Editor – Joel Katz
RABBINATE
AND RABBI AVI WEISS
Rabbi Weiss' iconoclasm has given other Orthodox leaders plenty of headaches, but perhaps his unwillingness to play along with an intolerable status quo is exactly what we need, given the stakes involved.
Despite not seeing eye-to-eye with him, the council’s Executive Vice President, Rabbi Mark Dratch, has acknowledged that Rabbi Weiss is “person of integrity” and “a person who is committed to halachah.”
The issue is Rabbi Weiss' refusal to be a spectator to the scandal of the rabbinate, a scandal that threatens Israeli-Diaspora relations and the unity of the Jewish People.
The real embarrassment, though, is that the RCA
cherishes a relationship with a religious body that has veered from its sacred
mission, choosing to detach itself from, rather than embrace, the majority of
the Jewish people.
I am asking Avi Weiss and the Orthodox, Conservative and Reform rabbis of America to continue their activities in Israel. Don’t sit idly by. Be vocal about your criticism of the Chief Rabbinate.
We all know that their actions are rotten to the core but none of us are doing anything about it. The Chief Rabbinate, in its current constellation, has never been more detached from reality and the people over which it governs. It has succeeded in transforming the title of rabbi into an abominable joke as it continues to search for new stringencies, promulgating a feeling of alienation towards the beautiful teachings of Judaism. The majority of the secular community has given up on this struggle and now many of the modern Orthodox community are following suit.
If you don’t mind, I have a bit of advice. Don’t
spend your time, energy and political capital trying to get back in to an
institution that doesn’t wan’t you as a member.
The Chief Rabbinate isn’t
corrupt because it has dissed Rabbi Weiss. The Chief Rabbinate is corrupt
because rabbis should not be instruments of the state. You won’t fix it by
granting specific rabbis (likely) tentative reprieves. And you won’t stay
insiders for long.
see also: http://www.jta.org/
NON-ORTHODOX MOVEMENTS
CHIEF RABBINATE/RABBINICAL COUNCILS/MUNICIPAL-CITY RABBIS
AGUNOT/MARRIAGE
See
also: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/
EDUCATION/CORE CURRICULUM
GENDER-SEGREGATION
CONVERSION
Knesset committee hearing on bill designed to increase number of
rabbinical courts able to conduct conversions.
BRIT MILAH/CIRCUMCISION
KASHRUT
ABORTION
HAREDI SOCIETY
KOTEL/WESTERN WALL/WOMEN OF THE WALL
IDF/ IDF AND HAREDIM
See also: http://lubavitch.com/
RELIGION
AND STATE
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
SHAS
SHMITA
WOMEN AND JUDAISM
ALIYAH/ISRAEL-DIASPORA RELATIONS
ZIONISM
VATICAN-ISRAEL RELATIONS
ISLAM/MUSLIMS
TEMPLE MOUNT
Editor – Joel Katz
All
rights reserved.
--> CLICK HERE for January 2, 2014 edition
--> CLICK HERE for January 2, 2014 edition
