By Avi Shafran, on October 30th, 2009 Two South Carolina Republican Party chairmen were roundly denounced recently for invoking “stereotypes about Jews,” as the Anti-Defamation League declared, that will “reinforce anti-Semitism.”
What Edwin Merwin and James Ulmer did was write an opinion piece in an Orangeburg newspaper, defending a senator under fire for shunning congressional earmarks. Unfortunately for them, they chose to make their case for fiscal responsibility in part by noting that financially successful Jews “got that way not by watching dollars, but instead by taking care of the pennies and the dollars taking care of themselves.”
The GOP chairmen could certainly have made their point without mentioning wealthy Jews; any number of pennies-to-riches examples, without reference to ethnicity or religion, would have sufficed. And so, apprised of the insult taken by some, they promptly and “deeply” apologized to “any and all who were offended.”
One of the contrite commentators explained that he had been quoting “a statement which I had heard many times in my life, truly in admiration for a method of bettering one’s lot in life.” And he insisted that, however ill chosen his example, he had “meant nothing derogatory by the reference to a great and honorable people,” categorically rejected … Read More >>
By Yaakov Menken, on October 29th, 2009 The discussion which led to this post began, of all places, on Twitter. Shai Gluskin, a Reconstructionist Rabbi whom I’d met on a train four years ago, was monitoring the J-Street Conference this week, as I was. I posted several comments about J Street and it’s formula for peace, he noticed and followed me (that’s a Twitter term), and we got into a discussion about what it means to be pro-Israel, what it means to be Pro-Peace, and, in Shai’s words, the “terms of engagement for Jews who disagree.”
Someone wrote to the Twitter account of the Republican Jewish Coalition that “Making pro-Israel advocacy a partisan issue weakens the pro-Israel lobby and weakens Israel.” I believe this individual felt that the Republican Jewish Coalition should not have commented on the fact that someone was at the J Street conference recruiting for a “freedom march” in Gaza. I responded, opining that it “Can’t be worse for ‘Pro-Israel’ than defining expansion of a Hamas terrorist base as ‘Pro-Israel’.”
Shai Gluskin: “Where did you get the idea that J Street wants ‘expansion of a Hamas terrorist base?’”
YM, in a six part series: There’s this place called Gaza, which Israel … Read More >>
By Jonathan Rosenblum, on October 26th, 2009 Rabbi Chaim Shmuelevitz, zt”l, in his classic Sichos Mussar, makes a striking statement: The true measure of a man is the degree to which he accepts responsibility for his actions. That quality of taking responsibility (achrayus) has several aspects. The first involves not blaming others for the consequences of one’s decisions.
The tendency to blame goes back to the beginning of time. Adam attributed his eating of the forbidden fruit to Chava: “The woman whom You gave to be with me – she gave me of the tree, and I ate” (Bereishis 3:12). And Kayin blamed Hashem for his murder of Hevel, with all manner of excuses: You created the yetzer hara; You could have protected Hevel from me; If You had accepted my offering with the same favor that You accepted his, I would not have become jealous and killed him (Tanchuma Bereishis 9).
Yehudah merited kingship because he took responsibility for his deeds and words. He acknowledged the signet ring, wrap, and staff sent to him by Tamar as his own. Later he argued with his brothers as to whether his promise to Yaakov Avinu to ensure Binyamin’s safe return required him to substitute himself for Binyamin as a prisoner, … Read More >>
By Jonathan Rosenblum, on October 26th, 2009 “A prince,” is the description that comes most immediately to mind when thinking about Rabbi Shlomo Lorincz, who passed away last week. That’s what I thought sixteen years ago, when I interviewed him for a biography of Reb Elimelech (Mike) Tress, the inspirational leader of the early American Agudah movement, and my initial impression only grew stronger with each subsequent meeting. Even the briefest time together with Rabbi Lorincz’s presence was sufficient to leave one with the feeling of having been in the presence of royalty. Such was his refinement and nobility.
In his preface to the first volume of B’Mechitzasam (the translation of which into English I had the honor of supervising), Rabbi Lorincz describes how he recorded only those stories of the Chazon Ish, the Brisker Rav, and Rav Shach that can inspire others to increased Torah learning, fear of Heaven and good deeds. He entreats the reader not to read the book as a storybook, but to contemplate each story, analyze what it teaches us, and think about how that lesson can be applied in practice.
And it was clear to anyone who every had the privilege of meeting him that he had himself thought … Read More >>
By Avi Shafran, on October 24th, 2009 there is still a mass of Jews who daily and diligently heed the Talmud’s admonition to act in a way that “causes the name of G-d to be loved because of you[r actions]” (Yoma … Read More >>
By Yitzchok Adlerstein, on October 21st, 2009 Imagine taking the entire universe of Jews and money – Madoff, lavish bar mitzvahs, money laundering, etc – and reducing it to three words. Credibly. In Yiddish.
Now imagine coming up with a global solution to Jewish impropriety. Convincingly. In three words. In Yiddish.
Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg of Beth Tfiloh in Baltimore managed to do this in his Rosh Hashanah derashah, which is now spreading virally across the internet. I thought it was one of the most powerful messages I have seen in some time, so Cross-Currents will do its share by bringing you the entire text. We thank Rabbi Wohlberg (a Cross-Currents reader) for permission to reprint.
For Queen Elizabeth it was 1992. With troubles from Prince Charles, Princess Anne anda fire at Windsor Castle, Queen Elizabeth called 1992 an “annus horribilis” – a horrible year.
