Rabbis for Jewish Rights

Let’s get one thing straight. Judaism isn’t a religion, nor should its rabbis be viewed as priests or ministers. We are a people, with a cultural identity and value system, part of which has a religious component. If we take our text seriously one could even say that Judaism is about culture, language and borders. It isn’t faith based, but “deed”oriented. Rabbis shouldn’t present themselves as though they were Jewish ministers and priests turning the other cheek and spreading love to the world.

Rabbis were intended to be teachers, and based upon our mesorah one who had achieved the degree of Jewish knowledge and wisdom qualified for Semicha. The degree of semicha conferred on a talmid chacham assumed that apart from mastering the required knowledge base, one was also in complete and total identification with his people. Thus being a rabbi carries with it an awesome responsibility. It is more than appearing rabbinic. It is more than giving a good sermon or appearing to be politically correct.

Being a serious rabbi is about being a teacher and leader among his people. It means that you have to be able to competently read a sacred text, understand its context and be able to derive from it a lesson on how we need to conduct our lives under certain circumstances. It requires a rabbi to be a leader even when it may not be necessarily popular – even when it isn’t politically or socially correct. There are many rabbis who fit this description, but after reading Rabbi Forman’s article “Rabbis for Human Rights – the 20th Anniversary” (Jerusalem Post, August 29, 2008) he clearly isn’t one of them.

It is abundantly clear to me today that Arabs and Jews cannot live together in the same country. Jews see their manifest destiny as living in Israel with Jerusalem as its capital, and so do the Arabs. They, as us are intractable. They aren’t willing to compromise, but for some unexplainable reason the Rabbis for Human Rights are willing to compromise with the fate of the Jewish People. They preach human rights and good will towards those who wish us harm, basing it on our sacred text.

Rabbi David Forman quotes cherry picked texts to further his argument but ignores other texts as well as our history which flies in the face of everything he stands for. Yes, we ought to be an or lagoyim, a “light unto the nations”, but that doesn’t mean by inflicting pain and injury upon ourselves. Israel is a “light unto the nations”, spreading science, health, technology to the world, not to mention the abundant Jewish scholarship in our rabbinical seminaries and universities. And we are a sterling example regarding ethical behavior on the battlefield, whether it is to protect enemy civilians at the expense of our own soldiers or providing medical help to those wishing to harm us. Israel has set a moral example to the rest of the world long ago; we will trade hundreds of terrorists in exchange for returning home one chayal, dead or alive.

In view of this I was alarmed at the fact that Rabbi Forman wrote:
“In a country where Judaism is often associated with intolerant and uncompromising beliefs and actions, RHR teaches an alternative understanding of the Jewish tradition, one that emphasizes Judaism’s humanistic and universal side.”
Rabbi Forman has the idea that Judaism believes in turning the other cheek. He believes that human rights abuse is incompatible with the Jewish tradition of moral responsibility and sensitivity and the biblical concern for “the stranger in your midst The strangers that the bible is referring to are a small minority of neighbors that shouldn’t be taken advantage of, nor should they be abused; but ought to be treated with respect. But that is a far cry from what has happened in Israel. These Arabs aren’t a “stranger in our midst”; they consider us the stranger, and are intent on driving us off the land. ”. In my tradition haba l’horgecha hashkem v’hargehu, (if someone is intent on killing you, rise up and kill him first) trumps everything.

Furthermore, our prophets that he quotes so conveniently, he misunderstands. Micah and Isaiah were concerned with social injustice committed by Israelites against their own. When referring to the “stranger in their midst” they are referring to benign neighbors. Understanding him contextually he wouldn’t have preached turning the other cheek, certainly not under circumstances where our neighbors are our enemies and wish us not only harm but extinction. They do not wish to live side by side; they wish to take over the entire land that we call Israel and reduce us to the sand under their sandals. And they would achieve this if left to the yefeh nefesh and Rabbis for Human Rights.

Closing Ranks

This Rubashkin business is becoming more than just a headache. It’s becoming a full blown migraine, and the orthodox community as personified by different orthodox institutions is digging for themselves a deeper pit by which it will be difficult to extricate themselves.

Just a few days ago I read a release in the JTA of an Orthodox rabbinical organization which toured the Postville based kosher slaughter house singing praise about the standards of the plant and its management. One would have thought that there was absolutely no basis for the investigation against the company. As a matter of fact one would have been led to believe that the whole thing had been a tempest in a tea pot.

Unfortunately it’s not. As it turns out our rabbis don’t have a clue as to what they are talking about. They ought to do what they know best – teach a shiur in theoretical gemorah, or deliver an arcane devar torah where there are no real life ramifications. It’s interesting and safe to learn about a “shor shenagoch…”, because there is little if no practical application. It’s harmless mental gymnastics. But once these rabbis begin to involve themselves in the corporate world and regulatory agencies, the playing field changes dramatically. One rabbi even referred to the Agriprocessor plant as a Cadillac. Another rabbi couldn’t imagine why someone shouldn’t buy the meat products. He hasn’t the foggiest idea that a moral outrage has possibly been perpetrated. This is totally believable in view of the fact that as one representative from the notorious slaughter house said “Agriprocessors doesn’t have any position on immigration. Agriprocessors doesn’t have positions on ethical culture”. Imagine that!

Charges have been made that there was exploitation of child labor. When the rabbis asked the authorities (feds) for names they advised them that they couldn’t release the names. Had the rabbis had the slightest clue as to the role of the feds they never would have asked for that information but would have begun their own serious inquiries. The Feds aren’t there to advise companies. They are regulatory agencies. Their job is to cite you and to ensure that the problems have been corrected. Their task isn’t to help you do your job.

What was most fascinating was instead of trying to get to the bottom of this horrific chilul hashem, this delegation of Orthodox rabbis went to Postville (one day) with a preconceived notion that the management had things under control and that with a little bit of PR things will get back to normal. They saw their mission in terms of damage control. For these rabbis, the issues presented over the past two years weren’t anything of ethical consequence. They were technical matters that needed to be addressed. They didn’t come there with open minds to try and find out how is it possible that we have sinned so egregiously. They came there to close ranks and circle the wagons.

Defensive. We have never done anything wrong. The goyim always have it in for us. What have we ever done to “piss them off”? I don’t know…what have we done? We’ve tried to whitewash the fact that a kosher slaughter house allegedly spits in the face of safe labor practice, allegedly exploits its labor force, allegedly exploits children, allegedly employs undocumented workers, allegedly provides them with no benefits and allegedly gives them little or no training at the risk of serious bodily harm and disfigurement. We’ll forget about the alleged sexual exploitation. Even though all of the above are allegations it ought to be enough for our esteemed orthodox rabbis to investigate, not whitewash, not circle the wagons. Big deal – the mitzvah is eating kosher meat, who cares about God’s children.

The fact of the matter is that they don’t really care about God’s children unless of course they are orthodox Jews. Actually I’m no longer convinced they care about non orthodox Jews, much less gentiles unless there is an angle in it for them – like fund raising, money and profits. After all, Getzel Rubashkin, a grandson of the founder of the now infamous slaughter house had the temerity to say that this isn’t about ethics, “it’s a business”. I guess for him and others of his ilk, religion is a business – and so is God. So it all boils down to money and “what can you do for me today”. Sad, but that is the profile of a community who allowed the end to justify the means, all for the purpose of sanctifying the name of God. I wonder what Amos would have to say?