a Chilul HaShem. This film is full of the most vile and disgusting scenes that one could imagine. The sexual situations are amongst the worst ever filmed. And the anti-Semitic diatribes coming out of the Bora character are so crude and disgusting that they transcend the alleged purpose of drawing out the anti-Semitic remarks that they are intended for.

I have written about Chilul HaShem on many occasions. And indeed those incidents merited being labled a Chilul HaShem, whether they were cover-ups by rabbinic figures of sexual misconduct of otherwise observant Jews… or the kind of violence perpetrated by Charedi rioters in Jerusalem protesting a parade. Yes... all a desecration of God’s name.

But I cannot think of a greater Chilul Hashem than this. A Jew who is observant creating a piece of garbage like this transcends even those events in this respect. Because in those other cases those who covered up or those who rioted at least had a side that one could hear… even though I personally disagreed with it. Their arguments centered around noble goals, like protesting public Toevah or protecting the reputations of religious institutions from the fallout. Wrong headed to be sure but at least one could hear the argument. But what Mr. Cohen did is well beyond that. Of course I do not compare the specific hurt to individuals physically or emotionally in the above mentioned events. There is no comparison. Those events are far more serious for those individuals. But in terms of pure Chilul HaShem, the terribly negative images in “Borat” seen by millions of people and attributed to an observant Jew is far greater.

What possible motive could he have? He says exposing anti-Semitism. Personally I think it is purely financial and self aggrandizing. The sheer numbers of people seeing this film and associating observant Judaism with it makes the Chilul HaShem near immeasurable. Mr. Cohen says his motives were altruistic and that these “means” were necessary to expose the latent anti-Semitism of otherwise good and decent people. Maybe. But this is clearly one case where the ends definitely do not justify the means. If the descriptions by various reviewers of some of the scenes are accurate, they are beyond disgusting. And I don’t even think he makes his case about wide spread latent anti-Semitism in this country.

This is all too bad. Mr. Cohen obviously has a lot of talent. In fact I think he is a comic genius of cutting edge humor… along the lines of Andy Kaufman. I have seen him on television in character promoting his film. What I’ve seen is hysterical and really motivated me to want to see that film. But after doing the research… No way! I am embarrassed by it. I am embarrased by him.

Yeshivos Must Change Course

While I sometimes criticize Agudah on certain of their positions, I do not think them an evil organization, God forbid. Quite the contrary. For the most part I am a big supporter of what they do, especially in the area of public service. They have been able to achieve a great number of successes over the course of their history that has benefited all of Klal Yisroel here in America. I don’t think there is a single area where I have disagreed with them in the area of public service. My only disagreements have been with some of public policy issues. For example I disagree with their opposition to Roe v Wade for reasons I have written about in the past and am not going to repeat here.

One area that has my complete support is project “YES”. It is a “hands on” effort tackling the “kids at risk” problem in the Torah world. To put it the way they do on their website: “Our objective is to intervene before little problems become big problem – before a teen comes close enough to the edge to fall.”

Its founder and director is Rabbi Yakov Horowitz. He has posted on this blog before. I have become a huge fan of his and I don’t think I have ever disagreed with a position he has taken on subjects that he has written about. Last week I linked to an article he wrote for the Chicago Community Kollel. I do so again this week as its subject is a matter of great importance. It is a continuation of the educational matters he discussed last week.

The article focuses on how to make all children love Torah and Yiddishkeit in an environment that’s becoming virtually impossible to be sheltered from anymore. Increasingly so! Yet Yeshivos are doing little if anything about it other them condemning these outside influences. They are not providing the kind of environment that can provide attractive alternatives to these distractions.

I think the situation demands a re-assessment of the actual curricula in the Yeshivos and day schools. Instead of minimizing their importance Yeshivos should include extra curricular activities in addition to an improved secular studies department. It should no longer be characterized as a B'Dieved. Traditional secular Yeshiva subjects like science, math and English should be the core of any secular curriculum but should also include such non-traditional subjects like music, art, and shop. It should include a serious physical education department too.

The curriculum should be as broad as possible so that every child can begin to fulfill his or her destiny as early as possible in life. In this way a child will learn to appreciate the beauty of Torah through a nurturing environment where instead of frowning on secular subjects they will be endorsing them.

Another improvement that needs to be made is a bigger empahsis on Bein Adam L'Chavero. Mussar also needs to be a part of every curriculum while insuring that a child’s self esteem is never diminished.

Also, there needs to be less pressure on those elementary school children who simply cannot take it. And even in high school, not everyone is cut out to learn from 8:00 in the morning to 10:00 o’clock in the evening and then do homework. For those who have the Cheshek… sure! Give them a suitable program. But the Yeshivas must make sure that they are appealing to the right students and not pressuring all of them to do this. Those who can’t hack it are not to be made to feel inferior. In short, Chanoch L'Naar al pi Darko should be the over-riding principle of all Jewish Education kindergarden through high school.

Most importantly teaching Mechanchim how to deal with the specifics of the ever increasing amount of garbage that permeates our world is of paramount importance. It should not be swept under the carpet as though it doesn't exist but rather tackled head on. No one should go into Chinuch without learning the proper way to deal with it from teachers or mentors who are experienced in these matters.

And what about after high school? Should we emulate the model of Volozhin? The idea that a Yeshiva Gedolah is where all Ysehiva high school graduates go?

Well, here is what Rav Hutner thought. From the article:

“Rav Hutner was saying how we must change the way that we view our yeshivos. He was suggesting that the holy yeshivos of Volozhin and Slabodka were primarily designed for a tiny percentage of the outstanding achievers in Torah, as the grinding poverty of pre-war Europe forced the vast majority of children above the age of thirteen
to join the workforce. American yeshivos and Beis Yakov’s, Rav Hutner maintained, need to be geared for all children to find success and refuge.”

So the answer is, yes... for a tiny percentage of outstanding achievers. But not everyone needs that kind of program. Rav Hutner’s bottom line? Chanoch L’Naar Al Pi Darko. And that applies to any Jew… at any age.