For us as Americans and as Jews, that’s what this past year has been! Thank God … thank God, with today the old year is over. Today I want you to take your minds off the problems of the past year. Today I want to focus on only one subject: the subject of money.
Now, well do I know that money has been on the … Read More >>
By Yaakov Menken, on October 21st, 2009 I am honored that Professor David Neipert, one of the faculty members who initiated the EEOC complaint against Belmont Abbey College, saw fit to respond to my earlier article on this topic (as it appeared on the Baltimore Sun’s “In Good Faith” religion blog). Given his personal involvement in this case, it is obvious that he begins with a far greater knowledge of its particulars, and I appreciate his sharing his perspective of the facts.
Here are the key points that he has made, to the best of my understanding:
1. The status of Belmont Abbey College as a religious institution is questionable. This is buttressed by the fact that the College “advertised itself as an equal opportunity employer and freely accepted funding that was not available to religious institutions.” Additionally, the majority of its faculty, staff, students, and alumni are not Catholic.
2. The college offered coverage for these services for 26 years, “indicating that this was a change of a deliberate policy.” It was then done immediately, unilaterally, and without discussion, and the College refused to negotiate.
3. It is not the eight faculty members, but the school, that is attacking religious freedom. “Forcing us … Read More >>
By Yitzchok Adlerstein, on October 20th, 2009 I often find the thoughts of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch utterly exhilarating in their relevance a century and a half after they were written. (Biased I am. During the great controversy around the bicentennial of his birth, I spelled out my belief that his writings were some of the most useful to contemporary thinking Jews.)
Several passages in parshas Bereishis always excite me. In one of them, RSRH detects not only meaning in the names in the geneologies of both Kayin and Shais, but treats them as a pattern that governs the pendulum swing of societies. That pattern invites comparison with our own times.
Here is the basic sequence. Forgetting the special relationship between G-d and Man, (אנוש) even while retaining belief in Him, must lead to dissatisfaction with religious life. This leads in a following generation to an excessive preoccupation with material things simply for the sake of possession (קינן). Finding this vacuous and devoid of meaning, the next generation tries again to connect with G-d by asserting His existence and honoring Him with pious proclamations (מהללאל). Alas, the service of G-d through praise of the lips without subordinating one’s life to His dictates is bound … Read More >>
By Yitzchok Adlerstein, on October 18th, 2009 Almost.
The 400th yahrzeit of the Maharal just passed, which means we are still in a prime time to motivate ourselves to study one of the most important Torah thinkers of all times.
A good friend and beloved Los Angeles figure needs a refuah shelemah, and many people here are finding things to do in his merit. My tentative contribution is to offer a four or five week series on Maharal to some group that can constitute itself, find people (men and women) who will commit themselves to the series, and agree on an evening in which to do it. Participants would have to be able to handle Hebrew text, albeit with accompanying translation.
I’m prepared to offer this either in the Los Angeles area (logistically easy), or a remote location through web-conference, if the local group has some facility in using the appropriate software and access to webcams.
Anyone interested can simply reply in the comment section, which will not be published.
By Avi Shafran, on October 16th, 2009 The life work of Norman Borlaug, who died shortly before Rosh Hashana at the age of 95, should give deep pause to those who see humans as a threat to the planet.
Those, that is, like Dr. Borlaug’s fellow scientist Paul Ehrlich, whose 1968 book “The Population Bomb” predicted worldwide famine within twenty years as a result of rising birth rates and limited resources. Hundreds of thousands of people, Dr. Ehrlich soberly prophesied, would starve to death by 1988. He compared the “population explosion” –he coined the phrase – to the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells in a body, and advocated the “radical surgery” of compulsory birth control, in the form of spiking the world water supply with sterilizing chemicals.
Over ensuing years, Dr. Ehrlich’s prediction was embraced by legions of scientists, intellectuals and population-control advocates across the United States and Europe.
All the while, Dr. Borlaug, a plant scientist, quietly continued his work of decades experimenting with grain varieties, eventually developing strains of wheat and rice that raised food yields by as much as 600%.
That achievement revolutionized modern agriculture, allowing a country like India, for example, whose population grew from 500 million in the 1960s to 1.16 billion today, … Read More >>
By Yaakov Menken, on October 14th, 2009 Belmont Abbey College is a small Catholic liberal arts college in North Carolina, serving nearly 1500 students. It was founded in 1876 by the monks of the Belmont Abbey, a monastery of the Benedictine Order. The school mission is “to educate students in the liberal arts and sciences so that in all things G-d may be glorified.” It is, without question, a religious institution, guided by the dictates of the Roman Catholic Church.
In 2007, the College discovered that its employee health benefits plan inadvertently included coverage for abortion, contraception, and voluntary sterilization. The college president, William Thierfelder, immediately altered the plan, declaring that the school “is not able to and will not offer nor subsidize medical services that contradict the clear teaching of the Catholic Church.” And at that point, several members of the faculty went running to the EEOC, charging “discrimination.”
If you think that government agencies take the First Amendment seriously, you should pay close attention to this case. In March, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission dismissed the charge, stating that it was “unable to conclude” that the statutes had been violated. But then, in July, the District Director of the EEOC reversed course, and … Read More >>
By Yaakov Menken, on October 12th, 2009 While everyone, from left to right, may be scratching their heads in disbelief, I don’t see why one should be so perplexed. The Peace [read: politics] prize has been given to Al Gore for one-sided pseudo-science about Global Warming… and Yasir Arafat, whose “peace” plan was an advanced [and very successful] war strategy. So why should we be surprised?
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